4 months ago
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Lee South/AEW
The relationship between Mariah May and Toni Storm took a dramatic turn on "AEW Dynamite" this week as the former brutally beat the latter with a commemorative championship belt and a high heel shoe. WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray has since weighed in on the bloody closing segment by offering props to May, Storm, and AEW's production team.
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"I liked it," Ray said on "Busted Open After Dark". "Toni Storm was an absolute mess about 30 seconds before AEW went off the air. The blood wasn't neat. It wasn't just running down her face. It was smeared all over her face. I loved the way Mariah took her own cheek and started rubbing it up against Toni Storm's cheek as if she was still nuzzling up against her like she loved her. A complete bloody mess. I'm sure that those pictures will be all over social media tonight and making the rounds tomorrow morning. Very, very well executed by the talent. Very well executed by production."
As Ray also pointed out, the May-Storm implosion marked a rarity for AEW, as the image of excessive blood is sparingly used in segments involving the women's division. In AEW's history, there have been three notable instances of this phenomena, the first of which emerged during Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa's famous Lights Out match. Similar occurrences arose during a 2021 New Year's Smash Street Fight, and January 2023 tag team street fight pitting Ruby Soho and Willow Nightingale against Tay Melo and Anna Jay.
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Coming off their respective bloody encounter, May is now set to challenge Storm, her former mentor, for the AEW Women's Championship at AEW All In.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open After Dark" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
