How do you release Kairi Sane? | Column
Kairi Sane being part of WWE roster cuts on Friday is a riddle I can’t seem to solve.
At the time of her departure, there was no evidence she was on the chopping block at all. WWE had invested screen time in her story, and she’d even beaten IYO SKY in her last singles match on the 4/13 Raw.
Everyone was waiting for her to finally stand up for herself against Asuka, leading to what I, and I’m sure many others, assumed would be a long-running program between the two.
Was Kairi Sane’s WWE departure unexpected?
By all public accounts, nobody saw Sane’s departure coming.
IYO SKY mentioned that in her post to Sane on Saturday, writing:
“I understand that everyone, as an athlete, eventually faces a turning point when thinking about their life and career, but I feel so heartbroken that it came at such an unexpected time.”
Bayley wrote that she was having trouble “wrapping her head around this one” in regards to Sane’s departure as well.
Bayley wrote:
“I’m having a hard time finding words for this one. I love you and it was an honor to tell stories with you.”
When exactly the decision was made that Kairi would be part of the cuts is not clear.
Kairi Sane and Aleister Black releases share similarities
Sane and Aleister Black being cut from WWE was either a late decision, or the old idea of beating someone before they leave the territory is not known to TKO.
Black was released after having won his final three singles matches against Randy Orton on 2/20, Sami Zayn on 3/20, and Matt Cardona on 4/3. Even when he left AEW, he’d lost his final two matches (to Adam Cole and to Adam Copeland), after having only dropped one throughout the rest of his time with the company.
Sane was coming off a singles win over IYO SKY on the 4/13 Raw. Her absence will be a giant elephant in the room during anything to do with Asuka now for fans who had been invested in the story the two had been telling.
All of this suggests WWE either didn’t prepare for Sane or Black leaving, didn’t know it was going to happen, or it was decided at the last minute.
Who made the decision to cut Kairi Sane?
This may not feel like a Triple H decision, but nobody forced his hand here.
Roster cuts are a Triple H decision with Nick Khan input. Our own Dave Meltzer has been explaining this to people online the last few days.
“Nobody above Levesque is saying who to cut. Maybe Nick Khan, maybe not. Ari Emanuel isn’t sitting there saying we have to fire Zelina and Kairi. By and large the decision maker, for good or for bad, here is Paul. It’s like in other years where people blamed this person or that person when the decision was 100 percent Vince.
There’s not a chance TKO is ordering who to cut. It is possible they’ve got an unofficial salary cap and Levesque as the manager has to keep the number below that. Most likely the salary total would be a Khan decision, and as far as the key in the personnel decision, that’s Levesque although Khan having input and others having input is likely. It’s like Vince would consult with a few people but at the end, it was Vince’s call, not evil Jim Ross or evil Johnny Ace or evil JJ Dillon.”
“You think a guy at the level of Ari Emanuel is deciding on whether or not to keep Kairi Sane? You’re kidding yourself,” Meltzer continued.
What’s next for Kairi Sane?
I imagine, whatever she wants. Everyone will want her.
Tony Khan will want her. Stardom will want her back. TNA probably thinks she’d make an excellent addition to the Undead Realm, and Juggalo Championship Wrestling would love to put her in an angle that has something to do with who controls the company.
Kairi Sane’s departure from WWE isn’t bad for wrestling, it’s just bad for WWE.
Ian Carey is a writer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, whose work has been featured in NOW Magazine, The Huffington Post, and more. A lifelong wrestling aficionado born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, he has covered the industry for a decade and a half. He joined the f4wonline.com team in 2019.