Nikki Bella has made AJ's title reign more relevant than AJ ever did.

[Messiah]

Well lately in the divas division people have been talking about Nikki breaking AJ's record for longest reigning Divas Champion, it seems that's all people are talking about. A record that doesn't mean very much in the first place. AJ wasn't a very good champion but somehow people got it in their minds she deserves to have that record over Nikki Bella, when Nikki has busted her ass longer and some credit for helping start this revolution that's happening. AJ did nothing memorable as champion besides cut 1 promo and that's it, a promo that wasn't a "pipebomb". Fans should stop calling it that.

People like to bash the Bella Twins because it's the "cool" thing to do now, hen in reality Nikki is one of the best divas they have right now, of course she wasn't always like that but she became that over the last couple year's... No matter how good Nikki becomes people will always view her as a model or being the girlfriend of John Cena.. It's the way most fans think, I've heard some people criticize Charlotte because she's the daughter of Ric Flair. Some fans just don't get it... The fact is, Nikki has made AJ's title reign more relevant than AJ ever did, simply because AJ did nothing memorable as champion and all the fans can talk about lately is Nikki breaking AJ's record.. Anyway, i think it's under 2 weeks now until she breaks it, hopefully people stop talking about it after the record is broken.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

Neither Nikki Bella nor A.J. did a lot with the title. I'm confident Charlotte will. Becky Lynch or Sasha Banks definitely will when they win the title.

 

[MERPER]

I don't know if "relevant" is the correct term. i mean, Nikki has more exposure in pop culture than AJ ever had simply because of Total Divas.

In terms of pure wrestling, I can't say that's the case. AJ defended the title a TON. Nikki has barely defended it at all (at least on TV) since winning it.

I mean seriously, how many title matches has she had? 7 maybe? Everything else has been a tag-team match or non-title match.

 

[ASKane]

AJ Lee's title run was poor because of the opposition, I can't remember much about it but she had a PPV title match with Cameron and that says it all, she had almost no talented opposition to work with bar Natalya and Kaitlyn, while the stuff with Kaitlyn was good she really didn't have much to work with. Nikki on the other hand has had AJ, Paige, Natalya, Sasha, Becky and Charlotte who are all potential opponents and keeping the title ahead of them has done nothing more than give her XPac heat, Nikki claims people love to hate her but they don't, they just want her to piss off and then the women with talent takeover and make the diva enjoyable to watch for the wrestling going on not just the tits and ass.

The revolution started 7 weeks ago on the 13th of July and Nikki has not defended her title once since and will not until she passes the record which means in the final 9 weeks of her likely to be record reign as champion she will not have defended her title. The Bella's are exactly what was wrong with what the divas division was and its time they moved aside to allow the women with talent to takeover.

On an addition note, I will not be watching any divas matches while Nikki is active if she beats AJ's title reign, a little petty but if WWE cares that little about Paige, Sasha, Becky and Charlotte to the point where they let Nikki not defend the title for 9 weeks when they are supposed to be in a revolution which is based around taking the power(title) away from the Bellas then they have given me no reason to care about what their doing.

 

[Navi]

Well lately in the divas division people have been talking about Nikki breaking AJ's record for longest reigning Divas Champion, it seems that's all people are talking about. A record that doesn't mean very much in the first place. AJ wasn't a very good champion but somehow people got it in their minds she deserves to have that record over Nikki Bella, when Nikki has busted her ass longer and some credit for helping start this revolution that's happening. AJ did nothing memorable as champion besides cut 1 promo and that's it, a promo that wasn't a "pipebomb". Fans should stop calling it that.

Did you even watch RAW last night? Nikki Bella was standing front and centre in the ring with her army introducing the Bellatron. She's the one who's been banging on about being the longest reigning Diva's champion for quite some time now. The only thing that you're right about is the fact that it's a title that no one really cares about.

Please tell me, no tell us all how Nikki Bella is a better champion than AJ. How many times has she defended the title since she won it? I can't remember the last time her title was defended can you? It's fine to come out and crow about how long you've had it, but try defending it once in awhile to see if you can actually keep it.

People like to bash the Bella Twins because it's the "cool" thing to do now, hen in reality Nikki is one of the best divas they have right now, of course she wasn't always like that but she became that over the last couple year's... No matter how good Nikki becomes people will always view her as a model or being the girlfriend of John Cena.. It's the way most fans think, I've heard some people criticize Charlotte because she's the daughter of Ric Flair. Some fans just don't get it... The fact is, Nikki has made AJ's title reign more relevant than AJ ever did, simply because AJ did nothing memorable as champion and all the fans can talk about lately is Nikki breaking AJ's record.. Anyway, i think it's under 2 weeks now until she breaks it, hopefully people stop talking about it after the record is broken.

No again you're wrong. People bash the Bella twins because Brie Bella is shit, and Nikki does nothing. I just want them to leave the WWE and never come back. Does anyone really give a shit about who Nikki is screwing at night. I don't. They can have each other.

The only way Nikki could have made the title more relevant was if she actually got into the ring and defended said title. As it is, she should just have put a pocket on it and used it as a new purse, it's would have been put to better use then. I do agree though that in two weeks we can stop talking about this shit because one of the new girls will have the title, and Nikki Bella will never see it again.

Like someone else on the thread said, get them of TV and let some women who can actually wrestle take over. The Bella's can rule TV on Total Diva's till the end of eternity for all I care, don't watch the show.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

AJ was relevant all by herself. Not because of the title but because slim to none competiton where you could see how much she is better at everything. She was better wrestler, better talker and more marketable then all of them combine. She had RAW 1000 revolving around her and it was very clear then that she will be great star. You can just look her "pipebomb" to other Divas to see how she is lightyears ahead of everyone there in Divas Division.

[youtube]0cHv9jBoOZo[/youtube]

I mean, her main opponent there was Kaitlyn. Paige comed later after her reign as Champion and that was because Lee wanted some time off. So she was pretty memorable by her own. Which is far more that you can say for the likes of Bellas and others. So its not about title and a record, she was just better then anyone she faced at her time in every sense of a way.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I only know AJ has the Divas title length record because of Nikki and the ******* off at the mouth people do around here about it getting broken by Nikki.

It was a meaningless accomplishment, Nikki and Vince have made it less meaningless.

 

[GeneralKarim]

You sound like a Nikki fanboy. You're giving her too much praise. She has improved in the ring a bit but both she and her sister are both still pretty bad.

Their personalities are shit and they have the most annoying voices I have ever heard, especially Brie. AJ was light years ahead of them in terms of personality, mic skills and wrestling. Pretty bummed that I didnt get to see AJ vs Sasha, but oh well...

It has taken the Bellas their entire career to finally make tiny improvements and this just shows their level of commitment. If it werent for John Cena and DB, I assure you they would not be where they are right now.

Kinda telling that the only way these two got more attention booking wise was them getting in bed with the hottest superstars in WWE. Hmm...
Anyway, because WWE have booked divas so badly, I'm not really interested in their title reigns at this point. So Nikki can have the new record, w/e, nobody cares. People will always know who the real wrestler is. AJ has moved on, and so should everybody else.

 

[laodaron]

I don't know if "relevant" is the correct term. i mean, Nikki has more exposure in pop culture than AJ ever had simply because of Total Divas.

In terms of pure wrestling, I can't say that's the case. AJ defended the title a TON. Nikki has barely defended it at all (at least on TV) since winning it.

I mean seriously, how many title matches has she had? 7 maybe? Everything else has been a tag-team match or non-title match.

Absolutely untrue. This is from around 2 weeks ago. Source: /r/SquaredCircle

As of 270 days
Nikki Bella has pinned/submitted 4 different divas to retain her title. AJ Lee has pinned/submitted 5 different divas to retain her title.
Nikki Bella has defended the title at 7 PPV events. By the end of her reign, AJ Lee defended the title at 7 PPV events.
Nikki Bella has defended the title at least once every month other than January (due to injury). AJ Lee has defended the title at least once every month other than January.
The longest amount of time Nikki has gone without defending the title is currently 48 days. The longest amount of time that AJ went without defending the title was 70 days.
Nikki set the record for the fastest amount of divas title defenses when she defended the belt once every week between the Raw after Payback and Money in the Bank.

In her 270 days as Divas Champion, Nikki Bella has had 98 matches. Of those 98, 45 have been tag matches, and 1 was a battle royal.
She's had 13 non-title singles matches - all of which were televised on Raw, SmackDown, and Main Event.
She's defended the title 39 times. Twenty-eight of those defenses were at house shows. Four have been on RAW, 1 was on SmackDown, and 6 or 7 have been on PPV/Special Events (TLC, Fast Lane, Extreme Rules, Elimination Chamber, Money in the Bank, and Beast in the East). Her last televised title defense was at Beast in the East on July 4. Her last title defense at a house show was on July 12 against Naomi and Paige.

As for AJ Lee's 295 days with the title, she had 114 total matches. Forty-eight of those were tag matches.
She had 34 non-title singles matches.
She defended the title 32 times. Nineteen of those defenses were at house shows. One was on RAW, 3 were on SmackDown, 1 was on Main Event, 1 was on NXT, and 7 were on PPV (Money in the Bank, Night of Champions, Battleground, Hell in a Cell, TLC, Elimination Chamber, and WrestleMania XXX).
While AJ Lee had more total matches, Nikki Bella has defended the title more often, although 72% of those defenses took place at house shows, where the title is less likely to change hands. In comparison, 59% of AJ's title defenses were at house shows.

 

[brainsuks123]

I mean to me AJ was a decent champ at that, no one cared about the divas championship until AJ was champ. I hope Charlotte or Sasha will make the title better, I'm hoping the NXT divas will make the division much better.

 

[L@RISANO]

I don't know if "relevant" is the correct term. i mean, Nikki has more exposure in pop culture than AJ ever had simply because of Total Divas.

In terms of pure wrestling, I can't say that's the case. AJ defended the title a TON. Nikki has barely defended it at all (at least on TV) since winning it.

I mean seriously, how many title matches has she had? 7 maybe? Everything else has been a tag-team match or non-title match.

Found this elsewhere: Doesn't seem to be a huge difference in terms of comparison as you are claiming...

-- "In her 270 days as Divas Champion, Nikki Bella has had 98 matches. Of those 98, 45 have been tag matches, and 1 was a battle royal.

She's had 13 non-title singles matches - all of which were televised on Raw, SmackDown, and Main Event.

She's defended the title 39 times. Twenty-eight of those defenses were at house shows. Four have been on RAW, 1 was on SmackDown, and 6 have been on PPV/Special Events (TLC, Fast Lane, Extreme Rules, Elimination Chamber, Money in the Bank, and Beast in the East). OP says 7 PPVs; I can't figure out which one I'm missing (I'd appreciate your help).

Her last televised title defense was at Beast in the East on July 4. Her last title defense at a house show was on July 12 against Naomi and Paige.

As for AJ Lee's 295 days with the title, she had 114 total matches. Forty-eight of those were tag matches.

She had 34 non-title singles matches.

She defended the title 32 times. Nineteen of those defenses were at house shows. One was on RAW, 3 were on SmackDown, 1 was on Main Event, 1 was on NXT, and 7 were on PPV (Money in the Bank, Night of Champions, Battleground, Hell in a Cell, TLC, Elimination Chamber, and WrestleMania XXX).

I found it interesting that she defended the title on NXT (against Bayley), and that her only title defense on RAW was when she lost the championship to a debuting Paige. I was surprised that, while AJ Lee had more total matches, Nikki Bella has defended the title more often, although 72% of those defenses took place at house shows, where the title is less likely to change hands. In comparison, 59% of AJ's title defenses were at house shows.

Apologies if I'm mistaken on anything. I've been doing this in between moments of actual work. I attained all numbers from The Internet Wrestling Database."

 

[whoopin' ass]

I have to agree with the people who question you saying "relevant". Only reason why Nikki would have made it more relevant is because she is also on Total Divas, which AJ was not, so hopefully you would have people watching her on both. Easy to do that when the company is behind you and pushes you like they do with Nikki. But again, what is relevant? The last season premier for Total Divas got less than 1 million viewers which was down a lot from the previous seasons so her having the title hasn't really helped them out any on that show. If you are talking about getting exposure outside of wwe, can't really say since there is no fair way to measure but the ratings have dropped.

If you are taking within wwe, again you run into the issue of wwe pushing Nikki much stronger than they did anyone else in recent memory. However, when AJ was around, fans were talking about her. Today, they are talking about who can be brought up from NXT - Nikki is a secondary thought. Only time she really gets mentioned is when we talk about her bring pushed to beat AJ's record but really that helps AJ too. So I can't agree with you on that - any discussion about Nikki is negative which doesn't make the title any more relative.

Let's be honest - the diva's title isn't even an afterthought for wwe. That's the issue. Even when they get someone in there who the fans are interested in, they totally blow it because they don't know what they are doing anymore. AJ was catching on so suddenly they make her the RAW GM so we can see her 10 times every Monday night - that alone almost killed the character. Then they make her champ but give her no real competition. Paige came along and people were excited again - they gave her the title her first night. And how did that work out? was it 6 months before we were bored because wwe wasn't doing anything with her? Recently Nikki became champ and we got the divas revolution which is pretty much a failure despite all the new talent. Why? Because wwe just doesn't care enough. I don't know what happened between Trish Stratus retiring and now as once when fans got behind the women's matches, wwe would push them but today push means 8 minutes instead of 3. Until wwe decides on thier own to really start pushing the divas (which won't happen as long as queen divas Steph is on tv) or the fans just demand it, nothing will change.

 

[Rykerzane]

All of you hater on the Bellas man. Look, I get it...they're not the best in the ring. They've improved for sure though and apparently some aren't giving them that credit.

And the whole point of this original post, it seems, was to say that title reign is more relevant than it was when AJ had it. That's not a lie. It's been the sole focus here as of late. And as the facts have been posted, there aren't that many differences in the two title reigns so to act as if AJ is the pinnacle and so far out of reach is foolish. I enjoyed AJ because she offered something different than any other diva. She had a little crazy like Mickie James, a little punk like Lita, and the feisty nature of Ivory.

But here's the deal, this whole "Divas Revolution" was booked like crap. If you would've brought up the girls from NXT (like they did) but NOT put them on these TEAMS, it would've been great to have weeks of these girls fighting SINGLES matches to prove themselves to Stephanie McMahon as to who would be the number one contender.

Even last night's "Beat the Clock" those matches should've gone much longer. Whenever the first one was only 5:00 the other matches then are going to be that long MAX because if they go over, it's called. Terrible.

But all of you bashing the Bellas, calm down. Seriously. They provide the snarky nature of heels and Nikki, though not as strong in the ring as others, does perform with a lot of power and plays her part well. Brie is the weaker of the two, definitely give you that. They are great liaisons between the wrestling world and mainstream world.They bring a lot of advantages to the division.

HOWEVER, I think once NOC is over you'll have a new champ if not, the next night on Raw to give Raw a title change and bring a spotlight to it. But a lot of this "Divas Revolution" we can all agree was focused on these dang teams instead of the title. When the storyline isn't focused on the title, you can't expect it to be something that's defended a lot.

I think we need to see the value and different flavors each woman brings to the division and utilize them in unique story lines but that's not happening right now.

Lastly, while NXT women are great, don't act like they're perfect either. Botched match at NXT Takeover recordings (4 way match had the wrong person win), a lot of the same moves I've seen even in that match such as Charlotte's chest slaps, big boot, neckbreaker with the spins, and jumping up from her back. So everyone that boo's and disses Nikki for her forearms, off the second rope kick, Alabama slam, etc. can chill.

All these women now that they're ALL being used at EVERY show, which shouldn't happen, need to take a week or so to get acquainted with each other and work on some new moves since they all have a good foundation. Rant done.

 

[Pedigree1]

AJ was the much better champ than Nikki was. This Bellatron or whatever the hell it is,just doesn't do it for me. AJ made the title relevant all by herself by talking,by her pipebombs by her ability in the ring.. She made the divas division all by herself.

AJ was the divas division the only reason why you didnt want to change the channel or go to take a piss break. Granted the Divas division is better now with the additions of Paige,Charlotte,Becky,Sasha,but the Bellas were boring as shit!

 

[Bernkastel]

Nah, the OP is right. Nikki has had a much better title reign than AJ ever had, successfully defending the belt multiple times in the past year, and has been booked stronger and more consistently. As far as Nikki elevating the women's title, I'd say she's done this quite well. Certainly allot better than AJ did. As far as elevating the women's division goes, Nikki only played one role. It was a variety of other factors that got the division to the point where it is right now.

 

[kadroan]

Well lately in the divas division people have been talking about Nikki breaking AJ's record for longest reigning Divas Champion, it seems that's all people are talking about. A record that doesn't mean very much in the first place. AJ wasn't a very good champion but somehow people got it in their minds she deserves to have that record over Nikki Bella, when Nikki has busted her ass longer and some credit for helping start this revolution that's happening. AJ did nothing memorable as champion besides cut 1 promo and that's it, a promo that wasn't a "pipebomb". Fans should stop calling it that.

People like to bash the Bella Twins because it's the "cool" thing to do now, hen in reality Nikki is one of the best divas they have right now, of course she wasn't always like that but she became that over the last couple year's... No matter how good Nikki becomes people will always view her as a model or being the girlfriend of John Cena.. It's the way most fans think, I've heard some people criticize Charlotte because she's the daughter of Ric Flair. Some fans just don't get it... The fact is, Nikki has made AJ's title reign more relevant than AJ ever did, simply because AJ did nothing memorable as champion and all the fans can talk about lately is Nikki breaking AJ's record.. Anyway, i think it's under 2 weeks now until she breaks it, hopefully people stop talking about it after the record is broken.

Yeah Nikki actually grew with the title. If somebody told me in 2012 that Nikki Bella would be a long term Divas champion, I wouldn't have believed them. She's improved so much in the ring and her matches aren't as predictable as AJ's was. I remember AJ just briefly look vunerable in matches then somehow get the win clean. Meanwhile with Nikki, she can beat you clean, or like a heel or her sister gets involved. They just need a consistent storyline behind her as champ. I would have loved if they saved Nikki vs. Sasha from RAW a few weeks ago for a PPV. That could have been a legit Divas match up. NXT Champion vs. Divas Champion.

 

[kumarjtk]

oh common guys aj did nothing as a divas champion. she impressed many adult fans with her crazy chick character. so wwe use her. but she cheat and bail from wwe and married a man who also do the same thing. so wwe give the opportunity to other diva who well beloved to wwe.
Nikki defend the title regularly until divas revolution starts. but Nikki do lot more than aj do.

 

[SportsNation2K7]

I don't think most people would care if Nikki did break AJ's reign. I for one DO care. The thing that pisses me off the most is that the announcers are shoving this fact down our throats week after week. We already know this. I think that whole "Cena doesn't want Nikki to lose the title" thing is pure crap. We all know that someone backstage is feeling salty and want to remove AJ from the top. Don't believe me, who is the longest reigning United States Champion (during the WWE era) and who was the second??

Give up??? It's Dean Ambrose (351 days) and the second person is MVP (343 days). That was at the time when the everyone was complaining about Ambrose not defending the title. The magically he lost it in a battle royal to Sheamus right after passing MVP's record.

They did it with the US title and they did it with the Divas title. I won't complain if Seth gets a 440+ day reign as World Heavyweight Champion...

 

[A11oftheLights]

The problem with Nikki Bella's reign is that both her and her sister have swung between acting like faces to acting like heels at the drop of a dime and it hasnt made any sense or even justified. Its just one minute they're bitchy and arrogant heels to the next minute coming out all happy high-fiving fans or saving the day. As a viewer you get confused as to what is going on, confusion leads to a lack of concentration and not caring about what happens. Add in Paige screaming "this is my house!" continuously for no reason and you have the reason why nobody cares and the reason as to why the division plummeted to the lows it did.

Then to fix everything you have a "revolution" which is why everyone is pissed about the lack of defences. It undermines everything, just like the bellas constant switches between heels and faces, and we've come full circle to not caring again

 

[Rykerzane]

I agree about inconsistency in the Bellas being heels or faces but I'd also say I think even when they were faces, they were a bad girl face. They always connect with the fans when they come out smiling and winking and pointing regardless of heel or face. I think they've stayed pretty true to their character in how they always have come off as the girls who think they're dominate and the best.

All the ladies are talented that are up right now, I really do believe that. But when you have poor writing (no direction, too many ladies involved at once) it makes it hard to develop lines when 9 people are always a part of a match or segment.

 

[Mustang Sally]

I have to agree with the people who question you saying "relevant". Only reason why Nikki would have made it more relevant is because she is also on Total Divas, which AJ was not, so hopefully you would have people watching her on both.

That's reasonable, and brings about the assertion that if 'Total Divas' didn't exist, WWE would never have felt it necessary to put the title belt around Nikki's waist.

AJ, on the other hand, had the advantage of several high-profile programs with the men to boost her stock before she even won the title against women. She was the diva for a long time without having to wrestle, after performing with Daniel Bryan, John Cena, CM Punk & others.

Forget about AJ's last few months with the company, when she was mailing in her efforts in the ring. In the time before her personal relationship with Punk, I believe she was far more relevant than Nikki could ever be. We cared about AJ....even as a heel. How much do you care about Nikki?

 

[Rykerzane]

But that could be argued too.

As mentioned, AJ was involved with Vicki Guerrero (HUGE leadership figure)...Nikki never was.

Involved with Daniel Bryan and the infamous wrestlemania kiss. Nikki never was.

Involved with even KANE...Nikkie never was.

Dolph Ziggler...Nikki never was. At least, not in the script. Haha

When a female is involved in the male storylines, right or wrong, they get more attention and more weight to their own character. Think of how much Lana has surged because of her being with Rusev as the dominate manager.

I think comparing AJ's popularity to Nikki's is apples and oranges because of how they got there.

 

[Logisticalbooker86]

As I said in another thread, I despise the Bellas. Everything from Total Divas to Brie yelling Brie Mode disgusts me.

I laughed out loud when the OP said that Nikki should remain the face of the divas division for as long as the focus is on wrestling. If it's an honest opinion, fine. Contrary to popular belief, opinions can be wrong. The beat the clock challenge Monday night was terrible, and did very little for anyone involved. Charlotte should beat Nikki, and neither Bella should be champion ever again.

The Bellas switch from heel to face more often than any other gimmick ever. Shit, this week it happened mid-segment.

Keep the Bellas on E! but for this revolution to gain ANY traction on the main roster, Charlotte needs to win in convincing fashion.

 

[mk_philly74]

First, let me just say that I have enjoyed reading everyone's posts who have shared their opinions. It's what makes wrestling great. We find a way to invest in these characters/people and enjoy talking about them. For me, I love the fact that I can be an AJ Lee fan, I can be a Nikki Bella fan, and I can be a Sasha Banks fans. They are all so different and I love them all for that.

Second, I have been a fan of women's wrestling for a long time now. I've advocated for better women wrestling in WWE for a long time and it seems we are finally getting just that. For me personally, even if WWe hasn't done the best job they could, for now, just seeing these women get more time has been great. Do I want more/better things for them? Absolutely. But i also understand it takes time, 5-6 weeks isn't that long of a time. Maybe its because of ho much time in these past few weeks have made it seem longer than it has, but they have a lot of way to go and I just hope more people are patient with everything developing.

Third, when it comes to Nikki vs AJ, their title reigns, etc. It's hard to base who's was better and whatnot. They have had similar televised reigns (which most will say is the only thing that matters), but who knows how many times they have defended their titles at house shows and other live events. I don't remember a lot about AJ's reign. I know when she won, when she lost, and that's about it. I know she has had good and bad matches, Tamina was her "bodyguard", but at the end of the day I don't remember a lot about it. When Nikki's reign is over, I won't remember a lot about it. I know more since it's happening right now. i think that's where people have drawn conclusions to who's reign is better and what not. Because Nikki's is happening right now, some want it to be done with, others, like it, and then there is the third option of just not caring one way or another. As a fan of both of these women, I don't think their title reigns will be what they are remembered for, good or bad.

Finally, I just want to say I have always looked at it like this; AJ was the one that gave change in the division its possibility, Nikki (and Brie) have been able to help build that possibility up, and these new Divas coming up (along with Paige) are going to be the ones that either make it happen, or they don't. I'm routing for them, but WWE and its fans are fickle. So only time will tell. At the end of the day, change has been building for a while, we see it from those character on tv, but behind the scenes there are a lot of people to thank for it as well as criticize for not doing enough. We as fans only get to see the end results.... and I'm hoping for a good one.

 

[OYDK]

A lot of reaching, completely made up arguments being thrown around in this thread. As has already been brought up, AJ didn't defend her title "every week"... she barely fucking defended the thing at all... 70 days without a title defense is ludicrous. Also, the Bellas have turned face one time I believe, since the title reign started. That's no reason to call this run a failure. How many AJ Lee moments can one really even recall from her time as champ? Personally, I remember her promo burying the division, her loss to a debuting Paige, and her win over Paige after returning... and that's it. I can't even remember what the state of the division was like at this time, but I know it was worse than it currently is today.

AJ didn't make the Divas title mean anything. She didn't make it "relevant". She made herself relevant while the title remained a glorified prop. While AJ broke out into superstardom, the rest of the division wasn't worth shit. Currently we have 5 women who desperately want the belt, and we have real interest in the Diva's division which we haven't had in quite some time. The crowd reacts to Nikki, Brie, Paige, Sasha, etc. they don't just sit on their hands and boo anymore.

By far I'd say the Diva's division is definitely much more relevant today than it was a couple of years ago, as is the title. How much of that relevancy is thanks to Nikki Bella however, is arguable.