Becky Lynch explains why she didn't feel authentic in 2019.
Many fans will argue that Lynch was at the top of her game in 2019, as she got the chance to main event WrestleMania 35 and hold both the Raw and SmackDown Women's Championships.
In her new book, 'The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl', Becky Lynch talked about her run in 2019, noting that she felt like it wasn't being the person she wanted to be.
In an interview with Lewis Howes of The School Of Greatness, Lynch followed up on that point in her book, as she first talked about her heel turn in 2018 and how she knew it wasn't go exactly as planned.
“Maybe a bit of everything. I was coming from underneath, I was coming from being this underdog that that audience loved because she was smiley and happy and would do creative things online because she was never getting an opportunity on TV. Even though I wouldn’t get opportunities on TV, I was always doing stuff with the digital team or on social media, I would create this little stories that I thought were fun and entertaining and that the audience could get to know who I was. Then, they wanted to turn me heel against Charlotte Flair, who at the time, she was a good guy but she’s the daughter of Ric Flair and she had multiple title opportunities and was seen very much as the chosen one. So when they were going to turn me heel, I knew, she knew, a lot of people knew that this wasn’t going to be a heel turn, this was going to be a mega babyface turn for me because now I’d get this attitude and shoulder chip."
Lynch went on to explain that her social media activity was hurting people's feelings at that time, which made her feel icky.
"That worked to a certain point, because I would rely on social media a lot. I started to put stuff out there into the world and on to the internet that I would justify it as it’s a business and this is making people talk and it’s whatever, but I know it hurt people’s feelings that weren’t in on it. It’s a different thing when you’re in the ring or when you’re cutting promos and stuff like that, I was like, but this is what people want, they want me to be like this but me as a person, didn’t necessarily feel good about that. I’ll always justify it, but it left me feeling icky I suppose. [It didn’t change] until I went away to have my child. So, it was like from mid 2019 that I just felt like it was forced, it all felt very forced."
'The Man' went on and continued to criticize that run, stating that she didn't feel like she had formidable opponents to challenge her for the titles after WrestleMania 35.
"I didn’t have formidable opponents necessarily, I didn’t have people that were built up for me on the back side so I was trying to — I was the champion, I had this historic moment being the first woman to main event WrestleMania, but then my first opponent somebody who the audience didn’t know, was quite green — and none of this was her fault, but it shouldn’t have been my first opponent."
After that, Lynch finished up the quote by saying that she broke trust that she had with several people with her social media activity during that time.
"Things just didn’t feel like they were right and I felt like I was trying the social media, that just felt inauthentic and I don’t know, I felt like I put out some stuff that I wish I didn’t. I wish I didn’t put that out there because social media can be a great tool, but it can also be horrible negative and it can cost real relationships if people aren’t in on it. I didn’t like that. I will always [tell people] whatever you want to say about me is fair game if we can make money on TV, let’s make money, but not everybody is like that and I know everybody is not like that. There is such a level of trust in what we do and I think I broke that trust for several people and it just didn’t feel good, it didn’t sit right with who Rebecca Quin is. Even though I can justify that it’s Becky Lynch and it’s business business business, at the end of the day, my gut said no. I was going against it and it felt inauthentic. I had my daughter and I haven’t relied on that since and I’ve felt just so much better, so much lighter. I tell my stories on TV, I tell them in the ring. I don’t need to be tweeting mean stuff at people on a random Sunday afternoon, you know what I mean?”
Fans can purchase Lynch's book, 'The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl', at your local bookstore now.
Elsewhere in a seperate interview, Lynch noted that she doesn't need to win a title because the women's division needs more stories that are not centered around championships. Learn more here.
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