Nia Jax gave the best answer to that Becky Lynch moment

There may not be a more unfairly maligned wrestler in WWE than Nia Jax, who has been hated ever since earning the “Facebreaker” moniker before Survivor Series after punching Becky Lynch.

The image itself has become iconic. Becky Lynch, proudly staring at the carnage with arms wide open (do NOT make a Creed reference!) as her bloodied face and broken nose spoke all of the image’s thousand words.

When it happened, WWE fans were upset and disappointed that Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch wouldn’t be the title vs. title match at Survivor Series. One year later, it’s was but a stumbling block and, eventual step, towards one of the greatest WrestleMania triumphs in history.

Nia Jax received the most hatred of anyone in WWE for being the one who punched Lynch, concussing her on that night.

Other fans, however, pointed out that if this incident didn’t happen, Lynch probably wouldn’t have main evented WrestleMania and become WWE’s top star. Instead, it would have been Charlotte Flair and Charlotte Flair alone facing Rousey at the Show of Shows.

Naturally, when Kayla Braxton had the opportunity to interview Jax for the “Braxton Beat” on Instagram, she asked about this incident.

But as much undeserved derision as Nia receives from many WWE fans, even her critics must praise her for her humble, praise-filled response that centered Becky Lynch. She did not attempt to take even the slightest credit for Becky’s meteoric, post-Survivor Series rise.

Nia Jax said, via Sportskeeda’s Abhilash Mendhe:

"“I won’t take anything away from Becky Lynch, you know, she’s so boastful of herself. She worked hard and granted, that night, however it happened, will go down in infamy, and I’m not gonna say I helped create her. I think that it was an opportunity that happened that night and she became an icon.”"

As a member of the WWE women’s locker room, Jax knows better than anyone the work Lynch puts in and how excellent she is in all phases of the game. Everyone recognizes that Lynch has her place at the top through hard work, talent, and a wonderful understanding of the wrestling business. As Jax says, Lynch simply seized on an opportunity, making the most out of a scary situation for her.

Right now, Lynch remains the Raw Women’s Champion over a year later and will likely remain champion after Money in the Bank on Sunday. Nia is competing in the MITB ladder match in the hopes that she can use the briefcase to cash in on Lynch, starting what would be wrestling’s most heated rivalry. But off the screen, there seems to be no hate here whatsoever.