#289: Iyo Sky vs. Bayley, WWE WrestleMania XL, Night 2 (4/7/2024).
This is for Iyo’s WWE Women’s Championship.
Beginning in 2022, Damage CTRL looked to be a dominant force in the WWE women’s division. Bayley, Iyo Sky and Dakota Kai busted their ass together and looked to siege the mountain top together. However, in the absence of Dakota, and the addition of Asuka and Kairi Sane, something changed in Iyo, and the three began to talk about Bayley behind her back. Their plan to slowly but surely squeeze Bayley out of the group had begun, unbeknownst to Bayley herself.
She would end up winning the 2024 Women’s Royal Rumble Match, and had originally decided to challenge Rhea Ripley for the Women’s World Championship on Raw, so that Damage CTRL would run WWE. However, her conversational Japanese she had picked up from years of being around Iyo helped her in finally discovering that Iyo had been against her for months, and thus Bayley attacked the rest of the group and declared that she’d see Iyo at WrestleMania for the Women’s Championship.
Bayley gets a super neat Egyptian style entrance for WrestleMania. Iyo confidently comes to the ring, and she’s brought out by Damage CTRL – who now have Dakota Kai on their side. Bayley is on her own tonight.
The bell sounds, and here we go! They lock up, and Bayley executes a side headlock takedown. Iyo stomps on her foot, and sends her to the floor. Another lock up, and both maintain control while rolling to the outside. They start throwing bombs at each other, before returning to the ring. Iyo hits a nice dropkick, and then looks to dive to the floor, but Bayley cuts her off with a strike. She guillotines her on the ropes, and then connects with a Tope to the floor.
Bayley hits a baseball slide to Iyo, and then looks for another, but Iyo catches the kick and swings Bayley’s leg into the ring post. In the ring, Iyo hits a brutal Dragon Screw Legwhip, Tanahashi style. Victory roll into a double stomp by the champion, and that gets her a nearfall. Bayley powders to the floor for a breather. They brawl around ringside, until Bayley tosses Iyo into the time keeper’s area. Iyo tries to springboard off the barricade, and Bayley catches her with a spinebuster on the floor.
In the ring, Bayley hits a running knee to the head, and several clotheslines in the corner. Nice side slam by Bayley, and Iyo is able to kick out. Bayley goes to the top rope, and Iyo cuts her off. Iyo springboards off the ropes, and dropkicks Bayley from the top rope to the floor. She follows up with a top rope moonsault to Bayley on the floor. Back in the ring, Iyo hits a shotgun dropkick, and a double running knees to the back for a 2 count.
They exchange control of the back, until Bayley hits a sunset flip powerbomb into the turnbuckle! Inside cradle by Bayley, and Iyo is able to kick out. Iyo with a bridging German Suplex, and she rolls through for another German Suplex, which nearly spikes Bayley on her head. She’s still able to kick out. Iyo tries for a top rope moonsault, and Bayley is able to get her leg up to block it, and she hurts herself in the process!
Top rope elbow drop is blocked by Iyo, who then goes into the Crossface submission. Bayley connects with a running elbow to the head, and Iyo catches her in the Crossface again. She transitions into the STF submission now, and Bayley elbows her way free. She connects with the Bayley to Belly, which gets her a 2 count. Iyo with a straight right hand to Bayley, who’s right back up and she slaps Iyo in the face.
Iyo with one of her own, and Bayley unloads with forearms. Iyo blocks the Bayley to Belly with a roll up for 2. Iyo with a double arm backbreaker, and now she goes to the top rope. Beautiful moonsault connects, and Bayley is still able to kick out. Iyo with a standing moonsault, and a middle rope moonsault. She goes for the top rope one, and Bayley avoids it! She hits the Rose Plant, and Iyo just walks it off!
Bayley with a big clothesline to slow Iyo, and a suplex. She goes to the top rope, and hits the elbow drop. One more Rose Plant to Iyo, and that’s enough for Bayley to find victory. She’s the new Women’s Champion. Maybe it was just me, but that felt really rushed, and that hurt it a lot. The action was good, and I liked Bayley’s selling of the knee throughout this, but I couldn’t escape the feeling that these two were told to sprint through a much longer match.
What we saw was solid, though, but far from the best work either woman has done, especially at WrestleMania. It was a good ending to the story, though, as Bayley got her revenge on Iyo and took her championship after months of sabotaging from Damage CTRL. A solid match, though it could’ve been so much better.