The 10 Best AEW Matches Of 2021

AEW had yet another banner year in 2021. From record-breaking pay-per-view events to the signing of huge free agents, the promotion delivered entertaining action over the past 12 months.

The in-ring output of All Elite Wrestling has always been one of their strong suits and it continued this past year.

AEW produced dream matches, excellent world title matches, improvement for the women’s division and the always fantastic tag teams on display.

Whether it be over championship gold or personal issues, these bouts provided some of the very best in wrestling.

Let’s take a look at the ten best AEW matches of 2021, shall we!

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10. The Young Bucks vs. Jon Moxley & Eddie Kingston – AEW Double Or Nothing 2021

When looking at this list, it is safe to say the Young Bucks had a very good 2021.

They became the longest-reigning AEW World Tag Team Champions and turned heel to become one of the best acts in the business.

The two men directly affected by this character change were Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston.

The animosity between the two tag teams led to a showdown at AEW Double Or Nothing 2021 for the first event with a full capacity crowd of live fans in attendance for the company since the pandemic.

The energy from the Jacksonville crowd at Daily’s Place was electric right from the entrance.

The fans wanted to see Moxley and Kingston overcome the dastardly heels.

Eddie Kingston was a man possessed here, wrestling with an extra oomph with every strike or suplex.

Meanwhile, Jon Moxley sold expertly for his opponents and built to the hot tag for his partner.

The Young Bucks were simply phenomenal and couldn’t be stopped, putting Moxley away with consecutive BTE Triggers to the head.

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9. CM Punk vs. Eddie Kingston – AEW Full Gear 2021

When CM Punk and Eddie Kingston went face to face backstage in AEW, fans were excited for these two fan favorites to square off.

What followed was one of the greatest promo exchanges in recent memory and that’s all that was needed ahead of Full Gear 2021.

In front of a sold-out crowd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Punk and Kingston put on a belter that was bloody, physically intense and captivating for the 11-minute duration.

The contest started with Eddie delivering a spinning back fist to Punk before the bell and smiling about it. The fans were split, but they became more into Kingston as the match went on.

The former WWE Champion fed into that by using some vintage offense and mannerisms from his former rival, John Cena.

CM Punk was able to vanquish Eddie Kingston with the Go To Sleep to get the victory. Despite being the shortest match at AEW Full Gear 2021, these two men had the fans eating out of their hand for every second.

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8. MJF vs. Darby Allin – AEW Full Gear 2021

The four pillars of AEW have been an essential part of the storytelling by the fledgling company.

Jungle Boy, Sammy Guevara, Darby Allin and MJF have all become homegrown stars for All Elite Wrestling.

The latter two finally crossed paths this year and looked to prove themselves as the best of the four pillars.

Following a masterful buildup, Darby Allin and MJF went one-on-one in the opener to AEW Full Gear 2021. The two young competitors put on a professional wrestling clinic.

There were intricate chain wrestling, brilliant character work, sound psychology and a compelling finish.

On top of all of that, the crowd was molten hot for both men and couldn’t tell who would be the winner.

That superb lead-up was paid off when MJF delivered on his claim of beating Darby with a headlock takeover.

However, he used the Dynamite Diamond Ring to knock out Allin beforehand.

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