The WrestleMania 36 creative plan almost saw Shayna Baszler claim the Raw Women’s Championship, marking what could have been a major milestone in her main roster career. Speaking recently, Baszler confirmed she was originally set to defeat Becky Lynch at the 2020 event, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced significant changes to WWE’s planned storylines.
Pandemic Alters Baszler’s Championship Path
After an impressive run in NXT, Shayna Baszler quickly established herself as a top contender on Monday Night Raw at the beginning of 2020. WWE positioned her as the primary challenger for Lynch’s Raw Women’s Championship heading into WrestleMania 36. However, as Baszler explained on “Insight with Chris Van Vliet,” her anticipated victory was never realized.
“I was originally told, and who knows in this business, but I was originally told like ‘Yeah, you’re going to go into a feud with Becky and eventually win the title off her,”
Shayna Baszler, WWE Superstar
No Audience, No Title Change
The outbreak of COVID-19 prompted WWE officials to relocate WrestleMania 36 to the empty WWE Performance Center. The absence of a live crowd heavily influenced the company’s booking decisions for the high-stakes event. According to Baszler, the lack of audience presence made executives reconsider a major title change at that point in time.
“COVID happens, and then we all get told, ‘Well, there’s going to be no audience, so we want a title change like that to happen in front of a live crowd, and remember at that time we didn’t know this was going to be like a year,”
Shayna Baszler, WWE Superstar
Lynch Retains as WWE’s Plans Shift
Instead of the anticipated title switch, Becky Lynch successfully defended the Raw Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 36. The situation changed again just a month later when Lynch announced her pregnancy and relinquished the championship, leading Asuka to take over as champion after winning the Money in the Bank match. While Baszler continued her WWE career as a tag team champion, she never secured a singles championship on the main roster before being released earlier this year.
Echoes of What Could Have Been
Baszler’s experience underscores how unpredictable shifts, like the COVID-19 pandemic, can reshape even the most carefully crafted WrestleMania 36 creative plans. Decisions made behind the scenes, such as the preference for a crowd during major title changes, altered the destinies of multiple superstars, highlighting the ongoing influence of global events on WWE storytelling and the careers of performers like Shayna Baszler.
