Former WWE Divas Champion Kaitlyn has revealed that her return for the 2018 Mae Young Classic involved an unexpected disagreement over her ring name, with Triple H reportedly questioning her reasons for wanting to compete under her real name.
During an appearance on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, Kaitlyn, whose real name is Celeste Bonin, discussed the circumstances surrounding her brief WWE comeback and the conversations that took place before she agreed to participate in the tournament.
Kaitlyn explained that former WWE Senior Director of Talent Development Canyon Ceman contacted her about returning to the company. Although she was interested in wrestling again, she was reluctant to revive the Kaitlyn character. “Essentially, I didn’t want to go back as Kaitlyn. I hated the name, Kaitlyn. It’s not that I hated it, it just didn’t resonate. I’m like, ‘Who is that?’ At the time, I had Celestial Bodies, and I had this conversation with Canyon (Ceman), and he came back to me, and he’s like, ‘Hunter thinks that you just want to wrestle under your name because it’s going to build your business.’”
According to Kaitlyn, Triple H believed her preference for using her real name might have been connected to promoting Celestial Bodiez, the fitness apparel business she established after leaving WWE in 2014.
However, Kaitlyn maintained that her hesitation was primarily about her lack of connection to the Kaitlyn name rather than an attempt to promote her business. “I’m like, even if that was the case. But it was over a weird name thing. If I was like, ‘Oh, I really want a contract, I think I would have been fine going back.’”
Despite the disagreement, Kaitlyn ultimately returned for the 2018 Mae Young Classic, defeating Kavita Devi in the opening round before losing to Mia Yim in the second round.
Looking back, Kaitlyn said she was grateful for the opportunity to experience the WWE Performance Center and compete against Yim, whom she already knew through their interactions on social media. “I’m really glad I did because I got to experience the Performance Center, and I wrestled, I can’t remember her name for my first match. It was like a very basic match, but my second match I wrestled Mia Yim, and Mia Yim is dope. I had never met her in person, but she was a big supporter of Celestial Bodiez, and she was posting my stuff and tagging me.”
Kaitlyn praised Yim’s wrestling style and described their tournament encounter as a particularly satisfying experience.
Although she lost the match by submission, Kaitlyn said she was proud of their performance and would have been content if it had marked the end of her WWE in-ring career. “I thought she had a cool style, and we had a great match. We had such a good match. I tapped out, and I was so proud of it, and I loved it. I was like if I never wrestle again for WWE, this is such a good match. I would be happy if this is my last match.”
The former Divas Champion also recalled a memorable moment immediately following the match, when Triple H appeared and surprised Yim with a WWE contract offer. “So I tapped out, and I was coming out of the ring, and then this was at Full Sail, and then Hunter comes out, and this was a shoot. He announced it. He gave her a contract that night. That’s when she got her contract, and I was like this is so dope! I wanted that for her. I think she had been wrestling for a while and she didn’t have a contract, and then they offered me a contract.”
Kaitlyn revealed that WWE subsequently offered her a contract as well, although she ultimately did not return to the company for another full-time run.
Having originally departed WWE in 2014, Kaitlyn had shifted her focus toward business ventures outside professional wrestling, including Celestial Bodiez.
While her 2018 comeback did not lead to a permanent return, Kaitlyn said she remains appreciative of the experience, particularly her match with Yim and the opportunity to participate in the Mae Young Classic.
