Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of WOMEN'S WRESTLING WEEKLY—a rundown of the events which have transpired in the world of women's professional wrestling over the past several days not just with the Superstars on WWE programming, but with Impact Wrestling's Knockouts, Lucha Underground's luchadoras, and even a glimpse at the women on the independent circuit.

What a week of contradictions in the constantly confusing world of WWE. Raw featured some of the most entertaining segments I've seen from them in a while, while SmackDown had no women's matches at all, despite having freaking Asuka as their champion. Impact, as is the norm for them now, made good use of its Knockouts' time. But we'll get to that. In fact, let's just dive right in!



The short...

Becky owns prime real estate in Ronnie's brain and the Boss'N'Hug Connection is too legit to quit.

The long...

Stone Cold Bex is undefeated. A crutch attack from Lynch put an end to round 1000000 of Rousey (and Natalya) vs. the Riott Squad, and things quickly escalated into a all-out brawl. WWE security wasn't enough to keep the pair apart, and Lynch (who is technically still suspended) was arrested and taken away. An infuriated Rousey then took to the mic and called out Vince McMahon himself. Naturally, she got Steph instead, and demanded that Becky be reinstated so they could have their fight. McMahon refused, so Rousey left the title in the ring and walked out. I dig this angle, but man, someone needs to teach Ronda Rousey how to have Twitter beef without devolving into transphobic nonsense that only lets Becky dunk on her even more than she already has. The Rousey we get on television is naturally unlikable, which is just fine. Her ability makes up for it. But this "I'm bigger than kayfabe" angle on Twitter is no bueno. Nobody, not even Rousey, should be bigger than the business, especially if she's about to main event WrestleMania.

Now get off my lawn.

Elsewhere, Bayley picked up a hard-fought victory over Nia Jax. Both women had their tag partners with them at ringside. I really enjoy Bayley and Sasha's seamless style of teamwork, born out of knowing each other so intimately in the squared circle. They're a blast to watch together, and it's a relief to see WWE not instantly bury its tag champs just for the hell of it. Let's hope this continues.

I had company over for this episode, one of which was not a wrestling fan. "I really don't get it," he would tell me.Well, long story short, he wants to come over and watch Raw again next week, partially because of this tag match. If that doesn't tell you how successful this episode of Raw was, I don't know what will.

Grade: A-



The short...

No matches.

The long...

Yeah, no matches. But Charlotte cut a promo announcing she'd be on Raw next week. Great job not even bothering to utilize your SmackDown Women's Champion, WWE. Just swell.

Oh, and Mandy Rose will challenge her at Fastlane. Hahahahahahahahahahahaahahelp.

Grade: D



The short...

Never forget where you started.

The long...

Aliyah and Vanessa Borne took down Xia Li and Taynara Conti in a match that reminded me that NXT is also a show where talent have to learn and grow. I actually enjoy these matches more than one might expect because you can spot early on the ticks and tricks that will make talent sink or swim. All four women still looked fairly green, but man, I enjoy Xia Li a lot and I'm rooting for all of these women to succeed.

Speaking of success, guess who dropped in this week? Your, my, our WWE Women's Tag Team Champions: Sasha Banks and Bayley. What an awesome reception they got, and well-deserved too. These two are what got me watching NXT, so I actually got a little misty-eyed seeing them back in Full Sail. Their exchange with Izzy was absolutely wonderful, too. "She's changed, she's great now!" Amazing.

I love that the titles could be defended in NXT. It's the perfect way to call up talent at the right moment, and also gives a lot of women a chance to get some valuable exposure, even if it's in a losing effort. Speaking of those...

There's a joke among indie fans of losing to Kazuchika Okada in a 20-minute star-making performance that comes to mind when I think about the showcase that Mia Yim put on against NXT Women's Champ Shayna Baszler. This clash of brawling badasses was everything it needed to be, and finally gave Yim the platform to show why she was a cornerstone of TNA for so many years. Yim was passionate and aggressive as all hell against Baszler, and that fire wound up costing her. A stray kick to the steps hurt her leg, and Baszler capitalized, eventually forcing Yim to tap. But man, this match made Yim look every bit the future champion that she is.

Grade: A



The short...

Tessa Blanchard IS Impact Wrestling.

The long...

Holy crap, you guys. You already know how behind Tessa Blanchard I am, but how can there be any doubt who the baddest wrestler on Impact's entire roster is when Tessa Blanchard is out here dismantling a very game Delilah Doom and then unabashedly demanding a rematch for the championship?

Elsewhere, an interesting wrinkle has appeared in Rosemary's Dark!Allie redemption arc. Jordynne Grace and Keira Hogan approached Rosemary and asked to join her cause to save Allie. Hogan, especially, wanted to be a part of this. Rosemary was hesitant to accept Hogan's help, but Hogan passionately insisted, and Rosemary accepted on the basis that she distance herself once Allie was saved.

Grade: B+



This section includes recaps of matches from around the world in various lesser-known independent promotions throughout the week.

STARDOM

Match: Mayu Iwatani vs. Konami (Women of Honor World Title match)
Winner: Mayu Iwatani

PROGRESS

Match: Millie McKenzie vs. Bea priestley
Winner: Millie McKenzie

Glory Pro

Match: Su Yung vs. Seishen
Winner: Seishen


The Blasian Baddie has officially arrived. This match had fire, physicality and some incredible storytelling from both the challenger and the champion. It's everything that makes NXT such a joy to watch every week.


I stan TWO badass women who know exactly how much they're worth and what they deserve.

So there you have it, the breakdown for the week in women's wrestling. What were some of your favorite and least favorite moments from these women? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!