WWE News: Backstage Plans For Bayley’s Road To ‘WrestleMania’
Much like Finn Balor, Bayley was ready for a main-roster promotion much sooner than when it finally came. But Balor and Bayley established themselves as the faces of their respective divisions in NXT, while Triple H was establishing his own blueprint for call-ups. The Game didn’t want to lose a top draw until a replacement had been pinpointed, and subsequently, both Bayley and Finn spent more time in developmental than their talent probably should have allowed.
In Balor’s case, the wait was worth it. After getting selected 5th overall in the WWE’s brand extension draft, he won two matches on his first night on RAW, including a clean singles victory over Roman Reigns. He parlayed those victories into becoming the first-ever WWE Universal Champion by defeating Seth Rollins at SummerSlam. Injury aside, Balor enjoyed one of the quickest ascents in recent memory. Bayley may soon experience similar success.
When Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch made it to the main roster in the summer of 2015, Bayley was left behind in NXT to carry the torch for the division and help build more female stars for when her time came. But it’d be an entire year before she finally joined her Four Horsewomen partners.
Bayley made her initial debut as Sasha’s mystery partner in a tag match against Charlotte and Dana Brooke at the Battleground pay-per-view in July. But it wasn’t until August that she cemented her place on the main roster. Now she didn’t reap the fruits of her NXT labor as quickly as Balor, as her build is clearly a much slower one.
But according to a report from Daily Wrestling News, Bayley is expected to be wearing gold within the next few months. We’ve noted on several occasions that if Ronda Rousey declined an invitation to work an actual match at WrestleMania, then the backup plan for the main program in the RAW Women’s Division would feature Charlotte and Bayley battling over the RAW Women’s Championship.
That, too, changed in recent weeks, as we reported that WWE officials were discussing a multi-woman’s match for the championship. However, a recent revelation that management was re-thinking its entire WrestleMania card has that (and more) in jeopardy as of this moment.
The plan has shifted back to the continuation of the singles program between Charlotte and Bayley. Bayley earned the right to face Charlotte for the RAW Women’s Championship at this month’s Royal Rumble by beating Nia Jax Monday night on RAW, thanks to a distraction by Sasha Banks. This will be Bayley’s first championship opportunity against Charlotte in a one-on-one match as all their previous encounters have been non-title matches, aside from the triple threat bout at Clash of Champions.
Bayley will likely get a second opportunity at Charlotte’s belt at Fastlane in March, but as is expected at the Royal Rumble, she will lose. However, the ultimate payoff is expected to come when she finally beats Charlotte at WrestleMania.
The build to WrestleMania is expected to mirror the Daniel Bryan angle leading up to his coronation at WrestleMania 30. We got a brief glimpse of that on Monday during Bayley’s backstage segment with Stephanie McMahon. Stephanie will continue to play the role of suppressor to enhance Bayley’s underdog status in what will be portrayed as insurmountable odds against someone like Charlotte.
The creative team is also pushing Charlotte’s undefeated streak in singles matches on pay-per-view as a major storyline in the overall program. By winning at the Royal Rumble and Fastlane, Charlotte will have won 16 straight matches on pay-per-view. That number, of course, is synonymous with her father Ric Flair’s record reigns as World Champion. Bayley will then break that streak on the grandest stage, catapulting her to elite level status on the main roster.
And perhaps, it will be all worth the wait.
[Featured Image by WWE]
