00:00And the award goes to Mariah May!
00:05Mariah May turned on Timeless Toni Storm on AEW Dynamite.
00:09This happened after she won the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament which allowed her to
00:13challenge her mentor, AEW Women's Champion Toni Storm at AEW All In 2024.
00:20Storm was at ringside to celebrate Mariah's win, but she was blindsided by her protege
00:24as May attacked Storm with her Owen Hart cup belt and followed it with a vicious, bloody
00:29attack using Storm's heels.
00:31With this, Mariah May has become one of the most talked about wrestlers in AEW and her
00:35upcoming clash with Toni Storm for the AEW Women's Championship feels epic.
00:41Fans who do not follow wrestling outside of WWE and AEW might not be aware of Mariah May's
00:46work.
00:47She had a passion for professional wrestling long before she ever laced up her boots and
00:50stepped into the ring.
00:52She started her journey as a ring announcer in 2018 and gradually transitioned into wrestling.
00:58In June 2019, May participated in a three-day WWE tryout at the UK WWE Performance Center
01:05where she received coaching from William Regal.
01:08Unfortunately, she did not get signed but had incredible things to say.
01:12Speaking to Love Wrestling, May spoke on what she learned.
01:16She said quote,
01:17I just felt so blessed to do that.
01:19The tryout itself was incredible.
01:21I learned so much and it was good to kind of show what you've been working on too.
01:26I was really gratifying to kind of get the opportunity to show your hard work.
01:30For me, I was just trying to be a sponge and take everything in."
01:34End quote.
01:36Following this, she continued wrestling in the indies.
01:38By 2022, she had already made a name for herself in her native country of the United Kingdom.
01:44This is when she went to Japan and joined the World Wonder Ring Stardom, joining one
01:48of Japan's premier women's wrestling promotions at a very young age, allowing her to show
01:52her in-ring abilities on a global stage.
01:55Her dynamic wrestling style combining strength and agility quickly made her a fan favorite.
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02:15She made her official debut by accompanying Mina Shirakawa to the ring.
02:19This became one of the highlights of Mariah's stardom career.
02:22Mina took Mariah under her wing, and her guidance helped Mariah adopt the unique style
02:26of Japanese wrestling, enhancing her technical skills and storytelling in the ring.
02:31However, soon this mentorship blossomed into a strong on-screen partnership which also
02:35featured some controversial moments where the two were seen kissing.
02:39Their alliance was a focal point in various storylines.
02:42Together, they competed in high-profile matches, often teaming up to take on some of the promotion's
02:47top talent.
02:48She went on to win the Goddess of Stardom Championship alongside Shirakawa.
02:52However, not too long after this, she signed a deal with AEW and left stardom.
02:58She was relatively unknown to the AEW fanbase, but Toni Kahn did a good job of introducing
03:03her to the fans.
03:04She made her debut in a segment with RJCity where she was portrayed as a fan of Women's
03:09World Champion, Timeless Toni Storm, who had just won the championship.
03:13In the following months, Storm adopted her as an understudy and protege.
03:18During that revolution, Mae began using Storm's previous Rockstar persona and wore Toni's
03:22old ring attire coming out to her old entrance music.
03:26She began wrestling matches on Dynamite and Collision in this persona as a tribute to
03:30Storm.
03:31She was so good that Storm presented her with the inaugural Toni Award for her portrayal
03:35of the Rockstar gimmick.
03:37Although both Storm and Mae were heels, they were so entertaining that fans started cheering
03:41for them, turning them into tweeners.
03:44As she was doing some of the best work of her career, her former stardom partner Mina
03:48Shirakawa came to AEW and started feuding with Storm.
03:52She was booked to face Toni for the AEW Women's Championship at Forbidden Door.
03:57In the weeks leading up to the event, Mae was in the center of a love triangle storyline
04:01which saw her torn between supporting Storm and Shirakawa.
04:05Ultimately, Mae chose to remain neutral.
04:07After Storm defeated Shirakawa at Forbidden Door on June 30th, she resolved the conflict
04:12with a three-way kiss.
04:14With this, it became one of the most intriguing storylines in AEW.
04:19Following this, Mae participated in the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament with the winner
04:23facing the AEW Women's Champion Toni Storm at AEW All In.
04:29Mae was one of the favorites to win.
04:31She defeated the outcast Saraya in the first round and Hikaru Shida in the second round.
04:36She knocked out two former AEW Women's Champions in two matches.
04:41Clearly, AEW wanted something big for her.
04:44She went on to defeat Willow Nightingale and won the tournament.
04:47In less than a year, Mariah Mae won a major tournament in AEW.
04:52That's what we call success.
04:55We all know what happened after Mariah won the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament.
04:59She celebrated with Storm on the stage, but after grabbing the title, she nailed the Women's
05:04Champion and left her laying on the ramp with blood pouring all over her face.
05:08It came out of nowhere and left fans intrigued.
05:11Now will she win the AEW Women's Championship from Toni Storm at All In at Wembley Stadium
05:17in her home country?
05:18That's a different question, but winning the Owen Hart Tournament allows her to showcase
05:23her talent at a top level.
05:25She has never wrestled for the Women's Championship before and getting this opportunity in AEW's
05:29biggest show in her home country is a huge accomplishment.
05:33This shows how much AEW trusts her.
05:36Now many would think that she has not done much work to earn the championship right now,
05:40but just know it's the UK.
05:43Considering that last year fellow UK wrestler Saraya won the AEW Women's World Championship,
05:48there's a strong possibility that Mariah could win the championship in her home country.
05:53Additionally, Mariah Mae defeating Toni Storm makes sense from a storyline perspective.
05:57However, there's also the argument that Toni Storm still has much more to accomplish
06:02with the title.
06:03Even if she doesn't win the title, this will solidify her status as a top woman competitor
06:07in AEW which is good for business.
06:10Mae is already one of the most well-rounded wrestlers in the AEW Women's division.
06:15She is still just 25 years old and had her first match less than 5 years ago.
06:20This just goes to show you how much of a natural she is and how much of an asset she will continue
06:25to be for the promotion.
06:27On the other hand, Mae has also tried her hand in acting and appeared in Deep Heat in
06:31the UK which is a wrestling-based show.
06:33She also used to be active on Twitch and YouTube.
06:37There is no doubt she can pull viewers with her natural charisma, but what do you think
06:41about Mariah Mae?
