8 Ups And 2 Downs For WWE NXT (Apr 27)

Downs...

2. When Will It Be Toni's Time?

Since coming back to the land of black and gold in October of last year, it's been a bit of a stop-start ride for Toni Storm.

The former NXT UK Champion has picked up vital wins against the likes of Rhea Ripley and Shotzi Blackheart, but it's hard to escape the fact that she's stumbled into the perennial loser category in recent times. A showdown against NXT rookie Zayda Ramier looked to be the perfect opportunity to halt that slump on this week's show, but those in charge clearly had other ideas.

Despite absolutely obliterating Ramier for the majority of the contest, delivering a particularly devastating German suplex to the unfortunate newcomer in an attempt to prove a point to current rival Zoey Stark, Storm found herself staring up at the lights in the end. This was largely due to the agonising WWE trope of 'wrestler appears at ringside and rival wrestler completely forgets all of wrestling history' setting the stage for an impressive shooting-star press from Ramier, but the end result remains the same.

"Shocking" rookie win or not, Storm has not won a match since December 16, 2020. Sure, there have been a couple of NXT Women's Championship matches buried in that bad form, but Toni Time needs to come around again soon or this Mae Young Classic winner's shine will start to rust before long.