Backstage Details On Bayley's WWE Contract Status, Expected Interest From AEW

Bayley was defeated by former friend Lyra Valkyria and left lying after a post-match beatdown at WWE Saturday Night's Main Event. Fans are speculating the match could have been Bayley's last in the company after Valkyria's decisive victory, and a new report offered more about the "Role Model's" status.

According to Fightful Select, no source within WWE could confirm that Bayley is off television, despite Valkyria's claim in an interview on "WWE Raw" that she "ran Bayley out of here." The expectation is that her contract is up by the end of 2026 unless injury time is added, though no official date has been confirmed, something the outlet has reported previously.

Sources confirmed to Fightful Select that the first-ever Women's Grand Slam Champion has not signed a new deal. The outlet reported it's expected WWE will want to retain the star, even with the reports of cost-cutting measures like asking top talent to take pay cuts, possibly due to interest within AEW.

The star's contract status has been a topic backstage in WWE's competition. Bayley's best friend, AEW's Mercedes Mone, teased a WrestleDream dream match against her in an Instagram post. Sources told Fightful there have been discussions about Bayley joining AEW for almost a year now. She has been backstage at AEW shows, in support of Mone and other friends in the company, but according to the outlet, AEW President Tony Khan doesn't make a habit of conversing with contracted WWE talent.

While the financial nature of Bayley's current deal with WWE is not public, Fightful speculated that both companies would likely offer the star multi-year, big money, as in multi-million dollar, deals. Bayley herself has not commented on her situation, but recently posted a carousel of photos to Instagram after her loss to Valkyria, which had multiple WWE stars in the comments seemingly speculating on her departure.