Toni Rossall (born 19 October 1995), better known by the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or project ...

Toni Storm, is a New Zealand-Australian

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

. She is currently signed to AEW, where she is a former

AEW Women's World Champion The AEW Women's World Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established on June 18, 2019, the inaugural champion was Riho. The current champio ...

. She previously worked for WWE, where she was a former

NXT UK Women's Champion The NXT UK Women's Championship was a women's professional wrestling championship that was created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It was defended on the NXT UK brand division, a sister brand of WWE's developmental territory NXT ba ...

. Storm first gained attention in WWE from her 2017 and 2018 performances in the Mae Young Classic tournament. She progressed to the tournament's semi-finals in 2017, and won it in 2018 at

Evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

, WWE's first all-female PPV. She then performed on the NXT UK,

NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...

, and

SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes sim ...

brands before her release in 2021. Beyond WWE, she has performed in Japanese promotion Stardom, where she became the first non-Japanese wrestler to hold the World of Stardom Championship. She also held Stardom's SWA World Championship for a record-setting reign of 612 days. In the British promotion

Progress Wrestling Progress Wrestling (stylized as PROGRESS) is a British professional wrestling promotion that was established in 2011 by comedian Jim Smallman, events and comedy promoter Jon Briley, and later, actor Glen Robinson (professionally known as Glen ...

, she held the Progress Women's Championship. In the German promotion wXw, she held the wXw Women's Championship twice.

Early life

Toni Rossall was born in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

on 19 October 1995, and moved to Australia's Gold Coast with her mother at the age of four when her parents separated. At the age of 10, while living on the Gold Coast, she discovered WWE on television and developed an interest in professional wrestling.

Professional wrestling career

Early career

Rossall began training at the Australian affiliate of New Zealand promotion

Impact Pro Wrestling Impact Pro Wrestling (IPW) is a New Zealand professional wrestling promotion. It has promoted regular events throughout the country and abroad in the last several years and is credited for being the first to bring live wrestling shows to cities ...

(not to be confused with the American promotion

Impact Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promo ...

) and debuted for the company under the

Storm (which she later changed to Toni Storm) on 9 October 2009, when she was 13 years old. At the age of 18, after five years of honing her skills with Impact, she decided she wanted to receive further training to become a better wrestler; she convinced her mother to let her move to England and live with her grandmother, who was based in

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

. While in England, she trained under

Dean Allmark Dean Allmark (born 25 August 1983), is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in All Star Wrestling and his appearance in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and a performance in Pro Wresting Live (PWL). Allmark, who often go ...

. She started working internationally in countries such as Finland, France, Germany, and Spain. Storm took part in a WWE tryout camp in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

during WWE's 2014 Australian tour, and attended another tryout camp in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

during WWE's 2015 UK tour.

Progress Wrestling (2015–2018)

Storm made her debut for

on 14 April 2015, being defeated by Elizabeth. In May 2017, she became the first-ever Progress Women's Champion after defeating

Jinny Jinny is a feminine given name which may refer to: * Jinny Beyer (born 1941), American quilt designer and quilter * Jinny Jacinto (born 1976), Canadian contortionist * Jinny or Jinny Lee, a stage name of South Korean pop singer Chae Yeon (born 19 ...

and Laura Di Matteo in a

three-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. This match marked the first time that female wrestlers competed in the main event of a Progress event. Throughout the year, Storm went on to successfully defend the championship numerous times against challengers like Kay Lee Ray, Laura Di Matteo and

Candice LeRae Candice LeRae Gargano (''née'' Dawson; born September 29, 1985) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand. She is a former NXT Women's Tag Team Champion and was a member of The Way. LeR ...

. She lost the title to Jinny at Chapter 69: Be Here Now.

World Wonder Ring Stardom (2016–2018)

In 2016, Storm began working for the Japanese promotion Stardom, where she won the SWA World Championship on 24 July. On 2 October 2016, Stardom officially announced that Storm had signed with the promotion. After winning the 2017 Cinderella Tournament on 30 April, Storm also won the 2017 5★Star GP on 18 September, becoming the first wrestler to win the two tournaments in the same year. On 24 September, Storm became the new World of Stardom Champion in an unplanned finish, when

Mayu Iwatani (born February 19, 1993) is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to World Wonder Ring Stardom. Since making her debut in January 2011, she became a two-time World of Stardom Champion, two-time Wonder of Stardom Champion, one-tim ...

was legitimately injured during a title defense against her, prompting the

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other tit ...

to stop the match and award Storm the title. On 9 June 2018,

Kagetsu (born on June 24, 1992), better known by his ring name , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in Stardom, JWP, Sendai Girls and various independent promotions. Professional wrestling career Independe ...

defeated Storm in a title match, ending her reign at 258 days.

WWE (2017–2021)

On 16 June 2017, WWE announced Storm as one of the first four participants of the Mae Young Classic. Storm entered the tournament on 13 July, defeating

Ayesha Raymond Ayesha-Michelle Housen (born 24 September 1991) is an English professional wrestler, entertainer, actress and stunt actress known by her ring and stage names Ayesha Raymond and Amazon. She is known mainly for her work in the WWE inaugural Mae Y ...

in the first round. The following day, Storm defeated

Lacey Evans Macey Estrella-Kadlec (née Evans; born March 24, 1990) is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Lacey Evans. Originally introduced to wrestling while serving as a militar ...

in the second round and Piper Niven in the quarterfinals, before being eliminated from the tournament in the semi-finals by

Kairi Sane is a Japanese professional wrestler and actress currently working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and World Wonder Ring Stardom under the ring name Kairi (stylized in all caps). Housako is also known for her work with WWE as . She is the cur ...

. On 9 May 2018, Storm was advertised for the upcoming United Kingdom Championship Tournament. On 24 May, Storm signed a WWE contract. On 18 June at the United Kingdom Championship Tournament, Storm defeated

Killer Kelly Raquel Lourenço-Winkler (born 21 March 1992) is a Portuguese professional wrestler best known under the ring name Killer Kelly, currently signed to Impact Wrestling. She is best known for her tenure with WWE where she competed on the NXT UK bran ...

and

Isla Dawn Courtney Florence Stewart (born 2 February 1994) is a Scottish professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, performs on the NXT brand under the ringname Isla Dawn. Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (2013–2016) On 17 Oct ...

in a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

to become the #1 contender for the

NXT Women's Championship The NXT Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on April 5, 2013, t ...

. The following day at the NXT U.K. Championship, Storm was defeated by the defending NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler. Months later, she participated in the second Mae Young Classic, a tournament she won when she defeated

Io Shirai is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Iyo Sky (stylized in all caps). She is a member of Damage CTRL and one-half of the current WWE Women's Tag Team Champions ...

at WWE Evolution. She also participated in a tournament to crown the inaugural

, but she lost against Rhea Ripley. In a rematch on 12 January 2019 at NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool, Storm defeated Ripley to win the title. She reigned as champion until 31 August 2019 at NXT UK TakeOver: Cardiff, where Storm lost her title to Kay Lee Ray, ending her reign at 230 days. On 24 November 2019 on the TakeOver: WarGames post-show Q&A session with

Triple H Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969), better known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler currently serving as the chief content officer for WWE. He is widely regarded as ...

, Storm was announced to be a part of the NXT Women's Survivor Series team by team captain Rhea Ripley. At

Survivor Series Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the se ...

, Storm was eliminated via submission by Natalya and

Sasha Banks Mercedes Justine Kaestner-Varnado (born January 26, 1992) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sasha Banks. Banks previously wrestled on ...

. At NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool II, Storm competed unsuccessfully in a triple threat match for the NXT UK Women's Championship against Kay Lee Ray and Piper Niven. Storm participated in the women's

Royal Rumble match The Royal Rumble match is a professional wrestling match based on the classic Battle Royal match in which a number of wrestlers (traditionally 30) aim at eliminating their competitors by tossing them over the top rope, with both feet touching the ...

at the namesake pay-per-view and entered at #20 but was eliminated by Shayna Baszler. Storm wrestled her last match in the brand on 27 February 2020 episode of ''NXT UK'', losing to Kay Lee Ray in an "I quit" match. After a 8-month hiatus, on 4 October 2020 at TakeOver 31, Storm returned to NXT following the

match between Io Shirai and

. She then joined Candice LeRae's team with Dakota Kai, and Raquel González for TakeOver: WarGames. At

Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and WWE Network events, event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named afte ...

, she entered as #7 and was eliminated by Rhea Ripley. She then competed in a triple threat match for the NXT Women's Championship involving

Mercedes Martinez Jazmin Benitez (born November 17, 1980) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) under the ring name Mercedes Martinez. She also appears for AEW's sister promotion, Ring of Honor (ROH), where she is a form ...

and reigning champion Io Shirai at TakeOver: Vengeance Day in a losing effort. On 10 March 2021 episode of ''NXT'', Storm challenged Shirai for the title, where she was again unsuccessful. Storm debuted on ''SmackDown'' on 23 July episode, defeating

Zelina Vega Thea Megan Trinidad Büdgen (born December 27, 1990) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Zelina Vega, and is a member of Legado Del Fan ...

. She was then defeated by Vega during the Queen's Crown tournament in the first round. She participated in the 5 on 5

Survivor Series elimination match The Survivor Series match is a professional wrestling tag team elimination match held in WWE. The match typically sees two teams pitted against each other and members of the teams are eliminated one-by-one until one entire team is eliminated. Memb ...

; eliminating both

Carmella Carmella is a female given name. Notable people with the name include: People * Carmella DeCesare, a playmate for ''Playboy'' magazine * Carmella Flöck, a courier for the Austrian Resistance during the Anschluss of 1938–1945. * Carmella Sab ...

and Vega but was then eliminated by

Liv Morgan Gionna Jene Daddio (born June 8, 1994) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Liv Morgan. She is a former SmackDown Women's Champion. In ...

. Storm then began a program with SmackDown Women's Champion

Charlotte Flair Ashley Elizabeth Fliehr (born April 5, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Charlotte Flair. She is currently inactive. She is a second-genera ...

with Storm winning their first bout via disqualification. She then received her title opportunity on the Christmas Eve edition of ''SmackDown'' in a losing effort. This was her last televised appearance in WWE; the following week, on 29 December 2021, Storm requested a release from her WWE contract and it was immediately granted. In an interview with

Renee Paquette Renee Jane Paquette is a Canadian-American television personality currently working as a backstage interviewer for All Elite Wrestling (AEW). She was previously known for her time in WWE between 2012 and 2020, where she served as a commentator, ...

six months later, she explained the reasons that led to her departure from the company and said, "I didn't feel that appreciated. And I just felt like WE at times, didn't have very much respect for me. I feel like, over time, they just crushed my love for wrestling. It just wasn't even wrestling anymore. You're not even allowed to say 'wrestling'."

All Elite Wrestling (2022–present)

Storm made her AEW debut on 30 March 2022 episode of ''

Dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germany, and patented in 1867. It rapidl ...

'' as a participant in the qualifier match for the Owen Hart Foundation Women's Tournament, defeating The Bunny. AEW then announced Storm signed with the company. Storm defeated

Jamie Hayter Paige Wooding (born 23 April 1995) better known by the ring name Jamie Hayter is an English professional wrestler who is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where she is the current AEW Women's World Champion in her first reign. S ...

in the quarterfinals of the tournament, and she was defeated by

Britt Baker Brittany Baker (born April 23, 1991) is an American professional wrestler and dentist. She is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where she performs under the ring name Britt Baker where she is a former AEW Women's World Champion. Born in Punxsut ...

in the semi-finals. On Road Rager special episode of ''Dynamite'', Storm defeated Baker in a rematch to challenge

AEW Women's Champion The AEW Women's World Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established on June 18, 2019, the inaugural champion was Riho. The current champio ...

Thunder Rosa for the title at AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door in a losing effort. At All Out, Storm defeated Baker, Hayter, and Hikaru Shida in a

four-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

to become AEW Interim Women's World Champion. She then defended her title against

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

, Baker, and

Serena Deeb Serena Deeb (born June 29, 1986) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). She is well known for her first stint with WWE, appearing on the SmackDown brand and also known for her time with the develop ...

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

. She lost her championship in a title match against Hayter at Full Gear.

Other media

As Toni Storm, Rossall is a playable character in the video games ''

WWE 2K20 ''WWE 2K20'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It was released worldwide on October 22, 2019, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twenty-first installment of ...

'' and ''

WWE 2K22 ''WWE 2K22'' is a 2022 professional wrestling sports video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the twenty-second overall installment of the video game series based on WWE, the ninth game under the ''WWE 2K'' banne ...

''. In August 2022, Rossall was featured as the

cover girl A cover girl is a woman whose photograph features on the front cover of a magazine. She may be a model, celebrity or entertainer. The term would generally not be used to describe a casual, once-off appearance by a person on the cover of a magaz ...

of '' Fitness Gurls'' magazine.

Personal life

In June 2020, it was revealed that Rossall was dating American wrestler

Juice Robinson Joseph Ryan Robinson (born April 10, 1989), better known by his ring name Juice Robinson, is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Robinson is also a member of the Bullet Club stable and also wrestles ...

. They were married in 2022. On 22 June 2021, Rossall

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

during her takeover of the WWE NXT

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

account for

Pride Month LGBT Pride Month is a month, typically in June, dedicated to celebration and commemoration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pride. Pride Month began after the Stonewall riots, a series of gay liberation protests in 1969, and ha ...

Championships and accomplishments

* All Action Wrestling ** AAW Women's Championship (1 time) *

All Elite Wrestling All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. It is considered the second largest wrestling promotion in the United States behind WWE. AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and his son Tony, w ...

AEW Women's World Championship The AEW Women's World Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established on June 18, 2019, the inaugural champion was Riho. The current champion ...

( 1 time) * British Empire Wrestling ** BEW Women's Championship (1 time) * Pro Wrestling Alliance Queensland ** PWAQ Women's Championship (1 times) ** PWAQ Women's Underground Championship (1 time) * ''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publish ...

'' ** Ranked No. 13 of the top 100 female wrestlers in the ''

PWI Women's 100 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publis ...

'' in 2019 *

** Progress Women's Championship (1 time) ** Natural Progression Series IV * ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'' ** Ranked No. 7 in the top 10 women's wrestlers in 2018 *

Westside Xtreme Wrestling Westside Xtreme Wrestling, commonly shortened to wXw, is a German professional wrestling promotion based in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. wXw has been one of the leading professional wrestling promotions in Germany, and most of its event ...

** wXw Women's Championship (2 times) ** Femmes Fatales (2017) *

World Wonder Ring Stardom World Wonder Ring Stardom (スターダム女子プロレス), often referred to simply as Stardom (stylized as ST★RDOM), is a Japanese '' joshi puroresu'' or women's professional wrestling promotion based in Tokyo, Japan. Stardom was founded i ...

** SWA World Championship ( 1 time) ** World of Stardom Championship ( 1 time) ** 5★Star GP (2017) ** Cinderella Tournament (2017) ** Stardom Year-End Award (1 time) *** MVP Award (2017) * WWE **

NXT UK Women's Championship The NXT UK Women's Championship was a women's professional wrestling championship that was created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It was defended on the NXT UK brand division, a sister brand of WWE's developmental territory NXT ba ...

( 1 time) ** Mae Young Classic (

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Storm, Toni 1995 births Australian female professional wrestlers Australian expatriate sportspeople in Japan Australian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Australian people of New Zealand descent Bisexual sportspeople Bisexual women LGBT professional wrestlers LGBT sportspeople from Australia LGBT sportspeople from New Zealand Expatriate professional wrestlers Living people New Zealand female professional wrestlers New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Australia New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Japan New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in the United States New Zealand people of English descent NXT UK Women's Champions Sportspeople from Auckland Sportspeople from the Gold Coast, Queensland 21st-century New Zealand women All Elite Wrestling personnel 21st-century professional wrestlers World of Stardom Champions Progress Wrestling World Women's Champions AEW Women's World Champions