Huge News: WWE Diva Retires At Tonight's SmackDown Taping

[JohnCenaFan28]

Victoria has apparently worked her last match with WWE. According to live reports from tonight's SmackDown taping in Omaha, Nebraska, Victoria lost to Michelle McCool in a match that will air on this week's edition of SmackDown. After the bout, Victoria announced that she was finished with WWE.

As far as I know this is not a work as Victoria reportedly gave notice to WWE officials a couple of months ago that she would be retiring from the company. Victoria opened a custom car shop in Louisville, Kentucky last May and is said to be pursuing other career opportunities.

Source: WNW

I'm going to miss her, she was great:sad:

[flamesoffury]

After being mistreated for 4 or 5 years, i'm not surprised she's leaving.

[mikedudelang]

she's been the best female wrestler on the roster for YEARS. it's a shame they never took better advantage of her talents.

[Black Widow]

Former WWE Women's champ Victoria (Lisa Marie Varon) announced at tonight's Smackdown taping that she had finished with the company following a loss to Michelle McCool in a bout that will air this Friday and would be retiring. PWInsider.com first reported in December that word was going around that she had given notice at the Survivor Series PPV that she would be departing.

Victoria has been with the company since 2002 after going through WWE then-developmental companies Memphis and Ohio Valley Wrestling. After making a cameo appearance as a Godfather Ho that later was involved in a vignette with Eddie Guerrero during his run as Chyna's love interest, Victoria was introduced as a full fledged character to feud with then top Diva Trish Stratus.

The back story at the time was that Victoria she felt Stratus had betrayed her back when both were fitness models and she had come for revenge. Both were fitness models and probably did cross paths during competitions prior to become wrestlers. Victoria broke into the business, originally training at Rick Bassman's UPW school in California.

Victoria has had a long run with the company where she was linked on-air with different partners, including Molly Holly, Stevie Richards, Kenny Dykstra and most recently Natalya Neidhart. She and Neidhart had been feuding with the Bella Twins on Smackdown in a storyline designed to introduce the Twins to viewers. Despite being a ring general, Victoria's role in recent years has more or less been to be the older veteran who worked with younger, greener babyface talent that were getting pushed.

Victoria was the last of the Divas who rebuilt the WWE Women's division in the early part of the decade into something was more than a T&A diversion as Ivory, Stratus, Molly Holly, Jazz and Lita have pretty much retired from the business in recent years, being replaced by a generation of talent mostly cultivated by the company's Diva Search era (although there are exceptions to that rule, such as Mickie James and Neidhart).

Victoria had two runs with the WWE Women's championship, defeating Stratus in a Hardcore Match in New York City at the 2002 Survivor Series before dropping the belt back to Stratus at Wrestlemania XIX in Seattle in March 2003. Victoria regained the belt in February 2004, winning a Four Way match against Lita, Holly and Jazz. She held the title for four months before dropping it during another Four Way at the 20054 Bad Blood PPV, with Stratus again regaining it.

Victoria has been very involved in opening outside projects in the Louisville area where she lives, including most recently a custom body shop for cars and previously a pizzeria named after her Uncle.


PWI

[OMEN]

I was hoping this was a work by the WWE as Victoria has been one of the few Diva's on the roster that could actually wrestle....If it's true it's another sad day for the Diva's division of the WWE..

[Lady DeathStrike]

oh my god!! she was the best one!! what the hell

[bluebuster]

would have liked to seen her in Playboy

[Punisher]

^ way to kill the convo lol

Huge blow to the diva division, she should have gotten at least more more title run. Instead of giving McCool a 5 month run as champion

[panteraopeth]

Just another sign the "Diva" division is going in the wrong direction (mostly).

[redmustangpony]

she was definately one of the best diva's wwe ever had .Im sorry to see her go.She will be deeply missed.The diva division is loosing alot of talent.Mickie James is the only one left,besides neidhart,that has any wrestling ability.Its gone from talent to just good looks,and that is really a dissapointment.

[Dilph]

This sucks!! Victoria has long been my favorite diva. The women's division has been reduced to a bunch of eye candy that cannot wrestle.

Sad day! :sad:

[DUKE NUKEM]

we mite see her in tna