How Should WWE Book Becky Lynchs Return?
Admit it, something has been missing since May 11th of last year. On May 11th of 2020, WWE lost one of its biggest, most influential superstars on its roster. In a shocking turn of events that saw her ascend the ranks of WWEs womens division, topple every opponent placed in front of her and be one of the first three women in history to headline a Wrestlemania card, Becky Lynch announced her indefinite leave of absence from WWE programming. But rather than announcing an injury, tragedy or storyline write-off that were so commonly used to, Becky announced her leave for none of the aforementioned reasons. She was leaving at the peek of her career in her own words, to be a mother. A move that nobody saw coming no matter how smart you think you are. And with her departure, the very foundation of the companys womens division, arguably the biggest modern star in the company and a true example of how re-defining a character can work when done right took her bags and went off to embark on a whole new journey. A journey that would welcome a life into this world, but at the same time, leave a huge rift in the division she dominated over for the better part of a year. In her absence, WWEs women have had their fair share of ups and downs. On a positive note, the likes of Sasha Banks, Bayley, Bianca Belair, Asuka, Rhea Ripley and lesser-known stars like Zelina Vega have been given a larger spotlight than what was likely should Becky have stuck around. However, on a more negative note, the booking tendencies that have plagued so much of the companys programming have arguably hit the women worse than any other aspect of the weekly shows we sit down to watch. Now, however, more than a year removed from Becky Lynchs heartbreaking departure from in-ring competition, The Man herself is rumored to be headed back to the ring she once dominated over every opponent imaginable. Much like the delve I took into Brock Lesnars potential WWE return last week, there is likely no better time to look into the potential avenues Becky Lynch could go upon her inevitable WWE return. With summer officially here, the return of live fans and a roster packed with potentially fantastic matches for the former multi-time champion, lets see where Becky Lynch would fit in best upon her return to the squared circle. Rhea Ripley and the RAW Womens Championship  Well start off on the brand in which Becky Lynch left her most lasting impression through her historic title run. Monday Night RAW hasnt been too kind to its women since 2020. While it has had some ups, such as Asuka essentially carrying the division on her back for the better part of a year, the overall booking and mentality of RAWs creative team on a weekly basis has hurt the credibility of basically every potential title contender that isnt named Charlotte Flair. As a result of the booking choices, you have the RAW Womens division as it stands. A division packed to the brim with meaningless, randomly paired tag teams, an Alexa Bliss character that just isnt the success we expected her to be as a solo act, Nia Jax constantly underperforming, Shayna Baszler being booked to look like a child, Asuka wondering from one match to another and Charlotte Flair being made to look like the untouchable golden child she always has been. Becky Lynchs return could be the shot in the arm this division needs to garner steam once again, but at the same time, it offers little excitement with the characters on offer and state of its creative direction. A match with Rhea Ripley for her RAW Womens Championship is certainly an intriguing prospect or a rematch with former rival Shayna Baszler, but outside of that there is little for myself personally to really get excited over. Becky going up against Charlotte Flair following their dozen matches in the past serves little purpose, placing her opposite a character like Alexa Bliss doesnt sound like something I trust the creative team to execute well, facing Nia Jax does absolutely nothing for either party and even another Asuka match isnt something we really need to see. While this much like any other suggestion all depends on the booking and state of the product whenever Becky is to return to active competition, this one of those times where my excitement isnt all out in regards to how things could play out. Bianca Belair and the SmackDown Womens Championship  Now my favoritism towards the current SmackDown Womens Champion likely plays a gigantic factor in this potential route, but few potential matches that can currently be made in the WWE excite me in the way that Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch does on paper. Over the last year, Belair has gone from a superstar who could barely get booked on an episode of Main Event to a WrestleMania headliner tearing it up in an absolute war against Sasha Banks that ranks amongst the best title matches in recent memory. Belair overcame the lackluster booking that tainted the start of her main roster run upon her NXT call-up and ascended to one of the main representatives of the company. And since her crowning took place at Wrestlemania Belairs momentum has not slowed in the slightest. In fact, shes quickly peddling towards Summerslam as the hottest female star on the main roster, heads & shoulders above practically everyone else. On every level from personality, to in-ring ability to her newfound stardom, few choices make as much sense to welcome the biggest female wrestling star on the planet back that the EST of WWE. Belair vs Lynch has the markings of a classic written all over it. Two athletes, both in their prime, both stemming from NXT, both Wrestlemania headliners, going head-to-head in what in my opinion, is the most high-profile womens match you can make right now. Seek redemption against Shayna Baszler  If there was one aspect of Beckys previous WWE run that I am deeply critical over, it was her Wrestlemania 36 bout with Shayna Baszler. On paper, it was a great clash of styles and personas, with two very different superstars colliding in a fight to determine who is the very best on the RAW roster. And while admittedly the match did deliver some solid action on a very unusual evening, it just felt like the wrong lady walked out with her hand raised that evening. Shayna was on fire following this match, demolishing every woman on the roster in the lead up to the tension-fueled title match only to be upset in a bizarre manner to seemingly prolong the feud past WrestleMania. There was no better time for a challenger to dethrone the then RAW Womens Champion and despite there being no fans in attendance, the shocking result itself didnt seem as satisfactory as wed hoped. Much like another match pitting veteran against newcomer on the events card in Charlotte Flair facing Rhea Ripley, this result didnt seem all that necessary and only hurt the character of Shayna Baszler more than anything. Granted the win wasnt the most dominant, but it really stopped the ruthless momentum of the challenger dead in her tracks. A rematch between the two wouldnt just be a rematch Id love to see but would work well considering how far Shayna pushed Becky for close to three months leading up to their clash. Despite the booking of Baszler being a far cry from what it once was down in NXT, with some minor tweaks and renewed aggression, this could be a rematch that well outpaces their initial match over a year ago. A rubber match with Asuka  This is a pretty simple proposition; a nice little pick-me-up for a woman whos lost over 15 months of in-ring time as of this writing. Alongside Charlotte Flair, Asuka is the greatest in-ring rival Becky Lynch has had since she arrived in the WWE back in 2013. Every match between the two is electric, whether one-on-one or multi-person, they constantly up each others games, and the storytelling the two put on display every time they collide is a thing of beauty. My personal favorite thing in this business is a good match pitting two fundamentally different styles against each other and the immense levels of chemistry in any Asuka vs Becky Lynch match has consistently delivered contests that easily claim match of the night honors, a trilogy contest on a third major event will likely produce the same result. While it isnt necessarily anything new or innovative considering the crop of talent available, its certainly a guaranteed highlight on any card its placed on from two women at the height of their careers at this very moment in time.