The John Report: AEW Full Gear 2025 Review

This is AEW Full Gear, featuring “Hangman” Adam Page against Samoa Joe, Kris Statlander taking on Mercedes Mone, several big title matches, and more.

It’s the seventh edition of AEW Full Gear, since the first was in AEW’s first year, 2019. They have nine matches scheduled for the main card and four more on the pre-show, so it will be a long night of action. Frankly, I think most AEW PPVs are too long. WrestleDream last month lasted 4.5 hours, ending at 12:30 a.m. ET, while AEW All Out was five hours in September, and AEW All In back in July was six hours. If you plan to run for more than 4 hours, start the show earlier than 8 p.m. ET. Just saying.

My review will feature some matches in summary style and others in full play-by-play. It’s a long night of writing for me after I spent most of the day writing (I wrote news stories from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.), so writing a bit less about the matches makes sense to me. I doubt many people read the full play-by-play, so I’m sure it’ll be okay. The analysis is what really matters. I ordered from AEW’s YouTube channel for a whopping $63.28 Canadian, which includes tax. Let’s get to it.

The pre-show “Tailgate Brawl” matches took place on TNT before the main show. I don’t watch the pre-show matches because the main shows are long enough. Here are the results of the pre-show matches.

• Bang Bang Gang (Austin Gunn and Juice Robinson) defeated Max Caster and Anthony Bowens, Big Bill and Bryan Keith, and The Outrunners (Truth Magnum and Turbo Floyd) by pinfall.
• Boom & Doom (“Big Boom!” A.J. and Q. T. Marshall) (with Aaron Solo, Big Justice, and The Rizzler) defeated RPG Vice (Rocky Romero and Trent Beretta) (with Don Callis) by pinfall.
• Hook and Eddie Kingston defeated WorkHorsemen (Anthony Henry and JD Drake) by pinfall.

The fourth pre-show match led into the main PPV just like at the last PPV they did.

AEW Full Gear
From the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey
Saturday, November 22, 2025

It’s Saturday and you know what that means. The commentary team to start the show was Excalibur, Tony Schiavone and Nigel McGuinness. Don Callis was there to start the show because his guys were in a match.

CMLL World Trios Championships: El Sky Team (Místico, Máscara Dorada, and Neón) (w/Alex Abrahantes) vs. The Don Callis Family (Kazuchika Okada, Konosuke Takeshita, and Hechicero) (w/Don Callis)

The story is that Mistico was attacked before the bell, so he was injured during the match. Kazuchika Okada made his entrance at the start of the PPV, so he was late in the match. Okada also doesn’t get along with Takeshita. Mistico went down to the ring with his right arm taped up, so he was back in the match. Mistico cleaned house on everybody. Okada saved Takeshita from an armbar, then he punched him in the back and threw him out of the ring. Okada dropkicked Neon. Takeshita and Okada argued again. Neon and Dorada hit some incredible moves, including dives onto the floor on Okada and Takeshita. Mistico hit an impressive Reverse Rana and La Mistica armbar on Hechicero for the submission win.

Winners by pinfall: El Sky Team (Místico, Máscara Dorada, and Neón)

Analysis: ***1/4 A lot of flips and barely any tags because those are CMLL rules. I don’t know if we’re supposed to care that Okada and Takeshita’s issues cost them some trios titles that most AEW fans have never heard of, but at least it advanced that storyline. Just turn Takeshita face so that we can have the feud with Okada. No surprise that Hechicero lost for the team since Okada and Takeshita are bigger names.

The first official PPV match is Pac against Darby Allin. A video package aired to set it up. The story is that Pac wanted to face Allin in a regular match so that Allin can’t use weapons.

Darby Allin vs. Pac

Allin had his ribs taped up and right arm taped up to sell the fire bump he took over a week ago. Allin was in control early with armbars and then a dropkick, which led to Pac regrouping on the floor. They did a sequence of nearfalls again with Allin showing he has wrestling skills. They did a spot where Pac gave Allin a press slam off the apron onto the floor. That drew gasps from the crowd because of how crazy it looked. When Allin got back in the ring, Pac took bandages off Allin’s right arm and rubbed the burns that Allin had. The fans chanted, “You sick f**k” at Pac, who sling-shotted Allin into the ropes. Pac whipped Allin to the turnbuckle and Allin bumped through ropes, and landed on the floor hard! Allin is nuts, man. Pac hit a missile dropkick for two. Allin trapped Pac between the ring apron and the side of the ring, so then Allin hit a suicide dive to send Pac into the barricade. Allin jumped off the top and dropkicked Pac, who was seated in a chair, so Pac’s head hit the commentary table. Allin tried a guillotine, but Pac hit a German Suplex and a belly-to-belly suplex. Allin came firing back with a lariat, which Pac sold with a flip bump and both guys were down.

When Allin went for a Coffin Drop off the ropes, Pac caught him and hit a German Suplex. Pac ran the ropes, leading to a powerful running lariat for two. Pac applied the Brutalizer submission, so Allin got his foot on the rope to break it. Pac hit Allin with three running kicks to Allin’s head. Pac went for the Black Arrow off the top, Allin avoided it and Allin applied the Scorpion Deathlock submission. Pac waved for some help, so Wheeler Yuta went into the ring. Allin went after Yuta. Pac grabbed Allin’s bat and Pac hit Allin with the bat (Pac’s hand was covering the end of the bat). The referee never saw it because he was looking at Yuta. Pac covered Allin for the pinfall win after 18 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Pac

Analysis: **** Great match between two talented veterans. A four-star opener. Nice way to start the PPV portion of the show. The story with Allin in this match is that he wanted to show he can wrestle a technical style, and he showed it throughout the match. The other part of the story is that Pac wanted a regular match, yet he blatantly cheated to win. Guess what? Heels lie. The bumps that Allin takes are insane. The dude is going to shorten his career big time by taking some of these bumps that he does. It’s entertaining for sure, but I feel bad for the guy because I worry about what his health is going to be like when he’s older. Pac is one of my favorites in AEW because he wrestles a believable style, and he always goes full speed. I want Pac to get a push, but it depends on how active he is.

The women’s four-team tag team match was next, and a video package aired to set it up.

Sisters of Sin – Julia Hart & Skye Blue vs. Babes of Wrath – Willow Nightingale & Harley Cameron vs. Timeless Love Bombs – “Timeless” Toni Storm & Mina Shirakawa vs. Megan Bayne & Marina Shafir

All four teams are in the semifinals of the AEW Women’s Tag Team Title tournament. The winning team chooses the stipulation for their semifinal match in the inaugural AEW Women’s World Tag Team Championship tournament.