Backstage Update On Asuka's Continued WWE Absence

Why exactly has the Empress of Tomorrow been missing from WWE TV for the past month?

by Andrew Pollard
Asuka WWE
WWE

While the Raw women's division has recently revolved around Charlotte Flair, Rhea Ripley and current Raw Women's Champion Nikki A.S.H., one talent conspicuous by their absence is Asuka.

In an update on why the Empress of Tomorrow hasn't been seen on WWE programming lately, the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that this is simply a case of WWE not having anything for Asuka right now.

The Women's Grand Slam Champion is not injured and was actually in attendance for a recent episode of Raw, although she exited that Raw early once it was confirmed she wasn't booked to appear that night.

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It's now just over a month since Asuka last wrestled, with that match being the women's ladder bout at July's Money in the Bank PPV. Prior to that, she was embroiled in the ongoing rivalry between Charlotte Flair and Rhea Ripley.

Throughout the pandemic era, the hugely popular Japanese star forever proved to be one of the most entertaining aspects of WWE programming, with her spending a large part of those empty arena/Thunderdome days as the Raw Women's Champion - embarking on a 78-day reign and a mammoth 231-day run with the red brand's top female prize during that time.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.