Adam Cole’s arrival in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) was met with immense excitement and high expectations from wrestling fans worldwide. However, his journey in AEW has been anything but smooth. In this video, we look into the reasons behind the disappointing run of Adam Cole in AEW. From underwhelming storylines and missed opportunities with MJF to injuries and booking decisions, we analyze what went wrong for one of the most talented wrestlers in the industry.
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00:00Adam Cole is the kind of talent you want your company to build around.
00:11He's just 34 years old and is already a decorated superstar in his own right.
00:16He's been around the world and won several championships.
00:19His run in NXT Black and Gold was legendary, where he held the NXT championship for 403 days, longer than anyone else.
00:28Fans had high hopes for him in WWE, but before he could join the main roster, he left the company and went to sign with AEW in 2021.
00:38At the time, All Elite Wrestling was hot and had signed big names such as CM Punk and Bryan Danielson.
00:46Adam Cole was one such hot name who joined the company at its highest and at the time, it made sense.
00:53His girlfriend Britt Breaker was there and his elite friends Young Bucks and Kenny Omega were the EVPs.
01:00It seemed like a perfect fit for Adam Cole, but nearly 3 years after his debut, Adam has yet to win a singles championship in the company.
01:08So what exactly caused his setback in AEW?
01:12Let's get into it.
01:14Adam Cole's WWE contract expired in August 2021 and the company wanted him to stay and offered him a new contract.
01:22However, Cole was in a hard place.
01:24He was one of Triple H's main guys in NXT and fans saw potential in him on the main roster.
01:30But Cole wanted something different.
01:33He wanted to be with his friends and girlfriend.
01:35Talking about how he made his decision in the Talk is Jericho podcast, Cole said quote
02:05End quote.
02:16So that's how he joined AEW.
02:18During All Out 2021, following Kenny Omega's successful defense of his AEW World Championship against Christian Cage,
02:26the best bout machine was bragging about his greatness with the elite standing beside him.
02:32That's when the lights went out and all you hear is, you know what's all about the boom.
02:38And out came Adam Cole.
02:40The crowd went crazy as Cole walked toward the ring and came face to face with the elite.
02:45He then proceeded to kick Jungle Boy's face before embracing his elite comrades.
02:50A few minutes later, Bryan Danielson also made his AEW debut, but that's a topic for a different video.
02:57It was a shocking moment.
02:59Many fans were speculating about the potential debut of Bryan Danielson at the show,
03:03but Cole's unexpected appearance added an extra layer of excitement to the event,
03:08exceeding the expectations of the audience.
03:11In the coming weeks, Cole established himself as a heel and teamed up with the elite in several matches.
03:17His first feud in the company was with Christian Cage and the Jurassic Express.
03:22He teamed up with the Young Bucks to face them at full gear.
03:26Even though his team failed to win that match, Adam Cole was still a hot name
03:30and AEW booked him in matches with the likes of Orange Cassidy and Jungle Boy Jack Perry.
03:36In the meantime, his friends of Undisputed Era from his NXT days, Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish,
03:43also joined him in AEW.
03:45This started a slow dissension between him and the Young Bucks, but they remained together.
03:50He also shared a moment with his girlfriend, Britt Baker, teasing a couple's storyline.
03:55The couple were featured here and there, but not very prominently.
03:59They were still kept apart for the most part.
04:02Moving into 2022, Cole started a rivalry with AEW World Champion Hangman Adam Page.
04:09Hangman had ended Kenny Omega's title reign and was riding high on success,
04:14and inserting Cole in the main event feud with Hangman was a no-brainer.
04:18The two also had a history as both of them were part of Bullet Club and even had matches.
04:24With the help of Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish,
04:26Cole tortured Hangman for the next few weeks before their match at Revolution.
04:31Cole lost his match, but he did not lose any momentum
04:34as he went out to win the first ever Owen Hart Cup at Double or Nothing by defeating Samoa Joe.
04:41Even though he did not win a lot of matches,
04:43he had that superstar aura and Tony Khan kept booking him in high profile matches.
04:48At Forbidden Door, he challenged for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a Fatal 4-Way match,
04:55but he ended up losing once again.
04:57However, during the match, Cole suffered a severe concussion,
05:01leaving him sidelined from AEW for an unspecified period of time.
05:05This was a major setback for him and the company as we did not see him for the next year.
05:11AEW was developing a feud involving Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish
05:15squaring off against the Young Bucks with both tag teams seeking the allegiance of Adam Cole.
05:21But due to Cole's injury, the storyline got cancelled.
05:24In the meantime, AEW brought new wrestlers and created new stars
05:28and of course, Adam Cole was missed by the fans.
05:31At the time, no one knew how severe his injury really was.
05:36It was quite serious and Cole even feared that he might not ever wrestle again.
05:40He said quote,
05:42I wasn't ready to have this taken from me.
05:44I want to wrestle for another 15 to 20 years,
05:47so the idea that my livelihood was taken away from me was the hardest battle I've ever faced.
05:52End quote.
05:53On the January 11th, 2023 episode of Dynamite,
05:57Cole made his return to AEW and delivered a passionate promo
06:01talking about how he struggled in the past few months due to his injury
06:04and thanked the fans for believing in him at a time when he was uncertain about his future.
06:09Cole then announced that he was back and was ready to take over AEW,
06:13effectively turning him into a fan favorite.
06:16This was the logical decision as Cole had already proved his mantle as a heel,
06:20not just in AEW but in NXT and in the indies.
06:24He had worked as a face before but not at this level
06:27and it seemed as if everyone was behind him as a face as well.
06:31Soon, AEW booked him in a feud with Chris Jericho.
06:35A veteran like Chris Jericho being Adam Cole's first opponent after his return was the right choice.
06:40They both have contrasting personalities with Jericho being the brash and outspoken legend
06:45and Cole being the confident up-and-comer.
06:48Their dynamic on the mic created engaging storytelling opportunities
06:52with each character trying to outwit and outmaneuver the other.
06:55Jericho used his JAS members to get the upper hand on Cole.
06:59On an episode of Dynamite, they handcuffed Cole on the ropes
07:03and proceeded to give a brutal beatdown to his girlfriend, Britt Baker, with the help of Saraya.
07:08They tortured Britt as Cole watched in anger.
07:11This classic heel tactic served to elevate Cole's status as an even more sympathetic babyface.
07:17Following this, Cole became even more ruthless and started targeting Jericho wherever he went.
07:23This was the edge he needed to propel him to the next level.
07:26At Double or Nothing, they had an unsanctioned match where Cole went on to win.
07:30A few weeks later, Cole and Britt defeated Chris and Saraya in a mixed tag team match to end the feud.
07:36It wasn't that long compared to other AEW feuds, but it was effective.
07:41It turned Adam Cole into a legit fan favorite.
07:44Now he was ready to once again go for the prize in AEW, the AEW World Championship,
07:51and around this time, MJF was the champ.
07:54On June 7th, 2023, on an episode of Dynamite, Cole came out to interrupt MJF.
08:00They engaged in an entertaining promo battle where both of them threw verbal jabs at each other.
08:05It was clear that AEW was going forward with this feud.
08:09The following week on Dynamite, Cole faced MJF in an Eliminator title match
08:13where if Cole won, he'd earn a future title match against Max.
08:17It was one of the best matches in Dynamite history and Cole almost defeated MJF,
08:22but due to the 30 minute time limit expiring, he could not.
08:26He didn't lose, but he didn't win either, and MJF refused to grant him a title match despite his close loss.
08:33You would think that this would turn into a heated rivalry between the two,
08:37but what happened next exceeded all expectations.
08:40They found themselves unexpectedly teaming up for the impending Blind Eliminator tournament, much to their shock.
08:46As the Blind Eliminator tournament began, Cole and MJF began to get along and were featured together.
08:51There was a series of sitcom-esque segments of MJF and Cole that were absolute television gold.
08:58They would go for meals together, drink together, go trampolining together,
09:02and even play dodgeball against a bunch of kids together.
09:05These moments became comedic highlights, brilliantly showcasing their contrasting personalities.
09:10They eventually became best friends and developed a mutual respect for each other.
09:15This trust enabled them to work cohesively as a tag team and win the Eliminator tournament.
09:20However, they failed to win the AEW Tag Team Championships against FTR.
09:25Despite the loss, MJF had promised Cole a future AEW World Championship match,
09:31which he announced to take place at the main event of AEW's biggest show in London in Wembley Stadium at All In.
09:38But Cole also wanted the Tag Team Championships,
09:40so they challenged for the Ring of Honor Tag Team Championships against Aussie Open at All In.
09:46Yeah, they put the double duty in on AEW's biggest show
09:50and secured the Ring of Honor Tag Team Championships earlier that evening.
09:54In the climatic showdown in the main event, MJF successfully defeated Cole for the AEW World Championship.
10:01But the match had much different vibes this time around.
10:04They weren't enemies anymore and MJF had given Cole the match out of respect for him as opposed to annoyance.
10:10Also, MJF was holding back not wanting to hurt his friend.
10:14It was a storytelling masterpiece.
10:17This was a great opportunity for AEW to give the title to Adam Cole as he was hot and over,
10:22but they kept the gold on MJF.
10:24Following their match, they shared an embrace in the ring,
10:27showcasing to the world that their friendship had reached newfound depths and was stronger than ever.
10:32This turned MJF into a full-fledged babyface.
10:36Yes, Adam Cole turned the man who was once one of the best heels of modern wrestling into a fan favorite.
10:43Fans were enjoying their friendship.
10:45They had an incredible chemistry.
10:47MJF's brash arrogance and sharp tongue worked well with Adam Cole's smooth charisma and confident demeanor.
10:53This stark difference in personalities added depth to their partnership,
10:57creating engaging interactions both in and out of the ring.
11:01Their banter and clashes of ego provided entertainment value for audiences
11:05while highlighting the nuances of their characters.
11:08It felt like a match made in heaven.
11:11The storyline became the talk of the town in AEW, with fans eagerly anticipating its epic conclusion.
11:17Some even started speculating that Adam Cole would eventually end MJF's title reign,
11:22even after his defeat at All In.
11:24Tony Khan had a lot of belief in Adam Cole around this time.
11:28During a media call, he said, quote,
11:30I believe in 2023 he's been hotter than he ever was or has been, end quote.
11:36Unfortunately, Cole suffered an ankle injury in late September.
11:40Yeah, it was rough.
11:42He had just returned from a career-threatening injury in January 2023,
11:47and now this when he was at the height of his career.
11:50He must have felt devastated.
11:52Although he was injured, Cole still appeared on TV with MJF supporting him in his title defenses.
11:58In the meantime, MJF's devil mask got stolen.
12:02MJF had used the devil persona earlier,
12:04so at first, everyone thought it was him who launched an attack using his associates against Jay White,
12:10but Max completely refused the claims that he was the devil.
12:14Over the next few months, the devil and his men would make several appearances in AEW and attack people,
12:20and the question remained, who was the devil?
12:23As Adam was injured, MJF was left alone to defend the Ring of Honor tag titles all by himself,
12:29and he eventually lost those titles to two of the devil's men.
12:33Smart fans kind of knew where this was going, but the only problem was, who they thought was the devil was injured.
12:40Still, AEW decided to go with the original plan,
12:43and at World's End, after Max dropped the AEW World Championship to Samoa Joe,
12:48the identity of the devil was revealed.
12:51It was Adam Cole, who led an army of Roderick Strong, Matt Taven, Mike Bennett, and Wardlow.
12:58The faction was later renamed to Undisputed Kingdom.
13:02MJF had been one of the best heels in the business, and then he managed to become a babyface as well.
13:08He trusted one friend, Adam Cole, and it made all the sense in the world to have that very friend betray him
13:14just like MJF betrayed everyone he associated with before this.
13:18It's a great storyline.
13:20The only problem was that we couldn't see Adam Cole competing in the ring.
13:24MJF was supposed to take some time after losing the title,
13:28which allowed AEW to establish Adam Cole and the Undisputed Kingdom as a force to be reckoned with,
13:33but the company has failed to do so.
13:36It has been five months since the devil was revealed, and we haven't seen any development in this storyline.
13:42Many would argue that this has gone cold and has no excitement.
13:45Adam Cole has rarely been featured on TV.
13:48Wardlow lost his opportunity to win the AEW World Championship.
13:52Matt Taven and Mike Bennett have largely been forgotten.
13:56The faction's only claim to gold lies in Roderick Strong's possession of the International Championship.
14:01Beyond that, credibility seems elusive for the group, and it might be that way before Adam Cole returns to the ring.
14:08Also, Adam was one of the biggest babyfaces when he returned in January 2023.
14:13Is reverting him back to a heel role the right call at this stage of his career?
14:18Yes, it makes sense due to the story AEW is telling with Adam Cole and MJF,
14:23but there is undeniably significant untapped potential for Cole as a hero.
14:28Although this is not entirely AEW's fault, injuries gave him a major setback,
14:33but there were missed opportunities where he could have won the AEW World Championship.
14:38It remains possible that Cole could eventually claim the championship,
14:42but the question looms whether he can reclaim the same level of prominence he had at All In.
14:47Nonetheless, Cole has shown his potential as a top-tier main event talent if the company puts the machine behind him.