All Elite Wrestling is coming up on its 1 year anniversary of its first routine pay-per-view, Double or Nothing, hailing from the Grand Garden Arena on the 25th of May, providing that all goes ahead as planned. AEW have been on a hot streak with their pay-per-view events, building up some exciting championship feuds and grudge matches that have ultimately paid off on TV.
AEW, as well as pretty much every other wrestling promotion still going, have been struggling with the lack of live audiences and the growing pressures of the global crisis, naturally it’s going to be difficult for them to build to a huge event such as Double or Nothing and do it justice. Nevertheless, they’re giving it a go with the star-studded roster they’ve produced over the past few months, with former WWE stars Broken Matt Hardy and Brodie Lee both making an impact upon their debuts.
With the hype for this pay-per-view slowly starting to simmer in the background of everyone’s worries, we’re going to have a go at some armchair booking, predicting the potential card for Double or Nothing 2020 and giving a general idea of who might come out on top in the rankings.
Make sure you drop your own fantasy matches and card predictions in the comments below.
1. Casino Buy-In Battle Royal
Last year’s Buy-In was headlined by the Casino battle royal, pitting the majority of AEW’s base roster against one another for a future shot at the inaugural AEW Championship against the winner of the show’s main event between Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega. ‘Hangman’ Adam Page came out on top that night, which propelled him into the seat of being AEW’s top babyface for the first few months of Dynamite.
There’s no doubt that AEW should once again use this gimmicked battle royal to help build a star for the upcoming year, but maybe this time they should switch it up slightly by having the winner compete against the AEW Champion in the main event of the main card. Of course, that champion being Jon Moxley.
In terms of a winner, I personally believe we’ll see the return of MJF, who is reportedly out on injury for the foreseeable future. Bit of a long shot I know, but AEW could be doing a great job at working us into believing that MJF won’t be in the picture for a while. Perhaps an interference spot where he last eliminates a popular babyface star would get some huge heat on him for his first run at the AEW Championship.
Undoubtedly, MJF is one of the hottest heels in the business today, and rightfully deserves a chance to take down Jon Moxley in 2020.
2. Darby Allin vs Jake Hager
Darby Allin has slowly been building a feud with The Inner Circle, first defeating Sammy Guevara at Revolution and since making his intentions clear for a future match with Chris Jericho via his concept vignettes. With Guevara scratched off the list and Proud & Powerful potentially involved in the Tag title scene, that leaves Jake Hager for Allin to prove himself against.
Hager recently came off of a championship match with Jon Moxley, admittedly it wasn’t best received by the fans, so Jake needs a chance to get himself back on their good side by going for a classic clash of styles with the daredevil.
Darby has become one of the most popular stars on the roster, captivating the audience more and more with every passing match. This should be the continuation of his rise to prominence with a big win over the former WWE World Heavyweight Champ and another step towards a big match with Jericho.
3. The Dark Order vs SoCal Uncensored
Mr. Brodie Lee has certainly made some waves since making his AEW debut in Rochester, donning the title of The Dark Order’s Exalted One. Lee is set to finally become the star he was supposed to become outside of The Wyatt Family, and that starts with his developing rivalry with Christopher Daniels and his SCU buddies. The Dark Order might not have been taken too seriously when first emerging on the scene, but now Brodie Lee has taken over and led the charge, there’s nothing stopping them becoming the biggest thing in AEW.
This could also make for the start of a successful trios division in All Elite Wrestling. SCU are certainly one of the more successful factions from AEW’s first year, now with The Death Triangle and The Dark Order all starting to build momentum, there’s plenty of chance for a Trios Championship to be introduced at Double or Nothing, held up in the match between these two warring stables.
Of course, The Dark Order should walk away with the win if AEW want to capitalise on Brodie Lee’s newfound hype. SCU can take the loss for now and still come out looking strong, they’re one of those acts that will forever remain a popular act.
4. Dr. Britt Baker DMD vs Nyla Rose
Nyla Rose has taken over the AEW Women’s division and started carving out a legacy for herself with successful defences against both Riho and Kris Statlander. With Dr. Britt Baker now starting to become a ruthless heel in the Women’s division, shedding both blood and sweat to get herself on the map and to make a name for herself as a potential contender for Rose’s title.
It’d certainly be a typical Unstoppable Force/Immovable Object scenario that would make for exciting TV on pay-per-view. Some might dispute that it might be a little too soon for these two to meet, with Baker only recently getting herself in the headlines by becoming the first female to top the sellers list on ProWrestlingTees. If there’s ever a time to push her to the moon, then it’s definitely now.
There’s money in this feud, if AEW make it last then they could have a game-changer on their hands.
5. Cody vs Lance Archer – TNT Championship
The TNT Championship tournament has started to take shape with two particular stars standing out from each end of the bracket, that being Cody Rhodes and Lance Archer. Their impending match was teased as part of Jake Roberts’ AEW debut, when he implied that his client was looking to usurp the entitled Cody and bring down his glass castle.
Archer has remained undefeated since debuting and knocked off Colt Cabana in the opening round of the tournament. Should his momentum continue through Cody’s brother Dustin, or Kip Sabian depending on whoever wins their match, then the inevitable pay-per-view match is set for Double or Nothing.
Lance would make for an incredible inaugural champion, pitching him as a star to the AEW fans that might not have caught his incredible work in NJPW from the past year. A big win over Cody would set him up perfectly to become the head honcho of the mid-card, giving the TNT championship a huge start as part of this growing blood feud between ‘The Murderhawk’ and AEW’s proprietor.
6. Chris Jericho vs Broken Matt Hardy
Two former WWE headliners are set to do battle at the Hardy Compound sometime over the next few weeks. Matt Hardy and Chris Jericho could quite possibly be producing one of 2020’s defining matches, going all-in with the cinematic wackiness that’s starting to become a key feature of professional wrestling in these uncertain times. Personally I think they should save their off-set encounter for Double or Nothing, as opposed to using it as a ratings draw for one of the upcoming Dynamite episodes. It’s a marquee attraction that could easily make Double or Nothing a must-see event.
An in-ring battle between the two veterans would of course be a fantastic bout, but might not be quite as pay-per-view worthy as AEW’s first excursion to House Hardy. Bringing in Senor Benjamin, King Maxel and Reby Hardy for their first AEW appearances, as well as all the usual cliches of a Deletion match, would get a huge response from the pay-per-view audience and would give AEW a massive surge in popularity going forward in the Wednesday Night Wars.
Matt Hardy can finally let his creative ways run wild in his upcoming backyard scuffle against Chris Jericho. I’m sure ‘Le Champion’ is going to fit right in with the absurdity and will bring his own flavour to the always-entertaining Deletion episodes.
7. The Young Bucks vs The Revolt
Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler are officially free to compete wherever they please, with the typical 90 day no-compete clause seemingly absent from their release papers. The former Revival are now able to explore different avenues and compete in tag matches that fans have been dying to see for years. One in particular that started trending minutes after WWE confirmed their release was a dream match against AEW’s Young Bucks.
Without a doubt, putting the newly-named Revolt against The Young Bucks is a pay-per-view worthy attraction that could easily steal the show on any card. Their feud dates back to the original days of Being the Elite and has been a staple of the road to All Elite Wrestling, despite them both being in rival companies.
The sooner AEW capitalise on the tensions between the two teams the better, getting this match set up for Double or Nothing could do wonders for their sales figures and get The Revolt off the ground running for their indie run.
8. Kenny Omega & Hangman Page vs Proud & Powerful vs Death Triangle
Kenny Omega and ‘Hangman’ Adam Page stole the show at AEW Revolution with their critically acclaimed match against The Young Bucks. With the tensions between both ‘The Cleaner’ and ‘The Hangman’ still bubbling, it’s only a matter of time before AEW’s Elite mega powers explode on pay-per-view, and I personally believe that’s incoming at Double or Nothing.
Of course this means that they need to relinquish the AEW Tag Team champions in the process, and with a handful of phenomenal duos in the fray right now, this could make for an equally incredible triple threat tag match to that of their two-on-two battle with their Elite pals in February.
With The Inner Circle’s Proud and Powerful still waiting on their Tag title shot and Pentagon Jr and Rey Fenix of The Death Triangle now building some momentum, we’ve got some ideal challengers ready to step up to the plate at Double or Nothing. It’s about time that the former Lucha Brothers claim some gold in AEW and making them the reason behind Page and Omega’s bust-up could make for some drama going forward.
9. Jon Moxley vs MJF
As mentioned earlier on, I think MJF is walking away with the win in the Casino battle royal, shocking the AEW audience by competing despite implying that he’ll be out for a while with injury. Jon Moxley doesn’t really have a specific challenger standing out at the moment, having crossed Jake Hager off the list in the latest episode of Dynamite, so leaving a big question mark on the main event prior to the show would be a great way at building some intrigue in the pre-show as well as the main card’s final contest.
MJF has been on the precipice of becoming a headline attraction in AEW, with his recent feuds with Adam Page and Cody both leading to him becoming one of the most talked about heels in the entire wrestling world. All he needs to become a credible star is one big win and a championship run. Having been gifted his ring from DDP, he’s a ready-made champion that just needs to be in the right place at the right time.
Not that Moxley’s reign is running on empty, but what better babyface star to help put over MJF in a big way and get fans rallied against MJF even more than they already are. This could be AEW’s biggest feud of the year, if they time it right and work the fans like no other promotion can. MJF is their guy and Double or Nothing could be his crowning moment.
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