Match Spotlight: MJF Vs Kenny Omega, AEW Collision 10/28/2023

MJF and Kenny Omega are set to headline the upcoming AEW Dynasty pay-per-view, with the two men fighting over Maxwell Jacob Friedman's AEW Men's World Championship. A lot has been said between both guys in the lead up to the event, with MJF trying to downplay Omega saying he's feeling better than ever by bringing up that his battle with diverticulitis might not be over. However, this isn't the first time these two men have fought over the richest prize in AEW.

Back in the fall of 2023, MJF was getting dangerously close to surpassing Omega's then-record of being the longest reigning AEW Men's World Champion in history, despite being chased by the likes of Samoa Joe, Jay White, and Wardlow. Omega decided to step up and do what the rest of the AEW roster had failed to do throughout 2023, dethrone the "Salt of the Earth," and keep his record in tact in the process. Many people thought this would have been a match to main event a pay-per-view, but Omega wanted to make sure that MJF couldn't possibly break his record, and the last possible chance to beat Friedman was the October 28, 2023 episode of "AEW Collision."

This match was, at the time, far and away the biggest match in the short history of "Collision," and is still only one of three AEW Men's World Championship matches to take place on AEW's Saturday night show. One could argue that it is still up there as one of the biggest matches in "Collision" history, and with MJF and Omega looking to top this match at Dynasty on April 12, it's only right that we take the time to shine a spotlight on this historic encounter. 

Without further ado, let's shine a spotlight on MJF vs. Kenny Omega's AEW Men's World Championship match from the October 28, 2023 episode of "Collision."

Even for All Elite Wrestling, a company that prides itself on having a roster full of people wanting to put on five-star classics every single night, this match is a lot. Don't get me wrong, it's very good and is one of the most entertaining matches in "Collision" history, but it does reach a point where you have to throw your hands up and say to Omega and Friedman "I'm full guys, please, no more."

Considering what had been going on in AEW at the time with CM Punk getting fired, Bryan Danielson getting injured basically as soon as he returned from a broken arm, and Adam Cole's exploding ankle ruining the entire "Devil" storyline, this was a welcome shot in the arm for the company. Kenny Omega arrives looking like a megastar despite feeling like the polar opposite (diverticulitis would take its toll two months later), MJF gets a huge response from the live crowd who are fully locked in for this one, and even though Friedman is technically a babyface at this time, he has to play the heel when he's in there with Omega.

That actually plays into the match's advantage as MJF has always wrestled better when playing the heel. He struts around, he pokes Omega in the eye, he goes for a sportsmanlike handshake knowing full well he wants to kick Omega in the groin, it's the classic MJF playbook. However, because he is getting cheered like crazy, it forces Omega to try even harder to get the crowd behind him, and when he's wrestling the type of match that wouldn't look out of place in an NJPW main event, he is also dipping deep into his bag of tricks.

There are some surprises, particularly from MJF who sort of hits a Fosbury Flop in the early going (he basically attacks the apron more than Omega), and busts out a Poisonrana to get out of the One-Winged Angel. This forces Omega to bring out some more power-based offense like hitting a Powerbomb on the barricade, and through a table on the outside which was incredibly satisfying because a good table break in wrestling is one of the best visuals in all of entertainment.

By the end of things, both men are exhausted and still going for the big bombs, but it does run out of steam when Don Callis, with all the subtlety of a strobe light with Tourette's, runs down to try and distract Omega. This is something I think we could have all done without, but it doesn't take too much away from things. Does it need to be 30 minutes? Probably not as there are a few moments throughout that could have been chopped off, but in the end, this is a very fun match, MJF breaks Omega's record, and delivers one of the best matches of his first AEW Men's World Championship reign.

We are two-and-a-half years removed from MJF and Kenny Omega's initial encounter, and a lot has changed in those 30 months.

Omega has had nearly a foot of his intestines removed after his battle with diverticulitis, and since returning to the ring in 2025, he still has some of the offense we know and love him for, but he much weaker when it comes to blows to the body. After all, the idea of him being one bad bump away from death might be exaggerated, but it isn't too far from the truth. 

MJF on the other hand reverted back to the heel character that made him famous after the end of his first world title run. A lackluster 2024 turned into a rejuvenated 2025 where he has matured and become more focused and ferocious in between the ropes, leading to him re-capturing the AEW Men's World Championship at Worlds End 2025. He's arguably surpassed his first reign already from a quality standpoint with matches against Bandido, Brody King, and the Texas Death Match against Hangman Page.

As far as the match at Dynasty is concerned, you all better strap in because it will be a long one. If this was 30 minutes and MJF's match at Revolution with Hangman surpassed 45 minutes, somewhere in the middle of that range is where this match will end up. Is that a good thing? Potentially considering MJF and Omega are as dialed in as they have ever been. The Canadian crowd will be full behind the challenger while the champion will be fully heel this time around, and knowing that the career of Omega is nearer to the end than it is the start, you can bet that Vancouver will be on the edge of their seats in the hopes of seeing "The God of Professional Wrestling" win the big one once again.

There's no Don Callis interference expected in this one, although he tends to pop up wherever he wants these days, making this a clean and fair contest, but expect MJF to target the abdomen region for the vast majority of it, which could lead to another great body-selling performance from Omega. Dynasty is a loaded card full of potential show stealers, but this one, if done right, could go down as one of the best AEW pay-per-view main events in history.