Earlier this week, just hours before it was confirmed by the performer herself, I penned an article about the latest round of potential free agents that were on the pro wrestling market. I mentioned that the grappler known previously as Paige said on Booker T’s podcast that she would consider a return to the WWE so it was more or less confirmation that she was on her way out of AEW. Saraya announced on her newly-launched podcast that she made her exit from All Elite Wrestling, concluding a three-year stint with the company that saw her make a comeback to the ring after a very serious neck injury was thought to have ended her career several years ago.
All things considered, this wasn’t and shouldn’t have been surprising at all. Besides the appearance on Booker T’s program, Saraya hasn’t been a part of the AEW line-up in nearly six-months, and outside of her hometown win at the original Wembley Stadium event in 2023, she hadn’t been given anything of importance to do in the company for the majority of her tenure there. Prior to the announcement, it was speculated that her contract expired later this year, but not only had the duration of the deal concluded, but she didn’t have a no-compete clause since the agreement had finished without any renewal. Taking into account that she hadn’t been on television in nearly six months, I’d guess that both sides just let the contract run out rather than trying to negotiate an early release from the deal. The Outcast stable faded into obscurity and Saraya really didn’t have a direction in the organization after that. Granted, this isn’t anything new, as we’ve seen the same thing happen with many performers, regardless of where they worked prior to their arrival in All Elite, but the fact remains that outside of the shock of her return to the ring after it was assumed her career was over, Saraya’s run in the promotion was rather uneventful.
Despite that, the story of the former Paige is still undoubtedly a success story.
From a pro wrestling family, the British competitor broke into the sport in her early teenage years and was such a natural in the squared circle that she was offered a WWE developmental deal when she was just 18, which was prior to the start of the NXT brand. Three years later, she made her surprise debut on Raw, beating AJ Lee for the Divas championship in her first match on the main roster.
She had a unique look, a unique charisma, and sharper skills than most competitors her age because of the ability to start in the sport at such a young age since she was from a wrestling family. Without question, Paige had the talent to be a star and looked to be on track be one of the featured performers on the women’s division at a time when the office was just starting to give the female division more of a chance to showcase their ability.
Unfortunately, her story almost ended in tragedy.
She originally suffered a serious neck injury in 2016 that required surgery to repair the damage, putting her on the shelf for several months. Around this time, she was suspended on two different occasions for violating the WWE Wellness policy. When she returned to action, her comeback was short-lived, as she was injured at a house show in late-2017, which ultimately forced her into retirement. At 25, her career was seemingly over. She had an unhealthy relationship with former WWE star Alberto Del Rio, involving domestic disputes, and there were rumors of drug issues as well. Several years ago, as a part of the celebrity leaks online, explicit photos of Saraya and a sex tape involving former WWE star, Brad Maddox and Xavier Woods surfaced on the internet. She later revealed that she considered suicide after the private material surfaced online. She also revealed years later that she had battled drug addiction previously, but was able to overcome those hurdles to maintain a healthy life style.
She avoided many pitfalls that could’ve made her just another cautionary tale of the pro wrestling business so an underwhelming run in All Elite Wrestling isn’t the worst case scenario for where she could be in 2025.
After she laced up her boots again to sign a deal with Tony Khan’s company, she explained that she had undergone another neck surgery in 2019, which is probably what allowed her to be medically cleared to compete again.
That being said, I don’t think that will automatically translate to an in-ring return to the WWE.
Sure, Saraya was cleared in some form or fashion to return to professional wrestling, but the WWE protocols could be stricter or the company simply might opt not to put her back in the ring because of her history of neck injuries. Yes, I understand that others, including Edge and even Steve Austin have competed after it was thought that their careers were over, but the former Paige is only 32, and at some point, especially given the bullets that she already dodged, both personally and professionally, it might not be worth it to step in a WWE ring again as far as the potential risk for another injury. Obviously, this is just speculation, but I think it’s a valid point to be made that it’s very possible that the WWE office wouldn’t want to see her risk another injury.
After she was forced into retirement, she was named the Smackdown General Manager in 2018. Through the pandemic, she stayed under contract to the WWE until mid-2022 when she announced her exit from the organization. Since she already worked in a non-wrestling role for the company, it’s possible that she could be brought back in a similar fashion, but it’s almost as though it would be a “been there, done that” type of situation. Furthermore, since she wrestled for All Elite Wrestling, if she returned to the WWE, the audience might expect her to compete in-ring for WWE again.
Hypothetically speaking, if she was was cleared by the WWE doctors to wrestle again, she’d probably fit into the current female division extremely well because of her years of experience and the quality of opponents that she would have to work with on the roster.
On the other hand, in conjunction with her new podcast, she also just released a new autobiography so she definitely has enough outside projects to keep her busy. Those ventures alone might be an indication that she’s not looking to return to the WWE machine immediately, especially because she has plans for a book tour to promote the autobiography, and while possible, the WWE road schedule, as reduced as it might be compared to the touring of the past, doesn’t necessarily lend itself to the availability to host a new podcast on a regular basis. It goes without saying that an association with WWE helps book sales, but there were successful publications outside of the scope of WWE so it’s not a requirement to be involved with the company to sell the autobiography.
It remains to be seen what the former Paige does next or if she’s still interested in wrestling at all. She might opt to work a few lucrative independent events since it’s a way to maximize her in-ring appearances without the commitment or toll on the body of a full-time contract. If I had to guess, I’d say that Saraya will probably decide to pursue other opportunities outside of the pro wrestling business since it’s not worth the risk of another injury.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
