Mercedes Mone is looking ahead to her next title defence.
First debuting on AEW TV at the Big Business special back in March, The CEO finally made her in-ring debut at Double or Nothing over 2 months later on May 26th. Making it a night to remember, Mercedes Mone immediately made an impact as she defeated Willow Nightingale to become the new TBS Champion.
The next pay-per-view on the calendar will be Forbidden Door on June 30th and is expected to see stars from other promotions in addition to New Japan compete as Toni Storm recently teased the collaboration at a STARDOM show back in April.
Appearing at the post-show press conference following Double or Nothing, Mone urged NJPW President Hiroshi Tanahashi to find the best opponent possible for her at the pay-per-view:
“June 30, we have Forbidden Door just right around the corner, Tony, so I don’t know. Tanahashi, san, do you have any good opponents for me in New Japan and Stardom? You think about that, right? You call Tony and Tony will call me and Mone/Khan, we’ll just collaborate and choose the best opponent for June 30 at Forbidden Door.”
While Mone is still looking for her challenger, Toni Storm made a surprise appearance for STARDOM to lay down a challenge for Forbidden Door.
Mercedes Mone Addresses Previous Reports
Prior to Mone’s debut becoming official, the rumour mill went into overdrive about her in-ring future with some fans speculating that the former Sasha Banks may make a shock return to WWE 18 months after previously walking out of the company while an episode of Raw was being broadcast. Additionally, other reports claimed that Mone had signed well ahead of her debut in AEW and the onscreen appearance was inevitable. Also at the press conference, Mercedes Mone clarified AEW debut rumours.
H/t to Wrestling Inc.