9 Ups & 5 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Aug 12)
2. Two Minutes
Two minutes.
That's how much ring time AEW dedicated to women's wrestling on this week's Dynamite, despite the widespread criticism thrown at the division's lack of focus in recent times. The counterpoint to this is that the Deadly Draw has given these performers their own dedicated platform, of course, but this is the flagship. This is where it matters - and AEW flubbed it.
Hikaru Shida vs. Heather Monroe was an acceptable squash that presented the AEW Women's Champion as a take-no-sh*t badass in victory. Afterwards, Shida said that she was still waiting for an All Out challenger, urging the division to "bring it on."
No Britt Baker, no Big Swole, no Penelope Ford, no Nyla Rose and Vickie Guerrero: just this, the equivalent of nothing.
No promotion should bow to every bit of criticism thrown at their way, but this was an unacceptable response. The division needs to improve. Wrestlers can't become stars if they aren't given the right platform - and that platform is Dynamite. No more excuses.