Mercedes Moné says the broken nose she suffered while winning the AEW Women’s World Championship from Willow Nightingale is still not fully healed, even after undergoing surgery to repair it.
Moné made the revelation during the post-show media scrum following AEW WrestleDream on October 17, 2026, where she successfully retained the title against Thekla. Speaking to reporters after the defense, Moné said that despite the surgical procedure, “It’s still very much broken.”
The injury dates back to the 2026 AEW All In pay-per-view, where Moné defeated Nightingale to capture the AEW Women’s World Championship. Moné broke her nose during the course of that match, an injury serious enough that she did not return to in-ring competition until late September, a gap of several weeks between the title win and her first follow-up appearance.
According to the reports from the WrestleDream scrum, Moné underwent surgery on the nose at some point after the All In victory in an effort to address the damage. Despite that procedure, she indicated the nose has not fully recovered and remains broken, a detail she shared publicly only after proving her championship status was not compromised by defeating Thekla at WrestleDream.
The update underscores the physical toll of the All In main event encounter with Nightingale, which produced the title change but also sidelined the new champion for an extended stretch before she could resume defending the belt. Moné’s return to the ring in late September preceded her WrestleDream title defense against Thekla, meaning she has now wrestled multiple times since the injury while still managing the lingering effects of the broken nose.
No further details on the timeline of the surgery itself, additional treatment plans, or whether the injury will require further medical attention were provided in the reports from the scrum. As AEW Women’s World Champion, Moné continues to hold the title won from Nightingale at All In, with her WrestleDream victory over Thekla marking her latest successful defense while dealing with the unresolved injury.
