James Storm has parted ways with Impact Wrestling after being with the company since the very beginning of TNA. His departure after some 17 years (give or take) was reportedly due to Impact wanting to shed some of their higher-cost contracts.
The future is wide open for Cowboy James Storm, and there’s no telling where he might end up. While it’s unlikely Ring of Honor might have a need for him, he can presumably name his own price on the extensive independent circuit.
Of course, many fans are hoping Storm will hop on over to WWE, where he appeared on precisely one episode of NXT television in 2015 before opting to re-sign with Impact for another two-year deal. After NXT’s success with fellow TNA legends Samoa Joe, Bobby Roode, and Eric Young, they would presumably welcome him with open arms.
But for his part, Storm is enjoying his free agency at the moment and is in no way eager to tip his hand as to his next major career move. He explained during a recent interview with Cerrito Live that he loves surprises in wrestling, and so he’s playing his cards close to his chest. (Transcript via Wrestling Inc.)
“There are a lot of companies and the funny thing is that I’m now free to talk and negotiate with other companies and actually go work for other companies. But right now, I think I kind of want to keep it under wraps, make it a surprise where old James Storm pops up.
“I just want [it] to be a surprise because today, especially in our social media world, there [are] not that many surprises anymore. And because everybody wants to be cool and I always say, ‘people are wrestling for the likes and the retweets’ or GIFS, whatever they call those things these days. But to me, I always try to keep stuff kayfabe and keep stuff secret until it happens or whatever, so it’s even cooler when it’s a surprise.”
I would assume the odds are good that he ends up going back to NXT, but I’m hoping he holds out long enough to make it to Reseda and a PWG show for the first time in his career. There’s a Mystery Vortex coming up in January, you know.
