Toni Storm is expected to be sidelined for an extended period following an undisclosed injury, according to Bryan Alvarez of F4Wonline.com.
Alvarez reported that Storm will be out of action for a long time, confirming that her absence from Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite in Fresno, California, was the result of a legitimate injury rather than a storyline development. Mina Shirakawa filled in for Storm and defeated Marina Shafir in the no-holds-barred match that had originally been scheduled for Storm.
Storm last competed at AEW Revolution on March 15 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, where she defeated Shafir in a physical and hard-hitting match. Following the bout, Ronda Rousey made a surprise appearance to confront Storm, and Storm was struck by Shafir as the two women were being separated during the post-match chaos. It is unclear whether the injury sustained at Revolution or the post-match incident contributed to her current condition.
Prior to Wednesday’s Dynamite going on the air, AEW posted a clip on social media showing Storm bloodied in her locker room with Shirakawa and Luther attending to her. The clip was used to explain her absence from the scheduled match, with WWE announcing she had not been medically cleared to compete. The presentation blurred the line between the storyline and reality, with Alvarez’s report confirming that something legitimate occurred.
The extent of Storm’s injuries and her return timeline are currently unknown. It is also unclear whether Shirakawa is being slotted into the creative plans that had been in place for Storm heading into the next phase of AEW programming, including whatever had been planned involving Ronda Rousey following her Revolution debut.
We wish her a speedy recovery.
