Nia Jax Crowned Queen at WWE King and Queen of the Ring
Nia Jax defeated Lyra Valkyria to become Queen at WWE King and Queen of the Ring.
The King and Queen of the Ring PLE continued with the finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament -- Nia Jax vs. Lyra Valkyria. The winner of the match is the first Queen since 2021 when the Queen's tournament was revealed. That year, Zelina Vega won the tournament. She was originally part of this year's lineup as well, but both the King and Queen tournaments have been plagued by injuries. Nonetheless it has persisted and both Jax and Valkyria looked to cement themselves in history.
Lyra debuted on the main roster in the WWE Draft. She's a former NXT Women's Championship who quickly won fans over with her in-ring abilities. So far she has three wins under her belt so a win over Jax would be huge. While the match starts out in her favor, a Samoan Drop from Jax quickly evens the playing field. Jax drags her to the corner for a second time in the match but Lyra plays possum and hangs her into the ropes.
.@Real_Valkyria is not backing down!
— WWE (@WWE) May 25, 2024
She is doing WHATEVER it takes to become Queen of the Ring 👊#WWEKingAndQueen pic.twitter.com/2QXyPe9JnA
She goes for the double stomp but is only able to get a two count. Heading to the top rope, she hits a leg drop but is unable to put her away so she attempts her finishing maneuver, Nightwing. She can't lift her up and by now Jax has recuperated, lifting her up and heading to the top rope. Lyra transitions into a sunset flip but Nia slams down with the annihilator, pinning Lyra for the win.
WWE recently announced that the finals of this year's King and Queen of the Ring tournament would have some great stakes. Not only would they be able to claim the title of King or Queen with a shiny crown to match, they will automatically earn a title shot at WWE SummerSlam in Cleveland, Ohio. The winners will face the champions on their respective brands, so if Bayley remains champion through August, Jax will go face-to-face with her in their first singles match since 2019.
Jax departed WWE in 2021 due to "budget cuts" but she claims she offered to take a pay cut. It was then that the real intentions made themselves clear in a conversation with John Laurinaitis."Just because I knew it was a script. And he was like, 'that's not it.' And I was like, 'oh, so you just want a total different change,'" Jax told The Sessions with Renee Paquette. "And he said, 'yeah that's it we're going to put you on your 90 days.' I hung up the phone and I was relieved." She reappeared in the 2023 Royal Rumble which was a complete surprise to fans. At the time, she wasn't under contract. She signed a few months later and began appearing on WWE television and has been a consistent figure since.
WWE King and Queen of the Ring Results
- Women's World Championship: Becky Lynch (c) vs. Liv Morgan
- Intercontinental Championship: Sami Zayn (c) vs. Chad Gable vs. Bronson Reed
- Queen of the Ring finals: Lyra Valkyria vs. Nia Jax
- King of the Ring finals: Gunther vs. Randy Orton
- Undisputed WWE Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. United States Champion Logan Paul
- Women's Tag Team Championships: Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill (c) vs. Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell