It was only this past weekend that Toni Storm defeated her WWE NXT UK rival, Rhea Ripley, to become crowned NXT UK’s Women’s Champion. This title change happened at NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool. Her victory makes her the first-ever New Zealand born champion in WWE history.

Toni Storm was recently interviewed by Planeta Wrestling. During their conversation, Storm discussed a range of different topics including her dream match opponent at WrestleMania, and her thoughts on WWE NXT’s impact on independent wrestling.

“Rowdy” vs “The Man” vs “The Boss”

Although initially naming Ronda Rousey, Becky Lynch, and Sasha Banks as Superstars she would like to compete with, it was Becky Lynch that would take the honor.

“I really want to be in there with Becky,” Storm confessed. “She’s someone that’s inspired me so much, ya know? She’s the man. I just love her strength, and I love her fire, and she’s a strong woman, and that inspires me. That’s why I keep doing this.”

As the discussion turned to indie wrestling, and WWE’s potential impact on that as an industry, Storm reflected that “Independent wrestling is at the best it’s ever been, and then what WWE has done, they just come in, and they just elevated it for us so that we can pursue more.”

She continued, “I’m so thankful for that because it’s just making it more mainstream, and making it more popular, and that’s what we needed. I think independent wrestling needs more exposure because it’s so incredible and this [WWE NXT UK] is going to help it a lot.”

Her comments are especially interesting given Triple H’s recent insight into the perceived show hierarchy in WWE. Could this be a further indication as to where we are heading?

NXT UK’s first ever Takeover event is currently in full swing. In the semi-main event of the show Rhea Ripley defended her NXT UK Women’s Championship against Toni Storm.

The Blackpool crowd were firmly behind Storm throughout the bout. Storm would take the win after hitting her Storm Zero finishing move and getting the pinfall. Following the win Storm celebrated with the crowd.

Winner of the 2018 #WWEMYC and now the NEW @NXTUK Women’s Champion… #ToniStorm. #ToniTime #NXTUKTakeOver: Blackpool @WWEUK @WWENetwork #WeAreNXTUK pic.twitter.com/gE4TNGZrUZ

— Triple H (@TripleH) January 12, 2019

WWE NXT UK star Toni Storm has a big match ahead of her. She’s set to challenge Rhea Ripley for the NXT UK Women’s Championship. The match will go down at the NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool event on Saturday, January 12th. A big showing in Blackpool could help Storm make an even bigger name for herself in the WWE.

In fact, she draws inspiration from, arguably, WWE’s hottest star at the moment. Speaking to Express.co.uk recently, Storm explained why Lynch is her “biggest inspiration” in professional wrestling after seeing what she has done for WWE’s women’s division:

“Becky Lynch is currently my biggest inspiration,” Storm said. “She is taking the women’s division to a completely different level. Her strengths and her fire are definitely inspiring me right now. I hope to eventually step into the ring with her because I feel the biggest competition at the moment is Becky Lynch.”

It’s hard not to draw inspiration from “The Irish Lass Kicker.” After her heel turn at SummerSlam this past August, the WWE Universe really rallied behind the Irishwoman. She went on to win the SmackDown Live Women’s Championship at the Hell In A Cell pay-per-view (PPV). Lynch then found herself in a feud with RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey.

Unfortunately, Rousey and Lynch were never able to work together inside the ring due to an injury. However, they may finally get to do so next year, and it could be the biggest women’s match in professional wrestling history.

What do you think about Storm calling Lynch her biggest inspiration?

Insane Championship Wrestling (ICW) has announced that Toni Storm will be taking part in the Eighth Annual Square Go! event. Storm is one of the first confirmed names for the upcoming show on Sunday February 24th from Glasgow, Scotland. Storm’s opponent for the show has not yet been named.

ICW are believed to be one of the companies on WWE’s ‘greenlit’ list alongside PROGRESS, OTT and Fight Club: Pro. Whether or not Storm appears on the company’s On Demand service remains to be seen, as this was a caveat of NXT UK contract changes. The Australian star Toni Storm is of course one of the top Superstars from the NXT UK roster, so allowing her to participate and potentially appear on ICW’s On Demand service is a big deal if allowed. Storm would most likely face a fellow NXT UK Superstar at this event. However with the recent news that PAC would be facing WALTER for OTT this could change. This big main event for OTT shows that free agent talent are still ‘allowed’ for NXT UK Superstars. PAC, however might just be a special circumstance.

ICW recently held their biggest event of the year in Fear & Loathing XI. The card featured some top international names including 205 Live’s Noam Dar, NXT UK’s Pete Dunne, Tyler Bate, Trent Seven and James Storm. You can check out the full results for that show here.

https://twitter.com/InsaneChampWres/status/1075812602343841793

Mae Young Classic 2018 winner Toni Storm recently spoke to the UK’s Metro Sport on a variety of topics. The Australian Superstar is one of the top prospects in the UK and is heavily featured on the NXT UK brand.

When asked who the best wrestler in the world is right now Storm replied by saying “That is such a tough one right now! You’ve got the likes of Daniel Bryan and Finn Balor, but I’ll tell you who’s coming up right now who’s going to take that soon, Pete Dunne! I think he’s on his way to becoming the best in the world. He knows exactly what he’s doing, he’s an absolute professional and has been doing it since he was a kid. He’s just fantastic.”

Storm was also asked who the most underrated wrestler in the UK scene was. Toni stated that “I know it’s probably the obvious choice but my fiancee Chris Ridgeway is incredible, and he’s doing really well on the UK indie scene. He needs to be seen all over the world. I watch his stuff a lot, I had a match with him a few months ago and he is literally world class. It would be good if we could see his face a lot more.”

Storm was also asked if she felt Ronda Rousey and Becky Lynch should headline WrestleMania next year. The Aussie Superstar responded by saying “Absolutely, 100%! Imagine that, it should absolutely headline Wrestlemania. They’re two of the toughest women in the world. That’s exactly what I want to see at Wrestlemania.”

You can check out the full interview here 

Pro Wrestling: EVE held the opening matches for their upcoming SHE-1 tournament on Saturday. This is the second year of the SHE-1 and is set to be an absolutely incredible event. Current EVE Champion Charlie Morgan won the first iteration of the tournament and went on to beat Sammii Jayne for the belt at Wrestle Queendom.

One of the biggest names confirmed for the tournament is NXT UK’s Toni Storm. The Australian star won this year’s Mae Young Classic at the Evolution Network event. Also confirmed are NXT UK Superstar Jinny, WoS/World of Sport’s Viper, Jetta, Rhia O’Reilly and Joshi wrestling legend Command Bolshoi.

Here’s the full results for Day 1 of the tournament:

SHE-1 Show 1 Results

• Viper b. Millie McKenzie – The Scottish star took the win after rolling through a Million Dollar Dream type submission
• Charli Evans b. Erin Angel – Evans took the win after hitting a Package DDT. 
• Jamie Hayter b. Madison Eagles – Hayter took the win after hitting a Curb Stomp
• Kris Wolf b. Rhia O’Reilly – Wolf took the win after hitting a Satellite DDT 
• Command Bolshoi b. Jetta – Bolshoi took the win via pinfall to earn 2 points
• Toni Storm b. Kasey – Storm took the win after hitting Strong Zero

SHE-1 Standings after Show 1

A BLOCK: Hayter 2, Viper 2, Eagles 0, McKenzie 0

B BLOCK: Evans 2, Wolf 2, Angel 0, O’Reilly 0

C BLOCK: Bolshoi 2, Storm 2, Jetta 0, Kasey 0

Credit to ProWresLand for the results

SHE-1 Show 2 Results

• Viper b. Madison Eagles – Viper took the win after hitting the Viper Driver. Eagles is eliminated
• Command Bolshoi b. Kasey – Bolshoi took the win via submission to reach 4 points
• Toni Storm b. Jetta – Storm took the win after rolling up Jetta
• Charlie Morgan b. Erin Angel – Morgan took the win after hitting the Ace’s Over
• Kris Wolf b. Charli Evans – Wolf took the win after hitting a Satellite DDT
• Jamie Hayter b. Millie McKenzie – Hayter took the win after Curb Stomping McKenzie on a table

SHE-1 Standings after Show 2

A BLOCK: Hayter 4, Viper 4, Eagles 0, McKenzie 0

B BLOCK: Wolf 4, Evans 2, Morgan 2, Angel 0

C BLOCK: Bolshoi 4, Storm 4, Jetta 0, Kasey 0

Toni Storm beat Io Shirai to win the 2018 Mae Young Classic at Sunday’s (October 28, 2018) WWE Evolution pay-per-view event in Long Island, New York at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on the WWE Network. It should be noted that WWE has already signed Storm to an NXT UK contract.

WWE taped the tournament on August 8th and August 9th from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida that later aired on the WWE Network leading up to this show.

It’s truly a special tournament and similar to the Cruiserweight Classic. The name of the event is in honor of the late WWE Hall of Famer Mae Young. If you recall, the Cruiserweight Classic was a tournament produced by WWE wherein all participants were billed at a weight of 205 lbs or less to determine the first Cruiserweight Champion.

Last year’s tournament finals went down on September 12th from the SmackDown TV event in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Thomas and Mack Center that saw Kairi Sane beat Shayna Baszler in the finals to win the tournament.

What are your thoughts on Storm winning this tournament? Did WWE make the right decision or was this a mistake? Sound off in the comment section.

The second edition of the Mae Young Classic enters its Sweet 16 tonight. On the line in all 4 matches will be a spot in the tournament’s quarter-finals as we start the 2nd round tonight.

Mae Young Classic 10/3 Preview

Kacy Catanzaro vs Rhea Ripley

2 of WWE’s hottest prospects clash in the MYC second round tonight. Rhea Ripley defeated MJ Jenkins in the 1st round while her opponent tonight defeated Reina Gonzales.

Catanzaro is a veteran of American Ninja Warrior and the gymnast has been receiving rave reviews since joining the WWE PC earlier this year. Ripley joined the PC after last year’s tournament and looks to have bulked up considerably over the last year. Both are considered top prospects, although Ripley’s been in the system for a year longer.

The winner of this match will face the winner of Tegan Nox vs Nicole Matthews in the quarter-finals.

Mercedes Martinez vs Meiko Satomura

Martinez defeated Madison Rayne in the first round while Satomura defeated Killer Kelly.

Martinez is an 18-year pro out of Waterbury, Connecticut, and a former 2x SHIMMER Champion. Satomura competed on WCW Nitro as a teenager and now at 38 years of age, is one of the most experienced in the tournament.

These two veterans of women’s wrestling clash tonight with a spot in the quarter-finals on the line. The winner will face the winner of Lacey Lane vs Taynara Conti in the next round.

Toni Storm vs  Hiroyo Matsumoto

22-year-old Toni Storm steps into the ring with Hiroyo Matsumoto tonight. The woman from Gold Coast, Australia has been winning over a lot of fans in her short career thus far. Storm was a big success in both Progress and Stardom before signing with WWE earlier this year. She defeated Jinny in the 1st round.

Matsumoto is a Stardom vet and was ranked #25 in the 2017 PWI Top-50 female rankings. She defeated Rachel Evers in the 1st round.

The winner of this match will take on the winner of Mia Yim vs Kaitlyn in the quarter-finals.

Lacey Lane vs Taynara Conti

Both of these two women are already signed to WWE and working in the Performance Center at the moment. Lane is a local talent as well, having attended Winter Park High School not far from Full Sail University. She trained with the Dudley Boyz at the Team 3-D Academy. Lane defeated Vanessa Kraven in the 1st round.

As for Conti, the 23-year-old is the first female Brazilian signed to the company. The Judo and Jiu-Jitsu expert defeated the awkward Jessie Elaban in the 1st round.

The winner of this match will face the winner of Martinez vs Satomura in the quarter-finals.

PROGRESS has made the Women’s Title match for Wembley official. The ‘Queen’ of the Women’s division Jinny will be defending against Toni Storm and Millie McKenzie.

Toni Storm was the inaugural holder of the Women’s Title, holding the belt for 1 day off an entire calendar year. Jinny became only the second holder of the belt at Chapter 69: Be Here Now. Jinny will be joined by her House of Couture stable which features Chakara, Charlie Morgan and Sammii Jayne.

Millie McKenzie defeated Candyfloss, Chakara, Charlie Morgan and Laura Di Matteo to become the Number 1 contender at Chapter 75: These Violent Delights Have Violent Ends.

This will be the biggest English Independent show in years and the following bouts are now signed:

• Matt Riddle vs Mark Haskins
• PROGRESS World Champion WALTER vs Tyler Bate
• Eddie Dennis vs Mark Andrews
• Jimmy Havoc vs Paul Robinson
• Thunderb*stard Tag Team Title Match
• Ilja Dragunov vs Pete Dunne
• Mark Haskins vs. Matt Riddle

BREAKING: with confirmation from our medical team that @tonistorm_ will be fit to compete by 30th Sept, both she and @MillieMcKenzie0 take their title shots and look to dethrone the #Queen @JinnyCouture when we head to @ssearena! Tickets: https://t.co/AmuRQfdx3z #ThisIsPROGRESS pic.twitter.com/FLSXcpw0U0

— PROGRESS Wrestling (@ThisIs_Progress) September 5, 2018

Pro Wrestling: EVE has announced an independent Women’s wrestling dream match for their upcoming event ‘Global Women Strike’ which takes place September 27th from the Resistance Gallery in Bethnal Green, London.

Former PROGRESS Women’s Champion and Superstar in the NXT UK Women’s Division Toni Storm will be facing Japanese wrestling legend Meiko Satomura. Toni Storm of course took part in the inaugural Mae Young Classic tournament for WWE and the belief is that Satomura will be part of the second annual iteration of the event.

In 2005, Satomura co-founded the all-woman promotion, Sendai Girls. She also worked with WCW in the mid-90s on their short-lived women’s division which was to feature the likes of Bull Nakano and Madusa.

She helped create Sendai Girls after a previous female promotion, Gaea Japan, went out of business. Satomura wrestled in the final match ever held by the promotion before founding a new company the next year. She is the current Fight Club Pro champion. Satomura is also the last person to win the Joshi Puroresu Grand Prize award before Io Shirai began her sweep of the award. Satomura was given the award in 2013 and Shirai has swept every year since. That will change in 2018, however, as Shirai has spent the year with NXT.

https://twitter.com/ProWrestlingEVE/status/1020015104593661953

Toni Storm has reportedly come to terms with the WWE.

Dave Meltzer reported in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the young exciting wrestler has signed a UK contract with the sports entertainment company.

According to the report, once she was asked about working the upcoming Stardom 5 Star Grand Prix tournament in August and September, there was no confirmation and thus, WWE contacted her about competing in the second installment of the Mae Young Classic which is scheduled to film in August.

If you recall, she took part in WWE’s Inaugural Mae Young Classic where she defeated Ayesha Raymond in the first round, beat Lacey Evans in the second round and Piper Niven in the quarterfinals. She would later lose to Kairi Sane in the semifinals.

This prospect is already advertised to appear at WWE’s second UK Tournament that takes place on June 18th, and June 19th.

For those who are wonderful, although she is under contract with the WWE, this deal will allow her to continue working for PROGRESS and other promotions

What are your thoughts on WWE signing Storm? Sound off in the comment section below.

PROGRESS Wrestling Women’s Champion and inaugural Mae Young Classic entrant Toni Storm has reportedly signed a deal with WWE. The Australian star reached the semi final of the Mae Young tournament before being eliminated by eventual winner Kairi Sane.

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Storm is believed to have signed or is at least working on the two Royal Albert Hall shows on June 18th/19th. Storm had allegedly turned down past offers from the company as she wanted to continue working with Japan’s STARDOM promotion, Pro Wrestling: EVE in the UK and other independents across the globe.

It was also mentioned that WWE have likely stepped up their advances and been more aggressive in attempting to sign Storm, who is expected to make the Royal Albert Hall dates followed by an already confirmed appearance for Will Ospreay’s Frontline Wrestling event on June 28th at the Stratford Circus in London, England.

Storm is currently scheduled to defend her PROGRESS Wrestling Women’s title this Sunday at PROGRESS Chapter 69: Be Here Now against longtime rival Jinny. With this announcement it is likely that Storm finally loses the title which she brought into the company and has been the only performer to ever hold.

Mae Young Classic competitor and PROGRESS Women’s Champion Toni Storm has been confirmed for Frontline Wrestling’s debut show ‘Build Me An Empire’ which takes place June 28th from Stratford Circus in London. Frontline Wrestling is a new promotion headed by IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay, the company will be looking to present a more ‘sports’ based style that is akin to Japanese/Puro’s presentation and aesthetic.

Rumors have been circulating regarding Toni Storm’s WWE status for several months now. There was an expectation following the Mae Young Classic that Storm and fellow British performer Piper Niven/Viper would be signed however this does not appear to have yet come to fruition, whether Storm and indeed Niven will end up in WWE/NXT remains to be seen but is very likely given the international popularity of both stars.

Storm will be facing fellow STARDOM roster star Bea Priestley in somewhat of a dream match for UK fans; Priestley is an up and coming performer in her own right, she has recently been confirmed as one of the 16 women taking part in the STARDOM ‘Cinderella’ Tournament taking place April 30th from Korakuen Hall in Japan, she will be facing Irish star ‘Session Moth’ Martina in the opening round.

Toni Storm vs Bea Priestley.
June 28th, Stratford Circus, London https://t.co/3gSMUX1bzA pic.twitter.com/IbMmJ2ccDI

— Frontline Wrestling (@FrontlinePuro) April 17, 2018

Germany’s top independent wrestling promotion wXw has announced an International Dream match between two of the top stars in Women’s wrestling.

wXw and PROGRESS Women’s Champion Toni Storm will be facing former WWE Superstar Tenille Dashwood/Emma at the ‘Superstars of Wrestling’ event on May 5th from Oberhausen in Germany.

Toni Storm took part in the inaugural Mae Young Classic and is currently slated as a potential star that WWE are keen to bring into the NXT system as soon as possible. Whilst no news has emerged over the past few months there are still a number of European based stars that WWE will be hoping to secure, including ICW’s Piper Niven/Viper and Kay Lee Ray.

https://twitter.com/wXwGermany/status/976873769229803521

Mae Young Classic competitor and PROGRESS Women’s Champion Toni Storm has been crowned the wXw Women’s Champion. Storm has been heavily rumored with a move to WWE over the past few months yet she appears to be capturing independent titles across the globe, whether she will be making her way over to the United States in the near future remains to be seen.

wXw has also confirmed that international standout WALTER will be facing EVOLVE star Matt Riddle at their upcoming AMBITION tournament on March 10th, AMBITION is a unique tournament with a fight based rule set, WWE superstar and Smackdown Live General Manager Daniel Bryan actually won the first ever iteration of the event.

https://twitter.com/wXwGermany/status/954780991675097089

https://twitter.com/wXwGermany/status/954428256480124928

PROGRESS will be heading to Alexandra Palace on September 10th for their biggest show of the year. Chapter 55: Chase The Sun will see all of PROGRESS’ top stars clash in front of thousands of the PROGRESS Ultras.

The Women’s Championship match for the card has now been announced and it is a huge one. South Pacific Power Trip member Dahlia Black will be challenging PROGRESS Women’s Champion and Mae Young Classic Competitor Toni Storm for the strap in a match that could easily steal the show.

We’ll update you with further news on the show as it becomes available.

CONFIRMED: @tonistorm_ defends vs @blahliadack at a SOLD OUT @Yourallypally on 10th Sept! #Chapter55 #ChaseTheSun #ThisIsProgress pic.twitter.com/hQv0pJQKPO

— PROGRESS Wrestling (@ThisIs_Progress) August 29, 2017

PROGRESS has announced the first two matches for their Chapter 50 event ‘I Give it Six Months.’

First up is a bout for the PROGRESS Tag Team Championships between current title holders British Strong Style (Tyler Bate & Trent Seven) and rising stars on the British scene #CCK. This will be #CCK’s official debut in PROGRESS and looks set to be a barnburner of a match.

Also confirmed is Toni Storm’s first defence of her PROGRESS Women’s Championship. Toni won the gold back at the Super Strong Style 16 event against Jinny and Laura Di Matteo. Her opponent Kay Lee Ray is one of the top performers in the ICW Women’s division so this match has the potential to be a show stealer.

#MatchNewsMonday: CONFIRMED – #BritishStrongStyle vs #CCK for the tag team titles at #Chapter50! pic.twitter.com/tiwtPjonz2

— PROGRESS Wrestling (@ThisIs_Progress) June 5, 2017

#Chapter50: @tonistorm_ defends her Women's Title vs No.1 Contender @Kay_Lee_Ray! #IGiveItSixMonths #ThisIsProgress pic.twitter.com/yY2fJbzKdP

— PROGRESS Wrestling (@ThisIs_Progress) June 6, 2017