It appears that Io Shirai’s future in WWE & NXT is still up in the air with nothing confirmed as of yet.
It was recently reported that Io Shirai has not signed her contract renewal with WWE & had also told people in Japan that when her current WWE contract is up, she wanted to return to Japan and be closer to her family.
In response to the news and rumours surrounding her future, Io Shirai took to twitter and tweeted the following:
Rumors🤮
— 紫雷イオ、Io Shirai (@shirai_io) July 12, 2022
Now in an update for Dave Meltzer in the most recent Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Io Shirai is still yet to sign a new deal with WWE. However, people that know her from Japan believe that she could stay in WWE if she can get a Main Roster opportunity.
Those at NXT said last week that at the time Shirai had not signed a new contract that had been offered. They believed she was returning to Japan and Stardom now that Stardom has stronger financial backing from Bushiroad. Those close to Stardom did not indicate she was coming back, although did believe she would be moving back to Japan if she wasn’t on the main roster.
As noted, if she lets her contract expire without renewing she could work anywhere, whether it be Japan or the U.S., immediately. Still, she disputed this report. She had been injured and not been used in months but has been back training at the PC lately. Those who know her from Japan said she went to WWE with the goal of making the main roster and believe she would stay with a main roster deal. We haven’t heard about her signing a new deal this week after checking but there is an offer on the table and her current deal hasn’t expired yet.”
– Dave Meltzer
Io Shirai is one of wrestling’s great talents, so whether she ends up on WWE’s Main Roster or with another company, there is little doubt about whether she will be a success.
