We've reached a point where the contract statuses of several AEW stars are up in the air, meaning the likes of Daniel Garcia, Dustin Rhodes, and Ricky Starks could soon be WWE-bound.
However, one name we can expect to see remain in AEW for now is Saraya (better known as Paige in WWE). According to Fightful Select, she's signed a new deal which will see her remain part of the company until at least next September.
We're surprised Triple H didn't pull out all of the stops to bring her back into the fold given their history in NXT. Still, seeing how much Tony Khan is supposedly willing to pay talent, there's a good chance WWE was simply unwilling to match it.
Interestingly, it sounds like Saraya's original deal had a clause in it which meant they could choose to keep her signed for another year; instead, the decision was made not to invoke that and she's now signed a completely different contract.
Saraya's AEW stint has received mixed reviews, largely down to how she's been booked. Earlier this year, she addressed her critically panned match with Dr. Britt Baker DMD and shared her belief that it was down to ring rust and the fact she got off to a bad start with her first promo.
Since then, she's worked with Jox Moxley and praised him for the role he's played in her improvement on the mic.
"Jon Moxley actually helped me a lot. One of my best friends is Renee [Paquette], [so] I’m friends with the hubby, too. He was one of the catalysts of getting me over to AEW as well. He was on the phone with me and stuff like that,” she explained. “With the promos, since I s*** the bed the first time, I was just like, ‘I just need help I don’t feel confident in myself.’ He was just like, so, that promo with me and Britt [Baker] where I’m being real. I’m talking about real-life stuff."
"Like yeah, I am sober. Yeah, I was a mess. Yes, the world saw my tapes go on the friggin’ internet from when I was 19, just all the struggles that I went through for that year and a half. I was being real. He was telling me I had to be real. He was just like, ‘That’s the perfect promo, stop trying to be a character right now and just speak your truth’ kind of thing. He was helping me with that kind of stuff. He really, really did help me. It made me come out of my shell, and made me feel way more comfortable."
Are you excited to see more of Saraya in AEW?