Former world champion teases return to WWE after 3590 days

WWE opened the doors for collaboration across different promotions ever since the company found new owners and Triple H took over the creative duties. Meanwhile, former TNA World Champion James Storm teased a return to the promotion after 3590 days.

In 2015, James Storm made two appearances for the Stamford-based promotion and won both his matches on WWE NXT. Unfortunately, The Cowboy didn't sign a deal with WWE and returned to TNA Wrestling. Storm's primary success as a performer emanated from the Nashville-based promotion.

Apart from being a decorated tag team performer, he also captured the TNA World Championship from Kurt Angle. Recently, Ava decided to put the TNA World Championship on the line against NXT's Oba Femi in a 'Winner Takes It All' match on the upcoming edition of the weekly show.

The 48-year-old star had a cryptic response to a tweet on X where he hinted at a possible return to the Stamford-based promotion for the first time in nearly ten years. The response was towards an edited image hinting at TNA Wrestling invading the NXT show due to Ava's decision.

James Storm

@JamesStormBrand

🤔🍺

It'll be interesting to see if James Storm returns to the promotion and sides with TNA Wrestling.

---

Why didn't James Storm sign with WWE?

In 2015, James Storm decided to re-evaluate his options and tried his hand at the developmental brand in the Stamford-based promotion. At the time, Triple H was the creative head, and the then-Black and Gold brand was filled with stars from the independent circuit.

In an appearance on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, Storm revealed that Triple H approached him on different occasions and would've fast-tracked his run on the developmental brand, but he couldn't have offered him a bigger contract as a performer, as it was, at the time, in Vince McMahon's hands.

“So he [Triple H] called me and I talked and he’s like, ‘Look, you’re not gonna be here long, because Vince loves characters and you know how to work, so you’ll probably be shipped off real quick.’ I was like, ‘Well, can you give what I was asking?’ And like I said, it was not much at all, and he’s like, ‘No, I just don’t have the authority to do that.’ I was like, ‘I’m sorry, man. I’m gonna have to say no," Storm said. [H/T - chrisvanvliet.com]

It'll be interesting to see if Storm appears on NXT before No Mercy 2025.