How One Historic WrestleMania Match Stole The Show And Caused Backstage Chaos
WWE WrestleMania is known for both moments and matches, but for years, neither were coming from the women's division WWE didn't book the division as being important and barely gave them any time, let alone anything to do of substance. When women like Trish Stratus and Mickie James came along, WWE eventually budged and started booking them more consistently, giving them real storylines and actually letting them wrestle. Among other things, this resulted in what many consider one of the best women's matches in WrestleMania history when James challenged Stratus for the Women's Championship at WrestleMania 22 — but while the match stole the show, it also had people scrambling to restore order backstage.
James' heel character at the time was obsessed with Stratus in a way that bordered on psychosexual stalker territory, and while both the match itself and the performances of the two wrestlers involved are tremendous, there's one infamous moment that stands out the most. Late in the match, James grabbed Stratus by her crotch, causing a horrified Stratus to break the hold she had applied and leading to James making a suggestive gesture to the camera, adding fuel to the subtextual fire of a romantic relationship between the women.
James thought the spot made sense for their story and that it would be well-received backstage, but during an interview with "Wrestlecast Radio," she revealed that quite the opposite was true — Vince McMahon screamed at her.
"I came back through the curtain and Vince was really mad," she said. "In the moment it had seemed amazing to me. I thought, 'Vince will love this.' 'Crass' is the word I got. He didn't like it at all. He told me 'We're going to have to go back and edit that out. Do you know how much time [this will take]?'"
"I felt horrible," James said in another interview with "Ring the Belle." "After this super huge high moment, I just felt so defeated. I was like, 'Yeah, I didn't read the room right at all."