Thekla kept the AEW Women’s World Championship after a hard-fought win over Mina Shirakawa on AEW Dynamite. The champion survived a dramatic finish to complete her third successful title defense.
Match summary
The match started with action on the outside, where Shirakawa took an early upper hand. Thekla fought back, regaining control and wearing Shirakawa down on the mat in the center of the ring.
Shirakawa answered with a well-timed reversal that turned into a submission, but Thekla made it to the ropes to force a break. Back on their feet, the two exchanged strikes until Thekla finished the sequence with a spear.
After the spear, Thekla tried to use the title belt on Shirakawa, but the referee stepped in. As the referee moved to remove the belt, Thekla then pulled out a knuckle duster. Shirakawa landed a spinning backfist that stopped the first strike, but Thekla connected with the knuckle duster on a second blow and quickly followed with the pinfall to retain the championship.
Title context and recent history
This marked Thekla’s third defense of the AEW Women’s World Championship. She had originally won the title and then defended it in a previous match against Kris Statlander.
Mina Shirakawa earned this title shot after beating Marina Shafir on last week’s show. She stepped up to take the match while her usual partner, Toni Storm, is out with an injury.
What this means
Thekla leaves Dynamite still the AEW Women’s World Champion after a controversial finish that featured the hidden weapon. The win cements her run as champion with another successful defense.
Shirakawa showed grit and some strong offense, including the submission attempt and the spinning backfist, but she came up short against the champion’s toughness and the illicit late strike.
| Fighter | Recent Result |
|---|---|
| Thekla | Retained AEW Women’s World Title — defeated Mina Shirakawa |
| Mina Shirakawa | Lost to Thekla; had beaten Marina Shafir last week to earn the title shot |
AEW Dynamite viewers saw a dramatic title match that may lead to more fallout on future shows, especially given the use of a foreign object and the involvement of the referee in the finish.
