10 Match Star Ratings For AEW All Out 2023

8. Luchasaurus Vs. Darby Allin - TNT Title Match

Ricky Starks Star Ratings
AEW

Darby Allin is at once one of the best and most underrated talents in the world.

As expected, he bumped his coccyx off for Luchasaurus in the only logical direction the match could take, but what was unexpected is how he worked (or battled) his way back into the match. For all the talk of his debilitating stunt work, there are few wrestlers better than Allin at earning his high spots. He makes it feel real, somehow, even when he's blasting a significantly bigger wrestler with an avalanche code red, as he did at All Out in a tremendous spot.

His dedication to getting mauled pays off deep into his matches. It isn't gratuitous stunt work. Nor does it feel like he's getting his s*** in. He sells and fires up so well that he can hit somebody the size of Luchasaurus with a crucifix bomb and make sense of it through emotional logic. He makes it feel like an accomplishment, like he needs the crowd's support, and he achieves this by, as an example, smashing into Luchasaurus with a lopé and bouncing right back off him. He puts everything behind everything. He wrestles with as much emotion as strategy.

He's simply really, really damn good, and so was this match.

Star Rating: ★★★★

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!