The inaugural AEW Continental Classic did not go as originally planned.
Inspired by New Japan’s G1 tournament, the round-robin tournament began on AEW television in late November and ran through to the Worlds End pay-per-view on December 30th. With wrestling fans generally more used to the single-elimination concept, this was the first time that a major promoton in the United States presented a tournament with this structure.
Similar to scoring in European football, competitors would obtain 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss. Out of the 30 matches that took place in the group stages, the only match to end in a draw was the Blue League match between Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli. However, this was due to a change after the Continental Classic began.
As reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the original plan was for there to be more time-limit draws in the tournament. This was changed due to feedback from those within the promotion. It is noted that these changes did not affect the final:
There were booking changes in the original incarnation of the Continental Classic. Originally there were going to be more time limit draws but Tony Khan with feedback from others ended up limiting it to just the Bryan Danielson vs. Claudio Castagnoli match. I believe in every incarnation it was to come down to Eddie Kingston vs. Jon Moxley
Who Won The AEW Continental Classic?
As seen at Worlds End, Eddie Kingston would triumph over long-time friend and Rival Jon Moxley to be crowned the winner of the inaugural tournament. While this was the first time that either competitor had competed in the AEW tournament, both Moxley and Kingston had previous experience in the G1 tournament. Following the victory, Eddie Kingston now reigns as AEW Continental Champion, NJPW Strong Champion and Ring of Honor World Champion. Speaking after the tournament, Eddie Kingston admitted he was happy that some names were omitted.