On the September 5, 2025, version of WWE Friday Evening SmackDown, former Divas Champion AJ Lee made her return to the corporate after over a decade, signing a brand new contract.
Bodyslam.web reviews Lee signed a “multi-year, full-time contract” with the corporate, which means she is again for the lengthy haul, not a one-off feud (per Sports activities Illustrated).
“This is not a one-off cameo or a nostalgia pop,” they reported. “AJ is again for actual, and she or he’s able to shake up the ladies’s division another time.”
Her first match has but to be confirmed. Nevertheless, all indicators level to Lee teaming along with her husband, CM Punk, to face fellow married couple Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch at Wrestlepalooza.
What does AJ Lee’s new WWE contract and return imply?
Now that Lee is again on a “full-time” foundation, there are a number of new alternatives for her. The WWE ladies’s division has grown since she left the corporate in 2015.
There are a number of new opponents for her. Younger stars like Roxanne Perez and Rhea Ripley are thrilling choices, as are a few of the different “4 Horsewomen” like Charlotte Aptitude and Bayley.
Lee’s final match in WWE occurred on the March 30, 2015, version of Monday Evening RAW. Lee took half in a six-woman tag staff match.
Throughout her preliminary run, Lee was one among WWE’s hottest stars. She had a record-setting Divas Championship reign that lasted 205 days. Paige, aka Saraya, ended her reign on an episode of RAW in April 2014.
She retired following her WWE exit in 2015. Nevertheless, in 2021, she returned to skilled wrestling by becoming a member of Girls of Wrestling (WOW) as an government producer in October 2021. She later departed the corporate in 2023.
Whereas she was retired, Lee dipped her toe in different avenues. She launched her memoir, which was printed in April 2017 titled Loopy Is My Superpower: How I Triumphed by Breaking Bones, Breaking Hearts, and Breaking Guidelines. Moreover, she wrote comedian books and the screenplay for Blade of the 47 Ronin.
Her return got here on September 5. Throughout that night time’s episode of SmackDown, Punk and Lynch had a confrontation in the principle occasion section. After Lynch slapped him once more, Punk arrange Lee’s return. The Chicago crowd erupted as soon as “Let’s Gentle It Up” hit, and Lee skipped to the ring earlier than attacking Lynch.