Week 5 of the AEW Continental Classic concludes Saturday night on AEW Collision with 3 Blue League matchups!
GOLD LEAGUE
Andrade El Idolo (9) takes on Eddie Kingston (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (6) and Bryan Danielson (9) face off.
Brody King (6) clashes with Daniel Garcia (0)
The action starts SATURDAY NIGHT on AEW Collision LIVE at 8/7c on TNT!
Follow the AEW Continental Classic standings ,here.
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE: Holiday Bash was broadcast from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK!
Your broadcast team was Excalibur, “The Ocho” Chris Jericho, and Tony Schiavone!
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
AEW International Championship Match!
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) (with Trent) vs. Rocky Romero!
Cassidy hit a dropkick but Rocky came back with a step up hurracanrana. Rocky followed up with a tope suicida! Rocky jumped off the steps and connected with another hurracanrana on Orange! Rocky connected with two clotheslines, but Orange countered the third attempt with a rollup for a near fall.
Orange charged off the turnbuckles and nailed Rocky with a swinging DDT. Orange connected with a diving crossbody press off the top rope. Rocky rallied back with a vertical suplex. Rocky rocked Orange with a snap suplex on the edge of the ring!
Rocky and Orange exchanged forearms in the center of the ring. Orange clobbered Rocky with a thrust kick and then the Orange Punch out of nowhere! Both men collapsed to the mat, so Orange couldn’t capitalize.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Orange began to stomp Rocky and then knocked Rocky for a loop with a running PK kick! Rocky jumped up and landed a sliced bread on Orange Cassidy. Rocky hit a DDT and then a Strong Zero on Orange for a two-count!
“I think there’s a lot of conflict going on in Trent,” said Excalibur.
Orange avoided a knee strike from Rocky. Orange countered with the Orange Punch and then the Beach Break and pinned Rocky!
Orange, Trent, and Rocky hugged after the match! They’ve got to give the people what they want!
Tony Schiavone interviewed former TBS Champion Kris Statlander backstage!
Kris: “Willow and I have been through a lot and whatever might have slightly gone off the rails, we got them right back on track. No hard feelings. We’re a team and we’re stronger than ever. Nothing can come between us.”
Stokely Hathaway walked onto the set and interrupted Kris!
Stokely: “You know what’s crazy? The fact that Willow has been telling everyone that she carried you on Saturday. That if it wasn’t for her, you two would have lost on Collision.”
Kris: “Interesting. Is that what she said?”
Stokely: “Oh yeah. And the other thing that’s crazy about AEW is the fact that everyone feels like they need to be in a group or in a faction. Yeah, that may work temporarily, but long term, it does not. And trust me, I know. So how about tomorrow morning you look in the mirror and I want you to see the Kristen Statlander that I see, the former TBS champion, the woman who could do anything on the roster if she set her mind to it. But listen, if you want to hang out with Willow, Orange Cassidy, and Danhausen, that’s on you. What do I know?”
Tony Schiavone: “Do you believe that?”
Kris: “Did he call me Kristen?”
Tony: “Yeah.”
Kris: “That’s not even my name.”
Prince Nana was backstage with “The Machine” Brian Cage!
Nana: “This Saturday it’s the Vanilla Gorilla going up against that fool Keith Lee!”
Cage: “I’m in a hell of a mood! You know why, Nana It’s Christmas time! And I must have been an extra good Machine because Santa is bringing me a giant-sized gift—Keith Lee! And don’t worry, Keith, it’s better to give than to receive. So, I’m going to return the favor and give you a giant-sized ass-kicking in front of the world on Collision!”
The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett (with Roderick Strong)
vs.
The Hardys—Jeff & Matt!
Matt Hardy drove his shoulder into Matt Taven in the corner. Hardy backdropped Taven. Jeff tagged in and hit a leg drop and a splash on Taven for a near fall. Matt and Jeff used tandem offense on Taven. Finally, Taven kicked Matt in the back of the head and tagged out to Mike Bennett.
Mike Bennett slugged Matt Hardy, but Matt tagged Jeff. Jeff jumped off Matt’s back and splashed Bennett in the corner. Jeff climbed to the top rope, but after some interference from Taven, Bennett knocked Jeff off his perch.
Matt Hardy tagged in and began to repeatedly send Taven’s face into the turnbuckles. Matt Hardy power bombed Taven out of the corner! Bennett ran in the ring and Matt Hardy retaliated with a Twist of Fate. Matt followed Taven out of the ring and sent Taven flying over the timekeeper’s table! Matt Hardy whipped Bennett into the steel ring steps. Matt Hardy grabbed a chair, but the ref pulled it away. Matt Hardy got back into the ring and began to argue with the ref, but Taven snuck up behind him and rolled up Matt Hardy for the pin!
Renee Paquette was backstage to interview Ruby Soho!
Ruby: “I haven’t had any time to speak with Saraya since her loss to Riho.”
Angelo Parker walked onto the set and began flirting with Ruby.
Parker: “Look, I’ve been trying to get some alone time with you for a really long time. It’s the Christmas season, there’s magic in the air. I know this is the time of year when you just ask for what you want, so, Renee, could you do me a big favor and ask me what I want for Christmas?”
Renee: “What do you want for Christmas?”
Parker: “I would love to take this beautiful lady out for a drink tonight.”
Ruby: “Wow, um…”
Saraya interrupted!
Saraya: “Ruby! I’m wearing my comfy sweater and I’m not here to fight right now. I just want to say I’m so sorry. I am so sorry, Ruby. You are so right. I need you. I absolutely need you. And if that comes with him, then I am all for it. I like this actually. I support this. I love what’s happening. I know you guys have some plans tonight, but I actually have some Christmas gifts for her, if that’s all right. But yeah, it’s in the locker room. And Renee, you too. There’s some gifts in there for you guys. Go ahead. I just want to have a chat with him.”
Renee and Ruby left to go get their presents, leaving Saraya with Angelo.
Parker: “It means a lot that you’re coming around…”
Saraya: “Listen here you piece of crap. She’s my friend. She’s mine entirely. I know what you’re trying to do, and you cannot have her. Do you understand me?”
Parker: “She’s yours for now.”
Saraya: “No. For always. I hate you.”
Skye Blue vs. Queen Aminata!
Skye and Aminata traded hard forearms. Aminata headbutted Blue. Aminata cracked Skye with a twisting neck breaker. Skye Blue drove Aminata face first onto the ring apron, looking at the camera with disdain.
Aminata sent Skye flying with a German Suplex. Aminata rammed into Skye with a modified hip attack and then a running boot for a two-count on Skye. Aminata was looking for the Best Moonsault Ever, but Skye avoided it and blasted Aminata with a thrust kick. Skye Blue sat out with a TKO and then forced Aminata to tap out with a dragon sleeper!
“Something more for Thunder Rosa to think about tomorrow ahead of Collision,” said Excalibur.
Main Event Time! AAA Mega Championship Match!
El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Black Taurus!
Vikingo avoided a power bomb attempt early on. Black Taurus applied a side headlock, but Vikingo fought out of it. He charged at Black Taurus, but Taurus rammed Vikingo with a shoulder block.
The fans chanted “Lucha! Lucha! Lucha!”
Vikingo cracked Taurus with a pump kick. Black Taurus retaliated with a flurry of offense and then put an exclamation point on it with an elevated Samoan Drop! Vikingo hit a springboard dropkick, but Taurus shrugged it off. Taurus blocked a poison rana and followed up with a tope!
“Wow! Deceptively agile,” said Chris Jericho.
Vikingo shoved Black Taurus into the steel ring post! Vikingo flew over the top rope, but Taurus caught him! Vikingo escaped and powerslammed Taurus on the arena floor! Vikingo walloped Taurus with a sky twister press to the floor!
Vikingo performed a rope walk and then followed up with a poison rana on Black Taurus! Vikingo spiked Taurus with a crucifix bomb! Black Taurus found the strength to gore Vikingo!
Appreciative of the state of the art pro wrestling being displayed in front of them, the fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Black Taurus press slammed Vikingo off the top rope for a near fall! Taurus decimated Vikingo with a powerbomb to the knee and then a discus lariat for a two-count! And now the crowd was chanting “Fight forever!”
Vikingo charged off the ropes and flipped over Taurus and transitioned into a power bomb. Vikingo rammed into Taurus with running knees. Vikingo lowered his knee pads and cracked Taurus in the back of the head again! Vikingo splashed Taurus with the 630 senton and pinned Black Taurus!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, FL!
Don’t miss AEW Collision: Holiday Bash on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, TX featuring:
-TBS Champ Julia Hart & Skye Blue vs. Thunder Rosa & Abadon!
– Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo vs. ROH World Champ/NJPW Openweight Champ Eddie Kingston!
-AEW World Trios Championship Match!
The Acclaimed & Daddy Ass (c.) vs. Top Flight & Action Andretti!
– Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Daniel Garcia vs. Brody King!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
“AEW: Worlds End” PPV Available in Select Out-Of-Home Establishments on Saturday, December 30
Dec. 22, 2023 – AEW and Joe Hand Promotions will bring All Elite Wrestling’s “AEW: Worlds End”
pay-per-view event to select out-of-home establishments including theaters and
bars/restaurants across North America Saturday, December 30 starting at 7 p.m. ET.
To locate a participating establishment, fans in North America can check the Joe Hand
The card for “AEW: Full Gear” includes the following match-ups:
• AEW World Championship: MJF (c) vs Samoa Joe
• AEW Women’s World Championship: Toni Storm (c) vs. Riho
• Continental Classic Tournament Finals: Blue League Winner vs. Gold League Winner
*Card subject to change
“We are thrilled to stand alongside AEW as they deliver another epic event in the form of Worlds
End,” said Joe Hand, Jr., President of Joe Hand Promotions. “Our commitment to the AEW
community remains unwavering, and we anticipate an unforgettable night of wrestling action on
Dec. 30. Whether you gather at select Dave & Buster’s locations or experience the event in your
favorite premier movie theaters across the nation you will witness the excitement and
camaraderie that make AEW events truly special.”
ABOUT AEW
Founded by CEO, GM and Head of Creative Tony Khan in 2019, AEW is a red-hot professional
wrestling promotion featuring a world-class roster that is injecting new spirit, freshness and energy
into the industry. “AEW: Dynamite” airs every Wednesday from 8-10 p.m. ET on TBS, “AEW:
Rampage” airs every Friday from 10-11 p.m. ET on TNT, and “AEW: Collision” airs every Saturday
from 8-10 p.m. ET on TNT. For more info, check out Twitter.com/AEW; Instagram.com/AEW;
YouTube.com/AEW; Facebook.com/AEW
ABOUT JOE HAND PROMOTIONS
Joe Hand Promotions brings fan communities from mainstream sports and entertainment into
the top corporate and independently owned bars and restaurants, theaters, casinos, and other
commercial establishments to provide the best viewing experience outside of the arena. As the
commercial content partner for some of the nation’s top live-sports media properties, Joe Hand
Promotions is the leader in the out-of-home live sports and entertainment media distribution industry. For over 50 years, Joe Hand Promotions has seamlessly connected commercial
establishments with live sports, which has successfully driven traffic and increased revenues,
time and time again. The Joe Hand Promotions team is more than the distributor, but also the
advisor in this fast-growing industry.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/N2yy0eMgi9Q?si=PyBM9Svy-17OKER_&start=321
The points portion of the Gold League came to a conclusion this past Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, and surprisingly, the finals will be a Three Way between Jon Moxley, Jay White, and Swerve Strickland! That takes place next week in Orlando, as will the Blue League Finals once they are set in San Antonio this Saturday! We also saw Riho earn the right to face “Timeless” Toni Storm at WORLDS END for the AEW Women’s World Championship, and the mystery of The Devil’s identity continued as they issued a challenge for the ROH World Tag Titles to MJF and Samoa Joe!
This Friday night RAMPAGE is coming from Oklahoma City and gets underway at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and features quite an array of bouts! AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy puts his title on the line against CHAOS ally Rocky Romero, The Kingdom clash with The Hardys, Skye Blue will be in action, and AAA Mega Champion El Hijo del Vikingo clashes with Black Taurus in a rematch of their amazing FINAL BATTLE 2023 title bout! Before the show starts, 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!
AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
Orange Cassidy(c) vs. Rocky Romero
Well it certainly did not seem like Rocky Romero intended to challenge his own friend for a title, but his innocent usage of the world “international” seemed to indicate otherwise to reigning AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, and now we have ourselves a championship fight this Friday night on RAMPAGE!
For two years now, Rocky Romero has been both friend and ally to OC, their mutual connection in Trent Beretta effectively making Cassidy and Chuck Taylor members of CHAOS, and as partners in several trios and multi-man matches, they’ve been quite successful together! But this is the first time the two men have ever stood on opposite sides of the ring, and though Romero may not have intended to end up in this situation, that doesn’t mean he’s going to let a championship opportunity slip away! Having recently had his CMLL Historic Welterweight Championship reign ended by Mascara Dorada, Rocky is hungry to put gold back around his waist, it’s just unfortunate that it might have to be at the expense of his own friend’s title run. Still, it’s not the first time Orange has been in that position, he did fight Trent Beretta over the International Championship during his first reign and their relationship survived the fray, no doubt the same will be true for that of Cassidy and Romero…
TAG TEAM BOUT…
The Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt)
2023 has been a rather frustrating year for The Hardys; the multi-time championship duo have won just one tag team bout, a non-televised Three Way with The Butcher & The Blade and Angelo Parker & Matt Menard, but have yet to get a televised victory in 2023 with just one more week to go. They’ve had some success in Trios and Multi-Man matches, but the thing that has always been their bread and butter has eluded them this year.
It what could be their last chance this year to get back on track, Matt and Jeff will go head-to-head with The Kingdom of Matt Taven and Mike Bennett this Friday night on RAMPAGE! There’s plenty of history between The Kingdom and Matt Hardy, Matt was actually one of the founding fathers of the group in Ring of Honor back in 2014, but this will be their first traditional tag team clash here in All Elite Wrestling! Back in September, as part of RAMPAGE: GRAND SLAM 2023, both teams took part in the ROH World Tag Title #1 Contender’s match won by The Righteous, but that’s been their only interaction here. May 2022 saw the two teams collide outside of AEW, a bout won by The Hardys, and until this Friday night, it’s their only fight!
So will this be the chance for The Hardys to get it together, or will The Kingdom add another win to their five consecutive victories?
AAA MEGA CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Black Taurus
At FINAL BATTLE 2023, El Hijo del Vikingo successfully defended his AAA Mega Championship against Black Taurus in one of the most amazing spectacles to ever take place inside a ROH ring, and given the 20+ year history of the company, that’s saying quite a lot!
This Friday night on RAMPAGE, in the main event of the evening, Black Taurus will have a second chance at dethroning Vikingo and ending this epic reign as it draws closer to breaking Kenny Omega’s 765-day record. This bout comes just 24 hours after Vikingo and Komander competed in tag team action during ROH ON HONOR CLUB, and his fourth match in just one week for AEW/ROH. For as amazing an athlete as El Hijo del Vikingo is, eventually even the greatest runs come to an end, and taking into consideration how often the man competes, it is amazing he’s continued to reign for as long as he has! Will this Friday night be the end of the road for Vikingo, or will he find another way to put down Taurus like he did at FINAL BATTLE 2023?
ONE-ON-ONE…
Skye Blue vs. Queen Aminata
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Lo7tHbRmRGE?si=MWVX8GowONfHtBgX&start=117
Much to the shock of the AEW faithful, Skye Blue has apparently sided with TBS Champion Julia Hart in opposition to “The Living Dead Girl” Abadon. Everyone knew that Skye had been somewhat changed by her previous encounters with the Princess of the Black Throne, that her exposure to Hart’s mist fundamentally shifted something within the young woman, but Skye’s previous actions seemed to indicate that she remained on the side of the angels.
Last week, as seen in the video above, that all fell to the wayside when Skye interrupted Abadon’s attack on Hart not to join in on the situation, but rather to turn the tables on Abadon at the side of the TBS Champion. This Saturday on COLLISION, Skye and Hart will have to face the wrath of Abadon and the returning Thunder Rosa, but Friday night, Skye will be in singles action as she prepares for whatever war may come to San Antonio!
https://www.youtube.com/embed/H8X_GYxefog?si=yPsKgoNVSPCF_zWA&start=321
RAMPAGE is coming to you from the home of the Oklahoma City Thunder this Friday night beginning at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and features AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy defending his title against Rocky Romero, El Hijo del Vikingo putting his AAA Mega Championship on the line in a FINAL BATTLE 2023 rematch with Black Taurus, Skye Blue in action, and The Kingdom taking on The Hardys! Prior to the start of the show, be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted 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!
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE: Holiday Bash was broadcast live from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, 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!
Continental Classic: Gold League Standings!
Jon Moxley (12)
Swerve Strickland (9)
Jay White (9)
RUSH (6)
Mark Briscoe (0)
Jay Lethal (0)
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Mogul Embassy’s Swerve Strickland (9) vs. LFI’s Rush (6)!
Rush and Swerve grappled to the mat, chain wrestling. Rush got to his feet and landed big chops. Both men used arm drags, resulting in a stalemate early on. Rush knocked Swerve out of the ring and followed up with a running flip over the top and down onto Swerve. Rush’s leg was all taped out and he began to limp slightly after landing on Rush.
Out of nowhere, Swerve jumped on Rush and applied an arm bar. Rush escaped but Swerve went to work on Rush’s injured let, pulling him down with a dragon screw leg whip. Ref Aubrey Edwards checked on Rush, who was writhing in pain.
Rush grabbed Swerve’s leg, tripping him up and Swerve landed hard on the edge of the ring. Swerve fired back with a German Suplex on the arena floor, but Rush retaliated with a shotgun dropkick, knocking Swerve into the barricade.
Back in the ring, Rush and Swerve stunned one another with rolling elbow strikes. They each went to boot the other and they knocked the other down to the mat, with both competitors having the same idea. Rush was looking for the Bull’s Horns, but his leg gave out on him. Swerve grabbed Rush’s legs and applied a stretch muffler. Rush countered with a cradle for a near fall.
Rush put Swerve in a straitjacket arm lock and then spiked Swerve with a piledriver for a two-count. They traded chops on the apron. Swerve charged at Rush, but Rush sent Swerve flying with a belly-to-belly suplex. Swerve landed hard on the arena floor, as Rush used Swerve’s own momentum against him.
Rush struggled to climb to the top turnbuckle. Rush went for a senton, but Swerve moved out of the way. Swerve hit Rush with a 450 splash, but Rush managed to kick out of the pin attempt. Swerve smashed Rush with a brain buster for a two-count. Swerve connected with the House Call kick. Swerve rocked Rush with the Swerve Stomp from the top and pinned Rush!
“Tip your cap off to Rush. He kept it competitive with an injury, but Swerve pulled off the victory,” said Taz.
Chris Jericho was backstage with an important announcement!
Jericho: “Last week, on the Thursday after Dynamite, Kenny Omega ended up in the hospital after suffering the effects of diverticulitis. And as he shared on social media, we now have the news that Kenny Omega is out of AEW indefinitely.
“We don’t know how long or how short that’s going to be. But one thing that’s affected is the Golden Jets’ opportunity to become the AEW World Tag Team Champions by beating Ricky Starks and Big Bill at Worlds End. And while we decide what we’re going to do in the meantime, the most important thing is Kenny’s health. And I just wanted to let you know. We’re all pulling for you Kenny.
“We’re pulling for you Kenny, the AEW fans as you can hear, the entire locker room, and most importantly, me. And take as long as you need to get healthy, but when you come back, we’re all going to be here and I’m going to be waiting for you. And the Golden Jets will resume. Goodnight and goodbye, but only for now. We’re pulling for you Kenny. We’ll see you soon.”
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Jay Lethal (0) vs. Mark Briscoe (0)!
The fans chanted “Dem Boys! Dem Boys!”
Mark used an inside trip into a side headlock on Jay Lethal. Lethal slapped Mark Briscoe in the face. Mark smiled and chopped Jay in the chest. Lethal hip tossed Mark and then dropkicked him in the face.
Lethal and Mark jockeyed back and forth for position on a vertical suplex, but Lethal won the battle. Jay Lethal followed up with a tope suicida, knocking Mark Briscoe into the safety rail. Lethal tried for another tope, but Mark caught him and countered with a vertical suplex on the arena floor.
Lethal clocked Mark with the Lethal Combination! Lethal was looking for the King’s Elbow, climbing to the top. Mark met him up there, tried for a superplex, but Lethal brought his base down and rocked Mark with an elbow to the back of the neck. Mark knocked Jay off the turnbuckles with his Redneck Kung Fu. Mark pulled up a steel chair, ran across the ring and used the chair as a launching pad to fly over the top and land on Jay outside the ring!
Lethal hoisted up Mark in a torture rack, transitioning to a back breaker. Lethal dropped an elbow from up top and Briscoe kicked out at the two-count! Mark countered the Lethal Injection. Mark Briscoe nailed Lethal with a fishermen’s buster for a near fall.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Mark planted Lethal with a Death Valley Driver. Mark tried for the Froggy Bow but Lethal countered. Jay Lethal spiked Mark with the Jay Driller for a near fall! Briscoe blasted Lethal with a burning hammer, followed up with the Jay Driller, and pinned Jay Lethal!
Reach for the sky, boy!
“Look at this, a standing ovation, deserved for both men,” said Taz.
Footage was shown from earlier of the week of AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF being inducted in the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame!
A vignette aired of Wardlow!
“Max, we are getting closer to your world ender. Soon the world will see you broken. Max, the payment for your sins cannot be delayed any longer. And I will be the one to bring the devil to his knees!” said Wardlow.
Samoa Joe came out to the ring!
The fans chanted “Joe! Joe! Joe!”
Samoa Joe: “My name is Samoa Joe. And once again I have come here seeking answers. Last week I was asking the right questions but maybe I wasn’t asking the right questions. Even though Roderick Strong may be the dimmest bulb on the Christmas tree, he brings up a good point.
“Week after week, we are assaulted by the devil, and it seems are illustrious World Champion isn’t the only victim. As a matter of fact, for some odd reason, Hangman Adam Page was a victim. And then we think back to the malicious attack on our World Champion, and it seems every time the devil attacks someone, we get plenty of footage of them getting stomped out, but our World Champion was just found gingerly laid down in the back passed out. Very conveniently on the ground. So once again I have come asking the right questions, but maybe not to the right people. So MJF, why don’t you come out here right now!”
AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF walked down the ramp to the ring!
MJF: “Cut my music! Joe, let me get this straight. So, I get jumped in the back by a bunch of goons, I get hit in the back by a beer bottle, and you’re out here accusing me of being the man behind the mask. The devil. Is that correct?”
Samoa Joe: “Correct.”
MJF: “That’s really interesting, Joe. I recall that you said you were going to protect me in our main event going out to Long Island for the World Title. Matter of fact, I think you said, ‘From hence forth, MJF, you are my property.’ So ‘No Show Joe’ it’s become pretty clear that you care about your property about as much as you care about your diet.
“So, if we’re throwing accusations around, Joey, I got some accusations of my own. So, I get jumped in the back, the goons surround the ring, but I don’t recall them laying a finger on you, Joe. So, let’s see. I don’t like you. Now, I don’t trust you. So, why am I waiting until December 30th at Worlds End when I can end your world right now?”
MJF shoved Samoa Joe. A swarm of masked men ran into the ring and Samoa Joe and MJF had to beat them away! MJF and Samoa Joe fought off the masked assailants but even more came over the barricade and surrounded the ring. MJF and Samoa Joe were back to back and had to work as a unit because the entire ring was surrounded by masked men!
The arena lights went dark!
The man in the devil mask appeared on the big screen! There was a graphic scrawled across the screen that read:
“Where can you go? Who can you trust? Next week, will you accept a challenge…for your ROH World Tag Team Championship? Are you a hero, Max?”
MJF: “Joe, I know what you’re going to say. You’re going to say no again. But I made a promise to my best friend that I would defend those tag team titles, no matter what, until he comes back.”
Samoa Joe: “We accept! Seems the best way to handle a devil is with our bare hands. Next week we beat his boys’ asses!”
“Allies again for a moment,” said Taz.
“Wow, blockbuster announcement as MJF and Samoa Joe united in the face of this devil. But at Worlds End they will not be partners. Champion MJF, challenger Samoa Joe on pay-per-view, one week from Saturday,” said Excalibur.
Renee Paquette was backstage with the Best Friends—Kris Statlander, AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, Trent, and Rocky Romero!
Rocky: “Renee, I just spent 329 days as a CMLL World Historic Welterweight Champion until last week when I lost it. But I’m just looking for new international opportunities and I just want to bring gold around this waist.”
Orange: “Oh, ok, I get it. Fine. I’ll see you Friday, Rocky.”
Renee: Sounds like it’s official for this Friday on Rampage. Orange Cassidy versus Rocky Romero for the AEW International Championship.”
Saraya vs. Riho!
Winner faces “Timeless” Toni Storm for the AEW Women’s World Title at AEW Worlds End!
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Ruby Soho was watching the match from backstage.
Riho charged at Saraya, but Saraya rolled out of the ring. Riho followed Saraya and rocked her with her innovated offense. Saraya hid behind an AEW security guard and then hit Riho with a cheap shot. Saraya swung Riho into the ringside barricade, bouncing her off it!
Riho countered a suplex attempt with an inside cradle for a near fall. Riho brought down Saraya with a Northern Lights Suplex for a two-count. Riho jumped off the top rope with a double stomp and followed up with charging double knees, pinning Saraya and becoming the #1 contender for Worlds End!
Luthor carried Toni Storm to the ring. Storm got in the ring and Riho began to clobber her with strikes. Riho blasted Storm with a Tiger Faint Kick but out of nowhere Mariah May smashed Riho with the AEW Women’s World Title Belt!
Tony Schiavone read a prepared statement from TNT Champion Christian Cage!
Tony Schiavone: “Schiavone, you’d better read this statement word for word. As the biggest, hottest, and most talked about star in AEW, I have no double the hole my absence has left in your lives. After my career-defining victory over Adam Copeland, I decided to take my prodigy Nick Wayne on a well deserved vacation.
“I understand that the Rated R Superstar has challenged me to a No Disqualification Match at Worlds End on December 30th. So just to put all your tiny minds at ease, I want everyone to know that I will make my triumphant return this Saturday live on TNT on Collision, where I will address Adam Copeland and address any lingering questions people may have about what’s transpired a couple of weeks ago on Dynamite in Montreal. I expect nothing less than a hero’s welcome upon my return. Sincerely the TNT Champion, the Patriarch of AEW, Christian Cage.”
AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF was walking backstage!
Max stopped in his tracks when he saw a black mask on the floor. It was right in front of the Mogul Embassy’s dressing room. MJF knocked on their door. Prince Nana opened the door and Max grabbed him!
Max: “Explain this black mask! What the hell is it?”
Swerve walked out into the hallway and Max let Prince Nana go.
Swerve: “Be careful handling my property. Nice to finally see you out. I feel like you’ve been ducking me my whole time here in AEW.”
MJF: “Shane Strickland! Swerve! Look at you, man. See a lot of people don’t know this but we’ve got a big history. We used to do these long car rides on the road every single week when we were trying to make a name for ourselves on the independents. And now look at you! All grown up! All the momentum in the world, beating some of the biggest stars this company has to offer. Man, I’m so proud of you. However, I haven’t been ducking you.
“The reason you and I haven’t made eye contact in this place is because unfortunately there’s levels to this. And you’re just not on mine. And to make matters worse, I don’t hear your theme music. Therefore, neither is your star power.”
Swerve: “It’s funny you brought up those car rides, those were amazing. You remember that. You were the best chauffeur I ever had in my life. Thank you, man. Let’s go back to the interaction between you and William Regal years ago. Didn’t you bring up an email about a tryout that you just failed at and turned you into the whiny little guy that you are today? Yeah, you’re right, there are levels to this. You do tryouts. I sign contracts. And be careful how you talk to me. Because the last person that did, I hung him outside the ring in front of 13,000 people by a chain.”
MJF: “Solid monologue, bro. You’re starting to get so good at talking. I’m proud of you. But you talk about Hangman an awful lot. It’s almost obsessive. Now it’s funny you’re talking about respect because I’m your World Champion, kid. So, I think you need to check your tone and watch your mouth. But I do have a question for you. I find a couple things odd. Let me run them by you.
“You hate Hangman. More than anything you want to be AEW World Champion. So, putting those things together when I’m really thinking about it, why wouldn’t you frame Hangman with a beer bottle. Why wouldn’t you consistently try to get inside my head? And your goons in the Mogul Embassy are jumping people creating a clear path for you to finally be a world champion, be on top like yours truly. So, are you the devil? A part of me really hopes so. You say this is your house. Well, you’re looking at the Big Bad Wolf of professional wrestling. And when I feel like it, I’ll blow your house down. And then while I’m at it, I’ll break both your arms so you can always swerve while you drive.”
Swerve: “I ain’t the devil you’re looking for, but you keep waving that championship in front of me, I’m gonna be the one to bring you hell.”
Prince Nana opened the door and Brian Cage and the Gates of Agony stood behind Swerve!
Samoa Joe walked up to MJF, put his arm around him, and said to Swerve, “Well what is all good on this side of the hood, my friends? My associate and I have business elsewhere.”
Swerve: “Go handle it.”
Roderick Strong (with The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) vs. Komander (with Alex Abrahantes)!
Roddy used a leg sweep to trip Komander and grounded him. Roderick smashed Komander with a running knee strike. Roddy rocked Komander with stiff chops to the chest. Komander leveled Roddy with a dropkick.
Roddy knocked the wind out of Komander with a back breaker. Komander dodged a charging knee from Roddy. Komander cracked Roddy with a round kick. Komander stunned Roddy with elbow strikes. Komander connected with a Phoenix Splash for a near fall on Roddy!
Komander climbed back to the top, but the Kingdom pulled Roderick out of harm’s way to the arena floor. Komander did a backflip and wiped out all three men on the floor! Komander went for a springboard, but Roderick countered with a jumping knee strike to Komander’s face! Roderick finished off Komander with the End of Heartache and pinned Komander!
After the match the Kingdom passed out signs to the fans that said: “MJF is the Devil”!
After the match Renee Paquette interviewed Roderick Strong in the ring!
Roderick Strong: “Oh Renee! I’m so happy you’re here! Samoa Joe, please listen to me! It is so, so obvious now that Max is the devil. I mean look, Hangman mentions Max as the devil, and he gets taken out. C’mon Joe, it’s time to wake up. It’s time to believe me. Samoa Joe is my best friend by proxy. Joe listen to me!”
Main Event Time! Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley (12) vs. Bullet Club Gold’s Jay White (9)!
Jim Ross returned tonight to provide his main event analysis!
Moxley went for the sleeper right away. Jay White escaped but Moxley nailed him with the hammer and anvil elbows Moxley sat out with a piledriver for a near fall on Switchblade.
Jay White whipped Moxley into the steel ring steps outside the ring. Jay White stomped on Mox in the corner. Moxley slugged Jay White. Moxley back dropped Jay White on the ramp. Moxley chomped on the head of Jay White. Mox charged at Jay, but Jay dodged it and then clipped Moxley’s legs.
Moxley absorbed forearms from Jay White. Mox set Jay White on the top turnbuckle. Moxley gouged at White’s back, digging his fingers into Jay White’s flesh. Moxley superplexed Jay White. Moxley hit a lariat on White, knocking him over the top rope. Mox followed up with a tope suicida. Moxley may have buckled his knee when he landed, immediately grabbing his knee.
Jay White countered a suplex and planted Moxley across the steel ring steps! Jay White grabbed two steel chairs. The ref admonished White and Jay White tossed one of the chairs in the ring. The ref went to grab the chair in the ring, unbeknownst to him that Jay White had a second chair. Jay White smashed the chair into Moxley’s leg.
Moxley jumped into the ring, barely beating the 10-count. Moxley countered the Blade Runner with a Paradigm Shift for a near fall! Jay White wiped out Moxley with a dragon screw leg whip. Moxley smashed Jay White with a knee strike for a two-count!
Moxley grabbed White and planted him with a cutter! Jay White fired back with a sleeper suplex for a near fall! Jay White spiked Mox with the Kiwi Crusher! Moxley fired up and fired back with a lariat! Moxley curb stomped Jay White! Switchblade escaped the Death Rider! Jay White drilled Mox with the Blade Runner and scored the pin!
“Jay White beats Jon Moxley! What a hell of a match!” said Jim Ross.
“And now we know one week from tonight in the Gold League Finals it’ll be a three-way match! Jay White and Swerve Strickland and Jon Moxley! There’s no man with a clear tiebreaker win over the other so it’ll have to be a three-way match one week from tonight,” added Excalibur.
After the match, Swerve Strickland walked onto the ramp and stared at Moxley and Switchblade in the ring! Moxley managed to get to his feet, but Jay White clipped him from behind!
“That changed the game,” said Jim Ross.
“This could be disastrous for Jon Moxley,” replied Excalibur.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, FL!
This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!
Don’t miss AEW Collision: Holiday Bash on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, TX featuring:
-TBS Champ Julia Hart & Skye Blue vs. Thunder Rosa & Abadon!
– Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo vs. ROH World Champ/NJPW Openweight Champ Eddie Kingston!
-AEW World Trios Championship Match!
The Acclaimed & Daddy Ass (c.) vs. Top Flight & Action Andretti!
– Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Daniel Garcia vs. Brody King!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
https://www.youtube.com/embed/d4rUN6WpBzs?si=atTiIJu3sGCA5OWe
For the first time in AEW history, All Elite Wrestling heads to Oklahoma and the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City! With WORLDS END just ten days away, the last bouts of the Continental Classic Gold League will go down Wednesday night, setting up the Finals in Orlando next Wednesday on DYNAMITE!
Jon Moxley versus Jay White, Swerve Strickland versus RUSH, and Jay Lethal versus Mark Briscoe are all on tap for this Wednesday with the potential for some intriguing results to be explored shortly. Suffice to say, while Jon Moxley may not be as comfortable as his twelve points would make it seem. In addition, Roderick Strong goes one-on-one with Komander, Saraya faces Riho for the right to challenge Toni Storm on the line, and we will hear from both AEW World Champion MJF and his WORLDS END challenger Samoa Joe!
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, to catch highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as the newest CONTROL CENTER, and don’t forget to check out one of the best professional wrestling events of the year FINAL BATTLE 2023 over at ROH Honor Club (www.watchroh.com)!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: GOLD LEAGUE
Standings
Jon Moxley (12)
Swerve Strickland (9)
Jay White (9)
RUSH (6)
Mark Briscoe (0)
Jay Lethal (0)
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wmr-pfxHZrE?si=poW6tBp_HpoLUOjv
Jon Moxley(12) vs. Jay White(9)
For the last week, Moxley has been on top of the Continental Classic’s Gold League with 12 points, but as soon as the night begins on Wednesday, there’s the possibility that he will not get any higher and could even end up sharing the top spot depending on how RUSH/Swerve plays out. It’s a sure thing that Jon Moxley will end up in the Finals of the Gold League next week in Orlando, it’s just a matter of what things will look like once the former 3-TIME AEW World Champion gets there. The man who could stop Moxley from being the undisputed points king of the Gold League is none other than “Switchblade” Jay White!
Now White has managed, on his own merit and without BULLET CLUB GOLD involvement, to bounce back from his loss to Swerve Strickland and win his last two tournament bouts to net a total of nine points. Those wins have put him on the precipice of tying up the top spot with Moxley at twelve points, all “Switchblade” has to do is repeat the performance he had against Moxley in their 2019 G1 Climax bout for New Japan. That night, in the first and last singles match between the two prior to this Wednesday, it was White who took home the victory en route to his loss in the tournament finals against Kota Ibushi, and helped stifle Moxley’s strong push towards winning the B Block that year.
Will this Wednesday be a repeat of that outcome with a “Switchblade” Jay White victory? Or will we see Moxley run the table, net 15 points, and head to Orlando to meet one of the several possibilities that await him in the Gold League Finals? What are those possibilities? Read on to see how this half of the Continental Classic could play out…
Swerve Strickland(9) vs. RUSH(6)
Undaunted; that is what Swerve Strickland appears to be following his loss to Jon Moxley last week, a loss that kept him from claiming the position as points leader in the Gold League, at least for the time being. Strickland seems to garner motivation from loses such as that one, loses he can learn from to become a better competitor, loses that push him to improve and come back stronger. When that loss comes against one of the best in the game, well there is a great deal to take away form it but it call comes down to if a competitor is capable of seeing their flaws and getting better, or if they’re only capable of placing blame elsewhere. In this instance, Swerve seems completely capable of seeing where he went wrong to insure he doesn’t make the same mistake when he and Moxley meet again, and the possibility is very real they could fight against next week in the Gold League Finals.
The match of it breaks down like this: Moxley is at the top of the field with 12 points but both Jay White and Swerve Strickland could move up to into a tie with the former 3-Time AEW World Champion, and “Switchblade” would be doing so at the expense of Moxley. Should Moxley lose to Jay White, and Swerve beat RUSH, then we have ourselves a three-way tie at the top with each man sporting 12 points. Should Moxley win, he is the undisputed points winner of the Gold League and it’s just a matter of whether Swerve or RUSH wins this fight. See RUSH saved himself last week with that victory over Jay Lethal, staying alive for another week, but entirely dependent on how others perform in these last matches to make it to the second spot in the finals, and even then he won’t be alone.
As stated, a Moxley win nets 15 and makes him the king of the Gold League in terms of points, whereas a “Switchblade” victory ties them up at 12. Should Swerve win to get 12, he’s either tied with Jay White at 12 or there’s a three way tie at 12, but if RUSH wins to bump to 9 points, then both he and Swerve sit at 9 with the potential that Jay White could also end up at 9, creating a three way tie for the second spot in the Gold League Finals. Either that or, worst case scenario for the two men in this match, White wins and RUSH wins, tying “Switchblade” up with Moxley at 12 points, and insuring a rematch between the two in the Finals. That’s just scratching the surface of what could happen without looking at the possibility of draws in either match!
There are a multitude of ways this could go down, but nothing will be for sure until the final bell rings on the last Continental Classic match of the night! The only thing we know for certain at this moment is that neither of the men involved in the third Continental Classic bout of the night will be a factor in the Gold League Finals…
Mark Briscoe(0) vs. Jay Lethal(0)
Here we have two men with, on paper, nothing left to fight for in the Continental Classic. They both lost their previous four matches, have scored zero points despite their best efforts, and yet in the face of what could be a depressing, heartbreaking situation leading either man to throw in the towel, Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe have found something to fight for: honor.
The history of these two men dates back twenty years to the formative days of each man’s career, and even saw The Briscoes face the Special K duo of Lethal (then Hydro) and Deranged as part of a Gauntlet Match for the ROH Tag Team Titles at GLORY BY HONOR II in 2003. The two would have their first singles match of record at GATEWAY TO HONOR 2011, a Proving Ground match during Lethal’s 1st ROH World TV Title reign, and would go one-on-one several more times in ROH, with Lethal getting the victory in all but one situation, and only because that one time ended in a No Contest.
In AEW they’ve had one match, back on the January 25th edition of DYNAMITE, a bout to honor the late Jay Briscoe, and one of the most emotional matches ever presented on AEW television. Mark finally got a victory over Jay Lethal on that night, and as sweet as that may have been, ultimately the fight was about honoring the memory of our fallen brother more than about who actually won the contest.
Though they’ve had their issues, primarily stemming from Lethal’s choice to associate with The Jarretts, Sonjay Dutt, and Satnam Singh, Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe are still bonded, through shared history, through the fights they’ve had together, and through their experiences with Ring of Honor. There’s something unique to those men and women who came through the ROH ranks during the first twenty years, especially those who were there in 2002 when The Murphy Rec Center in Philly was the home of honor. Mark and Jay are two such competitors, and it seems they found their reason to fight this Wednesday night by looking back to that history, focusing on those letters, and putting Honor before everything else.
ONE-ON-ONE…
Roderick Strong vs. Komander
Roderick Strong is clearly just picking fights now that he’s decided to get back into active competition; he did it with Action Andretti and now he’s doing it with Komander, a man who did nothing more than have the audacity to show up and show out at both FINAL BATTLE 2023 (www.watchroh.com) and on last week’s RAMPAGE. Komander may not have been on the winning end of either Survival of the Fittest 2023 or that epic Trios Match, but he absolutely showed he’s got the tools to be a top tier player in AEW or ROH, as well as add more titles to a mantle already holding the AAA World Cruiserweight Championship.
So it will be this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE that Roderick Strong and Komander go head-to-head in their first meeting, and there’s little doubt that The Kingdom will be close at hand. Wherever Roderick goes, so too do Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, and Komander might want to bring some back-up of his own to even the odds lest he fall victim to a piledriver and a…groin…punch from Bennett to soften him up for Roddy!
WORLDS END OR BUST…
Riho vs. Saraya
***WINNER FACES AEW WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPION TONI STORM AT WORLDS END***
When she last stepped onto the AEW stage Riho back in April, it was with the dual purpose of fighting for the AEW Women’s World Championship held at the time by Jamie Hayter and in defense of the AEW Women’s locker room in the face of The Outcasts. Unfortunately the former AEW Women’s World Champion failed in both missions, losing to Hayter on the April 5th edition of DYNAMITE, and being decimated by The Outcasts one week later following a tag match loss to Ruby and Toni Storm.
So it came as no surprise that, upon her return to the fold, Riho’s first order of business was last week’s match with Ruby Soho, a match that ended in Riho’s favor, and now this week it continues with a bout against Saraya. Not only is it a fight with the Outcast member, but it is also one upon which the future of the AEW Women’s World Championship hangs!
See to the winner of this contest on Wednesday night go the spoils of fighting “Timeless” Toni Storm at WORLDS END with the AEW Women’s World Championship at stake! So there is still the possibility for Riho to achieve one of the goals she first set for herself last Spring; as for the other one, well The Outcasts did a grand job of imploding all by themselves, starting with Toni Storm being blackballed from their stage, and continuing with this separation of Saraya and Soho:
So that will be the question this Wednesday won’t it? Can Saraya pull off this all-important victory by herself, without Ruby Soho in her corner, or has she pulled Anna Jay into her corner based on their mutual issues with the entire Cool Hand Ang/Ruby situation? After all, Anna was Saraya’s side a week ago when she interrupted Parker and Menard’s words before their tag match in Montreal…
THE CHAMP AND THE CHALLENGER…
https://www.youtube.com/embed/gwWaA6TgWHQ?si=jrgwhbJV-mznSA-N
When last we saw AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF, he was face down on the concrete after apparently being struck in the head with a beer bottle. The conclusion was made by Samoa Joe that the presence of the beer bottle meant Hangman Page was responsible, and the confrontation earlier in the night between the former AEW World Champion and the current further reinforced Joe’s beliefs.
Well the last time we saw Samoa Joe, he was standing face-to-face with that former World Champion and telling Page straight up that he knows Hangman was responsible for the attack on Max and thus, presumably, was also the man behind the devil’s mask that’d been stolen from MJF’s bags weeks ago.
At the end of the night last Wednesday, fans all witnessed Hangman end up another victim of The Devil’s masked men, this time in the parking lot outside the arena, and essentially eradicating any notion that Page was still a suspect. After all, if it’s possible to believe Hangman staged his own assault, than one must accept the possibility that MJF staged his own, or Jay White staged his, or that even The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn stage theirs. Occam’s Razor would suggest removing any victim of The Devil or his ilk from suspicion, and looking elsewhere for suspects.
So perhaps this Wednesday night, when we hear from both champion and challenger, we will all get fresh illumination on the subject. Perhaps MJF saw something or heard something during his attack that points a finger in the right direction, any clue would help unravel this tangled web, and perhaps allow MJF to focus solely on this impeding fight with Samoa Joe.
DYNAMITE debuts in Oklahoma City, OK this Wednesday night Paycom Center and we’ve got the three final bouts in Continental Classic: Gold League on tap! Jay White and Jon Moxley, the winless Mark Briscoe versus the winless Jay Lethal, and RUSH fighting Swerve! Plus former ROH Women’s World Champion Riho battles Saraya for the right to move on to a WORLDS END championship fight with Toni Storm, Roderick Strong will be in action against Komander, and we will hear from both AEW World/ROH World Tag Champion MJF and Samoa Joe!
The bouts begin at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, just be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel for all the highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as this week’s CONTROL CENTER!
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Tonight’s AEW COLLISION: Winter Is Coming was broadcast from the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, TX!
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.
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo (9) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli (3)!
Claudio Castagnoli locked up with Andrade and back him into the corner. Andrade powered out and rammed Claudio with a shoulder block. Claudio fired back with a standing clothesline. Andrade connected with a crossbody for a two-count.
Andrade jumped over the top rope to Claudio on the arena floor, but Claudio countered with a European uppercut. Andrade used two dragon screw leg whips, but Claudio couldn’t be contained and blasted Andrade El Idolo with a pop up European uppercut.
Claudio hurled Andrade around the ring with the Big Swing! Claudio applied the sharpshooter. Andrade escaped and reversed the sharpshooter into a figure four!
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen that!” said Tony Schiavone.
Claudio used his upper body strength to reach the bottom rope and force the ref to break the hold. Andrade climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Claudio met him up there. Andrade took down Claudio with a sunset flip powerbomb. Andrade charged at Claudio and crashed into him with a running knee strike. Andrade exposed the top turnbuckle but Claudio superplexed him. Andrade rallied back with two suplexes of his own. Andrade blasted Claudio with a pump kick and then a spinning back elbow for a near fall!
The fans chanted “A-E-W! A-E-W!”
Claudio knocked Andrade off the top turnbuckle and Andrade landed hard on the exposed turnbuckle. As the ref turned his back to put the turnbuckle pad back on, Claudio cracked Andrade with a low blow. Claudio followed up with a Gotch style piledriver and pinned Andrade!
“Claudio stays alive, and this tightens things up in the Blue League!” said Kevin Kelly.
Abadon vs. Jazmin Allure!
Abadon grounded and pounded Allure. Jazmin retaliated with a thrust kick, but Abadon absorbed it. Abadon ended things with the Black Dahlia and pinned Allure.
The arena lights went out! Julia Hart appeared in the ring and dangled the TBS Championship in front of Abadon.
Abadon lunged at Julia and then nailed Julia with a running knee strike. Abadon picked up the TBS Championship. Skye Blue ran into the ring and attacked Abadon! Skye Blue held Abadon while Julia hit Abadon.
Thunder Rosa charged into the ring and hit Skye Blue! Julia Hart and Skye Blue retreated out of the ring. Rosa offered her hand to Abadon and Abadon accepted!
AEW World Trios Champions The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass were backstage with Renee Paquette!
Daddy Ass: “You know, Renee, I don’t mean to cut you off, but we have the problem. The problem is Daddy Ass and the Acclaimed are now pissed off. You might have knocked us down, but the problem is we got back up!”
Max Caster: “Calm down. What Billy means is we’re coming for whoever’s under that Devil mask. And MJF, we’re friends, but now I want nothing to do with you. Because you put us in danger, and you didn’t care.”
Anthony Bowens: “What it boils down to is there’s a group of individuals that tried to end our careers. So, consider this the Acclaimed’s search and destroy mission because we’re going to beat your goofy asses the second we figure out who you are! And on top of that, Renee, we’re going to get back to being the best damn Trios in all of AEW history because everyone loves the Acclaimed!”
Top Flight and Action Andretti interrupted them! They said they wanted to clarify that they weren’t the ones who attacked the Acclaimed. They issued a challenge to the Acclaimed. Bowens said he appreciated it, but “wrong place, wrong time. Challenge accepted for next week on Collision. Be ready to fight.”
AEW International Title Match!
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) vs. “Bounty Hunter” Bryan Keith!
Orange tried mind games, but Keith chopped at Cassidy. Orange ran off the ropes, but Keith countered with a boot to Orange’s head. Orange Cassidy fired back with a tornado DDT and then a tope suicida to Bryan Keith!
Bryan Keith headbutted Orange and followed up with an exploder suplex off the top rope. Orange countered a gut wrench suplex attempt with a Beach Break for a near fall on Bryan Keith! The Bounty Hunter fired back with a stunner for a near fall on the champ. Cassidy rolled up Keith out of nowhere and pinned him!
Orange offered his hand, but Keith slapped it away. Bryan Keith then tipped his hat at Orange out of respect.
A vignette aired of “The Redeemer” Miro!
“I am the Redeemer. I don’t want to fight Andrade because he is my wife’s client. I want to fight him because he is an a——! His losing to Claudio in this tournament brings him one step closer to being eliminated. I am done avoiding people to please my wife. I am ready to kill everyone to please myself. I fought the light for so long that I let my darkness consume me. This is the word of the Redeemer.”
Lexy Nair was backstage with Komander to interview him!
They were interrupted by Roderick Strong and the Kingdom—Mike Bennett and Matt Taven!
Roderick Strong: “Hey, despite all the good things she’s saying about you, you didn’t win last night, and that’s not good. You see, I am a former Ring of Honor Television Champion. And a Survival of the Fittest winner.”
Matt Taven: “I won the TV Title my very first night under contract.”
Roderick Strong: “So I just wanted to let you know this. I myself am looking to get back on the horse, pun intended. And fellas, I think I found my next victim: Komander!”
FTR—Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler came down to the ring!
Cash Wheeler: “House of Black, let me say first and foremost, if you have a problem with us, no more magic, no more sneak attacks. Come out here and speak to us face to face. I’ll tell you I think your problem is you’ve seen the success we’ve had in the past three years here in AEW. We came here and we’ve had the best run of our careers.
“We have been the Ring of Honor, the Triple A, the New Japan, and two-time AEW World Tag Team Champions. And you two, you’re still just unrealized potential. I think you’re mad at yourselves. I think you see the success that Brody has had in the Continental Classic and you’re jealous of that. I think you’ve seen the success that Julia has had and you’re jealous of that. But you’re not going to take your anger out on yourselves. You’re not going to direct it at yourselves. You’re going to direct it at the living legends.”
Dax Harwood: “You can say we’re not the best looking, and that’s ok. You can say we’re not the flashiest. I’ve even heard we’re hard to do business with. But there’s one thing that you can’t say about FTR and that’s we’ll back down from a fight.
“I don’t mind taking an ass whooping. Half of my life I’ve fought men for money. And that’s ok but I do have a problem with a sucker punch from behind. And I’m going to lay out a challenge, first time ever. House of Black—”
Dax’s microphone went dead and then the arena lights went dark!
The House of Black appeared on the big screen. Buddy Matthews told FTR that they were here to prove a point that no one in the back has FTR’s back. “Mark Briscoe, he won’t save you. Dax, your wife, your kid, they won’t save you. Everyone you love won’t save you. But I want to direct this question to Cash. Who loves you? All these people love Dax, but who loves you? I’ll tell you who loves you. We love you. We embrace you. We welcome you. We welcome both of you. Be in our family.”
Malakai Black: “See there’s this thing, this constant here, that this is personal. It’s not personal. No, this is what happens when we have to prove a point so aggressively that it even hurts us. Because this is love. Because let me ask you this question. When we attacked you, who came to save you? No one. So, did we lie? No, we did not lie.
“And if I were to make it personal, I would have a picture of you, of your wife, and your daughter, and I would do this to it.”
Buddy held up the picture while Malakai lit it on fire.
Malakai Black: “Symbolic. Like it or not, we’re your family now.”
Texas Street Fight Match!
Kris Statlander & Willow Nightingale vs. Mercedes Martinez & Diamante!
Mercedes smashed a bottle over Willow’s head! Kris spiked Diamante with a DDT onto a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire. Kris and Willow rammed Mercedes with a metal step ladder!
Mercedes cracked Willow with a crowbar across the back. Mercedes booted Willow in the head. Willow pounced Diamante and then smashed a board against Diamante’s back. Statlander rocked Mercedes with Saturday Night Fever for a near fall!
Diamante cracked Kris with a briefcase. Diamante opened the briefcase and dumped the contents all over the mat—shards of glass and thumbtacks! Mercedes dug Kris’ face into the tacks. Mercedes power bombed Willow off the apron and through a table on the arena floor!
Kris Statlander had her hand wrapped with a steel chain. Statlander hit the knockout blow on Diamante and then pinned her!
Renee Paquette was backstage with AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm and Mariah May!
Renee said whoever won between Saraya and Riho would face Storm at World’s End, and she asked Storm if she had a preference of who she faced.
Storm: “Not really.”
Renee asked Mariah if there was any update on who were debut opponent might be.
Mariah May: “Well Tony Khan helped me apply for my American wrestling license so very soon and Miss Storm you were sensational on commentary on Dynamite. And I was hoping you could commentate my first match.”
Toni Storm: “Darling, I am very busy.”
Mariah May: “That’s okay. Maybe you could check it out and offer some pointers.”
Toni Storm: “Darling, I am very busy but next time I hold a seminar you’ll be the very first to know. And as for Riho and Saraya, go ahead and go out there and slap each other around. Rip each other’s hair out. And at Worlds End I’ll be facing either one of two bland baldies.
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champion “The Machine” Brian Cage (with Prince Nana)
vs.
Kerry Wright!
Cage clobbered Kerry right out of the gate! Cage German suplexed Wright. Cage power bombed Kerry and then crushed him with the Drill Claw, scoring the pin!
“Who’s going to stop that monster?” asked Kevin Kelly.
Lexy Nair interviewed Brian Cage, the Gates of Agony, and Prince Nana backstage!
They said they were on a roll, this was Swerve’s house, but they were living in it.
“Limitless” Keith Lee interrupted.
Keith Lee: “Congratulations are in order. However, to celebrate, you can tell him, my patience runs thin, and time is running out.”
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
ROH World Champion/NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
vs.
Daniel Garcia (0)!
Matt Menard joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Daniel Garcia and Eddie Kingston traded chops. Eddie used a back heel trip on Garcia. Daniel Garcia stunned Kingston with a dragon screw leg whip off the apron. Kingston fired back with a belly to belly suplex. Kingston nailed Garcia with a DDT.
Kingston blasted Garcia with machine gun rapid fire chops. Kingston was like a man possessed. Garcia mocked Kingston. Garcia got his second wind and broke through the defense of Kingston. Garcia applied a kneebar on Kingston, but Kingston managed to reach the ropes.
Garcia put Kingston in a leg lock, but Eddie grabbed the ropes and escaped one more time. Garcia charged at Kingston, but Kingston countered with an exploder and then a spinning back fist for a two-count!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Garcia rocked Kingston with a suplex. Kingston’s leg gave out and Garcia grabbed him and hurled him with another stiff suplex for a near fall. Kingston fired back with a half and half suplex and then a spinning back fist and scored the pin on Garcia!
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
House of Black’s Brody King (6) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Bryan Danielson (6)!
Danielson kicked at Brody’s legs. Brody went after Bryan’s surgically repaired eye. Brody chopped Danielson in the throat! Brody splashed Danielson in the corner with a cannonball!
Brody smashed Danielson’s head across the announcers’ desk. Brody whipped Danielson into the steel barricade. Brody put Danielson on a chair and then splashed him, sandwiching Danielson between himself and the barricade!
Danielson was able to regain some momentum with a diving knee off the apron. Danielson hit a missile dropkick. Danielson returned to kicking Brody and inflicting damage to Brody’s knee. Brody retaliated with a lariat off the second turnbuckle.
Brody was looking for a cannonball, but Bryan tripped up Brody and applied a single crab. Brody kicked himself free, stunning Danielson. The American Dragon chopped away at big Brody with round kicks. Danielson grabbed Brody’s wrists and began stomping on him. Danielson switched to the hammer and anvil elbow strikes. Brody mustered the strength for a Death Valley Driver on Danielson for a near fall.
Danielson used his trademark knee strike on Brody, but Brody kicked out at one! Brody smashed Danielson with a lariat for a near fall! Danielson smacked Brody in the face with the running knee and then caught him in the back of the head with another knee strike, finally scoring the pin on Brody King!
“What a battle,” said Tony Schiavone.
“Bryan Danielson has inched forward to nine points,” added Kevin Kelly.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
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All Elite Wrestling returns to Garland, TX and our home for the last four years at the Curtis Culwell Center! It’s the first time COLLISION has emanated from this great venue, and with WORLDS END fast approaching, that means more Continental Classic action in the Blue League! We saw Brody King take his first loss in the tournament on DYNAMITE, falling to Andrade El Idolo in each man’s third League bout, and boosting El Idolo up to the top spot with 9 points.
This week the Blue League continues with Claudio Castagnoli taking on Andrade, ROH World & NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston fighting an old rival in Daniel Garcia, and Bryan Danielson facing the immense challenge of Brody King! The bouts begin at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and the best way to get ready is to visit 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 events from last week’s COLLISION, the latest CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: BLUE LEAGUE…
Standings
Andrade El Idolo (9)
Brody King (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
Daniel Garcia (0)
Daniel Garcia (0) vs. Eddie Kingston (3)
The Continental Classic is getting down to the wire, we’ve passed the halfway point, and unfortunately for Daniel Garcia there is no way for him to win the Blue League on points, nor even come in second in order to battle it out with the points leader for that spot in the Continental Classic Finals at WORLDS END. All Garcia can do now is play spoiler to those with hope in their hearts, and with enough points to potentially get them to the Blue League Finals.
One of those men who has to hold onto hope right now is Eddie Kingston, an opponent Garcia has battled many times over the last two years, because after dropping his first two Blue League bouts, Kingston finally scored his first three points last week over Claudio Castagnoli.
But with Bryan Danielson, as well as Brody King, at six points and Andrade El Idolo at nine points, Kingston finds himself with two must-win bouts left in the league, and also dependent on the failings of others. Save the possibility of a draw, either Danielson or King will walk out of Saturday with nine points to their name, and Kingston has lost to both of them already. With the other bout pitting Castagnoli against Andrade, either Claudio walks with six or Andrade with 12, the latter result puts that top spot in the league totally out of Kingston’s reach, with only a hope of second place to hold onto.
Now this is where things get very interesting, the possibility of ties and what draws could potentially do to shake up the entire Blue League, but the bottom line for the ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion is that he must defeat Daniel Garcia to have hope, he must defeat Andrade El Idolo in his next match to have hope, otherwise Kingston’s gamble with his two championship titles will have failed.
But is it a failure to risk it all in order to achieve something greater? Is that willingness to fail actually what makes a person great? Is it brave or foolhardy for an athlete to look at their future and be willing to gamble everything at the risk of walking away with nothing? Only at the end of this road will Eddie Kingston be able to answer that question for himself…
Bryan Danielson (6) vs. Brody King (6)
In his first two matches in the Continental Classic, Brody King showed the world just how dangerous an individual he can be. Generally competing in tags and trios with his fellow House of Black devotees, Brody took it to Eddie Kingston and Claudio Castagnoli with a fierceness. That first match with Kingston kind of shook up the competition as many thought Eddie, as the ROH World and NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion, would come into the tournament strong. Instead Brody dropped “The Mad King”, and moved onto Claudio Castagnoli, who was coming off a strong win on Daniel Gacris. Just as he did with Kingston, Brody King handed Castagnoli his first loss in the tournament, shocking the world once more with his dominance in singles competition, and with eyes on his third bout against Andrade El Idolo.
But Brody’s power and capacity for violence were no match for Andrade’s cunning as El Idolo took advantage of an exposed turnbuckle, cracked Brody’s head against the steel, and ended up with the victory of The House’s behemoth. Every man coming into this tournament did so knowing loss was a possibility, if not an inevitability, so King will take the defeat as a lesson and move forward with no excuses into his last two fights. For better or worse, Brody King has to meet former multi-time World Champion and Blackpool Combat Club member Bryan Danielson in his next fight.
Bryan has been through a bit of hell during 2023; from the litany of injuries sustained after REVOLUTION 2023’s Iron Man Match with MJF to his broken arm from FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023 against Okada to the fractured orbital bone suffered at the hands of both Okada and Orange Cassidy, the body of “The American Dragon” has gone through the ring.
And yet he never stops, Bryan Danielson never yields, and that is why he is a part of this tournament in spite of how much his body has endured. It seems with Danielson that no matter what his body may feel, his mind is strong, his will is iron, and his drive to compete is inevitable. That’s why he went through three Continental Classic matches in a week against Eddie Kingston, Daniel Garcia, and Andrade El Idolo. The first two were victories for Dragon, hard-fought, still victories nonetheless, but then came Andrade and his willingness to do something that the other two competitors did not: attack the eye.
With a relentless aggression, Andrade went after Danielson’s eye to the point that many wondered if Dragon would even be able to fight the match through to its end, but anyone who questioned that clearly doesn’t know the heart of Bryan. He fought through to the bitter end, taking the pain and punishment Andrade dished out, never stopping his fight, but ultimately succumbing. So now that the man who many thought would run the table with a perfect bracket has tasted defeat, what is his road to the finals? What is Brody King’s?
Obviously for both victory here is the goal, putting the winner at nine points in the Blue League, and potentially tied with Andrade El Idolo depending on how his battle with Claudio sways. If that’s the case, it comes down to the final match of the League for each, for Bryan that is actually fellow BCC member Claudio Castagnoli while for Brody King it is Daniel Garcia, someone who holds a victory over Brody from earlier this year. Win or lose, both men are still in the fight to win the Continental Classic, but whoever walks out of this with hand raised will be just a bit more comfortable in their position…that is if anyone is in position to walk away from this fight. Add in the fact that Bryan Danielson had a Fight Without Honor war last night at ROH’s FINAL BATTLE 2023 that ended with Mark Briscoe dropping “The American Dragon” with a Jay Driller to win the match, and it’s really questionable how Danielson is even capable of walking into this one, much less expecting to walk out the winner!
Claudio Castagnoli (3) vs. Andrade El Idolo (9)
Though some may have questioned whether or not Andrade El Idolo was wise to take on CJ Perry for his management, it’s hard to question the results as El Idolo is undefeated thus far, with victories over Daniel Garcia, Bryan Danielson, and Brody King just this past Wednesday on DYNAMITE. In each case Andrade has looked strong, dominant even, and as evidenced in both the Danielson and Brody King matches, willing to do anything it takes to secure that victory. In Bryan’s case it meant attacking that eye injury, and in King’s making use of the exposed turnbuckle, either way it ended with points for Andrade, enough to put him at the top of Blue League with just two matches left.
As for Claudio, he had a great first outing against Daniel Garcia to score his three points, but then ran into the brick wall of Brody King, and stumbled once more in his DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2023 rematch with Eddie Kingston. The latter likely stung greater than the former given the ill will between Kingston and Castagnoli, but the Brody loss is still a loss and Castagnoli finds himself in the same hole as Kingston.
Claudio’s path to possibly make the cut for League Finals means defeating Andrade and, in his final match, his own Blackpool Combat Club brother Bryan Danielson. Even that would only net him nine points, leaving The Swiss Superman also dependent on the outcome of other matches in order to be one of the last two men standing for the Gold League Finals in Orlando on December 27th. Andrade is obviously in the Gold League driver’s seat, but he could end up fighting for that second place spot if he drops this match and his final bout with Eddie Kingston. No one in this Blue League should let themselves get too comfortable…especially considering four of these six men fought at ROH’s FINAL BATTLE 2023 event last night. All but Andrade El Idolo and Brody King went through a fight, so it will be very intriguing to see how those may effect these three bouts!
AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy(c) vs. “The Bounty Hunter” Bryan Keith
Last night at FINAL BATTLE 2023, Bryan Keith came into ROH for the very first time with nothing more than an opportunity to qualify for the ROH World Television Championship Survival of the Fittest Elimination bout. “All” Kieth had to do was beat Jack Cartwheel on the ZERO HOUR to get there.
Well he did that, and in the span of the seven minutes that fight lasted, Bryan also won over the ROH faithful in Garland, TX. Then “The Bounty Hunter” stepped into the Survival of the Fittest Finals and hung in there for seventeen minutes, eliminating Lee Moriarty in the process before Kyle Fletcher took him out, and Bryan Keth solidified himself as a force to be reckoned with anywhere he goes.
Obviously someone took notice because Orange Cassidy, the 2-Time AEW International Champion, actually stepped up to “The Bounty Hunter” and offered him an opportunity to challenge for the title this Saturday night on COLLISION! Now Orange is coming into this off a fight of his own, teaming up with The Von Erichs on RAMPAGE to beat Cool Hand Ang, Daddy Magic, and Jake Hager, but that took far less a toll on the champion than FINAL BATTLE 2023 did to his challenger!
Can Bryan Keith upset the defending champion this Saturday night in Garland, and continue to show the world what he brings to the table inside that squared circle? Will OC’s own challenge backfire on him come COLLISION?
All Elite Wrestling has called Garland, TX and the Curtis Culwell Center home since 2019, and for the first time we are bringing COLLISION action to town! The Blue League tournament action heads into its fourth round with Castagnoli versus Andrade, Kingston battling Garcia, and Danielson tackling King! COLLISION begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to get prepared for it all, drop by the official AEW YouTube channel to watch highlights from this week’s editions of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from the last COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
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DYNAMITE was absolutely action-packed this past Wednesday with three Gold League bouts, one Blue League contest, and several other exciting bouts as AEW heads towards WORLDS END on December 30th! Jon Moxley took the top spot in the Gold League with 12 points after his victory over Swerve Strickland, while Rush added three more points to his total after beating Jay Lethal, and Jay White also scored another trio of points after topping Mark Briscoe. Meanwhile, in the Blue, Brody King fell to Andrade El Idolo to put the latter competitor on top of that bracket with every man now having competed in three bouts.
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We also learned that The Golden Jets will take on AEW World Tag Champions Big Bill and Ricky Starks at WORLDS END, fans witnessed Adam Page have a heated confrontation with Samoa Joe and then best Roderick Strong in the opening match of the night, only to be laid out in the parking lot during the closing moments of DYNAMITE.
This Friday night RAMPAGE hails from Arlington, TX and begins at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and features an intriguing collection of matches! AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy teams with The Von Erich’s to take on Daddy Magic, Cool Hand Ang, and Jaker Hager in Trios action while Anna Jay and Red Velvet go head-to-head for the first time since 2020! Plus, The Don Callis Family will be in tag team action and, in the main event, Top Flight and Action Andretti will finally lock up with Penta, Vikingo, and Komander in their much anticipated Trios bout!! Before the show begins, make a point to drop in on the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, to get up to speed with highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as previous episodes of RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
TRIOS MATCH…
AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy & The Von Erichs (Marshall & Ross) vs. Angelo Parker, Jake Hager, & Matt Menard
The history of the Von Erichs in Texas is well known to wrestling fans around the world, and the newest generation of the fabled grappling family is set to make their first in-ring appearance for All Elite Wrestling this Friday night on RAMPAGE!
The issues between AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy and the former J.A.S. members have been growing for several weeks, in fact it was only a couple weeks ago that he teamed with HOOK, Danhausen, and Trent Beretta to defeat Angelo Parker, Matt Menard, and The Dark Order, and on the Thanksgiving Eve DYNAMITE that he, Shibata, and HOOK bested Daddy Magic, Cool Hand Ang, and Jake Hager.
But like a bad penny, they keep turning up in OC’s life, and this time the AEW International Champion is bringing some hometown help from Ross and Marshall Von Erich! The sons of Kevin Von Erich, Ross and Marshall have been competing for eleven years, learning from their father as well as the legendary Harley Race, and spending time in the Pro Wrestling NOAH Dojo under Naomichi Marufuji. They are multi-time tag champions over the course of their career, certainly experienced competitors, and strong partners for “Freshly Squeezed” in this Trios bout.
But not being one of OC’s regular partners like Trent Beretta, Danhausen, Chuck Taylor, or even HOOK, how will they gel on this first outing? Angelo Parker, Matt Menard, and Jake Hager have been together virtually every week of their life for the last year and a half, but their current situations have not led to a great deal of success for any of the men. Can they take advantage of the inexperience of Orange Cassidy’s trio to get back on track?
ONE-ON-ONE…
Anna Jay vs. Red Velvet
It has been over three years since the last time Anna Jay and Red Velvet locked up as foes. That night, the September 1, 2020 edition of AEW DARK, it was Anna Jay who scored the victory and the two women would not share the ring again until last year on the 2/21/22 edition of DARK: ELEVATION, only that night it would be as partners in a Trios match, scoring victory alongside Tay Melo.
This Friday night on RAMPAGE, these two women, each looking to get their career back on the right track, will lock up in a rematch of that 2020 bout! Anna Jay is trying to focus on her career while dealing with her friends problems, Red Velvet is freshly returned from a long injury layoff and trying to get back in the mix, that makes this a must-win bout for both!
TRIOS MATCH…
Action Andretti & Top Flight (Dante & Darius Martin) vs. El Hijo Del Vikingo, Komander, & Penta El Zero Miedo
This one stems from a challenge made by Penta El Zero Miedo, his way of welcoming Dante Martin back to the fight it seems, and perhaps a reminder that The Lucha Brothers were responsible for the gruesome injury he suffered at SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023. Top Flight and Action Andretti were more than willing to accept the challenge, and fans will be the ones lucky enough to experience it this Friday night on RAMPAGE!
Just look at the six competitors involved in this battle and one can predict the kind of insanity coming to TNT with this Trios bout! This is a “blink and you’ll miss it” kind of battle featuring six of the best high-flyers in professional wrestling today, and the kind of action you can only get with All Elite Wrestling!
ALSO FEATURING:
-The Don Callis Family of Kyle Fletcher & Powerhouse Hobbs!
RAMPAGE comes your way from Arlington, TX this Friday night starting at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and will bring the legendary Von Erich family to AEW where Ross and Marshall will united with AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy for Trios action against Daddy Magic, Cool Hand Ang, and Jaker Hager! We will also see The Don Callis Family in tag team action, Red Velvet take on Anna Jay, and, the trio of Top Flight and Action Andretti fighting with Penta El Zero Miedo, El Hijo del Vikingo, and Komander in a highly anticipated Trios bout!!
Prior to the start of the show, be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted 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!
Week 4 of the AEW Continental Classic continues Saturday night on AEW Collison with 3 huge Blue League matchups!
BLUE LEAGUE
Brody King (6) takes on Bryan Danielson (6)
Eddie Kingston (3) and Daniel Garcia (0) face off.
Andrade El Idolo (9) clashes with Claudio Castagnoli (3)
The action continues SATURDAY NIGHT on AEW Collision LIVE at 8/7c on TNT!
Follow the AEW Continental Classic standings here.
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE: Winter Is Coming was broadcast live from the College Park Center in Arlington, 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!
Continental Classic: Gold League Standings—
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley (9)
Swerve Strickland (9)
Bullet Club Gold’s “Switchblade” Jay White (6)
LFI’s Rush (3)
Mark Briscoe (0)
Jay Lethal (0)
Continental Classic: Blue League Standings—
House of Black’s Brody King (6)
Andrade El Idolo (6)
Blackpool Combat Club’s “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
Daniel Garcia (0)
Samoa Joe walked to the ring to kick off the show!
Samoa Joe: “I have come here tonight looking for answers. Not a long time ago I made a promise to MJF that I would keep him whole until World’s End when I would dismantle him myself. Last week I was made into a liar when I came out here to the machinations of a devil. I looked up at that screen and saw MJF laying in the back, potentially jeopardizing my AEW World Championship opportunity.
“Now one can’t stand on the tracks of destiny and not get run over. So let me explain to you what’s going to happen tonight. You see when I walked in the back last week with MJF laying on the ground, I saw a beer bottle, a certain beer brand, that a certain cowboy likes, busted over MJF’s head.
“And then as I got closer, I noticed a certain scent of Stetson and disappointment. And I said to myself, I’ve smelled this before. And then as I walked around the building, searching high and low for this cowboy, it seemed like a certain Hangman was missing.”
“Hangman” Adam Page’s music hit, and Page came down to the ring!
“What if someone is trying to frame ‘Hangman’ Adam Page? What if MJF is trying to frame Adam Page?” asked Excalibur.
“Hangman” Adam Page: “Joe if there’s something you want to accuse me of, why don’t you just say it like the man I thought you were. If you think it’s me, if you think I have anything to do with it, if you think I give a damn about the Devil, you’d be so wrong, because I don’t care.”
Samoa Joe: “Hangman you may not care, but you see you made the mistake of thinking I came out here like a detective. I’ve already made up my mind. I’m an executioner.”
Hangman Page: “Well Joe, if there’s something you want to do about it, why don’t you do it?”
Roderick Strong walked onto the ramp with the Kingdom, and he was screaming “Samoa! Samoa Joe, you are so lucky that they didn’t hurt you last week. But I hate to say this, you gotta listen to Hangman. I mean he is my young boy and all. I never forgot about that.
“And listen, have you seen the things that have been happening, Joe? Jay White asked for a World title match, he gets attacked. The Acclaimed lose a tag match for Max and they get attacked. The goons attack Max on November 29th, but they don’t lay a single shot on him, and you come to his aid.
“And then last week, we never saw them physically touch him. We just saw him lying there. C’mon, Joe, think! It’s obviously Max. Max is the devil. C’mon, Joe, I wouldn’t like to you. I’m not talking to you Adam, I’m talking to my best friend by proxy, Samoa Joe!”
Adam Page swung at Roderick Strong and knocked him to the mat!
Roderick Strong (with The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett)
vs.
“Hangman” Adam Page!
Samoa Joe left the ring and pointed at Adam Page as he was exiting. As Page had his back turned, Roderick Strong blindsided Page! Strong stomped on Page in the corner. Hangman retaliated with stiff chops to Roderick Strong.
Page sent Strong flying with an overhead slam. Page hit a standing shooting star press for a near fall. Roderick connected with a back breaker. Page blasted Roddy with a high cowboy boot to the face.
Roddy used a single leg takedown and then drove his knee into Page’s chest. Roddy charged at Page, but Page flipped him over the top rope and followed up with a tope, crashing down on Roddy on the arena floor. Page climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Matt Taven grabbed a hold of Page’s boot. Mike Bennett distracted ref Aubrey Edwards while Roddy kicked Page in the head.
“The opening was there, Roderick took advantage of it, the referee couldn’t see it,” said Taz.
Roderick Strong nailed Hangman Page with a backbreaker on the turnbuckles! Roddy grabbed a top wrist lock. Page escaped and exchanged forearms with Roderick. Both men went for rolling elbows and they collided with one another, each being knocked down.
Adam Page got a second wind and began to stomp a Texas mudhole in Roddy. Hangman planted Roddy with a Death Valley Driver for a two-count! Adam Page chomped on Roddy’s forehead. Page went for a moonsault press, Roddy dodged it, but Page landed on his feet! Roddy charged at Page, but Page took him down with a pop-up powerbomb for a near fall!
Page was looking for the Dead Eye, but Roddy broke free and pancaked Page for a two-count. Roderick followed up with a suplex and then a Tiger Driver for a near fall. Roderick locked on the Strong Hold, but Page reached the ropes, forcing the ref to break the hold.
Page was searching for the Buck Shot Lariat, but Taven grabbed Page’s boot. Bennett distracted the ref on the other side. Page wiped out Taven with a moonsault. Page went back up top and tore down the Kingdom with another moonsault, this time from the ring post!
Hangman went for the Buck Shot, but Roddy had it scouted and went to apply the Strong Hold. Page countered with a roll-up, but Roddy kicked out. Page hit the Dead Eye on Strong and pinned him!
“Both these guys left it all in the ring,” said Taz.
“A great return to form for ‘Hangman’ Adam Page,” replied Excalibur.
Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo vs. House of Black’s Brody King!
Brody back up Andrade into the ropes. Andrade applied a headlock and took Brody down to the mat. Brody escaped and squashed Andrade with a senton. Big Brody pummeled Andrade in the corner with chops and then landed a solid elbow strike.
Andrade connected with a big cross body press, but Brody kicked out at the one-count. Brody rolled out of the ring, but Andrade followed up with a moonsault on the middle turnbuckle to Brody on the arena floor.
Andrade dropkicked Brody in the knee and Brody’s momentum sent him crashing into the turnbuckles. Andrade nailed Brody with two dragon screw leg whips. Andrade took Brody down with a flying elbow strike. Andrade El Idolo body slammed Brody. Andrade followed up with a split legged moonsault for a near fall!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Brody rocked Andrade with a lariat for a two-count! Brody connected with a cannonball splash in the corner on Andrade El Idolo. Brody and Andrade exchanged chops. Brody stunned Andrade with a forearm, but Andrade answered with a spinning back elbow!
Andrade El Idolo climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Brody got to his feet. Brody knocked Andrade down with an elbow strike. Both men jockeyed for position on the top turnbuckle. Andrade pulled Brody’s head down, spiking it on the exposed turnbuckle! Andrade followed up with a hammerlock DDT and pinned Brody King!
“Andrade has picked up three crucial points in the Blue League,” said Excalibur.
Renee Paquette was backstage with the legendary Von Erichs—Kevin Von Erich, and his sons, Marshall and Ross Von Erich—who made their return to Dallas!
Kevin Von Erich: “Renee, I love AEW. The style, and I’ve got so many friends here, too.”
Danhausen walked onto the scene, interrupting, along with International Champion Orange Cassidy and Trent!
Orange: “Hey, I got a match on Rampage this week, and I need two partners. How about you two guys tag up with me on Rampage?”
Danhausen: “Hey, you’re betraying us.”
Orange: “What? No, we’re in Texas. So, what do you guys say?”
Marshall and Ross Von Erich agreed, saying they’d gladly have Orange’s back!
Out next: The Golden Jets—Kenny Omega & Chris Jericho!
Jericho: “Dallas, welcome to the return of the Golden Jets! I think that was the first ever Golden Jets chant,” Jericho said with a smile.
Jericho: “The reason why it’s been a while since we’ve been here is because of Big Bill and Ricky Starks. They attacked me after Full Gear, pretty much dislocated my elbow, put me out for three weeks. Last week after Kenny’s great match with Ethan Page, Big Bill kicked Kenny in the face and put him down to the ground. I spent three weeks thinking of what I was going to say to Big Bill and Ricky Starks. It’s pretty simple: Hey boys, get your sorry asses out here!”
AEW World Tag Team Champions “Absolute” Ricky Starks and Big Bill walked onto the ramp!
Starks: “Wow, did you miss me? Point proven, Chris. I find this whole situation to be funny. I have no problem with you Kenny. I want to thank you for this great place we have called AEW. And you, Chris, there’s nothing to really thank, because you just suck the life out of every single thing. And it makes me question, you, though, Kenny, because do you really think you can trust a guy like Jericho? I mean, look at the Inner Circle. Look at JAS. Look at what he’s done to those people in the past.”
Big Bill: Kenny, look at the things that Chris has actually done to you. If Chris attacked you randomly on the drop of a dime, me, Ricky, nobody here, would actually be surprised. Just saying.”
Kenny Omega: “So you’re basing this off of my trust between myself and Chris Jericho? Do I trust Chris Jericho? Chris, you know I don’t trust you. Look, Big Bill, you’re talking about track records. Let’s take a look at something from your past, the Firm, for example. Everyone remember the Firm? I can’t say that I do.
“I would say that that Firm angle you had with MJF is more like the flaccid, looking less firm and a little more up your alley, something say, I don’t know, soft. But hey, when it comes to beatdowns, I’m pretty much the king of receiving them. So hey, you guys think you can talk a big game, that’s fine. We’ve earned ourselves a tag team title shot down the road, and guess what? On December 30th at World’s End, we’re thinking maybe the Golden Jets can maybe take those two titles off of your waist and place them firmly around ours. What do you say to that?”
Ricky Starks: “That’s all well and good and we understand you two are the number one contenders and I’m going to speak for both of us and say, hey, guess what, you’re on! But before we even get to World’s End, let me just remind you Chris, I hope you remember January. Because back in January, I actually beat you on Dynamite.”
Big Bill: “Correction. You actually beat him twice. You beat him on a pay-per-view also.”
Starks: “So as far as I’m concerned, I’ve already done half of the work. I know you in and out and I know what you’re all about. We are the best tag team that there is because we are the AEW Tag Team Champions, without a name!”
Chris Jericho: “It’s funny, Starks, you keep bragging that you don’t have a name. I think you need a name. How about this? The Absolute S—ts? I got it! How about we take his first name and then his last name, ladies and gentlemen, AEW World Tag Team Champions Big Billy Starks!”
Starks: “Well that one fell flat.”
Jericho: “Kinda did.”
Starks: “I can excuse the name, but I cannot excuse the outfit where you went to a local Hot Topic and said, ‘Hey, give me the best stuff that you’ve got!’”
Jericho: “Listen, you said I’m a clown vampire, believe me, if I was going to suck my fangs into somebody, I’d do it with somebody with a lot more clout than you. Because from where I’m standing, all I see is a better dressed, less charismatic version of Enzo Amore.”
Omega: “Hey, let’s give Enzo credit. At least he would hype up Big Bill and not take all the spotlight.”
Starks: “Well I think you guys have taken the spotlight a little too far in my opinion, but regardless, I want you to know something. You talk about the way I dress. You talk about Big Bill. Chris Jericho, no one cares anymore. I am sick and tired of you. And Kenny, you’re starting to piss me off, brother. You want the war? Bring it! World’s End, me and Big Bill will take you two on, because we are the best damn tag team there is. Bar none! Nobody better! And if you think you’ve got something better than me and Big Bill, prove it, you two Winnipeg scumbags!”
Omega: “Well, now that you’ve brought out the big guns, I might need to sit and stew on that for a minute. So, much like those tag team belts on December 30th, I must bid you good-bye, bang!”
Jericho: “We’ll see you on December 30th Starks and Big Bill!”
The Outcasts’ Ruby Soho vs. Riho!
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm joined the broadcast booth for this match. She was accompanied by Mariah May.
Ruby stomped Riho in the corner. Ruby body slammed Riho, but Riho followed up with a dropkick. Riho suplexed Ruby and then squashed her with a double foot stomp. Riho climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Ruby knocked her off balance. Riho managed to secure herself and then crashed down on Ruby Soho like a bolt of lightning, double stomping her!
Riho connected with a big cross body press for a near fall. Ruby rocked Riho with a kick to the side of the head. Riho planted Ruby with a crucifix bomb for a near fall! Ruby fired back with the No Future Kick, but Riho kicked out at the two-count! Riho stunned Ruby with a dragon suplex and then pinned Ruby after a running knee strike!
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
LFI’s Rush vs. Jay Lethal!
Rush splashed Lethal in the corner. Lethal fired back with a basement dropkick and the did his strut. Rush hit a German suplex and followed up with a knee strike. Rush whipped Jay Lethal into the steel guardrail outside the ring.
Lethal chopped Rush off the turnbuckles. Lethal shocked Rush with the Lethal Combination. Lethal tried to apply the figure four but Rush rolled him up for a near fall. Lethal countered Rush’s discus lariat with a kick to the head. Lethal charged at Rush but Rush nailed Lethal with a belly to belly suplex in the turnbuckles. Rush countered the Lethal Injection with a sleeper and Lethal tapped out!
“Rush has not forgotten how Jon Moxley put him to sleep one week ago,” said Excalibur.
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Bullet Club Gold’s “Switchblade” Jay White vs. Mark Briscoe!
Briscoe wasted no time, going right after Jay White! Briscoe hit a Death Valley Driver!
The fans chanted “Dem Boys! Dem Boys! Dem Boys!”
Briscoe climbed to the top and smashed White with the Froggy Bow. White rolled out of the ring. Mark chopped at Jay White back in the ring. Briscoe chomped on Jay White’s head. Jay White hurled Mark out of the ring, and Mark’s shoulder collided on the ring apron.
Mark blocked the Blade Runner with redneck Kung Fu. Jay White hit a basement dropkick and then a DDT on Mark Briscoe. Mark Briscoe wiped out White with a massive lariat! Mark employed the redneck Kung Fu once again. Mark nailed Jay with the Cactus elbow drop off the ring apron!
Jay White escaped Mark’s attempt at Splash Mountain. White connected with elbow strikes. Mark signaled for the Jay Driller but White countered with a dragon screw leg whip out of nowhere. Briscoe was clutching his knee. White walloped Mark with a sleeper suplex. White served up a second sleeper suplex on Mark! Mark countered the Blade Runner with a side suplex. Mark went for a Froggy Bow, but Jay White countered by raising his knees into Mark’s ribcage. White pinned Mark Briscoe after planting him with the Blade Runner!
Main Event Time! Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley vs. Swerve Strickland!
The fans were on their feet as the match began, chanting “A-E-W! A-E-W!”
Mox applied a hammerlock. Swerve escaped and taunted Moxley. Both men were playing mind games early on. Moxley and Swerve traded strikes in the center of the ring. Swerve kicked out Moxley’s legs and then spiked Mox with a DDT off the turnbuckles!
Swerve rammed Mox into the steel ring post. Mox retaliated with a lariat out of the corner. Mox planted Swerve with a stalling piledriver for a near fall. Moxley trapped Swerve in the apron skirt and then crotched him on the apron skirt cord. Moxley launched Swerve into the steel ring steps!
Back in the ring, Mox clocked Swerve with a clothesline at the halfway mark. Swerve smashed Mox with a back breaker. Swerve accelerated off the ropes with a back elbow. Moxley nailed Swerve with a cutter, but Swerve kicked out of the cover. Mox spiked Swerve with a Gotch style piledriver for a two-count!
Swerve and Mox exchanged headbutts. Swerve rocked Mox with a flatliner. Swerve connected with a high boot right on target for a near fall.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Swerve used hammer and anvil elbow strikes on Moxley. Swerve followed up with the House Call kick. Swerve was looking for the Swerve Stomp, but Mox knocked Swerve off the top turnbuckle. Swerve fell to the arena floor! Moxley mauled Swerve with a curb stomp as Swerve rolled back into the ring!
Moxley applied a cross arm breaker on Swerve’s injured right arm. Swerve managed to reach the ropes with his boot to force the ref to break the hold. Moxley grabbed a steel chair from outside the ring, but Swerve jumped over the top rope and crashed onto Moxley. Swerve landed on Moxley with a Swerve Stomp outside the ring!
Swerve climbed to the top rope and hit the Swerve Stomp on Mox, but Mox kicked out at two! Moxley countered a JML Driver with a roll thru cradle and he pinned Swerve!
“Jon Moxley, I think he may have even grabbed the belt for that added leverage,” said Excalibur.
“He sure did! He grabbed it with both hands,” replied Tony Schiavone.
“Jon Moxley stealing a victory and stealing three crucial points. Jon Moxley now sits at the top of the table with 12 points, the highest overall total,” said Excalibur.
Outside the arena, four masked assailants with the Devil’s mask logo on the back of their hoodies, attacked “Hangman” Adam Page!
“He’s outnumbered four to one,” said Excalibur.
“Someone’s in that car,” added Taz.
The person in the Devil mask exited the car and nodded at the assailants. The masked men power bombed Adam Page through the glass windshield of the car!
“The devil and his goons just destroying ‘Hangman’ Adam Page,” said Excalibur, as Page was writhing in pain.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK!
This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!
Witness history by watching ROH: Final Battle 2023, this Friday, December 15th, exclusively for subscribers on Ring of Honor HonorClub at WatchROH.com!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, TX!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
https://www.youtube.com/embed/lvEbPwNhroU?si=zOY43tJl6sK2-Nh7
Winter is coming to Arlington, TX this Wednesday night when All Elite Wrestling debuts at College Park Center! All roads lead to Long Island for WORLDS END on December 30th, but the way there is increasingly fraught with peril for everyone in the Continental Classic, as well as AEW World Champion MJF, his scheduled challenger Samoa Joe, and anyone else around the champ!
Three more matches in the Gold League will go down on Wednesday night with Rush facing Jay Lethal, Mark Briscoe battling Jay White, and the two unbeatens, Jon Moxley and Swerve Strickland, putting that on the line in their first-ever meeting! Plus Ruby Soho takes on the returning Riho, Roderick Strong gets back in action with a fight against “Hangman” Adam Page, and we will hear from the #1 Contender to MJF’s AEW World Championship, Samoa Joe! DYNAMITE begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so drop in on the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, to watch highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as the newest CONTROL CENTER!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: GOLD LEAGUE..
https://www.youtube.com/embed/goyQaKfWv1o?si=8XBYDQZvl6NqZ81a&start=7
Standings
Jon Moxley (9)
Swerve Strickland (9)
Jay White (6)
Rush (3)
Mark Briscoe (0)
Jay Lethal (0)
Jon Moxley (9) vs. Swerve Strickland (9)
One would be hard-pressed to find a man on a bigger role right now than Jon Moxley, he’s won 13 of his last 15 singles matches, including that Steel Cage Match with Kenny Omega and being the one to end Orange Cassidy’s historic first AEW International Championship reign. His two losses were quite painful to be honest, losing that same championship to Rey Fenix and failing to reclaim it from “Freshly Squeezed” in their rematch, but Mox has rebounded spectacularly with this three victories in the Continental Classic: Gold League thus far. RUSH, Mark Briscoe, and Jay Lethal have all fallen at the hands of the 3-Time AEW World Champion and even though we’ve all heard it from the horse’s mouth just how he is hurting, Mox is going to keep fighting until there’s no breath left in his lungs.
Swerve is also on quite a roll of his own, winning nine of his last ten singles bouts, the loss in that situation coming at the hands of Bryan Danielson and there is absolutely no shame in losing to “The American Dragon”. Now Strickland might put that loss squarely on the shoulders of Hangman Page, but the reality is that all the former AEW World Champion did was prevent Swerve from cheating to win. Now the nature of this tournament removed the Prince Nana factor from the equation, but rather than be a hindrance, it has instead allowed Swerve to prove just how good he is without the assistance of The Mogul Embassy. Victories over Mark Briscoe, Jay White, and Jay Lethal have bolstered Swerve already massive go, but also demonstrated that he’s got the ability to be truly great on his own. And now it will be put to the test this Wednesday night when the only unbeaten men in the Gold League go head-to-head for the very first time!
Swerve Strickland and Jon Moxley are both on the precipice of winning the Gold League, the only man that can possibly match them is Jay White, but he requires a lot of pieces to fall into place in order to make that happen, not the least of which is beating Moxley in their final League match. That’s a story for another week though, and another fight, this one will either set a definitive top dog in the Gold League with a three point victory, or leave things all tied up with a one point draw. One will have twelve points, or both will have ten, those are the only two ways this can go, and all eyes will be watching to see how it plays out.
Rush (3) vs. Jay Lethal (0)
With just three points to his name, “El Toro Blanco” is one of three men in this tournament on the outside looking in; mathematically speaking, there is no way for the head of La Faccion Ingobernable to move to the front of the line save both Jon Moxley and Swerve Strickland forfeiting their last two matches. Even if two current leaders of the field went to a draw in their bout this Wednesday, and Moxley lost in his last bout to Jay White while RUSH beat Swerve in theirs, the best he could hope for is nine points to their ten. Still, stranger things have happened, and “El Toro Blanco” is fighting with the hope that one of those things takes place between now and the finals of the Gold League!
As for Jay Lethal, the “Franchise of ROH”, he has taken his zero point total very hard, and there was obviously not a whole lot for Jeff Jarrett or Sonjay Dutt to say about the matter. So while Lethal is eliminated from any possibility of winning this tournament, he can still score some sort of moral victory by winning at least one of his remaining battles, and in the case of Rush, he can do it with a win over a man he’s never beaten in RUSH. Their only singles encounter, a ROH World Championship match at the 19TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW in March 2021 ended with a RUSH victory, their one Four Corner Survival ended with neither as the victor, and their Eight-Man Tag ended with LFI having the upper hand.
Coincidentally, before any of their matches against one another, there was a period of time in 2019 where the two men actually fought side-by-side, and even challenged for the ROH World Six-Man Titles together with Jeff Cobb. Yet now they stand as foes once again, Lethal’s first chance to redeem that 2021 championship defeat, and his second-to-last opportunity to put any points on the board before the Continental Classic comes to a close. Will Lethal be able to overcome his disappointing run so far, or will this be another night that drives him further towards the edge?
Jay White (6) vs. Mark Briscoe (0)
One month ago, just ten days before “Switchblade” Jay White fought MJF at FULL GEAR 2023 for the AEW World Championship, he went one-on-one with Mark Briscoe for the very first time. Now the two had some history dating back to Jay’s NJPW excursion spent with Ring of Honor, and even fought in a tag team affair as recently as June 2022, but that evening was their first singles bout, and after fourteen minutes, it went the way of Jay White. That sent “King Switch” to his championship match on a high note, not one that led to him claiming the title as his own, but a loss that has perhaps served to stoke White’s fires with this Continental Classic.
With two victories under his belt, and two matches still to go, the possibility exists that Jay White could actually end up in a tie for the Gold League crown. He just needs to win out in this match, as well as in his final bout with Jon Moxley, and hope that, regardless of the Swerve/Moxley outcome, Strickland also blows his final match in the tournament against RUSH. The situation is possible, but it all hinges on “Switchblade” beating Mark Briscoe.
So knowing he’s completely eliminated from the tournament, what does Mark Briscoe stand to gain from these last two matches with Jay White and Jay Lethal? Well right here, with this “Switchblade” rematch, Mark has the opportunity to redeem his loss a month ago, and play spoiler for any hopes the head of BULLET CLUB GOLD has at winning the Gold League. If White loses this Wednesday night, all hope he had of snaking into a tie for the top spot will be so much dust in the wind thanks to the 13-Time ROH World Tag Team Champion! Can Mark do that? Can he find it within himself to score a win even though nothing is a stake save personal redemption? If there’s anyone in this tournament who has that heart, it’s Mark Briscoe!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: BLUE LEAGUE…
Standings
Brody King (6)
Andrade El Idolo (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
Daniel Garcia (0)
Andrade El Idolo (6) vs. Brody King (6)
This Wednesday night the Blue League of the Continental Classic will come to DYNAMITE for the first time, and with it comes a battle of the two top men in standings! On paper there may be a three tie between Brody King, Andrade El Idolo, and Bryan Danielson, but the reality is that Bryan’s six points are the result of three matches in the Blue League while King and El Idolo have had just two thus far. That changes on Wednesday night when those two warriors collide in their third Blue League match, the halfway point of the tournament, and a rematch of their June 24th COLLISION bout that ended with a DQ victory for Andrade El Idolo after Buddy Matthews interfered on Brody’s behalf.
That will not be the case on Wednesday since, as we all know by now, outside interference in the Continental Classic will not be tolerated, a rule that thankfully has been obeyed by all parties involved thus far. That leaves the powerhouse of The House to deal with the man who had him dead to rights back in June when Buddy’s involvement was the only thing that saved Brody from tapping to the Figure Eight. Will DYNAMITE see Andrade finish the job that was so rudely interrupted at the beginning of the Summer, or will Brody King continue his monstrous run through the Blue League competition to ascend to the top of the mountain with nine points?
ONE-ON-ONE…
Roderick Strong vs. “Hangman” Adam Page
https://www.youtube.com/embed/uvJIgsR3Xb4?si=ao2NdrD3gtcsoHRt&start=7
Hangman hasn’t stepped into the ring since his unforgettable Texas Death match against Swerve Strickland, a fight he lost, but will forever be etched onto Adam’s soul as one of the most life changing he’s ever had. Where does he go now? It seems his mission is to insure Swerve never achieves his own championship dreams, but now there’s also a little bit of MJF in the mix because, quite frankly, the AEW World Champion is seeing the devil in everyone…
https://www.youtube.com/embed/CaXu6XTFPZQ?si=sAhvoclUmKc4vbeX&start=7
Roderick Strong, since being (questionably) injured by Samoa Joe in the Grand Slam Eliminator Tournament finals back in September, has only fought twice, both just about a month ago, and spent most of his time being wheeled around by The Kingdom while yelling quite unnecessarily. One of those matches, the fight with Action Andretti, saw Strong land rather painfully on that neck that he’s been nursing for three months, giving him further excuses to not fight, but it looks like Roddy is finally putting himself back in the mix!
There’s a rich history between Roderick Strong and Adam Page, one dating back to the earliest years of Hangman’s career, and even saw Page serve as Roddy’s young boy in Ring of Honor when Strong was part of a group known as The Decade. It has been nine years since their last one-on-one fight, ROH’s FINAL BATTLE 2014 event to be exact, and seven-plus years since they last shared at ring at ROH/NJPW GLOBAL WARS 2016. So much has changed for both men, especially for Hangman whose stock has risen so much from those young boy days to that of a former AEW World and World Tag Team champion.
This Wednesday night their paths merge once more as each forges ahead with their careers into the great unknown. Is their future the AEW World Champion? Is it something else neither has found yet? Page still has Swerve in his focus, Roderick is still rather obsessive where it comes to anything around Adam Cole, but is that all there is for them?
VENGEANCE…
Ruby Soho vs. Riho
https://www.youtube.com/embed/WZZrFjUAxS4?si=aN91IEfpK7Br_e14&start=166
When we last saw Riho inside an AEW ring it was as another victim of The Outcasts, when they were a united trio, after they’d already beaten her and Skye Blue in a tag team bout. Following the match, Riho was assaulted, spray painted, and dropped with a Triple Powerbomb, never getting a chance to even the score with her assailants.
This past week on DYNAMITE though, after Toni Storm’s victory over Skye Blue, Riho returned to the AEW stage and went straight for the AEW Women’s World Champion! Though Toni may longer have an affiliation with The Outcasts, she was still part of the scenario that put Riho out of AEW action, and the fact Toni’s the reigning champion furthers the incentive for Riho to target her first.
But that doesn’t mean the other women involved are in store for their own comeuppance as well, and that begins this Wednesday night in Arlington when Riho goes one-on-one with Ruby Soho! It’s the first time these two warriors have gone to battle since Ruby eliminated Riho from the 2022 Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament, given Riho even more incentive to even the score with this Outcast! Will Riho manage to do that this Wednesday night, or will Ruby have Saraya at her side to tip the scales?
JOE! JOE! JOE!
https://www.youtube.com/embed/gwmpZ6s4s8I?si=B2n_MeC_QDSZnzZa&start=7
Samoa Joe had promised to keep Maxwell Jacob Friedman intact heading into their AEW World Championship bout, but it’s hard to do that when the champion is doing nothing to keep himself safe. He’s already banged up from his title fight against Jay White at FULL GEAR 2023, but that hasn’t stopped MJF from continuing to pursue a fight at every opportunity, especially where this Devil and his masked men are concerned.
That’s what led to Samoa Joe standing in the ring waiting for the arrival of his temporary partner, saw him stuck in the ring while a group of masked men surrounded it, and then just as abruptly left all by himself to watch a video of MJF laid out, apparently with bottle smashed across his head based on the wreckage left around him.
So where is Samoa Joe’s head at after all that, knowing he’s only a couple weeks away from WORLDS END, and MJF constantly in jeopardy of not being up for the fight? We will hear from the most dangerous man in professional wrestling this Wednesday in Arlington!
THE GOLDEN JETS…
Coming off a hard-fought victory over “All Ego” Ethan Page, Kenny Omega was laid out by Big Bill and left for dead on the COLLISION stage, a message to Omega and Chris Jericho as they sit with a guaranteed AEW World Tag Team Championship match in their pocket. Both Jericho and Omega have paid physical prices for earning that shot, though Omega may have paid a more personal one given that it came at the cost of beating his supposed best friends at FULL GEAR 2023, and this week on DYNAMITE we will hear from the #1 Contender’s regarding Ricky Starks and Big Bill! Will this be the day they call their shot, and name the site of their title match?
DYNAMITE debuts in Arlington, TX this Wednesday night at the College Park Center featuring three more bouts in the Gold League of the Continental Classic! We’ve got a battle of the 9-Pointers in Swerve Strickland and Jon Moxley, the winless Mark Briscoe fighting Jay White, and Rush taking on Jay Lethal as the latter tries to stay in contention! In addition, former ROH Women’s World Champion Riho returns to action against Ruby Soho, Roderick Strong is back in the fight opposite Hangman Page, and Samoa Joe will be in the house after watching his WORLDS END foe get laid out apparently by AEW’s Devil.
The bouts begin at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, just be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel for all the highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as this week’s CONTROL CENTER!
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Tonight’s AEW COLLISION was broadcast from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC!
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.
Continental Classic Blue League Standings:
Brody King (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
Andrade El Idolo (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (0)
Daniel Garcia (0)
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli
vs.
ROH World Champion/NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston!
Kingston cracked Claudio with a spinning backfist. Claudio left the ring and Eddie followed up with a tope suicida. Things were intense right out of the gates, with Kingston trying to finish Claudio early. Claudio pancaked Kingston, his face slammed into the mat, good for a two-count.
Claudio clotheslines Kingston, who was on the apron of the ring. Claudio connected with a big double stomp on the sternum of Kingston. Claudio ducked a chop and put Kingston in the Giant Swing! Claudio transitioned into the sharpshooter. Kingston reached the ropes, forcing the ref to break the hold.
Claudio battered Kingston in the corner with vicious forearms. Eddie was dazed. Claudio blasted Kingston with a short arm lariat.
The fans chanted “Let’s go Eddie! Let’s go Eddie!”
“Eddie may be out here. He can’t even get his hands up,” said Tony Schiavone.
Claudio pulled Eddie to his feet and hoisted him up onto the top turnbuckle. Claudio dug his fingernails into Eddie’s back and then superplexed Eddie! Claudio grabbed a waist lock suplex for a two-count on Eddie.
“Claudio just toying with Eddie, asking him to fire up,” said Schiavone.
Eddie responded with two exploder suplexes on Claudio for a near fall.
“It looks like Eddie has flipped the switch,” said Kevin Kelly.
Kingston fired off machine gun chops to Claudio. Kingston rocked Claudio with a lariat for a two-count. Claudio countered a knee strike with a suplex. Claudio applied an STF on Kingston at the 15 minute mark. Kingston crawled to the ropes and forced the ref to break the hold.
Claudio went for the Ricola bomb, but Kingston tried to counter with a spinning backfist. Claudio ducked it and hit a clothesline for a two-count on Kingston. Eddie hit the half-and-half and then two spinning backfists for a near fall on Claudio! Claudio used a hurracanrana, but Eddie rolled up Claudio, pinning him with a cradle!
“Eddie Kingston stays alive! An incredible gut check win for Kingston,” said Tony Schiavone.
Renee Paquette interviewed FTW Champion HOOK backstage about the consistent issues he’s been having with Wheeler Yuta!
Paquette: “What’s going on with you two?”
ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta walked onto the set and interrupted Renee before HOOK could answer.
Wheeler Yuta: “Renee, I’ll tell you what’s up. Hook you are a paper champion. Renee you shouldn’t be wasting your time with amateurs like this when you could be interviewing honorable guys like myself.”
Hook: “Yeah, real honorable. You kicked Shibata in the balls.”
Wheeler: “Hook, I pinned Shibata in the middle of the ring to become a record-setting three-time Ring of Honor Pure champion. I can do it under Pure rules, but I can do it under your rules too. And I am tired of dealing with you. You’re the one who started this. I’m ready to put you out. So, let’s do it under FTW Rules.”
Hook: “All right.”
Willow Nightingale vs. Mercedes Martinez (with Diamante)!
Willow clocked Martinez with a clothesline. Willow clubbed Martinez with repeated shots and then a shoulder block. Willow splashed Martinez with a senton. Willow followed Martinez to the floor and Martinez rammed Willow into the edge of the ring. Martinez whipped Willow into the steel barricade.
“That is one vicious lady right there,” said Tony Schiavone.
Martinez spiked Willow with a draping DDT off the timekeeper’s table! Back in the ring Martinez hit Willow with two vertical suplexes, but Willow countered with her own suplex and then face planted Martinez for a near fall.
Willow smashed Martinez with a cannonball splash in the turnbuckles. Diamante jumped onto the apron, but Willow knocked her to the arena floor. Martinez used the distraction to her advantage and stunned Willow with a fisherman’s bomb for a two-count. Martinez followed up with a backdrop driver, and then another. Martinez hoisted up Willow and planted her, but Willow managed to roll up Martinez with a small package and pin her!
“How did Willow do it?” asked a shocked Kevin Kelly.
Martinez and Diamante attacked Willow after the match. Diamante pulled a ladder out from beneath the ring and slid it to Martinez, who used it on Willow.
Kris Statlander ran to the ring with a chain wrapped around her fist! Martinez and Diamante retreated while Statlander checked on Willow.
Renee Paquette interviewed Daddy Magic, Cool Hand Ang, and Jake Hager backstage!
Hager was outraged that Danhausen had stolen his purple bucket hat. “I got bad hat fever!” said Hager.
Ruby Soho showed up and began to smile at Cool Hand Ang. Saraya and Anna Jay walked onto the set. Saraya ordered Daddy Magic to handle the situation.
Saraya: “We’ve been looking for you all day. What are you hiding?”
Ruby: “Nothing. It’s cold.”
Saraya pulled Ruby’s jacket open and saw she was wearing a Cool Hand Ang t-shirt underneath.
Saraya: “You’re an evil witch. You’re going to leave me just like her! You haven’t been there for me and I’m not going to be there for you next week when you face Riho, unless you prove to me that you still want to do this.”
Up next: Wardlow vs. Willie Mack!
“Willie Mack is AR Fox’s friend, but you’ve got to be some kind of friend to want to fight Wardlow,” said Kevin Kelly.
Willie hammered Wardlow with some strikes but then Wardlow dropkicked Willie. Wardlow rocked Willie with uppercuts in the corner. Wardlow headbutted Willie Mack. Willie fired back with a standing moonsault, but Wardlow kicked out at the one-count. Wardlow caught Willie in midair and powerbombed him!
Wardlow powerbombed Willie Mack again and then walloped Willie with a lariat. Wardlow devastated Willie Mack with another powerbomb, and the ref stopped the match! Wardlow was victorious via ref stoppage!
The House of Black had a message for FTR!
Malakai Black: “So your best friend is gone. And the only people that truly seem to care about you, well, it’s us.
“All Ego” Ethan Page vs. “The Cleaner” Kenny Omega!
“Ethan Page is not 100% right now, after being put through a table by Tony Nese,” noted Tony Schiavone.
Omega charged into Page with a shoulder tackle. Page wailed away at Omega in the corner with stiff shots. Tony Nese was seen scouting the match backstage.
Ethan Page jumped through the ropes with a cutter on Omega out of nowhere! Omega immediately rolled to the outside, clearly hurt from the cutter. Page followed Omega and whipped Omega into the guardrail. Kenny put the brakes on and then hit a moonsault off the guardrail onto Ethan Page!
Back in the ring Page scoop slammed Omega. Kenny lured Page in and suplexed Page over the ropes and both men spilled out onto the arena floor!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Omega powerbombed Page and then targeted him with a V-trigger for a near fall. Page brought down Omega with an Iconoclasm and then a DDT for a near fall. Omega retaliated with a snapdragon suplex. Omega hit a second snapdragon on Ethan Page.
Page rocked Omega with an avalanche slam off the top rope for a near fall. Omega tried for the One-Winged Angel, but Page countered with a cradle for a near fall. Kenny smashed Page with two V-triggers and then finished him off with the One-Winged Angel, scoring the victory over Page!
“Standing ovation here in Montreal,” said Nigel.
After the match, Big Bill blindsided Kenny Omega with a big boot to the head!
“So now the World Tag Team Champions have put both the Golden Jets down,” noted Kevin Kelly.
Lexy Nair interviewed CJ Perry backstage when “The Redeemer” Miro interrupted!
Miro: “I am your husband, and I’m trying to figure out when was the last time you said so many good things about me, like you do about Andrade El Idolo? Why are you so mad because I told you to stay home? I am the bread earner and you’re my queen.”
CJ Perry: “Are you really that delusional Miro? I mean, you told me to stay home and cook, clean and listen. And then you denounce me. Make up your mind.”
Miro: “A lady needs to get her hands dirty every now and again. When my dad goes fishing, my mom cleans the fish. When my dad kills bull with his bare hand, my mom guts them. When I hunt, you clean. But don’t worry. I’m not going to touch your client Andrade in this tournament. But once it’s finished, so is he.”
Penta El Zero Miedo & Komander (with Alex Abrahantes)
vs.
“Daddy Magic” Matt Menard & “Cool Hand” Angelo Parker!
The hometown crowd chanted “Daddy Magic! Daddy Magic!”
Penta El Zero Miedo punted Daddy Magic in the face. Menard offered his hand to Penta, shook it, and then blindsided him. Komander and Parker tagged in for their respective teams. Komander took down Parker with two arm drags and a dropkick.
Komander and Penta used tandem offense on Parker. Menard charged in and was staggered but stereo thrust kicks. Penta monkey flipped Komander into Parker and Menard! Komander and Penta went for double dives but Menard and Parker crashed the party with stereo forearms.
Penta rallied back with sling blades to Menard and Parker. Komander and Penta connected with double thrust kicks to Parker and Menard.
“The fans are chanting ‘This is awesome!’ and I would agree,” said Schiavone.
Menard applied a Montreal Crab to Penta, but Komander charged in and broke it up. Penta picked up Parker for the Fear Factor and then Komander walked the ropes and crashed onto Parker, more than enough to score the pin on Cool Hand Ang!
Main Event Time! Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Bryan Danielson vs. Andrade El Idolo!
“The crowd seems to be evenly split with respectful chants for both Andrade and Danielson,” said Kevin Kelly.
Andrade had a tight side headlock on Danielson, putting pressure on Danielson’s surgically repaired orbital socket. Andrade shoulder blocked Danielson but Danielson came back with a suplex.
Danielson kicked Andrade but Andrade countered with a dragon screw leg whip. Andrade tried to smash into Danielson with the double knees, but Danielson dodged it. Danielson rocketed out of the ring with a dive to Andrade.
Andrade ripped off Danielson’s protective mask and nailed him in the eye with a forearm! Danielson was busted open. Andrade El Idolo applied a figure four to Danielson in the center of the ring. Danielson rolled and managed to reach the ropes.
Andrade headbutted Danielson on the top turnbuckle. Andrade put his thumb in Danielson’s eye socket. They hit one another with open palm strikes. Danielson slapped Andrade off the turnbuckles. Danielson connected with a missile dropkick!
Bryan Danielson punished Andrade El Idolo with round kicks. Danielson tried for the LeBell Lock, but Andrade fought it off. Both men went down after they collided into one another with clotheslines.
The fans chanted “Fight forever! Fight forever!”
Andrade superplexed Danielson at the 15 minute mark. Andrade grabbed a near fall after the three amigos suplex. Andrade climbed to the top turnbuckle, looking for a moonsault, but Danielson countered with an avalanche belly to back suplex for a two-count. Danielson applied the LeBell Lock and screamed for Andrade to tap!
Andrade escaped and caught Danielson with a spinning back elbow for a near fall! Danielson’s eye was swelling up. Both men peppered one another with stiff shots to the face. Andrade smashed Danielson with another spinning elbow and then rocked him with double knees in the corner. Andrade spiked Danielson with an arm bar DDT and pinned the American Dragon!
“Ladies and gentlemen, we have seen an unforgettable match here tonight,” said Tony Schiavone.
Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta ran to the ring to check on Danielson. Claudio shoved Andrade away, but Andrade was merely trying to check on Danielson.
“The concern right now is the condition of Bryan Danielson,” said Tony Schiavone.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Winter Is Coming on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the College Park Center in Arlington, TX!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
https://www.youtube.com/embed/-GAJk5UbvqM?si=VnTaEho-5PATJejt
As we reach the halfway point, things are heating up with the Continental Classic in both the Gold and Blue League with both Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal eliminated from victory in the Gold, Daniel Garcia (depending greatly on Saturday night) stands on the precipice of suffering the same fate in the Blue following his loss on RAMPAGE, and Eddie Kingston could end up in the same position depending on his COLLISION contest! We are heading full speed toward WORLDS END on December 30th, but there’s a lot of story to be told before All Elite Wrestling gets onto Long Island, and Montreal plays host to the next chapter!
In a clash of Canadians, “All Ego” Ethan Page goes head-to-head with Kenny Omega in their first-ever contest, Willie Mack steps up to defend his friend AR Fox against Wardlow, an old rivalry renews between Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Martinez, and the Blue League continues with Claudio versus Kingston and Danielson versus Andrade! The night begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to best get prepared for it, visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, to catch highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from last week’s COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: BLUE LEAGUE
Standings
Brody King (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
Andrade El Idolo (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (0)
Daniel Garcia (0)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Eddie Kingston (0) vs. Claudio Castagnoli (3)
The history between these two men is well-documented; former training partners, as well as former roommates, whose bad blood blossomed long ago and spilled all over the independent wrestling landscape in the years before Castagnoli left that landscape to ply his trade elsewhere. It was never laid to rest, never settled, and the truth was, even after Eddie Kingston finally defeated Claudio Castagnoli at GRAND SLAM 2023 to win the ROH World Championship, that animosity wasn’t going to fade away even if the two men planned on never fighting each other again.
Unfortunately for Kingston and Castagnoli, their plan to never have to fight one another again became impossible as soon as the brackets were set for the Continental Classic and both were positioned in the Blue League. That made a conflict inevitable, whereas if they’d been kept in separate leagues then the finals would’ve been their only possible meeting place. Instead this Saturday night on COLLISION, in their third tournament matches, the ROH World & NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion will fight the man he dethroned for the former, only this time no title will be at stake, rather three points in the league and the potential for Kingston to be mathematically eliminated from tournament victory. That loss would be a blow more devastating than any other he’s experienced thus far because not only would it mean Kingston is out of contention in the Continental Classic, it also means that he has effectively lost both the ROH World Championship and the NJPW STRONG Openweight Title.
He may have the championship sobriquet attached to his name until December 29th, but if Kingston is eliminated from this tournament before WORLDS END, its a meaningless distinction and he’ll only have himself to blame for putting both titles into the mix to create this modern North American Triple Crown! Can Kingston ward off elimination with a second consecutive victory over Claudio Castagnoli? Or will “The Swiss Superman” bounce back from his loss to Brody King with yet another victory over “The Mad King”?
Bryan Danielson (6) vs. Andrade El Idolo (3)
The last time these two men met in combat was on the October 21st edition of COLLISION, and also the last singles match Bryan Danielson had before the orbital bone injuries he sustained just four days later in that DYNAMITE tag team bout against Okada and Orange Cassidy. It took nearly 19 minutes of fierce battle, but “The American Dragon” managed to topple Andrade on that night to emerge the victor. Now this Continental Classic tournament has given Andrade an opportunity to even their score…
It’s common knowledge that Bryan Danielson comes into this fight still healing from that eye injury, but it didn’t stop him from defeating Eddie Kingston last week in Bryan’s first tournament bout, it didn’t stop him from beating Daniel Garcia on RAMPAGE less than 24 hours ago, and it isn’t going to prevent Danielson from giving it his all against Andrade either. Much like how Danielson had to be wary of Kingston’s spinning back fist when it came to protecting the eye, this time around he needs to be cognizant of that deadly spinning back elbow Andrade employs to knock his opponents senseless. If that connects, not only could it mean the end of Danielson’s bid for three more points, it could mark the end of his participation in this tournament as a whole thanks to another re-fractured orbital bone…
A CANADIAN CHALLENGE…
“The Cleaner” Kenny Omega vs. “All Ego” Ethan Page
For the very first time in their careers, “All Ego” Ethan Page and “The Cleaner” Kenny Omega will go one-on-one after Ethan challenged AEW’s only Triple Crown winner to see who was the better Canadian! Back in June, when AEW came to Hamilton, Ontario for the first time, Ethan stepped up to give AEW World Champion MJF a run for his money in an impromptu title bout, and now he’s making another stand in the Great White North by calling out one of the most influential athletes of this generation!
Omega has had a rough 2023, losing four of his last six singles matches beginning with the night Don Callis stabbed him in the head inside a Steel Cage, and constantly being on the wrong end of an assault from Callis’ Family, but he’s now won three straight in tag team and multi-man affairs, including beating his own best friends The Young Bucks to steal their guaranteed AEW World Tag Title match while apparently sending them off to lick their wounds.
In Montreal, will Omega continue to get himself back on track or will it be Ethan Page’s time to step up to the plate and knock it out of the park?
FOR A FRIEND…
Wardlow vs. Willie Mack
Willie Mack and AR Fox have ties that run deep, back some ten years to shows in Mexico, even include the two men reigning as champions together as part of a trio back in 2015, and those ties have led Wardlow to putting himself in the path of “The War Dog”! For Wardlow, the path ends at MJF’s grave, but the AEW World Champion has a whole lot on his plate and his former bodyguard is going to have to get in the queue. Until then, every one who slows Wardlow down from getting to his goal is going to suffer, and he intends to make Willie Mack the next victim!
TIME FOR A FIGHT…
Mercedes Martinez vs. Willow Nightingale
Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Martinez have a rivalry that has spanned a half-decade, crossed across multiple companies, and across the United States. It began in 2018 in the Berwyn Eagles Club and picked back up in 2022 at ROH’s SUPERCARD OF HONOR event when the two competed for the Interim ROH Women’s World Championship. Both those singles matches were won by Martinez, as was their first AEW bout, a tag team match on COLLISION in August where Martinez and Diamante topped Willow and Kris Statlander. A Trios bout on the ZERO HOUR of ALL OUT 2023 finally saw Nightingale, with Hikaru Shida and Skye Blue as her partners, get that first victory over Mercedes who had ROH Women’s World Champion Athena and Diamante as her allies, and she would score another win over Martinez in a tag match for the Kitsune Women’s Wrestling promotion a few weeks later.
But nothing has brought an end to this rivalry, and the insistence of Mercedes and Diamante to engage with the woman Willow calls friends has kept them in each other’s lives as well. So it comes to blows once again this Saturday night on COLLISION in the third singles match between Nightingale and Martinez! After scoring the last two victories in their rivalry, can Nightingale finally get her first one-on-one win over Mercedes Martinez?
The Blue League tournament action continues, Mercedes Martinez and Willow Nightingale clash, Wardlow goes into battle with Willie Mack, and in a first-ever battle, Ethan Page meets Kenny Omega! COLLISION gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to get prepared for it all, drop by the official AEW YouTube channel to watch highlights from this week’s editions of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from the last COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
CONTAINS SPOILERS
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE was broadcast from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC!
Your broadcast team was Ian Riccaboni, “Daddy Magic” Matt Menard, and Tony Schiavone!
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
AEW International Championship Match!
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) (with Danhausen & FTW Champion HOOK)
vs.
Angelico (with Serpentico)!
Orange and Angelico chain wrestled and then Cassidy loaded up for the Orange Punch. Angelico rolled to the outside to take a breather and collect his thoughts. Back in the ring, Angelico punted Orange in the hip.
Orange played mind games, placing his hands in his pockets. He used a wristlock takeover and flying head scissors on Angelico. Orange crumbled as Angelico chop blocked him. Angelico kicked Orange’s leg, inflicting more damage.
“Orange Cassidy is going to have to try to fight through this,” said Tony Schiavone.
Angelico tied up Orange in a submission. Orange escaped, and nailed Angelico with the Stun Dog Millionaire. Orange followed up with the Beach Break, but he couldn’t make the cover because he was writhing in pain. The crowd willed him to his feet. Orange was looking for the Orange Punch, but Serpentico grabbed Orange’s leg. Angelico blasted Orange with a pump kick. Then Danhausen evened up the score by grabbing Angelico’s leg, tripping up Angelico.
Danhausen placed a curse on Angelico, and then Cassidy grabbed Angelico with an O’Connor Roll. Angelico managed to kick out and Orange inadvertently collided with Danhausen, who was on the ring apron.
Angelico twisted Orange in a grapevine ankle lock, while Serpentico had Danhausen in a camel clutch on the arena floor. Orange rolled to the ropes forcing the ref to break the hold. As ref Paul Turner was admonishing Angelico for not breaking the hold sooner, Serpentico tried to blindside Orange. Luckily Danhausen was there and cracked Serpentico with a low blow!
“Jingle Bells have rung in Montreal,” said Ian.
Orange rocked Angelico with the Orange Punch and pinned him!
Abadon vs. Trish Adora!
Abadon dared Adora to strike them in the face, and Adora complied. Trish Adora chopped Abadon, but Abadon shrugged them off, absorbing them. Abadon picked up Trish by the arms and then stomped on her.
Abadon cracked Trish with a knee strike and then began to pummel her with punches. Adora pump kicked Abadon, but Abadon got right to her feet. Abadon connected with two thrust kicks and then pinned Trish with the Black Diamond!
The arena lights went dark! The lights turned back on, and TBS Champion Julia Hart was standing in the ring behind Abadon! Julia placed the belt down in front of Abadon, drawing the battle line. Abadon picked up the title. The arena went dark again and this time, when the lights came back on, Julia Hart vanished, along with her title!
“Abadon is having a fit,” said Tony Schiavone.
The Don Callis Family— “The Alpha” Konosuke Takeshita & Powerhouse Hobbs
vs.
“Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal!
Don Callis joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Daniels ducked a chop from Powerhouse and then hit him with elbows. Hobbs wasted no time and bulldozed Daniels. Hobbs body slammed Daniels halfway across the ring!
Takeshita tagged in and charged at Daniels with a running strike. Sydal tagged in and dished out kicks to Takeshita. The Alpha caught Sydal, looking for a front plant, but Sydal escaped and countered with a wrist lock takeover.
Hobbs powerslammed Sydal and covered him for a near fall. Takeshita tagged back in, but Sydal used a hurracanrana on him. Hobbs grabbed a tag, but so did Daniels. CD used a drop toe hold and then a hurracanrana on Hobbs. Powerhouse Hobbs signaled for the end, though, and decimated Daniels with a spinebuster. Hobbs pinned Daniels after the world’s most dangerous slam!
Backstage Renee Paquette interviewed Action Andretti and Top Flight—Dante & Darius Martin!
Dante: “What we’re not going to do is accept Penta’s disrespect walking in while we were talking. But what we are going to do is accept your little one, two, three challenge. So, guess what? There’s three things you need to know.”
Action Andretti: “It’s that Double A don’t play.”
Darius: “And it’s time to step up.”
Dante: “Or take flight!”
Main Event Time! Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson vs. Daniel Garcia!
Garcia came out wearing trunks instead of his leather pants. Garcia grabbed a wrist lock. Danielson suplexed his way out of it. Garcia was looking for the Dragon Tamer, but Danielson grabbed the ropes.
Danielson blasted Garcia with kicks to the hamstring and the shin. Garcia backed up Danielson with rapid fire strikes. Garcia dropkicked Danielson in the corner for a near fall. Danielson sent Garcia flying with a German Suplex.
Danielson taunted Garcia: “Dance, Danny, dance!”
Garcia absorbed a kick and then exchanged open hand strikes with Danielson. Garcia suplexed Danielson for a near fall. Garcia tried for a powerbomb, but Danielson countered with a triangle choke. Garcia fought back but Danielson mounted Garcia with the ground and pound. Garcia got to the ropes and forced the ref to break the hold.
Garcia played possum and rolled up Danielson with an inside cradle for a two-count. Garcia applied the Dragon Tamer on Danielson. Garcia spiked Danielson with a piledriver for a near fall!
“What a main event!” said Daddy Magic.
Garcia punted Danielson in the injured eye. Garcia stomped on Danielson, going to the orbital socket. Garcia started to dance but Danielson seized the moment and charged at Garcia with the running knee strike! Danielson applied the LeBell Lock, and the ref stopped the match after Garcia went unconscious!
“He had Danielson right where he wanted him but then Garcia just had to dance!” said Daddy Magic.
“And now in less than 24 hours Danielson must climb back into the ring and take on Andrade El Idolo,” noted Tony Schiavone.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Winter Is Coming on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the College Park Center in Arlington, TX!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC featuring:
-Continental Classic Blue League Match: Bryan Danielson vs. Andrade El Idolo!
-Willow Nightingale vs. Mercedes Martinez!
-Continental Classic Blue League Match: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Eddie Kingston!
– “All Ego” Ethan Page vs. Kenny Omega!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q_Z4gJPwYjg?si=pm4daG2ss5oskV4A&start=300
This past Wednesday on DYNAMITE the AEW faithful in Montreal, and those watching worldwide, witnessed the Gold League reach its halfway point, putting Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe on the cusp of elimination while both Moxley and Swerve Strickland shot for their ninth points. While the last two men achieved their goal of nine points, the first two sadly found themselves on the outside looking in with two matches in the tournament still to go. Moxley did it at Rush’s expense, Swerve did it a Jay Briscoe’s, and Jay White gained his 6th point by knocking Lethal out of contention.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/CaXu6XTFPZQ?si=HzF78OKSsQcODZMj
In addition, AEW World/ROH World Tag Champion MJF was laid out, apparently with a broken bottle, while Samoa Joe stood in the ring awaiting their tag bout against The Devil’s Masked Men, Toni Storm retained her AEW Women’s World Championship over Skye Blue only to be confronted by Riho, and TNT Champion Christian Cage managed to defend his title over Adam Copeland in no small part due to the involvement of Shayna Wayne.
This Friday night RAMPAGE comes to you from Montreal starting at 10pm ET/9pm CT on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and features a Continental Classic match in the Blue League between Bryan Danielson and Daniel Garcia, Abadon in action against The Infantry’s Trish Adora, and The Don Callis Family in Tag Team action, plus we will see AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, with Danhausen in his corner, in action against Angelico stemming from ROH ON HONOR CLUB Thursday night! Beforehand, be sure to drop by the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted social media platforms, before showtime to up to speed with highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this latest CONTROL CENTER!
Continental Collision Blue League…
Bryan Danielson (3) vs. Daniel Garcia (0)
https://www.youtube.com/embed/VrhcnljbWP0?si=JqjG7kuJJocB8XRN&start=336
Last Saturday night Bryan Danielson, with one eye concealed due to his orbital bone injury, defeated ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston in The American Dragon’s first Continental Classic bout. It was hard-hitting, draining, pushed Danielson to his limit, and yet here he less than a week later competing in his second Blue League bout, with his third scheduled for COLLISION opposite Andrade El Idolo!
And just who will “The American Dragon” face this Friday night on RAMPAGE? Why it’s the man who dubbed himself “The Dragon Slayer” after beating Bryan back on the July 27, 2022 edition of DYNAMITE. Danielson might hold the overall advantage over Daniel Garcia in their series of matches, including a 2 of 3 Falls victory on the 8/17/22 edition of DYNAMITE, but the man once called “Red Death” knows what it feels like to be the ROH Hall of Famer.
Garcia is coming into this fight without a point to his name in the Continental Classic, just two painful losses to Andrade El Idolo and Claudio Castagnoli, and certainly considered the dark horse of the Blue League. He still has Brody King, he still has Eddie Kingston, but this Friday night he must remain focused on Bryan Danielson and take the rest of this tournament one fight at a time. Garcia needs to get on the board with this match, his halfway point of the tourney as the first man to compete in his third bout, otherwise he could end up in the same position as Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe.
But if Daniel Garcia can find a way to another victory over Bryan Danielson, this one without the helping hand of Jake Hager, it may very well be the launching point he needs to rebound from those two painful losses and run the table the rest of the way to a nine point showing! Playing spoiler to Bryan Danielson’s pursuit of Blue League superiority is a tremendous resume builder, and if Garcia can be that guy, Kingston and King better take notice and be prepared.
On the other hand, if it’s Danielson who comes out with the victory, he better hope it’s a fast victory with minimal damage to his person because less than 24 hours later, “The American Dragon” will be right back in Continental Classic action with a fight against Andrade El Idolo! For someone who’s freshly back from injury, is it wise taking two fights of this caliber in just one day’s time?
AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (w/ Danhausen) vs. Angelico (w/ Serpentico)
AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy and Danhausen were just trying to do the right thing by Christopher Daniels, help someone out when their foe was taking advantage of a numbers situation, and that has now brought the champ into direct conflict with The Spanish Announce Project this Friday night on RAMPAGE!
Though not endeavoring into quite the hectic schedule he kept with his first International Championship reign, Orange Cassidy still aims to defend his title against anyone brave enough to step up to the challenge, and it looks like Angelico will be the next individual to try “Freshly Squeezed”!
This encounter will mark their third since the inception of All Elite Wrestling, with OC taking the victories in 2020 and 2021, but their first with a championship on the line. Will Angelico be able to parlay his unique pro wrestling style, with maybe a little help from Serpentico, to his first AEW championship title? Or will Orange Cassidy continue the success he experienced in his first International Title reign?
TAG TEAM BOUT…
The Don Callis Family (Konosuke Takeshita & Powerhouse Hobbs)
vs. Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Vmle0p2f5II?si=on0FRvc1iTgokIVv&start=336
As witnessed last week, Don Callis’ Family is on a roll and this Friday night on RAMPAGE they aim to continue elevating their dominant presence inside the squared circle. This weekend they will do so in a tag team encounter when Powerhouse Hobbs and Konosuke Takeshita, two of the most powerful men in All Elite Wrestling, unite for the first time to create a team that could be the most terrifying in the locker room.
Their foes on RAMPAGE will be former ROH Tag Team Champions Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal who, though their reign took place some 17 years ago, have set their sights on finding that magic once again. They’ve been frustrated thus far, losing four consecutive bouts in AEW, but with careers as rich as theirs and 53 years of combined experience in the mat wars, Daniels and Sydal are not about to lay down and give up. They want to face the best competition, the hungry young faces looking to take the top places in the game, and one would be hard-pressed to find two hungrier individuals than Takeshita and Hobbs!
ONE-ON-ONE…
Abadon vs. Trish Adora
https://www.youtube.com/embed/E_UuH_f5_Cw?si=rAIQjezEQwrsiR-X&start=336
The TBS Championship is clearly on the mind of “The Living Dead Girl” Abadon, but it is just as evident that reigning champion Julia Hart is not the least bit spooked by what Abadon brings to the table. That makes the potential of an Abadon/Julia Hart showdown quite intriguing, two people who live in the shadows and darkness, but before that potentiality becomes reality, Abadon will be in action this Friday night on RAMPAGE against The Infantry’s Trish Adora.
Adora has been building her name on Ring of Honor each week, and now she aims to bring that to the AEW stage as well, but with one of the most fearsome entities in the Women’s Division standing across the ring from her, can Adora rise above any fears and put “The Living Dead Girl” back in the ground?
https://www.youtube.com/embed/uvJIgsR3Xb4?si=AffTbxbboM50fxz-
RAMPAGE comes to you at 10pm ET/9pm CT from Montreal’s Bell Centre this Friday night on TNT, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, and it is one stacked event! Sadly Don Callis’ “Family” will be in action to spoil the party, but thankfully the Continental Classic will continue with Blue League action between Bryan Danielson and Daniel Garcia! Plus, Orange Cassidy will defend his AEW International Championship against Angelico after their encounter following ROH ON HONOR CLUB, and Abadon will be in action! Before the show begins, be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted social media platforms, to get up to speed with highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE, as well as RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this latest CONTROL CENTER!
Week 3 of the AEW Continental Classic continues with 3 huge Blue League matchups!
First on Rampage, Bryan Danielson takes on Daniel Garcia. Then Saturday night on Collision, Eddie Kingston faces off with Claudio Castagnoli and Bryan Danielson has his second match in 24 hours, this time against Andrade El Idolo!
AEW Rampage kicks off Friday night at 10/9c on TNT
Then the action continues Saturday on AEW Collision at 8/7c on TNT
Follow the AEW Continental Classic standings here.
**CONTAINS SPOILERS**
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC!
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!
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley vs. LFI’s Rush!
Rush chopped at Moxley and Moxley returned fire! Mox changed levels and kicked Rush, but Rush countered with a belly-to-belly suplex. Mox came down hard on his shoulder with an awkward landing, his shoulder and arm being caught under Rush’s body.
They brawled outside the ring and Mox whipped Rush over the barricade. Moxley pursued Rush through the fans. Rush gouged Moxley’s eyes and then smashed a drink over Moxley’s head. Back in the ring they traded more strikes. Rush stomped on Moxley in the corner and then booted Moxley in the face.
Rush taunted Moxley, but Moxley flipped him off in response. Rush scoop slammed Moxley for a near fall. Moxley rallied back with a big cutter to Rush. Moxley rocked Rush with a lariat in the corner. Moxley superplexed Moxley for a two count.
Outside the ring, Moxley charged at Rush and Rush countered with a belly-to-belly suplex, sending Mox flying into the steel barricade. Rush returned Moxley to the ring and Moxley spiked Rush with a DDT.
The fans chanted “Moxley! Moxley! Moxley!”
Rush blasted Moxley with a stalling piledriver. Rush superplexed Moxley for a near fall. Moxley got to his feet and rocketed out of the ring with a tope suicida at Rush! Both men returned to the ring, barely beating the ref’s 10-count.
Moxley and Rush collided in the ring, Rush resorting to a headbutt, knocking Mox down. Rush was looking for the Bull’s Horns, but Mox rocked Rush with the King Kong Lariat and the Death Rider. Rush kicked out of the pin attempt, and then Moxley transitioned to the bulldog choke and put Rush to sleep!
“That’s how you do it, with the proper fundamentals,” said Taz.
“Rush is frustrated. He woke up and heard Moxley’s music playing,” added Excalibur.
Renee Paquette interviewed Roderick Strong and The Kingdom on the ramp!
Roderick Strong: “Renee! It’s obvious that Max is going to put his dagger into the heart of my best friend by proxy Samoa Joe. But you know, Joe is a big boy, and if life has taught me anything, actions have consequences. And tonight, Joe is going to put his hand on a hot stove and it’s going to burn.
“Renee, you sound crazy! Every decision has consequences. Look at me! This is my life. I’m in this wheelchair because of decisions I’ve made. This is my life every single day! And I will live with the consequences of my decisions until now!”
Roderick Strong stood up from the wheelchair and began to walk!
Roderick Strong: “I will no longer suffer consequences for my decisions. I will no longer be held back by this wheelchair! This wheelchair has held me back for far too long. Far too long.”
Renee Paquette was backstage outside of AEW World Champion MJF’s locker room, hoping to get a word with him!
“Hangman” Adam Page walked by, unaware that Renee was doing a live shot. She transitioned to interviewing Page, who hasn’t been seen since his Texas Death Match with Swerve Strickland.
Adam Page: “I got hit in the back of the head with a cinder block and then choked unconscious. So, I could not fly for a few weeks. I’m glad you caught me, because there is something I need to say to you, Swerve, and to the world. Swerve you broke into my home. You went into my son’s room. It took Prince Nana, it took Brian Cage, but you beat me in a Texas Death Match on pay-per-view. I can concede, I can recognize when I’ve lost.
“And you have beaten me. But Swerve at Full Gear I took something from you that you will never get back. And I think we are bound by something bigger than either of us. And I think you should know this is not over. And Swerve I know what you want more than anything from this life. And I promise because of what you’ve done to me that you will never have it.”
MJF walked out of his locker room.
MJF: “Howdy Seabiscuit. I just wanted to say to you, bravo on that match at Full Gear against Strickland. I mean it was so impressive to see two guys battle it out to see who could get more STDs.”
Page: “Honestly I don’t have 30 minutes to stand here for you to talk to me like you normally do, so Renee, if this is your interview, have at it.”
Page walked off.
MJF turned to Renee: “The reason that I have to go out there for 30 minutes is to wake the crowd up after they have to deal with somebody like you putting them to sleep.”
Page turned around and came back to MJF!
Page: “Is there something else you want to say to me?”
MJF: “Funny you ask. My memory is not all that great, Renee, I’ve been hit in the head a few times. I think the last time you and I saw eye to eye was when I verbally bent you over in front of Bret Hart at Double or Nothing.”
Page: “Yeah, yeah, I think you were talking about a match where I buckshotted you and threw you over the top rope. Was that the one?”
MJF: “That’s a good memory. See what I remember is the first time I won the Dynamite Diamond Ring, but I can’t recall who I beat. I think it was this white trash hick. Renee, do you remember who I beat for the Dynamite Diamond Ring, because it’s escaping me.”
Page: “You know, I think it was me, and I think it made me so upset I had to console myself by becoming the World champion instead.”
MJF: “Oh yeah, that reign was fantastic. Lasted about six months, right? The thing is my reign has been well over a year.”
Page: “Well I’m sure you’re really proud of that. And I’m sure you’ll continue to be proud of it until you’re 70 years old, at home, by yourself, telling your ninth cat about your one year title reign.”
MJF: “Funny stuff. You want to get honest here Hangman. You know what I think? I think out of everybody in this locker room, there’s one guy I think…I think you’re the devil.”
Page: “The devil? The masked guy? You think I’m running around in a Party City mask? I have known you for a long time, Max, and as long as I have known you, you have been a manipulator, Max. Just be honest with me, Max. It’s probably just you, right? You put on a mask, you run around, you attack your opponents, you pretend you attack yourself. I don’t know what the deal is but it’s just you. Be honest with me.”
MJF: “You want honesty? How about I honestly beat the living crap out of you!”
Hangman got into MJF’s face, but Samoa Joe intervened.
Samoa Joe: “Easy there, he’s my responsibility now. And MJF, what is wrong with you? We have other issues tonight that do not involve him.”
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Mark Briscoe vs. Mogul Embassy’s Swerve Strickland!
“This is a must win match for Mark Briscoe,” said Excalibur.
“He’s facing elimination here tonight,” replied Tony Schiavone.
Briscoe used an arm drag on Swerve and followed up with an inside trip and a headlock. Briscoe connected with a high boot into the jaw of Strickland. Mark hit a tight Russian leg sweep on Swerve.
Swerve managed to rally back with a diving uppercut to Briscoe’s neck. Swerve followed up with a delayed neck breaker. They exchanged strikes on the apron. Mark clocked Swerve with a kick, knocking him to the floor. Briscoe charged at Swerve and Swerve backdropped him over the barricade. Swerve superplexed Briscoe off the barricade and onto the arena floor!
Back in the ring, Briscoe rang Swerve’s bell with redneck kung fu. Briscoe was on target with an elbow strike and then a high boot in the corner. Briscoe nailed Swerve with a fisherman’s buster for a near fall.
Swerve turned the corner with a German suplex. Swerve cracked Mark with a roundhouse kick for a two-count! Swerve climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Mark knocked Swerve off his perch with a big uppercut. Briscoe connected with a lariat for a near fall. Swerve had the Jay Driller scouted and countered with the House Call kick! Swerve tried for a 450 splash, but Mark raised his knees to counter! Briscoe tried for the Froggy Bow, but Swerve raised his knees to counter!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Mark was looking for a Jay Driller on the apron, but Swerve countered with a Death Valley Driver! Swerve climbed to the top turnbuckle and hit the Swerve Stomp, scoring the pin on Briscoe!
“Nine points for Swerve Strickland,” said Excalibur.
“Briscoe deserves a lot of credit, putting his body out here, but he was not able to get the victory,” said Taz.
Renee Paquette was backstage with Mariah May!
Mariah: “The meeting last week with Tony Khan went really well. He’s watched all of my work in Stardom. He loves Japanese wrestling. I mean, he’s not an idiot, he signed me. And we planned my debut. We want it to be as good as it can possibly be, bring some much needed glamour to AEW.”
Renee: “You guys planned your debut. Can you give me information on who your first opponent is going to be?”
Mariah: “Renee, that’s none of your business, because tonight is all about ‘Timeless’ Toni Storm. Her first title defense, I’m going to be there, watching, studying.”
AEW World & ROH World Tag Team Champ MJF & Samoa Joe
vs.
The Devil’s Masked Men!
Samoa Joe made his entrance first, by himself. The Devil’s masked men surrounded the ring as the lights flickered. Joe was surrounded on all four sides. The lights went out completely. When the arena lights came back on, the devil’s masked me were nowhere to be seen, and Joe was standing alone in the ring.
“Is this supposed to be a warning message to Samoa Joe?” asked Excalibur.
The masked Devil appeared on the big screen, and then live footage began to show from backstage while Samoa Joe watched on. MJF had been knocked out and his body was unconscious on the cement floor, a broken bottle nearby. Samoa Joe sprinted up the ramp to the back.
After a commercial break, Jon Moxley was backstage!
Moxley: “I’m humble before God and my mother, but look, I know exactly who I am. I know exactly what I’m capable of. I expected to be 3 and 0. I expect to be 5 and 0. I expect to win the Continental Classic because I’m the ace of the world.”
Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana walked onto the scene.
Swerve: “9 and 0, 9 and 0. It’s going to take more than those crappy new kick pads that you have on to stop the momentum that I’m on. As you saw in L.A., I’m willing to do whatever it takes to win, at all costs, it don’t matter who’s in my way. Remember that.”
Mox: “Good! Me too!”
Swerve: “See you in Texas.”
TCM host Ben Mankiewicz introduced “Timeless” Toni Storm ahead of her match!
AEW Women’s World Championship Match!
“Timeless” Toni Storm (c.) (with Luther the Butler) vs. Skye Blue!
Mariah May was watching from ringside.
Toni Storm had a tight headlock on Skye Blue. Toni Storm blasted Blue with a stiff shot. Toni bounced Skye’s head against the broadcast booth. Storm hit the hip attack against Blue and the barricade!
Blue connected with a dropkick and then a rising knee strike. Blue got a near fall on Storm after a diving crossbody press. Storm blocked Skye Fall and nailed Blue with a German suplex. Blue dodged the hip attack and fired back with a thrust kick on Storm. Skye Blue cracked Toni Storm with her own version of the hip attack!
Skye Blue rocked Toni with the Code Blue for a (very) near fall! Toni delivered headbutts to Skye Blue, stopping Skye in her tracks. Storm superplexed Skye Blue! Storm used the hip attack, went for the Storm Zero, but Skye countered with a roll-up! Storm reversed the roll-up and pinned Skye Blue!
After the match, Riho’s music hit, and Riho ran down to the ring! Storm charged at Riho, but Riho dodged Storm and dropkicked the champ out of the ring! Luther carried “Timeless” Toni Storm away from the ring.
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
“Switchblade” Jay White vs. Jay Lethal!
Lethal and White locked up as the fans chanted “Let’s go Jay!”
Lethal went to strut and White capitalized, hitting Lethal from behind. Lethal hip tossed White and then dropkicked him. Jay White went to work on Lethal’s leg. Jay White spiked Lethal with a DDT for a near fall.
Lethal retaliated with a tope suicida. Back in the ring Lethal put White into a torture rack. Lethal hit the elbow drop from the top rope for a near fall! Jay White suplexed Lethal into the turnbuckles. Jay White followed up with a brain buster for a two-count!
White sent Lethal flying with a sleeper suplex. Lethal tried for the Lethal Injection but Jay White countered it, going right back to Lethal’s knee. Lethal countered the Blade Runner but White put his weight on Lethal and scored the pin!
“A heartbreaking loss for Jay Lethal,” said Excalibur.
Main Event Time! TNT Championship Match!
“The Patriarch” Christian Cage (c.) vs. “Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland!
Copeland smacked Christian Cage with an open hand shot! Copeland rammed Christian into the broadcast booth over and over. Christian begged Copeland to stop, pleading for mercy. Copeland intercepted a low blow and stomped on Christian’s hand!
Copeland whipped Christian Cage into the barricades. Christian grabbed Copeland and drove his throat into the steel ring post! Copeland blocked the pendulum kick between the ropes. Copeland hit a clothesline, jumping off the turnbuckles and knocking Christian off the apron!
Christian used a drop toehold, driving Copeland’s face into the ring steps. Christian landed a frog splash for a near fall on Cope! Copeland countered the spear with the Impaler for a two-count! Christian was looking for a superplex, but Copeland knocked him down with a head butt. Adam Copeland nailed Christian with a running powerbomb for a near fall!
“That was an impressive kick out by Christian Cage,” said Taz.
Copeland countered the Kill Switch attempt, planting Christian Cage for a near fall. Copeland locked on the crossface but Christian managed to reach the ropes with his boot to force the ref to break the submission.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Adam Copeland hammered Christian Cage’s head on the mat with forearm shots. Christian jumped over Copeland’s spear attempt with a leapfrog and then clocked Copeland with the Kill Switch for a two-count!
Copeland dodged the spear attempt from Christian, and as Copeland moved, he inadvertently knocked down the referee. As the ref had his back turn, Christian kicked the ref with a low blow. Christian grabbed his championship title and swung it at Copeland, but Copeland avoided it. Both men went for spears and collided into one another!
“Both men went for the spear!” said Excalibur.
“The referee is still down,” added Taz.
Nick Wayne’s mother, Shanna Wayne, walked to the ring. She got into the ring, grabbing the TNT title!
“She’s torn,” said Excalibur.
Shanna Wayne smacked Copeland in the head with the belt!
“What the hell did she just do?” asked Tony Schiavone.
“She made a decision, that’s what she did,” replied Taz.
Christian planted Copeland with the Kill Switch. Christian placed Copeland’s head on the championship and then stomped on Copeland’s neck! Christian Cage covered Adam Copeland and pinned him.
“One of the worst things I’ve ever seen,” said Tony Schiavone.
“This is scary and Christian Cage has sunk to a new low,” replied Excalibur.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Winter Is Coming on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the College Park Center in Arlington, TX!
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 Bell Centre in Montreal, QC featuring:
-Continental Classic Blue League Match: Bryan Danielson vs. Andrade El Idolo!
-Continental Classic Blue League Match: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Eddie Kingston!
– “All Ego” Ethan Page vs. Kenny Omega!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
