Can’t Knock The Hustle: AEW’s Championship Future
*By Request*
“This is going to be a very important year for AEW and people like me are wanting to look ahead or fantasy book things. My column request is for you to fantasy book AEW. Not full booking and making stories but like the people you think should win all the AEW titles over the rest of the year. I know you did a similar column to this in the past but this is kinda different. If you want you can do this for WWE but I’m more of an AEW fan so I’m more interested in your thoughts on them. Thanks.”
As he said, I have done similar columns to this idea in the past. Who should be the next Intercontinental Champion? The next AEW Tag Team Champions? Next NXT Women’s Champion? That sort of deal.
After clarifying the request, his idea was for me to not just look at the next champions in AEW, but perhaps the ones after that, and after that, and after that, and so on. I’m going to try and work for the rest of 2024 as much as possible, so I’m not trying to talk about the TBS Champion in 2031 and make a super lengthy list of champions.
Like the request said, this is about who I feel should be the champions, not who I think will be the champions.
I guess I’ll start my way from the “bottom” of the title scene and work my way up to the AEW World Title. That makes sense.
Trios Titles: Honestly, I don’t even care who does it, but the titles need to leave The Acclaimed as soon as possible. Their act is still popular with live crowds, but it is nowhere near as popular as it was in 2022 when Anthony Bowens and Max Caster were chasing after the Tag Team Titles. Since the inception of the Trios Titles, the division has been all about the wildest and craziest six-man matches possible, with The Elite, Death Triangle, and House Of Black tearing it up on a weekly basis. Now, The Acclaimed have brought that momentum to a screeching halt. In my opinion, there hasn’t been an Acclaimed match that was better than “pretty decent” since December 2022, when Bowens and Caster defended the Tag Team Titles against FTR.
I’m of the thinking, like many of you, that pairing The Acclaimed with Bullet Club isn’t going to be a long-term thing. It certainly shouldn’t be. I wouldn’t call myself the biggest Jay White fan in the world, but holy shit, he’s someone that was the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion at the beginning of the 2023 calendar year, and now, he might be the 73rd most important member of the AEW roster, and not because there are actually 72 more important people on the roster right now. Let’s cut the shit, and let’s get to the “turn” already, so that Bullet Club Gold can become the new Trios Champions.
If Switchblade and The Gunns can rebuild a lot of the prestige that the Trios Titles had before, they should have a relatively lengthy reign. Eventually, they can drop the titles to another team that can continue the tradition of exciting trios matches. They’re also a group that probably deserves better than what they’ve been given… when healthy. That last hint should give it away. Let’s have Bullet Club Gold eventually drop the titles to Top Flight & Action Andretti. By this point, I would hope that the Trios Championships are getting viewed as very important again.
TBS Title: I’ve said this in my columns before, but I really give Julia Hart a ton of credit for how much she has improved since she began her time with AEW. Her in-ring work has gotten better month-by-month, and her character work with the House Of Black is heads and shoulders better than anything she was doing before that. She is currently out of action with an undisclosed injury, with no word on when she might return to the ring, but as of now, news hasn’t stated that her hiatus would be long enough to require her title be taken away from her.
The TBS Championship started as a vehicle to make Jade Cargill a superstar, then became a vehicle to try and create a superstar out of Kris Statlander for beating Jade Cargill, and then became a vehicle to solidify the transformation that Julia Hart had gone through. New, new, new. What if we went in another direction for the next champion? How about someone that is, to varying degrees, already established? There are a few options you could go with if you’re looking to do that, and what helps is that AEW has shown they aren’t afraid of blurring the “Face vs Heel” lines, or ignoring them altogether. Face vs Face. Heel vs Heel. Tweener vs Tweener. If it will create a good match, AEW will do that. Julia Hart is going to get cheers from a good portion of the live audience, no matter what she’s doing, and no matter what the rest of House Of Black is doing.
My choice here is someone who arrived in AEW with a good amount of fanfare, only to suffer from the tale-as-old-as-time with AEW booking, getting completely lost in the mix with 16,000 contracted wrestlers on the roster. Let’s give Ruby Soho a run with the title, and attempt to rebuild her a bit.
Let’s continue the rebuilding theme. Why the hell not? While this next woman didn’t show up in AEW with quite the same level of buzz that Ruby had, she’s still someone who has been really underutilized. She hasn’t won a match on television since an episode of Collision seven months ago. That’s a shame. I really do think that Taya Valkyrie is someone that could have a good run as the TBS Champion.
Just for fun, let’s go with another name here. Unlike my previous two picks, this isn’t someone who needs to be rebuilt at all. She’s still really new to the AEW scene, but in this scenario, we’ll be months down the road. That should give Queen Aminata more than enough time to become a legitimate title contender. She has the potential to be special one day in the not-too-distant future.
TNT Title: Jeff Hardy, then Bully Ray, then Adam Copeland, then Matt Hardy, then Brother Devon, with plenty of tables, ladders, and chairs involved in all the matches. Easy enough, right?
In all seriousness, it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if we got some sort of variation on what I just typed out. Would it surprise you if either of the Hardy brothers worked with Christian Cage and actually defeated him? I don’t think it will happen, but again, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Since I’m the one doing the booking here, so to speak, I’m going in another direction. I want Christian to have a lengthy reign as the TNT Champion. He’s 50 years old, but he might be doing the best overall work of his entire career right now. On top of that, the TNT Title could really… REALLY… use a lengthy reign. The title made its debut 45 months ago, and in that time, we’re now on the 23rd overall reign. Let Christian do his thing for a while, hopefully making the title mean something again, and then he can drop it to…
Nick Wayne.
This is pro wrestling, after all. Every team/group has to split up eventually, even if they haven’t been together for all that long in the first place. Nick Wayne has been destined for greatness in AEW ever since Darby Allin handed him an AEW contract when Wayne was only 16 years old. Put those ingredients together, and you’re going to end up with a storyline where Nick ends up seeing through the bullshit that his “father” is putting out. The kid’s face makes him easy to hate, but his in-ring work makes him easy to love. It could be quite the moment if/when he turns face and steps away from Christian.
A long title reign for Christian, followed by a potential star-making title reign for Nick Wayne. That’s it, but that’s all I need here.
International Champion: With the way this title gets defended, it’s one of those championships that almost anybody could be the next champion, the champion after that, and so on.
I’ve said before that I would love to see more to the depth of what comes with the International Title. Sure, it’s fun to see some really fun matches on a weekly basis, but I want some story to go with it. That makes pro wrestling a lot more interesting.
For my next champion selection, it has to be someone that can keep up the tradition of being able to face off with anyone on the roster and being capable of having good-to-great matches with all of them. However, it’s also someone that has a character which will allow them to tell more of a story than Orange Cassidy. That’s not a knock on Cassidy at all. It’s not unfair to say that his character means he always has a bit of a ceiling above him.
What about Brody King?
The House Of Black was, obviously, put together to be a showcase for Malakai Black. As time has gone by, though, it’s Brody King that has proven to be the most valuable member of the group. He is one of the most terrifying looking men in the business, and as he has shown (especially during the Continental Classic) repeatedly, he can “go” in the ring.
Honestly, if you wanted to replace Brody with either Malakai Black or Buddy Matthews here, I wouldn’t be mad at you. I would curse you to suffer from wet socks for the rest of eternity, but I wouldn’t be mad at you.
If Brody is going to be such a terror, it should be a big deal when he is finally toppled and loses the title. My pick here is someone that AEW fans love and are waiting to see reach the next level. He’s also someone that is capable of having the type of matches that the International Title has become famous for in its brief existence. Daniel Garcia, you’re up. He is finally washing the stink of Chris Jericho off, and has been able to show more of a personality recently to go with his already top notch in-ring work. He deserves to be elevated, and soon.
Tag Team Titles: I’m going to cheat just a bit here. We know that Sting and Darby Allin are going to defend the titles against The Young Bucks at Revolution, and we know that it’s going to be Sting’s retirement match. That means there’s a debate on whether or not Sting should end his AEW run undefeated or not. I don’t think there should be a hard rule on that kind of thing, and wrestlers having undefeated streaks or how they end their time with a company should be handled on a case-by-case basis. Sting has, literally and figuratively, put zero people over since coming to AEW. The only person who has gotten anything out of his time there is Darby, and since we’re not getting Sting vs Darby, Sting should definitely lose on his way out the door.
My problem is that I wouldn’t have had him lose to the Bucks. They damn sure don’t need the “rub” that could/would come with handing Sting his only loss in AEW, his first loss in eight-and-a-half years, and his first loss in a tag match in nearly ten-and-a-half years. Unfortunately, I don’t need a story that sees Sting and Darby win, followed by Darby relinquishing the titles after Sting’s retirement, leading to another fucking tournament in AEW. Therefore, let’s just go with the next champions being The Young Bucks.
Where do you go from there, though?
Do you have the Bucks rekindle feuds with teams like FTR or The Lucha Brothers? Matt Taven and Mike Bennett? Top Flight? Any combination of The House Of Black? Some combination of the Blackpool Combat Club? The Gunns? Private Party? The Hardys? Aussie Open, whenever Mark Davis returns to the ring after breaking his wrist? As you can see, the tag division is pretty loaded. There are a ton of options, but I will be forever sad that Santana and Ortiz probably won’t ever be the Tag Team Champions in AEW.
Even though I’m not necessarily a fan of the Bucks being placed in the spot with Sting and Darby, people do seem to be reacting to their new heel roles, and that’s really what matters.
I would like to see Lucha Brothers reach the top of the tag mountain. It has been over two years since they last held the Tag Team Titles, and strangely enough, their one run as the champions came after they defeated the Bucks.
If we’re going to look even further down the road, the team I would have dethrone the Lucha Brothers is a duo that has been dealing with injuries and/or terrible booking for a while. Getting Private Party as far away from Matt Hardy as physically possible would be the best first step for them, and then… and only then… should they be considered contenders on this level. They’ve been one of the most exciting teams on the roster since they debuted in AEW, so it might be time to see about getting them to the next level.
Continental Crown Champion: I still don’t like the idea of combining the three titles and making a “Triple Crown” deal, but that’s a different argument for a different day.
If I’m going to be completely honest and transparent with you, I don’t even know what I would do with the Continental Crown. I’m not sure what direction AEW wants to go with it, or if AEW even knows what direction they want to go with it. The Continental Title is brand new and might as well be completely fictional, while the RoH World Title, like all RoH titles, isn’t exactly treated like a big deal. Then you have the Strong Openweight Title, which is, technically, a New Japan title, but for its American program, even though it does get featured in Japan… and AEW… and RoH.
Just bring Toshiaki Kawada out of retirement and have him beat Kingston. It would be his first match in nearly 14 years, but at least Eddie would be honored to do the job to his hero and idol in the business.
I’m barely serious with the Kawada nomination, of course. I just don’t know what else to say here.
Women’s Champion: Character-wise, there aren’t many people in the entire business doing better work than “Timeless” Toni Storm right now. Yes, you could make the argument that the character work bleeds too much into her matches, and that has affected the quality there, but overall, she’s doing great things.
When it comes to the woman who will eventually take the Women’s Title from Toni, I think there’s a pretty obvious choice that is on everyone’s minds. Someone who is reportedly set to make her AEW debut next month, and who is rumored to be making “Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair” levels of money. I’m of the thinking that you shouldn’t be bringing someone like Mercedes Moné in and not making her the main focus of the entire women’s division. From day one, she will be the biggest star that the division has ever seen, and it isn’t even close. I’d have no problem putting the title on her somewhat soon after her debut. She’s going to bring so much more attention to the title than anyone else could.
Because of Mercedes’ star power in comparison to the rest of the division, that presents an interesting situation when it comes to who should eventually defeat her. Do you give that role to someone else is a major star, or do you try to go for another star-making situation by building someone up? Depending on the woman, both of those scenarios could work. Personally, I’d go with someone like Jamie Hayter. She is exactly the type of wrestler that Mercedes is going to be pushing to work with, and they could have some really fun matches together.
World Champion: I’ll tell you this much… if Swerve Strickland isn’t the next World Champion, Tony Khan should be investigated by the FBI, CDC, ABC, NFL, and LAX. Swerve is my pick for who WILL be the next champion, and he’s my pick for who SHOULD be the next champion.
If you’ve been a reader of mine for a bit, you probably have a good idea of where I’m going next. Just like it is long overdue to crown Swerve Strickland as the top guy in AEW, it is also long overdue to crown this next man as the top guy in AEW. 2024 can be a huge year for both of them. If Swerve gets his time to shine, then I’d have Konosuke Takeshita shine next. There might not be anyone in all of wrestling who has seen their stock go up as much as Takeshita’s has over the last year or so.
Next up, I’d go with another first-time AEW World Champion. This would be a great way for the company to try and expand, showing that they aren’t only about signing WWE stars or pushing the EVP’s and their buddies. Swerve is ready, and live crowds are ready for him. Takeshita is ready, and live crowds are ready for him. Will Ospreay is also ready, and live crowds are going to be ready for him. With Ospreay and Takeshita facing each other at Revolution, that makes an easy path for them to face off for the World Title down the road. Have Ospreay win at Revolution, and he can use that as taunting leverage to goad Takeshita into defending the World Title against him.
Time to turn things over to you again. Who would you crown as the next champions in AEW? You don’t have to do all of the titles, and you don’t have to book too far into the future, but give me a general idea of where you’d be taking the company if you were in charge. As always, feel free to hit me up in the comments section below, or on Twitter (@HustleTheSavage), and let me know what’s on your mind.
Now, let’s keep things rolling along with my Weekly Power Rankings, followed by finishing things off with the playlist of music I was listening to as I put this very column together.
Weekly Power Rankings
Jon Moxley vs Dax Harwood: A real old school fight, with two of the toughest men in the business beating the hell out of each other for nearly 20 minutes. What more do you need?
Tony D’Angelo & Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo vs Baron Corbin & Bron Breakker: I find it hilarious that the pairing of Corbin and Breakker has been a complete success so far, damn near turning both men face in the process. They both seem like they’re having a lot of fun, as if they’ve been best friends for decades and are finally getting a chance to work together.
Sami Zayn vs Shinsuke Nakamura: It wasn’t as good as their match at NXT Takeover: Dallas in 2016, but this was still a lot of fun. As an added bonus, it was good to give Nakamura a big singles win. Do you consider The Miz a “top tier” name in WWE? If so, then Nakamura’s win over Miz on the May 15th, 2023 episode of Raw was the last time Nakamura had a televised singles win against people of that level. For those who don’t feel Miz is on that level, you have to go back to the May 20th, 2022 episode of Smackdown, when Nakamura defeated… Sami Zayn. It’s something. I’ll take it.
Bron Breakker: He and Corbin win the NXT Tag Team Titles, and then Bron officially becomes a member of the Smackdown roster three days later. Big week for someone who could very well be the future of WWE.
Orange Cassidy vs Matt Taven: I like Matt Taven, but man, it was really weird to see him in the main event of Dynamite. It was only his second singles match on AEW television since he joined the company, and the first match was right before Halloween 2022. This was a fun match. It was a Texas Death Match, but not quite on the same level of violence that we often see from those types of matches in AEW.
Jey Uso, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods vs Imperium: More build for Jey’s shot at Gunther and the Intercontinental Title. More than most of Gunther’s opponents, it seems like fans feel that Jey could be the one to come along and end the record-setting title reign. With the Brock Lesnar “dream match” seemingly out of the question for Gunther now, it could be Jey’s time.
Kevin Owens vs Dominik Mysterio: Dom continues to make great improvements in all aspects of his game. He’s going to be a future World Champion in WWE, and that’s a crazy thing to even “say” out loud.
The Rock: It was a bit dated, compared to more modern day promo styles, but that was a high quality promo from The Rock. He stepped right back into a heel role for the first time in forever, and he proved that he didn’t miss a beat. The crowd in Salt Lake City, Utah was hanging on every word he said.
The Miz vs Logan Paul: It was Logan’s first match on WWE television, and he helped to round out a loaded cast of characters in the Elimination Chamber match. Simple. Effective.
Top Flight vs The Young Bucks: Exciting stuff. It wasn’t a Match Of The Year classic or anything, but it wasn’t designed to be, and that’s perfectly acceptable.
This Week’s Playlist: “CONTIGO” by KAROL G & Tiësto… “Yeern 101” by ScHoolboy Q… “Everything” by Yelawolf… “HIVEMIND” by The Browning… “Bradford Death Squadron” by Bokassa & Aaron Beam… “THROUGH THE VALLEY” by TEZ & AJ Francis… “FINALLY FREE” by TEZ… “FRIEDAY” by TEZ & AJ Francis… “SINNER’S PRAYER” by TEZ & Josiah Williams… “BETRAYED” by TEZ & AJ Francis… “BOWNCE” by TEZ & Jay Marr… “09 D. ROSE (ROOKIE YEAR)” by TEZ… “THANK YOU” by TEZ & AJ Francis… “On My Block” by Scarface… “Choose U” by Project Pat… “Whip It” by BigXThaPlug… “Welcome To The Jungle” by Guns N Roses… “Nightrain” by Guns N Roses… “Mr. Brownstone” by Guns N Roses… “Paradise City” by Guns N Roses… “Think About You” by Guns N Roses… “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N Roses… “Rocket Queen” by Guns N Roses… “Still Loving You” by Scorpions… “Welcome Home” by Coheed and Cambria
