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Asuka and Becky Lynch battled it out in what was a very solid match, and then, as one would expect, Becky Lynch stood tall. It was a great end to a brilliant rivalry, but little did we know that it would be the beginning of a brand new epic feud.
Shayna Baszler would show up from out of nowhere and take out the RAW Women's Champion, Becky Lynch. And that would only be the beginning because Shayna Baszler would bite 'The Man', drawing blood all over her maw.
Why did WWE decide to have Shayna Baszler attack Becky Lynch in this shocking manner, you rightfully ask? I do believe that I know the reasons and would like to list them out in this article.
As always, let me preface this by saying that my opinions are just my opinions, and if you disagree, you're welcome to sound off in the section below.
#5 Setting up a feud for WrestleMania
By defeating Asuka, Becky Lynch has pretty much cleared out the entire women's division I guess. I mean Ruby Riott could always get into it with Becky Lynch, but she is obviously embroiled in a feud with Liv Morgan at this very moment. There were rumors that Shayna Baszler and Becky Lynch would lock horns at WrestleMania and that certainly seems to be the case.
It is certainly the biggest match that can happen at this point unless Nia Jax was to make a return from injury and reignite her feud with The Man. Even then, Nia Jax vs. Becky Lynch may not exactly be a match worthy of WrestleMania, considering Shayna Baszler is significanly more 'lethal' in the ring. And WWE may want to save Nia Jax's return, if she's healed, for the night after WrestleMania 36 to kickstart a brand new feud with Becky Lynch.
#4 Massive inter-brand cross-promotion on the USA Network
Even though WWE SmackDown moved to FOX not long ago, WWE RAW and WWE NXT are still a part of the said Network at the moment. Both brands appeal to very different audiences, with NXT catering to hardcore wrestling fans while the storytelling nature of RAW appeals to casuals.
But obviously, WWE wants to do a fair amount of cross promotion between the two brands on the same network, with Charlotte Flair appearing on NXT and with Rhea Ripley and Shayna Baszler appearing on RAW, to get new eyes on both brands. This is especially necessary for the NXT product, which has a significantly lower viewership than RAW does, at the moment.
Maybe someone who watches Rhea Ripley and Shayna Baszler on RAW would feel compelled to tune into NXT and catch these two stars in action there. Neither of them looks like an 'independent darling' and look like legitimate stars who can certainly go toe-to-toe with the top women on RAW and SmackDown, so the strategy may just work.
#3 Sets up the premise for a Ronda Rousey return
Ronda Rousey has not been seen since WrestleMania, where she lost to Becky Lynch in what was a historic main event. She remains a big draw to this day and I believe that it's only a matter of time before she returns to action again.
I really wonder if this feud is just a way for Becky Lynch and Ronda Rousey to face off against one another in a full-fledged feud with just the two women. I mean, even at WrestleMania, a lot of fans were upset at the inclusion of Charlotte Flair because people believed it deserved to be a one-on-one match.
And now that Shayna Baszler and Becky Lynch are clearly on a warpath on RAW, it will allow for Ronda Rousey to make a comeback and potentially enter a feud with Becky Lynch after WrestleMania comes around. This is especially if Becky Lynch can defeat Shayna Baszler and remain the Champion even after WrestleMania 36.
The possibilities are endless in the WWE Women's Division.
#2 Because blood is a rare sight today in WWE
Shayna Baszler could have always made waves by just attacking Becky Lynch on RAW. But because of how rare the sight of blood is in WWE right now, I have a feeling that Vince McMahon decided to make a statement by having Baszler bite 'The Man'. It just establishes Baszler as a nasty competitor who would go to any lengths to inflict pain and punishment upon her opponent.
Blood was a common sight in WWE during the Atittude Era and also in the Ruthless Aggression era. While there are segments with blood in modern-day WWE, they are much rarer and this is why every time it happens, the world invariably pays attention. 'The Man' was made last year when Nia Jax accidentally injured her with a punch that caused blood to stream down her face, and it makes a lot of sense for her WrestleMania program this year to be rinsed in blood as well.
If Baszler had not bitten Becky Lynch, not as many people would have been talking about it.
#1 To set Shayna Baszler apart from the other MMA performers in WWE
Back in the heyday of WWE, Ken Shamrock, Steve Blackman, and Dan Severn were all in the roster at the same time and all of them had legitimate MMA backgrounds. And as a result, while Ken Shamrock got over to a great extent as the 'World's Most Dangerous Man', the others hit a ceiling as there was nothing to differentiate them from him.
Right now, you have Shayna Baszler, Marina Shafir, and Jessamyn Duke, all of whom are MMA stars, in addition to Matt Riddle, who's been in the UFC, and Sonya Deville who has an MMA gimmick too. And this is not even counting Bobby Lashley and Brock Lesnar, both of whom have a background in the MMA world as well.
Ronda Rousey could make a comeback at any point in time, and she is a UFC legend. The last thing WWE would want is too many people with the very same gimmick, I guess.
And this is probably why Shayna Baszler is being portrayed as a vampire.
