It’s been nearly a year since Dakota Kai’s time as a member of the WWE roster came to an end.
Charlie, the 37-year-old talent who used to wrestle in WWE under the stage name Kai, last appeared in the ring back in March 2025. However, she’s not done wrestling just yet.
The Kiwi talent will make her in-ring return as part of Pro Wrestling EVE’s Wrestle Queendom card in London, England on March 6. She’ll be going head-to-head with former AEW Women’s Champion Kris Statlander, who she described as a “bucket-list” opponent.
Many ex-WWE talents are quick to return to the ring after parting ways with the company. However, in Charlie’s case, she felt that a break was needed. She explained in a recent interview with Busted Open Radio that the time away from wrestling allowed her to “rebuild” herself, as the WWE departure made her question if she even has a future in the business.
“I think I definitely needed to take that sort of step back,” she said. “I was incredibly grateful for my time with WWE, you know, everyone I met there and worked with, the locker room especially, such a big part of my heart loves that time. I think I just really needed to take a step back and sort of rebuild myself, in terms of confidence and what I thought about myself as a wrestler and in this world. I didn’t really know if I still had a place in this world. It’s one of those things, being in a company, it was sort of a glass ceiling … I just needed to build my confidence back up, and I think we’re really there.”
Charlie noted two main goals as she begins the next chapter of her career: Staying healthy and falling back in love with the industry.
“Find that love in terms of why I do this again [is a goal] … Going forward, it’s just making sure I’m good health-wise, that being mental and physical as well. So, focusing on that, rehabbing all the time, because it is a 24/7 thing, and just making sure I’m taking care of my mind, my body.”
Charlie is part of a stacked all-women’s card coming up next month by Pro Wrestling EVE. The show will also feature appearances from Willow Nightingale, Syuri, Rhio, AZM, Harley Cameron, Miyu Yamashita, and Jamie Hayter.
