With less than 14 days until WrestleMania 37, the Mania two-night card is shaping up. WWE’s decision to make this year’s WrestleMania a two-night event gives the company an opportunity to book more matches. It also gives more superstars their well-deserved WrestleMania moment. This year’s show will feature two main events.
In a video tweeted by WWE Deutschland, the SmackDown Women’s Champion, Sasha Banks says she’s main eventing night one. So it’s safe to assume that Sasha Banks vs Bianca Belair is main eventing night one. Here are three reasons why Banks vs Belair deserve to main event WrestleMania Night one.
The Match is Historic
Sasha Banks (c) vs Bianca Belair for the SmackDown Women’s Championship is more than a Wrestlemania championship match. Banks vs Belair is historic. This is the first time in WWE history two Black women will wrestle in singles competition at Wrestlemania. Most importantly, this is the first time two Black women will wrestle for a WWE championship at Wrestlemania. This is huge and is also rare.
WWE itself knows this match is historic. (Yet the company is afraid to acknowledge why the match is so historic.) On multiple occasions, WWE has stated that Banks vs Belair is “history in the making.” If WWE is aware of the historic nature of this match, it’s a smart move to allow the women to main event night one. Never in WWE history have Black women accomplished something as big as main eventing a championship match at WrestleMania. But that is not to say that Black women haven’t had their WrestleMania moments.
At WrestleMania VI, in 1990, Sapphire became the first Black woman to wrestle at The Grandest Stage of Them All. She teamed up with Dusty Rhodes to take on Randy Savage and Queen Sherri. Sapphire had her WrestleMania moment when she pinned Sherri. Jazz had her WrestleMania moment at WrestleMania X8 in 2002. She walked into WrestleMania as WWF (WWE) Women’s Champion and retained, defeating Trish Stratus and Lita in a Triple Threat match. She is the only black wrestler in WWE history to keep her championship at WrestleMania. In 2003, Jazz wrestled again for the WWE Women’s Championship at WrestleMania XIX. This time she didn’t win.
In more recent history, at WrestleMania 32, Sasha Banks made history by wrestling in a triple threat match to crown the inaugural WWE Women’s Champion. At WrestleMania 33, Naomi had her WrestleMania moment in her hometown of Orlando, Florida when she won the SmackDown Women’s Championship. One year later, at WrestleMania 34, Naomi made history by winning the first-ever WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal.
Yes, Black women have made WrestleMania history and WrestleMania moments. But none of these moments are bigger than two Black women main eventing one night of WrestleMania.
Banks and Belair Deserve It
Both Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair have worked very hard to get to this stage in their careers. Banks has accomplished a lot in her WWE career. Time after time, WWE has put its trust in Banks to deliver in big matches. She has participated in many first-ever women’s matches and main events. (To see a full account of how much Banks has accomplished in WWE read our Sasha Banks Is Our WWE Superstar of the Decade 2010-2019 article.)
Even though Belair hasn’t accomplished as much as Banks, she has accomplished one thing that only two other women have. She won the 2021 Royal Rumble. (She is the first Black woman to win the Royal Rumble and the second Black person to win the Royal Rumble). Winning the Rumble is no small feat. Many Rumble winners have gone on to become multi-reign champions and WWE Hall of Famers. Many have also gone on to main event WrestleMania. And yes, not all Royal Rumble winners main event WrestleMania, but many have.
With WWE opting for a two-night WrestleMania, both the men’s and women’s Rumble winners should main event. Banks vs Belair should main event night one, and Roman Reigns vs Edge vs Daniel Bryan should main event night two. So let’s be honest. There is no other confirmed night one match that deserves the main event spot more than Banks vs Belair.
It’s What The Fans Want
Fans have been very vocal about Banks vs Belair main eventing WrestleMania. How vocal? Viral hashtag vocal. Banks and Belair fans created the hashtag #MainEventBanksVsBelair/#BanksVsBelairMainEvent/#SashaVsBiancaMainEvent. It’s clear, WWE fans want Banks vs. Belair to main event WrestleMania night one. The hashtag has since gone viral on social media. WWE is aware of the hashtag and has asked fans which match should main event. Obviously, Banks vs Belair.
Without a doubt, Sasha Banks vs Bianca Belair should main event WrestleMania 37. These women have worked hard their whole careers and they deserve the opportunity to make wrestling history. No other match on night one of WrestleMania can compare to the hype and fanfare of this match. None of the other matches on night one are as important as this match. And if WWE believes this match is “history in the making” then these phenomenal Black women deserve to make history in the main event of night one.
