Saraya : Rulebreaker & Gamechanger
Professional wrestling is experiencing a true renaissance. The men and women of the squared circle are not only redefining the craft but reshaping the industry's future in real time. Among the trailblazers leading this charge, few have left as profound an impact as Saraya — formerly known to WWE audiences as Paige.
The phrase “wrestling has more than one royal family” is often thrown around, but in this case, it couldn’t be more fitting. The Knight family stands as a pillar of wrestling legacy, and Saraya is its crown jewel.
Born into a dynasty of wrestlers, Saraya has had professional wrestling woven into the fabric of her life from the very beginning. But rather than simply inherit a legacy, she’s carved out one of her own — breaking barriers, defying expectations, and inspiring a new generation along the way.
At just 13 years old, Saraya made her professional debut as Britani Knight in her family's promotion, World Association of Wrestling. What started as a one-off favor to her father — filling in for a missing female competitor — quickly ignited a lifelong passion. From that moment on, the ring became her sanctuary.
Through her teenage years, she dominated the European wrestling scene, collecting championships and perfecting her craft. Driven by a dream to become a WWE Diva, she set out to make herself undeniable — and she did exactly that. Her ambition, talent, and resilience made her impossible to ignore, eventually leading to a groundbreaking career in WWE.
After six years of building her name on the independent circuit, Saraya received a life-altering phone call — one that would forever shift the trajectory of her career and life. On the other end of the line was WWE, offering her the opportunity to fulfill a dream she had chased since childhood. But with that dream came a new reality: the real work was just beginning. Fortunately, that was a challenge Saraya had been preparing for her entire life.
Leaving behind her small hometown of Norwich, England, Saraya relocated to Orlando, Florida, embarking on a journey that would not only change her life — but begin to reshape the professional wrestling industry.
Upon entering WWE’s developmental system, Saraya was given the ring name “Paige.” It didn’t take long for her to make an impact. At a time when women’s wrestling was often relegated to the sidelines, Paige emerged as a force to be reckoned with, helping to redefine the perception of women in the sport.
It’s important to understand the climate of WWE at the time: women’s wrestling was treated more as spectacle than sport. Matches like "Bra and Panties" bouts dominated the division, and female wrestlers were rarely given the platform to showcase their athleticism or storytelling ability.
But Paige — alongside a rising generation of female talent — played a pivotal role in rewriting that narrative.
Early in her WWE career, Paige began competing in Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), WWE’s developmental territory at the time. Her talent quickly caught the eye of WWE executive and legend, Triple H, who was in the process of launching NXT — a new developmental brand designed to cultivate the future stars of WWE. NXT soon became a powerhouse of its own, and Paige stood at the forefront of that transformation.
In 2013, she made history by becoming the inaugural NXT Women’s Champion after a standout match against Emma. That bout turned heads across the industry, proving that women, when given the stage, could not only perform — they could steal the show. Triple H’s decision to spotlight the women of NXT helped usher in a new era for female competitors, and Paige was a cornerstone of that change.
The following year, Paige would make an even bigger splash. On the night after WrestleMania 30 in 2014, she debuted on Monday Night Raw — while still the reigning NXT Women’s Champion — and defeated veteran AJ Lee to become the WWE Divas Champion. It was an unprecedented moment: Paige became the only woman in WWE history to hold both titles simultaneously. Her victory sent shockwaves through the wrestling world and brought renewed attention and credibility to WWE’s women's division.
Despite these achievements, Paige’s journey was anything but easy. In 2015, she and longtime rival Emma faced off against the Bella Twins in a tag-team match. The match was allotted just three minutes — including entrances. This moment sparked outrage among fans and talent alike, leading to the viral #GiveDivasAChance movement. The hashtag trended for three consecutive days, pressuring WWE leadership to reevaluate the way it treated its female performers. It marked a turning point in WWE’s approach to women's wrestling — and Paige was at the center of it.
Her impact was undeniable. Paige became one of the defining figures of WWE’s Women’s Evolution — a movement that would ultimately replace the “Diva” era with a more competitive, respected vision for female wrestling.
Tragically, just as she was reaching the height of her stardom, Paige was forced to retire in 2018 due to a severe neck injury. Her departure from in-ring competition was one of the most emotional moments in recent WWE history — a heartbreaking end to an incredible chapter.
Saraya’s remarkable journey from a small-town wrestling ring in England to global superstardom was so compelling, it became the inspiration for the critically acclaimed feature film Fighting With My Family, produced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and starring Florence Pugh, Lena Headey, Vince Vaughn, and Johnson himself.
After years away from in-ring action due to a career-threatening injury, Saraya shocked the wrestling world in 2022 with a dramatic return — this time under the bright lights of All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Making her debut at AEW’s Grand Slam event, she reminded fans why she’s one of the most captivating figures in the industry. The comeback reached a new peak when she captured the AEW Women’s World Championship in front of a record-breaking crowd in her home country — a full-circle moment for a woman who once stepped into the ring as a favor to her father, and ended up inspiring millions around the world.