All Elite Wrestling returns to pay-per-view on Saturday night with All Out, and the young promotion has a lot riding on this show. Given that this is the final live event before AEW premiers on TNT on Oct. 2, the company will look to put its best foot forward and keep its momentum going before it makes it way to primetime.
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We’ve once again brought together our team of wrestling writers — Connor Casey, Ryan Droste and Matt Aguilar — to break down the biggest questions heading into Saturday night’s show and predict the winners of the biggest matchups.
Check out the panel’s answers below!
How much does Jon Moxley’s exit hurt you’re excitement in the show, and is Pac a good replacement?
Connor: I won’t lie, my initial reaction when I heard the Moxley news was that I thought it was a huge blow to Saturday’s show. There were still plenty of reasons to be excited — including the fact that we’ll be there covering both it and Starrcast live — but this was the match that tied the card together. It had the biggest star power for multiple fan demographics and it had the most momentum. By the time Double or Nothing went off the air back in May this was the AEW match wrestling fans wanted to see. It was by no means anyone’s fault that it got cancelled, but it was a lousy situation.
But I’ve got to hand it to AEW. In less than an hour after Moxley’s announcement, the company bound back with yet another must-see matchup by finally bringing Pac back into the fold. I’ve heard the arguments for other wrestlers to get that spot — MJF and Dustin Rhodes seemed to have the most support — but AEW needed to replace this with an instant Match of the Night contender. It won’t have the storytelling of Rhodes vs. Spears or the spectacle of the ladder match, but it will be the best bell-to-bell wrestling match this company has to offer until the TNT premiere.
Ryan: It definitely hurts the show, no question. The match has been built-up for three months. At the same time, though, a match with PAC is another great scenario for AEW as he and Omega should tear the house down. For fans that are looking for a five star clinic between the ropes, Omega/PAC would probably garner more votes than Moxley/Omega if given the option between the two. Omega/Moxley had the broader appeal though, especially among curious WWE viewers.
PAC vs. Omega should be an easy contender for match of the night, and Moxley vs. Omega should now be a match built-up for television on TNT and could be a ratings draw, so in that way, it could be a blessing in disguise as AEW tries to top NXT on Wednesday nights.
Matt: To me this is as good (if not a little better) a replacement. Sure it would’ve been great to have Moxley and Omega go at it, and they assuredly will once Moxley is back to 100%, but fans have been just as eager to see PAC in an AEW ring since he was first announced, and having that finally happen versus Omega at All Out makes this fan even more excited for the show. Honestly, I think their styles are more interesting in a clash than Omega and Moxley’s, so I think AEW found a way to truly make lemons into lemonade.
Who is walking out as AEW World Champion?
Connor: I’ve been going back and forth on this for months. On the one hand, Jericho has the star power and fame heading into the TV show and the storyline of babyfaces chasing after a dastardly champion is the easiest story in wrestling to tell. But on the other hand you have to consider the optics. Having a 48-year-old world champion on your first show doesn’t scream “bringing in a new, young audience!” and Jericho has started to slow down physically ever since his last WWE run ended. Hangman doesn’t need to hold the title for long, but he should to walk out on Saturday night as champion
Ryan: I’ve also been going back and forth on this one. I actually think Jericho as a short-term champion makes the most sense as it gives the belt some prestige right away as they can always say a major star like Jericho was the brand’s first champion. Page’s push has fallen flat thus far and putting the title on him out of the gate could be a risk. I put it on Jericho and try to recover some of Page’s momentum as he goes after the belt. While Jericho’s age could certainly be looked at as a negative, I think his star power outweighs any negative. The company has certainly been garnering some of their product around stars from the past and recognizeable faces to a more general audience (ie: bringing in Jim Ross and Tony Schiavone).
Matt: I think the best thing for both wrestlers is to have Chris Jericho walk out as champion here, putting the belt on one of the most established and over stars in the industry for a bit. Jericho knows what to do with a championship over his shoulder and will only bring it more prestige right off the bat. As for Page, it gives him a perfect foil to figure out and eventually overcome, giving the belt to one of AEW’s younger stars and setting him up for a great run.
Also, that’s the sort of programming fans have always criticized WWE for (putting Legends over young stars too long), so while it will be briefer than a championship run in WWE, it should still go to Jericho to kick things off.
What’s your pick for Match of the Night?
Connor: Omega vs. Pac for all of the reasons I mentioned earlier. Close contenders will be Cody Rhodes vs. Shawn Spears, Private Party vs. Angelico and Jack Evans (I absolutely love both of these teams) and the ladder match.
Ryan: To me, Omega vs. PAC and the Bucks vs. Lucha Brothers are the only options here. I think Omega/PAC with the ladder match coming in a close second.
Matt: Easy, PAC vs Omega. I’ve wanted to see PAC back in action ever since he first stormed the AEW stage, and having him against someone of Omega’s talents is just a dream come true. MATCH…OF…THE…NIGHT!
How violent do you expect the Cody Rhodes vs. Shawn Spears match to be?
Connor: Cody has not shied away from blood since AEW launched, and I don’t think that ends here. I think Spears gets a win through underhanded means and leaves Rhodes a bleeding mess in the process. I don’t think we see another unprotected chair shot, but they might get close and tease another one at some point during the match.
Ryan: Nothing like we’ve seen in the past from the promotion during Cody/Dustin or the Moxley/Janela contests. Especially considering this one isn’t a gimmick match. I’ll say it’s toned down a bit as we get closer to the TNT debut, though a good brawl is a certainty.
Matt: To me this is something that needs to be reigned in just a touch, especially after how bloody that match with Cody and Dustin ended up being and that chair shot Cody took at the last show. There’s a balance to be had and I think they’ll eventually find it, so while there will be some likely brutal moments in this match, I think compared to some of Cody’s past outings this will be not quite as violent as some are expecting.
Book a surprise
Connor: Johnny Impact debuts. Yes, I know you all want CM Punk but I’m walking into that situation with zero expectations so that if I’m wrong at least I’ll be happy about it. The man formerly known as John Morrison is no longer under contract with Impact Wrestling and he popped up on Being The Elite this week, so they’re already hinting at it. Plus, you can’t deny Johnny Elite doesn’t have a nice ring to it.
Ryan: Morrison is a good guess and prediction. Kudos, Connor. I’ll go with that as well.
Matt: Yeah, can’t really disagree with Connor either on this one. John Morrison could be a great addition to the roster, and seeing him debut here would be a welcome surprise. That said, going out on a limb and saying that CM Punk will come up at some point during the show, whether it’s a reference, a call out, or just being in the crowd. AEW isn’t exactly subtle with their jabs at WWE (see Cody bashing a throne for a perfect example), so odds are they won’t pass on the CM Punk opportunity either.
Who gets the first shot at the AEW Women’s World Championship?
Connor: I’ll go with Britt Baker vs. Hikaru Shida. Baker is an outright star and a pillar of the company, and I think pairing her up with an unbeaten Shida (assuming she beats Riho) is a great way to show off the potential of the Women’s Division.
Ryan: Baker should be an absolute must. Her story is great and she’s a fantastic performer to start to build the division around. On the other side of the ring I’m not too sure but Shida seems as good of a bet as any.
Matt: Again, can’t argue with a good pick, so going with Baker as well. The potential in a Baker vs Hikaru Shida rivalry is stellar, though wouldn’t count Riho out in that opponent role either if AEW wants to give fans a bit of a swerve. Who knows though, perhaps the big surprise in this show will end up being the debut of a new female addition to the roster and not a male one, which would throw everything into chaos.
Will this show reach the same level of hype as All In and Double or Nothing?
Connor: I’m optimistic that it will. However you may have felt about Fyter Fest and Fight for the Fallen, you can’t deny that when these guys are on pay-per-view, they deliver. This is their last opportunity to put their best foot forward heading into Oct. 2, and I sincerely doubt they waste this shot with a lackluster show.
Ryan: Double Or Nothing was a fantastic PPV debut. As the company’s second PPV event, I think they’ll come through with another outstanding show this weekend at All Out. Fyter Fest and Fight for the Fallen, both shows presented for free, definitely seemed like place holder events to tide us over until All Out and the excitement level was not at the same level as Double Or Nothing. That changes here as the company needs to spike interest in a big way in advance of the TNT debut on October 2nd. Additionally, it will be interesting to see if they announce the date and location of their third and final PPV event of 2019 during the show on Saturday night.
Matt: I think so. Fight for the Fallen did what it was supposed to do, and that’s set up some storylines and interesting rivalries for the big event to come. Aside from the Moxley thing, I think their plan has gone off without much of a hitch, and the card looks stacked, so think once all is said and done fans will come away quite hyped for what AEW has in store. To me this card is more compelling than Double or Nothing‘s, so the potential ceiling here is much higher.
It’s 8 p.m. Eastern on Oct. 2, 2019 — which wrestling show are you watching?
Connor: AEW, because I’ll be covering it live every week right here on ComicBook.com! (Insert Mick Foley pose here)
Ryan: AEW. While NXT has been on Wednesday nights for years, it’s never felt like a show that had to be watched on that night. Myself and many others have been in the routine of binging several episodes of NXT at a time in the past, on demand. While some of that changes with it going to a live, two-hour show, uploading it the very next day to the WWE Network doesn’t do a whole lot to change the perception that it’s a show that doesn’t need to be taken in live and can be watched at your leisure. At the same time, AEW absolutely does need to be watched live if fans want this company to succeed and thrive as all eyes will be on their ratings numbers.
Matt: NXT all the way. AEW still has quite a bit to do in terms of production values and roster building to get me to switch to it full time, and intuition says that Triple H will be pulling out all the stops on a weekly basis to make sure that fans feel like NXT is a must-watch show every week. The quality of content is already present in NXT, and if they add a few more wrinkles here and there (like that Rhea Ripley/Shayna Baszler square off or perhaps Toni Storm making her presence felt on the US side of things instead of NXT UK), I don’t see myself switching over to AEW full time for a while.
