AEW: Darby Allin is the breakout star of year one

Darby Allin deserves recognition as the breakout star for All Elite Wrestling’s first year of existence on the professional wrestling scene.

All Elite Wrestling is celebrating its one-year anniversary all throughout the month of October. The last 365 days have been an exciting and trying time in professional wrestling. Even still, there are several excellent moments that have occurred in AEW. One of such is the emergence of a Breakout Star. When looking at how the roster has performed this year, that Breakout Star for the first year of AEW’s existence is none other than Darby Allin.

Allin signed with AEW back in April of 2019 to what would not be called extensive fanfare at the time. He was known across the independent circuit as the guy who consistently put his body on the line in more extreme fashion each outing. But it was her performances in AEW right from the start that made it clear leadership in the promotion saw something in him and he was someone that the company had faith in elevating above some of the other roster members.

The moment that caught everyone’s attention was the time limit draw with Cody back at Fyter Fest in June 2019. This was before the actual television deal kicked off, but it was that match that presented Allin as a wrestler that is on the level with the Elite. Once the promotion hit weekly television, Allin was slated to become one of the top babyfaces in the company. He has already had two title shots, one against both AEW champions, Chris Jericho, and Jon Moxley. When he is not challenging for the belt, he is placed in prominent roles such as his previous feud with Sammy Guevara and the current angle he is enjoying against Ricky Starks.

At 27-years of age, Darby Allin is someone that AEW can build around for the future. He is unsuccessful in title reigns to date, but it is hard to see any future where he is not holding the AEW gold. The reason being is because he is truly emerged as a breakout star for the company in the last twelve months. Before crowds were forced to stay away due to COVID-19, his entrances received some of the biggest pops each week. His promos and in-ring work continue to improve, and they are rising just as his stock continues to build. Imagine what the responses would be like for him if the global pandemic never pushed the industry to stop.

One special aspect about AEW is that it is a space where new faces can emerge in the North American wrestling scene. Individuals like Thunder Rosa, Ben Carter, Ricky Starks, and others are leveraging the platform as a stage to increase the stature in wrestling. For the last year that was Darby Allin, as he deserves recognition as the All Elite Wrestling Breakout Star of the year.