The WWE has strived hard to build a highly recognisable platform for its female division utilising the star power and relevance of the modern-day wrestling divas. And fittingly, the prominence of women wrestlers has witnessed tremendous growth in the recent past. Among the many factors that have had a direct impact on the quality of the product are elements such as the reach of contemporary media and social platforms.
But, for WWE diva Alexa Bliss, one of the most distinguished faces on the WWE roster, it has a lot to do with the storyline.
“Honestly, I think it is all in the storyline,” begins Bliss.
“You can have a match but it takes a certain kind of creativity to make people feel something about it,” the 31-year-old opines.
“So, I feel, if anything, it is all about the character and storyline if you need to really develop a division or a female superstar in general because everyone brings something different to the table and when they get the opportunity to highlight that you get to see how many stars we have on our roster.”
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The tag team title tournament has proven to be a good addition to the franchise as a means to increase engagement and excitement heading into the championship games, and the wrestler, who is gearing up for the title match at the Clash at the Castle event was candid enough to discuss the types of formats she’d prefer to be involved in and also the once she’d rather avoid.
“I’ve never been in a ‘Beat the clock’ challenge, and I don’t think I’d want to,” she laughs.
“Especially if you’re staying the longest or something like a gauntlet match, I don’t think I’d want to be a part of that. That is a lot,” feels the Ohio native.
“I feel I could do well in a ‘Beat the clock’ challenge as I depend on my speed a lot in my size because I’m not going to outpower someone but maybe I could outwit them. And maybe beat someone in a match before the buzzer calls time, I could probably do, but, when there’s like a gauntlet match where you face pretty much everyone on the roster and to be the last woman standing, I don’t know if I ever want to do that.”
It has been a while since we saw the five-footer walk out onto the ring with an individual title belt on her person and when questioned if she would like to shift her focus to the singles championships post her Clash at the Castle bout, she pops up with an assertive response that oozes confidence and composure.
“First and foremost, Asuka and I are going to work on becoming the women’s tag team champions.”
“It has been almost four years since I held an individual title and I think it has been four years too long,” says the former Raw and Smackdown women’s champion.
The past year has been one filled with ups and downs for the diva, but she seems to be relishing the challenges as they come. And the wrestler feels that her steely off-ring resolve to take on obstacles head first has been crucial in order to maintain her competitive integrity.
“It is really important to face the challenges that are in front of you. In work and in life, there are things that do not always go according to plan and you have to face them head-on and know that things are always going to get better.”
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The moniker of the five-time women’s world champion that has garnered widespread acknowledgement in the wrestling fraternity, Alexa Bliss, wasn’t an instant hit with the wrestler herself as she explains that she did not like it at the beginning but has grown fond of it over time.
“At first, I did not like it, but my coach at the time in NXT said he liked it.”
“When I got the list of names that were legally cleared, there were a bunch of names and my coach came up with Alexa Bliss. He also said that I could change and they would probably change it if I made it to the main roster, but it has actually become a nice little pun.”
“But it has really grown on me and it looks really cool on a tee shirt”, she jokes.
“As I said, I wasn’t a big fan of the name when I first got it, but now it is a part of me and a part of my identity,” says Bliss with a big grin on her face.
She signs off on a jovial note by saying “It also makes for a lot of good dad jokes which is great.”
Watch the LIVE coverage of WWE Clash at the Castle on SONY TEN 1 (English), SONY TEN 3 (Hindi) and SONY TEN 4 (Tamil and Telugu) channels on 3rd September 2022 from 10:30 pm (IST).
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