Mercedes Mone Beats Maya World to Win Owen Hart Cup and AEW World Title Shot at All In

Mercedes Moné defeated Maya World at Forbidden Door on Sunday to win the 2026 women's Owen Hart Cup tournament and secure an AEW Women's World Championship match in August at All In.

Following a five-month hiatus, Moné made her surprise return to AEW programming on June 3 as a replacement for the injured Willow Nightingale in the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament.

The former TBS champion powered her way through the first two rounds of the tournament, beating Alex Windsor and Hazuki to punch her ticket to the finals at Forbidden Door.

On the other half of the bracket, a far more surprising result played out, as another injury replacement went on a Cinderella run.

Japanese wrestling star Sareee was originally supposed to be part of the tournament, but when an injury rendered her unable to compete, she was replaced by World.

Little was expected out of the 23-year-old, but after beating Skye Blue in the first round, she shocked ROH women's world champion Athena in the semifinals to move within one victory of an AEW women's world title shot.

The gap in experience and accolades between Mercedes and Maya entering Sunday's bout could not have been any wider, as Moné is widely considered one of the greatest women's wrestlers of today and potentially all time, while World has only been wrestling since 2022.

Moné was a heavy favorite because of that, but winning the tourney wasn't necessarily a slam dunk given that she was in the midst of a losing streak before taking time off.

During her absence, World climbed the ranks and established herself as a rising star to watch, although few could have expected her to reach this point so quickly.

Ultimately, AEW went with the expected result, though, as Mercedes became the first back-to-back winner of the Owen Hart Cup, and put herself in position for an AEW women's title match at All In, likely against Thekla.