7 months ago
42 ARTICLE AD
WWE's Damage CTRL faction first formed in July 2022, with Bayley, IYO SKY, and Dakota Kai uniting as a trio at WWE SummerSlam. Despite a strong initial reaction, the group's momentum was often marred in its earlier days by frustrating stop-start booking, leading to a weak crowd reaction. That turned around over time, with Damage CTRL adding new members in Kairi Sane and Asuka and gaining a lot of steam leading into WWE WrestleMania 40.
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After splitting apart from Damage CTRL several months ago, Bayley has served as the hero of the story, culminating in her victory over IYO SKY on Sunday night to win the WWE Women's Championship. At the press conference following the show, Bayley was asked to comment on the group steadily building moment over the last year. The WWE performer shared her belief that the women had to become closer friends before functioning properly as a team.
"Once we started ironing those things out and getting confident in ourselves and trusting each other, we started to feel better," Bayley said. "Then IYO won the title, and I think that was just like, 'We're on top of the world.' ... IYO winning the title was definitely a shift change."
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SKY's victory took place with a Money in the Bank cash-in at WWE SummerSlam 2023, almost exactly one year after the faction's debut. According to Bayley, the moment reminded her that fans really do care about them as performers.
Over time, it seems that the WWE audience has become invested in Damage CTRL as a group as well. As an added point, Bayley mentioned that Damage CTRL had strong representation on both nights of WrestleMania 40, which the WWE Women's Champion views as a major win for the performers despite losing both nights.
