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WWE: How Kharma vs. Beth Phoenix Will Change the Divas Division

Posted: Feb 12th 2012 By: mikeiles

One thing is for sure: WWE's women's division is in a sorry state.

In recent times, the beleaguered division has become known for it's laughably short matches, stop-and-start pushes of Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres and others, and truly awful storylines (Natalya's recent angle, which depicts the third-generation diva as having an, er, flatulence problem, is the most glaringly obvious offender).

It's a sad situation because, for all the criticism of them, the girls on the roster try incredibly hard and desperately want to be an important and entertaining part of the show, but are burdened by an erratic booking team who do not prioritize or value women's wrestling.

However, there may be some light at the end of the tunnel, if the much-talked about program being Divas Champion Beth Phoenix and returning star Kharma (formerly Awesome Kong in TNA) comes to fruition.

Indeed, a Phoenix/Kharma program may be just what is needed to put WWE's struggling women's division back on the map. With their contrasting personalities, promo ability and athletic skills, Phoenix and Kharma could surely churn out a highly enjoyable feud that would bring back fan interest to a stale product.

As most know by now, Kharma returned to the company as a shock entrant at the Royal Rumble (she managed to eliminate Smackdown star Hunico before getting eliminated by Dolph Ziggler).

She had been absent from the company due to her real-life pregnancy since late April. (She had the child, a healthy baby boy, in December). She has not been seen on WWE screens since her appearance at the pay-per-view, but it surely a matter of time before she emerges on television again.

Phoenix, on the other hand, has been floundering in the division despite, ironically, being its champion (she won the title from frequent foe Kelly Kelly at WWE's Hell in a Cell pay-per-view). After her victory, she made sporadic and short appearances on Raw and Smackdown and was largely banished to dark matches and WWE's C show Superstars.

To make matters worse, few fans noticed or cared that she was champion, and she was almost always greeted with silence in her rare TV appearances.

Beth has recently garnered a slightly better, more steady spot on television, feuding with Smackdown diva Tamina, but her reign as Divas Champion has still been decidedly lukewarm. Certainly, she desperately needs a high-profile feud to raise her status in WWE.

And a feud with Kharma may be the solution to her problems.

Indeed, Phoenix has loudly proclaimed in recent interviews that she has defeated everyone in the divas' division and has no new challengers. Such a bold statement has to be aimed squarely at the returning Kharma, who will surely take such a statement as insult.

At this point, a match between the two at WrestleMania, for Phoenix's title, seems likely.

If this is the case, fans should welcome such a development. With the proper booking behind it, a Phoenix/Kharma storyline has the potential to be one of the better women's feud in WWE history. Such a battle of the female monster heels will surely be a sight to see and something that will make the women's division interesting again.

Besides, anything that moves us away from the crassness of Natalya's current angle and returns the focus to actual women's wrestling can only be considered a good thing.