Asuka stepped into the ring at the Backlash premium live event over the weekend when The Empress of Tomorrow faced off against Iyo Sky in a singles match. Iyo Sky picked up the win and after the match they embraced as Asuka got emotional.
Following the show it was rumored that Asuka would be stepping away from WWE for a while, and she was officially written off TV during this week’s episode of Raw when she said goodbye to Kairi Sane.
During Fightful’s Raw Review, Sean Ross Sapp discussed the Asuka situation and noted that she was not part of any cuts, and she was not asked to take a pay cut. He added that there is some personal stuff going on with Asuka that requires her to return to Japan.
“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.’”