Armchair Booking: AEW All Out 2020 Card

With AEW already building towards its biggest pay-per-view event of the year, the infant promotion is already in with a chance of producing one of the highest drawing box-office attractions of 2020. Last year’s event saw the crowning on the first AEW Champion in Chris Jericho and an instant classic between Jon Moxley and Kenny Omega. With the standards set pretty high, AEW must put together one hell of a card.

In this piece, we’re going to attempt to book the main card for AEW’s flagship event in Chicago. Providing that things continue on the course they are, we should hopefully see a bunch of rabid wrestling fans in attendance for the show, making for an even more incredible atmosphere after a year of empty arena performances.

AEW deserve for this to be their crown jewel of 2020. No, not the awful WWE Saudi shows, but the shining example for what makes a phenomenal wrestling show. So far, they’ve been wiping the floor with NXT in the ratings and putting together more exciting pay-off shows, I have no doubt that they’ll do the same in September.

With this in mind, let’s run down our card for AEW All Out 2020.
 

Jon Moxley vs Brian Cage vs Brodie Lee – AEW Championship

Jon Moxley has had a pretty rough time as AEW Champion; having to defend against three of the stockiest dudes on the roster in Jake Hager, Brodie Lee and Brian Cage is no easy feat but Moxley has come through looking like the valiant champion AEW needs on the top of their card. At the time of writing, Moxley is set to defend against ‘The Machine’ Brian Cage at Fyter Fest. Presuming that Mox walks away with the title in that huge contest, I highly suspect that we’ll see a big rematch down the line at All Out.

With the finish to Moxley/Lee being somewhat of a dirty finish, mostly due to the two crashing through the ramp and Brodie never actually submitting to Moxley’s rear naked choke, I see him returning straight to the main event scene when he eventually re-emerges. Perhaps he costs Cage the win at Fyter Fest, setting up the perfect triple threat scenario for All Out.

Moxley would be facing his biggest challenge in not only the extraordinary Cage but also The Dark Order and their exalted one, Brodie Lee. It’d be a hell of a match with a variety of different styles on display, perhaps not blockbuster main event material to the masses but I certainly wouldn’t say no.

 

Chris Jericho vs Mike Tyson

Yeah, this is happening and what a play by All Elite Wrestling. Signing ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson for a few special appearances is a huge momentum shift in their direction and will undoubtedly lead to an almighty pay-off if and when Tyson actually steps in the ring with someone.

Tyson has quickly become one of the most talked about athletes in the world once again, confirming his future in-ring return to the world of boxing and putting the wheels in motion for a box-office dream match against Tyson Fury. Whichever way you look at it, him even showing his face at Double or Nothing was huge for Tony Khan’s wrestling company.

This week’s episode of Dynamite proved that Mike Tyson signed more than just a one night deal with AEW. In one of the show’s highlights, he and his crew collided with Chris Jericho and The Inner Circle, setting up a huge marquee attraction for a future AEW event. Tyson has never been given the chance to actually trade shots with someone in a wrestling ring, aside from his brief moment at WrestleMania 14, I’m sure he’s itching to mix it up with a veteran like Chris Jericho now that he’s in a fighting state.

This will undoubtedly be the show’s main event and probably bring in most of the ratings. Global media follow Tyson like a hawk, and if they confirm this match, AEW will likely be considered on a higher pedestal than WWE.

 

Cody Rhodes vs Dustin Rhodes – Title vs Career

There seems to be two narratives that are going to be the driving force on AEW: Dynamite throughout the summer: Cody’s weekly title defence and Dustin’s potential retirement. I couldn’t imagine a better scenario than both storylines being given a huge climax at All Out this year in a rematch between the two brothers on the big stage. Last year, Cody and Dustin stole the show at the first Double or Nothing, producing a Match of the Year candidate that left many wrestling fans wondering how they’re ever going to top such a performance.

Arguably, a rematch between the two with both a championship and a career on the line would go a long way in making it one of the most emotionally-fuelled wrestling matches to ever take place on global TV. Both Rhodes siblings are incredibly popular with the AEW crowd and the TNT Championship needs to be featured in some huge matches with equally huge stars to establish its prestige, what better match than this one right here?

This could very well be the Omega/Okada of western wrestling, where they manage to put together Match of the Year qualifiers two years running. Expect blood, expect tears, expect history.

 

Kenny Omega & Hangman Page vs Pride & Powerful vs Lucha Brothers vs SCU vs The Best Friends vs Superbad Death Squad – Ladder Match for the AEW Tag Team Championships

There’s nothing better than multi-man ladder matches. AEW knocked it out of the park with their Casino Ladder match at Double or Nothing, so there’s no argument against them putting together another for All Out but instead putting the spotlight on the stacked Tag division for a change. Kenny Omega and Hangman Page have become quite the team, hopefully the ‘Civil War’ angle is going to be put to rest after the amazing Stadium Stampede match, setting them up for one big defence against the very best of the division.

With P&P, SCU, Death Triangle, The Best Friends and The Superbad Death Squad all picking up wins here and there, there’s an easy argument to be made for all teams to be featured in a title match on the biggest show of the year. Adding the ladder stipulation would only go to take the match from being good to great. It’ll be absolute carnage with the variety of styles on display in this match, hopefully bringing Tag wrestling to the fore-front of AEW’s movement and once again stealing the show.

I highly suspect that this will be the time that AEW pull the trigger on Hangman’s heel turn, providing that he and Kenny somehow lose the titles to one of the many teams involved in the match. There’s money in a feud between those two guys, starting that programme on the big stage of All Out would go a long way in getting fans invested from the get-go.

 

The Revolt vs The Young Bucks

The Revolt have arrived in All Elite Wrestling and have instantly set their sights on the top of the Tag division. Since Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood were granted their release from WWE, the world has been buzzing for a meeting between them and The Young Bucks, an encounter that was teased seconds after The Revolt arrived on AEW Dynamite.

For now, it seems that The Revolt will be going head-to-head with The Blade and The Butcher, which will likely be a fantastic match in its own right. Assuming that it scheduled to go down at Fyter Fest, it begs the question of when will AEW pull the trigger on the dream match between the newcomers and The Bucks. I mean, it has to be All Out, right?

You talk about blockbuster attractions, then there’s no bigger for the tag division than this clash right here. Another tick off the dream match list and a massive rub for The Revolt as they begin the next chapter of their wrestling careers.

 

Hikaru Shida vs Dr Britt Baker D.M.D – AEW Women’s Championship

Britt Baker has confirmed that she’ll return from injury at the All Out event. Even though AEW officials champion victories over simply handing out title opportunities, I personally think that this match is a necessary addition to the All Out card in September. This match has taken place several times already, with the most recent putting Britt Baker on the map with her new, grittier style and character. These two have a natural chemistry that shines through every time, making for a great title match in the making.

This will be a huge test for Hikaru Shida as the leader of the AEW Women’s division and could easily be the reason she wins over a few more fans in the West. Britt Baker on the other hand is waiting on one big performance to put her on the map, with several wrestling legends already paying notice and putting her over on social media, all it’s going to take is some championship competition on the big stage to make her the next top female star in wrestling.

 

A Trip to House Hardy

The last thing AEW wants is for Broken Matt Hardy to fade away and be classed as obsolete. One of the biggest draws for Matt Hardy is his cinematic universe in House Hardy, the many deletion matches have been game-changers in the wrestling world, leading to the likes of the Boneyard, Firefly Funhouse and Corporate Ladder matches in WWE. It’s about time AEW lets Matt loose with the first deletion match in All Elite Wrestling at All Out.

It’s a draw in of itself, seeing the original innovator do his thing on the big stage with no creative restrictions. As far as who should be the one to step into the whimsical world of Hardy’s imagination, take your pick from the range of talent available in AEW. MJF, Lance Archer, Darby Allin even Mr. Brodie Lee if he doesn’t make the cut for the AEW title match. There are so many avenues AEW could take when producing their first deletion match, perhaps it could even be an open invite from Hardy himself to the entire AEW roster?

Exploiting House Hardy on a regular basis would do wonders for AEW pay-per-view buys. Fans love it, the wrestlers love it, make it happen.