PARKS’S TAKE: Half-way through, the Continental Classic is living up to its sterling reputation earned the last two years

We are about halfway through the 2025 AEW Continental Classic which, thus far, has lived up to the sterling reputation created by the previous two versions of the tournament.

We just saw what could be considered the match of the tournament up to this point, when “Speedball” Mike Bailey upset Kyle Fletcher on last night’s episode of Dynamite. That’s one of a few big upsets we’ve seen in the early stages, with Mascara Dorada’s recent defeat of Claudio Castagnoli as one of the others that stands out.

The nature of the Continental Classic, where seconds are banned from ringside and interference is not tolerated, inherently makes the finishes and therefore the tournament itself more satisfying to the viewer. You really get the sense you’re seeing who is the best of a simulated athletic competition, not who can outsmart the other with use of foreign objects or who can distract their opponent to gain the upper-hand.

It’s not just a tournament of great matches however; we’re seeing stories play out that will have reverberations beyond the Continental Classic.

The Blue League has Death Rider members Jon Moxley and Castagnoli. Right now, Moxley has one win and two losses – with one of those losses coming at the hands of Claudio. With his recent string of losses, Moxley’s grip on the top spot in the group may be slipping. If there’s a coup, Castagnoli is the most likely to become the de facto leader, and he can use this victory over Moxley to strengthen his position within the Death Riders.

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There’s also the slow burn of dissension between Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita. Don Callis has done his best to try to smooth over the differences between the two alphas of his Family, so far to no avail. Okada has to be considered a favorite in the Gold League, while Takeshita won his first two bouts in the Blue League. It’s possible, even likely, these two clash in the finals at Worlds End later this month, where their relationship with each other, and potentially with the Callis Family, finally explodes.

Right now, there’s a two-way tie at the top of each block: Takeshita and Castagnoli in the Blue League, Fletcher and Okada in the Gold. Takeshita, Moxley and Castagnoli seem like the most likely to come out of the Blue League.

Just as Castagnoli could use this as a take-over of the Death Riders, so too could Moxley use a high-level performance to retain his position of power and get back on track. Fletcher and Okada seem the only ones likely to emerge from the Gold side of things, though don’t sleep on Pac, who has come back with a new look and has done great both in the ring and in promos.