Saraya, formerly known as Paige in WWE, recently gave a harrowing and detailed account of the 2017 in-ring injury that forced her into early retirement. She described the terrifying moments where she lost all feeling in her body and knew instantly that her career was over.
A Devastating Kick
The injury occurred during a six-woman tag team match at a WWE house show, just six weeks after she had returned from her first major neck surgery. Speaking on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Saraya recounted the moment a kick to the back of her neck changed everything.
“I remember, and there’s a video on YouTube of it, I lost all the feeling in my legs at first, and then I kind of stumbled, and I fell down. Then I lost all feeling in my arms. You can see me try and grab Mercedes’ legs at the time, and I just could not grab them. Then I remember just being completely paralyzed in the middle of the ring, and then just knowing in my head, I was like this is it. I’m never gonna wrestle again. I already knew. I was like, I’m done… just the feeling in my body, it was like an electric shock, and then everything went numb.”
The Aftermath and Retirement
Despite the terrifying experience, Saraya famously refused to be taken out on a stretcher, choosing to walk out on her own terms. She later received the devastating diagnosis from WWE’s Dr. Maroon, who told her the injury was equivalent to a severe car crash and that she should never wrestle again.
“I remember calling my mum and dad, and I was crying my eyes out. I was like, done. I’m done. And they were crying, because that’s my whole family’s life is wrestling. I’m just devastated… WWE were amazing, and they instantly put me in a position of General Manager, which I was so grateful for. And Vince gave me the opportunity to say goodbye on TV, which is not something a woman usually does within the WWE back then… I had the opportunity to be like I am retiring guys, devastated, cry my eyes out in the ring, and the crowd were amazing, and then the next day, I was the GM. But I knew at that point, okay, I’m never gonna wrestle again. That’s it. I’m done.”
After years away from the ring, Saraya made a miraculous comeback to wrestling in 2022. She is now a free agent, having recently parted ways with AEW, and is promoting her new book, which details her incredible life story.
