WWE has confirmed four women’s matches for WrestleMania 42. Overall with the men, there are seven matches on one night and six on the other. This leaves at least on spot open on night two.
The biggest tease for that final announced match is a singles bout between Asuka and IYO SKY. According to Bryan Alvarez of the Wrestling Observer, the wait for this match announcement is due to Nikki Bella’s sprained ankle. The Bella Twins are set to be one of the four teams in the WWE Women’s Tag Team Title match at the upcoming event. Originally, Nikki is expected to only be out for up to ten days with her injury and planned to be ready to go by WrestleMania. However, this is allegedly the reason why the green light has not been given for Asuka vs. SKY.
According to Alvarez, if The Bellas aren’t able to compete at Mania, then The Kabuki Warriors would take their spot. This then would leave SKY off the card potentially.
If this news is accurate, there’s so much that could be done differently. Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez could take the spot of The Bellas if need be. Granted, now Perez is under concussion protocol. If the Judgement Day isn’t available, they could utilize Michin and B-Fab or any other tag team from NXT or TNA(use it as a stepping stone for Fatal Influence, let it be used as a spot for the Elegance Brand). Or they could simply have a Triple Threat match.
SKY is one of the top women in WWE, and leaving her off the WrestleMania card because a Plan B wasn’t well thought out is poor booking.