In The Ring With WWE Diva Beth Phoenix
Posted: Jul 12th 2008 By: CMBurnham
Live wrestling and the wrestling you see on television aren't quite the same thing, WWE RAW diva Beth Phoenix said.
"It's a completely different animal," she promised. "You get the drama, like you see on TV, but it's very interactive. Anything can happen."
Unlike some of the other female professional wrestlers, Phoenix started out a wrestler, and not a dancer or a model.
Phoenix, also known as "The Glamazon," was in Charleston on Friday to promote World Wrestling Entertainment RAW's Summer Slam, tonight at the Charleston Civic Center. A legion of WWE wrestlers will battle it out in the ring. Phoenix takes on Mickie James in an effort to regain her championship title.
At 5-foot-7, with undeniably powerful-looking shoulders and arms, it's hard to imagine the championship isn't hers for the taking. Of course, that's all part of the show.
"The only way to really experience it," she said, "is to buy a ticket and come out to the Civic Center."
Phoenix grew up watching wrestling on television with her family in Buffalo, N.Y. Back then she wasn't "The Glamazon" or even Beth Phoenix, but a little girl named Elizabeth Carolan. When she was 11 years old, she entered a coloring contest through the local paper and won tickets to a World Wrestling Federation show.
"My parents didn't really have any money," she said. "It was probably the only way we could have gone."
The event was being taped for television, which translated into a massive four-hour wrestling extravaganza.
"I was in heaven," she said. "And it really changed what I wanted to do with my life."
Unlike some of the other female professional wrestlers, Phoenix started out a wrestler, and not a dancer or a model. She was the first female varsity wrestler in her high school's history and was a member of USA Wrestling, an amateur Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling association. USA Wrestling is the official wrestling representative to the U.S. Olympic team. Phoenix has been one of the very few women to climb up the amateur ranks to turn professional.
"I just fell in love with it."
The life of a diva isn't easy. A lot of professional wrestling is image. She has to look the part, which requires the right clothes, the right make-up and a lot of attention to detail. It's not easy to look good every night and for every crowd. The travel is constant.
WWE runs two tours simultaneously, Phoenix says. The organization does around 300 shows a year. Between matches and appearances, she thinks she gets back to her home in Tampa, Fla., probably two days a week.
Professional wrestling requires a fierce devotion to exercise and fitness. Phoenix spends a lot of time in the gym doing cardio exercises for endurance and lifting weights to build up her muscles and bones.
It's not all about strength and being able to pick up another human being. The drops, slams, kicks and punches take their toll, and just because a match is scripted doesn't mean wrestling isn't dangerous.
Three years ago, Phoenix took a bad hit to the face. She broke her jaw and was sidelined for almost a year with surgery and recovery.
She pointed at her chin and smiled.
"I got a titanium plate and nine screws."
It all comes with the territory and is part of the price to be a WWE champion.
Supplemental Information
Latest News
Ric Flair Says Pizza Place Threw Him Out, Manager Says Flair Was 'Drunk And Disorderly'
Having not been seen on AEW programming since Sting's retirement bac... Read More
The Scoop
NEWS Footage revealing Carlito as Dragon Lee’s mystery attacker was shown on the April 26th episode of “WWE Friday Night SmackDown”. There had been... Read More
“Make yourself undeniable” – Bodyslam.net speaks with Walker Stewart of NJPW
In the realm of professional wrestling, I wear two hats – one as a wordsmith for Bodys... Read More
- AEW’s Ricky Starks recalls sneak-eating king cakes, washing cars for money ahead of champions’ homecoming show
- Mickie James on Her Next Chapter In Impact Wrestling & ‘Bound for Glory’
- Ric Flair Interview Recap
- AEW ‘Grand Slam’: Sammy Guevara on His Journey from Working at Taco Bell to Facing Chris Jericho
Card Results
- EDW · May 5th 2024 · Tulsa
- UWO · May 4th 2024 · Oklahoma City
- BPW · May 4th 2024 · Sapulpa
- WFC · May 4th 2024 · Broken Arrow
- ASP · May 4th 2024 · Noble
- TexPro · May 4th 2024 · Ardmore
- UWO · May 3rd 2024 · Guthrie
- UWE · May 3rd 2024 · Tahlequah
- UWO · Apr 29th 2024 · Guthrie
- UWE · Apr 27th 2024 · Tahlequah
- 3CW
- 3DW
- 412PE
- AACW
- ACW
- AdCW
- AEW
- AmWF
- ASP
- AWA
- AWE
- AWF
- AWFUL
- BB
- BBOW
- BCW
- BLOW
- BMLL
- BPPW
- BPW
- BSWF
- BTW
- BYEW
- CAPW
- CCW
- ComPro
- CPW
- CWE
- CWF
- CXW
- DEMW
- DI2IW
- ECW
- EDW
- EmpCW
- EMWF
- EPW
- FCW
- FIW
- FTE
- GPCW
- GWF
- GWF2016
- HPB
- ICW
- IMPACT
- IPW
- IWR
- IWW
- IZW
- JCW
- KCW
- LA
- LDU
- LLQ
- LLR
- MajCW
- MAW
- MCW
- MERC
- MMWF
- MPW
- MSPW
- MStW
- MSW
- MSWA
- MVSC
- MWA
- MWF
- MWW
- NAW
- NCW
- NCWO
- NEW
- NMS
- NWA
- NWA-FTA
- NWA-OK
- NWA-TXO
- NWA-U
- NWA-West
- NXT
- NXW
- OCCW
- OCW
- OECW
- OKX
- OPW
- OWA
- OWF
- OWP
- PWR
- PWTV
- PZWA
- RDW
- ROH
- SCW
- SCWF
- SECW
- SLPW
- SoCW
- SPW
- SRPW
- SWCW
- TAP
- TAZW
- TCBW
- TCW
- TexPro
- TIW
- TNA
- TOPW
- TPW
- TSW
- TxPW
- UCW
- USWA
- UWE
- UWF
- UWF06
- UWO
- W4CW
- WAH
- WCCW
- WCP
- WCR
- WCW
- WCW92
- WFA
- WFC
- WIA
- WLW
- WWE
- WWEmp
- WWF
- WWG
- WWW
- XMW