Trish Stratus' Body Transformation Over The Years, Told In Photos (2024)

Trish Stratus is an icon of professional wrestling, despite coming from an irrelevant background to becoming one of the most popular wrestlers in WWE's Women's Division. After initially being hired to work as a valet for Test and Albert, Stratus would eventually transition into an in-ring role while the team feuded with Lita and the Hardy Boyz. Stratus would outstrip the popularity of Test and Albert, winning the WWE Women's Championship seven times before retiring from in-ring competition in 2006.

Aside from sporadic appearances, Stratus eventually came out of retirement in 2023 to team with former rival Lita and Becky Lynch against Damage CTRL. This led to Stratus turning heel and introducing Zoey Stark as her enforcer during her feud with Lynch. Stratus' final match in her return run ended at the Payback pay-per-view where she lost in a Steel Cage match, with Stark turning on her after the match.

Trish Stratus Worked As A Fitness Model

Before Her WWE Debut In 2000

Before becoming a WWE Legend, Trish Stratus had a very different career path. Born and raised in Canada, Stratus was studying for a degree in biology and kinesiology before pivoting to modeling. At the same time, Stratus also joined a radio program called Live Audio Wrestling as the third host that aired in Toronto on the FAN 590 radio station. It wasn't 1999 when she signed a WWE developmental contract, where she was sent to train with former Canadian wrestler Ron Hutchinson at Sully's Gym in Toronto. Four months after signing, WWE prepared Stratus to make her WWE on-camera debut in March 2000.

Debuted In WWE With Test & Albert

A Great Look Fit For A Manager

In March 2000 Trish Stratus made her WWE debut appearing on the top of the entrance ramp on an episode of Sunday Night Heat during a match between Test and Gangrel. Stratus watched as Test defeated Gangrel and again later in the same episode during a match between Prince Albert and Joey Abs, of the Mean Street Posse, in which Albert emerged victorious. After this, Stratus would begin to accompany the pair to the ring for their matches.

Stratus would work with Test and Albert through feuds with the Hollys, Hardyz Boyz, and Dudley Boys. It was during a feud between Test and Albert against the Dudleys that Stratus took her first bump when the Dudleys hit her with a 3D through a table.

Managed Val Venis & Affair With Vince McMahon

Not Quite The Trish Stratus That Became A Fan-Favorite

In May 2000, Stratus sent Test and Albert to recruit Val Venis to her services during his match against Matt Hardy on an episode of Saturday Night Heat. Stratus would help Venis defeat Rikishi to win the Intercontinental Championship on an episode of SmackDown. The alliance between Stratus and Venis would last until SummerSlam where Stratus and Val Venis lost to Chyna and Eddie Guerrero after Chyna pinned Stratus to become the new Intercontinental Champion.

Around the same time, Stratus also began an affair with WWE CEO Vince McMahon while McMahon. This led to a feud between Trish Stratus and Vince McMahon's daughter Stephanie McMahon. Stratus would eventually turn on Vince McMahon at WrestleMania X-Seven, becoming a face for the first time in her short career.

Won Her First Women's Championship In A Six-Pack Challenge

Her Iconic Look Takes Shape

In 2001, at Survivor Series, Trish Stratus was entered into a Six-Pack challenge to crown the new WWF Women's Champion against fellow WWE wrestlers Lita and Jacqueline, as well as Alliance wrestlers Ivory, Jazz, and Mighty Molly. The Women's Championship had been vacated since Chyna's departure from the promotion earlier in the month after a contract dispute. Stratus would win her first title reign after hitting Ivory with the Stratusfaction.

Stratus would hold the Women's Championship multiple times between November 2001 to March 2023. During the same phase of her career, Stratus would also hold the WWE Hardcore Championship, pinning Crash Holly on an episode of Raw before being pinned by Steven Richards, becoming the third woman to hold the title after one of the Godfather's Hos and Mighty Molly.

Her Legendary Feuds With Lita

From 2003 To 2005

In the mid-2000s, WWE's women's division was dominated by Trish Stratus and Lita. For the majority of 2004 and 2005, the Women's title was held by Stratus and Lita, with Mickie James the only person to hold the title outside of Lita and Stratus from June 2004 to November 2006. This included a brief period when Lita and Stratus teamed up to take on Gail Kim and Molly Holly in several tag team matches in 2003 after Lita returned following a several-month absence after she was fired by Eric Bischoff.

During this period, Trish Stratus and Lita would become the first women to ever main event an episode of Raw. This was a huge achievement at a time when women were predominantly used in bathroom break matches and short spots, instead of being taken as serious competitors. This also occurred decades before the Women's Revolution that saw female wrestlers main event pay-per-views including WrestleMania.

Vacated Her Final Title Run After One Day

Trish Would Retire From Full-Time Competition

At Unforgiven 2006, Trish Stratus faced Lita for the WWE Women's Champion. The two had traded the title back and forth over the two previous years. Going into the match, fans knew that the match would be Stratus' final match in WWE before her retirement. Stratus would win her seventh and final Women's Championship reign after making Lita submit after locking her in a sharpshooter.

The night after the pay-per-view, Stratus successfully defended the title against Mickie James picking up the win despite Lita attempting to interfere in the match. Following the defense, Stratus cut a short promo thanking the fans for supporting her before vacating the title. Despite retiring from in-ring competition, Stratus would occasionally make special appearances for the promotion, including Raw's 15th Anniversary Special and occasional cameos in 2008, when WWE was in Canada.

Controversial WrestleMania Return

Teamed Up With Snooki And John Morrison At WrestleMania 27

Despite retiring from in-ring competition in 2006, Stratus continued to make cameo appearances for WWE in 2008. Stratus would appear in a mixed tag team match, teaming with John Cena against Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella. In 2009, Stratus had two WWE matches on one episode of Raw in September in mixed tag and mixed 6-person matches. Again, despite being retired, Stratus had four matches in WWE in 2011, including a mixed 6-person tag match at WrestleMania XXVII alongside John Morrison and Snooki against Dolph Ziggler and LayCool.

Stratus' appearance at WrestleMania reportedly caused some issues, as she reportedly replaced Morrison's real-life partner Melina in the high-profile match. As a result, Morrison reportedly snubbed Stratus and caused the duo to have heat backstage.

Trish Stratus Is A Hall Of Famer

Stephanie McMahon Inducted Her In 2013

Following the Raw after WrestleMania XXVII, Stratus genuinely took a hiatus from WWE making only three appearances on WWE programming between 2011 and 2018. One of the appearances was in a WWE documentary about the Women's Evolution where she spoke about the role of women during the Attitude Era and her epic rivalry with Lita during the era. The two other appearances she made revolved around the Hall of Fame

In 2013, Stratus was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by Stephanie McMahon. Stratus' Hall of Fame included former WWE Champions Bruno Sammartino, Mick Foley, Bob Backlund, and Booker T, as well as celebrity wing induction Donald Trump. Stratus would then return to WWE at the Hall of Fame ceremony the following year, this time to induct Lita.

Number 30 Surprise Entrant In The First Ever Women's Royal Rumble

Trish Was Part Of History Again

It's unfortunate for Stratus that the majority of her first WWE run came at a time when the promotion didn't take their Women's division seriously and things only seemed to get worse after Stratus retired as female wrestlers were replaced by female models instead of trained wrestlers, as the promotion was seeking to emulate the success of Stratus in the female wrestlers that they hired. This seemed to continue until the Women's Revolution as female wrestlers began working proper matches leading up to the first all-women Royal Rumble match in 2018.

Trish Stratus then made her return to the ring at the 2018 Royal Rumble as the 30th entrant into the match. Stratus would also team with Lita to take on Mickie James and Alicia Fox at the all-women Evolution pay-per-view later the same year, with Fox a late injury replacement for Alexa Bliss.

Her Full-Time Return In 2023

Arguably The Best Work Of Her Career

Despite making cameo appearances over the years, Trish Stratus seemed to be quite comfortable with her position as a WWE legend. Even with the improving quality of the women's division, Stratus seemed more than happy to let the WWE develop its female roster without over-shadowing its progress by returning. This lasted until 2023 when Stratus finally announced that she was ready to return to the WWE for another full-time run with the company.

Stratus originally returned to save Lita and Becky Lynch from Damage CTRL, helping Lita and Becky win the WWE Women's Tag Team Titles. Stratus then turned on Lita and Lynch, attacking Lita backstage and costing the pair the title. This run, which saw Stratus hire Zoey Stark as an enforcer, led to a cage match between Stratus and Lynch with Lynch emerging victorious despite interference from Stark. After the match, Stark would turn on Stratus after the WWE icon berated and slapped Stark for costing her the match.