Becky Lynch 365: The highs and lows of The Man's year-long title reign
On April 7, 2019, Becky Lynch defeated Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair in the main event of WrestleMania 36 to become the RAW and SmackDown Women's Championship. While she would lose the SmackDown title a month later to Charlotte, The Man has held on to the RAW title for a year now, breaking numerous records in the process. As RAW Women's Champion, Lynch not only became the face of the women's division but of the entire company. It was hard even to contemplate Lynch being in such a position a few years where she was languishing in pre-show matches or simply off TV for a long time.
Becky Lynch's year-long reign has seen her defeat the who's who of WWE women's division. She has shined in her role as the face of the company. But the best thing about Lynch has been the ability to fans invested in her character and storylines. The Man has always had a vocal fan base but over the past year and a half, she has got popular than ever and there seem to be no signs of her popularity dwindling. This is a remarkable achievement in today's time where we have seen fans turning on a Superstar on a whim (cue Seth Rollins).
But it hasn't been all rainbow and sunshine for The Man and her title reign. There have been numerous instances where the fans have questioned her booking as this unstoppable force. Lynch has had to face criticism as some of her high-profile matches failed to click with the audience.
Here are some of the highs and lows of Lynch's year-long reign as the RAW Women's Champion :
#5 High: Conquering The Empress
There are moments in sports where an athlete just can't get the better of his opponent for a long time. We have it seen happen in tennis with Roger Federer found it difficult to get past Rafael Nadal in the duo's first few meetings. In MMA, Tito Ortiz never managed to eke out a win over ' The Iceman' Chuck Liddell until their final bout in 2018.
In wrestling too, there have numerous instances where a wrestler just couldn't beat an opponent for a long time. Lynch's rise saw her defeat some of the best that the company had to offer but there was one Superstar whom The Man wasn't able to put down and that was 'The Empress of Tomorrow' Asuka.
The Japanese Star had been a constant thorn in Lynch's side for the longest time. She defeated The Man and Charlotte Flair in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match to win the SmackDown Women's Championship at TLC 2018. Lynch would get a shot at redemption when she faced off against Asuka for the title at Royal Rumble 2019 but would come up short after she submitted to the Asuka Lock. Later that night, The Irish Lasskicker would insert herself in the Women's Royal Rumble match and win the entire thing by last eliminating Charlotte Flair.
Lynch would have to wait another year before she once again got her hands on Asuka. After conquering every single challenge put in front of her, Lynch would turn her attention to Asuka, the one woman she wasn't able to get the better off. A match between the duo was set for Royal Rumble 2020 for the RAW Women's Championship. The build-up to the match saw Lynch question herself on whether or not she had what takes to defeat one of the most dominant Superstars in WWE history.
Lynch ended up overcoming her biggest challenge as she defeated Asuka to retain the RAW Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble. She would once again beat the Empress in a rematch for the title a few weeks later on RAW.