Roundtable: AEW All Out

Which match are you most looking forward to?

Steven Jackson: Adam Page vs Chris Jericho. I’ve been a massive fan of Page since seeing him debut for ROH in 2012. This has got to be his coming out party. He’s worked so hard and I want him to have his moment.

Neal Wagner: Cody vs. Spears. I’m a sucker for a surprise and they have the best story going into the show. AEW is still fresh enough that you can’t quite guess what the surprise might be in terms of who is in Cody’s corner.

Juan Bautista: PAC vs. Omega. It’s to be a mixture of strong style and high flying. The match will be excellent.

Sam Gladen: Cody vs. Shawn Spears should be incredible. Both of these guys have intense, old-school styles that will mesh well.

David Gibb: I’m most excited to see the crowning of the first AEW World Champion.

Chad Gelfand: PAC vs. Kenny Omega. I was obviously disappointed that Jon Moxley wouldn’t be facing Omega due to MRSA in his elbow, but replacing him with PAC is huge and it will be match of the night.

Matthew Smith: The main event. I know that sounds like an easy out, but this will be history. It has an old-school main event feel with a young challenger going up against the grizzled vet with the AEW World Title on the line. I am looking forward to see how they use Hangman against Jericho; will a member of The Elite be the first to get his hands on the world title or is The Master going to give us another first?

John Corrigan: The Cracker Barrel Clash, baby!

Jack Goodwillie: I’ll elaborate on Jon Moxley being pulled from the event later, but Moxley vs. Omega was the can’t-miss match on this card. Now? The world championship match should still be compelling. I’m not wowed by this card. Doesn’t mean it won’t still be a good event, but having TV will be a great benefit to AEW getting its young guys over. I still don’t see Shawn Spears as a top guy, but they’re going to try to get him there and crazier things have happened.

Will you watch the pre-show for the 21-Woman Casino Battle Royale?

Jackson: As with all AEW events, I will watch the pre-show. They are always interesting match ups and the whole events are always fun. In for a penny, in for a pound!

Wagner: I’m only watching the pre-show for the battle royal honestly. I’m curious about some of the surprise entrants and a few new and fresh faces. Since the stakes include a spot in the Women’s Championship match, it makes the intrigue so much better.

Bautista: I will have to watch it later because I’ll be working.

Gladen: I will. The pre-shows have been less than stellar, but so long as it isn’t two hours long with only one match and Jonathan Coachman yelling at me, then they’re better than some.

Gibb: I’ve found their pre-shows pretty hard to watch in the past, but if I hear good buzz about any of the matches, I’ll go back and watch them afterward.

Gelfand: Yes. I’m curious to see how they fill out this battle royal and the legends that are going to appear. This match has the potential to be really good or a disaster, but either way it’ll be entertaining.

Smith: Yes, I will be, although I would have liked more build-up to this. Battle royals can be so good, but yet so bad, too, and I have a feeling this one might tank a bit.

Corrigan: I usually zone out during AEW pre-shows, but I’m excited to see who shows up in this battle royal.

Goodwillie: Can you still have a “Casino” Battle Royale at a venue that is not a casino? I’m not so sure. As for the match itself, I like that it has championship ramifications, but I’m just not THAT invested in any of the women just yet, and if the early returns have showed us anything, it’s to avoid AEW pre-shows like the plague until proven otherwise.

How do you feel AEW handled Jon Moxley being pulled from the event?

Jackson: It’s a tough one. Moxley being pulled came out of nowhere and considering AEWs reliance on social media, it made sense to notify people through this. Replacing Moxley with PAC is a good move, but I’m slightly confused by PAC’s status. Is it a work or is it a shoot?

Wagner: AEW did what it had to do and sadly, this isn’t a situation that can be looked away from. Having PAC come in to replace Moxley was smart and the best decision without maybe revealing a new roster member that the company isn’t ready to reveal yet. After what happened at Double or Nothing, it’s good for PAC to come back in like this to make up for cancelling his initial match a week before the show.

Bautista: AEW handled the situation perfectly, having found a suitable replacement in PAC and not forcing Moxley to work hurt.

Gladen: It was handled correctly. AEW announced he had been pulled, but should be good for the TV taping in October and then quickly announced his replacement.

Gibb: AEW handled it as well as possible. Bumping Omega into the world title match would’ve been a more exotic make-good, but AEW not doing it shows good patience.

Gelfand: AEW handled it in the best way possible. It was a sudden change that the company had to make and replacing Moxley with PAC to take on Omega was the best case scenario.

Smith: It was a terrible situation to begin with. Wish Mox the speediest of recoveries and the Omega promo was amazing. It did a good job of building up the eventual fight while also not crossing the line of being disrespectful. And for those who wanted to see PAC, well, he is here.

Corrigan: Aptly. AEW obviously waited until a replacement was made before allowing Moxley to announce the heartbreaking news. While PAC vs. Omega doesn’t have the same spark as Mox vs. Omega, it’s a suitable replacement.

Goodwillie: AEW handled it beautifully and provided an excellent replacement. When you’re WWE, it’s easy to give the fans a bigger name than was originally booked because, well, you’re WWE! Roman Reigns can’t compete? Just get Kurt Angle to fill in. PAC was probably AEW’s ace in the hole as far as surprises for the first television show go (or maybe it’s LAX?), but the company did what it needed to do and hopefully we get that Moxley-Omega match sometime soon.

Who will be in Cody’s corner?

Jackson: I really hope that Jim Cornette shows up in Cody’s corner because of his history with OVW and Tully Blanchard.

Wagner: I’m sticking with the dirt sheets and believing it’ll be Arn. It makes the most sense for it to be him considering Tully being in the mix. I do predict a swerve to happen with Arn backstabbing Cody and revealing that it was a plan the whole time.

Bautista: Arn Anderson. A few months ago this wouldn’t be possible, but now it is.

Gladen: Magnum T.A. His long rivalry with Blanchard back in the territory days, plus his time as Dusty’s manager in WCW makes him the perfect fit for the match.

Gibb: Arn Anderson. He’s a logical foil for Tully Blanchard and has a new podcast starting next week with close-friend-of-AEW Conrad Thompson. Seems like perfect timing.

Gelfand: MJF. I like the direction they’re going with Cody and MJF’s friendship. It’s a partnership that I would like to see develop for a while before they inevitably feud with each other.

Smith: I am hoping for MJF. The more camera time this guy gets, the better for AEW. It will also help him get more of a rub being so closely associated with Cody. He doesn’t need to be involved in the finish because Shawn Spears needs to come out of this the biggest winner, but MJF should make it tough for him since you know he almost killed his best friend.

Corrigan: Cody needs an enforcer, and it’s gotta be Double A.

Goodwillie: It’s easy to say Diamond Dallas Page or Brandi Rhodes, because, well, they’ve done it before. And in this case it makes sense to have them there again. MJF is not booked as of now, though, so he will be a guy to watch out for as well. Again though, this is probably my least anticipated match on the show, and that’s in SPITE of Tully Blanchard’s epic promo with Jim Ross on Road to All Out.

Who wins the AEW World Championship: Chris Jericho or Adam Page?

Jackson: As answered in question one, it has to be Adam Page. Jericho is a good option for casual fans, but AEW needs to build its franchise around Adam Page. He can deliver phenomenal matches, gives great promos and is super over with fans.

Wagner: While he obviously doesn’t obviously need it, I’m going with Jericho to win based on the chase for the title and it’ll be so much sweeter once someone takes Jericho down after a few cheating defenses. Jericho winning will bring his storyline full circle, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Hangman gets a rematch sooner than later and then he will be World Heavyweight Champion.

Bautista: Adam Page. If Jericho wins, there has to be another babyface chasing immediately and while other babyfaces are present, they’re not quite at the level of Page to challenge on PPV. It won’t be a problem for television. If Page wins, MJF is waiting in the wings.

Gladen: You have Jericho win the championship and hold on to it through the first TV taping into the next PPV, where he loses to Page and starts to fade to a part-time schedule. As famous and well liked as Kenny Omega and Adam Page are, there is no one with more name recognition in professional wrestling today than Chris Jericho.

Gibb: Jericho. He’s AEW’s biggest star on paper and in terms of name recognition, and if you follow The Wrestling Estate Twitter feed, you know he’s incredibly popular with the most vocal fans. AEW needed two more Fyter Fest-style shows before All Out to get Page where he needed to be for him to be a believable winner and inaugural title holder.

Gelfand: Adam Page is the young and upcoming superstar who AEW wants to eventually build the company around, but the title will go to Jericho to have a big, established name hold it off the bat. Plus, there is still some juice to the story of Page’s quest to be world champion.

Smith: Unlike WWE main events where you can generally guess two or three weeks ahead of a PPV who is going to win, this feels like a tossup. Hangman, much like MJF, is the future of AEW. He has the build, a nice moveset and from what we have seen on “Being the Elite,” he is very entertaining. In the other corner, you have what many people believe is the G.O.A.T. My heart wants Hangman to win, but I stopped betting against Chris Jericho a long time ago. We all owe him a thank you.

Corrigan: I’m pretty torn on this one because we know that Page is the chosen one, yet Jericho would be the logical choice to kick off the TNT Era. I’ll go with Jericho to win the gold so Page can do the chase.

Goodwillie: My predictions in world title matches have been flat out bad recently, but I don’t think there’s any way Chris Jericho doesn’t become the first AEW World Champion. It just makes good business sense. Jericho is a leading name in the industry and to have his name on the first world championship would be a major coup, not to mention Adam Page’s best chance to get over as a top guy will not come in this match, but in the potential chase to get a rematch with Jericho and be the one to knock him off his pedestal.