The WWE rosters run creatively thanks to a large creative writing team. Triple H and a hand-picked crew are constantly working on various ideas and making different changes. Late shifts in creative directions have been a thing for many years, and now Triple H has confirmed a certain change that was made.
WWE began the tournament to crown its inaugural Women’s Intercontinental Champion during RAW on December 2 in Everett, WA. Dakota Kai defeated Shayna Baszler and Katana Chance to advance, then Lyra Valkyria advanced by defeating Ivy Nile and Zelina Vega one week later in Wichita, KS. The Boston RAW tapings on December 16 saw Zoey Stark beat Raquel Rodriguez and Kayden Carter, while IYO SKY went over Natalya and Alba Fyre in a match that aired two nights before Christmas to wrap up the first round.
The final RAW on the USA Network aired as the last show of the year. The tournament semifinals saw Kai defeat Stark, and Valkyria defeat SKY to set up the championship final for the second RAW Netflix episode on January 13. Valkyria defeated Kai in just over 8 minutes to become the inaugural WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion. She was dethroned by Becky Lynch 144 days later at Money in the Bank.
WWE Unreal is set to premiere on Netflix later this month, and the series continues to make viral headlines just based on teasers and previews. A new plug from The Game includes a unique look at a creative meeting and an unexpected disclosure. WWE’s Chief Content Officer took to X/Twitter to tout the next trailer release for Tuesday, July 15. He included a backstage photo with Jey Uso and a behind-the-scenes shot from a creative meeting.
From the boardroom to the bell… and everything in between. New trailer for #WWEUnreal drops July 15. @netflix,” Triple H wrote with the photos below.
From the boardroom to the bell… and everything in between. New trailer for #WWEUnreal drops July 15. @netflixpic.twitter.com/9TEPdNtOfU
— Triple H (@TripleH) July 9, 2025
WWE Changed Plans For Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament
Fans and industry insiders previously responded to the initial WWE Unreal trailer with a significant amount of criticism for just how far behind the scenes the show had gone. The whiteboard in Triple H’s new photo from Unreal shows the original plan for the Women’s Intercontinental Championship Tournament semifinals had Lyra Valkyria facing Alba Fyre, not IYO SKY.
RAW’s current Women’s World Champion was added to the tournament after Kairi Sane was pulled with an injury. SKY defeated Alba Fyre and Natalya in a first-round Triple Threat, but now it appears WWE’s creative writing team originally had Fyre booked to advance to the semifinal, as revealed in Triple H’s graphic. It should be noted that IYO’s name is listed, not Sane’s, but it remains to be seen why SKY defeated Fyre and Natalya, instead of Fyre going over.
The Lady Of The Opera previously revealed how she was not involved in initial tournament talks, and only found out she’d be defeating Dakota Kai in the final when she showed up to the arena that day. It’s also not clear if WWE considered Fyre vs. Kai for the championship final, or if Valkyria was always going over Fyre or SKY before making history as the inaugural Women’s Intercontinental Champion.