10 Worst WWE Moments Of 2009
2. Santino Marella Is “Miss. WrestleMania”
Before WrestleMania XXV, WWE bragged about how they'd shine a spotlight on the women's division with a 25-strong Battle Royal that'd crown the first ever 'Miss. WrestleMania'. Iconic Diva of yesteryear Sunny was going to be there, and it'd be a thrill for fans to see her mix with modern day favourites in a bid to earn the tiara.
This was going to be the only women's match on the show, so it was of utmost importance that they do things properly. That's what made the end result so difficult to reconcile come crunch time. Santino Marella dressed up as his "sister" Santina to win the whole thing, and he'd eliminated Beth Phoenix last of all to win this women's division showpiece. That was slap in the face after slap in the face for the often-overlooked roster.
If you want to see how far women's wrestling in WWE has come since, then revisit this match and watch the nonsense unfold. The commentators barely mentioned that Sunny was involved, and the cameras failed to focus on her due to the number of bodies flying around the place. That wasn't the only negative. Presenting a Battle Royal as WrestleMania's celebration of women, then putting Santino f'n Marella over instead?! It was too much.
As if it wasn't bad enough that the women's division often received paltry ring time on major PPVs. Now, on the biggest of them all, their own showpiece match was won by a member of the men's locker room. Someone was having a laugh at the women's division's expense here, surely.
Beth should've gone into Daniel Puder-style shooting mode and rebelled.