Alexa Bliss on WWE Royal Rumble return: ‘I got the call at midnight the night before’

Alexa Bliss spoke about her WWE return and the reaction she received at the 2025 Royal Rumble during an appearance on The Nikki & Brie Show.

Bliss said she didn’t get called about being in the women’s Rumble match until midnight the night before the show, was on a plane at 10 AM that morning, and arrived at the building just two hours before it started.

She said:

“I got the call at midnight the night before and it wasn’t fully decided until like 4:00 AM. And I get a call at five, they’re like, ‘Alright, we need you on a plane by 10:00 AM.'”

“So no one would see me, I flew to Cincinnati, drove in, had to cover up, got snuck into a back room.”

“I didn’t get there until four, we are the first match starting at six,” she added.

Following her return, Dave Meltzer reported in the February 10 edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Bliss’ agent finalized a deal with WWE either the night before or the day of the Rumble and that Bliss signed a new five-year contract just before the show began. Weeks earlier, it was reported that they were at an impasse in negotiations.

Bliss says that when she arrived at the building she discussed what she would do in the match with Bayley and Natalya but her return was otherwise kept secret until she got to the Gorilla position.

“I owe all that to Bayley and (Natalya) cause they were so great about coming in, sneaking in and being like, ‘Alright, what are we doing?”

Bliss also spoke about the reaction she received when she came out as a surprise entrant in the Rumble. She says it was one of the rare times in her career that she’s been able to be in the moment and soak in the crowd’s response.

“I was so just taken aback and in the moment of it. I think that was one of the first times I’ve really just been in the moment (during) an entrance besides my first WrestleMania. Because a lot of times when I’m doing my entrance, I’m still thinking about what’s coming next. I get so nervous and I’m not able to enjoy the moment. And that was one of those ones where I just kind of actually took in the moment and I was like, ‘Wow, this is, this is pretty cool.'”

Charlotte Flair and Bliss will be in the Women’s Tag Team title match at Evolution after winning a qualifying match on SmackDown. Bliss said that she and Flair have had a bond since their days in NXT together.

“We’ve always had just this fun dynamic with each other. We always work really well together and we’ve always had this weird bond from NXT that we just always kind of gravitate towards each other.”

She added that one of her favorite matches is her vs. Flair at Survivor Series 2017.

Bliss’ full appearance on the podcast is available below: