All Elite Wrestling’s second-to-last pay-per-view of 2023 is finally here! Full Gear has had plenty of surprises in the past such as MJF costing Cody Rhodes the opportunity to NEVER challenge for the AEW World Heavyweight title and Jon Moxley and Kenny Omega going to war in a Lights Out Match.

This year promises to be no different. With the promise of a new talent debuting at the Los Angeles show and six titles on the line, this is sure to be an eventful pay-per-view for AEW. Below are the predictions for AEW’s Full Gear 2023:

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AEW World Heavyweight Championship: MJF (c) vs. Jay White 

This is one of the easiest matches to predict. Tony Khan may feel that Jay White is ready to take the mantle as the top dog of AEW. Though White came in as a warm body earlier this year, he’s nicely grown into his role thanks to Bullet Club Gold with Juice Robinson and The Gunn Club. 

Jay White is a main event guy who puts on a high caliber of matches. He plays the old-school heel to perfection and the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion understands his character inside and out. But Full Gear just isn’t his night. 

MJF already has Wardlow and Samoa Joe on the back burner for future title matches. This could be a red herring, but MJF has to get his win back against Wardlow. He was squashed in their first bout and it would be stunning if these two never met for the top prize of the company. Plus, The Adam Cole storyline is far from finished. Until these stories are resolved, here’s likely not dropping the belt.

Winner: MJF

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AEW International Championship: Orange Cassidy (c) vs. Jon Moxley

On the surface, it seems like Moxley would get the title back. The original plan was rumored to have Moxley run as the International Champion for a good while until the concussion in the Phoenix match happened. 

There’s no word on the direction of Cassidy, but it did seem like a rematch would’ve likely happened somewhere around Revolution. Cassidy is coming off a long title reign that helped elevate the belt, but Moxley doesn’t particularly need it. There are some fun matches and feuds down the line for the former AEW World Heavyweight Champion if he gets the belt back. It won’t kill Cassidy’s momentum if he drops the belt to Moxley again and it does feel too soon for him to go on another long run.

Winner: Jon Moxley

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Four-Way Ladder Match for the AEW World Tag Team titles: Ricky Starks & Big Bill (c) vs. FTR vs. LFI vs. House of Black

This is a tricky match. Ricky Starks and Big Bill aren’t destined to be a long-term tag team. However, it’s clear that Tony Khan wants to give Starks a nice push, but with the main event scene crowded, he’s not able to put him into the picture in a meaningful way. 

FTR still has the fourth Bucks match looming. It was clear what they were building up to until the shocking title change. LFI and House of Black feel forced into this match just to get more bodies on the pay-per-view. Kings of Black Throne do have issues with FTR, but these guys are coming off a trios tag team title reign. 

Still, it does appear that there are long-term plans for Black, Matthews, and King. LFI was just re-introduced, so it’s possible that they can escape with the belts as well. However, I’m going to go with the team that currently has notable feuds coming out of this, so….

Winner: House of Black

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AEW Women’s World Championship: Hikaru Shida (c) vs. “Timeless” Toni Storm

The AEW’s Women title picture is a mess. Saraya’s win was only because she was in her hometown. This is a shame because there was a missed opportunity to finally showcase the former WWE star in a proper light. But it’s Toni’s time and Shida just comes across as a transitional champion right now. Storm’s character continues to build as she slowly develops a faction. Shida is building wins so her title reign isn’t written down as meaningless. It wouldn’t be impossible for Shida to retain, but that’s highly likely.

Winner: Toni Storm

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The Golden Jets (Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega) vs. The Young Bucks

This is a hard one. The match feels like it came out of the blue because Jericho and Omega were dealing with The Callis family issues. Though this does feel rushed, the story going into this bout is quite intriguing. The Buck’s recent heel turn adds layers to the story. 

As a singles wrestler, Kenny Omega isn’t going to be in the main event picture any time soon. He’s already had an excellent match with MJF and the finish was decisive. Jericho doesn’t have much going on outside of this story either. There are still lingering issues with the Callis family, so that angle could come back into play. 

Perhaps The Bucks ends up joining The Callis family? It would tie both stories together and further the rivalry between these two teams. The Golden Jets can easily win this bout as well; it would help further the frustration of Matt and Nick, and these teams can always circle back to this match should Jericho and Omega win. This surely isn’t one-and-done, but I’m choosing the babyfaces here.

Winner: The Golden Jets

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Texas Death Match: “Hangman” Adam Page vs. Swerve Strickland

Swerve is on the cusp of breaking into the main event. Tony Khan sees potential in the former AEW World Tag Team Champion, and Swerve has done an excellent job of showcasing why he belongs in the main event. If this was a Lights Out match then I would’ve given Page the win here so it wouldn’t be on record. But since it’s not, Swerve needs the win more than Page. The former AEW World Heavyweight Champion can always get his win back later. There doesn’t seem to be any plans for him at the top of the card right now, though I can see Page challenging for the AEW title down the line. Swerve is my pick, though Page winning wouldn’t be a surprise.

Winner: Swerve Strickland

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TBS Championship: Kris Statlander (c) vs. Julia Hart vs. Skye Blue

Julia Hart seems to be in the middle of a push. She’s been featured prominently for the last several months and, interestingly, Tony has given her a second shot at the TBS title. There’s not much else to do with Kris Statlander, though to be fair, AEW hasn’t given her the title reign that she deserves. Statlander has had plenty of really good matches, but there haven’t been many stories or moments to help elevate her or the title. Skye Blue is likely here to take the pin. Like Toni Storm, it feels like it’s Julia Hart’s time as champion.

Winner: Julia Hart

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Sting, Darby Allin and Adam Copeland vs. Christian Cage, Luchasaurus and Nick Wayne

It’s not clear what the final story for Sting will be leading into Revolution. However, the chances of him losing here are 0.01%. A challenger will emerge for Christian’s TNT title. It could easily be Sting and Tony Khan gives him a nice send-off as the next TNT Champion. Or, Sting could put over Christian Cage and the build between Adam Copeland and Christian continues. Whatever direction they go in, Sting and company aren’t losing here.

Winner: Sting, Darby Allin, and Adam Copeland

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ROH World Tag Team Championship: MJF & TBD vs. The Gunns

Interestingly, I refuse to believe that MJF will drop the tag belts until they finally face The Kingdom. That match literally writes itself story-wise. However, The Gunns do have some steam behind them, and giving them the ROH World Tag Team belts would only increase their stock. 

Samoa Joe is likely going to be chosen as MJF’s partner. If that’s the case then the two are retaining the belts. Of course, Joe, or MJF’s chosen partner can turn on the AEW World Champion and let the Gunns win. There are plenty of avenues to take with this match. The Adam Cole/MJF story isn’t over, and it is fishy that Cole is insisting that Joe be the man chosen as his partner. 

Storytelling-wise, there’s not much going on with the Gunns outside of Bullet Club Gold. They’ve yet to be featured on Ring of Honor (oddly enough, neither has the actual ROH World Tag Team Champions) and there isn’t much signs of a ready feud on Dynamite and Collision. MJF & partner retains, though a screwy finish with the Gunns winning is likely as well.

Winner: MJF & TBD

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Claudio Castagnoli vs. Buddy Matthews

This should be an excellent pre-show match. Had this been Wheeler Yuta then I would’ve gone with Matthews easily because the former ROH World Television Champion is usually the scapegoat in BCC. However, Matthews beat Yuta on Collision, and though it wouldn’t be unbelievable that he beats Castagnoli, this seems like a situation where the BCC gets a small piece of their win back. 

Winner: Claudio Castagnoli

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