A returning WWE star has explained their decision to re-sign following their release.
On April 29, 2022, Dakota Kai was released from WWE after being a consistent figure on the NXT brand and working dark matches on the main roster.
Following her 30-day non compete clause, Kai didn’t take any bookings despite being a highly touted free agent in the business.
The former two-time NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion ended up returning to the company at WWE SummerSlam alongside Bayley and IYO SKY to form Damage CTRL.
Speaking with Ryan Satin on Out of Character, Kai explained why she took her time in making a decision to return.
She said:
“That was always in the back of my mind, ‘Should I not be hitting the ground running’ in terms of doing Indie promotions and things like that. I just didn’t have it in me to rush in after the 30 days were up and be like ‘boom, boom.’ Obviously, there were talks that were happening, but I think it worked out a lot better for me that I didn’t. I focused on streaming and something that was more relaxing and something that I love. It all worked out great and I came back into the company refreshed and with a nice outlook on everything that happened instead of trying to be like, ‘I have to do this, this, and this.’ Obviously, that’s good, but for me personally, I wanted to step back and look at everything, reassess, and make sure that…it’s not even about the bookings. I wanted to make sure, in my own mind, I wasn’t going into things just because I was like, ‘I have to capitalize on this’ and ‘after 30 days, I have to do this, this, and this.’ It was definitely a priority for me to worry about myself and how I was feeling.”
Kai’s return came off the heels of Triple H taking over all creative duties for the WWE main roster following Vince McMahon’s retirement.
Dakota Kai is currently one half of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions with IYO SKY after defeating Aliyah and Raquel Rodriguez on the September 12 edition of Raw.
Stay up to date with the WWE roster’s win-loss record (for televised matches) at this link.
Transcription via Fightful
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