26 March 2024 , 19:54
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WWE’s Wrestlemania XL is less than two weeks away and with huge name matches confirmed for Logan Paul and The Rock there’s already plenty of star power looking to steal the show from the workhorse wrestlers fans love. But, while the draw of celebrity means WWE is consistently breaking records for their social media video views as guest star segments go viral, one of the biggest names in the business has warned of the dangers of these household names being thrown into the mix.
Speaking exclusively to The Mirror about the launch of her best-selling new book, Becky Lynch spoke openly about locker room frustration surrounding these part-time stars coming in and taking big spots.
With the characteristic honesty that makes the book a must-read she told us: “It's easy to be special when you only show up every four weeks or however often and then creative is specifically designed to make you feel important.
“Whereas when you are on TV every week, you're on every live event, you're doing the work to make these people seem important, you are doing the grunt work to allow them to come in and say 'hello, let me wave majestically at everybody.'
“It used to be a thing that wrestling fans would scoff at but now it seems they are starting to revere it more. Like: 'Oh yay, this person has come around and graced us with their presence.' So that becomes frustrating.
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“In the past, the champion would make their rounds through the territories, show off the title and be front and centre. Now that model is changing and I don't know if it's for the better. You learn by being in front of the crowd constantly and when you are in there with somebody who has learned by being in front of the crowd, you get better. So it moves the business forward.”
As someone who in her book, and despite her husband Seth Rollins ’ current on-screen feud, describes WWE icon turned movie star Dwayne Johnson as ‘the freakin’ best’ after he gave her permission to use his finishing move the Rock Bottom on her return from injury, she is keen to underline the difference between wrestlers that no longer have a full-time schedule and part-time celebrities.
“Roman and Rock are an exception because they have been there before. But if we start relying on these celebrities, the part timers, the people that don't actually know how to do this, that don't understand the craft, we're in trouble.
“We need leaders, people who care about this, who think about stories, who think about their character, who want to drive it forward. So yes, it's great to have the eye grab of celebrities, let them bring eyes to the product, but we can't rely on it.”
Lynch was talking to us as part of a punishing pre-publication press schedule between appearances on WWE programming building to an inevitably must-see match between her and Rhea Ripley at what’s set to be the biggest Wrestlemania of all time, in Philadelphia next weekend.
Becky Lynch and Rhea Ripley are due to face each other at Wrestlemania XL (WWE)It’s the kind of over-achieving multi-tasking anyone who’s read the book will have come to expect.
While everyone else spent lockdown learning how to bake banana bread and binge-watching Tiger King, Lynch wrote the first draft of her searingly honest autobiography. She openly cites her childhood hero hardcore-legend-turned-bestselling-author Mick Foley as an influence as she started the process and the comparison is all the more striking because the end result, Not Your Average Average Girl might just be the best wrestling autobiography since his iconic .
There are no ghost writers - she actually did a year’s writing course with author Neil Strauss before putting pen to paper - and this isn’t published by a WWE imprint. Make no mistake, Lynch is going mainstream. is already a best seller for Sphere Books, whose other authors include Tom Clancy, Val McDermid and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Tackling everything from dealing with post-natal depression to headlining Wrestlemania and with some astonishing asides like what made her call Charlotte Flair the C-word following a disastrous segment on Smackdown that Lynch describes as one of the worst in the show’s 25-year history, this is for both fans and casuals who just want an inspiring story about a woman juggling real life with achieving her dreams.
Its openness is all the more striking as Lynch, real name Rebecca Quin, has notably declined appearances in WWE’s various reality shows, keeping her real persona largely private from fans.
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She tells us: “I'm asking people to sit down and take the time to read it, I want to give them an honest account of everything that I went through. It has to be real. I think that's why I've always stayed away from reality TV because it's not always real and honest, you know?”
Becky Lynch The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl is absolutely that. It’s out today to buy on .
Alternatively, you can listen to Rebecca Quin on Audible with a free trial or take advantage of a special 99p offer for three months' free membership to the audiobook and podcast service. The gets you an audiobook a month for three months, perfect for lining up some other autobiographies written and read by wrestlers and bigwigs from the industry once you’ve finished listening to .
For wrestling fans looking to spend those extra credits, we’d also recommend by Diamond Dallas Page, by former WWE writer and long-time Dwayne Johnson collaborator, Brian Gewirtz and by Guy Evans, an almost-forensically written history of the rise and fall of WCW.