WWE News: Company Reportedly Turned Down Special Request From Kairi Sane

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter‘s Dave Meltzer, by way of WrestlingNews.co, WWE officials have blocked Stardom’s attempt to bring in Kairi Sane for an anniversary show.

The Japanese promotion is trying to bring back some notable stars from its past back for the event, which will take place at the Budakon Hall on March 3. Sane had a successful career there before joining the biggest sports entertainment entity in the world and recently met with WWE’s Japanese office about a one-off appearance.

However, Meltzer noted that the meeting went nowhere as Vince McMahon’s company won’t allow Sane to work with a competitor. Even though she stopped wrestling in WWE to return to Japan earlier this year, she is still technically under contract and employed as an ambassador.

It’s unlikely that Sane would get physical at the show as she’s seemingly retired from in-ring competition for the time being. Stardom could still be viewed as a rival, however, and WWE officials rarely let their staff members work with promotions who interfere with their business interests.

The timing is also interesting given that WWE is looking to expand its footprint in Asian territories. As The Inquisitr previously documented, the company will launch an NXT brand in India in the near future. Officials are reportedly considering black-and-gold brand offshoots that focus on gaining a stronger foothold in other Asian nations, such as Japan.

There has been some speculation about Sane helping out with the formation of a possible NXT Japan. As The Inquisitr article pointed out, it’s been well documented how Triple H was interested in acquiring Pro Wrestling NOAH with the intention of rebranding it as a black-and-gold brand territory. The pandemic put an end to those plans, however.

Stardom management has reportedly been keen to bring back Sane for quite some time, however. Prior to her accepting her ambassador role in WWE, it was speculated that she and Io Shirai were going to be offered big-money deals to join the Japanese promotion as active in-ring competitors when their contracts expired.

Those rumors were effectively crushed when Sane opted to hang up her boots. At the same time, her presence at a Stardom show could still attract more eyes to the product, especially when WWE management could be focused on trying to steal them for their own interests.

It remains to be seen if WWE will make an exception for Sane, but as of this writing, the answer is reportedly a resounding no.