WWE: Sasha Banks on her favorite Royal Rumble moments

More than anything else, the 2018 Royal Rumble pay-per-view will be remembered the inaugural women’s Royal Rumble match, signifying another long-overdue step forward for WWE in regards to presenting the women on the roster as legitimate athletes.

It was a moment that fans who watched and the wrestlers who participated won’t forget anytime soon, a fact that is certainly true for current SmackDown Women’s Champion Sasha Banks.

Sasha Banks discusses her favorite Royal Rumble moments and what she’s looking forward to in this year’s match.

“The Boss” appeared on The Complex Sports Podcast and opened up about her most treasured Royal Rumble moment and, unsurprisingly, she brought up the first women’s Rumble:

"To be in the first ever Women’s Royal Rumble. To go into rehearsals, and seeing all of these Legends, and then to be pulled aside and to be like ‘you’re going to be the girl that’s going to lead this, you’re going to be the girl that’s goin to have to do all of these things.’ It’s more than just being a good performer and putting on a good show for you guys. It’s making sure I show up for all of these women and women that haven’t been in the ring for how many-plus years and then a lot of brand-new women who haven’t been in a WWE ring. It’s a lot of pressure, and being in a crowd in Philly! It’s more than just one thing, it’s more than what you guys really understand, so that’s why I always say ‘if you guys only knew!’"

Banks entered the first-ever women’s Rumble as the number one entrant — Becky Lynch entered at number two — and lasted for nearly 55 minuted before being eliminated by The Bella Twins. As of Jan. 27, only Natalya has lasted longer in a single Royal Rumble match.

This year, Banks will not compete in the Rumble, as she will likely defend her SmackDown Women’s title against Carmella at the PPV. Still, she had some thoughts on what she would like to see in the 2021 distaff battle royal.

“I’m going to be watching out for that sneaky Charlotte Flair, making sure she doesn’t win again. I’m going to watch for these NXT girls, hopefully there’s going to be some surprises.”

You can check out the rest of the podcast here or here — depending on which streaming service you prefer — to hear the full show, where Banks talks about her wrestling mount Rushmore, her thoughts on the SmackDown Women’s division, wrestling in the WWE Thunderdome, missing live crowds, her experiences on the set of The Mandalorian, and more.