Willow Nightingale and Thekla are set to meet at AEW All Out in a match that will determine the next challenger for the AEW Women’s World Championship. The winner will advance to WrestleDream in October to face reigning champion Mercedes Moné, whose recent title victory over Nightingale remains central to the developing picture at the top of AEW’s women’s division.
The number one contender’s match was announced during this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite. It comes after Moné defeated Nightingale for the AEW Women’s World Championship at All In, a physically punishing encounter in which Moné suffered a broken nose. With the champion unable to defend the title at All Out in Chicago next weekend, AEW has instead positioned Nightingale and Thekla in a high-stakes contest to establish the WrestleDream challenger.
For Nightingale, the bout represents an immediate opportunity to force her way back toward the championship she just lost. For Thekla, it offers the chance to take a major step forward after returning at Wembley and setting her sights on both Moné and Nightingale. There is also significant history between the two competitors: All Out will host the third singles match in their series, with each woman carrying one victory into the rubber match.
A Trilogy Match With Championship Consequences
Nightingale and Thekla first faced each other on AEW Collision in July of last year. Thekla emerged victorious in that opening match, giving her an early edge in what has become an increasingly important rivalry. Nightingale later evened the score at Redemption, where she defeated Thekla in a match that carried championship significance of its own.
For more background on this topic, read Maya World Temporarily Sidelined Following Recent AEW Dynamite Appearance.
That 1-1 record means All Out will provide a clear tiebreaker, but this is not simply about settling an individual rivalry. The winner receives a direct route to WrestleDream and an AEW Women’s World Championship match against Moné. Nightingale arrives with recent experience against the champion and a personal reason to seek another meeting. Thekla, meanwhile, could earn a fresh singles showdown with Moné at one of AEW’s major events.
The timing makes the contest especially notable. Nightingale’s defeat at All In remains one of the most consequential losses of her AEW career, as Moné left Wembley with the championship while Nightingale was pushed out of the title picture. Rather than waiting through a longer ranking process or a separate eliminator, Nightingale now has a direct path toward another title opportunity. The obstacle is Thekla, who has already proven she can defeat her.
Thekla’s return at All In also sharpened the stakes around the division. Having previously lost the title to Nightingale at Redemption, she returned with unfinished business involving the former champion and the woman now holding the AEW Women’s World Championship. All Out gives her the opportunity to convert that momentum into a WrestleDream title match.
Mercedes Moné’s Absence Shapes the All Out Card
Moné’s broken nose has altered the immediate championship plans. She won the AEW Women’s World Championship from Nightingale at All In, but the injury sustained during that match has left her unable to make a title defense at All Out. AEW’s solution preserves the importance of the championship while giving two established rivals a major platform in Chicago.
Instead of a vacant championship situation or an interim title scenario, the promotion has put the focus on determining who is most prepared to meet Moné at WrestleDream. That creates a clear structure for the next several weeks: Nightingale and Thekla fight for the contender’s position, and Moné awaits the survivor.
There is no shortage of intrigue in either possible direction. A Thekla victory would establish a first-time singles match between Thekla and Moné. The two have shared the ring as partners in tag team competition, but they have not previously met one-on-one. That makes Thekla’s route particularly compelling from a matchup standpoint, as she would enter WrestleDream against a champion she knows in one setting but has never tested in a singles environment.
A Nightingale win would take the championship rivalry back to a familiar and deeply competitive place. Nightingale and Moné have wrestled four times, splitting those encounters evenly at 2-2. Their next meeting would not merely be a rematch from All In; it would be the fifth chapter of a series that has unfolded across multiple promotions and several defining title matches.
Nightingale and Moné Remain Even at 2-2
Nightingale’s history with Moné began in NJPW in 2023, where Nightingale won their first match. Their rivalry then moved into AEW and quickly became tied to championship stakes. At Double or Nothing 2024, Moné defeated Nightingale to win the TBS Championship, a result that shifted the balance of their feud and gave Moné a significant early victory in their AEW rivalry.
Nightingale answered the following year at Dynamite: New Year’s Smash in 2025, reclaiming the TBS Championship from Moné. That victory ensured neither competitor could claim sustained dominance over the other. Their All In match added another major result to the ledger, with Moné defeating Nightingale for the AEW Women’s World Championship and bringing the overall series level to two wins apiece.
That 2-2 mark gives Nightingale an obvious motivation heading into All Out. Beating Thekla would not only make her the number one contender; it would give her the chance to break the tie with Moné in a championship match at WrestleDream. After losing the AEW Women’s World title at All In, Nightingale’s potential rematch has a natural emotional foundation as well as a clear competitive purpose.
At the same time, Nightingale cannot afford to look past Thekla. Thekla already owns a win over her from their first Collision encounter and has her own history tied to Nightingale’s championship ascent. Their Redemption match showed that Nightingale can defeat her, but it also established how closely matched the two are when major stakes are involved.
Thekla Can Create a New Championship Matchup
Thekla’s case at All Out is straightforward: defeat Nightingale and move into an entirely new singles title program with Moné. While Nightingale versus Moné would be a continuation of an established rivalry, Thekla versus Moné would present an unfamiliar championship clash. Their prior experience as tag team partners may provide some knowledge of one another, but partnership is very different from competing across the ring with the AEW Women’s World Championship on the line.
That potential freshness is balanced by the urgency of Thekla’s issue with Nightingale. Thekla previously lost the title to Nightingale at Redemption, and her return at All In put her back in the orbit of the division’s two most prominent recent champions. A win at All Out would allow her to move beyond that defeat and position herself directly against the woman who currently holds the top prize.
For AEW, the match also ensures that the All Out card has a women’s division contest with a definitive long-term outcome even with Moné unavailable to compete. The number one contender will be decided by two wrestlers who have already exchanged victories, rather than through a matchup lacking prior context. The result will influence WrestleDream immediately and could shape the championship landscape beyond October.
What Is at Stake at All Out
All Out will answer two connected questions. First, can Nightingale rebound from the All In loss and earn the chance to reclaim the AEW Women’s World Championship? Second, can Thekla defeat Nightingale for the second time and secure her first singles meeting with Moné?
Nightingale enters with a familiar objective but a different kind of pressure. She has beaten Moné before, including in their first NJPW meeting and in the TBS Championship rematch at Dynamite: New Year’s Smash. Yet her latest match with Moné ended in defeat at All In, and she must first overcome Thekla before she can attempt to even the score once more.
Thekla has the opportunity to turn her return into a defining breakthrough. Her first victory over Nightingale demonstrated that she can handle this opponent, while her loss at Redemption gives the trilogy encounter added importance. If she wins in Chicago, she not only takes the series but also earns a first-time singles collision with the AEW Women’s World Champion.
Moné, meanwhile, will be watching the outcome as she recovers from the broken nose suffered at All In. Her WrestleDream opponent will either be the former champion she has battled to a 2-2 draw or a challenger with whom she has never had a singles match. Either way, All Out will establish the next major direction for the AEW Women’s World Championship.
With a trilogy winner to be crowned and a WrestleDream title challenge on the line, Nightingale versus Thekla is more than a replacement for a postponed championship defense. It is a pivotal match for two former champions, a direct response to Moné’s absence from the All Out ring, and the contest that will determine who steps forward to pursue AEW’s top women’s title.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.