AEW Redemption 2026

Guys… I know I am late AF

Boom! Here we are, just hours before AEW Redemption and I got to be honest, I am flying by the seeds of my pants. Very busy week for me while working on some other things - some wrestling related, some not - but nonetheless, I am going to take this opportunity to challenge myself. I sit here writing this at exactly 11:02AM. I am aiming to get this done by 12:30.. First idea that pops into my head, I am going to write and roll with. Just to see what I can write under pressure lol. But don’t expect this for SummerSlam pitches, I am going to organize some thoughts for that immediately after this. So anyways, here. we. go….

Kenny Omega vs Kevin Knight

(For the AEW World Championship)

I read a rumor that Omega was originally supposed to win the AEW World Championship at this PPV from MJF, opposed to Beach Break a few weeks ago. In fact, the whole ‘Redemption’ name was originated from the idea that Omega would redeem himself by capturing the title back after so long. So while that made the Beach Break match historic, unfortunately it renders this match pretty much very predictable. So let's change up the road to All In, in perhaps controversial fashion. So let's rip the bandaid: Kevin Knight beats Kenny Omega.

Hear me out lol. Omega and Knight can put on an absolute banger, so we let it rip - and in the climax, the majority of the Don Callis Family hits the ring. Every member EXCEPT Fletcher, Andrade, and Okada (write that down). The Young Bucks sprint down to even the odds, it's a full-on clusterfuck, and in the chaos Knight sneaks in and steals the three. We take a stone-cold LOCK of an Omega win and turn it into a bigger shock than when Darby won the title.

Now, Knight is not world-championship material at this stage… and that's exactly what I'm leaning into. Look who I sat OUT of that run-in. Fletcher. Andrade. Okada. Those guys could all be champion right now. So why would Callis pull this stunt for Knight and not them? Because Callis doesn't care WHICH member holds the belt, as long as someone does. The family IS him. If a family member is champion, then in his mind Don Callis is champion. Crowning a rookie over three made men is a genuine slap in the face and those three notice.

Then we pay it off quick: next Dynamite, Omega gets his rematch and Okada screws Knight. Omega wins it back, and Okada begins believing he is no longer the biggest priority for Don Callis, creating a new dynamic between the two. That's the real story here - the guy who should've been anointed reminding himself that maybe he doesn't need Callis to make himself king.

Jon Moxley and Will Ospreay vs The Young Bucks

So this whole thing is a trust exercise, and I mean that literally. Every single man in this match is one degree of separation from Kenny Omega.

Ospreay's the Death Riders' new project - Moxley's been playing mentor, "guiding" him, which we all know is Death Rider code for corrupting him. Omega has straight up warned Ospreay to his face that these guys are poison and don't have his best interests at heart. And the Bucks? They didn't call Mox and Ospreay out for a random banger. They called them out to prove a point to Omega: that his buddy Ospreay has already been lost to the dark side, and that Kenny's trust is misplaced. This match is the Bucks trying to save their friend from himself by beating the truth out of his new stablemate.

Match itself is chaos, obviously you've got two of the best in the world in Ospreay and Mox against the most decorated tag team going. Let it breathe and get insane. But in the finish things break down, the ref gets knocked down, and it's falling apart - and here comes Kenny Omega, sprinting down to save the Bucks from a Death Riders beatdown. The crowd LOSES it. Kenny's cleaning house, standing tall with his boys, the whole thing looks like it's turning into a feel-good Elite reunion moment…

…and then Will Ospreay lays out Kenny Omega from behind. Hidden Blade to the back of the skull. The place goes dead silent. The one guy Omega refused to give up on, the guy he vouched for - Ospreay just confirmed every single warning was true, and he did it to the man he's supposed to fight at All In. Moxley's mentorship is complete. The corruption took. And now Omega's got to walk into Wembley to defend his title against a man who just proved he's fully gone - again, spicing up the road to All In: London.

Six-way Ladder Match

(For the #1 Contenders match for the AEW International Championship)

Alright, this is the "get a bunch of dudes on the card and let them kill themselves" match. Perry, Speedball Bailey, Beast Mortos, Komander, Nick Wayne, El Clon. It's a spotfest and the winner doesn't even know who they're challenging yet, since Fletcher and Bandido go later the same night. (BONUS PITCH: Fletcher retains against Bandido lol).

Maybe too obviously but we are doing it anyways: Speedball Mike Bailey wins in his hometown of Montreal. So now Bailey vs Fletcher is your next International Championship feud, keeping Bailey orbiting the Callis Family story, which means it keeps him rubbing shoulders with Kenny Omega, who's now at war with that entire faction. Bailey chasing Fletcher's belt puts him on a collision course with the exact group screwing over Omega, and that's a lot more useful than a random babyface winning a random ladder match.

In fact, let's plant the seed into the earlier pitch. Remember the clusterfuck in the main event, where the Bucks come sprinting down to help Omega against the Callis Family? Have Bailey run out right alongside them. He's already got beef brewing with Fletcher, so him flying down to even the odds against the family makes total sense.

Thekla vs Willow Nightingale

(For the AEW Women's World Championship)

This one's about a redemption arc actually landing. Which, hey, is fitting for the show's name since Kenny went and ruined it by getting his title early. Anyways.

Thekla's been a toxic, dream-crushing champion for five-plus months - crushing dreams is her whole thing. Willow's the perfect story to run against her. She tore up her shoulder, vacated the TBS title, pulled out of the Owen Hart tournament (the very thing that opened the door for Mercedes Moné, remember that) and reportedly thought her shot might never come. Then she comes BACK, wins the Casino Gauntlet, and books herself into this match. That's a redemption story before the bell rings.

The build's been personal, too. That Foley face-to-face where Thekla accused Willow's positivity of hiding something uglier, and Willow fired back that the toxic act is Thekla covering her own insecurity - then promised to go full Foley, "sick and twisted," if that's what it takes. Cracks the sunshine-babyface open and shows the edge underneath. So let them have a nasty war. Then we bring the karma home, because Thekla made a graveyard of enemies on the way up and it's time one collected.

Late in the match, Thekla's lining up the spear when BOOM, STARDOM's Starlight Kid appears at ringside. These two went to war at Forbidden Door; Thekla beat her, ripped her mask off, spat in it, rubbed it in her boss's face. Not a grudge you forget. Kid just hops on the apron and gets in Thekla's head, the one person Thekla can't help but fixate on. The champ's focus snaps for one fatal second, and that's all Willow needs. Pounce from hell, Babe with the Powerbomb, over. Willow Nightingale is your NEW AEW Women's World Champion.

This pays off both stories at once. Willow gets a HUGE victory after being away injured and Thekla's own sins catch up to her. And THEN the launchpad: Mercedes Moné's music hits. Her All In shot's been locked since the Owen Hart tournament - the one Willow's injury let her into. There she is at the top of the ramp, not attacking, just holding up her contract and smiling. The woman who took Willow's spot, coming for the title Willow just bled for. Redemption complete.

Experiment complete!

As I type this sentence, it is 12:49. So I was off my goal by 19 minutes. And I got to say, I’m not so sure I enjoyed it haha. I thought it would be a fun little challenge but nothing beats coming prepared! Anyways, I will see y’all in a few days for SummerSlam! There is so many matches to pick from, I feel confident that I can start writing them today and this upcoming weeks TV storylines won’t ruin the pitches lol.

Love!