Bayley is officially the first opponent for AJ Lee’s Women’s Intercontinental Title reign.
On the March 9 episode of Raw, a gauntlet match took place to determine the number one contender. The participants included in order: Lyra Valkyria, IYO SKY, Raquel Rodriguez, Ivy Nile, Bayley, and Asuka.
Valkyria was the first eliminated by SKY. Rodriguez was out next, also at the hands of SKY, but she retaliated by attacking SKY out of frustration. Liv Morgan had attempted to help Rodriguez during the match, but Women’s World Champion Stephanie Vaquer appeared and brawled with Morgan to the back. With Rodriguez having already taken out SKY, Nile capitalized on the moment and rushed in to score the pin on her.
Bayley would go on to defeat Nile and finally go face-to-face with Asuka. Kairi Sane was on the outside looking to do damage to Bayley while the referee was distracted. However, Valkyria took out Sane. Asuka almost made Bayley tap out, but Bayley was able to escape the Asuka Lock and land a Rose Plant for the win.
Bayley will take on AJ Lee next week.