Paige Pens Heartfelt Farewell Letter To WWE
Olivia Owen Paige is on her way out of WWE, with her contract set to end on Thursday (July 7).The former WWE Divas Champion retired from in-ring competition in 2018 as a result of spinal stenosis. She was given a full segment to announce her retirement and, in an emotional farewell letter, noted WWE saw her as someone who had built her own legacy.Related: WWE Totally Wasted Paige For The Past Few YearsThe 29-year-old has let it be known that she wasn’t the one who decided she wouldn’t be signing a new deal. “Getting the, ‘Hey, can I call you? I’m at SmackDown though.’ I’m like, ‘That leaves no room for negotiation,” she said during a stream on Twitch last month. “They’re probably not going to renew it.’”
Writing in The Player’s Tribune this week, Paige praised WWE for the way the company treated her while she was at her lowest.
“You can call me Saraya now,” she began. “Tomorrow is my last official day as Paige.”
“The truth is, it was easy enough for WWE to get behind me in those early days. I was a young woman who could wrestle at a high level and cut good promos and move loads of merch — I was probably one of their top assets, you know what I mean? And you don’t learn much about people from how they treat you when you’re on top,” she added lower.
“You learn about people’s true nature, I’ve found, from how they treat you when you’re closer to the bottom. And a few years ago I got pretty close to the bottom. It was like, almost overnight, so many things changed: Suddenly my neck was fucked and I couldn’t wrestle. I popped a drug test. My sex tape leaked. I got depressed. I started drinking. And I became less of an asset to WWE, and more of a liability, for a long time. I’m sure of it.
“But they never lost faith in me — they never once threw me off to the side. They got me the help I needed when I needed help, and they gave me the time and space I needed when I needed time and space.”
Paige Thanks WWE And Her Fans
She ended the letter with: “And I want to thank YOU ALL — truly, anyone who might be reading. From my bosses to my coworkers to my friends to my fans. For the past 11 years, you’ve let me live out my dreams. More living to come. I’ll see you down the road.”
The UK native is already booked for her first post-WWE appearance. She will be at an event set to be hosted by her family’s promotion, the World Association of Wrestling, in October.
We at TheSportster would like to wish Paige the very best in her future endeavors.
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