Suplex Retweet Best of 2016 Awards – Best Female Wrestler
Women’s wrestling has soared to grand heights in 2016, with WWE moving further away from the old diva image of their female stars. In the next part of our Best of 2016 awards, we break down the nominees for Best Female wrestler of the year.
Charlotte
12 title matches on PPV in 2016. 12 wins. You can’t argue with the numbers, Charlotte has an phenomenal year. With competition more fierce than it’s ever been, the daughter of The Nature Girl has established herself as the women to beat. Highlights include winning the battle of the horsewomen at Wrestlemania, plus winning the first WWE Womens PPV main event inside of Hell in a Cell.
Sasha Banks
After a mixed start to life on the main roster in 2015, Sasha hit back with a bang this year, establishing herself as a three time womens champion. Whilst her rivalry with Charlotte was arguably one of WWEs best feuds of 2016 and cemented both as true stars of the industry, Sasha’s failure to beat her rival on the biggest stages will have many questioning what the company has in store for her going forward.
Becky Lynch
Often a background figure in the Diva Revolution angle on her arrival, Becky has been able to find her own voice as 2016 went out, with the brand split allowing her to move out of Charlottes shadow. The inaugural Smackdown exclusive PPV saw Lynch crowned SD Lives first Women’s champion, an achievement that capped off a decade long journey for the Irish Lass Kicker. She has since helped establish newcomer Alexa Bliss in a rivalry that has been a standout on the blue brand in the final months of the year.
Bayley
In a year in which he entered as the star of the NXT womens division, ends with great uncertainty for the lovable hugster. Whilst she produced a standout bout at NXT Takeover: Dallas in March, arguably her highlight since her main roster call-up would be the reaction she received the the Glasgow live crowd for RAW in November. Expect to see more big moments from Bayley in 2016.
Asuka
It is safe to say that as we enter 2017, NXT has only one real women star at present, and that is Asuka. Since taking the NXT Womens title from Bayley, Asuka has ran a rampage through the roster over the year, including a big win over the veteran Mickie James at the latest NXT Takeover. Hopefully she will be on the main roster in no time.
Alexa Bliss
The find of the WWE draft by a country mile. Alexa has walked into the SD Live women scene like a fish to water. Bliss has shown fantastic progression as the year has went on, especially for someone who has only been wrestling for three years. A master at the age of 25 of the heel art, with superb facial expressions and promo work, she capped off an amazing debut year on the main roster, dethroning Beck Lynch to end the year as Smackdown womens champion.
Voting for the Suplex Retweet Best of 2016 awards opens next week.
The founding father and ‘higher power’ of the ESSR army, Steven oversees the operation of the Suplex Retweet podcast series and is the show’s primary host. With a broad knowledge of the industry, Steven leads discussions on a wide range of subjects from stables to WCW.
Email: steven@eatsleepsuplexretweet.com
For some reason, he thinks John Cena’s real name is Allen Jones and is madly in love with Becky Lynch.
