Swerve Strickland Believes He Needed To Turn Heel In AEW

Swerve Strickland believes he needed to turn heel in All Elite Wrestling, and that Kenny Omega was the right person to do it with.

Strickland had been a babyface in AEW since May 2024, but he turned heel on the February 19, 2026 episode of Dynamite following a win over Kenny Omega as Swerve beat down The Best Bout Machine after the match.

Speaking with Bleeding Cool, Swerve addressed the heel turn:

"It was needed, and it was needed with the right person at the right time with Kenny Omega. There's no more of a lightning rod of attention in AEW to get than Kenny Omega. Everybody's always interested in what Kenny is doing when he's on-screen, when he's active, and he's very much healthy and at his best. There's no more of a top performer in the industry than Kenny Omega.

"So going over 25 minutes with him in the main event, taking him out at the end the way that I did, it sparked a lot of noise throughout the industry. It sparked a lot of noise throughout AEW. That also woke up Nana in a lot of ways. In a lot of different ways, I'm able to navigate and move through AEW the way that I want to. The way I'm meant to, I would say."

The programme between Kenny Omega and Swerve Strickland continued following the heel turn, with Omega making his return at Revolution to save Brody King from a Strickland beatdown. Omega then levelled the series at one win apiece on the March 25 episode of Dynamite, earning an AEW World Title shot against MJF at AEW Dynasty in the process.