Bayley On Her Favorite Moments With Sasha Banks, The “Tough” Aspects Of Being A Babyface

For nearly seven years through both NXT and WWE, Bayley had always been a doe-eyed, smiley babyface. She gave people hugs, wore a side ponytail, and had inflatable tube men flailing in her entrance. But that all changed about one year ago when the new Bayley emerged and became a heel for the first time in her WWE career.

Making such a drastic change can be difficult when you’ve been one character for so long. Bayley was asked what was going through her mind when changing the character during her interview on Table Talk.

“It was hard. I thought of being this character and not having to be this hugger anymore, not having to be so happy all the time. I thought it was going to help me conserve my energy and not have to turn it on so much every night. After a while, it gets a little tough,” admitted Bayley.

“You have to give it 200 percent when you’re known as this happy, bubbly character. It’s just as hard; it’s just as hard to try to change my whole personality and try to be mad all the time. Luckily, before the whole pandemic happened, I was able to get in some runs on live events, on tours for practice. It was harder than I thought it was going to be. Now, it’s so much fun. I think my niche in it, find my piece of personality, be able to use that, and make that bigger.”

If you ask Superstars who’ve been both babyfaces and heels in their careers, “Which role do you prefer?” most would likely say they prefer being a heel because it’s more fun. Bayley was posed that question, and she discussed the difficulties in being a babyface at all times.

“I was really lucky because being a good guy, to me, is so hard. It’s so hard to get people to like you, so hard to get people to cheer for you,” stated Bayley. “I was just able to connect at a very early age in my career, connect with the fans and connect with a lot of kids. Even with grown men, I think they just love the fact that I was just a dork that had a side ponytail. They thought it was funny to wear a shirt that said, ‘I’m a hugger.’

“So, I was so lucky in that sense. I think that’s why a lot of people thought it was going to be difficult for me to make that switch. I did too, but luckily, I was able to overcome that challenge. I think I’m still in the process of it all, but it’s been a fun game to play, I guess.”

Just as fans like to watch old matches of their favorite Superstars, that is no different for talent as well. Bayley was asked which matches or Superstars she can watch over and over again without getting bored.

“I really love any Rey Mysterio matches. Recently, getting ready for my matches with Sasha, Rey was having us watch matches with him and Psychosis,” said Bayley. “So, I’ve actually watched a lot of those matches. Any Rey Mysterio match is always fun and something you can enjoy as a fan.”

You can’t talk about Bayley without also talking about Sasha Banks, as their careers have been intertwined dating back to NXT. They’ve been the best of friends – and were the inaugural Women’s Tag Team Champions – and they’ve been the worst of enemies such as when they faced each other at last month’s Hell in a Cell.

They’ve had numerous storylines together over the years, and Bayley shared her favorite one when working with Sasha Banks.

“I guess I would say when we were both double champions because it was like Stone Cold and Triple H, they were The Two-Man Power Trip. It was such a crazy time to think about, being able to represent three different divisions in RAW, SmackDown and the tag division, being able to go around two or three different shows and work with different people. I guess what completed that was when Sasha beat Asuka for the RAW Women’s Title, so that was when it started, Bayley Two Belts and Two Belts Banks,” stated Bayley.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Table Talk with a h/t to PWrestling.com for the transcription.

Mehdy Labriny contributed to this article.