3 potential finishes to Mariah May vs. Willow Nightingale in the Owen Hart Cup final

The final of the 2024 Women's Owen Hart Foundation Tournament will be contested between Mariah May and Willow Nightingale on the upcoming July 10, 2024 episode of AEW Dynamite, which is set to emanate from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The winner of the match will challenge for the AEW Women's World Championship, which is currently held by Toni Storm, at All In 2024.

May, who made her All Elite Wrestling debut towards the end of 2023, has yet to face Nightingale in singles competition in the Tony Khan-led promotion. While the latter is looking to bounce back after her recent setbacks - namely, losing her TBS Championship to Mercedes Mone and losing her friendship with Kris Statlander - by winning the tournament for the second time, May is resolved to repay Storm, her mentor, for inserting her in the tournament and to bring the Owen Hart Cup to her hometown in London.

As such, let us look at three possible finishes to Mariah May vs. Willow Nightingale in the finals of the Owen Hart Tournament.

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#1: Mariah May wins the Owen Hart Cup with help from Toni Storm

After defeating Lady Frost on the June 8, 2024, episode of Collision, Toni Storm applauded Mariah May for her development as a performer, and proceeded to leverage her status as the reigning Women's World Champion to insert The Fighting Princess into the 2024 Owen Hart Tournament.

During the Zero-Hour pre-show to AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door 2024, May defeated Saraya in a quarterfinal bout of the tournament with the aid of The Timeless One. She went on to beat former world champion Hikaru Shida on Rampage: Beach Break last week in the semifinals, earning the right to head to Calgary for the final.

Although Mariah May has not wrestled Willow Nightingale in AEW yet, Toni Storm certainly has. The former WWE Superstar faced Nightingale on three separate occasions in singles action last year - including a bout for the Women's World Title at Forbidden Door 2023 - with Storm emerging victorious each time. However, Nightingale has grown by magnitudes since then as a performer, which could motivate Storm to try and sabotage her chances to head to All In 2024 to face her.

The final of the Owen Hart Cup on Dynamite could thus see The Illustrious One interfere in the match between May and Nightingale to cost the latter the win.

#2: Mariah May wins due to interference from Kris Statlander

Kris Statlander stunned fans by betraying Willow after the latter lost her TBS Title to Mone at Double or Nothing 2024. The 28-year-old star laid out her former friend in a brutal post-match attack, and cemented her heel turn through her alliance with Stokely Hathaway. Statlander would later declare herself as a participant in the Owen Hart Tournament, and defeated Nyla Rose in the quarterfinals on Dynamite last month to advance to the semifinals.

As it happened, her opponent for the semifinal bout would turn out to be none other than Nightingale herself, who exacted a measure of revenge on her former ally by beating her on Dynamite: Beach break last week to proceed to the finals.

As a newly-minted top heel, Statlander needs to make her mark on the AEW roster. As such, it would make narrative sense for her to take the fight to Willow and avenge her loss to the latter. The former TBS Champion could therefore interfere during Nightingale's match against Mariah May on the upcoming episode of Dynamite and jeopardise her chance to challenge for the Women's World Title at Wembley Stadium.

This would allow Willow to resume her feud with Statlander while May would then advance to potentially face off against her mentor at All In 2024.

#3: Toni Storm turns on Mariah May on AEW Dynamite

Mariah May made her debut in AEW as a fan and admirer of Toni Storm. Since then, the two women have developed a close relationship, with Storm regarding May as her protege and "understudy." The latter has adopted Storm's old theme song and gimmick, and even incorporated the former NXT UK Women's Champion's signature move - the hip attack - into her repertoire.

Although Storm's feud with May's Club Venus stable-mate Mina Shirakawa teased some tension between the duo, the 25-year-old English star managed to broker peace between Shirakawa and Storm after their match at Forbidden Door 2024. While their relationship may seem to be untroubled for the moment, speculations have arisen regarding the likelihood of Storm turning on May.

As mentioned previously, Toni Storm has faced and beaten May's opponent for the Owen Hart Cup final, Willow Nightingale, several times already. However, Storm has never squared off against May herself. Furthermore, despite consistently receiving favorable reactions from the crowds in recent months, Storm is technically not a full-fledged babyface.

It is possible that she may re-establish her status as a heel by costing May a shot at her world title, driven by the logic of wanting to face a competitor she has defeated before (that is, Willow Nightingale). As such, Toni Storm could potentially turn on Mariah May during her match against Nightingale during the Owen Hart Cup final.

Alternatively, Storm could wait to strike after May defeats Nightingale - should that come to pass - and launch a post-match assault on The Glamour to set up their clash at All In 2024.

It remains to be seen whether Mariah May or Willow Nightingale will come out on top and win the 2024 Owen Hart Foundation Tournament on Dynamite.