Biggest Takeaways From 2022 AEW Full Gear Results
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AEW
All Elite Wrestling took over Newark, New Jersey this weekend for its annual Full Gear pay-per-view, and unsurprisingly, the show delivered some great action.
Here is a rundown of the results from the show:
- Best Friends defeated The Factory
- Ricky Starks defeated Brian Cage
- Eddie Kingston defeated Jun Akiyama
- Jungle Boy defeated Luchasaurus
- Death Triangle defeated The Elite
- Jade Cargill defeated Nyla Rose
- Chris Jericho defeated Bryan Danielson, Claudio Castagnoli and Sammy Guevara
- Saraya defeated Britt Baker
- Samoa Joe defeated Wardlow and Powerhouse Hobbs
- Sting and Darby Allin defeated Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett
- Jamie Hayter defeated Toni Storm
- The Acclaimed defeated Swerve in out Glory
- MJF defeated Jon Moxley
Let’s take a look at some of the biggest takeaways from Saturday’s show.
Danhausen Doesn’t Have to Be a Comedy Character All the Time
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One of the matches during the Zero Hour pre-show featured The Factory taking on Best Friend, Orange Cassidy, Rocky Romero and a partner who was clearly telegraphed to be Danhausen.
However, the Danhausen we got was not the goofy character we have seen in AEW up to this point. He was much more focused and a little on the creepy side.
With blood on his face and a jar of teeth, the painted grappler proceeded to enter that match late and singlehandedly take out the entire opposing team.
This harkened back to the origins of his character when he was leaning more into the horror side of his personality, and it proved he doesn’t always have to be a joke.
Comedy and pro wrestling go together like chocolate and peanut butter, but there is always a ceiling on how successful somebody in that position can be. This other side of Danhausen is going to open up more possibilities for how he can be used, and that is going to mean more chances to be successful.
Eddie Kingston Needs to Be World Champion
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The final match of the pre-show saw Eddie Kingston take on a man he has idolized since the age of 18, Jun Akiyama.
The match was as hard-hitting as you would expect, but the emotional response Kingston had after it was over might have been even better.
Not only was he in tears as he bowed and hugged Akiyama, but he also gave a speech after the match thanking the fans and hyping up a few of the matches.
The crowd gave him a great reaction in the arena and on social media, and it’s just one of many reasons why Kingston needs to be the AEW world champion within the next year.
He might not be a homegrown star since he has been around for almost two decades, but he is one of AEW’s greatest success stories. He came in having never had a regular spot on national TV and won over the majority of the fans by being the most real guy in the room.
If AEW makes him a world champion in 2023, the crowd is going to go nuts.
Jade Cargill Is Going to Be a Huge Star but Still Has Work to Do
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Jade Cargill successfully defended the TBS Championship against Nyla Rose, but the match also highlighted something about the champion. She is going to be a massive star someday, but there is a long road ahead of her to get there.
She has the charisma part of the business down, but her in-ring work is where she needs further improvement. Thankfully, that will happen over time.
Cargill is still only a couple of years into her wrestling career and has already made some great strides in the ring, but whenever she is in the ring with somebody who has a lot more experience, her weaknesses are on full display.
At this point, AEW should have her drop the TBS title so somebody else can shine with it for a little while. The belt is no longer helping her the way it did earlier in the year, so a change would help both the title and whoever wins it.
Somebody like Rose would have been a great choice to beat her because it would be believable, but she is not the only choice. If Kris Statlander can return in the next few months, she would be a prime candidate.
The Elite Doesn’t Just Put Itself Over
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Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks made their triumphant return to a huge ovation from the AEW crowd at Full Gear, but the result of their match with Death Triangle shocked a lot of people.
Many assumed the winners of the original Trios title tourney would regain the gold that was stripped from their waists following All Out, but that was not the case.
Thanks to some help from Pac and a hammer, Rey Fenix was able to take down Omega to retain the titles for his team.
While one example does not constitute a pattern, this definitely goes against the misconception that Omega and the Bucks only want to put themselves over.
At the end of the day, those three men know what is best for AEW as a whole. They have put over plenty of people if you actually look at their win-loss records, so seeing them do it again here was not as surprising as it should have been.
All three men will hold gold again someday, but for now, The Elite is open to go in any direction. We could see more trios action or they may go back to the singles and tag team divisions. Time will tell.
This Is MJF’s Time
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The main event of the evening ended with Maxwell Jacob Friedman completing his goal of becoming the AEW world champion, but he didn’t do it alone.
As the bout was coming to a close, William Regal slid him a set of brass knuckles, officially turning on Moxley in the process.
What this means for the Blackpool Combat Club remains to be seen, but we know one thing for sure. AEW is all in on MJF.
The new champion will likely hold some kind of official address on Wednesday during Dynamite to celebrate his win, so we will probably get more answers there. For now, the crowd seemed stoked to see him win, so hopefully, everybody at home was, too.
Full Gear was not a perfect show but it definitely had more good booking decisions than bad ones. What did you think of the PPV?