SUMMARY
- Jade Cargill signed with the Stamford-based promotion in September 2023.
- Before signing with WWE, Big Jade was a part of All Elite Wrestling for nearly three years.
WWE Royal Rumble 2024 was one hell of an event, and a major credit for it goes to the women’s division. Its obvious that Bayley’s victory to get an opportunity to compete in the WrestleMania 40’s main event was special. But the probable highlight of the PLE was the debut of former AEW star Jade Cargill.
Big Jade finally made her presence felt by entering the women’s Royal Rumble, and what a night it was for her. The 31-year-old straight away made a statement by eliminating Nia Jax and then had a face-off with Bianca Belair. In fact, Cargill was among the final three in the match, and that was surely an achievement.
“Thank you for your
— WrestlingWorldCC (@WrestlingWCC) January 29, 2024
guidance, help and structure”
— Jade Cargill sends message to Cody Rhodes’ Nightmare Factory pic.twitter.com/kTVgBy1TJh
But after her successful WWE debut at the January 27 PLE, the female star has a special message for ex-AEW EVP, Cody Rhodes. In a sweet gesture, Cargill has expressed her gratitude to the 38-year-old for everything he has done for her. Jade sharing such comments for the fan-favorite star after her performance in the Royal Rumble shows how much respect she has for The American Nightmare.
Why did Jade Cargill leave AEW?
Jade Cargill started her pro wrestling career in April 2019, as she attended a tryout at the WWE PC. After this, the former basketball player joined All Elite Wrestling, where she enjoyed a lot of success throughout her 3-year-long stint.
The 5-foot-10 star was the inaugural TBS Champion in Tony Khan’s promotion and had a legendary reign with the title. After carrying the championship for a total of 508 days, she lost her title in May 2023. Following this, she stayed with AEW for a few more months before making the shift to the Triple H-led promotion.
Sharing the reason why she left All Elite Wrestling, Cargill said that her ambition to create a legacy of her own was a big reason behind this decision. Telling why she joined WWE, the 31-year-old said, “I want to be in the Hall of Fame. I want to wrestle with the best women in the world. I mean, there is no grander stage than this stage — the opportunities are endless with this company.” (Via: Wrestling Inc)
In addition to this, Jade also shared how The American Nightmare opened the door and played a vital role in persuading her to leave Tony Khan’s promotion. “He was one of the guys that led me to a great decision,” the former AEW star said while referring to the fact that Cody laid out the blueprint for others to jump from All Elite Wrestling to the Triple H-led promotion.
Why did WWE delay Big Jade’s debut until Royal Rumble 2024?
Despite signing with WWE back in September 2023, Big Jade didn’t make her in-ring debut until January 27. As she was kept her away from competition for a long time, fans wonder why her debut was delayed until Royal Rumble 2024.
As this was such a highly talked-about topic, the answer to it was given by Triple H himself. It happened at the media conference after WWE Survivor Series 2023, as a journalist asked him about the Jade’s absence.
Giving the answer in his own way, Hunter said, “I wanna make sure that no matter what is thrown at Jade Cargill, she’s ready, and at no fault of her own, I think that she was limited in that.” Additionally, the WWE CCO said, “People are understanding, and they’re waiting, and they’re excited for her to come. And when she does, it’s going to be massive.”
After these comments by The Game, the former basketball star shared a tweet and wrote, “Also, like I said. It’s on MY time.” It was a statement that nobody really understood at that particular moment. But now we can understand why her debut was delayed by the Stamford-based promotion.
WWE probably wanted to showcase her in-ring abilities to their audience on a big stage, and they did the same by having her debut at Royal Rumble. In what was a massive crowd reaction, Jade came out to a huge pop, and her performance was also special. After such a showing, we can assume that she’s surely going to be pushed like a megastar in the division.