Courtesy WWE
Bianca Belair is going back to WrestleMania, this time to challenge Becky Lynch for the Raw women’s championship.
For a second straight year, Belair will be in a top spot at WWE’s signature show. She defeated Sasha Banks last year in the main event of the first night of WrestleMania 37, and now looks to add another iconic moment this year against Lynch. The match was made official at Saturday’s Elimination Chamber, where Bianca won the six-woman Elimination Chamber match, pinning Alexa Bliss for the victory.
“It’s going to be the two women’s main-event winners from WrestleMania history going one-on-one, so there is a lot of anticipation just thinking about it,” said Belair. “I’m going all out to beat Becky Lynch and become Raw women’s champion.”
Lynch helped headline WrestleMania 35 in a match against Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair, and she is one of WWE’s most popular stars. She has not lost a pay-per-view singles match since 2019, and she also defeated Belair in only 26 seconds last August at SummerSlam.
“I plan on redeeming myself against Becky Lynch, and that’s a lot deeper than just because I lost a match to her at SummerSlam,” said Belair. “That loss showed that life can change in the blink of an eye. Bad things happen, but setbacks don’t mean you should give up.
“SummerSlam, the way it went down, that was very hard for me. Becky told me to get to the back of the line, and that’s what I did—and I cheered for everyone else while I worked my ass off to get back to the top. So bad things are going to happen, but that doesn’t mean you give up. You keep going, and I’m going to show that when this all comes full-circle against Becky Lynch at WrestleMania.”
Elimination Chamber was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and it is controversial every time WWE returns for a show there. Progress in Saudi Arabia for women is still not where it should be, but Belair was proud to have a chance to represent women in an impressive and influential manner.
“I’m honored to be one of the women in the matches at Elimination Chamber,” said Belair, who was also part of WWE’s “Be A Star” event in Jeddah. “This is the most women we’ve ever had on a card in Saudi Arabia and the most matches we’ve had. My purpose is to go out there and be powerful and strong, representing women in that way. It’s very important for little girls to see that, but it’s just as important for little boys to see women as powerful, strong, and determined. That opportunity means a lot, and I’m honored to be a part of it.”
Courtesy WWE
Here are the complete results from Elimination Chamber:
- Rey Mysterio defeated The Miz on the pre-show
- Universal champion Roman Reigns defeated Goldberg
- Bianca Belair won the women’s Elimination Chamber match
- Ronda Rousey and Naomi defeated Charlotte Flair and Sonya Deville
- Drew McIntyre defeated Madcap Moss in a Falls Count Anywhere match
- Raw women’s champion Becky Lynch defeated Lita
- Brock Lesnar won the men’s Elimination Chamber match to become the new WWE champion
For the second straight pay-per-view, Roman Reigns opened the card. Reigns defeated Goldberg, a match that was originally scheduled to main-event WrestleMania 36 in 2020. It lasted just six minutes, with Goldberg playing his greatest hits before Reigns choked him out with a guillotine submission. This was the final match on Goldberg’s current WWE contract, but it remains likely that the 55-year-old will remain in some capacity with WWE.
As the final pay-per-view before WrestleMania, this show helped lay the groundwork for the two-night event in April. That was visible in the main event as Brock Lesnar regained the WWE championship, setting up a champion vs. champion against Reigns to close out WrestleMania 38.
Bobby Lashley, who entered the match as champ, was never pinned or submitted, but was instead removed from the match under a storyline concussion protocol after Seth Rollins hit a buckle bomb on Austin Theory into Lashley’s Elimination Chamber pod. That was the spot that removed Lashley from the match—and continues the Lesnar-Lashley program. But there are drawbacks to the decision; why introduce a concussion-based storyline? Especially considering his body took the brunt of the impact in the body, why not call it a rib fracture or ruptured spleen? Or WWE could have gone in a different direction, having Matt Riddle or someone else score an upset pin on Lashley. In terms of creative booking, this was far from WWE’s finest moment.
This match was loaded with talent—and it would have been believable to see Rollins, AJ Styles, or Riddle win. But instead, the creative decision was made to have Lesnar burst out of his pod and pin each one of his opponents.
The final two were Lesnar and Theory, so the finish was painfully obvious. Theory was given a few moments on offense before Lesnar dominated, winning the match with an F5 off the top of a pod. The Reigns-Lesnar matchup has been done numerous times already, but making it for both titles at WrestleMania does add a new element—as well as storyline incentive for Reigns.
Wearing her judo gi, Elimination Chamber also featured Ronda Rousey teaming with Naomi to defeat Charlotte Flair and Sonya Deville. Flair and Rousey are currently scheduled to main-event the opening night of WrestleMania 38, though Lynch and Belair will undoubtedly make a run for that spot on the card. Lynch worked a phenomenal match against Lita, who hadn’t worked a singles match in a decade—and had her farewell match in 2006. It was evident that these two wanted a match together, and both took risks, especially with Lynch attempting a moonsault. This match also marked the end of Lita’s current WWE deal, but clearly there is a lot more she is capable of accomplishing in the ring.
In a match that included a frightening moment when Madcap Moss landed on his head, Drew McIntyre won a Falls Count Anywhere match. This included plenty of outside interference from Baron Corbin, which was beneficial since it gave extra time to check on Moss, who somehow finished the match. The Usos-Viking Raiders tag bout never happened, extending their storyline, as Jimmy and Jey Uso attack Erik and Ivar before they entered the ring.
Elimination Chamber was built around Lesnar winning the WWE title, but Belair once again stole the show in a match that was overflowing with talent, featuring Bliss, Rhea Ripley, Doudrop, Liv Morgan, and Nikki A.S.H.
“We all came out better in the end than we started at the beginning,” said Belair. “I came out [of my Elimination Chamber pod] last, so it was great to watch that group of women go to work.
“Liv surprises me every time she enters the ring. She’s tenacious and always adding something new. Watching Nikki climb up the chamber was amazing, and I love watching Rhea wrestle. She’s just so dominating. Doudrop is someone else who is incredibly strong, so to share the ring and mix it up with all of them was amazing. I was so grateful to end the match with Alexa, who has been away but you know she’s always bringing it when she’s in the ring.”
Delivering the match of the night is becoming a regular occurrence for Belair, who made sure to share the credit with her peers.
“We’re showing why the women should be on top,” said Belair. “I came out the winner, but every single girl in that match showed up and showed out.”
Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.
