Peacockery Pick: WWE 50 Greatest Women Superstars Episode 2 (35-21)

Welcome to the second episode of WWE’s 2021 series documenting their choices for the 50 greatest women wrestlers (1993 and onward). You can check out part one (50-36) here.

Our host is Sarah Schreiber.

35: Bianca Belair – The EST of the WWE and the reigning Royal Rumble winner at the time of airing. Bianca is drenched in athleticism. After a run in NXT, she made a surprise entrance in the 2020 Royal Rumble and set the women’s Rumble elimination record. She would be drafted to SmackDown, carry Otis around her back, and won the 2021 Rumble by eliminating Rhea Ripley.

Following this airing, Bianca would of course continue to explode. She would win that Rumble title shot against Sasha Banks at Mania and has since added a few more titles to her legacy. She’s also settled in nicely as one of the company’s go-to names for promotional visits.

34: Carmella – Debuting in NXT in 2014, we run past the Enzo and Cass part and right to her SmackDown debut. With the help of James Ellsworth, she wins the Money in the Bank briefcase as well as the rematch nine days later. She would cash in on Charlotte and win the SmackDown Women’s Title. She took on the “Untouchable” persona in 2020 which brought Reggie into our worlds.

Since this aired, Mella had a tag title reign with Queen Zelina and had a good run in the last Elimination Chamber. She’s currently out on maternity leave.

33: Gail Kim – In 2003, Gail Kim debuts on Raw and won the Women’s Title in a battle royal. We get a look at her athletic style, high-flying moves, and we are told she will always be remembered for her athleticism. And that’s all we get.

This is surprisingly high, really, just from “WWE speak.” She’s working with Impact now and is in their Hall of Fame.

32: Jacqueline – We go all the way back to her days as Miss Texas in USWA before looking at her time in WCW. She beat women, men, and Disco Inferno. I’m 1998, she debuted in WWE and became the first African-American WWE Women’s Title. She won the Cruiserweight Title and was a trailblazer. In 2016, she joined the WWE Hall of Fame.

31: Kairi Sane – Debuting in the Mae Young Classic, Kairi won the finals against Shayna Baszler. She would beat her rival Shayna for the NXT Women’s Title and then move to tag team action as the Kabuki Warriors with Asuka. They won the Women’s Tag Titles and helped raise the bar for the division.

Kairi would leave the company not long after this. She returned to Stardom, then went on to be the first IWGP Women’s Champion. She would lose it in a fun match with Mercedes Mone and it has been reported she’s on her way back to WWE.

30: Naomi – Debuting on Raw as half of the Funkadactyls, she joined Team BAD with Sasha Banks and Tamina to help “usher in the women’s revolution.” In 2017, she found her glow and lit up the SmackDown women’s division and won their title at Elimination Chamber. She relinquished the title due to injury shortly after, but won it back at WrestleMania.

We know how things went for her after this. Along with Sasha Banks, she would win the Women’s Tag Titles. They would both leave the company, unhappy with its plans for them. Trinity would appear in Impact, where she would become Knockouts Champion.

29: Bull Nakano – After making her name and legacy in Japan, Nakano returned in 1994 to cause destruction in WWE. With Luna Vachon at her side, she focused on eliminating Alundra Blayze from WWE. She would win the title from her in the Tokyo Dome. Their paths would cross again in WCW. No matter where, Nakano is remembered for her hard-hitting style.

Bull has since retired from in-ring action but has been a producer and authority figure in several Japanese organizations.

28: Ivory – Ivory appeared in 1999 with her scarf and won the Women’s Title. However, soon she would join Right to Censor to fight the good fight. She defended the title at WresteMania X-7. She joined the Hall of Fame in 2017 and joined the greatest women’s superstars.

Since leaving WWE, she has made sporadic independent appearances and a few WWE cameos, including becoming the oldest woman to enter a Royal Rumble.

27: Melina – In 2004, Melina started in OVW (cool footage here). She and MNM would appear on SmackDown and a lot of us would quickly be drawn to her. She would split – ha – from the group and win the Women’s Title from Mickie James, followed by two more and a few Divas Titles as well.

She has done independent work since leaving WWE, including NWA and Impact. She started the Rumble with Sasha Banks a few years ago and was quickly eliminated, which many of us griped about.

26: The Bella Twins – No separate spots? Weird. We met them in the 2006 Diva Search and would quickly hit the main roster with twin magic. They’d find individual success as well, winning several titles. They’d be on Dancing with the Stars and have their own show as well. Really though, why not two spots?

Since this aired, the Bellas have become the Garcia Twins as their WWE contracts expired. They continue to run reality TV, including hosting a game show that sometimes appears after Raw.

25: Io Shirai – The Genius of the Sky, Io joined the Mae Young Classic in 2018. She joined NXT and quickly found success, topping Charotte and Rhea in a triple threat match for the NXT Women’s Title. And she’s only just begun.

And following this special, it did begin… again. She would be go out with an injury, only to return as Iyo Sky as part of Damage Ctrl at SummerSlam. She’s held tag gold and is the current champion for the SmackDown brand, putting on some banger matches. If this list came out today, she would be higher.

24: Luna Vachon – Luna started in the 1980s and brought her unique look to WWE at WrestleMania IX. After battling Sherri and Alundra Blayze, she would make an alliance with Bam Bam Bigelow. She’d join the kink team with the Artist Formerly Known as Goldust and head to her second WrestleMania mixed tag match, a stat that is uniquely hers.

Luna passed in 2010.

23: Stephanie McMahon – The creator of the women’s evolution, Stephanie has done it all. She first appeared onscreen in the Attitude era, starting the McMahon-Helmsley era that would work out pretty well for her. She always found roads to success, whether it was leading SmackDown or telling Daniel Bryan he was a B+. Always polarizing, she found success at every turn.

As we know, Steph continued being a prominent figure in WWE for a while… until she didn’t anymore, leaving her position with the company.

22: Michelle McCool – She’s loving life! Breaking in as a Diva Search finalist, she immediately stood out for her athletic ability. She made history as the first Divas Champion and then the Women’s as well. LayCool were formed and unified the women’s titles. She returned for the first women’s Rumble.

Michelle has mostly been Mom McCool since leaving, appearing randomly usually around Rumble season.

21: Rhea Ripley – I just think she’s neat. She said my name in a video once, you know. Anyway, Rhea appeared in the Mae Young Classic tournaments and broke out in NXT UK, quickly winning their women’s title. She would stomp her way into the NXT US division, winning their women’s title against Shayna Baszler in one of my favorite series of matches. She became the first to defend the NXT Women’s Title at WrestleMania (we don’t talk about the result). Where will the Nightmare go from here?

You know, I think she’s done a few things since this aired. Maybe a few women’s titles. A Rumble win. Leading a faction. Becoming Mami. Making me fall in love. She’s probably top ten for this list if it came out today, and she’s just getting started.

Thirty down, twenty names to go. Any surprises? Remember this was 2021.