Paige removed from Royal Rumble, long-term future not addressed
While her long-term future wasn’t addressed, Paige appeared on Raw tonight and was officially removed from the upcoming women’s Royal Rumble.
Paige accompanied Sonya Deville to the ring for her match against Sasha Banks, and it was mentioned on commentary that Paige wouldn’t be able to compete in the women’s Royal Rumble due to a neck injury. WWE.com then posted an article reiterating that information.
Paige and Mandy Rose stayed at ringside opposite Bayley and Mickie James for the match, with Deville picking up the win after hitting Banks with a kick to the chest.
PWInsider first reported that Paige wouldn’t be cleared to return to the ring by WWE and that her in-ring career with the company was over. Our Dave Meltzer backed up that report and discussed the situation on Wrestling Observer Radio last night.
Less than two months after returning from neck surgery, Paige suffered the injury when she was kicked in the back by Banks during a six-woman tag match at a house show in Long Island on December 27th. She has accompanied her Absolution stablemates in back-to-back weeks on Raw.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.