It was nowhere near as definitive-appearing as Brock Lesnar’s apparent retirement at WrestleMania 42 last month. But the way Asuka emotionally showed her love and respect to IYO SKY after their nearly 25-minute thriller at WWE Backlash on May 9 and then waved to the crowd? It felt like goodbye to many.
In the immediate aftermath of the moment, some online discussed the deeper meaning
of this Instagram she posted earlier Saturday:
She also posted that photo in her Story accompanied by Frank Sinatra’s “My Way”, which if you don’t know, starts with Ole Blue Eyes singing:
And now, the end is near
And so I face the final curtain
My friend, I’ll say it clear
I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain
I’ve lived a life that’s full
I traveled each and every highway
And more, much more than this
I did it my way
That led folks further, where they found Charlotte Flair played off a fan’s concern about her tribute to the first woman in history to win a Royal Rumble, a Money in the Bank ladder match, and an Elimination Chamber…
… but The Queen wasn’t even the first living legend to fangirl over Asuka on Saturday…
And Bayley’s written shout out to both of the women on Backlash got quote-tweeted so Natalya could do the same after Saturday’s event ended:
We have to do a lot of connecting of dots to make any of the above mean much other than that the Empress is very highly thought of backstage, though — which we already knew. Even Asuka’s choice of “My Way” for her IG Story could be about the end of Asuka’s story with her protege IYO, not her WWE run or pro wrestling career.
On the Backlash Post Show, Big E said he didn’t know what the moment SKY and her mentor shared meant, but…
“I wonder if this is a goodbye. I haven’t really seen Asuka this emotional. If this is goodbye, I know she will be dearly missed. She has been a pioneer; she has done truly incredible things in the ring before she even got to WWE but has further staked her claim as an all-time great here in WWE. I don’t know what this means…”
Rumors about Asuka’s next moves should be along soon, and perhaps she’ll even address them herself. We shall see.
If you choose to, interpret these clues along with any others you might find and speculate in the comments. Or just think about the epic career of a woman who conquered the biggest wrestling company the world’s ever known, without sharing a language or culture with her bosses or most of her colleagues, and without any drama or very little comment of any kind.
She made an impression on most of us the moment she landed on our radar, whether it was as a joshi named Kana or the Women’s Evolution trailblazer we knew’ve known as Asuka in WWE. She’s also changed the business. Whether this is goodbye or not, I’m grateful for Asuka and her career.
