Former WWE star Dakota Kai announced for indie return

The former Dakota Kai is getting back into the ring.

Since her release from WWE back in May, Kai has been on a break from wrestling. That will be ending soon, though, with Pro Wrestling Eve announcing that Kai will be competing at its Wrestle Queendom VIII show on March 8, 2026. She is being billed as “Charlie” and is set to challenge AEW star Kris Statlander for the Eve International Championship.

Wrestle Kingdom VIII is happening on International Women’s Day in 2026. The show will be held in London, England at Indigo at The O2.

It remains to be seen if this will be Kai’s first match back or if she will be taking more bookings before then. During a stream on her “charliegirl” Twitch channel this September, Kai said she missed wrestling and would be returning after taking some time away.

“I miss wrestling, you guys. We’re going to get back into it,” she said. “It’s just one of those things where it’s been nice to have a little bit of a break. I’ve been doing it for a long time, longer than the last seven years I was with WWE, you know what I mean? So it is nice to take a step back… but I really do miss it.”

Along with streaming on Twitch, Kai co-hosts a podcast with WWE’s Zelina Vega.

Pro Wrestling Eve is a UK-based women’s wrestling promotion that has existed since 2010. Will Ospreay is involved with helping the promotion behind the scenes.

Wrestle Queendom is Eve’s biggest event. The name of the show is a takeoff of NJPW’s annual Wrestle Kingdom spectacular.

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Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier

Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.

In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.