AEW WrestleDream 2025: Where Do We Go From Here?

We're a few days out from AEW WrestleDream 2025, and like several members of the AEW roster, surely, we here at Wrestling Inc. needed most of that to recover from both the show's length and it's unceasing brutality! But there's no time left to throw out social media takes about fish tank spots — "AEW Dynamite" goes down this very evening, and as Tony Khan prepares to transition into the build to Full Gear, the WINC staff has predictions for what that build will look like coming off Saturday's St. Louis festivities.

There are several intriguing storytelling possibilities for pretty much every match on the WrestleDream card, and we're going to cover nearly all of them (apologies to The Hurt Syndicate vs. The Demand, which is the only one we're not hitting). How will Jamie Hayter's win over Thekla get us to the women's Blood & Guts match in November? Is it finally time to pull the trigger on Takeshita vs. Okada? Are Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa suddenly the presumptive favorites to become the first-ever AEW women's tag team champions? And is there even such a thing as the Death Riders anymore after Jon Moxley said "I Quit?"

We've told you about the things we hated and the things we loved, and we've named the winners and losers, but that's all in the past. AEW WrestleDream is behind us — where do we go from here?

Jamie Hayter may have ended her time in St. Louis with her hand raised, but if her yet-to-be-answered call for the first-ever Women's Blood and Guts match is anything to go by, Hayter's WrestleDream victory over intense rival Thekla hardly has feud-ending implications. With the battle lines between The Triangle of Madness and Hayter and Aminata's team yet to be, who will join this high-stakes multi-woman feud to complete the five-on-five coalitions necessary for Blood and Guts.

The Triangle of Madness' Thekla, Skye Blue, and Julia Hart are looking for two people to fill out their ranks for the Blood and Guts match, and honestly, their vacancies are probably the easiest to fill. Megan Bayne and Penelope Ford have been seen alongside the Triangle of Madness, and as the other heels on the women's midcard, they're the most logical choice to fill out the Triangle of Madness' ranks for Blood and Guts. I anticipate Bayne and Ford will secure their alliance with The Triangle of Madness as soon as Hayter's Blood and Guts challenge is officially accepted. It's all pretty self-explanatory.

Hayter and Aminata's situation is worse. The two are down one compared to the Triangle of Madness, their allies are more difficult to pinpoint. AEW doesn't have a shortage of female babyfaces in the midcard, but some of the more popular competitors, like Willow Nightingale, are currently embroiled in other feuds (though, Nightingale's JetSpeed alliances could rope her into this through Bayne and Ford's FTR alliance, but the jury's out on that one). Harley Cameron comes to mind as the most popular female midcarder who can join Hayter and Aminata's babyface forces, and the helpful Australian could easily make a name for herself with a stellar performance in Blood and Guts. Tay Melo was also seen fighting alongside Hayter and Cameron on the September 11 of "AEW Collision," so Hayter could probably rope her into her Blood and Guts team.

Cameron and Melo are logical and somewhat easy shoe-ins for Hayter and Aminata's Blood and Guts team, but if the Nightingale situation doesn't pan out, Hayter and Aminata might be hurting for an extra member. Now is the time to start fantasizing about AEW returns. Off the top of my head, Thunder Rosa hasn't been seen since All Out, and she famously beat the then-unbeatable Dr. Britt Baker in a Steel Cage to claim the AEW Women's World Championship. If there's any babyface who is familiar with cages, it's her. Plus, she has been seen defending Kris Statlander against Megan Bayne and Penelope Ford, however awkwardly. She might be our girl.

Regardless of who may participate, this incoming Women's Blood and Guts match will be nothing less than historic.

Written by Angeline Phu

Jurassic Express may be the team that's $500,000 richer, but it's the Young Bucks who look to have the stronger storyline angle here following their loss to the newly reunited tag team at WrestleDream. Sure, that loss means they're still the "Broke Bucks" with, if their entrance tron is to be believed, only $32.17 in their bank accounts, but they also look like they're headed for a babyface turn.

After the match, "Jungle" Jack Perry and Luchasaurus extended their hands to Matt and Nick Jackson after retrieving the bag full of cash at ringside. The Bucks considered accepting, but not before The Don Callis Family would attack Jurassic Express. The Bucks, still playing the heels, didn't help Perry and Luchasaurus, but Kenny Omega came to their aid. Omega tried to get their help to get ahead of the numbers game, but the Bucks were hesitant. AEW cameras made a point to show the conflicted Bucks on the ramp during the brawl, making fans believe they were actually going to turn around, quite literally, into a babyface turn. After the chaos with the babyfaces standing tall, the Bucks sheepishly stared down Omega on the ramp, but things didn't come to blows between the former Elite members.

The "Broke Bucks" gimmick has been fun since it started back when they lost their EVP statuses at All In, but the story seems like it's come to its natural end. The obvious next step is for them to come to their senses and possibly reunite with Omega, and maybe even Perry, alongside Luchasaurus, for a babyface run. Or, if AEW wants to do something really interesting, the Bucks could only just pretend to be friends with Jurassic Express, hoping to get a cut of the $500K.

The crowd in St. Louis was certainly ready to see a babyface Bucks turn, as was a lot of social media. Going in to "Blood & Guts" next month, if the company is going to do a men's match, it could be fun to see a Don Callis Family team take on Omega, Jurassic Express, and the Young Bucks, as the match type would be perfect to further push Matt and Nick Jackson as good guys once again. It would also be a good place for a potential swerve angle, with the Bucks taking out the babyfaces to join the ever-growing Don Callis Family, or to at least align themselves with Callis in an attempt to get rich again. With just the simple babyface tease for the "Broke Bucks," AEW seems to have unlocked quite a few options for the tag team going forward.

Written by Daisy Ruth

Kyle Fletcher continued to carve his name in the halls of the TNT Championship's high-profile lineage after he took the win against the wildly popular Mark Briscoe in a violent WrestleDream title defense. With Briscoe in the rear view mirror, one can only wonder what's next for The Don Callis Family's star child. Who can possibly step up to face a "Protostar" with momentum as meteoric as Fletcher's?

Fletcher has been either in the main event scene (by way of his match with AEW Men's World Champion "Hangman" Adam Page), or he's been adjacent to it, with high-profile opponents like Cassidy and Briscoe in his list of defeated challengers. With a laundry list of high-profile names surrounding him, it's not outrageous to claim that the 26-year old Fletcher is the future of AEW, so why not acclimatize him to the main event scene of AEW further, and throw some star-powered challengers his way?

Okay, I'm not saying stars like Jon Moxley should be challenging for Fletcher's TNT title: that would sound like a booking demotion, no matter how good Fletcher is right now. There are, however, upper mid-card stars that could stand toe-to-toe with Fletcher in order to build the young star's impressive resume. The recently-returned Eddie Kingston has somehow become even more over with fans since his return at All Out 2025, and could be a shoe-in for a TNT Title feud with the young Fletcher. If (and, honestly, when) Kingston fails to pump the brakes on Fletcher's rockstar rise, perhaps a feud with the similarly popular HOOK could provide both youngsters with an opportunity to sharpen the other man's craft. With Ricochet and the Gates of Agony fresh off of a loss against The Hurt Syndicate, perhaps Ricochet could rebuild his lost street cred with a high-stakes feud against the similarly treacherous Fletcher.

Jay White recently took to social media to tease a return, and while his one-word return didn't specifically stake a challenge for Fletcher's title, you can't deny that a Fletcher and White feud would draw eyes to AEW's product. It would be a great way to welcome White back to the ring, and this would catapult Fletcher even further into the spotlight. The only issue with this feud is that White would have to take the feud's penultimate loss, as putting White in a feud to put over Fletcher, only to not have Fletcher stand tall at the end, seems counterintuitive.

The point of all this? Throw anyone at Fletcher. Give him White, give him Ricochet, give him Kingston — give him literally anyone. Fletcher has proven he can hang with some of the best AEW has to offer, and he should continue to prove that.

Written by Angeline Phu

WrestleDream saw Toni Storm sustain her first one-on-one defeat this year as Kris Statlander retained her AEW Women's World Championship, challenging for the title she held a record four times and only lost to Statlander in a four-way at All Out in Toronto. 

There was no question or asterisk to her defeat, Statlander going over clean and establishing herself as the true successor to the former champion, differing to the other times she lost the title rivals she would go back after. By the end of the show, she was seen as a picture of dejection in the backstage area, joined by fellow loser Mina Shirakawa – who had also lost her Interim ROH Women's TV Championship to Mercedes Mone, also failing to wrest the TBS Championship – as they both mourned the losses of their titles. 

Storm said that she had nothing left, but Shirakawa corrected her and said that they still have each other, with the segment ending as they embraced one another. Mone has the TBS title, as mentioned, and seems far more concerned with the title sat on Statlander's shoulders at the moment. So given the fact that both Storm and Shirakawa have been effectively pushed out of competing in that picture, and the recent announcement that there will be inaugural Women's World Tag Team Champions crowned, an opportunity has arisen for them both to align in their quest for gold. 

Time will tell how far they eventually get in that journey, but for the time being at least that appears to be their direction, and it would undoubtedly offer two of the more prominent names to titles that could use legitimizing.

Written by Max Everett

AEW set up Women's World Champion Kris Statlander's next challenger almost immediately following her successful defense over Toni Storm, and the woman who's got next is one of the most committed there is when it comes to winning titles. TBS Champion, and now the holder of 11 other belts, Mercedes Mone interrupted Statlander's celebration at WrestleDream, but "Stat" laid her out with a Samoan Drop following Mone's victory over Mina Shirakawa.

Mone challenged Statlander to a match at Full Gear next month for the AEW Women's World Championship, but not for her TBS title or any other gold currently around "The CEO's" waist. Statlander didn't respond at WrestleDream, as Mone issued the challenge just before the main event of the show went on air, but it's expected she will on Wednesday's episode of "AEW Dynamite." The challenge is an interesting one, as Statlander has never beaten Mone. At last year's Full Gear, Statlander challenged "Ultimo Mone" for the TBS title and lost, and lost again during their rematch at Worlds End. 

With Statlander never being able to beat Mone for the TBS Championship, it seems likely that she'll demand Mone also put her belt on the line. Their match at Full Gear could of course go one of two ways, but it seems like AEW could finally give Mone the women's top title. Or, they could chose to pivot and start Mone's downfall, though that storyline is harder to book, as AEW President Tony Khan obviously isn't booking the other promotions where Mone holds gold. If these smaller promotions are choosing to strap up Mone for their own benefit, basically almost like free advertising, AEW may as well play off the gimmick and give her the Women's World Championship.

It could be a choice to make Statlander a transitional champion, for lack of a better term, after Storm's long title reigns. The champion's stories have been a bit all over the place, from teaming with Harley Cameron, to the "will she or won't she?" story with the Death Riders. While Statlander is an excellent athlete and performer, her victory over Storm at All Out seemed rather sudden. Maybe it's not Mone who is destined for the crash out after losing a championship, but rather, Statlander, after having an emotional whirlwind of moments and stories over the last few months. Statlander is also a great talent when it comes to the chase of a title, and if she does lose the title to "The CEO," she could take back the gold from Mone in the future, whenever Mone's downfall does begin.

Written by Daisy Ruth

While some AEW fans have started to see the constant presence of Don Callis and his ever-growing family as something that is a bit repetitive and boring, the group does have one very promising story that could eventually lead to one of the most anticipated showdowns in AEW history. 

You can see the excitement for a potential showdown between Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita as early as last fall when the two were involved in the same match at AEW All Out 2024. The idea of having the two Japanese stars meeting in the finals of something like the Continental Classic final sounded tantalizing in 2024, but now that the two men are both in the Don Callis Family, there is so much more meat on the bone, especially given their loss at AEW WrestleDream 2025 when Brodido successfully retained the AEW Tag Team Championships.

There is a very fine line to walk when it comes to the future of Okada and Takeshita's rivalry. Both men are champions and need to be protected in their own right, meaning that losing tag team matches due to miscommunication like what we saw at WrestleDream can't happen all the time. In turn, the idea of having them continue as a tag team probably isn't the best idea either, but that doesn't mean you can't have them lose due to the other guy.

For example, Okada is defending the AEW Unified Championship against Bandido this Wednesday on "AEW Dynamite," while Takeshita is defending the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship on November 2 against Hirooki Goto in New Japan Pro Wrestling. You could theoretically have either one of those matches end with a new champion thanks to Okada and Takeshita getting involved in each other's business. While that might not be the best idea, it is a path that can be explored as it would add even more fire to an already hot feud.

The path I think the story will go down will culminate either at Worlds End in December, or potentially Wrestle Kingdom 20 in January. If Tony Khan remembers the rule of his own tournament, Okada should be in this year's Continental Classic tournament given that he won last year's competition. Place him in one league and Takeshita in the other as the current winner of the G1 Climax to see who the greatest tournament wrestler in the world is in the final at Worlds End. However, if NJPW wanted some of the action, they could have Wrestle Kingdom 20 headlined by IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Takeshita defending his crown against Okada. Wherever this feud ends, there will be fireworks at the finish line.

Written by Sam Palmer

If there is Brody King and Bandido are anything, it's booked and busy. Brodido defended their AEW World Tag Team Championships against the team of IGWP Heavyweight Champion Konosuke Takeshita and AEW International Champion Kazuchika Okada at WrestleDream, and overcame the pair with one less shoulder and plenty more tag team synergy than the competition. With their reign set to continue at 59 days and counting, one has to ask: what's next for Brodido? Who will be the next tag team willing to step up to the champions, and contest Brodido's dominance of AEW's tag team division?

It makes sense that Brodido, a tag team whose origins lie in the random pairings that Tony Khan's brain comes up with, often find themselves receiving the most random of opponents. To date, Brodido have bested the Death Riders (Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta), Galeon Fantasma, Jetspeed, The Don Callis Family (Hechicero and Josh Alexander), The Young Bucks, GOA, and The Don Callis Family again (Okada and Takeshita). To date, there is little to no indication that Brodido's tag team reign will move from its mostly-arbitrary booking. If Brodido aren't expected to be entered into any deep storylines, then anyone can be their next challengers.

AEW's tag title scene is vast, and any number of teams from AEW or associate organizations ROH, CMLL, or NJPW are able to cross promotion lines to challenge for Brodido's tag titles. We may see this become the case, as Brodido already boast victories over most of AEW's homegrown tag teams. You could argue that the Don Callis Family's vastness could see them throw two more random members at Brodido in yet another attempt to earn the gold, but with some of their members last seen entangling themselves with The Jurassic Express and Kenny Omega, the chances are slim. The opposite is also true: while "Jungle" Jack Perry and Luchasaurus are white-hot enough to be shoed-in for a high-profile title match, especially after their WrestleDream win over The Bucks, I can't imagine AEW drops the DCF/Kenny Omega alliance storyline they're pushing. Perhaps either team will challenge for Brodido's tag titles sometime in the future, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Bandido's ROH World Championship could open the door for some AEW/ROH cross-promotional storylines, as I'm sure there are plenty of ROH tag teams ready to contest for Brodido's AEW gold. La Faccion Ingobernable have been appearing on AEW programming recently. The Outrunners are reliable fan favorites. Perhaps MxM could challenge for the titles in a fun storyline.

Whether it's an AEW, ROH, or even CMLL or NJPW team that comes for the World Tag Titles, though, you can be sure that Brodido will be ready to defend them.

Written by Angeline Phu

"Hangman" Adam Page completed the fifth defense of his AEW World Championship reign against Samoa Joe, seemingly putting to rest their disagreement and earning his respect in the process. Joe had set his eyes on the champion after what he perceived as a lack of respect and humility after Joe and The Opps fought alongside Page to see him dethrone Jon Moxley at All In Texas, and despite his best efforts fell prey to three Buckshot lariats to drop him where he stood. 

After the bout, Powerhouse Hobbs and Katsuyori Shibata emerged and helped their teammate to his feet, before all three of them showed their individual respect for the champion and raised his hands in the middle of the ring. But then Joe turned and dropped Page with a lariat, Hobbs and Shibata joining in to cement The Opps' turn for what it was, and holding him as Joe jawed at Page with his title belt in-hand. Point being, Joe is not only unfinished with Page and the World Championship, but now Hobbs and Shibata look to stand beside him in the coming battles. 

While the expectation will naturally be for a World title rematch between Page and Joe, there is also the opportunity for Page to run an Opps gauntlet against any or all of the members, but also a question of whether he will be alone in his fight. The Elite may not be on the same page, but there is always the opportunity for either the Young Bucks or Kenny Omega to offer a helping hand to their semi-estranged friend. Wherever, if ever, he has the help, there is a chance he could likewise look to take Joe's Trios Championship, having tried and failed for the title before. Whichever form it may take in the coming weeks, the direction certainly seems to be with Joe and The Opps' pursuit of Page, and only time can tell how the rest unfolds.

Written by Max Everett

AEW WrestleDream 2025 went off the air with the sight of a very wet Darby Allin draping an AEW flag over his battered body after forcing Jon Moxley to say "I Quit." The story of the match was Moxley giving 95% of his effort because he knows that if he gave 100%, he would probably kill Darby on pay-per-view and he didn't want that to happen. Why didn't he want that to happen? Because you could see over the course of the bout Moxley coming to the realization that his goal as the leader of the Death Riders had been accomplished with Darby. Someone who was not only willing to give his body for something that he believes in, but someone who had risen to his level in the process.

So what now? Is the feud over? Are Darby and Moxley saving something for Full Gear or Worlds End because they weren't allowed to bleed in Missouri? For now, it's fairly safe to say that the feud between the two men is over and that they physically can't ramp up the intensity anymore without severing a number of major arteries. That then begs the other question of what is next for both men?

I feel like it's only a matter of time before Darby Allin gets thrown into a world title program, but with Hangman Page still champion, it would be stupid to slot Darby into a feud with Hangman unless Tony Khan had some wild idea of turning either man heel (don't do that Tony that's a terrible idea). A world title program is in Darby's future, but not right now as I personally believe he will end up having another run in the Continental Classic towards the end of the year, and he might even end up taking time off between now and Full Gear to sell the brutality of the match.

The Death Riders are in a much more interesting spot. The group have seen their ruthless leader both tap out and say "I Quit" recently, which probably isn't what they signed up for when Moxley pitched his ide to them one year ago. They're also in the position of not needing to stay off TV to sell the match because there's so many of them, and Moxley doesn't have to wrestle, but the loss needs to be addressed, and that's where I think a turn could happen. There's a long running joke on social media that Claudio Castagnoli is actually the more evil one in the group, and while I don't know if Claudio has the same leadership qualities as Moxley, I do think Moxley will need to watch his back in the coming weeks.

Written by Sam Palmer