Injured WWE Star May Be Sidelined For Rest Of Year
WWE Raw superstar Zoey Stark experienced a heartbreaking setback on the May 19, 2025, episode, suffering a severe knee injury after her knee buckled upon landing a missile dropkick.
WWE SmackDown arenaPhoto by Chris Ryan/Corbis via Getty Images
This unfortunate injury is another major hurdle in Stark's WWE journey, which began when she signed in early 2021. Stark sustained a legitimate knee injury in late 2021 that required surgery and extensive rehabilitation. She made a strong return to NXT before being drafted to Monday Night Raw as part of the 2023 WWE Draft.
Advertisement
Stark made an immediate impact on the main roster, most notably forming an alliance with WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus. She effectively served as Stratus's enforcer during the heated feud with Becky Lynch, featuring in key premium live event matches.
The latest incident occurred during a high-stakes Money in the Bank qualifying match, which also involved Rhea Ripley and Kairi Sane.
Stark was immediately attended to by medical staff and carefully carried backstage, with the broadcast cutting away, indicating the potential gravity of the situation. She later connected with fans on social media, expressing profound gratitude for their messages.
Stark wrote on Twitter in a statement, 'Wow the love and support means more to me than you'll ever know! What hurts more than my knee is knowing I won't be able to perform for all of you for a while. I LOVE what I do and I'm blessed to do this. As the saying goes, the comeback is greater than the setback. Love you guys.'
Advertisement
Adding to concerns, a May 22, 2025, Fightful Select report noted, "The initial fear backstage was [a] tear that would require surgery," although an official diagnosis remains unconfirmed. The report further suggested WWE is "preparing not to have Stark for the remainder of the year." We wish her a speedy recovery.
Related: WWE Ramps Up International Recruitment, New Brand Launch Expected
Related: Roman Reigns Reportedly In Talks For Big Hollywood Film
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Vox
an hour ago
- Vox
Do kids need a best friend?
is a senior correspondent for Vox, where she covers American family life, work, and education. Previously, she was an editor and writer at the New York Times. She is also the author of four novels, including the forthcoming Bog Queen, which you can preorder here As important as best-friendships can be, they don't always last forever. Amr Bo Shanab via Getty Images/fStop This story originally appeared in Kids Today, Vox's newsletter about kids, for everyone. Sign up here for future editions. Divya met her best friend when she was just 4 years old. They've been through all the phases of childhood and adolescence together, and more than 14 years later, they're still incredibly close, Divya told me. They don't see each other every day, but whenever they get together, it's like no time has passed. 'Every time I look back to that particular friendship, I just feel amazed, and I feel like it's an achievement in itself,' the 19-year-old said. Having a friend like Divya's can be a joy for kids, just as it can be for adults. 'We all would like to have somebody who is there for us through thick and thin, and who knows us deeply and loves us anyway,' said Eileen Kennedy-Moore, a clinical psychologist and host of the podcast Kids Ask Dr. Friendtastic. Kids with best friends tend to be less anxious, better able to handle rejection and bullying, and even more engaged in school, Kennedy-Moore said. But when I reached out to a group of contributors from the podcast This Teenage Life (Divya among them) to talk about friendship, one of the first topics that came up was pressure. Adults and other kids alike send the message that everyone needs a best friend, or that friendship should look a certain way, the teens told me. Even Divya gets worried sometimes when she sees other teens post on social media about talking to their best friends every day. She starts to worry: 'Are we even best friends or not?' The good news is that kids don't need a certain kind of best-friendship, or even a best friend at all. 'What kids need is a repertoire of anchors,' people who 'hold you up, that are there for you,' said Michele Borba, an educational psychologist and author of the book Thrivers: The Surprising Reasons Why Some Kids Struggle and Others Thrive. Maybe one friend is for sharing worries, and another is for sharing soccer games, and that's okay. As Brin, 18, put it, 'not all friends can help with every single thing.' Best friends are valuable — but not constant Kids have preferences for one classmate over another as early as preschool, Kennedy-Moore said. They may even use the term 'best friend,' but they don't always understand its meaning the same way older kids do. My 2-year-old, for example, says that his left foot and right foot are best friends. Real best-friendship starts a bit later, often by kindergarten or first grade, experts say. It's a common experience, but not universal — research has shown that about half of kids have a best friend who would also identify them as a best friend, Kennedy-Moore said. Definitions have shifted with time, but today, a best friend is usually 'someone that you can trust will always be there for you, someone you can trust with your intimate secrets,' said Barry Schneider, an emeritus professor of psychology at the University of Ottawa who studies children's friendships. When teens talked to me about their best friends, many of them emphasized not just common interests, but mutual support: 'She was super helpful, and she was always there when I needed her,' Pratyusha, 18, said of one best friend from the past. As important as best-friendships can be, they don't always last forever. In one study of seventh-grade best friends, only a quarter of best-friendships lasted until eighth grade, and only 1 percent all the way until senior year of high school, Kennedy-Moore said. Kids also go through periods when they have a best friend and periods when they don't — in another study, two-thirds of fifth-graders had a best friend, leaving about 33 percent without. By sixth grade, the share of best-friendless kids had dropped to 17 percent. The kids who gained a best friend had become kinder and more helpful according to their peers, suggesting that building social skills can help children acquire a best friend, Kennedy-Moore has written. As shifting as best-friendship can be, having that one super close relationship can have real benefits, experts say. Some research, for example, shows that having a best friend is protective against depression, Schneider said. Brin, now 18, met their first best friend in day care, and they're still close today. 'This person is like a sibling to me,' Brin said. 'I know that no matter what, I can always go to them for help.' The pressure to pair off But the idea of best-friendship can also be stressful, teens say. Brin remembers taking a mental health survey in elementary school that asked if they had a best friend in the school district. 'That made me feel so guilty for not feeling like I connected to anybody' within their school, Brin said. 'Our world is very set up for partners or couples,' Stella, 19, told me. Teens get the message that certain activities are for two — 'this is for you and a partner, or this is for you and a friend,' Brin said. 'It's always expected that you have somebody else with you, or else you're kind of weird, like going to the movies by yourself.' Social media can amplify these pressures. Teens will hard-launch a best-friendship on Instagram just like people announce new relationships, Stella said. Some best friends will post about choosing their outfits together before going out. 'They will post aesthetic pictures, they will take trips,' Divya said. 'It does make me feel like, am I missing out?' Best friends are not mandatory Despite the messages kids get, experts say it's completely okay not to have one particular best friend. 'The best analogy is romantic relationships,' Kennedy-Moore said. 'Can you be happy single? Sure, absolutely, you can have other enriching relationships.' It's important 'to break through all-or-nothing thinking about friendships,' she added. She sometimes talks with kids about tiers of friendship, from kids you talk with at the bus stop to soulmates who know everything about you. 'We might have a math class friend, or we might have a neighbor friend, or we might have a soccer friend, and all of these have value.' For the teens who talked to me, having an official best friend was less important than having people to rely on. 'I don't necessarily feel like I had best friends this year,' Stella, a first-year college student, told me. 'But by the end of it, it was like, these are people that I feel like I can trust.' 'It doesn't really matter if you have the label of best friend, or if you're matching clothes or not, if you're wishing each other happy birthday or not on Instagram,' Medha, 15, told me. 'It just matters that you have someone to help you when you're feeling low, to congratulate you when you're feeling high, when you're very happy, and to keep motivating you all the time.' What I'm reading Some surveys show fewer parents are reading to their kids now than in the past. It could be one reason fewer kids are reading for pleasure. Even young kids see disasters like wildfires and worry about the future of our planet. These early educators are helping to give kids a sense of hope. After HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced last week that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would no longer recommend Covid vaccines for healthy kids, the agency stated that the shots would now be 'recommended vaccination based on shared clinical decision-making,' meaning kids can get them after talking with their doctor (the shots should still be covered by insurance). My little kid has been enjoying the picture book I Was So Mad, which is relatable for young children because they are always mad at you for telling them not to do cool stuff. From my inbox One of the best parts of writing this newsletter is hearing from young people directly about their lives. If you're a teenager and there's something you'd like to see me cover here — or something you feel like adults always get wrong about kids your age — feel free to get in touch at (if your parents are okay with it, of course). And thanks, as always, to readers of all ages for writing in! (By emailing, you acknowledge that we may use your message in a story, and a Vox reporter may follow up with you. You also agree to Vox Media LLC Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and Cookie Policy.)


New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Journalism's jockey readies for Triple Crown rematch with Sovereignty at Belmont Stakes
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Journalism is the lead story in horse racing in the days leading up the Belmont Stakes. The Preakness champion is the 8-5 favorite for Saturday's 157th running of the third jewel in the Triple Crown, just slightly more expensive than Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty, who is 2-1 on the morning line. Advertisement As with any juicy tale, Journalism's comes with a helping of controversy after his rock-'em, sock-'em dash to the wire at Pimlico on May 17. As the field turned for home, Journalism was on the rail and in a box, behind Gosger and Clever Again with Goal Oriented on his outside. Connections on all sides would run with their own accounts of what happened next. Advertisement According to the industry publication Paulick Report, Journalism's right shoulder appeared to bump Goal Oriented's left hip, which caused Goal Oriented to turn inward, thus sending Journalism bouncing into a collision with Clever Again. Jockey Umberto Rispoli muscled Journalism between the two horses and came out the other side only to see Gosger running away with the race. But then the bumper car turned into a top-fueled dragster and chased Gosger down. The pull quote from Clever Again's trainer Steve Asmussen was that Rispoli rode Journalism 'like a rented mule.' But Rispoli and Journalism's trainer Michael McCarthy tell it differently. 'That's part of horse racing. Sometimes you can have an easy trip, sometimes it gets a little crowded, you can have some bounce around. We came out of there pretty good,' Rispoli, the 36-year-old Italian who scored his first Triple Crown victory, told The Post as he watched Journalism work out on Saratoga's main track Tuesday morning. Advertisement 4 Jockey Umberto Rispoli road Journalism (2) to victory in the Preakness (above), but was second to Sovereignty in the Kentucky Derby. Getty Images 'When I saw Gosger open up four lengths in front of me, it puts you in a tough situation to think that you can go and get him. But [Journalism] got the job done.' 'Very brave effort, horse and rider,' McCarthy said. 'To do what they did inside the 16th pole is certainly something special. I read somewhere that [Journalism's] stride increased in length by about two feet in that last 16th of a mile, so that's pretty impressive.' In Saturday's Belmont Stakes, the second to be held at Saratoga during the $455 million renovation of Belmont Park, Journalism will get another crack at Sovereignty. Advertisement 4 Sovereignty, who won the Kentucky Derby but did not run in the Preakness, looks on from his barn at Saratoga on June 4, 2025 in preparation for Saturday's Belmont Stakes. Jason Szenes / New York Post The latter won their stretch battle in the Kentucky Derby by a head. It will be Journalism's third race in 35 days, while Sovereignty has been resting and training since the Derby. Rispoli, however, doesn't see it necessarily as just a two-horse battle in the expected field of eight. 'Obviously we are the two that won the first two legs and people want to see a rematch, but I think Baeza will be there as well,' said Rispoli, who has more than 2,000 career wins, with more than 600 coming since he moved from Italy to the United States in 2020. 'We don't need to disrespect any other horse in this field. If they are here, there's a reason.' 4 Journalism breezes during his workout at Saratoga Racecourse on June 4, 2025 in preparation for the Belmont Stakes. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images Rispoli knows the reason Journalism is here. 'He's special. He takes the job [seriously], and he knows when he needs to be really serious and when he can chill around,' the jockey said. 'It's a different horse. Hopefully the Belmont will give us another Triple Crown [victory].' For McCarthy, the 54-year-old former assistant to Todd Pletcher, the Preakness was his second career Triple Crown triumph. He sent Rombauer to the winner's circle in the 2021 Preakness. Rombauer then cashed a show ticket in the Belmont Stakes. Advertisement 4 Preakness winner Journalism walks on the Saratoga Racecourse track on June 3, 2025. Jason Szenes / New York Post McCarthy's training operation is based in California. He says this week's Upstate New York weather has been similar to what Journalism is accustomed to. This, however, will be the horse's first race at The Spa. Tuesday morning, McCarthy and an entourage walked Journalism from his barn, across four-lane Union Avenue, down a long, manicured horse path and into the paddock so he could get a taste of his surroundings. 'Just to give him some familiarity, something to do,' McCarthy said. 'We have a lot of time on our hands here.' Advertisement In due time, Journalism's story will be written in full.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
England reveal Jofra Archer comeback plan ahead of India series
Jofra Archer is primed to make his return to Test cricket in the second encounter with India at Edgbaston next month – provided the Sussex seamer proves his fitness in the County Championship. Archer has not played first-class cricket of any kind since 2021 due to a series of injury issues, and was not considered for England selection for the first Test at Headingley as he works his way back from a broken thumb suffered at the Indian Premier League (IPL). Advertisement The 30-year-old looks set to bolster England's options in Birmingham should he come through Sussex's clash with Durham, which begins on 23 June. Archer has featured regularly in England's white-ball sides over the last few years having made an eye-catching start to life in international cricket in the World Cup win and Ashes series in 2019. His possible return would come as a significant boost for England with their seam stocks hit by a hamstring injury to Gus Atkinson, who is expected to miss the first two Tests against India. "Jof's trucking along really well actually," said Luke Wright, the England selector and a former Sussex teammate of Archer's. "The plan is for him to play a few second team games, loading up in the second team for Sussex. And then the idea for him is to play for Sussex against Durham during the first Test. So he'll play for Sussex if all things go well, and then if all things go well fingers crossed he should be available for the second Test. Advertisement "Like anything with all these bowlers, he's got to keep ticking things off everyday with no setbacks but if all goes well and he gets through that Durham game then he's available potentially for selection for that second Test.' Jofra Archer is set to return to action for Sussex (Getty Images) Mark Wood and Olly Stone look likely to miss the entirety of the series after their own injury issues, resulting in a recall for Jamie Overton after three years out of the Test set-up. Chris Woakes, who is working his way back to full fitness, and Brydon Carse also return to a 14-man squad with Sam Cook and Josh Tongue retained after the win over Zimbabwe. England face a big call at No 3 for the first Test with Jacob Bethell back available. The left-hander batted with aplomb having earned a surprise promotion to the position on the tour of New Zealand late last year but all of England's incumbents, including Ollie Pope, made runs at Trent Bridge in the opening Test of the summer. Advertisement Wright admitted that Bethell, who made a fine 82 in the first one-day international against the West Indies, was pushing for selection though no final decision had yet been made. 'He's very close to [making the side], it's a great option to have, isn't it?' Wright conceded. 'What a talent we all see in him. When we get up to Leeds we'll have good discussions and look to announce it a few days out from the Test.' England squad for first Test against India at Headingley (20-24 June) Ben Stokes (Durham) – Captain Shoaib Bashir (Somerset) Jacob Bethell (Warwickshire) Harry Brook (Yorkshire) Brydon Carse (Durham) Advertisement Sam Cook (Essex) Zak Crawley (Kent) Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire) Jamie Overton (Surrey) Ollie Pope (Surrey) Joe Root (Yorkshire) Jamie Smith (Surrey) Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire) Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)