Becky Lynch and Trish Stratus faced off inside a steel cage at WWE Payback 2023 to take their rivalry to a conclusion.
Stratus wasted no time trying to break free from the cage. She made a dash for the cage door, and when that didn’t work, she attempted to scale the cage walls. However, Lynch was quick to intercept her, taking control of the match. Despite Stratus’s persistent efforts to escape, Lynch managed to keep her engaged in the fight.
As the match unfolded, Stratus found her groove, resorting to some unconventional tactics. She even used the cage itself as a weapon, fishhooking Lynch to gain an advantage. The two competitors exchanged blows, especially after Lynch thwarted Stratus’s high-flying move from the top rope, which nearly allowed Stratus to make her way out of the cage. But Lynch countered with a powerful powerbomb that resulted in a close near fall.
SAY CHEESE!#WWEPayback pic.twitter.com/zyrfc06qYu
— WWE (@WWE) September 3, 2023
Stratus didn’t back down, answering with her own signature move, the Widow’s Peak, paying tribute to Victoria, who had made history by facing Lita in the first-ever women’s cage match in WWE. Just when it seemed like Stratus might make her escape, she was apprehended by Lynch, who used some hair-pulling tactics to hang her upside down on the cage. This precarious position led to Lynch executing a dramatic superplex from the top rope, nearly securing another pinfall.
The match took an unexpected turn when Zoey Stark entered the fray, preventing Lynch from exiting the cage and slamming the cage door in her face. Lynch regained her composure, delivering a devastating Manhandle Slam to Stratus, only for Stark to intervene once again, breaking the pin.
That’s a SUPER DUPER PLEX! #WWEPayback pic.twitter.com/KkhpVEc23O
— WWE (@WWE) September 3, 2023
Finally, Lynch took matters into her own hands, sealing the cage door and locking herself inside with Stark. Stratus attempted another escape during their scuffle, but Lynch wasn’t letting her get away. Lynch struck Stark with a Manhandle Slam and then turned her attention back to Stratus, executing a spectacular Manhandle Slam from the top rope for the three-count victory.
