Layla Says Fit Finlay Fought For WWE Women’s Roster, Believes He Pushed For Her Women’s Championship Win

WWE

Former WWE star Layla says Fit Finlay fought for the women’s roster during the Divas Era, believing he pushed for her to win the Women’s Championship.

Running from 1999 until 2016, the Divas Era saw the focus shift in the WWE women’s division from competition to glamor and spectacle, later being replaced by the Women’s Revolution.

The Miz has previously looked back upon that period, praising his real-life wife, Maryse, for her ability to get over despite the limited screen time she and fellow women’s roster members were afforded on WWE television.

There was support for the women’s roster behind the scenes, however, with Layla revealing that Fit Finlay was among the voices during an appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet.

Revealing how Finlay supported the women’s roster, Layla would also reveal that the veteran name pushed for her to win the WWE Women’s Championship, saying:

“He trained us all. Fit Finlay trained all the girls; he had patience with us, he fought for us. I think he even fought for me to win the Women’s Championship the first time. I think he literally was like, she can do it.

“We used to get to live events super early, and then Fit would have diva sessions in there, and he would be like, ‘Nope, you’re wrestling like girls, wrestle like guys.’ He didn’t care. He treated us like the guys, and we would have Fit Finlay boot camp, and I’m telling you right now, thank goodness we had that, because if we didn’t have that.

“He believed in all of us, he really did, he supported us, and he was also the agent that all the girls would go to to cry and stuff like that, he was the guy. But Fit Finlay, I would say, without a doubt, 100%. I had other training, of course, but 100% Fit.”

If you use this transcription or any portion of it, please credit WrestleTalk.com and link to this page.

The final WWE Women’s Champion, Layla would also reveal that she thought she was being ribbed by Finlay when he told of the plan for her to hold the title, explaining:

“So the idea that I remember was it was going to be Vickie Guerrero. She used to come out with me and Michelle before. It was pitched that Vickie was going to win the title, just Vickie.

“They needed the title to go on somebody else, but my gut was it was Fit Finlay that fought for me. I think it was him, because the day of, about maybe two hours before the show, like, Fit comes up and he’s like, ‘Congratulations, champ.’ I’m like, ‘Congratulations, champ?’

“He goes, ‘You’re going to win a title.’ He was known for always ribbing everybody and just telling everybody, playing jokes. I’m thinking, what the hell is he talking about? I didn’t even listen.

“We went through the whole match… I’m waiting this entire time for them to be like, ‘Ha ha!’ Because he would do that, like he would make jokes on us and stuff like that, and it never happened. It just never happened.

“Went through the match, and I won the women’s championship. ‘What? Co-women’s Champion?’ It was the biggest surprise to me.”

Layla is yet to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and would suggest to Van Vliet that the only way for her enter would be alongside Michelle McCool as LayCool.

The Right Fit For WWE

A veteran of the professional wrestling world, long before he headed to WWE in 2001 following the purchase of WCW, seeing himself become a trainer.

His early WWE career would see Finlay instrumental in not only the training of the Divas, but of John Cena and Randy Orton, long before either would walk a legendary path. This isn’t to say that Finlay left his wrestling career behind, competing as a WWE star on multiple occasions before being released in March 2011.

A brief return to the independent wrestling scene would see Finlay make his WWE return as a producer in July 2012, going on to be furloughed during the COVID-19 pandemic and making his return in a new capacity in November 2020.

Currently serving as a WWE Performance Center trainer and assistant coach, Finlay’s experience in multiple capacities across the decades clearly continues to be a valuable resource to future stars.

The father of David Finlay, currently signed to AEW, and Brogan Finlay (known to NXT fans as Uriah Connors), the veteran star held the WWE United States Championship.

If you use this transcription or any portion of it, please credit WrestleTalk.com and link to this page.

To make sure you stay up to date with all the biggest wrestling and WrestleTalk news, follow us on Threads by clicking this link!

• wwe
• fit finlay
• layla

Share this article with friends