AEW: Five Women The Company Should Sign In 2019

Hana Kimura

If AEW wants to showcase the best of international women’s wrestling, there’s a huge opportunity waiting for them with Hana Kimura. Kimura is a second-generation joshi wrestler most famous for her work in STARDOM’s Oedo Tai faction.

Kimura is known for being a quick and vicious schemer in the ring, whose missile kicks knock opponents flat. Every women’s division needs a good heel, and there aren’t many better heels out there than Hana Kimura.

Kimura isn’t exactly a free agent, as she’s currently involved in some significant plotlines in STARDOM and also working with Sendai Girls. However, she has been working more engagements in the UK and other places.

She debuted with Pro Wrestling EVE over the summer in a gangbuster match with Sammi Jayne, she went on an excursion to Mexico, and she was one of the STARDOM talents who made it to the Women of Honor tournament. She is relatively early in her career and would benefit from being able to continue to build her profile outside of Japan.

She has also distinguished herself as a great tag team wrestler at Sendai Girls and STARDOM, which could open some interesting possibilities for AEW’s booking in the future.

Bringing Kimura stateside for a long-term engagement would be a huge coup for AEW, and would get joshi fans watching too. It also might make Kagetsu angry enough to get her in an AEW ring. A showdown between Kagetsu and Kimura at an AEW show? I’d be there.