After making her return on Monday Night RAW this week, former NXT Women’s champion Sasha Banks appears to be back in the WWE Women’s championship hunt. Following Charlotte’s successful title defense against Paige, Banks made a statement by confronting both the champion and her sidekick Dana Brooke.
Now, with her 2-month hiatus from WWE television over, Banks is primed for the competition. She hadn’t competed on RAW or SmackDown since early April. Banks’ most recent bout came on an episode of WWE Main Event , defeating Summer Rae. It’s been a long road from being just another wrestler-in-training to the class of WWE’s Women’s division.
Speaking to The Orlando Sentinel ahead of tomorrow night’s live event in Orlando, Florida, Banks is amazed by how quickly her career has taken off inside the WWE system.
“It’s insane to think about where I’ve come from in just a little over three years. Imagine what the next three years could bring! It gets me really emotional to feel like I’m a part of history.”
Banks has alluded to her wrestling fandom on every possible occasion, never failing to mention her admiration of WWE Hall of Famer Eddie Guerrero. She paid tribute to “Latino Heat” with a Guerrero-inspired outfit for her triple threat match at Wrestlemania 32 .
Without Eddie Guerrero would have no Sasha Banks ?? @SashaBanksWWE #LegitBoss pic.twitter.com/nJ5zG3Isvl
— Legit BOSS ? (@DamiIrwinStyles) April 16, 2016
In prior interviews, including her appearance on Chris Jericho’s Talk is Jericho podcast, Banks expressed disappointment with the way the female portion of the roster was utilized when she watched as a fan. However, she also said her love for WWE was so strong, she would be all for wrestling with inexperienced models, having 3-minute matches, and having a compromised in-ring style.
But, with her success in the WWE system, Banks is glad she has the opportunity to have the same impact the male performers — the one’s she truly admired as a young fan — on the main roster.
“Before I came to WWE, I was watching guys like John Cena and The Rock and said, ‘I want to be able to bring people to their feet cheering like that.’ The women’s match has been the bathroom break on shows for too long. Since the match I had with Bayley, people have been buying tickets to see us. That’s amazing.”
Banks’ popularity has exploded on the main roster. While many questioned her prolonged absence from WWE television, several reports — most of which suggested she would be back to start a feud for the WWE Women’s championship — proved to be correct. Now, Banks is on magazine covers, including Muscle and Fitness Her’s.
Get LEGIT toned thanks to @SashaBanksWWE ‘s issue of @mandfhers available on newsstands now! https://t.co/sKRdFTVWCK pic.twitter.com/b7Esa9ATx6
— WWE (@WWE) June 20, 2016
A huge part of Banks’ success has been her flashy character, incorporating several overexaggerated qualities best personified by prominent figures in the music industry. Banks has been honest that her cousin and rap legend Snoop Dogg played a big role in helping her find herself as a performer. The “Gin & Juice” rapper played Banks out to the stage at Wrestlemania 32 .
However, her cousin was not the only one instrumental in coming up with “The Boss” character. No matter how it came about, however, Banks is thrilled to be in the position that she’s in.
“When I was first starting out, I was looking at people like [Snoop], Kanye [West] and Nicki Minaj, then somehow the idea ‘I’m the boss’ clicked with me. So now I’m ‘The Boss.’”
Banks is reportedly set to face Charlotte at Battleground for a chance to capture the WWE Women’s championship for the first time in her career.
[Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images]