It’s good to be the Ace of EVE. When she won the 2018 SHE-1 tournament in November, Jamie Hayter earned two prizes. First, she is the Ace of EVE for the next year. Nobody can take that away from her, and she can rub it right in our faces as a good heel should. Her second prize is the right to challenge for the title of her choice at Wrestle Queendom II. She knocked off both Kris Wolf and Toni Storm in the final, firmly cementing herself as the next big thing in EVE.

At just 25 years old, she’s already quite impressive and has a strong list of accolades. She debuted in 2015, wrestling Jinny Couture at South Coast Wrestling’s first-anniversary show. She was a semi-finalist in the 2017 SHE-1 and 2018 Stardom 5 Star Grand Prix, won the 2018 SHE-1, and was the second RevPro Women’s Champion. Since her debut, she has expanded from the British independent scene to Europe at large, and most recently she has completed two tours with Stardom.

From Day Job to Japan

Quitting her day job to go to Japan for her first tour, Hayter has shown dedication to her craft. It also involved her love for Joshi wrestling. Hayter is a confessed fan of Joshi wrestling, saying that she has always been inspired by the “movement, the emotion and the storytelling they portray.” At the beginning of her second tour with Stardom, Hayter joined Oedo Tai. This becomes important as we consider her upcoming match at Wrestle Queendom II.

Focusing the Spotlight: On Jamie Hayter’s upcoming match at Wrestle Queendom II:

There are three titles Hayter had to choose from for her match. The EVE Tag Team Championships, which are being inaugurated at Wrestle Queendom II, are one such option. Hayter could have been part of a team that would go down in EVE history as the first tag team champions. A look at Hayter’s EVE tenure shows that she doesn’t do that much tag team work with EVE. Suffice to say, the EVE Tag Team Titles were never going to be on Jamie Hayter’s radar for her Wrestle Queendom II title shot.

The EVE Championship could have been another avenue. They could have opted to use her shot to make the match a three-way. The possibilities that match could have contained would be very interesting. At the same time, it is known that the match will be the farewell match for both Kay Lee Ray and Viper to EVE, and inserting Hayter would potentially telegraph the conclusion too hard. Besides, the title Hayter is challenging for makes the most sense for her.

The EVE International Championship is currently held by Stardom wunderkind Utami Hayashishita. The two have met in four matches in Stardom, and setting aside the battle royal (where neither won), Utami has come out victorious in all of them. Hayter is a member of Oedo Tai (Stardom’s premier heel faction), while Utami is part of Queen’s Quest (a tweener faction, but certainly faces when put up against the heel Oedo Tai). The prior history between the two couples brilliantly with their positions within opposed factions in Stardom, making the challenge to Utami a no-brainer.

Role in EVE & Stardom Partnership

Jamie Hayter plays a major role in the EVE partnership with Stardom. Stardom fans appreciate both her crisp ring work and her excellent character work. Hayter makes it easy to hate her. EVE is bringing in other Stardom talents besides Utami for Wrestle Queendom II. They include; Kagetsu, Mayu Iwatani, and Arisa Hoshiki who are also all scheduled to be on the card. With Utami holding the EVE International Title, putting Utami and Hayter opposite each other in a title match that puts two promotions’ worth of storytelling behind the match makes perfect sense.

At EVE’s 9th Anniversary Show on May 11th, Jamie Hayter officially announced her intention to challenge for the International Title. Later that same night she lost a match to Nina Samuels. She made her challenge a triple threat match for the title. With Samuels as part of the match, the match seems to present many opportunities. Hayter will seem a natural fit be the tweener of the match to Utami’s face and Samuels’ heel. As for where her character will go after the match, that depends on if she wins the championship. It also depends on if she succeeds or fails to do so.

Jamie Hayter | The Future is Bright

Whatever the result of the match is, Jamie Hayter is a big star on the rise for EVE. She’s an incredible young talent, and she’s already on WWE’s radar. She made her NXT UK debut in a loss to Piper Niven (Viper), and she recently participated in a WWE tryout at the WWE UK Performance Center. Her future is certainly with a big promotion, as she’s an undeniable talent to keep an eye on. It’s just a matter of when her time will come.