7 Match Star Ratings For WWE WrestleMania 37 - Night 1

by Michael Sidgwick

1. Sasha Banks Vs. Bianca Belair - SmackDown Women's Title Match

Bianca Belair
WWE.com

An incredible main event worthy of the WrestleMania name, this was actually far better than most.

This wasn't sent out to die after seven draining hours. This wasn't toiled through melodramatically by boring men treating you like a moron by taking an age to actually do anything, like you wouldn't grasp the beats of the "story" otherwise.

This was incredibly creative without ever feeling like a sequence of cool things to do. This pulsed with as much action as heart and struggle. This was a super-exciting fight, but it felt at first - in a deliberate story beat - like a flexing battle never without a charged emotional undercurrent.

Belair used her strength where Sasha used her quickness and ring IQ in a superb dynamic that realised itself with an iconic spot early: Sasha, attempting a dive, was caught by Belair on the outside. Belair then carried her up the steps and threw her into the ring.

Sasha, overpowered, drew on that savvy in several very creative spots in which she used Belair's trademark hair against her. Belair was tremendous, but this was the sort of performance that establishes Banks as the greatest North American women's wrestler to ever do it. In smashing herself into the barricade with a missed meteora and selling every grab of the hair with the desperation of an imminent loss in sight, she was exceptional at elevating Belair as a top star.

This required a great deal of creativity from Banks - she was playing the role of a veteran who had to contain one of the greatest athletes WWE has ever produced - and she innovated with a super-inventive version of a tornado DDT. If there was one ambitious moment too many - the contrived awkwardness of the missed double foot stomp - it at least resulted in a great near-fall. An instantly iconic story of mind-blowing athletic advancement versus immense wrestling acumen, this absolutely ruled. It was unforgettable, too.

The sound of Belair's hair whipping Banks in the abdomen will echo through years and years to come.

Star Rating: ★★★★½

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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!