Kiana James | |
---|---|
Birth name | Kayla Inlay |
Born | Sioux City, Iowa, U.S. | May 23, 1997
Spouse(s) | Zach Klingensmith (m. 2022) |
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Kiana James Kayla Inlay Xtina Kay[1] |
Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) |
Billed from | Sioux City, Iowa |
Trained by | |
Debut | September 11, 2021[1] |
Kayla Klingensmith (née Inlay; born 23 May 1997), is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE performing under the ring name Kiana James and is a former NXT Women's Tag Team Champion.
Inlay was born in Sioux City, Iowa. She completed her elementary education at East High School and later graduated from Morningside University in 2019 with a degree in science.[2]
On the September 21, 2021 episode of AEW Dark, Inlay made her in-ring debut under the name Xtina Kay, losing to The Bunny.[3]
Inlay made her WWE debut under the ring name Kayla Inlay on the February 1, 2022 episode of NXT, losing to Sarray.[4] Inlay was repackaged as Kiana James and took on a businesswoman gimmick, debuting in the NXT Women's Breakout Tournament on May 17, losing to Roxanne Perez in the first round.[5] James would have her first televised win on the June 24 episode of NXT Level Up by defeating Brooklyn Barlow.[6] On the July 19 episode of NXT, James competed in a 20-woman battle royal to determine the number one contender for the NXT Women's Championship, eliminating Fallon Henley but was eliminated by Nikkita Lyons.[7] James then feuded with Lyons after insulting her looks but lost to her on the August 9 episode of NXT and in a tag match alongside Arianna Grace against Lyons and Zoey Stark on the September 13 episode of NXT.[8][9] James would have a short feud with Dana Brooke on WWE Main Event, defeating her on November 3.[10] James would start a feud against Henley with whom she would bet her parents' bar against the offer that James offered her.[11][12] On the November 29 episode of NXT, James defeated Henley.[13] At NXT Deadline, James competed in the Women's Iron Survivor Challenge to determine the number one contender to Mandy Rose's NXT Women's Championship, which was won by Perez.[14] On the December 27 episode of NXT, James ended her feud with Henley after losing to her in a Battle for the Bar.[15]
At New Year's Evil on January 10, 2023, James competed in a 20-woman battle royal to determine the number one contender to Roxanne Perez's NXT Women's Championship, being eliminated by Lyra Valkyria.[16] On February 5, at NXT Vengeance Day, James and Fallon Henley defeated Katana Chance and Kayden Carter to win the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship, making it the first title in James' career.[17][18] On April 1, at NXT Stand & Deliver, James and Henley lost the tag titles to Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn. On the April 25, 2023 episode of NXT, After James and Jensen were defeated by Josh Briggs and Fallon Henley, James walked out on Jensen causing Jensen to go back to Briggs and Henley. [19]On May 9 episode of NXT, in the first round of the tournament for the vacated NXT Women's Championship, James was defeated by Valkyria, eliminated in the first round.[20]