Post by cjh on Jul 17, 2023 8:39:15 GMT -5
itrwrestling.com/news/exclusive-triple-h-had-no-idea-wwe-was-letting-saraya-go/
Saraya has opened up about her WWE departure and Triple H’s surprise at discovering she was being let go.
Saraya — who was known as Paige in WWE — had initially joined the company in 2011 and went on to become the first-ever NXT Women’s Champion. The star debuted on the main roster just three years later and defeated AJ Lee to claim the Divas Title, becoming the only woman to ever hold the two titles simultaneously.
The British star became a vital part of the women’s division and helped spearhead the ‘Women’s Revolution.’ However, the second half of her WWE run was punctuated by two serious neck injuries, battles with addiction, and mental health struggles. The second of these neck injuries which she suffered in late 2017, was believed to have ended her career.
Despite being unable to wrestle, Saraya stayed with WWE until July 2022, performing in a number of different roles including being SmackDown General Manager, working on WWE Backstage, and managing the Kabuki Warriors.
Speaking in an exclusive new interview with Kenny McIntosh for Inside The Ropes, the British star reflected on being let go by WWE, and why she understood the company’s decision.
The star also bravely admitted that if she would have been given the news a few years earlier, she would have struggled significantly more due to her mental state at the time.
“I was told I was never going to wrestle again. I was told that, so I kind of had that in my head. But you know how every wrestler, you can never tell them no, when it comes to wrestling. So the past five years or so it’s been really difficult. But at the same time, I’m in a really good mental space, which has been a really positive thing. If I would have lost my career a couple of years prior to that, I don’t know if I would still be around right now.
So I’m very, very fortunate in a way where it happened at a time where I have a really good community around me, like my boyfriend, my friends, my family, you know, I have a really good, stable community around me that’s always so positive.
I was sitting on my ass for a couple of years, which was the most frustrating thing ever. I wanted to do media, I want to go there and do stuff, but I couldn’t. And plus there was a pandemic, so they really didn’t have that much use for me since I wasn’t wrestling. They were like, ‘What are you gonna do? We could always do Zooms and all this kind of fun stuff.’
Anyway, after a while I got the call from John Laurinaitis, and he was just like, ‘We’re not gonna renew your contract.’ And I was like, ‘That’s totally fine. You know, I don’t wrestle anymore, I don’t know what you would have [done with me].’ And that’s, that’s perfectly fine. We left on really good terms, which I appreciate from Vince [McMahon] and Johnny.”
Triple H Thought Saraya Had Decided To Leave WWE
While Saraya had come to terms with her WWE exit and was accepting of the company’s decision, it seems that the news hadn’t made its way through the entire management team.
Shortly after being told that she would be leaving WWE, Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis stepped away from the company due to the sexual misconduct scandal that was engulfing the company. In the aftermath, Triple H was effectively in charge of running the wrestling side of the company and set about reshaping the roster.
During this period, The Game was surprised to learn Saraya was leaving the company and mistakenly presumed that it was her decision to move on.
“Then a month down the line, Vince and Johnny took a little hiatus and then Triple H came in and kind of took over and he had no idea that they didn’t renew my contract, he had no idea. He just called me and was just like, ‘So what was the deal? Did you just want to leave?’ And I was just like, ‘Well, it wasn’t that, it was just I wasn’t of use, I guess anymore, and that was on their side.’
I had that conversation with Hunter and he was really, really great. And he was like, you know, if you want to come back the doors open, you know, and it’s, he was really, really gracious and kind and he always has been.”
Despite believing that her in-ring career was over, Saraya made a remarkable return to action at AEW Full Gear 2022, just two months after signing with the company.
Saraya — who was known as Paige in WWE — had initially joined the company in 2011 and went on to become the first-ever NXT Women’s Champion. The star debuted on the main roster just three years later and defeated AJ Lee to claim the Divas Title, becoming the only woman to ever hold the two titles simultaneously.
The British star became a vital part of the women’s division and helped spearhead the ‘Women’s Revolution.’ However, the second half of her WWE run was punctuated by two serious neck injuries, battles with addiction, and mental health struggles. The second of these neck injuries which she suffered in late 2017, was believed to have ended her career.
Despite being unable to wrestle, Saraya stayed with WWE until July 2022, performing in a number of different roles including being SmackDown General Manager, working on WWE Backstage, and managing the Kabuki Warriors.
Speaking in an exclusive new interview with Kenny McIntosh for Inside The Ropes, the British star reflected on being let go by WWE, and why she understood the company’s decision.
The star also bravely admitted that if she would have been given the news a few years earlier, she would have struggled significantly more due to her mental state at the time.
“I was told I was never going to wrestle again. I was told that, so I kind of had that in my head. But you know how every wrestler, you can never tell them no, when it comes to wrestling. So the past five years or so it’s been really difficult. But at the same time, I’m in a really good mental space, which has been a really positive thing. If I would have lost my career a couple of years prior to that, I don’t know if I would still be around right now.
So I’m very, very fortunate in a way where it happened at a time where I have a really good community around me, like my boyfriend, my friends, my family, you know, I have a really good, stable community around me that’s always so positive.
I was sitting on my ass for a couple of years, which was the most frustrating thing ever. I wanted to do media, I want to go there and do stuff, but I couldn’t. And plus there was a pandemic, so they really didn’t have that much use for me since I wasn’t wrestling. They were like, ‘What are you gonna do? We could always do Zooms and all this kind of fun stuff.’
Anyway, after a while I got the call from John Laurinaitis, and he was just like, ‘We’re not gonna renew your contract.’ And I was like, ‘That’s totally fine. You know, I don’t wrestle anymore, I don’t know what you would have [done with me].’ And that’s, that’s perfectly fine. We left on really good terms, which I appreciate from Vince [McMahon] and Johnny.”
Triple H Thought Saraya Had Decided To Leave WWE
While Saraya had come to terms with her WWE exit and was accepting of the company’s decision, it seems that the news hadn’t made its way through the entire management team.
Shortly after being told that she would be leaving WWE, Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis stepped away from the company due to the sexual misconduct scandal that was engulfing the company. In the aftermath, Triple H was effectively in charge of running the wrestling side of the company and set about reshaping the roster.
During this period, The Game was surprised to learn Saraya was leaving the company and mistakenly presumed that it was her decision to move on.
“Then a month down the line, Vince and Johnny took a little hiatus and then Triple H came in and kind of took over and he had no idea that they didn’t renew my contract, he had no idea. He just called me and was just like, ‘So what was the deal? Did you just want to leave?’ And I was just like, ‘Well, it wasn’t that, it was just I wasn’t of use, I guess anymore, and that was on their side.’
I had that conversation with Hunter and he was really, really great. And he was like, you know, if you want to come back the doors open, you know, and it’s, he was really, really gracious and kind and he always has been.”
Despite believing that her in-ring career was over, Saraya made a remarkable return to action at AEW Full Gear 2022, just two months after signing with the company.