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Written by Samuel Preston with contributions from Tim, Peter, Mark and Sergei.
We here at Pro Wrestling Musings love a good tournament. Last year’s Continental Classic featured some fascinating arcs, tremendous matches, and a wonderful feel-good moment as Eddie Kingston ended the tournament as the inaugural Continental Champion, the NJPW Strong Openweight Championship, and the Ring of Honor World Champion. Unsurprisingly, several of us were already beginning to think of ideas for articles on the 2024 edition of the Continental Classic, and we decided to team up to try something a little different.
This article will be specifically broken into three sections with contributions from the five members of the team. The first section is an overview of the entrants officially announced on Sunday.
In the second section each contributor discusses their thoughts on the entrants and how the tournament might go. Finally, in section three, each writer is asked “Should Okada retain the Championship?” with explanations for their answer.
Continental Classic – The Announcements
Gold League
Former G1 Climax competitor, and two-time winner of the Best of the Super Juniors round robins for New Japan, the first entrant is the ‘Aerial Assassin’ Will Ospreay. Since his debut at AEW Revolution, Ospreay has proven himself as one of the MVPs of the roster, with two successful reigns as International Champion and having already main evented at AEW Forbidden Door for the World Title.
‘Rock Hard’ Juice Robinson is the second entrant in the Gold League. One of the biggest success stories of AEW Collision in its early years, he’s previously appeared in G1 Climax and also Best of the Best for Combat Zone Wrestling, but has yet to achieve victory in singles tournament action.
Brody King is our second returnee to the Continental Classic, determined to improve on his performance in last year’s tournament. He earned big victories over Claudio Castagnoli and eventual winner Eddie Kingston, but fell to his other opponents, including Daniel Garcia’s single victory, ending up second from the bottom.
Since his debut at AEW All In London, Ricochet has been determined to prove himself and will enter as the fourth entrant of the Gold League, hoping to continue his success that he’s demonstrated as winner of New Japan’s Best of the Super Juniors and a two-time winner of PWG’s Battle of Los Angeles.
The fifth entrant and another returnee from last year is a member of Jon Moxley’s Death Riders, Claudio Castagnoli. His victories over Andrade El Idolo and Daniel Garcia impressed, but it was his time limit draw with then-fellow Blackpool Combat Club member Bryan Danielson that demonstrated his full potential, and this year, he enters with no intention of respecting his opponent or taking it easy. Could this be the breakout tournament for Claudio?
The final entrant of the Dynamite block is a man setting his sights on the Death Riders, Darby Allin. Despite his lack of major round robin experience, Allin has proven himself capable of performing at high standards over a prolonged period of time, looking back at his inaugural reign as TNT Champion when he was defending on a near weekly basis. However, Allin’s focus may be less on winning, and more on stopping Castagnoli from succeeding.
A few matches jump out at me as inherently of interest, include a rematch between Darby Allin and Castagnoli, Will Ospreay taking on Brody King, and Ricochet versus Juice Robinson.
Blue League
Entrant Number 1 is the defending Continental Champion, ‘The Rainmaker’ Kazuchika Okada. Not only is he aiming to successfully retain the title, but he will also aim to equal the record of Masahiro Chono, who had previously won five tournaments, specifically the G1 Climax. With four victories already at the G1 Climax, this year’s tournament is his opportunity to match Chono at "major" tournament success.
Second entrant is Kyle Fletcher, aiming to capitalise on his massive victory over former best friend Will Ospreay at AEW Full Gear and prove himself in his first Continental Classic. Until quite recently a tag-team specialist with his former partner Mark Davis, young Fletcher's only singles tournament experience was last year's New Japan Cup, but he may soon discover that a knockout tourney is a very different animal from the grueling schedule of a major round robin.
The newly crowned TNT Champion and the first returnee to the Collision block, the third entrant is Daniel Garcia. Last year he massively struggled in the tournament and entered the final week with zero points, but against the odds he earned a huge victory over fellow returnee Brody King. Since then, he’s used the lessons he’s learned to come back to defeat MJF and to win the TNT Championship. Question is, will he also be putting his title on the line?
The Beast Mortos is a wildcard as the fourth entrant, representing LFI attempting to achieve better than his compatriot RUSH of last year. Mortos has become a cult favourite after impressing for several months, including an excellent two out of three falls match at WrestleDream. Will this tournament allow him to achieve the success RUSH couldn’t?
The fifth entrant and another returnee, representing The Conglomerate, is former ROH World Champion, Mark Briscoe. The contrast from last year’s tournament to this tournament demonstrates the emotional and physical journey Mark has undertaken, last year he had only just transitioned regularly into singles competition after the tragic loss of his brother Jay, and could only achieve a single victory. But since last year, he’s proudly represented Ring of Honor as World Champion, and has become an unlikely leader of the Conglomerate. This year may offer him the chance to bounce back from his recent title loss.
Finally, representing the Hurt Syndicate, is Shelton Benjamin. Possibly the biggest surprise in terms of a new member of the roster impressing, Benjamin is wrestling at an all-time high and suits such a tournament as a former professional athlete and amateur wrestler — a possible dark horse for this tournament.
Some instant curiosity-rousing matches will be seeing Okada battle Fletcher, Briscoe versus Benjamin could become a precursor to gang warfare, and Mortos taking on TNT Champion Daniel Garcia.
Tim
I was most surprised by how many year-one competitors we have returning as Mark Briscoe and Brody King weren’t on my short list. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy that they’re here as Brody King was awesome last year, and Briscoe is a selfless performer which you need for tournaments like this. As for new competitors, I am thrilled that Shelton Benjamin made the cut as he’s been delivering stellar matches since joining AEW. The Beast Mortos is another fun addition, a man (beast?) who has been underutilized by other wrestling groups only to become a fan favorite with AEW sickos.
The Blue League feels like it’s there just to feed Okada, while the Gold league is a little trickier to predict. Gold has more story threads weaving throughout with Ospreay/Richochet, Darby/King, and Darby/Claudio all having recent run ins. If Juice seems like the odd man out, it shouldn’t come as a surprise when he ends up eating all the pins in Gold League. My prediction for the whole tournament is a NJPW rematch of Will Ospreay vs. Okada at World's End. Orlando is a long way from Tokyo but I like the idea that these two wrestlers will face off against each other half a world away from their previous bout.
Peter
At first glance, the theme for this year's C2 is the chance for people to prove themselves in various forms.
In Gold, Ricochet, a veteran of tournament wrestling in his days in NJPW has a chance to show that his creative juices — the deciding factor in making the move from WWE to AEW — are still flowing.
Claudio Castagnoli, one of Moxley’s lieutenants in the Death Riders, wants to show that he is just as good as Mox and hold singles gold again in AEW/ROH and win the Conti belt which eluded him in Cardiff earlier in the year.
Will Ospreay for all his MOTYCs has a losing record since winning a big one at Wembley against MJF.
Darby is looking to take a scalp in Claudio and also looking to take home gold in his quest to save AEW from the Death Riders.
With uncertainty circling the House of Black, Brody can seize the incentive as the HoB’s most successful member with a C2 win.
Juice, a veteran of tournament wrestling has a chance to show off that guy who had that 2018 G1 and step out of the shadow of his Bang Bang Gang leader, Jay White.
While we always knew that Kazuchika Okada was going to be in the C2 as defending champ, it was the potential opponents in his league that fans were eagerly awaiting to find out.
Kyle Fletcher might have the crown on his head and his victory over Ospreay was career-defining but a title coronation is needed for Kyle to truly be one of AEW’s kings.
Daniel Garcia has unresolved issues with the C2 from last year and, with title gold in his arms, he goes into the tournament with a confidence that wasn't anywhere near him this time last year.
Shelton Benjamin has had a great start to his time in AEW but with 5 matches in 5 weeks, this is a chance for the Gold Standard to prove that nickname is suited with his highest caliber of opponent in such a condensed time he's had since his appearance in the 2014 G1.
Mark Briscoe having taken a part of the Original Continental Triple Crown in April has a chance to take his second third of a Career Conti Crown on his quest to be the first man to win all 3 of the Career Triple Crown.
Beast Mortos might be the rank outsider in the betting but Beast Mortos is going to do Beast Mortos things and have some bangers…. Admit it, Okada/Mortos is the one you're looking forward to the most in the League stage of the C2!
Mark
My immediate reaction to seeing this block is a bit ‘meh’. In 2023 the Blue League consisted of - Bryan Danielson, Eddie Kingston, Andrade El Idolo, Claudio Castagnoli, Brody King, and Daniel Garcia. The blocks felt fresh with wrestlers who had been somewhat sidelined, or not utilised to their full potential, but there was a genuine sense of excitement around a potential fresh start for many of them.
Daniel Garcia, although concluding 2023 with a losing record, felt restored as an in-ring competitor. His ability to make fans feel his struggle in the ring, his will and drive to win, left us feeling as though a new star was on the horizon. Andrade El Idolo, my personal MVP for the 2023 Continental Classic, amazed and astounded in every match he competed in, with many of us given a false sense of expectation for his 2024 season within AEW. Brody King emerged from the shadows of being the ‘heater’ for the House of Black, to being a monster to be feared and admired in his own right. Most importantly of all, the 2023 Blue League had two natural babyfaces that fans adored, and desperately wanted to win, in Bryan Danielson and Eddie Kingston.
When I look at this bracket for 2024 I don’t get a sense of excitement to see the listed competitors, nor do I get a sense of wanting a particular talent to win over another. A lot of the talents in this block, in my opinion, have become somewhat over-exposed, and I have no expectations for them to succeed in this format.
Mark Briscoe is a brilliant competitor, and rightfully a former ROH World Champion, but after a year working through the AEW midcard as part of the Conglomeration, I don’t have any expectations for Briscoe to pick up more than 1 possible win in this group.
The Beast Mortos, has been a brilliant addition to the AEW undercard, with fantastic performances and featuring in ring weekly across multiple AEW programmes regularly. The Beast has had 29 matches in AEW, with 21 losses. Under what criteria should a competitor with such an appalling record be included in a competition, with the desired prestige of the Continental Classic?
Daniel Garcia is quite rightfully included, and I hope he has an improved record on last year's iteration, but again, my expectation for Garcia, and how he has been booked this calendar year, feels predictable, and not necessarily a babyface I want desperately to win, just yet.
Shelton Benjamin’s initial outings within AEW were a wonderful reset for those of us fully aware of how utterly incredible the man can be. However, he still has the ‘Fed Stink’ on him, and his reversion to being a background character within the Hurt Syndicate immediately following the arrival of Bobby Lashley has not helped on this front. The Continental Classic this year will be a great rehabbing programme for Benjamin, but again, does not fill me with excitement or expectation.
Kyle Fletcher I expect to win all of his Blue League contests - bar one. After defeating Will Ospreay this past weekend at Full Gear, I hope Kyle will dominantly defeat all before him, except the Rainmaker. Kyle is the one person included in this whole tournament that provides me with a fresh feeling of excitement. A feeling I can best articulate as ‘Oh Shit - something’s happening here’. As a man I know well, and have personally wrestled, trained with and under, I want the rocketship strapped to this man.
The treatment of Kazuchika Okada following his arrival into All Elite Wrestling has been at times baffling. I hope and pray we get to see the true Rainmaker throughout this tournament, and I expect him to remain undefeated throughout.
Much like the Blue League, the Gold League has competitors who featured in the 2023 iteration, in Claudio Castagnoli and Brody King. I very much hoped that the ongoing ‘Deathriders’ would preclude Darby Allin and Claudio from participating in this year’s iteration, but there we have it. This interfolding of the world title arc into the Continental Classic, which in my view should be it’s own stand alone entity, takes from the prestige.
As discussed previously, the 2023 edition allowed Brody King to flourish and be seen as a monster in his own right. His inclusion this year I find thoroughly confusing. He has been realigned of late with Malakai Black as a tag unit, while Buddy Matthews has been presented as the singles competitor, picking up a win in a fatal four way at the Full Gear PPV, leading into the Australian Grand Slam event in the new year. His exclusion, and booking overall as a consequence, are utterly baffling, and his lack of participation in this year’s event makes zero sense to me.
Much like Shelton Benjamin, Ricochet still has a ‘Fed Stink’ but has gradually worked through that since his debut, with incremental improvements in his output week on week as he rediscovers his own personal comfort levels as a performer in this whole new world. Looking forward to seeing him having a growing tournament.
Will Ospreay, one could argue, is in need somewhat of a rehab of his image and record following his loss to Kyle Fletcher, Swerve Strickland, the Young Bucks, and others this year. I foresee him having a similar tournament as Eddie Kingston last year, where he struggles to find his footing before eventually turning things around and qualifying for the later stages.
Juice Robinson, much like Mark Briscoe, I’m incredibly fond of, but his inclusion does not make sense to me. I sincerely hope he isn’t included as the 2024 Jay Lethal to take pin falls week after week (whatever happened to Lethal?)
I expect Kazuchika Okada to emerge undefeated before facing Will Ospreay in the final, at World’s End.
Sergei
My expectation is that the two big stories here will be Fletcher and Ospreay trying to make the finals to face each other again, Daniel Garcia proving how much he's grown since last year, and Darby only focused on acting as spoiler for Claudio to the exclusion of all other considerations. Based on those story hooks going in, this is my bracketology for the round robin:
Here, Darby Allin is having a terrible tournament, even losing to the Juice, but at the last minute steals the block semi-finals away from Castagnoli, the only aspect that he really cares about. Ricochet and Ospreay go into the semis tied on points, but with Rico having a round robin win over the Assassin. Can he beat him twice in a row?
In my Bracketology, Kaz has a strong showing, but doesn't make the semifinals. If you want to maintain his aura as the greatest tournament wrestler, you could change Okada's L to Benjamin to a W and have a three-way tie. But to me the real story here is Daniel Garcia.
Samuel
While not all these names are ones I expected, I do think they’ve been able to guarantee a high standard of matches for the tournament. My only worry is that with Okada in one League and Ospreay in the other, the booking does seem set up for the two to face each other in the Final, and to be fair, there aren’t many matches guaranteed to be better than that. The inclusion of individuals like Fletcher and Benjamin allows them to continue the momentum with their recent performances, Claudio is always a guaranteed banger, though I do feel both he and Darby will fail to get the points they need by one of them cancelling the other out?
For the Blue League, I think the League Final will feature Okada against Garcia, a dark horse for the tournament but with his recent victory as TNT Champion, getting to the League Final will keep him and the title strong, while also demonstrating what a huge challenge Okada is. Blue League feels like it will be a group of death, I could easily see just three victories being enough to reach the top two.
For the Gold League, with Ospreay looking likely to win, it might come down to the final day, as mentioned above I could see Darby or Claudio cancelling one another out, and if so, the most likely finalist will be Ricochet, allowing another match between Ospreay and Ricochet. Once Ospreay wins, he will go on to face Okada, and that’s where I become uncertain on who will win, for reasons I go into below. But overall, I don’t think there is a single weak link in either Leagues, no obvious Jay Lethal, Mark Briscoe or Daniel Garcia to earn 3 or less points, maybe at a stretch Robinson or Beast Mortos, but to be honest, I think more likely this year’s leagues will be relatively tight apart from Ospreay or Okada.
Should Kazuchika Okada Retain the Continental Championship?
Tim
Okada has been on a pretty good run, with not a lot of title defenses. It’s time for someone new though, as I do fear that if Okada retains he’ll keep the belt for another year. It would reduce the Continental Crown championship to the level of a trinket, like the niche the Dynamite Diamond Ring occupies.
Peter
When Kazuchika joined AEW, it felt big. One of the best to ever do this wrestling thing is now All Elite. It was one of the big coups in the ongoing wrestling war between AEW and WWE. But let's be honest, Okada hasn't got out of third gear yet. Part of it is that in the true spirit of AEW where the roster members that have thrived in the duration of the company so far have been themselves dialed up to 11 and as a tweet once said Kazuchika Okada is a comedy wrestler born in the body of the greatest wrestler ever.
But a lot of people want Big Match Kaz back and this upcoming 7-week stretch of the C2 is a perfect way to get him. But at the end of the day, Okada's purpose for Q4 is to be the final boss in the Continental Title picture and the C2 specifically. But who is the guy to slay the final boss? Well, in my eyes it should be someone who can be the future of AEW, someone with history with the tournament and history with The Elite.
My first pick was going to be Daniel Garcia. But after his TNT Title and his declaration for the C2, it feels like Daniel will win matches but Daniel’s story in the second ever C2 is who will beat Garcia will be Danny’s first challenger. Maybe Okada beats Garcia to be that challenger if Okada loses the Conti but if I was a betting man Shelton Vs Garcia for the TNT belt would be on our screens.
But away from that digression, Okada’s slayer I think comes in the shape of Darby Allin. While the dream match is Will vs Okada, it feels like that's going to be on a day later rather than sooner (but if you're promoting the C2 as one of wrestling’s majors, a rematch from the 2022 G1 final at World's End would do a good job of that) if Darby is going to be the guy that takes the World Title off Jon Moxley, he needs to win a big one and in the process beat Death Rider member Claudio Castagnoli and in being the third man to hold the Continental Title looks to be the guy to take the biggest crown in AEW down the line.
Mark
Yes.
As I outlined previously, the booking of Okada within the AEW sphere has been at times baffling. I want Kazuchika Okada to feel as special as possible, and to run the gauntlet, leading into a 2025 where he faces Omega, Moxley, and more, in serious world title programmes.
Kazuchika Okada, the Rainmaker, is the biggest star currently on the AEW roster, and should be utilised, portrayed and booked as such. If done correctly, Okada could conceivably be the face of AEW as they build into Wrestle Dynasty, Grand Slam, All In Texas, and Forbidden Door - 4 huge landmark attractions for the start-up promotion - and there would be no better face of the brand to lead this than Okada, in my estimation.
Sergei
In short: no.
I understand the perspective that Okada should be the "Final Boss" of the Continental Classic — that fits with his lore. But if a spot on Danielson's farewell tour wasn't enough reason for him to bring out "Big Match Kaz", I dunno if that guy exists anymore. And if not, the Okada barely rates being in the C2 at all, much less the final.
That doesn't mean you have to ignore that lore. He could make a great gatekeeper for the Blue block, the man for Garcia or Fletcher to slay to prove themselves, rather than the Gold finalist (Ospreay likely.)
Samuel
I think the booking for Okada in this tournament could be fascinating to see, as I can see both pros and cons for him retaining, On the positive, him winning would add a extra level of importance to the tournament, having one of the most decorated tournament winners achieving another victory and helping cement him as the Continental Champion. On the negative, I do think that anybody who defeats him will gain a lot from having taken down ‘The Rainmaker’, and that him having kept it so long risks making it feel like a distraction so he doesn’t challenge for the AEW World Title instead.
Thinking coldly about it and the long term impact, I think Okada will retain the championship, so that the Continental Classic can point to a storied performer like Okada as a previous winner, similar to the decision to have Bryan Danielson become AEW World Champion for a short period of time, Even though Danielson was champion for just 48 days, the AEW World Title will now always be synonymous with the name of Danielson, arguably the best wrestler of the last twenty years. The decision to have Okada win the C2 would have a similar reaction, but I think what’s vital is to utilise the tournament to identify who will be the one who takes the title away from Okada. If Okada wins his group, but loses to one individual in the lead up, then after the tournament, that individual could legitimately claim that they deserve a shot against Okada, similar to what would occur in the G1 Climax in New Japan. Having Okada face a challenger that has previously proven they can beat him could intensify the stakes to a higher level.
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