5 booking decisions Sasha Banks wouldn't have liked

With recent news of Sasha Banks threatening to leave WWE, rumors and speculation have run wild. Along with longtime confidante Bayley, the duo had a great start on the main roster in 2016- but have taken a back seat to their fellow four horsewomen since 2018 (Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch who recently just main-evented at the biggest WWE spectacle of the year, WrestleMania).

Sasha has received consistent fan support off the heel of her magnificent displays of talent during her NXT tenure but has failed to reach the same heights under the bright lights of Monday Night RAW. With the impending 'Superstar Shakeup' it appears a trade to SmackDown Live (along with Bayley) might be able to reinvigorate Banks and see her embark on a career renaissance.

---

#5. Quickly losing the Women's Tag Team Championships (with Bayley)

Sasha Banks and Bayley

Although they won the Women's Tag Team titles at Elimination Chamber 2019, the celebration wouldn't last long for the recently formed Boss N' Hug Connection (a weak homage to The Rock and Mick Foley's infamous 1999 tag team The Rock N' Sock Connection).

Adding insult to injury, Bayley was pinned by Billie Kay, thus dropping the titles at WrestleMania 35 to The IIconics. Overall, their tag run was lackluster but its clear WWE quickly lost faith in Sasha and Bayley carrying the mantle for women's tag team wrestling in the company.

---

#4. Hotshotting the Women's Title and Short Reigns

Sasha Banks and Charlotte were fixtures in the main event of RAW's women's division in 2016.

Sasha engaged in a high profile feud with Charlotte for several months in 2017 (who was a quickly rising star at the time- paired with both her father Ric Flair and NXT new-comer Dana Brooke). Their feud was given the spotlight on Monday Night RAW but ultimately came up short.

The two locked up in a historic, hellacious Hell in Cell matchup- but the title changed hands too many times and far too quickly. Coupled with this, Sasha never held onto a lengthy reign where she could show what she was capable as champion.

The feud decisively ended at Roadblock: End of the Line 2016, in a grueling Iron Woman match where Banks' career has never quite recovered from.

#3. Her feuds with Nia Jax

Nia Jax is said to have injured Banks during in-ring confrontations.

Her initial feud with Nia Jax seemed directionless and was a big step down for Banks. She was thrown into this storyline after descending down the ranks from main event status, and it felt like a major demotion.

Her latest 2019 stint with Jax led to Banks receiving a title shot against RAW women's champion Ronda Rousey, but this ultimately went nowhere. Banks was soundly defeated by Rousey at The Royal Rumble 2019 and hasn't been anywhere near the title picture since that night.

---

#2. Her 2018 in perpetual limbo

Bayley and Banks had an utterly forgettable 2018.

In 2018, Banks accomplished almost nothing of significance on the main roster. This would have been a great year to transform her character, but an incoming Ronda Rousey (who debuted at the culmination of Royal Rumble 2018) was clearly anointed the poster-girl and major box office attraction on RAW from then onward.

Rousey's stranglehold of the women's division and Title on RAW didn't help either. Banks was only on the pre-show of WrestleMania 34 and not even booked at SummerSlam 2018.

#1. Her failure to turn heel on the main roster

The Boss

Its been almost three years since she debuted and we have yet to see Banks shine as a heel. This is an alignment that always best suited her personality and character. Continual clunky, unconvincing babyface promos have solidified this fact. This was evident even from her earliest promos on RAW when squaring off against Charlotte Flair-- it was obvious Banks was deeply out of her comfort zone.

The 'Boss' persona clearly doesn't lend itself to a babyface character (Banks was ruthless and arrogant during her NXT days). Her lack of versatility might have ultimately led to her gradual downfall.

2018 saw Banks in an awkward feud/relationship with Bayley where it seemed she was on the verge of snapping, but WWE never really went ahead with that angle. This would have been the ideal timeframe as it was clear management had zero immediate direction or long-term vision for both women