The Paige/AJ Lee Frenemies Storyline, Explained
Mia Walsh
Published Mar 28, 2026
Quick Links
WWE witnessed Paige and AJ Lee becoming two of the most popular women in company history during a time when that was a tougher task. The previous era of the divas division and the Divas Championship saw these two having a feud that received a lot of crowd interest. Paige, AJ Lee, and the Bella Twins were the main names that connected to build interest against the odds.
However, it was both the rivalry and friendship of Lee and Paige that got the most attention before bigger changes were implemented after NXT names started to get called up. Paige returning to wrestling for AEW as Saraya has fans nostalgic for her WWE work. The frenemies angle between AJ and Paige deserves a look back at the ups and downs for a relevant time in women’s wrestling.
Paige's Epic WWE Debut Set Up A Great Feud With AJ Lee
Many WWE decisions of the 2010s were criticized for not listening to the audience, but they were on the money during WrestleMania 30 week. AJ Lee won a battle royal on that show to continue her record-setting Divas Championship reign. It felt like none of the women on the main roster had a realistic chance to dethrone Lee after her previous victories and general momentum.
RELATED: AJ Lee's 10 Best Rivalries, Ranked
Paige was the first female star pushed in Triple H’s NXT with a tremendous NXT Women’s Championship reign hyping her up. The wish of the diehard fans for a big Paige main roster debut was fulfilled when she answered an open challenge from AJ on the big Raw after WrestleMania 30. A massive pop saw fans genuinely captivated by such an impactful surprise.
The decisive victory for Paige made her a relevant player and the Divas Champion just minutes into her debut. A dream introduction started off this storyline with Paige ending Lee’s dominant heel title reign and instantly becoming the top female face on the roster. WWE let AJ take off a few months before returning to kickstart the whole frenemies angle.
Paige And AJ Lee Became A Tag Team Before A Shocking Heel Turn
AJ Lee returning for the first time after losing the Divas Championship to Paige saw her embracing a new character. The overly evil heel act was no longer blatant as Lee showed more love to the fans and respect to Paige when challenging her to a title match. WWE intelligently booked the same scenario that Paige took advantage of when AJ challenged her when she wasn’t ready. Paige showed reluctance until the crowd response pressured her into defending the title.
Lee winning the match started another Divas Championship reign and made Paige endure a bit of a character change for suffering such a heartbreaking loss. Both women started acting over the top in supporting each other as best friends with some facetious mannerisms implied. WWE booked them in multiple tag matches to score victories while pretending that the trust was growing as fans saw the distrust in play.
The tag run as friends played out with a huge heel turn from Paige brutally attacking AJ after a team victory on Raw. Paige’s new side helped her win the Divas Championship back from Lee at the SummerSlam 2014 event. Nikki Bella entering the feud saw AJ winning the title back in a triple threat and WWE pivoting to a singles feud with Paige as the odd person out.
Paige And AJ Lee Reunited As A Tag Team At WrestleMania 31
WWE slowly turned Paige back into a face character by the start of 2015 while AJ Lee continued her feud with the Bella Twins. Even though the initial tag run of Paige and AJ started with them each trying to con the other as frenemies, there was a genuine crowd investment in them working together. Lee needed someone to even the odds against Brie and Nikki Bella at the right time when Paige turned face.
The reunion of the frenemies saw AJ and Paige now more united than ever against the common enemies of the Bella Twins. This story was working enough for WWE to willingly pick a tag match for the women at WrestleMania 31 over a title defense. Nikki wasn’t losing the title any time soon, so a better story for the big night set up the tag match.
Many fans view WrestleMania 31 as one of the best in the show’s history since everything was good to great, meeting all expectations. Paige and AJ winning a fun tag bout over the Bella Twins felt like the best women’s representation in years, with mostly battle royals or mixed tag matches in previous years. The storyline culminated their time as enemies and proved that fans loved seeing them as best friends.
