WWE Referee Aja Smith Comments On Reffing Her Boyfriend's NXT Match

Aja Smith is one of the newest additions to WWE, and you've no doubt seen her interacting with [...]

By Matthew Aguilar

Aja Smith is one of the newest additions to WWE, and you've no doubt seen her interacting with your favorite stars on NXT. Smith signed with WWE in February and happens to be the first African-American full-time female referee in the company. She recently had to remind some on social media of that fact after a comment that has since been deleted, posting a photo of herself in her referee uniform. She accompanied the photo with a caption that served both to check the person who started this in the first place and to let fans know that no one and nothing should ever devalue you. She also recently had the chance to referee her boyfriend Leon Ruff's match during NXT's much-anticipated debut of Karrion Kross and Scarlett, and she celebrated that occasion on social media as well.

First up was the post regarding her name and title. "The post was deleted. But just in case some don't know; My name is Aja Smith," Smith wrote on Twitter. "First full-time African American female referee for the WWE. Put some respect on my name. Don't let anyone devalue you. ✨"

Smith had already accomplished a lot before she made it to WWE and NXT. In addition to competing in various companies in the United States, she's also competed in Japan and Mexico under the name Aja Perera. She also held the SHINE Nova and Tag Team Championship, which serves to bring invaluable experience to anyone trying to call a match.

As for Leon Ruff, he took on the just debuting Karrion Kross and Scarlett this past Wednesday. Smith took to social media to celebrate the occasion, which you can find below.

"If you would have told me a year ago I'd be a referee, let alone referee my boyfriend's match on TV, I woulda neverrrr believed it! Life is so cool.
@LeonRuffsxe you're always a winner to me. Purple heartSparkles #NXT'

Also kudos for being so impartial in the matchup. Ruff ended up taking some pretty stiff offense from Kross in the match, but as he said, it was just because of the smoke in his eyes.

0comments
Start the Conversation

of