5 potential AEW storylines that could rival The Bloodline drama in WWE
AEW has their work cut for 2023, given the amazing storyline WWE has on its hands with The Bloodline. The biggest news story of the Royal Rumble wasn't former AEW EVP Cody Rhodes' victorious return or Rhea Ripley's dominant Rumble victory.
Sami Zayn's chair shot at Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns was heard around the world. In a bid to save his best friend Kevin Owens, who was handcuffed and beaten into oblivion, the Master Strategist decided to turn on his Bloodline brothers, garnering an amazing pop from the San Antonio, Texas crowd.
Fans have been crying out for Zayn to break free of the faction and challenge The Tribal Chief, and they have finally gotten that catharsis in one of the most compelling storylines that WWE has put out in years.
Looking over at AEW, there's honestly nothing that can compete with The Bloodline drama. However, the potential is always there, given their stacked roster. Here are 5 potential AEW feuds that we would book that could rival The Bloodline's implosion.
#5. AEW Homegrown vs. AEW Outsiders
“I build AEW from the ground up until it became a fortress, that wrestlers like you, no, no, no... that superstars like u wanted to move into..." -- Britt Baker to Saraya https://t.co/p6at8r1H6T
When Saraya made her debut in AEW back in November 2022, she was immediately pitted against the most popular superstar in the company, Britt Baker.
While the former Divas Champion was initially positioned as a babyface, Baker cut an impassioned promo about how she was the one who built the women's division from the ground up before all the former WWE Superstars started streaming in.
It was certainly a compelling argument and essentially turned the feud into a homegrown talent vs. outsiders storyline. Based on the crowd reaction, Tony Khan decided to execute a double turn, turning Saraya and former AEW Women's Champion into heels against Britt and current champ Jamie Hayter, who is also incredibly popular with the fans.
The storyline has the potential to become the biggest angle of the year for the women's division if they can rope all the homegrown talent together to fight against anyone with past WWE ties. This would basically be a women's version of NWO vs WCW.
#4. Sting vs. Darby Allin
Darby Allin and STING. A beginning and an end. STING does not think he will come to Japan to wrestle again, while for young Darby Allin, this is just the beginning. https://t.co/TkLCI33GpY
When Sting debuted in All Elite Wrestling back in Winter Is Coming 2020, he immediately aligned with Darby Allin, acting as his mentor and occasional partner. The tandem has seen incredible success, with Darby winning the TNT Championship a number of times.
Eventually, The Icon will have to call time on his legendary career and it seems like he will bow out in Tony Khan's company. The only opponent that would make sense for him to have his last match with would be the youngster himself.
It is a story that writes itself. The student takes on the mentor in a passing-of-the-torch moment.
#3. Adam Cole vs. The Elite
AEW reportedly wanted to ensure Adam Cole's return was kept secret so they went extra mile to keep it under wraps.
A "TBD promo" was listed on the internal run sheet after the Moxley/Hangman match. That was Cole’s segment. Even Excalibur was caught off guard by this live on air. https://t.co/qhoD2EuTg7
Adam Cole made a monumental return to AEW Dynamite at the start of the year after a long injury layoff. The former NXT Champion last wrestled at the Forbidden Door pay-per-view back in June 2022.
While he was previously positioned as a heel and aligned with The Elite, his appearance and emotional promo evoked a positive appearance from the crowd, and he firmly feels like a babyface right now.
This would put him at odds with his former faction mates. The Trios Tag Team Champs are coming off an outstanding series with the Death Triangle, and their standing is currently unclear right now. Their perception online is even more mixed given their recent drama with CM Punk.
With Cole gunning for the AEW World Championship and wanting to break free from his stable, this could cause friction between the two parties. Who wouldn't want to see a match between Adam Cole and Kenny Omega?
It was a mixed opportunity not to book The Elite vs. The Undisputed back when Bobby Fish was still with the company. But they could easily pull the trigger on the Young Bucks vs. Cole and a returning Kyle O'Reilly instead.
#2. The Blackpool Combat Club implodes
Being in the Blackpool Combat Club #BCC is utter Madness. @GentlemanRegal https://t.co/XtrosBU21v
Tho Blackpool Combat Club was one of the most dominant factions of 2022. It brought three of the best pro wrestlers in the company together with Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley, and Claudio Castagnoli.
They also recruited a star of the future in Wheeler Yuta and had the legendary William Regal as their manager. Despite their success, they never appeared together on-screen often, with everyone involved in separate storylines.
After Regal's betrayal of Mox and subsequent departure from the company, there seem to be new cracks in the faction. Jon has been hinting at a heel turn during his rivalry with Hangman Page, while the American Dragon is busy with his quest to win the AEW World Championship.
Despite getting attacked and ganged up by Brian Cage and his ROH faction, neither Claudio nor Wheeler turned up to save Danielson, which was quite odd. This could be the seed of dissension between the group members.
Who wouldn't want to see Claudio vs. Danielson for the ROH World Championship? Either that or the entire faction could turn heel and become the most dangerous alliance in the company. It would be an epic plot twist.
#1. CM Punk vs. The Elite
“My plea to all 4 guys. Please find a way to make it work.
If we can make it work, we can set up the future of professional wrestling for a long time and we can change the course of professional wrestling”
- Dax Harwood on issues between CM Punk & The Elite
(via FTR with Dax) https://t.co/UGMeWJO2WZ
This could easily be the biggest money-drawn feud that Tony Khan can book right now. CM Punk was All Elite Wrestling's biggest box-office talent up until All Out 2022.
While the media scrum fiasco and the subsequent backstage fight were truly unfortunate and scuppered his momentum, the Straightedge Superstar was easily the best part of AEW television in the 12 months prior to that.
The Elite has since returned and are the current AEW Trios Champions. Tony Khan will have his work cut out to bring the two parties together and let bygones be bygones. However, if there's any AEW feud that could rival The Bloodline drama, this would be it.