While WWE’s 30th-anniversary celebration of Raw was popular with many fans, others ended the show feeling disillusioned.
Although there were a number of legends on the show, the vast majority were male. In fact, the only female legend to appear was Alundra Blayze, who featured in a backstage poker skit. This coupled with the heavily advertised Cage Match between Becky Lynch and Bayley being scrapped led some fans to question why WWE’s female performers were seemingly given second billing.
The Bellas Call Out WWE
In the immediate aftermath of the show, WWE Hall of Famers, The Bellas went live on Instagram to vent their frustration at how the show had panned out. The pair took issue with the ‘Women’s Revolution’ being glossed over, adding that there were a number of women the company didn’t want to show on television.
Nikki: “How didn’t they showcase anything from the Women’s Revolution? So Sasha Banks [Brie adds, “The Bellas”] is in it and they’re like ‘we cant. Mercedes [Mone] is too over and we can’t say her name.'”
Brie: “There’s a couple of other girls and Raya [Saraya] that they don’t wanna show.”
The Bellas had been advertised to appear on the show but didn’t end up featuring.
Bella Twins spilling pic.twitter.com/lN14wjjVmD
— DS Ring the Belle 🔔 (@ringthebelleds) January 24, 2023
WWE came under fire on social media for their handling of the planned Becky Lynch vs. Bayley match. The bout had been set up the previous week and advertised significantly in the run-up to the show. However, the match was over before it even started with Bayley and Damage CTRL attacking Lynch outside the cage. Once in the ring the trio locked the door and beat down Lynch to leave her laying in s short segment.
It was reported that the opening portion of the show featuring the trial of Sami Zayn ran long on time which left multiple segments needing to be cut. The biggest casualty was the match between Lynch and Bayley.
An audible was called after it was realised that they could either have a Cage Match lasting just a couple of minutes or work an angle, they chose the latter.
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