Days after Revolution 2025, the AEW World Championship was on the line once again, as Jon Moxley went to war with Adam Copeland in a Street Fight on the latest episode of Dynamite. The battle was bloody and brutal, involving various weapons, including The Rated-R Superstar's nail-embedded two-by-four Spike, which he used against The Purveyor of Violence in one of the company's most disturbing programming moments.
Unfortunately for the WWE Hall of Famer, Wednesday night was not his night, as interference from both The Death Riders and The Patriarchy led to Copeland falling prey to Moxley's bulldog choke again. The latter barely walked out of Dynamite with his title, although his next defense is already set for April.
With this week's edition of the Wednesday night show behind us, let's consider five reasons why AEW may have booked Adam Copeland to lose to Jon Moxley once again.
Trending
#1: To placate the AEW fanbase
Despite starting with a bang, the storyline of The Death Riders has failed to land for many All Elite Wrestling viewers, who have lately grown weary of Jon Moxley's latest World Title reign. Although fans were excited when Adam Copeland returned with FTR to lead the charge against the heel group, the reception changed its tune when the WWE legend was slotted into a championship feud against Mox and successfully neutralized the latter's stablemates en route to their match at Revolution 2025.
Regular viewers of AEW were dissatisfied with Cope being the one to take out The Death Riders along with Jay White and Willow Nightingale, despite the company's fan-favorite homegrown babyfaces (like Hangman Page, Orange Cassidy, Daniel Garcia, and Private Party) failing to do so last year. The backlash continued after Moxley and Copeland put on what numerous fans deemed to be an underwhelming match at Revolution.
All Elite Wrestling likely understood that audiences had soured on Cope's rivalry with The One True King and booked the latter to win against the veteran on Dynamite.
#2: C & C back at it again - To restart Cope vs Cage
Adam Copeland's AEW World Championship match at Revolution 2025 turned into a triple-threat bout toward the end when Christian Cage cashed in his All In 2024 Title Match contract at the event. While The Patriarch tried to take advantage of the stipulation and singled out his best-friend-turned-bitter rival, he left himself open to a bulldog choke locked in by Jon Moxley, who forced Christian to pass out and thus retained his title.
Cage was resentful of Cope receiving another World Championship match, which could explain why his "sons" Kip Sabian and Nick Wayne interfered in the Street Fight for the belt on this week's Dynamite and cost The Ultimate Opportunist. This angle will likely lead to Copeland resuming his feud with his former tag partner and his stable, almost a year since their unforgettable TNT Title war.
Considering that AEW also teased tensions within The Patriarchy last week, revisiting Adam Copeland's story with Christian Cage could also lay the groundwork for an eventual reunion, in case Sabian and Wayne (and maybe the returning Killswitch) turn on Christian, just as Copeland had predicted after his debut.
#3: To develop FTR's apparent slow-burn heel turn
After being ambushed by The Death Riders last year, FTR returned alongside Adam Copeland at Worlds End 2024 to confront the villainous faction. They successfully teamed with Cope against Moxley and company and The Learning Tree in January. However, things seemingly began to take a turn when Dax Harwood, Cash Wheeler, and Daniel Garcia lost to The Undisputed Kingdom the following month.
In March, the former AEW World Tag Team Champions lost to Kyle O'Reilly and Roderick Strong on Collision. Curiously, Harwood refused to shake hands with their opponents post-match, in uncharacteristic fashion. After defeating the former NXT duo this past Saturday, FTR was once again offered a handshake, although this time, both men declined the gesture before leaving.
Fans believe that Dax and Cash could be poised for a potential heel turn sometime soon. Notably, Harwood rejected a fist-bump from a battered Adam Copeland after his loss to Jon Moxley on this week's AEW Dynamite - despite FTR arriving to fend off The Death Riders during the bout. Although Harwood and Wheeler were seemingly not on the same page this Wednesday, The Top Guys could soon be on their way to fully turn on Cope.
#4: "Whose House?": To crown Swerve Strickland at Dynasty
Swerve Strickland earned the opportunity to challenge for the All Elite World Title by defeating Ricochet in a contender's bout at Revolution 2025. He attacked Jon Moxley at the end of that event, seemingly letting the self-proclaimed One True King of AEW know that he had his sights set on him. The Realest later called his shot for Dynasty 2025, aiming to reclaim the belt at the same event where he first won it.
Strickland is undoubtedly one of the Tony Khan-led promotion's most popular and in-demand performers. Fans have been calling for the company to reinsert him into the World Title picture for months. After Moxley's successful retention against Adam Copeland this Wednesday, it appears that The New Flavour will square off with the ex-Blackpool Combat Club brawler in Philadelphia.
Innumerable fans on social media and live audience members have clarified that they want to see Strickland back on top again. The 34-year-old recently signed a long-term deal with the promotion and has emerged as one of its most vocal and beloved spokespersons. All Elite Wrestling could thus be planning to make the Liacouras Center "Swerve's house" on April 6 by having him dethrone Jon Moxley at AEW Dynasty 2025.
#5: The Ultimate Opportunist returns: to potentially explore an Adam Copeland heel turn in AEW
Adam Copeland may be a crowd favorite now, but he is best known for his work as one of the greatest heels in pro wrestling history. Even after he returned in 2020, years after his retirement, the Canadian legend had a brief run as the villainous leader of The Judgement Day in WWE (before he was kicked out of the stable and turned back into a babyface again).
So far in his All Elite tenure, Cope has been on the side of the "good guys," generally battling antagonists like Christian Cage and The Patriarchy, The House of Black, Chris Jericho and The Learning Tree, and now The Death Riders. However, major losses often serve as catalysts for character changes in this sport, and the frustrations of losing two massive title matches could very well push The Ultimate Opportunist to his old ways.
Copeland could, therefore, turn to the dark side and turn heel for the first time in his AEW career. He could do so easily by ambushing Swerve Strickland or trying to steal his World Title opportunity by taking him out on the road to Dynasty 2025. The 51-year-old could even forge a villainous alliance with Jay White, who has always excelled as a heel himself.
