Back in May, the news broke that Saraya, formerly known as Paige in WWE, had left AEW. For many fans unhappy with how Tony Khan has booked the British wrestler, the news was long overdue, and all eyes are now on what Saraya does next.
She's yet to make a decision or step back into the ring. If a WWE return is planned, then it could happen as soon as this Sunday at the long-awaited Evolution 2 PLE.
Talking to Chris Van Vliet, Saraya opened up on her decision to walk away from AEW:
"It got to a point, I loved my time there, I really did, but there was nothing really much for me to do. When I was there, all I wanted to do was help elevate the division. So I'm like, 'I'll eat a pin here and there, I'll do it, whatever someone needs.' I don't think there was much room for me there. You have big stars there, and I just decided that this is probably the perfect time for me to take a step back, because the only thing left for me to do there would be to wrestle Mercedes. But she already had stuff lined up all the way up until All In that they're about to do. So I was like, What am I gonna do, stay at home?"
"It's nice to collect a paycheck sometimes, sure, but I'd rather be active and doing something I'm really enjoying. That's why I wanted to do the podcast, my book came out, all that kind of fun stuff, so I can put all my energy into that, rather than being like, well, when am I going to be on TV next? I don't want to have to stress about that. So it was just easier, and Tony was great. He was agreeing too. He's like, okay, yeah, let's do it. So it was a very nice split, and great business, which is wonderful. And like I said before, the door is always open for these places, which is really nice. I leave on really good terms. But yeah, I feel like my time came to an end, what else do I do?"
Confirming that she's a free agent, Saraya said she could "pop up anywhere" because "my contract's done." She added that there was no non-compete and said, "Tony was great. It was a clean split."
If and when Saraya does return to WWE, she confirmed that she wants it to be as Paige, the name she originally went by in the company.
"Paige, 100%. I miss Paige so much. I tell people all the time. So again, when I went to AEW, I didn't want to be close to my character in WWE because of the comparisons. I was like, Okay. And then I ended up being like a chicken sh*t heel with AEW, which is all fun and good, but there's a ceiling to that. Whereas Paige, I mean, she's generational. I love her."
"She's bad ass, tough as nails, just screaming all the time. I loved being her. She was a f*cking badass, and that felt more like an elevated version of myself, rather than doing what I was doing in AEW. But again, that was my decision to be like that. But then I was like, Damn I wish I leaned more into my original character, but it is what it is. You live, you learn."
You can watch the full interview with Saraya in the player below.