A History Making Main Event

Sasha Banks (c) vs. Bianca Belair
SmackDown Women’s Champion

Bianca Belair won the 2021 Royal Rumble and, after some showy waffling, chose to face the SmackDown women’s champion, Sasha Banks, at WrestleMania 37. What started as a friendly competition between two outstanding athletes quickly turned into a feud built of animosity and antagonism.

The Road to WrestleMania 37

The moment Bianca Belair chose Sasha Banks as her opponent for WrestleMania, both competitors knew that it would be a historic match. Sasha Banks is the blueprint, and Bianca Belair is the EST. They are, simply put, the best of the best, and this match is a celebration of both women’s wrestling and black excellence.

For a few weeks, the duo became just that - a duo. They both respected the hell out of each other and were excited to compete at WrestleMania. No need to start a feud! Mutual respect enough to drive the story, right? Wrong!

In an entirely unnecessary and convoluted storyline that included Carmella, the tag team titles, and a Cirque du Soliel sommelier, Bianca and Sasha realized friendship in wrestling is overrated and that they did, in fact, hate each other.

Sasha Banks sees Bianca Belair as a cocky upstart not worth the hype, while Bianca sees Sasha as a champion afraid of real competition.

Tonight they both put their money where their slaps are, and we learn who the real EST of WWE is.

What’s at stake?

Main eventing any PPV is a big deal. Main eventing WrestleMania is the biggest deal. Not only do these two competitors have to deal with that pressure, but they have to deal with the pressure of this being a history-making event. Although the times-they-are-a-changing, it is still slightly unusual for a women’s match to main event a PPV. Each time one does, there is the added pressure of “we have to work twice as hard as the men to have this match be considered acceptable.” Throw in the fact that this is also historical because it’s two black women in the WrestleMania main event slot, and yeah, I’d say they are both feeling the pressure.

In more individualistic terms, the pressure is on Sasha Banks here to break her impressive loss streak at WrestleMania. She’s never won on the grandest stage of them all - could this be her night?

For Bianca Belair tonight, it’s her chance to prove that she really is the EST of WWE. Since she won the Royal Rumble, the buzz around her has been palpable. She is someone the WWE Universe wants to succeed - not even Reginald could ruin that! She has all the makings of a big babyface star. If she becomes champion tonight, that dream becomes a reality.

This has to be pretty much the best match either of them has ever had because all eyes are on them. People are either going to walk away saying, “Yes! That was everything I wanted!” or “I was expecting so much more.” So yeah, no pressure.

Sasha Banks will defend her championship against Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 37 exclusively on Peacock. Be sure to check back in at CagesideSeats.com for all of your WrestleMania coverage.