WWE star Kiana James was sick and uninterested in sitting behind a desk — so she determined to offer suplexes a attempt.
“I come from a company background,” James, 28, completely advised Us Weekly. “I used to be in company America and I fell in love with wrestling and give up my job to coach.”
James enrolled at Flatbacks Wrestling Faculty in Forest Metropolis, Florida, which was based by professional wrestling stars Shawn Spears and Tyler Breeze.
“I’ve an schooling and a profession to fall again on, however I by no means considered falling again,” she stated. “That was by no means an possibility. I used to be going to turn into a WWE famous person and I used to be going to place the work in till that occurred.”
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James described the transition from her 9-5 job to the wrestling world as “two totally different lives.”
“I wish to assume that my journey, each piece of it, led me right here,” James stated. “I feel that being a WWE famous person blends all of my worlds. I come from a company background, however I grew up a aggressive gymnast. In school (at Morningside College in Sioux Metropolis, Iowa), I did aggressive dance and cheer. I’ve carried out in entrance of a crowd. I’ve love for the vitality of a crowd. The acrobatics, the athleticism, the competitors, it simply blends all of it.”
She added, “I’ve to do that. I used to be born for this.”
When she made the selection to pursue wrestling, James had the total assist of her accomplice, Zach Klingensmith. The couple finally bought married in January 2022.
“I made a decision, ‘Hey, I wish to be a WWE famous person,’ and he was like, ‘Nicely, it looks like Florida is the place to do it,’” James stated. “I didn’t have a contract or something and he was like, ‘Let’s give up our jobs. I consider in you.’ From day one, he give up his job and moved to Orlando only for me to chase my dream. He’s my journey or die.”
James debuted in WWE developmental model NXT in February 2022.
Shortly after making her essential roster debut on an episode of Uncooked in June 2024, James suffered a leg damage, which stored her out of motion for over a 12 months.
Earlier this month, she gained the most important match of her profession in a triple risk in opposition to Charlotte Aptitude and Nia Jax to earn a spot within the upcoming ladies’s Elimination Chamber match.
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James will step contained in the Chamber construction with Alexa Bliss, Tiffany Stratton, Asuka, Rhea Ripley and Raquel Rodriguez with a title match at WrestleMania 42 on the road.
“I at all times wish to say, ‘Keep prepared so that you don’t must prepare,’” James stated in regards to the match. “So on the subject of coaching, food regimen, physique, all that stuff, I’m at all times honed in. However the Chamber is like nothing else. However it will get me excited. I feel my aggressive edge is my thoughts and my strategic methods of pondering. Now I’ve a cage and pods and weapons and no guidelines.”
She continued, “I’ve been watching previous Chamber matches from the previous, males’s and ladies’s, to research like, ‘Oh, I may take from that’ or ‘That’s actually cool.’”
WWE Elimination Chamber streams stay on the ESPN App Saturday, February 28, at 7 p.m. ET from the United Heart in Chicago.