Sasha Banks appeared on Edge & Christian’s Pod Of Awesomeness this week and revealed the biggest influences on her Boss character.
Banks also discussed some of the help she received from The American Dream Dusty Rhodes, not working like her idol Eddy Guerrero, and what continues to push her to reach the top of her profession.
Sasha Banks On Developing Her Boss Character
Banks signed with WWE in the summer of 2012 and debuted on NXT television in December of that year.
In her TV debut against Paige, Banks had not yet developed her heel Boss persona. While the NXT staff saw something in her as a worker, Banks says she found herself not being pushed.
“At the time, I wasn’t really being used, or I was being used more as just a good hand, so to speak,” said Banks.
“I was looking around at what they had and didn’t have at the time in NXT, which were heels.”
Sasha says she and Tyler Breeze were both in a similar spot, and Breeze suggested that she pitch ten different character ideas to Dusty Rhodes.
The Boss was her first pitch.
“Being around [her cousin] Snoop Dogg, everyone always called him The Boss,” Banks said.
“At the time, Floyd Mayweather was out there, Nicki Minaj, just all these larger than life characters that were flashy, cocky and flamboyant.”
“That’s who I wanted to be,” said Banks. “I felt like I was the best, I just didn’t have that character to let people know I was the best.”
Banks says that Dusty Rhodes provided some polish to her idea, and the rest is history.
“I was talking to Dream, and Dream helped me so much, trying to find my voice as this Legit Boss character,” Banks said.
“And now, I’m here today.”
Sasha Banks On Not Wrestling Like Eddy Guerrero
Anyone with more than a casual knowledge of Sasha Banks knows that Eddy Guerrero was her favorite wrestler as a kid. So naturally, when she was first training at the Chaotic Wrestling school, Banks says she tried to emulate her hero.
“Frog splashes were all I wanted to do,” said Banks.
“Until in training, I did a frog splash and I went over the crash pad. I landed straight on my face, busted it, bleeding everywhere,” Banks said.
“And then I was terrified to do a frog splash until I got to the main roster. But then I was like, I had to do one for WrestleMania.”
Sasha Banks On What Continues To Motivate Her
After participating in many WWE firsts, including the first women’s hell in a cell match and being the first entrant in the first women’s Royal Rumble match, Banks finds herself in something of a unique place.
At just 26 years old, she already has a list of credentials worthy of the WWE Hall of Fame.
So what continues to drive The Boss?
“There’s always going to be something more to strive for,” Banks said.
“I want to be the best, and I want to do this as long as I can while being absolutely happy.”
“I love wrestling with all my heart,” said Banks. “It’s the only thing that I know and love, so that’s what drives me.”
“I feel like I just have to continue to show the world what women wrestling can do within this company. I know we can take over, and just keep on striving for more. And hopefully soon, we can main event a WrestleMania.”
You can hear Banks’s full interview with Edge and Christian below.
