WWE Raw Top 5 Segments: Braun Strowman and His Bass

5. Sasha Banks vs. Bayley

For those of us lucky enough to watch their NXT rivalry, the names Sasha Banks and Bayley will be forever linked and in many ways, their match this week showed why. There’s a genuine chemistry between these two and it comes in their characters as much as it does in their physicality. Sasha’s arrogance and ego often plays a big part and face or heel, her consistent aggression is a good platform to build their matches stories on. Why? Because it always leads to Bayley’s own mean-streak and that’s when these matches truly get going.

The most vivid example of that mean-streak here was Bayley’s clothesline out of the corner, a simple move with enough intensity to pick the pace up dramatically. Moreover, the best Sasha matches often feature a pivotal false finish once the Bank Statement is applied and that was no different here as both women sold it beautifully. Sheer desperation on both sides. The finish protected Sasha too, as Bayley hit her Bayley to Belly from the middle rope for the pin. This was obviously a huge win for the former RAW Women’s champion and another big step in her recent rebuilding.

Don’t get me wrong, this wasn’t TakeOver good and it wasn’t supposed to be. It was very similar in its appeal though. These matches are mechanically solid but mostly carried by the contrasting personalities as well as an engaged crowd. Speaking of such, I’d hoped that this hometown crowd would be a little more with Bayley but they got there in the end and seemed to very much care by the match’s climax. Afterwards, Nia Jax hit the ring but Bayley pushed Banks out of the way to take the brunt of the bullet.

A subtle aspect but a necessary one to make any eventual turn more meaningful. Let’s remember of course that ideally, heel turns are supposed to be surprising. Regardless, this was a very good match.