It’s been more than three years since the last time “La Mera Mera” Thunder Rosa and “The Superbad Girl” Penelope Ford went one-on-one inside the squared circle, and suffice to say both women have gone through a great deal personally and professionally in those 1,270 days. Each suffered debilitating injuries that kept them out of the ring for extended periods of time, each has dealt with personal struggles away from the ring, but only Rosa has experienced the success of championship victory. Rosa reigned as Women’s World Champion for 116 days that included six successful defenses, and it was only injury that brought an end to that run rather than actually being beaten for the title. Though Rosa has had two opportunities to reclaim the title since her return to action, one versus Toni Storm and the other against Mariah May, she’s been unable to regain the title she never lost as of this point.
As for Penelope Ford, save a failed World Championship bid against Hikaru Shida at FYTER FEST 2020, “The Superbad Girl” has been far from championship status during her AEW tenure. The long layoff from injury certainly didn’t help her when it came to getting into contention, but that just meant when she did finally return to action, Ford had to set her sights high and it doesn’t get much higher than gunning for former Women’s World Champion Jamie Hayter. Though that fight didn’t go Ford’s way, that didn’t stop her from taking on the top of the division. In the five fights she’s had since returning to action, Ford has faced three former champions, and tonight she adds a fourth to that resume when she tries to, in her words, put Thunder Rosa in the ground!
Can Ford take that next step forward in her career with a victory over “La Mera Mera” or will this be the beginning of Rosa’s road back to championship contention?
GLAMOROUS EXHIBITION MATCH…
After spending the first-half of her AEW tenure manipulating “Timeless” Toni Storm, it seems that AEW Women’s World Champion Mariah May is not particularly fond of the shoe being on the other foot. This past Wednesday night, when the role of Mariah May was played by Toni Storm, “The Woman from Hell” sat at the commentary table seething. Mariah found herself stumbling over her words, her fury growing each time Excalibur mistakenly (or perhaps purposefully) called Toni by her name, and after Storm’s victory it seemed like GRAND SLAM: AUSTRALIA was going to come early.
However Mariah walked away in utter frustration, leaving Toni Storm in the ring still locked in her role as “The Glamour”, and leaving no question that “The Timeless One” had gotten to her. As if in response to Toni taking on Queen Aminata on DYNAMITE, it was announced that Mariah May would participate in her own “Glamorous Exhibition” tonight on COLLISION! Who will face off with the AEW Women’s World Champion in Houston, and will Mariah use this opportunity to send a message of her own back at her GRAND SLAM: AUSTRALIA opponent?