5 WWE backstage stories we learned this week: The Rock made RAW star cry, Jinder Mahal injury update

#4 How Triple H reacted when Vince McMahon took NXT’s women’s division

Shayna Baszler, Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley and Tegan Nox were among the female NXT Superstars who appeared on the November 1 episode of SmackDown, with Triple H leading an invasion ahead of the RAW vs. SmackDown vs. NXT battle of supremacy at Survivor Series on November 24.

Earlier in the week, the NXT boss opened up to Corey Graves on new WWE podcast After The Bell about transitions that Superstars have made in the past from NXT to RAW and SmackDown.

One of the most interesting stories came when he recalled a situation when Vince McMahon asked for his entire women’s division, leaving NXT with Asuka as the only established female Superstar.

“I think that [sudden call-ups] will change now. It was before where it was just like, ‘Hey, this is what we need. This is the moment we needed it.’ When Vince called and said, ‘Basically, I need your entire women’s division from NXT’ and I was like, ‘Oh my God, the whole thing?’ and he was like, ‘Well, not the whole thing’ and then he listed all the talent and that’s everyone!”

Although Triple H did not reveal exactly when this happened, he was likely referring to the summer of 2016 when Alexa Bliss, Bayley, Carmella, Dana Brooke and Nia Jax all left NXT within four months of each other.