Top 10 AEW Debuts

9. Christian Cage

AEW debuts that I was wrong about due to the performer’s age: Part 2.

Don’t get me wrong, I was really excited to see Christian Cage debut as the special, “Hall of Fame” worthy talent that Paul Wight promised. I genuinely feel Christian falls into the category of the most underrated wrestlers of all time, right alongside Curt Hennig and Owen Hart, and so on. I mean, he was no CM Punk or Brock Lesnar but it was still very exciting to see Christian finally be treated like he deserves to be treated.

The problem I had with it was the catchphrase “Out Work Everyone.” Because I was like, there’s no way this guy, who just returned from a career-ending injury at the age of 46 can outwork the super workers and some actual superheroes (Rey Fenix) in AEW.

Well, I, or anyone, for that matter, was foolish to doubt even a single fragment of Christian’s in-ring prowess. He stepped into the squared circle knowing he was one of the greatest storytellers in the game. Christian brought back the old school style of matches in AEW’s wonderful mess of suicide dives and spot-fests and made the product diverse. From his very first match against Frankie Kazarian, Christian wrestled technically sound, logical, and psychology-driven matches like a pro.

He went on a winning streak yet it never felt like he was burying any of the younger talents. He got over with the fans because he was so likable as a babyface, he worked every match like an uphill battle and the fans couldn’t help but get behind him, and also because he’s Christian and he always gets over.

Another one of my fears was that considering the vast amount of talent in AEW, Christian may get lost in the shuffle and there may not be a significant spot for him in this pool of young hungry sharks. He could just end up as he did in WWE, an afterthought.

Fast forward to now, Christian Cage is the only man to defeat the AEW World Champion Kenny Omega, considered by many to be the best wrestler in the world, in more than a year. He’s the current Impact World Champion, he’s having classic Impact title matches, while also being involved in a storyline against the Elite aligned with possibly the most over babyfaces in AEW.

This has honestly been one of the best runs of Christian’s long and illustrious career.

He’s always been charismatic and a good promo, making him a complete professional wrestler and a reliable top guy for Impact. As the Impact World Champion, he’s elevated the title as well as his opponents.

Christian truly has Out Worked Everyone.