Konosuke Takeshita To Make First AEW International Title Defense Against Top TNA Star

By Sam Palmer
Konosuke Takeshita AEW/Lee South

Konosuke Takeshita walked out of AEW WrestleDream as the new AEW International Champion after defeating both Will Ospreay and Ricochet with the help of The Don Callis Family. It's the first title Takeshita has won since signing with AEW in 2022, and he's wasting no time putting it on the line — just not in AEW. PWInsider has learned that Takeshita will make his first defense of the AEW International Championship against former TNA World Champion Josh Alexander on the second night of Maple Leaf Wrestling's Forged In Excellence event in Windsor, Ontario, Canada on October 20.

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Takeshita was already announced for the event, and his match with "The Walking Weapon" had already been booked before he won the AEW International Championship, but the stakes for their bout have now been elevated. The two men have only crossed paths once before at a Garden State Pro Wrestling event in July 2022; their match ended in a 20-minute time limit draw. Alexander won't be the only man Takeshita faces over MLP's debut weekend, as the event's first night on October 19 will see him face "Speedball" Mike Bailey in a rematch from the PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2023 final, which Takeshita lost.

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Multiple stars from AEW and ROH will appear over the two day event that will relaunch the Canadian promotion that will now be backed by former TNA President Scott D'Amore. ROH Women's World Champion Athena will defend her championship against Gisele Shaw, QT Marshall will take on Bhupindar Gujjar, and there will be appearances from Harley Cameron, Rocky Romero, and Don Callis. The event will be streamed live on TrillerTV.

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