AEW Double or Nothing was main evented by the second ever Anarchy in the Arena, where,
I think we can all agree, Claudio Castignoli lobbing Matt Jackson’s boot up the ramp
was the spot of the year. But in storyline terms, the biggest shock was Takeshita’s
heel turn, where he costed The Elite the win, causing Kenny Omega to get pinned by Heeler
Yuta to pin Kenny Omega - which Yuta has confirmed on Twitter, posting:
“I pinned Kenny Omega.” [TWEET]
It’s still unclear whether Takeshita and Callis are working alone or if they’ve aligned
themselves with the Blackpool Combat Club, but the heels now have the numbers advantage
against the four man strong Elite. But that might not be an issue for much longer, as
Kenny cut a promo after the pay-per-view had gone off air to the Las Vegas crowd only,
saying:
“I might not be the most popular guy backstage, but there is a bigger world than AEW, and
I still have at least one or two really good friends that can even up the odds. You guys
stay tuned. We are not done! This is not over!"
It can only be two people: CM Punk and Ace Steel. [DOG WOOF NOISE]
Just in case they haven’t all actually made up though, Omega is likely teasing current
free agent and one half of his Golden Lovers team Kota Ibushi. Speculationamania is running
wild on the other name being Omega’s former New Japan rival Kazuchika Okada - who is currently
feuding with Moxley in a separate storyline.
This could align perfectly for AEW’s next major event, the second annual Forbidden Door
on June 25. Ibushi left New Japan on very bad terms though, so perhaps we could get
Okada helping Omega first, with Ibushi reuniting with Kenny to set up a 5 on 5 Blood and Guts
match for the All In, Out, Shake It All About week in late August.
But that’s not the only hot young signing potentially on their way to AEW. Because Tony
Khan has revealed he’s been talking to…
…Bill Goldberg.
At the post-Double or Nothing media scrum, Khan teased:
“Yeah, I have talked to Bill. It wouldn’t be that unusual.”
“We have a lot in common and we have a lot of mutual friends, and I have a really good
relationship with Bill. I like him a lot. As to what I’ve talked to him about, I would
say that’s just between the two of us. It was a good chat. I like Bill a lot, he’s
a great guy."
Please, please, please make Goldberg be Collision’s main star, and the whole CM Punk Chicago thing
is just a swerve.
Goldberg’s WWE contract expired at the end of 2022, and with Collision’s branding being
heavily WCW Nitro-inspired, having the familiar faces of Sting, Goldberg and Tony Schiavone
would be a great way to reconnect with that lapsed audience from… JESUS CHRIST, ALMOST
A QUARTER OF A CENTURY AGO. I think they’ve all moved on.
Goldberg actually being Collision’s top star seemingly hasn’t deterred CM Punk,
though, who has started promoting the new AEW show on his social media - posting on
his Instagram story an image of the Collision poster, tagging almost all the names involved
but with pictures of Danhausen over everyone except House of Black members Malakai Black,
Brody King and Buddy Matthews. Presumably because they already had face paint. Or setting
up a trios match of them vs him and FTR.
I’m seeing double here, 20 Danhausens.
Curiously, MJF’s face has a picture of old Batman from the Dark Knight Returns comics
over his face. Either meaning Danhausen is Joker, or Punk is turning heel on MJF when
he returns!
The AEW media scrum wasn’t quite the same without CM Punk burying the roster and putting
over Mindy’s Bakery muffins, but that didn’t mean Tony Khan had an easy night of it. Not
only did he refuse to be drawn into any questions about Punk, he also had to sit through MJF
and Toni Storm kayfabe but also kind of not kayfabe trashing the company.
Khan looked to be in visible pain while AEW World Champion MJF spoke about his favourite
subject - not just whether he could leave for WWE when his contract expires at the end
of this year. But that he could leave wrestling altogether.
“Now, does Nick Khan want me to work in his company? Sure. Does Triple H want me to
work in his company? Sure. Calm down [Tony], it’s fine, or maybe it’s not, but I’m
kind of bored of this sport and I’m bored of the lack of respect from professional wrestling
fans, so when I say ‘take my ball and go home,’ I mean literally, just hang it up,
and f*** up the lineage of this title.”
Not done there, Max went onto bury AEW’s partner promotion New Japan.
"Do I have to wrestle at Forbidden Door? F*** that. Oh God, it's a f****** indie fed, dude…
I think New Japan Pro Wrestling sucks… everyone else there is the drizzling s**ts.”
MJF made sure to say the only person he’s a fan of is the Great O-Khan, a notoriously
unliked wrestler until he’s more recently changed up his gimmick.
In shoot, it’s a lot of kayfabe posturing. Max most likely re-signed his contract when
he came back last Summer. But Toni Storm’s comments upon winning the AEW Women’s Championship
from Jamie Hayter had a very strong undercurrent of her true feelings.
With Tony sitting next to her, she said:
“I’m sure we can all agree that the interim thing was bulls***. Right, Tony? Crazy. That
was a tough, terrible time.”
Speaking of Jamie Hayter, Fightful Select has reported the real injury that led to the
title change meant there were serious concerns she would not be able to compete in the Double
or Nothing match. That’s why it was booked as more of a smoke-and-mirrors 5 minute beat
down angle rather than a match. Despite her loss, Fightful notes that Hayter will receive
a top level push on her return.
They also add the very well received Blackjack Battle Royal was produced by Tony Khan himself,
which might be why “several talent” in the match reportedly did not know they were
in it when it was announced, and that at one point, it was going to be a Casino Battle
Royal format, with staggered entrants.
The real reason behind Jade Cargill’s shock TBS title loss has also emerged - with Cargill
set to be taking a break from the promotion.
After extending her undefeated streak to 60-0 upon beating Taya Valkyrie, Mark Sterling
announced Cargill could wrestle another match… but there’s nobody left for her to beat.
Apart from all the Women’s Championship contenders that have ignored her for the past
two years.
This cued up the awesome return of Kris Statlander, who beat Cargill in 40 seconds to become the
new TBS champion.
Fightful Select is reporting Cargill is set to be leaving regular action to take some
time off soon, if not immediately following her defeat. It’s not known what the reason
for her hiatus is, or how long it will be, but when Cargill returns, she’s expected
to have a “personality shift” of some kind. Statlander has reportedly been planned
as the person to dethrone Jade for at least several weeks.
AEW appears to be in a much better place following Double or Nothing than the infamous All Out
Brawl Out pay-per-view in September 2022. As also according to Fightful Select, a mandatory
talent meeting held prior to the event was said to have gone really well, with a former
WWE employee receiving a particularly positive reception.
The meeting was led by former 25 year WWE employee Adam Hopkins who now works for AEW’s
public relations department after surprisingly being released by WWE earlier this year. The
general topic of discussion from the meeting was media literacy, with talent being sure
to make clear what comments given to media outlets should be ‘off the record’ in
order to “protect themselves and the company from the spread of misinformation”. Hopkins
was described as a “game changing hire” for the company, hopefully getting on top
a lot of the negative stories that have been leaked to the press about AEW over the past
year.
Veterans Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli also added their own wisdom, with Castagnoli
apparently reiterating the importance of media in promoting yourself as a talent, the storylines
and the company as a whole. While Danielson… said he shouldn’t really be giving anyone
advice after he once said in an interview that apples were tree semen when he should’ve
been promoting a match with Kenny Omega.
Fightful Select write that AEW talent were also informed over the weekend about Collision
starting with a ‘soft’ brand split, which could then potentially develop into a harder
one.
Potentially developing into a harder one, title of your sex tape.
But with talent not being told anything specific, it could be a case of AEW not knowing themselves
what they’re planning to do either.
Now go watch my review of Double or Nothing, which had two of the best matches of
the year…