When news broke that Eddie Kingston had suffered an apparent leg injury on the guard rails at New Japan Pro Wrestling Resurgence in Ontario, California, that could leave him out of action for an undisclosed amount of time, it left fans wondering if he would be able to work his scheduled match against The Elite, Jack Perry, Kazuchika Okada, and The Young Bucks in a highly anticipated Anarchy in the Arena match.

Would Kingston work the match with an injury angle, playing into his tough guy persona? Or would AEW find a way to write him out of the match entirely, opening the door for another wrestler, be that a debuting star from outside of the promotion like Mustafa Ali – even if that ruins the whole “Team AEW” thing – another member of the Blackpool Combat Club, or someone else entirely?

Well, after securing a huge win over Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal on Dynamite, The Elite was riding high and officially announced that Kingston was out of action for the show, but not before they sent a message to CD and the rest of the roster about testing their authority in any way.

With that piece of business out of the way, the Bucks effectively announced that the reason Kingston couldn't wrestle was because of their actions at Resurgence, letting fans know that the “Mad King” won't be working Double or Nothing because of their post-match beatdown, not because of the guard rail spot. Team AEW could choose to forfeit the match if they wanted to, or they could wrestle down 4-3, but in The Elite's opinion, they secured the advantage and, as a result, would be able to run through their foes in Las Vegas in order to secure another big win in Sin City at the original AEW event.

Unfortunately for Perry, Okada, and the Jacksons, their plans weren't as perfect as they might have hoped, as, in their post-match beatdown of Dax Harwood at the end of the “Rainmaker's” match on Dynamite, who but local legend Darby Allin came out to the ring to officially join Team AEW, becoming the new eighth man in the match and officially announcing his return after a broken foot took him out of action in March. Is this a better outcome for AEW fans at Double or Nothing? Debateable. Will Allin definitly give AEW fans some wild spots in Las Vegas in just under two weeks? Yeah, that is a borderline guarantee.

The Young Bucks and Jack Perry were proud of their NJPW attack.

Harkening back to NJPW Resurgence and the first inklings that Eddie Kingston might not be able to work the match at Double or Nothing in Las Vegas on May 25th, after watching Gabe Kidd become the new NJPW Strong Champion, Jack Perry came out to address the “Mad King” in front of the California crowd, leading to an eventual sneak attack by the Young Bucks, who delivered a serious beating on the barely able to stand former champion.

Taking things back to the locker room, where NJPW often does its post-match press conferences, The Elite minus Kazuchika Okada delivered a pretty definitive statement explaining why they attacked Kingston, letting him know that they plan to take everything from him for hitching his wagon to the wrong side of the AEW Civil War.

“Surprise, surprise, Eddie, you threw your hat in with the wrong team on Wednesday night. Now I was surprised because Eddie Kingston is a “Real One,” everyone knows that Eddie Kingston tells it like it is, right?” Jack Perry declared backstage. “But you sure didn't hesitate to step into beat with a bunch of fakes who pretend to represent what AEW is all about. You just paid for that right now. And you're going to pay again next Wednesday night, and net Wednesday night, and you're going to pay again at Double or Nothing. And you are going to pay again, and again, and again until The Elite decide that your debt is paid, because we all have to sacrifice, Eddie, and you're about to lose everything.”

Well, mission accomplished, I guess, as Kingston went from a Triple Crown Champion to a non-champion in a matter of months and now has to stand on the sidelines as his unlikely pairing with FTR and Bryan Danielson falls by the wayside at Double or Nothing when he likely would have really enjoyed returning the favor on The Elite a few weeks later. Fortunately, this Elite angle appears to have some pretty serious legs, and as a result, Kingston should be able to return to it in the future when he's back to full strength.