Stokely Hathaway & Athena Debut at AEW Double or Nothing

Jade Cargill’s successful defense of the TBS Title against Anna Jay at AEW Double or Nothing might’ve been a forgone conclusion, but I bet most folks didn’t see Stokely Hathaway and Athena (WWE’s Malcolm Bivens and Ember Moon, respectively) debuting during the ensuing chaos.

That’s exactly what happened, however. After Jade Cargill’s (former?) manager “Smart” Mark Sterling almost cost her the title, professional wrestling’s best Twitter follow Stokely Hathaway made his way to the ring looking incredible in a new suit. Hathaway immediately sided with Cargill and her Baddies Section, cheering on a post-match attack against Anna Jay. Hathaway made his name on the indies as one of the freshest and funniest managers on the circuit, eventually making his way to WWE and NXT where he managed The Diamond Mine under the name Malcolm Bivens before departing the company earlier this year.

Kris Statlander would run in to make the save for Anna Jay, but with the numbers game still favoring the champion and her crew, unknown entrance music hit to reveal “The Fallen Goddess” Athena has also made her AEW debut. A standout on the Texas indies for years, Athena eventually made her way to WWE where she found some success in NXT as Ember Moon before being spectacularly misused on the main roster and getting released in November 2021.

AEW’s most notable rapid fire debut showcase came in 2021 with Adam Cole and Brian Danielson at the end of All Out, but honestly I think I got more excited about these two. Athena is a fantastic wrestler with one of the best finishing moves in the entire pantheon of finishing moves. Stokely Hathaway is not only a top tier manager and talker but now he’s managing Jade Cargill, one of the most promising wrestlers in the entire business.

Maybe we still don’t know what’s up with MJF and his contract (at least he showed up and got powerbombed a bunch), but Stokely Hathaway and Athena are All Elite and that’s pretty rad.