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Ever since All Elite Wrestling became a reality over the last few weeks, speculation has run rampant as to who would sign with the company, would they secure a television deal and how much they are able to offer talent in contracts.
One thing that they did mention last week after officially going public by stating the promotion was going forward was that they were having a rally practically across the street from WWE Smackdown in Jacksonville, Florida.
Since Jacksonville is the home base of AEW, it's not surprising that the new promotion would try to piggyback on WWE being in town. Not much is known as to exactly what their special announcement(s) will be at the rally, but there are several possibilities.
Here are some suggestions as to what they may announce during their rally tomorrow night. They could make more than one big announcement, so the following are potential possibilities.
#1 Announcing their potential television deal
When All In was announced, I didn't originally know that a pre-show would air on cable television. Luckily for me and anyone else with WGN America, we were able to watch the pre-show of the event.
It included the 'Over the Budget Battle Royal' eventually won by Flip Gordon as well as a match between SCU members Kazarian and Scorpio Sky against the Briscoes.
Since they already had a brief television deal with WGN America, could they be announcing a television deal with the same network that aired their pre-show? Or will they announce that they have secured a TV deal with a bigger cable network like TNT or TBS like they had rumored to be?
Having a show on either of the networks owned by Turner Broadcasting would harken back to the Monday Night Wars but also bring All Elite Wrestling's Tuesday Night Dynamite into millions of homes weekly.
#2 Announcing date for All Out: Double or Nothing
When interviewed over the final months of 2018, Jim Ross mentioned that he could see the second show for the Elite take place in May of 2019. Could that be among the announcements at the AEW rally in Jacksonville?
Cody and the Young Bucks obviously have the minds of bookers, otherwise both All In and All Elite Wrestling probably wouldn't have come to fruition.
A trademark regarding 'Double or Nothing' was filed for towards the end of 2018, leading to speculation that it would be the name of the follow-up to All In.
While it might take some time to both secure a television deal and film episodes of Tuesday Night Dynamite, having a tangible goal of a second Elite PPV on the docket might help offer some solace to some fans who are worried about the promotion lasting.
PPVs are always announced several months in advance of when they actually take place, so perhaps the Elite are using this rally/platform to announce the show since they can't do so officially on television - yet.
#3 Revealing the signings of wrestlers
Over the last week or so, superstars SCU and Britt Baker have been announced as signing contracts with All Elite Wrestling.
While Baker is probably still going to be more of a freelancer on the independent scene, SCU seems like they'll likely be foundational members of the roster.
They are all talented wrestlers with decades of experience in the business. Christopher Daniels, in particular, could also help out with production and booking responsibilities.
Would announcing these signings be something that would be revealed at the rally? Knowing whom to expect outside of the Elite would give fans more of a reason to eventually tune into any shows put on by AEW.
The recruitment stage is still ongoing for all professional wrestling promotions, so announcing the initial signings might also coax some other wrestlers who may be on the fence sign with AEW.
Jim Ross and Chris Jericho are also free agents, so perhaps they are officially introduced in some capacity as being involved with AEW.
#4 Revealing partnerships with other promotions
Since the formation of All Elite Wrestling was rumored to happen towards the end of 2018, a lot of attention turned towards a few things.
One was how the Elite leaving both New Japan Pro Wrestling and Ring of Honor would affect all three promotions. Well, in order to figure just that out, the three promotions had a meeting to discuss just that yesterday.
It appeared on the surface that AEW had hoped to work with NJPW going forward for joint-shows, but according to several reports, including one from Biggoldbeltgroup.com, NJPW opted to maintain its current relationship with ROH rather than add one with AEW.
The entirety of the Elite group practically left both promotions, save for Marty Scurll. NJPW opting to stay with ROH isn't a surprise. The relationship has been fruitful for both promotions.
So will AEW announce that they have partnered with other promotions? They were offered Impact Wrestling according to several news outlets, including a piece by Wrestlingrumors.net.
Impact Wrestling appears to still need some help from the outside, so perhaps since they were rejected by NJPW, they will partner with Impact.
President of Impact Ed Nordholm recently mentioned in a Q&A with fans that was carried by WrestlingInc.com and Mandatory.com that he would be open to a relationship with AEW:
“It’s a world in which we would welcome an opportunity to work with Ring of Honor,” explained Nordholm according to Wrestling Inc. “It’s a world in which we would welcome an opportunity working with New Japan. It’s a world in which we welcome working with AEW, if they actually get up and running. We have interest in them. I don’t think we have any bias against any of that happening.”
#5 Kenny Omega is signing with them
While announcing a potential television deal and a date for the next PPV would be great functional steps in the every-day operation of the promotion, fewer announcements would have greater impact than revealing that Kenny Omega has signed with the promotion.
A report from Bodyslam.com reports that they Omega has chosen his friends in All Elite Wrestling over WWE which wouldn't surprise many. While the report doesn't really give much in the terms of specific details, he could still sign with WWE.
Omega going to AEW makes the most sense for the group and the wrestler himself. He wants total creative control which is something he might not have been promised had he gone to WWE.
He already has boatloads of experience with his friends in the Elite and putting on an independent show, so perhaps Cody and the Bucks wanted to announce their buddies' signing with the company as a middle finger to WWE in the same town on the same night.
'The Best Bout Machine' likely would have made more of an impact for himself by going to WWE, but AEW will need top wrestlers they can depend on as top draws in the company.
Unfortunately for Cody, although he might be a great wrestler and main-event star no matter where he goes, he isn't a top draw in the vein of Kenny Omega.
