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Aliyah – First WWE Superstar to Get Drafted on the Main Roster After Almost a Decade in NXT

Published 10/03/2021, 1:00 AM EDT

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When one has worked with WWE for almost a decade, it’s unnatural to not move to the main roster. However, the story of WWE Superstar Aliyah isn’t something the WWE Universe heard everyday.

Aliyah made her WWE NXT Television debut on January 12th, 2016, where she worked in the Battle Royale. This match was to decide the contender for the NXT Women’s Championship, and at that point, the champion was Bayley.

Since then, she has worked dark matches and continued to work through all hardships to reach a certain point where the main roster noticed her.

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At the latest WWE Draft 2021 extension on Talking Smack, Aliyah was called up to SmackDown, finally securing her position on the main roster.

Following this call up, the new main roster debutant left a message for the WWE Universe.

“It feels great. And to anyone out there that’s watching, I just want to let you know — just keep going. If you have a goal, if you have a plan, if you have a dream in mind, just keep going, keep pushing. If nobody else believes in you, well, guess what? You better believe in you.”

Aliyah aspired to be a Superstar from a young age

The WWE SmackDowb Superstar wanted to become a part of the wrestling giant when she witnessed Mickie James and Beth Phoenix in action at her hometown, Toronto. Since then, she focused on the path that would finally lead to the main roster, and the WWE ring.

However, prior to entering the world of sports entertainment, she had worked in circus training, which provided her with the flexibility required for wrestling.

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The young Superstar started her journey with appearances on the WWE Network. The series, Breaking Ground, showed her days in the Performance Center, followed up by becoming an in-ring competitor.

The last time she appeared on WWE NXT Television was in July. She turned on Robert Stone after Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter defeated her and Jessi Kamea. It’s possible WWE took her off NXT Television to make the call up to SmackDown a smooth process.

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Considering she has just been drafted to the blue brand, she could make her first official SmackDown appearance at the upcoming episode. Nevertheless, this is a beginning of an exciting journey for Aliyah and a great addition for the SmackDown women’s roster!

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Written by:

Shuvangi Sen Chaudhury

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Shuvangi is a senior WWE and AEW author at EssentiallySports. She has over 1000 published WWE articles and also has experience in content operations with Forbes. Having completed her undergraduation from Royal Holloway, University of London, Shuvangi is closely aligned to the fitness industry, having amateur skills levels in tennis and basketball while rowing at a regatta level.
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