One of the most prominent WWE stars of the past few years, we haven’t seen much of Bianca Belair since she broke her finger at WrestleMania 41. She reemerged for a small part in the Naomi/Jade Cargill
feud, including as guest referee for her former tag partners’ match at Evolution. The EST was back in September as WWE announced that WrestleMania 43 will take place in Saudi Arabia, a reminder that even when she can’t wrestle Belair is seen as more than just another wrestling talent by WWE.
A broken finger doesn’t seem like something that would keep a ‘Mania main event-er out for six months and counting, and apparently neither Belair nor WWE thought she’d be out that long. She knew it was bad when it got caught under Rhea Ripley during a triple German Suplex spot during their match with IYO SKY, but after initially thinking she’d broken her hand or multiple fingers, she realized it was just one and finished the match.
Recovery wasn’t straightforward, as she did break her knuckle in addition to multiple finger bones. But Bianca seemed to think she was almost ready to return while talking Netflix’s Unreal with CBS Sports’ Shakiel Mahjouri after Evolution in late July. Bianca all but ruled out a SummerSlam return the following week, but otherwise…
“I broke it in three places and the joint. It healed, but it won’t bend. You can’t wrestle with a straight finger because it’ll break again… I can’t even sew right now. I can’t even make gear. We’re on the end of this healing process, so we might have some time [to come back for SummerSlam, but you never know. Crazy things happen.”
After the Saudi WrestleMania announcement, Belair was on the Club 52o podcast and casually mentioned that her finger still hadn’t healed:
“I have my wedding ring on my right hand because my left finger is still broken.“
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reported shortly after The EST’s September press tour that there was still no timetable for her return, reiterating that WWE was not expecting to be without Belair for months. And in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer:
There is still no return date for Belair. She’s been out since WrestleMania with broken fingers, so that injury must have been far worse than usual broken fingers that people often work on and would usually be, even with surgery, only a couple of months.
Unfortunately, no one seems to have any idea when Bianca will be able to sew again, let alone wrestle. We’ll keep hoping for better news, and pass whatever we hear along to you.
