Will Ospreay’s AEW World Championship reign is still young, but wrestling fans rarely wait long to ask who comes next. AEW has several compelling options for the wrestler who eventually dethrones him, and each would take the championship in a different direction.
MJF and Swerve Strickland bring personal history and championship experience. Kevin Knight offers the chance to establish a new main event star. But whose victory would do the most for AEW?
MJF
MJF is the most predictable choice, but that doesn’t make him a bad one. He has already shown he can carry the world championship and build personal feuds around it. Putting the title back on him would give AEW an established champion with plenty of ways to make his challengers’ lives miserable.
His history with Ospreay makes the possibility more compelling. Their nearly hour-long match on Dynamite in July 2024 ended with MJF using his diamond ring to take the International Championship. Another title feud would give him the chance to exploit an opponent he has already outsmarted when gold was at stake.
AEW could build that story around Ospreay’s willingness to take on difficult defenses. Every match would give MJF another weakness to study, allowing him to choose his moment while the champion absorbs the punishment. Losing another championship to MJF could also leave Ospreay questioning how he allowed the same rival to get the better of him again.
There is no need to rush that outcome. Giving Ospreay time to establish his reign would make MJF ending it more consequential. His ability to generate conflict makes him a dependable choice, provided another run builds on their history and gives the rivalry somewhere new to go.
Swerve Strickland
Swerve Strickland has already beaten Ospreay with the AEW World Championship on the line. At Forbidden Door 2024, he retained against him, giving a future meeting a history worth revisiting with their positions reversed.
Ospreay would enter as champion, but Swerve could question whether winning the title means he has finally surpassed him. For Swerve, reclaiming the championship at Ospreay’s expense would reinforce that he remains a standard others have to meet, even when the spotlight shifts.
His involvement with The New Level alongside Kofi and Austin Creed gives him something substantial to focus on in the meantime. Swerve can carry important programs without holding the world championship, which allows AEW to build toward another title pursuit without rushing Ospreay’s reign.
That flexibility makes him a compelling choice for a second run. His previous reign established his credibility at the top, and beating Ospreay to reclaim the championship would give his return a clear purpose. It would position Swerve as a recurring obstacle in Ospreay’s career, someone capable of taking away the title even after Ospreay has reached the level once demanded of him.
Kevin Knight
Kevin Knight offers AEW the chance to turn Ospreay’s eventual defeat into a career-defining breakthrough. MJF and Swerve would add another championship to their résumés. Knight would join the world title picture as a new champion with fresh opponents and expectations.
AEW has already shown a willingness to give him significant opportunities. His pay-per-view main event against Kenny Omega for the world championship at Redemption was a substantial investment in his potential. That experience gives a future challenge against Ospreay a foundation, with Knight having already competed on the stage he wants to make his own.
There is a strong case for treating him as ready to take that next step. Keeping a wrestler in the “future champion” conversation indefinitely can become its own limitation. At some point, the promotion has to follow through on the opportunities it has given him and let him win the match that changes his standing.
Ospreay would be an ideal opponent for that moment. Knight’s athleticism would make the matchup appealing, but the result would carry the greater significance. A decisive victory over Ospreay would establish that Knight belongs alongside the wrestlers AEW trusts to lead its biggest events.
The timing could be soon or several months into Ospreay’s reign. What matters is giving Knight a sustained role before the match and meaningful direction after it. If AEW wants this title change to expand its main event scene, Knight offers the greatest opportunity of these three. Beating Ospreay could turn the faith already placed in him into something lasting.
