Their weekly TV has received regular praise for maintaining a consistent quality. Dynamite in 2026 has played host to major moments in AEW history, including two world title changes, while Collision continues to be the show for “the sickos” wanting two hours of some of the best and purest in-ring wrestling on TV.
On the pay-per-view side, all four shows thus far in 2026 have been hailed as being among the best in company history. Double or Nothing and Forbidden Door, in particular, are both among AEW’s top ten highest-rated shows by fans on Cagematch.
The roster may be the strongest it has ever been, as well, with the wealth of talent and names dotting AEW’s men’s and women’s divisions. But more importantly, a large majority of the roster is over with crowds to some degree, giving AEW the flexibility to put a wider variety of people on either of its weekly shows even if someone hasn’t appeared for several weeks.
One name in particular has been a standout in 2026, having a career year after their first few years was snake-bitten with various injuries. It didn’t help that their tag team partner broke out as a singles star in that same time to become one of AEW’s marquee names and is seen as a future world champion in the promotion.
That wrestler – Mark Davis.
Davis was signed by AEW in May 2023 alongside his Aussie Open tag partner Kyle Fletcher, with the pair expected to become a key part of AEW’s tag team division. However, Davis suffered his first injury with AEW when the team challenged then-champions FTR for the AEW Men’s World Tag Team Titles at AEW WrestleDream in October and Davis wound up breaking his wrist.
He returned in October 2024, joining the Don Callis Family shortly after and rejoin Fletcher who, as mentioned, became a breakout star in the time Davis was out and key member of the Don Callis Family.
Just as it seemed Davis was regaining momentum, he suffered a broken foot following a match with Powerhouse Hobbs on a March 2025 Dynamite. He would return from that injury several months later in October, and has since been able to avoid injury.
Cut to 2026 and Davis, only suffering brief hiccups due to recent AEW signing Jake Doyle, who Davis was set to challenge for the tag titles with, got injured almost two weeks after signing, and a brief holdover due to issues renewing his U.S. work VISA along with many other AEW and WWE wrestlers.
Aside from those, the veteran from Queensland, Australia, has quietly emerged as one of AEW’s standout workhorses and TV wrestlers over the course of the year. He’s gotten to share the ring with many of the promotion’s top names including Will Ospreay, Darby Allin, and ‘Hangman’ Adam Page, putting on one of the best matches of the show in a losing effort.
The work wasn’t lost on AEW’s top brass, though, as Davis would win his first AEW gold in 2026.
He first won the AEW World Trios Championship with his Don Callis Family stablemates Kyle Fletcher and Kazuchika Okada in March, but would lose them barely two weeks after to ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey, ‘The Jet’ Kevin Knight, and CMLL star and new AEW signee Mistico at AEW Revolution.
Davis would win his first singles title in May at AEW’s Fairway to Hell special, defeating ‘Jungle’ Jack Perry for the AEW National Championship.
As of July 12, he is still AEW National Champion after defending the title in another standout match on the July 11 edition of AEW Collision against ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey. He also appears poised to face former Don Callis Family member Andrade el Idolo, who will receive a shot at the National Title if he defeats Jake Doyle on the upcoming AEW Dynamite.
All this can be boiled down to one simple truth – Davis has overdelivered, and then some, in 2026 and deserves more recognition for it.
He has received praise in the moments for his work, but when you are working in the same company as wrestlers such as Jon Moxley, Kenny Omega, MJF, Mercedes Mone, Athena, and many others, it is easier to get lost in the shuffle. This is not a slight at Davis or the roster, either, but reflective of how strong the AEW roster is as of July 2026.
That said, it doesn’t diminish Davis’ contributions in the least. If anything, it speaks more to how consistent he has been in 2026 that fans now expect, at minimum, a good match from the wrestler nicknamed ‘Dunkzilla.’ Singles, tags, trios, stipulations, it hasn’t mattered what AEW has put Davis in over the course of the year, he has hit a proverbial home run, or close to it, every time he’s been given the chance to shine.
A competitive 8-minute loss to then-National Champion Jack Perry on the AEW Dynasty Zero Hour in April turned into his first singles title win for the National Title in AEW barely a month later on a major TV special. If there was any clearer evidence to how much Davis’ performance in 2026 has been recognized by AEW, this is it.
And while he has gotten some flowers from fans and critics, it feels as though Davis should be recognized even more for the banner year amid AEW’s own banner year. Thankfully, there is plenty of time left in 2026 and ‘Dunkzilla’ doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon.
It goes without saying that the first half of 2026 has been very kind to All Elite Wrestling.
The seven-year-old promotion has been on one of the strongest runs of business since it began in 2019, with Dynamite and Collision regularly praised for their consistent quality. And while pay-per-views have typically performed well, 2026 has been particularly strong on that front, too, with Revolution in March, Double or Nothing in May, and Forbidden Door in June all being hailed as being among the best shows AEW has ever put on.
The roster has continued to improve, as well, with perhaps the strongest collection of talent not just in AEW history, but arguably pro wrestling history. And considering how loaded the roster was heading into AEW All In Texas, that is saying something. It is expected to only get stronger ahead of AEW’s return to Wembley in London, England, for All In 2026, as well, in the wake of many high-profile “departures” from WWE in early May.
One AEW star, in particular, has really gotten to shine in 2026, effectively taking a division on their back amid a variety of injuries and talent stepping away for personal reasons resulting in reported plans from January looking almost unrecognizable by the end of June.
The star in question is The Toxic Spider, herself, Thekla.
Since making her AEW debut in May 2025, Thekla has been a mainstay of the women’s division hot off the heels of dramatic departure from Stardom where, in kayfabe, she was fired by Stardom President Taro Okada. She would spend the next year making a rapid ascent, becoming AEW Women’s World Champion after only nine months with the company while leaving chaos in her wake no matter where she appears.
President Okada learned this the hard way on multiple occasions, including at Stardom American Dream 2026 over WrestleMania week in Las Vegas, Nevada, and again at Stardom The Conversion two months later.
Thekla thrives on the chaos she and her Triangle of Madness stablemates Skye Blue and Julia Hart create in AEW and beyond with an devilish glee. Where others would scream or fear at their own darker impulses, Thekla laughs and embraces her own madness.
This isn’t unlike The Joker, DC’s Clown Prince of Crime and the embodiment of chaos and madness to juxtapose Batman’s order and control. A being of unbridled, uncontrollable madness that even other villains are afraid to confront or seek aid from because Joker is just as likely to turn on them just because he can.
Perhaps no better description for Joker came in 2008’s The Dark Knight, widely hailed as one of the greatest comic book/superhero movies ever made, from Michael Caine’s Alfred –
“Some men aren’t looking for anything logical. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with.”
“Some men, just want to watch the world burn.”
This description fits Thekla in AEW to a tea. Since arriving, she has been a source of chaos for the entire women’s division and has enjoyed every second of it. Whether its simply attacking someone from behind or making an entire mockery of Starlight Kid at the Forbidden Door media scrum and again a few days later on Collision, Thekla will do what she wants, when she wants, to whoever she wants.
And, ironically, this was something AEW’s women’s division needed.
It wasn’t that it lacked talent. Far from it, especially when at the time Thekla arrived. Toni Storm, Mercedes Mone, Willow Nightingale, Kris Statlander, Megan Bayne, and Athena are just a handful of the names already in AEW at the time Thekla debuted, elevating a division that had struggled to get off the ground since the company started.
For all that talent, Thekla was still able to make an immediate splash by being The Joker the division needed. A true chaotic wildcard who couldn’t be trusted by anyone, save for one or two like-minded individuals. She will play well enough with others when she has to, but even in those instances, there’s looming doubt that Thekla won’t turn on allies not named Skye Blue or Julia Hart.
It injected a level of unpredictability to the division because it was never really clear what Thekla would do next. All fans knew was she wanted to be on top of the division, but weren’t always sure how she’d go about getting there until she did.
And like The Joker, Thekla’s eventual defeat will only feed that chaos and make life worse for anyone caught in her sights. It could be argued the only thing holding her back is how much she is enjoying her time as champion. Once that ends, things could get much worse for the rest of the division as nothing will be holding Thekla back from making the roster’s life a true nightmare until she gets the title back.
It is the same vicious cycle that has consumed Joker for decades in the comics and beyond, and it is one that he has no intent on trying to escape. Instead, he only wishes to expand it by giving the rest of the Justice League and DC’s other heroes a taste of the madness Batman has to deal with regularly.
AEW’s relationships with Stardom, New Japan, CMLL, and several other promotions means nowhere is safe from the Toxic Spider’s poison, either. As mentioned, Stardom and Okada continue to fall victim to Thekla who continues to have the upper-hand in hostilities. CMLL’s Amazonas could find themselves in a similar situation before long if Thekla’s gaze turns south of the border.
All that is clear if nothing and no one will contain the madness of Thekla, and that’s just what fans want.
AEW Forbidden Door 2026 is in the history books as the promotion begins, in earnest, the summer-long march to All In at London’s Wembley Stadium.
The cross-promotional event, spearheaded by AEW, sat in an interesting part of the company’s 2026 pay-per-view calendar. It was following Double or Nothing 2026, which was hailed by many fans and critics as possibly the best pay-per-view AEW has ever put on, but was still far enough away from All In that fans could tell the promotion wasn’t really stepping on the gas when it came to the overall build to Wembley.
It was also one of the lightest years when it comes to major cross-promotional matches for the show, though this was due in part to some untimely, but thankfully not major, injuries and a swath of visa issues and renewals keeping wrestlers out of the U.S. for the time being. That said, there were still some high-profile contests for this show, especially on the women’s side as three of the four matches across the show were cross-promotional bouts.
Despite a lackluster build, fans were treated to what may have been one of AEW’s best in-ring pay-per-views, ever.
The Buy-In
As with any AEW pay-per-view, things got started on The Buy-In hosted by Renee Paquette and Jeff Jarrett. The pre-show featured three matches, anchored by two women’s matches with pretty significant stakes.
The opening bout pit Daniel Garcia, representing the Death Riders, taking on Drilla Moloney of New Japan’s Unbound Co. and as some fans may have suspected, it was a physical ten minutes. Moloney and Garcia traded bombs for most of the bout until Moloney was able to catch Garcia during a roll-over attempt and hit the Drilla Killa to score the win.
Maika vs. Skye Blue was next with the sixth and final spot in Wednesday’s TBS Championship Survival of the Fittest match. Like the opener, Maika and Blue didn’t hold back when it came to big strike and big moves to earn a shot at the vacant TBS title, with Maika ultimately scoring the win with a Hammerlock Michinoku Driver after around nine minutes.
Rounding out the pre-show was the AEW Women’s World Tag Team Champions Divine Dominion, Megan Bayne and Lena Kross, putting their title’s on the ling against AEW’s Thunder Rosa and CMLL’s Olympia. The four women weren’t light with their offense, all of them putting their mix of strength and athleticism on display for fans over the roughly ten minute match.
BUY-IN RATING – 3.75/5
Another good pre-show in a string of fairly strong pay-per-view pre-shows from AEW in 2026. The Forbidden Door Buy-In was another Buy-In this year to feature one or more fairly important matches to actually incentivize people to tune in and maybe even buy the pay-per-view last minute.
Main Card
Young Bucks vs. El Sky Team vs. Unbound Co.
Kicking off the pay-per-view was a special cross-promotional tag team match pitting AEW’s Young Bucks against El Sky Team of Mistico and Mascara Dorada from CMLL and the team of Shingo Takagi and Titan representing Unbound Co. and New Japan. Given the talent involved, it was an athletic showcase were five of the wrestlers got to demonstrate their impressive athleticism. Four of them would then run directly into the living brick-wall named Shingo Takagi waiting with a punch and lariat in hand to swat them down. After almost 18 minutes, the Bucks would get the win after a Meltzer-Driver to Titan so the brothers could continue their march back to the AEW World Tag Team Titles.
MATCH RATING – 3.75/5
As good of a tag team opener as fans have come to expect when the Bucks get to kick off a pay-per-view. That said, the match isn’t perfect, with the six wrestlers having some slight missteps early before they finally settled in.
Kenny Omega vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
There was no slowing down as second on the card was Kenny Omega taking on Zack Sabre Jr. in a match both men wanted to use to springboard back to their respective company’s world title scene. In the first epic of the night, Sabre and Omega would put on an incredible display of pro wrestling that was able to spotlight both wrestlers’ abilities. Sabre was once again able to show why he is considered the best technical wrestler in the world today while Omega got to remind Sabre, fans, and the AEW locker room that while he may be a little older and a bit beat up, he is still the “Best Bout Machine” when it counts. The two would keep up a fairly steady pace for roughly 26 minutes before Omega was able to catch Sabre and hit the One-Winged Angel to score the win.
MATCH RATING – 5/5
As mentioned, this was the first of three epics that took place over the course of the show. Sabre and Omega, who commonly speak on the artistic side of pro wrestling, got to be the artists they pride themselves on being inside a wrestling ring. In the process, they put on one of the best matches of the year as of July 1, 2026.
AEW Continental Championship – Jon Moxley (c) vs. Bandido
The hits kept on coming as Jon Moxley once again put his AEW Continental Title on the line, this time against the reigning Ring of Honor Men’s World Champion, Bandido. They had the unenviable task of having to follow Sabre vs. Omega, but were more than up to the challenge as the ever-physical and aggressive Moxley took it to the valiant Bandido from the start. For 18 minutes, Moxley would lay into Bandido, even tearing a massive hole in the luchador’s mask, only for Bandido to fight back time and time again. However, Bandido’s fight would only keep him in it for so long as he was eventually caught by Moxley in a rear-choke that’s ended plenty of matches in the past. Bandido would make one last effort to escape before passing out, forcing the referee to end the match.
MATCH RATING – 4.5/5
Moxley has been considered the Ace of AEW for years, and for good reason, but the star of this match was Bandido. The luchador is one of several names, including his tag team partner Brody King, to have a breakout 2026 and this continued at Forbidden Door with another standout performance.
IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship – Shota Umino (c) vs. Pac
The Death Riders didn’t get a break as next was Pac challenging New Japan’s and Moxley’s old protege Shota Umino for the IWGP Global Heavyweight title. This is barely two weeks after Umino was attacked by Gabe Kidd at NJPW Dominion on behalf of Moxley and the Death Riders in what many fans believed to be Moxley severing his last ties with Umino. This was also the first match to suffer from a tired crowd after the blitz the first three matches were and, as a result, they were quieter for the opening minutes of the match. Pac and Umino were able to get them back into the action by the second-half of the match as the intensity ramped up, climaxing with Umino hitting a Fisherman’s Buster to retain his freshly-won Global Championship.
MATCH RATING – 4/5
Despite a tired, quieter crowd for the first half of the match, Pac and Umino had them hooked for the closing stretch of the 18 minute match that was one of the last matches announced barely a week before Forbidden Door. The post match hinted that things may not be done between Umino and Moxley, either.
AEW Women’s World Championship – Thekla (c) vs. Starlight Kid
Thekla, the Toxic Spider of AEW, put her Women’s World Title on the line against Stardom’s Sky Tiger, Starlight Kid, in the biggest inter-promotional match on the card. This is due to Thekla’s history in Stardom, where she was known as the Idol Killer and found herself at odds with Stardom President Taro Okada before he eventually fired her, fueling Thekla as she issued a challenge for Stardom’s best to step to her. Starlight Kid would answer the challenge, already holding two victories over Thekla dating back to Thekla’s Stardom days. The Sky Tiger continued to be a challenge for Thekla, though she was keen to show Starlight Kid she was even more dangerous since being fired from Stardom. Thekla and Starlight Kid managed to keep up a brisk pace for the third straight 18 minute match of the evening before Thekla was able to score the pinfall after a spear and two curb stomps to retain the title.
MATCH RATING – 4/5
Yet another brisk, well-paced match that showcased why Thekla was the current AEW Women’s World Champion and why Starlight Kid was one of the top names in Stardom. It appeared hostilities between Thekla and Taro Okada will continue after Thekla ripped Starlight Kid’s mask off before spitting in it and hitting Okada with it. Only time will tell when Stardom takes another run at defeating the Toxic Spider.
AEW Men’s World Tag Team Championship – Cope and Cage (c) vs. The Dogs
The final match before the advertised “triple-main event” pit the tag team champions Adam Copeland and Christian Cage against David Finlay and Clark Connors of The Dogs. This comes after weeks of mockery by the Dogs and brawls between the two teams, all so The Dogs could get their shot at the Men’s World Tag Team titles. The Dogs would spend most of the match targeting Christian Cage due, in part, to Cage still nursing an arm injury, though the veterans would get plenty of chances to remind The Dogs why Cope and Cage are among the best tag teams in history. However, The Dogs would get the upper-hand after the referee was taken out, allowing Finlay to hit Cage with his shillelagh. The lights would then turn off as he took aim at Copeland, only for the Bang Bang Gang to appear at the top of the ramp to herald the long-awaited return of ‘Switchblade’ Jay White after 15 months away due to injury and help Copeland retain the tag titles for himself and Cage.
MATCH RATING – 3.5/5
When this can be considered the “worst match on the card,” it reflects just how good the in-ring product was for the entire show. It was still a very good match, overall, that gave The Dogs another chance to shine on pay-per-view and set up an easy feud to carry The Dogs and Bang Bang Gang until the end of Summer, at least, thanks to White being usurped by Finlay as Bullet Club’s leader and forcing ‘King Switch’ out of New Japan.
Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament Finals – Mercedes Mone vs. Maya World
The first of the advertised “triple main event” was the finals of the women’s Owen Hart Cup that saw Mercedes Mone attempting to be the first woman to win back-to-back Owen Hart Cups while Maya World hoped to take her Cinderella Story to Wembley. It has to be said that World suffered a wardrobe malfunction early in the match, resulting in an uneven first few minutes as they tried to get World’s gear problems resolved. She wouldn’t be able to, however, so World and Mone proceeded to just put on what may be AEW’s best women’s match of 2026 so far. Mone’s reputation as one of the best in the world precedes her while, on the other side, World has be heralded as a future star by anyone who has watched her in her three short years as a full-time wrestler. The women left everything in the ring over the course of almost 25 minutes, with World, especially, coming close to scoring her third straight shock win and punch her ticket to Wembley. Unfortunately for her, the veteran Mone would be able to weather the storm and catch the young breakout in a straight-jacket Statement Maker in the middle of the ring for the tapout win.
MATCH RATING – 5/5
In recent years, no “big name” professional wrestler has had such a positive impact on the careers of multiple women around the world. World is the latest to join that list of names, but more than held her own and proved she belonged at the top of the card despite only signing with AEW in December 2025 and could find herself challenging for the Ring of Honor Women’s World Title before long.
Death’s Door Cage Match – Team DCMJF (MJF, Kyle Fletcher, Kazuchika Okada, Jake Doyle, Kevin Knight, Andrade) vs. Team Briscoe (Mark Briscoe, Orange Cassidy, Kyle O’Reilly, Roderick Strong, Darby Allin, Konosuke Takeshita)
Second was the 12-man steel cage match between Team DCMJF and Team Briscoe, with Mark Briscoe receiving an AEW Men’s World Title shot if his team win. With both teams locked into a specially designed circular cage, it would be a chaotic match with plenty of weapons and plunder put to use over the course of half an hour. Along with tables and whatever other weapons were under the ring, Team Briscoe came armed with backpacks loaded with different weapons to make use of. ‘Blackheart’ Lio Rush would even get in on the action when Okada opened a hockey equipment bag Team Briscoe had pulled out from under the ring. Despite MJF’s team coming out ahead near the end of the match, tensions between the AEW Men’s World Champion and Andrade boiled over after MJF forced Andrade to hold up a limp Briscoe so MJF could punch him with his Dynamite Diamond Ring. Andrade would, instead, push Briscoe to the side and nail MJF with a back elbow, followed by low-blowing Jake Doyle and revealing a shirt tell MJF and Don Callis to “F**k off.” Briscoe would finally hit a Jay Driller on Doyle to get the pin and it was announced shortly after the match that MJF will be defending the AEW Men’s World Title against Briscoe on the next episode of Dynamite.
MATCH RATING – 4.25/5
Helping to break up the two Owen Hart tournament finals, the 12-man steel cage match certainly lived up to expectations. All 12 wrestlers got to show off their athleticism, toughness, and even comedy chops during the 30 minutes of insanity that overtook Forbidden Door 2026 until the mat
Owen Hart Foundation Men’s Tournament Finals – Will Ospreay vs. Swerve Strickland
Closing out the evening was Will Ospreay trying to punch his ticket to Wembley in the Owen Hart Men’s Tournament Finals, but standing in his way was his old friend and rival, Swerve Strickland. And at 35:30, it was the longest match on Forbidden Door, but not a minute was wasted by these two professional wrestlers. The match reflected how the two had changed from this time last year heading into All In Texas, leading the charge against the Death Riders and the then-EVP Young Bucks. Since then, Strickland has tapped back into the dangerous side of him that brought him to the AEW Men’s World Title, friendships be damned, while Ospreay has received aid from the very group he fought to defeat at All In last year on his quest to challenging for the World Title at Wembley. Both would leave everything, from sweat to actual pools of blood, in the ring as it seemed like the two were throwing haymakers all match to try and keep the other down. The rest of the Death Riders would eventually come to ringside to cheer on Ospreay, reminding him this was what all the training he has done with the group has been for and no one, not even Strickland, would keep Ospreay from Wembley as the ‘Aerial Assassin’ put his old friend down with the Tiger Driver ’93 to win the match and the Owen.
MATCH RATING – 5/5
In what may go down as one of the greatest main events in AEW history, Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay once again proved why they are now the measuring sticks of AEW alongside the likes of Jon Moxley, Kenny Omega, MJF, and ‘Hangman’ Adam Page at the top of the card. Ospreay and Strickland have had career years, respectively, in 2026 for the sheer quality of their matches, so it was no surprise these two produced magic when put back in the ring for their first singles match since Ospreay challenged Strickland for the AEW Men’s World Title at Forbidden Door 2024 and lost. Now, Ospreay has earned his shot at Wembley and looks to be an even more dangerous wrestler this time around thanks to his training with the Death Riders.
OVERALL SHOW RATING – 4.75/5
Despite a weaker build compared to some of their other pay-per-views in 2026, Forbidden Door continued AEW’s hot streak of shows going thanks to one of the strongest in-ring cards the promotion has ever produced. Every match was some degree of good to near-perfection, whether it was the opening “party match” or one of the three potential Match of the Year candidates produced.
There is a common phrase used when an industry is seemingly revitalized off the back of a larger entity within said industry experiencing a boom – a rising tide raises all ships.
In the professional wrestling sphere, the common consensus for years has been when WWE gets hot, the rest of the industry reaps just as much of the rewards as WWE. The Attitude Era and Monday Night Wars is the period often used to reflect this idea, with wrestling enjoying a boom period that was arguably as big, or maybe even bigger, than the golden age of the mid to late-80s.
The Monday Night Boom
Two national promotions went head-to-head on Mondays, WWF with Raw is War and WCW with Monday Nitro, in a battle for ratings dominance. It became destination viewing for fans excited excited to see what could happen and who may show up, with plenty of names like Jeff Jarrett and The Radicalz jumping between WWF and WCW during this time.
Outside of the “big two” on national TV, a promotion operating out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was becoming an underground sensation as Extreme Championship Wrestling offered a more mature, violent, grittier wrestling product that allowed it to stand out from WWF and WCW. The buzz quickly caught the other two companies’ eyes, with many of ECW’s top names being signed away to make their national TV debut.
ECW would also lay the groundwork for what would become the modern independent scene, specifically the “super-indie” that was able to book some of the biggest independent and international stars available. WWF would help buoy ECW for several years, as well, with financial help and even an angle on Monday Night Raw to promote ECW’s first pay-per-view, Barely Legal, in 1997.
It truly was a period of rising tides, with all three companies benefiting from each other’s success and failures. WWF and WCW figured out what appealed to viewers at the time and was able to draw more eyes on their products than anyone thought possible while ECW carved out a faithful fanbase of its own along with becoming a pseudo-“feeder promotion” for the two bigger promotions. Steve Austin, Mick Foley, The Dudleys, Raven, Rey Mysterio, and Chris Jericho were just a handful of the names who used ECW as a springboard to the bigger companies and potential success.
Despite the success of this period, it quickly becomes clear this may be the only clear period where WWE’s popularity actually benefitted the rest of the industry, at least under Vince McMahon’s tenure at the head of WWE.
A Golden Era…..Of One?
Fans need only look back to how McMahon, against his father’s wishes, began his national expansion in the mid-80s. The new promoter quickly began buying up some of the biggest name talent available across the national territory system, with the AWA in particular being hit hard as Hulk Hogan, Gene Okerlund, and Iron Sheik were among the names the WWF took from the Minneapolis-based promotion.
McMahon’s aggressiveness didn’t stop there, as he began going into these territories and buying the TV, airing his product in the timeslots previously filled by the regional promotions in handshake deals with local TV stations. The most infamous of these was “Black Saturday,” when the WWF took over the timeslot previously filled by Georgia Championship Wrestling’s World Championship Wrestling show on the TBS Superstation. To say fans didn’t take the change well would be an understatement as viewership declined sharply and TBS regularly received viewer letters sharing their frustration at the change.
McMahon ultimately sold the slot to Jim Crockett Promotions in July 1985 as the slot was costing him more and more money as time went on. Media mogul and TBS founder Ted Turner was also keen to get out of the deal to the declining ratings and impact it was having on the rest of the outlet and leading to the billionaires’ infamous rivalry.
As the 80s rolled on, McMahon continued with his national expansion with the launch of WrestleMania in 1984 and tours pushing out of the WWF’s home region in the northeastern U.S. to the rest of the country. Many of the remaining territories tried and failed to fight, with Jim Crockett Promotions being among the last of the “old guard” of the National Wrestling Alliance to fall as the promotion sold to Turner in 1988, renaming it World Championship Wrestling.
WWF was at the top, but it came at the cost of an entire territory system that had existed since 1948. Mid-South, Championship Wrestling from Florida, Mid-Atlantic, World Class, and so many more that stood as regional institutions were gone, slowly replaced by various independent promotions that were able to carve out small audiences of their own, but were limited to even smaller areas to operate in the fallout of WWF’s surge to the top.
Despite this aggressive approach by McMahon to dominate the industry, there is still an argument that if it wasn’t McMahon, another promotion was eventually going to have to nationalize. A rapidly changing TV landscape was going to force one promotion’s hand eventually, and McMahon was simply the first to see what was coming. He saw the tide of exposure the national cable overlay could give a promotion and rode that tide rather than resting on his laurels or even trying to fight it.
But that was the 80s, what about the modern scene?
It is the modern era of pro wrestling where the notion of a hot WWE being a boon for the wider industry really begins to lose weight.
The Modern Age
First, there is the late-2010s.
It was around 2016 that fans were once again growing disgruntled with the product on weekly WWE TV. Babyface Roman Reigns received mixed reactions akin to 2010 John Cena at the best of times, the creative felt out of touch with modern sensibilities, and upward momentum felt almost impossible for anyone that wasn’t handpicked by McMahon.
NXT became a bright spot for fans trying to escape the doldrums of WWE’s main roster shows with modern ringwork and simpler creative that left fans satisfied instead of feeling like their intelligence was being insulted. WWE’s developmental arm became an in-house “super indie” with a who’s-who of prominent stars such as Samoa Joe, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens, Adam Cole, Keith Lee, Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Io Shirai, Shayna Baszler, and many others from outside WWE contributing to what has since become known as the “Black and Gold Era.”
Things were going even better outside of WWE as the U.S. indies was experiencing its own boom thanks to a glut of unsigned or available talent from smaller promotions like Ring of Honor and TNA available to bring in. Even if WWE picked up several big names, as it did several times between 2016 and 2021, there was still plenty of talent for the indies to book.
New Japan experienced its own boom off the back thanks to the viral exposure of Bullet Club, one of the promotion’s top stables that took clear inspiration from the nWo, and a roster of wrestlers like Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega putting on acclaimed matches fairly regularly.
And when the calendar rolled over into 2019, a new entity emerged on the national stage in the U.S.
All Elite Wrestling was formally announced in January 2019 after months of rumors that a new promotion capable of contending with WWE on national TV. Backed by Tony Khan, son of Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham FC owner Shahid Khan, and an initial roster including Kenny Omega, Jon Moxley, and Chris Jericho as the clear top names. The promotion held four pay-per-views between May and August before its flagship show, Dynamite, premiered on TNT in October.
WWE may have been a mainstream establishment, but it was clear that the promotion’s main roster shortcomings was contributing to the industry-wide surge taking place. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the world shut down in 2020, with quarantining mandates put in place globally to try and slow the spread of the virus.
Jump forward to 2022 and things begin to look quite different.
McMahon would resign in June 2022 following a Wall Street Journal report on alleged hush money payments the WWE Chairman paid to multiple women over the years for alleged affairs and sexual misconduct. This resulted in Triple H taking over the company’s creative direction while Nick Khan and Stephanie McMahon heading up the business side of things.
AEW began to hit its own rough patch as Cody Rhodes, one of the promotion’s founding stars, departed to rejoin WWE and was quickly established as a top name with a massive return and win over Seth Rollins at WrestleMania. Tensions were also reportedly rising backstage between CM Punk, who returned to wrestling in 2021 by signing with AEW, and the remaining members of The Elite that ultimately resulted in the now infamous “Brawl Out” evening at All Out that saw Punk shoot on the locker room, leading to a fight involving himself and friend/AEW producer Ace Steel against the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega, though Omega’s involvement was reportedly more in an effort to break up the fight and get Punk’s dog, Larry, away from the fight.
The indies weren’t fairing much better either as the founding of AEW in 2019 led to many top names being signed to either company, draining the wider scene of a lot of star power. Several indies were also forced to close their doors as a result of the pandemic.
The UK indies, in particular, were hit hard as a result of WWE’s effort to try and monopolize the scene that was booming in the 2010s via NXT UK, despite partnering with the promotions Progress in England, ICW in Scotland, and WXW in Germany. By the time NXT UK closed shop, the once booming scene was left handicapped by WWE’s efforts, leaving RevPro as the only prominent UK indie that wasn’t hurt or forced to close due to this period.
New Japan went through its own downturn, as well, due in large part to stringent quarantine regulations that made it difficult to bring in their foreign talent regularly.
Despite all this, WWE was able to shake things off and closed out 2022 with a resurgence in popularity thanks to a fresh creative vision headed by Triple H and the immediate aftermath of the COVID-19 quarantines being lifted. McMahon would return to WWE in 2023 to facilitate a sale to talent agency Endeavor, which also owned the UFC, that would see the two entities merged into TKO Group Holdings, before he was once again out of the company by January 2024 in the wake of the Janel Grant lawsuit aimed at McMahon, his longtime confidant John Laurinitis, and WWE.
Things had never been better for WWE at this time. Fan interest was higher than it had been in years, the product felt refreshed, there was a slew of new and established stars, and business was booming.
The same could not be said for the rest of the industry. Despite a rising tide for WWE, the larger wrestling landscape was still going through various rough patches for one reason or another.
AEW would be dominated by Punk-related drama until he was fired following another backstage fight, this time at All In 2023 at Wembley Arena in London, England, leading to Punk’s return to WWE at Survivor Series later that year. The overall product had cooled off significantly, as well, reflected in lower TV ratings and ticket sales, though pay-per-views would continue to be a regular bright spot for the company.
More independent promotions would close their doors in this period, unable to bounce back from the costs the pandemic had incurred. And while there was plenty of talented unsigned names, there were few that had the name cache many had during the indie boom of the late-2010s.
Things for the wider industry wouldn’t begin to really turn around until 2025, when the cracks in WWE’s massively successful machine were becoming more noticeable.
First was the rising ticket prices, which were reaching record highs as floor seat packages for tentpole shows like WrestleMania and SummerSlam cost north of $50,000. Fans and pundits were becoming more frustrated with WWE’s creative direction, pointing to how many angles and feuds felt dragged out while the promotion seemed gun-shy on pushing some of the younger names on its roster, such as Bron Breakker.
By contrast, AEW was beginning to see the rewards of bolstering the roster with names like Mercedes Mone and Will Ospreay at the top of the card and stabilizing the backstage environment in 2024. This would set the stage for 2026, where the promotion has enjoyed what many have felt is the best stretch of TV in the promotion’s history, or at least since late-2021 through early-2022.
The indies and international scenes stabilized as well. Mexico has been enjoying its own boom period, reflected in regular sellouts for CMLL and the now WWE-owned AAA. New Japan has been forced to elevate names fans have been wanting to see at the top of the card for some time including Yota Tsuji and the Knock Out Bros.
And the indies finally stabilized, both stateside and in Europe. There was once again a wealth of names working globally capable of drawing crowds wherever they worked. Some established promotions such as Progress would change hands while new ones slowly began popping up, often with established wrestlers taking a more prominent part in the promotion’s operation or running them, outright.
This juxtaposes a WWE that has, once again, hit a lull in business as high-ticket prices and spreading out content across multiple platforms is becoming too much of a financial commitment for many fans, especially in a wider global economy where inflation has run rampant in recent years. Creative that feels lackluster and slow hasn’t helped things, either, which were both on display at WrestleMania 42 between the notable drop in attendance from the year before, also in Las Vegas, Nevada, and messy creative direction for the night one main event of Randy Orton vs. champion Cody Rhodes for the WWE Undisputed Championship after the inclusion of Pat McAfee and Jelly Roll.
Opposite Impacts
All this reflects a decade of ups and down that truly reinforces that WWE, despite its size and influence, isn’t the boon for the wider industry it sometimes claims to be. If anything, it says the opposite and that WWE’s low points is the actual rising tide for the wider industry that can be seen going back to the WWE’s golden 80s.
The 80s came at the cost of the territories, the late-90s through 2001 came at the cost of WCW and ECW, and the modern boom came at the cost of the momentum for the larger industry. In each case, there are outside factors that played instrumental roles, from an evolving and modernizing TV landscape to a global pandemic, that still need to be acknowledged for the impact, negative or positive, those also have on the industry. However, it doesn’t change the fact that WWE’s popularity didn’t “trickle down” the way some would have had fans believe in the past and it is more evident than ever in the modern wrestling world.
It has been almost 30 years since the Attitude Era began in the then-WWF, helping to propel the biggest boom period for professional wrestling in history. Vince McMahon became the most hated heel figure in WWF opposite the beer-swilling, middle-finger throwing rattlesnake, ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin, who would become arguably the biggest star and babyface in WWF history. Surrounding them was a who’s who of names including Mick Foley, The Rock, Triple H, Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle, Kane, Undertaker, The Hardys, and many more.
Week-to-week TV became destination viewing to see what craziness would unfold on WWF Raw is War, and later WWF SmackDown. The promotion pushed the envelop further and further, sometimes purely out of spite for any groups who criticized the product for its graphic nature and portrayal of minorities, stances which would be vindicated with time.
As a result, there has been a long desire from pro wrestling fans for WWE to “get back to the Attitude Era,” often arguing this will improve the product. This stance is so common among fans it became a focal point of Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship at WrestleMania 42 once Pat McAfee was injected into the feud.
The simple fact many of these have to accept is that era of TV content has long-since passed. So much of what was deemed acceptable during the 90s faces harsh scrutiny from modern critics and audiences for the portrayal of women, POC, and the LGBTQIA+. WWF’s product was no different, and in some cases, one of the worst perpetrators of that period with segments like DX imitating The Nation in full blackface or just how women were used on the shows, in general.
Even the most cynical viewpoint can see how trying to go back to anything resembling this tone would be a near-suicidal business decision.
All that said, it doesn’t mean every aspect of the Attitude Era was bad and not worth trying to get back to. In fact, the most important aspects of the Attitude Era have already been back and yet, often get overlooked by many fans.
A Healthy Dose of Competition
First, and most important, is the simple existence of competition in the professional wrestling space again.
The birth of All Elite Wrestling in 2019 is the biggest reason for this, as the fledgling promotion was able to secure a primetime slot on TNT for its weekly show, AEW Dynamite. It immediately made the promotion founded by Tony Khan, son of Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham F.C. owner Shahid Khan, and The Elite, a spin-off group of the massively successful Bullet Club in New Japan Pro-Wrestling consisting of Cody Rhodes, ‘Hangman’ Adam Page, Kenny Omega, and the Young Bucks, a true competitor to WWE for talent. A second promotion on national TV means another option for independent wrestlers to try for other than WWE, in turn forcing WWE to make competitive contract offers.
Will Ospreay reportedly drew multiple big money offers from various promotions when his New Japan contract was up in 2023 before ultimately announcing he was signing with AEW at AEW Full Gear 2023 and would begin with the promotion, full-time, in 2024. All of this would not have been possible if WWE was still the only “big time” promotion on national TV as it had been since 2001.
Even something like the WWE ID program exists so WWE can ensure they have the “first crack” at signing specific independent talent both promotions may be interested in.
The existence of two national promotions also means more talent jumping back and forth between the promotions the way a Jeff Jarrett, Big Show, or Sid Vicious did in that time.
Andrade El Idolo is perhaps the highest profile name to already jump back and forth between WWE and AEW multiple times.
After being cut from WWE in March 2021, Andrade was signed by AEW shortly after and debuted that summer. His tenure wasn’t a smooth one, though, as he did get in a fight with fellow AEW wrestler Sammy Guevara in a bid to get fired so he could return to WWE after Vince McMahon “retired” the first time in 2022 and Triple H took over creative. Andrade would ultimately remain with AEW until the end of 2023 and returned to WWE at the 2024 Royal Rumble. Despite the return, he quickly found himself back to a similar spot on the card he was in before his first release. He was ultimately fired for reportedly multiple wellness policy violations in September 2025. He was quickly resigned by AEW the next month and appeared on the October 1st Dynamite, but WWE quickly attempted to halt this by arguing Andrade had violated the non-compete clause in his previous WWE contract that could keep him from working anywhere for up to a year. After roughly two months, the issue was settled and Andrade was allowed to return to AEW in January 2026 and has since been on arguably the best run of his career.
This would not have been possible if WWE was still the only major promotion on national TV.
A Sky Full of Stars
The other aspect of the Attitude Era that is back, also as a result of competition, is the sheer number of stars in professional wrestling now as a result of two nationally televised promotions.
During the 90s, WWF and WCW stars were among the biggest names in the world because of the Monday Night Wars that saw WWF Raw is War and WCW Monday Nitro engage in a ratings war from 1995 through 2001, when WWF would purchase a floundering WCW.
Steve Austin, The Rock, Hollywood Hogan, Sting, Undertaker, Goldberg, Mankind, and many more were in high demand outside of professional wrestling for everything from magazine spotlights to guest spots on some of the most popular TV shows at the time. The Rock would be the biggest name to break out from that generation, making the successful jump from the wrestling ring to the movie screen and becoming one of the most financially successful actors in history.
But it wasn’t just the main events that saw stars emerge. WWF, specifically, would assemble one of its most star-studded rosters by 2000 thanks to a main event scene anchored by names like Austin and The Rock, major acquisitions from WCW including Big Show, Chris Jericho, and the Radicalz, and a white-hot tag division centered on an ongoing three-way feud between the Hardyz, the Dudleyz, and Edge and Christian.
Jumping forward to 2026, and once again the industry is overflowing with names that are genuinely over with fans and experience mainstream demand. AEW Men’s World Champion MJF is the latest wrestler to break into Hollywood, He portrayed Lance Von Erich, the fake Von Erich introduced to World Class Championship Wrestling amid the tragic deaths of all but one of the five Von Erich brothers, in the 2023 film The Iron Claw, though his appearance was extremely brief. His first sizeable role was in 2025’s Happy Gilmore 2 as Gordy Gilmore, the oldest of Happy Gilmore’s four sons, and reportedly has a significant supporting role in the upcoming action sequel Violent Night 2.
On the other side of the aisle, Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes are just two of the names in WWE that can be found all over pop culture, with Reigns and Rhodes set to appear in the upcoming Street Fighter film as Akuma and Guile, respectively. Becky Lynch became the first active WWE wrestler to appear in a film across from an active AEW wrestler when she also appeared in Happy Gilmore 2 as a golfer.
And then there’s just the sheer number of popular and talented names populating both WWE and AEW that result in extremely deep rosters the promotions can pull from for shows. AEW, in particular, has been enjoying the best run of shows since 2021/2022 on the back of a roster of over talent across the men’s and women’s divisions.
A healthy and revitalized independent scene alongside a rise in popularity for multiple international promotions such as CMLL and Stardom means there is no shortage of available talent with sizeable followings, as well. Social media has made it easier for many independent wrestlers to cultivate a fanbase that will follow them promotion to promotion. It opens the door for someone like Joe Hendry to become a social media sensation thanks to a meme-worthy entrance that caught WWE’s eye and saw the Scottish-native sign with the promotion in 2025.
So next time someone brings up wanting wrestling to go back to the Attitude Era, tell them that the most important parts are back and have been back for quite some time while the rest can stay in the 90s, where they belong.
This won’t be too long and, unlike my other posts, I will actively be speaking in the first person.
To say 2026 has been an….. interesting year for a variety of reasons would be an understatement. Obviously a lot of it isn’t good, with most of it tracking back to one person, but that is not what I am here to discuss.
Instead, this is about celebrating a year where I have rediscovered two loves for most of my life – gaming and film.
Now both haven’t ever stopped being part of my life, but it they definitely began taking more a backseat in my life for no other reason than I just drifted away. And it wasn’t just watching a movie or playing a game, but I followed industry news and announcements less, shared my opinions less, and just generally watched and played less.
I got stuck on something of a loop following the pandemic, which I’m sure I’m not the only one to suffer, and just hadn’t been able to break that loop.
Until this year.
First, I started pushing myself to get back to the movie theater more often.
The theater going experience has always held a special place in my heart. There is no other experience quite like sitting down for a movie you’ve been excited for months or maybe even years for and watching the silver screen light up. Whether it was the next entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or a loving tribute to Mr. Rogers, the movie theater was a place I would go and just be happy.
I have needed to remind myself of that in 2026 and for as much as the theater-going experience has changed, and not often for the better, having that feeling rush over me again has been a special one. I am excited to go to the theaters regularly again. I have a list of films lined up that I want to try and see by the end of 2026, something I hadn’t really put together in the last couple of years.
On the gaming side, it took slightly longer but that itch to play has also returned in a big way. It was, of all games, Diablo 4 to bring that itch back as dramatically as it did. The release of Diablo 4’s second expansion, Lord of Hatred, for some reason got me digging back into gaming the same way I had for film. I was paying close attention to event schedules again so I didn’t miss any big announcements, most notably the BIG first week of June the industry had with PlayStation’s State of Play, the Xbox Showcase, and Summer Games Fest. A swath of big, exciting titles for me to dig into and mark off the release date on my calendar.
It is even prompting me to look back into something I have wanted to do for years – build a proper gaming PC. I am, admittedly, still in the planning stages but have already made more progress in putting one together than I have in years.
I say all this to say it is never a bad time to discover or, in my case, rediscover passions that speak to us. It doesn’t matter how silly or trivial it may be seen by others, if it speaks to you then it speaks to you and no one can say different. Passions help make us whole, reflect who we are, where we have been, and can be the escape we need in bad times.
In the modern pro wrestling landscape, there is no shortage of talented commentators across the world. WWE has veterans like Michael Cole who worked their way up from a backstage interviewer, AEW elevated Excalibur from indie sensation to national broadcaster, New Japan has given Walker Stewart the chance to showcase his abilities on commentary that belies his youth, and many more around the world.
One name in particular, though, has been able to garner a following of fans and wrestlers as arguably the best unsigned commentator going in 2026. Their resume reads as a who’s who of wrestling promotions, from AEW and New Japan to a whole host independents across the U.S. and U.K.
Their name is Veda Scott, your favorite commentator’s favorite commentator.
Scott’s career began in the ring back in 2011, their earliest known match being at Horizon Wrestling Alliance in May of that year. They would continue working over the next decade as a wrestler, with some of their biggest exploits taking place in Ring of Honor and Shimmer Women Athletes, being among the first wave of women’s wrestlers into Ring of Honor in the early 2010s.
Things really began to change for Scott when they began doing commentary more often starting around 2020.
Their first bit of major exposure was thanks to AEW Deadly Draw Women’s Tag Team Tournament, working alongside Tony Schiavone for the tournament aired on AEW’s YouTube channel, along with a handful of AEW Dark episodes. This was due to the tournament taking place during the COVID-19 Pandemic and AEW was bulk filming content at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida.
After that, they slowly began picking up steam as a commentator on the U.S. independent scene, quickly becoming a regular at GCW and GCW-adjacent shows. Wrestling Revolver and Juggalo Championship Wrestling are among the other promotions that joined the list of regular commentary stops.
Scott’s momentum over the next six years has only grown, with major international promotions taking notice of their talent. New Japan and Stardom continue to bring them in for their U.S. shows while CMLL has made Scott their go-to lead English commentator and even gotten to call shows at the legendary Arena Mexico.
These exploits can typically be seen through Scott’s eyes on her YouTube vlog, which has garned its own faithful following.
In all that time, they have found themselves sharing the commentary table with what reads like an all-star list of commentators in modern wrestling. Tony Schiavone, Walker Stewart, Ian Riccobani, Caprice Coleman, Don Callis, and Mauro Ranallo are just a few of the names on that list Scott has shared the table with and, on more than one occasion, stolen the spotlight.
They also got to make history in 2023, becoming the first out LGBTQIA+ commentator to call a New Japan show in history as they identify as non-binary. It was another example of how open and accepting pro wrestling, especially independent wrestling, has become for the LGBTQIA+ and reflected in things like Scott’s own success and shows such as Effy’s Big Gay Brunch which, yes, Scott can more than likely be heard calling over WrestleMania weekend.
They continue going strong in 2026, hustling as hard as any of the major names on the independent scene like One Called Manders or Shotzi Blackheart. Scott can be heard on at least one wrestling show seemingly every weekend, whether it is a Jersey Championship Wrestling or New Japan, their voice can be heard giving added life to the wrestling in the ring and it seems its a when, and not if, they find their way to the national stage full-time.
Until then, she will continue popping up at shows all over the world and, without trying or maybe even realizing, proving why she is one of the best commentators in the world.
It is the end of a massive professional wrestling show and the seemingly unstoppable babyface has been left lying in the middle of the ring, with the top name in the promotion standing over them while the faction that was split appeared to come back together to see witness the babyface’s defeat. Fans, in the meanwhile, are left to question what is happening and if the promotion is really going back to this well, again.
If this sounds like something involving The Bloodline in WWE or new World order in WCW, both are correct.
This was the scene at the end of WWE Clash in Italy, where Roman Reigns defeated Jacob Fatu to retain the World Heavyweight Championship after a Tribal Combat match, with the Usos joining Roman in the ring while Solo Sikoa and MFTs watched from behind the ringside barricade.
It was also the scene at the end of the January 4, 1999, edition of WCW Monday Nitro, the night of the infamous Fingerpoke of Doom that saw WCW World Heavyweight Champion Kevin Nash effectively lay down and lose for the returning Hulk Hogan. Goldberg would attempt to attack them but was ultimately beaten down and left lying in the ring by a reunited nWo.
In both cases, many fans responded with one simply question – really?
Despite a proverbial bow being tied off on The Bloodline story coming out of WrestleMania 40 in 2024, WWE continues going back to the group time and time again. The group has been split up, reunited, had a “civil war” storyline with Solo Sikoa breaking off to start the MFTs, and Roman remaining a constant in the world title scenes as other wrestlers question his motives on screen. It wouldn’t be the first time Fatu found himself at the center of Bloodline-related drama, either, as he previously served as Sikoa’s “right-hand” in the MFTs before breaking away from that group, only to find himself having to serve Roman after losing at Clash in Italy.
The way WWE has gone back to this well time and time again is almost exactly what happened with the new World order once it got past the seemingly natural endpoint of their time on top in WCW after Starrcade 1997 and Sting defeating Hogan to win the WCW World Title after a year-long build.
Granted, a controversial finish often pinned on Hogan ensured the ending wasn’t as clean as it should have been. The group began to splinter, with nWo Hollywood and nWo Wolfpac forming due to Nash being sick of Hogan’s leadership. The rest of 1998 was spent with the two groups battling each other at various points, sometimes with WCW representatives getting involved as the third party in those fights. Everything would ultimately end up back to square one after the Fingerpoke of Doom, but the reformed nWo would quickly fizzle out over the coming months. The group reformed again as nWo 2000 in December of 1999, with the initial lineup of Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Bret Hart, and Jeff Jarrett changed to Hall, Jarrett, the Harris Twins, and Scott Steiner due to injuries suffered by Hart and Nash, with Hart’s ultimately being a career-ending injury, and the attempted-reboot fizzled out as well.
So going back to the question at hand – is The Bloodline the new nWo?
Yes, and its what that means for WWE that should be worrisome for fans.
Despite nearly four years on top of the wrestling industry thanks to the success of Monday Nitro, cracks behind the scenes were slowly starting to erode the onscreen product in the company’s waning years. Many of the top names in the promotion, most of whom were around the age of 40, did not appear willing to move aside for new names. Hogan especially was infamous for this going back to his prime in the then-WWF during the mid-to-late 80s and only appeared to get worse in WCW thanks to having creative control for his on-screen character written into his contract. Constant questions and interjections from Time Warner executives, and later AOL-Time Warner following the January 2000 merger, only compounded these.
WWE now finds itself in almost the exact same position almost three years on from merging with the UFC to form TKO Group Holdings and the final exodus of Vince McMahon. Triple H, who’s been spearheading WWE’s creative direction since the middle of 2024, has found himself facing greater scrutiny from fans and critics, alike, who are frustrated with the promotion’s product in 2026. TKO executives such as Chairman and CEO Ari Emmanuel haven’t hesitated to inject their own ideas into the on-screen product. The most egregious of this in many fans eyes was Pat McAfee’s involvement in the build-up to Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship at WrestleMania 42. There are also aging stars occupying the main event scene, with the youngest names involved only a year or two shy of being 40, though this seems to be due to WWE’s creative team being seemingly “gun-shy” about pushing younger talent that earlier in 2026 looked poised to move to the top of the card.
And unlike WCW, WWE appears to be under corporate leadership that actually value what professional wrestling, or the money it can make at the very least and is not likely to go under any time soon, if tall. WCW was not so lucky, especially after the AOL-Time Warner merger, as new leadership wanted to distance the corporation from professional wrestling as they didn’t believe in wrestling’s ability to generate money.
It certainly didn’t help that WCW recorded staggering losses in 1999 and 2000 after turning profits in 1997 and 1998, usurping WWF as the top wrestling promotion in the world.
WWE now appears to be suffering from many of the same problems that plagued WCW’s product in those final two and a half years, with The Bloodline being emblematic of those issues the same way the nWo was. A group that, at their peak, made their respective companies the hottest promotion in the world to bogging down the main event scene and, as a side effect, the rest of the card due to how its making upward movement harder for younger and newer names.
The silver-lining is WWE doesn’t appear to be anywhere near in danger of going under the way WCW, with the promotion more likely to be sold to another corporate entity than shut down. It is not able to avoid the inevitable downturn, as most wrestling promotions go through hot and cold periods. But much like how trying to refresh the nWo did nothing for WCW’s business, it appears The Bloodline has finally reached that same point.
It is September of 2005 in a bedroom somewhere in the Havering borough of London, England. A young man struggling in school because of his ADHD and dyslexia puts on Sky Channel 429, also known as the Wrestling Channel, to watch a match that had taken the wrestling world by storm. It was Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe. vs AJ Styles for the X Division Championship in the main event of TNA Unbreakable 2005.
It was a rare main event spotlight on TNA’s X-Division, which became a major selling point for the promotion when trying to attract new fans. The division and its respective title typically featured some of, if not the best matches on the entire show and becoming a foundational piece of the promotion in the 2000s. It became the platform young talents like AJ Style, Samoa Joe, Frankie Kazarian, Jay Lethal, Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, and many others were able to springboard into even bigger careers in professional wrestling, many of whom are still wrestling in 2026.
The Unbreakable 2005 main event cemented this as Daniels, Joe, and Styles put on a match that earned a then-rare five-star rating from wrestling and combat sports journalist Dave Meltzer. Fans and critics praised the match for the fast pace all three managed to keep up for over 20-minutes with plenty of jaw-dropping offense that, for as flashy as it was, all felt like moves done with purpose.
Every dive, every forearm strike, every flip somehow didn’t feel out of place. Joe, Daniels, and Styles made what could have easily been written off by harsh critics as an “indie-rific spot-fest” where they were just doing moves for the sake of doing moves with no real reason and turned that on its head. Something as spectacular as Daniels’ Best Moonsault Ever felt like it was done with reason and intent to win.
It was widely considered on of the matches of the year in 2005 and is still celebrated in 2026 as one of the greatest matches in professional wrestling history.
It was after the legendary 22-minute match concluded that the young Londoner decided he was going to become a professional wrestler.
That young man – Will Ospreay.
Cut to May 24, 2026, at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Flushing, Queens, New York for AEW Double or Nothing 2026. Along with multiple title matches, the pay-per-view would also kick-off the 2026 Owen Hart Foundation Tournament with three matches. One of those matches would pit Samoa Joe, just over 20-years since the Unbreakable match, and Will Ospreay in his second pay-per-view match since returning from neck surgery in March.
In the lead-up to the match, Joe didn’t bother hiding his disdain for Ospreay accepting help from Jon Moxley and the Death Riders instead of his own group, The Opps, despite the Death Riders attempting to end Ospreay’s career, in kayfabe.
Ospreay, however, made no attempt to hide what the match against Joe was going to mean to him. The London-native said the quarterfinal match was a dream for him, hinting back to the Unbreakable 2005 match, but that wasn’t going to stop Ospreay from doing what he needed to so he could win the tournament and go on to challenge for the AEW Men’s World Championship at London’s Wembley Stadium.
The match would be the fifth on Double or Nothing’s main card, placing it right in the middle of the pay-per-view.
Ospreay wouldn’t waste time, hitting an Oscutter on Joe as his music was still playing. This pace continued through the match, with Joe and Ospreay trading hard strikes and submission attempts to reach the tournament’s semifinal round.
If this sound’s familiar, that’s because it is the same pace and intent that can be seen in the Unbreakable 2005 match. Ospreay and Joe’s every action had winning intent as they went back-and-forth over the course of the match. Nothing was done “just to do it,” whether it was a simple rear-choke or a hand-spring tope, it was all done to try and score a win.
The near-14 sprint would end with Ospreay escaping a Muscle-Buster attempt by Joe and hitting two Hidden Blades in quick succession to score the winning pin to advance to the semifinals.
But perhaps more importantly to Ospreay, he got to write his love-letter to the match that led him to Louis Armstrong Stadium over 20-years after watching the match that changed his life. He got to do what most people can only hope to do, live his dream, but also may have inspired another young fan the way he was inspired in his youth watching Unbreakable 2005.
Since the start of 2026, it is safe to say AEW has been on the best run of shows since 2021 as the promotion marches into the Louis Armstrong Arena in Flushing, Queens, New York, for AEW Double or Nothing. The show is scheduled for May 24, with Kazuchika Okada vs. Konosuke Takeshita being the first match announced for the pay-per-view. As of May 7, FTR vs. Christian Cage and Adam Copeland for the AEW World Tag Team Titles in an “I Quit” match with Cage and Copeland’s tag team career on the line and Ricochet challenged Chris Jericho to a Stadium Stampede.
The two not officially announced for the show are Maxwell Jacob Friedman, or simply MJF, and Will Ospreay, though there have been teases for who their opponents could be.
The Assassin, The Rider, and The Injury
For Ospreay, he’s found himself peculiar bedfellows with Jon Moxley and the Death Riders. It was only weeks ago Ospreay was gunning for Moxley at the cost of his own surgically-repaired neck, failing to defeat Moxley at AEW Dynasty for the Continental Championship.
Ospreay would end up losing a match to the Don Callis Family’s Mark Davis via doctor stoppage due to the damage Ospreay suffered to his neck. This didn’t stop Davis from pulling Ospreay back into the ring to do more damage when the Death Riders surround the ring, forcing Davis and Callis to back off. The Death Riders would carry Ospreay to the back where Moxley extended an olive branch and offered to train Ospreay, making him into the “ultimate weapon.”
Ospreay would take him up on this offer, though this didn’t sit well with The Opps and Samoa Joe, who had battled the Death Riders alongside Ospreay in the past. Joe would offer his hand to Ospreay, asking him to leave the Death Riders and train with The Opps. However, if he didn’t, Joe also made it clear he would be coming for Ospreay, suggesting the two are set to collide at Double or Nothing.
The Plight of MJF
MJF, on the other hand, has been spiraling since losing the AEW Men’s World Championship in a shocking loss to Darby Allin. MJF has been demanding a rematch for weeks, which Darby has refused multiple times and instead given title shots to people he believes have earned it and deserve it. Allin would battle Tommaso Ciampa and Brody King in his first two defenses, both of which were praised by fans and media as incredible main events for AEW Dynamite.
MJF’s own cries for a rematch went largely ignored and instead found himself in a TNT Title match against the champion, Kevin Knight, after Knight goaded MJF into the match. The two would go back-and-forth for most of the match until MJF distracted the referee by threatening to hit Knight with it, forcing the referee to rip it away. MJF quickly went for his Dynamite Diamond ring to punch Knight in the head with it, but Knight caught MJF with a low-blow before he could use the ring and cradled MJF to win and retain his title.
In order for MJF to get his rematch, Allin made it clear MJF also had to put something on the line. MJF attempted to play this off by first offering his scarf, then his Dynamite Diamond ring, and finally a million dollars. Allin refused, instead demanding MJF put up his hair if he wanted to get a title shot and seemingly confirmed fan theories MJF had gotten hair implants in Turkey. Allin added that MJF doesn’t show up for the contract signing on the next Dynamite, he can’t challenge for the title again.
The Invisible Mirror at Play
This is where the brilliance of AEW’s recent booking shines through as they have, without many fans realizing it, told very similar stories.
Ospreay and MJF are two wrestlers at a crossroads in their AEW careers. Both are at stages where, for very different reasons mind you, they have to adapt as wrestlers if they wish to stay atop AEW for the foreseeable future.
Ospreay has been slowly realizing he can’t be the same wrestler he was before the neck surgery and in order to adapt, he’s accepted help from his most hated enemy in Jon Moxley. MJF, on the other hand, is getting his comeuppance after years of cheating, short-cuts, and gaming the system to stay within the orbit of the AEW Men’s World Title.
The only difference is the stage both wrestlers are in these stories. As mentioned previously, Ospreay has already accepted he needs to change if he wants to succeed and has taken the steps to do so. He accepted Moxley’s olive branch and its already paying off as AEW’s lead doctor said “whatever training” Ospreay was doing was working and he could be cleared to wrestle by the next AEW Dynamite.
MJF, meanwhile, is still spiraling as he hasn’t accepted his old tricks are now hurting him instead of helping him.
Even the result of the expected-men’s world title match at Double or Nothing has been cast into doubt with Allin demanding MJF put his hair on the line. Fans speculated MJF may use the same stipulation ‘Hangman’ Adam Page did for AEW Revolution and say if he lost, he wouldn’t challenge for the title ever again. While it made narrative sense, other fans argued it made the outcome of the match too obvious and using it again so close to AEW Revolution was overkill. With MJF’s hair possibly on the line, there’s now an air of doubt around MJF walking out a three-time AEW Men’s World Champion.
Losing his hair could be the thing that gives MJF the same realization Ospreay came to – he needs to change. He has been pulling from the same box of tricks since AEW was founded in 2019, so it would figure that the rest of the locker room eventually got wise to MJF’s tactics and started to get one over on the self-described “Salt of the Earth.”
Whatever may come at Double or Nothing and beyond, it speaks to AEW’s attention to detail with its booking in 2026 to be able to tell the same story while dressing them so differently that many fans don’t realize this. It doesn’t mean anything is guaranteed because it is still professional wrestling, injuries could happen or personal issues behind the scene may force changes no one planned for. Even if it does, there is no denying the good work AEW has done to this point and the stage being set for the promotion’s biggest show of the year in August.
Minimum Wage Nerd 