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At one point, Christian Cage thought his wrestling career was dead in the water.
Saddled by multiple injuries that forced him into an early retirement, Christian probably never thought he would wrestle again, much less be where he's standing today. Nor be given the opportunity that he has this weekend at All Out.
The longtime WWE superstar, who made his return to full-time action after a seven-year layoff, now holds the IMPACT World Heavyweight title and is looking for more gold.
It's been one of the feel-good stories of the summer, seeing Christian rise to the top of the wrestling world again.
Christian's accomplishments are well-documented. From his time teaming with Edge to his singles run in WWE, he was always known as one of the more solid and reliable in-ring workers. Along the way, he captured a whole lot of championships including the WWE World Title on two different occasions.
A great talker on the mic, he rightfully earned the nickname 'Captain Charisma'. And he always finds a way to elicit emotions from his 'peeps'. He is truly one of the most engaging talkers in the industry.
Outside of the ring, Christian is well-respected for being a class act as well.
Here's a guy who has been married to the same woman for 20 years, has never had any controversy or brushes with the law and has always been friendly with the fans.
During his time with AEW, he has been praised for his attitude and leadership. If there was ever an example of someone who puts the word 'professional' into the term professional wrestling? It's Christian.
He's pretty much easy to root for. Not just as a performer, but as a person.
Now he'll have one of the biggest matches he's had in years when he steps through the ropes to battle Kenny Omega at AEW All Out.
After defeating Omega for the IMPACT World title recently on the debut episode of Rampage, the odds are pretty slim that he can do it a second time and capture a second world title. Smart Money says that Omega will walk out of Chicago retaining the gold, and that the two men will go their separate ways for now.
However, win or lose: This return has been a personal and professional victory for Christian. He's come back in great shape, wrestled through some terrific matches, captured a world title and proven a lot of his doubters wrong.
There have been several huge stories recently that have overshadowed this banner run that Christian has been on. Lots of huge comebacks, swerves and things we probably thought we would never, ever see.
But when we look back on the summer of 2021? We'll always have to acknowledge that the re-birth of Christian will be among the best stories of them all.
Do you think Christian Cage will defeat Kenny Omega for the AEW World title at All Out 2021? Sound off in the comments section below.
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