WWE superstar Kiana James recently discussed the knee injury that derailed her 2024 main roster debut and what she did with that time.
She recently spoke to TMZ's Inside The Ring ahead of the Women's Elimination Chamber match and revealed that the injury initially took an emotional toll. However, she chose to use the setback as motivation instead of letting it define her. She then managed to come back stronger. James explained:
Emotionally it took a toll at first, because it's like you work so hard to get to that point and then you feel like it's ripped away from you. But then that mental toughness comes in and it's like — okay, this happened, I can't change it, so I can either let it define me or I can use it. And I decided: am I going to be someone where this defines my career, or is this just going to be something that happened? And I made a promise to myself that I would come back better and stronger.
Turning Rehab Into a Film Room
James, who was drafted to Raw in April 2024 and suffered the injury just weeks later, used the downtime for something she hadn't had time to do since entering WWE: a deep study of the craft.
I took the time, when I wasn't able to be in the ring or training in the gym, to start studying more and watching more film," she said. "Because coming into WWE, everything happened really fast for me. I took my first bump in April of 2021 and then I was signed in 2022. So it was just like, you're on TV — sink or swim, girl. The knee injury really allowed me to take a step back and watch film. I wasn't a lifelong fan, so there's decades of wrestling I can go back and watch and study. I do think I came back stronger.
James made her return to WWE action in July 2025, more than a year after going down with the injury.
Trusting the Body Again
Coming back from knee surgery carries its own psychological hurdles, and James addressed the mental side of that transition directly.
Coming back and getting the opportunities and that momentum feels amazing, but the first time going in, it's like — are we a little nervous?" she said. "But you just have to trust your body, trust the training. Once I let that mental crutch fall, it was just like riding a bike.
She also credited mental strength as the foundation of her competitive edge overall.
I definitely feel the nerves — I get nervous just like everyone else, but I use it to fuel me. I understand how powerful your mind is, and being able to take that nervous energy and channel it into something productive — that's kind of what I've done thus far and it's worked for me.
The Promise, Now Being Kept
James entered the 2026 Royal Rumble at number three and lasted 27 minutes — the biggest match of her career to that point. She described it as the fulfillment of what she'd been building toward during recovery.
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail," she said. "I've been working so hard towards getting an opportunity like this, so I was like, 'This is it — go do your thing.'
She now enters the Elimination Chamber on February 28 as one of six women with a potential WrestleMania 42 title shot on the line.
