Lyra Valkyria may still be a relatively new face on the WWE main roster, but she is a veteran of the sport. Debuting in 2015, the Irish-born superstar worked the indies for years until she joined WWE’s NXT UK brand in 2020 as Valkyrie, which is where I was first impressed with her in-ring skills and athleticism. She took the ring name Lyra Valkyria when she took NXT by storm a couple of years later. It was there that Valkyria faced “The Man” herself, Becky Lynch, for the NXT Women’s Championship, emerging victorious. The relationship forged there between the two Irish champions, a rarity in American pro wrestling, is a crucial storyline in Netflix’s WWE Unreal season two.
In WWE Unreal‘s second season, Valkyria, real name Aoife Cusack, is involved in a major program involving Lynch that will culminate in an Intercontinental Championship match at Summer Slam. But the journey to getting there was a long, tough road. Valkyria was initially reluctant to take part in the docuseries, and it took a while to get used to having her personal moments captured on camera.
A crucial thread in the series is Valkyria’s connection with Lynch, and how the two bonded as Irish women in a sport that has rarely pushed them to the top of the card. That said, the Summer Slam match between them has become infamous, as a key spot didn’t go as planned, and Valkyria put a lot of the blame on herself.
Lyra Valkyria talks about her reaction to the Summer Slam match, her feelings about showing her personal side to the cameras, and the respect she has for Becky Lynch, in an interview I did with her for WWE Unreal season two. Lyra was open and honest in the time I had to speak with her, but, I’ll also be honest with you, I think she’s still shouldering too much blame for what happened in that match. It’s why I propose to her that a third season should be about her vs. Lynch for the world title at WrestleMania. You can see her reaction to that.
WWE Unreal season two is streaming now on Netflix!
