It’s been a volatile week for the WWE Universe. After the excitement and disappointment of WrestleMania 42, many fans were let down by the 20+ releases from WWE. They’re particularly salty about WWE firing Kairi Sane. In the wake of Kairi Sane’s dismissal, pro wrestling journalist Dave Metzler speculated that The Pirate Princess requested her early release. After all, Kairi Sane already headed back to Japan. Now, Kairi Sane debunks Dave Metzler’s report.
WWE Releases Kairi Sane After WrestleMania 42
WWE released Kairi Sane less than one week after WrestleMania 42. Her departure sent shockwaves across the WWE Universe and the women’s locker room.
Kairi Sane was originally to play a role in an Asuka vs. Iyo Sky showdown at The Showcase of the Immortals.
However, The Kabuki Warriors were held off the card while Nikki Bella waited for clearance. If Nikki Bella couldn’t compete, the former Damage CTRL members were to be inserted into the Women’s Tag Team Title Fatal Four-Way. However, as we first reported prior to the show happening, Paige stepped in to fill that role.
Asuka and Iyo Sky were informed that they would be a focal match at Backlash. With these plans in place, the entire world was shocked to learn that Kairi Sane was given her release.
The former NXT Women’s Champion shed a heartfelt goodbye:
Almost immediately, word got out that Kairi Sane left the United States to return to Japan. This quick action caused Dave Metzler to erroneously speculate over why Kairi Sane was let go by WWE.
Why Did Dave Meltzer Say That Kairi Sane Wanted to Leave WWE?
The last time Kairi Sane left WWE, she went home to Japan. This was around 2020. At the time, Kairi Sane was a newlywed, in a long-distance relationship at the height of a pandemic.
Naturally, the Japanese native wanted to go back home to be with her husband. Just as she did then, when Kairi’s duties in America were done in 2026, she went home to Japan. This life-changing odyssey led Dave Metzler to speculate that she had requested her release so she could leave the States.
The long-time journalist shared his thoughts on Wrestling Observer Radio:
“The Kairi thing, the reason she was cut was, I think, she had kinda indicated that she wanted to move back.
The reality is, this is not a money issue. This company makes… whatever it is. The revenue between UFC and WWE, and throwing everything in, the revenue’s in the billions of dollars.”
Critics of Dave believe he created this story because Kairi returned to Japan so quickly, just as she did before leaving WWE for 3 years. While the pandemic played a role in Kairi’s decision to let her contract expire in 2020, she was also unhappy with how she was being used.
At the time, The Kabuki Warriors rarely defended their Tag Team Championships. In fact, they won the Titles from Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross in October 2019, and lost them back a few months later at WrestleMania 36 to almost no storyline. If WWE wasn’t going to use her during the pandemic, she wanted to go back home to her new husband.
It’s safe to assume Kairi Sane could’ve been disappointed about being left off of this year’s WrestleMania card. However, that didn’t push the former WWE Tag Team Champion to quit. Shortly after Dave Metlzer claimed she wanted to leave WWE, Kairi Sane debunks his story.
Kairi Sane Debunks Story That She Quit WWE
Although Dave Metzler had some valid reasons to believe Kairi Sane’s release was a mutual one, the former WWE Superstar is clapping back. The Pirate Princess insisted that she didn’t indicate her unhappiness and had no plans of leaving WWE.
Kairi Sane denied the speculations on X:
As you can see, Kairi claims she has never quit a job in her life. The 5’1″ Superstar also enjoyed her current role in WWE. Suffice to say, it’s a real disappointment for Kairi, her peers, and the fans!