Maya World Stuns Trainer Athena in Owen Hart Tournament Semifinal, Advances to Forbidden Door Final Against Mercedes Moné

Houston witnessed one of the most emotionally charged upsets in AEW history on Saturday night, as Maya World defeated her own trainer, ROH Women’s World Champion Athena, in the Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament Semifinal on Collision at the Smart Financial Centre. The win sends World to the Finals at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door on July 28 in San Jose, where she’ll face Mercedes Moné.

The moment was immediately complicated when Moné came to the ring to acknowledge World following the main event — only to turn on her, joining Athena in a post-match attack that left the night on a jarring note. With Forbidden Door just eight days away, the message from the champion was clear.

Elsewhere, Kris Statlander punched her ticket to the TBS Championship Survival of the Fittest match on the July 1 Dynamite by defeating Mina Shirakawa in a qualifying bout. Hikaru Shida made her own feelings known in a pre-match interview, warning that no matter who wins on July 1, the TBS title will ultimately belong to her — closing with the line, “TBS will stand for The Best is Shida.”

The Young Bucks and Jack Perry picked up a hard-fought Trios victory over The Lethal Twist — Jay Lethal, Blake Christian, and Lee Johnson — in a high-energy opener that featured a Meltzer Driver on Johnson for the finish. Perry has also set his sights on Zack Sabre Jr. after ZSJ defeated Adam Priest on the same card; those two could be on a collision course for Dynamite.

PAC, representing the Death Riders, dispatched Jay Alexander and made clear he’s locked in for his IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship match against Shota Umino at Forbidden Door. Místico turned in an impressive showing in front of the Houston crowd, defeating Dante Martin. And with Dynamite Beach Break on July 8 now confirmed as the site of Chris Jericho versus Tommaso Ciampa, both men took the opportunity to send sharp messages to each other heading into that showdown.

With Forbidden Door approaching fast, Saturday’s Collision did exactly what it needed to — raise the stakes across the board and leave fans with more questions than answers heading into San Jose.