5 Potential Winners of The Women's WrestleMania 35 Battle Royal

The WWE have announced the second-ever Women's Battle Royal for WrestleMania 35, and while it will likely be put on the pre-show like the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, it can be of plenty of use to the WWE.

It allows them to promote stars from NXT to get them in the spotlight and noticed by the WWE Universe, as well as give seasoned main roster performers a chance to shine at WrestleMania, but ultimately, only one can come out on top and outlast the field.

From NXT upstarts to current main roster performers, there are plenty of candidates to follow in Naomi's footsteps and win this battle royal, but today we are going to take a look at the field and give you our 5 best candidates to come out on top in New York.

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#5 Candice LeRae

Candice LeRae is one of the most talented women in the entire world, as she spent a long independent career mixing it up with not only the best female talent in the world, but the best male talent too.

Her NXT career hasn't exactly gone the way most had envisioned, with most of her time spent with her husband, Johnny Gargano rather than focusing on her own career, but a victory here is a way to allow her to stand on her own two feet in the WWE.

She obviously has the talent to do that, all she needs is a chance, and after entering the Royal Rumble a few months back, it's clear the WWE have high hopes for her.

Much like her husband, Candice operates as a fantastic babyface/underdog, and outlasting all the other performers in a battle royal will help her to become one of the best on the main roster immediately, and with so many new, fresh opponents for her on the main roster, it will indeed be a catapult to superstardom.

#4 Rhea Ripley

When it comes to being physically dominant, there are few better in the WWE than Rhea Ripley, but she combines this physicality with incredible athleticism, making her one of the companies top prospects.

Her time is currently spent performing for NXT UK, where she was the first ever NXT UK Women's Champion, but Rhea is built for the main roster, and whether this is an official call-up or not, she has to be considered a favourite.

The Aussie powerhouse has improved a tremendous amount since her first appearance in the Mae Young Classic, and when she gets to the main roster, it's hard to see Vince McMahon not pushing her as one of the 2-3 best women in the company. That may be a while down the road, but a victory here could cement her status as a future star in the WWE, and it's worth taking a look at if you're the WWE decision maker.

#3 Lacey Evans

Lacey Evans has the look, the gimmick and all the talent in the world to be a Champion in the WWE, but for some reason, they've been booking her quite strange since her arrival on the main roster.

Evans lacks the experience of a lot of other performers in the WWE's women's divisions, but she makes up for it with an undeniable presence and great talent, and if the WWE are to pay off the odd way they've been using her, WrestleMania makes complete sense.

For months now, Evans has been interrupting segments and matches to simply walk down the aisle and back to the back, and while it has been very strange, the company seem to be quite high on her.

Evans lasted 29 minutes in the Royal Rumble after entering at #1, so she clearly has had some success in these type of matches, and if the WWE indeed do want to start pushing her, a lengthy victory here will help their cause.

#2 Shayna Baszler

On first thought, having the current NXT Women's Champion (assuming she still is by that point) win this battle royal seems beneath her, but it's a great way to introduce her and her team to the wider WWE Universe.

Baszler likely wouldn't come alone, with both Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir behind her, and considering the rumours of a Four Horsewomen vs. Four Horsewomen match down the line, it's time to bring them up.

Physically, there are few performers in the WWE's women's division that can match up with Shayna, and considering that she will have support behind her, she must be considered a big favourite. It's likely that the Queen of Spades will somehow drop her title on Friday at NXT Takeover: New York, but whether she does or not, Baszler is still an incredible talent, and this is the way to get her main roster career started right.

#1 Asuka

Last year, the WWE brought us the female version of the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and while it seems to have just as much reward as that match, a victory at WrestleMania is still a victory.

After losing the Smackdown Women's Title just days away from WrestleMania, the Empress of Tomorrow seems like the obvious choice here, as it's a way to catapult her back into contention immediately after 'Mania.

Asuka is one of the most dominant performers in WWE today, but her main roster booking has left a lot to be desired, and while this would definitely seem like a hollow victory, it's the best choice for the WWE.

Many fans and even people backstage were upset with the booking on this past week's Smackdown (and rightfully so), and while they have a lot to do to make it up to Asuka, a dominant victory here would be a decent start to that.