WWE: It’s the right time to revisit a feud between Bayley and Alexa Bliss

This week on SmackDown Live, Alexa Bliss became the number one contender for the SmackDown Women’s Championship, setting her on a collision course with her one-time rival, Bayley.

Tuesday, we learned Alexa Bliss will challenge Bayley at Stomping Grounds. As Bliss noted, she went on a tear as the two-time SmackDown Women’s Champion. On the other hand, she and Bayley have also clashed in the past on Raw.

In April of 2017, Bliss switched brands during the Superstar Shake-Up and confronted then-champion Raw Women’s Champion, Bayley. She went on to become the number one contender and defeated her in stunning fashion at Payback. This program spawned the horrendous “Bayley, This Is Your Life” segment, as well as the embarrassing build to and finish of their match at Extreme Rules.

In a rematch for the Raw Women’s Championship, the challenger was too innocent and soft to use a weapon in their Kendo Stick on a Pole Match. It was one of the most confounding and frustrating booking decisions of the year. The loss followed Bayley for the rest of her time on the “A-show” and she never really recovered. She had a strong run alongside her best friend and tag partner, Sasha Banks, but their on and off again rivalry was equally baffling.

When she made the move to SmackDown after WrestleMania, fans hoped she would finally get a chance to shine as a singles competitor again. Their prayers were immediately answered at Money in the Bank, where “The Hugger” won the Women’s Ladder Match and cashed in to become the new SmackDown Women’s Champion. The win felt special because of everything she went through in the two years prior. Moreover, it was the culmination of her growing aggressive streak.

She is finally back on top of the division and she must go through Alexa Bliss to stay there. It’s fitting. Ignoring the fact that Bliss isn’t a member of the SmackDown roster, this is a perfect time to revisit their infamous feud. Bayley acknowledged it herself when she tweeted, “Rewriting history.”

“Little Miss Bliss” represents her biggest failure on the main roster. If she wants to start a new chapter and prove she has changed, she has to defeat Bliss at Stomping Grounds. It took longer to get to this confrontation than we hoped and the circumstances could be better. However, Bayley deserves a chance to redeem herself and correct the damage their initial program did to her character.

Honestly, Alexa has something to prove as well. This is her first major pay-per-view match in months. She didn’t compete at WrestleMania and she was forced to sit out the Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match. Even more so, her vocal critics like to claim she gets by with good character and mic work. This is an opportunity to prove she can hang with Bayley in the ring.

Admittedly, Alexa Bliss wouldn’t have been my first choice for Bayley’s first title defense, but this match is essential if WWE wants fans to invest in her as SmackDown Women’s Champion. If the theme of her second Women’s Title reign is redemption, there is no better opponent.