On last night’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown , WWE continued to tease a split between Bayley and Sasha Banks . Lacey Evans defeated Banks on the show to earn the final slot in the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match, but “The Boss” could have won the contest if her partner hadn’t accidentally distracted the referee. Following the show, Banks made her frustrations about the situation known.
As documented by WrestlingNews.co , Banks took to social media and called Bayley a “dead b*tch.” She also captioned the photo by saying that she “can’t wait for the summer” and ended the post with a SummerSlam hashtag. It’s entirely possible that Banks was trolling fans, but the match also seems like a possibility as the dissension within the team is intensifying, and SummerSlam is an ideal pay-per-view for a match of this magnitude.
Bayley responded to the post by saying that she wants to go to the beach with Banks when summer arrives. Banks followed up with another thinly veiled threat, stating that she hopes Bayley can swim. It’s pretty clear that Banks isn’t happy with her friend costing her last night’s match.
Tensions between @itsBayleyWWE and @SashaBanksWWE have ESCALATED as #TheHugger and #TheBoss BRAWL BACKSTAGE!!!! #RAW pic.twitter.com/AEeTSt0sgR
— WWE (@WWE) March 27, 2018
SummerSlam will take place in Boston, which is Banks’ hometown. While it’s unlikely that there will be a live audience at the event due to the current coronavirus guidelines, all the signs point toward Banks turning babyface and dethroning Bayley as SmackDown Women’s Champion at the pay-per-view.
Tensions have been building between Banks and Bayley for a while, and they almost came to blows at this year’s WrestleMania during a six-pack challenge match for Bayley’s title. However, they were able to patch up their differences and Bayley emerged from the match victorious.
Bayley’s championship reign has also forced Banks to take a backseat and support her friend, which isn’t the latter’s style as she wants to hold the title. There have been numerous subtle hints in recent months to suggest that Banks has her eyes on the prize, but it’s been more obvious these past few weeks.
Banks and Bayley have been allies during their respective stints on the main roster, but they were fierce rivals during their NXT days and are credited as pioneers of the women’s wrestling revolution in WWE.
Many fans want to see their rivalry recommence on the main roster, as there is a storied history of both bad blood and friendship between them, and that makes for interesting storytelling. Now it remains to be seen if they’ll settle their differences in the coming weeks, or if the teased SummerSlam match will come to fruition.