10 key women’s matches that have led to the first ever women’s main event at WrestleMania

#8 Bayley vs. Sasha Banks – 30 Minute Ironwoman match (NXT TakeOver: Respect, October 2015)

First ever women's 'Match of the Year'

Despite being the inaugural and current WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, Bayley and Sasha Banks weren’t always on the same side. Whilst they had notable issues with each other last year, they had problems long before they were both on the main shows back when they were both competing in WWE’s developmental show, NXT.

They had an on-off feud for several years before it culminated in a 30 Minute Iron Woman match at NXT Takeover: Respect. This match broke several records in the WWE. It was the first time that a women’s match headlined a major NXT event, it was the first time the WWE had a match with this stipulation involving two women, and it ended up being the longest women’s match in WWE history at the time.

Whilst it’s not uncommon for an Ironman match to have moments throughout the match slowing down due to the amount of time the wrestlers have to compete in, this didn’t apply to these two women as this match was packed with non-stop wrestling. In fact, the match was of such a high quality that Pro Wrestling Illustrated voted this as ‘Match of the Year’ in 2015, the first time for a woman’s match.

Even though Bayley remained NXT Women’s Champion after the match, the result paled in comparison to what they both achieved steering the women’s revolution.