Professional Wrestling is not a sport for the faint-hearted, as it takes years of dedication and hardcore training to survive in the business. Countless performers went on to overcome that challenge and evolved into the legends we know today.
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Mickie James is one of those legendary wrestlers we've had the privilege of watching perform in the ring. She has shared the ring with the iconic names of the industry, and with a career spanning over two decades, she has commanded the respect of her peers and fans alike. With that said, let's take a look at the decorated career of Mickie James through photos taken over the years.
10 Training & Independent Circuit
Mickie James was a fan of pro-wrestling from an early age, and after a suggestion from a friend, she started her training at a wrestling school in Washington D.C. She made her debut for KYDA Pro Wrestling in 1999 and first appeared as a valet under the ring name Alexis Laree and managed multiple wrestlers, including Tommy Dreamer.
She made her in-ring debut for the promotion the same year and continued to perform for the promotion, and also explored the independent circuit. She competed across the indies from 2000 to 2002 before breaking into the big leagues.
9 TNA & WWE Developmental
Mickie James made her debut for TNA in June 2002 and competed in the Miss TNA Lingerie Battle Royal. She didn't get much time in the spotlight and had to wait a long time before competing in another match on TNA, which came in March 2003.
She continued to send tapes and make phone calls to WWE to get a tryout and her time came in late 2003 when she signed a developmental contract with the promotion. She reported to Ohio Valley Wrestling, where she honed her skills until she made the jump to the main roster in 2005.
8 Storyline With Trish Stratus
James made her main roster debut on the October 10, 2005, episode of Raw, where she introduced herself as the biggest fan of Trish Stratus. Over the course of the weeks, James began to team up with Stratus, during which her obsession with Stratus grew even more.
She even dressed up as Trish Stratus in a Halloween costume contest, and the story soon developed into a lesbian angle. James challenged Stratus for the Women's Championship at the 2006 New Year's Revolution PPV but ended up losing the match.
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James continued her obsession with Stratus despite the defeat, which prompted the latter to confront James and tell her they should spend some time away from each other.
7 Women's Champion
Soon the storyline with Trish Stratus evolved into a rivalry, which also resulted in a heel turn for Mickie James. The feud culminated at WrestleMania 22, where James defeated Stratus to win her first Women's Championship.
She held the title for 134 days and defended it against Trish Stratus on three occasions before dropping it to Lita in August 2006. She won the title on three other instances between 2006 and 2008, and her last reign in the said period ended in 125 days at the 2008 SummerSlam PPV, where she and Kofi Kingston lost the Women's and Intercontinental Championship in a winner takes all mixed tag team match against Santino Marella and Beth Phoenix.
6 Divas Champion & Departure
During her final days with WWE between 2009 and 2010, Mickie James found herself back in the championship picture, and this time, she set her sights on the Divas Championship.
James started a rivalry with Maryse over the Divas Championship, which resulted in a match between the two at the 2009 Night of Champions PPV, where James defeated Maryse to win the title. She held the title for 78 days before dropping it to Jillian on the October 12, 2009, episode of Raw.
She then got traded to SmackDown, where she entered a heated rivalry with the LayCool, which resulted in a highly insulting segment. The feud led to a match between Michelle McCool and Mickie James at the 2010 Royal Rumble, where James defeated McCool in 20-seconds to win the Women's Championship.
However, the reign lasted only 23 days as James lost the title back to Michelle McCool. Following this, James took some time off to heal from a staph infection on her right knee. She made her return after three weeks, but it was short-lived as she got released after WrestleMania 26.
5 Return to TNA & Independent Circuit
Following her release, Mickie James returned to the independent circuit again and appeared for various promotions, including AAA, NEW, WWC, and MCW.
She also found her way back to TNA and signed a contract with them in September 2010. She acted as the special guest referee for the Knockouts title match between Angelina Love, Madison Rayne, Velvet Sky, and Tara at the 2010 Bound for Glory PPV.
James entered the Knockouts title picture by defeating Angelina Love to become the No.1 contender but couldn't defeat Tara for the title at Final Resolution 2010.
4 Knockouts Champion
Mickie James' road to winning the Knockouts Championship was not smooth as she suffered defeats at the hands of Madison Rayne on two occasions, with one being a last woman standing match.
However, she persevered throughout the obstacles and defeated Rayne at the 2011 Lockdown PPV to win her first Knockouts Championship. She held the title for 112 days and defended it against the likes of Miss Tessmacher, Madison Rayne, Angelina Love, and Velvet Sky before dropping it to Winter.
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James didn't take long to reclaim the title as she defeated Winter on the September 1, 2011, episode of Impact but lost it back to her in 17 days at the 2011 No Surrender PPV.
3 WWE Return
She continued to perform for TNA until 2013 before leaving the promotion and returning to the independent circuit. She did make a surprise return in 2015 but competed in only one match before leaving for good.
After some time in the indies, James found her way back to WWE in October 2016. She made her NXT debut and challenged Asuka for the NXT Women's Championship in a losing effort. She returned to the main roster as the mystery woman behind the La Luchadora gimmick and helped Alexa Bliss retain the SmackDown Women's title against Becky Lynch.
2 Various Feuds & Controversial Release
She continued to perform in WWE and shared the ring with the new generation of female superstars. She tried her luck in re-entering the championship picture but couldn't make use of the opportunities.
She stuck with WWE until 2021 when she got released as part of the pandemic budget cuts along with various other superstars. Her release sparked some controversy after she posted on Twitter that WWE sent her care package in a trash bag, which prompted a public apology from Stephanie McMahon. However, she didn't let the unfortunate incident destroy her liking for WWE, and she made her return to the promotion in a historic way.
1 NWA, Impact Knockouts Champion & Historic Royal Rumble Appearance
Following the release, Mickie James made her NWA debut and announced she'd serve as the executive producer for the promotion's first all-female event NWA EmPowerrr. She then returned to Impact Wrestling in July 2021 and immediately started a rivalry with Deonna Purrazzo over the Knockouts Championship. She took on Purrazzo for the title at the 2021 Bound for Glory PPV and won the championship for the fourth time in her career.
She also made a historic return to WWE when she entered the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble match as the reigning Impact Knockouts Champion. She dropped the Knockouts title to Tasha Steelz at the 2022 Sacrifice PPV and lost a rematch for the title in March. She would look to reclaim the title in the coming days, and we would have to wait to see if her plans would succeed.
