Shayna Baszler has not wrestled on WWE television since May 12th, and the current status of the former NXT Women’s Champion remains up in the air. Earlier this year, Baszler appeared ready to hit WWE’s main roster running, embroiled in a feud with Becky Lynch. Instead, Baszler was puzzlingly booked to lose several high profile matches when she still had momentum, and now, hasn’t been seen in almost two months. That decision ultimately comes down to Vince McMahon and what the Wrestling Observer Newsletter alleges has been his “souring” on the future of Baszler.
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In this week’s Observer, Dave Meltzer notes that McMahon made the call to remove Baszler from television following her May 12th victory over Natalya on Raw. The report goes on to note that McMahon hasn’t been a big fan of her MMA style in a wrestling ring. Meltzer wrote “she doesn’t check his (McMahon’s) buttons when it comes to women in wrestling, so he made the call to remove her push and take her off television.”
Becky Lynch noted recently during an appearance on the Bella’s podcast that she wanted to lose the Raw Women’s Championship to Baszler during their match at WrestleMania. She pitched the idea to creative but it was rejected. The plan then called for Lynch to win at WrestleMania, Baszler to win Money In The Bank, and there would be a rematch down the line. However, McMahon changed the Money In The Bank finish and decided to go with Asuka. Then, Lynch left wrestling due to her pregnancy, and Asuka became champion with the Money In The Bank win. Baszler was left out entirely.
Meltzer also noted in his report that one of the reasons that Paul Heyman was fired from Raw creative had to do with McMahon not agreeing with him when it comes to the potential of a lot of the talent that Heyman was looking to push. Baszler would seem to fit that description, as Heyman was reportedly a big fan of the former MMA fighter. The Observer report notes that the television ratings situation also led to Heyman’s firing, but as the Top Rope Nation podcast reported a few weeks back, WWE sources also indicated that Heyman “had to go” and that it was a chaotic working environment, with multiple departments (including merchandising) reportedly frustrated with the way Heyman was handling business.
How would you like to see Shayna Baszler brought back to television? Let us know in the comments section below and give me a follow on Twitter @ryandroste for all things WWE.
