Daniel Bryan may not be able to keep promises like The Miz pointed out on Talking Smack, but he sure can make big announcements. In the Smackdown Live show following Summerslam, Bryan (and Shane McMahon) announced that the tag team division and the women’s division now had prizes to fight for. And the woman who would be crowned the first ever Smackdown Women’s Champion of the new era would have to win a 6 pack challenge between Alexa Bliss, Natalya, Carmella, Naomi, Nikki Bella and crowd favourite Becky Lynch, at WWE Backlash. At first glance, the roster looks like an inferior version of the division on Raw. Can any of these women really carry the division on her shoulders? Let’s meet these lovely superstars and get to know them better. Here are the favourites for this heated contest.
5: Naomi
At first glance, Naomi does not look like the favourite to win the Smackdown Women’s Championship. But ever since she changed her entrance and made her huge comeback, WWE looks like they have a lot more invested in her. We know she can go in the ring, and put on better matches than women superstars in the bygone era (sorry Vaudevillains), but is she really championship material? Her ties to Jimmy Uso also helps her case. She’s still the underdog coming into this match, but we know that WWE has been taking chances. Heck, Kevin Owens is the Universal Champion. Just remember that if she does become champion, you’ll have to see her headache-inducing entrance every single night. So let’s explore other contenders right now.
4: Carmella
Vanilla babyface Carmella would have never made this list. But heel Carmella has been pretty awesome in our opinion. Attacking her competition from behind when they least expect it, Carmella is living the ‘rearview’ attitude better than Naomi. Her feud with Nikki Bella is honestly the only women’s storyline on Smackdown. While we think that she would have benefited immensely as NXT Champion, WWE is taking chances and associating new belts with new stars (like the Undisputed Championship was for Chris Jericho, and the Universal Championship with Finn Balor and Kevin Owens). Maybe Carmella can be associated with the first ever Smackdown Women’s Championship belt.
3: Natalya
More often that not, WWE tries to project itself as a youth driven company. But sometimes when introducing a new championship, they rely on experience to carry the brand. Natalya is probably the best technical wrestler in the women’s division and can put on Pay Per View quality matches. She represents everything that WWE has been looking to project with women’s wrestling- she’s not your stereotypical model but is a legitimate bad ass, with genuine in-ring skills. Just don’t be surprised to see the belt on her.
2: Becky Lynch
Becky Lynch has got it all. A character who appeals to the fans. Legitimate wrestling skills. Experience in big shows. But sadly, she’s always been booked to lose. Even during NXT, Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Bayley got Championship runs, but Becky did not. She had amazing feuds with Charlotte, culminating in a triple threat Wrestlemania 32 match that was off the charts, but yet again she did not go over.
We believe this is the Dean Ambrose underdog booking and she was biding her time before getting a championship run. Making Becky champion is something that’ll genuinely make the fans very happy. Maybe that’s the reason she was drafted to Smackdown and did not remain on Raw. To carry the blue brand on her strong back to success.
1: Nikki Bella
Unlike the rest of the women on the Smackdown Women’s roster, Nikki Bella looks like a star. Sure, she’s a throwback to the days of the 'diva’, but considering the pop she got when she made her return at Summerslam 29, some diva power is never a bad thing. And fans who did not respect her back in the day, now do so because she braved a career-threatening neck injury to make a huge comeback. She’s also improved inside the ring by leaps and bounds.
Considering that two weeks since her return, she’s the only women’s division roster (aside from Carmella) who’s in an actual storyline speaks volumes about how much the company has invested in her. And of course, being John Cena's beloved does not hurt at all. We’d love to speak about Nikki Bella’s qualities in detail, but Carmella has threatened to attack us from behind if we do.
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