{"id":153018,"date":"2026-02-12T06:00:32","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T11:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=153018"},"modified":"2026-02-12T03:33:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T08:33:44","slug":"why-zaria-didn-t-betray-sol-ruca-after-getting-the-next-nxt-women-s-championship-match","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2026\/02\/12\/why-zaria-didn-t-betray-sol-ruca-after-getting-the-next-nxt-women-s-championship-match\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Zaria Resisted the Betrayal After Sol Ruca Earned an NXT Women\u2019s Title Shot"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">For months now, Zaria and Sol Ruca haven\u2019t been on the same page. They\u2019ve said that they\u2019re fine tons of times, but lately it seems that a breakup is very close. Interim NXT General Manager Robert Stone announced that ZaRuca and WrenQCC (Kendal Grey and Wren Sinclair) would be in a tag team match on the February 10, 2026, episode of NXT. The woman who got the pinfall would face Jacy Jayne for the NXT Women\u2019s Championship on February 24. That definitely put more strain on Zaria and Ruca\u2019s partnership. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0match was very entertaining, and Ruca ended up <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/shorts\/k6lAKxa4F2Y\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">with the pinfall<\/a>. Afterwards, Jayne and the rest of Fatal Influence confronted Ruca. In the background, Zaria was looking super angry and ready to pounce on Ruca. However, that never happened. There are a couple of reasons why she didn\u2019t attack her friend at that moment.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:480}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Zaria Wants Ruca on the Top of Her Game<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">When <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/shorts\/zLykFAHe2ew\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jayne confronted Ruca<\/a> at the end of the show on Tuesday, not a lot happened. That\u2019s because that wasn\u2019t the focus of the camerawork at that time. The camera was focused on Zaria, who was looking straight at Ruca. Many people were probably screaming to attack her at that moment. But that wouldn\u2019t be a good idea. Handicapping her before the match would just be handing the title back to Jayne. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The reason she\u2019s mad is that Ruca got the title shot before her. Attacking Ruca before the match could mean an extremely easy victory for the current champion. If she were going to lose anyway, then the attack would\u2019ve been pointless. Not attacking immediately showed that Zaria has good timing, as she knows how important the match is to Ruca. Handing Jayne an easy victory would\u2019ve prevented Ruca from putting up a fight for the title.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:480}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Her Winning Would Be a Great Time to Strike<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:480}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Fans probably now think that Ruca will be mysteriously attacked before the match, or that Zaria will do it herself at the time. However, that isn\u2019t smart, and Zaria knows that. Attacking her after a loss wouldn\u2019t be the right move either. That\u2019ll get her the match with Ruca, but not the title match. She wants to attack her at the precise moment. If Ruca pulls off the victory, then that\u2019ll be the perfect time to strike. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">She\u2019ll immediately get herself a title shot and a chance to be NXT Women\u2019s Champion. Not only that, she\u2019ll potentially take the title from her former friend. That definitely seems like something Zaria wants to experience. Knocking her down at her lowest would prevent her from being champion herself. Becoming a champion, turning to celebrate with Zaria, and then getting betrayed sets up Ruca\u2019s first defense immediately if she wins.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:480}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-contrast=\"auto\">To get the Most out of the Betrayal, Ruca has to Win<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:480}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">There was a big question coming out of NXT\u2019s episode on Tuesday, which was why didn\u2019t Zaria attack Ruca? Wrestling is all about timing, and attacking her then wouldn\u2019t have put her ultimate plan in motion.\u00a0 She\u2019s extremely jealous of Ruca getting the NXT Women\u2019s Championship title match for herself. Attacking her then would\u2019ve handed the title back to Jayne, as well as attacking her right before the match.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_153060\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-153060\" style=\"width: 240px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/22-9-240x300.jpg\" alt=\"A WWE NXT graphic featuring Sol Ruca and Zaria.\" width=\"240\" height=\"300\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-153060\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/22-9-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/22-9-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/22-9-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/22-9-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/02\/22-9.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-153060\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo Credit: WWE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">To immediately be the number one contender, she has to make sure Ruca wins. Even if she has to help her and then betray her afterwards, that\u2019s what Zaria has to do. If she didn\u2019t care about the title at all, the betrayal would\u2019ve already happened. But the title opportunity loss is why she\u2019s angry. She has to make sure Ruca wins in order to get a chance to become NXT Women\u2019s Champion.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559739&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:480}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>More From LWOS Pro Wrestling<\/strong><amp-fx-flying-carpet height=\"600px\"><amp-ad data-block-on-consent=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"600\" layout=\"fixed\" type=\"doubleclick\" data-slot=\"\/15188745,22512265771\/FS-lastwordonsports-AMP\/AMP-FlyingCarpet\" data-lazy-fetch=\"true\" data-loading-strategy=\"1.25\" rtc-config=\"{\n     &quot;vendors&quot;: {\n        &quot;t13&quot;: {\n          &quot;TAG_ID&quot;: &quot;f502adbd-5c9b-4d6f-9ec5-b0cdc0f4827c&quot;,\n          &quot;ACCOUNT_ID&quot;: &quot;9a3c6c23-453a-4cba-b419-30b908f39a50&quot;\n        },\n        &quot;aps&quot;: {\n          &quot;PUB_ID&quot;: &quot;600&quot;,\n          &quot;PUB_UUID&quot;: &quot;16268e26-dabe-4bf4-a28f-b8f4ee192ed3&quot;,\n          &quot;PARAMS&quot;: {\n            &quot;amp&quot;: &quot;1&quot;\n          }\n        },\n        &quot;criteo&quot;: {\n          &quot;NETWORK_ID&quot;: &quot;4905&quot;,\n          &quot;ZONE_ID&quot;: &quot;1382491&quot;,\n          &quot;PUBLISHER_SUB_ID&quot;: &quot;FS-lastwordonsports-AMP-FlyingCarpet&quot;\n        },\n        &quot;medianet&quot;: {\n          &quot;CID&quot;: &quot;8CU8ZT2C4&quot;\n        }\n      }\n   }\"><\/amp-ad><\/amp-fx-flying-carpet><\/p>\n<p><em><i>Header photo \u2013<span> WWE<\/span><span>\u00a0<\/span>\u2013 Stay tuned to the<span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/\" target=\"_self\"><em><u><i>Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i><span>\u00a0<\/span>for more on Sol Ruca, Zaria, and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the significant news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.<\/i><\/em><amp-ad data-block-on-consent=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"600\" layout=\"fixed\" data-multi-size=\"300x250,300x600\" data-multi-size-validation=\"false\" type=\"doubleclick\" data-slot=\"\/15188745,22512265771\/FS-lastwordonsports-AMP\/AMP-2\" data-enable-refresh=\"30\" data-lazy-fetch=\"true\" data-loading-strategy=\"1.25\" rtc-config=\"{ &quot;vendors&quot;: { &quot;t13&quot;: { &quot;TAG_ID&quot;: &quot;4f799893-5665-4629-b0fc-8b97d3569fd6&quot;, &quot;ACCOUNT_ID&quot;: &quot;9a3c6c23-453a-4cba-b419-30b908f39a50&quot; }, &quot;aps&quot;: { &quot;PUB_ID&quot;: &quot;600&quot;, &quot;PUB_UUID&quot;: &quot;16268e26-dabe-4bf4-a28f-b8f4ee192ed3&quot;, &quot;PARAMS&quot;: { &quot;amp&quot;: &quot;1&quot; } }, &quot;criteo&quot;: { &quot;NETWORK_ID&quot;: &quot;4905&quot;, &quot;ZONE_ID&quot;: &quot;1382491&quot;, &quot;PUBLISHER_SUB_ID&quot;: &quot;FS-lastwordonsports-AMP-2&quot; }, &quot;medianet&quot;: { &quot;CID&quot;: &quot;8CU8ZT2C4&quot; } } }\"><\/amp-ad><\/p>\n<p><em><i>You can check out WWE programming on\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.netflix.com\/title\/81788927\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Netflix<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(Raw),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usanetwork.com\/wwe-friday-night-smackdown\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>USA Network<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(SmackDown),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cwtv.com\/shows\/wwe-nxt\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>The CW<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(NXT),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/tubitv.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Tubi<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Evolve),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aetv.com\/wwe\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>A&amp;E<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Superstar Sunday \u2013 Rivals, WWE LFG, and Greatest Moments), and\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peacocktv.com\/watch\/home\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Peacock<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Main Event, as well as archives and premium live event streaming). Follow WWE on social media to relive top moments and matches on\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/wwe\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>YouTube<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>, and catch fast-paced action on X (<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/i\/events\/1773457579022155776?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>WWE Speed<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>).<\/i><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For months now, Zaria and Sol Ruca haven\u2019t been on the same page. They\u2019ve said that they\u2019re fine tons of times, but lately it seems that a breakup is very close. Interim NXT General Manager Robert Stone announced that ZaRuca and WrenQCC (Kendal Grey and Wren Sinclair) would be in a tag team match on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5338,"featured_media":144980,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"1","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,5,3,320],"tags":[8820,9036],"class_list":["post-153018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wwe","category-nxt","category-wwe-universe","category-wwe-women","tag-sol-ruca","tag-zaria"],"modified_by":"Michael Joseph Sugue, Manager","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5338"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=153018"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153018\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":153061,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153018\/revisions\/153061"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/144980"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=153018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=153018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=153018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}