10 Origin Stories Of Awesome Wrestlers

6. Sasha Banks

Dominik WWE
WWE.com

Sasha Banks initially struggled during Dusty Rhodes' weekly NXT promo class. Curiously, given the opponent she cast herself in diametric opposition to, she first arrived in the developmental league as a glorified fan - one who was simply happy to be there. Though Bayley would define herself in that role, it wasn't suited to the future Boss.

Timid and bland, Rhodes constantly implored her to show some "sass". She did so by drawing inspiration from her cousin Snoop Dogg. "Everyone called him The Boss - so I took that from him," Banks confirmed in an interview given to GQ.

Her cousin wasn't the only star of the hip hop world Banks would co-opt in order to fashion herself as wrestling's on fleek answer to the trendsetters of the urban music scene. Soon, inspired by Kanye West and Nicki Minaj, Banks would drape herself in gaudy jewellery and borrow its legit language to establish herself as a surfer of the elusive zeitgeist.

Regrettably, this element of her act has been lost in translation on the main roster, but it's not really the fault of Banks, as much as it is the RAW creative team's failure - or unwillingness - to similarly go with the trend.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!