Toni Storm Shuts Down WWE Return, Says She's An AEW "Lifer" (AEW News)

Timeless Toni sees herself as an AEW lifer.

by Andrew Pollard
Timeless Toni Storm
AEW

Ahead of AEW All Out 2025, Toni Storm has shot down any chance of a WWE return down the line, stating how she's an AEW lifer.

Timeless Toni was speaking on the latest, hugely entertaining episode of The Sandman Podcast (via SI), which was shot last week during AEW's final week of residency in Philadelphia's iconic 2300 Arena, and released last night.

As the AEW Women's Champion explained:

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"When I'm done wrestling, you'll never see me again. You'll never see me in any other capacity, or in any other company for that matter. There's no encore. This is it. What would I do? Because I'm on a long deal for AEW. I signed my life to AEW. I'm on a five-year deal, and I can't remember how long, but I'm a lifer for AEW. There's no, like, 'Oh well, I'll see what happens.'"

Despite being an AEW lifer, though, Storm did have plenty of praise for WWE, too, as she continued:

"And that's no offense to [WWE]. I think they're great, and I understand them for exactly what they are. They're a machine, they're a business, and I just don't fit in with their whole schtick, and that's cool. I love it, and I love a lot of people that work there. It's like, 'Yes, get that money, get that power.' But realistically, in my life, like, that's it. How long can I do this? I don't know, but I could do another 20 years with AEW."

Having honed her craft with the likes of Progress and Stardom, Toni Storm would land in WWE in 2017 as part of the inaugural Mae Young Classic, and she'd remain with the market leader until requesting, and being granted, her release at the end of 2021. By March of the next year, Storm would debut in AEW, and she's only gone from strength to strength under the All Elite banner, becoming a four-time AEW Women's Champion and one of the company's biggest stars.

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At All Out this Saturday, Toni Storm defends the AEW Women's Title in a fatal four-way against Jamie Hayter, Kris Statlander, and Thekla.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.