Mae Young Classic 2018: Predicting the path of every participant

#29 Toni Storm

A star returns.

Toni Storm will be the star of the NXT UK division, and normally that would suggest that she'd make it to the final at least. According to WWE, however, there will be an NXT UK women's title match at Evolution on October 28th.

Toni Storm is almost certain to be in it. The Mae Young Classic final will be held at the same event. Obviously, Toni Storm won't be pulling double duty, so she won't get to the final. Jinny might play a role in her loss to add fuel to the feud.

#30 Meiko Satomura

A run of respect.

Meiko Satomura is the most experienced participant in the tournament, with over 20 years inside the squared circle. She's likely to play the Mercedes Martinez role this year as the hard-hitting veteran who's getting her due for her years of devotion to the industry. She's also going to go far because she's one of the best wrestlers in the world and can make whoever she shares the ring with look great.

Meiko Satomura explicitly expressed a desire to meet Io Shirai in the finals of the tournament, and while that won't happen, a semi-final clash will be the next best thing. Ultimately she'll put Io over in what will probably be the best match of the tournament.

#31 Deonna Purrazzo

The Virtuosa has arrived.

Deonna Purrazzo will defeat Toni Storm in the semifinals and punch her ticket to Evolution. Triple H is supposedly tremendously high on her, and she's come a long way since those earlier appearances on NXT where she was squashed by Asuka.

The Virtuosa is going to be a big deal in NXT, and she's going to make herself known by getting to the finals of the tournament as the quintessential babyface within it. For someone who was only an alternate last year, it's going to be a monumental accomplishment.

#32 Io Shirai

Mission 1: Accomplished.

The idea of two Japanese winners back to back would at first appear unlikely, but this isn't just another Japanese wrestler. Io Shirai has widely been considered the best female wrestler on the planet for the past four years. The tournament was actually hers to win last year before her injury delayed her arrival at the last minute.

Io Shirai was determined to prove that she should have been the star as soon as she saw Kairi Sane announce her participation last year. Winning the Mae Young Classic would indeed be step one in proving that she "was the wrestler who should have been in the video."

Her victory will accomplish her first mission and put her on the road to accomplishing her second - becoming NXT Women's Champion after a fierce rivalry with Kairi Sane.