After missing around a year due to injury-related reasons, promising WWE Raw Superstar Kiana James found her way back to the ring last night. Interestingly, she wrestled in a taped match after appearing just before SmackDown aired on the USA Network, confirming that she is cleared to wrestle.
During the July 18 episode of SmackDown, the WWE Raw Superstar was seen in the background during an Alexa Bliss-Charlotte Flair segment, talking to new United States Champion Giulia. As such, her comeback was kept quiet and was further reserved for a later show.
Before Smackdown taping began, Kiana James wrestled Michin’ in a match that will air on Main Event later this week. It was James’ first match since last year, when she was still listed as a WWE Superstar. As she’s been out of action for over a year due to a leg injury, there’s still no update on whether WWE intends to use her on the blue brand.
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"I got us a Tag Team Title Match at SummerSlam."
But you guys aren’t friends? 🤨 @MsCharlotteWWE @AlexaBliss_WWE pic.twitter.com/N4L3Sfe5m4
— WWE (@WWE) July 19, 2025
Kiana James returned to WWE in her first match in over a year, facing Michin on a taping of Main Event before today’s #SmackDown. pic.twitter.com/p1uBCvnxhk
— Pro Wrestling & MMA News (@PWMMANews) July 19, 2025
WWE Raw: Kiana James only wrestled in two matches after the 2024 Draft
James is mostly known for her brass heel run in NXT, where she feuded with top stars such as Lyra Valkyria and Becky Lynch. For once, she had also held the NXT Women’s Tag Team titles with Fallon Henley. It was during the 2024 WWE Draft that she was called up to the WWE Raw roster, but only wrestled a couple of matches on the red brand before being sidelined.
Competing in her debut TV match on WWE Raw in the main event scene, James defeated Natalya Neidhart, which to date remains the best accolade of her career. Her last match on WWE’s flagship show came on the June 17 episode of last year, where she faced IYO SKY and Zelina Vega in a triple threat Money in the Bank qualifier and came up short.
After this match, there was no trace of James on WWE Raw, raising eyebrows among the fans about her status with the company. Later, PWInsider reported in early September that she was out of action with a leg injury, contributing to her sudden disappearance at the most unwanted phase when she was about to receive a push given her natural heel abilities.