Mercedes Moné made more history at AEW WrestleDream 2025, and it came together in truly last-minute fashion.
For a reason.
At the October 18 event in St. Louis, the reigning TBS Champion issued an open challenge that was only first advertised 24 hours prior, and would go on to be answered by Mina Shirakawa. Moné went on to retain her title, and add the ROH Women’s Interim TV title to her collection to surpass Ultimo Dragon’s record.
But the booking decision reportedly carried much more significance than just another defense.
According to one source, AEW’s creative direction for her match at WrestleDream was centered around Moné achieving a historic milestone. The report stated, “AEW wanted Mercedes Mone to break the record held by Ultimo Dragon (the most championships held simultaneously by a professional wrestler) at the WrestleDream 2025 event.”
It was noted that the match was added late in the process to avoid spoiling the outcome of another event overseas, as the night before WrestleDream, Moné defeated Persephone in Mexico City to retain the CMLL Women’s Championship. Only after that victory was confirmed did AEW finalize the open challenge segment for the St. Louis show.
The report explained the reasoning, noting, “but if they had pushed it prior to late Friday night, it would have given away that she wasn’t losing her CMLL women’s title to Persephone. Unlike WWE, which doesn’t concern itself with spoiling a finish to a show in Mexico, AEW does. But it led to adding a match with zero build at the last minute.”
By the end of WrestleDream, Moné’s successful defense reportedly secured her 11th active championship, breaking Ultimo Dragon’s long-standing record of 10 simultaneous titles.
However, the celebration didn’t last long. AEW Women’s World Champion Kris Statlander, who had earlier retained her title against “Timeless” Toni Storm, confronted Moné after the match. The two champions faced off in the ring to close out the segment, setting the stage for a future title clash between Moné and Statlander.
As noted, just over 24 hours later, Moné traveled to Canada to defeat Jody Threat to become the WPW Women’s Champion, adding an unprecedented twelth title to her ever-expanding collection.
(H/T: Wrestling Observer Newsletter at F4WOnline.com)
