10 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Apr 8)

1. Battered & Bruised

Well, this exceeded expectations.

Britt Baker is much improved and Hikaru Shida has been the women's division's most consistent performer, but there was still a slight chance their singles bout would go off the rails. For a while, it looked like it may. Baker's early offense was too soft to resonate. In a setting that demands stiffer, snugger work, her kicks were pillowy at best, pitiful at worse, and borderline immersion-breakers.

But holy sh*t, did things get great once Braker's nose got busted open.

The teasing, effective heel work (masterfully played by Britt, it should be said) gave way to physicality. Something clicked within the performers. They adapted to the hardway colour and ("she's bleeding like a faucet!" - Jericho) and got intense with each other, putting plenty of starch on every strike to look like two fighters who really wanted to beat the snot out of each other, crafting something ugly and attritional.

Shida's victory was her eighth in nine matches. She's a clear number one contender for Nyla Rose now, but the problem with that is 'The Native Beast's' absence. Nyla hasn't been on TV in weeks, likely sidelined by the ongoing global situation, which could leave Shida without a target. Regardless, she's on fire right now.