WWE Star Naomi's Mysterious Removal from 'Monday Night Raw' Has Fans Speculating on Her Future

Fans are wondering when the WWE star will return to action.

August 17, 2025

WWE Star Naomi's Mysterious Removal from 'Monday Night Raw' Has Fans Speculating on Her Future

Photo by Andrew Timms/WWE via Getty Images

A planned Women’s World Championship match didn’t make it to air on this week’s WWE Monday Night Raw.

Naomi had been advertised to defend the title against former champion IYO SKY, but hours before the show, WWE announced on social media that she wasn’t cleared.

“Naomi is not medically cleared to compete and therefore her scheduled match against Iyo Sky will not take place tonight on Monday Night Raw,” the company posted, directing viewers to follow updates during the broadcast.

With the title bout off, WWE pivoted to SKY vs. Roxanne Perez. Perez scored the win, and the fallout continued backstage when former Damage CTRL teammates Asuka and Kairi Sane confronted SKY after attempting to run interference during the match.

The creative shuffle kept the red brand moving, but it also left the most pressing question unanswered: why was the champion pulled?

Reporting from Sports Illustrated indicates that information around Naomi’s status was kept “very quiet” behind the scenes and that some talent “didn’t even know what happened” to prompt the change.

The outlet also noted Naomi was backstage despite not appearing on camera and that the internal reaction to the SKY–Perez replacement was positive.

The timing matters for WWE’s premium live event calendar. Naomi is currently slated to defend the Women’s World Championship against Stephanie Vaquer at Clash in Paris on August 31.

Vaquer earned the shot by winning last month’s 20-Woman Evolution Battle Royal—the same show where Naomi executed a surprise cash-in during SKY vs. Rhea Ripley to win the title.

On Raw, Vaquer told SKY she wasn’t the only person promised a title match, a pointed line that acknowledged multiple contenders without clarifying whether Naomi’s defense is still on track.

For now, Naomi’s most recent match remains her SummerSlam appearance on Sunday, August 3, where she retained in a Triple Threat against SKY and Ripley. WWE has not issued an official update on her status.