AEW Double or Nothing: 9 big takeaways for MJF, Darby Allin, an absurd Stadium Stampede, Will Ospreay's future and more

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AEW Double or Nothing 2026 took over Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York on Sunday night. MJF reclaimed his spot back as the AEW World Champion, Kevin Knight stunningly turned heel on Darby Allin, Athena took a step toward the Women’s World Title, and Konosuke Takeshita is no longer a member of the Don Callis Family. 

As we shift forward toward the summer, here are nine takeaways from a wild night in the Big Apple.

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Darby Allin’s AEW World Championship run was nothing short of diabolical.

He’s spoken at length about giving his everything to AEW and running himself until the wheels fall off, whether he’s in the main event or a pre-show match. And the writing felt like it was on the wall before the bell rang Sunday night, with Allin’s body destined to fail him before handing the world title back to MJF. There also felt like almost no chance MJF would actually shave his head.

It was a short but fantastic reign, with Allin fitting as many hard-hitting matches as he could before succumbing to the pressure of being champion. I’m a bit perplexed as to how a Coffin Drop from the top of the stage, then from the top rope couldn’t finish MJF, but I’ll leave that for others to discuss. Allin’s loss was well done otherwise, with MJF hitting an avalanche tombstone, then the takedown for the pinfall. And the decision to turn Kevin Knight heel at the match’s conclusion immediately draws me into what happens next.

Moving Allin away from MJF and straight into a program with Knight feels like an escalation of his standing across the roster — and an interesting battle over the TNT Championship looming in the coming months.

Thekla’s surprising AEW Women’s World Championship victory over Kris Statlander three months ago gave her the launching pad to grow into quite the title reign. She’s since managed to squeak her way through every challenger she’s had, and was required to scrap and claw through a loaded Fatal 4-Way Sunday night in order to retain her title. 

A breakdown between Statlander and recent tag partner Hikaru Shida opened the door for Thekla to land the stomp on Statlander for the pinfall. It’s another relatively unconvincing victory for Thekla, but based on the finish, it looks like Shida and Statlander may mix it up in the coming weeks. It would be nice to get fresh bodies in the ring against Thekla at this point, who now has title wins over almost every legit AEW contender. 

Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita’s slow-burn dissension within the Don Callis Family has been one of the brightest spots within AEW across the past year. Of late, it’s only felt like a matter of time before Okada and Takeshita truly went to battle inside the squared circle — and they did not disappoint. 

Their showdown had drama aplenty, blending power with precision to put on a beautiful, violent car crash of two equals. The fallout from Takeshita’s win was an official elimination from the Don Callis Family at the hands of a returning Kyle Fletcher. That should make for a stellar branch rivalry, with a Fletcher and Takeshita program projecting to be an absolute barn burner. If Okada-Takeshita wasn’t held back for AEW’s biggest show of the year, Fletcher-Takeshita absolutely shouldn’t even be hinted at until All In. 

Kyle O’Reilly pushed Jon Moxley to the limit to earn his title shot, but couldn’t quite get the job done against the Continental Champion in a showcase of two technicians. The match was perfect for what it was — an opportunity to highlight two in-ring experts in a highly technical match that concluded with Mox earning the tap-out and O’Reilly earning the champ’s respect. 

As much as it was sold that O’Reilly had a chance to claim the belt from Moxley, it never felt quite like he was a real threat to become champion. Out of the world championship picture, it feels like Moxley — and to an extent both factions, the Death Riders and the Conglomeration — are collectively floating without much direction. I’m anxious to see how much both groups are featured in the coming months and the build to All In. 

What's next for Jon Moxley? (Ricky Havlik, AEW)Ricky Havlik

With as much riding on this match as the quartet of FTR and Cope & Cage had, they were going to have to do something truly insane to live up to expectations heading into Sunday night. But the four men showed yet again why they’re two of the best tag-teams to ever do it, putting together a genuine show-stealer and somehow elevating above the sky-high expectations established from the beginning. 

The match featured a little bit of everything — weapons, a flaming table and the return of Beth Phoenix. Ultimately Cope’s crossface on Dax Harwood led to FTR quitting and extending the run of the legendary tag-team. Passing the tag titles to two former world champions like Cope & Cage also signals a fresh start in one of the best tag divisions on the planet. 

It always felt like we’d get some iteration of Cope & Cage, FTR, and the Young Bucks at All In later this summer — and things have surely been set up that way. 

AEW was going to be hard-pressed to live up to last year’s outstanding, chaotic Anarchy in the Arena match. And while it wasn’t quite what last year’s was, this year’s Stadium Stampede still had its own unique flavor. 

Mixed into the absolutely absurd behind-the-scenes skits, weapons, and characters like “Jungle” Jack Perry running down Mark Davis with a repainted school bus was fantastic storytelling. The Elite hit their stride, The Dogs were standout opponents, and Chris Jericho showed he can still go at age 55, pulling off a Lionsault for the victory.

All around, this match continues to be a great breather, especially on cards that have such high-stakes matches. Slot the Stadium Stampede right next to the Casino Gauntlet match as two fantastic AEW concepts that should be here to stay.

Following Will Ospreay’s return from neck surgery, I was curious how AEW could stretch him winning “the big one” out until Wembley at All In. I have to give it to Tony Khan and company that having Ospreay lose to Jon Moxley upon his return, then undergoing a Rocky-style training montage with the Death Riders was pure gold. 

With their support, and what appears to be a fully-healed neck, it feels like Ospreay is the favorite to come out of the Men’s Owen Hart Cup tournament on top. His quarterfinal match coming against Samoa Joe felt like a true test of grit and determination to see if he could get through a slog to the next round. Ospreay’s ability to navigate Joe’s technical prowess and escape numerous near-finishes feels intentional in showcasing this won’t be an easy run to the title.

That being said, even if the odds get stacked against him, it should be no surprise come August if it’s Ospreay holding the AEW World Championship at the end of All In. 

Is the Will Ospreay title run inevitable?Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Not to contradict myself, but if there’s anyone who can derail Ospreay’s road to the world title, it feels pretty singularly focused on Swerve Strickland. He’s perhaps never looked better than he did Sunday night, with as smooth and strong of a performance as we’ve seen in quite some time. The former world champion looks hungrier than ever, and Bandido served as a perfect dance partner in their Owen Hart Cup quarterfinal.

Bandido showed supreme strength, athleticism and composure in what at times had the intensity of a world championship match. Strickland showed his veteran ex-champ prowess in his ability to hold on just long enough to land the House Call for the win. Bandido, like Athena, is a perfect candidate to continue rising up the AEW roster despite the result from Sunday. 

The Ring of Honor forever champion, Athena, finds herself back in the driver’s seat toward an AEW Women’s World Championship shot. Her quarterfinal win over Mina Shirakawa provided a much-needed boost to make her feel like a legit contender to win the Women’s Owen Hart Cup tournament. Still, it feels like every couple of months we’re seeing her receive a prominent spot in AEW before fading back to the ROH shadows. 

After earning a championship opportunity during last year’s Casino Gauntlet Battle Royale at All In, she was unsuccessful in her title bid and ultimately fell back into running the show in ROH. For as good as Athena has been, it’s unclear why she hasn’t made the leap to the main-event scene more consistently in AEW. Hopefully the promotion finally pulls the trigger with a featured role for Athena on weekly television from here on out. 

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