The Latest on the Impending AEW Return of Mercedes Moné

The wait for The CEO's return to All Elite Wrestling may be drawing to a close.
Mercedes Moné has not competed for AEW at all in 2026, but her hiatus from the company is expected to end relatively soon, according to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select.
"We were told that she was always planned to be out past AEW Dynasty," Ross Sapp said in a new report Wednesday evening. "It was reiterated to us that Moné is still under AEW contract, and is planned for a return to the company. We weren’t given specifics on a date, but that her involvement will have major ramifications for the top of the card in AEW."

Moné last wrestled for AEW during the special New Year's Smash edition of Dynamite. That was the night she lost her TBS Championship to Willow Nightingale. She went on to compete for a number of independent promotions in the early part of this year to drop many of the title belts she collected during her Ultimo Moné run of 2025.
Now without gold of any kind, Mercedes has been away from the ring entirely since the end March when she lost the WPW Women's Title to Jody Threat.
Regarding a potential return to AEW programming Wednesday night in Richmond, Virginia, Ross Sapp was unable to confirm if she was scheduled for the show.
"We haven’t heard that she’s been spotted at AEW tonight as of yet. Some of her moves were being practiced by someone else this afternoon, but to be fair, plenty of people do running knees these days. Alex Windsor also practiced with a placeholder in Will Ospreay today, we’re told."
AEW could certainly use Mercedes Moné with two of the company's biggest stars out of action
Mercedes Moné would give the AEW women's division a major boost following the loss of both "Timeless" Toni Storm and Willow Nightingale. Storm is expected to miss the rest of 2026 for undisclosed reasons, while Nightingale was forced to relinquish the TBS Championship due to a shoulder injury.
A new TBS Champion will be crowned on the July 1 edition of AEW Dynamite in a Survival of the Fittest Match, with qualifiers for that bout taking place over the next few weeks.
In the meantime, the Women's Owen Hart Tournament will continue Wednesday night on Dynamite, with Alex Windsor facing a wildcard opponent. While not confirmed, It would not be surprising to see Moné make her return in this spot. Mercedes has history with the former RevPro British Women's Champion, having dropped that very title to her back in December.
We'll know for certain in a few short hours.

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com