Report: Asuka 'Semi-Retired' Following WWE Backlash 2026

WWE Backlash 2026 saw Asuka lose to IYO SKY in singles action, then seemingly retire from the business with an emotional post-match embrace.

The angle had all the hallmarks of a retirement or farewell, with myriad members of WWE’s locker room taking to social media to praise and thank the ‘Empress of Tomorrow’, but a report from Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer suggests that Asuka is ‘semi-retired’:

“So, the story I heard is that she is semi-retired. I haven’t really gotten an exact meaning of what semi-retired means, but I guess people were wishing her goodbye and things like that backstage. So I don’t know if that means she’s going to Japan and still wrestle. I don’t know if that means she’s going to still do stuff here and there, but I was told semi-retired,” claimed Meltzer.

With a raft of high profile WWE releases following WrestleMania XLII due to wage restructuring, some wondered whether Asuka was exiting WWE as part of the structured releases. A report from Fightful Select stated that Asuka is believed to have signed a long-term deal with WWE in Summer 2024, and although it is not known how long the deal was for, most at the time were believed to have been five-year contracts.

H/T: F4WOnline