Belair said it was the most rewarding but physically exhausting time of her career.
From April of 2022 to May 2023, Bianca Belair reigned as WWE Raw Women’s Champion. She held the title for 420 days and gained the accolade of longest-reigning WWE Women’s Champion of the modern-era.
While guest appearing on The Collection with Brad Gilmore, Belair looked back on that title reign and called it the most rewarding yet physically exhausting stretch of her career. She then shared that at WrestleMania 39, she was sick on top of being exhausted.
I will say it (Raw Women’s Title reign) was the most rewarding but exhausting time of my career. Everyone wants to be champion but a lot of people don’t realize the schedule that comes with that, the pressure that comes with that, the reputation that comes with that. Every time you step out, you wanna put on a champion performance. You said there’s multiple segments on the show, you’re on every single show, you’re on every single live event, you’re doing the media between the weeks. When everyone else is going home after Raws and SmackDowns, you’re going to New York, to California, to do media, to do press, to do opportunities. I think I got to do a lot of amazing things. I think I took the title to so many places when I was champion, from NBA games, NFL games, The Kentucky Derby, Kevin Hart, Wild ‘n Out, College Gameday. I did so many amazing things but, I was never home and it also comes with the pressure. I’m someone who… I’m a perfectionist, so when it comes to WrestleMania and I put everything into it, I was so sick at WrestleMania and I think physically, I was just run down. I was just so sick at WrestleMania. But it’s a lot of pressure that comes with it, but like I said, it’s the most rewarding but exhausting time of the year. What I will say is that my husband and I, we have a Hulu series coming out, February 2nd, called ‘Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez’ and we actually shot the road to WrestleMania and we shot — I was champion, I was coming up on a year being champion and you’ll see. Just tune in. You’ll see how exhausting and rewarding that journey is and trying to balance everything but yeah, it’s exhausting and rewarding.
Later in the conversation, Belair was asked for her thoughts about NXT’s women’s division. She praised the entire division and shouted out both Lash Legend and former NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton.
I mean, of course Lash Legend (is an NXT talent that catches my attention). Even when she first came in, any collegiate athlete because I feel like they have that similar background as me. I always saw her when she first came in and she just recently had a great showing and I’m so happy for her that she had a great showing and I think that there’s a lot of greatness to come from here. I would be so excited to get in the ring with her one day. Tiffany is doing amazing things. I was very impressed with her, like how quickly she became champion in such a short amount of time of being there. I don’t think people realize how impressive that is to maybe be there a year and some change and you’re champion? You’re being thrown into that and she did so well in that role and I think that she’s gonna be — she’s a star now, she’s gonna be a star in the future. But I think there’s so many women in NXT. I think that there’s a lot of talent down there and those girls are being thrown on TV so quickly and they’re just catching on so quickly so, I think that’s a testament to see what type of noise that they’re gonna make in the future.
The next episode of NXT on USA Network is airing on 12/26 and there is going to be written coverage of the show here on POST Wrestling.
If the quotes in this article are used, please credit The Collection with Brad Gilmore with an H/T to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
