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Disclaimer: The views of the author do not necessarily reflect those of Sportskeeda.
The story of Becky Lynch's rise to the top of the WWE ladder is an incredible one. It's a story that was told very well by our own Gary Cassidy earlier this month. He focused on her journey from (what was thought to be) a career-ending injury to the Main Event of WrestleMania. There's been a lot of debate in the wrestling community recently over who has been the top Superstar of the past decade. Becky Lynch is certainly in that conversation, but I want to focus solely on the past year. In my mind, there is no doubt that 'The Man' was the superstar of 2019.
January 1, 2019 - 'The Man' answers the call
It all started on Day 1 for The Man when John Cena showed up on an episode of SmackDown Live, fully expecting someone to come down to the ring and step to his face. What he didn't expect was for Becky Lynch to be "the man" to do it. Lynch cut a solid promo which included a Booker T. "Tell me she didn't just say that moment" when she brought up Nikki Bella (although to be fair to John, he brought her up first.)
Lynch would end up teaming with Cena to take on Andrade and Zelina Vega. Lynch would pick up the win after throwing the 16-time World Champion out of the ring and then locking Vega in the Dis-arm-her. Afterward, in a symbolic passing of the torch gesture, Lynch would flash the "You Can't See Me" sign right in Cena's face. The move got a begrudged seal of approval from the former World Champ. The Leader of Cenation knew The Man was on her way to accomplishing big things in 2019.
January 27, 2019 - The Road to WrestleMania begins
Becky Lynch ended up pulling double duty at this year's Royal Rumble. She opened up the night taking on Asuka as she tried to win back her SmackDown Women's Championship. Lynch lost the title the previous month at TLC, appropriately in a TLC match. Lynch and Charlotte Flair were on top of the ladder, battling over the belt when Ronda Rousey made her way to the ring and shoved the ladder over. Rousey's interference allowed Asuka to make the climb and grab the gold.
Lynch and Asuka put on one of the best matches, not only of the night but of the year. A hard-hitting exhibition of submission maneuvers that the Empress of Tomorrow eventually won when she locked in a modified version of the Asuka Lock. Lynch had nowhere to go and no choice but to tap out. Her dream of going to WrestleMania was over (yeah, none of us believed that then, either).
Later on in the night, a moment happened that still gives me chills when I go back and watch. Lana was announced as the 30th woman in the Royal Rumble match but was unable to compete due to an ankle injury suffered earlier. The Man came around to seize an opportunity, pleading with Fit Finley to let her take Lana's place. The capacity crowd at Chase Field came unglued when Lynch strolled down to the ring and stood toe to toe with the woman who cost The Man her match with Ronda Rousey at Survivor Series.
The Man overcame Nia Jax, Charlotte and an ankle injury of her own to win the Royal Rumble and become the No. 1 Contender for the Women's Championship of her choosing. It didn't take long at all to find out which one. Lynch showed up the next night on RAW and threw down the challenge to Rousey. The Man and The Baddest Woman on the Planet were finally going to do battle.
April 7th, 2019 - 'The Man' makes history
For the first time in the 35 year history of WrestleMania, the women would close the show.
Ronda Rousey, Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch would meet in a winner-take-all triple threat match for both the RAW and SmackDown Women's Championships. The Man would be the only one to enter the match without gold, but she would leave with it all when she became the first woman in the company to defeat Ronda Rousey.
A crucifix pin and a three-count by the referee, and The Man had done it. She came all the way back from a career-threatening injury to do what no woman had done before her; Win the Main Event of WrestleMania. We can over analyze the ending to the match all day long, but it doesn't change the magnitude of the moment. This was the moment all her dreams came true.
Not only did Lynch become the first woman to win the main event of WrestleMania, but she became the first woman to hold both the RAW and SmackDown Women's Championships at the same time.
April 8th, 2019 - WWE Universe shows their appreciation
There's no off-season for the WWE. Less than four hours after all her dreams came true, Becky Lynch was back to work. She started with the media rounds before hitting Monday Night RAW. Becky 2 Belts stood in front of a capacity crowd, and could barely get a word out before the "You deserve it" chants broke out.
The moment didn't last long. Lynch immediately launched into her next program with then-recent NXT call-up Lacey Evans. The Sassy Southern Belle got in a sneaky Woman's Right punch - and the fight was on. It was a huge moment for Evans who, up to that point, had been walking upand down the ramp on a weekly basis and not much else.
The two would have a series of matches over the next couple of months. Evans would fail to win gold but would cost Lynch some of hers. At Money in the Bank, Lynch would defeat Evans to retain the RAW Women's Championship, and then immediately lose the Blue Belt to Charlotte, thanks to another sucker punch from the Marine Vet.
July 14th, 2019 - End of Days but not her Title run
The feud with Lacey Evans culminated at Extreme Rules, when Becky Lynch's on-screen relationships blurred with her real life ones. The Lynch/Seth Rollins on-camera romance wasn't enjoyed by everyone, but it did result in a highly entertaining Extreme Rules Mixed Tag Match. The Power Couple put their respective titles on the line against Evans and Baron Corbin, with the winners taking all the gold.
This was match where Lynch would prove her toughness. Early on in the bout, she would take a flying chair right off her forehead, which left a golf ball-sized welt. Then, towards the end of the match, Corbin would grab Lynch from behind and plant her with an 'End of Days'. That made Rollins go crazy on Corbin, hitting him with several stomps before pinning him to retain the championships.
Success outside of the Ring
July 12th, 2019 - Just a couple of days before her big match at Extreme Rules, The Man hit another milestone. She became the first WWE Superstar to be on the cover of ESPN: The Magazine, joined by Netflix's GLOW star Alison Brie.
The issue included a lengthy interview with both Lynch and Brie about the obstacles they face in their respective industries and the power of women.
August 5th, 2019 - Another cover and another milestone for The Man. Becky Lynch was announced as the first female cover star for the WWE 2K20 video game, standing side by side with Roman Reigns (sending fellow Sportskeeda writer Kevin Sullivan's four-year-old daughter into a fit of joy.)
August 22nd, 2019 - Becky Lynch was absolutely was living her best life this year. What could possibly top accomplishing all of your career goals? How about saying yes to the love of your life? Lynch and Seth Rollins were engaged while on vacation over the summer - a day Lynch would call the happiest of her life:
The future husband and wife would later go on to grace the cover of Muscle and Fitness together.
September 2nd, 2019 - Not many people can say they stunned the Texas Rattlesnake, but Becky Lynch had the honor to do so earlier this year. She joined Steve Austin on an episode of his USA show "Straight Up Steve Austin". After a day of ATV riding and hatchet throwing, the two shared a beer in the middle of the ring, and The Man just couldn't pass up the opportunity to his Austin with his own signature move.
October 4th, 2019 - One on one with the Great One
The Rock doesn't make many appearances on WWE programming anymore, what with him being the biggest movie star in the world, but he made sure to come in for the SmackDown premiere on Fox. The Great One became the 4th WWE icon to work with The Man this year.
There was instant chemistry between them. They roasted King Corbin on the mic, before laying the... wait for it... smack-down on him.
It was an immensely fun segment that accomplished two things. Firstly, it proved that no spotlight is too big for Lynch, as The Man can hold her own on the mic even when sharing the ring with one of the best trash talkers incompany history.
Secondly, Lynch collected her debt for the aforementioned End of Days in July.
October 6th, 2019 - Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks go thru Hell
After taking several months off to recharge her batteries, Sasha Banks made her long-awaited return to the company in August. She returned to great fanfare before turning heel by attacking a grieving Natalya. This led to a program with The Man and a Championship match inside Hell in a Cell.
This was one of the more physical and innovative matches in both Lynch's and Banks' career. The chair spot in the corner of the cage was an absolute thing of beauty.
The chemistry between Lynch and Banks is outstanding. The two put on the match of the night and a match of the year candidate. Many in the WWE Universe had this night pegged as the one where Lynch would drop her RAW Women's Championship, but once again The Man would come out on top.
October 11th, 2019 - First Overall Draft Pick
The WWE left zero doubt as to who they considered the top star in the company. Superstars like Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre, Braun Strowman, and Sasha Banks were all available, but it was The Man Becky Lynch who was selected No. 1 Overall to Monday Night RAW in the WWE Draft.
November 3rd, 2019 - Building Hype to Survivor Series
Much of the build-up to the main event of Survivor Series this year centered around Becky Lynch and then NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler. It started on an episode of RAW where The Queen of Spades interrupted a sit-down interview with The Man. The two shared an intense conversation that had the WWE Universe on the edge of its collective seat.
Bazler would go on to win the Women's Championship showcase at Survivor Series by making Bayley tap out. After everything was all said and done though, it was The Man who stood tall. Lynch, never one to take a loss lightly, attacked Baszler during her celebration and put her through the Spanish announce table.
The rivalry between these two is far from over. Becky Lynch likes to talk about collecting debts. Well, Baszler has a debt of her own to collect and now that she is no longer NXT Women's Champion, she could be free to come collect in 2020. Don't be surprised if Baszler wins the Royal Rumble match, and comes after the RAW Women's Champion.
November 20th, 2019 - The Man returns to Full Sail
Full Sail University was on fire the night Becky Lynch made her long-awaited return to NXT. Four years after her call up to the main roster The Man returned as RAW Women's Champion and was looking for a fight.
She called out Shayna Baszler but instead was greeted by the woman who recently dethroned The Queen of Spades. Rhea Ripley came straight for Lynch and the two ended up putting on a rock-solid match. That was until it ended in a no-contest due to outside interference. It was still a great appetizer for what could be a highly entertaining feud down the line.
For me though, the best part of the night was the promo. Lynch was able to return to the one place where she was never able to win gold, touting her accomplishments like a proud alumnus.
December 15th, 2019 - Lynch steps up as the locker room leader
During the last several weeks of 2019, Becky Lynch ended up sliding into the tag team division. Her desire to collect on her one remaining debt forced her to reluctantly team up with her old rival, Charlotte Flair, to battle the Kabuki Warriors. The two teams met for the Women's Tag Team Championships in the main event of TLC 2019 - in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs Match. This was the 4th PPV of the year that The Man would be in the main event.
It had all the makings for an absolute classic. The story was ther and four of the company's best performers were involved. Lynch and Flair specifically have a history of delivering big-time matches when the rules are thrown out. Unfortunately, Kairi Sane suffered a concussion early on in the match. She seemed out on her feet but continued to battle through. It was here that Lynch showed her true brilliance in a wrestling ring.
As you can see in the videos above Lynch and Flair did everything they could to get Kairi Sane to the finish line safely, despite how it affected the quality of the match. Throughout various points, Lynch was seen talking to Sane, before appearing to call an audible to end the match early. Then later on more footage was released that showed The Man taking extra steps to make sure that Sane was out of harm's way for the finish.
The match itself failed to live up to the hype, but all four women did what they could to finish the show. In the process, Becky Lynch showed what a class person she is and why she's one of the most respected wrestlers in the world.
As 2019 draws to a close, it's hard to imagine anyone having a better year than Becky Lynch - both inside and outside of the wrestling ring. She is, without a doubt, the 2019 WWE Superstar of the year, and it doesn't appear she's slowing down anytime soon.
The Man still has that last debt to collect on Asuka. It appears they'll battle it out for the RAW Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble. Shayna Baszler could be right around the corner as well. Plus, you never know when Ronda Rousey might return to seek her revenge. It appears there's plenty for Becky Lynch fans to be excited about as we head into a new decade.
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