Mercedes Moné Making Stars and Biggest Takeaways From AEW Forbidden Door 2024 Results

AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door is a special event celebrating the great talent of All Elite Wrestling and New Japan Pro-Wrestling.

This year, that celebration also included stars from Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and World Wonder Ring Stardom.

The night featured special moments including Tetsuya Naito regaining the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship from Jon Moxley, Mercedes Moné becoming a double champion and an unforgettable battle between Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay.

This show may have focused primarily on great in-ring action, but stories continued to develop into the future with All In: London 2024 on the horizon.

The following are the major takeaways from Forbidden Door.

Mariah May avenged his recent loss to Saraya to advance into the semifinals of the women’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament.

It was an expected result, but it may have been the most difficult hurdle for May to climb on her road to tournament victory.

Her story with Toni Storm is unmatched amongst the remaining women in the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament.

She is the student fighting her teacher, leaving both to question how far they will go to capture the AEW Women’s Championship.

Willow Nightingale, Hikaru Shida or Kris Statlander would have great matches with Storm, worthy of Wembley Stadium. However, May challenging Storm is the kind of story that could headline All In: London 2024.

Moreover, May has earned the spotlight as one of the best wrestlers in AEW today while telling the most complete women’s story in the company’s history.

MJF competed in his first PPV match of 2024, defeating Hechicero in a fun but heatless battle of great professional wrestlers.

The Alchemist has delivered time and again in AEW but looked best against technical wrestlers. The Salt of the Earth was hardly the perfect opponent for him.

However, it was also clear that MJF was not fully ready to work at a top PPV level following his injury return. He focused more on the showboating while allowing The Alchemist to control the pace.

Hopefully, The Salt of the Earth will put it all together before All In: London as he will certainly have a bigger spotlight and story to pay off in Wembley Stadium.

It seems likely he will be working with Daniel Garcia and/or Will Ospreay, and he will need to step up to deliver against either or both men.

In 2022, The Acclaimed broke out as the top tag team in AEW. While Anthony Bowens and Max Caster are still immensely talented, the shine is off the group in 2024.

Caster’s raps are no longer landing with the fans. The 62-year-old Billy Gunn has almost overstayed his welcome after a recent fake-out retirement.

However, Bowens has only grown more popular while improving with every major challenge. Nothing can slow his momentum except keeping him in tag team and trios action.

AEW does not need to break up The Acclaimed completely, but the group is not working in its current form. Bowens should get a chance to ride solo, even if Caster and Gunn are still managing him.

With the Continental Classic returning the near the end of the year, Bowens would be the perfect underdog inclusion to highlight.

Bryan Danielson has established that 2024 will be his last year as a full-time competitor. The men’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament may be his last chance to earn an AEW World Championship match.

Even if The American Dragon does continue to wrestle on occasion in AEW or another company, he will not hold another championship with his focus on his family.

This is why Danielson must win the opportunity to face Swerve Strickland at All In: London. This is also why he should win the world title in Wembley Stadium.

His legacy in AEW, filled with great matches, lacks even one championship reign. It is almost more important to AEW than Danielson himself that he hold the title before it is over.

Swerve has delivered time and again as world champion so far, but there is not time enough for The Mogul to get a lengthy run and give Danielson his flowers.

The title can go back to Swerve at World’s End in Tacoma, WA where The Mogul calls home, and Danielson call it a career with a well-deserved AEW world title reign on his record.

Toni Storm has fully earned her title as AEW’s greatest female wrestler, but it was her opponent that stole the show at Forbidden Door.

Mina Shirakawa brutalized The TImeless One in a physical match that had the crowd completely invested in the story.

No one has raised their stock more in AEW than Mina over the past few months. She went from Mariah May’s fun friend to a worthy world title contender, selling the possibility that she might dethrone AEW’s top woman.

While Mina has had success in Stardom, currently holding the Artist of Stardom Championship with Maika and Xena, she has become one of the company’s most recognizable names for good reason.

AEW is certain to use her more, and she could very well capture the World of Stardom Championship soon, even if it is held by her Empress Nexus Venus stablemate Maika.

The future is bright for Mina in Japan and beyond. If she wants to commit to competing in the United States, the fans are clearly ready to cheer her all the way to the top of the business.

Forbidden Door is a time to highlight the top stars in wrestling, so it is no surprise that Zack Sabre Jr. has competed at all three events.

While he may not have the pedigree of stars like Tetsuya Naito or Hiroshi Tanahashi, he has been the best wrestler in the company in 2024.

He delivered once again with Orange Cassidy in a technical battle that completely invested a crowd that was lukewarm to start.

It was by far the best performance of anyone from NJPW by a solid margin, highlighting his value as the secret weapon the company can use to challenge anyone in any promotion.

ZSJ remains completely committed to New Japan, even as he waits for his true breakout moment. He can be more than just the in-ring hit maker though for the company.

At a time where NJPW is still in transition, establishing its future stars, ZSJ deserves a chance to finally hold the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.

Hook has pinned Chris Jericho in the middle of the ring with his own move, the Judas Effect. It was a cathartic moment in the midst of an awkward feud.

However, this should not be the end for The Handsome Devil’s rise to the top of the business.

SEScoops reported that his contract would be up later in 2024, and Hook would explore his free agent options.

While The Handsome Devil will have many exciting options ahead of him for his future, AEW would be foolish to let him walk away with a lucrative contract offer.

At 25 years old, Hook is one of the youngest stars in AEW with world title upside. His match with Samoa Joe at the beginning of the year was a star-making moment that has developed in a great trio with Joe and Katsuyori Shibata.

This group should be a threat to claim the Unified World Trios Championships soon, but 2025 could mean far more gold for Hook upon re-signing.

The Four Pillars of AEW have finally all won singles gold. Jack Perry took the longest road for many reasons.

He struggled to stand out on his own early in AEW, relying upon his tag team with Luchasaurus. Once he broke away, he struggled in promos to stand out.

That changed with his heel turn. A controversial encounter with CM Punk slowed his momentum but may have given him the extra edge he needed to become a must-watch star.

Joining The Elite pushed him all the way to capturing the TNT Championship, and it is hard to imagine anyone dethroning him soon.

If The Scapegoat can keep his momentum into 2025, he could take a further step to the world title scene, showing that he was always a special talent waiting for the right opportunity.

Mercedes Moné has wrestled three matches so far in AEW, and each has ended with her opponent coming off like one of the best in the world.

It has helped that she was facing great opponents. Her first rival, Willow Nightingale, was on the roll of her career and needed a great veteran to push her over the top.

Skye Blue has continued a strong steady rise through the ranks, becoming one of AEW’s most popular stars at 24 years old. The CEO pushed her to compete at a higher level.

However, arguably the best worker yet was Stephanie Vaquer. She carries gold for multiple companies while delivering at a level that could rival anyone, even The CEO.

She showed that against Moné with a performance that could not be ignored. However, she was also the most unknown to the AEW fan base and rose her own stake by working with The CEO.

No one will forget Vaquer after this match, another all-time great performance in AEW’s history for the women. AEW should reach out to CMLL regularly to bring her in for more matches.

Her match looks to be against Dr. Britt Baker, DMD, returning from major injury after nine months out of action. That will be one to watch as she could push The Doctor to a higher ceiling than she has ever reached.

Dr. Britt Baker, DMD is finally back, and her sights are set on Mercedes Moné. This is an important opportunity for The Doctor.

Before her nine-month injury hiatus, Baker was a controversial figure in the women’s division. While she had carried through tough times, AEW’s women’s division was perhaps too focused on her near the top.

With a needed reset, she comes in fresh and will work fresh angles with new top names.

Moné has brought the most of her opponents so far. If she can bring the best out of Baker, everyone will soon remember why she was AEW’s top woman for a reason.

Past that match, Baker working with Willow Nightingale, Deonna Purrazzo, Stardom stars like Mina Shirakawa, CMLL stars like Stephanie Vaquer and more will be the ultimate test of her greatness.

Jon Moxley made a statement when he took the top prize away from Tetsuya Naito. He tested the rising young talent in NJPW by fighting both Ren Narita and Shota Umino in Japan.

NJPW was not ready to crown either man though. Instead, it was El Ingobernable that regained the gold ahead of the G1 Climax where the champion must compete.

Not only did the reign amount to little, the match that mattered most at Forbidden Door was the worst showing of the event. It was slow and methodical without much crowd interaction.

While Shingo Takagi and Zack Sabre Jr. delivered in singles action, Tetsuya Naito could not compete at level needed from a top world champion.

Moxley was clearly not ready to commit to NJPW enough to carry the brand, but Naito is not in the shape necessary to keep the brand great.

Whether it means committing to Zack Sabre Jr. or putting over one of the new young stars of NJPW quickly, something major needs to happen to get NJPW back on track.

When AEW first announced Swerve Strickland’s next challenge would be Will Ospreay, the question loomed large: was The Mogul going to be able to stop the momentum of The Aerial Assassin?

It was not just about winning or losing. He needed to keep up with a man that was putting on all-time great matches week after week.

Swerve not only kept up with Ospreay but arguably led the best match of the show. Even on a night with great action, this was by far the standout fight of the evening.

The drama built to a furious finish where Swerve pushed Ospreay past his limit. The Aerial Assassin simply ran out of steam in a finish that sold the story the two men had told over the past month.

It was a special match that solidified Swerve as the man in AEW while establishing that Ospreay is not quite ready to carry the company.

When these two fight again, it will be a special moment. Until then, Swerve and Ospreay can carry AEW forward together.