AEW will crown their first-ever TNT Champion when Cody Rhodes takes on Lance Archer tonight at Double Or Nothing. Prior to the PPV event itself, AEW gave fans a first-look at the championship belt itself. And who better to unveil the belt than “Iron” Mike Tyson, whom will present the winner with the belt? That’s exactly what the company did, posting a photo on their social media feeds for the world to see.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The inaugural champion is the result of a tournament that has been held over the previous several weeks on Wednesday night’s during AEW Dynamite on TV. The TNT Championship is a take on the traditional Television Championship that has been a staple throughout wrestling history. This belt is named after AEW’s broadcasting partner.
Check out the photo of Tyson and the photo below.
Iron @MikeTyson is here and ready to present the #TNTChampionship to either @CodyRhodes or @LanceHoyt
Order #AEW Double or Nothing on all major providers, @FiteTV or @brlive pic.twitter.com/28qgCekt4K
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEWrestling) May 23, 2020
Of course, Tyson has a long history with professional wrestling. He was supposed to appear on an episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event for the WWE back in 1990 to referee a Randy Savage vs. Hulk Hogan match. However, Mike Tyson was defeated by James “Buster” Douglas just days before, forcing Tyson to pull-out of the appearance and have Douglas sign on short notice.
Fast forward eight years and Tyson actually did appear during the main event of WrestleMania XIV as the special guest enforcer for the championship match between Shawn Michaels and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. That appearance was met with a ton of media attention and helped to usher in the Attitude Era in a big way.
The card for AEW Double Or Nothing on Saturday night is as follows:
- AEW World Championship Match
Jon Moxley (c) vs. Mr. Brodie Lee - Stadium Stampede Match
Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Jake Hager, Santana, Ortiz, Sammy Guevara) vs. The Elite (Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, Hangman Adam Page, Broken Matt Hardy) - TNT Championship Tournament Final
Cody vs. Lance Archer - AEW Women’s Championship Match
Nyla Rose (c) vs. Hikaru Shida - Casino Ladder Match (For A Shot At The AEW Championship)
Colt Cabana vs. Kip Sabian vs. Rey Fenix vs. Luchasaurus vs. Orange Cassidy vs. Scorpio Sky vs. Frankie Kazarian vs. Darby Allin vs. TBA - Penelope Ford vs. Kris Statlander
MJF vs. Jungle Boy - Shawn Spears vs. Dustin Rhodes
- (Buy-In Show Match)
AEW Tag Team Championship Number One Contender Match
Private Party vs. Best Friends
