Eddie Kingston Deserves a Run As the AEW World Champion

On January 4, 1999, one of the coolest moments in the history of Monday Night Raw took place when Mankind (Mick Foley) won the WWE Title for the first time ever by defeating The Rock.

This was an epic moment for Foley himself but is also looked back on as the moment that WWE turned the tide and started to win the Monday Night Wars against WCW.

Foley’s title win was very popular with wrestling fans for a number of reasons. Foley was always a massive underdog, and physically, he didn’t sport a flawless physique and wasn’t as jacked up compared to most on the roster. But what he did have was a connection with the wrestling fanbase because of how real he seemed. The wrestling fans could connect with Foley because he seemed like the everyday average guy, and he was in a sense, one of us.

Fast forward to the present day and we are seeing Eddie Kingston make some waves among the AEW fanbase for many of the same reasons.

At a glance, Foley and Kingston are very different, but the common theme between the two is that Eddie Kingston is the most real professional wrestler doing it today. And because of that, he has established a connection with the wrestling fanbase in a way that most performers will never be able to.

At forty years of age, Kingston is closer to the end of his time of being a top-level performer than the start of it. And because of this, the time may be right to give this talented performer a run with the AEW Title.

When CM Punk won the AEW World Title from “Hangman” Adam Page at Double or Nothing, it seemed to be the perfect setup for MJF. The MJF and Punk feud was put on hold at one win apiece after Revolution and most thought that the third and deciding match between the two would be a future encounter with the AEW Title on the line. MJF beating Punk and then going into the final year of his contract as the AEW Champion seemed like a certainty.

However, as of now, no one is sure what is happening with MJF.

There is the possibility that MJF and Tony Khan have patched up their issues and that MJF’s absence from not only AEW television but also the roster page and AEWShop.com is all just part of an elaborate work.

But we would be remiss if we didn’t also consider the possibility that MJF and Khan are still at odds and the former is sitting at home with no future plans in AEW in place for him.

If this is the case, then AEW will need to pivot from its presumed plans with the AEW Title, and Eddie Kingston is the perfect person to pivot towards.

Assuming that Punk comes back and wins the AEW Title unification match with Jon Moxley, Kingston would be the perfect choice to take the title off of Punk, in part because of their past history.

Kingston and Punk had a very intense and emotional program near the end of 2021, and it was one that the fans were very emotionally invested in. So running it back with higher stakes this time is something that AEW fans would surely buy into.

Kingston is also the right call to dethrone Punk because of his aforementioned connection to the fans. If you have not had the opportunity to read Kingston’s article in The Player’s Tribune, do yourself a favor and go do so. It is all but guaranteed you will become a huge fan of Kingston after reading it.

This article undeniably took the connection between Kingston and AEW fans and propelled it to another level. You can hear it when Kingston’s music hits and you feel it when he is in the ring. The fans are invested in Kingston’s success in a way that just doesn’t exist when other wrestlers are performing.

Finally, AEW is in desperate need right now of top-of-the-card heels.

While Christian Cage has started to establish himself in the absence of MJF, he will be tied up with Jungle Boy for the foreseeable future. A Kingston-Punk feud gives AEW the opportunity to turn Punk heel if they so desire.

A title match with Kingston in which Punk cheats to win would turn the AEW fan base rabid against Punk and enhance their support of Kingston, leading to the roof being blown off the arena when Kingston finally gets his rematch and becomes AEW World Champion by defeating his longtime nemesis.

At the end of the day, if MJF is still in good standing with Tony Khan and AEW, then the best option remains MJF taking the title off of Punk, both from a storyline and re-signing MJF for the long-term perspective.

But if the MJF angle is a no-go, for whatever reason, the time for an Eddie Kingston title run needs to be much sooner than later.

And Punk putting Kingston over is the perfect way to do it.