Last week, WWE dropped the bombshell announcement that beloved wrestler Mickie James would be returning to the company for the first time since 2010 to face NXT Women’s Champion Asuka at NXT TakeOver: Toronto during Survivor Series weekend. The news pretty much came out of nowhere, since James has been gone for so long and because there were never any rumors that she might be returning, or anything like that. Well, there’s a reason it was such a surprise to everyone: it was actually Plan B.
The original plan, as reported by the Wrestling Observer, was to have Asuka face Trish Stratus, WWE Hall of Famer and actual Toronto native. It would have made a ton of sense and would have had the Toronto crowd going wild. Alas, it was not to be. Stratus found out she was pregnant, and was obviously unable to work a match. Without a legitimate title contender within NXT (at least at the current moment), WWE reached out to another legend and made things come together with James quickly.
As of right now, James is only scheduled to work this one match, but plans can always change. I mean, Trish Stratus can probably attest to that.
