3 favorites to win the 2024 Continental Classic

The 2024 Continental Classic draw has been announced. The Blue League consists of Shelton Benjamin, Mark Briscoe, Kyle Fletcher, Daniel Garcia, The Beast Mortos, and Kazuchika Okada. The Gold League includes Darby Allin, Claudio Castagnoli, Brody King, Will Ospreay, Ricochet, and Juice Robinson. This is an amazing draw, with these three men standing out as the early favorites to take everything home.

Kyle Fletcher

If there’s one thing coming out of AEW Full Gear on November 23, it is that the company is firmly behind building Kyle Fletcher as a force of the future. He picked up a rare, clean win over Will Ospreay – pinning his shoulders to the mat after being firmly in control for much of the contest. If it wasn’t clear heading into the PPV, there’s a lot of support behind Fletcher becoming a main event player. Winning the 2024 Continental Classic would further that push, especially when looking at who else is in his bracket. If AEW wants to cement his position on the roster, seeing him come out of the Blue League and take the whole thing would do it.

Kazuchika Okada

Is there a better tournament professional wrestler than Kazuchika Okada? No. Even though the industry is scripted, the answer is still no. We’re talking about the current Continental Champion and four-time winner of the most important tournament in wrestling, the G1 Climax. It will be interesting to see Okada tap into that version of himself, as many have been critical of his run in AEW, particularly his use as a comedic element in The Elite. Well, get ready for those voices to be silent once he puts on several amazing performances against the names listed in this tournament.

Will Ospreay

It’s easy to see Will Ospreay coming out of the Gold League to set up a rematch against Kyle Fletcher. Even though the latter picked up a clean win over the former AEW International Champion, there’s certainly going to be more story to tell between the two men. It would be interesting to see that come to a head during the Continental Classic, with not only the stakes of the tournament win, but their story and recent match furthering the build. There’s a lot of meat on the bone left and Will Ospreay versus Kyle Fletcher in the finals makes sense.