Chris Flackett
It’s been a big week for AEW as the build-up to Forbidden Door has begun to accelerate, there were some surprising heel turns, and new tag team champions have been crowned.
All of this combined made it quite challenging (in a good way!) to pick out the placements on our AEW Power Rankings! How did it pan out?
Read on…
5. Toni Storm
AEW’s build of Toni Storm was quite slow, to begin with, but things seem to be picking up now with the end game looking to be Storm as the next big challenger to Thunder Rosa’s AEW Women’s Championship.
What better way to have someone look like a genuine title contender than by having them beat the former champion? And Storm did just that, not only pinning Britt Baker in less than ten minutes but doing it cleanly and decisively too. That’s going to make things all the more interesting when Storm does eventually take on Rosa.
4. Christian
The turn on Jurassic Express has been teased for months now, but it still seemed pretty shocking when it happened. A feud with Christian is going to do Jungle Boy a world of good but what does Christian get out of it?
Well, since dropping the Impact Championship, Christian has played second fiddle, managing and mentoring Jurassic Express instead of being a performer in his own right. While all of that was by design to build up to this point, Christian will benefit from being his own man again and proving his worth as a star once more in the ring.
3. Jay White
What a week for ‘King Switch’! Not only did he become IWGP World Heavyweight Champion at Dominion, but he also established a position of power over the two men who want to challenge him for that title at Forbidden Door.
Dropping Hangman Page in the middle of the ring and reminding him of the number of victories he holds over him sends a clear message. But Jay White telling an expectant and now-disgruntled Adam Cole that he is also not getting a title shot at Forbidden Door makes an even big statement: Jay makes the rules, calls the shots, and gives opportunities—when he wants to. The King Switch has spoken.
2. Jericho Appreciation Society
Never forget that Jericho has more tricks up his sleeve than a master magician—he is The Wizard, after all.
Not only did Jericho survive losing his hair after Sammy Guevara (with Tay Conti in tow) got involved in the match with Ortiz and reunited with Jericho, but the whole appreciation society made a point of beating down Mox and Tanahashi, with assistance from Lance Archer and El Desperado. This in turn has led to a match at Forbidden Door between Minoru Suzuki, Sammy Guevara & Chris Jericho vs. Wheeler Yuta, Shota Umino & Eddie Kingston. Not bad work at all from the so-called ‘Judas’ and friends.
1. The Young Bucks
The first-ever two-time AEW World Tag Team Champions get first place on our Power Ranking this week. By virtue of their win over Jurassic Express, the Bucks are at the head of the AEW tag division once again. OK, it might not have been the match we were expecting, but The Bucks did what they do best—they won. After an underwhelming JE title run, the Bucks are a good, if obvious, call to inject some life back into the tag scene. Congratulations to the new champs.
