Predicting the first title holders in All Elite Wrestling

Will either Cody or the Young Bucks be the first to hold titles in All Elite Wrestling?
Will either Cody or the Young Bucks be the first to hold titles in All Elite Wrestling?

At Double or Nothing, Bret Hart unveiled the first championship belt for All Elite Wrestling, the AEW Heavyweight Championship. It was meant to merely be a reveal because a way to determine the first title holder was to be implemented in a title match at All Out in August.

Adam Page had won the battle royal earlier in the night to qualify for the Heavyweight Title match. Also at the show, the winner of the main event between Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho was given a spot in a match for the title at All Out in August. After Jericho punched his ticket with a win, the match became official.

But since we know there will be other titles in the promotion, just what will they be? Most promotions have a Heavyweight Title, a Women's Championship, a Tag Team Championship and a mid-card title.

Because they have such a diverse roster and a lot of wrestlers under 200lbs, the mid-card title might be a lightweight, middleweight or cruiserweight type of belt. Every promotion names it differently as WWF/E and NJPW's mid-card titles have always been the Intercontinental Championship.

Other promotions, like Ring of Honor, have the TV Title or in Impact's case, the X Division Title. The official type and name of that belt will likely be determined at a later date this year, possibly on AEW's TV show.

At the post-show scrum for Fyter Fest, the Young Bucks mentioned that there are plans for a men's title, women's title and a set of tag titles for both men and women. With all of the above considered, here are predictions for just who will be the first titleholders in AEW.


AEW Women's Tag Team Champions - Hikaru Shida and Riho Abe

The two women -Abe on the left and Shida on the right - were on the winning side of a six woman tag team match at Double or Nothing
The two women -Abe on the left and Shida on the right - were on the winning side of a six woman tag team match at Double or Nothing

There aren't many, or for that matter any, established female tag teams yet in AEW. There have been four female matches collectively at both DON and Fyter Fest but outside of Nyla Rose being a bully type and Leva Bates 'shushing' people, there aren't many greatly established heels.

On the face side of things, however, are Kylie Rae, Britt Baker, Abe and Shida. Since the latter two ladies have teamed together, it might make sense for the first Women's Tag Team champs to be from outside of the US. It would help give them more exposure and allow them to grow into their roles stateside.

Both matches that featured the joshi women were great, so by giving them a tag title run, it will help to further cement their legitimacy. Until some other teams are either forced together or formed naturally, this pairing makes the most sense as the first holders of Women's Tag Team titles in AEW.

AEW Tag Team Champions - Lucha Brothers

These two teams have competed in some of the most marketed matches in AEW so far
These two teams have competed in some of the most marketed matches in AEW so far

At Double or Nothing, the Young Bucks defeated the Lucha Brothers. At Fyter Fest, the Elite defeated the team of Laredo Kid and the Lucha Brothers. Since the lone win that the duo of Pentagon Jr. and Fenix have over the Bucks happened in AAA, they need a huge win in the near future to validate only working for AEW in the United States.

I think the good will they showed by falling in the first two shows will come back to help them later when the tag team tournament starts up. These two teams have mainly been focused on their feud with each other but that will likely be amped up once they battle every other team for the right to be the first set of tag champs in All Elite Wrestling.

The Bucks, and none of the Elite for that matter, can be the first title holders in the company. It would mark a huge abuse of power and a sort of nepotism since they are all Executive VPs in the company.

For that matter alone, the Young Bucks shouldn't and probably won't be the first team to hold titles. The next best team, and one that hasn't been given a win yet, is the Lucha Brothers. Once they get away from the Bucks and get to face the other teams, we'll see them go on a winning streak culminating with a title win.

AEW Midcard Title - Darby Allin

The man who carries a bodybag to the ring is in for big things in AEW
The man who carries a bodybag to the ring is in for big things in AEW

Not only did Darby Allin debut at Fyter Fest against Cody Rhodes, but he took the Executive VP to a time-limit draw in their match. It would have been easy to have Cody win, although it would have set a precedent of members of the Elite going over young talent. But since the match ended as a draw, it protected Allin in his debut.

If they didn't have big plans for him, then he would have lost at some point during the match. Although Cody got in most of the offense, Allin took most of the risks like the coffin drop off of the top rope to the outside. That's a staple of his game - being a daring, risk-taking wrestler who will pull out all the stops and take a lot of damage to win.

There will be a mid-card title in AEW, but it isn't quite known if it will be like a TV or Intercontinental Title, or one based around weight like a cruiserweight belt. WCW had a great cruiserweight division, and Cody wants to recapture some of what made WCW special back in the day.

With guys like Allin, Jungle Boy, Kip Sabian, Sammy Guevara and Joey Janela all on the lighter side of things, it might be that type of title. Or it could be like a Next-Gen Title since they are all young as well. Since Allin was protected, he will be in the running for any mid-card belt and possibly its first holder.

AEW Women's Champion - Britt Baker

She won the first women's match under the banner so big things might be in store for Baker
She won the first women's match under the banner so big things might be in store for Baker

Baker was both the first woman (other than Brandi Rhodes) to be announced as signing with the company. She also won the first women's match at Double or Nothing by defeating Kylie Rae, Awesome Kong and Nyla Rose. Rae took the pin, keeping the other two women strong. But if records will be so important in AEW, how will that effect the records for those who are not pinned in multi-person matches?

Whatever happens regarding the records, Baker has been positioned as one of the top women in the company. While the likes of Bea Priestly and Sadie Gibbs are yet to have matches, Baker has, and it was likely to expose her to a portion of the audience who might not know her.

Chances are that most of AEW's audience knows most of the Superstars, save for maybe some of the women from Japan. Kong hasn't been around since DON and Rose has been on the losing end of both of her matches. For those reasons, it appears that Baker is one of the 'young and up and coming' talent that AEW will try to push.

AEW Heavyweight Champion - Adam Page

The first title to be unveiled and decided will be the AEW Heavyweight Championship.
The first title to be unveiled and decided will be the AEW Heavyweight Championship.

This is likely the easiest one to predict. Chris Jericho may be a legend of the business, but he's being used to put over the younger stars ready to be main-eventers. And since Page is the youngest member of the Elite and was never a main-eventer elsewhere, he'll get his chance in AEW.

He's won both of his matches so far as each member of the Elite has been a part of a featured match at both DON and Fyter Fest. He'll also be facing Kip Sabian at Fight for the Fallen. Page is fighting Jericho for the title at All Out and since Jericho has been a part of other parts of wrestling history (the first Undisputed WWE Champion), this will be Page's honor.

It will be a member of the Elite winning the title, but as far as that goes, it would have been a little worse had Cody or Omega been the first champion. I love Omega as much as the next person, but in order for AEW to become a promotion that doesn't 'promote its own children', like a lot of promotions did back in the territorial days, a younger star needs to be the first person to hoist the beautiful title over his shoulder. That person will be Hangman Page.

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