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Asuka made her first in-ring appearance on WWE television in October 2015, defeating Dana Brooke at NXT TakeOver: Respect, and she has since proven herself to be one of the greatest female Superstars of her generation.
“The Empress of Tomorrow” is the most successful performer in the history of NXT, where she held the NXT Women’s Championship for 523 days, and she made an instant impact on WWE’s main roster by winning the first all-female Royal Rumble in January 2018.
Since then, the Japanese star has taken part in her first WrestleMania, where she lost her undefeated streak against Charlotte Flair, while she suffered two controversial PPV defeats in SmackDown Women’s Championship matches against Carmella over the summer.
After a one-month break from television, Asuka made her return to SmackDown Live on this week’s episode, aligning with Naomi to help her fight off an attack from The IIconics, and the two teams are scheduled to do battle at Super Show-Down in October.
Right now, WWE is using her in a mid-card role, but it surely won’t be long before the history-making Rumble winner is back in the title picture and involved in more meaningful storylines at the top of the card.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at five things that she could do before her time in WWE comes to an end.
#5 Win a title on the main roster
It’s incredible to think that, after a modern-era record reign of 523 days with the NXT Championship, Asuka has been on the main roster for almost a year but she is yet to hold either the Raw or SmackDown Women’s Championships.
After winning the Royal Rumble in January, it looked as though “The Empress of Tomorrow” would face Alexa Bliss for the Raw Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 34, but she decided to change brands and challenge Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Nearly five months on from WrestleMania, Asuka has now had three one-on-one matches for a main-roster title but, largely due to James Ellsworth’s interference during the matches against Carmella, she still finds herself without a championship.
Somebody the calibre of Asuka is destined to win a title sooner or later in WWE, so we can expect her to return to the SmackDown Women’s Championship picture at some point before WrestleMania 35.
#4 Face Ronda Rousey
At the end of Asuka's Royal Rumble victory, she was joined in the ring by Alexa Bliss (the Raw Women’s champion at the time) and Charlotte Flair (the SmackDown Women’s champion at the time) to decide which title she wanted to challenge for at WrestleMania 34.
Just as she was set to choose, Ronda Rousey’s music hit and the former UFC megastar made her first official appearance as a WWE Superstar, introducing herself to the three women in the ring before pointing at the WrestleMania sign.
With the spotlight stolen from her, Asuka refused a handshake from Ronda during the Rumble-closing segment, planting the seeds for a future rivalry between the two.
#3 Turn heel
Asuka has been one of WWE’s most popular female Superstars since her debut on the main roster in October 2017, but it’s fair to say that the aura surrounding her indestructible character has definitely been damaged following her recent PPV defeats against Charlotte Flair and Carmella.
During her two-year run in NXT, the Japanese star enhanced her popularity with a series of impressive victories during her first year with the brand, much like she did initially on the main roster, before showing a more villainous side to her persona during her battles with Mickie James, Nikki Cross and Ember Moon.
We haven’t seen the former NXT Women’s champion as a heel yet on the main roster, but she definitely has the ability to become one of the top villains in the women’s division if WWE decides to go down that route.
#2 Lose against Ember Moon
It will be difficult for any NXT Women’s Championship rivalry to surpass the battles that Sasha Banks and Bayley had in 2015, but the feud involving Asuka and Ember Moon from 2017 is a very close second on the list.
The two women met for the first time at NXT TakeOver: Orlando in April 2017, with Asuka controversially using the referee to help retain her title, while “The Empress of Tomorrow” went into the rematch at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III in August 2017 as the underdog champion but was able to win via submission.
No matter what she tried, Ember couldn’t defeat Asuka, and it made for one of the most compelling stories in NXT history.
If and when the two women are reunited on the same main-roster brand, WWE will surely revisit this rivalry, possibly with a different outcome next time.
#1 Solidify a tag partnership
Given that there were so many rumours about WWE introducing Women’s Tag Team Championships when Stephanie McMahon made her announcement about the Evolution pay-per-view, it’s a little surprising that we still haven’t heard an update about the possibility of tag titles in the women’s division.
Whether it happens now or in a year’s time, it’s almost certain that WWE will bring them aboard at some point, especially with so many female tag teams and friendships currently on the main roster (The IIconics, The Bella Twins, Absolution, The Riott Squad, Sasha Banks & Bayley etc).
One name missing from that list, of course, is Asuka, who didn’t have a single ally during her time in NXT/WWE until she aligned with Naomi on the most recent episode of SmackDown Live.
If tag titles are introduced, she is bound to be part of a duo somewhere down the line, so it’ll be interesting to see if her new alliance with Naomi lasts.
Long-term, how does a tag team with former rival Ember Moon sound?
