10 Predictions For WWE Women's Wrestling In 2017
What next for the Women's Revolution?
What a great year it has been for women's wrestling in WWE. The Women's Revolution will close out 2016 as one of the company's biggest assets, and its protagonists stand among WWE's most important performers. Where women's wrestling was once no more than a punchline, it is now a vital component of WWE's product, and the likes of Becky Lynch and Bayley are just as popular as their male counterparts.
Raw's women's scene has largely revolved around Charlotte and Sasha Banks, whose long-running feud will go down as one of the year's finest. The duo have had a stranglehold on the Raw Women's Championship, but with their business now concluded, it's time for both to move on, and a fresh set of challengers to emerge.
SmackDown, meanwhile, have made great use of the full breadth of their female roster, with Alexa Bliss currently sitting as their figurehead. Her ongoing rivalry with Becky Lynch will continue into 2017, but the likes of Nikki Bella and Natalya will surely make strides towards contendership as the year progresses.
Few years have had such a transformative impact on women's wrestling. The "Revolution" finally justifies its title, and after 2016 brought us the first ever all-women pay-per-view main event, the sky is the limit in 2017. How will things pan out? Let's take a stab at it.
Here are 10 predictions for WWE women's wrestling in 2017.
10. WWE & Paige Part Ways
Few WWE superstars have had as turbulent a year as Paige. Her status within the WWE women’s division was already greatly diminished at the start of 2016, after her Divas Championship feud with Charlotte flopped. Paige featured on television less and less as the year progressed, and while she did notch a couple of non-title wins over Charlotte, she was continually neglected in favour of the brand’s big three.
Her year took a real turn for the worst in August, when her mother revealed on Twitter that Paige was currently out of action with an undisclosed injury. Two weeks later, Paige was suspended for her first Wellness Policy violation, and in October, she began a second suspension. A brief Twitter spat followed, with Paige’s family protesting her innocence, but WWE put the hammer down by insisting she’d tested positive for an illegal substance, not prescription drugs.
Paige underwent successful neck surgery and got engaged to Alberto Del Rio a few months ago, but these are the only bright spots in her dark year. WWE have already removed her from Raw’s opening montage, and it looks increasingly like the company are waiting for her to heal up before cutting her loose. This might suit both parties at this point, as Paige, despite her talents, has been continually misused throughout her WWE run.