'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Asuka vs Mickie James had a lot of hype going into it. The last time Asuka met the 6-time Champion, it was NXT Takeover: Toronto when WWE was still in the early stages of building Asuka as this dominant superstar - a reputation she still holds today.
What was interesting was that Mickie James mentioned how the match against Asuka could be her last shot at gold. With that said, Mickie James was never expected to beat Asuka. They had a nice and reasonably lengthy match on RAW that saw the two women take each other to the limit.
Ultimately, Asuka came out on top as expected, but it wasn't a conventional finish. Asuka had Mickie James in the Asuka lock but there didn't appear to be a tap. Instead, Mickie James appeared to be rolled over in a pinning position and the referee called the bell while on top.
Everybody looked confused about what happened, including Mickie James. The referee waited for a moment before officially declaring Asuka as the winner. There was no actual tap, but it's possible that Mickie James may have mentioned something to Asuka resulting in a quick and impromptu finish.
Either way, Asuka is still the RAW Women's Champion.
Asuka's next challenge
Asuka's next challenge is a bit of a surprising one. While Natalya was expected to confront her and become her Clash of Champions opponent, she was met by another surprising name - Zelina Vega.
Just for context, Zelina Vega teased being done as the manager for Andrade and Angel Garza after the two of them continued to fail to get on the same page. She confronted Asuka and from the look of things, will be her RAW Women's title challenger, presumably at Clash of Champions 2020.
It's certainly an interesting decision since Zelina Vega has had very little emphasis put on her singles wrestling career. It's not often that you see people jump into the title picture right away, but if she does and secures the PPV match, then she'll likely become another victim to the RAW Women's Champion Asuka.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
