The inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions have been crowned. Bayley & Sasha Banks beat Nia Jax & Tamina, Sarah Logan & Ruby Riott, Sonya Deville & Mandy Rose, Billie Kay & Peyton Royce, and Carmella & Naomi at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view event at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Three teams from RAW and three teams from SmackDown Live competed inside the Elimination Chamber to crown the first Women’s Tag Team Champions. As a result, this marks WWE history.

FIRE and DESIRE is absolutely RELENTLESS, and @WWE_MandyRose just proved it. #WWEChamber pic.twitter.com/SLT2nISI8x

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) February 18, 2019

Are @itsBayleyWWE & @SashaBanksWWE THE team to beat?

The #BossNHugConnection goes into survival mode inside the #EliminationChamber! #WWEChamber pic.twitter.com/CmRMChjrlv

— WWE (@WWE) February 18, 2019

It's OPEN SEASON for #TheIIconics! Can they score the first elimination?!#WWEChamber @BillieKayWWE @PeytonRoyceWWE pic.twitter.com/YkI0wcRBY4

— WWE (@WWE) February 18, 2019

Welcome to the Elimination Chamber, @WWE_MandyRose!#WWEChamber @itsBayleyWWE pic.twitter.com/OZiTiyJyCX

— WWE (@WWE) February 18, 2019

This comes after WWE Chairman Vince McMahon confirmed in December that after months of talk of the possibility, there would be an introduction of tag team titles in the women’s division.

At the time of this announcement, the speculation was that WWE could have separate titles on each brand just like they did with the men’s tag team titles. However, it appears that WWE is going with the idea of one set of champions defending the gold on both brands.

What are your thoughts on Bayley and Banks winning the titles? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.

We noted before that the general tickets for AEW’s upcoming Double or Nothing event were sold out within 4 minutes after they went on sale yesterday.

The company EVP Cody Rhodes took on his twitter after this quick sell out and told some interesting facts about this, including the fact that it was the first same day sell out for a Pro Wrestling Show in Las Vegas:

• Tickets purchased from all 50 states domestically(plus Puerto Rico / D.C)

• 9 countries. Canada, UK, Mexico, Australia, Costa Rica, Finland, Germany, Panama, Austria

• 1st same day sellout for pro-wrestling in Vegas ever!

Thank you fans for going “all in” on this dream. pic.twitter.com/F5oi8A7uDu

— Cody Rhodes (@CodyRhodes) February 13, 2019

Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega and a Women’s Triple Threat are the two matches that have been announced for Double Or Nothing so far. We can expect more matches to be added to the show in coming weeks.

Sasha Banks Reacts To Being Cleared

After being attacked on this week’s Raw, WWE had reported that Sasha Banks re-aggravated a shoulder injury and her Elimination Chamber status was in question.

Though the company later confirmed that The Boss has been cleared to compete at the show and reacting to the news, Banks sent out the following Tweet:

God is good 🙌🏾😭🙌🏾 https://t.co/vKzwqoC4KV

— Mercedes Moné Varnado (@MercedesVarnado) February 13, 2019

Banks is currently expected to compete in Elimination Chamber match to determine the Inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Champions and she along with her partner Bayley is expected to start the match.

Sasha Banks has been cleared to compete Sunday at the Elimination Chamber. Banks’ status for the PPV had been in question due to a shoulder injury. She has seen limited in-ring action since the Royal Rumble.

WWE officially confirmed the news just recently on Twitter:

INJURY UPDATE: After undergoing additional rehab on her injured shoulder, @SashaBanksWWE has been CLEARED to compete in the @WWE #WomensTagTitles Elimination Chamber Match this Sunday at #WWEChamber. https://t.co/quXx2Z5vMZ

— WWE (@WWE) February 13, 2019

“After undergoing additional rehabilitation on her injured shoulder, Sasha Banks has been cleared to compete in the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Elimination Chamber Match this Sunday,” a WWE Press Release reads.

• Update On Sasha Banks’ Injury

Sasha Banks Shoulder Injury

Banks was taken out of her last two matches on RAW early due to injury, leaving Bayley to fend for herself. This was evidently due to Banks only being cleared for limited contact.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter noted Banks has been cleared since Tuesday. WWE only made the news official in storyline today, however.

WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Elimination Chamber Match

Banks will compete in the Elimination Chamber tag-team match on Sunday. Her team with Bayley will face Nia Jax & Tamina, the Riott Squad, the Iiconics, Naomi & Carmella, and Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville.

Two matches on WWE programming this week revolved around this match. On RAW, Nia Jax & Tamina won a triple threat match which saw Bayley pinned. The loss for the Boss N Hug Connection means they will enter the chamber first. Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville then lost a similar match on Smackdown and will also start the match.

Sasha Banks has been hardly seen wrestling a single match since her bout with Ronda Rousey at the Royal Rumble for the WWE Raw Women’s Championship. This was believed to be because of the injury and WWE was trying to protect her till she recovers properly for Sunday’s match.

But WWE released a report last night saying that Sasha has “re-aggravated” her shoulder injury after getting slammed onto a barricade on Raw, and that her status for the PPV is unclear. However there seems to be some good news in sight for the Boss ‘n’ Hug Connection.

Dave Meltzer on the Wrestling Observer Radio noted that Sasha has been officially cleared to compete as of Tuesday. He added that she was partly cleared on Monday and that’s the reason the barricade spot was done.

The WWE report had stated that more updates will soon be coming and it seems like the injury will be played as part of a storyline where Sasha overcomes her injuries to take part in the match.

Sasha and Bayley, who together are the Boss ‘n’ Hug Connection, are set to compete in a Elimination Chamber Match against the teams of Liv Morgan & Sarah Logan, Carmella & Naomi, Sonya Deville & Mandy Rose, The IIconics and Tamina Snuka & Nia Jax for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship. The event will emanate from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on Sunday, 17 February.

The team of Sasha Banks and Bayley, The Boss ‘n’ Hug Connection, were probably on many people’s list to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships on the upcoming Elimination Chamber event. This however has been put in jeopardy as Sasha Banks has “re-aggravated” her shoulder injury according to a report released by WWE.com last night.

On this week’s episode of Raw, during a triple threat tag-team match against Nia Jax & Tamina and Liv Morgan & Sarah Logan, Banks was driven into the barricade by Ruby Riott, and was unable to compete in the majority of the match. Banks has not been overly active in any match she has participated in since her injury at the Royal Rumble title match against Ronda Rousey.

It looked like Sasha was getting ready for the Elimination Chamber match with her making appearances on Raw each week. But this sudden report from WWE without much details has made her status for the event unclear. The report simply states:

“Sasha Banks re-aggravated a shoulder injury during a Triple Threat Tag Team Match on Raw, WWE.com has learned.

The injury forced Banks out of the match, leaving her partner Bayley to compete by herself.

Stick with WWE.com for more updates on Sasha Banks’ status as they become available.”

So is the WWE planning to sideline Sasha Banks from the Elimination Chamber? Or is this part of a storyline? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

As WWE heads fully into WrestleMania season, several Superstars are said to be dealing with injuries.

Seth Rollins Injury Update

Seth Rollins is said to be dealing with a back injury which will keep him from in-ring work for the next month. According to an update on Wrestling Observer Radio, however, his injury is not said to be serious enough that his WrestleMania match with Brock Lesnar is in jeopardy.

“Seth Rollins has a bad back,” Dave Meltzer said. “He was off TV tonight. They’re going to rest him up. I was told it’s not WrestleMania-threatening.”

Rollins could potentially miss the next PPV, however, as Elimination Chamber is scheduled for just 12 days from now.

• Jeff Jarrett Works First WWE Match Since 1999

AJ Styles Injury Update

Former WWE Champion, AJ Styles, has not wrestled since losing to Daniel Bryan at the Royal Rumble. His status appears to be up in the air at the moment.

“AJ has a hernia,” Meltzer continued. “I don’t know where that would stand as far as tomorrow goes but that’s the injury.”

Sasha Banks Injury Update

Banks wrestled for the first time since the Royal Rumble last night on RAW but her injury status is still not clear either. Her and Bayley defeated Nikki Cross and Alicia Fox but Banks was not overly active in the match.

“They did the entire match, she did not tag in a single time,” said Bryan Alvarez. “She laid on the ramp and then she laid outside the entire match. She did one spot where she yanked Nikki Cross into the post. Then Bayley got the win, so she never tagged in.”

Meltzer noted that if Banks was not cleared to compete she would not have been out there, however.

Becky Lynch also missed some house shows recently but her injuries are said to be entirely storyline based.

Seth Rollins is currently dealing with an undisclosed injury that will keep him out of action for the next several weeks. Rollins has not been medically cleared to wrestle, according to John Pollack of Post Wrestling.

“He is off live events for the time being and not expected to be used on Raw this Monday to recover,” Pollock reports. “We were told that he will only be doing promos with no physicality for the next month on television.”

WWE has yet to acknowledge the injury, but it’s believed the situation predates his recent beatdown at the hands of Brock Lesnar last week on Raw.

Rollins is scheduled to challenge for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania 35 on Sunday, April 7th.

Other WWE Injury Updates

Sasha Banks was not cleared to compete following the Royal Rumble but she is expected to be for Monday. She’ll team with Bayley against Nikkie Cross and Alicia Fox in a WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship qualifier.

AJ Styles was said to be a little beat up but will be cleared for Smackdown on Tuesday.

• AJ Styles Denies He Has Signed A New WWE Contract

Becky Lynch was not on a recent Smackdown house show but the knee injury she is dealing with is said to be entirely storyline based. She’ll be on Smackdown this week barring any new developments. Lynch was seen leaving the arena Tuesday on Smackdown before WWE medical personnel could evaluate her.

Two top WWE RAW stars were missing in action at a live event on Friday in Saskatoon, SK, CA at the SaskTel Centre. Those stars were former WWE RAW Women’s Champion Sasha Banks and former Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins.

It was noted by fans in attendance that prior to the show starting, ring announcer Dasha Fuentes hyped how “The Kingslayer is here in the house tonight” while looking at the crowd for signs.

This comes after both Rollins and Banks were advertised to appear. Also, it should be noted that Rollins even hyped appearing at the show once he tweeted out “mother tongue @ Saskatoon, Saskatchewan” with a photo from Instagram.

As of this writing, there’s no word yet on why Rollins and Banks missed the show. We’ll pass along an update if we get one.

Dean Ambrose, who is on his way out of the company once his contract expires in April, headlined the show when he battled WWE Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley, Drew McIntyre and Finn Balor in a Fatal 4-Way Match.

WWE Saskatoon, SK Event Results

• RAW Tag Team Champions Bobby Roode and Chad Gable retains over The Revival
• Nikki Cross defeated Tamina Snuka
• Apollo Crews defeated Elias
• Braun Strowman defeated Baron Corbin
• Rhyno, Heath Slater and Titus O’Neil defeated The Ascension and Rezar
• Natalya and Bayley defeated Ruby Riott and Sarah Logan (w/ Liv Morgan)
• Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley retains over Dean Ambrose, Drew McIntyre, and Finn Balor in a Fatal 4-Way Match

Former WWE RAW Women’s Champion Sasha Banks spoke with William Mullally of The Cutaway about a wide range of pro wrestling topics in order to promote the WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view event where she’s set to challenge WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey for the strap.

During the interview, she was asked about her desire to headline WrestleMania 35 in a few months.

“I hope it’s me main-eventing WrestleMania. I’ve been saying it since day one. As far as Becky goes, she’s part of the Four Horsewomen so I have so much love and respect for her.”

Banks continued by stating that it’s cool to have Rousey in the WWE but she’s not the legit boss or the Man or the Queen or Hugger. In her eyes, she does think Rousey brings a lot of viewers to WWE from the outside world but she’s not one of them and no one is going to break more ground than her.

“I said from day one that I wanted to main event a WrestleMania. I put it out in the universe. If I see someone else does that, that’s going to break my heart. My hard work and someone else takes it? I don’t think so.”

Banks continued the interview by bringing up WWE expanding storylines in the women’s division. This is where she stated that she feels like they have come such a long way with the women’s division of the WWE but there’s only one women’s title on each brand and there’s only one story on each show. That will change once the Women’s Tag Team Titles get introduced.

“I don’t understand why we can’t have titles for it to have a secondary storyline where people will be more invested in what we do. Me and Bayley tag team all the time, but I feel like if we have a tag title to chase after, if we are champions, we can go to both brands and show the world that women’s tag team [wrestling] is where it’s at. For 2019, that is definitely the goal.”

Ronda Rousey will defend her RAW Women’s Championship tomorrow night (Sun. January 27, 2019). “The Rowdy One” will defend her strap against Sasha Banks at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV). The event goes down from the Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. Rousey has called a match with Banks one of her dream match-ups. She’ll finally get the opportunity to share the ring with “The Boss” on one of WWE’s biggest events of the year.

In preparation for her bout, Banks has been training at the WWE Performance Center alongside Charlotte Flair. They also trained at the Amazing Red’s House of Glory wrestling school in Queens. WWE posted a video of their sessions below. Check it out here:

There are several big match-ups scheduled for tomorrow’s PPV. Check out the full card for the event below:

• WWE Universal Championship: (C) Brock Lesnar vs. Finn Balor
• WWE Championship: (C) Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles
• 30-Man Royal Rumble Match: R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, Mustafa Ali, John Cena, Andrade “Cien” Almas, Apollo Crews, Elias, Baron Corbin, Jinder Mahal, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor, Drew McIntyre, Kofi Kingston, Big E, Xavier Woods, Jeff Hardy, Bobby Lashley, Kalisto, TBA
• 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match: Carmella, Naomi, Zelina Vega, Natalya, Bayley, Sasha Banks, Ember Moon, Ruby Riott, Sarah Logan, Liv Morgan, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Alicia Fox, Mickie James, TBA
• WWE RAW Women’s Championship: (C) Ronda Rousey vs. Sasha Banks
• WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship: (C) Asuka vs. Becky Lynch
• WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship: (C) The Bar vs. Shane McMahon & The Miz
• Fatal Four-Way Match For The WWE Cruiserweight Championship: (C) Buddy Murphy vs. Kalisto vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Hideo Itami
• WWE United States Championship: (C) Rusev vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

What do you think about Flair helping Banks prepare for her match with Rousey?

It can be difficult to move forward with a plan of action. Even if you have a plan, constant changes and life obstacles can impact a person’s progress towards achieving their goal and executing their plans. Just ask “The Boss” Sasha Banks.

Sasha Banks was a recent guest on the popular podcast, E&C’s Pod Of Awesomeness. Over the course of their conversation, she would speak about her partnership (and friendship) with Bayley and highlighted dealing with WWE’s frequent creative indecision.

Banks said she was looking forward to 2019, claiming 2018 to have been a difficult year full of constant creative change. She isolated this as a core reason as to why she struggled to build, and maintain, any momentum.

“All of last year, I feel like our [Sasha Banks and Bayley] career was kind of like at a standpoint where we weren’t really doing much, where we were told one thing and the next week, it was something else,” she confessed.

“We thought we would be facing each other, and then they stopped that. So we were like, ‘Alright, if they’re going to make us a tag team, let’s be the best tag team we could possibly be.’ […] We were training together; we’re watching tape together; we’re getting matching [ring] gear just to be told that they weren’t going to have the [Women’s Tag Team] titles. And then, the next thing you know, they’re introducing the titles.”

“[…] there are so many dreams and so many goals that we stay up late on the road just talking about how we’re going to achieve them all.”

You may have noticed that the screen blacked out for a few seconds during the main event of last night’s Monday Night RAW. RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey teamed up with Natalya to take on Sasha Banks and Bayley. During the match, while Banks worked with Natalya, the screen went black for a few seconds before coming back on.

It turns out that a Sasha Banks wardrobe malfunction was to blame for the brief blackout. Banks’ trunks came down during the match, exposing her backside. For those watching satellite, however, the incident was not able to be blacked out in time.

Sasha Banks is scheduled to face Ronda Rousey at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view this weekend for the RAW Women’s Championship.

WWE Royal Rumble Updated Card

• WWE Universal Championship: (C) Brock Lesnar vs. Finn Balor
• WWE Championship: (C) Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles
• 30-Man Royal Rumble Match: R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, Mustafa Ali, John Cena, Andrade “Cien” Almas, Apollo Crews, Elias, Baron Corbin, Jinder Mahal, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor, Drew McIntyre, Kofi Kingston, Big E, Xavier Woods, Jeff Hardy, Bobby Lashley, Kalisto, TBA
• 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match: Carmella, Naomi, Zelina Vega, Natalya, Bayley, Sasha Banks, Ember Moon, Ruby Riott, Sarah Logan, Liv Morgan, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Alicia Fox, Mickie James, TBA
• WWE RAW Women’s Championship: (C) Ronda Rousey vs. Sasha Banks
• WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship: (C) Asuka vs. Becky Lynch
• WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship: (C) The Bar vs. Shane McMahon & The Miz
• Fatal Four-Way Match For The WWE Cruiserweight Championship: (C) Buddy Murphy vs. Kalisto vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Hideo Itami
• WWE United States Championship: (C) Rusev vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

The WWE’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) is set to go down this weekend (Sun. January 27, 2019) from the Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. In one of the premiere match-ups of the night, RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey will be defending her title. She’ll face off against former RAW Women’s Champion Sasha Banks. The pair have been feuding on WWE TV for the past several weeks to hype up their bout.

This week, Rousey teamed up with Natalya to take on Banks and Bayley in the main event of RAW. Rousey has proven herself to be a solid worker inside the ring. As for Banks, she’s one of the best in-ring performers the WWE’s women’s division has to offer. It will certainly be interesting to see how the pair work together in singles action on one of WWE’s biggest pay-per-views (PPV) of the year.

Best Ever?

WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T seems pretty optimistic about the match-up. Speaking on his “Heated Conversations” podcast recently, Booker said he believes the bout has the potential to be the best women’s match ever:

“It could be the best women’s match that we’ve seen thus far – and really, I’m not just saying that – as far as Ronda Rousey goes,” Booker said. “As far as Ronda going out there and having that match to where she look back and say, ‘Man, that was so, so good.’ Sasha Banks, she’s one of the best. And she’ll throw caution to the wind.

“She puts herself in certain positions sometimes where it scares me – seriously – inside of the ring, as well as outside of the ring. She’s just one of those type that just will put herself out there and you got to love that. That’s what the business is about, it’s not ballet or anything like that.

“Ronda Rousey’s definitely gonna be tested as far as her cardio and endurance goes because Sasha can go all night long. I’m looking forward to it. All around, the ladies are doing some crazy stuff.”

Do you think Rousey vs. Banks could turn into the best women’s match ever?

H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

– WWE has announced a new licensing agreement with New Era Cap Co. Inc. As part of this new agreement, New Era will produce select hats for marquee WWE events, including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Royal Rumble and Survivor Series, as well as select headwear featuring logos, names and catch phrases of WWE Superstars and Legends. The WWE-branded New Era caps go on sale this April.

Excited to announce our partnership with the @WWE! Be on the lookout for a full collection soon, and multiple drops throughout the year. pic.twitter.com/oVtt1jWnHY

— New Era Cap (@NewEraCap) January 22, 2019

– “WWE 24: WrestleMania Big Easy” premieres this Sunday night on the WWE Network immediately following the Royal Rumble. The latest installment of the WWE 24 documentary series profiles last year’s WrestleMania 34 pay-per-view from New Orleans.

THIS SUNDAY immediately following @WWE #RoyalRumble, stick around for "#WWE24: @WrestleMania Big Easy" streaming only on @WWENetwork! pic.twitter.com/47WNmvIAL6

— WWE Network (@WWENetwork) January 22, 2019

– In just a matter of days, Sasha Banks challenges Ronda Rousey for the RAW Women’s Championship at the Royal Rumble. The two have been exchanging words on social media in recent weeks and The Boss has responded to Rousey calling her a “Faux” Horsewoman.

Channeling Demolition member Smash, Banks says, “I’ll kick your teeth in, tap you out, and send you back to your farm wishing you never even stepped in a ring.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bs7Q_92AlNH/

On the final Raw before their Royal Rumble 2019 title match, Ronda Rousey and Sasha Banks will be on opposing sides of tag-team action. Scheduled for this week’s Raw is Rousey and Natalya taking on Banks and Bayley.

This week’s Raw will take place in the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City. No other matches have been made official for Monday’s show.

“With the animosity between The Baddest Woman on the Planet and The Boss ramping up over the past week, both on the last edition of Raw and on social media, what will it look like when the two have a chance to get their hands on one another just six nights before their title clash?” – WWE Press Release.

Ronda Rousey & Natalya vs Sasha Banks & Bayley Stats

This will be the 4th time that Rousey and Natalya have teamed together on WWE programming. They are a perfect 3-0 so far. They were victorious against the teams of Alexa Bliss & Mickie James, Nia Jax & Tamina, and in a triple threat match involving Jax & Tamina and Sarah Logan & Liv Morgan at Tribute to the Troops.

Bayley and Sasha Banks teamed together 22 times in 2018. They finished the year with a record of14-8.

Banks said recently it’s her goal to be a double-champ, holding both singles and tag-team gold.

“It’s just cool at the start of 2019 going into the title picture and hearing the tag titles are coming,” Banks said to Talk Sport. “So for me, my goal is to be a double champion.”

With their Royal Rumble storyline trash talking heating up, it may be easy for the lines to be blurred between fact and fiction in the Ronda Rousey/Sasha Banks rivalry.

One place to go for some shoot comments in the build to this match is Ronda Rousey’s YouTube channel, where she regularly releases videos discussing her wrestling journey in a candid way.

In a video released late Wednesday, Rousey discusses why she looks forward to working with Banks, and why she sees Banks as a special talent.

Ronda Rousey On Sasha Banks’s Style

“I love her wrestling style. It’s very unique and distinct. Her personality comes out in how she fights,” said Rousey. “When you fight people it’s like having a conversation. She’s got a very wide vocabulary.”

Rousey also sees Banks as an innovator.

“She has lots of moves, but she makes up new stuff all the time. It’s not just spots and stuff like that.”

Ronda Rousey: Sasha Banks Is Obsessed

Rousey also gushes about Banks’s wrestling IQ. As a driven person who has reached the pinnacle of multiple professions, Rousey can appreciate what she calls that obsession.

“She’s just a fanatic of wrestling. An encyclopedia,” said Rousey.

“I’m pretty sure that the second she leaves actually wrestling, she goes home and watches wrestling nonstop until she goes wrestling again,” Rousey said.

“Don’t you kind of get that vibe? Like she’s one hundred percent obsessed with it?”

“I understand having an obsessive personality about things. A) So I like her, and B) of all the women wrestling right now, she’s the most knowledgeable,” Rousey said.

“Not just of history, but she’s a fanatic of how matches work and how you put them together. She’s a savant in a way that doesn’t take away from everything else.”

“She’s just really f—ing awesome.”

What do you think of Ronda Rousey’s comments on Sasha Banks being obsessed with wrestling?

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.

Former WWE RAW Women’s Champion Sasha Banks continues to make the media rounds to promote her next big match under the WWE banner, which will see her challenge for the top title in the women’s division on the red brand later this month.

While doing a recent interview, “The Boss” made a bold claim while discussing her chance to dethrone the current WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view event on Sunday, January 27, 2019. Up until this point, there’s been no star that has been able to do so thus far in Rousey’s career in the company.

In fact, Banks believes that she will be the first WWE Superstar to defeat Rousey. The reason behind her mindset is due to the fact that she thinks she is the best Superstar in the WWE women’s division and better than almost half of the men’s division.

“I’m The Legit Boss,” Banks said to The Express. “There’s a reason why she called me out and it wasn’t the other way around. I’m not scared of Ronda Rousey, that’s the big difference between other opponents and me. I’m not scared. There’s a big reason why I’m not scared, because I didn’t call her out.”

Banks continued by stating that, “She’s not gonna beat me because I know that in my heart I am better than her. I’m better than every woman in this company, I’m better than almost half the guys in the company as well. I might even be the greatest superstar this company has ever seen. There’s a reason that she called me out and it’s not the other way around.”

Nearing the first anniversary of her debut as a regular performer at the Royal Rumble, Ronda Rousey already has a long list of WWE achievements. Rousey recently talked about her future goals on her YouTube channel.

From a featured match at WrestleMania 34 to capturing the Raw Women’s Championship to headlining the Evolution pay-per-view, Rousey has already checked a number of boxes on a performer’s Hall of Fame resume.

What’s Left To Do?

Obviously, headlining WrestleMania would put Rousey among an elite class of superstars. It seems that Rousey may check that box as well in just a few short months.

What Else?

For Rousey, entering a Royal Rumble match at number one is something that she has put a lot of thought into, and would like to accomplish.

“It was one of my dreams in the WWE, when I first came here, one of the things I really wanted to do,” said Rousey on her YouTube channel.

Rousey goes on to explain what entering the Rumble match first would mean to her.

“I just felt like I would never be able to prove to anyone that I actually knew how to wrestle in a way that wasn’t just memorized from beginning to end unless I was the first one out in the Royal Rumble and go all the way to the end and win it.”

“Then nobody can say I don’t know how to wrestle,” said Rousey.

“That to me was the most difficult thing you could do,” Rousey said.

“That, to me, is like the peak of being able to say I can really f—ing do this.”

Will It Ever Happen?

With a showdown with Sasha Banks at this year’s Rumble, it won’t happen this year.

Rousey’s desire to start a family is well known. She isn’t expected to have longevity in the wrestling business for that reason.

“It’ll probably never happen,” said Rousey.

“We’ll see.”

Would you like to see Ronda Rousey in the Royal Rumble match?

Former WWE RAW Women’s Champion Sasha Banks has fired back at current champion Ronda Rousey over some recent comments she made.

Rousey took to her official Instagram account on Tuesday where she took some shots at Sasha Banks for representing the Four Horsewomen of WWE when the group is no longer together.

Banks, who is set to challenge Rousey for the RAW Women’s Title at the upcoming Royal Rumble PPV event on Sunday, January 27, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona at Chase Field, responded to the champ by writing the following in a recent Instagram post:

“The 4HW is about changing the perception of women’s wrestling in the WWE. Its about walking into an arena full of people, including some of the people in the back, who’s expections are lower than low, and knocking them on their asses. Showing the whole world that ” I was born to do this ” isn’t some catchy line, but a promise to them from me, that as long as I have a breath in my lungs, I will never go less than 100. That’s why I throw up the 4 fingers. You throw them up cause you’re a fan… That’s the difference between you and I @rondarousey after #RoyalRumble you can go back to sitting in the crowd where you belong.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bss-ViEg8rP/?utm_source=ig_embed

Sasha Banks has discussed WWE booking her as a babyface heading into her match against Ronda Rousey with the WWE RAW Women’s Title being on the line. This is something that WWE positioned on Monday’s episode of RAW in Memphis, TN as they added a little shade of grey into the feud once Banks got upset at Rousey’s assumption that she would be winning at the Royal Rumble.

This was after Banks and Rousey beat Nia Jax and Tamina in a tag team match on the show. This led to Banks storming to the backstage area while Rousey apologized profusely.

When Rousey defends the RAW Women’s Title against Banks at the Royal Rumble, Banks isn’t worried about the “good vs. good” or “good vs. bad” dynamic. This is something that she made clear in a recent interview with SportsKeeda.

“Why do I need to be a bad guy to wrestle her? I think in WWE it’s all about competition and having the best match, whether it’s good guys wrestling each other or bad guy against a bad guy.” Banks continued by stating that it’s all the same thing and they all have that one common goal of winning.

“So if you’re a good guy versus a bad guy, you want to win. If you’re a good guy versus a good guy, you still want to win. The common goal is winning. So I don’t think it’s going to take away from the match at all.”

If you’re excited to see “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey defend her WWE Raw Women’s Championship against “The Boss” Sasha Banks at Royal Rumble, then you’re not the only one.

Turns out that Rousey herself may be more excited about the prospect than the majority of the WWE Universe.

In a vlog uploaded over the weekend to her YouTube page, Rousey addressed facing Banks at this January’s Rumble event and even brought up the discussion of her MMA Horsewomen feuding with WWE’s Horsewomen. The video provides a unique look backstage of a WWE event, as well as the life of one of the company’s top Superstars.

“This Is My Dream Match”

“Everyone always asked me what is my dream match and I always say, ‘Sasha Banks.’ I think a lot of women have had their best match with Sasha. More people in the women’s division have had their best matches with Sasha, I think more than anyone else in my opinion. I’ve always been really excited about the potential she could really bring out of me,” Rousey admitted. “Up until this point, I didn’t think I was ready at the level where I could fully take advantage of the opportunity of being told to have a match with her.”

Regarding the matchup itself, Rousey confesses that she is “excited! Really super excited,” and that when she initially found out she “marked out super hard.”

“This is my dream match and I’m so excited. One reason why I’m really excited to have a match with Sasha is just there’s so many things that only me and her can be able to do. Very, very small and very, very durable is not a very common combination. […] There’s so many things with Sasha that I will be able to do with her because of how athletic and just knowledgeable of wrestling she is.”

“I’m really excited because I’m going to learn so much,” she said. “I’m just gonna be so much better in the ring for having absorbed everything that I can from her. We’re both faces, you don’t really get to work with each other. I’ve been able to watch her a lot and be in some tag-team matches with her and try to absorb things that way, but it’s different. You learn things different, moving around with somebody.”

Hoursewomen

“I’m excited to see what the promotion for this match is gonna be like,” Rousey said. “I would really like to bring the Four Horsewomen into the discussion because it needs to be addressed and it hasn’t been, so far. I think it’s a point of contention for all of us and everyone involved is just bursting with things to say, and I think this is finally the time to get some of it out.”

Could this be the start of this Horsewomen feud? Is that a rivalry you’d like to see?

Ronda Rousey released a video on her YouTube channel this weekend discussing her upcoming “dream match” with Sasha Banks. In the video (below), Rousey lays out why Banks is her dream match, and explains why she is better equipped to wrestle the four-time Raw Women’s Champion now than at any point in her short wrestling career.

Why Is Sasha Banks Ronda Rousey’s Dream Match?

“Everyone always asks me what my dream match is, and I always say Sasha Banks,” Rousey said. “I think more people in the women’s division have had their best matches with Sasha than with anyone else. My opinion.”

Rousey says that Banks’s combination of athleticism and wrestling IQ bring something special to the table.

“One reason I’m so excited to have a match with her is there’s so many things that only me and her can do,” said Rousey.

“Very, very small and very, very durable is not a common combination.”

“There’s certain things I’ll only be able to do with her just because of how athletic and knowledgeable of wrestling she is.”

“I’ve always been really excited about for the potential of what she could bring out of me.”

Ronda also talks about her reaction when she was told that she would be working with Banks, and what their interactions backstage have been like.

“I’m so excited. When I found out, I marked out super hard. I was like, don’t be a mark around Sasha,” said Rousey.

“I’m totally like a mark around her sometimes. She probably thinks I’m being, like, creepy nice to her.”

Why Now Is The Perfect Time For Ronda Rousey’s Dream Match

As she wraps up her first full year in WWE, Rousey says that she thinks she is much more ready to wrestle Banks than if they had been booked together earlier.

“Up until this point, I didn’t really think I was at the level where I could fully take advantage of the opportunity of being able to have a match with her,” said Rousey.

Rousey says that she memorized her WrestleMania match last year move for move, and likens learning to call things in the ring to learning a new language.

“It’s like moving to Spain and not speaking any Spanish. After a year, you learn how to speak Spanish,” Rousey said.

She also used a debate analogy to describe her knowledge base increasing.

“It’s like being on debate team, but the debate is in a language you don’t know,” said Rousey.

“After being so immersed it in, it’s not like I completely know the language, but I know enough to get my point across.”

“I might not have the greatest vocabulary to put things in the perfect way, and to be as succinct and articulate as I would want to be, but I can speak enough for you to understand what I mean.”

“So, in short, I’m really f—ing excited to have a match with Sasha Banks,” said Rousey.

“This is my dream match.”

You can see Rousey’s full comments below:

Banks Takes Shot At Rousey & Lesnar

RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey is currently set to defend her title against Sasha Banks. The pair will meet at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) later this month (Sun. January 27, 2019). “The Legit Boss” took to Twitter and commented on working live events recently. She then proceeded to take shots at Rousey and Universal Champion Brock Lesnar.

Banks promised fans that soon enough they’ll have a champion who will come to a town near them:

“Making towns like it’s 1993”

Making towns like it’s 1993 pic.twitter.com/VE56njw01q

— Mercedes Moné Varnado (@MercedesVarnado) January 11, 2019

“And good morning to all the future towns I’ll be making. Soon enough you’ll have a champion that will actually come to a town near you. Hi @brocklesnar Hi @rondarousey #ShowUpShowOut #LegitBoss #MakingTowns #EveryWeek #EveryYear #PissedOffForGreatness”

And good morning to all the future towns I'll be making. Soon enough you'll have a champion that will actually come to a town near you.
Hi @brocklesnar
Hi @rondarousey #ShowUpShowOut #LegitBoss #MakingTowns #EveryWeek #EveryYear #PissedOffForGreatness

— Mercedes Moné Varnado (@MercedesVarnado) January 11, 2019

ROH Title Holder Re-Signs With Promotion

Ring Of Honor (ROH) recently announced that they’ve re-signed WOH World Champion Kelly Klein. The announcement was made official on ROH’s Twitter account. Klein recently captured the WOH World Title in a Fatal Four-Way match against Sumie Sakai, Madison Rayne, and Karen Q at “Final Battle.”

She had this to say about re-signing with ROH:

“Time and again I have earned respect. You don’t have to like me. But you’re lying if you say you don’t respect me” – @Women_of_Honor World Champion @RealKellyKlein on signing with #ROH and her upcoming defense THIS SUNDAY at #ROHHRS! Read Now: https://buff.ly/2QwPo9X”

“Time and again I have earned respect. You don’t have to like me. But you’re lying if you say you don’t respect me" – @Women_of_Honor World Champion @RealKellyKlein on signing with #ROH and her upcoming defense THIS SUNDAY at #ROHHRS!

Read Now: https://t.co/hwuzzAxEIU pic.twitter.com/ACYmC0G09j

— ROH – Ring of Honor Wrestling (@ringofhonor) January 8, 2019

Klein will defend her title against Jenny Rose this weekend (Sun. January 13, 2019) at the Honor Reigns Supreme live event in Concord, North Carolina. Check out the card for the show here:

• ROH World Championship: (C) Jay Lethal vs. Dalton Castle
• ROH WOH World Championship: (C) Kelly Klein vs. Jenny Rose
• Villain Enterprises (Marty Scurll, PCO, Brody King) vs. Silas Young and The Briscoes
• The Kingdom (Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan, and Vinny Marseglia) vs. Delirious, Luchasaurus, and Shane “Hurricane” Helms
• Bandido vs. PJ Black
• Flip Gordon vs. Tracy Williams
• Best Friends vs. Juice Robinson & David Finlay
• Mark Haskins vs. Beer City Bruiser
• Proving Grounds Instant Reward Match: Jeff Cobb vs. Shane Taylor vs. Rhett Titus vs. Jonathan Gresham

This past Monday on Raw, “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey discovered who her next challenger will be, come the Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) on January 27th.

Competing in a hard-fought affair, Sasha Banks would come out victorious in her number one contender matchup against former Raw Women’s champion, Nia Jax.

After the match, Sasha shared her thoughts backstage regarding facing Ronda Rousey at the Rumble.

Taking to her Instagram account, Rousey has since responded, sending a message aimed directly at Sasha Banks:

“@sashabankswwe Congrats on your win against @niajaxwwe last night, it’ll be my honor to defend my #rawwomenschampionship from you. But it’ll be my absolute pleasure dispelling the #fantasy of the #fauxhorsewomen when I beat you at the #RoyalRumble – this is the #reality era, and the real #4horsewomen are here to define it. #TheBossVsTheBaddest #RondaVsSasha #Jan27 #4horsewomenVSfauxhorsewomen check link in bio for context if you missed the action last night.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BsYXa2dn-RQ/?utm_source=ig_embed

It’s interesting that Ronda has brought up the Four Horsewomen. Given the other members of the MMA Four Horsewomen are still in NXT, and WWE’s previous plans for a major Horsewomen feud, could this be a hint towards a future rivalry?

Royal Rumble 2019

The Royal Rumble event will take place on January 27th at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.

Women’s Royal Rumble match

Men’s Royal Rumble match

Universal Championship
Brock Lesnar (c) vs Braun Strowman

WWE Championship
Daniel Bryan (c) vs AJ Styles

SmackDown Women’s Championship
Asuka (c) vs Becky Lynch

RAW Women’s Championship
Ronda Rousey (c) vs Sasha Banks

WWE Cruiserweight Championship
Fatal 4-Way
Buddy Murphy (c) vs Kalisto vs Akira Tozawa vs TBD