Every Original WWE NXT Black & Gold Roster Member - Where Are They Now?

31. Paige

paige scream
WWE.com

What was she doing at the time?

Losing, and loads. Paige lost to Sofia Cortez and Raquel Diaz during the first month NXT finally replaced Florida Championship Wrestling, but this turned out to be a story about the quantity of appearances rather than the quality of results. Her consistent presence as opposed to merely sneaking in once during the taping cycle revealed a keener interest in getting her seen and getting her over, and with good cause. She was the first ever NXT Women's Champion within a year and debuting on the Raw after WrestleMania the year after that.

What is she doing now?

Rolling back the years. Paige made a somewhat surprising return in 2026, but to in-ring competition eight years after she was forced into early WWE retirement and two less from her last match in All Elite Wrestling. She won big in both promotions, becoming AEW Women's Champion at the first All In: London show at Wembley Stadium, before scooping WWE Tag Team gold at WrestleMania 42. 

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for nearly 10 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 65,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has provided in-person coverage of some of the biggest pay-per-views and Premium Live Events in wrestling history, including WrestleMania, Survivor Series, All In & Double Or Nothing in destinations such as New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live.