Mercedes Moné has indicated a potential interest in returning to Japan for a major championship opportunity. Using a single “eyeballs” emoji, she reacted on X to the announcement of a winner-take-all match between World of STARDOM Champion Saya Kamitani and NJPW Strong Women’s Champion AZM, scheduled for September 27 at Korakuen Hall.
This is a match with direct history for Moné. She is a former NJPW Strong Women’s Champion, having lost the title to AZM earlier this year in a triple-threat match that also involved Mina Shirakawa.
A return to Japan to challenge the winner would offer Moné the chance to capture her tenth and eleventh career championships. The World of STARDOM Championship is a title she has never held.
Moné’s focus on championships abroad comes as AEW President Tony Khan has recently clarified the nature of her role with his company.
During the AEW All In media call, Khan directly denied that Moné has any creative control, making it clear that he is the only person with final say in the promotion.
That’s definitely not true at all, so I would love to talk about that. I’m the only person with creative control over the show. I’ve had the final say since day one of AEW.
Khan’s comments addressed speculation that grew from a June 2024 TMZ Sports interview where Moné herself claimed to have creative control. However, reports from May 2025 suggested that sources within both AEW and NJPW understood those claims to be in-character comments supporting her “CEO” gimmick.
While denying any contractual creative power, Khan praised Moné as an “incredible talent.” He noted her strong television presence is based on her value to the company, stating,
When you have somebody of that stature, you’d want to feature them, you’d want to push them strongly.