Possible Reason For Kairi Sane’s WWE Release Revealed
Kairi Sane was recently released from WWE along with several other talents across different brands.
The culling of the roster is now believed to be a ‘post-WrestleMania tradition’ when a handful of wrestlers are let go either due to their contracts having ended or being near the end.
Along with the Japanese wrestler, popular superstars like Aleister Black, Zelina Vega, Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley (Motor City Machine Guns), Santos Escobar, and the entire Wyatt Sicks faction were also let go.
Kairi Sane’s release, especially, came as a shock to many wrestling fans because she was involved in a riveting storyline with Asuka and IYO SKY.
Furthermore, many believed that the 37-year-old was a devoted soldier who gave her gimmick everything that was needed. Plus, it seemed like a betrayal was on the horizon for her due to Asuka’s mistreatment of her every week.
The storyline, though, did not get a closure owing to her unexpected release on Friday, April 24.
While WWE gave no official reason for Kairi Sane’s release, or any other wrestler for that matter, it may have something to do with her contract, according to a former employee.
Discussing the releases on The Coach & Bro podcast, Vince Russo shared his thoughts, citing the duration of her contract as the potential reason for her departure.
Listen, I’m almost certain that it was her contract. It was dollars and cents, and she was probably due for a big raise, maybe going into a third, fourth, or a fifth year, whatever. It’s gotta be that because she was a main player. She was on that main stage. It seemed like she was connected to the right people. It’s gotta be something like that. [54:19 onwards]
Kairi Sane Chants Heard On WWE Raw
It is by now well-known that the WWE Universe does not hide its displeasure when it comes to some of the decisions made by the Stamford promotion’s higher-ups.
One of the loudest encores was heard last year when the company released R-Truth out of the blue.
As soon as the veteran wrestler announced his departure on Twitter, large amounts of support flew in for him. Some fans even called for Triple H to be fired.
During live shows, fans changed “We Want Truth” several times, with the hashtag trending on X, too. Within a week, the 54-year-old was back on television.
Triple H & Truth both discussed his release on Season 2 of WWE: Unreal, explaining that a miscommunication between all parties involved created the mess.
A similar chant was heard on the April 27 episode of Raw during IYO SKY’s match against Becky Lynch. In the closing minutes, Kairi Sane’s senpai, Asuka, caused a distraction for her compatriot, resulting in a loss for her.
Subsequently, loud chants of “We Want Kairi” were heard inside the Sames Auto Arena. Whether or not the fans’ backlash to Sane’s release forces the company to reverse its decision remains to be seen.
Elsewhere, Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer has claimed that Kairi Sane’s release had nothing to do with money, but rather her desire to return to Japan.