Bianca Belair suffered a shocking 26-second loss to Becky Lynch at WWE SummerSlam, and this defeat marked the end of her run as the SmackDown Women’s Champion. Fans have continued to view this bout as a step back from the way “The EST” had risen to the top of the card, and she has struggled to regain this prominence ever since.
But in WWE, even the most disappointing setbacks can helpful for the future, as former WWE Champion John Cena told “The EST” after SummerSlam.
In an interview with Alex McCarthy of talkSPORT, Belair recalled how the leader of the “Cenation” gave her some powerful advice in the aftermath of her stunning loss to Lynch; he told her that fans would rally around her, so the disappointing outcome could actually benefit her in the long haul.
“I really got to talk with John Cena a lot after the 26 seconds moment at SummerSlam,” said Belair. “He really just gave me a lot of great advice and keep the right perspective of everything.
“Basically the gist of what he said was ‘moments like this you can really use to propel you. You see how much the fans really get behind you.’ For me, out of that, I was able to look at the longer picture, the bigger picture and hopefully one day it’ll come back full circle, who knows.”
Belair elaborated by saying that she took Cena’s advice and ran with it by vowing to show the world who she was without a championship. In doing so, “The ET” believes she reached new heights coming out of the defeat at SummerSlam.
“But for me, I took it as you can use this as an opportunity to show who you are without that title,” said Belair. “I’m still the EST of WWE and I’m still going to go out there and show out every single time I step in the ring and you really get to see who’s behind you.
“Ironically, I think that moment really propelled me and made me a bigger star.”
“The EST” will have the chance to earn a shot at the title at WWE Elimination Chamber, where she’ll compete in the steel structure for the chance to challenge for the RAW Women’s Championship at WWE WrestleMania 38.
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