Blake Monroe has been on SmackDown for months without actually getting to wrestle an official match as a member of the roster. Fans are getting impatient, Monroe knows it, and she has a pretty interesting comparison for why everyone needs to wait.
While speaking with SPORF, Monroe addressed the lengthy wait for her SmackDown in-ring debut. Her first main roster vignettes began airing in April, but nearly five months later, the former NXT Women’s North American Champion still hasn’t competed on WWE television as a SmackDown Superstar.
Monroe didn’t dance around the frustration. She simply thinks people are expecting everything to happen too quickly: “People are very impatient.” She then compared waiting for her first match to dating someone and expecting too much on the first date.
“Have you guys never taken time and care with anything? When you’re dating a woman, what do you think is going to happen on the first date? I’m betting it doesn’t happen, whatever you’re thinking.”
For Monroe, some of that impatience comes from how long fans have followed her career. Her audience has watched her move through the independent scene, Japan, the United States, NXT and eventually onto WWE’s main roster, so she understands why they want to see the next step immediately.
“You have to wait for a good thing. I have always documented my journey very well, so I have a strong fanbase that have seen me go from the independent scene to Japan to America, now to NXT and WWE. So they’re so invested in me and want me to do well.”
Monroe also understands that the delay can make fans nervous about what WWE has planned for her. She isn’t sharing that concern and instead believes getting the timing right matters more than rushing her into the ring.
“People can get nervous or scared and I understand that, but you have to have patience. Timing is everything. But I think that’s why people are invested in me, because they know me.”
It isn’t as though Monroe has been completely absent from the action. Her developing issue with Giulia has repeatedly turned physical, including their September 4 SmackDown encounter.
Monroe was being interviewed backstage when Giulia blindsided her and started a fight that eventually spilled toward the stage. Giulia landed several headbutts before hitting Arrivederci and sending Monroe crashing down the ramp.
Monroe later posted photos showing scratches across her lower back and a large wrap around her jaw and face. It was also the second time a scheduled match between the two failed to officially get underway because they started fighting before the bell.
So Monroe has already spent plenty of time getting beaten up on SmackDown without technically having that first match. She isn’t worried about how long the real debut is taking, though. As she sees it, fans have waited this long for the next chapter of her career, and a little more patience might make the payoff worth it.
Do you think WWE is right to take its time with Blake Monroe’s SmackDown in-ring debut, or has the wait already gone on too long? Let us know in the comments.
