Pac's First All-Atlantic Title Defense To Air On AEW Dark
After becoming the inaugural AEW All-Atlantic Champion at AEW X NJPW Forbidden Door, Pac now knows who his first challenger will be for the belt. It was announced by AEW Founder and CEO Tony Khan that Pac's first title defense will be against Shota Umino at RevPro's live event in Sheffield, England this coming Sunday. To give fans who are unable to view the full RevPro show a special treat, Khan announced that the match will air as part of this Tuesday's AEW "Dark". The company also intends to show highlights of the match on Wednesday's "Dynamite: Fyter Fest Pt. 1".
As noted, PAC became the first-ever AEW All-Atlantic Champion at Forbidden Door by winning a four-way against Miro, Malakai Black, and NJPW's Clark Connors, who he made submit for the win. Umino was also a featured performer during Forbidden Door, teaming with Eddie Kingston and ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta to face Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, and Minoru Suzuki. Unfortunately for Umino, his team ended up losing the trios match, allowing The Jericho Appreciation Society a slight advantage in their subsequent Blood & Guts match on "Dynamite". Despite the advantage earned, the JAS still lost to the Blackpool Combat Club when Claudio Castagnoli forced Matt Menard to tap out to the Sharpshooter while they were atop the cage.
Fans should expect Pac defending overseas to be happening regularly going forward, as Tony Khan noted in a recent interview that he wants the titleholder to be a "traveling" champion. His next International, All-Atlantic title defense is set for Friday, July 22 when he faces LJ Cleary at OTT's Poetry Slam in Dublin, Ireland.
"[This Title] is for the international fans and for the international wrestlers on the roster. I felt like it would create more opportunities," Khan said to "ComicBook.com". "But I also don't think this title or these opportunities are exclusive to the international wrestlers. But it's a big benefit of the term."
In Sheffield @RevProUK, the@AEW All-Atlantic Title will be at stake:@BASTARDPAC vs @Shooter_US!
We'll have the full match on #AEWDark Tuesday + highlights on #AEWDynamite Wednesday! I expect a great title fight!
See you on TNT for #AEWRampage
TONIGHT @ 10pm ET/9pm CT/10pm PT! pic.twitter.com/daHoYdXN1D— Tony Khan (@TonyKhan) July 9, 2022