On the June 8 episode of AEW Dynamite, Thunder Rosa issued an open challenge for the AEW Women’s World Championship. It was answered by Marina Shafir and the two fought that night. Rosa retained before Toni Storm came out to save her from Shafir and lock in her bid to be next in line.
The match between Rosa and Shafir didn’t garner much applause. After her victory, several fans on social media felt that Rosa was not doing her part in the match by “no selling” and “sandbagging” the attempts made by Shafir.
Rosa spoke to The MMA Hour and responded to the concern.
“No,” she responded about the accusations. “I have nothing but respect for my opponents. Nothing but respect for my opponents. Anyone that dares to stand in the ring with me, I have nothing but respect for my opponents. I send them nothing but blessings. Moving forward, I will continue to work harder to have the best matches I can bring and to bring the most opportunities to all the women that are behind me so when they step into the ring with me, they’re like, ‘Okay, cool.’ People are going to talk and that’s fine. I’m not worried about that. I will continue to move forward and I will continue to show, with my body of work, what I’m all about.”
With Storm eyeing up the championship belt last week, tonight’s Dynamite will likely have championship implications as Toni Storm takes on Dr. Britt Baker.
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