The AEW women’s roster has been dealt a significant blow regarding the health of Penelope Ford. During a pre-show video posted to X (formerly Twitter) ahead of the March 7th episode of AEW Collision, AEW CEO Tony Khan provided a discouraging update on the severity of Ford’s recent injury.
A Longer Recovery Than Initially Anticipated
Khan addressed the situation while promoting a newly booked tag team match for Collision featuring Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa taking on Megan Bayne and Lena Kross. Because Ford is a key member of the Bayne/Kross alliance, Khan felt it necessary to clarify her absence.
“It looks like, unfortunately, [Ford] will be out with an injury maybe for weeks, but possibly even up to months,” Khan revealed to the fanbase.
The timeline is much more severe than early estimates suggested. According to Bryan Alvarez, Ford suffered a legitimate ankle sprain during the February 25th episode of Dynamite. The injury occurred during an AEW Women’s Tag Team Championship match where Ford and Bayne were challenging Willow Nightingale and Harley Cameron. Ford executed a moonsault to the outside and landed awkwardly on her feet.
At the time of the incident, initial reports indicated she was expected back relatively “soon.” The legitimate injury forced officials to call an audible in the ring, changing the planned finish of the match. The revised ending saw Lena Kross interfere, causing a disqualification to protect Ford from further damage. Kross had recently made a surprise appearance at the Grand Slam Australia event to officially align herself with the MegaBad team of Bayne and Ford. Now, that faction will have to operate without Ford for the foreseeable future.
