AEW Double or Nothing: Adam Copeland Retains TNT Championship With Help From Gangrel

Adam Copeland defeated Malakai Black at Double or Nothing.

At AEW Double or Nothing, Adam Copeland defended the TNT Championship against the leader of the House of Black, Malakai Black. The match has become personal for the champion who had his wedding ring stolen from him. On the final AEW Dynamite before Double or Nothing, Copeland surprised Black with the return of The Brood bath -- associated with Copeland's time in WWE's Attitude Era alongside Gangrel and Christian. Copeland continued this with his Double or Nothing entrance, returning to his Brood roots. The last time he used The Brood entrance was at WrestleMania 39, his final WrestleMania before exiting WWE last fall. 

The Double or Nothing title match was fought in a steel cage, and there was nowhere for either man to run. It started off hot as they both dueled with steel chairs. It doesn't take long for either men to bleed, as Copeland's smooshes Black's head into the barbed wire while Black gets some revenge but doing the same with a barbed wire bat. Copeland grabs the bat to swing at Black and just like that the Rated R Superstar is in control of things but Black is able to kick his legs out from under him and take things over. He goes for the avalanche power bomb into the Black Mass but Copeland counters knowing that could spell the end for him. Copeland binds the challenger to a table with the barbed wire and ascends to the top of the cage. He jumps off with an elbow drop straight through the table.

When things get back in the ring, the rest of the House of Black -- Buddy Matthews and Brody King -- make their way to the ring. Because it's no disqualification, they can easily overpower the champion and bring gold back to their faction. At first it looks like they may have actually turned on Black to join Copeland but they were just baiting him, continuing with a three-on-one assault of the champion. The lights in the arena turn red and music starts to play which confuses the House of Black. Through the ring, Gangrel pops out and hits an Impaler DDT on King and Matthews. Black stops him in his tracks with a Black Mass but Copeland hits the spear, still covered in barbed wire. Copeland wins the match due to submission with a barbed wire cross-face move.

AEW Double or Nothing Results

  • AEW World Championship: Swerve Strickland (c) vs. Christian Cage

  • AEW TBS Championship: Willow Nightingale (c) vs. Mercedes Moné

  • Anarchy in the Arena: The Elite (The Young Bucks, Kazuchika Okada, Jack Perry) vs. Team AEW (FTR, Bryan Danielson, Darby Allin)

  • AEW TNT Championship – Barbed Wire Cage Match: Adam Copeland (c) vs. Malakai Black

  • AEW Women's Championship: "Timeless" Toni Storm (c) vs. Serena Deeb

  • AEW International Championship: Roderick Strong (c) vs. Will Ospreay

  • Unified Trios Championships: Bullet Club Gold (c) vs. Death Triangle

  • FTW Championship: Chris Jericho (c) vs. HOOK vs. Katsuyori Shibata

  • Trent Beretta vs. Orange Cassidy

  • IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Eliminator Match: Jon Moxley (c) vs. Konosuke Takeshita