wrestling / Columns
411’s AEW WrestleDream 2023 Preview
Image Credit: AEW
Hello everyone, and welcome to the latest offering from AEW (and friends!) on PPV, as I will be your guide through this preview for WrestleDream. It was one year ago that the Wrestling world at large lost a true legend of the sport who transcended it into other ventures in one New Japan Pro Wrestling founder Antonio Inoki, and this show has been lauded as a memorial/tribute show in his honor. And, although there are New Japan talent to be found on the card throughout, let’s not fool ourselves into thinking this is anything BUT an AEW fronted and managed card, although that does not mean that it will be bad in any instance, but it will feel different.
The impetus is on dream matches (hence the show’s name), and so we shall witness the show on Sunday Night to see if said matches live up to that promotional hype. But first, let’s preview the show and see what we have on tap for both the main show and the completely free Zero Hour show!
Luchasaurus vs. Nick Wayne
Although these two do not have intertwining personal issues per se, they do have, by extension, issues revolving around and situated with the people that they associate with; for our young 18-year-old standout Wayne, that would be Darby Allin, and for our 65-million-year-old dinosaur with a degree, that would be Christian Cage, the TRUE TNT Champion!
At first glance, this bout does seem like a complete mismatch and seems to be nothing more than a squash, even if it veers into extended territory. But then you start to notice some things, such as the fight and the fire that Wayne has, and the fact that, despite being severely undersized compared to his opponent, that Wayne is willing to do whatever it takes to win a match. Now, I’m not quite sure if that will make a difference or not seeing as to how Luchasaurus SHOULD be upset over losing his rightful property to Cage, but if he is indeed angry, he hides it well, and could be situated to take it out on Wayne in this match. Seeing as to fact that Wayne IS from the Seattle area, I could see him sneaking out a win here, but because it is on the Zero Hour portion of the show, I feel like this is a better opportunity to restart a Luchasaurus push, although towards what remains to be seen.
WINNER: Luchasaurus
AEW World Trios Championship Match
The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn vs. Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls, and Bad Dude Tito
It’s interesting to me that one of the true crossovers between AEW and New Japan is featured on Zero Hour, and it’s also very interesting to me that the announcement of the match appeared from out of thin air on Friday’s Rampage, but heck, I’m here for it!
Here we have the super talented and super over Acclaimed and Daddy Ass defending the Trios Titles against members of The Mighty Don’t Kneel (TMDK, for those who like shorthand). Now, I won’t confess to knowing the first thing about Bad Dude Tito as my overall interactions with New Japan have waned over time, but Haste and Nicholls are a credible tag team that have been around the world and done it all. With that being said, I truly don’t feel like there is any drama for a title change here, but the quality of the match itself should not be bad, and it should be a treat for those who haven’t seen the original tag team known as TMDK in sometime state side.
WINNER: The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass (STILL AEW World Trios Champions)
Wheeler Yuta vs. Ricky Starks
While this one does look like a match for the sake of just having a match, it should be noted by usual AEW viewers that there have been issues between Ricky/Big Bill and the BCC, and with the other members of the BCC either tied up in matches or out due to injury, the onus is on Yuta to defend club honor against a Starks Raving Mad Ricky.
While I feel like this matchup does have an obvious winner to it, I also feel like some things such as the match layout, the quality of it, and other things such like possible Big Bill interference make it seem more interesting than it has any right to be. I also like the blurring of the lines because, while the BCC has been turning the corner towards more of a neutral/tweener state in terms of booking, Starks has been pushed as a full-blown heel, especially after the beating he gave industry legend Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat. To say that the match quality should be sufficient will be an understatement, but I don’t see any scenario where Ricky doesn’t win, especially considering recent losses to Bryan Danielson, and this is a way for him to stick it to the BCC in retaliation for such losses.
WINNER: Ricky Starks
Hangman Page vs. Swerve Strickland
This match, at least to me, felt like it was produced out of thin air and was just a reason to get two guys on the card (that Strickland is from Washington as well seemed to help the case). But I will admit that, over the weeks, this one has grown on me, and the exchange of promos and the passion from Page has made me very interested in which way this match ends up breaking.
There is a point to be made, perhaps from an outsider’s perspective, that Page has been floating by in the company since he lost the AEW World Title, and to that end I can respect Strickland calling him out on that. Page obviously did not feel the same way and has shown a little bit of the Cowboy that he once was and can easily be again, although I am very interested to see how the confines of Climate Pledge Arena treats him since he’s basically “on the road” here against Strickland, who hails from Tacoma. Another interesting thing about this match centers around the recent Mogul Embassy and Elite interactions, namely the Young Bucks and Page defeating the Gates of Agony and Brian Cage for the ROH 6-Man Titles at Grand Slam Rampage. This one feels like a way for Strickland to get some luster back on his name while Page can rest on the fact knowing that he has a title belt that he took from Swerve’s group of merry men.
WINNER: Swerve Strickland
Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho & Kota Ibushi vs.
Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
To me, this match does many things; first, it reunites the Golden Lovers yet again and creates an odd paradigm with Jericho teaming up with them. Secondly, it brings Ospreay back into the fold for another match, which is not a bad thing at all, and will make chemistry interesting with the Don Callis Family. Third, and most importantly of all, the interactions and teamwork between Jericho and Omega, two guys who despise Callis with all their fiber and wellbeing, will be put to the ultimate test in this match.
It goes without saying that, ultimately, we have a very good group of wrestlers here, but how the interaction and dynamics between these trios pans out is the most interesting thing to me. We know the long-time union that Omega and Ibushi have, but how does Jericho factor into that chemistry set, and conversely, while Ospreay and Takeshita have shared a ring together, how does Guevara fit in with this group? In my opinion, Guevara is best fit as a heel within a structure, so his admission into the Callis Family was for the best, and of course, that plays into his betrayal of Jericho on the other side of the ring. There are a lot of interesting variables and ways that this one can go, but when you consider the outside factor of Callis lurking in the shadows, I feel like the family prevails, whether by hook or crook.
WINNER: Konosuke Takeshita, Will Ospreay, and Sammy Guevara
Brian Danielson vs. Zach Sabre Jr.
To be quite honest, I find the phrase “Dream Match” to be overused and over blown to the point of hysteria, but if there was ever a match that deserved such a title, it is this one indeed. I don’t know where it will place on the card order, but I know that no matter who follows them is going to have one of the hardest jobs in trying to bring the fans back from what should be an instant classic.
First, the backstory; this match is 15-months in the making, as Danielson was set to face ZSJ at the original Forbidden Door event in June of last year, but due to injuries sustained by Danielson, a debuting Claudio Castagnoli instead substituted in versus ZSJ. Then, you have the promotional build to this one for months on end, and the ability of both men to talk about one another despite not actually interacting with each other has been top notch, to say the least. Finally, you put these two guys in the ring together and you pretty much know what you are going to expect; a clinical classic and a mat-based, grapple heavy match. What is going to be interesting to me at least is who wins this match; given that this is supposed to be the “Danielson Retirement Tour” (or, at least, from full time in-ring activity) it would suggest that The American Dragon goes over. However, he’s also defeated Ricky Starks twice in a row, and it might behoove him to lose a match to a guy who’s uber talented like ZSJ. But then I remembered something; Danielson is back home in front of what will probably be his family and his daughters, and what more motivation could he need to win than that?
WINNER: Bryan Danielson
AEW TBS Championship Match
Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart
Let me preface this by stating that I truly appreciate the company’s dedication in pushing Julia Hart as a wrestler and not just a manager for The House of Black. It may be born out of necessity, since members of the House not named Brody King are injured, but Hart has handled it well, with 26 successive wins, most recently and impressively over Willow Nightingale.
However, let’s not kid ourselves into believing any real chance exists where she knocks off the dominant TBS Champion in Statlander, the same woman who she herself ended the 60-plus match winning streak of the now departed Jade Cargill and then once more defeated the former (and first) champion in a much more competitive match. In fact, I’m not quite sure how the match quality will shake out, since while we know that Kris can go and has been in longer matches as of late, a lot of Julia’s wins have been on the shorter side. Again, I laud the company for coming up with a new challenger for Statlander, but unless King gets involved in the match, there is no way she drops the title here.
WINNER: Kris Statlander (STILL AEW TBS Champions)
AEW World Tag Team Championship #1 Contender’s Match
The Young Bucks vs. The Gunns vs.
Lucha Bros vs. Orange Cassidy and Hook
Look, there is an easy and obvious winning team within this group, and no, it’s NOT Nick and Matt Jackson, it’s CLEARLY Hook and Orange Cassidy! I mean, could you imagine any cooler team than them not just winning this contender’s match, but going on to be the ones to dethrone 7-Star FTR, because I can’t!
But seriously, this is a loaded match up with a lot of unique styles between the teams, and it’s always good to see the Lucha Bros together, even if Rey Fenix does have the International Title to his name already. Within this match we do have three teams who are previously tag team champions in AEW, so experience rests with a lot of the teams in this match sans the Hook and Orange union. Even so, a fun hodgepodge team like that could make for a really fun challenger for whoever emerges champions between FTR and Aussie Open, but I feel like it won’t be them who win and instead we’re going to get a continuation of the recently rekindled feud between FTR and the Bucks’ Hopefully I am wrong, but seems like the other viable option here is the Lucha Bros, especially since it was Austin and Colten Gunn that FTR won the belts from in a “retirement match” and we’re likely not getting Orange and Hook moving forward.
WINNER: The Young Bucks
ROH World and NJPW Strong Openweight Championship Match
Eddie Kingston vs. Katsuyori Shibata
You know, if the fact that Shibata is NOT putting his title on the line doesn’t indicate who SHOULD win this match, then I don’t know what does. Seemingly you have Kingston, who just won the ROH World Title from Castagnoli at Grand Slam Dynamite, and I’m supposed to believe that he is going to lose not just that belt but also his New Japan belt to Shibata?
Even with that stipulation aside, this match should be good, albeit it on the shorter side of the run time. Those who have witnessed the revival of Shibata, long thought to have seen his career ended due to injuries back in 2016, will know that his matches usually sit within the 10–12-minute range, and I feel like one match such as this with a brisk pace should suit the show well. It also does not hurt that we have a match based upon sportsmanship and to just have a match, as there is next to no ill will between Shibata and Kingston, illustrated by the fact that Shibata emerged on Rampage to locks arms with Kingston in a show of respect. This one should be good but again, given what is on the line here, the winner shouldn’t be much in doubt, unless there must be an audible called within the match somewhere.
WINNER: Eddie Kingston (STILL Dual Champion)
ROH World Tag Team Championship Match
MJF vs. The Righteous
You know, if you really stop and think about it, this match is ironic for one big reason; we now have the AEW World Champion Maxwell Jacob Friedman defending both ROH tag team titles against Vincent and Dutch because Adam Cole is injured. Why is this ironic? Because it was at Cole’s insistence/persuasion that MJF help him go after the titles and win them from Aussie Open back at All-In.
So fast forward to WrestleDream, and suddenly MJF has himself a handicap situation due to Cole’s ankle being broken in three different places. The situation does look dire for our favorite scumbag and Devil MJF, but could he possibly pull this off by himself against a credible team with some upward trajectory like The Righteous? And did the end of Dynamite mean something, with guys adorned in MJF Devil masks ambushing Switchblade Jay White, because if it did, MJF may just have something brewing. At its elemental core, I’m erring on the side of caution in assuming that something happens, whether it’s MJF’s “Devil Worshipers” getting in the match, or he does find a fill-in partner for the match?
You know, come to think of it, wouldn’t it be hilarious if that person ended up being Roderick Strong? NECK STRONG!
WINNER: MJF (STILL ROH World Tag Team Champion)
AEW World Tag Team Championship Match
FTR vs. Aussie Open
As I spoke about in my introduction, this event is near to the year of the passing of the late and great Inoki, but it’s also near to the year since the first meeting between these two teams, and if you listen to Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis, you’ll know that it did not go the way of Aussie Open. Could a rematch between the two teams break in the favor of Aussie Open, or will “7-Star FTR” continue their great run as AEW tag champs?
One thing is for certain, and that’s the fact that Aussie Open have committed themselves to AEW and the pursuit of said tag team titles. After Davis was injured and the team was forced to vacate their New Japan Heavyweight and Strong Tag Team belts, they have never looked better together in the ring. On the flipside, FTR have never looked better either, putting on amazing matches against BC Gold, MJF and Adam Cole, and The Young Bucks at All-In. It speaks to the quality of the card that, despite there being NO World Title match (just like at All Out) that you can get amazing matches like this one in place of that and you’ll hardly miss a beat. As for the winner, well, it does seem tempting to side with Aussie Aussie Aussie (OI OI OI!), but has recent history has proven, it’s never wise to beat against Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler. No matter who wins, this should be a BRISCOE and match of the night candidate.
WINNER: FTR (STILL AEW World Tag Team Champions)
AEW TNT Championship 2 Out Of 3 Falls Match
Christian Cage vs. Darby Allin
So, it’s my understanding (whether false or otherwise stated) that this match is the one that will main event WrestleDream, and honestly, it makes a lot of sense. Not only does the match have the two out of three falls stipulation attached to it, but it is also for what’s been viewed as for years as the second ranked singles title in AEW. Oh, and it just so happens that the challenger IS from Seattle as well.
Also, let’s not kid ourselves here either in saying that this has been hands down one of the best and long-term angles going within the company today. It’s been fantastic seeing Christian Cage lament the idea of being the TNT Champion even though the title belt was originally won by his loyal charge Luchasaurus. Well, that was until last week’s Collison anywhere, where Cage outsmarted both him and Darby Allin in winning the belt for real. Now, the real champion must defend the belt for real, and there is no question that Seattle will be behind their daredevil, thrill seeking hometown hero. It would seem like the perfect time to have a title switch, especially considering the hot potato status of the belt versus, say, the World Title or the International Title, but one must wonder how much influence Luchasaurus will have in this match. I mean, he’s not supposed to be at ring side (and neither is Nick Wayne) but would that really stop him from helping his leader?
Also, there is some guy who may or may not appear at the show; as it turns out, he has a long history with Cage as both a tag team partner and a rival. I mean, again, this could be false pretense, but we’ll just have to wait and see if we do know him or not.
WINNER: Darby Allin (Two falls to one, NEW AEW TNT Championship Champion)
