AEW Star Was “Scared To Pick Up A Mic” Before Reinvention

An AEW Champion was once terrified of cutting promos.

Since going from rock star upstart to Hollywood Golden Age darling, “Timeless” Toni Storm has taken the industry by… well… Storm.

Diving into her new persona has taken her to the very top of the industry, and the AEW Women’s World Champion cemented that position at Revolution with a blood-soaked win over Mariah May.

However, her path to success was far from straightforward as she was wracked by self-doubt.

During an interview with Rick Ucchino of Sports Illustrated, Saraya heaped praise on her one-time stablemate, noting how she’s blossomed since being scared to cut promos just a couple of years ago.

“She’s one of the best promos and characters, I think, of all time, and she’s one of my favorites all together right now. She is making wrestling fun and exciting and I love that. And it’s just funny seeing her from two years ago… when she was scared to pick up a microphone.

Once you have a character and something that you’re enjoying in wrestling, you wanna put a hundred percent of your mind, body, and soul into it. And she’s doing it. And she’s so humble about it and I love that for her. She’s just like, ‘I hope I’m doing a good job.’ I’m like, ‘Babe, you are smashing it! You are the best thing in wrestling right now.’”

Toni Storm Makes Strap-Based Promise For AEW Dynasty

On the March 19 edition of Dynamite, “Timeless” Toni Storm got into a wild brawl with Megan Bayne who has been laying waste to the women’s roster in recent weeks.

During her match with Kris Statlander, Bayne launched her rival into Storm, who was on commentary. Once the match was over, Storm rushed the ring and took out Bayne, before grabbing a microphone and branding her a big b*tch.

As only she can, Storm vowed to leave Dynasty and her match with Bayne, with her strap on, adding “The bigger they are, the harder they come.”

Indeed.

During the same interview, Saraya admitted she’s planning to retire “very soon,” and as a result, she’s aiming to help her rivals as much as she can. The star’s All Elite contract will expire in September and she’s been tipped to make a return to WWE.

In a different interview back in February she expressed her admiration for her former employer and admitted she’d be open to going back. Saraya signed with WWE in 2011 and remained with the company until July 2022.