Saraya, formerly known as Paige in WWE, has reportedly been given the go-ahead to wrestle again.
The former WWE Divas Champion was forced to retire in 2017 as WWE’s doctors didn’t clear her to perform in the ring as an active wrestler because of spinal stenosis.
She would remain with WWE for many years following the injury before WWE decided not to renew her deal a few months ago, making her a free agent.
At AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam 2022, Saraya debuted with AEW. She got physical in a wrestling ring for the first time in five years this past Wednesday night with Britt Baker. Before the confrontation, Baker claimed that Saraya wouldn’t be wrestling in the company as she hadn’t been cleared for in-ring action.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that AEW’s Dr. Michael Sampson has cleared Saraya.
Andrade El Idolo was sent home by AEW on Wednesday night after he got into a fight backstage with Sammy Guevara, who was working the main event of Dynamite.
This occurred after they had a verbal altercation on Twitter, during which Guevara accused El Idolo of wanting to make a comeback in WWE.
Many fans were under the impression that this was all an act and part of a storyline in which Andrade would compete in a mask vs. career match against 10 from the Dark Order on Friday’s Rampage. That match will not take place any more.
On today’s Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer brought up the fact that Andrade had stated on Twitter during the exchange with Guevara that he wasn’t scared to get fired, as well as the belief that Andrade is trying to get out of his AEW deal.
“Andrade’s trying to get fired, we all know that….when guys want to leave, some will go to great extremes to do that. It’s happened with WWE. I’ve talked to people in WWE who’ve tried to get fired with some of the craziest things in the world, and I’ve told them it’s not gonna work. There were some crazy stories of people trying to do things to get fired. Getting in a fight was never one of them, but there are things much crazier than that from people who wanted to leave and get out and were not going to be allowed to do that because the company wasn’t going to release them. So now the situation is on the other front, where there are a few people, and it’s not that many, it’s like three that wanna leave [AEW]. There’s different stories and whatever, and Andrade’s one of them.”
Meltzer then added, “So, Tuesday night, they were talked to. Both of them were told no fighting. Andrade was told, ‘If this is your idea, you’re not gonna get fired if you fight, but you will be sent home’. Andrade said, ‘Don’t worry, nothing’s gonna happen. There’s gonna be no fight.’ This was Tuesday night. Sammy was the same thing, ‘Nothing’s gonna happen’. They had security there. Everybody was warned ahead of time.”
Bryan Alvarez and Meltzer both mentioned that they were aware of the fact that they had heard several distinct accounts of how the altercation initially began.
Alvarez stated, “Sammy in fact didn’t throw any punches. One person did say that Andrade spun Sammy around, and Sammy shoved him, and then Andrade punched him. The other stories were that Andrade just punched him and that Sammy didn’t fight back.”
Meltzer mentioned that a reliable source had told him the following, “Andrade was waiting in the hallway, got two punches in before it was broken up, and Sammy didn’t fight back.”
Meltzer pointed out that Sammy didn’t appear to have any bruises on his face due to the punches he took during the backstage altercation at Dynamite.
“He did throw two punches, and it was broken up right away and Andrade was sent home.”
You can listen to the Wrestling Observer Radio below:
Contrary to recent reports, it seems Jeff Hardy may not be back in the ring as soon as previously thought. According to PWInsider, Hardy is preparing for a pre-trial hearing set to take place later this month regarding his DUI arrest back in June. The report also claims that Hardy is not expected back with AEW until his legal issues are handled and the company feels confident that Hardy has a handle on his sobriety.
Last month, Jeff’s brother Matt Hardy teased on his podcast that we would soon be getting a look at a brand new Jeff. Matt shared his confidence in his brother’s new outlook on life and his ability to stay sober. Prior to his DUI arrest, Jeff was reportedly set for a major run with his brother in AEW, with the pair even being “strongly considered” for an AEW Tag Team Championship victory. However, Hardy’s arrest and subsequent suspension derailed those plans.
Hardy was released by WWE last December after a strange incident that saw him leave a match during a live event and enter the crowd. Many speculated that Hardy was somehow inebriated at the time, but nothing was ever conclusively proven, and it was later denied by both Hardy brothers. Following his release, WWE reportedly attempted to convince Hardy to return to the company, even offering him a spot in the company’s Hall of Fame. However, Hardy turned down the offer and instead decided to join his brother in AEW. Though their initial run in the company would wind up being short-lived, it seems likely that Hardy will be given another chance once he has straightened things out in his personal life.
AEW commentator Jim Ross has joined the growing number of people who believe Saraya will compete as part of Tony Khan’s promotion.
Saraya hasn’t wrestled since Boxing Day 2017 when she suffered an injury at a WWE Live event.
The former WWE Divas Champion retired in April 2018 but remained hopeful of an in-ring return, before her departure from WWE this July.
Speaking on his Grilling JR podcast, Ross said he is hopeful that she will wrestle again.
“Saraya, I am assuming she’s going to be healthy enough to wrestle, I don’t know, I am assuming that she is.
“We will see, she’s a positive addition if so. It’s good, helps our women’s division I think, she was a good hand, and still is a good hand … so we will see.”
Neither Saraya nor AEW President Tony Khan have confirmed or denied claims that she will wrestle in AEW.
A recent report has suggested that she will wrestle given the amount she is being paid by AEW.
After an AEW wrestler informed the company that a WWE representative had contacted them about the possibility of returning to WWE, the company reportedly sent an email to WWE co-CEOs Nick Khan and Stephanie McMahon warning them “not to tamper” with their talent.
Malakai Black has now denied the claims that he wanted to be released from his contract after it was later revealed that he had made a request. After Triple H took over creative duties from Vince McMahon a number of months ago, WWE reached out to numerous members of AEW, including Black, FTR, and Swerve Strickland, to inquire about the possibility of returning to the company.
Dave Meltzer revealed the news that AEW President Tony Khan will not be releasing anyone during his appearance on today’s episode of Wrestling Observer Radio.
“Nobody’s getting released, that’s the doctrine. [AEW President] Tony Khan made that very clear I guess in the last couple of days. So now it’s just, [Malakai Black’s] not being released, Buddy Matthews isn’t being released. Now they may be back sooner than before. They were wanting to go and trying to get a way out.
It’s not to say it’s hard and fast, and there’d be no way they’d never give anybody a release. But I think it’s pretty much the deal that if this happened in any other company, would those people get releases, and the answer is no. They signed the contract, so basically now their option is to sit at home – and [Tony Khan] can extend the contract if they sit at home – or wrestle. So now they’re gonna wrestle. He [Malakai Black] waved goodbye and now he’s coming back and he’s gonna blame me.”
“They really came after [Tony Khan], it’s pretty blatant that [WWE] came after so many of the guys. Basically everyone who had worked there, there might be an exception, every name that you would think of that had a previous relationship with Triple H was contacted and told to ‘try and get your release and come in.’ Several went to Tony and said, ‘they’re contacting us we have no intention of going’ and several said ‘we want the release’ and have been told no.”
TNT has updated its programming schedule, and a change has been made to AEW’s upcoming TV slate.
AEW will air a live Rampage on Friday, October 7, in addition to taping Battle of the Belts IV at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, D.C.
Originally, Rampage was listed as airing at 9 p.m. ET followed by Battle of the Belts IV at 10 p.m. ET. This would’ve put Rampage head-to-head with the second hour of WWE SmackDown.
TNT now lists Rampage as airing at 10 p.m. ET followed by Battle of the Belts IV airing at 11 p.m. ET on Friday, October 7. The start time for the show is listed locally as 8 p.m. ET.
Rampage typically airs at 10 p.m. ET on Fridays, while Battle of the Belts has been taped in the past and aired on Saturday nights at 8 p.m. ET.
If the Battle of the Belts special aired on October 8th, it would’ve gone head-to-head with WWE Extreme Rules on Peacock.
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