6 Ups & 2 Downs From WWE SmackDown (17 Jan - Results & Review)
3. Bayley’s Candour
Where was this sort of human touch during Bayley's mediocre title reign last year?! The 'Role Model' lived an inspired journey during the first half of 2024; from Royal Rumble win to beating ex-Damage CTRL pal IYO SKY at 'Mania 40 for the belt, she was on fire, but then her Women's Title reign sagged and felt like it ended with a whimper at SummerSlam. WWE let Bayley down by turning her back into a giggling mess of a character who had nothing to say.
Adversity has changed that.
On Friday, the company aired a nice pre-taped interview in the empty arena with Byron Saxton to hype up Bayley’s title opportunity vs. Tiffany Stratton. This wasn't standard WWE stuff, being honest. Bayley freely admitted that she didn’t have the best title reign possible, which eats at her. She clawed her way back to another title shot so she could right some wrongs and do things properly this time.
Bayley works when she’s frank as a character and has that human touch. She sure works a heck of a lot better doing this than she does saying daft, annoying nonsense like, "Ding dong...hello!" or laughing because she's run out of material. Fingers crossed the writing team learn their lesson here and give her more of this realistic air going forwards.
SmackDown's promo was a short skit, but a damn good one. It presented Bayley as someone of stature who's at a low ebb in her career and doesn't know how to arrest that. Keep this story going post-defeat to Tiffany, please. It'll work out and help Bayley reforge a connection with the audience.