WWE Hall of Famer Lita commented on how her last WWE run ended during a recent interview.
Lita’s final match with the company took place at WrestleMania 39 in 2023, where she teamed with Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch in a win over Damage CTRL. On the April 10, 2023 episode of Raw, Lita was shown having been attacked backstage and was replaced by Stratus in a Women’s Tag Team Championship defense against Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodríguez. She has not appeared on WWE programming since.
During an interview with The Toronto Sun, Lita did not rule out another return to the ring and said her last run ended in a strange fashion.
Lita said:
“It was a little weird the way it ended. I had this really fun, celebratory match at WrestleMania, and then the next thing I know they’re like, ‘Oh, by the way, you’re just going to be laying on the ground and we don’t need you anymore.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, okay.’“
“It felt complete, and then it didn’t, just the way things kind of ended.“
“Am I still satisfied with all I’ve accomplished, and even the stuff I’ve been able to do post full-time run? Absolutely. But yeah, I wouldn’t rule it out if the right opportunity came because I still feel really good, and there’s so much talent out there. It’s always fun to mix it up with the current roster.”
Since her initial retirement in 2006, Lita has wrestled eight times on WWE programming, including a match against Heath Slater in 2012, Royal Rumble 2018, the October 29, 2018 Raw, WWE Evolution in 2018, Royal Rumble 2022, Elimination Chamber 2022, winning the tag titles with Lynch on the February 27, 2023 Raw, and WrestleMania 39.
Lita’s interview with The Toronto Sun is available below:
Trish Stratus knows who from the current WWE roster she’d like to wrestle.
Stratus and Lita participated in a Q&A session hosted by SoCal Val with Monopoly Events at Comic-Con Northern Ireland this weekend. During the discussion, they were asked to name potential future opponents.
“Becky Lynch, oh wait, we did that already,” Stratus responded before adding, “Well, from the current landscape you’re saying, okay, so there’s um… oh gosh, what time is it? What time is it? Is it Tiffy time? Yeah, I mean she’s a little bit arrogant and I think it’d be interesting to show her what it’s all about from someone back in the day, you know? Maybe Tiffany Stratton.”
“Sounds marquee to me,” Lita added. “Easy to market.”
Lita, who has previously mentioned she’d like to face Rhea Ripley, again named the former Women’s World Champion as a potential future opponent.
“Somebody that I had a very brief interaction with in the Royal Rumble, Rhea Ripley, has just grown so much and added so many layers to her character, and I think she would be great to face,” Lita said.
Lita hasn’t wrestled since teaming with Stratus and Lynch to defeat Damage CTRL at WrestleMania 39. Stratus hasn’t wrestled since losing a cage match to Lynch at Payback 2023 last September.
Lita and Trish’s full session at Comic-Con Northern Ireland is available below:
Lita has announced two Iron Survivor Challenge qualifying matches for Tuesday’s NXT.
On Instagram Saturday night, Lita announced that Roxanne Perez would take on Lash Legend in a women’s qualifying match, while Trick Williams will take on Gallus’ Joe Coffey. Both matches will take place on Tuesday’s NXT. The winners of these matches will go on to qualify for the men’s and women’s Iron Survivor Challenge, which will take place at NXT Deadline on December 9 in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
Perez was the winner of last year’s Iron Survivor Challenge. She went on to defeat Mandy Rose to become NXT Women’s Champion.
Last Tuesday’s show saw both Tiffany Stratton and Dijak qualify for their respective Iron Survivor matches. Stratton defeated Fallon Henley, while Dijak defeated Tyler Bate.
Here is the updated lineup for next week’s NXT:
NXT Tag Team titles: Chase U defends against Tony D’Angelo and Stacks
Iron Survivor Challenge qualifier: Roxanne Perez vs. Lash Legend
Iron Survivor Challenge qualifier: Trick Williams vs. Joe Coffey
Three more WWE Hall of Famers will announce Iron Survivor qualifying matches.
It was revealed in a video package that Lita, JBL, and Jerry Lawler will announce future qualifying matches for the Iron Survivor Challenge, which will take place at NXT Deadline on December 9 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The video revealed that Lita will make the next qualifying matches for next week’s NXT.
Over the weekend, a video by Mick Foley was posted on social media where he made the first qualifying matches. On Tuesday’s NXT, Tiffany Stratton and Dijak went on to become the first to qualify, defeating Fallon Henley and Tyler Bate respectively.
For last year’s Iron Survivor Challenge matches, a panel consisting of Shawn Michaels, Road Dogg, X-Pac, Alundra Blayze, and Molly Holly determined who would compete in the matches. Roxanne Perez and Grayson Waller went on to win the Iron Survivor Challenge at last year’s Deadline. Perez would go on to win the WWE Women’s Championship, while Waller failed to capture the NXT title.
Rhodes confronted Paul Heyman and Sikoa on Friday’s SmackDown after he defeated Ludwig Kaiser. Heyman said Sikoa would be Rhodes’ final bump in the road prior to WrestleMania next weekend. Rhodes told Sikoa that he wasn’t ready for him.
A new edition of Miz TV has been also announced for Monday’s Raw.
During SmackDown on Friday, a commercial announced that Becky Lynch, Lita, and Trish Stratus will be the guests. This comes just days prior to their six-woman tag team match at WrestleMania, where they will face Bayley, IYO SKY, and Dakota Kai. The six women have been feuding ever since Lita got involved in a steel cage match between Becky Lynch and Bayley. Together, Lita and Lynch teamed up to defeat SKY and Kai to become the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions thanks to help from Stratus.
Brock Lesnar will also be at next week’s Raw, where he will meet Omos in a weigh-in prior to their match at WrestleMania.
The updated lineup for Monday’s Raw:
Cody Rhodes vs. Solo Sikoa
WrestleMania weigh-in between Brock Lesnar and Omos
A six-woman tag team match featuring two WWE Hall of Famers has been added to the WrestleMania 39 lineup.
Wrestling for the first time since SummerSlam in August 2019, Hall of Famer Trish Stratus will team with the Women’s Tag Team Champions Becky Lynch and fellow Hall of Famer Lita against Damage CTRL’s Bayley, Dakota Kai, and IYO SKY at WrestleMania 39.
The groundwork for the match was laid on last week’s Raw when Stratus helped Lynch and Lita win the Tag titles from Kai and SKY. On this week’s Raw, Stratus issued a challenge to Damage CTRL on her team’s behalf, and Bayley accepted for her side.
In her last match, Stratus faced Charlotte Flair at SummerSlam 2019 in Toronto. Stratus last wrestled on a WrestleMania in 2011, teaming with Snooki and John Morrison to defeat Dolph Ziggler, Michelle McCool, and Layla in a mixed tag match.
WrestleMania will be held on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
Here is the updated lineup:
WWE WrestleMania, Saturday, April 1 & Sunday, April 2, 8 p.m. Eastern time on Peacock & WWE Network —
Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Cody Rhodes
SmackDown Women’s Championship: Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Rhea Ripley
Raw Women’s Championship: Bianca Belair (c) vs. Asuka
United States Championship: Austin Theory (c) vs. John Cena
Intercontinental Championship: Gunther (c) vs. TBD
Brock Lesnar vs. Omos
Seth Rollins vs. Logan Paul
Trish Stratus, Becky Lynch & Lita vs. Damage CTRL (Bayley, Dakota Kai & IYO SKY)
With an assist from the returning Trish Stratus, new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions were crowned last night.
Becky Lynch & Lita won the Women’s Tag Team titles by defeating Damage CTRL’s Dakota Kai & IYO SKY in the main event of last night’s Raw. Stratus appeared during the match and helped neutralize interference by Bayley.
When Lynch was going for a tag at one point, Bayley threw a tag team title belt in the ring to distract the referee. Bayley then pulled Lita off the apron so Lynch couldn’t tag out. Lynch was able to kick out of a pin attempt — then Stratus ran down and went after Bayley.
After tagging in, Lita was able to avoid a moonsault from SKY. Lita hit a Twist of Fate and went for a moonsault of her own. Bayley tried to stop it, but she was taken out by Stratus again. Lita then connected with the moonsault on SKY as Lynch had Kai locked in an armbar.
A few WrestleMania 39 developments also went down on Raw last night. Brock Lesnar accepted Omos’ challenge for a match at WrestleMania, Finn Balor issued his own challenge to Edge, and The Miz revealed that he’ll be this year’s WrestleMania host.
Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed the Women’s Tag Team title match that took place on Raw.
On Tuesday morning’s show, Meltzer and Alvarez talked about the match, which saw Lita and Becky Lynch win the titles from Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai and IYO SKY). The finish saw Trish Stratus make her WWE return, helping Stratus and Lita ward off Bayley at ringside long enough for Lita to hit the moonsault for the win.
Alvarez theorized that it could be that Stratus, Lita, and Lynch vs. Damage CTRL in a six-woman tag team match at WrestleMania 39. However, Ronda Rousey & Shanya Baszler have been teaming in recent weeks, leading to speculation.
“They’re definitely chasing the titles,” Meltzer said in regards to Rousey and Baszler. “I was of the impression that they were still challenging for the titles. So we’ll see.”
Baszler and Rousey have targeted Natalya since her return from injury at the Royal Rumble. During last Friday’s SmackDown, Tegan Nox warded them off after continuing to attack Natalya following a match. Nox & Natalya will now face Rousey & Baszler this Friday.
Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed the Women’s Tag Team title match that took place on Raw.
On Tuesday morning’s show, Meltzer and Alvarez talked about the match, which saw Lita and Becky Lynch win the titles from Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai and IYO SKY). The finish saw Trish Stratus make her WWE return, helping Stratus and Lita ward off Bayley at ringside long enough for Lita to hit the moonsault for the win.
Alvarez theorized that it could be that Stratus, Lita, and Lynch vs. Damage CTRL in a six-woman tag team match at WrestleMania 39. However, Ronda Rousey & Shanya Baszler have been teaming in recent weeks, leading to speculation.
“They’re definitely chasing the titles,” Meltzer said in regards to Rousey and Baszler. “I was of the impression that they were still challenging for the titles. So we’ll see.”
Baszler and Rousey have targeted Natalya since her return from injury at the Royal Rumble. During last Friday’s SmackDown, Tegan Nox warded them off after continuing to attack Natalya following a match. Nox & Natalya will now face Rousey & Baszler this Friday.
New Women’s Tag Team Champions were crowned on Raw after an assist from a WWE Hall of Famer.
Lita and Becky Lynch defeated Damage CTRL’s Dakota Kai and IYO SKY with help from the returning Trish Stratus on Monday to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship for the first time.
As Bayley interfered in an attempt to help Damage CTRL retain the Tag titles, Stratus ran in and hit Bayley with a Chick Kick to level the odds. As Lynch held Kai on the apron in a Disarm-Her, Lita climbed to the top rope and landed a moonsault on SKY for the pinfall victory to win the titles.
Date: February 27, 2023 Location: Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI
Show Recap —
Becky Lynch and Lita were shown arriving at the arena earlier tonight.
A video package recapped the Sami Zayn/Usos angle from Smackdown.
Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa entered for their match. Jimmy knew that people thought there were cracks in the Bloodline but it only looked that way from the outside. The Bloodline was a family and family fought all the time. The crowd chanted for Sami Zayn. Jimmy said that Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn failed when going after them.
Jimmy moved on to Cody Rhodes and the crowd chanted for Cody. Jimmy asked the fans if they thought Rhodes would get one over on the Bloodline and the crowd cheered. Jimmy said hell no he wouldn’t.
The Street Profits interrupted. Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins tossed a few insults at the Bloodline and mentioned that Jey Uso — not Jimmy — was given a 90 rating in the upcoming video game. (Jimmy got an 89.)
Jimmy warned them not to talk about Roman Reigns. Ford and Dawkins attacked them and cleared the ring ahead of a break.
Solo Sikoa & Tag Team Champion Jimmy Uso defeated The Street Profits (11:34)
(They showed a replay of Ford’s Spider-Man dive from Elimination Chamber.)
Sikoa took control ahead of a break and remained in control when they returned. Dawkins avoided a second running hip attack by hitting a running back elbow. Ford made the hot tag and hit Jimmy with strikes, a back suplex, and a standing moonsault for two. Ford followed later with an impressive flying crossbody for a nearfall.
Sikoa made a blind tag while Ford gave Jimmy a spinebuster. Dawkins tagged in but Sikoa shoved Ford off the top to the outside and superkicked Dawkins. Sikoa then dropped Dawkins with a Samoan Spike for the pinfall win.
— The Bloodline attacked the Street Profits after the match. Sikoa was going to kill Ford but Owens ran in wearing black jeans and a black hoodie (with no music) and superkicked Sikoa before dropping Jimmy with a stunner.
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MVP’s VIP Lounge with Brock Lesnar
The announcers were expecting MVP to enter but Brock Lesnar entered first without waiting for the host. Lesnar shook the hands of a few fans around ringside while politely saying, “how do you do?” Lesnar took a seat and awaited MVP.
MVP entered the stage and Lesnar nodded his head to his music. Lesnar invited MVP into the ring but he wanted to wait in the aisle. Lesnar said he had no issue with MVP and just wanted to do business. The crowd chanted “Suplex City” but MVP didn’t want them to encourage him. Lesnar assured MVP there wouldn’t be any suplexes tonight and the crowd booed.
MVP gladly entered the ring and Lesnar immediately reminded him that he called him a coward. Lesnar was just kidding, though, and he asked MVP to sell him and the fans on this fight against Omos.
MVP said everyone fell to Lesnar — except Bobby Lashley. Lesnar was mistaken to think he could handle a giant the way he handled everyone else. A giant could fight back and Lesnar wouldn’t be able to do anything to the giant Omos.
Lesnar acted impressed by the pitch and gave MVP a high five. Lesnar accepted the challenge. He wanted to shake on it and drink on it.
MVP wanted to toast with champagne but Lesnar didn’t have the same taste as him. Lesnar was a farmer, after all. Lesnar pulled out a flask and took a big swig. MVP still wanted to toast with the champagne but Lesnar talked him into drinking his White Lightning instead.
MVP took a sip but was grossed out and spat it out all over Lesnar’s face. Lesnar used MVP’s handkerchief to wipe his face and gave him an F5.
(The last time Lesnar was on Raw, his segment was also halfway through the first hour, so he’s probably long gone by the end of the hour.)
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Cathy Kelley interviewed Lynch and Lita about their tag title match. Lita wanted to make history again, while Lynch said she wanted to check something off her bucket list. Lynch said Bayley could give involved if she wanted to but they’d take care of her too.
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Rhodes gave his weight-lifting belt to a young fan and she hugged him.
Cody Rhodes defeated Chad Gable (w/Otis) (10:34)
They went to break a minute into the match after Rhodes hit a reverse superplex.
[SECOND HOUR]
Gable gained control during a break after Rhodes was distracted by Otis. Gable worked over Rhodes’ leg but Rhodes dodged a diving headbutt and followed with a powerslam and Disaster Kick for two.
The crowd chanted for Rhodes who applied a figure four but Gable got a rope break. Rhodes went for another move off the middle rope but Gable caught him mid-air and hit a German suplex for two. Gable followed with a cliffhanger DDT and moonsault for two.
They both got fired up and exchanged chops before Rhodes tossed Gable from the ring. Gable signalled for Otis but Otis was distracted off-screen so Rhodes hit Gable with a suicide dive.
Otis was still looking into the crowd for someone so Rhodes put his arm around him and spoke to him about whoever he was staring at. Otis went after him once he realized Rhodes wasn’t Gable but Rhodes sidestepped him and he tumbled into the crowd.
Back in the ring, Rhodes hit a Cody Cutter and Cross Rhodes for the pinfall win.
— Rhodes grabbed a mic. He said they were 33 days from WrestleMania and he has yet to stand toe-to-toe with Roman Reigns.
Rhodes said, “I am ecstatic that Roman Reigns is on Smackdown this Friday — because I’ll be there too.”
********
Byron Saxton tried interviewing Baron Corbin but it was interrupted again because Saxton wanted to interview a nearby Kevin Owens instead. Owens said the Bloodline was suffering the consequences of their actions and they weren’t the only ones. Owens has been fighting them on his own for months and still didn’t want any help.
There was a Titanic movie parody with Bianca Belair and Montez Ford.
********
There was a Judgment Day backstage promo. Dominik warned Rey Mysterio that he was in ex-con Dom’s prison now, Rhea Ripley told Charlotte Flair that she would become the new Women’s Champion, while Finn Bálor warned Edge that this would only be over when he said so. Edge was playing checkers while Bálor was playing chess and there was only one more move. Bálor challenged him to a match at WrestleMania.
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Maxxine Dupri and the Maximum Male Models approached Otis. Dupri said they would be delighted to watch him in action tonight if he had a match (Mace and Mansoor were far less enthused). Otis said he could make that happen and scampered off to find Adam Pearce.
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Asuka defeated Carmella (8:45)
This is not the match I would have done with Asuka.
Corey Graves screamed about Carmella on commentary for a minute straight when the match started. He also reminded us that Carmella has twice beaten Asuka in the past (2018) while Asuka has never beaten her.
Carmella hit a superkick outside the ring which led to an early commercial break. Carmella held control through the break and Graves had Kevin Patrick repeatedly inform us of this fact.
Asuka eventually put Carmella in her submission finisher for the win.
— After the match, Asuka called out Bianca Belair who immediately entered to her music.
Belair thought Asuka should let everyone know that they were going to tear the house down at WrestleMania because if she said anything else, Belair would remind her why you can’t spell “WrestleMania” without “E.S.T.”
Before Asuka could respond, Carmella decked her from behind which knocked over both Asuka and Belair. Carmella left and Belair stared her down.
This was no good.
********
Candice LeRae defeated Piper Niven (2:33)
Nikki Cross watched the match at ringside.
Niven was fully in control and chucked Cross into the barricade as it seemed like Cross was about to go after her (for beating up LeRae). As Niven entered the ring, LeRae caught her in a schoolboy for the pinfall win.
The crowd was as quiet as a wrestling crowd can get.
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Saxton interviewed Johnny Gargano who said he was proud of LeRae and her win. Judgment Day approached and Gargano made a dig about them going through a goth phase. Damian Priest wasn’t impressed with Gargano using the same old goth line. Bálor warned Gargano that he would get squished by Otis tonight, but if he didn’t, Bálor would finish the job next week.
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Miz TV
Miz wanted to introduce us to the host of WrestleMania. They did a big drum roll to reveal the host would be… The Miz. He ran down some of the main event matches before being interrupted by Seth Rollins.
The crowd sang Rollins’ song so Miz told them to shut up. Rollins told him not to get his panties in a bunch. Miz was annoyed that Rollins kept stepping on his moment the past few weeks. Rollins said he stomped Miz a few weeks ago because he was being a jerk. He stomped him three times in their match because he was being a “b-hole.”
Miz said he wasn’t a b-hole, he was more of an “A” type of person which was meant to evoke an “asshole” chant but it didn’t really catch on. Rollins said he was out there because he has unsuccessfully been trying to get a hold of Logan Paul and he figured Miz could help. Rollins wanted Miz to call Paul but Miz said no.
Miz called Rollins a clown who didn’t have anything for WrestleMania so Rollins superkicked him. Rollins stole Miz’s phone while he was down and used Miz’s face to unlock it.
Rollins called Paul on video chat and asked him how his brother was doing (which did get a reaction). Rollins invited him to show up to Raw next week like a man. Paul accepted the invitation. Rollins said “bye-bye, bitch” before hanging up the phone. He danced, proud of his behaviour.
Rollins stomped Miz before leaving.
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Kelley interviewed Damage CTRL about their title defence. Basically, Bayley wasn’t worried about it.
After they left, Austin Theory approached Kelley. He said it was appropriate that she was interviewing the Women’s Tag Team Champions but he was annoyed that people were talking more about John Cena and about not him and his recent success. Theory planned on meeting Cena face-to-face in Boston next week.
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They replayed the Bray Wyatt segment from Smackdown. Rick Boogs was shown in the back taking notes during the match.
Bobby Lashley defeated Elias (1:32)
Lashley hit a flatliner, a spear and applied the Hurt Lock for the submission win.
— Lashley was not in a good mood. He said he owned Lesnar at Elimination Chamber and yet, he was now playing Wyatt’s kid games. Lashley didn’t plan on playing games and warned Wyatt to keep his name out of his mouth or else.
A video of Wyatt doing the muscle man dance appeared on the screen with clips of Lashley spliced in. It ended with Wyatt saying, “you should run.”
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Chelsea Green berated Adam Pearce because she wound up in Ottawa, Illinois last week. She claimed not to know that there was even an Ottawa, Ontario but Pearce reminded her that the was Canadian.
Carmella approached Pearce to complain about something. He granted her a match against Belair next week before leaving his own office to take a phone call. Green and Carmella seemed to get along swimmingly after he left.
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Johnny Gargano defeated Otis (w/Maxxine Dupri & Maximum Male Models) (2:52)
Gargano tried a dive but Otis caught him and dropped him on the announce table. Otis did a little flex in Dupri’s direction before getting back in the ring.
Mace grabbed Gargano so Dexter Lumis, who appeared suddenly, grabbed Mace and dragged him into the crowd.
Gargano used the distraction to hit Otis with a DDT on the apron followed by One Final Beat in the ring for the pinfall win. Gargano and Lumis gave Dupri a thumbs up from across the ring.
(They didn’t explicitly explain why Gable didn’t accompany Otis to the ring but Otis was shown standing outside the trainer’s room following Gable’s match earlier so presumably, he was being checked on.)
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Kelley asked Paul Heyman about Rhodes’ announcement that he would be on Smackdown. Heyman loved it. He loved that Rhodes would confront Reigns. Kelley said that Rhodes never said he would confront Reigns, just that he would be there. Heyman knew better. He knew that Rhodes was going to invade Smackdown. Rhodes would confront Reigns — or he would be confronted by Reigns.
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Raw next week in Boston:
John Cena returns
Kevin Owens vs. Solo Sikoa
Seth Rollins/Logan Paul face to face
Johnny Gargano vs. Finn Bálor
Bianca Belair vs. Carmella (non-title)
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Becky Lynch & Lita defeated Dakota Kai & IYO SKY to win the Women’s Tag Team Championships (13:22)
Trish Stratus returned to help Lita and Lynch win the tag titles.
Lita and Lynch worked as a team and were in full control through a break. Lynch dropped Kai and SKY with a DDT/reverse DDT combo before hitting Kai with Diamond Dust. SKY attacked Lynch as she tried putting Kai in a Disarmer and SKY followed with an Asai moonsault for two. Kai and SKY worked over Lynch until Kai and Lynch dropped each other with clotheslines.
Bayley slid a title belt into the ring to distract the referee so that she could yank Lita off the apron. Kai and SKY hit Lynch with a double back suplex but only got a two count.
Trish Stratus’ music hit and she sprinted out to go after Bayley. Stratus hugged Lita who got the hot tag. SKY kicked out of some move by Lita and went for a moonsault but Lita dodged it and hit Twist of Fate. Stratus blocked Bayley from interfering again while Lynch put Kai in the Disarmer.
Lita hit SKY with a moonsault for the pinfall win. Crowd popped for the win. Lita and Lynch are the new tag team champions. Fireworks went off as Lynch and Lita celebrated with Stratus.
Becky Lynch and WWE Hall of Famer Lita will challenge for the Women’s Tag Team Championship on next week’s Raw.
In a match set up in a talk show segment on this week’s episode, Lynch and Lita will face Dakota Kai and IYO SKY for the Women’s Tag titles on the February 27 show.
Lynch and Lita crashed Bayley’s Ding Dong Hello talk show on Raw and issued the challenge, which Bayley accepted on behalf of her Damage CTRL teammates.
Two additional matches, plus a talk show segment are also set for next week’s episode.
Number one contender to Bianca Belair’s Raw Women’s Championship Asuka will be in action next week against Carmella.
In another women’s division contest, Candice LeRae will take on Piper Niven on next week’s Raw.
On a “WrestleMania Goes Hollywood” edition of Miz TV next week, The Miz will reveal the contents of the envelope he was handed in a cliffhanger on this week’s show.
A Brock Lesnar appearance was also teased for next week, though Lesnar was not officially announced for the show. Omos issued a challenge to Lesnar for WrestleMania on this week’s Raw, and the commentary team asked if Lesnar would show up next week to answer the challenge.
Next week’s announced lineup:
WWE Raw, Monday, February 27 —
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship: Damage CTRL’s Dakota Kai & IYO SKY (c) vs. Becky Lynch & Lita
Lita returned to WWE television for the first time in nearly a year on Monday’s Raw, attacking Damage CTRL in the main event segment.
The WWE Hall of Famer appeared during Raw’s main event Becky Lynch vs. Bayley steel cage match, dispatching Dakota Kai and IYO SKY at ringside as they attempted to interfere in the bout. Lita then slammed the cage door on Bayley as she attempted to escape, allowing Lynch to hit Bayley with the Manhandle Slam to score a pinfall victory.
Lita’s last WWE run came in January and February of 2022. She first participated in the women’s Royal Rumble match in January, then kicked off a program with Lynch over the Raw Women’s Championship. She went on to challenge Lynch for the title at Elimination Chamber in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on February 19, 2022 in a losing effort.
Prior to the 2022 run, Lita wrestled three times for WWE in 2018, including appearing in the first women’s Rumble match, tagging with Trish Stratus at the Evolution pay-per-view, then teaming with Stratus, Sasha Banks, Natalya, and Bayley the night after the pay-per-view on Raw.
WWE Hall of Famer Lita will be Steve Austin’s next guest on Broken Skull Sessions.
A new Broken Skull Sessions episode with Austin interviewing Lita will premiere on Peacock/WWE Network on Friday, March 25. Lita recently made her return to the ring for a stint that began with the Royal Rumble and saw her challenge for the Raw Women’s Championship at Elimination Chamber.
After appearing as an entrant in this year’s women’s Royal Rumble match, Lita started a feud with Becky Lynch. Lynch retained the Raw Women’s title against Lita at Elimination Chamber in Saudi Arabia last month.
Lita was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014.
Ron Simmons was Austin’s guest on last month’s Broken Skull Sessions episode. The Undertaker, Goldberg, Kane, Big Show, Bret Hart, Ric Flair, Mark Henry, Jerry Lawler, Kurt Angle, Drew McIntyre, Bayley, Sasha Banks, Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, The Godfather, Mick Foley, Kevin Nash, Bobby Lashley, Seth Rollins, Jeff Hardy, Diamond Dallas Page, and Lynch have appeared on previous editions of the show.
Bully Ray also revealed earlier this month that he was interviewed for an upcoming Broken Skull Sessions episode.
While speaking with Sports Illustrated ahead of her Raw Women’s Championship match against Becky Lynch, Lita revealed that she has no current plans with WWE past Elimination Chamber.
“Currently, I was just asked to do this match,” Lita said when asked if we could be seeing her past Saturday’s pay-per-view. “I know everything can change in WWE at the drop of a hat. There is a lot of opportunity here, and just because there are no current plans doesn’t mean there won’t be. This is also allowing me to focus on the task at hand, which is to put on a killer match and not focus on anything else except Elimination Chamber.”
Lita made her return to WWE ahead of this year’s Royal Rumble. She entered the women’s Royal Rumble match at number 26 before being eliminated by Charlotte Flair.
Lita told Ring the Belle last week that she was originally supposed to go home after the Royal Rumble, but WWE asked her if she wanted to wrestle Lynch. Their title match was announced for Elimination Chamber when Lita confronted Lynch on the post-Royal Rumble episode of Raw.
Sports Illustrated asked Lita how much finally getting to face Lynch factored into her deciding to return for Elimination Chamber: “100%. Becky and I have been fantasy-booking ourselves for years. Every time we’d meet up, we’d always talk about that. It was always there whenever we were catching up.”
In 2021, Lita had discussions with AEW that included a pitch for a potential program against Britt Baker. She told Sports Illustrated why she decided against joining AEW: “They reached out to me initially, and I was intrigued. They’re doing a lot of cool stuff. It’s exciting whenever there is competition — it stokes the industry as a whole. And they’ve really fostered the rise of the star of Britt Baker. I was intrigued, but as we ended up talking, it felt like it wasn’t the right move for me. We ended it with, ‘Not right now. I wish you the best and I’ll be watching.’ It’s a fun product and I’m glad for their success. I ultimately feel I’m home in WWE. There is something that feels right about that.”
When asked if there are other women on the WWE roster she’d like to wrestle, Lita named Rhea Ripley as an opponent she wants to face: “The roster is so deep. There are limitless dream matches on their roster right now. Rhea Ripley is one of them. She’s so young, but she’s already so powerful and grounded. It would be an honor to work with her.”
Elimination Chamber is taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia this Saturday. The main card will begin at noon Eastern time.
