he Big Gold Belt Podcast is back talking the week in pro wrestling including:-A look at Elimination Chamber: What stands out & how does is effect WrestleMania-The Rock Joins The Bloodline: What’s next for the People’s…
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK!
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!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli & Jon Moxley
vs.
FTR—Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood!
Cash grabbed a single leg on Mox, and Mox returned with a forearm. Mox tagged out to Claudio and Claudio blasted Cash with European uppercuts. Cash swept out Claudio’s leg and tagged out to Dax. Claudio booted Dax in the midsection and then body slammed Dax.
Dax retaliated with a snap suplex on Moxley. Dax hit a leg drop across the bridge of Moxley’s nose, good for a two count. Cash tagged in and Mox went for a rear naked choke, but Cash lowered his hips, using Mox’s momentum to knock him out of the ring. Mox was infuriated and jumped right back in the ring, bowing right up to Cash head-to-head. They exchanged forearms in the center of the ring.
Dax headbutted Mox outside of the ring, but Claudio ambushed Dax with a European uppercut. Moxley flew out of the ring with a tope directed at Cash, but Dax shoved his partner out of the way, acting as a human shield, and Dax took the brunt of Moxley’s force. After Moxley landed, Cash shoved him into the steel ring steps. FTR pummeled Moxley in their corner with an onslaught of strikes.
FTR catapulted Moxley into the bottom rope, throat first. Moxley blasted Dax with a King Kong lariat and then tagged Claudio. Claudio smothered Dax with European uppercuts. Claudio managed to hoist up both members of FTR at the same time and planted them!
“Claudio with superhuman strength!” said Excalibur.
Outside the ring, Moxley spiked Dax on the arena floor with a stuffed piledriver when Claudio jumped off the apron with an assist! Back in the ring, Dax displayed his fighting spirit, dodging Claudio and tagged out to Cash Wheeler. Cash cleaned house on the BCC!
Cash countered a Paradigm Shift from Mox with a brain buster for a near fall. Justin Roberts announced that five minutes remained. Cash hoisted up Moxley and then Dax jumped off the top rope with a leg drop for a near fall on Moxley.
“That was super close there,” said Taz.
Dax superplexed Moxley while Cash went for a splash off the top rope, but Moxley countered by raising his knees into Cash’s ribs. With three minutes remaining, Claudio whipped Dax around the ring with the Giant Swing! Moxley dropkicked Dax in the head and covered him, but Dax kicked out at the two-count!
Moxley battered Dax with the hammer and anvil elbows and then applied a rear naked choke. Cash crawled back into the ring to try to break up the bulldog choke, but Claudio grabbed Cash and applied a rear naked choke on Cash. There were two minutes remaining.
“Dueling submissions,” said Taz.
Cash powered himself and Claudio up, getting to his feet, and then fell backwards on top of Moxley.
“Cash, out of sheer desperation, dropping his body weight and Claudio’s onto the pile to force Moxley to break his grip,” said Excalibur.
“Now that’s what you call multitasking. Good job by Cash,” replied Taz.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Dax took Moxley off his feet and applied the sharpshooter. Claudio tried to boot Dax in the head, but Cash ran interference and German suplexed Claudio. Justin Roberts announced there was one minute remaining.
Claudio wrapped up Cash in a sharpshooter, turned around and began to trade strikes with Dax, who had Moxley in a sharpshooter! Claudio and Dax relinquished their holds and began exchanging shots in the center of the ring! Dax spiked Claudio with a piledriver! Mox was there to cradle Dax with a crucifix, but Dax kicked out at two! Moxley went back to a rear naked choke on Dax, but Dax escaped. As Mox was looking for the King Kong lariat, FTR tried to counter with the Shatter Machine! As Cash lifted up Mox for his portion of the tandem finishing maneuver, time ran out and the bell rang!
The time limit expired, and the bout was declared a draw by Justin Roberts.
“I think if they had 10 more seconds, I think FTR lands that Shatter Machine and maybe wins the match,” said Excalibur.
“I agree, they were in the midst of a Shatter Machine, and the bell sounded, which stopped it,” replied Tony Schiavone.
Both teams began to brawl until security and wrestlers from the locker room sprinted out to separate them!
Renee Paquette was backstage to interview AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy!
Renee wondered how Orange was doing after all of his matches these past few weeks, and if he was medically cleared to wrestle. Orange replied, “Well, that’s why Doc Sampson is standing here in the hallway. He’s going to let me know.” Doc Sampson said that Orange was cleared, barely, to compete.
Orange: “If I’m cleared, I’m gonna wrestle.”
Orange said he was taking Trent’s place tonight.
Alex Marvez was backstage to interview FTR!
Dax: “We came here to kick BCC’s ass, because they think they run this place. We don’t bow down to nobody. Revolution is coming up, we don’t have a match, they don’t have a match so what I say is—”
The Blackpool Combat Club interrupted the interview, and both teams were separated by AEW security and officials once again!
AEW International Champion “Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy vs. ROH World Tag Champion Mike Bennett!
Orange charged at the Undisputed Kingdom as they were making their entrance and clobbered Taven with an Orange Punch! Cassidy stomped on Bennett in the corner. The ref pulled Orange back and Bennett seized the opportunity to hit Orange with a suplex.
Orange rallied back with a Stun Dog Millionaire and then he landed a DDT on Bennett. Roderick Strong ran down to the ring and jumped on the apron. The ref had to keep Roderick back and prevent him from entering the ring. As the ref was dealing with Roddy, Mike Bennett nailed Orange with a blatant low blow!
Bennett rocked Orange with a piledriver for a near fall. Bennett got overconfident and grabbed Tony Schiavone’s headset and began to insult Orange over the headset. When Bennett put the headset down on the announcers’ desk, Orange flew out of the ring with a tope!
“Bennett took his eyes off his opponent for a moment and paid the price,” said Excalibur.
Bennett fired back with a Death Valley Driver on Orange on the arena floor! Somehow Orange managed to clock Bennett with an Orange Punch!
“This guy is a machine!” said Taz.
Mike Bennett regained momentum with a Gotch style piledriver on Cassidy. Bennett hit two rolling elbow strikes on Orange. Bennett was looking for another piledriver, but Orange countered with the Beach Break out of nowhere and pinned Bennett!
Matt Taven jumped in the ring after the match and stomped Orange. Roderick Strong returned and was about to double team Orange when Jake Hager ran down to the ring! Hager cleaned house of the Undisputed Kingdom, coming to the aid of Orange Cassidy!
Tony Khan informed Excalibur over the headset that this Friday on Rampage it’ll be Roderick Strong versus Jake Hager!
Renee Paquette was backstage to interview Angelo Parker about his big date out tonight with Ruby Soho!
Ruby walked up to them smiling and told Renee she’d tell her all about it Friday night. Angelo offered his arm to Ruby and asked if she was ready to go. A white SUV pulled up and Ruby asked if that was their ride. Angelo said, “No, we’ve got a Lyft.” They walked away and “Nature Boy” Ric Flair exited the SUV!
Renee Paquette interviewed “Nature Boy” Ric Flair about Sting’s upcoming retirement match at Revolution!
Flair: “I’m disappointed. When I signed up for this, I thought I’d be a bigger part of the picture. I’m not upset with Sting, I’m just upset that I’m not more involved. I feel like I should be right in the middle of things, and I haven’t been. So, between you and me, I’m just going to explore some options. I’m not trying to put you in the middle, I’m just telling you the truth.”
Ric Flair walked away and knocked on a nearby dressing room door. The Young Bucks opened the door. Matthew Jackson asked Ric what he wanted. Ric asked if they had time. “Let’s talk,” replied Matthew, inviting Flair in.
Tony Schiavone was in the ring to interview Daniel Garcia!
Tony said that after what happened to the “Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland last week, Copeland is on the shelf and unable to compete. Tony said that at AEW Revolution, Daniel Garcia will get his shot at the TNT Championship against Christian Cage!
The fans chanted “You deserve it! You deserve it!”
Garcia: “A lot of the time I feel like I don’t deserve it, so thank you for saying that. I always felt like in this business I was destined for great things, but a couple months ago when I was at the lowest point of my life, I started to lose that confidence. I started to lose that feeling, I really did. But I knew that going through all that, three seconds is all I needed. And at the end of the Continental Classic, I got those three seconds. Those three seconds changed my life.
“Every single time I got down, y’all picked me back up. Every time I danced, y’all danced with me. And I can’t thank you enough for helping me restore that feeling. And Adam Copeland, no one knows how that match would have ended last week, but I have full confidence that if that match went on any longer, I would have made you tap out.
“It’s not over between you and me. But the next time you see me I will be holding the TNT title! And that brings me to Revolution. Christian Cage, I have a message for you. When you step in the ring with me, I am going to take you down—”
TNT Champion Christian Cage walked onto the ramp with the Patriarchy—Nick Wayne, Killswitch, and Mother Wayne!
Christian Cage: “Adam Copeland will not have another chance at my TNT Championship ever! Do you understand me? Daniel, what happened to you last week was just a by-product of you standing in the ring with Adam Copeland, but it worked out pretty well for you because now you’re the number one contender for my TNT Championship at Revolution.
“You’ve been on a hell of a run lately, but I have to say, as much as I’d love to step in the ring with you, I really don’t think it should happen at Revolution. And it’s not that I don’t think you’re worthy, it’s that I don’t think you’re ready. You just want to make these people smile and be entertained with your dance moves. I just want to leave the arena every night as the most dominant TNT Champion of all time.
“We both know why you’re the way you are, don’t we Daniel. I know something that these people don’t know. That you had a pretty dark childhood, didn’t you, Daniel? You didn’t have so many happy memories, did you? Do you know a Jackie Garcia that lives in Buffalo, NY? And can you confirm to me that Jackie was married to David Garcia And I understand that David Garcia is your father. And your father is dead.
“Now wouldn’t it be a beautiful fairy tale ending for you to walk into Revolution with my TNT Championship, raise it above your head in memory of your late, great father, but let’s be honest, your father wasn’t so great, was he? He was a loser that lost his life to the bottle. And unlike him, I don’t want to hurt you, I want to help you. At Revolution, I don’t want to be your opponent, I want to be your father.”
Garcia: “Since you know so much about my dead father, why don’t you come to the ring, and I’ll put you in the ground right next to him!”
Christian Cage sent Nick Wayne to do his dirty work! Nick Wayne charged right at Garcia! Daniel Garcia side stepped Wayne and put him in the sharpshooter! Killswitch came down to the ring next! “Daddy Magic” Matt Menard, out of nowhere, smacked Killswitch in the back with a steel chair!
“This backfired on Christian Cage,” said Taz.
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm (with Mariah May & Luther)
vs. Sydni Winnell!
Toni stormed Sydni and stomped her in the corner. Toni grounded and pounded Sydni. Toni splashed Sydni and then clobbered her with a running bulldog. Toni hit the hip attack and then planted Sydni with the Storm Zero! Toni locked in the Break a Leg submission and then released it. Toni opted instead for the Venus De Milo and won via submission!
“The Virtuosa” Deonna Purrazzo vs. Madison Rayne!
Deonna took down Rayne with a snap mare. Deonna wiped out Rayne with a pump kick. Deonna smashed Madison with a knee strike to the face. Madison rolled up Deonna, but Deonna kicked out at the one-count. Deonna applied Toni Storm’s Break a Leg and forced Madison to tap out, sending a message to the AEW Women’s World Champion! After the match Toni ran into the ring and tried to whack Deonna with a shoe! Deonna ducked it and countered with a pump kick! Deonna swung at Mariah May but Mariah May backed up. Toni grabbed Deonna from behind and locked in the Break a Leg on Deonna!
AEW World Tag Team Champions had an important message for the Young Bucks—Mathew and Nicholas Jackson!
Darby: “When you’re this close to the end, you look back at life and it really puts things in perspective. The fame, the spotlight, the material things that we chase that don’t mean a thing. We were looking at some old photos today. Sting, is it okay if we show them to the Young Bucks?”
Sting: “Yeah.”
Darby showed a picture of Sting with Sting’s sons when they were children. Darby said when the photo was taken, Sting’s sons were about the same age as the Bucks’ kids are now. “This is this man’s flesh and blood. This is the only thing in life that matters in the end. It’s family,” said Darby.
Sting: “You hit the nail on the head, Darby. Family is all that matters. It strikes a nerve right now because in all my years as a pro wrestler, no one has ever messed with my own flesh and blood until you, Bucks. Lots going on in my own personal life in the last couple of weeks. The Bucks attacked my sons, and only seven days ago, my own father passed away. He was like a hero to me. He taught me right. Makes me think a lot about my own mortality. I used to think I was so invincible. Sometimes I do feel that way still, but time catches up to everyone, and it caught me for sure. I know I am truly not invincible. But one thing I do know. Everything I have left in me, I’m bringing to Revolution. You have a fight on your hands, Bucks, the fight of your life.”
Tony Schiavone interviewed Wardlow in the ring!
Wardlow: “Get out of my ring before I knock you down again! I’m pissed! I’ve been pissed off for a long time! Two years ago, I had thousands and thousands of people chanting my name, city after city in a manner that hasn’t been heard or seen in decades. I was the next big thing, but apparently the rocket that was strapped to my back was put upside down, because ever since, I have been driven into the ground and screwed over and over again.
“You would think the one true homegrown day one original AEW megastar would have been the champion a long time ago. But I’ve never received an opportunity for the AEW World title and people back there need to be fired and thrown in jail for that fact.
“But let’s look at some of the people who have held it. There’s kings, there’s gods, so what does that make me? Because the best in the world, the real heavyweight champion? I beat his ass like nobody has in his entire career. His body is still falling apart from me. Which brings me to our former champ, the guy who’s better than us and we know it. I squashed him like an insect. Which brings me to the most dangerous man in the room. Our king, the current champ, Samoa Joe. Can somebody remind me when he and I were in the ring? Oh yeah, that’s right, I choked his ass out and I beat him too!
“So again, I ask, what does that make me? Because it sounds like I’m the best in the world. It sounds like I’m better than you and you know it. It sounds like I’m the most dangerous man in the room. I am the uncrowned king of AEW and it is time that I start eating like one, because I have been starving! And I am done begin fed scraps! I am everything a World champion is supposed to be! And there is no one back there bigger, faster, or stronger than me! There’s no one that can stop me! And if anybody wants to get in my way, just know this is no longer wrestling. This is war!”
The Bang Bang Scissor Gang were backstage!
“Switchblade” Jay White suggested that on the next Collision, he, along with Colten and Billy team up as the Collision Cowboys representing the Bang Bang Scissor Gang. Bowens said it didn’t matter about the combo, the Bang Bang Scissor Gang ruled the world.
Excalibur announced that Will Ospreay will be on Dynamite next Wednesday night!
Tony Khan informed Excalibur that Wardlow will be competing in “Meat Madness” at Revolution!
Renee Paquette was backstage with the Don Callis Family!
Renee asked Don how Will Ospreay against Takeshita at Revolution will benefit the Don Callis Family. Callis said because win or lose, the two best rope to rope wrestlers will still be a part of the Don Callis Family. Callis said he was on his way to the UK in a private jet to pick up Ospreay. Callis said that Powerhouse Hobbs was going to do damage in “Meat Madness” at Revolution. Don said that the Don Callis Family and Sammy Guevara had a score to settle at Rampage!
Main Event! Trios Match!
AEW World Champion Samoa Joe, “The Machine” Brian Cage, & Swerve Strickland
vs.
FTW Champion HOOK, “Hangman” Adam Page, & Rob Van Dam!
Samoa Joe and Hook started the match for their respective teams. They locked horns and Joe planted Hook. Hook ran off the ropes and hit Joe with a forearm, taking Joe off his feet. Samoa Joe battered Hook in the corner.
Brian Cage tagged in and isolated Hook in the corner with chops. Hook escaped and tagged RVD. Van Dam was looking for a monkey flip, but Cage rammed RVD into the turnbuckles. Swerve grabbed a tag and ate a kick from Rob Van Dam. RVD used his powerful legs to monkey flip Swerve.
Hangman tagged himself in and had a stare down with Swerve. They began to brawl and Hook and Cage had to peel their partners away. Samoa Joe tagged in and bulldozed Hook in the corner with strikes. Cage entered and rocked Hook with a delayed vertical suplex.
Hook stunned Cage with a DDT. RVD tagged in and cleaned house with his educated feet! RVD crushed Swerve with the Rolling Thunder! Rob Van Dam smashed Cage with the 5-star frog splash. Samoa Joe ran in to break up the pin attempt!
Samoa Joe splashed Rob Van Dam in the corner. Samoa Joe rocked RVD with jabs. Joe headbutted RVD. Rob Van Dam took Samoa Joe off his feet with a springboard kick! Hangman tagged in and dished out a lariat to the back of Swerve’s head. Hangman reversed a power bomb from Cage with a hurracanrana! Hangman jumped off the top rope with a diving cross body press, but Brian Cage caught him! Hangman slipped free and drilled Cage with a Death Valley Driver for a near fall!
Samoa Joe jumped in and booted Page. Hook entered the fray and blasted Samoa Joe with a lariat. Swerve grabbed Hook and planted him with a brain buster! RVD jumped off the top rope and nailed Swerve with a kick. Cage connected with a pump handle power bomb on RVD! Page was looking to hit Cage with the Buckshot Lariat, but he spotted Swerve on the floor. Rather than go for the win, Page climbed to the top rope. Cage climbed up to superplex Page, but Hook got up behind Cage and German suplexed Cage!
Hook locked Cage in the RedRum but Cage tagged Samoa Joe. Swerve grabbed Hook but Hook put Swerve in RedRum. Swerve escaped. Cage power bombed Hook! Swerve rocked Hook with the House Call kick! Swerve ducked the Buckshot Lariat from Page, but Page ended up walloping Cage with it!
Samoa Joe, Hangman Page, and Swerve Strickland met in the ring and glared at each other. Samoa Joe booted Page in the jaw. Samoa Joe followed up with a tope to Hangman, driving Hangman into the announcers’ desk. Swerve was on the apron and went to kick Page, but Page ducked, and Swerve inadvertently connected with Samoa Joe! Hangman Page grabbed Swerve off the apron and power bombed him through the announcers’ desk! Back in the ring, Samoa Joe ducked the Buckshot Lariat and countered with a powerslam to Hangman for a near fall! Samoa Joe tried for a Muscle Buster on Page but Page broke free! RVD jumped back into the ring, but Samoa Joe swarmed him in the corner. Hook snuck up behind Samoa Joe and sent him for a ride with a T-bone suplex! RVD headed to the top, looking for the 5-star Frog Splash, but Cage shoved RVD off the top! Cage wiped out Hook with a discus lariat! Samoa Joe locked in a rear naked choke and won for his team via ref stoppage!
“Wow, what a prelude to Revolution one week from Sunday,” said Tony Schiavone.
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 Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield, MO featuring:
-Thunder Rosa in action!
-Serena Deeb in competition!
– “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson vs. Jun Akiyama!
& Much, much more!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Propst Arena at Von Braun Center in Huntsville, AL!
This Wednesday night, for the very first time, AEW brings DYNAMITE to Tulsa, OK and the BOK Center! With REVOLUTION 2024 eleven days away, every fights matters as we barrel towards the Greensboro Coliseum, and do we have some serious bouts set for AEW’s flagship! Representing The Blackpool Combat Club, Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli will go to battle with Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler of FTR! Plus AEW World Champion Samoa Joe forms an uneasy alliance with Swerve Strickland, one of the men he will fight on March 3rd, as well as “The Machine” Brian Cage, to take on the other challenger for REVOLUTION 2024 “Hangman” Adam Page, and his partners FTW Champion HOOK and the legendary Rob Van Dam! In addition, we will see both AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm as well as her pay-per-view opponent Deonna Purrazzo compete, and so much more!!!
DYNAMITE begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans; just make a point to drop 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, COLLISION, as well as the latest CONTROL CENTER! Then join us this Saturday night in Springfield, MO for an brand-new COLLISION where Bryan Danielson will battle Jun Akiyama, and we will see both Thunder Rosa and Serena Deeb in action!
A FIGHT…
Blackpool Combat Club (Claudio Castagnoli & Jon Moxley) vs. FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood)
DYNAMITE February 9, 2022; Jon Moxley scores a tag team victory over FTR
RAMPAGE, September 9, 2022; Claudio Castagnoli defeats Dax Harwood in a ROH World Championship match
FINAL BATTLE 2023, December 15, 2023; FTR and Mark Briscoe defeat The BCC of Claudio, Jon Moxley, and Bryan Danielson in a nearly 30 minute fight that AEW/ROH GM Tony Khan had to make a Fight Without Honor
DYNAMITE, February 14, 2024: Jon Moxley defeats Dax Harwood
Suffice to say that the bell-to-bell history between these to members of The Blackpool Combat Club and FTR tilts in favor of The BCC, but this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE will mark the very first time Moxley and Castagnoli have faced Cash and Dax in tag team competition. FTR is world-renowned for their prowess as tag team competitors, their 10 reigns with 7 different championships are testament to that, not to mention the fact they held the AAA, IWGP, and ROH World Tag Title simultaneously for six months. This BCC combination, while 10-1 in tag team competition and ranked #2 as of the 2/10/24, does not have that pedigree together, though there is plenty of tag team experience in each individuals back catalog.
Claudio, alongside Chris Hero, holds status as the 2nd longest reigning World Tag Team Champions in Ring of Honor history, while his resume boasts a total of 19 reigns as a tag champion across his career and Moxley carries nine different tag team championship reigns across his time spent in professional wrestling. That is certainly a great deal of experience in the tag ranks, but unlike FTR, none of that championship experience came together, in fact Claudio and Mox had very little experience working as a duo prior to Castagnoli’s entry into The BCC.
That being said, Moxley and Claudio are two of the best individual combatants on the planet today, so pooling their forces does make for quite the formidable team, and that kind of skill does help compensate for their lack of experience in tag team competition. Big Bill and Ricky Starks proved, at FTR’s expense actually, that a lack of experience working together doesn’t automatically put a team at a disadvantage. Those two barely knew each other’s names yet brought an end to Cash and Dax’s second reign as champions, and performed quite impressively as a tandem during their reign atop the division.
So don’t discount The BCC duo because of that advantage FTR holds over them, in fact the one thing that may work against Moxley and Claudio this time around is the one thing that usually gives them an edge over their foes. Their capacity for violence, their willingness to use Cash and Dax to send a message to everyone else in professional wrestling, that may be the thing that comes back and bites them in the end. Now Claudio and Moxley are dealing with two very angry men who want nothing more than to choke out The BCC and do them the way FTR got done. Cash and Dax are out for blood with designs on leaving The Blackpool Combat Club laying in a pool of their own Wednesday night.
PREPARATIONS..
Deonna Purrazzo vs. ???
AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm vs. ????
As these two women, former friends once as close as sisters, prepare for their impending AEW Women’s World Championship match at REVOLUTION 2024, each will be in combat this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE. This has been an interesting back-and-forth between Toni Storm and Deonna Purrazzo ever since “The Virtuosa” questioned Storm’s abilities as she’s spun out into this “Timeless” persona. It seems to have become something of a driving force for Storm, proving she is still as good bell-to-bell as the version of Toni Storm that Purrazzo has challenged to actually come out and play on Sunday night March 3rd. Storm fought Red Velvet and Queen Aminata just three days apart from one another after having refrained from in-ring combat for nearly 40 days following her victory over Riho at WORLDS END, and made it a point to create “Wet Ink” in order to show Deonna just how over their past relationship she is.
Deonna’s response, embedded above, was quite succinct, with her in-ring record also speaking volumes with victories over Taya Valkyrie, Red Velvet, Kiera Hogan, and Anna Jay, putting “The Virtuosa” at the number one position in two consecutive rankings. This Wednesday, as they did on the 2/10 COLLISION, it looks the two women will play “can you top this” once again as each will be in singles competition on DYNAMITE! With their championship fight a little over a week away, neither woman can afford to lose a bout, not just because of how it could affect the rankings, but also because of the psychological ramifications of fumbling the ball so close to the end zone…
TRIOS COMBAT…
AEW World Champion Samoa Joe, Brian Cage, & Swerve Strickland vs. FTW Champion HOOK, Adam Page, & Rob Van Dam
Some people could look at the situation before Samoa Joe and assume he’s a man behind the proverbial eight ball; those people clearly don’t know the AEW World Champion all that well. He is a man who smashed his way through every competitor Ring of Honor through at him during his 645 day reign as World Champion between March 2003 and December 2004. He is a man who took the label of longest reigning ROH World TV Champion from Jay Lethal, and carried it for 574 days, only relinquishing the championship to focus his pursuits on the AEW World Title now resting on his shoulder. Keep that mind: no one beat Samoa Joe, he willing turned over that championship to replace it with another. The odds don’t matter to Joe, be it one challenger or two, he should never be the one considered behind the eight ball or the underdog in the situation, Joe is always the man running the table, and should always be considered the odds-on favorite.
Even in this awkward situation where he’s paired with one of his challengers, as well as his challenger’s ally, Joe should be considered in control of the situation. It doesn’t matter that his other REVOLUTION 2024 is on the opposing team, or that Hangman has found two familiar faces as his partners. FTW Champion HOOK may have given Joe a good fight a few weeks ago, and completely bewildered the wrestling world when he kicked from a Muscle Buster just after the one count, but the bottom line is he still lost decisively. As for Rob Van Dam, it’s been over 11 years since he and Joe last faced one-on-one, and that October 2012 night Joe beat RVD, then in their final meeting a few months later, a tag team affair with Chris Daniels as his partner, Joe was again victorious.
Suffice to say Samoa Joe has every reason to be confident about this fight, and can rest assured that his partners, or at least one of them, has designs on something other than the championship Joe carries:
With that in mind, knowing Brian Cage is intent on neutralizing HOOK from this situation, Joe can focus on the other two men standing across the ring from him, and hopefully not have to worry about Swerve taking advantage of the situation to get a leg up on Joe before the title fight. Perhaps Hangman and Swerve will neutralize each other in this situation, leaving Joe with only one man to worry about in Rob Van Dam. There are a lot of variables at play here, ones that affect both this trios affair, as well as the AEW World Championship bout scheduled for REVOLUTION 2024, and the outcome of this fight is going to make quite the interesting fuel to the fire that is burning around Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland, and “Hangman” Adam Page!
REVOLUTION 2024 is less than two weeks out and that means every moment counts on the road to Greensboro, NC! This Wednesday marks another stop on that journey as AEW comes to Tulsa and the BOK Center for the first time! We’ve got The BCC in action versus FTR, a huge Trios match involving the AEW World Champion and his two REVOLUTION ’24 challengers, both the AEW Women’s World Champion and her PPV challenger in action, as well as a great deal more!!!
DYNAMITE gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, for highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, as well as the newest CONTROL CENTER! Then join us in Springfield, MO on Saturday for an all-new COLLISION featuring Bryan Danielson versus Jun Akiyama, as well as Thunder Rosa and Serena Deeb in action!
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE was broadcast from the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, TX!
Your broadcast team was Excalibur, “Daddy Magic” Matt Menard and Tony Schiavone.
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
This…is…Rampage!
No Disqualification Match!
Jeff Hardy (with Matt Hardy) vs. Sammy Guevara!
Jeff taunted Sammy, slapping him in the face. Sammy fired back with a slap of his own, refusing to back down.
“We’ve seen Jeff’s behavior change the past few weeks,” said Excalibur.
Jeff Hardy pulled a ladder out from beneath the ring, but Sammy dropkicked it into Jeff’s face! Jeff whipped Sammy into the guardrail. Jeff flew off the apron and wiped out Sammy on the floor!
Sammy connected with a knee strike on the apron. Sammy nailed Jeff with a thrust kick. Sammy followed up with a foot stomp on the apron! Jeff lunged at Sammy with a dropkick. Jeff moved the steel ring steps. Jeff charged, launched off the ring steps, and crushed Sammy against the barricade.
Jeff threw a steel chair at Sammy’s head. Jeff began to climb the ladder in the middle of the ring. Sammy met Jeff on the opposite side of the ladder. The two exchanged blows, perched on the ladder. Jeff stunned Sammy with a Twist of Fate off the ladder for a near fall!
Matt Hardy set up another table at ringside, along with a massive ladder. Jeff propped up Sammy on the table. Jeff began to climb the ladder, but Sammy got up and clubbed Jeff, preventing Jeff from ascending any higher. Sammy put Jeff’s head between a steel chair and then blasted Jeff with a cutter off the ropes! Sammy placed Jeff on the table at ringside. Sammy climbed the ladder all the way to the top! Sammy crashed down onto Jeff with a senton from the top of the massive ladder!
Sammy hit a shooting star press on Jeff Hardy. Jeff countered by raising his knees into Sammy’s ribcage, but Sammy’s knee smacked into Jeff’s face on the landing! Sammy reversed a Twist of Fate and scored the pin fall victory after the GTH!
Powerhouse Hobbs jumped in the ring after the match, ambushing Sammy from behind with a spinebuster! Don Callis was clapping on from ringside. Powerhouse Hobbs squashed Sammy with the World’s Most Dangerous Slam!
Renee Paquette was backstage with “The Machine” Brian Cage and Prince Nana, talking with him ahead of his huge match next Wednesday on Dynamite when he teams with Swerve Strickland and AEW World Champion Samoa Joe to take on FTW Champ HOOK, Rob Van Dam, and “Hangman” Adam Page!
Cage: “I got something to say. It doesn’t matter who are partners are. Hook, I’m going to be real with you. You don’t belong here. You come in here as some fad flavor of the month. And the fact that I go out there and they cheer you, it pisses me off. This is what I love. This is what I want to do. Everyone cheering for you when they should be cheering for me. I’m what a real wrestler looks like. I’m sick of taking a back seat to you. Next Wednesday you’re getting your ass beat!”
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli were backstage!
Moxley: “You know what they say: you can’t fix stupid, but you can choke it. FTR—they are the standard bearer, they are the benchmark of great tag team wrestling. You don’t think we know tag team wrestling? You don’t think we are every bit the artists when it comes to tag team wrestling that you are?
Claudio: “We don’t walk around calling ourselves Top Guys. We don’t have to. We get results. We don’t play this. We are this.”
Renee Paquette interviewed Ruby Soho backstage!
Renee asked what she was expecting tonight now that Angelo Parker requested some time with her. Before Ruby could answer, Saraya and Harley Cameron walked onto the set.
Saraya: “I forgive you by the way.
Harley: “You know what? I forgive you too.”
Ruby: “You forgive me? Here’s the thing. I’m not sorry. I’ve known this whole time, every bad thing that has happened to me lately, you’ve been behind. I’m hoping maybe it was because you were doing what you thought was best for me. But I’m a grown woman. I know what’s best for me. And what’s best for me is space. Especially from you.”
Ruby walked off.
Saraya: “It’s time to really end that.”
Dustin Rhodes & The Von Erichs—Ross & Marshall
vs. Hitt, Shimbashi, & Romero Crews!
Dustin locked up with Hitt. Dustin nailed Hitt with a stiff strike. Ross tagged in and landed a dropkick on Hitt. Dustin came in and destroyed Crews with the Cross Rhodes. Ross and Marshall locked on the claws on Shimbashi and Hitt and Dustin finished Crews with the Final Reckoning for the pin!
Renee Paquette was backstage with AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm, Luther the Butler, and Mariah May!
Toni put Mariah in an arm bar! Toni: “Is this what you want Deonna No body likes a drama queen Deonna, so piss off!”
Anna Jay vs. Queen Aminata!
Aminata took down Anna with a side headlock. Anna Jay walloped Queen with a backstabber for a near fall. They traded chops but Queen Aminata wiped out Anna with a snap suplex. She followed up with a running PK to Anna Jay!
Anna Jay dodged a hip attack. Aminata avoided a kick and then annihilated Anna Jay with a boot slide for a two-count! Aminata countered the Queen Slayer with a jaw breaker! Queen Aminata headbutted Anna Jay in the abdomen as Anna Jay charged in. Queen Aminata scored the pin on Anna Jay!
Renee Paquette was backstage with Stokely Hathaway, Kris Statlander, and Willow Nightingale!
Renee asked Willow if she was happy with her victory over Skye Blue. Willow freaked out and questioned Stokely’s involvement in the match.
Kris: “This might have been my fault. We should have had a team meeting. I’ll make sure this won’t happen again. We’ll try this one more time.”
Willow: “Okay, Stokely, you’re going to shake on it?
Kris forced Stokely to shake Willow’s hand. “So, we’re all good here, right?” Kris asked.
Willow and Stokely nodded yes.
Next Renee Paquette interviewed Ruby Soho and “Cool Hand” Angelo Parker!
Angelo: “I know this is kind of a weird place, but I wanted to start off by saying Happy Valentine’s Day. Ruby, you have me feeling things that I don’t even know how to wrap my head around. I slipped you a note because I thought I lost you after what happened a few weeks ago with Harley, and you smashed the cake in my face. It was the only way I could get to you. Then I saw what you did last week on Rampage with Saraya, so I’m just going to go for broke and…”
Ruby: “Do you want to have a drink with me? I can’t tonight because I have a red eye. But how about next week?”
Angelo: “Yeah, yeah.”
Ruby: “Pick me up next Wednesday night, Cool Hand.”
The Bang Bang Scissor Gang—AEW World Trios Champs Daddy Ass & The Acclaimed—Anthony Bowens & Max Caster and ROH World Six-Man Champions Bullet Club Gold—Jay White & Austin & Colten Gunn
vs.
Jay Lethal, Jeff Jarrett, Satnam Singh, and Dark Order—Alex Reynolds & John Silver!
Lethal and White locked up first. Lethal used a side headlock takeover. Jeff Jarrett hit Jay White in the back with a knee when White ran into the ropes. Evil Uno tagged in, and Jay White served up stiff chops to Uno’s chest.
Colten grabbed a tag and splashed Evil Uno in the corner. Colten followed up with a dropkick. Caster held Evil Uno while Bowens nailed Evil Uno with the Scissor Me Timbers! Satnam Singh tagged in and hurled Austin Gunn across the ring!
Daddy Ass tagged in and cleaned house on the opposition! Billy bashed Reynolds with the Fame-Asser! Silver hit a flurry of offense on Bowens. Satnam tried for a double choke slam on the Acclaimed, but Colten launched off Austin and drilled Satnam with a flying forearm. Colten blasted Lethal with the Colt .45! Jeff Jarrett jumped in and stunned Colten with the Stroke!
Jay White entered the fray and walloped Jeff Jarrett with the Blade Runner! Alex Reynolds shoved Daddy Ass into Jay White and then rolled up Daddy Ass for a near fall. Daddy and Austin rocked Reynolds with the 3:10 to Yuma and then Daddy Ass scored the pin!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK!
This Friday RAMPAGE comes your way from the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, TX, beginning this week at a special start time of 7pm ET/6pm CT on TNT, and is staked up with a quartet of tremendous match-ups! REVOLUTION 2024 is coming on fast and with that in mind, the wrestlers of AEW are fighting to earn their way onto that pay-per-view extravaganza! Jeff Hardy meets Sammy Guevara for the first time with the fight contested as a No Disqualification match, Queen Aminata goes head-to-head with Anna Jay, The Bang Bang Scissor Gang will be in action for the first-time as an six-man entity, and Dustin Rhodes welcomes Marshall and Ross Von Erich back to AEW for a Trios bout!
Before the night gets underway, drop in on the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, to catch up on highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
NO DISQUALIFICATION…
Jeff Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara
All is not right in the world of The Hardys; part of it is the downward slide both Matt and Jeff have been on that began in 2023, and part of it is how they’ve responded to these losing efforts; that is to say poorly. Moxley, Darby, and Swerve all witnessed Jeff’s poor responses first-hand, but perhaps that will finally turn around for the death-defying veteran this Friday night on RAMPAGE when he faces Sammy Guevara for the very first time!
Now brother Matt and Sammy have plenty of history here in All Elite Wrestling, history that nearly ended the careers of both men at various times, so if there’s anyone to give Jeff Hardy advice on how to take this fight, it is most certainly his brother. Then there is the x-factor of this match, the stipulation that could sway it in either man’s favor, the fact that this is a No Disqualification contest where everything is legal!
This is a situation where we have seen Jeff Hardy thrive for years, the world of tables and ladders and chairs and the assorted weaponry stashed under the ring, but the AEW faithful have also witnessed Sammy Guevara commit spectacular acts when ladders are involved, when chairs are in the mix, and when tables are set-up to be destroyed. This first-time fight between Jeff Hardy and “The Spanish God” will be a sight to witness this Friday night on RAMPAGE, but what version of Jeff will we see if the bout doesn’t go his way?
ONE-ON-ONE…
Anna Jay vs. Queen Aminata
It’s been said before and repeated ad nauseam; Queen Aminata has been one of the most impressive women in All Elite Wrestling through these first six weeks of 2024. Her fights with Mariah May, Thunder Rosa, Serena Deeb, and Toni Storm have been superb, hard-hitting fights that demonstrated Aminata’s willingness to throw down against the best AEW has to offer without backing down.
Unfortunately, as impressive as the young woman has looked in each of those bouts, she has not scored a single victory in those bouts, and looking good in defeat is only going to get one so far. Yet Aminata perseveres, and continues to take enter the ring show-after-show, including this Friday night on RAMPAGE where she takes on the ever-improving Anna Jay!
With the drama of Ruby Soho and Angelo Parker behind her, Anna Jay is free to focus on what’s important, and that’s building her own resume up to the levels of title contention! Several weeks ago, Anna scored an impressive when over the aforementioned “Runaway”, and aims to continue building that momentum at the expense of the Queen!
THE BANG BANG SCISSOR GANG!
AEW World Trios Champions The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster) & Daddy Ass
and ROH World Six-Man Champions BULLET CLUB GOLD (Austin Gunn, Colten Gunn, & Jay White)
vs.
Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, Evil Uno, & John Silver) & Jay Lethal, Jeff Jarrett,& Satnam Singh
Well these two forces came together in the new year, and though it doesn’t seem like a good fit given the history and the combustible elements within, thus far The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass have gelled quite well with BULLET CLUB GOLD! It seems that Daddy Ass and The Gunns have mended fences over their familial issues, ones that stemmed from Billy choosing The Acclaimed over his own kids in the first place! Then, of course, there is the fact that Austin and Colten dethroned Caster and Bowens as AEW World Tag Champions just about a year ago; suffice to say there is plenty of baggage wrapped up in this union, but yet they’ve found a way to make it work outside the ring.
But what about inside the squared circle? Can these six men make it work as a unit once the bell rings and they’ve got to tag one another, sync up as partners, and actually rely on one another for assistance? We will find out this Friday night on RAMPAGE when The Bang Bang Scissor Gang unites for the very first time!
ALSO FEATURING:
-Dustin Rhodes & The Von Erichs in action!
-We will hear from Ruby Soho & Cool Hand Ang!
Austin, TX and the H-E-B Center welcome back RAMPAGE this Friday night, and we’re starting early at 7pm ET/6pm CT on TNT, and we’ve got The Bang Bang Scissor Gang in action for the first time as a six-man unit! Plus, Anna Jay faces Queen Aminata, Dustin Rhodes brings The Von Erichs back to AEW for Trios action, and Sammy Guevara faces Jeff Hardy for the first-time ever in a No Disqualification fight!!!
Before the night gets underway, drop on by the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, to catch up on highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, plus the latest CONTROL CENTER!
The Big Gold Belt Podcast is back talking the latest in pro wrestling including:-With AEW grabbing free agents, should WWE be concerned or concentrate on re-signings?-Have the women earned a WrestleMania main event over The Rock?-Darby…
The Big Gold Belt Podcast is back talking the latest in pro wrestling including: -With AEW grabbing free agents, should WWE be concerned or concentrate on re-signings? -Have the women earned a WrestleMania main event...
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, TX!
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!
FTR’s Dax Harwood vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley!
Moxley flipped off Dax, trying to get under Harwood’s skin. Moxley put his hands behind his back and invited Dax to hit him. Dax blasted Mox with stiff strikes and chops. Moxley hammered the jaw of Harwood with forearms. Moxley bit the side of Dax’s head.
Moxley applied a bulldog choke on Dax. Dax countered with a roll-up, but Mox kicked out quickly. Moxley kicked Dax with the heel of his boot, kicking upward at Harwood. Moxley whipped Dax into the barricade. Moxley catapulted Dax into the steel ring post!
Dax and Mox slugged it out back in the ring. After one last volley from each man landing flush on the jaw, they both fell to the mat. The fight moved to the top turnbuckle and Dax superplexed Moxley!
“A car crash in the center of the ring!” said Excalibur.
“Tough landing for both of them but Mox got the worst of it,” replied Taz.
Moxley changed levels, kicking Harwood in the leg and striking him in the head. Harwood dodged an arm bar attempt and countered with a sharpshooter on Moxley!
Justin Roberts announced that five minutes remained in the match.
Moxley escaped and back body drop Harwood. Dax fired back, spiking Mox with a piledriver for a near fall!
The fan chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Moxley rocked Dax with a cutter and then curb stomped him. Moxley nailed Dax with a piledriver, but Dax kicked out at the two-count! Dax countered a Paradigm Shift with a brain buster for a near fall! Justin Roberts announced there were two minutes remaining. Dax jumped off the top turnbuckle, but Mox countered with a rear naked choke and Dax tapped out!
Moxley wouldn’t release the hold! Cash Wheeler sprinted down, jumped in the ring and began to pummel Moxley. Claudio Castagnoli jumped into the ring and leveled Cash! Moxley put Dax in another sleeper while Claudio wrenched back on Cash Wheeler.
Renee Paquette was backstage with Don Callis, Takeshita, and Powerhouse Hobbs!
Callis said they’re a victim of their own success because no one wants to wrestle Takeshita or Hobbs and the Revolution pay-per-view is coming up. Callis said he looked within the family and put together a match: “The Alpha” Takeshita vs. Will Ospreay!
“The best part about this is the Don Callis Family wins and after Revolution you’ll all be talking about the Don Callis Family and the match of the decade!”
The Undisputed Kingdom’s Wardlow vs. Barrett Brown!
Adam Cole joined the commentary team for this match.
Wardlow hoisted up Brown onto the turnbuckle and then dropped Brown right into Wardlow’s own knee. Wardlow began posing and flexing, admiring himself on the big screen. Wardlow power bombed Brown and pinned him!
Footage aired from earlier in the day of EVPs the Young Bucks landing in a private jet, still wearing their white suits that were stained with the blood of Sting and Darby Allin!
“The Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland vs. Daniel Garcia!
Matt Menard joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Copeland missed a splash and Garcia rolled up Copeland for a near fall. Garcia brought Copeland down with a drop toehold. Garcia danced and stomped on both of Copeland’s knees. Garcia hammered Copeland’s head with elbows. Garcia jumped off the turnbuckles, but Copeland caught him and countered with a shoulder breaker.
Copeland baited Garcia into the corner and then wrenched on Garcia’s arm over the top rope. Garcia swept out Copeland’s legs. Garcia yanked Copeland down with a dragon screw leg whip! Garcia backed Copeland into the corner and stomped him down! Garcia connected with a running boot. Garcia worked on Copeland’s leg with another dragon screw. Garcia applied an STF on Copeland in the middle of the ring. Copeland countered into a front headlock.
Copeland met Garcia on the top turnbuckle and rocked Garcia with an avalanche Impaler! Copeland went for the spear, but Garcia kicked Copeland in the head! Garcia jackknifed Copeland for a near fall. Copeland escaped and hung on to Garcia, putting Garcia in a cross face submission!
The Patriarchy—Nick Wayne and Killswitch—jumped into the ring and began to beat down Copeland and Garcia. The match was thrown out. TNT Champion Christian Cage and Shayna Wayne walked down to the ring.
“Christian ordered that because he doesn’t want to face either of these men!” said Tony Schiavone.
Christian Cage pulled a chair from beneath the ring, but Matt Menard saw enough, got up and threated to whack Christian with his own chair! Killswitch ambushed Matt Menard from behind!
“Extinction from Killswitch! Daddy Magic never saw it coming!” said Excalibur.
Killswitch choke slammed Daniel Garcia in the ring! Nick Wayne and Killswitch set Garcia onto a chair, positioning him for a con-chair-to. Adam Copeland jumped into the ring with a chair of his own and cleaned house on the Patriarchy! Christian Cage and Adam Copeland swung their chairs at one another, but Christian dropped his chair upon impact! Christian Cage was down in the corner, begging off Adam Copeland, when Shayna Blazer snuck up from behind and hit Copeland with a low blow!
Nick Wayne rocked Copeland with the Wayne’s World! Killswitch hit Cope in the back of the neck with the Extinction! Christian Cage blasted Copeland with a con-chair-to!
“That was just disgusting,” said Taz.
AEW World Champion Samoa Joe came to ring ahead of his 3-Way Battle at AEW Revolution on March 3rd ring with “Hangman” Adam Page & Swerve Strickland!
Samoa Joe: “My name is Samoa Joe and I stand here proudly your AEW World Champion. But tonight, I come here with the spirit of apology. When I became champion, I reenacted a ranking system to insure that only the very best victims were served up in front of me to destroy.
“Everything was going so well until last week when Hangman Adam Page and Swerve Strickland battled tooth and nail for thirty minutes to a draw. The AEW Championship Committee took a page out of the Texas playbook and made my match bigger and dumber. We reward mediocrity around here. Instead of telling these pretenders they don’t belong in a ring with me, at Revolution I find myself in a three-way match.
“Obviously a crime has been committed against me and now there must be repercussions. You send your two bright stars in the ring with me, and I guarantee I’m hurting one if not both of them. They may walk in, but I guarantee they will both limp out. Because I am Samoa Joe, I stand here the AEW World Champion, and there is nothing anything can do about that.”
Swerve Strickland’s music began to play! Swerve walked down to the ring with Prince Nana.
Swerve: “Joe, when we started this whole thing, like I said it wasn’t supposed to be personal. But as we get closer to Revolution and you run your mouth, I can’t help but feel it’s become personal. When you became World Champion, you said the new champion protocol, you show up with your reputation and you show up with your resumé. You also said hunger is what defines the great. Well, if you look at me, I’m on my way to becoming one of the greatest of all time.
“No one outhustles me. No one outworks me. And no one out grinds me. So, check my résumé. 15 years I’ve been grinding so maybe one day someone will say Swerve you’ll go down as one of the greatest. And this year I proved that. Today is that day. I’ve gone toe to toe with former world champions and some of the best legends that AEW has to offer. And the same result every time. I’m the one left standing. At Revolution, nothing changes! Except for one difference, is the fact that I will be holding that championship above my head.”
Hangman Adam Page walked down to the ring!
Page: “Hold on, hold on! First, I want to set the record straight about last week’s match—I wasn’t mad. When you’re writing your Dynamite reports, don’t say I was mad. Last week was horses—t! Because I signed a contract for a match to determine the number one contender for the World championship. And the winner of that match became the number one contender. And he couldn’t do it. Swerve had 30 minutes and he couldn’t do it.
“So, if it were up to me, Joe, at Revolution, the match would be between two men who value and respect that championship for everything it stands for. But unfortunately, I don’t make the matches and it looks like Swerve, you have been added to this match. Swerve I’m going to need to look you in the eyes and hear this. After everything that you have done to me, you don’t deserve one second of my time. You don’t deserve for me to give you five more minutes because you couldn’t get the job done. And you, Swerve, you don’t deserve to be in this championship match!”
Samoa Joe: “This walking domestic dispute ends tonight! As far as you’re both concerned, I’m Samoa Joe, and come Revolution, I’m whipping both your asses!”
Up next: AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm had the world premiere of her newest film, Wet Ink!
“What do you do when you can’t change the past? You kill it!” said Storm, as she had a dagger tattooed through the bird tattoo that she once shared with “The Virtuosa” Deonna Purrazzo!
Renee Paquette was backstage to get Deonna Purrazzo’s reaction!
Deonna: “Renee, Toni Storm talks too much. So, I’m going to keep this short and sweet. Toni, I’m going to break your arm!”
AEW EVPs Nicholas and Matthew Jackson—The Young Bucks, pulled up to the arena in a stretch limo!
The Young Bucks—Matthew & Nicholas Jackson
vs.
Top Flight—Dante & Darius Martin!
Dante used an arm drag on Nick. Matt tagged in and gave a condescending fist bump to Dante. Dante and Darius battered Matt back and forth with strikes. Top Flight tried for sliding dropkicks but the Bucks dodged them.
Back in the ring, Top Flight concentrated on the arms of Matt Jackson. Matt shut down Darius and Dante after Nick got involved with a cheap shot. Darius kicked Matt in the back of the head with a guillotine like kick.
Dante tagged in and connected with a big springboard crossbody press on Matt for a near fall! Top Flight hit stereo sunset flips on the Bucks for a near fall. Matt caught Dante with a DDT! Top Flight got back in control and Darius launched off Dante and spiked Matt with a DDT! Nick broke up the pin attempt, but Dante drove him hard into the barricade with a tope! Darius nailed Matt with a Spanish Fly for a near fall!
Nick interfered to help Matt, and Matt put his foot on the ropes for leverage while trying to pin Darius. The ref saw Matt cheating and stopped him. As the ref was admonishing Nick (and Nick was using the opportunity to distract the ref), Matt kicked Darius between the legs! The Bucks smashed Darius with the EVP Trigger and pinned him!
Tony Schiavone interviewed the Bucks after the match.
Matt said they were undefeated this year, which makes them the top unbeatable team in AEW, in his opinion. “After beating a team like that, I think it’s safe to say we’re number one contenders!”
Matt said Tony Schiavone was under breach of contract by publicly disparaging the AEW EVPs. “That’s unprofessional. That is bush league, and you know it Tony,” said Matthew.
“That’s a $1000 fine! Do you have a problem with that? You heard me!” said Nick, as he shoved Tony, knocking him to the mat.
Matthew apologized saying his brother was a bit of a hot head. They offered to help Tony up but were really putting him in position for the EVP Trigger. Darby Allin sprinted to the ring with Sting’s baseball bat and the Bucks retreated!
Darby: “Young Bucks, remind everyone what was the original mission statement of AEW! It was to change the world! You know when I was homeless and AEW first started, and I begged for a job. Yet you saw nothing in me, and I had to sit by and watch all your s—t friends get hired! And thank God at the time there was an EVP here with a sense of brains, and I’m not talking about Kenny Omega!
“You did a little interview last year why you re-signed with AEW. You said you re-signed because the travel schedule was light, the money was good, it was no longer about changing the world. The mission statement was dead. I thought this was All Elite Wrestling, but it looks like this is All Friendship Wrestling. Think about the first episode of Dynamite. Darby Allin wasn’t on it. You know who was? Brandon Cutler! What the—?
“You guys want to be Sting’s final match. I don’t think you guys understand what you guys got yourselves into. You’re talking about a man who’s got nothing left to lose. It’s showtime!”
“The match has been made for Revolution, March 3rd, Sting’s last match, when he and Darby Allin put the AEW World Tag Team titles against the line against the Young Bucks!”
Renee Paquette was backstage with the Bang Bang Scissor Gang!
Jay White: “What’s the goal for the Bang Bang Scissor Gang? We’re running smoothly. We have new merch. We still have yet to test our cohesiveness in the ring.”
Daddy Ass: “What about this Friday we have a twelve-man match on Friday?”
Anthony Bowens said it was a great idea!
Willow Nightingale (with Kris Statlander & Stokely Hathaway) vs. Skye Blue (with TBS Champion Julia Hart)!
Blue blasted Willow with a shotgun dropkick. Willow did a cartwheel and scooped up Skye and body slammed her. Willow sent Skye Blue to the outside with a pounce!
Skye Blue connected with a thrust kick, but Willow walloped Blue with a lariat! Willow used a hip attack in the corner. Willow nailed Blue with a spinebuster for a near fall! Willow avoided a kick from Blue and sent Blue spilling to the floor with a pounce!
Willow set up Skye on the top turnbuckle. Skye escaped and power bombed Willow off the top rope for a near fall! Skye rocked Willow with the Code Blue, but Stokely jumped on the apron to distract the referee! Willow clobbered Skye Blue with the Doctor Bomb and scored the pin, thanks to the big assist from Stokely!
Main Event! Texas Death Match!
AEW International Champion “Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy
vs.
ROH World Tag Champion Matt Taven!
The only way to win is by knockout or submission.
Taven chopped Orange in the corner. Taven knocked down Orange with a beautiful dropkick. Taven planted Orange with a Blue Thunder Bomb!
Cassidy whipped Taven into the guardrail. Orange baited Taven in and booted Taven in the jaw. They began to brawl into the crowd. Taven launched an elbow drop off the stage and landed on Orange who was on a table!
Taven propped up the partially broken table against the stage. Taven suplexed Orange against the table, breaking it in half! Orange’s head was busted open. Taven obliterated Orange with a running knee strike on the ramp!
Taven tossed Orange back into the ring. Taven spiked Orange with a DDT! Orange got to his feet before the 10-count. Taven pulled another table out from beneath the ring and propped it up against the broadcast booth. Cassidy jumped out at Taven with a tope!
Taven jumped off the turnbuckles and connected with a kick to Orange. Taven smashed into Orange with a dropkick. Taven ran and jumped over the top rope like a missile at Orange Cassidy, but Orange moved, and Taven went crashing through the table!
“What the hell did we just see?!” said Tony Schiavone.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Orange pulled a heart-shaped box of chocolates from under the ring. It had a tag that read: “To: OC, From Chuckie T. XOXO”. Orange opened the box, and it was filled with thumb tacks! Orange poured the thumbtacks onto the canvass. Taven shoved Orange from the turnbuckles right on top of the thumbtacks! Taven attempted to land a frog splash onto Orange, but Orange rolled out of the way and Taven landed right on top of the thumbtacks! Orange DDT’ed Taven into the thumbtacks!
Orange pulled a steel chain from beneath the ring. Mike Bennett ran down to the ring and smashed another heart-shaped box across the head of Cassidy! Bennett filled the ring with steel chairs. Trent walked down the ramp with a steel pipe! Trent swung the pipe right at Bennett’s head and it bashed into a steel chair, colliding into Bennett’s head! Taven hurled a steel chair at Trent’s head! Taven planted Trent face first into a steel chair! Orange was there, though, and drilled Taven with the Orange Punch! Orange planted Taven with a Beach Break on a chair on top of the tacks!
“There’s blood everywhere! My God!” said Schiavone.
Taven ripped at the pockets of Orange’s jeans. Orange wrapped the chain around his fist and smashed Taven with the Orange Punch! Roderick Strong ran to the ring and rocked Trent with a jumping knee strike! Trent had jumped in the way to protect Orange!
“Trent took the bullet for Orange,” said Excalibur.
Orange chucked Roddy out of the ring! Taven couldn’t get to his feet before the ref counted to 10 and Orange won via knockout!
“Orange is lucky to have a friend like Trent,” said Excalibur.
“Yes, he is. Trent took the bullet for Orange. What a Texas Death Match! That was nuts,” replied Taz.
“That’s one of the craziest we’ve ever seen,” added Tony Schiavone.
**Special programming note: This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at the special start time of 7/6c on TNT featuring:
-Queen Aminata vs. Anna Jay!
-No DQ Match: Jeff Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK!
This Wednesday night, All Elite Wrestling brings DYNAMITE back to the Austin, TX area and our home at Cedar Park’s H-E-B Center! This has been one of the prime stops on AEW’s calendar since February 2020, with the fans inside the H-E-B always among the best in the land, and that will no doubt continue this time around as AEW brings the greatest professional wrestling on the planet back to town! With each man on the hunt for the TNT Championship, Adam Copeland and Daniel Garcia will clash in singles competition, and we will also see two former friend go to battle when Skye Blue meets Willow Nightingale inside the squared circle! In addition, we will hear from AEW World Champion Samoa Joe as well as his two REVOLUTION 2024 challengers, and The Young Bucks continue their goal of ascending the tag team rankings when they renew their rivalry with Top Flight!
With REVOLUTION 2024 fast approaching, everyone wants to be part of one of the sport’s most historic nights, and they are all chasing that opportunity this Wednesday on DYNAMITE! The night begings at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com (https://www.fite.tv/join/aew-plus/) for international fans, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFN4JkGP_bVhAdBsoV9xftA/videos), as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, for highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, as well as the newest CONTROL CENTER, and more! Then, with no COLLISION this Saturday, we are back at it next Wednesday night in Tulsa, OK (https://www.allelitewrestling.com/aew-event/aew-dynamite-rampage–tulsa) for our debut at the BOK Center!
Having won all five of his matches in 2024, including four singles bouts, Adam Copeland is on the hunt for the TNT Championship, but more specifically the head of Christian Cage. As the third ranked competitor in the Men’s Singles division, “The Rated R Superstar” is right on the cusp of achieving his goal of one more match with his former tag partner and best friend. There’s only one problem blocking his path: Daniel Garcia!
See Garcia may not have the winning record of Copeland, he isn’t even in the rankings as of 2/10/24, but what he does have is momentum after winning four consecutive matches this year, including being the deciding force in the Escape The Cage match against The House of Black, topping Shane Taylor, and pinning Nick Wayne in the Trios Match against The Patriarchy. That final victory mentioned is the one spurring Garcia on towards a TNT Championship challenge, feeling that pinfall over Christian Cage’s “son” has given him reasonable justification for a championship bout.
Obviously this puts him at cross-purposes with Adam Copeland, and though Copeland respects Garcia’s ability and his gumption in wanting a TNT Championship match, he is adamant in showing Garcia he’s not on his level. Copeland’s may also be looking to use Garcia as an example for someone else looking to jump the line around the rankings. For both men, this match means a TNT Championship match at the expense of the other, and quite frankly, if Garcia wins, he should be wary of the consequences. Adam Copeland has proven throughout his career to not be the most stable of individuals when someone steps into his path, just ask Nick Wayne how his skull felt when he did it.
That being said, Copeland could also be impressed with what Garcia brings to the table if he proves victorious, and that’s not as big an “if” as it once was. Garcia is a former ROH Pure Champion, a man who holds a victory over Bryan Danielson, who learned under the tree of Chris Jericho, and now stands side-by-side with FTR. His growth since coming into AEW has been exponential, and this may be a case of perfect timing for Garcia to ascend to the next level of his career.
Will we see Adam Copeland earn his shot at vengeance, or will Garcia play spoiler to that goal and earn his own TNT Championship since January 2022?
Texas Death Match…
AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy vs. ROH World Tag Champion Matt Taven
Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong are destined to fight at REVOLUTION 2024; though the challenge was made by Roddy weeks ago, and though he deferred Cassidy’s offer to fight any time, it became official during the last week that the International Championship will be at stake on March 3rd live on pay-per-view!
Though the fight is set in stone, that hasn’t stopped the Undisputed Kingdom from trying to take away Cassidy’s support system one man at a time. They started with Chuck Taylor, a man already recovering from injury, added Rocky Romero to that list, and then attempted to take out Orange ahead of the fight this past Saturday on COLLISION. With Cassidy worn down from his fight with Ishii, Taven and Bennett assaulted the International Champ, but thankfully “The Stone Pitbull” ran them off before the onslaught could get any worse.
Well Cassidy has had enough, and he aims to return the favor this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE when he clashes with ROH World Tag Champion Matt Taven in a Texas Death Match! We’ve seen Cassidy get down right violent in the past, just look at his fights with Jon Moxley or the Stadium Stampede last year, and Taven has been in his fair share of brutal bouts, like the Fight Without Honor against Action Andretti & Darius Martin, but neither has been in Texas Death before now!
Can Matt Taven help wear Orange Cassidy down for Roddy Strong as REVOLUTION 2024 draws near? Or will the ROH World Tag Champion follow the path of so many before him and fall before the winningest competitor in AEW?
Singles Match…
Willow Nightingale vs. (#4)Skye Blue
Over the last two years, Skye Blue and Willow Nightingale have been partners in tag and trios, but more than that they have been friends with one another. In fact after Julia Hart first sprayed her black mist into the face of Skye, it was Willow who stood by her side as support while Kris Statlander questioned where Skye’s head was at. So imagine the feeling of betrayal Willow felt when Skye gave into the darkness and chose TBS Champion Julia Hart over those who’d been her supporters.
What’s rather fascinating about this dynamic is that it’s Julia and Skye who sought this fight out, but neither Stat nor Willow were going to ignore the challenge, and that’s why the original NJPW STRONG Women’s Champion laid this out for Skye Blue! Their first one-on-one encounter will go down Wednesday night as part of another stacked DYNAMITE, but there’s no doubt this is just the beginning of a new chapter in this rivalry between the TBS Champion, Skye, Statlander, and Willow!
FTR and The Blackpool Combat Club do not mess around; all it took was Jon Moxley challenging anyone to rise up to their level, telling any team that stepped up that they’d get stepped on, and out came the former 2-Time AEW World Tag Champs to answer the challenge.
Very few words were exchanged, certainly no back-and-forth duel on the microphone, all it took to push this confrontation into a pull-apart brawl was Mox pie-facing Dax Harwood. Mox is a smart man, he knew it wouldn’t take much to push the hot-tempered Harwood over the edge, and knowing Mox’s predilection for fighting, there’s little question about his intent. Security, as well as members of the locker room, came to separate the combatants, but that just made them each potential targets in the melee before the four men were removed from ringside.
Suffice to say there was no hesitation in making this first-time match for Wednesday night pitting two of AEW’s roughest against one another! Moxley and Harwood were on opposite sides of a DYNAMITE tag two years ago, and opponents for a Trios Fight Without Honor at ROH FINAL BATTLE 2023 just two months ago, but they’ve never thrown hands one-on-one before. That changes on Wednesday, and given the love of the fight each man has, neither is going to stop until the other is broken down!
Chasing the Champions…
The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) vs. (#3)Top Flight (Dante & Darius Martin)
So The Young Bucks have decided to get back to work, throwing around their EVP status, and inserting themselves into the tag team championship picture once again now that Darby Allin and Sting are atop the division. It seems pretty clear that Matthew and Nicholas want to be the ones to end Sting’s run on a sour note at REVOLUTION 2024, but in order to get into that position, they’ve stated their willing to work up the rankings into a position of contention rather than play their EVP card to just slide into an AEW World Tag Team Championship Match on March 3rd. They started their journey up the rankings on Friday night’s RAMPAGE with a victory, but are taking a giant leap up in the quality of competition with a fight against some old rivals: Top Flight!
The last time these four men fought in tag team competition was just over a year ago, January 18th of 2023 to be exact, and it actually ended in a victory of the Martin Brothers. That, in turn, led to a pair of AEW World Trios Championship challenges for Top Flight & AR Fox, though neither resulted in the titles changing hands, and thus it’s been since February 17, 2023 that they’ve fought in any capacity. Overall the brothers Jackson hold a 2-1 lead over Dante and Darius in their head-to-head bouts, but there’s just been this whole new fire under Top Flight since Dante returned from injury at the end of November. They aren’t the unseasoned team of 2020 that The Young Bucks beat in Daily’s Place, they’re not even the duo the former AEW World Tag Champions beat on RAMPAGE in 2022, they’ve grown as individuals, as well as a team, and could very well disrupt the EVP’s plans the AEW World Tag Team Championship!
A week ago Swerve Strickland and Hangman Page, with a REVOLUTION 2024 World Championship opportunity at stake, engaged in one of the most memorable clashes in DYNAMITE’s four-plus year history. After thirty minutes of a breathtaking battle, the bout was ruled a time limit draw, and while Swerve Strickland was game for five more minutes, Hangman was content with being the man who blocked Swerve from a title bout with Samoa Joe. For Page it wasn’t a matter of winning the title match for himself, but rather about stopping The Mogul Embassy’s boss from getting the pay-per-view opportunity, and to Hangman a draw meant he was successful in achieving his goal.
Unfortunately for the former World Champion, AEW President Tony Khan had other ideas and ruled that as a result of the draw, both Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland would face AEW World Champion Samoa Joe at REVOLUTION 2024 in a Three Way Title Fight! It’s been nearly three years since the last time the AEW World Title was defended in a Three Way, and this Wednesday night we will hear from all three competitors involved in this situation!
Wet Ink…
All Elite Wrestling is back at the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, TX with another awesome edition of DYNAMITE! For four years the Austin area has been a welcoming home to AEW, and this will doubtless continue this week when the AEW faithful watch The Young Bucks take on Top Flight, see Willow Nightingale clash with Skye Blue, and bear witness to Adam Copeland’s fight with Daniel Garcia! Plus, Toni Storm will premiere her latest film endeavor “Wet Ink”, and we will hear from all three men involved in the REVOLUTION 2024 World Championship match!
All that and so much more comes to you this week on DYNAMITE, just make sure to visit 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, as well as the newest edition of the CONTROL CENTER! There is no COLLISION this week, but we will be back at it next Wednesday night when All Elite Wrestling comes to Tulsa, OK and the BOK Center for the very first time!
Tonight’s AEW COLLISION was broadcast live from The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, NV!
It’s Saturday night and you know what that means! Saturday night’s alright for fighting!
Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly and Tony Schiavone were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli & Jon Moxley
vs.
CMLL’s Esfinge & Star Jr.
Moxley took down Star Jr with a side headlock. Moxley grabbed Star’s hair. Star escaped and put Mox in a submission until Claudio came in and broke up the hold with a boot to Star. Moxley swung at Star, but Star ducked it and smacked Moxley in the mush. Star and Esfinge were about to go for stereo topes, but the BCC walked away. Esfinge and Star pumped the brakes.
Claudio tagged in and hurled Esfinge with the Giant Swing! Moxley grabbed a tag but so did Star Jr. Star shoved Claudio into Moxley. Star jumped off the top rope and took down both Moxley and Claudio. Esfinge and Star jumped out of the ring with a tope and a tope con hiro onto both members of the Blackpool Combat Club.
Star tried for a springboard, but Claudio countered with a European Uppercut. Moxley whipped Esfinge into the steel guardrail. Esfinge clocked Claudio with a thrust kick and then hit a monkey flip on Moxley. Esfinge tried to apply an Indian Death Lock pinning combo on Moxley, but Claudio jumped in to break up the pin. Star wiped out Moxley with a running lariat and then followed up with a tornillo on Claudio!
Moxley nearly decapitated Esfinge with a King Kong lariat for a near fall. Moxley ate a kick and then a risking knee strike from Moxley. Claudio gorilla press slammed Star right into a cutter from Moxley!
Claudio smashed Esfinge with the Ricola Bomb! Moxley put Star in an arm submission and forced him to tap out!
Moxley: “Gracias, amigos. You take that message back to CMLL in Mexico, or anywhere else in the world, and you tell any team that if they want to step up, they get stepped on!”
FTR—Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler—came down to the ring!
FTR had a stare down with BCC! It quickly escalated and the two teams traded fists!
“It did not take long for the fisticuffs to fly here,” said Tony Schiavone.
The locker room emptied as wrestlers and security guards tried to separate the BCC and FTR and contain them!
Daniel Garcia vs. Shane Taylor Promotion’s Shane Taylor (with Lee Moriarty)!
Matt Menard accompanied Garcia and then joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Taylor was throwing haymakers, but Garcia dodged them. Taylor knocked down Garcia with a shoulder block. Garcia came back with a dragon screw leg whip on Taylor. Shane Taylor shoved Garcia out of the ring with his leg. Taylor rammed Garcia into the ring apron and then whipped Garcia into the front row guardrail.
Garcia got out of the way of Taylor’s leg drop. Garcia dropkicked Taylor in the legs and then stomped him in the corner. Taylor retaliated with a pop up powerbomb and then a nasty right hand for a near fall.
Garcia escaped a package piledriver when Taylor’s leg gave out. Garcia locked on a kneebar, and Taylor tapped!
“Five in a row on Collision for Daniel Garcia,” said Tony Schiavone.
Lexy Nair interviewed Continental Champion Eddie Kingston backstage!
Kingston: “First off, Young Bucks, what you did on Dynamite was disgusting. You stole Sting and Darby’s thunder. Just like you Bryan Danielson. When you stole the thunder from Bryan Keith. That kind finally got a contract, and you took away his moment to get under his skin. Well, you did, and now I’m going to challenge you to a match at Revolution.
“Me and you, one on one, but I’m going to add a little stipulation. At the end of this match, after I beat you, you’re going to have to shake my hand. Because I know you don’t respect me. So now after I beat you again, you have to shake my hand and act like you respect me. And I know, and I pray, that that legit eats you up inside.”
“The Machine” Brian Cage (with Prince Nana) vs. The Outrunners—Turbo Floyd & Truth Magnum!
“Chance”, the mascot of the Vegas Golden Knights, was ringside cheering on the Outrunners.
Brian Cage hit a German release suplex on Truth. He double suplexed the Outrunners. Cage stepped on the head of Turbo and Turbo submitted!
Chance did the Swerve dance with Prince Nana after the match. Brian Cage clubbed Chance from behind!
FTW Champion HOOK’s music began to play!
HOOK and Cage brawled on the ramp! The fight continued all the way to the back!
Lexy Nair was backstage with the Undisputed Kingdom and Tomohiro Ishii!
Taven: “I have a bone to pick with this goofy melvin right here. I used to be in Chaos and then one day I get knee surgery and no emails, no texts, no nothing from you Ishii!”
Roderick: “Ishii! None of that matters. The only thing that matters is if you win tonight, March 3rd at Revolution, I’m coming to beat you for the AEW International Title, and I’ve been waiting eight long years for this rematch. And I can’t wait to break you. So good luck.”
Tony Schiavone was in the ring to interview “The Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland!
Schiavone: “4-0 in the Cope Open, I want to tell you this, as far as top contenders are concerned, as we know, at Revolution Samoa Joe has the two top contenders to deal with in that three-way match. You’re number three, which means you have your pick. We have the International Championship, we have a TNT Championship. What’s going through the mind of the Rated R Superstar right now?”
Copeland: “First off, if I had been at Dynamite, that wouldn’t have happened to Sting and Darby. So, Nicholas, Matthew, that’s a warning. Now you talked about the other championships that I can challenge for. There’s Christian Cage. There’s that TNT Championship that I won and had ripped out of my hands. So, I think you know where I’m leaning.”
Daniel Garcia’s music began to play, and Garcia came down to the ring.
Garcia: “Adam it sounds to me like you think you deserve a shot at the TNT title because you’ve been getting a lot of wins. And I could not agree with you more. I believe that championship opportunities should be rewarded through wins. But you’re not the only person that’s been picking up a lot of wins. Somebody else right in front of you has been on a hot streak. And I don’t mean any disrespect, but last week when I beat the Patriarchy, I looked at Christian Cage and saw that championship, and I thought maybe, just maybe I deserve a shot at the TNT title. The thing about me is I’ll fight through that line a million times over if it means I get to hold championship gold in AEW.”
Copeland: “Okay, and I can respect that. And you didn’t beat the Patriarchy by yourself. FTR helped you. But the FTR boys speak highly of you. And that’s enough for me. I respect you. But Daniel, if you’re saying you want a shot at the TNT Championship, I want a shot at the TNT Championship, I’ve got a proposal. Wednesday, Dynamite, you and I fight each other and the last man standing fights Christian. What do you say?”
Garcia: “I accept.”
Copeland: “Now I know you had a match tonight and that’s the only reason I’m not taking your face off right now. But make no mistake about it, you’re now threatening to take food off my family’s table, and that does not work for me. So, I am going to beat your ass next week.”
Renee Paquette was backstage with Willow Nightingale, Kris Statlander, and Stokely Hathaway!
Renee said she thought the addition of Stokely was working out for them, especially after their win last night against the Outcasts.
Stokely had words for Skye Blue and Julia Hart and said that there were only two bad asses that he knows in the AEW Women’s Division, and that’s the former TBS champion Kris Statlander and the first ever New Japan Strong Women’s champion Willow Nightingale.
Willow said that she thought Skye would have been right there with them, but Skye chose a different path. Willow said that she and Skye had done a lot together, but they still hadn’t fought one another.
Mark Briscoe vs. The House of Black’s Brody King (with TBS Champion Julia Hart)!
Mark chopped away at Brody, but Brody hoisted up Mark and threw him half way across the ring. Brody blasted Briscoe with a cannonball in the corner. Brody followed up with a running senton for a near fall.
Brody King battered Mark in the corner with a stiff chop and then a boot. Briscoe pulled Brody out of the ring. Mark jumped off the apron and nailed Brody with a neck breaker. Mark used a steel chair and launched himself off it to land on Brody with a tope con hiro!
Mark tried to pull a table out from beneath the ring, but the ref stopped him, admonishing Mark. Mark went for a plancha, but Brody caught him and slammed him onto a steel chair. Back in the ring, Brody planted Briscoe with a Bossman slam for a two-count.
Briscoe kicked Brody in the head, knocking Brody to the floor. Mark climbed to the top turnbuckle and connecting with a twisting moonsault, landing on his feet! Brody blocked a Death Valley Driver and then leveled Briscoe with a lariat!
Mark Briscoe climbed to the top, but Julia Hart jumped on the apron to distract Briscoe. Brody shoved Briscoe and sent Briscoe flying, crashing onto the table on the arena floor! Brody drilled Briscoe with a Gonzo Bomb and pinned Briscoe!
Brody held Mark back while Julia Hart hit Briscoe with a spike on the forehead! Mark was busted wide open!
“The Bounty Hunter” Bryan Keith was backstage with some strong words!
Keith: “It’s no secret that I’m all about my payday. So, when I came here to AEW, I’m looking to climb the ranks and collect my bounty, whether you’re good, bad, or ugly, you stand across the ring from me, you’d better be ready to pay up, sucker.”
“The Virtuosa” Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kiera Hogan!
Deonna Purrazzo yanked at Hogan’s arm. Kiera fired back with a hip attack. Deonna dodged a charging Kiera. Deonna went back to working on Kiera’s arm. Deonna drilled Hogan with a backstabber for a near fall.
Hogan caught Deonna with a thrust kick. Deonna blocked a piledriver attempt. Deonna applied the Venus De Milo and Hogan had to submit verbally!
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm (with Mariah May & Luther the Butler) vs. Queen Aminata!
Toni had a headlock on Aminata. The Queen fought out of it and taunted Toni. Storm took down Queen Aminata with a Thesz Press. Toni Storm applied a full nelson. Toni Storm kicked Queen Aminata right in the face. Toni charged at Queen Aminata, but Aminata cradled Toni for a near fall!
Queen Aminata walloped Toni with a snap suplex. Toni spiked Aminata with a DDT but the challenger kicked out at the two-count. Queen Aminata retaliated with an Air Raid Crash for a near fall on the champ! “Timeless” Toni cracked Queen Aminata with a hip attack and then crunched Aminata with a piledriver for the pinfall victory!
Toni Storm: “Mister Schiavone, I know what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. But we’re in Henderson so stop looking at me like that. Darling, did you see that? Another fantastic technical show of brilliance. This week on Dynamite I will be releasing a brand new film!”
Main Event Time! AEW International Championship Match!
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) vs. “The Stone Pitbull” Tomohiro Ishii!
Ishii knocked Orange to the floor with a shoulder tackle. Ishii waffled Orange with chops to the chest!
“Orange Cassidy was freshly squeezed,” said Nigel.
Orange came back with a Stun Dog Millionaire and then a twisting DDT! Orange flew out of the ring with a tope suicida to Ishii. Orange spiked Ishii with another DDT for a two-count!
Orange jumped off the top rope and planted Ishii with a diving DDT! Orange stomped Ishii in the corner. Orange connected with a shotgun dropkick, but Ishii popped back up and pounced Orange!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Ishii blasted Cassidy with an avalanche brain buster and covered Orange for a near fall! Orange fired up but collapsed to the mat. Orange got up and went for the Beach Break, but Ishii reversed it and countered with a powerbomb! Ishii went for a sliding lariat, but Orange dodged it and cradled Ishii for a near fall.
Ishii headbutted Orange but Orange caught Ishii with an Orange Punch! Orange drilled Ishii with a Beach Break, but Ishii lifted his shoulder in the nick of time! Ishii nailed Orange with a dragon suplex. Ishii hit the sliding lariat, but Orange kicked out!
Ishii attempted the vertical brain buster, but Orange escaped! Orange decked Ishii with the Orange Punch! Ishii wouldn’t go down! Orange tried for another Orange Punch, but Ishii blocked it! Orange rolled up Ishii in a small package and pinned Ishii!
The Undisputed Kingdom surrounded the ring after the match! Taven and Bennett spiked Orange with a stuffed piledriver! Ishii sprinted back to the ring and the Undisputed Kingdom retreated! Trent came down with a steel chair as reinforcement!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, TX!
Coming off a red-hot RAMPAGE and a history-making DYNAMITE, this Saturday night All Elite Wrestling comes to Henderson, NV and the Dollar Loan Center for a stacked edition of COLLISION! After their fight on Wednesday, and the locker room clearing situation that erupted afterward, The Blackpool Combat Club of Claudio Castagnoli and Jon Moxley will take on CMLL’s Esfinge and Star Jr. in tag team action! Plus, AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm is in action once again, this time against the hard-striking Queen Aminata, Mark Briscoe takes on The House of Black’s Brody King, and Deonna Purrazzo will be in a fight with Kiera Hogan!
The night begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and the AEW faithful can get prepared for the action-packed evening by visiting the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, for highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as the latest CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
Orange Cassidy(c) vs. “The Stone Pitbull” Tomohiro Ishii
Despite his date with Roderick Strong on March 3rd, Orange Cassidy still plans to be a fighting champion on the road to REVOLUTION 2024, willing to take on any competitor, be it friend or foe, enemy or ally. That’s why this Saturday night on COLLISION, the AEW International Champion will take on one of his CHAOS allies in “The Stone Pitbull” Tomohiro Ishii!
This seems to be a bit of an issue for Trent Beretta, though he hasn’t outright said it, but it’s not as if OC didn’t give Beretta an opportunity during his first International Championship reign, it’s not as if Ishii is the first friend Orange has fought over the title, Rocky Romero had one too. In fact, in the eyes of Cassidy, it seems like giving “The Stone Pitbull” a title shot is the right thing to do because of the times he’s been there for OC and The Best Friends.
It’s difficult to say is the toughest challenge of Orange Cassidy’s second reign as champion, after all he went to battle with Claudio Castagnoli and Jon Moxley in his first month, but Ishii is certainly one of the toughest of either run with the International Title, certainly one of the hardest hitting who will not hesitate to blister Cassidy the way he blistered Chris Jericho in their ROH World Championship bout back on Thanksgiving Eve 2022. Cassidy is going to have to fight for every inch in this meeting on Saturday, and do his best to avoid a striking situation as Ishii’s hands are like stone. If nothing else, getting hit by those hands will at least prepare Cassidy for what it feels like to get chopped by Roderick Strong…
ONE-ON-ONE…
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm vs. Queen Aminata
Queen Aminata has had numerous opportunities over the past several weeks to fight the best AEW has to offer, the likes of Thunder Rosa, Mariah May, Serena Deeb, and Willow Nightingale to name a few, and though she’s looked impressive in each, Aminata has yet to secure victory in AEW singles competition. Seventeen singles losses since her April 2021 debut, six of those in 2024, and no matter how much you may hear commentary and fans sing your praises, and discuss your strong suits in the ring, it becomes frustrating to be so close to breaking through.
But that doesn’t mean stop, that doesn’t mean lay down and die, that means keep fighting until there is no fight left in your body, keep fighting until you break through to that next level, keep fighting until you’re standing on top of that mountain and prove all that praise was well-deserved. That is the path of Queen Aminata at this point, that is her struggle, and this Saturday night she has the biggest opportunity of her AEW career because it will be AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm standing across the ring.
This may not be a championship bout or even an Eliminator fight, but it is still a match with the World Champion and that means a victory will garner headlines, earn respect, and prove Queen Aminata belongs among the elite. Toni has her focus on Deonna Purrazzo at the moment, and their impending championship fight at REVOLUTION 2024, meaning she may be ripe for the picking by another foe, meaning this could be Aminata’s opportunity to rise up the ranks with a quickness. Can she finally get the “W” that’s eluded her in AEW thus far?
SINGLES MATCH…
(#1) Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kiera Hogan
What’s good for the goose is good for the gander; if Toni Storm is going to be in action against a top tier opponent to stay tuned up for REVOLUTION 2024, than so too will Deonna Purrazzo! That is why Saturday night on COLLISION, “The Virtuosa” will go one-on-one with “The Girl on Fire” Kiera Hogan for the first time since October 2016!
They’ve fought in a handful of matches since that victory by Deonna, four way and three ways and multi-woman affairs, but nothing one-on-one until this evening in Nevada. Though her championship challenge is set for March 3rd on pay-per-view, each time “The Virtuosa” steps into the ring, she is putting her title opportunity at risk, as well as that #1 spot in the rankings. If she loses to someone like Kiera Hogan who, though a supremely talented a competitor she may be, is not a ranked combatant, will it play against Deonna’s championship opportunity? Or does it simply serve to slide Hogan into a better position for the aftermath of REVOLUTION 204 should Purrazzo defeat Toni Storm?
However it plays out, Toni Storm better keep as close an eye on this one as Deonna will keep on Storm’s Saturday night fight!
TAG TEAM BATTLE…
Blackpool Combat Club (Claudio Castagnoli & Jon Moxley) vs. Esfinge & Star. Jr
Esfinge is the current Mexican National Light Heavyweight Champion, Star Jr. is a former CMLL World Trios Champion with Volador Jr. and Atlantis Jr., and together they make their in-ring debut for All Elite Wrestling on Saturday night! In what appears to be their first tag team bout (though they are quite versed in trios competition together) these two CMLL representatives will take on two of AEW’s best in Claudio Castagnoli and Jon Moxley!
Coming off a RAMPAGE where Mistico was victorious over Matt Sydal, but a DYNAMITE where The BCC defeated Hechicero, Mascara Dorada & Volador Jr., this fight marks the latest in the ever-escalating battle between The Blackpool Combat Club specifically, AEW as a whole, and the CMLL contingent.
Thus far, with Danielson’s victory over Hechicero as well as the aforementioned win on DYNAMITE, The BCC hold dominance over the luchadors from CMLL, and this will be an interesting test as you’ve got a BCC duo that’s 9-1 as a team versus a first-time tag pairing, though Star Jr. and Esfinge’s experience as trios allies may prove a boon for this bout.
Can the CMLL duo score their units first victory over The Blackpool Combat Club, and prove themselves equals to “the elite of the elite”, as Moxley referred to his unit? Or will this be The BCC continue to prove why they are the most dominating force in professional wrestling today?
SINGLES MATCH…
Mark Briscoe vs. The House of Black’s Brody King
Mark Briscoe had every intention of being there for FTR against The House of Black, and he was more than willing to step inside that Steel Cage in Daniel Garcia’s stead after the assault perpetrated on Garcia put his status in doubt. The House of Black had different idea though, and made sure the 13-time former ROH World Tag Champion was taken out of the equation before anyone set foot inside the cage.
But if The House thought that would be the end of Mark Briscoe in their life, well they’ve got another thing coming, and Brody King absolutely should’ve known better. See Mark and Brody are no stranger to each other, from Ring of Honor to GCW to the NWA, these two men have gone into battle in tag team situations, as well as trios, and have fought over several different championships. They’ve taken the measure of one another with partners at their side, and as a result of all that, Brody King should’ve known Mark Briscoe wasn’t just going to fade away; he should’ve know a fight was coming, and coming fast.
That fight is here this Saturday night on COLLISION when Mark Briscoe and Brody King lock up in their very first one-on-one match! Each man went through it in the Continental Classic, and now they step back into singles competition as Mark aims to bring the battle right to The House’s front door!
Daniel Garcia wants that TNT Championship, and even though he got the victory in the trios match last week, he’s going to need to build up his resume to get a shot at Christian Cage, and that begins this Saturday night on COLLISION with a fight against Shane Taylor!
Taylor, along with Lee Moriarty, are primed to ascend up the AEW ladder and take the respect they feel they’re owed. We all saw it with the fight they gave The Blackpool Combat Club, and Shane Taylor will throw those same blows at Daniel Garcia in their impending one-on-one battle! It’s a huge opportunity for both men to assert themselves in the singles ranks, a realm in which both previously had championship success under the ROH banner, but neither have managed to be a title holder in All Elite Wrestling as of yet.
Who will step up in the ranks on COLLISION, and who will be left frustrated in defeat?
This Saturday night, All Elite Wrestling brings some Saturday night fighting to Henderson, NV and the Dollar Loan Center! We’ve got The BCC fighting CMLL, “Timeless” taking on Queen Aminata, Orange Cassidy defending his AEW International Championship against CHAOS mate Tomohiro Ishii, Kiera Hogan fights Deonna Purrazzo, Mark Briscoe meets Brody King in singles competition, and more!
The night gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and the AEW faithful can get prepared for the action-packed evening by visiting the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, for highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as the latest CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE was broadcast from the Footprint Center in Phoenix, AZ!
Your broadcast team was Excalibur, “Daddy Magic” Matt Menard and Tony Schiavone.
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
This…is…Rampage!
Trios Match!
AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, Rocky Romero, & Trent Beretta
vs.
Undisputed Kingdom—ROH World Tag Champions Matt Taven & Mike Bennett, and Roderick Strong (with Adam Cole & Wardlow)!
Best Friends charged at the Undisputed Kingdom as the Undisputed Kingdom made their entrance. They were furious over Undisputed Kingdom for injuring Chuck Taylor.
Bennett booted Trent in the face. Trent jumped on Bennett, squashing him with double knees to the sternum. Taven tagged in and Rocky and Trent rocked Taven with stereo knee strikes. Trent followed up with a sliding knee for a near fall.
Roderick grabbed a blind tag, but Trent tossed Roddy with a German Suplex. Roddy pulled Trent off the turnbuckles and nailed Trent with a backbreaker. Taven and Bennett double teamed Trent in their corner.
“Great tag team continuity by Taven and Bennett,” said Excalibur.
Orange tagged in and cleaned house on Taven and Bennett. Orange planted Taven with a DDT and smashed Bennett with a Stun Dog Millionaire. Bennett blindsided Orange with a spinebuster. Cassidy connected with a thrust kick on Taven. Orange was looking for the Orange Punch, but Taven knocked Orange’s block off with a kick of his own!
Roderick Strong distracted the ref while Bennett blasted Orange with a low blow. Taven jumped off the top turnbuckle while Bennett held Orange and they pulped Orange with a stuffed piledriver.
Rocky was the legal man now, and he took flight, rocketing out of the ring and wiping out Bennett and Taven with a tope suicida. Rocky rocked Bennett with the Sliced Bread! Taven cut off Rocky’s flurry with a boot to the midsection. Romero took Taven down to the mat with a hurracanrana.
Rocky smashed Taven and Bennett with the Forever Clotheslines. Roddy came in with a blindside knee and then decimated Rocky with the End of Heartache backbreaker. Taven covered Rocky and scored the pin!
The Undisputed Kingdom set up chairs in the ring and Roddy planted Rocky right onto the chairs with the End of Heartache! Trent and Orange chased the Undisputed Kingdom out of the ring.
“Adding insult to injury, that was completely uncalled for by Roderick Strong,” said Excalibur.
The Young Bucks—Nicholas & Matthew Jackson vs. Mondo Rox & Robbie Lit!
Matthew seized on Robbie Lit, stomping him in the corner. Matthew bulldozed Robbie with a lariat. Nicholas tagged in and the Bucks used a backbreaker-neck breaker combo on Robbie.
Mondo got a tag and Nicholas kicked Mondo with a low blow as Matthew was distracting the referee. The Young Bucks smashed Mondo with the EVP Trigger and Matthew pinned Mondo!
Nicholas: “I am so tired of the disrespect that each and every one of you fans show us. I heard a heckler in the front row calling us by the wrong name. It’s time to show your EVPs a little more respect! Call us by our God-given names of Nicholas and Matthew Jackson!”
Matthew: “I apologize my brother is a bit of a hothead. Listen! Listen! The reason we’re out here in the first place is to say congratulations to AEW’s new Tag Team Champions Darby Allin and Sting! Incredible match! You’re putting your blood, sweat and tears on the line. You’ll be great champions but there is one caveat. I got an email, an injury report from Doc Sampson and apparently both Darb and Sting are a little bit banged up coming out of their big win. So, we just wanted to say we’re thinking about you guys, we’re praying for you guys, and we hope you’re ok.
“However, boys I want to make one thing clear. Our objective is to get our tag team titles back! And you may be looking at us and saying, ‘Oh, but you’re EVPs and you’re going to politic to do whatever it takes to do that!’ No, no, no. We’re going to play by the rules, climb up the rankings, and have competitive matches just like we did tonight on Rampage! We will get ranked, we will be number one contenders, and we will get our belts! And we’ll continue to climb up those rankings on Wednesday when you see Nicholas and Matthew Jackson, your EVPs in tag team action! We love you guys so much! Let’s have a killer show!”
“Tony Khan has just informed me that on Wednesday night on Dynamite Nicholas and Matthew will have some top flight competition when they face Dante and Darius Martin!” said Excalibur.
CMLL’s Mistico (with Esfinge & Star Jr.) vs. Matt Sydal!
Sydal and Mistico chain wrestled to start the match, exchanging a flurry of offense and going move for move with one another. Mistico hit Sydal with a tope suicida. Sydal jumped back in the ring and caught off Mistico’s momentum with a kick.
Matt Sydal placed Mistico in a bow and arrow submission. Sydal followed up with a senton splash. Mistico caught Sydal off guard with a crossbody press.
“This has been a back and forth battle,” said Excalibur.
Sydal caught Mistico in the face with a jumping knee strike. Sydal landed an Air Raid Crash for a near fall on Mistico. Mistico tried for a moonsault press but Sydal got the boots up, countering it! Sydal charged Mistico but Mistico walloped Sydal with a powerslam! Mistico hit a Spanish Fly on Sydal off the top rope and pinned Sydal!
“That was a desperation move by Mistico but man, it worked!” said Tony Schiavone.
Renee Paquette was backstage with Prince Nana and “The Machine” Brian Cage!
Brian Cage: “HOOK thinks he can hit me in the back with a chair and get away with it like a hit-and-run? Not today! I’m looking for HOOK. Where is he? Coincidentally, he’s not here. Of course he’s not here. He doesn’t want to feel the rage of Cage on Rampage.”
Prince Nana: “You know what? I think HOOK is at home reading a book because that’s what he needs to do instead of running around town hitting people with chairs in the back. Prince Nana knows how that feels. It happened to me on Wednesday, Renee.”
Cage: “Big deal, HOOK, you beat two guys the other night. I could beat two guys any day of the week. I could do that tomorrow. As a matter of fact, let’s do that on Collision. Any two sloppy Joes in the locker room that want to face me, come on down.”
The Outcasts—Ruby Soho & Saraya (with Harley Cameron)!
As Ruby was making her entrance on the ramp, she noticed there was a note scribbled on a piece of paper that was inside the pocket of her leather jacket.
Stokely Hathaway joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Kris took down Saraya with a side headlock. Statlander hit a dropkick. Willow and Ruby came in for their respective teams and Willow rocked Ruby with a Russian Leg Sweep. Willow followed up with a fisherman’s suplex. Statlander shoulder tackled Ruby, slammed her, and followed up with a sliding lariat.
Willow splashed Ruby in the corner. Willow climbed to the top turnbuckle. Harley grabbed Willow’s ankle and then Saraya shoved Ruby to the mat! Statlander tagged in and took Ruby off her feet with a powerslam.
Ruby and Saraya double teamed Statlander. Willow charged in to make the save but Saraya grabbed her and shoved her through the ropes. Saraya cracked Kris with a running knee strike and went for the cover, but Willow broke it up just in time.
Statlander clubbed Saraya with a discus lariat. Ruby rocked Statlander with the No Future kick! Ruby held Willow and Saraya went to strike Willow, but Willow escaped, forcing Saraya to inadvertently strike Ruby! Willow walloped Saraya and Ruby with a double clothesline.
Saraya and Kris traded forearms in the center of the ring. Statlander blasted Saraya with a massive roundhouse kick. Statlander planted Saraya with a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall! Saraya caught Kris off guard with a jawbreaker. Saraya went for the tag, but Ruby refused, turning her back and jumping off the apron, leaving Saraya in the lurch.
“Tony, I wonder if that note that Ruby was reading had anything to do with this?”
Harley grabbed Ruby and tried to stop Ruby from walking away. Ruby turned around and decked Harley!
“Ruby Soho finally standing up for herself to Saraya,” said Excalibur.
Willow power bombed a shocked Saraya and pinned her!
After the match Stokely celebrated with both Kris and Willow!
Skye Blue appeared in the aisle, smirked, and waved at Kris and Willow. The arena lights went dark!
“What is going on here?” wondered Excalibur.
The lights came back on, and TBS Champion Julia Hart was standing beside Skye Blue! They were staring at Willow and Kris, taunting them as Julia held up her title.
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, NV featuring:
-AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy vs. Tomohiro Ishii!
– “The Virtuosa” Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kiera Hogan!
-We’ll hear from the “Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland!
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm vs. Queen Aminata!
-BCC’s Jon Moxley & Claudio Castagnoli vs. CMLL’s Esfinge & Star Jr.!
& Much, much more!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park, TX!
This Friday’s edition of RAMPAGE hails from the Footprint Center in Phoenix, and gets underway at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, with a collection of amazing match-ups! We will see Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander, with Stokely Hathway at their side, take on The Outcasts of Ruby Soho and Saraya, while Matt Sydal battles CMLL’s Mistico in singles competition! Plus, as their REVOLUTION 2024 date nears, AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy teams with Roppongi Vice to take on The Undisputed Kingdom of Roderick Strong, Matt Taven, and Mike Bennett! And for the first time since last November’s FULL GEAR 2023 loss to Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho, The Young Bucks will actually step inside the ring to compete!
Before the show begins, swing by the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, to catch up on highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
TRIOS GRUDGE MATCH…
AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, Rocky Romero, & Trent Beretta vs. Undisputed Kingdom (ROH World Tag Champions Matt Taven & Mike Bennett and Roderick Strong)
AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy and The Undisputed Kingdom’s Roderick Strong are set to do battle at REVOLUTION 2024 provided “Freshly Squeezed” remains champion until that point. Strong is in no hurry to get to the title fight, though Orange has been more than willing to put the belt up at any point, instead he’d rather wear the champion down and bring down those around him. We witnessed it on DYNAMITE with the attack on Chuck Taylor, and that assault brings us to this Trios bout taking place on RAMPAGE!
Though he is set to battle fellow CHAOS member Tomohiro Ishii on COLLISION this Saturday, Orange Cassidy is more than willing to step into this Friday night fight alongside Roppongi Vice of Trent Beretta and Rocky Romero! Frankly Trent seemed less than enthusiastic about Orange fighting Ishii, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be game to pick up this battle alongside a trio he absolutely cannot stand, and Rocky is ready to stand right alongside his brothers-in-arms!
The Undisputed Kingdom, on behalf of Roderick, seems more than willing to remove all the pieces from the chess board before REVOLUTION 2024, leaving Orange all by himself for that championship bout, so that means Trent and Rocky best be wary of what The UK is capable of doing. This may not be about winning for them, and more about hurting Orange and those around him in advance of March 3rd’s pay-per-view extravaganza!
Last week on RAMPAGE, Matt Sydal was one of the members of Team AEW who welcomed the CMLL contingent to their first taste of All Elite competition. Though it was Christopher Daniels who ultimately took the pinfall at Hechicero’s hands, Sydal still felt the sting of that loss though he, and the rest of the men in the match, were taken out of the climax by a Mascara Dorada dive to the floor.
Looking for some redemption, Sydal was on hand Wednesday night to back up The Blackpool Combat Club against the CMLL contingent’s swelling numbers, and this Friday night he will step back into the ring for singles competition against one of the preeminent members of that roster. Unquestionably, Mistico is one of the biggest names on that CMLL side of this fight, his resume includes championships won around the globe, and these two even have a bit of shared history in the form of one lone match over a dozen years ago won by Mistico.
As representatives from CMLL continue to assert their forces on the members of the AEW locker room, each match pitting one side against the other becomes increasingly important, meaning Sydal isn’t just fighting for himself anymore, but rather for the entirety of All Elite Wrestling!
TAG TEAM BATTLE…
Kris Statlander & Willow Nightingale vs. The Outcasts (Ruby Soho & Saraya)
Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale, despite the presence of Stokely Hathaway, have managed to persevere through whatever drama he’s tried to kick up, with a friendship that seems tighter than ever. They both come into this Friday having had a successful 2024 thus far, scoring singles wins, tag wins, and even a DYNAMITE: HOMECOMING 2024 multi-woman victory over a team that included The Outcasts!
Speaking of Ruby Soho and Saraya, they are the two women who will face off with Statlander and Nightingale this Friday on RAMPAGE, but in stark contrast to their opponents, The Outcasts don’t seem to be any where near the same page! The source of their tension is clear, it’s all been about the Ruby/Cool Hand Ang relationship, and all that has been done to disrupt it from taking place. The inclusion of Harley Cameron into the dynamic has really poisoned the well, but with this tag team bout, can The Outcasts find that good place again? Can their friendship be restored to the place where it mirrored what Willow and Kris have?
ALSO FEATURING:
-THE YOUNG BUCKS RETURN TO ACTION!
Phoenix, AZ and the Footprint Center host this Friday’s RAMPAGE, beginning at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and featuring AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, Trent Beretta, and Rocky Romero battling The Undisputed Kingdom in Trios action! Plus, CMLL’s Mistico takes on Matt Sydal, Willow & Statlander take on The Outcasts in tag team competition, and the EVP’s get back to work inside the ring after four months away!
Before the night gets underway, be sure to drop by the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, to catch up on highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, plus the latest CONTROL CENTER!
