AEW World Champion Omega issued the following response…

“What the f*ck is wrong with you? It isn’t hard to try having some class.

A dear friend battles back from a career threatening injury, is no doubt still fighting pain today, and is somehow mocked and compared to a dude that was murdered. I get that a joke is a joke but these things should really be kept separate in my opinion.”

A dear friend battles back from a career threatening injury, is no doubt still fighting pain today, and is somehow mocked and compared to a dude that was murdered.

I get that a joke is a joke but these things should really be kept separate in my opinion.

— Kenny Omega (@KennyOmegamanX) July 17, 2026

The post Kenny Omega calls out person that compares Will Ospreay to the late political activist Charlie Kirk appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Fightful noted the following about the title change…

“There was a talking point that AEW did their title change on TV to ‘steal thunder’ from CM Punk’s title win. It was repeatedly reiterated to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select that this wasn’t the case, and Kenny Omega winning the AEW Championship from MJF had been planned for months. The plan for the match on AEW TV was set before Sami Zayn’s WWE Championship win even happened.”

It was previously reported that the original plan was for the match to take place at the AEW Redemption PPV in Montreal. However, it’s believed that MJF pushed to have the match take place on television, and AEW President Tony Khan approved it.

There was a talking point that AEW did their title change on TV to "steal thunder" from CM Punk's title win.

It was repeatedly reiterated to @SeanRossSapp of @FightfulSelect that this wasn't the case, and Kenny Omega winning the AEW Championship from MJF had been planned for… pic.twitter.com/RHdtUJbk8B

— Fightful Wrestling (@Fightful) July 12, 2026

The post News regarding Kenny Omega’s AEW World Title win taking place right after CM Punk captured the WWE Title appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

So of course leave it to the WWE to telegraph Sami losing on RAW Monday night. At first they set up Cody Rhodes getting his rematch after he beat Jey Uso on Smackdown on Friday night. All weekend all we could think of was “Poor Sami”. Cody was gonna get his damn title back because of course he had to. Cody Rhodes is almost in late 2000’s John Cena mode at this point where he overcomes the odds and wins back the title. Well, luckily that didn’t happen Monday night on RAW. The WWE took a hard left at the proverbial fork in the road and decided not to put the belt back on Cody as Gunther beat him up at the start of the show and Cody ended up not being “medically cleared”.

I thought Sami Zayn got a reprieve. But no, Adam Pearce was all “I promised a championship match here tonight and that’s what they’re gonna get”. Here’s where it got stupid in my view. Around the mid point of the show, Pearce was all “I can’t find anyone to face Sami”. You mean you couldn’t find one guy in the locker room who wanted a World title match? This of course led to Nick Aldis swooping in to say he found someone and they are ready. Cut to later in the night and as Sami is in the ring, the crowd has been chanting a certain someone’s name all night since they were in his hometown. The music hits and of course it’s CM Punk.

Well that’s just great. Sami Zayn was doomed. Now don’t get me wrong, the match was pretty good. It’s just the wrong guy won. Sami Zayn did not deserve to be a short run transitional champion. Now apparently according to the very reliable Wrestle Votes over on Twitter, NBC Universal has wanted Punk on Smackdown for a while now. They view him as a premier star. Well, duh…no kidding he’s a premier star. But just because he’s a top guy doesn’t mean he needs the title belt right off the bat.

I’ve seen criticism of Sami’s loss on twitter and elsewhere and it makes sense. How come Sami had to defend his title right off the bat? Rhea Ripley has been out over a month and she hasn’t had to vacate the title. Liv Morgan hasn’t defended her title at all (at least on tv…but house shows don’t count). Point is Sami Zayn was screwed over royally.

I think the WWE is blowing a golden opportunity here mostly because of their stupid perceptions. The big one that they have is that Sami Zayn is not a money player. That is a load of you know what like you wouldn’t believe. I’m thinking back to 1994 when the WWF at the time made a similar mistake. Come back with me to Survivor Series 1994 where Mr. Bob Backlund defeated Bret “The Hitman” Hart to become the new WWF World Champion. Now of course me back then, I didn’t have the advantage of seeing things in hindsight. I’ll admit when I was at Madison Square Garden three days later for that fateful night of Backlund vs. Diesel, I was rooting for the big man to win.

In hindsight though a lot of people would argue the WWF made a terrible decision to squash Backlund in eight seconds and give the belt to Big Daddy Cool. It’s not that Diesel didn’t deserve to be champion. It’s that Mr. Bob Backlund deserved better than three days as champion. Of course his moral heel persona was way ahead of it’s time for 1994 into 1995. We’re in the same situation with Sami Zayn now having lost the title. And knowing the WWE, they will push Sami Zayn to the backside because “he’s not a money player”. So we’re going to get Punk vs. Cody…because that’s been the plan all along.

Maybe Gunther vs. Cody will delay that match for like a week, but it’s clear it’s the plan and it takes something monumental to get the WWE to pivot from one of their plans. As I’ve said in the past, I have nothing against. Cody. I just want to see something different for once. Sami Zayn was that something different. He didn’t need a super long reign. He could have held the title till Summerslam and they could have still had Punk win then.

Ah well we shall see what happens on Smackdown going forth since it’s going to be CM Punk’s show. Me personally I would keep Punk and Zayn feuding. Shift Cody to face Gunther for a while.

On the otherside of the wrestling, Kenny Omega is the AEW Champion once again having defeated MJF on Dynamite. I thought it was a pretty good match. AEW is going to go full tilt into promoting Omega vs. Osprey at All In: London at Wembley Stadium. MJF vs. Osprey would have been better from a story standpoint, but it’s AEW. We all know they care more about the wrestling action over story telling. But AEW backed themselves into a corner with the stip that Omega had to win or he would never get another World title shot in AEW again. They did that to Adam Page and he hasn’t been seen since. But Omega vs. Osprey should be an amazing match when it happens next month.

On that note I am done for this week. I wish Sami Zayn was still champion, but it wasn’t to be.

As always you can leave me feedback down below, on Twitter or email me at phantomlordnyc@gmail.com

The post The Phantom Rant: Sami Zayn Deserved Much Better appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

The post NoDQ Review 395: CM Punk and Kenny Omega win world titles, Sheamus leaving WWE appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

According to Fightful.com, the match was originally planned for the AEW Redemption 2026 PPV in Montreal before AEW decided to move it to Dynamite. The report added that plans for the title match have been in place for at least three months, with the storyline dating back to AEW Dynasty, where MJF defeated Omega through cheating in the main event to win the AEW Title.

Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline.com noted the following about the rematch taking place next week…

“Doing this match on TV rather than Montreal is a real question. Between that and Kyle Fletcher’s International title match with Konosuke Takeshita also being on television, those were both major bouts that were expected on upcoming PPV shows. It is very clear, with 7/8 having no World Cup games on, that Tony Khan is really pushing hard with the idea of not just a PPV main event but in theory a major drawing PPV main event with two tier one guys and a strong undercard is a major attempt to draw a rating.”

The plan for Kenny Omega vs. MJF for the AEW World Championship has been in effect for well over three months at the very least.@FightfulSelect has also heard that the long-term plan was for AEW Redemption. pic.twitter.com/5MT0e2w7lI

— Fightful Wrestling (@Fightful) July 3, 2026

The post Backstage news regarding AEW’s plans for the MJF vs. Kenny Omega world title rematch appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

While he didn’t mention Jade by name, Kenny addressed the move being used via Twitter/X…

“When I see the moves I do elsewhere, I only take it as a compliment. If somehow I inspired people to use them, I can only be grateful. Besides, seeing the OWA on the WM ring was kinda neat, right? It’s all good with me!”

When I see the moves I do elsewhere, I only take it as a compliment. If somehow I inspired people to use them, I can only be grateful.

Besides, seeing the OWA on the WM ring was kinda neat, right? It’s all good with me! pic.twitter.com/geEie5PBPC

— Kenny Omega (@KennyOmegamanX) April 20, 2026

The post Kenny Omega addresses Jade Cargill using his “One Winged Angel” finisher at WrestleMania 42 appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

“I’m just still a little tiny bit on the mend, because it’s a process that takes a long time. Plus, I came back way too early, so I hindered my own full recovery because of the schedule that I took probably a year and a half too soon, which it is what it is, but here we are.”

The post Kenny Omega says he “came back way too early” from his battle with diverticulitis appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

“So you’re getting a whole heck of a lot of AEW, and you’re not having to mortgage your first house or sell off your first child. That’s not even a knock on any of the promotions or anything—it’s just that if you want to check out a television product, see yourself on TV, have fun, see what makes AEW so special, you can do it. And you can do it at an affordable price.

I’m just really glad that if there’s any interest whatsoever—whether it’s because you’re a diehard AEW fan or you just want to go out and check out a night of wrestling and do something fun with family or friends—I’m glad there are price point options available for all walks of life. And that’s one thing that I’m very proud of with AEW.”

The post Kenny Omega on AEW’s ticket prices: “You’re not having to mortgage your first house or sell off your first child” appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline.com noted that Omega is under contract to be at the Capcom event at Sumo Hall in Tokyo from March 11th to March 15th. Omega’s status for the 2026 Revolution PPV event is up in the air as Meltzer noted the following…

“He is trying to make a deal where he can leave on 3/14 and be on the PPV, but as of right now he still has the commitment. He said there is a possibility he can make the date but at this point he didn’t want to be in a position where he had to be on the show or where he would be teased or advertised in case he cant make it.”

The post News regarding Kenny Omega’s status for the 2026 AEW Revolution PPV event appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.

“Most of you doing this STUPID stuff aren’t going to listen to me, but hopefully a few will. Stop it now if you want a decent quality of life after wrestling, because that part of your life will be over before you know it.”

AEW star Kenny Omega issued a response to Regal…

“Regardless of timing or perceived intent, the general message from Mr. Regal remains a positive one. Tribalism, whataboutism, and other ‘isms’ aren’t needed here.

Regardless of timing or perceived intent, the general message from Mr. Regal remains a positive one. Tribalism, whataboutism, and other ‘isms’ aren’t needed here.

Safety often takes a back seat when a wrestler is locked in and actively chasing the dragon. We all sometimes need…

— Kenny Omega (@KennyOmegamanX) December 29, 2025

The post Kenny Omega issues response to William Regal’s public warning about neck and head bumps appeared first on NoDQ.com: WWE and AEW Coverage.