SmackDown Women's Champion Sasha Banks and Royal Rumble winner Bianca Belair were buoyant before and just after the bell rang for their main event match. WWE's various social media accounts made it official on the day of the show - 'The Boss' and 'The EST' were going on last on a history-making night, and how richly deserved the prestigious spot was.
This was a magnificent show to cap off the show - Banks and Belair complimented each other wonderfully in a battle of in-ring experience versus athletic excellence over a title that meant the world to both of them.
Going full heel to sell a one-night story in the absence of a good one in the build, 'The Boss' was in sublime form when she finally took control of the pace. That this happened after Belair's incredible strength game enhanced narrative - Banks had to earn the win if she was going to get one, and saw the challenger's hair as a power worth nullifying.
The plan failed, and the resultant ear-splitting kill-shot justified Sasha's strategy. Belair cut the Champion open with an eye-watering whip before the K.O.D finished the job to conclude one of the best WrestleMania main events in years.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for 10 years. Alongside the production of daily written, audio and video content covering WWE and AEW, he also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years.
As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot on the UK's wrestling podcast charts with over 10,000 episodes and 70,000,000 total downloads. He also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House!, Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast, and has guested on long-running Sunderland AFC podcast Wise Men Say.
With WhatCulture, he has provided in-person coverage of some of the biggest pay-per-views and Premium Live Events in wrestling history, including WrestleMania, Survivor Series, All In & Double Or Nothing in destinations such as New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. He has also been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana, 411Mania and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling.
Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in music and culture magazines The Crack, Pilot as well as Sunderland AFC's premiere fanzine A Love Supreme. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it every other Saturday at the Stadium Of Light, and at Cribs gigs nationwide.
