AEW All Out 2021 preview and predictions

It’s the first week of September, you know what that means! It’s time for AEW’s biggest show, All Out. Not only is it the biggest show they’ve ever run, or their most important, but it has a real chance to shift the wrestling world in a way we haven’t seen in a couple decades. AEW could very well be on the same plane as WWE, or adjacent to it, come the end of this show. So let’s not waste any time, Bryan. Let’s kick this pig! Women’s Casino Battle Royale credits: AEW Fels: Well, for one, with the rumors buzzing that AEW is going to bump up some of its debuts due to worries that future shows could be altered thanks to COVID and unvaccinated dummards, there’s every chance that Ruby Soho (FKA Ruby Riott) makes her first appearance here. AEW unveiling perhaps their biggest women’s signing on what would have been the pre-show before the Andrade-Pac cancellation is sadly perfect, given how they’ve handled the women’s division for their existence. But I’m going to choose to be more happy that Ruby is back than upset about a lackluster platform for her. That said, I don’t think they would vault her immediately into Britt Baker’s arms by winning this. This won’t set up a championship match on the next PPV, because AEW is allergic to long-term storytelling in their women’s division. Which means they can go a little under the radar for a title match on TNT. I’m going to go with Tay Conti here, as she’s been getting the recent TV rub, could definitely use the launchpad this would provide, and would make the most of it. She’s a star in waiting on whom they haven’t pulled the trigger yet, and they need to start promoting more women into the consciousness. Fonseca: To add to what Sam’s saying, I think Ruby should return and have a great performance, though I’m not sure she needs to outright win yet. I’d probably lean toward thinking AEW would have her win upon return and launch her right into the title picture, and if executed properly, that’s totally fine. The division could use a jolt, and Baker could use as many worthy adversaries as possible. Without the surprises, Tay Conti is a good shout. She’s a star waiting to happen in the division, and it appears as if the stage is set for her, of anyone on the roster, to take this minus a shocking debut candidate. That said, Ruby (Soho now?) is teasing us … so we’ll see. More on the implications this Battle Royale could have later on, though … MJF vs. Chris Jericho credits: AEW Fels: My hunch is they had something planned for the “5th Labor” that fell through, so they had to run Jericho-MJF instead. Which means this one feels a little flat because we just saw it, though I won’t be upset about a chance to sing “Judas” again with a large crowd. Feels like Jericho really is headed for commentary, though that won’t be forever. His work in the ring has looked more haggard, even if he was able to pull off a memorable match with Nick Gage. That didn’t have much to do with his mobility in the ring though, and there aren’t too many opponents for him in AEW that won’t make him look every bit of the 50 years old and 30 years in the business that he is. MJF “retires” Jericho, but probably not for too much longer than six months. They already put the Inner Circle at risk in the Stadium Stampede and saw Jericho survive. You can’t keep sidling everyone up to the edge and not jump otherwise everyone will stop caring. Fonseca: Enough already, fam… respectfully. This rivalry peaked a while ago, so I’m hoping these two finally move on after this. The stipulation that if Jericho loses, he has to retire from in-ring competition is perfect, even though in wrestling you never truly retire. At 50 years old, he probably should at least take a break, and there’s not much upside to him going over MJF here. I think it won’t be too long until we get CM Punk vs. MJF, who could use something different at this point, so a victory over Jericho could set that up later this year or early next. I get why, but I’m still a bit surprised Jericho is the favorite, but it’s not like that holds much weight in pro wrestling anyway, and neither do potential retirements. Paul Wight vs. QT Marshall credits: AEW Fels: Fuck. All. The.Way. Off. Fonseca: Yo, honestly, just try to set a record for fastest AEW victory of all-time. The bell rings, Big Show… erm, Paul Wight, punches QT Marshall in the jaw, knocks him out, doesn’t even pin him because it’s waved off, the night goes on and everybody could be happy. (Watch this video for No. 8 and No. 7.) Jon Moxley vs. Satoshi Kojima credits: AEW Fels: The announcement of this landed like a beer fart, as the whispers of Mox facing Hiroshi Tanahashi were too loud to ignore. Kojima is a legend in his own right, but we just saw Mox wrestling Yuji Nagata, another Japanese legend who is basically just an Old Timers’ Game now. Maybe there’s a surprise during or after to give Moxley a more meaningful feud going forward, but as good as Mox is this is a prime candidate for a bathroom break. Fonseca: Whenever I see “Kojima” I think of Metal Gear Solid and instantly become happy. Satoshi Kojima is legendary, but he’s also 50 years old, so this isn’t Jon Moxley facing him at his peak. Still, I’d expect an entertaining one here. Moxley himself promised “egregious felonious assault” in a story published by . “Kojima is here to be celebrated,” Moxley said. “With that being said, I’m still planning on committing egregious, felonious assault and trying to end his career, and he’d be insulted if I felt any other way. It’s an honor to share the ring with him, and I can’t wait to throw with him. “He still has gas left in the tank, and there’s still something he wants to prove. He’ll be staring across from the baddest motherfucker in the business. I don’t expect it to be long, I don’t expect it to be pretty. It’s going to be violent, and I can’t wait to get in there with him.” Moxley’s style ain’t always my preference, but yeah, I’m in. Moxley by TKO via death. Tag Team Championship: Lucha Bros vs. The Young Bucks in a steel cage credits: AEW Fels: With no Pac-Andrade, this one is the likeliest for best match of the night. What Rey Fénix can do with a cage at his disposal is probably beyond imagination. He’s going to jump off some point that’s incredibly stupid to do so from and it’ll be awesome. Feels like the Lucha Bros. are taking this, and the conflict between them, Pac, and Andrade moves into another gear, though that would have been easier to do if Andrade and Pac were actually on the card. It’s hard to see who the Bucks would be saving their eventual title-dropping for other than Fénix and Penta, especially with FTR’s future so up in the air. Strap in tight for this one. Fonseca: The high spots, of which there will be many, are going to be dangerous as hell in this match. That said, the Lucha Brothers are as good as any tag team in the world right now. These two are maybe the most exciting tag team in wrestling, too. Rey Fénix is as literal of a Rey Mysterio clone as anyone could ask for, which is meant to be a complement of the highest order. And ​​Pentagón Jr. is one of the most accomplished luchadores of the modern era. I’m not quite full Jim Cornette when it comes to the Young Bucks, but they’re not exactly my guys, either. My head and heart says the Lucha Bros take this. TNT Championship: Eddie Kingston vs. Miro credits: AEW Fels: This will be quite the gear change if it follows the tag match directly, which won’t make it any less tantalizing. There won’t be much flashy about this, as these two will just beat the ever loving shit out of each other with little to no decoration to it. I’d love to see Kingston with a title, but Miro is just too hot (and handsome?) right now to take it off of. Feels like he keeps it until running into Malakai Black or Andrade. If you like it raw, this is the one for you. Fonseca: It feels very much like a Miro victory is coming for the reasons Sam laid out, and he’s also a wide -400 favorite to retain. That said, as much momentum as he maintains, maybe he loses and gets injected into the main event picture shortly thereafter? Similar to how some Intercontinental Champions in the WWE will drop the title before getting in the world title mix. I’m not sure if Miro is quite there yet, but I ask because, wouldn’t Eddie Kingston make a perfect TNT Champion? He’s exactly the kind of guy who’d win this title, hold it for a year, raise the prestige as high as possible, and then by next fall we’re talking about Kingston being the number-one contender for the AEW Championship off a monster TNT title run. If not now, Kingston taking the title off Miro would make so much sense for both sides down the line. Kingston, assuming he loses, is also a great candidate for Bryan Danielson or Daniel Bryanson whenever he debuts as expected, even though we’ve seen it before. Women’s Championship: Britt Baker vs. Kris Statlander credits: AEW Fels: I’m a little nervous about this one. Britt Baker the character is still ahead of Britt Baker the wrestler, though she’s made giant strides in the latter department of late. Is Statlander the type of worker that can make up for Britt’s shortcomings in the ring in the way Hikaru Shida and Thunder Rosa have? This match needs to be a banger too, because of the short shrift AEW has given it as a story and really the women’s division overall. This had no build, and to justify that it has to be great when the bell rings otherwise it might be more justification for the EVPs to keep treating the women’s division like something they flushed out of their ear. Just not convinced it will be. Britt retains and hopefully gets a story she can really sink her teeth into. Fonseca: Britt Baker is a real star who also deserves a long title run off her persona alone. She has Mick Foley marking out for her for God’s sake (which is a good thing!). Kris Statlander’s about six months removed from returning after tearing her ACL, and although it doesn’t feel like she’ll win, I could see this being one of the sneaky better matches of the night. What you want, if you’re AEW, is for the bout to be good enough to the audience that they call for a rematch. The division could really use a long-term title feud to set the foundation for others outside the championship picture. The Battle Royale will obviously factor into that, though. As a bonus: We’re seeing smoke about Charlotte Flair potentially going to AEW for obvious reasons. Not just because she’s the current and five-time Raw Women’s Champion. Not just because she won the SmackDown Women’s Title six times. And no, not because of her two NXT Title victories. The WWE just last month released Ric Flair, Charlotte’s father, upon his request. We’re getting hints about The Nature Boy joining AEW. Flair’s fiancee is Andrade El Idolo, who is also on AEW, and was supposed to face Pac on this card but that has since been canceled. Charlotte’s family is essentially going to be in AEW, we expect, so why would she not want to follow? This isn’t to say Charlotte debuts here, but it’s to say, if she’s coming, Baker should be the champion in waiting. So it’s possible AEW tries to move things along quickly with Statlander and whoever the Battle Royale winner is afterward. But, again, this is an if. AEW World Championship: Kenny Omega vs. Christian credits: AEW Fels: I’m putting it here because it doesn’t feel like it would go on after CM Punk. And I still need some selling on this one. Their first match for the Impact title was good, not as great as some would have you believe. Christian’s run in AEW hasn’t really been all that impressive, and I don’t buy him as someone worthy of this stage much less as someone who is going to dethrone Kenny. This almost feels like a table-setter for a Daniel Bryan appearance to give Kenny a challenge worthy of the title and Kenny, and I think that’s what it’s going to be. Christian can Out. Work. Everyone down the card and I won’t be upset about it. Fonseca: It still feels like Kenny Omega needs something, and although Christian is a legend, that something feels more like a Bryan Danielson or Daniel Bryanson… or even Bray Wyatt or Bray Windham or Wyatt Rotunda or whatever his AEW name might become. This should be pretty good, that said, but it’s reasonable to be more intrigued about where this leads than what this is. CM Punk vs. Darby Allin credits: AEW Fels: OK, hear me out, because I know what suggesting a Punk loss in Chicago means for anyone’s well-being. Punk has made it clear that one of the biggest reasons he has returned is to give younger wrestlers the shine and boost that he felt they never got in WWE, including himself. And if you didn’t know the details, on the surface the idea of a veteran returning after a seven year absence to go over a company’s biggest young star in his first match back sounds like the exact kind of thing that bothered Punk about WWE. If he’s really here to turn people like Allin into a star… Secondly, a Punk loss could start him on a storytelling path of wondering if he still has it at 42 and seven years away. As would maybe one more loss after this (I can’t think of who that would be to though. Ricky Starks? Malakai? Come back to this later). Which would make his eventual and inevitable charge up the roster toward one of the titles have that much more bottom to it. Simply having Punk win to send everyone home happy doesn’t leave as much room or options. If Punk is here to make young performers look good, and he beats the first few he sees, does that completely work? Thirdly, Allin and Punk (if he’s anywhere near top shape) are more than capable of telling a story in the ring that would make an Allin make sense in a way that even a Chicago crowd would understand and go along with, or at least begrudgingly accept. . Of course the crowd could light everything on fire within a three mile radius if Punk doesn’t win, so we should consider that heavily. Fonseca: I doubt CM Punk is losing this. I think he would totally put Darby Allin over, and there’s a world in which you could convince most people that he should, but nah, I don’t see it here and I don’t see it right now. Initially, I was going to keep this very brief because we generally kind of know what to expect. But regarding my preference, Sam’s totally convinced me that Punk should lose this. His case is excellent. Punk should lose a great match, but also, look a step slow in big spots, and then we get into the storyline of whether or not he still has it, which is what he wants to find out, and the people would be behind him 100-percent. This could draw out for a while (not too long) and have a massive payoff, where a victory against Allin or whoever could skyrocket Punk into being the old him and getting title opportunities and such, if he even needs that. Yeah, I’m in on a shocking Punk loss for the bigger picture. And, of course, this pushes Allin into God knows what. Relatedtop rated online sportsbooksnew legal sports betting sitesus sportsbook applive betting websitelive streaming sitessports betting apps with cash out