Beth Phoenix

“I could read music before I could read words.”

“Male, female, it doesn't matter. All I see when I look across the ring is an opponent.”

“I followed wrestling, but I had just kind of made peace with, like, that was my career. I'm now a mom, and I'm going to find other things to do with my life.”

“I loved being a stay-at-home mom.”

“The challenge with WWE was keeping up with the schedule and trying to stay healthy and uninjured during that time. Now, with motherhood, the biggest responsibility is trying to protect this little baby and care for her and her needs.”

“Things that used to be a glass ceiling aren't anymore. Now not only is it a possibility that women are going to main event WrestleMania, I know that they are going to do it.”

“I was able to be influential and create a mold. There was no one else who was shaped like me or looked like me.”

“My ideal summer date would definitely be outdoors, something by the water.”

“Respect is important, and if you don't have it you won't be on the professional level very long.”

“My entire life I've proved that I'm able to overcome people's negativity toward me.”

“In fact, I was voted Prom Queen by my classmates in my senior year. So I went from being a wrestler to the prom queen in a year.”

“You don't know what a broken jaw feels like until it happens.”

“This isn't a business that you can pick up in a few weeks. This takes years of commitment, dedication, passion, and hard work. With that is WWE's road schedule that doesn't provide for enough in-ring time for the divas to develop.”

“We're moving away from the one-dimensional nature for women. It used to be that you were known for one thing - a cultural thing, the way you walk, talk or look. Now everybody is allowed to be a layer cake.”

“For a long time when I was working to get a job and in OVW to create an image to get hired by WWE, they kept saying, 'we're looking for the next Trish Stratus. We want that look - that beautiful, feminine fitness model that kicks butt, and you just don't fit the mold.' That was holding me back for so long.”

“My parents didn't have any money.”

“Wrestling goes through seasons. Some things become trends for a while or other things become a trend or the style.”

“I'm not a super social person.”