50 Ups & 50 Downs For WWE's Decade: The 2010s
7. Sasha Banks Vs Bayley, NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn
With a WWE Women's division now obsessed with making history just by the virtue of existing on the same plane as their male counterparts, it's easy to forget how 'The Boss' and 'The Hugger' managed it in 2015 by - imagine - delivering a the best match in WWE women's wrestling history as a payoff to an emotion-driven storyline.
Banks was a sensational heel; the Champion, 'The Boss', the best. Babyface Bayley the challenger, the underdog, the great pretender to her opponent's throne. Purity oozed from her determined expression throughout, replacing a more literal representation negated by the PG-era blood ban. Sasha initially soared, smashing her opponent's injured hand with cold vigour before flooring her foe with a plancha to shorten her recovery time.
Bayley's tenacity counted double in the frenzy of it all, particularly when she uncorked a terrifying reverse hurricanrana from the top rope to set up a match-winning Bayley-To-Belly. Her primal discarding of her wrist tape seconds before the move mirrored her long-awaited willingness to throw necessary caution to the wind.