AEW’S BEST OF THE WEEK: Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay earn top spots this week, but additional honorable mentions to Mercedes, Britt Baker, Jack Perry, more

Momentum is a funny thing, isn’t it? I’m an enormous sports fan and to be honest it takes up a lot of my free time. Whether I’m watching sports, talking about sports or coaching my kids’ teams. Momentum and vibes are things that can’t be measured. It’s why I laugh sometimes when I hear these analytics guys talk about spin rate on baseballs or when the AWS probability of a team scoring a touchdown on a drive pops up on the screen during Sunday Night Football. It can’t measure momentum or a player’s heart. I wonder what the AWS probability was on the Patriots coming back from down 28-3 in the Super Bowl?

Right now, if you ask me who has the momentum in wrestling it’s AEW. They have been in a boxing match with WWE for years now and they currently just threw a jab that has WWE stumbling into the ropes. This is why having two top promotions is good for fans. Now it’s time for WWE to shake off the cobwebs and get back in the ring.

This past weekend’s All In PPV from Wembley Stadium in London was really a momentum shifting show. I always feel like the terms “New Era” or “Passing of the Torch” are used way too much in wrestling. I have seen so many “Passing of the Torch” moments that were snuffed out faster than Jeff Probst snuffing out a blindsided player’s torch on Survivor.

For me, the “Passing of the Torch” moment from Kenny Omega to Will Ospreay was truly a momentum shifting moment for AEW and for the wrestling world. It is a defining moment for a still relatively young promotion.

It is Ospreay’s time now and AEW needs to capitalize on the momentum they have coming out of All In. I thought Ospreay’s walkout at All In was incredible storytelling, having his fiercest opponents and closest friends giving him the nod along the way and ending it with Moxley giving him his seal of approval and handing him the Union Jack. The flag bearer of AEW handing the flag to Ospreay was poetic. Moxley’s smile as he walked away really told it all. I think AEW has found the right mix of new and upcoming stars mixed with legends of the past.

I also think that coming out of All In, the momentum of the women’s division is heading into a new direction with Mercedes Mone finally winning the AEW Women’s World Title. Listen, we all know Mercedes can wrestle. She’s the best in the world at what she does and when the lights get bright, Mercedes asks for them to be brighter. I hope with her at the top, the ladies of that division really elevate their games (looking at you, Britt Baker). The division has a lot of women that can “go,” but what I want from this Mercedes Mone title run is the opposite of what happened with her TBS title run.

I don’t want just great match after great match with really no story behind it. I want Mercedes to be an absolute terror to this division. I want the baby faces lining up to take down the big bad CEO of AEW. I want them to do the same thing with Mercedes as they did with MJF’s title run from earlier in the year. I want the sharks circling and I want every woman in that division having eyes on her title now.

Best Promo
Sue Ospreay – Will Ospreay’s Mom – All In 8/30/26

Yes. Will Ospreay’s Mom. This promo video that was played before Will Ospreay walked out to the ring with his mom narrating in the background was such a feel-good moment for me and I thought it was a perfect way to capture the type of person Will Ospreay is. It was a beautiful moment and a beautiful entrance. I thought everything about it was perfect from “Teenage Wasteland” by The Who playing to Will Ospreay’s mom talking about how she has “almost shut up now” after telling a 16-year-old Will Ospreay that he “won’t make a living” being a professional wrestler. I loved her talking about “sticking two fingers up” to the people who closed doors in his face.

As someone who is extremely close to their mom and someone who grew up with a single mom, a lot of the reason I wanted to be successful in life was so that my mom could “stick up two fingers” to the people who doubted her and doubted me.

I know that feeling and it really made me smile. “The Kid from Rainham” has made it and he made it by not giving up and by grabbing every opportunity he could. I just thought this was an incredible and emotional way to begin Ospreay’s reign as AEW World Heavyweight Champion. Ospreay’s mom talking about how “He is a top guy but also a top man” was such a great quote as well. Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley don’t strike me as guys who would back Will Ospreay if they didn’t truly believe in him.

One of the things that I like about Will Ospreay the most is that he always comes off as genuine. That is something that AEW does the best in my opinion. They let their guys and girls be who they are. They don’t try to force guys into a corner or a gimmick that isn’t them. It is something that is missing in WWE. It’s the reason why I find guys like John Cena and Cody Rhodes as sterile and too calculated. Will Ospreay isn’t that to me. He’s a guy you want to grab a beer with. At the end of the day to me a lot of my wrestling fandom is “Would I want to hang out with this person.” When it comes to Will Ospreay, the answer is always yes.

Best Match
Kenny Omega (c) vs. Will Ospreay for the AEW World Heavyweight Championship – All In 8/30/2026

Match of the year. Entrances of the year. It was honestly breathtaking to watch parts of this match. Two generational talents at the peak of their powers just putting on a spectacle for the fans. From the opening entrances to the final bell, I was locked in, and I don’t think I blinked once.

I talked about Will Ospreay’s entrance earlier in the article, but I also want to give Kenny Omega his due respect for his entrance as well. It was beautiful in a different way. From the Japanese voiceover by Kenta Miyake to the camera being behind Omega as he walked out, it was all just beautiful. A true final boss moment all the way down to Omega’s gear, which I think may be the best he’s ever had.

When Ospreay walked out with the blond hair, I knew we were about to watch a war and that blond hair would be red soon enough. I did not imagine the amount of blood he was going to spill though. I am usually not a fan of too much blood, but I thought it worked in this match. After Ospreay headbutted Omega towards the end of the match and the camera zoomed in on him with that insane look on his face, it is a visual I will remember for a long time. His hair soaked in blood and a look in his eyes of a man who realizes that he needs to go to another level to beat Omega.

The lead up to the match had some hits and misses in terms of promos, but that all went out the window for me with the entrances and the match itself. The entrances told more of a story than the multiple promos these two did leading up to the match.

I felt similarly about the lead up to Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk at WrestleMania this year. I thought the lead up to the match left much to be desired and then the bell rang and they put on what I think is a top 5 WrestleMania main event of all time.

The final 10 minutes of this match had me on the edge of my seat. We all knew the outcome of this match, and it still had me on the edge of my seat. The Tiger drivers, the kickouts at 1 by Kenny Omega, Will Ospreay cleanly kicking out of the One-Winged Angel and the crowd going absolutely bananas over it. Ospreay absolutely leveling Omega with a Hidden Blade that split him wide open.

The final Hidden Blade by Ospreay when Omega was on his knees and Ospreay was staring at him and sizing him up gave me Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair vibes from Flair’s retirement match at WrestleMania.

I don’t know when we will see Kenny Omega again. I’m guessing it may not be until 2027, but damn do I love that guy. He laid it all out on the line in this match and was throwing absolute hammers at Ospreay all match. I loved the little boxing spots that he had with Ospreay throughout the match as well. Top to bottom, this was the best presented match that AEW has ever had. The Will Ospreay era has begun, Bruv.

Thoughts and Observations

•I was not overly impressed with The New Level debut. It was just The New Day adjacent all the way down to Kofi doing his battle royal spot where his feet don’t hit the ground. I hope that changes on Dynamite this week. I thought Derek Mitchell put it perfectly on Wrestling Night in America when he commented that it was McDonald’s and McDowell’s, which was an A+ “Coming to America” reference.

•I’m happy for Britt Baker. I know a lot of her problems in AEW were self-induced, but I hope she is in a better spot personally and professionally. Whether you like her or hate her, she has that star quality that can’t be taught.

•Justin Roberts mistakenly introducing Komander as Mystico and then being able to fix his mistake and turn it into a great moment was so great.

•I really want MJF to stop wearing the Triple B Title. I just hate the way it looks.

•Jack Perry looked like he had a little extra hop in his step during his entrance and during the Casino Gauntlet match. I’m guessing it had to do with his journey back to All In and London since the last time he was there.

•We have just entered the Will Ospreay era of AEW, but man does it sure feel like we are going to be talking about the Kyle Fletcher era sooner than later. He looked like a star at All In.

•Am I a jerk if I say that I’m out on Steve Borden, a/k/a Sting’s son?

•I loved Mercedes Mone stepping on Willow Nightingale’s body as she left the ring with her new AEW Women’s Championship over her shoulder. Too many times, these types of rivalries end with a handshake or a mutual sign of respect. I love Mercedes just stepping on Willow like she was nothing. I need a Mercedes Mone reign of terror for the next year.