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Mickie James |
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 Mickie James
Career
Mickie James made her professional debut in the summer of 1999 as a ring valet for KYDA Pro Wrestling in Manassas, Virginia. She started out managing some of the most popular stars in the promotion such as Steve Corino and Tommy Dreamer, but eventually found herself being drawn into feuds with other wrestlers and their valets and managers. Eventually James chose to step into the ring as a wrestler herself.
Although most of James's matches have been against women, some of her most memorable matches would be against men. She scored her first big win in a match against Sean Lei. One of the most highly acclaimed matches she has participated in was in June 2003 for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling as a member of The Gathering. She teamed with Julio Dinero against NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett in a 2-on-1 Clockwork Orange House of Fun match. This match pits competitors inside a steel cage adorned with weapons of various types.
James's career has gone through many promotions. In late 1999 she expanded out to other promotions including all-female promotions Beautiful Babes of Wrestling (BBOW) and Professional Girl Wrestling Association (PGWA). She probably made her largest impact wrestling for Maryland Championship Wrestling, where she engaged in several long-running feuds.
In January 2001 James made her debut appearance for two new women's promotions, Dangerous Women of Wrestling (DWOW) and Women's Extreme Wrestling (WEW). Both promotions worked together to promote women's wrestling with a hardcore edge, and WEW had regular monthly pay-per-view matches. James's feuds from here include matches against "Prime Time" Amy Lee, Dee-Dee Venturi, a re-ignition of her feud with Candie from MCW, and the start of a new series of feuds with "Simply Luscious" Ronnie Stephens. Her matches against Stephens stretched to many independent promotions in the northeast.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
On March 26, 2003 James appeared on a NWA:TNA PPV. Although she was on NWA:TNA's first-ever PPV in late 2002 as part of the all-women's lingerie battle royal, her arrival in 2003 marked the first time she was highlighted, as she helped out The Amazing Red in a mixed tag-team match against Kid Kash and valet Trinity. Two weeks later the two women would have a match against each other which ended prematurely when James was dragged away by the recently debuted Raven. Later that evening, it emerged that James had somehow become a part Raven's new group, The Gathering, which would later be expanded with the addition of Julio Dinero. The Gathering was a smaller part of Vince Russo's "Sports Entertainment Xtreme" (S.E.X.), and with Raven assuming some control of the group, they immediately focused on Raven's attempt to take the NWA World Heavyweight title away from champion Jeff Jarrett. Over the next few weeks The Gathering broke away as James and Dinero helped Raven win his matches and would even start engaging Jeff Jarrett himself. On April 16, 2003 Jeff Jarrett was challenged to a Clockwork Orange House of Fun match against James and Dinero, marking the first time a woman had ever participated in this dangerous style of cage match. Jarrett powerbombed James from the top rope and through a table with Dinero laying on top, however Raven would run in, attack Jarrett with his "Raven Effect" DDT, and put Dinero on top for the pin. Raven would lose his first-ever NWA World Heavyweight title match against Jarrett two weeks later. The Gathering would arise again shortly thereafter, starting a feud with Father James Mitchell and his Disciples of the New Church faction. On July 30, 2003 The Gathering would lose a Clockwork Orange House of Fun Match against The New Church. James again participated in this match, making her the only woman to participate in it twice. At the end of the match James was hit in the face by a fireball from Mitchell and would not be seen on NWA-TNA broadcasts again. On August 18, 2003 James was offered a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment. She was immediately replaced on the next NWA-TNA PPV by
CM Punk, who had been feuding against Raven but had recently won his respect after Punk beat Raven in a Dog Collar Match weeks earlier.
World Wrestling Entertainment
October 2003 would mark a new calling for James, however. After appearing on several PPVs for NWA-TNA, she finally caught the attention of World Wrestling Entertainment. She was signed to a developmental contract and immediately sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) in Louisville, Kentucky to begin training. In early 2004 she started making television appearances for the promotion and has been regularly included in storylines including feuds with Jillian Hall, Melina, Trudi Denucci, Nikita, Passion, Shaniqua, Melissa Coates, Ms. Blu, Beth Phoenix, & Shelly.
Although they never crossed paths as part of The Gathering, James and CM Punk were briefly united as a new team in WWE, with James serving as Punk's valet for a taping of WWE HEAT in Cleveland, Ohio on July 25, 2005. The match was not aired, and plans to team the two together were abandoned. She made her debut proper on the October 10, 2005 episode of WWE RAW under her real name, and was billed as an obsessed fan of Trish Stratus coming to her rescue following an attack on Stratus by Victoria. A similar storyline featuring Tori and then-WWF Women's Champion Sable took place in 1998 and 1999. On the October 17, 2005 episode of RAW, James competed in her first WWE-televised match, a tag match with Ashley Massaro and Stratus against Victoria, Candice Michelle and Torrie Wilson which ended when Victoria pinned James.
James took part in a "Fulfill Your Fantasy" Diva battle royal for the WWE Women's Championship at Taboo Tuesday 2005, ensuring that Stratus would retain her title by sacrificing herself in order to eliminate Victoria.
Finishing and signature moves
- As Mickie James
- Stratusfaction (Springboard bulldog)
- As Alexis Laree
- Laree DDT (Tornado DDT)
- Inverted DDT
- Flying forearm
- Diving hurricanrana
- Spinning back kick to the midsection
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