KAIRI’s contract with WWE came to an end in late July. With the entire wrestling world watching to see where the woman known as the “World Traveling Pirate Princess” will drop anchor next, her participation in an event hosted by Chris Jericho has officially been confirmed. As she finally begins to make her move, Weekly Pro Wrestling caught up with KAIRI to talk about what lies ahead.
The Reason for the Jericho Cruise
Interviewer: To tell the truth, we had originally booked this interview with you for a separate feature, but since your participation in the Chris Jericho-hosted event Rock ‘N’ Wrestling Rager at Sea (starting November 7, hereafter referred to as the Jericho Cruise) was announced on the very day of our interview, we would love to ask you about your future activities as well!
KAIRI (hereafter Kairi): The timing really was a complete coincidence, though (laughs). Thank you for having me.
Interviewer: The end of your contract with WWE was announced in April, and you officially departed the company at the end of July. Three months have passed since then.
Kairi: These past few months have been a very precious time for me to take a long, hard look at myself. Even while I wasn’t competing in matches, so many fans sent me warm messages, which made me truly happy. That support gave me immense strength, and right now, I am feeling very positive and forward-looking toward taking on new challenges.
Interviewer: Immediately after the announcement in April, the hashtag “#WeWantKairi” turned into such a massive movement on social media that it hit number one on X’s worldwide trends. With that kind of global reaction, all eyes are on what you will do next.
Kairi: That is precisely why I am giving so much careful thought to the next place I step into the ring and that first step I take. While making the most of the experience I have built up so far, I want to show an even further evolved version of myself, so I want to make a fresh start in a way that I am truly satisfied with. I have been continuing my training and physical conditioning for my in-ring return, and I have also started working on new ring gear, which is almost finished. Amidst all of that, I received a truly passionate offer from the Jericho Cruise. Above all, as the Pirate Princess, getting to do work aboard a ship makes my heart leap with excitement (laughs), so I decided I wanted to make this my first pro wrestling-related appearance since leaving WWE.
Interviewer: Will the Jericho Cruise serve as your return match?
Kairi: No, I won’t be wrestling a match this time. I am scheduled to do things like merchandise sales and autograph sessions, but more than anything, my primary feeling is that I want to cherish the opportunity to meet the international fans in person who have continued to support me since my time in WWE.
Interviewer: So a strong desire to give back to the fans played a major part in your decision?
Kairi: I don’t know if you can call it giving back, but I want to tell them in person that it was thanks to all the fans that I was able to get through that time. As a way of expressing my gratitude directly, I want to meet everyone with a smile.
Interviewer: Now that you have taken this first step by participating in the Jericho Cruise, I imagine people all over the world have all sorts of expectations, wondering, “What is Kairi going to do after this?”
Kairi: First of all, I am truly grateful that people continue to pay attention to me like this. Back then, even people who don’t usually post much on social media spoke up for me, and it really filled my heart with emotion. Seeing that made me realize all over again that there are still so many things I want to do, and there is still more scenery I want to show everyone.
New Gear, Physique, and Worldview: Preparations Steadily Underway for a Reborn KAIRI
Interviewer: I imagine there were many things you wanted to do, as well as things you weren’t able to do, as Kairi Sane.
Kairi: That’s right. I was able to have so many truly valuable experiences in WWE, and I believe every single one of them has led to who I am today. Of course, there are still plenty of things I wanted to do and things I wanted to express. That is why, in my next ring, I want to express my emotions more freely and to the absolute fullest, including sides of myself that I haven’t shown until now. Joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure—I want to pour all of it into the ring.
Interviewer: So you will be showing us an even more evolved Kairi in the ring?
Kairi: I am working hard so that everyone who has supported me up to now will be amazed and think, “She still has a side like this to show us!”
Interviewer: Is that still a little ways off?
Kairi: I want to show it to everyone as soon as possible. I am completely revamping both my ring gear and my entrance gown, and the worldview I want to present is already expanding inside my mind.
Interviewer: So preparations are steadily progressing.
Kairi: Yes. I am steadily moving forward with all the preparations I can make for my return. In the past, I didn’t really like watching my own matches, but right now, wanting to take a fresh look at myself, I have been rewatching footage of my past bouts. On top of that, I have been making an active effort to watch matches from various promotions in Japan and overseas. When I rewatch my own matches, I make all sorts of discoveries—like realizing I could execute a certain movement better, or noticing that a particular mannerism looks a bit unnatural. Wanting to gain more effortless control over my own body, I have been attending personal training specialized for athletes two to three times a week. Alongside weight training, of course, I am also studying body mechanics and core training.
Interviewer: You will celebrate the 15th anniversary of your debut next January. That is a career length where it is fair to call you a veteran, isn’t it?
Kairi: I want to keep evolving much further. I want to build the stamina to fight intensely even for 30 minutes, so I am also challenging myself with hard training that incorporates the kind of pacing and tempo changes found in pro wrestling—such as CrossFit and kickboxing. I am doing in-ring training as well; the other day, I spent two solid hours all by myself taking bumps and running the ropes so hard that I got bruises on my back (laughs). I think there are forms of expression that are only possible precisely because I have accumulated this much experience, and I want to be able to move better than ever before. Since people are paying such close attention to me like this, I want to deliver matches that surpass everyone’s expectations.
Interviewer: What about the place where you will be competing?
Kairi: I have an ideal vision in my mind, but I still don’t know yet whether it can be realized… Since I am the World-Traveling Pirate Princess, I would love for people to look forward to the elusive, unpredictable nature of it all—wondering, “Now then, which port will she drop anchor at next?” (laughs).
Interviewer: Will that be overseas? Or in Japan?
Kairi: Including that aspect, I am currently making various moves behind the scenes. I would be happy if everyone could wait just a little bit longer.
Interviewer: If that vision comes to fruition, do you think the fans will be surprised?
Kairi: If I can pull off what I am envisioning, I am certain everyone will really enjoy it.
Interviewer: Looking at your expression during this interview, it is clear how fulfilled you are heading into the start of this journey.
Kairi: I feel like I have become unburdened in a good way, or rather, I feel this is a precious time where I can once again expand my own potential. Challenging myself with new things every day is genuinely fun. Honestly, I might be the most excited right now that I have ever been (laughs). In order to return and enjoy pro wrestling to the absolute fullest, I am deliberately setting tough challenges for myself right now and trying all kinds of things. I want to turn all of my diverse experiences up to this point into my own strength, and in my next ring, express my own style of pro wrestling more freely and boldly than ever before. A new side of me that even I don’t know yet might emerge, and I want to take the emotions I have kept hidden inside until now and let them explode completely inside the ring.
Interviewer: Once the port you are landing at is decided, please let us interview you again!
Kairi: Likewise, I would love that! I hope to show everyone a brand-new KAIRI, so please look forward to it!
Translator’s Notes:
- Ring Name Styling and Editorial Convention (KAIRI vs. Kairi vs. Kairi Sane): Following her first departure from WWE in 2021, she adopted the all-caps ring name KAIRI for her international and Japanese appearances, distinct from her WWE persona Kairi Sane and her original rookie ring name Kairi Hojo. In the magazine text, Weekly Pro Wrestling introduces her by her official free-agent moniker KAIRI in the headlines and first dialogue tag, then switches to phonetic katakana (Kairi) for subsequent speaker tags in accordance with standard Baseball Magazine Company (BBM) house style.
- The “Pirate Princess” Persona and Nautical Metaphors: KAIRI’s long-standing epithet in Japan is Sekai o Tabi Suru Kaizoku Ōjo (“The World-Traveling Pirate Princess”), rooted in her collegiate competitive yachting background at Hosei University. Throughout the interview, both KAIRI and the interviewer lean heavily into maritime wordplay: the sub-headline uses shukkō byōyomi (“countdown to setting sail/departure from port”), and KAIRI frames her next wrestling destination as a “port” (minato) where she will land or drop anchor next (Tsugi wa doko no minato ni oriru deshō?).
- Four-Character Idioms (Yojijukugo):
- Kidoairaku (Joy, Anger, Sorrow, and Pleasure): Used by KAIRI when discussing how she felt constrained in what she could express previously and now wants to pour the entire spectrum of human emotion into the ring.
- Shinshutsu-kibotsu (Elusive / Appearing and Disappearing Unexpectedly): Literally meaning “appearing like gods and vanishing like demons,” KAIRI uses this classical four-character compound to describe her upcoming free-agent schedule, hinting that she may pop up across multiple promotions unexpectedly rather than being tied down to a single home promotion right away.
- Contract Timeline & The #WeWantKairi Movement: As noted by the interviewer, reports of her impending WWE departure surfaced in April 2026, sparking a global fan campaign under the hashtag
#WeWantKairi(modeled after the earlier#WeWantCodyand#WeWantRTruthmovements) that reached #1 worldwide on X, before her contract officially expired at the end of July 2026. When KAIRI mentions “thanks to all the fans, I was able to get through that period” (ano toki o norikoerareta) and how “even people who don’t usually post much on social media spoke up for me,” she is directly referencing that spring period between the news of her non-renewal and her official exit. - Puroresu Terminology & Training Nuances:
- Sekai-kan (Worldview / Aesthetic Universe): In Japanese pro wrestling journalism, sekai-kan refers to the holistic presentation of a wrestler’s character—combining entrance music, gown, ring gear, lighting, and in-ring storytelling.
- Kankyu (Pacing / Tempo Changes): Literally “looseness and urgency” or “slow and fast,” kankyu is a foundational concept in Japanese pro wrestling psychology describing the ebb and flow of a match—alternating between methodical selling/holds and explosive high-speed sequences. KAIRI notes that she is using CrossFit and kickboxing specifically to replicate the anaerobic-to-aerobic kankyu demands of a 30-minute singles match.
- Ukemi and Rōpuwāku (Taking Bumps and Running the Ropes): KAIRI mentions doing two straight hours of solo ring drills until her back bruised—a traditional Japanese dojo conditioning practice where a wrestler repeatedly hits the stiff steel-cable ropes and takes flat-back bumps to re-harden their body (“ring calluses”) after time away from active competition.
- Shosa (Mannerisms / Comportment): Often used in traditional Japanese performing arts (like kabuki or tea ceremony) to describe grace and physical posture, KAIRI uses shosa to critique the subtle micro-movements and transitions in her past match tape.