A new report shed light on Saraya’s previous WWE deal as well as the restrictions that led to her signing with AEW.
On July 7th, Saraya left WWE when her contract expired, making her a free agent for the first time in over a decade. Despite remaining under contract and serving in various on-screen roles within the company, the former Paige hadn’t wrestled since December of 2017 as the result of a serious neck injury that forced her to announce her retirement at the young age of 26.
Fast forward to AEW Dynamite Grand Slam, and the popular star officially solidified her status as All Elite when she made her surprise AEW Dynamite debut inside Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City. In the weeks to follow, she’s found herself embroiled in a feud with former AEW Women’s Champion Britt Baker, and on October 7th it was reported that she’s officially been medially cleared to return to in-ring competition.
A new report from Fightful Select shed some light on the circumstances behind her WWE departure as well as her decision not to return to the company despite being offered an on-screen role as GM by Triple H’s new regime.
According to the report, it was the decision of Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis not to renew the former Paige’s deal when it expired back in July. Sources that spoke to Fightful said that her deal was “surprisingly low,” and also that her outside projects were restricted. One of these outside projects is her Twitch channel, which currently sits at 232,000 followers.
WWE did not have any interest in bringing Saraya back prior to Vince McMahon’s retirement, and even failed to authorize X-rays to have her medically examined for a possible return to the ring. Fightful Select notes that as far as the old regime was concerned, the case was closed.
The report goes on to note that Triple H was said to be “shocked” that WWE didn’t renew Saraya’s contract prior to its expiration in July, and while his new regime did make efforts to get her to re-sign with the company after Vince McMahon stepped down, she instead elected to go to AEW. According to the information gathered by Fightful Select, the freedom to pursue outside projects without giving up a deep cut as well as other deal terms led to her decision.