Samoa Joe winning AEW title was ‘always the plan’ for Worlds End

  • Ian Carey
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The plan was always for Samoa Joe to win the AEW World Championship at Worlds End. 

Joe defeated MJF to win the belt on Saturday’s pay-per-view and some have speculated this was due to the former champion needing time off to deal with injuries. 

However, our own Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that Joe winning the title was unrelated to MJF being injured. 

Meltzer said: 

Even before Max got hurt, Joe was always going to win the title on the show. In that sense, the title did not change hands because he’s hurt. It was always the plan. 

MJF revealed in late November that he was dealing with a torn labrum but would still defend his title at the Worlds End pay-per-view from Long Island. He is believed to be dealing with “a plethora” of other injuries as well. 

Many in AEW believe MJF will be taking time off now that he’s dropped the title, Fightful Select is reporting. His run with the title concludes after 406 days and 10 successful defenses.