On the February 5 broadcast of SmackDown, Bianca Belair entered the ring to make what she called the most important decision of her life: who would be her WrestleMania 37 opponent? As the winner of the 2021 women’s Royal Rumble, she has her choice of champions, and two names were on her mind. Belair named RAW women’s champion Asuka, but seemed more eager for a shot at SmackDown champ Sasha Banks. Sasha’s ears must have been burning as she was quickly out on the ramp and pitching her bid to be Bianca’s opponent. The two clearly have their eyes on each other, and if they do face off at Wrestlemania 37 all eyes in sports entertainment will be on them.
Bianca’s achievements across brands in WWE are impressive. She set a record in the 2020 women’s Royal Rumble for longest duration in such a match, 33 minutes. Not only did she beat her own record in 2021, lasting 37 minutes, but Belair took the day and won her first Rumble, just months after being drafted to SmackDown. Her humor, beauty, positive and uplifting attitude, superhuman athleticism, and strength make her the total package with star power that will surely, as her career goes on, translate across various outlets of entertainment media. She is also a sure shot to be women’s SmackDown champion, sooner rather than later. However, she’ll have to fight a future Hall Of Famer, in the person of Sasha Banks, to get the gold.
Not idly does Banks call herself the Blueprint. She is a Grand Slam winner, and current WWE SmackDown women’s champion. Sasha Banks is an inextricable thread in the fabric of the current WWE women’s division, and its ongoing evolution. She is an undeniable key player of the transition from the Diva’s division to the modern women’s lineup, with its dynamic personalities and barrier-breaking athleticism. Banks was named Sports Illustrated’s Wrestler of the Year in 2020, and topped Righteous Reg’s Blackwrecellence 500 list of influential Black wrestlers. She’s made WWE women’s history wrestling in the company’s first Iron Woman, women’s Hell in a Cell match, and was one of the first women to headline a WWE pay-per-view. She is a five-time RAW women’s champion, and she and Bayley won the inaugural WWE women’s tag team match to become champions in that field, as well.
As a champion in her own right and as one of the pioneering Four Horsewomen, Banks helped build the foundation for the future of women in sports entertainment sum total, let alone the WWE. Thanks to the contributions of herself and various other dedicated female athletes, Superstars like Bianca Belair have a greater showcase for their athleticism and more championship opportunities.
The optics of the match would be compelling. Bianca’s key strengths are her incredible lifting ability, speed, agility, and endurance. Sasha, on the other hand, can be a brutal competitor. She excels at punishing submission holds like her signature finisher the Banks Statement, and also takes the air regularly for a crashing meteora double knee strike. She’s a cutthroat and versatile brawler, used to facing off against the best of the best of the women’s division, like Asuka, Bayley, Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch. Fighting Sasha would undoubtedly push Bianca to new levels of aggression, and utilizing new skills, all of which she will need to develop staying power.
Banks and Belair have partnered each other in tag matches, and on the February 5 SmackDown Sasha might have crashed Bianca’s moment at the mic, but expressed healthy respect for her achievements and seemed enthusiastic to face her at Wrestlemania. It need hardly be said what a huge vote of confidence it would be for Banks to put her belt on the line against Bianca, nor what a crowning achievement it would be for Belair to become SmackDown women’s champion after defeating the Boss.
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