Nic Nemeth Assesses AEW's Long-Term Planning For Mercedes Mone

Mercedes Mone made her first appearance in AEW back in March, but the former WWE performer has yet to wrestle in the promotion following her 2023 injury. That will change later this month, with Mone set to challenge Willow Nightingale for the TBS Championship at AEW Double or Nothing. Speaking on "Busted Open Radio," former WWE star Nic Nemeth spoke about how AEW has handled Mone thus far. According to Nemeth, the company has yet to dig in deep on what Mone can offer.

"Maybe [AEW's] long-term planning is to turn [Mone] ... because Willow's clearly the babyface in this scenario," Nemeth said.

The former Dolph Ziggler then theorized that AEW could be attempting to replicate a storyline previously laid out by Chris Jericho during one of his returns to WWE in the past. Nemeth was referring to Jericho's 2012 comeback, which saw him enter arenas to strong crowd reactions, taking it in silently before leaving. Crowds soon began turning against Jericho, realizing that the character was acting self-absorbed despite his cheery persona.

"It makes you wonder, 'Oh, are they doing this on purpose?'" Nemeth continued. "Now, if they aren't, that's unfortunate because it's starting to seem that way."

Nemeth noted that Nightingale has a great deal of momentum after winning the TBS Championship at AEW Dynasty last month. The storyline could be used to help further her development as an important star, and Nemeth believes the company could be on their way to doing that by turning Mone into a villain, though it's too early to say for sure.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.