WWE Clash of Champions: Bayley’s heel character starting to make sense

Bayley retained her WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship at Clash of Champions and in her dirty win, her heel character final makes sense.

Bayley turned heel about this time two weeks ago and it’s received mixed reactions thus far. Or, rather her character has received mixed reactions. The babyface-lite promo that the WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion cut the next night seemed to confuse some fans. Some of my own colleagues here at Daily DDT criticized the promo for not showcasing a clearer change in character for Bayley.

Me personally, in a previous article, I admitted that I would withhold my judgement on her new heel character until I got to see more of this character in action. Even now, it seems a little too early to comment on it, but now at least, I feel like I’ve seen enough of Bayley’s character to peg down a, well, character type.

Her Clash of Champions match vs. Charlotte was short, but sweet. It offered the best glimpse of Bayley’s heel persona that we have seen thus far.

Bayley has preached about wanting to be a role model for both children and the women’s division going forward. To etch that path for herself, she has committed to some nefarious acts. Namely pulverizing Becky Lynch with a steel chair. She’s desperate in her mission statement and that desperation jumped out upon seeing those goals slip through her fingertips in almost losing the SmackDown Women’s Championship at Clash.

From the start, Bayley was outmatched by The Queen, nearly losing her title seconds into the match from a Big Boot. From then on, Charlotte continued to dominate. Until, eventually, Bayley felt like she had no choice but to resort to nefarious tactics. Dirty tactics out of the Dirtiest Player in the Game’s playbook.

He removed the bottom turnbuckle pad, launched Charlotte’s head into exposed steel, and pinned her for the victory. Then ran away faster than a scalding dog.

Heel Bayley is a coward, but not a liar. She’s afraid to lose her championship, but she truly is dedicated to elevating her division and being a role model to kids (at least that’s what she believes in her mind). Linking up with Sasha Banks has convinced Bayley that she needs this killer instinct to achieve those goals and most importantly, hold onto this title. Because without that belt, those goals are unattainable.

This new Bayley still acts like the old Bayley – in gear, entrance, etc. – because Bayley doesn’t see how she’s changed. She doesn’t realize how far down a dark path Sasha Banks is leading her.

I could be completely off base with this one, but I think this is where the Bayley heel character is going. If nothing else, Clash of Champions got me interested in wanting to see which direction this character can go and most importantly, if there’s room for redemption in the future.