The idea for Bayley‘s new WWE stable was actually pitched earlier this year.
As previously noted, Bayley, Dakota Kai, and IYO SKY all made their returns to WWE TV at SummerSlam in Nashville.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reports that has been training “for weeks” at the WWE Performance Center and Flatbacks. Talent noted on Saturday that the former SmackDown Women’s Champion was expected to return at the premium live event.
Dakota Kai was brought back to the company in a move that many expected Triple H to make now that he’s in charge of WWE’s creative direction. Kai was brought in for several dark matches last summer but was not called up when WWE held a draft. She remained in NXT until the company let her go in a wave of cuts in April. Ross Sapp notes that her talks with AEW didn’t advance past introductions.
The report reiterates that Io Shirai’s contract was set to expire soon. She had been off TV since NXT Stand & Deliver during WrestleMania 38 weekend in April. The stable was said to be pitched earlier this year before Dakota Kai’s release, but Vince McMahon rejected it. Raquel Rodriguez and Kay Lee Ray were also reportedly considered for the faction at one point.
Related: WWE SummerSlam Results (7/30/22): Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns
More must-reads: