WWE has released Toni Storm.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select broke the news in a tweet on December 29 and noted that he confirmed the release with WWE. Ross Sapp stated that the reason for her departure is currently unclear.
I've confirmed this news with the company.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) December 29, 2021
Storm has been competing at live events over the past few days; as recently as December 28, she was in action at a live show in Washington D.C.
This past week on WWE SmackDown, Storm unsucessfully challenged Charlotte Flair for the SmackDown Women’s Champion. She pinned Flair the week before that, and the two women have been feuding for some time now. Storm is a former NXT UK Women’s Champion. She signed with WWE in 2017 and competed in the Mae Young Classic, where she lost in the semi-finals, but she won he tournament in 2018. Storm moved to WWE SmackDown this past July, but she wasn’t regularly utilized until October.
Update: In another tweet, Ross Sapp reported that WWE sources believed Storm requested her release, as the memo about her departure did not cite budget cuts as the reason for her departure.
WrestleZone will provide more details as they become available.