411’s AEW All Out 2024 Preview

Well, my friends, it is time once again to do a deep, match-by-match dive into another AEW Pay-Per-View. Taking place at the NOW Arena in Chicago, AEW All-Out is the natural progression of events stemming from All-In, and as a bonus, it’s not the following week after said PPV show.

(You will recall that last year, the only thing separating both shows was a mere seven days, so kudos to Tony Khan for realizing that a LITTLE bit more time should be placed between In and Out).

While the build for All-Out is nowhere near as long as the atypical PPV show, that doesn’t mean it lacks in drama, intrigue, and some possible big matches. For starters, we’re going to reopen the exploration into the Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland feud, except this time, we’re swapping out the previous gimmick matches for a SALAD Steel Cage. Speaking of rivalries continuing, Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander will do battle for Willow’s CMLL Women’s Title in a street fight, a stipulation picked by the champion. All this doesn’t even include the AEW World Title being put on the line by the new champion Bryan Danielson, as he defends the belt against the “Scapegoat” Jack Perry, who is sure to be the “favorite darling” of Chicago.

All this and, as usual, so much more, so please join me as we run through the entire card, and I look to predict some matches.

MJF vs. Daniel Garcia

Image Credit: AEW

Considering that MJF made his most obvious return to the heel side by nearly beating Garcia within an inch of his life roughly two months ago, you would suspect that there would be some kind of stipulation placed on this match so both men could fight without repercussions. However, while the match is simply a one-on-one contest, it will allow for Garcia to finally get his hands on MJF in the ring, and for MJF to back up his proclamation that Garcia is not on his level.

It seemed like such an odd time when MJF was a baby-face within the company. During the latter part of his AEW World Title reign, he turned over a new leaf when he was “best friends” with one Adam Cole (BAY-BAY). And even when he returned, Maxwell was still a good guy, going so far as to endorse and stand alongside Garcia. However, that quickly turned after Garcia lost an International Title match to Will Ospreay, and MJF went back to his usual “Devil May Care” attitude. Garcia has come back with a vengeance, returning at All-In to cost MJF his match with Ospreay for the then American Title. What this match will come down to is how much Garcia is able to keep his hatred and anger for MJF in check, and if he can’t, well we know that Maxwell is a man who can take full-on advantage of that.

WINNER: Maxwell Jacob Friedman…MJF

Chicago Street Fight
Willow Nightingale vs. Kris Statlander

Image Credit: AEW

[Ed. Note: AEW has announced since this writing that the CMLL Women’s World Championship is not on the line as CMLL would not sanction a street fight for the title.]

You know, it is a terribly tragic thing to see such two wonderful best friends have their relationship torn apart for reasons that simply make no sense to me. In this case, both Statlander and Nightingale made one heck of a tag team, having a lot of success together in the ring. That all turned as Stokley Hathaway kept at Kris to betray Willow, and the deal was sealed and done. Now, we have arrived at a street fight for Willow’s CMLL Women’s Title, and the way we got here (and how the stipulation was chosen) is interesting, to say the least.

Back at All-In on the Zero Hour (all less than two weeks ago), Nightingale teamed up with Tomohiro Ishii to defeat Statlander and Hathaway. The implication for the winning team was that said winner got to choose the stipulation for the upcoming title defense at All-Out, and as such, Willow chose a street fight. So, it comes off as odd to me that she chose this because, let’s face it, Willow is a nice, bubbly, and fun loving girl whereas Kris has turned into a more sinister, evil, and vindictive woman. Now, that’s not to say that Willow cannot get tough, because we’ve seen her in hardcore matches in the past, but this is all to say that, simply put, Kris is better prepared for this. Also, it would seem foolhardy to have Kris not only lose the match that led to this stipulation, but also lose the follow-up match as well.

WINNER: Kris Statlander

AEW TBS Championship Match
Mercedes Mone vs. Hikaru Shida

Image Credit: AEW

The persistence of Shida is admirable, as in the weeks leading up to All-In, she asserted that she would get her moment at the show by winning the TBS Title. When her plan failed after she lost to Britt Baker (and consequently, Baker lost to Mone at All-In for said title shot), she again asserted herself into the TBS Title picture by winning a 4-corners match last week on Collision to earn the right to face the CEO at All-Out. Perhaps it wasn’t the exact moment that Shida was looking for, but she has finally received a TBS Title shot.

To add a dash of intrigue to the situation, on this past week’s episode of Dynamite, Christopher Daniels made it clear that Mercedes’ bodyguard Kamille will not be allowed at ringside for the match. Although it does sound like a huge blow to a title defense for the champion, we shouldn’t be so quick to write off Mone and her chances of winning the match based on her own merit and ability. The fact of the matter is that Mone won the TBS Title originally by herself, and the introduction of Kamille came well after the fans rebuked the company’s insistence that Mone remain a baby-face. There is a lot more milage to go for this title reign for the CEO, and no matter the outcome of the match, Shida is made either way, since she will always be a fixture atop the women’s division.

WINNER: Mercedes Mone (STILL AEW TBS Champion)

AEW Continental Championship Match
Kazuchika Okada vs. Three More TBD

Image Credit: AEW

Allow to me do some inside booking/predictions within the overall predictions, because as you know we have a show on a Saturday, and I have a timeline before I can submit this review. So, as announced on Dynamite this past week, there will be three matches on the go-home episode of Collision to determine who the other three competitors that will challenge the Rainmaker at All-Out.

In scenario number one, we have Orange Cassidy facing “The Bad Apple” Bryan Keith, and despite how great it would be for Keith to get a push towards the title match, we all know that OC will win it. In scenario number two, we have the “Murderhawk Monster” Lance Archer facing off against the Ring of Honor World Champion, Mark Briscoe, and while Archer might make all the jobbers and enhancement talent die, he won’t be able to overcome Briscoe, so Mark moves on. And finally, in scenario number three and perhaps the best of the three matches, we have “The Alpha” Konosuke Takeshita facing off against the Beast Mortos. We got a taste of this a week ago on Rampage when these two men were half of a 4-way dance, where the winner got some bragging rights, but this time around, the winner moves on, and I think that’ll be Takeshita.

So, that leaves Okada defending the title against Briscoe, Cassidy, and Takeshita. Obviously, two of these guys are involved in the Conglomeration, and so they’re likely work together as much as possible. Takeshita is the real wildcard here, as he has just recently returned from a stellar showing in the New Japan G1 Climax, and a lot of fans (me included) have been screaming for him to win singles gold. And, let’s face it, Okada doesn’t need this title, as he’s just as much over without it as he would be with it. I think the time has finally come for “The Alpha” to bring some gold to the Don Callis Family.

WINNER: Konosuke Takeshita (NEW AEW Continental Champion)

AEW World Tag Team Championship Match
Young Bucks vs. Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta

Image Credit: AEW

Quick, someone make sure that the powers that be are okay! I’m very surprised that the Young Bucks are going to defend the tag team titles again so soon after they defended them at All-In against FTR and The Acclaimed, but here we are, so blessed to see the EVP Bucks in action! I mean, one is probably not excited about the prospect of a title change, and why should they, but will we get a good match out of it?

The clash of styles is an interesting one, as the mat-based members of the BCC are going to try and keep the Bucks grounded. The Bucks, although they don’t do a lot of the high flying that they have been famous for in the past, can still take risks when appropriate and calculated. As such, it wouldn’t be too hard for Claudio and Wheeler to get a grasp of Nicholas and Matthew Jackson and, in Claudio’s case, impose their will physically. However, we know that much like in the AEW World Title match which also features a member of The Elite challenging a member of the BCC for the belt, that the Bucks will stoop to any level of low possible to keep and retain their title belts. Like I said in the open to this entry, the winners of this match should not be in doubt (especially since Wheeler and Claudio already have Trios Titles belts), but the match quality could surprise people. I’m not crowning this as Match of the Night material, but it should be a good, solid bout.

WINNER: The Young Bucks (Still AEW Tag Team Champions)

AEW International Championship Match
Will Ospreay vs. PAC

Image Credit: AEW

Speaking of possible Match of the Night material, we arrive at arguably one of the best matches between styles and capabilities on the card. It’s a shame that the build for this match has not been all that great, but given who the guys are in the match, how can you argue with the result that we are getting?

If you’ll recall, PAC won a #1 contenders match sometime back on Rampage to earn himself a guaranteed shot at the International Title. Although we have taken quite the winding road to get here, including PAC getting his All-In moment as a new member of the BCC winning the Trios Titles, and Ospreay knocking off MJF and putting an end to the very short linage of the American Title, alas we are finally here.

The argument of the title doesn’t make the man comes into focus here, because like I mentioned with Okada and the Continental Title, Ospreay does not need the International Title to validate his ascent to the top of the popularity chart in AEW. Even so, PAC does have a third of the Trios Titles belts and doing a hotshot of the International Title away from Will to PAC in less than two weeks doesn’t make sense to me. So, while I do not see a title change on the way, I do see this match being easily one of the best that the show has to offer, if not the best overall, by any fan’s measurement.

WINNER: Will Ospreay (Still AEW International Champion)

AEW World Championship Match
Bryan Danielson vs. Jack Perry

Image Credit: AEW

So, I don’t know if everyone is aware of this, but giving a World Title opportunity to Perry in Chicago is a stroke of genius on the part of somebody within the company, because we’re already assured that Danielson is over on his own merits, but he’s going to be facing someone who the city of Chicago might despise more than a member (or a fan) of the Green Bay Packers.

You may have heard a story that leaked about an altercation between Perry and a guy who is no longer in the company at least year’s All-In event. The result was that the guy from Chicago got fired and returned to the company he last worked for, while the other guy, Perry, was suspended for months before he made his return earlier this year. In the meantime, Perry has taken on the mantra of the “Scapegoat”, and he has run with it and, dare I say, done fantastic work as a heel that you simply want to see get his face beat in.

No one believes that Perry is winning this match, if only because the stipulation is intact that when Danielson DOES finally drop the title, he is going to retire from full time in-ring action. Suffice to say, Bryan JUST won the AEW World Title from Strickland 13 days from the time this show goes live on Saturday, although that doesn’t mean it cannot be filled with drama, intrigue, and enough near-falls to make your heart skip a beat.

WINNER: Bryan Danielson (STILL AEW World Champion)

Steel Cage Match
Swerve Strickland vs. Hangman Page

Image Credit: AEW

With all due respect to the title matches on this card, none of them feature a rivalry that has become so personal and, frankly, has the best the build going on this short order card. The fact that AEW is going to run this (reportedly) as the main event of All-Out just tells you how much this feud has taken on yet another life and validates the hatred between both men that are involved.

It’s fitting that we are back here with these two guys, as the constant posturing by Page resulted in him getting distracted by his tunnel vision for Strickland when he first lost his Owen Hart Tourney match to Jeff Jarrett, and then lost in the All-In Gauntlet match to guarantee the winner a title shot whenever they so choose. At All-In, Page would have the last laugh when he helped to cost Strickland his title in his loss to Danielson, but Strickland got Page in a Steel Cage match for All-Out.

And then, we have what transpired on Dynamite, as Page burned down the “childhood” home of Strickland, leaving Swerve seeing red (probably because of its color palette within the fire, but also anger anew for Page). And look, some people will say that this is fair play because Swerve broke into Hangman’s house and stalked him and his then pregnant wife last year, but even in the suspended world of disbelief, these events don’t really make even.

So, who wins the match? Well, up to this point, Swerve has defeated Hangman at every turn, so it would make total sense for Hangman to get the ultimate revenge and win in the cage. The fact that this match is in the main event slot also leads me to believe that something else might be happening here, but what that might be remains a mystery to me.

WINNER: Hangman Adam Page

And that will do it for another preview and, as always, feel free to leave a comment with your predictions, and I thank you for checking out my preview and giving it a look.

All-Out takes place this Saturday Night at 8:00PM, with the Zero Hour starting us off at 6:30PM. As always, you can get the show VIA traditional cable and satellite, through Triller, YouTube, and across the US at Dave and Buster’s locations.