WWE Responds After Sasha Banks, Naomi Leave During Monday's WWE Raw

During this week's episode of Monday Night Raw, WWE women's tag team champions Sasha Banks and Naomi reportedly walked out of the show over creative differences, causing the planned main event to be changed.

WWE issued a statement regarding Banks and Naomi leaving the show, saying they "claimed they weren't respected enough as tag team champions."

Originally, a six-pack challenge was planned for the main event featuring Banks, Naomi, Asuka, Becky Lynch, Doudrop and Nikki A.S.H to determine a No. 1 contender for Raw women's champion Bianca Belair. The match was then changed to a one-on-one match between Lynch and Asuka, which Asuka won.

The commentary team referenced Banks and Naomi's walkout during the broadcast.

Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com reported that Banks had a meeting with WWE chairman Vince McMahon after she "took issue with some of the planned creative for the original main event."

Naomi was scheduled to win the original main event, according to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful. Even though their reasons won't be clear until they address the situation themselves, Banks and Naomi still had a ton of support from fans online:

This isn't the first time backstage drama made its way on air in WWE. This past November, Lynch was in a feud with former SmackDown women's champion Charlotte Flair. The two former real-life friends had a notable segment on SmackDown Live in which they had a contentious exchange of title belts that didn't play out as originally scripted.

Throughout her career, Banks has not been shy about voicing her displeasure when necessary. She once revealed that she requested to be released from WWE after WrestleMania 35, but McMahon advised her to take some time off. Banks is one of WWE's most popular stars, so it will be interesting to see how this latest situation unfolds.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).