Liv Morgan – the current holder of the WWE Women’s Tag Team belt and former holder of the WWE Women’s World Champion belt – was injured live on WWE Raw. During her match with Kairi Sane, Morgan landed with all her weight on her elbow, causing a dislocation. The injury was so severe that the match had to be called off, and the victory was awarded to Sane. Morgan will not be able to compete for the foreseeable future, which will wreak havoc on several ongoing storylines she was a part of. The question now is how the WWE will manage to fill their schedule in her absence.

Women’s World Champion Implications

Morgan kicked off WWE Monday Night Raw this week in a verbal sparring match with Women’s World Champion Iyo Sky. Morgan played the part of a disrespectful former champion who felt entitled to the belt, while Sky played the part of the dignified current champion who was putting the former in her place. The confrontation built tension for a potential title match between the two women, and it is now unclear if that build-up will be paid off. Morgan’s time in recovery could dissipate the tension she worked so hard to build around her title challenge.

Morgan’s heel work was perhaps too successful, as right after the show, Rhea Ripley felt the need to go to Twitter to tell off fans who had cheered on the injury. She made it clear that even though the two were enemies in the ring, outside of it, she had Morgan’s back all the way.

The match between Morgan and Sane was meant to forward another storyline, a feud with WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella. Bella was advertised to appear on WWE Raw this week, but eagle-eyed fans may have noticed she never did. That is because she was supposed to interfere with this match as revenge for her loss to Morgan last week. The injury occurred before Bella could make her entrance, and so she had to be cut from the show.

Women’s Tag Team Implications

The Women’s World Championship was not the only WWE title storyline that Morgan was integral to. The rumor was that she & Raquel Rodriguez were going to face The Bella Twins at Evolution II on July 13th. Whether that was the WWE’s plan or not, it’s hard to imagine that the WWE Women’s Tag Team belt storyline would not include its title holders somehow. Now that one half of the champion duo is injured, the company will have to figure out how to pivot quickly.

There are no obvious solutions for how to create tension around the Women’s Tag Team title without Morgan. For the time being, any stories the WWE tries to tell in the division will not be able to challenge or even banter with the belt holders. Until she returns, the title belt is in limbo. This division was already suffering under WWE’s management. Compared to the Men’s Tag Team title, it has far fewer teams and far less promotion. It is a division in dire need of development, and Morgan’s injury makes it even harder to make that happen.

What Happens Now?

Morgan’s injury will force the WWE to make numerous changes to their upcoming shows. All the storylines she set up – her mission to dethrone Sky, her feud with Bella, her dominance as the Women’s Tag Team Champion – will have to be put on hold until she recovers.

This is also right after Morgan returned to the WWE at the end of May, following a six-month stint filming a movie in Japan. When she returned, the WWE filmed a promo showing her reuniting with her faction, The Judgement Day. With the current word being that her injury could take up to another six months to heal, the WWE has to face the possibility of nearly a whole year without one of their most well-known female wrestlers.

With Morgan on the bench, the WWE will be hard-pressed to find someone who can step into her high-heeled boots. Some fans have suggested Roxanne Perez, another member of The Judgement Day, might take her place, but it is unclear if that is practical. It’s hard to imagine one wrestler being able to get established in all of Morgan’s storylines so quickly, especially when Perez has far fewer feats to her name. The WWE has faced criticism for not putting the work in to cultivate the same wealth of star power for its women’s divisions as it has for its men’s divisions, and now it seems to be paying the price. 

End Of My Liv Morgan Rant

It is unclear what direction WWE will take following Morgan’s injury. She left a big hole in their programming that they need to fill, and they do not have much time to figure out how to fill it. What is clear, more so now than ever before, is how important Morgan is to the WWE. The WWE and the fans can only hope that she recovers quickly, as both are going to miss her dearly while she is gone.