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Kenny Omega entered BayCare Sound in Clearwater, Florida on Wednesday night knowing that this could be the last time he gets to challenge for the All Elite Wrestling (AEW) World Championship.
This is the stipulation that Omega agreed to face champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman (MJF). It’s a similar stipulation that “Hangman” Adam Page agreed to and lost to MJF earlier this year. Omega and MJF are two of the biggest stars in professional wrestling.
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Scenes from the tag team match between Kenny Omega and Adam Page against Private Party during All Elite Wrestling Dynamite at the Landers Center in Southaven on Wednesday January 8, 2020. (Max Gersh / The Commercial Call)
The Clearwater crowd was apparently behind Omega. MJF already ruffled the feathers of his potential challenger at All In, Will Ospreay, when he spat in his face in a backstage segment. Tensions rose and it marked a terrific match between the two professional wrestlers.
And the referee let them fight. MJF and Omega took their brawl to the stands before taking it back to the ring. MJF used his dirty tactics to avoid Omega at first. He put the referee in his way with a V-trigger, then bit Omega in the face.
“I’m walking on the moon to Wembley Stadium whether you like it or not,” MJF told the camera during the match.
Omega tried to put some space between himself and MJF. He climbed the ramp and was able to take some control of the match. He climbed a rescue tower set up at the top of the ram and performed a moonsault on MJF. He brought MJF back into the ring and hit a dropkick from the top rope to MJF’s back.
Kenny Omega attends Wrestle Kingdom 13 at Tokyo Dome on January 4, 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. (Masashi Hara/Getty Images)
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Omega looked as good as ever and it looked like he was going to take control in hopes of becoming AEW World Champion for the third time. MJF had other ideas, taking advantage of Omega’s blinding speed with a foot drop. But that wasn’t enough to stop Omega’s momentum.
The two men went back and forth as fans waited to see who would leave Clearwater with the belt.
As the match wore on, MJF attempted to send Omega from the apron to the commentary table with a tombstone. However, Omega got out of it and hit a V-Trigger on MJF. The champion was sent flying from the apron and through the commentator table.
By the time MJF got up, both men were clearly exhausted. They tried to give their last lick. MJF hit Omega with a tombstone piledriver onto a chair, but apparently injured his knee with the move. Omega brought MJF back into the ring and hit two more nasty V-triggers.
Somehow MJF managed to counter a one-winged angel with a poisonrana. He hit him with a Heatseeker but couldn’t get the pinfall.
AEW Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman appears during AEW Dynamite at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona on February 22, 2023. (Joe Camporeale/USA TODAY Sports)
MJF lined up to hit Omega with the Diamond Ring Dynamite. But Will Ospreay came and took the ring. Omega was going to hit MJF with the AEW title belt but didn’t have the heart. MJF hit Omega with a low blow and the title. But Omega withdrew by one count.
It was Omega’s turn to light the fire. He reached deep inside to hit MJF with three more V-Triggers and a One-Winged Angel.
Omega pinned MJF to win the AEW World Championship.
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The crowd went wild and it looks like Omega will face Ospreay at All In later this summer.
