What's up, my Lucha fans! I'm Francis aka Francisthewitcher and this is The Lucha Corner, where I bring you mucho wrestling!
Today I'm in a great mood because last night I watched what should be not only the best PPV of the year, but also of all time! We're going to talk about AEW's Double or Nothing that took place last night!
So let's get to it!
First let's start with the Buy In.
The pre-show started with Renee Paquette welcoming Mick Foley into All Elite Wrestlng, and to this day it still feel surreal to me that he would come long overdue to the alternative.
But what made this moment so special was when Renee asked him what made him to join AEW, and his answer was what a lot of us felt the same thing years ago. We all took a break from watching wrestling or we rarely watched it, but when AEW came, they brought the passion back to us again!
So it's great to hear that Foley went through the same thing as us and I hope his presence will contribute immensely to AEW!
After that segment, we watched the Divine Dominion Eliminator Match with Viva Van and Zayda Steel as challengers. It felt a little rough to me and I think it's because the nerves were getting into Viva and Zayda. I cannot blame them since it's their first time to wrestle in a PPV.
That being said, I don't think the match was that bad, but it felt a little rushed because of the five-minute limit time. And I was more on board with the idea that maybe an underdog tag team will earn the title shots.
Sadly for VIva and Zayda, Divine Dominion succeeded and that didn't stop from attacking Christopher Angels, that was the best thing LOL
But then we saw TayJay coming out and it's more likely they're gonna demand a shot for the titles. And it really seems like Anna Jay is going to sign a new contract with AEW. Honestly, good for her. It also makes sense since Jungle Boy is her life partner and wants to be close to him. I can only hope that she will get better in the ring and doing a tag match with Tay Melo again will help her.
Next came the trios match between The Opps and The Death Riders. It was a pretty good match, though I was surprised to see Hook back after a while, but I forgot the fact the reason he was absent is because he got a role for a movie, so there's the explanation.
The best part about it is that how Anthony Bowen's new role as a new member of The Opps is actually working and to see him standing up to the Death Riders while outnumbered was a very nice detail.
And last but not least, there was the full 10-tag team match between The Conglomeration and Boom & Doom against STP.
I just need to say it in my humble opinion, STP are too good as a heel faction to have loss after loss, but at the same time I'm glad they're having more exposition for the brand that I hope they'll become more important in the Trios' division in AEW.
The match was still fun with A.J still showcasing his ring performance, but the botch at end where QT Marshall slipped off the corner and landed awkwardly out of the ring kinda made me think that maybe they should've done something else.
At the very least QT just confirmed that he's doing okay, so thank heavens for that. Oh, but it was pretty great that Eddie Kingston and Mance Warner came out to hype the crowd and it all makes sense since they're from NYC.
So after that, Renee and Foley returned to the ring to close the pre-show, but suddenly MJF came out to farm his aura and farm the heat. And my goodness, that Foley promo to MJF was so good that I was fully convinced he's going to be a great asset for AEW!
MJF of course attacked him before Darby came to save him, and Foley concluded the pre-show by sharing some words of wisdom to Darby, which made me feel more excited for the main event.
And now we're getting to the main show! The whole best part about the PPV!
The show opened with the I Quit Tag Team Match with Copeland and Christian against FTR, with the stipulation that if C&C were to lose this match, they'd have to retire as a tag team.
At first I thought this match wouldn't have so much impact because of their feud that was prolonged since All Out 2025, and the idea that FTR had to become AEW Tag Tag Champions again it didn't sit well to me. I mean, Brodido were the best tag team, The Young Bucks deserved to have another run as tag team champions, there were other tag teams who deserved it. But I knew they had an end game plan to make this match happen.
So I wasn't sure if I was gonna be invested in this one. But oh boy, not only they showed they were adamant about this storyline, but they really knew what they were doing.
The match was nothing short of entertaining and fun, but I also completetly forgot how FTR are so good as a tag team they knew how to make the crowd jeer at them. Copeland and Christian also knew their roles well, but Christian was the best of all cause he refused to change of being our favorite asshole and I still love his character!
The piledriver on the announcers table spot was insane, but the best moment of the match came when they did the famous flaming table spot, which was clearly a reference to Mick Foley vs Edge that took place at WrestleMania 22!
That moment really sold this match, but of course, let's not forget how it ended with Copeland using the Spike to force Dax to say "I QUIT!", making Copeland and Christian the winners and the NEW AEW Tag Team Champions.
I didn't expect I would be getting into this match, but I also thought it was a very smart decision to put this in the opening since there more solid matches that would follow, so you can imagine how difficult it would be to make the crowd feeling it if it was place somewhere else.
Also it's actually good that Copeland and Christian could get to be Tag Team Champions after over two decades and it looks likely they're going to retire after they lose the titles. But I hope that their new run could somehow push the tag team's division, especially when MCMG and The New Day could potentially join AEW soon.
Next came Konosuke Takeshita vs Kazuchika Okada for the International Championship!
This match... it totally blew my mind, and not because of how Takeshita and Okada had a great chemistry together and how the crowd was reacting to every single moment of it. It's more the fact of how long I've been following this feud ever since from the start that I was hoping to see this match happening.
Their dynamic was something you'd see in a main event from New Japan Pro Wrestling, and this is why I love watching AEW when you get to see different styles such as the Strong Style and the Lucha Libre.
The moment where Takeshita delivered a counter Rainmaker to Okada was such a cathartic moment that should be placed in the history books of pro wrestling so the next generation of fans could learn more about this.
And when Takeshita not only finally win the Intercontinental Championship, but also completed his turn as a Face, we witnessed the shocking return of Kyle Fletcher after he suffered a leg injury back in Collision March 28th. I actually didn't expect he would make a return since it was unknown what kind of injury he got, but thank God it wasn't that serious and now that he made the upsetting betrayal on Takeshita, we might gonna see them feuding on their road for All In.
Now here's the interesting part, after the match ended, I thought to myself how can the next match be able to keep the crowd from getting tired out after this intense bout? And the answer came with Athena vs Mina Shirakawa in the Owen Hart Tournament.
Placinig Athena and Mina Shirakawa in their next match after Takeshita vs Okada was a smart move since they both are the most popular wrestlers in AEW's women's division, and while their match wasn't on the same level of intensity as the previous one, they really gave their best to deliver another solid match and keep the crowd awake.
Also it's still great to see Athena and Mina facing each other in a AEW PPV, especially since Athena remained in ROH for too long that now she needs to be featured on AEW TV now than ever, more because without Willow, Toni and Mercedes, the division took a huge hit.
Even though Mina have lost her match, I'm now convinced that maybe she will get a push to be the new TBS Champion, but I wouldn't be surprised if anyone else will be. What I expect this week is Tony Khan announcing a possible tournament, maybe a Casino Gauntlet match to crown the new TBS champion. I think that would be the right move to keep the women's division afloat.
Only time will tell.
Next, we had Kyle O'Reilly vs Jon Moxley in a No Time Limit Match for the Continental Championship.
I think what made special is the fact that we almost never see the kind of match where we see an underrated wrestler like Kyle O'Reilly facing a top star for a title, I even was under the belief that maybe he could make an upset win just like he had against Moxley back at Full Gear 2025.
Of course, this match wasn't on the same level as their previous one, but they still delivered a good showcase of technical wrestling, which again, is one of the things I really enjoy watching AEW. Even after his defeat, Kyle O'Reilly stood tall and earned Moxley's respect, which gives me hope that sooner or later he will get a push and he will earn a singles title he much deserves.
Another great match we got to see was Will Ospreay vs Samoa Joe in the Owen Hart's Tournament! It's still insane to me that even after getting a neck surgery, Will Ospreay can still fly and you could see how much he missed wrestling in the ring! Not to mention Samoa Joe still could take the hits even and never changed his ring style despite his age.
I always love to see matches here two different styles clashes each other and makes you wonder which one could prove to be superior. In the end, Ospreay beat his rival to pave his way to the semifinals and we'll see if his road to All In is sealed, cause anything could happen at this point.
So the next match, and yet another match of the night, was Bandido vs Swerve Strickland in the Owen Hart Tournament!
Not only we get to see two biggest stars from different countries facing each other, but also a new side from Bandido I didn't see before, at least in my case. I can't even begin to imagine what would've happen if this line up would be ruined because of the Visa issues he had, and I hate the fact that Mortos and Komander are dealing the same thing.
But I digress, this match was another homerun for the PPV, and the way it ended with Swerve countering Bandido's 21 Plex with his Vertebreaker and finished with the House Call was the icing on the cake! Plus the spot where Bandido actually performed the 21 Plex on Swerve, but couldn't cover him as he was whriting in pain almost gave me a heart attack, and I think we know where he learned from that...
Anyway, what came next was the Fatal Four Way Match for the Women's World Title, between Kris Statlander, Hikaru Shida, Jamie Hayter and Thekla.
I didn't realize until now that Thekla was facing three former Women's World champions, so that was a really smart detail for the booking. Also it was a very good thing they placed it before the Stadium Stampede match, but we'll get to that later.
As I expected, this was a really good match, and not just because we saw more than two women facing each other, it's also the fact that Hikaru Shida completed her transiction to become a heel and after ruining Statlander's chance to become the new champion, we'll get to see a new feud that's gonna be something really interesting to see.
And once again Thekla proved to be a champion with great charisma and I think it would be amazing if she gets to face a Joshi wrestler from Stardom for Forbidden Door.
And the fun doesn't stop from there, cause the next match was none other than the Stadium Stampede match!
I've seen some uncertainty from other fans who didn't know what to think about the lineup for this match, that was before they made the full reveal of both team members. But there were still some questions whether this match would deliver. I, on the other hand, knew that it won't be any different because I've seen this kind of reaction all the time whether a Stadium Stampede/Anarchy In The Arena would be announced.
However, I was aware that this time it wouldn't be any different and it would still be much fun to watch, but I really didn't expect this would exceed my expectations.
They gave us a lot of moments that made this match more than just fun. The interesting brief reunion of Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush, Mark Davis meeting Tommy Invincible, the food fight in the catering room. And let's not forget the spot where Jungle Boy seemingly ran over Mark Davis at the parking lot!
Even some civilian reported it to the police because they thought it was all real! And some people say the Kayfabe is already dead!
That match was absolutely more than just a half-time entertainment, and the crowd really proved it. Also, I loved how Chris Jericho paid a tribute to Sabu by throwing himself into the table that wasn't broken earlier.
And now, we're going to talk about the main event.
Darby Allin vs MJF for the AEW World Championship.
I think this was more than just the title against MJF's hair, it was a battle between the champion who was willing to give up everything to make the titile more prestigious than ever, against the challenger who wanted nothing more but cementng his legacy by becoming the first three time champion.
I knew Darby Allin was going to take some serious risky spots to prove his point, but he did it for a purpose and that's why I love about him. The crowd even knew it, and they knew they wouldn't look themselves good if they wouldn't show any reaction to this important main event.
But what I really loved about this match was how MJF won the championship. In his past title defenses, we saw him using the dirty tactics as his last resource in order to get the victory, but iin the past few weeks, we saw him trying to do the same tactics, but all of the backfired terribly. Of course, this match wasn't different since he used the cameraman as a shield.
My prayers to the cameraman by the way.
The point is that at the last minutes of the match, we saw how MJF was aware that Darby's constant titles would wear him out, which he exploited to use it for his advantage. And after delivering a top rope piledriver tombstone and pin him with a headlock, was outstanding!
And the show wasn't over just yet.
We saw Kevin Knight coming out to save Darby, or so we thought before we witnessed him jumping off the top rope and hit Darby in the stretcher with the UFO, revealing to us his shocking heel turn!
And now, the show ends with the question that's etching in everyone's mind: Why Kevin Knight did this?
We're certainly going to see his answer in this week's Dynamite/Collision show, but one thing that I'm so excited is how big will be Knight's new role as a heel!
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