At AEW Revolution, MJF defeated “Hangman” Adam Page in a Texas Death Match to retain the AEW World Championship. Not only was it a major victory for MJF, beating Page at his own game, but the match carried enormous stakes for the challenger as well.
Page had vowed that if he lost, he would never challenge for the AEW World Championship again as part of the match stipulation. With the stipulation in place, the pressure was squarely on the former champion heading into the bout.
The stipulation surrounding Hangman Adam Page quickly became one of the biggest talking points coming out of AEW Revolution, especially after Tony Khan addressed it during the media scrum.
Even with those stakes hanging over the match, it was MJF who stood tall as Revolution went off the air, raising the title high above his head. Now the question remains: will Hangman Page truly never compete for the AEW World Championship again, or could there still be ways around the stipulation?
Tony Khan Addresses Hangman Adam Page AEW World Title Stipulation
Following AEW Revolution, the question about Hangman Adam Page’s future in the world title picture was quickly brought up during the post-show media scrum. According to AEW President Tony Khan, the stipulation preventing Page from challenging for the AEW World Championship again was not part of a formally signed contract.
Instead, Khan described it as more of a verbal agreement between the two competitors.
“A gentleman’s handshake. He’s somebody that is known for being a man of his word. We made a verbal agreement, so it’s a verbal contract.”
Tony Khan's exact words on Hangman Page not being able to challenge for the AEW World Championship anymore:
“Same thing with Cody. A gentleman’s handshake. He's somebody that is known for being a man of his word. We made a verbal agreement, so it's a verbal contract.”
Oh, boy. Khan’s comments suggest that the stipulation may rely more on Page’s personal integrity than on an official AEW ruling. This makes things quite interesting moving forward, which brings me to where I think this is leading.
A Heel Turn Could Change Everything for Hangman Adam Page
It was being teased for weeks and weeks, but Page officially turned face at AEW All In: Texas ahead of his Texas Death Match against Jon Moxley. It was a small but significant detail during his entrance in that match, as the camera was focused on the heel tunnel in Texas as his music played. While everyone awaited his entrance, the camera quickly jerked off to the face tunnel, where Page emerged. It was the final confirmation that Page had switched sides and was one of the final pieces of the puzzle of him defeating Moxley and becoming AEW World Champion.
Page held the title all the way until Full Gear in November, when he was shockingly defeated by Samoa Joe in a cage match. Page has been on the hunt for the World Title ever since. This was his first 1v1 shot at the title since Full Gear after defeating Andrade El Idolo at AEW Grand Slam to become the #1 contender. He picked the stipulation for this match, Texas Death, something he was 5-1 in his career in throughout his time in AEW.
The upcoming episode of AEW Dynamite will likely give us some strong clues about what’s next for Page. I would imagine, initially, Page will honor his word. However, as time goes on, he could become more and more incensed about losing in his preferred match, and a heel turn happens. In my opinion, Page is a natural heel and does some of his best work when he is. I immediately think about his feud with Swerve Strickland, which included Page burning down his childhood home in one of the most insane visuals we’ve seen in wrestling.
I don’t think it will be immediate but it’ll be more of a slow burn. Maybe Page, who suffered just his second singles loss since the beginning of 2025 at AEW Revolution, goes on a run and wins something like the TNT Championship. But the allure of the AEW World Title may never escape his mind. His inability to challenge for it haunts him until he can’t take it anymore and he snaps, becoming the man he used to be. Then, and only then, will he go back on his word and once again challenge for the AEW World Championship.
