Summary

Paige marked her WWE return with a public reaction after WrestleMania 42, where she stepped in for Nikki Bella and left with championship gold.

The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship match had been announced for night one of WrestleMania 42 with The Bella Twins, Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair, and Bayley and Lyra Valkyria challenging Nia Jax and Lash Legend. When the match arrived, Nikki Bella came out on a crutch and said she had not been cleared to compete, then introduced Paige as Brie Bella's replacement partner.

Paige and Brie Bella went on to win the titles, giving Paige a championship in her first WWE match back.

WrestleMania 42 return

The comeback carried extra weight because Paige had not wrestled for WWE since 2017. A neck injury forced her out of the ring and led to her retirement from active competition in the company.

She later resumed her in-ring career elsewhere and won the AEW Women's World Championship at All In in 2023. Her WrestleMania 42 appearance marked her first WWE match since that long absence.

Paige's place in the WWE tag title picture

Paige returning directly into a title win immediately changes the shape of the women's tag division. WWE now has a fresh championship team with built-in name value, and that gives the company an easy follow-up story once the WrestleMania fallout begins.

Nikki Bella's inability to compete also leaves an obvious thread hanging over the division. If she is cleared later, WWE has a ready-made angle with The Bella Twins and the new champions already tied together by the title change.

Social media

After the match, Paige celebrated the return on X and framed it as another new chapter in her career after coming back to WWE and winning a championship right away.

Sources

Saraya via X