Kairi Sane Bio: 5 Things You Need To Know About Her

Looking at her professional resume, it’s a little hard to believe that it belongs to just one person. Kairi Sane is a Japanese wrestler currently affiliated with the SmackDown brand of WWE. She has a laundry list of achievements to her name including four Artist of Stardom Championships, three Goddess of Stardom Championships, and one World of Stadium Championships, all of which she won while competing in the Japanese promotion World Wonder Ring Stardom.

Since leaving the promotion and joining the WWE in 2017, Kairi has continued the winning streak, establishing herself as one of the best wrestlers in the world. Shortly after arriving in the WWE as part of its NXT brand, she claimed victory at the inaugural Mae Young Classic tournament, beating out 31 other insanely talented wrestlers to the title.

Kairi Sane added another notch to her accomplishments in 2018 with a career-defining victory against Shayne Baszler that won her the NXT Women’s Championship. She then left NXT for SmackDown Live after being promoted to the main roster. Her elbow drop tactic is considered one of the best in the sport, and it has left opponents shivering in the ring on several occasions.

In 2018, Sports Illustrated ranked Kairi Sane at no. 8 on their list of top 10 female wrestlers, while Pro Wrestling Illustrated placed her at no. 10 on their list of top 50 female wrestlers.

Kairi Sane’s Bio

The title-winning wrestler’s real name is Kaori Housako. She was born in Hikari, Yamaguchi, Japan, on the 23rd of September 1988. Next to nothing is known about her parents and family except that she has a sister who is three years her senior. After graduating from high school, Kairi Sane enrolled at Hosei University where she bagged a degree in Japanese literature.

Her wrestling career began in 2011 when she started training with World Wonder Ring Stardom. After passing the required tests and completing the training program, Kairi began wrestling using the ring name Kairi Hojo. Her debut match was against Yuzuki Aikawa on January 7, 2012, and she lost. She then went on to fight other individual and tag team matches leading to her first title win on April 29, 2013. More victories and championships were quick to follow, punctuated by a few losses.

In 2016, Kairi was approached with an offer from WWE. The following year, she signed a three-year deal with WWE that would pay her $60,000 a year, a sum lower than what she was earning in Japan. In October of that same year, Kairi Sane debuted on NXT with a match against Aliyah, whom she defeated. In a few short months, she stacked up victory upon victory, claiming a number of Championship titles and other accolades along the way.

5 Things You Need to Know About Kairi Sane

1. She used to be an actress

What many of the wrestler’s fans don’t know is that Kairi Sane was working as an actress before she switched over to wrestling. In fact, it was during one of her theatre performances where she played the part of wrestling villain that she was discovered by the general manager of World Wonder Ring Stardom. Her acting credits include roles in Warate Iitomo!, Zenigata Kintaro, and Gachigase.

2. Kairi was an Olympic prospect in the yachting sport

In her life before the ring, Kairi was into yachting and she was quite gifted at it. She represented Japan at several national and international competitions and was headed for the Olympics until she quit. Her nickname Pirate Princess is inspired by this part of her life.

3. She decided to become a wrestler because it involved acting

Considering her artistic background, it is not surprising that Kairi Sane fell in love with the sport after she realized that it incorporated things she was already good at – acting and competing. The rest, as they say, is history.

4. Sane has a big heart

Kairi might be fierce and ruthless in the ring, but away from it, she is very generous and often devoted her time and resources to charitable causes such as teaching Japanese to orphans in Cambodia.

See Also: Megan Fliehr Biography Age, Height, Wedding, Children, Husband, Net Worth

5. Kairi has racked up an impressive net worth

With the level of success she has attained in her career, the Japanese pro wrestler has been able to amass considerable wealth for herself. She is estimated to be worth a little over $1 million.

Bonus Fact: Height and Weight

Kairi Sane is not the tallest or biggest female wrestling stars in the WWE, but she has never let her size hold her back. She is only 5 feet 1 inch tall (155 cm) with a bodyweight of 52 kg (115 pounds).

Complete profile of Kairi Sane