Kairi Sane Opens Up About WWE Release, Her Biggest Regret, And Future

Kairi Sane was released by WWE in April despite being prominently featured on television in a storyline with Asuka and IYO SKY.

Kairi originally left WWE in December 2021, but returned in November 2023.

Speaking to Ring Plus (translations via KairisWrestling), Kairi opened up about her WWE release.

“It was just as much of a bolt out of the blue for me as it was for everyone else-my friends around me felt the same way. I was appearing on RAW almost every single week without missing a beat, and I was involved in storylines both inside and outside the ring. The storyline was reaching a turning point where my character was about to explode into action… I had been building up frustration and holding back for so long, and I was finally at the stage where I thought, “Now I can unleash my true potential!” So getting released right at that moment was a huge shock,” she said.

Kairi revealed she returned to Japan about two weeks after her release.

Asked if she ever thought of retirement, she replied, “To be honest, if the storyline with Asuka and me had reached a proper conclusion, I might not have had any regrets. That was how much resolve I had going into it, and I gave it everything to make it exciting. But as I mentioned, it ended right in the middle of everything, so the idea of retiring didn’t cross my mind right away.

“I wanted to give it one last push until the very end. That’s why I couldn’t retire halfway through like this—not until I felt within myself that I had truly given it my all and done everything I could….So retirement never crossed my mind. Though, this release is probably the biggest setback of my entire career. But isn’t it great material for an autobiography? (laughs)”

Asked if she’s received offers from other promotions, she replied, “Right after the release, my head was an absolute jumble, so I tried not to think about it for a bit. But now, I’m extremely grateful… I’ve received offers from so many promotions around the world that I can’t even count them on both hands-both inside Japan and internationally. I actually met with the people who reached out from Japan.”

Fans can learn more about outside interest in Kairi by clicking here.