Why AEW Pulled Britt Baker Vs. Thunder Rosa From New Year's Smash
Thunder Rosa vs. Britt Baker won't go down on next week's AEW Dynamite as planned. Here's why.
Conspicuous by its absence when All Elite Wrestling announced next week's New Year's Smash show was Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa, which was originally booked to go down at the event, with NWA Women's Champion vs. Serena Deeb and Baker's Waiting Room segment from Dark seemingly taking its place.
Per Dave Meltzer in this week's Wrestling Observer Newsletter, AEW pulled the match as Thunder Rosa came into contact with somebody who had tested positive for COVID-19. She wasn't presented as this week's New Year's Dash tapings as a result of this.
Fans of the duo should rest easy, though: AEW still intends to put the bout together at some point, making this more of a postponement than a cancellation.
According to Meltzer, Deeb vs. Conti was added because it has been a while since the NWA Women's Championship was defended on television. Serena's last appearance was on 18 November.
Rosa and Baker have been warring for several weeks now, engaging in a number of heated brawls and verbal confrontations to build excitement for the eventual showdown. The last of these saw Britt pouring water on Rosa's face to wash her trademark paint away.