"They didn’t want us to train like the men"- Sasha Banks on training in 'Divas Era'
WWE Superstar Sasha Banks recently opened up about her training experience in developmental during the famous 'Divas Era.' The promotion has come a long way when it comes to its women's division, with women like Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and Sasha Banks main eventing WrestleMania.
However, things weren't looking bright before the famous Divas revolution of 2015. Back then, the women of WWE were heavily criticized because their matches were not as integral to the show as their male counterparts.
Speaking to WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle on The Kurt Angle Show, Sasha banks shed light on her training at the performance center during her initial years with Vince McMahon's promotion.
“It was really tough. Still, back then they didn’t want us to train like the men. We were told to train like Divas and we didn’t have any explanation to what that meant. They just came out and said, ‘Hey, no striking, no doing this no doing that,’" Sasha Banks said.
While they were training 'like Divas,' it was as hectic as it gets. The Boss detailed the things she had to do as a trainee:
"But training was every single day plus live events plus setting up the ring plus going to different towns and putting posters up so people could attend the shows. It was every single day sacrifice. I think maybe only Sunday I had off and that wasn’t even an off day cause you just had to recover mentally for what the next day was gonna bring,” Banks added. (H/T- sescoops)
Kurt Angle welcomed WWE star Sasha Banks as his guest on “The Kurt Angle Show” on AdFreeShows.com. Banks was asked to share h
Sasha Banks was an integral part of The Divas Revolution
The Bella Twins fought Paige and Emma on the February 23, 2015 episode of Raw in an infamous match that lasted around 30 seconds. Following the match, the hashtag #GiveDivasAChance trended internationally for around a day and a half.
In the aftermath, WWE CBO Stephanie McMahon declared a 'revolution' in the women's division, introducing Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and then-NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks to the main roster.
#OnThisDay in 2015, Stephanie McMahon announced the arrival of the "Divas Revolution" in #WWE, calling up Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Becky Lynch from NXT to the main roster.
It marked a change in focus for the division as a whole. https://t.co/RiTsMzAdF6
The call-up of these three talented NXT stars changed the landscape of women's wrestling forever. This change in the status of the division was signified by the return of the WWE Women's Championship in 2016 when Lita unveiled a brand new Women's Championship belt during the WrestleMania 32 pre-show.
Women got more screen time and started main eventing pay-per-views. WWE witnessed the first-ever all-women pay-per-view in 2018. The following year, three women, Flair, Lynch, and Ronda Rousey, main evented WrestleMania 35 for the first time in the promotion's history.
Sasha Banks main-evented WrestleMania this year when she defended the SmackDown Women's Championship against Bianca Belair on Night 1. She is expected to contest for the same title against current Champion Charlotte Flair.