Divas Champion Eve def. Naomi

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — In a match that proved much more difficult than she anticipated, Divas Champion Eve defeated the winner of the “Santa’s Helper” No. 1 Contender’s Diva Battle Royal, Naomi, to extend her impressive title reign to nearly 100 days. ( PHOTOS)

Naomi, one-half of The Funkadactyls who accompany Brodus Clay to the ring, won the Battle Royal and subsequent golden opportunity against Eve during the live WWE TLC Pre-Show, when the champion herself interfered in the match and distracted Kaitlyn, giving Naomi the massive win. ( FULL STORY)

If Eve assumed Naomi would be an easier opponent than Kaitlyn for her title defense, however, she calculated poorly. Although Naomi had never competed in WWE outside season three of WWE NXT, The Funkadactyl showed she can bust more than a move, as she took the fight to Eve, while Brodus and her fellow Funkadactyl Cameron watched the action on a backstage screen.

Overconfident to a fault, Eve taunted her opponent to start the match, but Naomi immediately showed her athleticism and competitive spirit, as she leaped over and slid under the champion, even hitting Eve with a flying butt butt maneuver. Naomi gave Eve a challenge and looked good doing it, as she showed some of her moves in the ring.

Eve took control of the match with her incredible Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills and her natural mean streak, though. When Naomi went off the top rope, the Divas Champion was able to dodge the high-impact move and hit The Funkadactyl with a neckbreaker to seal the win and successful title defense. Ever the bad sport, Eve posed over her defeated foe for a mocking photo op.

Even though Divas Champion Eve is in the midst of a dominant run with the butterfly-emblazoned title, the emergence of an exciting new contender in Naomi, combined with the ongoing drama between Eve and formidable challengers like Kaitlyn, makes the new-look Divas division a volatile situation worth keeping an eye on as WWE rolls into 2013.