Nikki Bella during the 295th day of her championship reign.This was a remarkable year in women’ wrestling in the realm of WWE. While the main roster, over the past few years, shied away from giving its female performers more time in the ring or a compelling storyline,NXT was right there producing some trailblazing work. The work was so good that it began spreading across the main roster. And with Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch and Charlotte making their main roster debuts, expectations rose as to what these women could do and how they’ll change the main roster for good.While the Divas revolution was the most overused and redundant term used this year, there have been some matches that have gone beyond expectations and delivered.Here are the 5 Best Divas matches of the year-
#6 Honorable mention- Nikki Bella Vs Charlotte (Hell In A Cell)
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This was quite a surprise. Nikki Bella dominated the match with some stiff moves and looked every bit the fearless diva she claims to be.
She was vicious in her attack and despite being up against someone like Charlotte, who’s one of NXT’s best performers to be promoted to the main roster, Bella came off looking like the better wrestler.
The babyface and the heel dynamic was clear cut, something quite rare for the main roster divas division.Charlotte took a lot of offence and sold like hell for Nikki and the former champ looked quite steady on her road to become a champion one more time.
But Charlotte won and had another great match on the main roster to boast of.
#5 Bayley Vs Eva Marie- (NXT)
A match worthy of a Takeover. This had all the storyline elements to make it seem like a thriller. Eva Marie has gone on to gain some nuclear heat and she was up against the biggest babyface in NXT right now.
This presented a fascinating, old world charm to this match where there was a clear babyface with unanimous support and a clear heel with unanimous heat. There were referee bumps, near falls and questionable calls, but ultimately Eva Marie did not win and all was fine with the world.
Even though this was no technical classic, it was really high on the element of drama that is so crucial in the world of wrestling.
#4 Nikki Bella Vs Charlotte (Raw)
On the 295th day of Nikki Bella’s Divas Championship reign, Charlotte challenged to claim the throne.
This was a day where Bella tied the record for being the longest reigning Divas Champion, a record she shared with AJ Lee. Throughout her reign, there were a few matches of note but only a few.
The main roster never fully realized the potential of its female performers until NXT broke all conventions and that influence spread to the main roster.
Charlotte got the opportunity to face Bella at Night of Champions for the title. But the stars finally aligned to give Charlotte the opportunity to be the party crasher on Bella’s reign on the 295th day.
Also, there was the jarring controversy of the WWE trying to get back to AJ Lee, who’s married to CM Punk.
Bella lost via disqualification but kept the title. The heel gained some nuclear heat and the babyface gained all the sympathy. A main roster clash that was unlike any other main roster clash and the story was perfectly played out in a well-wrestled match with the rapt attention of the audience.
#3 Bayley Vs Sasha Banks (NXT Takeover: Respect)
While not as great as their Brooklyn clash, the match that took place at Takeover: respect is a moment in history.
It main evented an NXT Takeover show. This is was the highlight for the women’ division of NXT, this was certainly something that these two women earned given the work they’ve done in NXT along with Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Thus was a huge statement and they lived up to the hype.
Since then, it’s quite hard to imagine Bayley not main eventing NXT shows and Takeovers.
They gave us a babyface juggernaut like Bayley in its full-fledged form with this feud.
#2 Sasha Banks Vs Becky Lynch (NXT Takeover: Unstoppable)
Sasha Banks lives her persona. When she says she’s the boss, you believe it. She gained that respect through all the work she’s put forth at NXT so much so that you could feel the respect at every arena she walked into.
Becky Lynch was quite new in her babyface character and wasn’t as over as a babyface as one would expect. She wasn’t even equal in the aura of her opponent. But at Takeover: Unstoppable something clicked.
These two went on to have a match way better than the match that actually ended the show. So even after Samoa Joe debuted in NXT and Owens and Zayn continued their hot feud, it was Banks vs Lynch that you most remembered.
It was high on in- ring psychology with banks trying to overpower Lynch with her own moves and Lynch trying really hard to survive. They completely outclassed the main even in the process. It was a breakthrough for Lynch who got a standing ovation from the audience.
#1 Bayley vs Sasha Banks (NXT Takeover: Brooklyn)
There is no match this year or in the past few years that changed the landscape of women’ wrestling as much as this one did. With the surging popularity of NXT, in the biggest arena, amongst the largest crowd it had at the time, two women outclassed everything they followed and what followed them.
Banks and Bayley told a beautiful story in a magical moment that finally gave Bayley the glory she deserves. These two put on a classic for the ages. The crowd was with them throughout.
Banks going over the top rope, Banks working Bayley’s arm, Bayley putting the Bank Statement on the champion, Bayley doing a reverse hurricanrana and then performing the Bayley to Bayley – the journey throughout was wonderful.
The story took all their time at NXT and then led to this beautiful moment.
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