Former champion to return after 107 days to cause title change at AEW Winter is Coming? Exploring the chances

AEW is just hours away from presenting its fifth annual Winter Is Coming edition of Dynamite. With the road to World's End heating up, the All Elite stars are looking to close the year on a high note, and tonight is the first of several special episodes on the schedule. There is strong speculation on a potential major return and title change on tonight's Dynamite.

Mariah May is set to defend the AEW Women's World Championship against longtime friend and tag team partner Mina Shirakawa at Winter Is Coming tonight. The match was made after May brutally turned on Shirakawa at Full Gear, then continued the assault on Dynamite that week.

Tonight's title match may be the second biggest match in Mina's short AEW career as her previous title shot came on a much bigger stage. The AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door held back in June saw Toni Storm retain the Women's World Championship, just weeks before dropping the title to May at All In.

Timeless Toni has been away from All Elite Wrestling since All In, though she has made several promotional appearances for the company, and has competed in Stardom. Storm has teased her retirement, but even Tony Khan doesn't believe it's real and expects her back in AEW. Now that Storm's hiatus has passed the 100-day mark, rumors and speculation are picking up on the return of the three-time Women's World Champion.

Storm is expected by some to show up at Winter Is Coming tonight to help Shirakawa win the championship from May. There's a notable history between the trio as Shirakawa returned this past summer during May's feud with her former mentor, bringing tension within the group. Mina then returned in September to celebrate Mariah's win over Toni.

The Venus even had a recent cryptic link to Storm. A vignette for Mina's return to AEW last month included a mysterious QR code that linked to an unlisted video on the company's YouTube channel, titled, "Where In The World Is Timeless Toni Storm?"

Furthermore, Storm's recent run in Stardom saw her and Shirakawa work together on two occasions. Storm and Shirakawa defeated AZM and Mayu Iwatani on September 28, and days later they joined Maika for a trios win over STARS. Their only time teaming before this came on the June 26 Dynamite episode, where they teamed with May for a win over Anna Jay, Saraya, and Harley Cameron.

The Fighting Princess has dominated the All Elite women's division as of late, but she could be up against a major force if her former friends-turned-foes in Storm and Shirakawa link up at Winter Is Coming. Storm has made it clear she wants revenge on May, and it will be interesting to see if she uses Shirakawa to secure that goal.

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AEW Dynamite: Winter Is Coming lineup for tonight

All Elite Wrestling will return to the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, MO tonight for Winter Is Coming. Below is the updated lineup for tonight's live Dynamite:

• Continental Classic Gold League: Will Ospreay vs. Claudio Castagnoli
• Continental Classic Gold League: Ricochet vs. Brody King
• Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly, with the winner facing MJF at World's End
• Women's World Championship Match: Mariah May (c) vs. Mina Shirakawa
• Jon Moxley and PAC vs. Orange Cassidy and Jay White

AEW will also tape the Winter Is Coming Rampage tonight, to air on Friday in its usual TNT timeslot. Matt Cardona has been announced to promote his Final Battle match with ROH World Champion Chris Jericho.