It's June, and you know what that means. In the comings weeks, All Elite Wrestling is going to be kicking off a huge tour of Canada that will include some major events like AEW Collision's second show on June 24th (following CM Punk's big return in Chicago on June 17th) and the AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling crossover pay-per-view Forbidden Door on June 25th both at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, and more.
All of this will culminate with the July 15 episode of AEW Collision at Calgary Stampede Saddledome, wherein the finals of the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament will take place.
So before any of that kicks into gear, let's talk about some of the predictions of what you might see going forward.
AEW Collision, AEW Dynamite and AEW Rampage
Obviously, the kickoff of Collision is starting with Chicago and the big return of CM Punk. That will be the focal point for that first show. But the week after, with the Canada tour going on, it will have a different feel to it. There won't be a hometown hero vibe for Punk, and the focus might shift to other people.
However, don't be shocked if we still see Punk featured prominently for two reasons. First, because he's still going to be fresh in the landscape and is a huge star, but second, because of his connections to FTR. Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler have their associations with The Hart Family and were even trying to get Bret Hart to be their manager at one point, so this could come full circle.
Expect to see CM Punk and FTR team together in a trios match against whoever they're currently feuding with at the time. Considering Bullet Club Gold is going after the tag titles, the betting odds would likely be that Jay White, Juice Robinson and whoever their third teammate ends up being becomes the opposing team, and we could see Punk vs. White as a feud going forward, too. That is, if Ricky Starks is no longer involved in that feud.
With this show, along with Dynamite and Rampage (June 28th happening at FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton, as well as Collision on June 29th, and then Dynamite/Rampage in Edmonton at Rogers Place on July 5, Collision at Brandt Centre in Regina on July 8, and Dynamite on July 12 at SaskTel Centre), expect to see appearances from Canadian legends and local wrestlers.
Chris Jericho's friendship with Lance Storm could open an opportunity for Storm to be a guest and possibly even wrestle, as he's not under contract with WWE or anything that should get in the way of him appearing on air.
Jericho himself should be a big focal point, as will Christian Cage. Shawn Spears could make his return. Kenny Omega's from Winnipeg, so that surely won't be ignored.
And don't forget about Ethan Page, who is another Canadian wrestler on the AEW roster and may have his contract storyline feud with Matt Hardy culminate in some fashion during this tour.
But even if AEW isn't able to pull an appearance from The Fabulous Rougeaus, it is very likely Canadian wrestlers will be spotlighted quite a bit on these episodes, and local talent will be brought in for guest matches and title shots.
AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door
With regards to Forbidden Door, some of that focus on Canadian wrestling will undoubtedly take a back seat as the AEW roster will share attention with New Japan. But this could still see CM Punk against Jay White or some variation of that FTR and Bullet Club Gold situation previously mentioned.
Kenny Omega as a home country hero defending the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship against Will Ospreay (who will likely beat Lance Archer at Dominion) seems extremely likely. Ospreay is one of his big rivals and if Don Callis is looking for someone to enlist to take Omega out, that's your best bet.
As far as other matches to look out for with Forbidden Door, Blackpool Combat Club is set to face Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii and Hiroshi Tanahashi at Dominion for the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship. Could we see BCC winning those belts so that they defend them at Forbidden Door, possibly against The Elite's Young Bucks and Hangman Adam Page? Or maybe even a three-way with Okada, Ishii and Tanahashi involved, too?
Alternatively, Jon Moxley against Okada in singles action could sell just as well and free up the others to wrestle different opponents, depending on how AEW and New Japan want to split the difference.
It wouldn't be shocking if MJF is not defending the AEW World Championship, given his anti-NJPW position and how there is still All In and All Out coming up relatively soon after that AEW will need to have him on.
But if the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship is on the line, either Sanada or Yota Tsuji (whoever walks out of Dominion with the belt) will undoubtedly retain against whoever their opponent would be. No one from AEW is going to capture that belt and be the top star of New Japan. So it doesn't matter who gets the shot (if it even happens), bet against the challenger.
For this event in particular, make sure to check out Ontario sports betting options who might have the scoop on any spoilers, but keep them in mind all throughout this tour to place your bets on who will win different matches over these shows.
Who Might Win the Owen Hart Cup?
At the time of this article's writing, nothing has been mentioned as far as a bracket or any possible contenders for the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament. Quite literally anybody from the AEW roster and elsewhere could be involved.
There's only been one other tournament to look to for any reference of how Tony Khan might book this, meaning there isn't much ground for tropes, recurring themes or booking philosophies like there would be for decades of WWE's Royal Rumble or the upcoming Money in the Bank ladder matches.
Having Adam Cole and Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. victorious the last time made for a fun couples moment, but it is extremely doubtful that is the game plan for 2023. There aren't other couples that would fit that bill without bending over backwards to make it happen.
Still, since Cole was an established name, but rather new to the brand at that point, AEW most likely will approach this with a goal to put these accolades on people who aren't multi-time champions or top of the line acts. Instead, the honors will go to people who could use the tournament to boost their notoriety.
Granted, if this is going to be very Canada-centric, AEW could go with a Kenny Omega winning and it wouldn't be the strangest thing, despite his status as a former world champion.
Bryan Danielson would make for a fantastic winner, and if he's in the running, he should immediately skyrocket to the top of the betting odds. He might not want the responsibility of holding a championship in AEW, but this isn't a true title, so it's the best of both worlds.
The women's roster is harder to predict. This could be a means to give Jade Cargill a boost after losing the TBS Championship, but that might be seen as a waste when they could give it to Hikaru Shida or Ruby Soho and build them up better, instead, or give it to Saraya so she has something to strut about while also not relying on her potential injury status as champion.
If Thunder Rosa is back in time, she could also be a major threat to win the cup as a means to propel her back into the title hunt. But that time table of her return is still questionable.
Taya Valkyrie is Canadian, though, and after losing to Cargill, she might be the best option to have win this tournament to offset that drop in her momentum.
In any fashion, stay tuned to the coming weeks here on Smark Out Moment's coverage of these events to find out what happens and how this Canadian tour plays out!
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