AEW Full Gear 2023: Matches and Predictions

Preview & Predictions: Swerve Strickland has officially crossed the line! Not only did he screw "Hangman" Adam Page out of a win back at WrestleDream thanks to some assistance from Prince Nana, but he also invaded the man's home and had quite a creepy conversation with the man's baby. Now this rivalry has gone from a game of one-upmanship to a total blood feud that has pushed Page to the edge. With an enraged "Hangman" at the ready, Swerve will definitely have his work cut out for him during this no-holds-barred Texas Deathmatch. I'm confident that Page will walk away with the win here, which will put both men at an even 1-1 score and prolong this feud until we get the ultimate tie-breaker. It's only right that both men settle their differences once and for all...IN A STEEL CAGE!

Preview & Predictions: Kudos to Julia Hart and Skye Blue. Both women have stepped up in recent months regarding their in-ring acumen and character work. They've been given some matches and storylines to dig their heels into, which has resulted in Hart and Blue steadily improving in the process. Back at WrestleDream, Hart put on one of her best matches of the year when she locked up with the TBS Champion Kris Statlander. Now she's managed to work her way back into winning that title once again but this time, she'll have to contend with both Kris and Blue. While both Hart and Skye have a lot going on for them at the moment, I just don't see either of them nabbing the TBS Championship at the moment. Kris is retaining her prize here and I think she won't be relinquishing it until 2024!

Preview & Predictions: So the stipulations for this match are really interesting. If the Golden Jets prevail, they'll earn the shot at the tag team titles that The Young Bucks currently hold. But if Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho fall in defeat here, Matt and Nick Jackson will retain their title shot while also getting the honor of breaking up The Golden Jets. This really could go either way, honestly - I could totally see Omega and Jericho making a run for the tag team straps and I can envision a scenario where The Bucks break them up & push Omega right back into a singles position or call upon Kota Ibushi to help him defeat his "Elite" brethren. I think Option A is going to become a reality - The Golden Jets will defeat The Bucks, piss them off even further, and possibly get screwed during their tag team title opportunity by a very vengeful Matt & Nick.

Preview & Predictions: "CHIN UP! TITS OUT! AND WATCH FOR THE SHOE!" Man, how can you not love "Timeless" Toni Storm? She's found a way to rejuvenate her character by adopting the gimmick of a crazed actress from the black-and-white movie era. Her picture-in-picture silent films, her insane strut to the ring, and her descent into madness are all highly entertaining. Now that she's extra over with the fans, she's been granted a title shot in "Tinseltown" against the defending champ, Hikaru Shida. While it would make a ton of sense for Toni to capture the belt now that she's experiencing a massive upsurge in popularity amongst the fans, I just can't see Shida dropping the title just one month into her third title reign. After this loss, I'm predicting a rebuilding stage where Toni takes Mariah May under her wing and eventually finds herself vying for the AEW Women's World Championship once again before the year is over.

Preview & Predictions: WELL DAMN! Ricky Starks and Big Bill sure got their hands full with this tag team title defense. Ever since they shocked the world by defeating FTR for the straps, Ricky and Bill have caught the ire of the former champs and the returning stables of La Facción Ingobernable & The House of Black. With all the post-match brawls and shit-talking that has occurred between all four teams, it makes all the sense in the world for them all to hash out their issues in a Four-Way dance. I'm overjoyed at the fact that some AEW guys I rarely see wrestle nowadays (I'm talking about the homies Malakai Black and Brody King, mainly) get their time to cook on such a major stage during an important title match.

So here's how my AEW Full Gear 2023 predictions are going to go for this one - FTR and The House of Black are going to be the teams that cancel each other out due to the immense hatred they share for each other. That leaves the champs and Rush & Dralístico to be the remaining teams that'll determine the outcome of this match. I'm placing my bets on the tag champs retaining here as Ricky pulls down the belts for him and his skyscraper of a partner.

Preview & Predictions: Man, the AEW International Championship has been through so much lately. Some would say it's cursed due to how many of its titleholders have gone down with a severe injury. After Jon Moxley defeated Orange Cassidy at All Out, I figured he'd go on a months-long title run. But at this year's Grand Slam, Moxley suffered an injury during his match with Rey Fenix and ended up dropping the title to the fiery luchador. Soon after, Rey's injuries caught up with him and resulted in Orange Cassidy recapturing the title he elevated during his initial reign.

Now we're back at square one with a rematch between Orange and Moxley for the title both men have fought so hard for. I think the end result for this is going to be quite different from the one fans witnessed at All Out - Orange will persevere and counter the game plan he fell victim to during his first encounter with Moxley. Moxley will be the one looking up at the lights at the close of this second go-round with Mr. Cassidy.

Preview & Predictions: We're officially on the road to Sting's retirement in March 2024 - more specifically, his final appearance as an active AEW roster member when he wraps up his in-ring career at next year's Revolution. In the meantime, "The Icon" is enjoying his final batch of matches fighting alongside Darby Allin. But this time around, those two face-painted dynamos will add Adam Copeland to the equation as they square off with the TNT Champion Christian Cage, Luchasaurus, and Nick Wayne. This feud has so many intriguing storylines surrounding it - Adam & Christian's fragmented friendship, Darby & Wayne's fallout, and Sting's impending retirement are among the main plot threads being contained here. For my next piece of AEW Full Gear 2023 predictions, my gut is pointing me toward a massive W for the babyface trio that'll end with Sting tapping Wayne out with a Scorpion Death Lock.

Preview & Predictions: Maxwell Jacob Friedman has built up a hell of a record as the reigning, defending AEW World Champion. He's now the longest reigning champion by surpassing Kenny Omega. Plus he's put on absolute bangers with the likes of the aforementioned Omega, Bryan Danielson, Ricky Starks, Adam Cole, and a whole host of other worthy contenders. Now he's set to confront one of his toughest challenges to date in the form of the "Switchblade," who's terrorized the champ for weeks by stealing his title and jumping him thanks to the aid of his Bullet Club Gold stablemates. With so many other world title challengers breathing down his neck and a mysterious individual using his devil mask to cause havoc backstage, MJF could be too distracted to concentrate on retaining his title.

But I think MJF will get his head on straight just in time for this major world title match. Jay White will try every trick in the book to defeat MJF once again - he'll rely on his buddies to chip away at MJF while the ref's back is turned, plus we'll most likely get a ref bump here that'll see Jay use the belt to smash it right into the champ's face. But in the end, MJF will reach into his bag of douchebag tricks to throw Jay off his game and retain his title when all is said & done. After MJF successfully walks away from this match with his title intact, who do you guys think he'll face next? Samoa Joe? Wardlow? Roderick Strong? The possibilities are endless!