The Problem With AEW's Continental Classic Isn't The Format But The Prize
December 10, 2023
By Ryan Porzl
Since All Elite Wrestling announced the creation of it's new tournament: The Continental Classic, like many things they do or announce, it had it's share of support and criticism. The main issue among critics lies with the format as most American wrestling tournaments use a single elimination format while this one is using a round robin format that's mostly popular in Japanese wrestling. Fans who want something different or that are fans of Japanese wrestling are welcoming of this tournament. Critics have criticized it for the fact that AEW does too many tournaments and the fact that they believe the round robin format is too confusing. I personally like the idea of a round robin tournament so I will have no problem defending the format. That said, this tournament does deserve criticism but not where the critics think it should go. The problem with this tournament isn't the format but rather the prize that the winner receives which is a new Triple Crown belt which consists of three unified belts in Ring of Honor's World Championship, New Japan's Strong Openweight Championship, and a new AEW belt called the AEW Continental Championship. In this article, we'll take a look at why the prize is the problem regarding this tournament.
Note: I don't own the picture. I found it on Google. Credit to AEW or whoever owns it. I apologize for not knowing.