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Toni Storm Reveals Major Issue With Her Run In WWE

Originally posted on Wrestling on SI | By Zack Heydorn | Last updated Sep 8, 2025 3:18 PM ET

Toni Storm had some career bright spots during her career with WWE. She won championships and was victorious in the second WWE Mae Young Classic tournament.

Overall, once Storm made it to the main roster, she was never able to catch fire like she did when she is NXT or NXT UK. As it turns out, there is a good reason for that.

In a new interview on the Marking Out with MVP podcast, Storm spoke openly about a major issue she had while working for WWE, and it was a big one.

Nobody told her what to do

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“In the WWE, I don't think I was told what to do enough. I wasn't told to do anything, actually. Obviously you're told what to do in a certain circumstance, but overall, I don't feel like I was told what to do enough. There’s direction in things like, you know, this is what you do on television, this is cameras. But then, as in regards to a character, no, I was never like—they would write promos, but I kind of just did it."Toni Storm

Storm continued:

"I wasn't really told, like, do this. ‘Today you're a cat and this is your character and your name is Bloody, Tory, Bloody Smith.’ No one had told me anything and I kept my name the whole time.“Toni Storm (h/t WrestlePurists)

On the main roster, Storm wrestled top women's talent like Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, and even got a win over Charlotte Flair via disqualification. Storm quit WWE in 2021 after saying she realized she couldn't succeed in that company.

Toni Storm found herself in AEW

Storm made up for the lack of success she had in WWE with a massive run in AEW -- a run that is ongoing as AEW Women's World Champion. Storm is a four-time women's champion and the face of the women's division in AEW thanks to her "Timeless" gimmick.

"Timeless" Toni Storm is a mix of old Hollywood, attitude, and aggression rolled into a wrestling character that's beloved by AEW fans.

Storm defeated Athena at the AEW Forbidden Door PPV event last month. Prior to that, she successfully defended her championship against Mercedes Mone in a dream match at the AEW All In PPV event in Texas.