Ranking #10 – Isla Dawn & Alba Fyre
Last Week – N/A
With Stand & Deliver fast approaching, this week’s NXT began to set the stage for our women’s division.
Isla Dawn & Alba Fyre have been targeting the other tag teams in the division for weeks and their efforts paid off. Capitalising on Tatum Paxley’s betrayal (which they had a hand in) Dawn & Fyre picked up the victory and have earned a title shot against the NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions.
Later in the show, the duo would pop up and attack Kiana James after her own match to drive home how their cohesion as a team easily trumps the issues between the tag champions.
Ranking #9 – Zoey Stark
Last Week – N/A
The match for the NXT Women’s Championship is still being built up but we know that Zoey Stark was the first women to qualify for the ladder match.
After week’s of seemingly avoiding Sol Ruca’s requests for a rematch, Stark met her on this week’s episode of NXT with a spot at Stand & Deliver on the line. Stark continues to give Ruca some of her best showings in the ring but it would be Stark getting the pinfall once again.
Not only was this a big win but Stark was also namedropped by Mercedes Moné as a current WWE talent she would like to face, showing that others are noticing that Stark’s stock continues to rise.
Ranking #8 – Gigi Dolin
Last Week – 7
Following on from a victory over her rival, Jacy Jayne, Gigi Dolin would run with her momentum and would defeat Kiana James this week to add her name to the ladder match at Stand & Deliver.
With the news that Jayne was injured in their match, Dolin can enjoy a temporary reprieve from watching her back and focus entirely on her upcoming title shot.
Ranking #7 – Bianca Belair
Last Week – 12
Another week and another victory for Bianca Belair.
It’s been refreshing seeing the RAW Women’s Champion back in the ring week to week and when she is facing a duo as devious as Carmella and Chelsea Green, it helps remind us of Belair’s resilience and dominance across the division.
This week played out like last week with Carmella this time running interference at several points but it was a post-match assault that caused Asuka to make the save and Green would be ping ponged between champion and challenger.
For the first time, Asuka began to taunt the champion by playing with the title but there was no confrontation between the two as of yet.
Ranking #6 – Athena
Last Week – 6
The ROH Women’s Champion continues to knockback challengers to her throne on both AEW and ROH programming this week.
Firstly defeating Inder Mundi on Elevation and then Hyan on ROH, Athena remains one of the more consistent women’s champions across the major promotions to get in the ring.
With Forbidden Door coming up in June, Athena is actively requesting a match and a challenger to step up.
Ranking #5 – Taya Valkyrie
Last Week – N/A
When Jade Cargill threw out a challenge for a Canadian to face her, many expected Taya Valkyrie to answer the call and she did… not in the way we expected.
Debuting after Cargill defended her title, Valkyrie would meet the champion in the ring and would send a clear message by taking out Leila Grey with a move all too familiar with Cargill.
On Rampage, Valkyrie would make her in-ring debut as an AEW talent and would pin Ava Lawless with Cargill watching on from the stage, taking notes on her apparent future challenger.
Ranking #4 – Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez
Last Week – N/A
There is a lot of justified criticism surrounding the WWE’s management of their women’s tag team division and making makeshift teams.
That being said, anytime someone can say they’ve secured a match at Wrestlemania is a time for celebration. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez would tag together again this week and would defeat Emma and Tegan Nox to earn that very match.
Who their opponents will be remains to be seen but the two boast impressive resumes already and will be hard to beat.
Ranking #3 – Rhea Ripley
Last Week – N/A
There is arguably no other women in the WWE getting as much screen time as Rhea Ripley.
Involved in segments across RAW and Smackdown, Ripley consistently stands out whether she’s rooting for Finn Balor against Edge or stirring the pot in the Mysterio family drama.
On top of all of this, Ripley has her own mountain to climb as she finally came to blows with Charlotte Flair this week on Smackdown. While her own thoughts on her star power may be disputed by fans, this opportunity to defeat Flair one on one will do wonders to propel Ripley to newer heights.
Ranking #2 – The Outcasts
Last Week – 11
The Outcasts are pissed and they want everyone to know it.
Taking to the ring this week to explain their attitude, the trio made some excellent points about their contributions to not only the AEW Women’s Division but women’s wrestling as a whole.
Ruby Soho led a passionate promo with Saraya and Toni Storm also making their points, Storm raising a very valid complaint about her ‘interim’ status as champion.
The mention of the title would bring out AEW Women’s Champion Jamie Hayter and Britt Baker who would storm the ring and level Soho with a right hand. Just as it looks like the duo were in control, the numbers game would catch up to them and Soho would take Baker out with Destination Unknown while Hayter would take a Storm Zero.
The Outcasts actions have repercussions however as the women they had run down moments before would storm the ring and chase them off.
Ranking #1 – The Coven
Last Week – 13
It seems almost fitting that The Coven would leap from #13 to #1 in just one week.
Call it destiny, call it fate, the results of the Knockouts Tag Team title match was almost expected by fans going in to Impact! this week but both teams still delivered in an intense match. It would be Rosemary and Taya Valkyrie defending the belts this time around and it would be Valkyrie that would fall foul of KiLynn King, the Tower, who picks up the win and the titles in her first match back to Impact!
While the future of the Death Dollz remains in question with Valkyrie’s departure, Wilde has the cards in her favour as she stands as one half of the Knockouts Tag Team Champions once again.
How would you have ranked this week’s women’s action? Who do you see making the biggest impact next week? Let us know in the comments!
