Jonathan Coachman Explains Why He Thinks Bayley Is Washed Up In WWE

Former WWE Women's Champion, Bayley, lost her WrestleMania match this year after being written off in favor of Becky Lynch. It appears that may have been the final straw for one former WWE announcer.
Jonathan Coachman has never been one to shy away from sharing his thoughts about his former employer, and he did so in a fairly strong way regarding Bayley on his Behind The Turnbuckle podcast this week.
Coachman was having a conversation with co-host Gabby LaSpisa about the future WWE Hall of Famer, at which point he declared her time in WWE could be near an end.
“Bayley is done, she’s washed up and boring,” Coachman said. “She’s nothing! She’s nothing anymore!”
"What does she bring to the table? If you dropped Bayley off the roster today, what would we lose?” Coachman continued. “No, no, no, I didn’t ask about a lot of people. I asked about Bayley.”
Bayley won the 2024 WWE Women's Royal Rumble match and defeated Iyo Sky at WrestleMania XL to win the WWE Women's Championship. She'd go on to lose the title to Nia Jax at SummerSlam, and has largely been relegated to a background role since. She herself has noted she still feels like she's not regarded at the level of her fellow Four Horsewomen, and is doing all she can to change that perception.
Coachman, however, believes her stock has fallen.
“That’s what happens, then we don’t see her for a while, or she’s sitting on the bench. I don’t think she’s someone that isn’t universally loved by the WWE Universe. I don’t know what it is holding her back, but I think a Bayley feud is not something to be slept on, considering some of the feuds that we’ve gotten that I could not get behind and don’t make sense," he said.
The former ESPN anchor would continue to rip into her accolades, arguing she has never been a draw for WWE since her main roster call-up back in 2016.
“I also agree with the Jeezer, [who says] she’s been boring since day frickin’ one. There are certain Superstars — and when I was in the WWE for 13 years, there’d be certain people, and she’d be one of them, you’re walking backstage going, ‘How in the world is she winning the Royal Rumble?’ or ‘How is he doing that?’ To me, I’ve never — and I think she’s a very sweet person, but there’s a lot of sweet people," he said. "I just don’t think she’s ever sold a ticket, like ever sold a ticket for any rivalry that she’s done.”
Coachman would also add he was surprised Bayley wasn't a part of WWE's recent round of releases, which included several women such as Dakota Kai, Shotzi, and Shayna Baszler.
H/T WrestleZone for partial transcript assistance.
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Jon Alba is an Emmy Award and SPJ Award-winning journalist who has broken some of pro wrestling's biggest stories. In addition to writing for The Takedown on SI, he is the host of "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy" podcast, and a host and contributor for Sportsnet New York. Additionally, he has been on beats for teams across MLB, the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLS during more than a decade in the sports media sphere. Jon is a graduate of Quinnipiac University with a B.A. degree in Journalism.
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