Hangman Page On Full Gear 2021: This Feels Like A Celebration, Different Than I’ve Ever Felt In A Good Way
Photo Credit: All Elite Wrestling
Hangman Page will have the opportunity to finally make his dream of winning the AEW World Championship a reality when he challenges Kenny Omega for the title in what promises to be an electric main event at Saturday’s Full Gear pay-per-view.
Page has been chasing the title since AEW launched; he had the chance to be the first champion in the promotion’s history, but that honor went to Chris Jericho instead when “Le Champion” defeated Page in the main event of AEW All Out 2019. This loss has haunted Hangman ever since, and before he won the Casino Ladder Match in October, his quest for the gold had been a fruitless one. Every time he came close to earning a title shot, he’d somehow fall short. But now that he’s firing on all cylinders, Hangman is ready to do some real “cowboy s—” by dethroning Omega.
In an interview with Connor Casey of Comic Book, Page previewed the presumed main event of AEW Full Gear and noted that, unlike some of the other big matches he’s had, he’s deeply hopeful about this one because it feels like a “party.”
“Unlike many times before, this to me feels better,” Page said. “This feels good. This feels like a party. This feels like hopefully a big celebration. This feels very different than I’ve ever felt it before in a very good way.”
The aforementioned loss to Jericho changed the course of Page’s career; it set him on a path that prompted him to split up with The Elite, and this separation fueled his eventual rivalry with Omega. Looking back on his mindset surrounding the Jericho match, Page said he feels “very different” compared to the way he’s approaching this title bout. More than anything, “Hangman” emphasized that he’s much more confident now; when he faced Jericho, he didn’t fully believe that he belonged in that spot. Bu t now he feels ready to shine in what will be the biggest match of his career up to this point.
“I know that when I wrestled Jericho, I was the young guy who joined the Bullet Club who had the break of his career in being able to do that, being able to travel to Japan, who was in all those multi-man matches and who probably got beat in all those multi-man matches with Bullet Club,” said Page. “And the next thing he’s challenging for this new championship for a brand new company, headlining a pay-per-view. It didn’t add up for people and I think truthfully it didn’t add up for me deep inside.
“I didn’t understand how I got in the position. I mean I know that I won a battle royal to get there, but honestly, that doesn’t feel as meaningful if I had worked my way up from something more. So, yeah I don’t know if I’ve felt a hundred percent the way that I do now back then.”
For now, fans will have to wait and see whether Hangman Page will be able to take the title from Omega on Saturday; either way, the match will have a lasting impact on AEW’s path forward.
This week’s episode of Dynamite wasn’t much of a party for Hangman Page, as he was ultimately attacked by Kenny Omega, who signed his Full Gear contract with Page’s blood. Check out full results from this week’s episode of Dynamite at this link.