AEW All Out: Preview and predictions for the card so far

Cody vs. Shawn Spears (w/ Tully Blanchard)

When the former Tye Dillinger signed a contract with his buddy, Cody’s new promotion, excitement was in the air for what Shawn Spears could do under new waters. None of us expected him to make the impact that he made for his first major appearance.

After first stepping into an AEW ring for the Double or Nothing pre-show, Spears made his first main card appearance after Cody vs. Darby Allin went to a time limit draw at Fyter Fest. Following the match, Cody would walk right into what would be considered by a bulk of the wrestling world as a “controversial” chair shot from a man who once looked up to him as a brother.

When explaining his actions on the first episode of The Road to All Out, Spears would tell Jim Ross that all it took was Cody publicly calling him “a good hand [in the ring]” in passing to offset this quite literal blood feud. Being called a “good hand” to Spears is like being given the kiss of death in the professional wrestling industry and it was enough to believe his former best friend had changed into a corporate hotshot.

As if this rivalry wasn’t personal enough, Spears has acquired the managerial services of Tully Blanchard, a WWE Hall of Famer who wrestled alongside Ric Flair as members of the Four Horsemen in several wars against Cody’s father, Dusty Rhodes.

Given there is so much in the tank, story wise, between these two, don’t expect their first encounter inside of an AEW ring to be their last. With that mind, I expect the heel to win, going on to intensify their feud in the coming weeks and leading to a rematch at the next PPV. In fact, to officially smear the stench of mid-card Tye Dillinger off of him to realize his potential as a main eventer, I think Shawn Spears needs to win his first main singles AEW PPV match.

Prediction: Spears