Monday Night Raw featured a huge surprise in the main event as IYO Sky defeated Rhea Ripley to become the WWE Women's World Champion. It was a huge shock as fans and pundits alike resigned themselves to the idea that Ripley would defend against Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 41. That's not the case as now the division is wide open.
Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky put on one of the best wrestling matches in 2025. For more than twenty minutes they went back and forth, with both women having their bright spots. The match wasn't picture perfect, but it played on the idea of both women knowing each other well since their days battling over the NXT Women's Championship.
Bianca Belair was ringside and did get involved in a sense, cheering Sky back to her feet to beat the 10-count. Ripley took onus to those actions and nearly started a brawl, hinting toward a potential triple threat. Upon returning to the ring, Sky took advantage with a top rope hurricanrana and the Over the Moonsault to win.
What does this mean for the Women's World Title at WrestleMania 41?
Rhea Ripley versus Bianca Belair in a singles match is a huge contest that WWE cannot miss out on. The company has missed out on several big matches, especially in the women's division. Several outlets reported that expectations were for Belair to face Ripley at WrestleMania. While that still may happen, this was a huge surprise with just a little more than a month to go for the massive event.
Then there's the budding angle between Naomi and Jade Cargill. Neither woman were on the show tonight, and Belair mentioned it briefly during a backstage promo. Speculation is growing that Belair had something to do with Cargill being attacked backstage, but this title switch is a great way to take the spotlight off that point, and put it firmly back on the championship and the women vying for it in a few weeks.
Fans continued to push WWE to put some momentum behind the women's division heading into WrestleMania 41. There were several reports about growing frustrations with how the division is booked. Seeing Iyo Sky pick up the championship by defeating Rhea Ripley clean in the main event is a great start to build to what is already an exciting PLE.