The exact reason for Storm's upcoming absence is unclear and reports of her situation remain vague and ambiguous. Meltzer noted that what Storm is dealing with "is not an injury or anything like that" and AEW only found out about it just hours before Dynamite while Sean Ross Sapp pointed out that the angle that played out on Dynamite was clearly non-contact in nature and AEW doesn't expect her to be cleared to wrestle through 2026 "at a minimum."
Fightful Select also reported that AEW plans to capitalize on the "mystery attacker" angle where Storm was shown laid out in a pool of blood, and they laid out multiple "easter eggs" in the clip to encourage the audience to guess on who the assailant may be.
