How Hangman Page Became a Top Star in AEW

Sportskeeda Wrestling

Hello, wrestling fans from around the world! Welcome back to Sportskeeda Wrestling! In this video, we are going to talk about one of the best talents AEW has to offer: Hangman Page. From feuding with The Elite to allying with The Dark Order and wrestling against one of the greatest of all time, CM Punk, Hangman Page has come a long way in AEW. Watch our latest video to find out how Hangman Page became a top star in AEW.  Also, make sure you like the video and subscribe to Sportskeeda Wrestling for more wrestling videos.  You can also visit our site: https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe  #hangmanpage #hangmanadampage #cmpunk #tonykhan #aew #wrestling #sportskeedawrestling

Transcript

00:00 All Out 2020 Hangman Adam Page and Kenny Omega had just

00:14 lost the AEW Tag Team Championships to FTR.

00:18 Distraught, devastated and broken, Hangman Adam Page went to embrace his friend and tag

00:23 team partner Kenny Omega.

00:25 But the best bout machine sidestepped, leaving Hangman to tumble face first, a clear indication

00:31 that their partnership had come to an end.

00:34 At the next AEW pay-per-view, Full Gear, Kenny defeated Hangman to become the number one

00:40 contender for the AEW World Championship.

00:43 And he finally won the title at a special episode of AEW Dynamite called World's End.

00:48 A year later at Full Gear 2021, Hangman stood across the ring against AEW World Champ Kenny

00:55 Omega.

00:56 And in one of the most emotional matches in AEW history, Page defeated his former best

01:02 friend Kenny to win the AEW World Championship and went on to celebrate his victory with

01:07 his newfound friends, the Dark Order.

01:10 It was a monumental moment for AEW, as it not only was the culmination of a long-term

01:16 storytelling that had been carefully crafted since the inception of the company, but also

01:20 served as a defining moment in Hangman's career.

01:23 So how did AEW manage to tell one of the best stories in modern wrestling?

01:28 Let's talk about it.

01:30 Hangman Adam Page was one of the first wrestlers to sign a deal with All Elite Wrestling in

01:35 January 2019.

01:37 He was close friends with the elite, namely Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks and Cody Rhodes,

01:44 all of whom were instrumental figures in founding the company.

01:47 In fact, the name All Elite Wrestling was probably inspired by them.

01:51 Although Hangman was wrestling for a decade up until this time, he wasn't that popular.

01:57 He was probably the least famous member of the elite, but his frequent appearances on

02:01 the Being The Elite YouTube channel helped establish his identity among certain fans.

02:07 He had almost impressed a lot of people with his New Japan Pro Wrestling run, given some

02:12 brutal matches.

02:13 Cody Rhodes himself endorsed Page, proclaiming him as the future of the industry.

02:19 So he did have a lot of backing from the elite, and during AEW's early days, it appeared

02:24 that Hangman was positioned to become the face of the company.

02:28 At the AEW press conference on January 8th, 2019, Hangman confidently took the stage and

02:34 claimed that he was going to be the first AEW World Champion.

02:39 Soon, the wheels started to turn and AEW produced its first pay-per-view, Double or Nothing.

02:47 Hangman participated in the 21-man Casino Battle Royale in that event, with the victor

02:52 slated to challenge the winner of Double or Nothing's main event for the coveted inaugural

02:57 AEW World Championship at All Out.

03:01 Page managed to secure the victory by last eliminating MJF.

03:06 On the other hand, in the main event, Chris Jericho defeated Kenny Omega to secure his

03:10 place at All Out.

03:12 So the stage was clear, Hangman Page vs Chris Jericho for the inaugural AEW World Championship.

03:21 Jericho was the biggest name to have signed a deal with AEW, and logically, he was the

03:26 best choice to become the first wrestler to hold the AEW World Championship, and fans

03:31 also expected him to win.

03:33 The story was just getting started, and the Being The Elite YouTube channel played a very

03:38 important part in it as a lot of details unfolded there.

03:41 In one of the episodes, The Young Bucks asked Hangman about his thoughts on the online prediction

03:47 of Jericho winning their upcoming match, to which he responded by saying that "this

03:52 is a new company, and there's no reason why someone new like him cannot be a champion."

03:57 Page also asked the Bucks to be at his corner during his match against Jericho, like they

04:01 used to do during Kenny Omega's match in New Japan Pro Wrestling.

04:05 But the Bucks had already had a match that night against the Lucha Bros, so they could

04:10 not be there.

04:11 This sparked a resentment in Hangman towards the Bucks, which we will get into later.

04:16 At the main event of All Out, Chris Jericho, as expected, defeated Hangman Adam Page to

04:23 win the AEW World Championship.

04:26 It was the biggest night of his career until that point, and he lost.

04:31 Disgruntled by the situation, he chose to distance himself from the elite, opting to

04:35 spend time alone, while The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega continued to stick together as

04:40 they became EVPs and took on extra responsibility.

04:44 Naturally, the group raised concerns about this behavior, but Hangman dismissed them.

04:50 Bad luck continued for Hangman, as on the first episode of Dynamite, he lost to the

04:54 Bastard Pack.

04:56 In the same episode, AEW World Champion Chris Jericho launched a brutal attack on the elite

05:02 with the help of his newfound faction, Inner Circle.

05:05 However, Hangman was nowhere to be found in that main event.

05:08 He didn't come out to save his friends.

05:11 He was unsure of himself, questioning his place in the group.

05:14 As Omega, The Young Bucks and Cody Rhodes, who were still aligned with the group, were

05:19 in a good position within the company and competed in high-profile matches, Page was

05:24 losing his confidence and even wanted to quit the group, feeling he was the least successful

05:29 member of the elite.

05:30 He somewhat redeemed himself by defeating Pac in a rematch at Full Gear 2019, but he

05:36 was still feeling lost.

05:38 Around this time, he began drinking more and more.

05:41 Even The Young Bucks were getting sick of him, and they openly told Hangman that he

05:46 wasn't mad with them, but he was mad with himself.

05:49 On the other hand, Kenny Omega, who had just lost a brutal match against Jon Moxley at

05:54 Full Gear, couldn't see what was happening within the group, and he tried to hold together

05:58 the elite.

05:59 This led to him teaming with Page in tag team matches.

06:02 Then they went on to defeat SCU to become the AEW World Tag Team Champs.

06:08 Finally, Hangman was a champion in AEW.

06:12 Sure it may not have been the specific title he aimed for, but now he could call himself

06:16 a champion.

06:17 When they won, The Young Bucks came out to celebrate, but Page was still uncomfortable

06:21 being around them, feeling that The Bucks were there to take his moment away from him.

06:26 He left the ring and celebrated with the crowd by drinking some beer.

06:30 Now this is when our story becomes interesting.

06:34 The Young Bucks became the number one contender for Page and Omega's tag team titles.

06:39 Tensions escalated between Page and The Young Bucks, while Omega worked to salvage whatever

06:44 remained of their relationship.

06:46 The stage was set for the clash of the elites at Revolution 2020, and Omega and Page successfully

06:52 defended their tag team championships against The Young Bucks in one of the best tag team

06:57 matches in AEW history.

07:00 The match was emotional, with some fans thinking that Hangman might turn on his partner out

07:05 of frustration and lose the tag team titles.

07:08 There was a significant moment after the match, as Hangman stood on the ring apron, in a position

07:14 reminiscent of when he executes his Buckshot Lariat finisher with Kenny in the ring.

07:19 Yet, the betrayal did not happen.

07:22 The Young Bucks tried to show respect, but Page still wanted nothing to do with them.

07:26 While the relationship between the elite was fractured, Kenny and Hangman carried the tag

07:31 team division.

07:32 Hangman continued to be spotted drinking backstage, leaving fans with a sense that something wasn't

07:38 right with him.

07:39 The elite did put their differences aside to win Stadium Stampede at Double or Nothing

07:44 2020 and defeat Chris Jericho's Inner Circle, but the wounds were far from healed.

07:49 This was the time when the COVID-19 pandemic had hit, prompting AEW Dynamite episodes to

07:54 be hosted at Daily's Place in Jacksonville.

07:58 Around this time, another tag team made their debut in AEW, FTR, formerly known as The Revival

08:05 in WWE.

08:07 This is when the mind games began, with Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood actively working to

08:11 sway already broken Hangman's allegiance away from his friends.

08:16 The reason was simple, they wanted the tag team championships, and what better way to

08:20 get those titles than by instigating conflict between the partners, potentially causing

08:26 them to turn against each other.

08:28 And guess what, they succeeded in their objective, as Hangman fell for their manipulation.

08:34 He cost the Young Bucks the title opportunity on Dynamite, this led the Bucks to officially

08:39 kicking Page out of the elite.

08:41 Even Kenny was getting frustrated with Hangman now.

08:44 FTR earned the tag team championship match against Omega and Page, and at All Out, they

08:49 emerged victorious, defeating the reigning champions to claim the titles for themselves.

08:55 Hangman knew he had destroyed his relationship with his friends, but the damage was done

08:59 now.

09:00 Kenny was done with him.

09:02 The Best Bout Machine didn't help him, and he left him lying in the ring after the match

09:07 at All Out.

09:08 Following this, Kenny started hunting for the AEW World Championship, the same championship

09:14 that Hangman Adam Page couldn't win the previous year.

09:19 But Hangman couldn't resist going for the same prize.

09:22 A tournament was announced to determine the new number one contender for the AEW World

09:27 Championship, and guess who were in the finals at Full Gear 2020?

09:32 Yes, it was Hangman Adam Page and Kenny Omega.

09:36 Before their match at the pay-per-view, Jim Ross had a sit-down interview with Hangman,

09:40 where he looked completely distraught.

09:43 With a glass of whiskey in hand, he said, "I am nervous.

09:47 The first day we started this company, I said I was going to be the first AEW champion,

09:52 and I don't think anyone believed it but me, and they were right.

09:55 And Saturday is the closest I have gotten to the shot of that title since then, and

09:59 if I don't win, I don't know what I got other than this glass of whiskey."

10:04 This felt real.

10:05 The character Hangman Adam Page was completely broken at this point, falling short of claiming

10:10 the inaugural AEW Championship.

10:12 Fracturing relationships with friends and losing the tag team title, the significance

10:17 of becoming the AEW champion was paramount for Hangman.

10:22 However, Full Gear 2020 wasn't his time to shine.

10:26 Kenny managed to defeat him, earning a shot for the AEW title.

10:30 On that very same night, the Young Bucks emerged victorious against FTR, and Kenny went out

10:36 there to celebrate with his friends.

10:38 Following this, at Winter is Coming, Kenny defeated his old rival Jon Moxley to win the

10:44 AEW World Championship.

10:47 The Elite were at the top, but Hangman Adam Page was no longer part of the Elite.

10:52 He watched all of this happen in the distance.

10:54 He tried to make himself feel better by drinking alcohol to drown his sorrows.

10:59 This is when the Dark Order comes into the fold.

11:02 So Dark Order was a cryptic faction in AEW that promised glory and prestige through recruitment

11:08 under the leadership of the mysterious, exalted one, the late, great Brody Lee.

11:14 They started pursuing Hangman to join the group, as they saw him as a broken individual

11:18 who had lost his friends.

11:20 But Hangman resisted.

11:22 He didn't want to go from one faction to another.

11:25 Unfortunately, Brody Lee passed away on December 20th, 2020.

11:30 But the group persisted in recruiting Hangman to the group.

11:34 Slowly but surely, Page started showing some respect for the Tenacity, finding himself

11:38 spending more time with them and experiencing a sense of happiness he hadn't felt in a

11:43 while.

11:44 Moving into 2021, he also began stacking some wins, securing a win against Matt Hardy at

11:50 Revolution and defeating Brian Cage at Double or Nothing.

11:54 As the crowd returned following the COVID-19 pandemic, their reaction grew louder for him

12:00 and he became one of the biggest babyfaces in wrestling.

12:04 Hangman Adam Page's character wasn't perfect, it was flawed and that's why fans found

12:09 him relatable.

12:10 Whenever he came out, fans chanted "Cowboy, you know the other word."

12:15 Little did we know, he became the number one ranked wrestler in AEW, meaning he could again

12:21 challenge for the AEW World Championship.

12:24 However, the champion Kenny Omega who had embraced his villainous side along with the

12:29 Young Bucks kept dodging him.

12:32 It was the Dark Order who finally stood up for Hangman to remind Kenny that Page was

12:37 coming for him.

12:38 With his new friends, the Dark Order by his side, Hangman had a pretty good chance of

12:43 becoming a champion this time.

12:46 During Fight for the Fallen, Page joined forces with the Dark Order to face Omega, the Young

12:52 Bucks and the Good Brothers in a high stakes 10-man tag team elimination match.

12:58 The victory meant earning shots at the World and Tag Team Championships for Page and the

13:03 Dark Order, respectively, as the Young Bucks were still the Tag Team Champs.

13:09 However, despite their efforts, they suffered defeat with Page valiantly standing as the

13:15 last man eliminated from his team.

13:18 Then at the homecoming event on August 4th, Omega and his friends relentlessly beat down

13:23 Page leaving him battered.

13:26 Following this, Hangman disappeared from AEW TV, taking paternity leave for the birth of

13:32 his son.

13:33 Kenny and the Young Bucks kept ruling AEW in the meantime and at All Out, their old

13:38 friend Adam Cole made his AEW debut and instantly joined the elite.

13:43 Former WWE stars such as CM Punk and Bryan Danielson also came to AEW.

13:50 Despite the potential distraction of these high profile additions, the company stayed

13:55 true to its course, following through with its plan for Hangman.

13:58 At Dynamite's second anniversary on October 6th, Hangman Adam Page made his return to

14:03 AEW as the surprise entrant in the 7-man casino ladder match.

14:09 He went on to win the match and secure a future title shot for the AEW World Championship.

14:16 This felt like his time.

14:17 Kenny had held the championship for more than 300 days and it was now time for someone else

14:23 to take that title away from him.

14:25 And who's better than the man who had a history with Omega?

14:29 A match was set at Full Gear 2021 for the AEW World Championship.

14:36 Kenny Omega vs Hangman Adam Page.

14:40 Before the pay-per-view, Hangman cut a passionate promo saying "So the promise I can make

14:45 is that at Full Gear I will give everything.

14:48 I will give you my heart.

14:49 I will give you my soul.

14:51 I will give you every fiber of my being.

14:53 I will give you my blood.

14:55 I will give you my sweat.

14:56 And in one way or another, I may give you my tears, but one thing I am 100% sure about

15:03 is that at Full Gear I will give you cowboy shit."

15:06 Damn, you can feel it in his eyes.

15:09 He was ready.

15:10 Hangman also apologized to the Young Bucks for the way he acted when he was the tag team

15:15 champion and also warned them to not get involved in his match against Kenny.

15:20 At the contract signing between the two on Dynamite, Kenny signed the contract with Hangman's

15:25 blood, making things personal and telling everybody that he wasn't going to take Hangman

15:30 lightly.

15:31 However, at Full Gear 2021, one year after his loss to Omega and nearly three years after

15:37 declaring his ambition to become the AEW World Champion, Hangman accomplished his dream by

15:44 defeating Kenny Omega and capturing the championship.

15:48 And the best part about the whole thing was, was that the Young Bucks were there at ringside

15:54 just like Hangman wanted them to be during his very first AEW title match.

16:00 Hangman celebrated the win with his new friends Dark Order as the show went off air.

16:05 This was long term storytelling at its best.

16:09 AEW transformed Hangman Adam Page into a legit superstar and all they had to do was give

16:15 him time to tell a story.

16:17 It was a tale of a tortured soul in Hangman who wanted to be more than just what he was

16:23 and his efforts finally paid off for him.

16:25 No offense to the bloodline storyline, but this too was cinema.

16:30 [music]

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