WWE Provides Official Update On Asuka's Future

WWE provided an official update on Asuka's future with the company during the May 11 edition of Monday Night Raw.

Asuka appeared in a backstage segment on Raw, during which she approached IYO SKY after the former Damage CTRL stablemates made amends immediately following their match at Backlash. Asuka noted that she was looking for someone to take over her spot and SKY was that person. The former Io Shirai then said they would always be family before she bid farewell to Asuka and the two wrestlers hugged, with Asuka then walking away with her luggage.

Later in the show, Michael Cole stated that Asuka's future was "up in the air", suggesting she won't be on WWE TV at least anytime in the near future.

The post-match angle between Asuka and IYO SKY following their Backlash contest had all the hallmarks of a retirement or farewell, and reports noted following the pay-per-view that Asuka is now considered semi-retired. PWInsider, meanwhile, has reported that Asuka is believed to remain aligned with WWE.

Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful also reported on the outlet's Raw Post-Show that Asuka will be taking an extended period of time away from WWE to handle a personal situation. Sean Ross Sapp said:

"So, I found out definitively what's going on, and I don't want to miscredit the person who said it, but the person who said there’s personal stuff going on, that’s accurate. I don’t want to elaborate on what that is but I was straight up told tonight she was not a part of any cuts. She wasn’t asked to take a pay cut, as best I know. She signed a new deal in 2024. It was a multi-year deal.

"Obviously, WWE did not want to have Asuka be gone for a while, so to speak. Here’s what I heard, Asuka had approached WWE and said, ‘Stuff I’ve got to attend to.’ It’s back in Japan, she’s going to be spending some time there. I don’t know how much time that’s gonna be.

"Obviously it’s not what WWE wanted to hear but it’s something that they felt was important to honour and all that. Asuka is beloved in that company. When people naturally were like, ‘Was she cut? Was she asked to take a pay cut?’ a number of people hit me up and they’re like, 'Man, we can’t speak higher of the job that she does.'"  

Asuka signed with WWE in 2015. She is a three-time WWE Women's Champion, one-time SmackDown Women's Champion, one-time NXT Women's Champion, and five-time WWE Women's Tag Team Champion. She also won the inaugural Women's Royal Rumble in 2018 and won the 2020 Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match.