In one of the major matches from the AEW All In 2023 pay-per-view, Saraya defeated Dr. Britt Baker, Hikaru Shida, and Toni Storm in a Fatal-4-Way Match to win the AEW Women’s World Championship in late August. It was a perfect occasion for the new champion to have captured the gold since it happened in her home country of England.
This was also the first time in nine long years that the former Paige won a championship which makes her the queenpin of the AEW Dynamite roster. Moving on, Saraya is also set to defend her newly won title for the very first time on the September 20 episode of AEW’s flagship show which is being touted as the Grand Slam edition from the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York.
It should be noted that Saraya debuted on AEW Dynamite in the first place during 2022 September’s Grand Slam episode, ending a six-year hiatus from in-ring competition due to a neck injury. WWE never renewed the contract of the former Divas Champion due to injury reasons. Now, she’s not only an active competitor in the AEW but also is the name to go after, being the reigning champion.
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Saraya talked about her first championship reign in the AEW
Heading into the title defense, Saraya sounded extremely grateful for getting the opportunity to have won a gold in the AEW. Speaking on Women’s Wrestling Talk, the former WWE Superstar sounded skeptical over whether she can retain her gold during the Grand Slam episode or not. The fact that she’s a champion is a bigger achievement for her.
“Hopefully [it’s] long and entertaining for everybody,” Saraya said. “I don’t know where it’s going to go. I don’t know if I’ll lose it in a week’s time. I don’t know. But I’m just really happy that after nine years, I never thought I would ever hold a championship again.
“I never thought I’d ever wrestle again. And so, yeah, just having that moment in Wembley [Stadium] in the UK where I’m from, it was special. It can end tomorrow, and I’ll be happy that I had that moment.” (quotes courtesy Sescoops)
Heading into All In PPV in England, Saraya was the automatic favorite to become the new championship winner but the fact that she’s still not competing regularly due to the bruised neck kept the AEW creative team uncertain. Ultimately, they proceeded to pull the trigger and make the UK-native the new champion. Time will tell whether the decision was right from the company’s perspective.
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