WrestleMania 37's theme may have been "Pirate Stuff" for posterity (and because they still had loads of it left from the year prior), but those that lived through the night will always remember its significance for other reasons.
When WWE were finally allowed to let some fans back into the building for a night after that oh-so-neat one year, one month and one day without, everything suddenly had increased gravitas. Performers that had lasted that time without the responses that drew them into the industry in the first place were about to get them, and nobody deserved them more than pandemic era-MVP Bayley.
'The Role Model' used 2020 and early 2021 to joyously experiment, proving herself to be something of a perfect all-rounder in the process. WWE, as thanks, didn't book her at WrestleMania. Later stories emerged that a Becky Lynch bout was sort of there/sort of not for a while, but no Plan B robbed the longest serving SmackDown Women's Champion of the lock-up she'd so desperately deserved.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. 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 sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
