At All Out Toronto, Kris Statlander surprised some (not here at GrapPro) by winning the AEW Women’s World Championship in a four way match featuring Thekla, Jamie Hayter, and champion Timeless Toni Storm.
The win made Statlander the first ever holder of both the TBS Championship and Women’s World Championship. Her counterpart would be Samoa Joe, the only man to hold both the TNT Championship and Men’s World Championship.
Statlander’s win was impressive but it was also the culmination of years struggling to get back to the top of the women’s division after her TBS Championship run. Kris Statlander had dealt with unfortunate injuries her whole career in AEW and those injuries either delayed pushes to the top or caused a shuffle in plans that pushed her away from a spot coming to her.
It has been a common rallying cry with All Elite Wrestling fans for the company to do something more significant with Statlander and Willow Nightingale. Statlander now gets to hold gold. Eyes will turn to Willow to see what she does next. She’s currently tussling with FTR, or at least was on Wednesday’s show. Will she continue to get in their business, or does she have other plans? When will Willow turn her attention to the former best friend she once beat at a Chicago Street Fight in 2024?
It was this speculation that convinced me that Kris Statlander was turning to the Death Riders. Wheeler Yuta’s constant presence in Statlander’s matches and Jon Moxley’s motivation to her made me think that it was only a matter of time for them to gain her into the faction. They got Daniel Garcia to turn and it was time to add another member. Statlander said she would never turn to them, but what if it meant the difference between being champion and not? Would Statlander go to that level?
Moxley’s motivation, of course, was telling Kris back in June, “Don’t ever let anyone ever tell you who you are, or what you’re worth.”
Moxley would make two more appearances planting the seeds for everyone to think that was the eventual goal. I thought it would be too. I was honestly excited for the idea of Kris Statlander as essentially the Jon Moxley of the AEW Women’s Division, lording over it all, pushing to burn it to the ground and build it in her image. I disregarded the fact that Statlander isn’t the promo of Moxley or has his similar aura, because I felt Kris could still hold that importance in AEW.
But Statlander didn’t need the Death Riders help after all. She was able to defeat the most dominant AEW Women’s World Champion of all time all on her own. She did use Wheeler Yuta’s Seatbelt, but more on that later. The fact remains that she didn’t call upon the Death Riders to help. She didn’t use the numbers game. She won clean.
On Dynamite, Kris Statlander defended the AEW Women’s World Championship against Mina Shirakawa as an open challenge, declaring herself a fighting champion ready to take on anyone for the title. It’s more of the flavour of the TBS Championship to do so, and you run the risk of burning yourself out, but this is how Kris Statlander wants to be AEW Women’s World Champion. Statlander would defeat Shirakawa, only for the Death Riders to come out for the celebration.
It felt like a coronation for Kris Statlander led by the Death Riders. Jon Moxley had expressed his appreciation, his motivation, and certainly allowed Wheeler Yuta to try and influence Statlander towards this. Yuta ran in for a hug and Statlander looked straight into the camera before returning the hug. It was the first time in years she had ever embraced Wheeler Yuta. Heck, she used to beat him up in the Best Friends which was part of his motivation to leave the group to join the Blackpool Combat Club!
Yuta raised her hand high with Harley Cameron in the corner looking dejected and stressed. Wheeler told her to be happy as she tried to drop her arm, Yuta still holding the wrist and essentially telling her to smile at the situation.
And then Kris clotheslined Wheeler Yuta’s head off.
Moxley and Marina Shafir stood in the corner shocked while Wheeler Yuta, ass on the mat, looked up at Statlander. Other folks have already pointed out that his look of shock was similar to Bryan Danielson after he ate a European uppercut from Claudio at that turn one year prior. Moxley’s shocked turned into giving Marina a tap to go after her, but Kris ducked the shot.
Kris went right into Jon Moxley’s face, the man who she showed a lot of fear of when Moxley was interrupting her segments to provide motivation and advice, and shot two middle fingers right into his face. Moxley couldn’t help but smile. Statlander and Cameron ran out of the ring and ran up the stairs.
I suddenly realized that the whole point of this wasn’t to just repeat the Death Riders but with the women’s division. This was actually to establish that Kris Statlander isn’t just a fighting champion. She’s the People’s Champion. This was AEW’s version of Diamond Dallas Page refusing the New World Order in World Championship Wrestling back in 1997.
DDP gave Kevin Nash a big hug after a win and threw on the nWo shirt. He gave Scott Hall a handshake before pulling him in for the Diamond Cutter. DDP then ran right to the crowd to celebrate with the fans of WCW. That rejection of the nWo made DDP a fan favourite and catapuled him into becoming a player in the company.
It’s also similar to when Jon Moxley turned down the Inner Circle in 2020. Jericho, back when he was AEW Men’s World Champion and leading the Inner Circle, tried to recruit Moxley so he wouldn’t try to beat Jericho and become champion. Moxley surprised everyone by agreeing to join, but after 5 minutes of celebration? Moxley told Jericho he didn’t want to join his stupid group that had nothing he wanted except the championship. Jericho ate a champagne bottle to the face for his failed recruitment.
Just like DDP, Jon Moxley ran into the crowd to celebrate with them to confirm he was the champion of the people instead of in the big heel crew. Now Kris Statlander does the same, and Jon Moxley couldn’t help but smile when Kris Statlander outright defied him. Of course, he couldn’t spend too much time thinking about it since Darby Allin later approached with a flamethrower.
So instead of becoming the big bad of the women’s division and becoming Jon Moxley? Kris Statlander has taken his advice. She isn’t letting anyone tell her who she is. She’s going to fight the Death Riders head on instead of letting their influence get into her skin.
It’s here that I wonder if I was wrong all along. Maybe this isn’t about Kris Statlander joining the Death Riders. You see, earlier that night there was a return from Orange Cassidy. OC, like Stat and Yuta? Was a member of the Best Friends. Maybe her hitting those Seatbelts to win isn’t about taking influence from the Death Riders but connecting with her old Best Friends.
Orange Cassidy has returned. Wheeler Yuta just found out he’s once again getting beaten down and left for dead by the Death Riders. Kris Statlander is the AEW Women’s World Champion. Chuck Taylor might be retired while Rocky Romero and Trent Baretta are in the Don Callis Family, but it wouldn’t be too shocking to see them one day be cast aside.
What if we’re finally going to get that big reunion hug?
I’m sure the Death Riders are going to try and find someone else they can build up to sick on Kris, aside from Marina Shafir. I wonder if they try to corrupt Willow Nightingale (difficulty level impossible) and if not, who else do they build to tear Statlander down?
It’s an exciting start to Kris Statlander’s AEW Women’s World Championship, and for her to go toe to toe with the Death Riders instead of avoid them like Toni Storm did? It helps set her reign apart immediately. Toni Storm might be the most beloved women’s star in the company, and she might have had the best Women’s World Championship run, but she isn’t an AEW Original, and Kris Statlander is. Kris doesn’t forget that, and she’s ready to fight for more than just herself. She’s ready to fight for All Elite Wrestling.
Self High Five.
