Kelly Kelly is a former WWE Divas and WWE 24/7 Champion, but she also has a unique title accolade to her name. To date, Kelly is the only woman to have successfully defended a Men's World Championship in the promotion. The defense came on the February 4, 2011, edition of SmackDown as she and champion Edge defeated Dolph Ziggler and Lay-Cool in a unique World Heavyweight Title tag-team handicap match.
14 years later, the match remains one of Kelly's most notable bouts. Speaking on the Insight podcast, the WWE alum reflected on the impact the match made.
I don't think I realized at the time how people [talked about it]. They were like, No, you were the only woman to defend the World Heavyweight Title in a match like that. It was a big deal.
Kelly recalled being pitched the match the night before, and shared that she'd be (kayfabe) fired during the same SmackDown by Vickie Guerrero. This led to WWE's team questioning if Kelly had the sufficient acting chops.
[Michael Hayes asked] Can you cry on command Kelly?' I'm like, 'I guess?' He was like, 'If you don't cry, it's all gonna go to sh*t. The fans need to feel this. They really need to feel like you're fired.'
Kelly was dealing with "so much pressure" but had a plan to drum-up tears. The easiest way for her to feel sad and hurt and produce tears, was if she was hurting for real.
I told Michelle and Layla, I said, 'Okay, I need you to beat the sh*t out of me. I really need you to lay it in.' Because I can internalize it, and I can hold it all in until it's time for me to cry.
Kelly's plan worked to perfection, as she held back the tears until the perfect moment. With "the ugliest cry" being produced by the young Superstar, Kelly's performance both during and after her sole World Heavyweight Title defense made this a key moment in her career.