Sasha Banks And Naomi Set For WWE Return; Teased For ‘Statement’ Raw

Sasha Banks and Naomi are reportedly on their way back to WWE, per WrestlingNews.co, amid a turbulent 2022 that has seen one unpredictable backstage story after another.

The report went on to note that Sasha and Naomi could return as soon as tonight’s WWE Raw with fallout from WWE SummerSlam 2022.

Banks and Naomi’s tenure with WWE appeared to reach its ugly end after the pair walked out during a broadcast of WWE Raw, forfeiting the WWE Raw Women’s Tag Team Championships by placing the belts on the desk of former WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis. WWE did not take the departure lightly, immediately burying Sasha and Naomi on commentary with WWE Raw color commentator Corey Graves prompted to say Sasha and Naomi “summarily and unprofessionally” walked out.

Cooler heads did not prevail that Friday on WWE SmackDown, when WWE lead commentator Michael Cole announced Sasha and Naomi had been suspended and stripped of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships.

In addition to creative differences, Banks and Naomi’s contracts were reportedly coming due, creating a potential disaster scenario for WWE where two of its biggest stars could possibly show up on AEW television. With the relationship seemingly untenable, the entire dynamic of Sasha Banks and Naomi vs. WWE changed when Vince McMahon abruptly retired/resigned amid an internal WWE investigation, and growing allegations of hush money payments for sexual misconduct.

With both Vince McMahon and Laurinaitis out of WWE, this opened an unlikely path for both Banks and Naomi to return under the Triple H regime. In fact, less than a week after McMahon announced his retirement, subsequent reports broke of WWE trying to reconcile with Sasha Banks and Naomi.

WWE SummerSlam 2022 already saw a reconciliation with a released women’s star as Dakota Kai made her main roster debut following an April release. Kai was joined by longtime fellow WWE NXT star Io Shirai, now known as Io Sky, and WWE top star Bayley, who have formed a three-woman stable.

Bayely, Kai and Sky began a feud with Bianca Belair, and while newly minted babyface Becky Lynch came to Belair’s defense, Lynch could be battling a shoulder injury stemming from her match against Belair. Should Lynch be out for any considerable amount of time, Sasha and Naomi make all the sense in the world to come to Belair’s defense in a potentially blockbuster trios feud.

The returns of Sasha Banks and Naomi could come as soon as tonight’s WWE Raw after SummerSlam, which already carries a #RawAfterMania feel after the promotion’s third-biggest show of the year. Emanating from Nissan Stadium with a near-sellout crowd of just under 40,000, SummerSlam mirrored a WrestleMania event in both presentation, star power.

The well-received show under this new era, anchored by a dynamite performance by a reenergized Michael Cole, has created enough momentum on its own ahead of WWE Raw. But with WWE insider @WrestleVotes being told tonight’s show “looks really good,” the potential return of Banks and Naomi on tonight’s broadcast will help make Raw after SummerSlam one of the most anticipated episodes of 2022. WWE’s own Twitter account got in on the hype, in a potential tease of Sasha and Naomi’s return, by asking who will make the biggest “statement” on tonight’s WWE Raw.