wrestling / News

Sasha Banks Discusses What Role She Wants in Women’s Royal Rumble, Which Alumni Should Return

December 21, 2017 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas
Sasha Banks TLC Image Credit: WWE

– Sasha Banks spoke with NBC Sports about the upcoming Women’s Royal Rumble and more. Highlights are below:

On what type of role she wants to have in the women’s Royal Rumble: “I don’t know if I would want to start off first. I would have to do extra cardio to prepare and with the holiday season I’ve been eating a lot, so I don’t know if I would be ready for that … just kidding (laughs). Honestly, I would rather get that lucky number 30 and throw everyone out that’s left. I don’t want to sweat my makeup off. I want to look good! But no, I haven’t seriously thought about it or had a chance to because I’m still kind of in that shock moment and I’ve been more thinking about what legend could be in the match or if we’ll have girls from NXT be in the match because with [the] SmackDown and Raw [rosters] we don’t have enough to get to that 30 number yet. The potential of what legend can I work has me more excited than which number I’ll be in the Royal Rumble match, but I think when I get closer to the actual Royal Rumble, that’s when I’ll get more of my nerves. I don’t want to say I’m in shock because I guessed that this would happen, but it’s still so crazy to kick off 2018 knowing that the women are going to have a Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble. It’s really cool.”

On which former WWE stars she’d like to see come back for the women’s Royal Rumble: “I would love to hear Trish Stratus’ music. Of course Lita, Molly Holly, Jazz, Jacqueline, man even Victoria. It would be an honor to be in the ring with any of those girls. Beth Phoenix. Of course I want to win it, but at the same time, I would just want her to pick me up and throw me over the top. I would mark out, but I would land on my hands and go back into the ring like Kofi Kingston (laughs). Any of those girls would be incredible, but of course I would love to see girls from NXT get the opportunity, but of course they wouldn’t win it because I would be the last person standing.”

On the storyline dictating when a women’s match will main event Wrestlemania: “Exactly and that’s the number one thing is. I don’t just want something to be given to us just to put that little stamp like ‘Oh look the women are doing it now it’s cool.’ No. My goal is to main event WrestleMania and if we’re going to main event it, I need it to be the greatest storyline ever. I need the fans to be invested. I just don’t want to get handed something because they’re putting a first time ever [match] for women. I want it to be a good storyline and I want the crowd to care because those are the moments that…I feel like the reason people talk about the Brooklyn match [I had] with Bayley so much is because of the history between me and Bayley. You know that she fought from the very beginning to get the women’s championship and for me, I fought to keep that and to show people that I’m the best. People are invested in the storylines more than just putting a name on something and bam! First time ever, you know what I mean?”