5 Biggest Winners & Losers From WWE Battleground 2016
4. Winners - Bayley
When WWE officially announced that six NXT names would make their way to the main roster as part of the Draft, many assumed that Bayley’s inclusion was all but guaranteed. Her popularity has seemingly peaked in NXT, and after a long, successful run as the developmental system’s Women’s Champion, she has nothing left to prove down in Full Sail University.
It was the perfect time to bring her up, but WWE opted for the less-seasoned Nia Jax, Carmella, and Alexa Bliss instead. While Bayley’s exclusion means she’ll now get a chance to win her old belt back from Asuka at NXT: Brooklyn next month, it was also one of the Draft’s biggest disappointments.
Battleground went some way to alleviating those gripes. Emerging as Sasha Banks’ mystery tag partner to take-on Charlotte and Dana Brooke, Bayley received a huge reaction from the audience, and helped set Battleground off to a great start throughout an energetic opening match.
Marketed as a “one-off” appearance, it’s unlikely that Raw and SmackDown viewers will see Bayley again any time soon, but her star has grown immeasurably.
She’s been formally introduced to main roster viewers alongside one of the company’s most popular performers in Sasha, and Charlotte, the Women’s Division’s alpha female.
However WWE choose to eventually bring her up, last night has already established Bayley as one of the most important females in the company.