AEW’s annual Full Gear PPV will take place Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
The card is full of interesting matches — and few of those will involve the defending of titles. Let’s break down the matches and what to expect.
“Big Boom!” AJ vs. QT Marshall
Yep, the father of ‘The Costco Guys’ was at one time a professional wrestler on the independent scene throughout the East Coast. We’ve seen this match promoted across several mediums, including on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon where ‘Big Boom’ AJ, Big Justice, and The Rizzler (yes, this is a real sentence) appeared as guests.
We can’t see AJ losing this match, if for nothing else the family’s branding doesn’t get a whole lot out of being defeated. With The Rizzler slated to be in attendance, Marshall will put this TikTok group over in what will be a preshow match.
Private Party (c) vs. The Outrunners vs. The Acclaimed vs. Kings of the Black Throne
Private Party will square off versus three other tag teams in what’s being billed as a Fatal 4-Way match. Having won the AEW Tag Team titles less than a month ago, it’d be pretty cruel for Private Party to drop the belts here in this match which features four tag teams having distinctly different styles.
It’s the first time Private Party will have defended the belts, and as such they likely will retain here.
Switchblade Jay White vs. Hangman Adam Page
This should be a banger of a match. These two professionals are highly competitive — not to mention technically gifted in the ring.
We’ve already seen Hangman take out White once in recent memory. With the gifted nature of both wrestlers, it wouldn’t be shocking to see AEW try and drag this rivalry out as long as possible. White winning here would make the most sense given his standing as an elite talent. Seeing him dropped twice in a row versus Page wouldn’t be conventional nor appropriate.
Kyle Fletcher vs. Will Ospreay
Speaking of talented wrestlers, these two could offer the best match of the PPV.
Ospreay is easily among the most gifted performers in the sport across the world today. Fletcher is no slouch, either — offering an impressive combination of power and gracefulness in the ring. Based on the storyline centering around a past history coupled with deceit, the energy surrounding this match should pop off the screen for those watching at home.
For those in attendance, we could envision a scenario where this match gets the biggest pop of the night.
Swerve Strickland vs. Bobby Lashley
This match is a curious one. Strickland is bar none one of the biggest stars on the roster to date. He’s worked tremendously hard to get to where he is today.
Lasley recently joined the roster, and his background/history as a professional wrestler speaks for itself. Strickland is already over with the fan base. This could lead to a Lashley victory — which would in turn build some momentum for himself and his Hurt Syndicate faction.
Jon Moxley (c) vs. Orange Cassidy
We’ll be blunt…this match doesn’t offer much in the way of interest or intrigue.
AEW has clearly put all of its chips into the Moxley basket. He’s all over the company’s programming, and it’s clear his influence is quite prominent given the coverage of his new faction, the Death Riders.
There’s little chance he’ll drop the match in this contest. Orange Cassidy might be a bit of a novelty, and he’s certainly a darling to those who love the independent scene. Having said that, the thought of Cassidy being the face of a wrestling promotion — where he’ll have to cut captivating promos at the very least — seems like a pipe dream.
MJF vs. Roderick Strong
With all due respect to Strong, he’s not the type of leading figure within the company to take down MJF on a PPV.
Strong is a terrific worker and a very good talent. There’s no doubting that. With that said, MJF is not losing a match on this stage to Roderick Strong.
Kris Statlander vs. Mercedes Mone (c)
Mone’s title reign has been, shall we say, dull.
The popularity she once held in WWE has not translated within AEW fanbase circles. Statlander is a very good competitor, and her prowess in the ring has gotten visibly better over the last calendar year.
With Mone having not lost a match yet in AEW, we’re not sure Statlander has the gravitas required to defeat Mone here. Instead, we’d think Mone will win here to set up a match versus someone with a higher profile — say Jamie Hayter?
Daniel Garcia vs. Jack Perry (c)
There’s some real heat surrounding this match.
It wouldn’t be shocking to see this become the match of Garcia’s career up to this point. The company has warded off rumored interest from WWE by pushing Garcia in a real way. He should be considered a real pillar within AEW moving forward. His ‘everyman’ look resonates with fans, and he continues to improve on the mic.
Jack Perry’s arc as a heel has been good for his career as well. The current holder of the TNT Championship, this could also become a rivalry where Garcia wins the belt here only for Perry to be bloodthirsty in wanting to reclaim it in the following months.
Either way, this could end up the best match on the card.
