Ranking the 5 Biggest Talking Points From AEW Redemption in Montreal

From a gut-punch main event swerve to a hometown tribute gone wrong, AEW’s first Redemption gave us plenty to argue about.

AEW’s first-ever Redemption pay-per-view rolled through the Bell Centre in Montreal and packed the card with six title fights plus a hometown nod to wrestling history. Some of it landed beautifully, some of it left a bad taste, and one moment is going to be talked about for months. Here’s how we’re ranking the five biggest talking points from the night — from least to most impactful.

5. Maya World wants to keep the band together

Maya World walked out of Montreal with the TBS Championship after dethroning Hikaru Shida, and the first thing she did was make it clear she isn’t ditching her tag team with Hyan. Good. Too often AEW crowns a new singles champion and immediately strips away everything that made them likable in the first place. Keeping World tethered to a partner gives her a built-in supporting cast and a reason to be on TV every week. It’s a small storyline choice, but it’s the kind of continuity AEW’s women’s division has been crying out for.

4. The United Empire beef gets personal

Mark Davis lost the National Title on the night, but he stayed newsworthy off the back of his ongoing spat with Callum Newman. Davis fired right back at Newman over his United Empire comments, and honestly, this is the kind of organic personal history AEW should be leaning into hard. Former stablemates who genuinely have something to prove to each other beats another cold, booked-from-scratch feud every day of the week. Davis dropping the belt only sharpens the story — he’s got something to be angry about now.

3. Andrade finally gets a belt worth caring about

Andrade El Idolo is your new AEW National Champion after finishing Davis with a spinning elbow. Let’s be real: Andrade has been one of the most consistently underused talents in the company since he arrived. He’s got the look, the moveset, and the crowd instinct to be a legit midcard anchor, and he’s spent far too long floating without direction. A title around his waist gives the booking team a reason to invest, and it hands the National Title some genuine prestige heading forward. The elevation is overdue — the only frustration is that it took this long.

2. The Rougeau tribute deserved better

AEW did the right thing bringing out the Rougeau family for a hometown ovation in Montreal — honoring regional wrestling history in the city that made it is exactly the kind of touch that separates a memorable show from a forgettable one. But by the account of the event, the moment doubled as an angle that took Rocky Romero out. That’s a tricky needle to thread. Fold a legend tribute into an in-ring segment and you risk cheapening the sentiment. Done well, it’s storytelling gold that gives the Rougeaus a reason to matter beyond nostalgia. Done clumsily, it reads like using a legacy family as set dressing for someone else’s beatdown. The intent was pure; the execution is what fans will debate.

1. Kenny Omega turned on Will Ospreay — and it’s the story of the night

There was only ever going to be one thing at the top of this list. Omega retained the World Championship and then, moments later, turned on Will Ospreay after a Death Riders save. This is the swerve AEW has been dancing around for what feels like forever, and pulling the trigger in Montreal on their first Redemption show is a statement. Omega and Ospreay have arguably the best pure in-ring chemistry in the world, and now there’s a poisoned personal edge running underneath it. A heel-leaning Omega, aligned with or indebted to the Death Riders, reframes the entire top of the card. It’s the kind of long-game payoff that rewards the fans who’ve been watching every week — and it instantly makes the road ahead must-see. Everything else on this show was a good undercard. This was the moment.

That’s our ranking — but Redemption gave everyone a different favorite. Which moment topped your list, and did Omega’s turn land or fall flat for you? Drop your take in the comments.