AEW Rampage: Hikaru Shida defeats Nyla Rose, earns title shot

On Friday night’s episode of AEW Rampage, one of AEW’s longest feuds added yet another match. Former AEW Women’s Champions, Nyla Rose and Hikaru Shida battled in the main event.

Rose was AEW’s second women’s champion. The world closed down during her title reign. Shida would defeat her at Double or Nothing in 2020 to become the “No Fans Era” champion due to the pandemic. Many have called for Shida to have a “proper” title run. Rose pointed out what happened to her during her reign, yet no one is calling for her to get another run.

In the promo leading up to their match, Rose said she and her opponent were “destined to fight forever.” Shida thinks of Rose as a stepping stone to regain the women’s title. The two know each other well and proved it once again on Rampage. Rose went for Shida as soon as she got in the ring and didn’t bother waiting on the bell.

Rose and Shida continuously tried to one up each other. Shida showed off her incredible strength when she suplexed Rose. She also hit her with a Falcon Arrow, but it wasn’t enough to keep her opponent down.

As usual, Rose was accompanied to the ring by Marina Shafir. Shafir would help out Rose where she could like stomping Shida on the outside. She also took Shida’s trusty kendo stick. She’d pay for it as soon as Shida regained it. Rose nearly got pinned, but “The Problem” put her friend’s foot on the rope. Shida was still able to get the victory.

As the show was going off the air, it was announced that Shida will get her title shot next Wednesday on the 200th episode of Dynamite.

Although Shida has only periodically wrestled, having her win next week wouldn’t be a mad idea. The women’s division is in desperate need of a shakeup. They could have a rematch at either ALL IN or ALL OUT. Both pay-per-views are coming up quickly and it’s past time to start building for them.

It would also give the women’s division some much needed direction and a compelling storyline. The division has been sputtering for weeks. The Outcasts vs. Originals feud is practically dead, especially now that a women’s Blood & Guts isn’t happening. Shida becoming AEW Women’s Champion could be the shot in the arm that the division needs.