WWE Vengeance 2011 Results: What's Next for Eve After Loss to Beth Phoenix?

At WWE's Vengeance pay-per-view, challenger Eve Torres put up a brave fight, but was nonetheless pinned by champion Beth Phoenix's Glam Slam, after Eve missed a moonsault, leaving her vulnerable to her more aggressive opponent.

To make matters worse, even after retaining her Divas Championship, Phoenix cruelly taunted the fallen Eve after the match for several minutes.

However, a disappointed Eve can take some consolation in the fact that the bout itself received very warm reviews from fans and journalists and was possibly her best in-ring effort to date.

Featuring some very good, smooth exchanges and innovative office from the resourceful Eve (including a thrilling MMA-style hold on Phoenix towards the end of the match), the two girls came to San Antonio with their working boots on and churned out a solid, enjoyable bout that they can both be proud of.

It also blew last week's calamitous four-way match for the Knockouts Championship at TNA's Bound For Glory event completely out of the water. Indeed, Gail Kim, who spent most of last week obnoxiously touting how vastly superior TNA's KO division was to the divas roster, may now be feeling a little red-faced watching this enthralling women's bout.    

Additionally, the bout was, refreshingly, free of any of the outside shenanigans that have marred previous women's matches in WWE (last month Kelly lost the Divas Championship to Phoenix directly due to interference from Natalya).  

This was explained in a pre-match backstage angle in which Natalya and Phoenix (along with the Bella Twins, who snickered in the background) viciously beat up and taunted Kelly and slammed her against a wall. Eve showed up for the save, but the damage was already done.

As a result, both Natalya and Kelly were banned from ringside for the Eve vs. Phoenix match-up in an attempt from management to gain some desperately needed order over WWE's unruly women's roster. 

But, after this impressive performance, what is next for Eve after this loss? After a brief stint as the company's top babyface diva, is it back to playing second fiddle to the lesser talented Kelly Kelly?

Well, for several reasons, I do not think this is the case. Indeed, it seems likely that Eve will not only continue on as main foe to the "Divas of Doom," but thrive in the role and get herself over even more.

Firstly, the former Diva Search winner's performance here was so good, and far above what we expect from the divas these days, it is almost guaranteed her some sort of push going forward. Unlike the often clumsy and uncoordinated Kelly, Eve is a smooth, polished performer.

Partly due to her extensive dance and gymnastics background, it appears she has the most potential out of any model-turned-wrestler since Trish Stratus.  

Secondly, Kelly vs. Phoenix a feud has already been played out. The two have faced off against each other countless times on television and pay-per-views and while their bouts were usually decent, fickle WWE fans will be craving something fresh and new to sink their teeth into.

This can be found in a Eve vs. Phoenix feud, with Kelly and Natalya on hand to serve as supporting characters.

Additionally, this bout seemed to perfectly set up for a finish: while Eve may have lost clean, it was mainly due to a sloppy, amateur move on her part that she lost to her more experienced opponent.

Tomorrow on Raw, Eve could come out even more determined, rejuvenated by her loss and vowing not to make the same mistake twice.