WWE Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch recently stated she has “one last debt to collect” during her title reign. But who is she talking about?
As my colleague Joe Anthony Myrick recently wrote, Becky Lynch’s first WWE Raw Women’s Championship reign has been “awesome” thus far. She helped make Lacey Evans into someone main roster fans cared about and had a sensational rivalry with Sasha Banks, as the two had arguably the Match of the Year inside Hell in a Cell two months ago.
Currently, Becky is locked in a rivalry with Women’s Tag Team Champions Kairi Sane and Asuka, and it looks like she and close friend Charlotte Flair – her bitter rival earlier this year – could team up to win those titles.
Lately, though, Becky hasn’t been seen on television. After being left off Raw for the second straight week, Becky defeated Sane in a dark match and cut a promo against WWE, calling them out for not putting her on the show. She also noted that she hasn’t been asked to defend her title in two months, which bothers her as a woman whose love to fight is central to her being.
Lynch saved her parting shot for an unknown wrestler, proclaiming she has “one last debt to collect”.
And we’re all wondering who that could be.
Asuka
The most obvious person is Asuka. She and Kairi faced Charlotte Flair in a two-on-one match, barely defeating the decorated “Queen” despite the numbers advantage. So there’s a natural story-telling progression element here, especially if Becky and Charlotte are to win the Women’s Tag Titles for the first time in their careers.
There’s also the past story-telling. Asuka made Becky tap out at the Royal Rumble Pay Per View earlier this year with a wonderful “Cattle Mutilation” submission move. This result came less than a month after Asuka won the SmackDown Women’s Championship in the main event of TLC when Ronda Rousey crashed the party.
Asuka looks like Becky’s “last debt”. She wants to prove she can beat the former undefeated Empress, whom Charlotte has consistently defeated over the years. Defeating Asuka would be the final loose straw in declaring Lynch as the most dominant champion on the main roster.
Beyond that, a rematch between Asuka and Becky would be awesome, especially if they do a callback to a “Cattle Mutilation” spot. A Royal Rumble PPV Part 2 between these two would be an instant class and would probably top what they did last year. The additional story involving the tag titles should bring more interest in their rivalry, too.
Shayna Baszler
Or maybe she’s talking about Shayna Baszler. This suggestion is a little bit more of a stretch, since Becky and Shayna didn’t really cross paths until the build to Survivor Series for a champion vs. champion vs. champion match that main evented show.
Since the match was in the main event, I have a feeling WWE were planting a seed here. Perhaps that seed involves Bayley, but with Bayley and Sasha Banks potentially ticketed for an all-out WrestleMania 36 rivalry for the SmackDown Women’s Title, Becky vs. Shayna means more likely. And Shayna never beat Becky in that match; it was Bayley who tapped out to the vaunted Kirifuda Clutch.
Becky seems to have her best matches against other wrestlers with submission finishers, since it adds even more intrigue around the finish. She is one of the more effective technical wrestlers on the WWE roster, which should mesh well with Baszler, who is both one of the best technicians and story-tellers in the entire company.
Baszler will face Rhea Ripley for the NXT Women’s Championship on Dec. 18, and if she loses the title, she could be ticketed for a main roster call-up in 2020 that includes a Royal Rumble win. At least, that’s what my friend JAM thinks could happen.
Even if it doesn’t and Baszler remains NXT Women’s Champion, Becky Lynch will still want to prove that she’s better than Shayna. Beyond the whole “Four Horsewomen” rivalry going on there, Becky wants to be the best and beat the best. And after her Survivor Series win, Shayna seems to be reigning over everyone else.
Ronda Rousey
And finally, her last debt could be Ronda Rousey. I think Asuka and Shayna are more likely options, but Rousey is the splashiest. Furthermore, a Rousey vs. Becky singles match as a “Part 2” from the WrestleMania 35 main event could actually main event WrestleMania 36, since Becky and Rousey are the two biggest stars in the company when they are in business.
There’s no clarity on when Rousey will come back, but wrestling fans believe it’s happening at some point. And when she does return, she’ll want to gun for her old Raw Women’s Championship – and the woman who pinned her in the main event of WrestleMania – with all speed.
WWE fans do NOT like Rousey, which is why Lynch vs. Rousey would have plenty of interested eyes. People will get fully behind Becky in the hopes that she’ll beat Rousey, though, of course, there will be some fans who dislike both and believe both are pushed too much at the expense of other women. (My response is this: I agree, and that’s why you should want Sasha Banks, Bayley, or both to main event WrestleMania 36.)
But WWE loves Rousey because Rousey moves the meter. Becky has already reached the summit of WWE, but she’ll want to prove that she can beat Rousey one-on-one so that there are NO questions she’s No. 1.
Rousey as “the last debt” takes the most convincing, in my eyes, but ever since Becky won the title at WrestleMania 35, I’ve been uncomfortably waiting for Rousey to return for the title. In the back of my mind, I’ve always wondered if Rousey vs. Lynch Part 2 at WrestleMania 36 is Vince McMahon’s end game.