Willow Nightingale made her return from injury on “AEW Dynamite” to win the Women’s Casino Gauntlet to earn a shot at AEW Women’s World Championship Thekla at AEW Redemption.
With the 2026 Women’s Owen Hart Foundation tournament winner Mercedes Mone watching from the stage, and Thekla on commentary, ROH Women’s World Champion Athena and Maya World started off the match. The pair battled until the third entrant, Skye Blue, came down to the ring with a kendo stick, and nailed Athena across the back, then hit World to take control.
Mina Shirakawa came out fourth and battled with World, while on the outside, Athena sent Blue crashing back-first onto the edge of the ring steps. Stardom’s Rina entered fifth to square up to Shirakawa. Number six was Julia Hart, armed with a trash can lid, and she took out everyone, before she and Blue grabbed chairs from ringside and started assaulting officials.
Thunder Rosa entered seventh, and met Blue and Hart while everyone else was down and out. Athena got up, but Rosa took her down before getting in a chop battle with Rina, who she hit with a neck breaker-back breaker combo. Rosa was laid out by Athena who flew off the ropes, but Shirakawa broke up the pin.
Nightingale entered eighth and hit Athena with a boot, perfectly in time with her music. Nightingale laid out everyone, and caught Athena and power bombed her on the ring apron before hitting a Death Valley driver on the floor. The former TBS Champion put Hart away with another power bomb for the victory.
Thekla speared Nightingale after the match, then Lena Kross and Megan Bayne took out Blue and Hart at the top of the ramp. Mone made her way down to the ring, where she took out both Thekla and Nightingale.
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