After Full Gear last weekend, we now know Kenny Omega is next in line for a shot at the AEW World Championship.
He won the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament, defeating ‘Hangman’ Adam Page in a hotly contested bout. Then, later in the night, Jon Moxley successfully defended his title against Eddie Kingston in an “I Quit” match. This now sets the stage for the two to collide sometime in the near future.
Moxley is on a whole other level right now. Since winning the title at Revolution, he has retained against the likes of Jake Hager, Brian Cage, Mr. Brodie Lee, Darby Allin, and MJF. While Kingston looked like a huge threat to his title reign, the champ once again brought his A-game and walked away victorious.
But will Omega be the one that he can’t put away? Will Omega end Moxley’s reign and become the new standard bearer for All Elite Wrestling?
It’s safe to say that he actually can. Not only does he have the in-ring skills, but there is some extra motivation in the form of some bad blood between the two.
After the main event of the inaugural Double or Nothing, Moxley made his debut. He laid out Chris Jericho and then turned his attention to Omega. The two battled through the crowd and made their way to the stage. Moxley ended up planting Omega with a Paradigm Shift on a prop poker chip, and then threw him off the stage.
Then, Omega returned the favor by attacking Moxley after his debut match at Fyter Fest. The two were scheduled to have a match at All Out, but Moxley developed a MRSA staph infection in his elbow a week before the event. He underwent surgery to remove it, and Pac replaced him in the match.
However, things didn’t stop there. Moxley returned during the first episode of Dynamite, interrupting a tag match that featured Omega. The two once again brawled throughout the arena, and Moxley put his rival through a glass table.
The animosity reached a fever pitch, culminating in the main event of Full Gear. The two faced off in an unsanctioned Lights Out match, one that AEW refused to officially recognize.
Brutality couldn’t even begin to describe what happened that night. They used barbed wire bats and brooms, glass, anchor chains, a screwdriver, and even a board filled with mousetraps.
Once the dust settled and the carnage ended, Moxley defeated Omega. The latter struggled to find consistency until teaming with Page earlier this year. They managed to win the AEW Tag Team Championships and held them until September when they lost to FTR at All Out.
Later, he talked about having the expectations of being the singles star and ace of the company. While he found a purpose teaming with Page, losing the titles showed him that he needed to focus on his own ambitions. In his own words, “. . .it’s time I go back to singles action and give everyone a piece of what they were hoping to see since day one.”
His performance in the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament showed that he’s well on his way to accomplishing that goal. He blew through the competition and is ready to fight for the AEW World Championship.
If anyone is capable of defeating Moxley for the title, it’s Kenny Omega. While he struggled in singles competition last year, his performances in recent weeks proved that he is finding his footing again.
Not only that, but his confidence is clearly growing with each win. Everyone knows that when Omega’s confident, and on his game, it’s hard to find anyone that can stop him. But add in the fact that Moxley is also on a roll, and we’re in for quite the treat when these two step foot in the ring.
AEW’s next pay-per-view, Revolution, isn’t until February, so this gives both men plenty of time to create some quality storytelling. They already laid the groundwork for it last year, so the bad blood will certainly resurface once again.
Regardless of what happens, it wouldn’t surprise many if Kenny Omega walks out of this feud with the title around his waist. He is gaining more momentum each week and is going to do whatever it takes to finally capture gold.
The champ better watch his back, because he may have just met his match.