WWE NXT: Ranking the Top 10 Women’s Title Matches of All-Time
By Joe Hulbert
4. 30 Minute Iron Man: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks (NXT TakeOver: Respect)
The famous sequel to Banks and Bayley’s Brooklyn battle two months prior, no women’s match in NXT history has been treated with the level of importance that this one was. After making magic in NYC, Sasha and Bayley had raised their stock exponentially and before Banks left for good, the NXT audience simply demanded a rematch. They’d get it too as the pair agreed to a historic 30 minute iron man match, a bout that’d main event TakeOver: Respect….something still not replicated in NXT to this day.
As I’m sure you’ve already guessed, the aforementioned Brooklyn match will be discussed in more detail but I must say, there are genuinely elements of this rematch that I prefer to its Brooklyn counterpart. Firstly and likely most memorably, Sasha’s heel antics. This was a match built on ‘history’ and ‘respect’ but in-ring it very much hit its peak when Banks found her mean-streak and got real nasty, cheating for the first fall and then snatching poor Izzy’s headband in one of the great heel moments in recent memory. It wasn’t easy but in the midst of this match, Sasha managed to make much of Full Sail hate her once again.
In many ways, this match is the opposite of #5. The work is good and I don’t want to underestimate that aspect but at heart, these matches are built on the audience’s investment in both characters. For example, this Full Sail crowd was red hot before a move had been made and that’s not a knock as they’d earnt that response, it was built up over a period of standout performances and memorable moments. This match only created more and will likely forever stand out in both women’s careers, no matter what they do or have already done on the main roster.
The post-match stands out too and is certainly one of the most heart-felt moments in NXT history. A whole roster stood for both women in an instance of genuine respect, a celebration for what both had achieved in that short but undeniably special period. If there was any doubt before, Sasha and Bayley had shown that the women could main event any show and slowly but surely, that trend looks likely to expand in the coming years.