It’s time for arguably the biggest show of 2021 in AEW. The upstart wrestling promotion kicked off in 2019 with the PPV dubbed “All Out” and has since made it a point to loaded it up with its biggest stars and storylines for fans. This year will be no different as Sunday night marks the in-ring return of CM Punk when he takes on Darby Allin in the superstar’s first match in more than seven years.
But that’s not all. The promotion’s four major titles will all be on the line on Sunday night. The biggest may be Kenny Omega looking to defend his AEW championship against Christian Cage after Cage took the Impact world championship from him recently on AEW Dynamite. Plus, Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. looks to defend the AEW women’s championship against Kris Statlander and the Young Bucks battle Lucha Brothers inside a steel cage with the AEW tag team titles on the line.
Let’s take a look at how we believe All Out will play out this Sunday at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. Buy-In show) from Now Arena in the Chicago suburbs.
2021 AEW All Out predictions
AEW World Championship — Kenny Omega (c) vs. Christian Cage
Cage already picked up a win over Omega to land the Impact championship. It would make little sense for him to get a second win and take another title. It would make even less sense for Omega’s championship reign to fall to Cage, who was not brought in to be AEW’s top champion. The Omega championship story likely ends with a loss to Adam “Hangman” Page, not Cage. That said, if the Impact title match on Dynamite was any indication, fans are in for a treat when Omega and Cage go at it again on Sunday night. Pick: Kenny Omega retains the title
CM Punk vs. Darby Allin
Fans have waited seven years to see CM Punk return to the ring. One of the elite wrestlers of his generation with his skills both in the ring and on the mic, Punk’s return was always going to be the biggest thing on whatever card he was on. In Allin, Punk has the perfect comeback opponent. Allin is a spectacular young talent whose style should mesh well with Punk while not pushing him into an uncomfortable place stylistically. Punk needs to get the win here. In front of his hometown crowd, in his comeback match, it’s the only thing that makes sense. Pick: CM Punk wins
Chris Jericho vs. MJF
Jericho’s career is on the line in this match, which generally gives a sense of how things are going to play out. There’s no indication that Jericho is actually ready to fully hang up his boots, nor does it seem the crowd is ready to stop singing “Judas” during Jericho’s ring walk. MJF has been well-positioned as a top heel and has had Jericho’s number for the better part of a year, but pro wrestling conventions say Jericho needs to get a win back at some point and the quest to get to this match set him up to do so. Pick: Chris Jericho wins
AEW Women’s Championship — Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (c) vs. Kris Statlander
Statlander is a fine title challenger and a good talent. It’s been nice to see AEW’s women’s division developing more and more in recent months. Still, Baker is the first real star AEW has developed on the women’s side and is a solid champion. It seems unlikely that Baker is going to lose her belt here, even against a capable and credible challenger. Pick: Dr. Britt Baker retains the title
AEW Tag Team Championship — The Young Bucks (c) vs. Lucha Brothers (Steel Cage Match)
It’s hard to imagine this isn’t a show-stealing match. We’ve seen these teams tear it up before and adding a steel cage to the mix should make for some fun new twists on that already successful mix. While it feels like the Bucks should drop the titles to Jurassic Express — and having all of The Elite available to interfere despite the cage — it still seems at least one title needs to change hands at the big pay-per-view event. Pick: Lucha Brothers win the titles
AEW TNT Championship — Miro (c) vs. Eddie Kingston
One of the best things to happen in AEW has been Kingston finally getting to shine on a big stage. That was never going to happen in WWE, but AEW is a place that allows someone as universally respected as Kingston to thrive. As great as it would be to see him get a run as a champion, it isn’t likely to come against Miro, who is still fairly early into what figures to be a long run with the TNT championship. Miro will get pushed here before managing to finish Kingston off. Pick: Miro retains the title
Jon Moxley vs. Satoshi Kojima
We’re used to seeing Moxley in bigger programs heading into major events. But who is going to complain about Moxley vs. Kojima even without a story? This is going to be mean and nasty and a ton of fun while it lasts. It does AEW no good to have Kojima come in for a one-off match and beat one of their top stars, so the result here feels obvious. That said, it’s going to be excellent while it lasts. Pick: Jon Moxley wins
Paul Wight vs. QT Marshall
Does anyone really care what happens here? QT Marshall was mean to Tony Schiavone and Wight came to Schiavone’s aid. Dynamite served as an opportunity to try and stack the deck against Wight with Billy Gunn and Gunn Club turning on Wight and attacking his surgically-repaired hip with a chair. Still, this should be short and to the point with Wight overcoming some interference for a chokeslam and a feel-good win. Pick: Paul Wight wins
21-woman Casino Battle Royal
We know AEW loves a big debut at their pay-per-view events. With Ruby Soho — formerly Ruby Riott in WWE — on her way to AEW, it makes sense for her to debut in the battle royal and pick up the win. A future title shot is on the line and Baker is going to need a compelling new challenger. There aren’t many more compelling options than Soho. Pick: Ruby Soho wins
