Breaking Down The Belts: Timeless Toni Storm's AEW Women's World Championship

At the time of writing, "Timeless" Toni Storm is 210 days into her record fourth AEW Women's World Championship reign, having fended off the likes of Mariah May, belt collector Mercedes Mone, and 1,000 day-plus ROH Women's World Champion Athena to continue her reign.  She enters All Out in Toronto ready to make the next defense of that title, a four-way against would-have-been allies Jamie Hayter and Kris Statlander, alongside persistent thorn in her side, the "Toxic Spider" Thekla. Whether that spells the end of her run is yet to be seen, but if history is any indicator the era of the "Timeless One" may not find its fall on such short notice, and that raises the question over who will or should claim that mantle when the time does arrive. 

The issue being, even with a myriad of championship-level challengers, there are but a few who can say that they have not lost to Storm whether in this run or throughout her entire time with the company. Even without the title on the line, Storm has overcame many of the options one would consider in Championship Eliminator matches, to the extent where is she is so whimsically throwing out challenges to allies and enemies alike, running through her competition and not leaving many within the company who could call time on "Timeless" Toni Storm. 

With that said, there's all the more reason to consider who that person should be, either in all likelihood with all things considered, or in an ideal world where matters of headcanon and sentimentality play their part. Naturally, that's what this is. An opportunity to break down the Women's World Championship picture, to present options that one considers to be prudent each for their own reason, and provoke discussion on the matter altogether. Without further ado, this is who this writer thinks will and should dethrone Storm as the Women's World Championship. 

Mercedes Mone is amongst the litany of names to have already fallen to Storm's title run, doing so on the largest stage in AEW at All In Texas. Mone had been undefeated in her pursuit of title belt upon title belt, defeat for the NJPW Strong Women's Championship aside, and had collected both the TBS and and CMLL Women's World title ahead of her challenge, itself facilitated by Mone winning the Owen Hart Cup and accompanying commemorative belt. But when she finally met the AEW Women's World Champion she was faced with a belt she could not call her own, and an opponent who rarely proved to be better on the day. 

However, losing once to a champion has rarely spelled the end of one's pursuit for the title, with it quite often taking multiple attempts before getting the elusive win. There is also the idea that while Mone holds so many titles or specifically just the TBS title, she is either too far spread thin or unable to feasibly take the step up while holding a title that a booker would want to keep well-presented. 

Rather ironically, that's where time becomes Mone's best friend against the "Timeless" one, since she will surely get the opportunity at some stage sooner rather than later, and the prospect of a trilogy might just prove too tantalizing not to give her the saga leveler. Simply put: Mercedes Mone is objectively AEW's biggest name on the roster, and whether right or wrong that ultimately does play a factor into whether someone is deemed worthy to carry the crown. 

Couple that with the fact that she is a consummate professional inside the ring at the very least, and subjectively one of the best if not the best in-ring talents in the world, and she strikes out as the most feasible option to not only take the title, that in itself would be one thing, but to be the one who ends Storm's current reign of bizarre noir. 

Moving onto whom this writer feels should take the title, and it has to be said that this was not an easy decision, but the story for Jamie Hayter is one that cannot be ignored. Before rationalizing that pick, it's worth noting that the likes of Kris Statlander, Athena, and Willow Nightingale were all considered, as well as Mone. All would have been great options, all with their own justifications, whether it be the established pedigree of Athena – that could maybe do with AEW legitimacy – or the yet-uncrowned main eventers in Nightingale or Statlander. But honestly, none quite felt right to be the one that ends this champion's current reign. 

Hayter has only just recently returned from injury, having got injured shortly after returning from injury, but prior to that, she was the AEW Women's World Champion having rose to prominence in popularity and position to dethrone "Outcast" Toni Storm at Full Gear 2022. For her part, she reigned as champion for 190 days fending off former champions Riho and Hikaru Shida, as well as Ruby Soho and eventual champion Saraya, but unfortunately the aforementioned injury struck and she dropped the title back to Storm at Double or Nothing 2023 after just three minutes of action. 

Hayter has had a rough time trying to get back into a place where she could challenge for the title again, having fallen runner-up in the Owen Hart Cup and losing contendership bouts, but fortune could favor her in the fact she has a place in the incumbent championship four-way. Whether she should win the title in Toronto is another matter entirely, likewise for whether she will. But in any case, one feels like she makes sense as both a champion and someone to dethrone Storm, someone that has already done it, and would arguably be righting the wrong of her injury-halted title run.