Photo: Released WWE Star Shows Off New Look, Confirms New Name
Dakota Kai is preparing to turn a new leaf.
On Tuesday, Kai officially became a free agent along with nine other former WWE/NXT Superstars who were released on April 29.
Besides confirming her new ring name to be King Kota, which she filed to trademark on May 9, Kai shared a few pics of her new look via Twitter. The former two-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion is now sporting a hairdo with a blend of pink, grey and black streaks, as opposed to the all-pink style she was last seen with.
In this very moment, I'm King. Kota. pic.twitter.com/UFpxNp46Xx
— 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖑𝖎𝖊𝖌𝖎𝖗𝖑 🎮 (@ImKingKota) May 31, 2022
In recent weeks, there have been calls from wrestlers and fans alike for AEW to sign the talented Kiwi wrestler. WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page, for one, believes Kai would be a great asset to AEW's women's division.
"I was surprised they [WWE] got rid of Dakota [Kai]," DDP told SportsKeeda's The Bro Show recently. "She's good-looking, her work is really good, I was expecting to see her up there, but she never got that shot. If I was Tony Khan, I'd pick her ass up. They have some good talent there with the women now. WWE's women's talent is off the charts. Most of the girls are better than the guys."
In the aftermath of her WWE release, Fightful Select reported that Kai's contract was set to expire in April 2023 and she had no intention of re-signing with the company. Another report from The Wrestling Observer suggested that WWE didn't view her as "main roster material" after she worked several dark match tryouts in January.
Among the others released on April 29, Stokely Hathaway [Malcolm Bivens] has already debuted at Sunday's Double or Nothing pay-per-view, Steph De Lander [Persia Pirotta] is booked for several future indie dates, and Parker Boudreaux [Harland] is ready to prove his naysayers wrong. There is no word yet on what the future holds for the likes of Raelyn Divine, Draco Anthony, Vish Kanya, Mila Malani and Blair Baldwin.