star MJF was stretchered out of the arena following a one-sided loss to Wardlow on Sunday night.
The Salt of the Earth – who has made no secret of his openness to joining when his AEW contract expires in January 2024 – arrived to AEW Double or Nothing to a chorus of boos and jeers after plenty of controversy and speculation over the weekend regarding his future with Tony Khan’s promotion.
Maxwell Jacob Friedman no-showed Fan Fest over the weekend, while there were reports he had a last-minute flight booked out of Las Vegas with his status for Sunday’s show unclear.
Fans chanted ‘You f**ked up’ and ‘He showed up’ as the 26-year-old wrestler arrived for his match with Wardlow, which was the culmination of an almost three-year story.
Before the match got underway, he gestured like an aeroplane and flipped off the crowd, drawing even more ire from the crowd.
In the end, the bout went exactly as it should with Wardlow hitting his storyline-employer with 10 Powerbombs before picking up a dominating win.
MJF left on a stretcher, while the match’s stipulation means his employee’s contract is over, and as announced by Tony Sciavone after the bell, he is now All Elite.
AEW owner Tony Khan made it official on social media too, with Wardlow getting his own graphic, which is a nice touch for the storyline.
TK added: ‘It’s official! @RealWardlow is All Elite! #AEWDoN #AEWDoubleOrNothing (sic)’
It’s been an eventful night elsewhere at Double Or Nothing, with former WWE NXT stars Malcolm Bivens (Stokely Hathaway) and Ember Moon (Athena) making their AEW debuts.
Hathaway appeared during AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill’s defense against Anna Jay, providing enough of a distraction to help her retain the gold.
Meanwhile, Kris Statlander and Anna were overwhelmed by the numbers game after the bell with an attack from Jade and The Baddies, but Athena came out to make the save.
