AEW Forbidden Door: 9 big takeaways for Will Ospreay, Swerve Strickland, Mercedes Moné, MJF and more after a dazzling show

Will Ospreay closed the weekend with fireworks, successfully defeating Swerve Strickland in the main event of AEW Forbidden Door 2026 on Sunday night from the SAP Center in San Jose, California. Elsewhere across the card, Mercedes Moné earned another shot at the Women’s World Championship, Mark Briscoe won a title shot against MJF, Jay White returned, Thekla wrecked Stardom, and Kenny Omega showed he’s still got it.

As we blitz into the summer months ahead of AEW All In at Wembley Stadium, here’s nine big takeaways from everything we just witnessed.

1. If there’s a Will, there’s a way

Will Ospreay is ready to fulfill his dream at Wembley. 

It took everything he had in an Owen Hart Cup final that flip-flopped between Ospreay pouring blood and Swerve Strickland gushing puddles. The action was paced perfectly as Ospreay and Strickland picked their spots and extended the Match of the Night Year into a nail-biter. 

The storytelling in this one was flawless, with Ospreay unable to get over the hump on his own and Strickland essentially laughing in his face through a crimson mask. As the Death Riders trotted to ringside, Ospreay’s no-sell on a House Call was chill inducing. Over the next few minutes, Ospreay pulled his past to the present, with callbacks to Jon Moxley, “Hangman” Adam Page, and ultimately a Tiger Driver to end Strickland’s night. 

Ospreay’s path forward seems quite clear, with a big-money match against MJF written in the stars. The partnership with the Death Riders looms large and there felt like an Evolution-style heel turn with Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli carrying Ospreay on their shoulders after the match. Judging by how AEW has managed stories like this in the past, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Moxley’s partnership with Ospreay run through the coming year. It just feels like the bottom could fall out at any point. I can’t imagine that’s planned for the hometown kid on his country’s biggest stage. 

One thing that felt intentional about Sunday night’s main event was the consistent callbacks to Page. We haven’t seen the former world champion since he lost a Texas Death Match against MJF in at AEW Revolution, and it’s hard to imagine him missing out on Wembley. Reigniting a rivalry with Strickland would be one heck of a way to get back into the ring. 

2. All about the Moné

Mercedes Moné is the first AEW star to win two Owen Hart Cup Tournaments, and she did it in back-to-back years. The final of this year’s tournament offered everything it needed to in the women’s division, with Moné serving as the relentless all-time great and Maya World playing the challenger not many expected to make it this far. 

World tested Moné each step of the way, continuing to establish herself as a legit contender in a loaded division after a surprising run to the finals. A Moné Maker wasn’t enough to put World down, and a series of Statement Makers were required to earn the submission. 

The path forward for both isn’t direct. Moné now has a straight line to the Women’s World Title, which has been firmly in Thekla’s grasp. If that’s the direction AEW goes, it’s an interesting clash of styles. The promotion has done well to ensure Thekla looks the part, but a matchup with her compared to last year’s Moné title match with Toni Storm offer two drastically different feeling competitions. 

World, on the other hand, was the recipient of a post-match promo from Athena. If the ROH world title is the direction, it feels like a best-case scenario and exactly how a tournament like this should be used. World sees her stock rise through the tournament and parlays it into a smooth transition at the top of the ROH women’s division. Ideally this dream scenario opens the door for Athena to take her rightful spot in the AEW women’s division as well. 

3. A partnership destined for failure 

I wasn’t sure how this one would turn out, but I really love the Death’s Door concept. The enormous cage felt like just enough room for Sunday’s massive 12-man match, but not overly egregious in the way the WarGames style matches have in the past. 

The commentary called it out a few times, but Jake Doyle genuinely felt like the star of this one. He has a great look, is fantastic in the ring, and with the right story, could absolutely be a main-eventer. 

As for the match itself, it was a mix of an absolute war blended with comedy bits, and a perfect sprinkling of individual rivalries. Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita found their moments, as did Darby Allin and Kevin Knight. Andrade El Idolo teased dissension with MJF throughout the contest, eventually turning his back on MJF and Doyle, opening the door for Mark Briscoe to hit the Jay Driller on Doyle for the pinfall. 

The win earns Briscoe a title shot against MJF, which he’ll cash in on Wednesday night’s “Dynamite.” Briscoe holds a win over MJF from last year’s Tables and Thumbtacks match, but it’s hard to imagine MJF dropping the belt just before All In. AEW has no problems turning left when we think it’s turning right, but unless they’re setting up for a match in London against Andrade, I feel pretty confident in what the next month or two look like. 

4. A trophy for her trouble

Thekla has never had a shortage of moments that show her unhinged side. She’s skyrocketed up the AEW roster into a sustained reign with the world title, and no signs of slowing.

With a showdown Sunday against Starlight Kid at Forbidden Door, AEW was able to play into Thekla’s storyline exit from Stardom, where the organization’s president Taro Okada fired her a year ago. What Thekla hasn’t lacked is work rate, and she showed it yet again in a barn-burner against Starlight Kid. The duo balanced pace with technical prowess, continuing to pull Okada into the spotlight throughout the match.

Thekla was victorious yet again with the stomp, then went on a tirade post-match that included ripping Starlight Kid’s mask off and attacking Okada. AEW has gold with Thekla’s hatred of Stardom, and continuing to lean into that absent a lengthy program for her would serve both organization’s best interests. 

5. Such thing as a good loss

For much of the past year, the question has been how does Bandido break through to the next level of AEW? The ROH World Champion found tag-team success alongside Brody King, but his ceiling still feels like becoming one of AEW’s top stars, bar none. 

It turns out all it took was a showdown with Jon Moxley. Bandido was the one bleeding Sunday night, taking a gnarly piledriver on the steel steps before Moxley ripped his mask. 

As AEW’s glue, Moxley pulls the best out of his opponents and provided space for Bandido to push the champ to his limits. Bandido showed his toughness in continuing to compete with Moxley, but the story they told showed how far he’s come, despite the gap that remains between the champ and challenger.

6. He’s still got it

AEW’s change of pace was on full display through the first two matches of the evening, moving from a frenetic, fast-paced opener into the ultra technical masterpiece that was Kenny Omega against Zack Sabre Jr. 

The story for much of the year has been about Omega working through all of the injuries and wear and tear on his body, and whether he can realistically fight for another world title. ZSJ pushed Omega to the limit in an absolute war that concluded with the former AEW world champ taking everything ZSJ threw at him. 

Ultimately a successful One Winged Angel resulted in Omega standing victorious as he continues to feel more equipped to challenge for the promotion’s top prize once again. 

Still, Oemga’s path into the summer isn’t quite as clear, unless his hunger for gold takes him into a program with Jon Moxley and the Death Riders. That feels like another big match that fits the bill for AEW’s biggest show of the year. 

Lee South

7. The unquestioned openers

Perhaps the best opening match wrestlers in the world, The Young Bucks were at it again on Sunday night against Sky Team (Máscara Dorada and Místico) and Unbound Co. (Shingo Takagi and Titán). The trio of tag-teams needed some time to get rolling, battling through the challenges that occasionally accompany high-risk moves.  

Once they did get rolling, though, the match provided space for each of the three teams to showcase their strengths and did just enough to solidify the Bucks as legit title challengers. With just about two months until AEW returns to London for All In, the Bucks are well positioned for a marquee match yet again.

8. You only get one Shota

The trend of talent continuing to be elevated in cross-promotional opportunities continued through Shota Umino’s battle with PAC. The central storyline of this one revolved around Umino being the understudy of Jon Moxley, which became the through line between Gabe Kidd’s attack and Umino’s bout with PAC. 

PAC put together a pretty typical match for the hard-hitting Death Riders member, bringing the action to Umino over and again. But the IWGP Global Heavyweight champ withstood everything PAC threw at him, including an Awesome Bomb over the top rope through a table. Instead it was Umino who paid tribute to Moxley with a Paradigm Shift before his own Northern Lights Bomb for the win. 

The goal here seems pretty clear: Umino’s next step in his career is battling Moxley, after the Continental Champion hit the ring to confront him. It’s a massive step and opportunity for Umino, and a logical step whenever NJPW pulls the trigger.

9. Cage and Cope

There was almost no chance Cope and Cage were trading their tag-team championship in just a few months away from All In at Wembley, but the Dogs gave it their all and showed why they belong with top-tier talent like the future Hall of Famers. 

A ref bump opened the door for the Bang Bang Gang to hit the top of the stage and a returning Jay White to get some comeuppance against former stablemate David Finlay. The match did everything it needed to establish the Dogs as legit contenders, while bridging the gap to get White and Finlay back in the ring together. This one feels ready-baked for a lengthy summer program.