How did Lita break her neck?

Lita is one of the most popular stars in WWE history. Her style and persona made her one of the greatest sports entertainers of all time. She was also a four-time Women's Champion and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014.

She suffered multiple injuries over the course of her career and fans may know that she once suffered a career-threatening neck injury. If you're wondering how that injury took place, we've got you covered.

How did Lita break her neck?

In 2002, the WWE Hall of Famer was already one of the most famous female wrestlers in the world. The fame earned her a role in the popular television show Dark Angel starring Jessica Alba. During filming, she landed awkwardly on her neck while performing a hurricanrana and was sidelined for an extended period.

Upon impact she suffered three cracks in her vertebrae. The treatment was long and required surgery. Thankfully, she recovered and eventually returned to WWE in 2003 and later officially retired in 2006.

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Why did Lita retire from WWE in 2006?

In 2005-06, the WWE legend was involved in a controversial storyline with Edge. The storyline featured an infamous 'live sex celebration' segment. She had considerable heat directed towards her on-screen character after the segment.

Ahead of her encounter with Mickie James at Survivor Series 2006, she announced that she would officially retire after the match. Sadly, she did not receive a good sendoff. She was interrupted by Cryme Tyme during her speech and they went on to insult her in her final segment.

In an interview with Ring The Belle, she explained how she was not happy with her retirement segment.

"I never was quiet about it. I was super uncool with it.'' said Lita. "I went up the chain. I went to the producers, I went to the writers, I went to Vince, I went back to the producers, back to the writers, back to Vince. It was a hard, ‘no’."

Thankfully, she has come out of retirement for a few more matches. As of now, she is scheduled to participate in the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble Match. If she outlasts the 29 other women it looks possible that she will challenge the SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 38. The two women recently confronted each other on the 14 January episode of SmackDown.

Thanks to Wrestling Inc for the transcription!

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