All Elite Wrestling superstar Kris Statlander was scheduled to wrestle Riho for the Women’s Championship on the next episode of Dynamite , but the match had to be canceled over the weekend. According to AEW’s official Twitter account, the reason behind the decision was due to Statlander having other commitments, though fans can expect to see her get a title shot in the coming weeks.
However, there will still be a title match on this Wednesday’s episode of AEW’s flagship show. In the same announcement where the company announced that Statlander could no longer compete at the event, they announced different challengers for Riho.
“Due to prior commitments, Kris Statlander will not be in Jacksonville to face Riho for the #AEW Women’s World Championship on Wed, Jan 1st. Riho will still defend her championship in a 4 way match w/ Nyla Rose, Britt Baker & Hikaru Shida.”
AEW subsequently announced that Statlander will face the winner of that match on the January 8 episode of Dynamite , which promises to be a special show as it marks the one year anniversary of the company being founded .
According to Dave Meltzer of F4Wonline , there was a communication issue between Statlander and the company which led to the mixup. Meltzer revealed that independent wrestling promotions rarely hold shows on Wednesdays, and the company assumed that the superstar didn’t have any other commitments that night.
. @callmekrisstat did it with an upset win over Shida! Watch #AEWDynamite NOW on @TNTDrama 8e/7c #AEWonTNT @AEWonTNT pic.twitter.com/SJg6zSEZkG
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) December 5, 2019
AEW president Tony Khan also took to Twitter to comment on the matter, revealing that the company was more than willing to work out a resolution with the superstar rather than strip her of a big opportunity.
“Rather than force Kris to choose between her title shot or keeping her word on a commitment she made before signing here, we’re allowing her to do both.”
Statlander is a recent addition to the company, and she is still honoring some of her pre-confirmed bookings. She is scheduled to appear at Bar Wrestling events on Tuesday and Wednesday while she misses Dynamite .
Statlander is scheduled to face fellow AEW star Priscilla Kelly on New Year’s Eve. On the following night’s show, she will take on Gisele Shaw. Both matches should make for exciting bouts, but fans will be keen to see one of AEW’s rising stars return to television next week.
Statlander earned her title shot by defeating Britt Baker on last week’s Dynamite , and AEW’s decision to let the title match go ahead at a later date is further proof that the company is taking its wins and losses seriously.
