Jade Cargill, Britt Baker & More React To Paige’s Shocking WWE Return At WrestleMania 42
Saraya made a shocking return to WWE under her former ring name Paige at WrestleMania 42 Night 1 on April 18, 2026.
She officially departed on July 7, 2022, after nearly 11 years with the company. Her departure was primarily due to WWE’s decision not to renew her contract because the company’s medical team had not cleared her to wrestle following a severe neck injury.
Following a major neck injury at a live event in December 2017, she was forced to retire from active competition in 2018. After Saraya left WWE, she joined AEW, where she competed under her real name, Saraya. She spent around three years in All Elite Wrestling, where she even won the AEW Women’s World Championship once.
Four years after she departed from WWE, Paige returned to the company as a surprise replacement for injured Nikki Bella. She teamed up with Brie Bella in the Fatal 4-Way match for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship and even emerged victorious to become a new champion.
Paige Is Back In WWE
Hours before her WrestleMania return, multiple reports had confirmed that she had signed a multi-year deal for a full-time return to the Stamford-based promotion.
Following Paige’s surprise return at WrestleMania 42, many WWE stars like Jade Cargill, Kit Wilson, and Tiffany Stratton took to Instagram to welcome her back to WWE. Her former colleagues from AEW, like Renee Paquette and Britt Baker, also reacted to her surprise return.
Check out WWE and AEW stars’ reactions to her WWE return below, shared in the screenshot.
After becoming the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion, Paige, along with The Bella Twins, made an appearance on the WrestleMania post-show event, where they talked about their match and Paige’s return.
During the discussion, Big E asked about Paige’s decision to return to the Stamford-based promotion, to which the Anti-Diva replied that WWE is her home and she’ll always be a WWE girl forever.
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