NXT Women's Champ Roxanne Perez Makes WWE Raw Debut, Gets Revenge On Indi Hartwell

The "WWE Raw" after WrestleMania is known for new talent debuts, and Monday night was is different. After reigning "NXT" Champion Ilja Dragunov made his "Raw" debut by defeating Shinsuke Nakamura, "NXT" Women's Champion Roxanne Perez made her own "Raw" debut against Indi Hartwell, against whom she had unfinished business.

A year ago at "NXT" Stand & Deliver 2023, Hartwell won a six-pack ladder match for the "NXT" Women's Championship, then in the possession of Perez. Hartwell, however, was only able to defend the belt twice before relinquishing it due to injury. The title loss was a crystallizing moment for the Perez character, who cited it as part of the justification for her recent heel turn, as she felt the title should have been returned to her when it was vacated. Now, Perez is champion again after defeating Lyra Valkyria at Stand & Deliver 2024, and she finally got her opportunity to mete out some revenge.

"The Prodigy" slapped Hartwell in the face to start the match and proceeded to dominate with her new, aggressive style. Hartwell did get some offense in, as well as some unwanted help from Candice LeRae at ringside, who tripped Perez. Hartwell wasn't pleased and began bickering with LeRae; while the ref was distracted, Perez raked Hartwell's eyes and followed up with Pop Rox to pick up her first win on the main roster. LeRae chastised Hartwell after the match.

"Raw" also saw the official announcement of the 2024 WWE Draft, which will take place over two nights later this month. It's unclear as of this writing whether Perez will be eligible, but it stands to reason that she will be since her male counterpart, Dragunov, has already been announced as participating.