Bianca Belair says it's not her time now, but she has big goals for WWE WrestleMania 38 (Exclusive)
WWE is honoring the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces this Sunday when they hold the 19th annual Tribute to the Troops show on FOX. The card includes a huge Champion vs. Champion match as Roman Reigns takes on Shinsuke Nakamura. WWE Champion Big E will also battle Dolph Ziggler, and for the second year in a row, Bianca Belair will be in action.
Tribute to the Troops is back in front of a crowd this year after being taped inside the ThunderDome in 2020. Belair teamed up with Sasha Banks to defeat Bayley and Natalya last time, and she tells Sportskeeda Wrestling she's incredibly excited and honored to be back this year, especially now that the live crowds have returned.
Champions are set to collide for WWE's Tribute to the Troops this Sunday on @FOXTV! #WWETroops
wwe.com/shows/tributet… https://t.co/2OT0WaL3Be
"Nothing compares to having our fans and so to be able to be a part of Tribute to the Troops this year in front of fans, it's amazing." Belair continued: "We can't do what we do without our fans. And yeah, I'm married to Montez Ford... he's a veteran. He's a Marine. I feel like I get to be a part of Tribute to the Troops and kinda represent for him. So it's really cool."
Belair is also excited to step into the ring with her opponent this Sunday. The EST of WWE will take on the new No. 1 Contender for the RAW Women's Championship, Liv Morgan. Morgan won a Fatal 5-Way match this past Monday on RAW to earn her first-ever opportunity at singles gold in WWE.
After a series of matches with Becky Lynch over the past few months, Belair was hoping to earn one more shot at Big Time Becks and that RAW Women's Championship, but Doudrop put a stop to any hopes of that happening. Disgruntled over Belair being put in the Fatal-5 Way over her, Doudrop yanked Bianca from the ring just as it appeared the former SmackDown Women's Champion was about to claim victory.
DOUDROP!!!!!
@BiancaBelairWWE
#Fatal5Way
#WWERaw https://t.co/Vsa7PMKpt0
Liv Morgan then capitalized on Doudrop's interference and rolled up Carmella for the victory. Despite being screwed over, Bianca Belair says she's extremely happy that Morgan is finally going to get her time to shine.
"I always would love to be the No. 1 Contender. I want to become RAW Women's Champion just as much as anyone else, but at the end of the day, Liv Morgan is someone who has been here, she's putting in the time, she's putting in the hard work. Everyone works hard, but you know, I think everyone sees that this is Liv Morgan's time. I'm so happy for her," Belair said. "I know how to clap for other people when it's not my time and it's Liv Morgan's time right now. And trust me, I'm the person giving her a round of applause right now. I'm rooting for Liv Morgan. There's just something so magical and endearing about Liv Morgan and something that makes you just want to get behind her and root for her. So I'm always excited to get in the ring with her, especially for Tribute to the Troops."
It's unclear when Liv Morgan will get her opportunity at Becky Lynch's RAW Women's Title, and the future of Bianca Belair is up in the air as well. Thanks to Doudrop, Belair appears to be out of the title picture, at least for now. However, come WrestleMania season, the EST hopes it'll be a completely different story.
Bianca Belair hypes WWE WrestleMania 38 as tickets go on sale today
Tickets are now on sale for WrestleMania 38 in Dallas next year, and for the third year in a row, the event is taking place over two days. In fact, it's being billed as "the most stupendous two-night WrestleMania in history!"
Fans have come to really enjoy the two-night format over the last couple of years and were happy to hear that it was coming back in 2022. Many of the performers seem to prefer spreading it out across two nights as well, including one of the women who main-evented night one earlier this year in Tampa.
"Definitely," Bianca Belair said without hesitation. "Just more opportunities for more people. I think everyone's so excited about WrestleMania when it comes about. It'll be April 2nd, April 3rd this year in Dallas at AT&T Stadium. But anytime we can get more WrestleMania matches and any more moments for that, I think everyone's for that. I'm super excited for it. And this year is going to be stupendous!"
But what will the EST be doing at next year's WrestleMania? For the first time in a while, Bianca Belair now finds herself on the hunt. She is once again chasing the gold with no clear path to getting her women's championship back.
She told Sportskeeda Wrestling that the dream scenario for her would be to find her way back into the main event on either April 2nd or 3rd in Dallas.
"I want to keep proving that I'm a main event caliber athlete and competitor and performer. I thought we (herself and Sasha Banks) proved it this year, but I'd love to be in the main event again with one of the Four Horsewomen. My goal is to take all four of them down by pinfall. So maybe I could take one of them down... by pinfall at WrestleMania," Belair stated.
Belair is halfway towards her goal with pinfall wins over Sasha Banks and Bayley. To this point in her career, she is yet to successfully pin Charlotte and Lynch in singles action on television.
Tickets for WrestleMania 38 can now be purchased through Seatgeek with single and two-day combo tickets available. Also, don't forget to check out WWE Tribute to the Troops this Sunday on FOX. Air time varies per market, so check your local listings.
Check out our full conversation with Bianca Belair in the video above. Also, make sure to follow Sportskeeda Wrestling on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube for more exclusive interviews in the future.