Alexa Bliss returned to WWE earlier this year as a surprise entrant in the women’s Royal Rumble match. A rumor quickly followed that said she took Shotzi’s place in the match.
In an interview on Unwrapped, Shotzi confirmed the rumor is true. Here’s the conversation she had about it with Daria Berenato (fka Sonya Deville) and her wife Toni.
Daria: “You weren’t supposed to be in Rumble. Then you were gonna be in Rumble. And then you weren’t in the Rumble.”
Shotzi: “So, I heard mixed messages. A couple producers said that I was always in the Rumble, but then they just told me last minute. And then, yeah, I don’t know, I was very confused by it. But they didn’t relay anything to me until the day before. It was like 3 pm the day before Rumble, and they were like, hey can you get on a flight in a couple hours? And then I’m like, oh my god, I’m not ready for this! And just packed my bags, I don’t even know what I put in the bags. Got to the airport in an hour, and then it led to nothing.”
Daria: “‘Cause you got there. You were at rehearsals, right? You showed up at rehearsals, and you thought you were in it for a second. And when did you find out you weren’t in it anymore?”
Shotzi: “The day of, I got told while I was in the makeup chair that I wasn’t in it.”
Toni: “That is insanity!”
Daria: “It’s tough.”
Shotzi: “Yeah.”
Alexa told Shotzi she didn’t know anything about WWE’s decision to pull her from the bout.
Shotzi: “Honestly, if you’re gonna take me out for anyone, at least make it be the biggest pop of the night. And I have to say that Alexa had no idea that someone was getting replaced. She had no idea any of that was going on. She felt so bad, and she came up to me afterwards. She was like, oh my god, I’m so sorry. I didn’t even realize they were taking someone out of the Rumble to get me in there.”
Toni: “But you were only called the day before. They must have known the day before she was gonna be in it. Why would they go out of their way to call you and have you come?”
Daria: “I think it was very much up in the air…they were having some contract negotiations, trying to get her to agree to something. From what I understood, it was up until that last minute. So I think they called Shotzi. Like alright, we have Shotzi. She’s gonna be in it unless something comes through, and then we can swap it out. I think it was probably, in their minds, as transactional as that, because they’re just moving pieces on a map, and things change so often.”
Does that sound like insanity to you as well, or is it probably just another day backstage at WWE? Let me know in the comments below, Cagesiders.
