In the long run, is Paige the best choice to be the face of the womens division?

[Coco]

I know we all love Sasha and Becky and Bayley. But hear me out --- please stop shouting about your waifus and hear me out!

Paige was pushed heavily in her first year on the main roster. She ended up on a good deal of promotional material and fans responded positively to her contributions to the womens division against AJ and the Bellas. Following her recent fall out of the spotlight, her popularity hasn’t waned one bit. Her cries insisting this is her house always generate a positive response from the paying audience. And her relationship with Alberto Del Rio has been a hit on social media. Her soft, porcelain white skin juxtaposed with her flowing, raven black hair continues to be one of the most unique and recognizable looks in a business filled with unique and recognizable looks. Everybody loves that dangerous bad girl look. In many ways, she reminds me of my big sister who always helps calm me down when there are scary thunderstorms. Paige, like my sister, is one of those too-cool-for-school bad-asses who are too grown-up to be scared by thunderstorms. In some ways, she’s a modern day Lita.

Cast aside for bright, shiny new toys, Paige is still an accomplished, capable young performer with wrestling in her blood. She has many great years in front of her and will have more of an established rapport to draw on when she is next promoted as a top-tier star. On account of that last point, her established rapport, I suspect her popularity will reach new heights after paying her C and D show dues.

In the long run, does Paige have what it takes to supersede the Four Horsewomen as the face of the womens division?

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

It's a real shame that the Paige/AJ feud happened before they were actually giving the women a chance. Upon first arriving she blew through two or three title reigns with matches that spanned ten minutes or less. And after that she just faded into the background as the Bellas dominated. Immensely talented and can play heel or face well she's the only other diva aside from Sasha that can possibly lead the division. I still maintain Bayley isn't nearly as versatile as most think, fight me wrestlezone.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I don't see why the women's division needs a single "face" when you get right down to it. As I mentioned in an earlier thread this week, Vince has put so much emphasis on and so thoroughly protected John Cena for most of the past 12 years or so that many of us automatically roll our eyes whenever anyone suggests a wrestler who could/should/can/will take Cena's spot or is credible enough to face Cena. When you look at the women's divisions of both the main roster and NXT, you've got plenty of viable talent that can be used instead of putting all your eggs in one or two baskets. Charlotte, Sasha, Becky, Natalya, Bayley, Asuka, Carmella and Alexa Bliss all already have the stuff or can have the stuff. Women like Naomi and Alicia Fox can also be utilized well with a little fine tuning here and there.

Booked properly, which is much of what we've seen for the past year, the women's division has the potential to draw money in WWE. At the same time, we're sort of in uncharted territory for WWE in that the women who're on the roster now and heading to the roster are going to be the ones to set the standards, to show how well women can hold up while working matches as generally physical as their male counterparts on the road 300 days a year, so the only way that can be determined is with time.

I find myself wondering if WWE will primarily try to keep younger, fresher faces as the focus of the women's division when it's all said & done. Paige turns 24 in about a month, Sasha Banks turned 24 early this year and Bayley is 27, so one would think they'd be heavily relied on for several years, especially Sasha and Paige. Becky Lynch turns 30 early next year, Charlotte is already 30, Natalya turned 34 a few months back, Asuka hits 35 in mid September so I wonder how WWE will treat Paige and Sasha once they're older.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

There doesn't need to be just one face. Paige is much better as a heel, and Sasha and Becky are much better in the ring. So no she shouldn't be.

 

[Coco]

In my heart, I agree with the sentiment that there doesn't need to be a single top representative of the division. But this is WWE, so get real. Similarly, my parents didn't need to give my brother new clothes while I was stuck with his tattered, stained, out-of-fashion handmedowns. My father worked a lot back in the day and definitely wasn't carrying on a sleazy, expensive affair with his secretary. He could afford new clothes for both my brother and I, just like WWE has the resources to support multiple appealing, marketable personalities at the top level. But just like my parents, WWE doesn't roll like that.

Be as dismissive of reality as you want, WWE is going to push someone as the top representative of this division. And like it or not, Paige is someone they have no qualms about marketing at a high level.

Furthermore, I resent the notion that Sasha and Becky are much better than Paige in the ring. Let Paige stay in NXT long enough to have meaningful rivalries and matches in the Four Horsewomen era and this is a completely different discussion.

 

[S.J. Maximus]

For a PG era I literally cannot see how someone would be a better candidate than Bayley. Paige is good, she definitely has a natural charisma to her and can put on a decent match but I honestly think all four Horsewomen and Nattie are better ring workers than Paige. On the mic probably only Sasha and Charlotte can hold a candle to her. But in terms of the gimmick, I think Bayley and at least Sasha have her beat. I can somewhat agree that if we had to choose a Lita it'd probably be Paige; I'm just not so certain that a Lita would thrive in this PG era. Bayley is their Cena and DB rolled into one, the "girl next door" vibe with a very positive message and attitude accompanied with an everlasting will to win. Sasha has all the accessories and jewelry that little girls buy up on WWEShop.com and truly has that demographic yearning to be come a 'Legit Boss'. Personally I like Charlotte, Nattie, and Becky more (in addition to Sasha and Bayley) but I can definitely see how people would put Paige at #3. #1 though? I think that's just a neck and neck race between the two best Horsewomen.

 

[OYDK]

They need to give her a chance again. Part of me thinks they've gotten a little gun-shy because as we all know, Paige isn't as squeaky clean as Sasha, Bailey, or Becky has shown to be so far. Her mouth has gotten her into trouble more than once since she started on the main roster. Also, I think people believe Paige is inferior to the others in the ring because, again, she hasn't really had the opportunity to showcase herself like the others have. Sasha and Bailey have regularly gotten 20+ minutes in NXT and Charlotte and Becky have gotten, if not that much time, at least 15 in most of the matches they've been in since Charlotte won the strap.

I need to see more of Sasha on the main roster and of course, Bailey when she comes up, but it's not crazy to think that Paige could surpass them both if given the opportunity. Personally, I think Paige is better suited to be a heel, but I think that about almost everyone, including Sasha Banks.

 

[Dave]

She's very young and has a huge career ahead of her. Which is kind of odd, given just how much she has already accomplished in the WWE in such a small period of time.

I definitely think that she is going to be around the main event of the Women's Division but I don't see her being the face of the division like she, perhaps, should be. Really, I see her more of the Randy Orton type to the John Cena of yesteryear. She has all of the talent that her opponents might have but she just isn't the type of person that the WWE is going to bank on too heavily. I think that the WWE are set on having Charlotte as the standard bearer of the Women's Division heading forward and I don't think that is about to change. Don't get me wrong, I do think that the WWE knows how good Paige is and can be. But like I said, Paige just doesn't strike me as the person that WWE will believe in.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

In the long run, does Paige have what it takes to supersede the Four Horsewomen as the face of the womens division?

Does she have what it takes? Sure. She wrestles since she was a kid, she has a looks and can cut a promo. So she definitly has what it takes for position.

Will she be face of division? Dont think so. For some reason she was cast aside. Even Nikki Bella will be remembered more then her as Champion. And with coming of Charlotte, Sasha, Becky and Bailey there is less and less space for her. Dunno if she pissed off someone or maybe they just dont see her as rolemodel type but with direction she is going right now just cant see her reemerging as Champion, let alone face of whole division.

 

[TJ Matics]

In the long run, does Paige have what it takes to supersede the Four Horsewomen as the face of the womens division?

As far as I'm concerned she can definitely offer more to the women's division than Charlotte and Becky, now and in the long run. Becky I adore, but she's just not as versatile as Paige and Charlotte is a ways behind. She's not bad like some people try to make her out to be (usually because they don't find her attractive), but still not nearly as entertaining in or out of the ring.

Now when it comes to Bayley and Banks... no I don't think she'll ever be put over those two. She can easily hang with either one but her versatility can't surpass Bayley's lovability or Bank's, erm, bossability.

Furthermore, I resent the notion that Sasha and Becky are much better than Paige in the ring. Let Paige stay in NXT long enough to have meaningful rivalries and matches in the Four Horsewomen era and this is a completely different discussion.

This is very true, but she just wasn't there. The crowd can respect her for being a consistent talent for the last couple of years but she did have a rocky start being pushed to the high heavens immediately. It took her a while to find her groove, which is nothing to really fault her for, but her growing pains happened on a much larger stage than any of the other women. Whereas a lot of people, including myself, hopped on the NXT bandwagon where Banks was already established and Bayley was already... Bayley.

What she does have over them both though is the ability to be a true heel with the right backing. You can't turn Bayley because... science. Whereas Banks is too over to ever be more than a tweener, even against Bayley.

And her relationship with Alberto Del Rio has been a hit on social media.

This is news, but I'd say the jury is still out on them until TD airs. She's very popular but could still receive a huge backlash if he's (still) married/how/when they got together.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

Only if Bayley fails to generate a crowd reaction or a strong following when she hits the main roster. If Bayley doesn't get a good reaction/following (possible considering others like Bo Dallas not doing anything after being NXT Champion) then sure, Paige or Sasha would be the Hulk Hogan of woman's wrestling going forward.

 

[ShinChan]

I seriously believe that She is the best women talent at present in WWE. And I agree with Coco and definitely find Paige better than Bayley and Sasha Banks, be it in-ring work or mic work.

She could fit greatly in the role of an Anti-Diva. Keep her attire unique from others. That's all you need to do and she could do wonders as the focal point of women division. She is very young too which helps her to have a significant amount of wrestling in her career.

Paige has enough potential to justify the following statement by her:

"This is my house!!!!"

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Paige is an interesting case... she's arguably the most experienced woman they have, perhaps even more so than their trainers like Sara Del Ray, having wrestled and been around the business her entire life.

Part of me thinks that what has gone on with her is a bit political for that reason. Paige isn't a shrinking violent and while she has learned the WWE way well, she is probably fighting a lot of instinct and her own views day to day to be a team player. Her mom in particular has a LOT of experience that will have been passed on and that could be a negative to WWE in some ways, just as at times being Ric's daughter could hurt Charlotte.

Paige is a gorgeous woman, but she isn't "cookie cutter" by any stretch, the anti-diva was based on WWE using that name... that's gone now. The reality of her future is that she will probably replace Natalya as the "elder stateswoman" of the division, which is insane when you consider her actual age... but there is potentially a long career for her in that role, with an eventual training role as well.

The other thing that hurts Paige is her private life seems a little muddled right now. The incident a few weeks back where she ran across a highway, seemingly linked to her relationship with Alberto was not apparently a Total Divas related one. With ADR already not on the best terms with Trips, it could be that Paige is collateral damage. It wouldn't be the first time a talent suffers because of who they hooked up with backstage.

It's the one aspect that WWE still manages to make themselves look ridiculous regularly over. They can't hold different couples to different standards with any moral authority but seem to do so regularly. DB and Brie/Cena and Nikki are given all the praise in the world yet Lana and Rusev and now Paige and Alberto seem to have issues stemming from them. It's another Sable lawsuit or Jerry Lawler/Kat walkout waiting to happen only this time whoever it is WILL sue and probably win.

I hope Paige comes through it all and is given the prominent role she deserves, but she's not the face of the division... If Bayley is gonna be the Cena, Sasha be The Rock and Charlotte the Flair/Triple H... then Paige is easily the Chris Jericho or at best Randy Orton equivalent... important to the show, always valuable but rarely the very top of the card.

 

[enviousdominous]

I would really like to see more women's division feuds that don't involve the world title. We have a Becky vs Natalya program, and that's about it. Even in NXT, where I imagine it would be easier to feature more women's matches, the only women's matches that don't involve a pursuit of the world title are jobber matches.

I think that Paige is a phenomenal performer, whose presence has faded from the interest of the average fan. Give Paige a high-profile feud with Dana or another NXT call-up like Alexa, and don't base it around stereotypical bullshit. Maybe Paige walks out on her tag team partner mid-match or is dropkicked accidentally during a match.

People need to see potential favorites perform often. I think that while Paige is an excellent choice for face of the company, we're talking about a company with a creative staff that has the attention span of a swarm of gnats. Right now they're stuck with Charlotte, and they might be passing the torch to Sasha soon. If Paige ever gets her due, it won't be until WWE creative can hack out a storyline reason for her to get a title shot.

 

[LBGetBack]

If things are truly great, then there doesn't always have to be one "face" of a division that's clearly above others.

Think of when Austin and the Rock both had an argument as the top guy, and then you had HHH, Foley, Undertaker, etc. right there and capable of carrying the ball too.

I think Sasha is the best all around combination, but Charlotte, Paige, Bayley, and Becky can all be right there too. There doesn't have to be a "John Cena" or a "Hulk Hogan" that is always pushed above everyone else.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

It's quite hard to have a true face of a division when the division usually only has one program running at a time. I echo the statement already made that there should be multiple feuds running at once, and hopefully with the Brand Split fast approaching, we will start to see that happen. While I didn't really enjoy most of them, there's still room to be using the old class of Divas that are basically now just on Total Divas and never being used on WWE television because they're focusing 100% of their effort on Charlotte and whoever she's facing. You could still be using Nikki Bella, Alicia Fox, even Eva Marie as feed for Becky and Paige while they're not chasing the title. It's very difficult to really elevate anyone when the only program running is the title program, because there's only one winner and one loser, and the loser after losing multiple times is sent back into the pool of people doing nothing.

To your actual point though, Paige is currently the most equipped to be running that group of girls. I know they have a focus on Charlotte and Sasha and Becky but it's beyond stupid that everyone else has to sit back and do nothing in the meantime.

Paige is 23 and already has more experience than most, if not all, of the aforementioned women's talent. Like you said, it's in her blood. But that doesn't necessarily mean anything, because it's also in Charlotte's blood, and in my opinion, Paige at 23 already has what Charlotte is still struggling to develop at 30: execution. Charlotte's good in the ring and can be okay at cutting a promo, she understands the business from living in it all her life, but she doesn't quite perfectly put all the pieces together yet. Case in point, look at that promo with Sasha Banks on Raw tonight - she didn't know when to stop talking, and instead of ending it on a high note, she started up against and just made things really awkward. Sometimes you can tell she's not exactly sure where to go next in a match either; it's just a natural instinct that I think Paige has down, and Charlotte will only get by being in the ring more and more over the years. But again, she's already 30.

Becky is probably the best total package they have there honestly. She and Paige have the dynamic looks and fiery personalities, and I would legitimately pay good money to see a properly booked Heel Paige vs. Babyface Becky program heading into a major PPV. The two of them just "get it", while Charlotte and even Sasha Banks to a point, are still putting a few things together.

I think part of the problem is that WWE feels they have to push Charlotte as their top heel because she has the name recognition (even though they aren't even using the Flair name because they're idiots). You're not going to see Charlotte and Paige on the same level at the same time, when they're only running one women's program at a time. But to answer your actual question, yes, absolutely, Paige has what it takes to effectively be the face of the women's division in WWE for the next 10 years, and I predict that (if she can keep her shit together and not make any PR nightmares) she will outlast Charlotte and Becky and probably even Bayley when all is said and done. But again, that's all based off pure, raw potential, and has nothing to do with how WWE will actually utilize any of them.

 

[Navi]

In the long run, does Paige have what it takes to supersede the Four Horsewomen as the face of the womens division?

Of course she has what it takes. She's one of the most accomplished and experienced women on the roster, despite being in her early twenties. The only issue is will the WWE let her do so.

If you look at Paige compared to the rest of the women, she sticks out like a sore thumb. With the anti-Diva, goth look she stands apart from the crowd. While the other's are a little more polished, Paige is like a diamond in the rough, and unfortunately for her she acts that way too. Her mouth has got her in hot water a number of times, and her antics might not be thrilling Stamford.

I don't give a crap about her personal life and who she's dating, but maybe the WWE does, but it's of little concern to me.

Her biggest problem was that after being called up she won the title right away. After that she was in feuds with Naomi, Cameron and Alicia Fox, not exactly the cream of the crop, but who else was there. Trading title reigns with a returning AJ didn't help either, and she sort of got lost in the Diva's Revolution. Something which she hasn't really recovered from. The WWE's insistence on having Nikki Bella break AJ's record could have easily gone to someone else, like Paige, we all knew it wouldn't though.

I know she was out with an injury at some point, but the WWE seems to have forgotten about Alicia, Tamina, Naomi and Paige. It's like they had new sparkly toys to play with and the old ones where put away in a drawer. If that makes any sense. Hopefully she can find her way out before Bayley gets called up. Have a feeling once she gets to the main roster, it will be Bayley all the way. Even Banks and the rest will have problems trying to overcome Bayley's popularity.

 

[kadroan]

I know we all love Sasha and Becky and Bayley. But hear me out --- please stop shouting about your waifus and hear me out!

Paige was pushed heavily in her first year on the main roster. She ended up on a good deal of promotional material and fans responded positively to her contributions to the womens division against AJ and the Bellas. Following her recent fall out of the spotlight, her popularity hasn’t waned one bit. Her cries insisting this is her house always generate a positive response from the paying audience. And her relationship with Alberto Del Rio has been a hit on social media. Her soft, porcelain white skin juxtaposed with her flowing, raven black hair continues to be one of the most unique and recognizable looks in a business filled with unique and recognizable looks. Everybody loves that dangerous bad girl look. In many ways, she reminds me of my big sister who always helps calm me down when there are scary thunderstorms. Paige, like my sister, is one of those too-cool-for-school bad-asses who are too grown-up to be scared by thunderstorms. In some ways, she’s a modern day Lita.

Cast aside for bright, shiny new toys, Paige is still an accomplished, capable young performer with wrestling in her blood. She has many great years in front of her and will have more of an established rapport to draw on when she is next promoted as a top-tier star. On account of that last point, her established rapport, I suspect her popularity will reach new heights after paying her C and D show dues.

In the long run, does Paige have what it takes to supersede the Four Horsewomen as the face of the womens division?

I think she needs to be repackaged. She was pushed real fast since she debuted, did a lot in a short time.

I'd love for her to be like a female Stone Cold/Randy Orton - tweener. She don't trust anybody.

 

[Trill Co$by]

Bayley, as talented and gorgeous as she is, won't be at the top for long. The universe will eat her up and adore her, but eventually she'll end up as just another woman wrestler. Sad too because it's going to suck seeing her fail to capture the Women's title. I love Bayley, I do but with how fast the main audience loses focus on people it scares me to think about her being called up.

Sasha Banks and Paige both get the same level of reaction every night. It's something that isn't easy to do either, and that's great for both of them. And if you turn either of them heel, then the roster will thicken immensely because you have a talented woman on both sides who can easily make the other look convincingly strong. However, if I had to pick one to be the face of the division I'd go with Sasha. Sasha's got the current Pop Culture that the entire world can relate to. She blends in with all of the top trends and could pull them off without looking weird. That goes a long way in preserving your top spot in the WWE. And also, she's down right beautiful. Like seriously, if there was ever a Beyonce of the wrestling world, Sasha Banks is it.

Honestly, I'd really like to see WWE get behind Emma once she gets back. I feel like adding Emma into the rotating wheel of Bayley, Eva Marie, Asuka, Becky Lynch, Alexa Bliss, and Natalya to bring in the next generation can become something of beauty. The talent pool would be endlessly flawless as we proceed... and if she ever felt like it, Maryse could lace up again and add more credibility. And of course, you've got Nikki for what I'm thinking is at least another year or two before she's gone completely. Will she be a top player in WWE before she goes? I hope so, she has the talent to do so. But I don't think she'll be used anymore than for trying to get Eva Marie over.

 

[HORRORHOLIC]

I don't think there needs to be just one, but if there was I agree that it should be Paige, if not then Becky!!