Dave Meltzer Explains Why ROH World Title No. 1 Contender Took Pin On AEW Dynamite

Next Friday, Nick Wayne will challenge Bandido for the ROH Men's World Championship at Death Before Dishonor. Not only would he be ending a 500+ day reign, he would become the youngest Men's World Champion in ROH history if he defeats Bandido. Since returning from his second Best of Super Juniors tournament in NJPW, Wayne has been competing in both ROH and AEW.

On this week's episode of "AEW Dynamite", Wayne was in a three-way match with MJF and "Speedball" Mike Bailey to determine the second entrant into the Men's Casino Gauntlet match at All In. Bailey was primed for the win when MJF stole the victory and pinned Wayne. If Wayne could potentially dethrone Bandido, why did he take the loss?

On "Wrestling Observer Radio," Dave Meltzer explained that "they didn't want to beat Bailey, so he was the one. Bailey is higher ranked." He said in theory, Wayne should be higher ranked since he's challenging for the title in ROH. He pointed out that Bandido loses often in AEW, including in Mexico, and that Tony Khan doesn't protect his ROH champions, as they generally lose outside of ROH.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Wrestling Observer Radio" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.