AEW: Why Chris Jericho’s Inner Circle makes sense

Last week’s AEW Dynamite brought confirmation to the speculation of a new group forming to counter The Elite. Some are questioning the composition of the faction but it makes more sense than people are – at least currently – willing to give credit for.

Before last week’s AEW Dynamite, absolutely no one predicted – I want receipts if I’m wrong – that Chris Jericho, Santana, Ortiz, Jake Hager and Sammy Guevara would be aligned in any way, shape or form. Without the proper context, it definitely seems like a random grouping but we’ve been given the proper context so it’s not.

The Elite – as the name “All Elite Wrestling” implies – are the founding fathers/cornerstones of the company. Historically, the World Championship has represented power and control which The Elite lost when Chris Jericho defeated Hangman Page for the title at All Out.

Jericho throughout the years has been one of, if not, the most dynamic wrestler in history. In this current incarnation, he’s the evil kingpin champion who has made enemies with the majority of The Elite. It would make sense for him to form the Inner Circle to not only help keep the World Title but stage a complete takeover. As far as the components of the group is concerned, each pick makes sense and was actually briefly elaborated upon by Jericho on Dynamite.

Sammy Guevara could be seen as Jericho’s handpicked successor considering the AEW World Champion credited “The Best Ever” as, “one of the greatest performers he’s seen at [Sammy’s] age in a long time.” In the event that AEW announces a midcard title, Guevara would be one of its top contenders.

The Young Bucks have reigned supreme over tag team wrestling for over a decade and are two of Cody’s closest confidants. Bringing Santana and Ortiz in to change the conversation for the best tag team in wrestling today and neutralize the Bucks is a logical decision. Now that the former IWGP Tag Team Champions are out of the AEW Tag Title tournament, Santana and Ortiz vs. The Young Bucks could be a fantastic matchup for Full Gear.

Last but not least is Jake Hager, who AEW has nailed the presentation of so far. Hager is clearly the silent, menacing X-factor of the group and is best served as such while Jericho functions as his mouthpiece. Hager’s MMA background – as brief as it has been thus far – definitely helps to make him a multi-faceted terror to anyone looking to lay claim to Jericho’s AEW Title. Long gone are the days of “We The People” and if he continues to be handled the right way, Hager can feasibly become a consistent main event-level fixture.

Typically, successful factions are ones where each member has a defined role. Otherwise, they risk reaching nWo-levels of convolution. Luckily, that isn’t the case with the Inner Circle. The group highlights the future of AEW while staking its claim as the “now”. It’s way too early to predict the long-term prosperity of the Inner Circle but this unlikely alliance oozes potential for the time being.