How Toni Storm's Absence Affected AEW Storyline Plans Revealed

Despite being advertised for a match on the March 18 episode of AEW Dynamite, ‘Timeless’ Toni Storm was mysteriously attacked backstage and ruled out of the bout, with it emerging soon after that the belief was that Storm would be out of action for a considerable amount of time, though the details surrounding the reason behind her absence have been quiet. It was noted that it wasn’t centered around any sort of injury, though fans are still in the dark. More has now been learned about AEW’s original plans for Storm. 

According to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the original plan for AEW Dynamite was for Storm to defeat rival Marina Shafir in a No Holds Barred match, building momentum for an AEW Women’s World Championship challenge against reigning champion Thekla (who re-signed with AEW this week).

Instead, Storm’s friend Mina Shirakawa stepped into the match in her place, beating Shafir and earning an AEW Women’s World Title shot for the following week, though she came up short thanks to Thekla using a knuckle duster to cheat her way to a title retention. It is unclear whether AEW simply sped through Shirakawa challenging for the title, or whether Storm was supposed to be in the same exact position, getting screwed out of the gold.