If they show up again with awakening, it would clear show that Oda nerf them for Luffy,Law and Kid to beat them, otherwise they would get rekt.
My problem with Kaido and overall the end of the fight was that Kaido was since 1009 in the same form, before the fight really even start we as reader know every form of him, drunken forms aren´t much less different, overall it feelt like Kaido didn´t had any trumpcard after 1009, the last fire mode was a attack but it doesn´t really feelt like as a trumpcard.
As example Big mom had such a form, she switch and powerup herself with her df, Gigantic BM was a new version and fight with that in combat battle for very long time.
Kaido didn´t had such a powerup, Kaido feelt like Frieza but with the negative side that he didn´t had a new form as trumpcard, like imagine Frieza only using his third form for the rest of the battle without switching to his final forms:
Imagine Frieza would never used his perfect form(he even had 100% version of his perfect form) but Kaido didn´t had it. He was staying in the same forms for like 40chapters, it took the tension that the most Shonen mangas had with the villian showing his trumpcard for the final phase of the battle, what Big mom as example show with Gigantic form.
And Oda had enough chance to give us a new form for Kaido, as example when Luffy beat him in chapter 1044 with G5, Oda could easily used it as chance to give Kaido a final form(awakened form) for like 5chapters, the result would be the same with the only difference that Kaido would show everything what he had(awakened confirmed) and Luffy would defeat him with a hard battle.
Sadly that wasn´t the case, once Luffy awaked hiis G5, the fight feelt like Luffy was stronger then Kaido and didn´t had much problems, Kaido was clearly inferior, you never had the feeling that Luffy in G5 had problems are been in danger against the STRONGEST CREATURE...
It feelt like Kaido was the underdog when Luffy awake his G5, literally he didn´t even had a trumpcard for a longer combat battle.
The worst part is that Luffy barely awake his df and still has lot of to learn, yet it was enough to beat the strongest Yonkou like this... In case Oda did this better with the BM battle where he give us the feeling that BM could still beat Law and Kid if the bombs where not around, the same can´t be said about Kaido who feelt like the underdog against G5.
How the fights supposed to look like in the future? Like legit to match the current Luffy, you need to be stronger then Kaido, since from now Luffy will keep growing and becaming stronger.
I feel like and what also Greg fear, the fight from now will mess up the powerscaling, we as reader will ask ourself,"was Kaido really the 1 of this generation"?, at worst when the future opponents showing awakening from now.
As example again BM, she could comeback for a final fight with Luffy.
The more I think how Kaido go down, the more I think it was probably Oda worst way to defeat a villiian. Kaido got take down as a 0815 villian, his end was no different then to the guys like Ceaser or Hody, nothing special even thought he was the first Yonkou who Luffy beat, the first Yonkou who Oda build up since 10years as saga opponent.
And half of the fandom feel this, they legit want Kaido to comeback since Luffy final battle was looking to easily for him. It never give us the feeling that a Yonkou fall down, it didn´t give us the feeling, "yeah Luffy barely won" when G5 literally was shown above Kaido...
I look back to Whitebeard lose, the impact, the build up, Whitebeard death was a huge thing in the OP world, the way how he go down was unique and special. Kaido as a unique and special character got the worst ending with a villian could dream of to get, rushed ending, without awakening, rushed flashback and a half ass defeat like Ceaser.
Kaido had the potential to became one of Oda best works, in the end he is probably one of Oda worst works, since when we will remember back at wano, we all will know how messed up Kaido and his crew was, we will always have the negative feeling for Kaido in case.
At worst every villian from now who shows awakening will show us how messed up it was that Kaido didn´t had awakening.
What a disaster, it start so good and end soo badly...