Match Point is an ongoing series at Last Word on Pro Wrestling, where we look at intriguing matchups in indie wrestling and beyond. They may be dream matches, first-time matchups, or hotly anticipated rematches. Today’s edition focuses on an upcoming Stardom event, the 3-day Stardom Dream Slam 2018, and one of it’s matches from Night 1 at Korakuen Hall, a title vs. title match between Toni Storm vs Viper.
https://twitter.com/missviper91/status/970994237650161666
Japan’s Stardom, arguably the top women’s promotion in the world (original home of NXT Superstar Kairi Sane), recently announced a three day event called Stardom Dream Slam 2018, which would have Night 1 on Wednesday March 28 at the legendary Korakuen Hall, Night 2 on Saturday March 31 at the Osaka Edion Arena 2, and Night 3 on Sunday April 1 at Nagoya International Conference Hall. While all three nights feature stellar women’s wrestling, one match stands out as an intriguing one. A double title, title vs. title match between UK indie stars Toni Storm vs Viper.
New World of Stardom champion, Toni Storm. pic.twitter.com/GXE5s9lzjd
— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) September 24, 2017
Toni Storm, originally from Auckland, New Zealand, Toni Storm has taken the UK – and international – women’s wrestling scene in full force the past year. Apart from taking place in the WWE Mae Young Classic (where she faced Viper in the second round), she’s won the World of Stardom, PROGRESS and wXw Women’s Championships and dominated Europe and Asia. Scotland’s Viper is a UK treasure who, like Storm, has taken her skills to Japan with regularity – she also holds Stardom gold as 1/3 of the Artist of Stardom (trios) Championship Queen’s Quest team with Io Shirai and HZK.
Viper (known as Piper Niven in the WWE’s Mae Young Classic) is the current ICW Women’s Champion in Scotland, a title she’s holding for the second time after being the inaugural champion back in 2015. Meanwhile, Toni Storm is the reigning SWA Undisputed World Women’s Champion, a title she’s held for over 600 days since defeating Io Shirai at Stardom X Stardom: Osaka Summer Solstice Celebration in the summer of 2016. The SWA title was created by Stardom as the international World Championship to represent Stardom’s European alliance, which includes the UK’s British Empire Wrestling (BEW), Association Biterroise de Catch (ABC) out of France, Mexico’s Women Wrestling Stars (WWS) and Revolution Championship Wrestling (RCW) in Spain.
https://twitter.com/InsaneChampWres/status/963526739577262080
The result of this is a huge accomplishment for either woman. If Viper wins the SWA Undisputed World Championship, she’ll be booked all over Europe, as well as take on elite level challengers in Stardom. If Toni Storm wins, it’ll be another European championship in a new land conquered, to add to her current PROGRESS Women’s title (England) and wXw Women’s Championship (wXw) and two Japanese titles in Stardom. Adding Scotland’s top women’s championship almost seems par for the course for Storm at this point.
https://twitter.com/wXwGermany/status/954780991675097089
This isn’t the first time these two UK indie superstars have collided – they first met up in Preston City Wrestling (PCW) in 2015 and have fought it out multiple times in SWE, wXw, Stardom and others before – but somehow this one feels like it’s going to be their best one yet. Both are fighting to be the pride of Europe and the Queen of Scotland, in front of an audience that appreciates women’s wrestling like no other. This will be one for the ages.
