Ranking Every AEW Championship Reign Of 2023

2023 belongs to Maxwell Jacob Friedman and the AEW Championship had been just waiting for him all this time.

It's not a big surprise that MJF has had an incredible run with AEW's top prize because he's consistently been one of the most entertaining performers on the roster. What has been unprecedented is Friedman's face turn, going from the biggest scumbag on Earth to a misunderstood and hurt man willing to give friendship another chance. It's completely refreshed a run that hadn't even begun to sour, and Max's ability to get the audience in the palm of his hand has been on display like never before. At its best, the title picture under MJF's stead has had more drama than any other AEW story.

More than this, Max has routinely outdone himself in the ring. The line between truth and fiction blurred when it came to his ability to perform for 60-minutes but MJF and Danielson kicked this year off with a match-of-the-decade contender. Since then, he's defended against the likes of Samoa Joe, Kenny Omega and Hiroshi Tanahashi and worked the main event of a huge Wembley Stadium show.

This isn't just the best reign of the year, Friedman's time with the AEW Championship will go down in history as a benchmark for the company.