4 mistakes Tony Khan has already made with Toni Storm's AEW return
AEW star Toni Storm shocked the world when she returned to the promotion at the Winter Is Coming edition of Dynamite. This was the first time she appeared on TV since the All In 2024 pay-per-view. She lost her AEW Women's World Championship to Mariah May at Wembley Stadium.
The Timeless star had announced her retirement from pro wrestling amid her hiatus. Her character drew many eyes to women's wrestling in the Jacksonville-based promotion. The star's intriguing character and pairing with Mariah May created a compelling plot. Later, The Glamour betrayed her mentor and went on to win her title. The latter is currently having a dominant reign.
Mariah May recently betrayed her long-time friend Mina Shirakawa and offered her a title shot. The duo faced each other on a recent episode of Dynamite. After a brutal contest, The Glamour emerged victorious and hoisted her title. Moments later, Toni Storm came out to confront the champion. However, she returned with her previous Rockstar gimmick.
AEW has had multiple absent stars in the previous months, which some felt was bad for the company's ratings and viewership. Now that a blockbuster star like Toni Storm is finally back, Tony Khan should be careful about her booking. Let's take a look at some of the mistakes the AEW President has seemingly already made after Toni's return.
#4. Toni Storm's wrestled on Rampage after her return
Rampage used to be a great show a couple of years ago. Top stars from the promotion were featured regularly on Rampage but since the arrival of Collision, it wasn't given much importance. Also, the show will reportedly be discontinued before 2025.
Many fans were excited to know where Toni would wrestle her first match after returning to the company. However, they were disappointed to know that her first match was announced for Rampage against Harley Cameron. Many people backstage were reportedly shocked by Tony Khan's decision that a star return like Storm's shouldn't be featured on Rampage.
#3. Two matches within the same week on non-hyped programs
The Timeless star returned to the promotion after three months. Instead of slowly building her next top feud against Mariah May, she wrestled Harley Cameron on Rampage. The very next day on Collision, she wrestled Shazza McKenzie in a contest without much of a build-up.
In both matches, she picked up victories but didn't involve much anticipation. Tony Khan should have given some time between the matches so the stars would have received some more time to build up the bout.
#2. Collision match against AEW performer without any feud buildup or storyline
The former AEW Women's World Champion wrestled Shazza McKenzie in her second bout following the blockbuster return. The latter is rarely featured on AEW TV and has appeared on the shows only a handful of times. Tony Khan didn't hype the match and announced it after her return.
On Collision, Storm emerged victorious in a mediocre contest and currently has wrestled two matches in a row on two back-to-back shows.
#1. Tony Khan should have extended the 'Timeless' gimmick
Timeless Toni Storm was one of the top acts in women's wrestling. Her promos and dedication to the gimmick of an 80's Hollywood actress turned out to be a huge factor in the success. She was the AEW Women's World Champion for many months while she continued as a Timeless star.
While her return was widely entertaining, Toni returned to Dynamite with her previous character. The Timeless persona should have been extended for several more months as it was seemingly a huge draw.
It will be interesting to see how will Tony Khan handle the booking of Toni Storm in the future.