WWE Survivor Series 2019: The chip on Bayley’s shoulder just grew

Bayley tapped out to Shayna Baszler’s vaunted Kirifuda Clutch at WWE Survivor Series 2019, but the tough loss will only stoke the flames that light the SmackDown Women’s Championship.

There’s a case to be made that Bayley is the 1b to Kofi Kingston’s 1a as WWE’s MVP for 2019. Since first winning the SmackDown Women’s Championship by cashing in her newly-won Money in the Bank briefcase on long-time rival Charlotte Flair, The Hugger has had one of the biggest stories in wrestling.

She later beat Charlotte again on the Oct. 11 episode of SmackDown and completed her heel transformation, showcasing a new, exciting layer to her work as a performer. Bayley has recently worn her frustrations on her sleeves and wrestles in the pursuit of excellence, like her partner Sasha Banks, rather than for the pleasure of a fickle fan base.

Her motivations are complex, but what drives Bayley centrally is a desire to be the best. She has all the passion in the world and she’s recently chosen to center it on herself.

Bayley has a chip on her shoulder that has only grown in size after her loss at Survivor Series. Not only was she the one to suffer defeat, but she tapped out to NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler, who sealed the Black and Gold brand’s dominance over WWE by winning in the main event.

There is no shame in losing to Baszler, who is the only two-time Women’s Champion in NXT history and is in the midst of one of WWE’s most dominant reigns of this era. But Bayley doesn’t wrestle to avoid shame. She wrestles to prove that she is more dominant than the likes of Becky Lynch and Baszler, who were her opponents in this match that was about much more than brand supremacy. This match was intensely personal for all three of these women, who are at the very top of this industry in 2019.

In the build to this match, Lynch and Baszler took shots at Bayley in promos – specifically their segment from the Nov. 4 episode of Raw – playing off an old insinuation that she was a weak link. Alexa Bliss, Charlotte Flair, and even Sasha Banks would prey off this insecurity in past rivalries with The Hugger.

But now that she’s embraced her inner power and answers to none of us, those words only fuel her. Shortcomings and tapouts? They only grow that chip on her shoulder and make her more hungry to prove everyone that doubts her wrong.

Bayley’s second reign with the SmackDown Women’s Championship is about to be even better than her first. Despite tapping out to Baszler, Bayley is more dangerous than ever, because she is even better-equipped to use this loss to guide her. The same fight that made her an adored and inspiring babyface is present in her and perhaps more dangerous now that she’s put herself first.