Lisa Frankenstein review by Big Gold Belt Media-Synopsis: A coming of RAGE love story from acclaimed writer Diablo Cody (Jennifer’s Body) about a misunderstood teenager and her high school crush, who happens to be a handsome…

The Big Gold Belt Wrestling Podcast is LIVE with so much to discuss including breaking WrestleMania news!-The Rock, Cody Rhodes & Roman Reigns: WrestleMania Shakeup-AEW Heads To Boston: Is Mercedes Mone about to take charge?-A look…

The Big Gold Belt Wrestling Podcast is LIVE with so much to discuss including breaking WrestleMania news!

-The Rock, Cody Rhodes & Roman Reigns: WrestleMania Shakeup

-AEW Heads To Boston: Is Mercedes Mone about to take charge?

-A…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/a3qJ6fopmEY?si=n4qpiXDHxnLbvF1y

It’s been 15 months since the last time All Elite Wrestling came home to Jacksonville, FL and Daily’s Place, but this Wednesday night the time is upon for a Homecoming! For some competitors it is a return to the familiar, for many it means a first time trip to AEW’s home base, one of those being AEW World Champion Samoa Joe. In addition to Joe’s first time live in Duval, “The Icon” Sting will have his final match at the place where his AEW journey began, two big singles bout, and two loaded eight-person tag matches on tap as well!

AEW DYNAMITE gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so make sure to swing by the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted social media platforms, for highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, the newest CONTROL CENTER, and more! This is just the beginning of a loaded week for AEW, capping off with BATTLE OF THE BELTS IX and COLLISION in Norfolk! 

THE CHAMPION ARRIVES!

The AEW World Champion is set to be in Jacksonville this Wednesday night, live for the very first time with that title over his shoulder, and he is willing to fight everyone who wants a piece of his AEW World Championship! He specifically mentioned Hangman and Swerve Strickland during the WORLDS END Media Scrum, but there is undoubtedly a slew of other competitors ready to step up as challengers. One of them let himself be heard loud and clear on COLLISION this past Saturday:

Currently reigning as FTW Champion for the second time, HOOK was less than a year old when Samoa Joe stepped into a wrestling ring for his first professional match, just shy of four years old when when Joe’s historic ROH World Championship began, and had his first professional match just after Joe marked his twenty-second year in the sport. Despite that experience disadvantage, both in life and in wrestling, HOOK is quite clearly fearless if he’s calling out Joe for a fight. Will Joe address that challenge on Wednesday night? What else does the champion have to share with the AEW faithful in Daily’s Place and those watching around the world?

ONE-ON-ONE…

AEW World Tag Champion Ricky Starks vs. Sammy Guevara

It has been five years since the last time Ricky Starks and Sammy Guevara went one-on-one inside the squared circle, just not an AEW squared circle. See theirs is a history that predates the existence of All Elite Wrestling, matches as far back as 2014 on the Texas independent circuit, but it wasn’t until January of 2023 that they ever met under the auspices of AEW. That night it was a tag team bout stemming from Starks’ issues with Chris Jericho, Guevara teaming with Jericho while Starks had Action Andretti in his corner, and it was The J.A.S. team that was victorious.

Ten months later at FULL GEAR 2023, Jericho stood beside a different partner, a former foe named Kenny Omega, and together they laid claim to the AEW World Tag Team Championship opportunity that belonged to The Young Bucks. While the brothers Jackson have not been seen since that November loss, Kenny and Chris prepared to face AEW World Tag Team Champions Big Bill and Ricky Starks at WORLDS END, at least that was the plan. Omega not only had to pull out of that match due to diverticulitis, but he had to step away from professional wrestling period in order to get the necessary treatment. That left Jericho with a championship match still owed him, but with no partner to claim it. That all changed the night Chris Jericho came to the aid of Sammy Guevara when “The Spanish God” was assaulted by The Don Callis Family; the former allies mended their battered fences, and are now a unified front barreling towards BATTLE OF THE BELTS IX and their Tag Team Championship opportunity.

But first, a stop on the road, to the place where Ricky Starks first appeared in AEW to answer the TNT Open Challenge of Cody Rhodes, and where Guevara went through the hell of two Stadium Stampedes, as well as the first Blood & Guts Cage. Guevara hasn’t competed inside Daily’s Place since December 2021, while for Starks it’s been since April of that same year, but it is still the place that shaped each of them as competitors and their AEW careers. This Wednesday night, when Starks and Guevara face off for the first time in AEW, it will also shape their impending AEW World Tag Team Championship fight 

A CHALLENGE…

Claudio Castagnoli vs. “Hangman” Adam Page

Claudio Castagnoli and “Hangman” Adam Page are no strangers to one another; over the course of this past year they were on opposite sides of a few of the most violent matches in AEW’s history. Between Anarchy in the Arena at DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2023, and Blood & Guts III in July, not to mention FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023 and other DYNAMITE fights, they’ve gone to war plenty of times in the last twelve months. 

But one thing Claudio and Hangman have never done is go one-on-one, but that changes on Wednesday night when Hangman returns to Daily’s Place, a site of both triumph and tragedy for his career, to take on “The Swiss Superman” for their very first singles bout! Hangman is on a warpath, looking to fight anyone and everyone, though much of his rage is focused on Swerve Strickland, and Claudio Castagnoli is more than happy to give Page that fight!

This is going to be a hard-hitting clash, of that there is no doubt, but will it be won by the anger of The Hangman or the focus of The Blackpool Combat Club? 

TAG TEAM GRUDGE MATCH…

Darby Allin & Sting vs. The Don Callis Family (Konosuke Takeshita & Powerhouse Hobbs)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/gXCPY5kldYM?si=_3y4IJqNgYxTCk95

Sting is on the highway to REVOLUTION 2024 and his final professional wrestling match, but with so much road between now and then, there’s plenty of stops along the way for fans to experience “The Icon” one last time, and for his foes to try and take one last stab at The Stinger! Over the last few weeks one of those foes, or rather a group of them, has set their sights on Sting and Darby Allin. It all began when the painted pair helped Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara defeat The Don Callis Family and the AEW World Tag Champions at WORLDS END, and continued last week on DYNAMITE when Konosuke Takeshita defeated Darby Allin in singles competition

Now coming off of a victory over The Workhorsemen on COLLISION, Sting and Darby Allin are ready to head back to where it all began again for “The Icon”, where WINTER IS COMING 2020 brought him to AEW for the first time, and started this magnificent 26-0 winning streak Sting has been on since REVOLUTION 2020. Being a man who loves to ruin everything around him, Don Callis has taken it upon himself (or rather put it upon his collection of combatants) to add that first loss to Sting’s record before AEW gets to REVOLUTION 2024. Can they pull it off at HOMECOMING 2024, or will The Don Callis Family be another victim of The Stinger/Darby Allin team?

EIGHT-MAN TAG…

AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, Adam Copeland, Dustin Rhodes, & LFI’s Preston Vance

vs.

ROH World Six-Man Champions The Mogul Embassy (Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun, & Toa Liona) and Lance Archer

Daily’s Place will always be a special venue at the heart of All Elite Wrestling; not only is it home base for the company, but for sixteen months it was our only home. It was the place where everyone involved in AEW bonded with one another, where AEW grew into a family, a building where every crevice of the facility was explored, where a lounge became known as The Dark Order Room, and became the location for so many memorable moments featuring Evil Uno, Stu, Alex and John, Anna, Alan, Ten, Cabana, Hangman, and others. But one of the biggest parts of what made that room special, what gave Jacksonville such life, was the presence of the late Mr. Brodie Lee. Just over three years since his passing, the shadow of Brodie still looms large over AEW and those who knew him, those who loved him, and returning home to Jacksonville, stepping foot back into Daily’s Place, it serves as another reminder of the great man we all lost way too soon. 

That is why this Wednesday night The Exalted One’s hand-picked pupil, Preston Vance, will forego uniting with his La Faccion Ingobernable brethren, and instead stand side-by-side three of the AEW fan’s favorite competitors! Just as he did on December 30, 2020 as part of the Tribute Show, Vance will team up with Orange Cassidy, only now their group will be rounded out by one of the men who went to war with Brodie over that TNT Championship, Dustin Rhodes, and one of the newest entrants into the AEW family: Adam Copeland.

Standing across the ring will be four of the most fearsome competitors on the AEW roster, ROH World Six-Man Champions The Mogul Embassy of Kaun, Toa, and Brian Cage, as well as “The Murderhawk Monster” Lance Archer! Preston Vance’s quartet certainly has their work cut out for them in this fight, but with the memory of Mr. Brodie Lee fueling them, they aren’t going to back down from the fight no matter the odds!

EIGHT-WOMAN TAG…

Anna Jay, Kris Statlander, Thunder Rosa, & Willow Nightingale

vs.

TBS Champion Julia Hart, Ruby Soho, Saraya, & Skye Blue

And speaking of those inspired by the memory of “The Exalted One”, Anna Jay was brought into The Dark Order by Mr. Brodie Lee as well, given the number “99” as a nod to the legendary Wayne Gretzky, and under his tutelage, she learned quite a bit in her earliest years as a professional wrestler. Now Anna Jay returns to the site where her AEW career truly began, having transformed from who “The Star of the Show” was in 2020, into a woman who truly embodies that nickname in 2024. Wednesday night she will team up with three other fan favorites in Willow Nightingale, Kris Statlander, and the newly-returned Thunder Rosa to do battle with the rather intriguing quartet of TBS Champion Julia Hart, Skye Blue, and The Outcasts of Ruby Soho and Saraya. Hart and Skye have made quite the fearsome pair over the last few weeks since Skye Blue fully embraced the darkness the TBS Champion spat into her soul, but The Outcasts duo have not exactly been on the same page as of late. It felt at one point like Saraya was trying to pull Anna Jay into their orbit, and now it’s Harley Cameron standing at their side, though she’s acting like quite an unhinged individual.

On the other side of the ring, Stokely Hathaway has been trying, quite unsuccessfully, to drive a wedge between Willow and Statlander, while this is just Thunder Rosa’s second match since returning to action after 16 months rehabilitating injuries. It should be noted that the first match back for the former AEW Women’s World Champion was a tag team victory over Julia Hart and Skye Blue with Abadon at her side! So in addition to Anna Jay wanting to pay homage to her mentor and friend Brodie Lee, this one has a load of other threads wrapped around the eight women involved in this bout!

The era of AEW World Champion Samoa Joe began at WORLDS END, and for the first time-ever he will be in Jacksonville this Wednesday night for DYNAMITE: HOMECOMING 2024! In addition, AEW World Tag Champ Ricky Starks takes on Sammy Guevara ahead of their BOTB XI championship clash on Saturday, Castagnoli versus Hangman, two huge eight-person tags, and so much more on tap! It all begins again at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so be sure to swing by the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, for highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, the newest CONTROL CENTER, and more!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/aV_vLfXZWwQ?si=g5IbsQS2Bh1gDBT-

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ALKhUPQnlKY?si=TsrJJirQ1ljHTBah

The end of 2023 is upon us and this Saturday night marks the final event of the year for All Elite Wrestling! Appropriately entitled WORLDS END, this pay-per-view offering features multiple championship matches, as well as the finals of the historic Continental Classic, which itself is also a title fight as the winner will be crowned the first Continental Champion, as well as ROH World Champion and NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion, creating an all-new North American Triple Crown!

Preceded by ZERO HOUR on the official AEW YouTube channel, WORLDS END begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT and hails from the historic Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Long Island! Be sure to watch all the COUNTDOWN content to get up to speed for the latest happenings leading to AEW’s year-end extravaganza, and do not miss out as the stage is set for 2024!

AEW World Championship Match…

MJF(c) vs. Samoa Joe

https://www.youtube.com/embed/y3mVgI4K3Xg?si=Ct4giTEtXpTRiiij&start=45

Betrayal; is there any other way to encapsulate the last month of MJF’s life since he beat Jay White at FULL GEAR 2023? Samoa Joe stepped up, after vacating the ROH World Television Championship and declaring the AEW World Championship as his sole focus, and told Maxwell Jacob Friedman that no matter what he would chauffeur the AEW World Champion to WORLDS END intact. Joe took it upon himself to be MJF’s bodyguard, to protect the hot-headed AEW World Champion from himself, and insure Max made it to December 30th at peak physical condition so there would be no excuses if he lost the AEW World Championship to Joe live on pay-per-view.

But this past Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, after Samoa Joe seemed to be taken out by The Devil and his lackeys ahead of a scheduled ROH World Tag Team Championship defense against said masked men, the entire situation went a drastic overhaul. MJF, as he’d done with The Righteous at WRESTLEDREAM 2023, elected to go solo in a tag title defense, only to be laid out by the superior numbers of The Devil’s henchmen, and watch the championship he’d earned with Adam Cole slip away just like that.

For MJF it was more than just losing a title, it was also breaking a promise to his best friend Adam Cole, the only man who’d given Max an opportunity to prove himself a better man than the scumbag he’d shown the world the last four years. After Adam Cole got hurt at GRAND SLAM 2023 while trying to come to MJF’s aid in his last fight with Samoa Joe, Friedman promised Cole he’d keep the ROH Tag Titles around his waist until Cole could return, but the machinations of this Devil made it a difficult situation, and the willingness of Samoa Joe to do business with the masked man turned it into an impossibility. As much heart as MJF as where it comes to Adam Cole, even he can’t overcome the multitudes willing to serve The Devil, much less Samoa Joe’s apparent willingness to do anything for an edge heading into WORLDS END this Saturday.

So with that broken promise to Adam Cole hanging over his head, with the various injuries MJF has sustained during his record-setting AEW World Championship reign, what chance does he have fighting the monster that is Samoa Joe? 

After all, Joe is the man who held both the ROH World Championship and the ROH World TV Championship longer than any man who came before him. He is the man who, unarguably, changed the landscape of professional wrestling for all those who came after him, and the man who broke the mold of what being Samoan meant as a professional wrestler. Samoa Joe traversed the independent landscape, battled across Japan, took Kenta Kobashi to his limit in game changing Ring of Honor fight, and tested a generational competitor like Brock Lesnar like no man before or since. Once upon a time Samoa Joe would look into a camera and unblinkingly tell the world “I am Pro Wrestling” in the same tone with which he now tells the world he is “The King of Television” and there is no doubt that he believes it with every fiber of his being. Ask anyone who has stood in that ring waiting for Samoa Joe’s arrival and they will tell you there are few individuals of this generation, maybe Jay Briscoe, who struck fear into the hearts of their foes before they ever stepped between the ropes. As soon as Joe steps before the people, the man standing in the ring knows he is in for the fight of his life, and that is what Maxwell Jacob Friedman has awaiting him on Long Island this Saturday night.

It’s not the first big-time fight of MJF’s AEW career, this is a man who has beaten Cody Rhodes, Chris Jericho, Jon Moxley, Bryan Danielson, and even Samoa Joe over the last four years, just to name a few, as well as the other Four Pillars of Jack Perry, Darby Allin, and Sammy Guevara. He’s been big-time for almost as long as he’s been in All Elite Wrestling, and although he has beaten Samoa Joe in the recent past, he’s never come at “The Samoan Smashing Machine” under these circumstances. Max is hurt, he’s fighting from behind, he’s got the specter of The Devil over his shoulder, but he’s fighting on his home turf and with everything to lose. His body may want to give up the ghost, but his spirit, that indomitable Fighting Spirit, isn’t ready to call it quits on this historic AEW World Championship reign just yet…

Continental Classic Championship Finals…

Gold League Winner Jon Moxley vs. Blue League Winner Eddie Kingston

https://www.youtube.com/embed/lTXNt4T0XQA?si=QnEoSdoKxmPTtByx&start=408

The AEW website took a deep dive into the history between Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston on Thursday night with “You Always Hurt The One You Love”, reflecting on the violence that has gone down between these two friends, these brothers-by-choice, ever since Kingston first came to AEW.

A dissection of their relationship can be read there, this is a look at the immediate history and what brought these two men to WORLDS END and the Continental Classic Finals! For Jon Moxley the road to Gold League success began on the November 22nd edition of DYNAMITE, one night before American Thanksgiving, with a match against Mark Briscoe. It was a first-time collision between the two men, and was every bit as hard-hitting as one would anticipate given their history as fighters. The end came with Mark Briscoe surviving one Death Rider, but eventually succumbing to a second, only after Moxley had to stomp Mark’s skull into the canvas: three points for the 3-Time AEW World  Champion.

Moxley’s second foray into the Gold League came against Jay Lethal, and that too went in his favor, but again only after stringing together a succession of moves that, under some circumstances would’ve put a lesser man away. Lethal survived a Paradigm Shift, a King Kong Lariat, and a piledriver, kicking out of the last maneuver at a 2.5 count, only to end up tapping out to Moxley’s Rear Naked Choke: two matches down, six points to his name, and three more to go.

For his halfway point Moxley welcomed a fight with RUSH, a man capable of matching Jon’s capacity for violence, but who ultimately fell to The Blackpool Combat Club member. In this case the leader of La Faccion Ingobernable survived a massive King Kong Lariat and Death Rider, kicking out just before the three, but could not escape the same choke that tapped out Jay Lethal a week prior. Unlike Lethal, RUSH never tapped out or said he quit, it was a matter of referee stoppage to protect the safety of the unconscious RUSH. It was a decision that did not sit well with RUSH, but it was final, and sent Moxley into his fourth bout with nine points to his name.

Enter Swerve Strickland, another man with nine points to his name, and one of the other favorite’s to win the entire Continental Classic. The winner of this bout would be etched into the Gold League Finals with twelve points, and though it was hard-fought by the head of The Mogul Embassy, it was Mox who squeaked out with a victory, but not with a lariat or Death Rider or choke, but rather via roll-up with a little pulling of Swerve’s tights. By hook or crook, Jon Moxley became the only man with 12 points to his name, and guaranteed himself a spot in the League Finals.

Then came the last night of the points competition, Moxley versus “Switchblade” Jay White, and perhaps it was the rigors of what had come the previous four weeks, but with this fifth tournament bout, Jon Moxley finally tasted defeat after being dropped with a Blade Runner. That victory by Jay, combined with Swerve’s over RUSH, meant the Gold League Finals would be contested in a Three Way match, and as we all saw this past Wednesday on DYNAMITE, it ended with Moxley’s hand raised after evening the score with Jay White as Swerve watched on from the outside. 

For Eddie Kingston, the tournament first began with him upping the ante from just the Continental Championship awaiting the winner to it being a Triple Crown situation involving both Eddie’s ROH World Championship and his NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship. It was a huge risk no doubt, and one that very nearly backfired in Kingston’s face as he dropped his first match with Brody King as well as his second with Bryan Danielson, sending “The Mad King” to the halfway mark with zero points to his name. He had to rebound with his third fight, a bout with long-time rival Claudio Castagnoli, and that’s exactly what happened after a series of counters ended with Kingston scoring the pinfall victory. 

There was a definite change in Kingston through this tournament, rather than a man beaten down by his losses, he was a man who fought through them, through the self-loathing that they could bring, and instead lived off the phrase “Humble in victory, humble in defeat”. It seemed his role as a dual champion had made an honest change to Kingston’s usual mentality, and it paid off as he racked up a victory over Daniel Garcia in his fourth Continental Classic match, and another in his fifth against Andrade El Idolo. Neither came easy, both took a toll on the champion, but he persevered through both and found himself, through hard work and determination, in the finals of the Blue League opposite “The American Dragon”. 

Despite the fact that he’d never beaten Bryan Danielson in their prior encounters, be it in AEW or elsewhere, Eddie Kingston latched onto the Fighting Spirit that had motivated him from the first time he saw an AJPW tape, powered through Danielson’s relentless punishment, and dropped the man many consider the greatest of this generation with that Kawada-style Folding Powerbomb that beat Claudio at GRAND SLAM 2023. 

With that victory it became locked in stone that Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston would fight at WORLDS END in the finals of the Continental Classic with ownership of the ROH World Championship, the NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship, and the brand-new Continental Championship all at stake. It’s a modern-day North American Triple Crown, one that will belong to either Jon Moxley or Eddie Kingston in this battle of brothers by choice rather than blood, but can their relationship survive yet another blow after everything it has endured since Kingston first challenged Moxley for the AEW World Championship more than three years ago?

AEW Women’s World Championship Match…

“Timeless” Toni Storm(c) vs. Riho

https://www.youtube.com/embed/O67wxotbvCQ?si=KMqs2pF3soazKzzj&start=45

Over the course of the last several months the AEW faithful have watched Toni Storm spiral out; it began when Hikaru Shida ended her second championship reign back in August, and kicked into full gear (no pun intended) as Storm neared her rematch with Shida at FULL GEAR 2023 on November 18th. Now RJ City and Renee Paquette have had to endure the “Timeless” experience more than any others, while Luther has thrown himself fully into the experience as her…butler, but the entire Women’s Division has had to take a step back and question what has happened to Storm.

She seems trapped in a delusion of Old Hollywood stardom, of key parties, of celluloid dreams, and only vaguely aware of anything going on outside of her own head. Toni’s barely cognizant of Mariah May’s fawning presence, despite the former STARDOM champion actively helping her fight Riho, and only remotely aware of an entire division of competitors gunning for the title around her waist. That division includes women that Toni, as part of The Outcasts, made a point to verbally denigrate and physically assault, women like original AEW Woman’s World Champion Riho!

That “Timeless” moniker matters not to Riho, no matter what she’s called Toni Storm is still part of the Outcast trio that took Riho out of AEW action many months ago, and she returned with a vengeance to right those wrongs. It started with a victory over Ruby Soho, continued with a #1 Contender’s victory over Saraya, leaving just Toni Storm and her AEW Women’s World Championship to be conquered this Saturday night at WORLDS END!

Can Riho etch her name into the AEW history book as a 2-Time Women’s World Champion, or will “Timeless” Toni Storm continue to live out her fantastical delusions with the title belt securely strapped around her waist?

TNT Championship No Disqualification Match…

Christian Cage(c) vs. Adam Copeland

https://www.youtube.com/embed/-4WAjPlrWS0?si=1V7FZJZ55llJnbnD&start=294

What can possibly be said about this championship match that adequately encompasses what it means to the two men involved in the battle. Christian Cage and Adam Copeland have been part of each other’s lives for more nearly four decades, they have fought side-by-side and been champions many times over, they’ve even battled one another on multiple occasions, and each man has seen the other have to give up their professional wrestling dreams when their body decided enough was enough. 

Each man has also seen the other fight back against the body that betrayed their dream, has watched the pain and sacrifice the other has experienced to get back inside the squared circle, and celebrated the moment each returned to the ring to continue living the dream they’d each had for as long as they could remember. And that’s the thing about dreams like the professional wrestling one; no matter the championship successes, the time spent on television and pay-per-view, or the opportunity to step into the ring with the legends one admired as they came up themselves, it’s a dream that is never fully realized. There is always something more to dream about, though for Adam Copeland the culmination of that dream was ending his career standing alongside Christian Cage, the best friend Jay Reso he’d grown up with before either actually laced up a pair of boots, the man with whom he’d changed the landscape of tag team wrestling.

Christian had other ideas…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/XzQCnL4IzzY?si=g12hkWW_J5vWselF

So after saying he would never fight his brother, Copeland had to come to a hard realization that Cage did not feel the same way and, in fact, was willing to break Adam’s neck if that’s what it took to insure their relationship was quits. Christian invoked the names of Copeland’s wife and children to express just how much animosity he had towards the very idea of every reuniting the band, and it took “The Icon” Sting, a man quite familiar with betrayal by those he called his friends, to convince Copeland that the man he considered his best friend was anything but. That resulted in the two colliding in Montreal during a recent edition of DYNAMITE, and showed just how far Christian Cage would stoop in order to see that he remained the top man in the Cage/Copeland dynamic…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q_Z4gJPwYjg?si=YtN4RE_7Nq-v5bre&start=172

Whether it was something Cage expected or not, the choice Shayna Wayne made to align herself with her son’s surrogate father figure changed the landscape of the game, putting even more forces against Adam Copeland, and that one largely because of choices Adam made in the heat of the battle. After all, what mother could watch their son’s head get caved in with a chair and not choose to oppose the individual who inflicted the pain? 

So now we enter WORLDS END and Adam Copeland’s challenge to face “The Patriarch” Christian Cage in one more TNT Championship match, only this time under No Disqualification rules. It was made clear by how Copeland responded to the idea of a sit-down interview with his former best friend just how this fight is likely to go down. There’s no quarter asked, and none likely to be given, between these two men who’ve gone up-and-down the wrestling roads together. 

After this there will likely be no more family dinners, no more “Uncle Jey”, nor the possibility of ending their hall of fame careers standing side-by-side as AEW World Tag Team Champions. This TNT Championship match on Saturday night may indeed be the end of the Copeland/Reso world and regardless of if it’s Adam Copeland or Christian Cage who walks away from the battle as TNT Champion, both will have to ask themselves whether it was worth sacrificing something built over a lifetime…

TBS Championship Match…

Julia Hart(c) vs. Abadon

https://www.youtube.com/embed/7G-QxEwAdTk?si=qjYGnvPRgLAFy9eU&start=45

A darkness has fallen over the TBS Title, the shadow of The House of Black dimming the light once brought to this championship by Kris Statlander’s reign, replaced by something wicked, something intensely scary with the reign of Julia Hart.

Thus perhaps it is apropos that this Saturday night at WORLDS END the Princess of The House defends her championship against “The Living Dead Girl” known as Abadon! With just four loses on their singles record, they are one of the most successful competitors in the Women’s Division, with two of the longest singles win streaks in AEW’s history to their name, seventeen matches between 1/26/21 and 10/22/21 and fifteen from 12/21/21 to 10/27/23. Abadon has drawn blood from foes with their own teeth, struck fear in the hearts of even the strongest competitors, and even in those few losses, come so close to the AEW Women’s World Championship on two occasions. Hikaru Shida has been the bane of Abadon’s existence, responsible for three of those losses, while the other has Dr. Britt Baker’s name attached to it in a Trick of Treat Match two years ago. Other than that, Abadon has been largely untouchable and unfazed by any opponent who’s stood across the ring.

Their desire for the TBS Championship that’s built up over these past few weeks has even led to some very strange bedfellows as Skye Blue, after weeks of successfully fighting against the darkness Julia Hart spat into her soul, finally succumbed to the House and aligned with the TBS Champion against Abadon. In turn, that alignment brought Thunder Rosa away from the commentary table and back into active competition as the former AEW Women’s World Champion chose to stand alongside “The Living Dead Girl”. Their tag team victory over Skye and Julia during last week’s COLLISION certainly gave an edge to Abadon heading towards this PPV battle, even if it was Thunder pinning Skye to bring the win for their team. 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/7G-QxEwAdTk?si=-w2xc8MNSHEEWyC8&start=172

This past Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, Julia Hart played a decisive role in helping Skye Blue defeat Kris Statlander, as well as assisting in the post-victory assault on the former TBS Champion that only ended with the arrival of Willow Nightingale. As the two women fled the scene of their crime, Abadon appeared on the stage, essentially trapping Skye and Julia between the proverbial rock and hard place, forcing them to flee to the side of the stage to escape from any repercussions. 

But Saturday night there will not be any running from the situation, there will not be an opportunity to flee from this TBS Championship fight, no hiding from Abadon when the bell rings at WORLDS END! “The Living Dead Girl” has been a dominating force from the moment they debuted in AEW, only Hikaru Shida has really had their number, but a title has eluded Abadon thus far. Perhaps that will all change on Long Island, perhaps The House of Black will lose its hold on the only championship under its roof, and watch it fall into a different kind of darkness.

This will be a fight unlike any other Julia Hart has experienced during her time in All Elite Wrestling, but if she can survive Abadon, she will have proven herself truly worthy of the mantle she ripped away from Kris Statlander. This is the abyss staring back at The Princess of the Black Throne, will she blink?

EIGHT-MAN TAG…

Chris Jericho, Darby Allin, Sammy Guevara, & Sting vs. AEW World Tag Champions Big Bill & Ricky Starks and The Don Callis Family (ROH World Television Champion Kyle Fletcher & Powerhouse Hobbs)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/lHfYiBHaMHE?si=iiw3Jwh4Tf10rRyp

Just a few weeks ago Chris Jericho was set to fight Big Bill and Ricky Starks for the AEW World Tag Team Championship with Kenny Omega as his partner, with the match scheduled for WORLDS END this Saturday night. Unfortunately Kenny Omega was struck down before the match, a diagnosis of diverticulitis forcing him away from the ring for an indefinite amount of time, and leaving Chris Jericho without his #1 Contender partner. Of course this made Don Callis extraordinarily happy, seeing his two former friends in pain and misery, even though the situation at that moment had nothing to do with him.

Unsurprisingly Callis chose to celebrate himself and, to a degree his “Family”, this past Wednesday night on DYNAMITE. He considered it a Boxing Day celebration, recognition of the holiday celebrated around the world, and chose to give each member of his Family a painting of himself, with them of course, but in each one Callis looked every bit a conquering hero. Still, he seemed quite surprised when one member of his family returned to the fold that night, one who’d been injured fighting for Don, and who’d also celebrated the birth of his baby during that time spent healing up; none other than “The Spanish God” Sammy Guevara!

It wasn’t all that long ago that Guevara chose Don Callis over Chris Jericho, turning his back on a history dating back to the very first DYNAMITE, but it only took a fraction of that amount of time for Don Callis to forget all about Sammy. That’s why Guevara said what he had to say upon his arrival, about how Callis leeches off the men he surrounds himself with, and uses them to keep himself in the spotlight rather than doing anything to bolster their careers. Perhaps the truth hurt because it only took moments for Callis to unleash his hounds upon Sammy Guevara, but “The Spanish God” was as shocked as everyone else to find Chris Jericho the man coming to the rescue, and it was not just because of his issues with Callis.

Guevara actually stood up and embraced Jericho, only for Ricky Starks and Big Bill to jump on the two men for a vicious assault, and then to the shock of the former Le Sex Gods, another save was made, only this time by Darby Allin and Sting! Considering that just six months ago Darby and Sting were beating up Jericho and Guevara in a Tornado Tag on DYNAMITE, it was absolutely a surprise to see them stepping to the assistance of these two. It wasn’t as if there was some pressing matter against Big Bill and Ricky Starks either, the bad blood between Sting, Darby, and Starks had been put to bed at REVOLUTION 2021 in that unforgettable Street Fight. 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/owgfbdGtSu0?si=ZBZd9Sqc8ges_nCS&start=196

Perhaps this is just Darby Allin and Sting doing the right thing, helping out two men who were being assaulted by an uneven numbers game, and offering their services as “The Icon” heads down the road to his final match at REVOLUTION 2023. It’s quite the intriguing scenario as this brings Ricky Starks and Powerhouse Hobbs back on the same side of the fence after their relationship soured some time ago, puts Darby and Sammy Guevara on the same side after years of back-and-forth, and gives Le Sex Gods an opportunity to heal their wounds in real time combat. 

This has all the elements to be quite explosive if tempers flare the wrong way, very combustible elements all crammed together in an unpredictable 8-Man tag! 

ONE-ON-ONE…

“Limitless” Keith Lee vs. Swerve Strickland

On July 13, 2022, during DYNAMITE: FYTER FEST N. 1, Swerve In Our Glory won a Three Way battle over Team Taz and The Young Bucks to become the 8th AEW World Tag Team Champions. Together Swerve Strickland and Keith Lee would reign over the division for seventy days, successfully defending on three occasions before The Acclaimed took the crown at DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2022. There partnership was tense, to say the least, as Swerve Strickland leaned towards a darker bent while Keith Lee wanted to travel the more righteous path. Those differences in philosophy made the partnership difficult, but yet successful, at least until the point it reached the point where it just wasn’t anymore.

That led to DYNAMITE: HOLIDAY BASH 2022 where Swerve and his new assembled Mogul Affiliates destroyed Keith Lee, leaving him easy prey for Strickland to Swerve Stomp a cinder block on the chest of “Limitless”. It officially marked the end of Swerve In Our Glory, but it never felt like Keith Lee got his chance to right the wrong done to him. Sure he partnered up with Dustin Rhodes to swing at The Mogul Affiliates, and later was able to team with Darby Allin, Sting, and Orange Cassidy for a shot at The Mogul Embassy, a conglomerate of Swerve’s Affiliates and Prince Nana’s Embassy, but satisfaction was never achieved. 

Even when the Blind Eliminator Tag Team Tournament forced the two men back together for one night, it didn’t lead to a resolution for Swerve’s betrayal, or Keith’s need to avenge it. They both continued their mutual business, Swerve building The Mogul Embassy up, competing in the Continental Classic while Keith Lee stepped to Samoa Joe, dealt with his past with Shane Taylor, and let it be known after his FINAL BATTLE 2023 victory that it was time for “him”. Initially the assumption was that the “him” to which Keith Lee kept referring was Shane Taylor, but he quickly put that notion to bed following the Taylor victory.

A confrontation with The Mogul Embassy, sans Swerve Strickland, made it quite clear who “Limitless” was talking about, and a victory over Brian Cage got the man one step closer to that goal of finally fighting Swerve one-on-one. Of course there was the matter of the Continental Classic, but Swerve’s loss in the Three Way Gold League Finals this past Wednesday on DYNAMITE left him free and clear for competition at WORLDS END, and he wasn’t going to wait any longer to settle this score.

So while Keith Lee left the contract, Swerve still had to put pen-to-paper, putting the ball fully in his court as to whether or not this bout would happen. It should come as no shock that after being frustrated in the Continental Classic Gold League Finals, after seeing the match slip away when Jon Moxley pinned Jay White, Strickland was looking for a fight. Thankfully Keith Lee is ready to give him that fight and finally put this issue to bed like he did the decade-old one with Shane Taylor.

As 2023 comes to its close, so too will the saga of Swerve In Our Glory, but only one of these two men can walk away with the victory…

A FIGHT…

“The Redeemer” Miro vs. Andrade El Idolo

At ALL OUT 2023, after Miro defeated Powerhouse Hobbs, his wife CJ Perry emerged as Hobbs began a post-match assault. Perry delivered a relatively ineffective chairshot of her own to Hobbs, ineffective but providing Miro enough time to recover and smack Hobbs with a chair of his own. To say “The Redeemer” was surprised to see his “hot and flexible wife” would be an understatement, he half-thought she was a delusion come to taunt him for forsaking his God.

But CJ Perry was all too real, and if her husband was going to reject her as his manager, then she was going to find herself new clientele within the AEW locker room. Unfortunately Miro made sure that any competitor who even thought about taking on his wife as a manager paid a price for her consideration. Action Andretti, Ryan Nemeth, and Daniel Garcia all paid the price for showing interest in CJ Perry’s offers, but her most recent consideration was not one who’d easily suffer the same fate as those individuals.

Andrade El Idolo, heading into the Continental Classic, agreed to take CJ Perry on as his manager and even though she wasn’t allowed at ringside during those bouts, he excelled in the tournament with her working in that role. Three straight wins, nine points, and likely a fourth if Claudio hadn’t resorted to a low blow to get his victory; it announced to the world that Andrade El Idolo and CJ Perry were a combination to be reckoned with, but there is one man who wants that reckoning.

For “The Redeemer”, knowing his wife is overseeing the career of another individual has not sat well, and he clearly sees her presence as poisoning this well of professional wrestling. For Miro, that means expunging the poison from his life, i.e. removing Andrade El Idolo from the equation. No Andrade means no one for CJ Perry to manage meaning no reason for her to remain with All Elite Wrestling. That’s Miro’s logic going into this fight on Saturday night, with his mission to end the world as he knows it and begin something new where CJ Perry is not in the picture. 

ALL-STAR EXTRAVAGANZA…

Bryan Danielson, Claudio Castagnoli, Daniel Garcia, & Mark Briscoe

vs.

Brody King, Jay Lethal, Jay White, & RUSH 

What is there to say about this one? Eight of the best men in professional wrestling, all who fell short in the Continental Classic, battling it out on the final pay-per-view event of 2023! Some came within a blink of being in the finals, some left the field without a point to their name, but all are elite-level athletes who will unite this Saturday night in an all-star tag team battle! Will they all get along? Probably not, but victory is more important than the individual squabbles that may exist because of the Continental Classic, or perhaps existed before the tournament even started; either way, this is an all-star extravaganza of talent, and it can only be witnessed as part of WORLDS END!

ZERO HOUR

FTW CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH/FTW RULES…

HOOK(c) vs. ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta

https://www.youtube.com/embed/sL4V7e96a3Y?si=3mpl3EY4vevdQ07D&start=196

TNT CHAMPIONSHIP #1 CONTENDER’S BATTLE ROYALE…

ONE-ON-ONE…

Kris Statlander vs. Willow Nightingale

WORLDS END emanates from the historic Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Long Island this Saturday night, and live on pay-per-view around the world! Samoa Joe will challenge MJF for the AEW World Championship, former champion Riho will take on “Timeless” Toni Storm with the AEW Women’s World Title at stake, and TBS Champion Julia Hart defends against “The Living Dead Girl” Abadon! Plus, Christian Cage puts his TNT Title on the line against former best friend Adam Copeland in a No DQ Match, the FTW Title is up for grabs in a FTW Rules match between champion HOOK and challenger Wheeler Yuta, and the landmark Continental Classic comes to an end with ???? taking on ???? with the winner crowned the first Continental Champion, as well as ROH World Champion and NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion, to form the new North American Triple Crown!

With ZERO HOUR beginning at 7pm ET on the official AEW YouTube channel, WORLDS END starts at 8pm ET/7pm CT, so make a point to visit that YouTube channel to catch up on the latest happenings leading to WORLDS END, including the COUNTDOWN special, as well as highlights from this week’s edition of DYNAMITE, the CONTROL CENTER, and more! This pay-per-view event not only marks the end of AEW’s 2023, but will set the tone as we move forward into 2024 and the first event of the new year in Newark, NJ! 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/EV-DRnjamZA?si=RD8yXylXeNWAlyCG

First recorded in 1944 by The Mills Brothers in 1944, the song bearing the title of this retrospective has been covered by Connie Francis, Fats Domino, Ringo Starr, Michael Buble, and even Ryan Gosling in the heartbreaking film “Blue Valentine”. The lyrics include lines such as “You always break the kindest heart with a hasty word you can’t recall, so if I broke your heart last night, it’s because I love you most of all.”

It’s a song very easily projected onto a romantic relationship, but that’s just one type of love, and if nothing else, since the two men first became entangled in All Elite Wrestling, it’s been pretty clear that there is a lot of love between Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley. Love built on shared experiences, on treading common grounds, on time spent together both inside the ring and out, knowing each other’s families, not to mention spilling blood along similar roads en route to the promised land of AEW. 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/7xFaEkZaWkA?si=Cr44zLuC9_9RQRQ-&start=137

Moxley got here first, making his impact on as grand a scale as possible in the closing moments of DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2019, taking out both Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega, and beginning the path that led him to his first AEW World Championship at REVOLUTION 2020, just weeks before the wrestling landscape as we knew it, as well as the world at large, became a different place under pandemic restrictions.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/hc9zLtDRvzk?si=4EFNOcqJfOM1UWLL&start=137

That’s the world in which Eddie Kingston was birthed into AEW, a world where fans were only able to watch from the safety of their own homes, a world where the hard-traveled Kingston was forced to sell his wrestling boots in order to make rent. So with nothing left to lose, and then-TNT Champion Cody Rhodes holding an Open Challenge for his title, Kingston took his shot and called out Cody during one of the few independent wrestling shows running at the time. This led to Eddie walking out on the stage on the July 22, 2020 DYNAMITE, no pomp or circumstance, and fighting Cody in a No DQ match for that championship. Eddie failed to become the champion, but he made such an impact on the AEW landscape that nine days later, Kingston got his “…IS ALL ELITE” graphic.

While Moxley went about building the AEW World Championship up with one of the most impressive streak of defenses amassed to date, Kingston drew men like Butcher, Blade, and The Lucha Brothers to his side, and when the opportunity opened up to take his shot again, Kingston didn’t hesitate to take aim at a man who had been his friend for years…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/skgfWPFhKgo?si=V5WjRGrRbVLLVSM-https://www.youtube.com/embed/UZ6swFRwGLo?si=ZzaG2JFxl_pow7wU

That fight did not go the way of “The Mad King”, but the aftermath of it set the table for the violent affair that would result at FULL GEAR 2020, a match that would turn out to by Moxley’s final successful title defense before losing to Kenny Omega at DYNAMITE: WINTER IS COMING 2020. Suffice it to say, the “I Quit” bout was twenty minutes of two men hurting the one they love, and came to an end with Kingston failing to claim the crown he’d risked destroying his friendship over…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/Yww6gAVlr_A?si=HkcxhsdT2C3fQyOz

Shockingly, despite how that fight came to its conclusion, when Moxley fought Kenny Omega in an Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match at REVOLUTION 2021, it was Eddie Kingston who came to the aid of Jon Moxley. That moment of sacrifice, Kingston’s choice to put his own safety at risk to protect his brother, that was a defining example of the core relationship between Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley. They were brothers, two men who cared about and supported one another, whose passion for pro wrestling bonded them, and whose capacity for violence mirrored one another’s. This reunion led Eddie and Mox into tag team competition, and a march towards The Young Bucks and the AEW World Tag Team Championship…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/5pyed4-IM3Q?si=qL-jsMZ4qm5adiNf&start=59

Though that DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2021 championship bout did not go in favor of Kingston and Moxley, it solidified their bond before the AEW faithful, and created a duo that continued on throughout the remainder of 2021, including a wild Lights Out fight with Minoru Suzuki and Lance Archer at RAMPAGE: GRAND SLAM 2021. Then the FULL GEAR 2022 Eliminator Tournament began, and though the layout of the brackets meant Moxley and Kingston could collide in the finals, Mox having to pull out of the field ended that possibility, and Eddie losing to Danielson in the Semi-Finals nixed his hopes of challenging for the title. 

Moxley would return to the fold in January 2022, refreshed and ready for the fight, a return that would lead him into battle with Bryan Danielson at REVOLUTION 2022, and then into the formation of The Blackpool Combat Club alongside “The American Dragon” and William Regal. At the same time, Kingston was in the midst of battle with Chris Jericho, a battle he actually won at REVOLUTION 2022, but would only be the precursor to much greater wars as Jericho abandoned The Inner Circle in the aftermath and formed The Jericho Appreciation Society. The paths of Kingston, Santana, Ortiz, and The Blackpool Combat Club would converge at DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2022 when they and The J.A.S. went to battle under Anarchy In The Arena rules. Perhaps it should have been clear before the unit even stepped into Las Vegas that the inherent strife between Kingston’s side and Mox’s side would make success unlikely…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/GSQmwGSbo_0?si=FrjAOTWOhjPpM-vk&start=406

Still, the attempt was made, Kingston tried to work with Bryan Danielson as best he could, but in one of the most horrifying visuals in AEW history, it ended up with Eddie dumping gasoline on Bryan, as well as his foes, in a failed attempt to actually light them all on fire! Perhaps it was fate that Danielson got injured during the course of Anarchy in the Arena and was unable to compete in the Blood & Guts cage match that followed, but much to the chagrin of Eddie Kingston, his friend Jon Moxley would ally himself with yet another of Kingston’s hated foes, perhaps the most hated of them all, Claudio Castagnoli.

The history between Kingston and Claudio has been well-documented since “The Swiss Superman” came into AEW, suffice it to say that it took everything Kingston had in him to fight alongside Castagnoli rather than rip his head off and chuck him off the top of the cage. The fact that Castagnoli, in Eddie’s eyes, stole the victory for their team from him did not help matters, and it sent Kingston back on his own path, completely separate from Moxley, as Jon and The BCC pursued theirs.

But those paths would once again intertwine, as friendships often too, only this time the circle had come back around to their AEW beginning, and Kingston was standing alongside Moxley’s enemies in The Elite, men he himself could not stand and did not respect, but his hate for Claudio burned far hotter. Strange bedfellows indeed…

This animosity put Eddie opposite his brother-by-choice at FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023 and during the course of that match, in unarguably the most emotional portion of the fight, the two actually came to blows. The scene would repeat two months later at ALL IN: LONDON, albeit with a twist, as Kingston allied himself with The Best Friends, Orange Cassidy, and Penta El Zero Miedo to fight Moxley, Yuta, Claudio, Ortiz, and Santana in Stadium Stampede! Eddie’s team actually won the fight, though he and Moxley would throwdown with one another yet again, and it certainly left a question as to the status of their relationship moving forward. 

For Eddie moving forward meant finishing his issues with Claudio Castagnoli once and for all, and that meant facing him at DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2023 with both Kingston’s NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship and Claudio’s ROH World Championship on the line. In front of his hometown, his family, and his loved ones, Kingston put the final nail in the coffin of his rivalry with Claudio Castagnoli, and became the holder of both the NJPW STRONG title and the ROH one!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/aai5io9JX28?si=lKd3qj2S0ZL-jxr3&start=406

For Moxley moving forward meant capturing a championship of his own, one he’d never held before, the AEW International Championship held by Orange Cassidy. That came to be at ALL OUT 2023, though the triumph turned to tragedy quite quickly when Rey Fenix dethroned him just 17 days later, and putting Moxley on the injured list for the next few weeks. Moxley’s return to AEW competition meant failure in regaining the AEW International Championship, once again held by OC who’d beaten Fenix himself in Jon’s absence, but then finding a new focus as the Continental Classic was announced.  Another man who found focus in the tournament was Moxley’s brother Eddie, only he chose to up the ante on the entire game, putting both of his championship belts in the mix, to create an American Triple Crown Championship…

Thus on November 22nd, with the field split into two groups dubbed the Gold League and the Blue League, twelve men began their trek towards WORLDS END, the Continental Championship, and now both the ROH World Championship and NJPW STRONG Openweight Title. For Moxley the road began with Mark Briscoe, and was followed in successive weeks with fights against Jay Lethal, RUSH,  and Swerve Strickland. Four consecutive victories meant 12 points for the 3-time former AEW World Champion, and berth in the finals of the Gold League, all that remained was his final match with Jay White to either solidify his spot atop the Gold, or to turn the League Final into a more complex situation with a “Switchblade” victory. But that’s exactly what Jay White did, he squeezed out a victory to tie up Moxley at 12 points, then Swerve did the same against RUSH in their fifth bout, thus leaving the Gold League with a three way tie to determine the victor. As we witnessed this past Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, Moxley would get his back on Jay White, and earn his spot in the Continental Classic finals this Sunday night!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/pKLg8JfgRAQ?si=QQq_7Jk097Qtas89&start=137

With Kingston slotted into the Blue League, there was a possibility that he and Jon Moxley could end up in the finals together, but the road to get there would be long and arduous for “The Mad King”. Though his two championship titles were not at stake in each of his five matches, each loss brought him closer to losing hold of them without technically being beaten for them in a title bout, but that was the risk Kingston took when he threw them into the pot for the Continental Classic. Unfortunately for Eddie, he started the tournament off on bad footing by dropping matches to Brody King and Bryan Danielson in his first two bouts, the latter especially stinging given the dismissive rhetoric Danielson has long used towards Eddie.

Those losses also put Kingston in a position where each match became a must-win situation if he hoped to have a shot at keeping the two titles in his camp, and gaining the Triple Crown he’d created with his choices. The third match of Kingston’s journey put him opposite Claudio Castagnoli, a man he’d only ever beaten once in their careers, and somehow Eddie found a way to make it two straight wins over this Blackpool Combat Club member. It was as if somewhere along the way, possibly the night he first held the ROH World Championship overhead in front of his mother and father, Eddie learned how to best handle his demons. He knew they were creeping up behind him, just waiting for him to slip up and stumble into their waiting arms, but instead of slipping, Eddie Kingston kept moving forward “humble in victory, humble in defeat”, and that made the difference as he rattled off a second victory in the tournament over Daniel Garcia, and secured himself a spot in the Blue League finals with a win over Andrade El Idolo.

That set Kingston versus Danielson as the match, and put Eddie in a situation where he had to do something he’d never done before: beat Bryan Danielson. Without a twenty-minute time limit hanging over their heads, the two warriors brutalized each other for nearly twenty-five, absorbing blow-after-blow, suplex-after-suplex, and surviving multiple submission attempts, before it came down to Kingston dropping Bryan with the same Kawada-style Folding Powerbomb that defeated Claudio at GRAND SLAM 2023 some months earlier.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/lTXNt4T0XQA?si=xEEp_G5ADWJUhmAI&start=137

With their respective wins in the Gold and Blue Leagues, for the first time since FULL GEAR 2020’s “I Quit” match, Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley will go one-on-one at WORLDS END in the Continental Classic Finals with the winner walking away as a Triple Crown Champion, simultaneously holding the ROH World Championship, the NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship, and the Continental Championship! It also means, if Eddie doesn’t want to see his last day as champion of the first two titles, he has to do something else he’s never done before: beat Jon Moxley. 

This Saturday night on pay-per-view, as part of AEW’s WORLDS END presentation, Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley will do to each other what they’ve done for years now, hurt the one they love, and in the end they will either embrace one another as brothers, happy for the success of the other, or they will see the rift in their friendship gutted even deeper. For as important as the championship aspect of this fight is, for as historic a contest as it is, this is undoubtedly the most personal fight of either man’s career…

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN!

Excalibur and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event. They were joined by “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson as a guest commentator.

It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!

Continental Classic Gold League Match!

Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley vs. Jay Lethal!

Lethal and Moxley exchanged side headlock takeovers. Lethal slugged Moxley with a right fist. Lethal applied a figure four but Moxley rolled under the ropes and both men tumbled to the arena floor.

Jay Lethal rocketed outside with a tope suicida to Moxley. Jon Moxley fired back with a tope suicida of his own. Moxley was wrestling with a sense of urgency, while Lethal was showboating early on. Lethal retaliated with a knee breaker and a dragon screw leg whip, sensing Moxley tweaked his knee on the tope suicida landing.

Moxley scouted the Lethal Injection, but Lethal countered Moxley’s attempt at a jawbreaker with a knee breaker. Jay Lethal dropped an elbow off the top for a near fall.

“This is the Jay Lethal I want to see,” said Danielson.

Moxley nailed Lethal with a cutter. Moxley tried for a piledriver but Lethal pushed Mox into the turnbuckles. Lethal wrenched Moxley’s knee with a dragon screw off the ropes!

“This is a different Jay Lethal than we saw last week,” added Danielson.

Lethal and Moxley traded forearms. Moxley nearly decapitated Lethal with a King Kong lariat! Lethal blocked the Death Rider with the Lethal Combination. Lethal went to apply the figure four but Mox countered with a small package for a near fall.

Lethal locked on the figure four again. Moxley grabbed the ropes to force the ref to break the hold. Lethal swiped at Moxley’s knee with a kick. Moxley baited Lethal in and spiked him with a Paradigm Shift! Moxley hit the King Kong lariat and then a stuffed piledriver, but Lethal kicked out. Moxley transitioned into a rear naked choke and Jay Lethal tapped out! Moxley is the first man with six points in the tournament.

Tony Schiavone was backstage and announced Sting’s final match will be Sunday, March 3rd at the Greensboro Coliseum!

“Nature Boy” Ric Flair and Sting walked onto the set!

Sting: “March 1988, my very first World title match against Ric Flair, and I never would have guessed all these years later, I’d be standing here with Ric. The memories, that night, 45 minutes, draw, commercial free on TV. The big deal to me was I was in the ring with the Nature Boy Ric Flair. Thank you, Ric. He put me on the map. What a fitting place for me to end my career all these years later.”

Ric Flair: “Tony, just like before, the words cannot be spoken to the volume and the emphasis of what’s about to take place in Greensboro. Make no mistake. Sting made himself. I’m 74 years old, I’m lucky. I’m working for Tony Khan. I’m standing next to Sting. I’m honored to be there at your side. This will be one for the ages. Sting and the Nature Boy, and AEW, are coming to Greensboro. Wooooo!”

Sting: “It’s showtime!”

Continental Classic Gold League Match!

Mark Briscoe vs. LFI’s Rush!

Both men charged at one another and began to fight. Rush landed a big strike. Mark followed up with a running dropkick. Mark unleashed rapid fire chops. Rush returned the favor to his opponent.

Rush kicked Mark in the spine. Mark jumped through the ropes with a dropkick, as Rush was playing to the crowd. Rush whipped Rush into the steel barricade. Mark back dropped Rush onto the top of the barricade. Mark dropped the Cactus elbow off the edge of the ring.

Back in the ring, Rush sent Mark flying with a release German Suplex. Mark threw his whole body into a vicious lariat. Briscoe baited Rush in and caught him with an exploder suplex. Rush rallied back with a belly to belly suplex.

Mark speared Rush for a two-count! Mark followed up with a neck breaker. Rush slipped free from the Jay Driller. Mark dropped Rush with a kick to the back of the head. Rush suplexed Mark off the apron and onto the arena floor!

Mark Briscoe smashed Rush with the Froggy Bow for a near fall. Rush fought out of the Jay Driller, backdropping Mark. Rush baited in Mark and suplexed Mark into the turnbuckles. Rush followed up with the Bull’s Horns, right on target, and pinned Mark!

“Rush is on the board!” said Excalibur.

AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm was backstage!

Storm: “I’m feeling very fatigued after the championship celebration. I’ll be fine for my match next week!”

AEW World Champion and one half of the ROH World Tag Team Champions MJF came to the ring next!

MJF: “December 30th, World’s End, it’ll be Samoa Joe against yours truly for the AEW World Championship. When it comes to Samoa Joe as a person, I don’t like him. But professionally, I respect him. I respect what he’s done for this industry, and because he didn’t come here to line his pockets, but because he believes in AEW.

“Now back in the early 2000s, I remember getting a poster in my mailbox for TNA Wrestling. I tuned in and I couldn’t be happier. I saw the ‘Samoan Submission Machine.’ He looked unconventional, and he didn’t seem to care, and neither did we. Now unfortunately, later on in his career, his talents weren’t fully recognized, and he was not afforded the opportunity to be a world champion in WWE. But what Joe did, for this sport, was bigger than that.

“Samoa Joe proved you don’t have to be a massive, male model body builder to be a top guy in this sport. Samoa Joe broke the mold. He proved alternatives matter. And because of the roads he paved, it has allowed a man like me to stand in the ring in front of you today. Without a guy like Joe, there might not be an AEW. As much as it pains me to admit, thank you.

“I’m not too shabby myself, now am I? I managed to pave a road of my own. I’ve helped build a new alternative and I’ve helped build this place brick by brick. And I did that by defeating some of the biggest names in this industry. Guys like Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, Chris Jericho, Jon Moxley, Kenny Omega, but of all the names I have had to face in this squared circle, the one name I look back on and say, not only was I lucky to be victorious, but I was also lucky to survive, that’d be you, Joe. Samoa Joe you are a wrestling legend. But December 30th is not about your wrestling legacy. December 30th is about my mine!

“December 30th is about can Max outlast the final boss of this sport one more time. So now, I’m going to make a promise. I’m going to make a promise to everyone watching at home and everyone in this arena. Joe, on December 30th, I don’t care if you beat me within an inch of my life, because I promise I am going to show the world it is not about the size of the dog in the fight, it is about the size of the fight in the dog! At World’s End, you are going to have to put me down!”

The arena went dark! Lights in the ring began to flicker. Men dressed all in black, their faces in black masks, with the devil logo on their backs, grabbed MJF and held him down. One of the men had a baseball bat and was about to use it on MJF!

Samoa Joe’s music hit! Samoa Joe sprinted to the ring and the men retreated!

A message on the screen read:

“In the shadows, our game begins. Next week, MJF & Samoa Joe…will you face the unknown in a tag match? Are you a hero, Max?”

MJF grabbed a microphone: “I’m so sick of your Scooby Doo BS! Let me explain something to you! I am not dealing with your crap when I’ve got Samoa Joe breathing down my back at World’s End. I am going to take out all of your men one by one. I am going to unmask you, you coward. And next week, you want a tag match? You’re one!”

Samoa Joe tried to calm down MJF and was upset when MJF accepted the challenge for next week.

Up next: Wardlow vs. AR Fox!

Fox jumped over the top rope and landed on Wardlow, but Wardlow seemed to shrug him off. Wardlow caught Fox and slammed him on the ring apron. Wardlow suplexed AR Fox back into the ring. Fox was sent flying from pillar to post!

Wardlow stalked his prey outside the ring. Wardlow threw AR Fox back into the ring. Wardlow tried to press slam Fox, but Fox escaped. Fox hit a 450 splash, but Wardlow kicked out right away! Fox booted Wardlow in the face. Wardlow absorbed it and then walloped Fox with a lariat.

Wardlow powerbombed AR Fox! Wardlow powerbombed Fox a second time! Wardlow climbed to the top and hit a huge senton on Fox! Wardlow powerbombed Fox again, and the ref stopped the match! Wardlow won via ref stoppage!

Trios Match!

Top Flight—Dante & Darius Martin, and Action Andretti

vs.

The Hardys—Matt & Jeff, and Brother Zay!

Jeff and Matt used tandem offense on Action. Darius and Brother Zay tagged in. Zay crashed into Dante with a shoulder tackle. Darius dropkicked Zay. Dante tagged in and Dante splashed Zay with a stalling senton!

Matt Hardy drilled Action with a Side Effect for a near fall. Action countered a Twist of Fate and clipped Matt with a combo of moves, including a kick to the back of Matt’s head. Dante tagged in and springboarded onto Zay for a near fall. Top Flight had a flurry of offense on the Hardys.

The Hardys hoisted up Dante on their shoulders and Zay dropkicked Dante for a two-count. Dante pinned Zay after a German Suplex! Dante is back and better than ever!

After a commercial break, Renee Paquette interviewed Dante Martin, Darius Martin, and Action Andretti!

Penta El Zero Miedo, Komander, and El Hijo del Vikingo interrupted! It appeared Penta challenged Top Flight and Action Andretti to a trios match!

TBS Championship House Rules Match!

House of Black’s Julia Hart (c.) vs. Emi Sakura!

Emi Sakura picked the stipulation: the match cannot be won by submission.

Julia bashed Emi’s head into the turnbuckles, battering her in the corner. Julia charged into the corner with a lariat to Emi Sakura. Emi chopped at Julia.

Julia rocked Emi with a spinning kick to the head. Outside the ring, Emi reversed an Irish whip and sent Julia crashing hard into the ring steps. Emi followed up with a splash, sandwiching Julia against the ring steps!

Emi stunned Julia with a stalling back breaker! Emi applied the surfboard to Julia and then dropped her hard. Julia dodged a moonsault. Julia locked in the Heartless, but there is no victory via submission tonight. Julia clubbed Emi in the back of the head with a lariat. Julia moonsaulted Emi and pinned her!

RJ City interviewed Mariah May backstage!

Mariah May: “I know I’m the new girl, but I just came here from Stardom in Japan. I’m dying to show AEW what I can do.”

Mariah knocked on Tony Khan’s door and walked into his office.

TNT Champion “The Patriarch” Christian Cage responded to Adam Copeland’s challenge for next week’s Dynamite!

Christian Cage was flanked by AEW security in the ring.

Christian Cage: “What I’d like to do right now is go ahead and invite the Rated R Superstar Adam Copeland to this ring right now. Adam, I know you’re back there. I just want to speak to you about a few things about what you said last week. If you don’t mind making your presence felt, it’d be very much appreciated.

“Adam, I would like to speak to you in the ring, if you wouldn’t mind. If the truck can hit his music, something. Maybe I should come back there and speak to him then.”

Adam Copeland’s music hit, and Copeland stormed to the ring!

Christian: “Management wanted me to have this security. It wasn’t my idea. We don’t need security here tonight. So, I’m going to ask you gentlemen to vacate the ring.

“Last week you challenged me to a match to the TNT Championship December 6th on Dynamite. I’m here to tell you that we’re not going to make it to Montreal next week. We’re not going to make it because I’m sorry. Now look, I know what you’re thinking, that I’m only sorry because I’m on an island by myself. Last week you took out the Kill Switch. You took out the “Prodigy” Nick Wayne.

“I was so mad when you hit Kill Switch with two con-chair-tos, I ran out of my house and drove with the windows down. I just needed to think. It turned into a road trip of soul searching, digging down deep, trying to figure out how I became this guy who does and says such unsavory things. And then on that drive, it started to remind me of those times we borrowed my mom’s car.

“We didn’t care where we went. We were broke. We were having the times of our lives on the road, and we were going to make it. And did we ever make it! We went on to become multiple times tag team champions. The greatest tag team that ever lived. We both became multi time World champions. Take the wrestling part of our relationship away and it runs even deeper.

“Everyone knows you grew up with a single mom, Adam. Everyone knows you didn’t have a father figure. Yes, I’m the patriarch of AEW, but I am your brother. You might not have had a father, but in turn, my father became your father. To this day, he’s still your biggest fan. I’m just going to say, we weren’t just two random guys that were thrown together. I love you, man. We are family.

“And listen to me, when your mom passed away a few years ago, that was the hardest time of your life. But sometime before she passed, she said, ‘What I wouldn’t give to see you guys in that ring tagging one last time.’ And on my drive, I thought, let’s do it for her, let’s go on this journey again. For your mom! Let’s do it for her, man.”

Adam Copeland turned around to contemplate what he just heard from Christian Cage. Christian charged at Copeland, trying to strike with a cheap shot. But Copeland saw it coming and kicked Christian with a low blow!

Adam Copeland: “Nice try, dumb ass. Sit up when I’m talking to you. Shine this belt up real nice, because next week, she’s coming home with me! Oh, by the way, I almost forgot, go f—k yourself!”

Main Event Time!

Continental Classic Gold League Match!

Swerve Strickland vs. Bullet Club Gold’s “Switchblade” Jay White!

Jay White went right after Swerve. White whipped Swerve into the steel barricade. Back in the ring, Jay White went after Swerve’s taped out shoulder. Swerve chopped Jay White. Swerve suplexed Jay right onto the top of the barricade.

Swerve jumped off the apron and stomped on Jay White’s spine. As Swerve was entering the ring, Jay White grabbed him and planted him with a DDT. Swerve got dropped on his head after a suplex from Jay White.

Swerve intercepted a chop and countered with a suplex to Switchblade. Swerve blasted Jay with a flatliner and followed up with a vertical suplex for a near fall. Jay White retaliated with a German Suplex. Swerve rallied back with a discus lariat!

“These two men! How incredible are these two men?!” said Danielson.

The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”

Jay White chop blocked Swerve’s knee. Jay White nailed Swerve with a uranage. Jay White applied an arm bar. Swerve escaped and blasted Jay with a kill shot to White’s arm. Jay White almost inadvertently collided with the ref. As the ref had his back turned, Jay White went for a low blow, but Swerve had it scouted! Swerve rocked White with a back breaker. Swerve hit the House Call on Jay White. Swerve connected with the Swerve Stomp, but Jay White kicked out at the two-count!

“You have to be impressed with Jay White’s resiliency here,” said Danielson.

Jay White shocked Swerve with the Blade Runner. Swerve was knocked out of the ring, perhaps a saving grace. Back in the ring, Jay chopped at Swerve, and Swerve fired back with his own shots. Jay White planted Swerve with a sleeper suplex! Swerve countered the Blade Runner, rolling up Jay White and pinned him!

“Impressive roll counter right there,” said Taz.

“Cerebral wrestling from Swerve,” replied Excalibur.

“That got him another three points to put him at six,” added Danielson.

Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC!

This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!

Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Erie Insurance Arena in Erie, PA!

And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/SfEVsM9X5_M?si=BsJ3z3u

After two huge nights on DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, All Elite Wrestling is right back at it this Saturday night with two massive events in a single evening! COLLISION and BATTLE OF THE BELTS VIII come to you this Saturday night from the FedEx Forum in Memphis and kick off on TNT starting at 8pm ET/9pm CT! Between the two events, four championships will be at stake, including The Blackpool Combat Club challenging Big Bill and Ricky Starks for the AEW World Tag Titles, The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass defending the AEW World Trios Championship, Kris Statlander facing Willow Nightingale for the TBS Title, and Orange Cassidy making the first defense of his second AEW International Championship reign against John Silver!  Plus Action Andretti tries to survive Miro and Jeff Jarrett meets Eddie Kingston in a Memphis Street Fight where a potential championship match for Jay Lethal is at stake!

Before the night begins, make a point to drop by the official AEW YouTube channel for highlights from this week’s episodes of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, the latest editions of CONTROL CENTER, and much, much more!

COLLISION

AEW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Big Bill & Ricky Starks(c) vs. Blackpool Combat Club (Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/1i-Na4CO3l8?si=vGnIPugzedjOBY2z

The hostilities between The Blackpool Combat Club and the new AEW World Tag Tag Champions has been relentless over the last several weeks. Originally born as an issue between Ricky Starks and Bryan Danielson, it has grown into something bigger and now the entire BCC is involved in the scenario.

Now, with Big Bill and Ricky Starks decimating FTR to claim the tag championship, there are titles involved as well and after their dominating performance on RAMPAGE, Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta will challenge for the gold! This BCC duo are 11-2 in tag team competition, have won their last four bouts following that win Friday night, and have far greater tag team experience than the champs.

That being said, in their wins over Danielson/Claudio and FTR, Big Bill and “Absolute” Ricky Starks have looked tremendous, complimenting each other as a team, and clearly doing something right with how they handled Dax and Cash to win the belts. In their time in AEW, no team has beaten down FTR the way Bill and Ricky did, and hopefully Claudio and Yuta were paying close attention to how that went down.

COLLISION has the potential to be a huge night for the Blackpool Combat Club, will it include the crowning of new AEW World Tag Team Champions?

DREAM MATCH…

Andrade El Idolo vs. “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson

The other reason it could be a huge night for BCC is right here: the first AEW clash between “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson and Andrade El Idolo, a dream match between two of professional wrestling’s greatest competitors, each who want little more than to test themselves against the best from around the world!

It’s been five years since their last one-on-one fight took place, and both have grown tremendously as competitors, each traversing their own paths of championship success, heartbreaks and loss, paths that ultimately led both men to All Elite Wrestling where they debuted just a few months apart from each other. Andrade has been on a tear since the launch of COLLISION, the only blemish on his record being a loss to Jay White, giving him five wins over the last six bouts. On the other side, Bryan has six wins over his last seven matches, that loss being the TNT Championship bout with Christian Cage last week, and that includes defeating New Japan’s Kazuchika Okada with a broken arm.

So in this clash of the world’s finest, will it be a triumph for Danielson and The Blackpool Combat Club, or will it be Andrade El Idolo with the victory?

ONE-ON-ONE…

Action Andretti vs. “The Redeemer” Miro

Miro is not a happy man; despite his successes since the premiere of COLLISION, he finds himself unhappy with the AEW arrival of his wife CJ Perry, and her intentions to launch a management company. “The Redeemer” made it clear he renounced his wife, his god, essentially everything he felt was holding him back from being a true destroyer, so much so that when she did arrive at ALL OUT 2023, in the moment it seemed Miro didn’t even believe she was real.

Clearly that has changed, and Miro seems intent on stopping CJ from gaining any traction with any potential clients, as Action Andretti found out the hard way after he showed interest in CJ’s services:

So this Saturday night on COLLISION, in a fight he may live to regret, Action Andretti will go head-to-head with Miro after the events of last week. It’s clear Miro wants no other man anywhere near his wife, even in a professional situation, though he doesn’t want her involved in his career either, and Action Andretti may be used as the example to any others looking to CJ Perry for managerial guidance.

MEMPHIS STREET FIGHT…

ROH World & NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston

vs. Jeff Jarrett

***IF JARRETT WINS, JAY LETHAL GETS A ROH CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH***

Jay Lethal wants a shot at the ROH World Championship, he wants to join the Adam Cole Club as a 3-Time holder of the title, but apparently he doesn’t want to earn it himself through hard work in the ring, he just wants it handed to him because of past accomplishments. Now Eddie Kingston will gladly fight anyone and accept any challengers, but it is clear that Lethal and his contingent have a plan in mind as Lethal’s title opportunity is now married to this Memphis Street Fight between the ROH World Champion and Jeff Jarrett!

If Jarrett wins, Lethal will get his championship match with Eddie Kingston, and given the nature of a Street Fight, there has to be plans in motion between Jarrett, Lethal, Sonjay Dutt, Satnam Singh, and Karen Jarrett. There’s no doubt Eddie will have to contend with all of that in order to survive this scenario on Saturday, and given the path Kingston has chosen in his travels through AEW and ROH, he will likely have to do it alone.

BATTLE OF THE BELTS VIII

AEW WORLD TRIOS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens/Max Caster) & Daddy Ass(c)

vs.

Angelo Parker, Daniel Garcia, & Matt Menard

TBS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Kris Statlander(c) vs. Willow Nightingale

https://www.youtube.com/embed/33EamAZEk2I?si=FWTYAXB7hvRH5IYe&start=384

Though this is a match that Kris Statlander requested, a championship opportunity she wanted to offer Willow Nightingale, it may prove to be Stat’s last if she can’t get her focus on the task at hand. Based on what went down on RAMPAGE, and Kris getting involved in the aftermath of Skye Blue’s fight with Ruby Soho, it seems the TBS Champion is a bit distracted by attitude Skye has adopted since being misted by Julia Hart several weeks ago.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/mxvwseefsKY?si=sDXIeosvyv22xo_U&start=258

Interestingly enough, following Statlander and Skye’s championship match last Saturday on COLLISION, it was Willow Nightingale who came to the ring following the match to quell what seemed a potentially combustible situation. As Skye swatted away the helping hand of Statlander, it was Nightingale who seemed to say she had it under control and encouraged Statlander to back off.

Will this ongoing situation affect the TBS Championship match going down during BATTLE OF THE BELTS VIII on Saturday night? Where will the focus of Statlander and Nightingale be when they lock up? This will be the first clash between these two women in AEW, and the fourth singles match of their career with the first going down in September 2017. Historically speaking, Willow has dominated their match history, winning all three of their previous encounters, so will that history repeat itself on Saturday and give us a new TBS Champion?

AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Orange Cassidy(c) vs. John Silver

https://www.youtube.com/embed/2BKkT49PjxE?si=G527Tk0T7W4hGsIM

Friday night on RAMPAGE, John Silver scored a victory over Brother Zay and Kip Sabian to earn this title fight with Orange Cassidy, his first singles championship match since March 24, 2021 when he challenged Darby Allin for the TNT Championship and just his second overall. Though he’s been in the mix for Trios and Tag championships over the years, the singles ranks have largely been untouched by Silver, having competed in just twenty singles matches, and carrying a record of thirteen wins and seven losses in those fights.

One of those losses, the first loss as a matter of fact, took place nearly three years ago at FULL GEAR 2020 and the man who had his raised in victory that night in Jacksonville was none other than “Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy. Fast forward to 2023 and Cassidy has enjoyed great success in the singles ranks, standing as the only 2-Time International Champion and holding the record for most successful championship defenses of any title in the whole of AEW. In addition, at 326 days in that first run, he’s also one of the longest reigning champions of any AEW title holder, with only Jade Cargill, Hikaru Shida, MJF, and Kenny Omega holding titles for a longer.

Conversely John Silver has not held any championships, and neither has any member of The Dark Order since the late-Mr. Brodie Lee lost the TNT Championship back to Cody Rhodes in their vicious Dog Collar Match on the October 7, 2020 edition of DYNAMITE. That’s three years without a title for Silver and his kin, and he aims to end that drought this Saturday at BATTLE OF THE BELTS VIII!

COLLISION and BATTLE OF THE BELTS VIII come to you this Saturday night on TNT starting at 8pm ET/9pm CT, and feature four championship matches between the events, as well as a Memphis Street Fight with a potential title match at stake there as well! It all goes down at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel for highlights from this week’s episodes of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, the latest editions of CONTROL CENTER, and much, much more!

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Tonight’s special 4th Anniversary episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the Stockton Arena in Stockton, CA!

Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.

It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!

Renee Paquette interviewed Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega backstage!

Adam Copeland interrupted and shook Jericho’s hand, saying it was good to see him. He introduced himself to Kenny Omega and said it was good to meet him. Kenny said Copeland had kept him on the edge of his seat the other night during the WrestleDream pay-per-view.

AEW International Championship Match!

The Lucha Bros’ Rey Fenix (c.) (with Alex Abrahantes & Penta El Zero Miedo)

vs.

ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champion The Young Bucks’ Nick Jackson (with Matt Jackson)!

Rey Fenix and Nick Jackson traded and countered a flurry of offense. Rey Fenix rolled out to the edge of the ring, checking on his injured back. Nick tried to powerbomb Rey onto the floor, but Rey Fenix countered with an arm drag off the post and onto the arena floor. Nick stood up clutching his back.

Nick took down Fenix with a hurracanrana off the guardrail. Nick nailed Fenix with a backstabber in the ring. Rey Fenix kicked Nick Jackson’s leg out from beneath him, with Nick landing on the crown of his head on the ring apron!

Fenix connected with a thrust kick, but Nick answered with two superkicks of his own. Both men had the same idea, Fenix with a strike, Nick with a round kick, and they knocked one another down. Fenix got a near fall with a hurracanrana. Nick blasted Fenix with a cutter on the arena floor!

Nick planted Rey with a facebuster for a two-count! Nick rocked Rey with a roundhouse kick. Nick drilled Fenix with an avalanche cutter but somehow Fenix was able to kick out! The fans erupted in applause!

Nick had Fenix rattled after a poison rana and then a destroyer, but Fenix kicked out at two! Nick nearly took off Fenix’s head with a running knee strike. Nick smashed Fenix with a BTE Trigger to the back of the head for a near fall!

Rey Fenix rallied back with a punt kick to the side of Nick’s head. Fenix used a frog splash on Nick Jackson for a near fall. Nick rolled up Rey Fenix, but Fenix countered with a roll-up of his own and pinned Nick Jackson!

“A tip of the cap to both men,” said Tony Schiavone.

Footage was shown from earlier in the day with Adam Cole visiting Roderick Strong’s house.

Roddy was there with the Kingdom. Roddy was rolling around in a wheelchair and had a scooter for Cole as a present. “I couldn’t be the only one on wheels,” said Roddy. They did laps in the house while the Kingdom watched on. Roddy said he had an emergency and wanted Cole to move some furniture for him. Again, the Kingdom simply watched as Cole did all the work.

Wardlow vs. Griff Garrison!

Wardlow charged Griff when the bell rang! Wardlow stomped Garrison in the corner. Wardlow powerbombed Griff! He hit Griff with a second powerbomb, and then a third! Wardlow powerbombed Garrison a fourth time! Griff was hearing the notes of the powerbomb symphony! After five consecutive powerbombs, the ref stopped the match and awarded the match to the returning Wardlow!

Renee Paquette interviewed Don Callis and Takeshita backstage.

Don Callis: “AEW has been shaken to its foundation by Sammy pinning Chris Jericho at WrestleDream. So much so, the crack AEW medical staff has deemed Sammy unable to perform. At the recommendation of Will Ospreay, I have requested Kyle Fletcher to be the partner of the ‘Alpha’ Takeshita tonight. I’m going to win this war, no matter what it takes.”

AEW Trios Championship Match!

The Acclaimed & Daddy Ass (c.)

vs.

The Butcher, The Blade, & Kip Sabian (with Penelope Ford)!

Butch dropped a leg on the chest of Caster. Kip Sabian moonsaulted onto the Acclaimed, wiping them out on the arena floor.

Bowens cleaned house on Sabian, the Butcher and Blade. Bowens dropped the Scissor Me Timbers on Blade. After tandem offense, Bowens pinned Sabian!

“Hard fought victory right there by the Acclaimed but they pulled it off,” said Taz.

Up next: We heard from Juice Robison and The Gunns after last week’s mysterious attack on “Switchblade” Jay White!

Austin Gunn: “Who’s ready for story time with the Bang Bang Gang? We came out to address the one they call ‘the devil.”

Colten Gunn: “You mean the people’s scumbag? Max, the reason you jumped Jay is because you’re scared. You know you’re about to suffocate when you breathe with the ‘Switchblade.’”

Juice: “MJF, get your ass out here! You’ve got some explaining to do! If you’re a man, you’ll come out here and face us like one. But you’re not a man, are you?”

AEW World Champion MJF’s music hit!

MJF: “Cut my music! It appears the devil has arrived in Stockton! And we’ve got an interesting trio here making a lot of accusations. We’ve got the assboys. And then we’ve got their best friend, Juice Robinson, aka talentless taint.

“Just call me mystic Max, I have a premonition that we’re going to have a dueling chant of ‘Ass Boys’ and ‘Talentless taint’. Stockton, I’m magic. Isn’t that nuts! It’s our four year anniversary of Dynamite, so I thought I’d list some of my highlights. I whipped Cody Rhodes with a belt. I threw Chris Jericho off a cage. And I almost got us kicked off TV when I called my boss Tony Khan a mark!

“I know for a fact that I didn’t attack your boy, Jay White. But if you don’t want to talk it out like gentlemen…I’ve got an idea. How about right here, right now, we have ourselves a Stockton Street Fight!”

MJF went to the ring and Bullet Club Gold backed out. “Switchblade” Jay White ambushed MJF from behind with the Blade Runner!

Jay White left with the AEW World Title belt!

“Switchblade” Jay White: “Max, I don’t know what type of caliber athlete you’re used to dealing with, but I’m a cut above. You got the best of me last week, but you’re not fooling anybody. We’re not buying what you’re selling. We use our brains. We know the real MJF. We know that MJF is a pathetic, dirty liar, a slimy gutless coward. And we need a truly elite champion. And you are not him, MJF.

“But hey, I’m a fair man. You want to prove me wrong. Put it all on the line at Full Gear! MJF versus ‘Switchblade’ Jay White for the AEW World Championship. You can try to prove me wrong, and you will fail. But don’t worry, I’ll lead by example tonight, and I’m taking this belt. And I’ve got two words for you: guns up!”

MJF: “Nah, you want me at Full Gear? Well, I’ve got two words for you: you’re on!”

Renee Paquette was backstage with FTW Champion HOOK and Orange Cassidy!

Orange: Hook is a great champion because he has a great championship.”

Hook: “It should be you next week against Rey Fenix instead of Mox.”

Orange: “Whatever.”

The Golden Jets—Chris Jericho & Kenny Omega

vs.

The Don Callis Family’s Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher!

Don Callis joined the broadcast booth for this match.

Takeshita hit Jericho with a shoulder block. Jericho got back up to his feet and traded strikes with Takeshita. Jericho fired back with a shoulder block of his own.

Omega tagged in and he and Jericho hit tandem offense on Takeshita. They double suplexed Takeshita. Takeshita blasted Jericho with the Takeshita-line.

Jericho drilled Kyle with a lionsault! Omega tagged in and Omega dished out Polish Hammers to the opposition. Omega hoisted up Takeshita, vaulted off his chest, and nailed Fletcher with a backstabber.

Fletcher sent Omega flying with a half and half suplex. Fletcher rocked Jericho with a thrust kick. Takeshita and Fletcher used a Blue Thunder-Michinoku Driver combo on Omega and Jericho.

Kenny planted Kyle with a snap dragon suplex. Jericho tagged in and dazed Fletcher with a running clothesline. Jericho sent Fletcher flying with a hurracanrana. Takeshita laid out Jericho with a lariat. Omega cracked Takeshita with a jumping knee strike. Fletcher fired back with a thrust kick to Omega and followed up with a brainbuster!

The fans chanted “A-E-W! A-E-W! A-E-W!”

Jericho and Fletcher had the same idea—going for lariats—and they knocked one another down. Omega tagged in and powerbombed Fletcher. He followed up with a knee strike to Kyle for a near fall. Omega got wiped out with a leg lariat from Fletcher. Jericho rattled Fletcher with the Code Breaker and Omega was there to finish off Fletcher with the One-Winged Angel, pinning Fletcher!

Powerhouse Hobbs ambushed Jericho and Omega after the match! He knocked them both down with lariats. Don Callis was smiling. Hobbs smashed Jericho with a spinebuster! Hobbs whipped Omega into the guardrail. Hobbs hurled Omega over the timekeeper’s table, over the barricade, and onto a row of chairs. Hobbs punished Omega out on the arena floor. Hobbs slammed a guardrail onto Omega. Hobbs trapped Omega’s throat in the guardrail.

Back in the ring, Don Callis taped Omega by the wrists to the top rope. Takeshita dropkicked Jericho out of the ring. Hobbs whacked Jericho with the chair, as Jericho was trying to take the bullet for Omega.

Hobbs was about to waffle Omega with the chair, but Don Callis asked for the chair. Callis smacked the chair over Omega’s head!

“Look at the dent left in that chair,” said Excalibur.

Renee Paquette was in the trainer’s room with AEW World Champion MJF!

Renee asked how MJF was doing.

MJF: “It’d be an easier pill to swallow if Adam was here.”

Max Caster snuck up behind MJF and MJF freaked out and told Caster to leave. “Stop stalking me!” MJF said he was going to call Adam Cole. The call went to voicemail.

“Timeless” Toni Storm vs. Skye Blue!

Toni hit Skye with a short arm lariat. Toni Storm whipped Skye across the ring by the hair! Skye fired back with a dropkick. Skye slugged Storm with a forearm. Toni sent Skye crashing to the floor with a hip attack.

Skye Blue was relentless with elbow strikes to Toni Storm. Skye connected with a high roundhouse and then a big cross body press for a near fall. Toni rattled Skye with a powerbomb.

Toni sent Skye flying with a German Suplex. Storm cracked Skye with the hip attack and finished her off with the Storm Zero for the pin!

Renee Paquette was backstage with Stokely Hathaway!

Hathaway said this Friday on Rampage there would be a four way match to determine the next challenger for Eddie Kingston’s ROH World Championship!

The Rated-R Superstar Adam Copeland made his Dynamite debut!

Tony Schiavone was in the ring and asked everyone to welcome to Dynamite— “The Rated-R Superstar” Adam Copeland!

Adam Copeland: “Tony, I grew up and your voice was the soundtrack to my childhood. So, to stand in the ring with you is a pretty big deal for me.

“I came out here to talk to you all. Let’s rewind back to 2011, I’m told I can never do this again. But guys, we’re in 2023 and I am standing in an AEW ring! There’s quite a few reasons why I came here. There’s one major one but I’ll get to that last.

“I’m pretty sure the AEW World Championship would look good around my waist. Check it out, we’re talking first ever matches. Adam Copeland versus Jon Moxley, Adam Copeland versus Kenny Omega, versus Miro, versus Powerhouse Hobbs, versus Juice Robinson. So those are all amazing reasons to be here, to challenge myself 31 years into my career.

“And I’ve already said this before, and this’ll be the last time I say it. The main reason I decided to come to AEW is I sat with my family. I asked my daughter Lyric, ‘Should I retire?’ She said, ‘You should go have fun with Uncle Jay.’

“So, I’ll call him what you all call him—Christian Cage. And I’d like him to come out here so I can tell him the real reason why I’m here. C’mon Jay.

TNT Champion Christian Cage came down to the ring!

Adam Copeland: “For 40 years we’ve been best friends. But it was this industry that made us realize we’d be best friends for life. And I know what you’re thinking. Why did I do those things at WrestleDream to Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus? And even though I know that about you, I still love you. That’s never gonna go away. But I saw you standing over Sting. A guy whose poster you took to the barber and put it on the mirror so she could give you the same haircut.

“And I see you standing over Sting. A man who has entertained people for four decades. My wife’s parents couldn’t speak English, but they loved Sting. I know that Luchasaurus and Nick Wayne are going to drop you like a bad habit as soon as they’ve sucked all the information from your brain.

“You’re so egotistical that you can’t see it. But Jay, it’s time. For the first time since 2011, for the first time properly in over 20 years, it’s time for you and me to team together again. To face a team like FTR. To face a team like the Young Bucks. To show an entire generation of fans why we are inarguably one of the greatest tag teams of all time! So, I am out here, hat in hand, and I am asking you, let’s do it. Let’s end our careers together as a team. Let’s show them all what we can do.”

Christian Cage hugged Adam Copeland.

Christian Cage: “Go to hell!”

Christian Cage walked out of the ring, leaving Adam Copeland behind.

Christian Cage: “Just a quick reminder of what you’ll be up against this Tuesday, live on Dynamite.”

Luchasaurus walked onto the ramp, with Nick Wayne by his side. They all stared at Adam Copeland!

This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!

***Special night*** Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Title Tuesday on TBS next Tuesday live at 8/7ct from the Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence, MO!

***Special start time*** Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 7/6c from the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City, UT!

And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/7Fud1kWe5fA?si=PqVniMbGmXxXHOn7&start=297

DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2023 was as exciting a night as it gets here in All Elite Wrestling, featuring two championships changing hands to the detriment of The Blackpool Combat Club, but also MJF overcoming all the odds to not only defeat Samoa Joe in their AEW World Championship match, but also earn a handshake from the respected (and feared) ROH World TV Champion. In addition, Saraya retained the AEW Women’s World Championship, Chris Jericho relived a piece of his own history when Sammy Guevara betrayed him to Don Callis, and now RAMPAGE: GRAND SLAM 2023 continues the excitement for two hours this Friday night!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/aai5io9JX28?si=S3pMu11TPj9McyFv&start=226

The Ring of Honor World Six-Man titles will be on the line as The Mogul Embassy, one day removed from a successful defense on Honor Club, will put the titles on the line against The Elite of Hangman Page and The Young Bucks! Plus, the AEW World Trios Championship will be at stake between The Acclaimed and The Dark Order, Mike Santana returns to action, a big Mixed Trios match is going down, and the next contenders for the ROH World Tag Titles held by Adam Cole and MJF will be determined! Also, ahead of their three way championship match on COLLISION in Grand Rapids, Darby Allin and Sting will take on Christian Cage and TNT Champion Luchasaurus in tag team competition.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/DUxv24_Po6A?si=OtZC7-JCKnve1DFS&start=73

The night begins at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for our international audiences, so be sure to check out the official AEW YouTube channel prior to RAMPAGE to catch highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE and COLLISION, plus THE CONTROL CENTER, and much, much more!

ROH WORLD SIX-MAN CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

The Mogul Embassy (Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun, & Toa Liona) vs.

The Elite (Adam Page, Matt Jackson, & Nick Jackson

With Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland set to do battle at WRESTLEDREAM in less than two weeks time, The Elite and The Mogul Embassy will lock horns this Friday night on RAMPAGE, and the ROH World Six-Man Championship will be at stake! Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun, and Toa Liona come into this fight having held the titles since FINAL BATTLE 2022, some 286 days, and turned away nine challenges to their crowns, including one Thursday night on Honor Club (www.watchroh.com).

Now no disrespect intended to their other challengers thus far, but this is unquestionably the toughest challenge Prince Nana’s unit has faced to date, despite the long layoff in their competing as a trio. See it’s only been a few weeks since this particular Elite group reformed as a trio, but they’ve experienced success in their reunion, scoring victories over both The BCC and Dark Order, and their past resume reinforces they danger The Elite represents.

See long before The Mogul Embassy was a gleam in the eye of Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana, BULLET CLUB reigned supreme over Ring of Honor, and with that came a 201 day reign as ROH World Six-Man Champions for Hangman Page and The Young Bucks. Sixth on the all-time list, this trio racked up eight championship victories over The Kingdom, CHAOS, and SCU, just to name a few, before losing to SCU in a rematch at the 16TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW.

Now, with the Seattle collision between Hangman and Swerve looming, The Elite aim to pick up their second run with the titles at the expense of Strickland’s crew. Fans have already seen one ROH championship change hands on AEW programming this week, will they bear witness to another on RAMPAGE: GRAND SLAM 2023?

TAG TEAM CONTEST…

Darby Allin & Sting vs. TNT Champion Luchasaurus & Christian Cage

Christian Cage made the challenge for Saturday night on COLLISION, a Three Way TNT Championship bout between he, Darby Allin, and Luchasaurus, but in order to get there, he and his Right Hand of Destruction still have to through Friday night’s tag team battle against Darby Allin and “The Icon” Sting.

At ALL IN: LONDON, Darby and Sting shut down the tag team challenge of Christian and Swerve Strickland, in a Coffin Match no less, but that fight, in addition to everything he’s gone through since, has left Allin battered and bruised without giving himself time to heal up in the slightest. Christian may have gone through that battle as well, but he came out less the worse for wear, letting Swerve end up with much of that beating, and he’s got Luchasaurus on his side to throw in the way of the punishment as well.

Thankfully Darby has Sting to support him, genuine support not just the…human…shield who actually earned the TNT Championship that Christian Cage has been carrying around, and pick him up when the going gets rough, usually meaning when Darby is at the wrong end of the numbers game or his physically battered body needs a moment of rest.

Whoever comes out of RAMPAGE with the victory will have a distinct advantage heading into COLLISION in Grand Rapids, the kind of momentum that’s hard to fight, but when the numbers are essentially two-on-one in favor of the defending champion, the real one not Cage, a tag team victory may not amount to much. Still, every victory helps momentum, every victory helps psychologically, and every victory helps get Darby one step closer to bringing that TNT to his side in time for AEW’s WRESTLEDREAM return to his hometown!

WRESTLEDREAM OPPORTUNITY…

Best Friends (Chuck Taylor & Trent Beretta) vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt) vs. The Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) vs. The Righteous (Dutch & Vincent)

***WINNER EARNS ROH WORLD TAG TITLE MATCH AT WRESTLEDREAM***

WRESTLEDREAM is less than two weeks away, and with this bout here, four teams are jockeying for the right to challenge Better Than You BayBay, Adam Cole and AEW World Champion MJF, for the ROH World Tag Team Championship! Of the four teams in contention, The Hardys and The Kingdom can both lay claim to previous status as champions, while The Best Friends have never held a championship of any kind together, and The Righteous can only claim status as former ROH World Six-Man Champions.

All have motivation to press on to Seattle on October 1st and try to claim the throne upon which Cole and Friedman sit, but which pair will be able to see through the chaos that is this sort of affair and find their way to victory? It’s going to be a wild time in Queens with this one come Friday night; which men will come out with their eyes on the prize?

AEW WORLD TRIOS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens, Daddy Ass, & Max Caster) vs.

The Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, Evil Uno, & John Silver)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZLHEBER-nG8?si=cxrmZc8nWtPNQDg1&start=73

Last time AEW was at Arthur Ashe Stadium for GRAND SLAM 2022, The Acclaimed captured the AEW World Tag Team Championship from Swerve Strickland and Keith Lee. This year they enter that same hallowed ground as the defending World Trios Champions, and the aim to walk back out the same way they come in: titles around their waist, and surrounded by a sea of scissors.

All that Max Caster, Daddy Ass, and Anthony Bowens have to do is survive The Dark Order’s onslaught, something that Bowens proved unable to do last week when he fell to John Silver (not without some trickery from The Dark Order mind you). Alex Reynolds, Silver, and Evil Uno have proven quite the competent competitors, 8-2 on the year and 11-3 overall as a trio, with a huge victory over The Elite included in that 2023 total. But after all this time in AEW, championship success has continued to allude the group ever since Mr. Brodie Lee lost the TNT Championship back to Cody Rhodes several years ago. No tag team or singles title has found a home in The Dark Order, and this will mark The Dark Order’s second attempt to claim the titles, albeit the first for this particular unit, the only three left standing to hold up the claw.

Can The Dark Order finally find their way to being called champion? Or will Arthur Ashe Stadium continue to be Acclaimed territory as it was in 2022?

ALSO FEATURING:

-TBS Champion Kris Statlander, FTW Champion HOOK, & Orange Cassidy

vs. “Cool Hand” Angelo Parker, Anna Jay, & “Daddy Magic” Matt Menard

-Mike Santana vs. Bronson

-Skye Blue vs. The House of Black’s Julia Hart

This Friday night, on a stacked two hour edition of RAMPAGE: GRAND SLAM 2023, the AEW World Trios Champions The Acclaimed will defend against The Dark Order, The Elite will challenge The Mogul Embassy for the ROH World Six-Man Titles, we will see the return of Mike Santana to singles action, and a new #1 Contender for the ROH World Tag Team Titles will be set! All that and more is coming to fans this Friday night at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for our international audiences! Be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel ahead of time for highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2023, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE and COLLISION, plus THE CONTROL CENTER, and much, much more!

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE: Fyter Fest was broadcast from the Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY!

Your broadcast team was Excalibur and Tony Schiavone!

The show opened with a graphic paying tribute to Windham Rotunda 1987-2023.

It’s Friday and you know what that means!

AEW International Championship Match!

“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) vs. QTV’s Aaron Solo (with Harley Cameron)!

Solo kicked Orange in the midsection. Orange countered with a side headlock takeover. Orange had Solo’s ankles trapped and then he sent Solo to the arena floor with an arm drag. Solo pulled Orange out of the ring. Orange went to strike Solo when Solo used Harley as a human shield. Orange wasted no time, moved around them, and connected with a tope suicida on Solo.

Cassidy climbed to the top rope, but Harley interfered and pulled Orange down. Solo seized the opportunity to go on the attack. Solo closed the distance, charging at Cassidy in the corner with a running elbow.

The champ took flight, jumping off the top rope and connecting with a crossbody press. Solo ducked the Orange Punch. Orange nailed Solo with the Stun Dog Millionaire and followed up with a DDT for a near fall.

Harley grabbed a microphone and began to sing to distract Orange. Solo landed a corkscrew dropkick and then planted Orange on his shoulders. Solo squashed Orange with a diving double stomp for a two-count. Harley removed her boot and while the ref was distracted, Solo struck Cassidy in the head with it!

Orange rocked Solo with the Orange Punch. He followed up with the Beach Break and pinned Aaron Solo!

From earlier in the week, footage aired of Jim Ross’s sit down interview with AAA Latin American Champion QT Marshall!

“Now it’s time I get the respect I feel I’ve earned. Ever since I started in AEW, people always think I’ve aligned myself with other guys. Cody Rhodes, Powerhouse Hobbs. When in actuality, they’ve aligned themselves with me.

“But that’s not the story that you guys on commentary wanted to tell. And I never complained. I just sat there and smiled because I’m a pro. I’m not just a pro, I put the pro in professional wrestling.

“I was taught: be a good soldier and opportunities will arise. Speaking of opportunities, it seems there’s this narrative that because of my relationship with Tony Khan, I get said opportunities. But if that were the case, why did I have to go to another country? Why did it take management of Triple A to see in me everything I’ve been saying since day one.

“The other night in front of 20,000, you’re right, I beat three of the best wrestlers in the world. And how’d I do it? By being one of the best wrestlers in the world. I don’t have a backup plan. This is it. I don’t have a degree from university, but I learned a long time ago I have a PhD in professional wrestling. I have passion, I have heart, I have determination to be the absolute best that ever stepped inside the ring.

“This is about me getting everything I’ve ever wanted in AEW. I’m not on the posters. I’m not on the trucks. I don’t even have an action figure. So now I’m going to defend this AAA Latin American Title with pride starting this Friday night. And I’ll finally get the respect I’ve earned, even from you.”

AAA Latin American Championship Match!

QT Marshall (c.) (with Johnny TV) vs. Gravity!

Gravity dropkicked QT out of the ring. Gravity went over the top and nailed QT with a tope con hiro. Gravity jumped off the ropes, but QT took down Gravity with a stiff forearm.

Gravity attempted a hurracanrana off the apron, but QT caught him and countered with a powerbomb onto the apron! Back in the ring, Gravity crushed QT with a Destroyer for a near fall! QT hit a combination on Gravity, making him pay.

Gravity reversed a suplex and nailed QT with several thrust kicks. Gravity landed a 21-plex on QT Marshall for a near fall. Gravity and QT jockeyed for position on the top turnbuckle. Gravity dropped QT back down onto the mat for a near fall. QT hit the Diamond Cutter and then used the Dirt Sheet Driver on Gravity, scoring the pin!

TNT Champion Luchasaurus vs. R. Jones!

Luchasaurus clocked his opponent with a massive boot to the face! Luchasaurus chokeslammed him. After hitting him with a lariat to the back of the head, Luchasaurus pinned his opponent!

Christian Cage, holding the TNT Championship, was watching on a monitor backstage.

Main Event Time!

AEW Women’s World Champion Hikaru Shida & Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D.

vs.

The Outcasts’ Toni Storm & Saraya (with Ruby Soho)!

Saraya hammered away at Baker with elbows. Toni tagged in and stomped Britt Baker in the corner. Toni took Baker down with a snap suplex. Toni smashed Baker with the hip attack, sending Britt crashing on the arena floor. Ruby Soho was kicking Britt until TBS Champion Kris Statlander sprinted to the ring, hoisted up Ruby, and carried her all the way to the back!

Baker rallied back with a neck breaker to Toni Storm. Baker tagged in Shida and Shida cleaned house on Storm and Saraya! Shida suplexed Saraya onto Storm!

Shida and Storm exchanged forearms and chops in the center of the ring. Saraya heaved Britt by the hair. Storm squashed Baker in the corner with the hip attack. The Outcasts hit a tandem powerbomb on Baker. Shida cracked Storm with a question mark kick. Saraya knocked down Shida with a thrust kick, but Baker was there to dish out a thrust kick of her own to Saraya!

“Kicks all around,” said Excalibur.

Baker connected with a ripcord elbow strike to Saraya. Shida dropped Toni Storm. Shida planted Saraya with the falcon arrow. Baker rocked Saraya with a swinging neck breaker. Britt Baker applied her surgical glove, getting ready to apply the Lockjaw to Saraya. Saraya grabbed the ref’s leg to distract him. Toni Storm pulled out a can of spray paint. Shida tried to pull the can away but Storm sprayed Shida in the eyes. Baker landed a thrust kick on Storm. Baker went to check on Shida, but Shida, who was temporarily blinded, struck Baker! Saraya spiked Baker with the Nightcap and pinned her!

Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from NOW Arena in Chicago, IL!

Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c!

Be a part of history! This Sunday order All In: London from Wembley Stadium, live on pay-per-view at 6pm BST / 1pm ET! Zero Hour begins at 5pm BST / Noon ET / 9am PT!

And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE: Fight for The Fallen was broadcast live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN!

Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.

It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!

AEW International Championship Match!

“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Wheeler Yuta!

Orange and Wheeler traded arm drags. Then they exchanged stiff chops and forearms. Wheeler suplexed but then Orange countered with one of his own.

“These guys are going move for move,” said Taz.

Wheeler blasted the champ with a tope suicida. Orange suplexed Yuta on the arena floor. Yuta spiked Orange on the ramp! Wheeler followed up with a thrust kick to Orange’s head.

Back in the ring Orange blasted Yuta with the Beach Break! Wheeler chomped down on Orange’s hand and then stomped on it, trying to neutralize the hand that Cassidy uses for the Orange Punch.

Orange took flight with a tope suicida. Orange climbed the turnbuckles, but Wheeler kicked him in the head. Wheeler rocked Orange with a massive superplex! Wheeler crashed down onto Orange with a diving splash for a near fall. Cassidy clocked Yuta with the PK and then DDT’ed Yuta.

Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli walked out of the stands and glared at Orange from ringside. Orange looked over at Moxley and nailed Yuta with a Paradigm Shift!

“He looked right at Moxley when he executed the Paradigm Shift,” said Tony Schiavone.

“Moxley’s not too impressed,” replied Taz.

Orange connected with the Orange Punch on Wheeler Yuta. Orange immediately grabbed his hand.

“Oh, man, Orange Cassidy is hurting,” said Tony Schiavone.

Yuta locked up Orange in the seat belt for a near fall. Orange rolled up Wheeler, held onto his jean pockets, and pinned Wheeler!

Immediately after the match, the BCC swarmed Orange Cassidy and began to pummel him!

Best Friends—Trent and Chuck Taylor, sprinted to the ring to even up the odds. But the Best Friends still were not at 100%. The Lucha Bros came down to the ring with Alex Abrahantes. The Lucha Bros dished out stereo thrust kicks to Claudio. Moxley took a powder, leaving the ring before anyone could get their hands on him.

“Moxley got out of town,” said Schiavone.

Claudio and Moxley grabbed steel chairs and were about to enter the ring again when Eddie Kingston’s music hit! Kingston ran to the ring and began to brawl with Claudio!

“This has just broken down!” said Excalibur.

Eddie Kingston: “Hey, guess what? Wembley Stadium, boys. All In, boys! Us against you and whoever you can find! In a Stadium Stampede Match!”

Jim Ross had a sit-down interview with The Elite’s Kenny Omega at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, FL!

Jim Ross wanted to know about Omega’s plan for All In: London, and he wanted to know how Omega could even consider doing business with Don Callis.

Omega: “Uncle Don was just a friend of my real uncle, Uncle Larry, the Golden Shiek. And whether it was Christmas or my birthday, he was always there. Now that I look back it was really an odd childhood. I didn’t have friends, Don doesn’t like friends. I wasn’t able to have afterschool parties. Don gave me my first weight set. My first tub of protein. He’d say, ‘Take your vitamins.’

“And the way he guided me made me the best athlete possible. I try everyday to remember that version of Uncle Don. You can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family. And I found myself trying to justify what this guy has done. I’m trying to find a reason not to make my entire existence one of revenge.

“I just want to move on. I don’t want him to get into my head. I don’t want this to all be about Don and the people he chooses to be part of his family. Takeshita and I go way back. I saw a lot of myself in him when I was in DDT in Japan. I thought this is the kind of guy you want to guide the right way.

“As the god of pro wrestling, I have the power to giveth, and I have the power to taketh away. And Don, this new cash cow of yours, that you think means the world to you, I’m going to take him away.”

Don Callis interrupted the interview!

Callis: “Whoa, J.R., I didn’t know you were a psychotherapist now. How is your mental health, Ken, I’m really concerned.”

“Switchblade” Jay White and Juice Robinson ambushed Omega! Takeshita joined in on the beatdown as Don yelled “More! More!”

“Hangman” Adam Page had followed his friend Omega to the hospital.

Adam Page: “If you’re going to drive all the way to Jacksonville to do a beatdown, it’s at least got to be good. It’s got to be longer than two minutes. If you’re going to start a beatdown, you have to finish it.

“I’m outside of the hospital, with Kenny inside of it. It may seem like he is, but Kenny’s not finished. And neither is he friendless. Because in London Kenny will have two of his greatest friends. And not to flatter myself, two of his greatest tag team partners of all time, in ‘Hangman’ and Ibushi. A dream team, if you will, in front of one of the largest crowds in the history of pro wrestling. Juice, Jay, Takeshita, this little beatdown you started, at Wembley, we finish it.”

Don Callis was in the ring!

Callis: “It looks like everyone wants a piece of the Don Callis family. Ladies and gentlemen, we know the world is waiting. Without further ado, we’re going to get the answer. It’s my pleasure to introduce the greatest of all time. And my best friend for 34 years, Chris Jericho!”

Chris Jericho came down to the ring!

Jericho: “What happened last week broke my heart, when all the members of the Jericho Appreciation Society walked out on me, it made me reevaluate myself. It made me reevaluate who I am as a person.

“Like I told you Don, Chris Jericho doesn’t join factions. Chris Jericho creates them. And after what happened last week, it’s obvious what the answer is. So, my answer, if I want to be a part of the Don Callis family, is yes!

“The answer is yes. I’ll tell you why, Don. When the Jericho Appreciation Society walked out on me, I realized I needed to get back to my roots. I need to align with a man who is just as low as I am. The answer is yes!”

Jericho and Callis hugged!

Callis: “This is great! Let’s go drink Broadway dry and beat up some rednecks, just like back in the day.”

Jericho: “Before we go, what’s with the picture there?”

Chris Jericho turned back and looked at a picture set up in the ring that had a black cloth draped over it.

Callis: “Oh, I got another picture of you, me and Bad News. Which one of your houses do you want it sent to?”

Jericho: “No, no, seriously, if you’ve got a painting for me, I want to see it. Let’s check this out.”

Callis: “Chris, Chris…”

Jericho: “If it’s a gift for me, I want to see it.”

Jericho pulled the cloth off the painting, and it was revealed to be a portrait of Don Callis holding up Jericho’s decapitated head!

“No wonder Don Callis was so surprised by Jericho’s answer,” said Excalibur.

Jericho: “What is this?”

Callis: “What do you think it is? It’s a joke. It’s a practical joke.”

Jericho: “Did you think I was going to say no? So, over a business decision you were going to have me assassinated? You were going to have me beheaded if I said no to you?”

Callis: “No, you don’t understand, this is very embarrassing for me. I paid a lot of money for you to have a painting of you, me, and Bad News, and the artist screwed it up.”

Jericho: “Stop, stop, stop! I have known you since 1989. I know when you’re telling the truth and I know when you’re lying. You’re lying to my face right now, Don. For the first time in your life, you scumbag lowlife, be honest with me and tell me the truth. Be a man and tell me the truth!”

Callis: “You want the truth? Okay, you’re right! I did not think in a million years you would say yes to me Chris. I thought you would say no because of your massive ego. I’ve known you for 34 years and it’s always been about you. So yes, I thought you’d make a stupid decision and say no. So, Chris in a business full of egomaniacs, you truly are the greatest at that. You are a narcissistic ego maniac who is too stupid to see what’s good for him and you don’t deserve to be a part of the Don Callis family!”

Jericho: “The Don Callis family? Who the hell is Don Callis? Three years ago, you weren’t even in the wrestling business, and nobody cared. And now because of me you’re in AEW at the top of your career, and compared to me, still, nobody cares! And this is why, Don, you have lost everything. You lost your family, you lost Kenny Omega, you lost your friends because you don’t have me, you have messed up every single personal relationship you’ve had in your life. And you want to know why? Because you’re a low life. You’re a worm. You’re a piece of trash. And Don Callis, you are an a—hole!”

Don Callis slapped Jericho!

Jericho shoved Don Callis against the turnbuckles. Takeshita jumped into the ring with a steel chair, but Jericho cut him off! Will Ospreay jumped into the ring and blindsided Jericho!

“Don Callis called in reinforcements!” said Excalibur.

Will Ospreay cracked Jericho in the skull with the steel chair and busted him wide open! As Takeshita and Ospreay held up Jericho, Don Callis smashed the picture frame over Jericho’s head!

Sammy Guevara ran to the ring with Jericho’s baseball bat and Callis, Takeshita, and Ospreay retreated out of the ring!

Jack Perry said next week on Dynamite he is going to retire the FTW Championship!

Darby Allin & Nick Wayne

vs.

Gates of Agony—Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona!

The Gates of Agony rushed at Darby and Nick as Darby and Nick were making their entrance!

Swerve Strickland and AR Fox walked onto the ramp with steel chairs.

Nick Wayne rocketed out of the ring with a tope suicida onto Bishop Kaun! The Gates of Agony hip tossed Nick into the barricade.

The Gates of Agony double teamed Darby Allin. Nick Wayne sent Toa flying off the apron with a hurracanrana. He followed up with a cutter to Bishop. Darby splashed Bishop with a Coffin Drop and pinned him!

Darby and Nick were ready for the fight with Fox and Swerve, as the Mogul Embassy members inched closer to the ring.

Sting appeared on the big screen! “Who’s house?” asked Sting.

Sting: “C’mon, I’ve got something I want to talk to you about. I’m directing movies, yes. Stinger is making movies now and I’ve got a great leading man. And I’m going to get into that in a minute. But first, Fox, this is for you. You better have eyes on the back of your head from this moment forward. Why? Because we have a Coffin Match in nine days at Wembley Stadium. I love it! The red blood cells are already moving. Tell ‘em, leading man.”

Sting pulled Prince Nana into frame!

Prince Nana: “Actually, 11 days away, sir.”

Sting: “Well, I guess the only thing left to say is, ‘It’s showtime!’”

Out next: AEW World Champion MJF and Adam Cole!

MJF: “Cut our music! The Devil has arrived!”

Adam Cole: “We are a week and a half away from the biggest pro wrestling event of all time, I’m talking about All In. And during Zero Hour, Adam Cole and MJF are going to become your new Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champions. And we’re going to do it—”

MJF: “With a kangaroo kick, baby!”

Adam Cole: “Max I was going to say we’re going to win with a double clothesline! But that is not the only match taking place that night. Because in the main event we have Adam Cole against MJF for the AEW World Championship. And this is going to go down as the most important match in my entire life. Because nine months ago I was told by multiple doctors that I may never wrestle again. Fast forward and now I’m in the biggest pro wrestling show of all time, challenging for the most prestigious prize in our sport, the AEW World Championship. And I’m doing it with one of my best friends. I’m talking about you Max.

“This match is so important for my legacy. For 15 years I’ve been at the top of every wrestling promotion I have ever worked for. I’ve broken records with my championship runs, and this match with Max, that solidifies my legacy in AEW. But not just being in the match but winning the match. Because Max, I love you, but I need to win this match more than you could ever imagine. And I’m just telling you this out of love, but the second that bell rings, I will do anything and everything to win that AEW World Title.”

MJF: “That was a great story. Too bad mine is better. When I first got into this sport, on my first day at wrestling school, we were told to write down dream opponents. I wrote down two names. Cody Rhodes. And Adam Cole, baybay. Fast forward, the year is 2018, I for one year have had a brand new Dodge Ram truck and in that one year I put 90,000 miles on it, because I busted my ass trying to make a name for myself on the independent circuit.

“And then a little birdie tells me in 2018 there’s going to be a show in Chicago, a show that would be the biggest show in wrestling outside of the WWE in decades, and that show was called All In. So, I shot my shot. I DM’ed Cody Rhodes and I said, ‘Sir, you don’t know me all that well and you don’t owe me a damn thing, but if you give me an opportunity, I promise you I will not disappoint. Some time went by, the show was getting closer and closer, and my hopes of getting on it were getting thinner and thinner until I got a response from Cody Rhodes. He said to me, ‘Kid, you’re all in.’

“That was the biggest night of my career and I got to open a pay-per-view I had no right being on. And yes, I may have lost that night, however, I managed to turn some pretty important heads. One of them being a man by the name of Tony Khan. After that match Tony Khan offered me a contract to a company called All Elite Wrestling.

“The fact of the matter is, if there’s no All In, there’s no MJF, and that’s a fact. Fast forward the year is 2023 and I went from being an unknown and I scratched, and I clawed my way up from the undercard and I grew up in front of your very eyes. I became a generational talent. I became the devil himself. I became the AEW World Champion!

“And now once again I’m looking at the opportunity to be on a show called All In and it will be in front of the biggest crowd in the history of this sport and I’m going to be in the main event with a guy who on day one was my dream opponent, and who I can proudly say has become my best friend. This means so much to me, you have no idea. However, it doesn’t mean everything to me. There is only one thing that means everything to me and that is the Triple B. This is not simply just a title. This symbolizes all my blood, sweat, tears, countless hours training in the gym. All so I could obtain this! And if you think just because I’m your bud I’m going to lay down on August 27th, you’re out of your mind. I love you like a brother but a win in Wembley will make me legendary and I’m going to win Adam, because nobody is on the level of the devil!”

Adam Cole: “Well Max, may the best man win.”

MJF: “I have a feeling the best man is going to win because I’m MJF and I’m better than you and you know it!”

Adam Cole: “That’s interesting because I’m pretty sure your new AEW World Champion’s name is Adam Cole baybay!”

ROH World Tag Team Champions Aussie Open emerged from the crowd and attacked MJF and Adam Cole!

Adam Cole and MJF turned the tables and got the upper hand on Aussie Open! They tried for the double clothesline on Mark Davis, but he jumped out of the ring and pulled Kyle Fletcher with him.

Roderick Strong as watching on a monitor backstage with the Kingdom—Mike Bennett and Matt Taven.

Chris Jericho was backstage being stitched up!

Jericho: “Ospreay, at Wembley Stadium, your home turf, you want a piece of Chris Jericho. Jericho versus Ospreay at All In! I’m going to make you bleed and drink your blood. I’m going to get inside your head and embarrass you. You don’t know what you got into, but you’ve opened hell and the Ocho is coming for you!”

Texas Chainsaw Massacre Deathmatch!

“The Last Outlaw” Jeff Jarrett vs. Jeff Hardy!

Absolutely anything goes and the only way to win is by pinfall.

Jeff Jarrett ambushed Jeff Hardy. Hardy whipped Jarrett into the wall and then bludgeoned Jarrett with a crutch.

Satnam Singh grabbed Jeff Hardy by the neck and hoisted him up against the wall. Matt Hardy, Brother Zay and Ethan Page came out to even up the odds.

“This is one of the most bizarre matches we’ve seen in All Elite Wrestling,” said Excalibur.

Jeff Hardy dropkicked Jarrett on the ramp. Smoke began to billow out from beneath the ring. Hardy smacked Jarrett with a kendo stick. Jeff Hardy connected with a swanton, crushing Jarrett through a table! Jay Lethal jumped into the ring to break up the pin attempt.

Ethan Page blasted Lethal with a shoulder tackle. Matt Hardy hit the Twist of Fate on Lethal! Karen Jarrett hit Matt Hardy from behind with a cheap shot. Jeff Jarrett grabbed his guitar, but Jeff Hardy pulled it away and smashed it over Jarrett’s head!

Leatherface came to the ring and kicked Jay Lethal in the midsection. Leatherface chased Karen Jarrett to the back! Satnam Singh grabbed Jeff Hardy and then Jay Lethal cracked Jeff Hardy in the back with a hammer! Satnam Singh choke slammed Jeff Hardy! Lethal placed Jeff Jarrett on top of Jeff Hardy and then Jarrett scored the pin!

All In: London Women’s Championship Qualifier Match!

Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. vs. The Bunny (with Penelope Ford)!

Bunny charged at Britt, but Britt rolled up Bunny for a near fall. The Bunny stomped on Britt’s hand. She followed up with a knee lift to Baker.

Penelope Ford jumped on the ring apron and distracted Britt long enough for the Bunny to hit a lariat. Britt fired back with forearms. Britt battered Bunny with elbow strikes. Britt hit the Sling Blade.

Britt nailed Bunny with a swinging neck breaker for a near fall. Baker landed a thrust kick and then the curb stomp and she pinned the Bunny!

“She punched her ticket!” said Taz.

The Acclaimed—Max Caster & Anthony Bowens

vs.

Before the Acclaimed’s opponents were introduced by Justin Roberts, the arena lights went dark!

When the lights came back on, the AEW World Trios Champions the House of Black were standing behind the Acclaimed in the ring!

The House of Black ran over the Acclaimed like a freight train! Brody had a chain wrapped around his hand and he clocked Max Caster with it! Brody planted Bowens in the center of the ring!

Julia Hart had Billy Gunn’s wrestling boots. They were handed over to Malakai Black!

Main Event Time!

The Young Bucks—Matt & Nick Jackson

vs.

The Gunns—Austin & Colten Gunn!

The Bucks superkicked the Gunns as the Gunns were making their entrance! The Bucks double suplexed Colten in the ring. They hip tossed Austin.

The Bucks cleaned house with a flurry of offense. The Gunns gained some traction, working over Matt Jackson with tandem offense.

Matt Jackson rallied back and tagged Nick. Nick took down the Gunns with a huge double crossbody. Nick superkicked Austin! Nick punt kicked Colten!

Matt Jackson tagged in and he superkicked Austin. Nick smashed Austin with a knee strike. Colten saved his brother from the Bucks. Colten tagged in, but Matt rolled him up for a near fall. The Gunns hit Matt with the 3:10 to Yuma but Nick used an elbow drop to break up the pin attempt.

Matt German Suplexed Austin Gunn. Matt pinned Austin with some leverage from his brother. Juice Robinson and Jay White jumped into the ring after the match and began to ground and pound the Young Bucks! They placed Matt Jackson’s injured arm between a steel chair, and they were about to crush the arm when FTR’s music hit! FTR jumped in the ring, and they cleaned house on Bullet Club Gold! The Bucks and FTR cooperated to clear out the ring of Bullet Club Gold!

Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from Gas South Arena in Duluth, GA!

This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!

Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday live on TNT at 8/7c from the Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY featuring!

And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!

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TONIGHT! AEW World Champion MJF vs Adam Cole in a Championship Eliminator bout, plus the AEW Women’s World Championship is on the line!

All Elite Wrestling returns to pay-per-view this Sunday night, live from Las Vegas and the T-Mobile Arena, with DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2023!

All Elite Wrestling debuts in Austin, TX at the Moody Center this Wednesday night for a loaded DYNAMITE!

This week AEW returns to Florida, making our debut in the Ft. Lauderdale area at the FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, and all eyes are falling…

**CONTAINS SPOILERS** Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the UW – Milwaukee Panther Arena in Milwaukee, WI!…