Ruby Riott claims she and the rest of her Riott Squad walked a long, hard road to get to WWE. The path forward might be a little bit easier for the most under-the-radar threat in the Women’s division after Riott defeated Bayley one-on-one.
Riott was clearly feeling confident as the match approached — she, Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan caused all sorts of petty chaos backstage on their way to the ring — and made a point of targeting The Huggable One’s shoulder. Her swagger didn’t falter even as the veteran Bayley battled back against her upstart foe, but it was The Riott Squad's timely distraction that proved to be the difference-maker. Once Bayley was otherwise occuped, Riott pounced, ramming Bayley shoulder-first into the ring post before dropping her with the Riott Kick. Adding insult to injury, The Riott Squad scrawled an “R” on Bayley’s stomach in black lipstick. Leaving their mark on a championship-caliber opponent, or the first of many such examples to be made? No reason it can’t be both.