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What's the story?
According to Ryan Satin of Pro Wrestling Sheet on Twitter, Asuka is expected to join the RAW brand now that she's officially done with NXT.
In case you didn't know...
Asuka retained her NXT Women's Championship at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn 3 against Ember Moon in a very impressive match.
WWE.com had reported that Asuka obtained a collarbone injury during the match and will be out of action for at least six to eight weeks.
In the latest NXT tapings, Asuka relinquished the NXT Women's Championship and it was hinted fairly straightforward that she will be moving up to the main roster. She received a farewell from the entire NXT roster and William Regal and Triple H greeted her as well.
Her undefeated streak is 197-0, according to Cagematch.net. She's now far surpassed Bill Goldberg.
The heart of the matter
Satin stated that Asuka is set to join the red brand when she debuts. It does make sense as Bobby Roode, the latest NXT call-up, debuted on SmackDown Live two nights after Summerslam.
Hopefully, Triple H will ensure that Asuka remains as dominant and protected on the main roster. It's no secret that he is high on The Empress Of Tomorrow. In a recent interview, Triple H stated openly of his conversation with Vince McMahon, where he told the Boss of WWE that he could take anyone he wanted from NXT except Asuka because he considered her to be the anchor of the ship that was NXT.
However, he has now let her go and she will be moving on to the main roster. This will leave the state of the women's division in NXT in a very interesting spot. However, it seems that unlike 2016, they now have the talent to carry the female division of the brand going forward.
Kairi Sana(Hojo) will undoubtedly be the biggest addition to the NXT women's roster, as she's one of the best in-ring performers in the company, male or female. However, talent such as Ember Moon, Ruby Riot, Nikki Cross, Peyton Royce, Billie Kay, Liv Morgan and many more now have a huge opportunity to step up to the plate in the NXT women's division.
The addition of Mae Young Classic competitors signed to WWE will also add a huge boost to the NXT brand.
What's next?
Asuka's time for the main roster has finally come, and it will be really interesting to see how WWE handles her. Unfortunately, they've not had the best track record the past couple of years with handling NXT call-ups, but maybe things will be different for The Empress Of Tomorrow.
As for the NXT Women's division, things are really going to shake-up and we're going to see a change in power and structure of the division with more women stepping up to the plate and more names being introduced.
Author's take
Asuka was introduced by William Regal as arguably the best signing in NXT history. There is no doubt that she belongs up there with the names of Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Finn Balor, Shinsuke Nakamura, Bobby Roode, etc.
She is now an NXT alumni and it's going to be really exciting to see what lies ahead. Will RAW have anybody ready for Asuka? We don't think so!
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One of Samoa Joe's colleagues had harsh words for him HERE
