While WWE’s women’s division has been flourishing for close to a decade now, there are a handful of trailblazers that never got to officially compete in the rebranded class. Talent like Gail Kim and Melina really only ever knew life in WWE as “divas.” That said, both Kim and Melina got the opportunity to showcase their skillset outside of WWE in the later years of their careers. Arguably the most impactful woman during the divas era started and ended her career strictly competing within that division, that being former WWE Divas Champion AJ Lee.
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Taking to Instagram, AJ confirmed her in-ring status once more, referring to herself as a “retired athlete.” AJ’s injury-related retirement had been initially announced in 2015, but the nature of professional wrestling had led to speculation that she could follow in Bryan Danielson and Edge’s footsteps by coming out of a career-ending injury years later to resume wrestling. This post reconfirms that AJ has no plans to step back in the ring.
AJ joined WWE in 2009, competing for developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling before joining one of the game show seasons of NXT. By 2011, AJ was wrestling on the main roster and had developed an on-screen relationship with Daniel Bryan that took her all the way to WWE WrestleMania 28. This angle led to her being featured in multiple main event storylines with the likes of CM Punk, John Cena and Dolph Ziggler.
She would eventually break out from her valet position and begin wrestling on a regular basis. She would defeat longtime friend Kaitlyn for the WWE Divas Championship in June 2013 and hold it for a then-record-breaking 295 days. That record was eventually broken by Nikki Bella, who held the title for 301 days.
AJ’s final match came on the Monday Night Raw after WWE WrestleMania 31. WWE quietly announced her retirement later that week, with AJ later noting that her decision came down to the permanent cervical spine damage that wrestling had caused. Since exiting the squared circle, AJ has become a published author and worked as an executive producer on Women of Wrestling. She is also set to star in the upcoming season of Heels alongside real-life husband CM Punk.
