Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

In Depth: Ending ‘Interim’ Chaos Best Decision for AEW Women’s Division


Fri 25 Nov 2022 | 12:02 AM
Rana Atef

Early Thursday, All Elite Wrestling (AEW) reached an agreement with AEW Women’s champion Thunder Rosa to relinquish her title. Rosa was out of action since August due to injury, a few weeks after capturing the AEW Women’s World title.

Rosa was injured a few days before facing her AEW tag team partner and friend Toni Storm in All Out. Therefore, AEW President Tony Khan set a fatal 4-way match for naming an interim AEW Women’s World champion.

The four competing stars were Toni Storm, Britt Baker, Hikaru Shida, and Jamie Hayter. The match ended with a huge victory for Storm.

The establishment of an interim Women’s World title was highly praised by several bloggers and fans as it gave a sense of equality between both men’s and women’s world titles. However, the unclear period of absence and lack of Rosa’s injury updates enraged AEW fans.

Storm introduced a true, and impressive title reign, although it is not shining as Baker’s one. Storm’s period with the title returned a good amount of the title’s prestige that somehow disappeared in the final days of Rosa’s title reign.

The Australian star did a huge effort with the title as she set several singular, and tag team competitions, moreover, she showed complete loyalty to the company as she brought her title to AEW Rampage, AEW Dark, and Dark Elevation.

She was there on each and every AEW occasion whether on the screen, backstage, or off-air.

In addition, Storm’s reign witnessed some factors that helped and improved the presentation of her as a world champion, mainly the presence of a strong and professional competitor as Britt Baker.

Baker always proves that she is the beating heart of the AEW women’s division and one of the company’s pillars. Being close to Storm and escalating against her, gave the fans the existence of real competition for this title.

In addition, the arrival of Saraya and her presence with a group of AEW stars such as Athena, Willow Nightingale, Hikaru Shida, and Storm for three weeks to make such a league against the revolutionary force of Baker and her companions: Sereena Deeb, Jamie Hayter, Rebel, and Penelope Ford improved the representation of the promotion’s women’s division that faced heavy criticism.

The good job introduced by Storm made AEW fans want to see her as an undisputed champion as she exerted no effort for making a memorable and good title reign.

She previously said on the status of being an interim champion: “I guess my first thing would be to beat Thunder Rosa and stop this interim nonsense. That’s kind of what’s been bothering me. I think that’s been bothering a lot of people because she’s still calling herself the AEW women’s world champion and I’m the one here every week doing the work. Right now.

I guess it’s about being a good champion, being a strong champion. That’s what I’m up against every day. I’m working harder than I ever had in my entire career. The time is now. I look at every week as just an opportunity to prove myself. I love giving it my all and who knows where we go from here? But all I know is I’m gonna continue to work hard,” she added.

These comments motivated the AEW fans more to call for an immediate end to the presence of this interim title and call Storm a champion.

However, the decision that long waited by Storm came two days after losing the title to Hayter during Full Gear, last Sunday.

Renee Paquette announced that due to the injuries to Rosa and the uncertainty regarding the time of her return, AEW asked Rosa to relinquish the women’s title, naming Hayter as the new AEW Women’s World Champion.

But, AEW Commentary added that Khan will consider Storm’s reign as AEW Women’s World title, without using the word “interim” in the records.

Hayter’s reign with the title is somehow anticipated by the fans as she is one of the faces that AEW invested in alongside Tay Melo, Ford, Nightingale, Skye Blue, Anna Jay, and Jade Cargill.

Baker and Rosa were the real pillars who built and formed this division, alongside Shida, and Deeb.

It is expected that Hayter’s first feud could be with Baker or Storm, but the presence of the British star could help in pushing more stars to the spotlight.

There are several AEW stars who could be ready for the spotlight such as Melo. Melo was a shining star in the company, and she had several awards for her Street Fight match with Jay against Ford and The Bunny last year. However, her light started fading away a few months ago.

Also, Athena who is one of the best in-ring performers in the company could be suitable as a competitor for the title.

The end of the world interim would give the company more space and freedom to write good storylines for Hayter, without wandering between Rosa and Baker, and open the door for more fresh faces and competitions.

Hayter proved that she is a very good athlete in the ring after her battle with Storm, in addition, she did huge and impressive work with Riho two weeks ago.

Finally, Rosa should be respected for making the best for the company and accepting the offer of relinquishing the title to give the opportunity for more stars to shine in AEW.

Rosa responded: “Thank you #ThunderArmy for all the support and @aew for being there for me…Dream-like moments happened in this run, and this is not how I wanted to lose the championship, but you deserve a present champion; on to the next chapter.”