7 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About Mickie James

WWE's recent efforts to promote an anti-bullying message in conjunction with groups such as Be a STAR are noble. Visiting children the world over and preaching tolerance and respect for others, this is something that WWE superstars and office personnel can be proud of. Unfortunately, it flies directly in the face of years worth of the on and off-screen torment talent has suffered.

We all know about Jim Ross and the ritual humiliation he suffered whenever WWE stopped by in his beloved Oklahoma or the exploits of the infamous 'goon squad' that comprised the Smackdown locker room in the mid-2000s. Often, however, WWE turned their attention to their female performers. There was the horrible way in which Trish Stratus was routinely degraded on camera before her in-ring career took off and the shameful way in which WWE sent Lita off at the 2006 Survivor Series, with Cryme Tyme selling off her 'personal belongings' to the audience.

Then there was the 'Piggy James' saga in 2009/10. Someone (or some people) in WWE management felt as though Mickie had put on some excess weight and gotten soft around the middle. While she was not perhaps as rail-thin as other members of the Diva's locker room, she was hardly what you would call 'fat' or 'overweight'. She was, at most, 'curvy, and had an athletic shape with distinct muscle tone.

Not in WWE's eyes, though, and as punishment for putting on some unwanted pounds Mickie was berated for it as part of a storyline. LayCool - Michelle McCool and Layla - targeted who they called 'Piggy James', with Layla wearing a fat suit and pig nose as they made all manner of crass remarks about her body. Mickie was, understandably, quite upset by what she felt were personal attacks, telling WrestleNewz.com in 2013 that it was difficult for her to take.

James did end up winning the WWE Women's Title and dumping a cake over LayCool at the 2010 Royal Rumble but it was soon taken off her and, not long after that, she was released. Speaking about it in 2010, Mickie said:

I don’t know where it came from. Were they ribbing me or just poking fun? I sat back and prayed about it... maybe they were trying to pull the fanbase away from me, but I got the championship, then they took it away. After six months of embarrassment and ridicule, that’s the payoff? I had to swallow my pride.