Nikki Cross is officially headed back to the ring for the first time since WWE cut her loose.
PROGRESS Wrestling announced that the former WWE star will wrestle at PROGRESS Chapter 196: Scorchio on July 26, but she won’t be using the Nikki Cross name. Instead, she’ll be stepping back into her old independent wrestling identity as Nikki Storm. The promotion broke the news on social media while teasing that her opponent will be revealed later.
“Nikki Storm (formerly Nikki Cross) will be competing at Chapter 196: Scorchio on Sunday 26th July!”
“We are delighted to have Nikki wrestling and we will be announcing her opponent soon.”
Cross was released by WWE on April 24 alongside the rest of the Wyatt Sicks fallout, ending a run that included NXT success, multiple women’s title reigns, and one of WWE’s most unpredictable characters. Her last match happened during a WWE live event in December 2024, meaning this will officially be her first match announced since leaving the company.
The booking is also a pretty major full-circle moment because it marks her first independent wrestling match since 2016 — the same year she signed with WWE. Before WWE fans knew her as Nikki Cross, she built her reputation on the indie scene as Nikki Storm.
This will also be her first-ever appearance for PROGRESS Wrestling. Cross is already starting to pop back up publicly following her WWE exit. She, Bo Dallas, Erick Rowan, Dexter Lumis, and Joe Gacy have all already been announced for WrestleCon during SummerSlam weekend in August.
Now the big question is who PROGRESS lines up across the ring from Nikki Storm for her first post-WWE fight.
Who should Nikki Cross face in her first match back on the independent scene? Drop your thoughts and feedback in the comments below.
