12 Ups And 16 Downs For WWE In 2021

10. Nikki ASH

Nikki A.S.H Asuka
WWE.com

The last surviving member of Sanity has actually done OK for herself in 2021. Nikki Cross won the Money in the Bank briefcase, successfully cashed it in to win the Raw Women’s Championship, and has held the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship this year as well.

But getting there was a ridiculous journey. Cross defeated Rhea Ripley and Charlotte Flair in beat the clock challenges where she was beat up in both matches, then started assuming a character of being “almost a superhero,” urging people to believe in themselves. She was thus rechristened Nikki A.S.H. Yes, her “last name” is now the abbreviation for “Almost a Superhero.”

In donning the costume, she’s now no longer treated as the pint-sized pitbull she was in Sanity, but as an undersized underdog who gets beat up regularly. Her monthlong run as Raw Women’s Champion was heatless, and her tag team with Ripley has been a disappointment.

Nikki is now doubting herself (again) and has swung back around to being incompetent, as the announcers are commenting weekly on whether she’s a jinx for Ripley… all while still wearing her superhero costume.

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Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.