AEW: Battle of the Belts III Preview and Predictions

AEW will present its third edition of Battle of the Belts on TNT Saturday night. This installment of the show will live up to its name, as the card includes three title matches that will showcase some of the best talents in the promotion.

The hour-long broadcast will include matches for the AEW Women’s World, TNT, and Ring of Honor World Championships, respectively.

On paper, this should be the best Battle of the Belts yet.

Let’s take a look at the announced matches for Battle of the Belts III and what to expect from each.

Jay Lethal vs Wardlow for the TNT Championship

There are many who thought that putting the TNT Title on Wardlow would bring back some of the prestige the title lost during the Sammy Guevara/Men of the Year rivalry.

It was a step in the right direction, but to truly get the TNT Title’s prestige back to where it was, it needs to be defended in high-profile matches and/or be included in entertaining storylines that fans care about. A match between Wardlow and Jay Lethal certainly checks that box.

The shenanigans of Sonjay Dutt and Satnam Singh and the veteran savvy of Jay Lethal will keep this interesting, but Wardlow will retain. Winner: Wardlow

Jamie Hayter vs Thunder Rosa for the AEW Women’s World Championship

This match is extremely interesting for a couple of reasons.

First, Jamie Hayter is probably the most underrated in-ring performer in the AEW women’s division.  Every time she is given a chance in a singles match, she shines. So, pairing her with the talented Thunder Rosa should lead to a very good match.

Second, the dynamic of Hayter and Britt Baker’s relationship has seen its tenuous moments. The fact that Hayter is getting an AEW Women’s Title opportunity does not seem like the kind of thing that would sit well with Baker.

Looking up and down the AEW women’s roster, it isn’t clear where the promotion goes next with their women’s title and Jamie Hayter would be a fine choice. But it seems like this match may be more centered around Baker and Hayter’s strained alliance than a changing of the title. Winner: Thunder Rosa

Konosuke Takeshita vs Claudio Castagnoli for the Ring of Honor World Championship

At long last, Claudio Castagnoli is a World Champion.

Castagnoli will make his first ROH World Title defense against the always exciting Konosuke Takeshita.

Takeshita is making quite a name for himself in AEW by taking on the best the promotion has to offer and more than holding his own in those matches. While that signature win has eluded him thus far, it won’t continue to do so for much longer.

Unfortunately for Takeshita, that signature win will not come on Saturday.

Claudio Castagnoli is deserving of a long and dominant title run as the ROH World Champion, so the thought that he may lose in his first title defense is extremely far-fetched.

What we can expect is another match where Takeshita shows the world that he is more than up to the task of taking another superb veteran of professional wrestling to the limit. Winner: Claudio Castagnoli