Raw Women’s Championship
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Liv Morgan
Everyone loves an underdog story...until they don’t
The Road to Day 1
Once a longish time ago, Becky Lynch allegedly told Liv Morgan that she would be champion one day. But of course, that was babyface Becky Lynch, not Big Time Becks. Liv Morgan, however, took that to heart and has been gunning for the title ever since. She got the opportunity to achieve her dream during the first RAW of December, but she couldn’t get it done. Also, Becky Lynch cheated.
It was a good showing for Liv, and she refused to take that loss to heart. After all, Big Time Becks was so intimidated by her that she had to cheat to win! What an ego boost! So with a chip on her shoulder and a fire in her belly, Liv took her displeasure into the ring (sort of) when she interrupted Becky Lynch during training. But instead of making Liv look championship ready it resulted in a very awkward beatdown and firmly pushed Liv Morgan into “plucky underdog” territory.
But the problem with being a plucky underdog is that you have to make babyface promos sound compelling, and that’s too tall of a task for Liv Morgan. She, unfortunately, has been unable to shake the WWE School of Stilted Promos, and each time she goes toe-to-toe with Becky on the mic, the disparity is uncomfortably stark.
Liv still has the backing of the WWE universe, but take it from Nikki ASH - that plucky underdog vibe only gets you so far; once you have the championship belt, it’s a whole other ball game. Becky’s assessment of Liv was right when she said, “It’s very hot under those lights, and I don’t think you can handle the heat.”
What’s at stake?
Despite this whole article telling you that Liv Morgan isn’t ready to be the Raw Women’s Champion, the truth remains that she absolutely should be champion one day. Her wrestling skills have improved tremendously in her short time with WWE, and it’s clear to anyone watching that she has a deep passion for the business. She’s got a great look, and the fans do love her. She will make an excellent babyface champ - just not yet. Not until she finds a way to translate her confidence in the ring into her persona and promos.
The fact of the matter is the WWE Universe that loves her underdog pluck and forgives her when her promos fall flat will turn on her if she has the belt and continues to sound like a robot. Especially if Liv were to take the title from Becky Lynch, one of the best promos in the entire business. She’s almost there. Just not quite.
The real trick here is how do they keep the title on Becky while allowing Liv to continue to learn and find her footing? WWE is notoriously scorched earth when it comes to something they deem to “not be working.” Liv herself has been repackaged too many times to count. Sure they can have Becky Lynch win by cheating again - heels gonna heel and all that - but that runs the risk of trapping Becky & Liv (and us) in an endless cycle of rematches. They need to find a way to gently push Liv to the back of the line while keeping her fire (and our interest) alive.
Will they be able to? Historically the answer is no, but we’ll just have to take Liv’s advice and watch her.
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