Kairi Sane says she never saw her release coming. Months after quietly leaving WWE, the former Women’s Champion has finally opened up in detail about the moment she learned she was being released—and by the sound of it, she was every bit as shocked as the fans watching it unfold.
Speaking to ShuPro, Kairi admitted the decision blindsided her because, from her perspective, everything was finally falling into place on RAW. She wasn’t sitting on the sidelines. She wasn’t waiting for creative. She says she was on television every week, involved in multiple storylines and convinced the biggest chapter of her WWE run was about to begin.
“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 story 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.”
That, she says, is what hurt the most. It wasn’t simply losing her job. It was losing the chance to finish the story she’d spent months building. Kairi explained that she had completely bought into WWE’s vision, throwing everything she had into the role because she believed the payoff was finally around the corner. Instead, everything stopped overnight.
“I think the people who supported me were building up frustration too, saying things like, ‘I’m looking forward to Kairi’s big moment.’ That anticipation was my own motivation as well. I had finally recovered my true pro wrestling style, generated momentum for WWE, and was working hard with the determination to make a huge impact for both WWE and myself. But then the thread snapped completely, and for a while, I couldn’t think of anything.
That was how dedicated I had been—putting everything I had into WWE. I never cut corners, and I intended to fulfill the role given to me with all my strength. Having that storyline cut off right in the middle was what left the biggest regret.”
As difficult as that period was, Kairi says one thing completely changed her outlook. After finally working up the courage to look at social media, she discovered thousands of fans rallying behind her with the #WeWantKairi movement.
“Yes, that’s right. Wondering what kind of reaction there might be, I summoned the courage to open social media, only to find the ‘#WeWantKairi’ movement was already happening. It actually hit number one in the world trends. I was truly saved by that.”
She admitted she never expected the reaction to become as massive as it did, especially with so many wrestlers being released around the same time. Seeing fans from all over the world campaign for her made her realize just how many people had connected with her work—even when she wasn’t positioned as one of WWE’s biggest stars.
“Even though so many wrestlers—both men and women—were released, such a huge movement started for me. People were posting things like ‘What a waste’ or ‘Just when things were taking off.’ Fans I’d never even noticed before were thinking of me, using hashtags, and sharing messages across the world. I was shocked from the very bottom of my heart.
In WWE, I was never in a position to stand at the center of the storyline. But within the roles assigned to me, I always tried to make things entertaining and put my own creative spin on my character. Realizing that people had been watching so closely and supporting me like that made me so happy. It made me think, ‘I can’t let things end here.'”
Those comments come just weeks after Kairi teased her next move with the message, “How Far I’ll Go… See you soon.❤️” While she still hasn’t revealed where she’ll wrestle next, one thing is clear after this interview: her WWE exit wasn’t the ending she wanted, and she’s determined to make sure it isn’t the ending of her wrestling story either.
Where do you want to see Kairi Sane wrestle next—WWE, AEW, STARDOM, or somewhere else? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
