As the title of this article suggests, it is my opinion that the WWE Women's Division are definitely looking up after they recently crushed it at WWE Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia. While I've read some reviews that rated the Smackdown Women's Title match itself as a B- or B, with even a few harrowing B+'s, I believe the match to be a solid A-. It achieved everything it needed to do in order to move forward with the completions of the WWE draft taking full effect throughout the WWE brands. Now, I am certainly not ignoring the controversial opinions surrounding the international event. I do, however, feel that overall the mixed feelings in regard to WWE's working relationship with the Saudi government does not overshadow the amazingly passionate performances put forth by these incredible WWE Superstars, live in front of the numerous WWE Universe fans in attendance at WWE Crown Jewel.
WWE returned to Saudi Arabia to host WWE Crown Jewel. They held the infamous international event for the first time since February 2020 and the in-ring action was nothing short of spectacular in spite of concerns. For me, there were several highlights in particular that began with the first match on the main card. And furthermore, in my opinion some of the biggest highlights on the event included the Smackdown Women's Championship match along with the emotional bone-crushing hard-hitting, Hell in a Cell match between Edge and Seth Rollins, and of course the aggressive well fought WWE Championship match between Big E and Drew McIntyre. As any Pro in any industry knows, nothing is completely perfect, and of course that's up to interpretation, and if you're a real Pro, then you know there's always ways to improve and evolve. And that is why I say the show was spectacular! For all the looming reasons for why the show could have gone absolutely wrong, it instead went right with a resounding echo of success. And that brings me back around to the WWE Smackdown Women's Championship…
There's surprise that the Smackdown Women's Champion was an immediate crowd favorite upon her entrance at WWE Crown Jewel. At the onset, defending her coveted title against two pillars of the division, Lynch found herself being knocked from the ring. I feel this was exactly what needed to be done in order to establish each WWE Superstars' role in the match and subsequently the evolving WWE Women's Divisions. There was a specific story that needed to be told and I think the subtlety was lost on some resulting in the lower grades. But again, as I previously mentioned, it's all up to interpretation. The pairings were done exceedingly well. Bianca and Banks. Banks and Lynch and so forth. The power moves and power plays. The strategies of each on full display. All the moving pieces allowed each woman to shine in their own time that ultimately freed their WWE characters from the confines of what's normally expected in a typical overseas bout.
The return of old school in-ring psychology with a modern twist really lent itself to the unfolding storyline that keeps all three women strong. Strong in not only their roles, but also in their positions post WWE draft going forward. And strong as well in their continuing story on WWE programming. And to be honest here, I saw quite a bit of old school tid-bits cleverly utilized throughout WWE Crown jewel which I think elevated the event as a whole to have each match lead to the next building towards the main event which is how a card should be designed for maximum success. While Banks and Belair did lose to Becky Lynch, overall, they were all winners in the grand scheme of things. As Becky Lynch exchanged her title with Charlotte Flair's, Sasha Banks will be built up as 'the' baby face of the Smackdown Women's Division. This puts her on a direct collision course for Charlotte Flair and the Smackdown Women's Title. An opponent Banks knows all too well, and Belair will not be far behind. Being added to the mix of Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair, and Sasha Banks, has really added extra legitimacy to The EST of WWE, and has provided excellent opportunities for her to elevate and learn from more experienced WWE Stars and grow into her own fullest potential as a WWE Superstar.
With so much heat on Charlotte as a heel among other things, this will be the perfect makings for a good heated emotional feud for Smackdown, while both Banks and Belair keep one eye each on the Raw Women's Champion Becky Lynch. Sasha Banks' role here in my opinion is perfectly timed. She won't be the typical quintessential good girl baby face which has been bludgeoned by the wrong traits with the wrong characters. Banks will be a baby face with a chip on her shoulder and attitude to match. A more complex character that is more believable as most people these days despite social media pictorials are not inherently perfect, but instead fall victim to certain human feelings of inadequacy or malicious intent. After all, misery loves company…
Regardless, with Sasha Banks on Smackdown with Charlotte Flair and Bianca Belair on Raw with Becky Lynch, this is a good split of talent that will add to ratings increases during WWE women's segments in my opinion. And as an additional point, I see this split opening up more opportunities for other deserving stars like Liv Morgan and Zelina Vega and others. Vega fresh off of a push of her own at WWE Crown Jewel and Liv Morgan a crowd favorite. All eyes will be on WWE. How far can they run with the momentum from WWE Crown Jewel event? A shiny new chessboard of players and moves. The full effects of the WWE Draft having now revealed themselves. I do think more than one superstar is ready to capitalize on this paradigm shift. I'm excited to see what they do and who makes it to the top!
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Children's Book: "It's Not Easy Being A Sloth" By: Taeler Hendrix
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