4 1/2 years on the main roster, 3 Divas titles, and being universally beloved by the fan base just wasn't enough to keep AJ Lee in WWE anymore. On Friday, it was announced that AJ was---gulp--retiring from in-ring competition.
AJ (April Melendez-Brooks)had, you might say, been on the hot seat ever since her then-boyfriend, now husband, CM Punk, left the company after the 2014 Royal Rumble. Ever since then, there'd been speculation that petty, vindictive Vince McMahon would find a way to embarrass and humiliate AJ to the point where she'd finally follow Punk out the door. Fans chanting for Punk during AJ's matches didn't help matters at all, but the ringsiders have enough axes to grind with the company, anyway.
Since losing the Divas title the final time, screwed out of the title at Survivor Series by Nikki Bella, AJ has gotten her shots to win it back, but apparently, they're in no hurry to take the belt off Nikki, not because of who her beau is (John Cena), but because of "Total Divas", and the fact that AJ is one of the few who opted not to do the show. It's clear now that the title and the show are inexplicably linked together going forward, and that is wrong.
The fact that AJ is retiring now, albeit rather abruptly, five days after winning a tag match against the Bellas at Wrestlemania, suggests there's more to this story that WWE won't admit to. Like the fact that AJ could be, well, in a family way. Could the Punkster have taken enough time from UFC training to start a family with his bride? Possible, but we don't know that yet. If that's the case, I'd not be at all surprised if, within 12-18 months, we hear AJ's theme song one more time, heralding her return.
For now, I'll borrow a line from the infamous Milli Vanilli to close with a note to AJ. Girl, we're gonna miss you.
