AEW Dynamite: 5 Biggest news stories - Deathmatch announced, Sting takes a major bump (February 17, 2021)
From an AEW Tag Team Championship match to an excellent women's bout, this week's edition of AEW Dynamite featured many contrasting moments.
Compared to the last few editions of Dynamite, this week's show was well-balanced, for the most part. A couple of botches aside, there were a few intriguing stipulation matches announced for AEW Revolution. Some storylines took interesting turns, which shall be discussed in this column as well.
How did NXT fare against AEW in terms of quality this week? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Here are the five biggest news stories from this week's episode of AEW Dynamite (February 17, 2021).
#5 Riho made a stellar return to AEW Dynamite after almost 11 months
AEW Dynamite featured the return of one of its key female players this week.
Riho returned to face Serena Deeb in the first round of the AEW Women's World Championship Eliminator Tournament. Although Riho was the inaugural AEW Women's Champion in the past, Serena Deeb is currently the NWA Women's Champion. As a result, Serena was the favorite to win in their clash.
The two women put on an excellent contest against each other. A lot of AEW's matches tend to become unfocused with their fast-paced action. However, Riho vs. Serena Deeb was focused in terms of spots and less gratuitous in the same department.
Towards the end of their back-and-forth match, Riho successfully rolled up her opponent for the pinfall victory.
Defeating a major champion has made the Japanese star a favorite in the tournament. Riho advanced to the quarterfinals, where she will now face the former NWA Women's Champion, Thunder Rosa.
Whoever wins between Rosa and Riho could probably go on to win the entire AEW Women's World Championship Eliminator Tournament. This tournament not only helps to build a formidable competitor for Hikaru Shida, but it also showcases the excellent potential of the women in AEW.