In a few weeks time AEW will head back to Newark, New Jersey for AEW Full Gear — a yearly pay-per-view that has become a staple in the northeast. Much of the card is coming together, with several titles on the line. This week’s AEW Collision confirmed that Bobby Lashley’s first PPV match in AEW will be against former AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland.
Since The Hurt Business’ arrival in AEW, they’ve quickly put a target on Swerve’s back. He’s not stepping down, however, and even laid out a challenge for Full Gear. Lashley, who attacked Swerve during his debut, accepted.
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Lashley, MVP and Shelton Benjamin haven’t shied away from their treatment in WWE where the Hurt Business is concerned. During the pandemic, they were consistently on television. Coming out of the world changing event, Lashley slammed their treatment in a recent interview with K&S WrestleFest.
“We were on half the show most the time. We came out of the pandemic and people started resurfacing, ‘Oh, I’m ready to work.’ What about the guys who were putting the time in during this dangerous time? We got overlooked. That was a little bit of a spit in the face.”
Lashley is a former multi-time WWE Champion that first popped up in the early 2000s. The dominant young star quickly rose the ranks but would leave it all behind in 2007 in pursuit of other wrestling ventures. He returned to WWE in 2018 where he’d remain until his departure earlier this year.
AEW Full Gear So Far
Additionally, three titles are on the line — Jon Moxley’s AEW World, Mercedes Moné’s TBS and Jack Perry’s TNT Championships. Moxley and his new crew have taken over AEW the last few months and Orange Cassidy, an AEW original, is looking to put a stop to his hostile takeover. Up until Private Party won the Tag Team belts, every champion in AEW was a heel. Moné has been terrorizing Kris Statlander for weeks, sending her muscle Kamille after her.
Stat has the opportunity for revenge at Full Gear, potentially reclaiming the title a calendar year after losing. As for Perry, The Elite has had a stronghold on the company for quite some time. Daniel Garcia recently re-signed his contract, bringing forth a new attitude and a shiny title may just be the perfect thing to solidify himself once and for all.
Another non-title match fans are looking forward to is “Hangman” Adam Page against Jay White. The two have a complicated wrestling history that dates back to their time in New Japan Pro Wrestling. In AEW, Page is 1-2 against the New Zealand born wrestler.
