10 Reasons WWE's Beth Phoenix Shouldn't Have Beaten Kelly Kelly

At the Hell in a Cell pay-per-view on October 2nd in front of 9,400 fans in New Orleans, Beth Phoenix defeated Kelly Kelly in an eight-minute match to win the WWE Divas Championship.

The "Glamazon" did it in dubious fashion, too, picking up the victory with an assist from her "Diva of Doom" partner, Natalya, who leveled Kelly Kelly with a microphone just before the "Glam Slam" led to the inevitable three count.

Since then, Phoenix has proven her dominance against the "barbie doll" one more time in a tag match on the October 14th edition of SmackDown.

Beth Phoenix might be on top of the divas division, but she had nothing to gain by beating Kelly Kelly, who needs to remain credible at all costs—literally.

As popular and respected she is by the "WWE Universe," Kelly Kelly can be an even bigger commodity if used correctly, which doesn't include being woman-handled by the "Glamazon."

Simply put, Kelly Kelly should be protected as a performer in her division to the degree John Cena is in his.

As a matter of fact, she is an invaluable asset who needs to be portrayed in the most flattering light possible, as opposed to being made to look helpless and vulnerable.

Kelly Kelly Has More Marketing Potential Than Beth Phoenix

This past year, Kelly Kelly was ranked No. 82 by Maxim's "Hot 100."

She has been on the cover of "Natural Bodybuilding and Fitness," donned numerous swimsuit calendars and has had her image plastered on WWE merchandise, magazines and programs.

It's no secret she is an astonishingly beautiful woman who is pleasing to the eyes—and WWE has taken advantage of it, but not to the fullest extent.

Beth Phoenix, on the other hand, doesn't have such a resume to her name because she fits the classic mold of the female pro-wrestler, thus limiting her mass market appeal.

As the ideal WWE diva, Kelly Kelly is the successor to Trish Stratus, who succeeded Sable, who, in turn, picked up where Sunny left off.

Kelly Kelly Is by Far the Most Popular Diva on the Roster

Granted, a majority of it can be attributed to her physical appearance, but nevertheless, Kelly Kelly has more loyal fans than any of her female peers in the company.

The fans respond to her plucky underdog nature as someone who fights to survive against foes who are bigger, stronger and more athletic than she is.

She wields the power of her own emotions—as well as the fans'—to overcome any obstacle, no matter how insurmountable, that is put in her way.

The "WWE Universe," especially the female contingent, can and has been able to relate to someone who doesn't look like a wrestler, but by the same token, isn't afraid to get her hair pulled or nails snapped off.

Kelly Kelly has consistently garnered fan reaction—usually positive—compared to other divas.

This is important to realize considering the divas division has had trouble being taken seriously by the WWE fanbase.

Kelly Kelly Garners More Google Hits and Ratings Than B. Phoenix and Other Divas

If one were to search "Kelly Kelly" in the Google engine, 650 million results would come up.

"Beth Phoenix," on the other hand, would yield only 2,010,000.

Even if one were to search "Kelly Kelly + WWE," there would still be 5,110,000 results compared to "Beth Phoenix + WWE," which yields only 2,560,000.

Additionally, if one were to scour Raw ratings data compiled by Nielsen and reported by the Wrestling Observer over the last few months, a marked discrepancy between Phoenix and Kelly Kelly stands out.

For instance, on the August 8th edition of Raw, a singles match involving Beth Phoenix lost 115,000 viewers, whereas a tag match involving Kelly Kelly the next week lost only 52,000.

Moreover, three weeks ago on Raw, a tag match pitting Kelly and Eve against Phoenix and Natalya attracted 185,000 viewers. And two weeks ago, on the October 11th Raw, a tag match between Kelly/Eve and Rosa Mendes/Tamina garnered 132,000 viewers.

Although the sample size of the data is insufficient, evidence points to Kelly Kelly being slightly more viewer-friendly than her counterparts.

Social Media Loves Kelly Kelly More Than Beth Phoenix

The numbers don't lie.

On Facebook, Kelly Kelly has 629,649 "likes" compared to Beth Phoenix's paltry figure of 52,310.

On Twitter, the blond bombshell trends much more often than the "Glamazon," who is lucky to get more than a handful of mentions.

And on YouTube, Kelly Kelly has 773,500 more videos dedicated to her than the current divas champion.

Even if one were to qualify the YouTube searches by adding "WWE" the difference is still over 10,000 in favor of Ms. Kelly.

When combining this data with the WWE's over-insistence on associating itself with social media (i.e., look no further than the countless references to Twitter on the last Raw), Kelly Kelly is an asset that needs to be cultivated, not undermined.

Kelly Kelly Was Just Getting Started as the Divas Champion

After making her debut in WWE five years ago, Kelly Kelly has struggled to become an in-ring competitor.

Suffice to say, she never had any trouble flaunting her svelte frame or being the camera's best friend. The main challenge for her has always been not only becoming just a wrestler, but a credible one.

After winning the Divas Championship for the first time on June 20th, the golden-haired fox became an underdog every night in the ring, often times scratching and clawing herself to a successful title defense.

She has been expanding her versatility as performer, who could take bumps and dish out a believable repertoire of offense, surprising observers who never thought she had it in her.

Unfortunately, what should have been a record reign ended a little too early. Would it have hurt to give Kelly Kelly a year-long run with the belt, en route to making her an even bigger box-office attraction?

With the Pressure On, Kelly Kelly Was Improving Nightly as a Wrestler

It wasn't too long ago when Kelly Kelly was a meandering, disheveled mess of a performer in the ring.

She lacked grace, timing and fluidity; however, within the span of six months, she started hitting moves, expanding upon her move set and giving fans the impression she belonged in the squared circle.

It's quite plausible that a significant part of her growth as a wrestler can be ascribed to the pressure of being Divas Champion. When someone is the highlight or crown jewel of their division, it is expected they perform up to par on a nightly basis.

She now executes her signature "Kelly Kicks," "bulldogs", "hurricanranas", "handstand elbows", "thesz presses", "ddts", "crossbody blocks" and "victory rolls" with a precision that would've been impossible only a year ago.

One can only surmise how much more she would've improved if the company showed a vote of confidence by keeping the title on her.

Beth Phoenix Had Nothing To Gain by Beating Someone Half Her Size

Take one look at the size discrepancy between the two. Quite frankly, Beth Phoenix has twice the body mass Kelly Kelly does.

Surely, most fans would think that if the two were to tangle in a legitimate fight, Phoenix would mop the floor with the former Divas Champion.

But, the question is—does Beth Phoenix have anything to actually gain by doing so?

The answer is a resounding "no," because by accomplishing the obvious, Phoenix only tarnishes the "tough chick" image Kelly has worked so hard to attain in the last year.

And taking into account the empirical data that confirms Kelly's viability as a golden ticket, her loss at Hell in a Cell, in hindsight, was not only unnecessary, but nonsensical.

To Make Matters Worse, Beth Phoenix Had To Cheat To Win

At Hell in a Cell, not only did Beth Phoenix senselessly defeat the rising Kelly, but she only did so by cheating.

If it wasn't for Natalya whacking the cover girl in the face with a microphone, Phoenix, presumably, would not be the Divas Champion.

Why does the "Glamazon," who outweighs Kelly Kelly by 70 pounds, need outside interference in order to defeat someone she can seemingly subdue with ease?

Does this kind of booking help the performers? Never mind the fact that Phoenix had nothing to gain by beating her former friend, but to add insult to our intelligence, she does so via nefarious means.

Therefore, not only does Kelly Kelly have her sails knocked out from under her, the woman who did so has her own credibility and perception among fans dented in the end.

That was only the beginning for Phoenix, however, who was scripted to say she was "scared" (of The Miz and R-Truth) the next night on Raw during the Triple H/vote of no confidence segment.

Beth Phoenix Should Be Focusing on Tagging with Natalya, Not Singles Competition

To her credit, Beth has worked hard—in conjunction with Natalya—to resuscitate the WWE tag division as female performers, which is a truly miraculous feat.

The "Divas of Doom" tandem has compelled viewers with their ability to not only wow men, but wallop fellow women who cross paths with them.

Before being booked to win the Divas Championship, there was unfinished potential between Beth and Natalya, who have staked their territory and declared war on stereotypically "pretty" WWE divas.

They pride themselves on being the antithesis of eye candy-exclusive characters—a refreshing twist on conventional storylines involving divas.

As a tag team, they had more goals to achieve—like gunning for the WWE Tag Titles. It may sound utterly infeasible, but there is precedence—Chyna, a female wrestler of the same mold, was once WWE Intercontinental Champion.

Beth Phoenix Defeating Kelly Kelly Reeks of Backstage Politics

In the WWE, personal liaisons with other wrestlers can spell professional success or failure.

Triple H is perhaps the epitome of such a wrestler whose liaison spelled success, as his relationship with the boss' daughter, Stephanie McMahon, enabled him to achieve a legacy that would've been unattainable without matrimony.

The "Kliq," also featuring Triple H, got booking decisions changed and outcomes to suit their favor simply because they had the clout to do so.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, John Morrison's affiliation with Melina, whose reputation has been sullied following her dispute with Trish Stratus at WrestleMania 28, has pundits wondering if the "Prince of Parkour" will be making the jump to TNA in the near future.

In Beth Phoenix's case, although one cannot prove her ascendancy is a direct consequence of her real life intimacy with CM Punk, her victory at Hell in a Cell does fan the rumor flames that she was booked to win as an ulterior motive to placate her boyfriend.