Nick Aldis to suspend current WWE champion for refusing to vacate the title on SmackDown? Potential booking direction explored
WWE SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis has a complex task ahead of him. Jade Cargill, who is one-half of the Women's Tag Team Champion, has been injured and declared out of action for potentially the next three months. That leaves Aldis in a quandary as he would either require someone to fill in Cargill's spot or he would require Bianca Belair to vacate the title so WWE could crown new Women's Tag Team Champions.
However, if Belair refuses to vacate the titles, which seemingly appears to be the case right now, Aldis might have to suspend the current champion. The EST of WWE might not relinquish the title belts she won along with Cargill at Bash in Berlin so easily. She could invoke the precedent set when Sonya Deville was injured, Piper Niven replaced her and Chelsea Green was never stripped of the title.
As reported by WrestleVotes during a Backstage Pass Q&A, Bianca Belair will be stripped soon of the WWE Women's Tag Team Title.
“Again, [I’m] working on nailing down the details, but I’m hearing they’re gonna have to strip Bianca… Yeah, these belts are cursed. I mean, this happens time and time again."
Nick Aldis might have no other option other than suspending Belair because moving along with one-half of a tag-team championship might not be possible on SmackDown.
Jade Cargill was found in an unconscious state on the hood of the car this past week on SmackDown. She was severely assaulted by an unknown attacker backstage in WWE and had to be rushed to a local hospital. When the attack happened, Bianca Belair was involved in a Triple Threat match inside the ring, and she abandoned it mid-way to rush to Cargill, who was being loaded into an ambulance.
Moreover, these titles, ever since they were introduced in 2019, have seemingly been cursed as they have been vacated by several superstars. In 2022, Sasha Banks (now Mercedes Mone) and Naomi had to part ways with Women's Tag Team Titles after they walked away during the middle of the show after creative differences with former Chairman, Vince McMahon. They were later suspended and the titles were vacated. Similarly, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez had to vacate the titles in May 2023, due to Morgan suffering a shoulder injury.
WWE analyst says Bianca Belair might relinquish the title
Former WWE executive Jonathan Coachman has said that Bianca Belair won't show any hesitation in dropping the Women's Tag Team Title. While speaking on Behind The Turnbuckle: The Last Word podcast, Coach said that Belair might show that she doesn't want to vacate those titles, but she would happily do it.
“Bianca may act like she doesn’t want to give them up. She’s happily gonna give up those tag team titles. She doesn’t care about them at all. You don’t make money in WWE as a tag team champion of the world. You gotta be on your own," Coachman said. [H/T - Wrestling Noticias]
Jade Cargill was supposed to team with Belair in the Women's WarGames match at Survivor Series alongside Rhea Ripley, Naomi, and IYO SKY. However, she has now been replaced by former WWE SmackDown Women's Champion, Bayley.
It remains to be seen when Cargill will make her return to the Stamford-based promotion.
