AEW Full Gear Predictions

It's time for another AEW PPV, and for the third time this year, I've taken time away from writing books to write predictions about another type of storytelling.

For those of you who don't know, I've been a pro wrestling fan since I was a kid. The mixture of action, violence, and stories is so addicting that I still am.

So let's get into the fun of predicting what's going to happen in AEW Full Gear 2025

2025 Predictions Record: 17-2

Here we go! Time for more storytelling via professional wrestling. Beautiful violence and loveable/detestable characters. Doesn’t get any better. Let’s get into AEW’s next card, coming up this Saturday.

Like all their recent PPVs, Full Gear will open with a Tailgate Brawl to give time to as many wrestlers on their roster (and not on their roster, and not even wrestlers) as possible. This is the free stuff you can check out to determine if you want to buy the PPV. Considering that, AEW isn’t really enticing anyone with this PPV’s Tailgate Brawl--by far, their weakest one to date, so let’s get this over with.

Big Boom AJ/OT Marshall vs Rocky Romera/Trent Beretta

Someone wake me up when this is over. If you’re connected to AEW circles, please plant a bug in Tony Khan’s ear to stop putting Big Boom AJ on TV. Please. This only ends one way: kowtowing to social media and giving them a win over respectable wrestlers like Rocky and Trent. Let’s hope it doesn’t get more than 2 minutes of ring time.

Winners: Big Boom AJ/QT Marshall

$200,000 Four-Way: Max Caster/Anthony Bowens vs Juice Robinson/Austin Gunn vs Big Bill/Bryan Keith vs Turbo Floyd/Truth Magnum

Half of these teams don’t have stories (and haven’t for a long time. What’s weird is that Juice Robinson and Austin Gunn really don’t either. Only Max Caster and Anthony Bowens enjoy any sort of story, and its one about their failed singles run and being forced by circumstances to work together again. It’s hardly compelling. The 2nd of two uninteresting matches to “make me” want to buy the PPV… I only see one outcome, where the team that dislikes each other is forced to continue on because they just “won” $200k. Sad, what AEW did to them.

Winner: Max Caster/Anthony Bowens

CMLL World Trios Championship

Mistico/Mascara Dorada/Neon vs Kazuchika Okada/Hechicero/Konosuke Takeshita

Let’s be real, this is all about adding some excitement to a tame Tailgate Brawl. Likely the third of three tag matches… Interesting that there aren’t any singles matches (as of the time of writing this). This is all about AEW working with another promotion (which is very cool and something WWE only started doing when they saw that us wrestling fans actually are smart enough to know that things outside the WWE exist (and 99% of the time, are far better products). That, plus the fact that we’re building toward Okada and Takeshita hating each other and fighting for a New Japan title, means only one thing… well, two, if you consider that this painful Tailgate Brawl will end after this:

Winners: Mistico/Mascara Dorada/Neon retain the CMLL Trios Titles!

Main Card

Four-Way Tag Match: Toni Storm/Mina Shirakawa vs Megan Bayne/Marina Shafir vs Willow Nightingale/Harley Cameron vs Jula Hart/Skye Blue

The stipulation of the match is that whoever wins, gets to choose the stipulations for the semifinals of the tournament to crown the first-ever (and long overdue) women’s tag team championship. Though it isn’t clear of the stipulation is for both semis or just the winner’s, it’s still a fun concept. This makes me happy. I thought they were going to cheat the women into a 4-way for the titles on this PPV (cutting short what’s been a fun tournament). Because it’s not the final for the belts, that makes predicting the outcome far more difficult and interesting. Because Bayne/Shafir are the most intimidating but rawest tag team, it doesn’t seem like they’ll get to choose. Hart and Blue have the devious Tekla to turn the tables at the last moment, and could come up with the most interesting stipulation that would favor them (since they’re the least believable team of the 4 who could be champs in the end. So….

Winners: Julia Hart/Skye Blue win & choose a far more interesting stipulation for the remainder of the women’s tournament than anyone else would.

PAC vs Darby Allin

PAC has been trying (and succeeding) at killing Darby Allin lately. Allin had been terrorizing the Death Riders. Seems too early for Darby to get revenge on PAC. Plus, as you’ll see later for the Jon Moxley match, PAC winning plays into the end of Mox as the Death Rider leader.

Winner: PAC wins with help from his crew.

No Holds Barred: Jon Moxley vs Kyle O’Reilly

Speaking of, Jon Moxley continues to be involved in amazing stories. This one is no different, and honestly one of his most interesting in a long time. Because Moxley is losing and looking like a chum to his group of badasses. For the PPV, though, I’m wondering where this goes. O’Reilly has had Moxley’s number. If he does again, I think we see the Death Riders send Moxley a message (especially if PAC beats Darby).

Winner: Kyle O’Reilly makes Mox submit & things get interesting for Moxley.

$1 Million Trios Match: Kenny Omega/Jack Perry/Luchasaurus vs The Young Bucks/Josh Alexander

Having so many tag matches on a second-straight PPV is interesting. What isn’t are all these matches for money--especially since Tony Khan does nothing with the story afterward. SO, what’s the point of them? The only story that relates to these are the Young Bucks, and that only has so many legs left in it. Essentially, this comes down to the story of the Young Bucks having enough money to avoid joining the Don Callis family or not. Since Jack Perry & Luchasaurus have recently won $$$ in (yet another) money match, I’m calling….

Winners: Young Bucks/Josh Alexandar, BUT where the Bucks turn on the Callis family and defend Kenny Omega.

Casino Gauntlet AEW National Championship:

Since we have no idea who the actual full list of participants is, I’m taking a stab at this and thinking that only one among the named participants is winning. Honestly, I’m more interested in watching the start of the match, with Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin of The Hurt Syndicate squaring off. My heart wants Ricochet to win, because that’ll make him even more annoying than he already is., but I don’t trust Tony Khan to allow too many heels to win in a PPV. Friends-turned-temporary-foes is far more interesting than anyone winning this thing… until we know if it’ll actually be defended outside of AEW/Ring of Honor.

Winner: Bobby Lashley

TNT Championship: Kyle Fletcher vs Mark Briscoe

Ask my wife; if Kyle Fletcher ever loses, I’ll burn down everything in protest. I said it over two years ago, when Fletcher still had that Cali-boy haircut. This kid just has ‘it!’ To the point that I celebrated when Fletcher signed a new contract with AEW. What makes this compelling is the stipulation. If Briscoe loses, he has to join the Don Callis family. I can’t see that happening. But I also can’t see Fletcher losing the strap to… Briscoe. Sorry, I love him, but not at the expense of the next (and current) generation of AEW superstars.

Winner: BETTER effin’ be Kyle Fletcher, though I fear Briscoe wins because… as you’ll see in the other title predictions.

AEW Tag Team Championship: Brodido vs FTR

I see too many heels winning, and few title changes. But there’s nothing compelling about FTR getting the belts again and this is a PPV, so…

Winners: FTR are NEW AEW Tag Team Champs!

AEW Women’s World Championship: Kris Statlander vs Mercedes Mone

Simple people don’t understand why it’s so awesome that Mercedes Mone now holds more belts than anyone, man or woman, has ever held simultaneously. Even more interesting (why AEW crushes WWE all the time) is that Mercedes hasn’t won the one title that is the title in professional women’s wrestling: the AEW Women’s World Title. To have her beat Kris Statlander here does nothing for anyone. To have her lose creates so many possible storylines that it’s the only way to go. I even dare to say, this could be the main event.

Winner: Kris Statlander retains against Mercedes Money, and Mercedes’s downfall begins.

AEW Men’s World Championship: Adam Page vs Samoa Joe

Steel cage matches are fun. It introduces questions that wouldn’t be asked otherwise. I’m not sure about booking Page against Joe a month after they just main evented a PPV, but here we are (hoping they won’t  main event and that Statlander vs Mone will). Page’s first title was deservedly short. He’s much, much better this time around. Joe winning does nothing for anyone, but buys us time for another challenger to rise.

Winner: Adam Page defends.

Are you looking for more pro wrestling content? Ever thought of reading a fiction book about it? What are about a guy who loses his indie career after a botched piledriver, who suddenly finds himself living in a video game where he builds his own wrestling promotion? Join my Patreon to read chapters of the first Mat Masters book: The Booker.

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