Maya World Credits Tony Khan for Noticing Her, Set to Face Mercedes Mone in Women’s Owen Hart Tournament

Maya World has come a long way from her days grinding on the independent circuit — and she knows exactly who to thank for it.

The rising AEW star has reflected on her journey, noting that when she first started out on the indies, her primary ambition was straightforward: make everyone remember her name. That goal eventually caught the right set of eyes. “When I first started on the indies, my goal was to make everybody know my name,” World said. “Thank God, it was Tony Khan who noticed me.”

World’s path into AEW came about through an opportunity she and fellow signee Hyan seized last year. The two stepped in as last-minute replacements for Nixon Newell and Miranda Alize in a match against TayJay, and their performance was apparently enough to earn them contracts with the promotion. It’s the kind of break that wrestlers spend years hoping for, and World clearly made the most of it.

Now she’s being tested at the highest level. World is booked to face Mercedes Mone in the upcoming Women’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament — a significant matchup that puts her across the ring from one of the most high-profile women’s wrestlers in the world. A strong showing against Mone could do exactly what World always intended on the independents: make sure nobody forgets her name.

With a tournament run and a marquee opponent ahead of her, the AEW newcomer’s ascent is moving quickly.