Kairi Sane could show up at Backlash this weekend, with a report saying there is a better than 50 percent chance WWE brings her back to help wrap up the storyline now driving Asuka and Iyo Sky. The possibility surfaced as chants for Sane have taken over segments in the build to their match.
Bryan Alvarez said within WWE there is a better than 50 percent chance that Kairi shows up at Backlash “to at least finish off that storyline,” and the Wrestling Observer has also raised the prospect of her return at the event. Asuka and Iyo Sky are scheduled to clash this weekend, but the angle has put Sane squarely in the middle of their feud even after her release during the past two weeks of roster cuts.
That left WWE with a story that was built around Sane and then continued without her, a gap made more visible by the audience response during the recent build. Fans have repeatedly chanted for WWE to reinstate her, and Sane has answered them several times since leaving, saying she hears the support. For readers following the fallout, Jackie Redmond’s report on Kairi Sane’s WWE release after a long unfinished run adds more of the background to how the split came together.
What remains unclear is whether any appearance at Backlash would be a one-off meant to close the loop or the start of something larger. One possibility being discussed is that Sane wanted to return to Japan and WWE let her out of her contract, though that has not been confirmed. The company has already shown it will reverse course when a release draws a strong enough reaction: last year, R-Truth was brought back after being cut immediately after wrestling John Cena on his retirement tour. If WWE does use Sane at Backlash, the move would answer the chant-driven pressure in the room and give Asuka and Iyo Sky an ending the current storyline still seems to need.
