Backstage Note on Why WWE Delayed the Sasha Banks & Bayley Feud

– During today’s Wrestling Observer Radio, hosts Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez were discussing the booking of the Sasha Banks and Bayley feud, and what might happen if Banks and Bayley are put on separate rosters as a result of the upcoming WWE Draft starting later this week on SmackDown. Meltzer noted on today’s show that WWE kept continually pushing back the breakup of Sasha Banks and Bayley because they worked so well together as a tag team.

WWE finally pulled the trigger on the breakup last month, when Bayley turned on her former best friend during SmackDown, which resulted in a Sasha Banks face turn. Now, the former women’s tag team champions are finally scheduled to face each other one-on-one in a title match.

According to Meltzer, Bayley and Banks splitting to feud each other was always the long-term plan for the two. He stated, “I know why they did the breakup because that was always the plan, [the plan] was to do the breakup, and they kept moving it back and kept moving it back. But because they were so good together, so they kept kind of moving it back.”

However, Meltzer critiqued the notion that WWE’s creative team might’ve delayed the feud so long, that the WWE Draft might put an end to it before it really starts. Ultimately, how that plays out will be seen later this week. Bayley is set to defend her SmackDown women’s title on this week’s SmackDown episode.

This year’s 2020 WWE Draft will be a two-night event. It will start on SmackDown on Friday, October 9. It will then continue on Raw on Monday, October 12.