Becky Lynch Rebecca Quin ( January 30 , 1987 ) is an Irish professional wrestler currently signed to WWE , performing on the " SmackDown " brand where she wrestles under the ring name Becky Lynch . She was the inaugural WWE Smackdown Women ' s Champion . Within the independent circuit , she was known as Rebecca Knox . Quin began training as a professional wrestler under Fergal Devitt and Paul Tracey in June 2002 , and made her debut five months later . Initially working in Ireland and occasionally teaming with her brother , she soon expanded her career into the rest of Europe . She wrestled regularly for the France - based Queens of Chaos promotion , and won the World Queens of Chaos Championship in 2006 . She also wrestled for England ' s One Pro Wrestling and Germany ' s German Stampede Wrestling . She competed in the SuperGirls Wrestling promotion , an offshoot of Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling . She was the promotion ' s inaugural SuperGirls Champion and held the championship for 10 months and two days . She also appeared at ChickFight III , where she made it to the second round of the tournament . In 2006 , she debuted for the all - female Shimmer Women Athletes promotion , and was involved in a series of matches with Daizee Haze , including an acclaimed two out of three falls match . In September 2006 , Knox suffered a head injury during a match in Germany , and was diagnosed with possible damage to her eighth cranial nerve . She was scheduled to return to wrestling in 2008 , but no - showed the event , stating she no longer felt that wrestling was the right option for her at that time . She later returned to Shimmer as a manager in 2011 , before signing a contract with WWE in 2013 Professional wrestling career . Training and early career ( 2002 – 2005 ) . As a teenager , Quin heard that Fergal Devitt and Paul Tracey were opening a wrestling school in Ireland , and decided to go check it out . Beginning in June 2002 , she ended up training there , along with her brother . She made her professional wrestling debut five months later on 11 November , using the name Rebecca Knox . She teamed with her brother in mixed tag team matches during the early part of her career . She also trained at NWA UK Hammerlock . European promotions ( 2005 – 2008 ) . During the early part of her career , Knox wrestled in Ireland , and lost to English wrestler Eden Black at an NWA Ireland show in Dublin . On 13 May 2005 , Knox was defeated by English wrestler Skye at Queens of Chaos ' inaugural show and DVD taping in Toulouse , France . On 7 August Knox appeared at a Fighting Spirit Federation ( FSF ) show , where she competed in a four - way match for the World Queens of Chaos Championship against the champion , Nikita as well as Jersey and Emil Sitoci and Robbie Mireno in a three - way match . On 26 September Knox competed for German Stampede Wrestling , where she lost to Finnish wrestler Kisu in a singles match . During the match Knox suffered a cut above her eye , for which she received stitches . Knox later posted on her website that she had been suffering from headaches , vision problems , and loud buzzing in her left ear since receiving the injury . She was diagnosed with possible damage to her eighth cranial nerve , and as a result canceled all her bookings for the rest of the year . She was expected to participate at a ChickFight television taping on 4 May 2008 , but was removed from the show after no - showing a Shimmer Women Athletes show , stating that she did not believe that wrestling was the correct career choice for her at that time . North American promotions ( 2005 – 2008 ; 2011 ) . Knox joined the Canadian promotion SuperGirls Wrestling , an all - female offshoot of ( ECCW ) in 2005 , first appearing on ECCW shows . She immediately began feuding with Miss Chevius , defeating her in a singles match in Surrey , British Columbia on 17 May , before losing to her in Port Coquitlam , British Columbia a month later on 17 June . The following night however , Knox teamed with Calum Macbeth to defeat Miss Chevius and Tony Tisoy in a mixed tag team match in Vancouver . On 24 June , Knox defeated Miss Chevius at an ECCW show in Surrey , British Columbia to become the inaugural SuperGirls Champion . Knox successfully defended the championship against LuFisto 23 September at the inaugural SuperGirls DVD tapings , when she hit LuFisto with the championship belt and Knox ' s manager , Scotty Mac powerbomb ed LuFisto through a table . She also successfully defended the championship twice the following night ; first against Cheerleader Melissa when Mac superkicked Melissa to allow Knox to pin her , and against Madison , where Knox illegally used the ring ropes for leverage during the pin . At ECCW ' s tenth anniversary show in January 2006 , she defeated El Phantasmo in an intergender match . In March she feuded with Nikki Matthews , defeating her at the ECCW television tapings on 25 March and teaming with Sid Sylum and Gurv Sihra to defeat Matthews , Phantasmo and Kyle O ' Reilly on 31 March . On 8 April , Knox defeated Veronika . Knox held the SuperGirls Championship for 10 months and two days , before eventually losing it to Lisa Moretti on 21 April 2006 . On 14 October 2005 , Knox appeared at a New England Championship Wrestling event in Framingham , Massachusetts where she competed in a four - way match that was won by Violet Flame . Later that month , Knox participated in All Pro Wrestling ( APW ) ' s third ChickFight tournament in Hayward , California . She defeated Morgan in the first round on 28 October , but lost to eventual winner Mariko Yoshida in the second round later that night . The following night , she teamed with Cheerleader Melissa and Tiffany in a losing effort to Rain , Morgan and Hailey Hatred in a six - woman tag team match match at an APW show . She also appeared for the AWA Pinnacle promotion on 21 January and 26 February 2006 . On 21 January she acted as the referee in a match between Christopher Ryseck and Caden Matthews , and helped Ryseck to win by hitting Matthews with a chair . On 26 February , she and Ryseck were defeated by Matthews in a handicap match in Pacific , Washington . Knox began working for the all - female promotion Shimmer Women Athletes in 2006 . In her debut match for the promotion at the DVD tapings of Volume 3 , she defeated Allison Danger on 12 February , and established herself as a heel by faking an injury . In the main event of the Volume 4 DVD tapings later that night , she lost to Daizee Haze , provoking a feud between the two women . At the Volume 5 tapings on 21 May , she attacked Haze following Haze ' s first match against Portia Perez , performing a release German suplex on Haze . She went on to defeat Haze in a two out of three falls match later that evening . The match lasted 29 minutes , and was later described by promoter Dave Prazak as " probably the best women ' s match [ that he ' d ] seen on U . S . soil in years , if not ever " . In a repeat of her debut match for the promotion , Knox defeated Danger in a ' Pure Wrestling Rules ' match at the tapings for Shimmer Volume 6 . Knox was supposed to face Haze in a 60 - minute Iron Woman match at Shimmer ' s Volume 7 taping , but due to the injury she sustained in Germany , the match was cancelled . Knox was booked for a Shimmer event on 26 April 2008 , but no - showed , stating that she did not believe that wrestling was the correct career choice for her at that time . On 26 March 2011 , Knox returned to Shimmer as the manager of the mother / daughter tag team , Saraya and Britani Knight . Japanese promotions ( 2005 – 2006 ) . In November 2005 , Knox completed a two - week tour of Japan , as she competed for International Women ' s Grand Prix . She tagged with Aja Kong and Gran Hamada in the main event on each show , and her team was undefeated . During this tour , on 9 November , Knox won an 18 - person battle royal in Korakuen Hall in Tokyo . She later singled out this tour as the highlight of her career . She returned to Japan in August 2006 , defeating Yuri Urai in a singles match on 13 August , before teaming with Bullfight Sora to defeated Gami and Kyoko Kimura . On 18 August , she teamed with Yuki Miyazaki to defeat the team of La Amapola and Kimura , before losing to Kimura in a singles match two days later . WWE . NXT ( 2013 – 2015 ) . On 8 April 2013 , it was reported that Quin had signed a two - year developmental deal with WWE and had moved to Florida to report to their developmental territory NXT . On 29 August , Quin ' s new ring name was revealed as " Becky Lynch " , and she debuted at an NXT live event in November . Lynch made her televised in - ring debut on the 26 June 2014 episode of " NXT " , defeating Summer Rae . On the 3 July episode of " NXT " , Lynch teamed up with Bayley in a losing effort to " The BFFs " ( NXT Women ' s Champion Charlotte and Sasha Banks ) in a tag team match . She spent the next few months in non - title matches against Charlotte , losing three in a row . On the 23 October episode of " NXT " , after being told to make herself relevant , Lynch aligned herself with Sasha Banks by attacking Bayley . Known as " Team B . A . E . " ( Best at Everything ) , the alliance started to disintegrate when Banks cost Lynch a match against Bayley , in February 2015 . On 11 February , at , Lynch participated in a fatal four - way match for the NXT Women ' s Championship , which was won by Banks . On the 22 April episode of " NXT " , Lynch won a triple – threat match against Charlotte and Bayley to become the number one contender to the NXT Women ' s Championship . On 20 May , at , Lynch unsuccessfully challenged Sasha Banks for the championship , debuting a new look resembling Magic : The Gathering character Chandra Nalaar , thus keeping herself moving into the main roster . The match received widespread critical acclaim , with praise going to the performances of both Banks and Lynch . Main Roster ( 2015 – present ) . Lynch made her debut on the July 13 episode of " Raw " along with Charlotte and Sasha Banks , after Stephanie McMahon called for a " revolution " in the WWE Divas division . While Lynch and Charlotte allied with Paige , who was feuding with Team Bella ( The Bella Twins and Alicia Fox ) , Banks would ally with Naomi and Tamina , leading to a brawl between the three teams . This set up a match between the 3 teams at SummerSlam , which Paige , Charlotte , and Becky won . Officially named PCB , the team continued to dominate over Team Bella , capping off with Charlotte winning the Divas Championship against Nikki at Night of Champions . Team PCB started to crumble on the following months , starting on the Raw after Night of Champions , with Paige calling out Charlotte that she only won the title because of her father Ric Flair , and calling Lynch " irrelevant " . Lynch continued to support Charlotte throughout her Divas title run , until Charlotte began to display villainous traits , like using her father to keep her title . Lynch would beat Charlotte on the January 4 episode of Raw , which then instigated an attack on Lynch , turning heel . Lynch would unsuccessfully challenge Charlotte for the Divas Championship on two separate occasions , on the January 7 episode of Smackdown and at the Royal Rumble pay - per - view . Lynch would then help Sasha Banks fend off Naomi and Tamina , Sasha ' s former stablemates , setting up a tag team match at Fastlane . Lynch and Banks would defeat Team B . A . D . at Fast Lane . However , Lynch and Banks would feud among themselves , both wanting the Divas Championship at Wrestlemania . They would have matches for the # 1 Contender ' s spot , but Charlotte would interfere . As a result , Charlotte would defend the title against both Lynch and Banks at Wrestlemania , which Charlotte won and retired the Divas Title and replace with the WWE Women ' s Championship . After WrestleMania , Lynch began a feud with Emma , being defeated by her on the 2 May episode of " Raw " , however , she regain revenge on her along Natalya by defeating her and Charlotte in a tag team match three days later on the 5 May episode of " Smackdown " . On the 9 May episode of " Raw " , Emma ' s NXT ' s tag team partner Dana Brooke made her in - main roster debut by assaulting and attacking her during an backstage segment . Three days later on the May 12 episode of " Smackdown " , she was defeated by Brooke after being distracted by Emma , and once again repeating the event on the May 16 episode of " Raw " . On June 19 at Money In The Bank , Lynch teamed with Natalya in a losing effort against Charlotte and Dana Brooke . After the match , Lynch was attacked by Natalya , who turned villainous in the process . At Battleground , Lynch lost to Natalya . Smackdown Live ( 2016 - present ) . Lynch became the first woman to be drafted to Smackdown Live on July 19th . Lynch started forming an alliance with Naomi and Carmella against Natalya , Alexa Bliss and Eva Marie , forming a six woman tag team match at Summerslam . However , Eva was pulled out , only to be replaced by Nikki Bella , who returned at Summerslam to defeat Lynch ' s team . All 6 women would compete against each other in a 6 - pack elimination Challenge for the first ever Smackdown Women ' s Championship at Backlash . Lynch won and became the first Smackdown Women ' s Champion . Her first challenger is Alexa Bliss , who defeated the others for a title shot at No Mercy . Due to a legitimate injury , the title match was rescheduled for the November 8 " SmackDown " , which saw Lynch victorious in controversial fashion ; due to the referee not seeing Bliss ' foot on the rope while she tapped out to the " Dis - Arm - Her " . Lynch was part of SmackDown ' s women ' s team at Survivor Series , being the last one eliminated in the five - on - five match , resulting in a loss to Team Raw . At , Lynch lost the SmackDown Women ' s Championship in a Tables Match . On the December 13 " SmackDown " , Lynch defeated Bliss via countout in a title rematch , after Bliss faked an injury . On the following week , Lynch donned a mask and competed as " La Luchadora " en route to defeating Bliss via submission , and revealed herself after the match . On the December 27 " Wild Card Finals " edition of " SmackDown Live " , Lynch received another title opportunity against Bliss , but she was defeated after being distracted and attacked by a villainess donning the La Luchadora costume . Their title rematch took place the following week , which Lynch lost after a distraction and attack by a mysterious villainess wearing the " La Luchadora " costume , which on the 17 January episode of Smackdown is revealed to be Mickie James . At the 2017 Royal Rumble , Lynch teamed with Bella and Naomi and the trio defeated James , Bliss and Natalya after Naomi pinned Bliss . Lynch then defeated James at Elimination Chamber . Other media . Quin performed stunts on a 2013 episode of " Vikings " . Lynch made her video game debut as a playable character in " WWE 2K17 . " Personal Life . Quin was a fan of professional wrestling as a child , and used to watch it with her brother . Her brother has also wrestled under the name Gonzo de Mondo . She was involved in horse riding , swimming , and basketball . Prior to beginning to train as a wrestler , Quin stated that she had been " going down a bad path " involving alcohol , but wrestling helped her give it up . Quin attended university to study philosophy , history , and politics , but said she " really hated it " and dropped out . She planned to return to college to study health and exercise studies . As a wrestler , she has broken both of her ankles and suffered two stingers prior to 2005 . During her time away from wrestling , Quin worked as an actress and was cast in numerous plays from 2011 to 2012 . She graduated with a degree in acting from the Dublin Institute of Technology and has attended Columbia College Chicago and the Gaiety School of Acting . She also worked as a flight attendant with Aer Lingus for two and a half years .