WWE rumors from Fox Sports, Naomi originally won the title against Alexa Bliss during the Elimination Chamber. However, while fighting Bliss, Naomi suffered a knee injury. This has never stopped any of the men from keeping the titles they’d earned, but apparently, the rules for the women are different. And she didn’t even give up the title voluntarily, either. It took SmackDown general manager Daniel Bryan, who knows a thing or two about injuries, to force her to relinquish the title because he’d made the announcement that the doctors determined that Naomi couldn’t wrestle for at least 30 days.
Why Naomi wouldn’t make her own announcement or relinquish the belt of her own accord is beyond anyone’s level of comprehension.
one time for the culture @NaomiWWE pic.twitter.com/nzAGF2m7TF
— NaomiWWE (@slayomi_mob) February 22, 2017
It seems rather suspect that the first black woman wrestler to get the Women’s Championship belt would have to give up her title because of an injury, and especially during Black History Month.
And these suspicions are echoed in Cageside Seats‘ latest round of WWE rumors. The respected outlet pointed out that even they — who have been following both wrestling and Naomi’s career since the beginning — couldn’t understand what was going on. Certainly, they didn’t expect Naomi to relinquish her belt.
“Last Tuesday, just days after beating Alexa Bliss for the championship at Elimination Chamber, Naomi revealed she was diagnosed with an injury. She vowed to carry the title into her hometown Orlando, this year’s Mania host. Bliss issued an ultimatum, however, demanding a rematch this week. There was never any official backing from SmackDown management for Alexa’s “or else”, and the preview for the Feb. 21 episode on WWE.com asks what Bliss might do if Naomi can’t wrestle tonight, so it doesn’t look like they’re on the verge of forcing the champ to relinquish her strap.”
Last year around this time vs now!???????????????????? @NaomiWWE #GlowChamp #YouDeserveIt pic.twitter.com/q5iYYDCIu9
— pettylina (@womenswrasslin) February 20, 2017
Even fans couldn’t understand what was going on with the Women’s Championship belt.
According to Bleacher Report‘s latest round of WWE rumors, they gauged the response from the fans during the broadcast of the title relinquishment, and needless to say, people were not happy.
“It was disappointing to watch Naomi hand over her title, especially given how passionate she was about winning it and how proud she was to be champion. Bliss brushing her promo off and stating her case for the title was perfect and earned her near-nuclear heat. She stumbled a bit, clearly overwhelmed by the “what” chants from fans who have not figured out it is not 2002 anymore, but she recovered perfectly. The revelation of Lynch as the opposition for the night’s title bout made sense given the fact that The Lass Kicker was the only other woman on the roster to previously hold the title. A strong segment that benefited exponentially from the connection between Bryan’s story and Naomi’s.”
There’s no word yet on whether Naomi will ever regain her title — or if she’s up for another rematch once she recovers. However, one thing is clear: fans would love to see Naomi on top again.
