Tag: AEW All Out

10 best AEW PPVs of all time: Which AEW shows were the greatest so far?

AEW has put on some classic pay-per-views since it came into existence in 2019. Here’s our list of the top 10 to date.

No matter how you feel personally about All Elite Wrestling, there’s no denying the boost that the company has given the U.S. pro wrestling scene in just its first few years of existence. A truly healthy, strong alternative to WWE had been missing for more than a decade before AEW came to life in 2019, and almost anyone you ask in the business will tell you that it’s been a net positive.

One of AEW’s calling cards from the very start has been a strong offering of pay-per-view shows. Driven by his days as a wrestling fan, Tony Khan tries to load up each event in a way that he might have once dreamt about, and while they often tend to run a little long and occasionally seem to come together at the last minute, they nearly always deliver in terms of the in-ring product.

That makes picking the best AEW PPVs to date a bit challenging. Since the company has been cautious about not running too many big cards — though that’s starting to change with the addition of Forbidden Door in 2022 and All Out and WrestleDream in 2023 — it’s not like there have been a bunch of mediocre shows to help separate the ones that have shined brightest.

Still, if there’s one thing that unites wrestling fans, it’s opinions on which things are better than others, and no site is better for that than Cagematch. Using both the user votes on that site and Dave Meltzer’s ratings, we’ve cobbled together a bit of a consensus opinion on the top AEW PPVs, just like we did for WWE.

You’ll see that even the awe-inspiring backdrop of 80,000+ fans at Wembley Stadium in 2023 didn’t sway these ranking too much, since All In London isn’t even in the top 10.

Which shows are? You’ll have to read on to find out.

AEW All Out 2023: Best photos from Chicago

Check out some of the best photos from AEW All Out 2023, from the United Center in Chicago.

A pay-per-view just a week after the biggest event in company history? No problem, as it turns out. AEW All Out put any fears of living in the large shadow of All In London by presenting some thrilling in-ring action from the United Center in Chicago.

Relive some of the indelible moments from All Out 2023 here. (Images courtesy of All Elite Wrestling)

AEW All Out 2023 results: Mox, Takeshita, Danielson win big in Chicago

Get full AEW All Out 2023 results from the United Center in Chicago, where Jon Moxley and Konosuke Takeshita were among the big winners.

Has the week’s drama been put behind AEW? That’s what we’re about to find out as All Out originates from the United Center in Chicago.

As you’ve likely heard by now, Chicago’s favorite son won’t be on this show nor any other AEW show ever again. All the company can do now is try to move forward, something made a tiny bit harder by the fact that this is the company’s second pay-per-view in the span of a week.

It’s doing the best it can, as despite a card that has no AEW World Championship match, it’s not without a number of intriguing matchups. One will see Kenny Omega take on Konosuke Takeshita in what could be a bit of a passing of the torch. Another bout, potentially the night’s main event, will see Orange Cassidy try to defend his AEW International Championship against Jon Moxley in a pairing of two men who are arguably the MVPs of AEW over the past few years.

Ricky Starks, rumored to be the potential opponent for CM Punk before this week’s events, still gets a big showcase against Bryan Danielson, freshly returned from injury. And the irrepressible Darby Allin will throw his body around again in pursuit of the AEW TNT Championship.

This feels like a night where the in-ring work of a talented roster can, at least temporarily, wash away everything else. Let’s find out.

AEW All Out 2023 Zero Hour results:

  • Hangman Adam Page wins the Over Budget Charity Battle Royale
  • Hikaru Shida, Willow Nightingale and Skye Blue def. Athena, Diamante and Mercedes Martinez by pinfall
  • The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn def. Jay Lethal, Jeff Jarrett and Satnam Singh by pinfall to retain the AEW World Trios Championship

AEW All Out 2023 results – Main card:

(click on any match with a link for full details)

  • Adam Cole and MJF def. Dark Order (Alex Reynolds and John Silver) by pinfall to retain the ROH World Tag Team Championship
  • On his way out for his match, Samoa Joe shoves MJF, and the world champ makes a beeline for the ring to confront Joe; a ton of staffers and officials have to separate MJF and Joe as the crowd chants “let them fight”
  • Samoa Joe def. Shane Taylor by submission to retain the ROH World Television Championship
  •  Luchasaurus def. Darby Allin by pinfall to retain the AEW TNT Championship after Allin hesitates when Christian Cage threatens Nick Wayne with a Con-chair-to; a selection of random faces saves Darby from a post-match attack
  • Miro def. Powerhouse Hobbs by submission, but after an apparent sign of respect, Hobbs attacks Miro from behind and pummels him on the mat; Miro’s wife attacks Hobbs with a chair, allowing Miro to do the same, but he leaves without her
  • Kris Statlander def. Ruby Soho by pinfall to retain the AEW TBS Championship, with a strange assist by Toni Storm, who takes the spray paint can from Soho and distracts her to set up the finish
  • Bryan Danielson def. Ricky Starks by submission in a Strap match that also saw Big Bill and Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat get involved
  • Nigel McGuinness announces the $50K donation from the Battle Royale is going to The Chicago Public Education Fund in Page’s name
  • Blackpool Combat Club (Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta) def. Eddie Kingston and Katsuyori Shibata by pinfall
  • Konosuke Takeshita def. Kenny Omega by pinfall
  • Bullet Club Gold (Jay White, Juice Robinson and The Gunns) def. The Young Bucks and FTR by pinfall
  • Jon Moxley def. Orange Cassidy by pinfall to become the new AEW International Champion

AEW All Out 2023 results: Orange Cassidy’s stellar title run finally ends thanks to Jon Moxley

Despite an amazing effort in the main event of AEW All Out, Orange Cassidy ran into the one opponent even he couldn’t defeat.

The rest of the Blackpool Combat Club (including a bandaged Bryan Danielson) walks behind Jon Moxley until he comes out of the tunnel and through the crowd. Best Friends and Kris Statlander accompany Orange Cassidy as far as the entrance to the stage.

Cassidy is in no hurry to get after it when the bell rings, and we’ll see if Mox lets him do his shtick. Uh, no. No he won’t. Moxley hammers the champ with chops, then bites at his head in the corner.

Orange hits a dropkick but is quickly suplexed and grabs his already beaten up neck. Another suplex just makes it worse.

More chops and forearms land before Cassidy finds a rhythm with forearms and shoves into the top turnbuckle pad. Moxley stomps on Cassidy’s chest in return, but the Stundog Millionaire leads to a suicide dive. Moxley responds quickly, then chucks the champ to the floor.

Moxley slings his foe into the post, returning to the ring to see if Cassidy can join him. Orange is bleeding now and takes a kick to the head by the announce table. They head on top of the announce table, where Mox bites away at Cassidy’s cut. The ref loudly admonishes Moxley, giving Cassidy a chance to pick himself back up.

The ref makes his count, which Cassidy beats but runs right into a stalling piledriver for a near fall. Moxley just tears away at Cassidy’s face, keeping the blood flowing. Mox says to the camera that he’s the champ now, letting Cassidy have it with a series of crossface shots.

The fans try to rally Cassidy, but he’s on rubber legs. Moxley mocks him with his hands in his waistband, dropping the champ in the corner before they both end up on the top rope. Orange gives Mox a taste of his own medicine, raking his back and biting him before hitting a pair of DDTs.

Moxley dodges an Orange Punch and hits a series of straight rights, but the champ hits a PK and an Orange Punch for a near fall. Beach Break is countered by a Gotch-style piledriver, and after both men have pinning predicaments, Moxley grabs a bulldog choke. He has a body scissors on too, then looks for an armbar. Mox pivots to a LeBell Lock, and Cassidy is super bloody now. Cassidy swings his lower body around and gets his legs to the bottom rope to break the hold.

With Cassidy in agony on the floor, Moxley starts tearing up the ringside padding. Mox wants a piledriver on the uncovered floor, but the champ reverses it into a Beach Break and kicks Moxley’s head into the steel steps.

Mox stumbles around but barely beats the 10 count. Cassidy hits two Orange Punches, but on the third, Moxley counters with a cutter. Orange comes back with a third Orange Punch and a spear, but Mox kicks out at two.

Finally, Cassidy gets to put his hands in his pockets, but his calm kicks turn into frenzied ones. Alas, Mox hits a King Kong lariat, then another, but Orange kicks out at two.

Mox hits the Death Rider, and it appears it’s over until Cassidy barely rolls a shoulder up. Cassidy staggers to his feet and flips Mox the double bird, so Moxley hits a high angle Death Rider to finally end it and give us a new champion.

After Moxley leaves with the rest of the BCC, Cassidy finally rises to the cheers of the fans at the United Center. “Thank you Orange” chants ring out too, and he acknowledges the fans.

Click here for full AEW All Out 2023 results from Chicago.

AEW All Out 2023 results: Konosuke Takeshita earns huge victory over Kenny Omega

With Don Callis by his side, Konosuke Takeshita earned the biggest victory of his career at AEW All Out. See how he downed Kenny Omega.

The video segment that plays before this match starts reminds us of how this has been some good long form storytelling. The announcers remind us that Kenny Omega paid a physical price for his long world title reign, and that Don Callis was beside Omega through his surgeries and recovery.

Konosuke Takeshita certainly looks confident in the early going, delivering a nasty high angle backdrop driver that sends Kenny for a rough landing. A Helluva Kick smashes Omega along the barricade, but Kenny pays him right back with a moonsault off the barricade.

Takeshita eats a kick to the ribs and a dunk that gives Omega a near fall. A Indian Deathlock puts Takeshita in agony in the middle of the ring, but he gets free and runs the ropes to fly and send Omega to the canvas.

Omega’s hurricanrana attempt is countered with a flapjack into the turnbuckles. Takeshita follows with a sheer drop brainbuster on the floor, and he digs beneath the ring for multiple steel chairs. The ref tells Konosuke “no chairs” and tells him to get back in the ring. But it appears it was all a ruse anyway, as Callis stacks chairs on Omega and Takeshita flies out with a senton on the stack.

Another Helluva Kick in the ring sets up a Blue Thunder Bomb, but Omega is able to kick out at two. A senton gives Takeshita another two count, but he’s soon getting lit up with chops until his forearm can drop his foe again.

Omega smartly gets his knees up when Takeshita goes for another senton. Kenny hits a couple of Polish Hammers and a jumping knee to send Takeshita to the floor. A tope con hilo is on target as well, though Omega looks a little winded.

A nasty missile dropkick lands on Takeshita’s back, and a snapdragon suplex is next … then another. A poison rana sees Omega cover, but Takeshita is out at two.

Both men crack each other with stiff shots, and Takeshita runs over Omega with a huge lariat. Omega counters a powerbomb attempt with one of his own, and a running knee gives him another near fall.

A V-Trigger has Omega thinking One-Winged Angel, but Takeshita hits the next two moves, and both earn near falls. Konosuke hangs on with a waistlock, but Omega frees himself for strikes. Now they’re both cracking each other until Kenny connects on a leg lariat to the back of his foe’s head.

Another V-Trigger lands in the corner, and Callis looks panicked. Kenny wants an Avalanche One-Winged Angel, but Takeshita escapes and lands a breathtaking Avalanche Blue Thunder Bomb. The cover is a little slow, so Omega is barely able to kick out in time.

A nasty knee shot finds the mark, but Omega is able to kick out again. Callis gets out the screwdriver but misses his shot, leaving it in the mat. Omega hits a knee strike and V-Trigger, and a wild sequence sees Takeshita grab the screwdriver, get disarmed by the ref, and almost pin Kenny again.

Konosuke exposes his knee, smashes Omega again, and this time, not even Kenny can beat the three count. Huge win for a still rising star.

Click here for full AEW All Out 2023 results.

AEW All Out 2023 results: Bryan Danielson outlasts Ricky Starks in wild Strap match

It was bloody and brutal, but Bryan Danielson managed to survive a Strap match with Ricky Starks. Get full details of their All Out bout.

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat joins the announce team to keep a closer eye on this one. Bryan Danielson once again has “The Final Countdown” as his entrance theme, which is great. Ricky Starks doesn’t get the strap attached to his wrist right away, and he attacks Danielson with a weight belt before the match even officially starts.

Finally, Ricky decides to let himself get strapped up, and the match gets underway with Danielson already bleeding. Starks strikes his pose as they fight from the outside back into the ring, covering for a two count.

The crowd boos as Starks mocks Danielson’s “yes” chant. He wraps the strap around his foe’s neck, and Bryan’s face is full of blood as he crawls to the corner. A headbutt finally allows Danielson to drive Starks back, but Ricky snaps the strap across the side of his head on the apron.

Starks’ decision to go up top may cost him, as Danielson slithers back out of the corner and brings the strap hard across his opponent’s back repeatedly. With Starks in the Tree of Woe, he takes more shots from the leather across his chest. Ouch.

Low kicks from Danielson smack into Starks’ face as he remains upside-down. His shoulder is dragged into the post as well, and the fans are chanting “yes” in support of the American Dragon.

With the strap wrapped all the way around him, Starks is opened up as his face is dragged against the post. Steamboat reminds the announcers that it was Starks who wanted a Strap match.

Starks eats a series of kicks in the corner, but then comes charging out with a desperation lariat. Both men rise slowly, forehead to forehead, and just wail away on each other with the strap.

Danielson asks for more and seems to discourage Starks with his sheer toughness. He blasts Starks with kicks, but Big Bill is on the apron to attack the American Dragon. Steamboat hauls Bill off the apron, and just when it appears the legend is in trouble, Danielson tosses Starks out then flies and lands on both of them.

Back in the ring, Starks hits a spear and is agonized when Danielson kicks out. A running knee shot comes the other way, and Starks kicks out in turn.

Danielson is able to get the LeBell Lock in, then uses the strap to choke Ricky instead. Starks yells “no” but ends up going out, giving Danielson the win.

Click here for full AEW All Out 2023 results.

No one wins from CM Punk’s departure from AEW

AEW had to fire CM Punk. But things should never have reached this point.

After two years of drama, fights and sneak dissing through the media, the CM Punk saga in All Elite Wrestling has ended.

On Saturday, AEW founder Tony Khan released a statement through the promotion’s social media platforms that officially announced that he — and he alone — terminated Punk’s contract with cause, effective immediately.

The announcement came hours before AEW presented Collision in Punk’s hometown of Chicago and one day before AEW hosted its second pay-per-view in as many weeks … also in Punk’s hometown. It could get pretty awkward for AEW this weekend in the Windy City.

This may come as a surprise (this is sarcasm), but the discourse around Punk’s departure on social media was devoid of any nuance. One on side, you had people loving the fact Khan finally put his foot down while the other side was lamenting the fact that AEW’s biggest moneymaker — Khan’s words, not mine — was now gone.

In my eyes, there is only one way to look at the entirety of this situation: Everyone loses.

Punk loses because he lost his job with a promotion that gave him basically everything he wanted, including his own prime time show.

AEW loses because … it had to fire Punk. I highly doubt when AEW first signed Punk, it was hoping to fire the guy two years in. Also, Punk could feasibly waltz right over to WWE and make his long-awaited return. While that is not guaranteed, if it does happen, that does obviously not help AEW.

I know some people saw Punk as a cancer inside AEW’s locker room and that his unceremonious exit is merely addition by subtraction. Given all of the reported drama, Punk hurting the morale of the locker room doesn’t sound like something that is outside of the realm of possibility.

However, Punk was the promotion’s top draw. Again, those were Khan’s words, not mine. How does a promotion losing its most notable star help? The locker room sans Punk could very well be a healthier work environment, but that does not guarantee AEW sells more tickets or gains more viewers on television. It just means everyone likes each other and nothing more. It does not guarantee that it will translate to a hot product on screen. Sure, it could help, but those results are not promised.

Two sides not being fond of each other is nothing new in professional wrestling. We have all watched and listened to countless documentaries and podcasts about the drama behind the scenes in professional wrestling. Hell, it’s basically the entire ethos behind the industry’s premiere docu-series, “Dark Side of the Ring.”

Yet AEW seemingly had no idea how to handle all of the egos at play, let the situation grow out of control, and lost its stop star as a result.

At the end of the day, this should have been nipped in the bud a long, long time ago. I figured the melee at last year’s All Out would be the worst of it. I figured all of these grown adults would learn from that embarrassment and either get on the same page or eventually just let bygones be bygones.

Instead, they did neither, making themselves look very immature in the process. On top of that, the drama overshadows all of the quality wrestling AEW produces on a weekly basis. Even when AEW set a world paid attendance record for pro wrestling last week at Wembley Stadium, most people were discussing the nonsense involving the AEW locker room and how messy it was.

To me, all of that did a disservice to everyone who helped AEW reach such exemplary heights.

So what now? For Punk, it could mean a return to WWE. It could also mean he is done with wrestling all together. For AEW, it is time to pick up the pieces from a disaster it could have avoided months ago. Ideally, AEW — from top to bottom — will learn from this situation and never allow it to be replicated again. Because what good actually comes from it all?

Regardless of what happens next, we should look back on Punk’s two-year term with AEW as a slew of missed opportunities due to egos that were never put in check.

And because of that, everyone lost.

Darby Allin not 100% for AEW All Out: ‘I really messed my spine up’

An ailing back isn’t going to keep Darby Allin out of AEW All Out, however.

Darby Allin‘s daring stunts often make the crowd pop or feel squeamish, especially when he attempts his signature Coffin Drop. He either hits it spectacularly or misses it completely, resulting in a hard crash onto the ring apron or another part of the ring.

In his Coffin match with Sting against Swerve Strickland and Christian Cage at All In, Allin missed a Coffin Drop where he landed on his back on the metal coffin being used in the match. To anyone’s eye, it looked bold but excruciatingly painful.

At All Out on Sunday, Allin will face Luchasaurus for the TNT Championship, but it seems the challenger is entering the bout injured after the failed coffin drop. He admitted to CBS Chicago that he “really messed my spine up” from the spot (h/t Fightful for transcription).

“I’m not 100%. We had a show in London, I really messed my spine up. I’m trying to take it easy before Sunday,” he said. “My lower back is really banged up. At the show in Wembley, I jumped off the top rope and landed on a metal coffin on my lower spine. Luchasaurus, he’s a huge dude. I think a lot of it has to do with where I’m willing to go in that ring. A lot of people aren’t willing to go where I’m willing to go mentally. I can take a big butt kicking. When things are going, there are things I’m capable of that I believe nobody else is.”

When asked if his All Out status was in question, Allin laid it out clearly:

“No, I can touch my toes still, so I’m good.”

Allin sounds determined not to miss any time unless it’s drastic, and his words show that he will push himself to the brink in the ring. With another marquee match set for Sunday, the two-time TNT Champion has another chance to showcase his daredevil moves.

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Tony Khan hopes to have CM Punk’s status cleared up by Sunday ahead of All Out

It’s not out of the question that CM Punk could still be added to AEW All Out on Sunday, but it’s far from a sure thing.

Is there still hope for the suspended CM Punk to make an appearance or even wrestle at All Out this weekend in front of his hometown Chicago fans? AEW CEO, GM and head of creative Tony Khan left the door open ever so slightly toward the end of his customary pre-PPV media call on Thursday.

Asked by Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics whether there would be an update on Punk’s status ahead of the show, Khan said that was his plan.

“That is my goal,” Khan said. “And I promise, that is what I hope, that we have a resolution. I don’t expect a full resolution, but I at least expect more information by then, and I’m going to keep working on it. It’s a challenging situation, to say the least.”

Khan was asked earlier in the call for updates on Punk and Jack Perry, both of whom are reportedly suspended after they had a physical altercation during All In London at Wembley Stadium last weekend. He noted that the “incident” was still under investigation and he couldn’t comment about it at this time. Khan also declined to comment on a query by Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp concerning reports that he had spoken to Punk prior to the show and any alleged frustrations expressed.

AEW is handling the Punk-Perry incident in a similar manner to the infamous dust-up between Punk and The Elite following All Out. No suspensions were ever publicly announced, but Punk, Kenny Omega, Matt and Nick Jackson were suspended, among others, until the fact-finding process was complete.

The urgency this time around is heightened since All Out is now just two days away. If Punk is cleared of wrongdoing enough in the eyes of AEW by Sunday that he can be reinstated, it sounds like we’ll know before the broadcast goes live from the United Center.

Why Ricky Starks might be the big loser from the CM Punk-Jack Perry All In altercation

The AEW All In backstage drama may have cost Ricky Starks a big match.

The backstage altercation between CM Punk and Jack Perry at AEW All In was obviously suboptimal for a company in the middle of its biggest show ever. It’s also less than ideal for Punk to be suspended for All Out this weekend in Chicago (assuming his suspension lasts that long), where he’s the biggest draw. Yet there’s also collateral damage in situations like this in the form of opportunity costs to other talent.

In this case, that sounds like it applies to Ricky Starks. While he’s been serving a storyline suspension, it conveniently was timed so that he could have a match at All Out on Sunday, though he’s nowhere to be found on the card.

According to Fightful Select (subscription required), there’s a reason for that: He was being considered for a match with Punk.

One of the matches on the table was CM Punk vs. Ricky Starks for the AEW Real Worlds Championship, which would have followed up their series of matches that went down this summer. From what we’ve heard it likely would have been the main event. There’s no word on the status of the match now that CM Punk was suspended after his physical altercation with Jack Perry.

AEW has certainly pushed Starks as a bigger star and given him more of a spotlight since Collision launched this summer, but his most recent plot twist that has kept him out of the ring has robbed him of some momentum (for what it’s worth, Fightful also says he isn’t injured).

A main event spot with Punk in Chicago obviously would have made up for that in a big way, but it’s possible that opportunity has fallen by the wayside if Punk is out of the picture for All Out.

That looks like the case, since Tony Khan has promoted a different potential match for Starks based on this Saturday’s episode of Collision:

 

A match against a legend like Ricky Steamboat isn’t nothing, and it makes sense in the context of Starks beating him down with a belt earlier this month. It’s just not the same as competing against the biggest name in the company in that person’s hometown.

Hopefully AEW finds a way to do right by Starks in the near future, but his predicament is a good example of how the kind of backstage drama that popped up again at All In can affect more than just the people involved.