Saraya is doing her wrestling comeback her way — whether you like it or not.
After returning in September after five years away because of what was at the time considered a career-ending neck injury, the 30-year-old has started a heel run at the top of the AEW women’s division with The Outcasts faction of her, Toni Storm and Ruby Soho, three former WWE stars.
And she couldn’t be happier.
Saraya will be in Storm’s corner on Sunday as she gets a rematch with AEW women’s champion Jamie Hayter at the Double or Nothing pay-per-view from T-Mobile Arena on Sunday (8 p.m., Bleacher Report)
“I love everyone I’ve worked with, don’t get me wrong, but I’m having the most fun I’ve had throughout my whole career,” Saraya said in a phone interview. “I’m really enjoying myself and it feels like it shows and it pisses a lot of people off and it doesn’t [bother me]. I’m like ‘C’mon dude, I’m having a great time.’”
Saraya has purposely taken her in-ring return slowly, wresting in just seven matches so far.
She didn’t want to rush back and take too many bumps as she had in the past after a neck injury.
She put in her own limit of one match a month and has stuck to it so far.
Her doctor actually told her she could do whatever she wanted, but Saraya wanted to protect her body and take care of her mental health.
Now that she’s got her confidence back, she’s more than willing to increase her workload.
“[My doctor] was like, ‘You’re safe, you can do it,’” Saraya said. “I said I personally want to take it slow. I don’t care what anyone bitches about on the frickin’ internet, I’m gonna do it my way. I don’t give a massive s—t about what they think.”
With her confidence back, the restrictions she had put on herself are coming off within reason. While she is up to take whatever move the other women want, her peers have been very protective of her.
“The stuff that I’ve said I wanted to take and they’ve had to be like, ‘Saraya, take a step back we’re not gonna do that right now maybe give it a few months you know.’ … They have to slow me down,” she said.
She actually wanted to enter AEW as a heel, but the idea was nixed by AEW president Tony Khan because of all the good feelings there would be around her return from injury.
But over the course of her program with Britt Baker, her opponent’s promos about the pride she felt being an AEW original and helping lead the company through the COVID-19 pandemic struck a babyface cord with the audience.
It gave Saraya a chance to get her wish.
Khan pitched the idea of teaming her with Storm, who it also seemed time to turn heel.
“I was like, ‘finally,’ Saraya said. “Because as a heel I feel like I can blossom a little bit more and I could get my confidence back.”
She said she, Storm, and Soho are having “mountains of fun” together.
The group has pulled from all different areas to form its identity, from D-Generation X, the nWo, the movie “Mean Girls” and the Bella Twins. The group is rebellious, spiteful, and snobbish while attacking the likes of Baker, Hayter, Hikaru Shida, and others.
“All those groups are so iconic, why wouldn’t we [tap into them]?” Saraya said. ‘I love being compared to them.”
It was her idea for them to start spraying green Ls on the other women after matches or attacks, but it was supposed to be a one-day thing.
And the original plan was for them to draw an X, but she didn’t want it confused for DX. Even the L for losers ended up being less than an original idea — drawing reminders of the Bellas.
“Everyone’s done everything so it’s hard,” she said. “We are creative in our own way, but it’s hard to do something without being compared to something else in this business. I said we might as well just embrace it and have fun.
“That‘s why we did The Shield powerbomb and stuff like that. Now we are just leaning more into it. That’s where we came from [WWE], so we’re gonna embrace it to make the fans even more mad.”
The storyline, which began back in January, is exactly what Saraya was hoping to bring to WWE’s women’s division — long-term storytelling not focused on a championship that can help get as many women on the show as possible.
The group has also crossed paths with Willow Nightingale, Riho, Allyson Kay and Sky Blue.
“My only goal when I first came in here was more TV time for women,” Saraya said. “They were already doing well, but it was just wrestling mostly. I’m like ‘No, but we need to tell some stories.’ … I love it, I love that kind of wrestling. I like doing more character stuff. I don’t want to keep doing the same match every single week.”
Part of that was being injected into Chris Jericho’s storyline with Adam Cole a few weeks back.
Jericho handcuffed Cole to the ropes as he had to watch Saraya beat Baker — his real-life girlfriend —with a kendo stick.
“I had never really intertwined storylines like that,” Saraya said. “And it worked”
The crowd in Baker’s hometown of Pittsburgh started chanting ‘piece of s—t’ as the heat around all parties grew from what for now was a one-off.
Saraya said Baker’s mom even flicked one of the yellow towels in her eye that night.
“I’m like, ‘I’m suing you!’” Saraya said jokingly.
The addition of “AEW: Collision,” a new two-hour weekly show Saturdays in primetime on TNT starting June 17, should only increase the quality opportunities presented to the women’s division. Saraya said she isn’t sure if the Outcast will land there, but is excited for the new platform.
“There are so many talented women that are not being utilized as of right now,” she said. “It’s gonna be a big show. You are gonna have huge talent on this show.”
That will also be the case for the big summer AEW has on tap, which includes already selling 60,000-plus tickets for All In at Wembley Stadium in Saraya’s home country of England.
There have been a few dream match possibilities thrown around, including Saraya versus Hayter at All In.
While it’s the match she wants there, she said she’d be happy with any match.
“Because what a f—king opportunity,” this is my home country, the tickets are insane, it’s absolutely bananas,” she said.
Any plans for a potential match with Mercedes Mone’, who delivered the kick in 2017 that injured Saraya’s neck, may have to be put on hold with the former WWE star suffering an ankle injury during a clash with Willow Nightingale last weekend.
But getting it to happen when Mone’ is healthy to put the “button” on their story isn’t as simple as it sounds.
“That’s only if Mercedes would want to do that,” Saraya said. “I would want to do whatever she’s comfortable with. That really affected her mental health and I would want her to go through with that. I’m not saying she said no or anything like that. I’m just thinking about how I would feel.”
How Saraya feels right now is grateful.
Grateful to be past her injury and all the baggage that came with it.
In a social media post on Mother’s Day with a photo of her younger self that popped up in her memories, she expressed her gratitude for putting drugs and alcohol behind her, for her family, and musician boyfriend Ron Radke.
The two just moved into a new home and have expanded their “zoo” of dogs, birds and fish and it made her reflect on her past and where she is now in life.
“It’s such a huge journey to go through and come out of,” Saraya said. “It was very publicized the stuff I went through and just to come out of that and get my career back and have such a wonderful boyfriend and wonderful community and family. I just felt very, very grateful at that moment.”
“I’m inspiring people by getting over addiction, having endometriosis, having scoliosis where my spine is wonky as s—t, having bad relationships. Just getting over and getting out of that bad moment. Then also the [sex] tapes, those come out. I could have been so much worse. Just overcoming that and reminding people you can get through it, too.”