Asuka’s WWE Status Reportedly A Mystery, Believed She Isn’t Retired

Asuka’s status following WWE Backlash remains uncertain.

This past Saturday at Backlash: Tampa, IYO SKY and Asuka’s rivalry came to a head in singles action, with IYO SKY ultimately picking up the victory. Following the bout, the two shared an emotional embrace, a moment that has sparked speculation regarding Asuka’s future with WWE, a notion further fuelled by various social media posts from her peers.

Fightful Select are now reporting that the situation appears to be something of a mystery among those within WWE, although there is said to be a unanimous feeling that Asuka has yet to have her final in-ring outing.

“The situation appeared to be a mystery to the locker room, and to a number of people around the creative process, who weren’t sure if this was actually a “goodbye.” One thing that was firm was that everyone that Fightful spoke to does not believe Asuka has had her final match.”

-Fightful Select

Another unanimous sentiment noted by Fightful Select was Asuka’s popularity among WWE talent and staff, who are said to have spoken highly of her work with the company. One WWE higher-up is reported to have highlighted Asuka as someone whose performances over the last year have been “always reliable no matter what was thrown her way,” adding that WWE were very happy with her.

Alongside speculation regarding Asuka being semi-retired or taking time off for personal reasons, another point of discussion following Backlash: Tampa has been the possibility of her contract expiring or her turning down a new deal, amid reports of TKO looking to negotiate new contracts for WWE talent on reduced salaries.

However, elsewhere within the report, Fightful Select touched on Asuka’s contract status and revealed that she signed a new long-term deal with WWE in 2024, with the majority of deals given to talent during this period reportedly spanning five years.

“Regarding her contract status, Asuka signed a new, long term deal with WWE in the Summer of 2024. We aren’t sure how long that deal went, but most deals were for five years at that point.”

-Fightful Select

Yet another point of speculation regarding Asuka’s future has centred around the recent departure of her former Kabuki Warriors partner, Kairi Sane. Kairi was among a lengthy list of WWE releases on April 24, with the bout between IYO SKY and Asuka prompting audible “We want Kairi” chants from the Tampa crowd.

Regarding the Kairi Sane situation, Fightful Select added that a number of sources indicated frustration over her release, particularly due to the lack of payoff to the storyline surrounding The Kabuki Warriors, although it was not communicated whether those frustrations extended to Asuka herself.

You can find more on the latest WWE news, including the fallout of Backlash: Tampa, here.

As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on Asuka’s future as soon as we hear more.