Sasha Banks returned from a back injury last week on Monday Night Raw and scared fans with her fake retirement speech. However, the latest rumors suggest that the angle was not well-received backstage.
The Boss announced on Raw that she will be back in action at Clash of Champions against Charlotte to reclaim the Raw Women's Championship. Before she made that statement, she had a fake retirement angle similar to what Mark Henry did back several years ago.
According to Cageside Seats, several talents were upset about the promo Banks made since Daniel Bryan had to retire in real life due to injuries. The former Women's champion was nursing a back injury and it felt like it was serious enough to end her career.
It should be noted that Bryan had to retire earlier this year due to injuries and it left a sour taste in the mouths of some superstars at the back. They felt that it was inappropriate to have a similar promo or retirement angle since something real happened just months ago.
Several people were also upset since Tyson Kidd has been out for more than a year due to a neck injury and his career might come to an end. However, the backstage heat is not on The Boss but at the WWE creative team, per The Wrestling Observer (subscription required).
The script was written by creative and Banks was just instructed to pull off the promo. The 25-year-old was really convincing but nevertheless, there is some backstage heat from talents directed to the creative team.
Banks' retirement angle is not the first fake speech since it has been used in 2013 by Henry which many fans considered as the best promo of his career. The future Hall of Famer did it in an episode of Raw and it led to him attacking then-WWE champion John Cena.
The promo was praised by fans and critics with many considering as one of the best in recent WWE history. The same cannot be said for Banks' but she has a bright future ahead. She has been cleared by doctors and she started wrestling again this past week during WWE's tour of England, the Philippines and China.
Check out the video below for The Boss' fake retirement speech.