fares on the 12:30 AA flight desired by the OP , it is $85 in economy and $164 in 1st class

With the $75 expedite fee on an award, 25,000 points to save $83 doesn't seem like a great deal and would suggest that just buying the ticket would be the best value

Even compared against a BA award booking ( assuming the OP has BA Avios anyway ) 18,000 points vs $164 still doesn't seem that great to me

Other than attaining status very quickly, there is no workaround to the $75 fee