AEW Full Gear 2025 preview, forecasts: 6 major inquiries for Saturday’s loaded PPV

AEW Full Gear 2025, one of the company’s longest-running annual pay-per-views, takes place this Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. If you weren’t pumped for the event after Ariel Helwani’s excellent interview with Tony Khan, the Uncrowned Horsemen — Kel Dansby, Robert Jackman, Drake Riggs and Anthony Sulla-Heffinger — have gathered to break down some of the biggest topics and answer burning questions about the card.

Let’s ride!

1. After his big moment at WrestleDream, Darby Allin is facing Pac. This feels like a step down — is it? Will we ever see Allin as AEW Heavyweight Champion?

Sulla-Heffinger: I can’t shake the idea that going from the main event of a pay-per-view against arguably the top guy in AEW’s history — and getting the baton passed to you by a literal icon — to a mid-card match against Pac is a step down.

Does that mean this match doesn’t have potential to absolutely kill it? No, but beyond being a showcase for both men, what outcome gets either Allin or Pac into a more significant position for a championship challenge?

You could argue an Allin win gets him into the AEW Heavyweight Championship picture, but that makes a whole lot more sense if Samoa Joe dethrones Hangman Adam Page and retains in a requisite rubber match. If Pac wins, there’s the idea of him breaking off as a solo act — where he’s at his best — but that hurts Allin’s standing, in my opinion.

Maybe this is why I’m not a booker, but I don’t see any spinning this as a step forward after the Mox match.

Dansby: Darby Allin probably would’ve held the AEW title already if injuries in 2024 and his Everest adventure didn’t derail all his momentum. The only real danger is missing that perfect window to crown him, but the crowd still explodes for his entrance and he’s as over now as he was during the Sting pairing — maybe more.

This isn’t a step down. Pac is still one of AEW’s most respected workhorses, and Darby thrives against guys who bring that intensity. Darby’s winning the big one in 2026. Book it.

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Riggs: It definitely feels like a somewhat strange direction to go — more of a boost attempt for Pac than anything, especially with his appearance changes and whatnot. I wouldn’t say it’s a step down, but it’s certainly not a step up.

Allin is bulletproof at this point and his world title reign is inevitable. The longer the wait, the better potential for it to be one hell of a sweet, unforgettable moment, knowing what he’s willing to put himself through. Right now, though, Allin doesn’t necessarily need the title.

(That’s not to say I wouldn’t be intrigued by a program with Hangman Page — or, let’s say, a coronation coming off MJF down the line.)

Jackman: I’m going to be optimistic here and say it might be part of Tony Khan’s strategy to rotate the top talent. I agree with what Drake said about this feeling like a step up for Pac, but maybe that’s the whole point — i.e. to promote Pac into the upper-card scene and potentially give him the room he needs to go it alone, without the Death Riders.

In general, I feel that’s something AEW does quite well: Keeping things rotating at the top of the card. Compare that to the main title scene over on “WWE Raw,” for example, where it feels like we’ve had most of the same names going around in a revolving door for the past year or so, usually with diminishing returns.

As for Allin as champion, that’s one of those things I just assume is inevitable at some point. If it weren’t for his comically-extreme appetite for risk, I’d consider it a total lock. But who knows what that man is going to get up to between now and when Tony Khan decides to pull the proverbial trigger.

Mercedes Moné (Ricky Havlik, AEW) — Mercedes Moné’s moment has arrived. (Ricky Havlik, AEW)

(Ricky Havlik)

2. The AEW Women’s Championship has been the one belt — seemingly in existence — to elude Mercedes Moné. What’s more valuable right now for her, the coronation or the chase?

Jackman: Honestly, I think this is the single most interesting question on this card. While I admit to being skeptical at first, I am so intrigued by exactly what Tony Khan has up his sleeve when it comes to Mercedes. He’s clearly playing some sort of long game, but it isn’t clear what the payoff will be — or which way this match is going to go.

If I were in his illustrious seat, I’d probably keep the chase going. There’s something poetic about the fact that Moné has so many belts that she needs lackeys to carry them, but she’d probably trade her entire haul for the one sitting around Kris Statlander’s waist. If I were Tony, I’d really hammer home that motif and use it as a chance to do some character-building promos with Moné.

Riggs: There are strong arguments for either options, and I don’t think one is wrong. This chase has been a long one, and the story aligns perfectly for this to be her moment since she’s been Stat’s kryptonite in their past feud.

I still think the long game here can — and should — be Mone taking the title and dropping it somewhat quickly to Toni Storm, the one woman she can’t beat. It’d also play into how poorly she was treated as a world champion in WWE, unable to hold the big title for long. That’s where the «Moné» really is.

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Sulla-Heffinger: You can’t go wrong with either outcome, but I think Moné winning the big one immediately devalues all — *counts fingers* — infinity titles she already has, meaning the chase is where I’d go here.

I think the best story here is Moné losing and then going into a downward spiral and publicly dropping the biggest championships she holds. Then, when she’s at her rock bottom, you get the coronation, against Statlander or whoever.

I was a little underwhelmed by Statlander’s defense against Toni Storm, so a win here would feel like a true signature moment for her. Moné will always be at or near the top of the card — keeping her going with the chase helps keep Statlander in that position moving forward, too.

Dansby: Mercedes is basically on her Infinity Gauntlet run, collecting every major title on the planet. Adding the AEW Women’s Championship — and possibly becoming a double champ — fits the arc perfectly. Statlander’s reigns just never land with the same punch, and unlike Toni Storm, there’s no real story-based reason to have her beat Moné.

At this point, delaying Mercedes’ coronation starts to feel counterproductive. AEW knows she’s the star; just give «The CEO» the belt.

Hangman Adam Page (Lee South, AEW) — Hangman Adam Page and Samao Joe go for Round 2 this Saturday. (Lee South, AEW)

3. Putting Hangman and Joe in a steel cage might be the perfect stipulation for this feud. Do you think it came about too quickly, though? If Joe wins, how do you escalate from here?

Sulla-Heffinger: I generally think the steel cage/Hell in a Cell is the ultimate feud-ender, so in that sense, I would argue that it did come about too quickly because I think there’s more to milk from this pairing. I suppose there’s always the Lights Out avenue to explore regardless of who wins.

Even though you could extend this feud either way, I think giving Joe a run with the title and then Page conquering him adds more juice to Page’s recent main-event run, not that it necessarily needs it.

Jackman: Well, at least it came around in a way that made sense, right? The Opps trying to leverage the «Blood and Guts» steel cage to trap Hangman like a wild animal was exactly the sort of trick the heels should be pulling. Likewise, there’s logic to Page being the one to demand a cage match, given that it helps keep Hobbs and Shibata at bay (at least in theory) and shows he isn’t afraid to take on Joe while surrounded by a steel fortress.

The question about Hangman losing is a really interesting one. Going into WrestleDream, I’d assumed that Samoa Joe was just a placeholder who would put in a decent enough shift at being the guy who loses to the champion before making way for someone else. But the past few weeks have morphed into something more interesting, with Joe seeming to get the upper hand on “Dynamite.”

Riggs: It was a fine amount of time. If anything, you could more so say this is too quick between potentially epic cage matches after the all-time banger between Will Ospreay and Kyle Fletcher.

Joe winning almost feels like it’d have to lead to a Texas Deathmatch type of stipulation, right? Simply because of Hangman. Ultimately, though, it just doesn’t feel like the right moment to dethrone Page.

Dansby: Hangman vs. Joe feels like a one-PPV feud, and the cage match is the natural way to wrap it up.

Joe has slid perfectly into that early-2000s Mick Foley role — the established, respected veteran who exists to test the champion’s toughness and add legitimacy to the run. He’s going to do that for Hangman, elevate him, and then step aside so Page can move into a bigger next feud.

Mark Briscoe continues to be the best kind of wild man. (Photo via AEW)

(Ricky Havlik)

4. No DQ for Mark Briscoe is like putting a kid in a candy store, but the stipulation screams Kyle Fletcher retains. How would a Briscoe-Don Callis Family alliance look?

Riggs: That’s not even a vision I’d really like to see. The Callis Family dynamic has become quite an interesting one, but Briscoe’s wackiness on his own is more than enough to keep at it. His inclusion to the faction would kind of make it feel like the super Conglomeration. That doesn’t do it for me at all.

Dansby: The Don Callis Family already has more members than the nWo in late WCW, so adding Briscoe would just muddy both acts. Keep them far apart.

Fletcher’s rise has been one of AEW’s best slow-burn stories, and this should be another step toward positioning him for a main-event push in 2026 — the same trajectory Darby’s on.

Jackman: I suppose the obvious playbook here is to have Briscoe forced to the bottom of the pecking order for a few months as a way of building up to the massively cathartic release when he finally breaks free of his captors and puts the smackdown on Kyle Fletcher. It could be similar to what WWE tried to do with Otis during his time with Chad Gable, but then stopped short of executing at the last minute.

We saw from Briscoe’s superb feud with MJF just how good he is at these emotional angles. The way he was prepared to have his personal life rendered fair game for promos in order to dial up the intensity of that feud was really quite remarkable. I’m not sure I’d have been so brave in his shoes, but, hell, you can’t deny that it paid off.

Sulla-Heffinger: Briscoe in the Callis Family is something I would like to see and there are two ways you could go here. First, have the Callis Family completely snuff out any of Briscoe’s chaos and personality, just turning him into an unwilling soldier for the heel faction before ultimately breaking free.

The other — and more fun — path to go down, is to have Briscoe just cause utter chaos and destroy them from the inside.

Briscoe has the ability to pull off the storytelling either way.

5. AEW is adding another championship into the mix with the AEW National Championship. Is this a positive?

Dansby: TOO MANY TITLES.

We literally just watched AEW unify two belts because they were redundant, only to turn around and introduce another one month later. Add in Mercedes carrying half the belts on Earth and ROH championships still popping up on TV, and it becomes impossible for fans to track who matters and which titles actually mean something.

More belts doesn’t equal more prestige — storytelling does.

Sulla-Heffinger: No. I get that there’s history behind it, but like Kel says, more championships doesn’t mean more prestige. If this were something more akin to the Cruiserweight Championship, with parameters around it, I would be more open to viewing this in a positive light.

Jackman: I mean, taken at face value, it seems kind of wild, right? It’s only been a few months since Tony was getting praised for consolidating the Continental and International championships in order to streamline things a bit.

On the other hand, to play Devil’s advocate, I can just about see a case for it. The fact that the Unified Championship was born from a match between Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega gives the belt an almost ceremonial feel. Tony Khan has said himself that he sees that particular title as being on par with the World Championship, and I suspect he’ll be keeping it on Okada for a long while yet. It almost feels like a title to celebrate six-star wrestling matches, rather than further the usual storylines.

In those circumstances, I guess creating a fourth men’s title isn’t totally ludicrous. Or am I clutching at straws here? You’ll have to help me out on that one, guys.

Riggs: Shortly and sweetly: No. AEW does a whole lot of things right, but their title count is not one of them.

Unless it truly serves its purpose and does travel around more outside of AEW than within it, then I don’t see the point here. I just don’t trust that, because that’s what the All-Atlantic/International title was supposed to be all about.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 22: Eric — Eric «Big Justice» Befumo and Andrew «A.J.» Befumo of The Costco Guys are back in action.

(Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images)

Bonus question: Big Boom AJ is back on the Tailgate Brawl portion of the card. Is this a Boom or a Doom?

Jackman: It’s a boom from me. Sadly, I haven’t had the chance to see him live at an AEW show, but I imagine he’s just the kind of guy you need to get the crowd warmed up and hollering in time for the proper show.

It’s such a feel-good story too. Who doesn’t like to see an everyday, blue-collar guy achieving his lifelong dream (albeit thanks to the intervention of a wrestling-obsessed billionaire)?

Sulla-Heffinger: Boom. The Costco Guys may not be the phenomenon they once were, but it’s still a very fun addition to the pay-per-view lead-in shows. Double Boom if The Rizzler is there.

Riggs: It’s been «Boom» so far since he keeps getting brought back. I’m not a fan personally, as he takes a spot from a full-timer, but what are you going to do?

Dansby: I’m over it … everyone should be over it. Let’s officially retire this in 2026 and move on.

Predictions

AEW Heavyweight Championship (Steel Cage): Hangman Adam Page (Dansby, Jackman, Riggs) vs. Samoa Joe (Sulla-Heffinger)
AEW Women’s Championship: Kris Statlander (Jackman, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Mercedes Moné (Dansby, Riggs)
AEW Tag Team Championship: Brodido vs. FTR (Dansby, Jackman, Sulla-Heffinger)
TNT Championship Match (No DQ): Kyle Fletcher (Dansby, Riggs, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Mark Briscoe (Jackman)
$1M match: Kenny Omega and Jurassic Express (Dansby, Jackman, Riggs, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Josh Alexander and the Young Bucks
Darby Allin (Dansby, Jackman, Riggs, Sulla-Heffinger) vs. Pac