Despite the litany of incredible matches AEW have put on in the past five-years, a lot of top-quality matches have been left on the table for one reason or another.
Tony Khan has the tendency to save some of the biggest matches for years down the line. While this builds up the anticipation, it does run the risk of these matches never happening at all.
That has happened in AEW. In this article, we’ll look at some of the dream matches the fans wished they saw in AEW, but so far have yet to see play out in a wrestling ring.
CM Punk vs Kenny Omega
It seems bizarre the AEW never got the chance to give the fans two of their top stars facing off, but that is true in regard to CM Punk vs Kenny Omega.
In his two years (almost exactly) in the company, CM Punk had a number of dream matches against top talent like Adam Page and MJF, but never shared the ring with an Elite talent like Kenny Omega.
The match between the two of them was surely planned – likely for the AEW Champion – had Punk not insulted The Elite during his All Out press conference, followed by a fight that saw a chair thrown and Omega’s arm being bitten.
Sadly, Punk suffered injuries and was eventually fired from AEW before he could wrestle against Kenny Omega, and now we’ll never see the dream match fans waited for a decade to see for the first time.
Bryan Danielson vs Malakai Black
Despite spending time in both WWE and AEW together, Bryan Danielson has yet to wrestle in the dream match against Dutch superstar Malakai Black.
The two AEW wrestlers are known for their hard-hitting strikes and violent matches, so putting them together as opponents would lead to an explosive and entertaining fight.
With Danielson retiring next year and Malakai Black’s back injury negatively affecting his singles career, it has to be now or never if the fans want to see this match take place in ASEW.
The Elite vs CMFTR
Building on the previous match with Punk and Omega, a six-man feud between CMFTR and The Elite was one of the biggest dream matches left on the table.
It looked like this match was going to happen after Double or Nothing 2022, when both teams joined together before the AEW Trios Championship tournament.
However, CM Punk suffered an injury which stopped his team with Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood, with his backstage fight with The Elite at All Out ending any chance of a match between the two teams.
Sting vs Cody Rhodes
Despite it being put on the table as an incentive for Cody Rhodes to re-sign for AEW, we never got to see Cody Rhodes vs Sting in a singles match.
In fact, they never fought in any kind of match. Sting only shared the ring with Cody once, when he saved the younger Rhodes brother from an attack on his debut at AEW Winter is Coming 2020.
With Cody Rhodes now in WWE and Sting nearly 65-years-old, the door has well and truly closed on Cody Rhodes vs Sting in a dream match in AEW.
Kenny Omega vs MJF
Outside of one brawl in the early days of AEW where they did not touch, MJF and Kenny Omega have shared zero screen time at all.
This is a staggering fact for two of AEW’s top stars, but it is something that is a key example of Tony Khan’s booking philosphy.
The AEW President makes it a point to not tease matches that aren’t ready to take place yet, which is why the pair have not shared the ring yet in AEW.
However, with MJF beating all comers in his current run as the best AEW Champion ever, he will need to face the former Champion Kenny Omega at some point in the future, in one of the top dream matches AEW can put on today.