WWE Wellness Policy - 6 Wrestlers Badly Derailed (And 4 That Prevailed)
9. Derailed - Paige
At a time when Women's wrestling has never been a higher priority in WWE, an original NXT success story may never be a permanent part of it.
Back-to-back suspensions left her off WWE television for 90 days in 2016, leading many to speculate that she'd lost interest in working for the company completely.
Family, friends and Paige herself spoke out on social media to advise that prescribed painkillers for a serious neck injury and subsequent surgery were the reasons for the failures. Things turned uglier though, when Paige tweeted that the nature of her second failing 'depends on your status', forcing WWE to publicly state that she "tested positive for an illegal substance, not a prescription drug".
Many speculated that these suspensions may have been by design and an intentional rebellion against the company, but she finally returned in late-2017 after a lengthy rehabilitation. The story had a sadder ending, with a back injury potentially ending her career less than two months after the return. It may now be that she never got to experience the highs of a division she undeniably helped build.