In 2011, Kelly Kelly emerged victorious over Brie Bella to claim the WWE Divas Championship during an episode of Monday Night RAW. Tracing the course of her title tenure, it spanned a duration of 104 days. Recently, while featuring as a guest on the “Fast Break” podcast, Kelly opened up about how she sought directly from Vince McMahon for this opportunity.
Kelly vividly recalled the experience, “It felt incredible to triumph over Brie for the Divas Championship. The most memorable element of that night was the fans getting to select who they wished to watch in the matches. We were informed on the same day that the match would take place. The contenders were either myself, Eve Torres, or Beth Phoenix. The one to be chosen by the audience would be crowned the champion. We actually didn’t know who the audience would pick. Subsequently, Brie had to prepare for three possible matches, with just an hour to memorize them. When they finally declared who was chosen to compete against Brie, that individual would also double as the victor. I remember the immense surge in crowd support. My polling numbers were drastically high. In fact, they were so overwhelming that it spilled over into the subsequent match. I garnered roughly 90% of the total votes. On seeing my name being announced, I was overtaken by pure shock and joy. After serving for five years, this was my moment of success. The whole experience was flooded with emotion and was truly priceless.”
Diving deeper into her journey, Kelly further explained, “A few weeks prior to this event, I had approached Vince. Despite my inhibition, given his intimidating stature, I was desperate for the opportunity. His presence was commanding and he was very particular about how he wanted things to be executed. It felt like walking into the principal’s office. Encouragement from family and friends finally persuaded me to stand up for myself. Their support prompted me to approach Vince, confess my desire for a championship, and request a shot. To my surprise, Vince responded somewhat affirmatively. When the opportunity for the audience-chosen match arose, I suspect they had a hunch about my victory given my popular appeal as the babyface back then. When I finally won the match and held the championship aloft, the experience was simply surreal. The tears just couldn’t be held back.”
Unfortunately, Kelly’s impressive reign came to an end against Beth Phoenix at the WWE Hell In A Cell event in 2011.