Word is (via a Fightful Select report) that AEW head honcho Tony Khan intentionally kept Kris Statlander and Toni Storm apart over the years because he always saw a match between the two as a potentially big deal. The crowd in St. Louis’ Chaifetz Arena tonight (Oct. 18) for the first-ever one-on-one singles clash between Stat and Storm seemed to agree with that, but TK placing the match in the middle of the WrestleDream PPV card meant they weren’t fired up throughout.
The fans were loud as their entrance videos told the story of Storm’s quest to regain the Women’s World title she lost without being pinned in a 4way at All Out Toronto last month, or to “die trying”…
… and Stat’s ascension back into her celestial self since capturing AEW’s top prize…
The champ was determined to prove she could beat the Timeless One one-on-one, and seemed to have the four-time champ scouted pretty well.
Toni got some offense in, but mostly Stat proved what both women wanted her to: that she could put Storm down, even if that meant killing her, as Toni again told her she’d have to while trapped in a submission hold. The Timeless One didn’t tap out in that hold, but did stay down after the champ hit Stat-urday Night Fever when Storm begged her to, “just fucking kill me”.
That was the closure she needed…
… while Stat went on to tease a rematch with AEW’s other women’s titleholder. But more on that in another post, or in our live blog along with complete results from WrestleDream and coverage of the entire show — right here.
