Asuka Returns To WWE Raw, Starts HUGE Feud!

The Empress makes first appearance in nine months, goes right after her old rival.

by Scott Carlson
Asuka Return
WWE.com

If you were thinking the Raw women's division needed a shot in the arm, you were right, and you got your wish Monday night.

Becky Lynch made her first televised appearance since losing the Raw Women's Championship at WrestleMania 38, looking downtrodden and lost. She admitted that she didn't know who she was without a title on her shoulder and that she had hit rock bottom -- but she then realized that must mean she was on her way up, and no one could stop her on her rise back to the top.

Cue Asuka. Yep, that Asuka.

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She immediately told Becky that she would stop her comeback, then flicked her on the nose to show she was not afraid of the former champ. Lynch took a swing and missed, and she then quickly retreated before getting her head bashed in.

The Empress of Tomorrow hasn't wrestled since Money in the Bank in July 2021, making this a pretty huge return and instant value added to WWE. Asuka has proven that she can elevate bad material, other wrestlers and the program itself when she's on it. She's instantly a top threat for any title, and having been away for so long, some of these matches will seem fairly fresh.

Also, hats off to WWE for bringing Asuka back and putting her in a top-level feud with Lynch. The two gel well in the ring, and it gives both women something meaningful to do. It would have been disheartening to have Asuka return to feud with Carmella or something like that.

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Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.