Why WWE NXT Star Blake Monroe Is 'Proud' Of AEW Feud

A vast spectrum of emotions were felt throughout the rivalry between "Timeless" Toni Storm and "WWE NXT" star Blake Monroe (formerly known in AEW as Mariah May). The story initially began on July 10, 2024, running through their bloody "Hollywood Ending" at Revolution, and this chain of unfortunate events (love, obsession, and treachery) will never quite be replicated on the big screens by Hollywood's most esteemed directors or producers. Deemed in contention as one of the greatest and most illustrious rivalries AEW has ever had, the new NXT Women's North American Champion has reflected on those pivotal moments that landed her in the position that she's in today.

"I think it was just showing that women's wrestling can be just as good as the men's, if not better," the former AEW Women's World Champion replied when asked what her proudest moment in AEW was on "The Masked Man Show." "I know that a lot of women that I meet in wrestling were always, always so hungry. We're trying to prove more. That's still a feeling I hold on to ... because I truly think women's wrestling is something special. ... I am really proud of a lot of the things that I've done. And I think if you can make people feel something in wrestling, you've nailed it."

After "sucking on the teats" of Storm's excellence (as the former and historic four-time Women's World Champion once put it) to be given a once-in-a-lifetime send off, Monroe, whether she'll ever admit it or not, will forever be a changed woman. From understudy to the top of the women's division both formerly in AEW and now in "NXT," without the planted seeds and the timeless rainstorms, there wouldn't be the roots that blossomed into the evolution of May/Monroe.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Masked Man Show" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.