When Neville left the WWE, having seemingly walked away from this contract, it was surprising. When it was discovered that other wrestlers were unhappy in WWE and potentially thinking about doing the same, it became clear WWE had a slight problem. When Nia Jax reportedly went home only to be replaced by Alicia Fox in her planned match against Alexa Bliss, things got rather interesting.
Was Nia Jax unhappy? Was she in the same boat as Neville? Was she going to come back?
It was later revealed that Jax asked for a leave of absence for personal reasons. It was not reported she quit WWE, but it was rumored in a story by Sports Illustrated that she was unhappy with her character arc, pay scale, and the travel associated with the work she was doing.
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The feeling by many is that Jax believes she is being underutilized and underpaid. Using the leverage she has as one of WWE's most unique, interesting, and dominant female competitors, she was looking to get a better deal and when she did, she'd return. The fact that she is related to "The Rock" Dwayne Johnson has perhaps given her a bit of extra confidence the WWE will see the "error of their ways".
Alexa Bliss was asked about the situation seeing as she's close to Jax, working with her leading up to TLC. Bliss said to the New York Post, "whatever she is going through, I wouldn’t necessarily call it a leave of absence. She’s taking some time off because our schedule is very grueling. It’s very, very demanding. There are times where you are run down and your body can’t do it anymore and you get sick or you get injured from it and you get tired."
Bliss called it a "reset" and something all WWE Superstars do from time to time. Bliss admitted that she's taken a couple during her time in NXT and just because it wasn't public knowledge doesn't mean other wrestlers didn't do the same when they realized they needed a break.
The current Raw Women's Champion isn't at all worried that Jax won't be back. As a close friend with Jax since she arrived in NXT, Bliss is confident this is a breather and nothing more. It's far different than the story Sports Illustrated posted, but there could be a bit of truth to both takes on the situation.