AEW Dynamite Preview for November 29, 2023

AEW Dynamite Preview for November 29, 2023

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Last Wednesday night the AEW faithful bore witness to the beginning of the 2023 Continental Classic with three first-time matches against six of the greatest athletes in AEW. In the Gold League, 3-Time former AEW World Champion and former International Champion Jon Moxley scored his first three points at the expense of 13-Time ROH World Tag Champion Mark Briscoe, former ROH World Champion Rush fell to former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jay White, and former AEW World Tag Champion Swerve Strickland topped ROH Grand Slam Champion Jay Lethal to get his three.

Then in the Blue League, House of Black’s Brody King beat ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion while former ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli beat former ROH Pure Champion Daniel Garcia. This Wednesday night in Minneapolis, with AEW’s return to the Target Center, the Gold League continues with three big-time singles matches, including one first-timer, and we will also hear from TNT Champion “The Patriarch” Christian Cage! And as a special bonus:

The night begins 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 assorted social media platforms, to get caught up on the action with highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this week’s CONTROL CENTER!

CONTINENTAL CLASSIC GOLD LEAGUE:

Standings As of 11/29/23

Swerve Strickland (3)

Jay White (3)

Jon Moxley (3)

Mark Briscoe (0)

Rush (0)

Jay Lethal (0)

Mark Briscoe(0) vs. Rush (0)

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Though both competed in Ring of Honor at the same time, though they actually worked together in CMLL, and fought one another in tags and multi-man bouts under the ROH banner, never before have “El Toro Blanco” and “The Sussex County Chicken” locked horns in a singles bout!

That all changes this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE as both men come into this fight having zero points to their name in the Continental Classic! In the case of Mark Briscoe, his loss came at the end of a hard-fought and bloody contest with Jon Moxley, one where Mark survived a nasty Paradigm Shift and came so close to scoring his first three points at the expense of the 3-Time former AEW World Champion. As for Rush, his loss also came at the end of a hard-hitting contest with “Switchblade” Jay White, but it came to an unfortunate end as a result of White’s underhanded tactics, proving he doesn’t need the rest of BULLET CLUB GOLD to find a way to cheat a victory.

This Wednesday night, in their first singles bout, one of these two men will likely lose their zero, and score their first three points of the tournament, although there’s that possibility of a draw and both leaving the Target Center with a single point..

Jon Moxley (3) vs. Jay Lethal (0)

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In a rematch of their 3/30/22 DYNAMITE clash, Jon Moxley and Jay Lethal will lock-up in their second bouts of the Continental Classic! Mox is coming into this fight with a strong win over Mark Briscoe, one that did not come easy, but a win nonetheless, while Lethal heads to Minneapolis with a loss to Swerve Strickland on his record for the tournament.

So for Moxley it’s an opportunity to add to his point total, possibly ramping it up to six points with a victory over Lethal, at the very least to four with a draw, while it is Lethal’s moment to actually get on the board with a victory or draw. Between he and Claudio, The Blackpool Combat Club has started off this tournament with two victories, so can Moxley continue that streak for his unit, or will he be the first BCC member to taste tournament defeat?

Swerve Strickland(3) vs. “Switchblade” Jay White (3)

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This one is quite intriguing as it is the first Continental Classic bout pitting two of last week’s victors against each other. As mentioned, Jay White got his in large part due to a low blow on Rush while Swerve, coming off that brutal Texas Death match with Hangman at FULL GEAR 2023, got his over Jay Lethal in a tremendous back-and-forth.

Wednesday night the two competitors will clash in their first AEW singles bout, a rematch of a March 12, 2022 NJPW STRONG battle won by “Switchblade”, and it either ends with one man having six, or both remaining tied with four. Swerve is certainly on the bigger role coming into this following his pair of victories over Adam Page, as well as those over Lethal, AR Fox, and Penta El Zero Miedo, while Jay White came up short in his bid to become AEW World Championship prior to finding a way to steal one from “El Toro Blanco” last Wednesday night. It’s going to be a fight for six, that much is for sure, will it be the leader of BC GOLD or the head of The Mogul Embassy who gets this one?

“THE PATRIARCH RESPONDS”…

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The world heard Adam Copeland’s challenge this past Saturday on COLLISION, he wants a match with TNT Champion Christian Cage on December 6th in Montreal and Adam wants the TNT Championship on the line so he can take Cage’s most prized possession away. It’s been more than 13 years since the last time these two lifelong friends got into the ring as opponents, with a vast majority of their singles matches won by Copeland, so will Christian Cage be willing to step into that ring once more, especially if it means putting the TNT Championship up? We will find out what he has to say this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE!

TBS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Julia Hart(c) vs. Emi Sakura

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Just a few days ago on COLLISION Lady Frost attempted to dethrone newly crowned TBS Champion Julia Hart in a House Rules match, and she was shut down in five minutes by the viciousness of the defending champ. This Wednesday on DYNAMITE, just four days after turning back Lady Frost, Hart will once again open the doors of The House to welcome a new challenger to her dark reign.

What woman is brave enough to cross the House’s threshold this Wednesday in Minneapolis? None other than the Queen herself, Emi Sakura! The two women have only ever stood on the opposite sides once before, during a Trios match that took place exactly two years ago on the 11/29/21 edition of DARK: ELEVATION and saw Julia on the losing side of the contest.

The Black Hart of the House is an utterly transformed woman from who she was at that point, but Emi Sakura brings an experience to the table unlike any other competitor Hart has faced in her AEW tenure. Can she find a way to overcome that major disadvantage, along with whatever House Rule is concocted by The Queen? The defending champ does have a bit of home field advantage in Minnesota, but is that a balance for the decades Sakura has on her inside the squared circle?

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AEW returns to the Target Center in Minneapolis for DYNAMITE, featuring the continuation of the Continental Classic’s Blue League with three big matches! Plus, TNT Champion Christian Cage will be in the house to address Adam Copeland’s challenge for Montreal, and so much more!

The night begins 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 assorted social media platforms, to get caught up on the action with highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this week’s CONTROL CENTER!

AEW Rampage and Collision Results for November 25, 2023

AEW Rampage and Collision Results for November 25, 2023

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Tonight’s AEW RAMPAGE & AEW COLLISION shows were broadcast live from the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, PA!

Tony Schiavone, Kevin Kelly, and Nigel McGuinness were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.

It’s Saturday night and you know what that means! Saturday night’s alright for fighting!

FTW Champion HOOK vs. Rocky Romero!

Rocky escaped a suplex and both men ran across the ring, delivering lariats, knocking one another down. Hook was first back to his feet. Hook hurled Rocky with a bigtime German Suplex. Rocky struck Hook with a rising knee strike and then a vertical suplex on the apron! Rocky followed up with the forever clotheslines back in the ring.

Hook rallied back with a vicious exploder suplex on Rocky. It was a high impact match in a very short time. Hook hit Rocky with body blows in the corner. Hook headbutted Rocky and got a near fall after a Northern Lights Suplex.

Rocky stunned Hook with Sliced Bread #2. Hook employed a leg sweep on Rocky. Hook countered a second attempt at the Sliced Bread with RedRum, and Hook won via ref stoppage!

Kris Statlander vs. Diamante!

Diamante tried to outpower Statlander, but once she realized she couldn’t, Diamante slapped Statlander. Kris knocked down Diamante with a shoulder block. Statlander powerslammed Diamante for a near fall. Mercedes Martinez walked out onto the ramp to scout Statlander.

Statlander was rolled up by Diamante for a two count. Diamante charged at Statlander, but Statlander was waiting for her with a powerslam. Diamante covered Kris after a cutter, but Kris kicked out. Diamante charted at Statlander, but Statlander countered with a discus lariat and scored the pin on Diamante!

Mercedes jumped in the ring and she and Diamante began to double team Kris. Willow Nightingale sprinted to the ring to even up the odds, coming to the rescue of the former TBS Champ Statlander!

The Kingdom—Mike Bennett and Matt Taven came out, asking the audience if they wanted to celebrate #NeckStrengthNovember!

Bennett said that Roderick Strong wasn’t here tonight because he was recovering from the match last week against Action Andretti, but luckily, Roddy is #neckstrong. Taven said MJF was the devil. Taven told MJF they are coming back for what’s theirs.

Duke Davis and Danny Jones got blindsided by the Kingdom, and the match began! Taven hit the Climax on Jones. Bennett spiked Davis on the ramp with a piledriver! Taven then connected with the aurora borealis for the pin!

Rampage Main Event Time!

ROH Pure Championship Match!

Katsuyori Shibata (c.) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Wheeler Yuta!

Jerry Lynn, Jimmy Jacobs, and Christopher Daniels were the judges.

The fans chanted “Shi-ba-ta! Shi-ba-ta!”

Shibata applied the bow and arrow submission to Yuta. Wheeler escaped and Shibata followed up with strong knee strikes. Shibata applied a leg submission and Wheeler grabbed the ropes, utilizing his first rope break of the match. Yuta was immediately issued a warning after a closed fist to Shibata’s face.

Shibata dropkicked Yuta’s head against the turnbuckle. Shibata applied the STF and Wheeler managed to reach the ropes, utilizing his second rope break of the match. Shibata put a sleeper on Yuta, but Yuta shucked him off. Wheeler fired himself out of the ring with a tope suicida to Shibata!

Yuta whipped Shibata into the guardrail. Shibata returned the favor, whipping Yuta into the guardrail. Back in the ring, Yuta ducked a PK from Shibata. Yuta knocked Shibata into the ref, hit a low blow while the ref had his back turned, and DDT’ed Shibata right on his head to score the pin!

And new ROH Pure Champion…Wheeler Yuta!

Shibata tried to shake Yuta’s hand after the match, but Yuta nailed Shibata with another low blow and then DDT’ed him.

FTW Champion Hook came down to the ring to check on Shibata. Yuta left, scowling at Hook and holding up the ROH Pure Championship.

The RAMPAGE portion of the evening kicked off!

Continental Classic Match—The Blue League!

Daniel Garcia vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli!

Claudio Castagnoli quickly hit Garcia with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Claudio followed up with a body slam. Garcia lunged at Claudio with a guillotine, but Claudio muscled his way out of it. Garcia chopped at Claudio, but Claudio fired back with a European Uppercut.

Garcia charged at Claudio, knocking Claudio out of the ring with a running knee. Daniel hammered Claudio with stiff shots to the head. Garcia ran at Claudio, but Claudio caught him and swung him into the steel guardrail.

Claudio applied a sharpshooter in the ring. Garcia managed to trap Claudio and cradle him for a near fall. Claudio blasted Garcia with a European Uppercut. Claudio rocked Garcia with the Ricola Bomb and pinned him, earning three points!

Representing the Patriarchy…Killswitch vs. The Boys—Brent & Brandon Tate!

Brent was thrown overhead by Killswitch with a wheelbarrow suplex. Killswitch choke slammed Brandon over the top rope and down onto the edge of the ring! Killswitch clobbered Brent with a lariat to the back of the head and pinned him!

Killswitch grabbed two chairs and placed them into the ring. Killswitch choke slammed Brent onto the chair! Killswitch grabbed Brandon but then the “Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland jumped into the ring and cracked a chair over the back of Killswitch! Copeland smashed Killswitch with the con-chair-to!

Killswitch tried to get to his knees but Copeland curb stomped Killswitch onto the chair! Copeland nailed Killswitch with another con-chair-to!

After a commercial break, Lexy Nair interviewed Adam Copeland backstage.

Copeland: “Lexy, I like you, but go. You know what I have to say? I’m coming straight down the barrel to you, Jay. Or should I call you Christian Cage? Or better yet should I call you the Patriarch now? All of this, what just happened to Nick Wayne on Wednesday, what just happened to Killswitch, it’s all because of your insecurity!

“You couldn’t get past your own ego, could you, man? The night I got here, you were about to con-chair-to Sting. Last Wednesday, you were about to have Killswitch con-chair-to Nick Wayne. You know I’ve got a short fuse. You said you were going to break my neck while my children looked at me. You’re not just threatening me and my future, you’re threatening theirs. Now I’m hunting you. I’ve already got two heads on my wall. I’m going to change your soul. I’m going to kick your face in. I am going to take your TNT Title because it’s the most important thing in your world.

“I am challenging you. Dynamite, December 6th, Montreal, Adam Copeland versus Christian Cage for the TNT Championship. And I am going to go places you can’t go, and you haven’t been to because you don’t have that dog in you. I am going to take your TNT Title!”

The House of Black’s Malakai Black & Buddy Matthews

vs.

Komander & Gravity (with Alex Abrahantes)!

Buddy punted Gravity in the face and tagged out to Black. Malakai had a flurry of strikes for Gravity. Komander had a blind tag and caught Black off guard with a hurracanrana. Black planted Komander with a German Suplex for a near fall.

Komander connected with a shotgun dropkick off the top to both House of Black members. Komander nailed Black with a gut buster for a near fall. Gravity took flight with a tope con hiro but Black and Matthews caught him and blocked it. Komander walked the ropes from one turnbuckle from another and then springboarded off the top, taking out Black and Matthews on the arena floor!

Komander and Gravity each jumped off turnbuckles, but Black and Matthews countered by raising their knees. Black cracked Gravity with a knee lift, and Matthews smashed Komander with a knee lift!

Black ravaged Komander with a spinning back elbow and then sat on the mat, waiting for Komander to crawl to him. It was a trap. Buddy curb stomped Komander and then pinned him!

TBS Championship Match! House Rules Match!

Julia Hart (c.) vs. Lady Frost!

Lady Frost chose no count-outs for this match.

Julia Hart whipped Lady Frost into the steel guardrail. The rules were favoring Julia Hart here. Julia picked up a steel chair and placed it on the ground after being admonished by the ref. Lady Frost tried for a moonsault off the ring steps, but Julia dodged it. Lady Frost landed on her feet, but Julia was one step ahead with a thrust kick to the challenger.

Julia propped Lady Frost on the steel chair. Julia ran down the ramp and clotheslined a prone Lady Frost. Back in the ring, Julia applied the Heartless Submission and forced Lady Frost to tap out!

“Julia Hart’s first title defense is a successful one,” said Tony Schiavone.

Lexy Nair was backstage with Don Callis and Powerhouse Hobbs!

Don Callis: “I can’t figure out the calculation that got the Golden Jets—Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega—a tag team title shot. I can’t figure out how you make that calculation when the last time Hobbs had his hands on Jericho and Omega, he broke them, sent them to the hospital. And as Will would say, anyone can get got. And Kenny and Chris, we don’t need two guys to beat the Golden Jets. Hobbs is a one man wrecking crew.”

Powerhouse Hobbs: “It’s simple. I’m big, I’m black, and I’m jacked, and anybody can get it.”

FTR—Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler

vs.

The Righteous—Vincent & Dutch!

Dax used a lariat to knocked Dutch over the top rope. Dax backdropped Vincent out of the ring, and Vincent landed on Dutch. Back in the ring, Dutch splashed Dax for a two-count. Dutch was looking for a senton off the turnbuckles, but Dax dodged it. Vincent grabbed a tag, but Dax used a baseball slide through Vincent’s legs to tag out to Cash!

Cash cleaned house on the Righteous. Dutch grabbed a blind tag and planted Cash with a bossman slam! Dax tagged in and FTR hit the Shatter Machine on Vincent, allowing Dax to score the pin.

Malakai Black and Buddy Matthews walked toward the ring.

Black: “If we would come to the ring right now there would be no one coming to save you. No Claudio, no Yuta. See the misconception is that this place is not the brotherhood that you two think it is.”

The arena went dark. When the lights came back on, FTR were alone in the ring, but the House of Black had vanished.

Action Andretti and Darius Martin were backstage!

Action Andretti: “Eight months, that’s how long it’s been since Darius, and I have been teaming together. Darius, these past eight months, I feel like we’ve grown such a bond together. We’ve had so many great opportunities and I’ve heard that this Wednesday Dynamite is returning to your hometown in Minneapolis.”

Darius Martin: “Yeah, man, we have been building a lot of chemistry. But it seems like there’s something just a little bit off and I think I know what that might be.”

Dante Martin walked onto the scene!

Darius turned to Dante and said, “You ready to step up? It’s time to take flight.”

Dante Martin: “I’m back!”

Tony Schiavone interviewed AEW World Tag Team Champions “Absolute” Ricky Starks and Big Bill!

Ricky Starks: “We thought there was going to be more of a fight from Jericho.”

Big Bill: “These two guys call themselves the Golden Jets. To us you look more like the Golden Girls.”

Starks: “Nice. I like that. They traveled up and down the roads together. Me and Bill don’t even know each other that well. Bill, when’s my birthday?”

Big Bill: “No idea.”

Starks: “Exactly. But what I do know is that you two aren’t built like him.”

Big Bill: “Four years ago when I was in and out of the emergency room having seizures from alcohol withdrawal, I always knew I’d make it back to the top. When I couldn’t get out of bed and I was at the lowest point of my entire life, I always knew I’d make it back to the top! And when nobody believed in me and they counted me out, they said he’s washed, he’s done, I always knew I’d make it back to the top!

“And standing in this ring with this guy, with these titles, I’d say I was right. I made it back to the top. Now Chris and Kenny, we know all about you. We’re very aware of all of the accolades. And you two are two of the best to ever do this. But I don’t think you two realize what you’re dealing with. We are angry, we are motivated, and we’re not only going to beat the living hell out of you, we’re going to embarrass you. When I look at you two, I don’t see Jordan, I don’t see Pippen. When I look at you two, all I see are the dudes that hand Michael Jordan his Bazooka Joe bubble gum before starting lineups are introduced.”

Starks: “I don’t even watch basketball and I know all those people are really good. And I also know two things: one guy tells everybody he’s the best, and the other actually is. After you are done with me and Big Bill, I’m going to let you know one thing. Ricky Starks likes his gum minty fresh and Big Bill likes his Big Red, baby.”

“Limitless” Keith Lee vs. Lee Moriarty!

Lee Moriarty kicked Keith Lee on the thigh. Keith fired back with a kick of his own, but Moriarty ducked it. Keith Lee came back with a pounce on Moriarty!

Lee Moriarty grabbed an arm bar, but Keith Lee pulled him up with a bicep curl. Keith Lee walloped Moriarty with a lariat. Moriarty stunned Keith with a bulldog from the top rope. Moriarty springboarded but Keith countered with a headbutt and then finished him off with a powerslam for the pin!

After commercial break, Lexy Nair interviewed Keith Lee!

Keith Lee: “Initially I planned to come in here and tell you about how good and talented Lee Moriarty is. He is that damned good. But he’s no Keith Lee. And I’m tired of the misrepresentation and the lack of opportunity given to me. And now I’m here to take it. And when I say take it, that means him. You are who I want. And you know who you are.”

Nigel: “Smart money has got to be on Shane Taylor.”

Tony: “That’s the question for us to ponder.”

Main Event Time!

Continental Classic Match—The Blue League!

ROH World Champion & NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston

vs.

House of Black’s Brody King!

Brody and Eddie traded shoulder blocks. Then they exchanged chops in the center of the ring. Brody battered Kingston in the corner with a running cannonball. Outside the ring, Brody pummeled Kingston with more chops and then whipped Kingston into the steel ring steps. Brody charged at Kingston, but Kingston countered with a drop toehold, sending Brody colliding into the steps.

Brody rallied back, splashing Kingston against the barricade. Back in the ring Brody body slammed Kingston and then connected with a senton splash. Brody tried to whip Kingston into the turnbuckles, but Kingston’s legs gave out and he crumbled to the mat.

Kingston collected himself and out of nowhere, in a desperate move, Kingston clubbed Brody with a lariat. Eddie went for an exploder suplex, but Brody countered with a German Suplex. Kingston shocked Brody with a spinning backfist for a near fall!

They traded chops again! Brody switched to forearms. Eddie spiked Brody with a DDT for a near fall! Eddie charged at Brody King, but Brody planted Kingston. Brody was looking for a lariat, but Eddie countered with an exploder and then a half-and-half suplex. Kingston followed up with a third suplex for a two-count on Brody!

Brody nailed Kingston with a piledriver for a two-count. Eddie ducked a lariat and cracked Brody with a spinning backfist! Brody decimated Kingston with Dante’s Inferno and then pinned him! Brody has earned three points!

“Holy smokes! What have we just seen? This is what the Continental Classic is all about,” said Tony Schiavone.

Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN!

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

AEW Rampage and Collision Preview for November 25, 2023

AEW Rampage and Collision Preview for November 25, 2023

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What a week it has been in All Elite Wrestling! Starting with FULL GEAR 2023 this past Saturday, and continuing into DYNAMITE on Wednesday night, the landscape of AEW continues to be the most exciting in all of professional wrestling! We know that Samoa Joe and MJF are scheduled to collide at WORLDS END, providing MJF doesn’t end up in a situation where the belt is at risk, but in addition the culmination of the Continental Classic will go down that night in Long Island as well!

This week in Chicago, as part of AEW’s Thanksgiving Eve tradition, fans witnessed Jon Moxley, Swerve Strickland, and Jay White each score three points in the Gold League, leaving Mark Briscoe, Jay Lethal, and Rush with zero points to their names, with the first bouts in the Blue League going down in Pittsburgh this Saturday night!

This Saturday night, with three hours of action between RAMPAGE and COLLISION, the Petersen Center on the campus of Pitt will be rocking! The first bouts in the Blue League of the Continental Classic are set to go down with ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston fighting Brodie King and Claudio Castagnoli taking on Daniel Garcia during COLLISOIN. But before that, on a special Satu night edition of RAMPGE, the ROH Pure Championship will be at stake with a SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023 rematch between 2-Time champ Wheeler Yuta and the man who dethroned him, Katsuyori Shibata into the mix, and it all begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans. Be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted social media platforms, to get caught up on the action with highlights from FULL GEAR 2023, as well as recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this week’s CONTROL CENTER!

RAMAPAGE

ROH PURE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Katsuyori Shibata(c) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Wheeler Yuta

Perhaps it’s his experience as a member of the Blackpool Combat Club that has beaten any fear from the former 2-Time ROH Pure Champion, perhaps it is cockiness due to that affiliation, but whatever the reason, it is clear that Wheeler Yuta fears little. Why else would he, all by himself, step the AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, FTW Champion HOOK, and ROH Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata ahead of their Trios match on DYNAMITE and talk trash on all three of them? There is plenty of history between Yuta and all three of these individuals; Orange served as a mentor to Yuta for much of his career before The BCC came calling while HOOK’s association with OC led to Yuta holding a pinfall victory over the FTW Champion on the November 15th DYNAMITE, and finally, it was Katsuyori Shibata who ended Yuta’s second reign as ROH Pure Champion earlier this year at SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023, a loss that Yuta has certainly not forgotten.

It seems the sting of that memory, and standing just feet away from Shibata hold the title belt, encouraged Yuta to dip his toes back into the Pure Division this past Thursday during ROH ON HONOR CLUB (www.watchroh.com), and score a victory over Shane Taylor Promotions member Lee Moriarty.

Earlier in the night, in a tremendous Pure Championship bout, Shibata retained the title over Trent Beretta, a man quite familiar to Yuta albeit the one member of the Best Friends unit who didn’t care for Wheeler’s presence, and as a result of these respective victories, this Saturday night on RAMPAGE, Wheeler Yuta will get the rematch he’s been waiting for since March 31st! With almost 240 days under his belt as champion, Shibata heads into this ninth title defense as strong as he’s ever been, and as imposing a presence as ever, and the history between these two men does not tilt in Yuta’s favor.

In addition to their SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023 fight, there was that ALL OUT 2023 tag team bout that may have been won by The Blackpool Combat Club, but Shibata’s offensive barrage actually put Yuta on concussion protocol for several weeks. So while this is primarily about the Pure Championship, and Yuta’s desire to be the only 3-time Pure Champion (he’s already the only two-timer), there’s also a whole lot of other reasons for Yuta to want this fight on Saturday evening!

The Blackpool Combat Club is woefully lacking any championships at this moment, but with Moxley’s victory in his first Continental Classic match serving as a moral booster to the unit, and Castagnoli’s fight with Garcia following shortly after Yuta’s, this could be a week that shines in the history of The BCC. The question may then be whether Yuta or Shibata will bring the violence needed to emerge from this fight as reigning Pure Champion!

ONE-ON-ONE…

Kris Statlander vs. Diamante

Coming off losing the TBS Championship to Julia Hart at FULL GEAR 2023, Kris Statlander is back in action against one of her long-time rivals, a woman she’s got history with dating back to 2018, but who she’s surprisingly never gone one-on-one with in a televised bout! Diamante and Stat had a pair of singles matches on DARK, in addition to two trios bouts, and they even clashed in a tag on COLLISION back in September, but this Saturday night will be their first televised singles match ever!

Statlander certainly holds upper hand in their rivalry, having been on the winning side for four of their five AEW bouts, but will she be there for it after watching the TBS Championship slip out of her grasp last week in Los Angeles? This may be the prime moment for Diamante to strike and score a huge victory over her rival!

COLLISION

CONTINENTAL CLASSIC TOURNAMENT…

BLUE LEAGUE

Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli vs. Daniel Garcia

They were trapped inside the Blood & Guts Cage together 17 months ago, and they fought in tags and trios over the ensuing months once Chris Jericho defeated Claudio Castagnoli to become ROH World Champion, but this Saturday night in Pittsburgh will be the first time that Claudio and Daniel Garcia fight in singles competition, and what stakes there are at hand!

This bout marks each man’s first in the Blue League of the Continental Classic, and Garcia is undoubtedly the underdog, not just in this match, but in the big picture of the entire twelve-man tournament! Though he is a former ROH Pure Champion, and the current PWG Champion, Garcia is absolutely the dark horse of the Blue League. After all this is a bracket consisting of the men involved in this match as well as Bryan Danielson, Andrade El Idolo, Eddie Kingston, and Brody King. That being said, regardless of how they came to be, Garcia’s record book shows victories over Brody and Bryan, though they are balanced by losses to Andrade and Kingston.

So the question is whether or not Garcia can find an amalgamation of his pro wrestler side and his sports entertainer side, because if he can find a balance of the two, he could evolve into the most dangerous wrestler in the whole of All Elite Wrestling. There is not doubt he is one of the most gifted wrestlers in the game today, he is also one of the most entertaining, but he’s yet to find a balance of the two that leads to consistent success.

With so much at stake in each Continental Classic match it becomes imperative that Daniel Garcia find his identity, and decide who he wants to be. Nothing dictates he has to be one or the other, but he has to figure out a balance between his best attributes if he hopes to defeat the complete package that is Claudio Castagnoli. One would be hard-pressed to find a professional wrestler more adept at every style in the game than Castagnoli, or one more powerful than the former ROH World Champion. Though there are several more matches to be fought before WORLDS END comes, that first victory is imperative to setting the town for the Continental Classic; will it be Claudio’s victory in the record books or will it belong to Daniel Garcia

ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston vs. The House of Black’s Brody King

The enhanced stakes of this tournament, the situation where the winner will walk out not only as AEW Continental Champion, but also as ROH World Champion and NJPW STRONG Champion, are a direct result of the fighting spirit that burns in the soul of Eddie Kingston. Call him “The Mad King”, call him “The Last of a Dying Breed”, whatever you call him, you have to call Eddie Kingston a fighter with a respect for professional wrestling above and beyond the call of duty. There is no reason for Eddie to put both his hard-earned championship titles at stake save for his belief that a champion should be defending their title any time they are in a prize fight.

That leads to this situation where Eddie has laid both his championship titles on the line for the ultimate winner of this Round Robin-Style Tournament, thereby creating a modern American Triple Crown Championship, and adhering the Continental Classic winner to three separate promotions. But that’s what comes at WORLDS END for the winner of the entire field, this Saturday night during COLLISOIN, Eddie Kingston will first have to deal with a man he first met in La Boom back in 2018, and first fought in Wilmington, CA one month later: The House of Black’s Brody King!

These two men had issues in All Elite Wrestling earlier this year, problems that created the fissure in the relationship between Ortiz and Kingston that ultimately put those two on opposite sides of the Stadium Stampede at ALL IN: LONDON, but seem quelled based on recent Ring of Honor activity, but the Kingston/HoB issues never put Eddie in the ring with Brody here in AEW.

That all changes this Saturday night on COLLISION when, as part of the Blue League, Eddie and Brody lock horns in singles competition for the first time in AEW, and for the first time time since an AAW title fight in December 2018. These are two men who were inspired to this trade because of their love for Puroesu, because of their love for the concept of Fighting Spirit, and though they’ve traveled very different paths to get to this point, now are engaged in a tournament that owes a great deal of inspiration to those that elevated the men Brody and Eddie love into inspirational figures.

This is going to be a hard-hitting affair, one in which bombs will be thrown from the outset, and neither man will emerge in perfect health. No matter who wins, both Brody and Eddie will know they’ve been through a battle to score their first 3 points, and they will feel the repercussions of the bout throughout the rest of the Continental Classic.

THE CHAMPIONS SPEAK…

After assaulting Chris Jericho following the FULL GEAR 2023 Media Scrum, reigning AEW World Tag Champions Ricky Starks and Big Bill will be on-hand this Saturday during COLLISION for an interview with Tony Schiavone.

With that Ladder Match victory under their belt, the duo were already riding high, but putting the boots to Jericho the way they did, and doing more damage to the arm already injured by The Young Bucks has left them even higher on the hog than they were. There’s no doubt Starks and Big Bill will have a lot of gloating to do on Saturday, but eventually they will have to answer for their attack, and given that The Golden Jets are owed a championship match, the champions’ actions may cost them the titles!

“THE RATED R SUPERSTAR” AND THE PATRIARCHY…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/XV-Ds3PTZzA?si=4TaoyiJCOdIKnqTj&start=356

This past Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, fans watched in horror as Christian Cage prepared to deliver a One-Man Conchairto to Shayna Wayne. If it wasn’t for the timely intervention of Adam Copeland, one can imagine the kind of damage that would’ve been done to Nick Wayne’s seemingly-estranged mother. Unfortunately for Nick, it was young Mr. Wayne who ended up with his head sandwiched between chairs and felt the cold sting of the steel across his skull, but also unfortunate was the fact this happened right in front of Shayna.

Whether or not “The Rated R Superstar” even realized there was a distraught mother crumbled in the corner crying for a stay of execution is something only Adam can answer, and perhaps that’s what he will address this Saturday night on COLLISION!

TAG TEAM BOUT…

FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood) vs. The Righteous (Dutch & Vincent)

FTR were within moments of claiming the AEW World Tag Team Titles at FULL GEAR 2023 but Ricky Starks played spoiler to their moment of redemption, and instead pulled down the titles to keep them around the waists of himself and Big Bill. Frustrating as that may be, it’s not the first time Cash and Dax have been on the losing end of a fight and it certainly won’t be the last, and that loss is not going to stop them from getting right back into the hunt for a third reign as champions!

The road that hopefully ends in another title opportunity begins tonight on COLLISION when FTR faces The Righteous for the very first time! Dutch and Vincent recently took up with Jake Roberts, a match certainly made in the most devilish of fires, pooling a wealth of knowledge with a bent towards wickedness that could certainly lead The Righteous towards championship success.

Will Dutch and Vincent be able to blaze that trail at the expense of FTR, or will Dax and Cash rebound from their PPV heartbreak and set their sights right back on the AEW World Tag Titles?

SINGLES BOUT…

“Limitless” Keith Lee vs. Shane Taylor Promotions’ Lee Moriarty

The issues between Shane Taylor and Keith Lee date back over a decade to the earliest days of the wrestling careers, into their time in Ring of Honor as The Pretty Boy Killers, even spilled over into the New Era of Honor with their fight at FINAL BATTLE 2022 last December, and into AEW with their Mixed Tag Team bout during the ZERO HOUR for WRESTLEDREAM 2023. Now, with Shane Taylor having recruited Lee Moriarty into his fold, it looks like Pittsburgh’s own is taking up the fight on his mentor’s behalf!

It was just a little over two years ago that Moriarty wrestled his first match for AEW, losing to Dante Martin on the August 17, 2021 edition of DARK, and his drive to become one of the best in the game led him to championship bouts with Orange Cassidy, HOOK, Wardlow, and Katsuyori Shibata, to mention a few, and caught the attention of Shane Taylor.

Stepping up this Saturday to fight Shane’s former tag partner, will Lee Moriarty come to regret his choice of partnering with STP, or will that association be the thing that bolsters the master of #TaigaStyle to the level he has been striving for since coming into AEW?

TAG TEAM BOUT…

The House of Black (Buddy Matthews & Malakai Black) vs. Gravity & Komander

FULL GEAR 2023 was not an ideal night for the men of The House of Black, though Julia Hart did bring the TBS Championship into their fold, all three of the men honoring The House were unsuccessful in their respective fights. Buddy Matthews fell to Claudio Castagnoli during the ZERO HOUR, while The Kings of the Black Throne came up short in the AEW World Tag Team Championship Ladder Match.

Thankfully for all three of them, today is a new day for a fresh fight, and while Brody King is embroiled in the Continental Classic Tournament and his opening fight with Eddie Kingston, Malakai Black and Buddy Matthews will team for the first time to take on the high-flying duo of Gravity and Komander! The Luchador duo have been sporadically tagging up for several years, though this will be there first time working as a team in All Elite Wrestling, and what a challenge they face in this House pairing!

AEW Dynamite Results for November 22, 2023

AEW Dynamite Results for November 22, 2023

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL!

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 Match—The Gold League!

Swerve Strickland vs. Jay Lethal!

Lethal clocked Swerve with a big right hand. They traded strikes on the ring apron. Lethal yanked on Swerve’s right arm. Lethal drove Swerve into the barricade after a tope suicida. Lethal followed up with a short arm lariat.

Swerve targeted the knee of Lethal with a basement dropkick. Swerve tied up Lethal’s legs and wrenched on them, putting all of his body weight on them. Swerve kicked Lethal’s leg and then chopped it!

Swerve sent Lethal flying with a German Suplex. Lethal rallied back with a shoulder breaker. They jockeyed for position on the top turnbuckle, and Swerve brought Lethal down hard with a superplex. Swerve followed up with a flatliner and then a brainbuster for a near fall on Lethal.

Jay Lethal stunned Swerve with an elbow drop from the top rope worthy of a king. Swerve avoided a dropkick and applied a stretch muffler, but Lethal grabbed the bottom rope. Lethal cracked Swerve with a pump kick. Lethal went for the Lethal Injection but Swerve countered with a dropkick. Swerve hit the House Call and then the Swerve Stomp to score the pin on Lethal. Three points for Swerve!

Renee Paquette was backstage with AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, FTW Champion HOOK, & ROH Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata!

Wheeler Yuta interrupted Orange Cassidy and mocked him, Hook, and Shibata. Yuta told Shibata that he’d be taking his championship back!

Up next: AEW World Champion & ROH Tag Champion MJF came out with his ROH Tag Champion partner Adam Cole!

MJF: “Cut the music. Now ladies and gentlemen, it appears the devil has arrived in Chicago. After I just freshly beat an undefeated Jay White. I learned in those 30 minutes that you are truly one of the best professional wrestlers in the world. Fact. However, nobody is on the level of the devil. Chicago, I’m just gonna say what we’re all thinking: you’re looking at the greatest AEW World Champion of all time. Now none of that is possible without my brochacho for life, Mr. Cole.”

Adam Cole: “Who’s ready for story time with Adam Cole, baybay? It’s great that me and Max are still your ROH World Tag Team Champions with a little help from Samoa Joe, as well. My ankle is in really bad shape. I’ve got a long road ahead of me. But I’m going to work my ass off every single day to make sure I can get back her in AEW to do what I love to do.

“Max, I’m really worried about you. I wish for nothing more than to be here by your side, but I can’t. It feels like you’ve got the entire world gunning for you.”

MJF: “You don’t gotta worry about me, Adam. To the man behind my devil mask, I’m going to find you and the hell I send you to is going to feel like heaven.”

Someone appeared on the screen wearing the devil mask, laughing, and then the feed disappeared!

Samoa Joe’s music played and out walked Samoa Joe to the ring!

Samoa Joe: “This is a time for celebration, Max. Two massive victories over a weekend. You stand here today AEW World Champion. But you know what else happened? Earlier in the night, MJF, you went out there with Samoa Joe and defended your ROH World Tag Championship for the simple price of giving me my rematch. So, I’ve come to Chicago to ensure that honorable men honor their deals.”

MJF: “Maybe you should take a couple of steps back because you have bad breath. And secondly, I thought long and hard about our deal. And I feel I’ve come up with a reasonable mature response. My response is no!”

Samoa Joe grabbed MJF by the throat, but Adam Cole begged Samoa Joe to stop and listen to him!

Adam Cole: “Thank you! Max, you can’t do this, man. The new MJF, he’s a man of his word. I get it, Joe is a killer. Max, that’s why you are who you are. They don’t just love you because you’re a great wrestler. They love you because when MJF says something is going to happen, damnit it happens. Max, be a man of your word.”

MJF: “You know what Joe, you want to face me for this belt? You wouldn’t be the first Ring of Honor legend I’ve beaten in Chicago twice! So how about Samoa Joe versus MJF right here, right now in Chicago!”

Samoa Joe: “Absolutely not. Let’s discuss what’s really gonna happen. You’re going to get on the Internet tomorrow and complain that you weren’t 100% and it wasn’t fair. Boo Hoo. No, Max, I want the best version of you, I want the fully healed Max. So, I say by World’s End, you should be nice and chipper to get in that ring and defend that title.”

MJF: “Let me get this straight. You want to wrestle MJF at Nassau Colliseum on December 30th at World’s End? You want MJF in the main event for the World Title? Is that correct?”

Samoa Joe: “That is correct, Max.”

MJF: “You’ve got yourself a deal, Joe. But let me explain something to you. Wrestling MJF in Long Island, that’s about as bright as copping head from an alligator. But based on the way you’re looking these days, I bet you don’t have many options.”

Samoa Joe: “I understand what this is and I’m really great at picking fights too, Max. But Max all this worrying you’re doing about the devil goes away today. Because you see from now on, you’re considered my property. And people don’t touch my property unless I say so. I’m going to deliver the very best MJF to Nassau Colliseum and then I’m going to take your World Championship in front of your family and friends and everyone you know and love!”

Trios Match!

AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, FTW Champion HOOK,

& ROH Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata

vs.

“Daddy Magic” Matt Menard, “Cool Hand” Angelo Parker, & Jake Hager!

Before the match, Orange Cassidy said he had a Thanksgiving surprise. Very nice, very evil Danhausen made his return!

Hook hurled Menard overhead with judo throws. Hook sent Angelo Parker to the mat too! Hager hit Hook with a blindsided shot.

Parker clocked Hook with a running knee to the head. Hager nailed Hook with a Hager Bomb for a near fall. Hook fired back with a lariat to Angelo Parker, exploding out of the corner. Hook planted Parker with a T-bone suplex and then tagged out to Orange Cassidy.

Hager intercepted the Orange Punch from Cassidy and then planted him on the mat. Shibata tagged in and he and Hager traded forearms. Shibata pump kicked Hager. Shibata chopped down Hager in the corner. Shibata followed up with a running dropkick to Hager! Menard and Parker doubled up on Shibata. Hager went to powerbomb Shibata, but Danhausen jumped on the apron, distracting Hager with Hager’s purple hat.

Danhausen cursed Hager and Cassidy stunned Hager with a tope suicida. Shibata put the sleeper on Menard while Hook made Parker tap out with the Red Rum!

Renee Paquette was backstage with Adam Cole!

Roderick Strong and the Kingdom interrupted!

Strong: “I saw you were there on Saturday. I’m sorry I missed you. Friday, where were you? I was dropped right on my head.”

Cole: “Shut up! When are you going to get it through your thick skull that I am not your best friend anymore? Do me a favor. Back off and leave me the hell alone!”

Up next: TNT Champion Christian Cage rechristened Luchasaurus & Nick Wayne!

Christian Cage: “Now everybody knows a true champion is gracious in victory and humble in defeat. And as you all know this past Saturday at Full Gear, it didn’t exactly go as we planned. I can tell you that I did not lose that match. Nick Wayne did not lose that match. Luchasaurus lost that match! And that’s unacceptable to me.

“And I went home, and I thought, how do I get rid of this stench of losing. And it hit me like a ton of bricks. Since you’re both my children, it’s time that I recreate you both in my image. Luchasaurus, take a knee. I said take a knee. I’m not sure what you’re not understanding about this you moron. Take a knee right now!

“The name Luchasaurus to me will forever be associated with me with being a loser. I thought long and hard about your name and I came up with a name of strength. A name of toughness. A name that means certain victory. A name that has served me well throughout my career. You are my finisher. This Saturday on Collision you will have the chance to prove that you are worthy of this moniker because from here on out you will be known as Kill Switch!

“Nick Wayne, get on your feet. You don’t ever get on your knees for another person, do you understand me? You’re different, Nick. You’re special. You are my golden boy. I see things in you that I’ve never seen in another person. You are me. I love you, Nick. Nick, you are a golden boy, and you will be known as ‘the Prodigy, Nick Wayne.’”

Nick Wayne’s mother walked to the ring.

Christian Cage: “What the hell are you doing here anyway? You are a terrible mother! Maybe you love Nick unconditionally but that isn’t good enough. This kid is a prodigy. It’s a good thing that your husband is dead because Nick would have disowned his father because he knows his father was never as good of a wrestler that I am. So do me a favor and get the hell out of my ring!”

Luchasaurus stepped between Nick Wayne’s mom and Christian Cage and stared at Christian!

Christian Cage: “Get back on your knees! I didn’t stutter. Get on your knees Kill Switch!”

Christian Cage slapped Luchasaurus in the face!

Christian Cage: “Get on your knees or I’ll make you take off that mask!”

Christian shoved Luchasaurus, who inadvertently fell back against Nick Wayne’s mother, knocking her to the mat!

Nick Wayne left the ring and looked under it. Nick Wayne pulled out a steel chair and slid it into the ring. He pulled out a second chair and slid it into the ring. Shanna Wayne’s head was placed onto one of the steel chairs. Christian held up the second steel chair and handed it to Luchasaurus. “Be the Kill Switch! Be the finisher!”

Luchasaurus held up the chair and contemplated what he had just been ordered to do. Adam Copeland sprinted to the ring and speared Nick Wayne! Copeland booted Luchasaurus in the face! Copeland had the chair and looked at Christian Cage, but Luchasaurus pulled Christian out of the ring to safety. Copeland speared Nick Wayne a second time and then nailed him with the Impaler! Copeland propped Nick Wayne’s head on one of the chairs. Copeland cracked Nick Wayne with the steel chair, right in front of Nick’s mom!

Renee Paquette was backstage with Anna Jay, Matt Menard, Angelo Parker, and Jake Hager!

Matt Menard: “Renee, I don’t know what’s going on around here. Garcia with his dancing, Parker with his little girlfriend, someone tell me what’s going on!”

Hager: “And Danhausen with the hat!”

Anna Jay: “Stop, this is about me! I just want to wrestle. I am so tired of the losing, the infighting, and I don’t know if you guys are here to help me or hurt me.”

Parker’s phone rang and it was Ruby Soho calling.

Anna Jay: “Really? You’re in my corner tonight, right?”

Parker: “Anna, of course. It’s family first. You got this!”

Continental Classic Match—The Gold League!

LFI’s Rush vs. Bullet Club Gold’s “Switchblade” Jay White!

Rush and Jay White locked horns, with Rush backing Jay into the corner. Rush dropkicked Jay White and then stomped on him. Rush splashed Switchblade in the corner and followed up with a beautiful dropkick.

Rush rammed Jay White into the barricades. Rush pulled a cable out from beneath the ring. Ref Paul Turner threatened to disqualify Rush, so Rush dropped the cable. Rush wrecked Jay White with more chops to the chest.

Jay White suplexed Rush right into the turnbuckles. Rush took Jay White off his feet with a flying forearm. Rush cracked White with a massive elbow strike and followed up with a brainbuster for a near fall.

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

Jay White dodged a senton from Rush. Jay White nailed Rush with a brainbuster for a near fall! Jay White gouged the eye of Rush, but Rush answered with a rising knee strike. White fired back with a uranage for a two-count.

Rush escaped the Blade Runner attempt. Rush staggered White with a German Suplex. Jay White took down Rush with a dragon screw leg whip. Rush hurled Jay White with a belly-to-belly suplex into the turnbuckles. Rush went for the Bull’s Horns but White countered and tried for the Blade Runner. Rush escaped, shoving White, who inadvertently connected with the ref. As the ref had his back turned, Jay White hit Rush with a low blow and then pinned Rush after the Blade Runner! Jay White gained three points!

Footage was shown from after this past Saturday’s media scrum, with AEW World Tag Team Champs “Absolute” Ricky Starks and Big Bill attacking Chris Jericho, targeting his injured arm!

RJ City and Renee Paquette were on the ramp to present AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm with her championship!

Mariah May presented Toni with the title.

Toni Storm: “I didn’t have anything prepared. I would first like to thank Mr. Anthony Khan and the wonderful people at Warner Discovery. I would like to thank whoever trained me, and the little Toni Storms out there who want to be me. This is my spot. You will not take it. You will not make it. So, stay in school. Thank you!”

The celebration was interrupted as Skye Blue made her entrance for the next match.

Three-Way Match!

Ruby Soho (with Saraya)

vs.

Skye Blue

vs. Anna Jay (with Matt Menard & Angelo Parker)!

Parker and Ruby smiled at each other. Anna Jay rolled up Skye for a near fall. Skye took down Anna with a shoulder tackle. Ruby Soho suplexed Skye Blue, planting her on the back of her head.

Skye Blue took down both members of the opposition at once with creative offense. Anna Jay cracked Ruby with a thrust kick, after Ruby was flirting with Angelo Parker. Skye Blue connected with a diving cross body press onto Anna and Ruby.

Skye Blue rocked Ruby with two knee strikes. Skye Blue pump kicked Ruby off the ring apron, sending Ruby right into the arms of Angelo Parker! Anna Jay stunned Skye with a pump kick of her own! Before Ruby and Angelo kissed, Saraya pulled Ruby away from Angelo.

Blue escaped the Queen Slayer and followed up with a thrust kick. Skye Blue scored the pin after the cutter on Anna Jay! Saraya and Ruby argued with one another after the match.

Renee Paquette was backstage with Wardlow!

Wardlow: “The world doesn’t revolve around MJF. The downfall of the devil is going to happen on my time.”

AR Fox interrupted. “Hey man, I see what you’re doing here. Putting the blame on everybody else. I get it. I was doing the same to Darby.”

Wardlow: “Listen, I don’t need advice from anyone.”

Wardlow headbutted AR Fox and laughed.

Main Event Time!

Continental Classic Match—The Gold League!

Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley vs. Mark Briscoe!

Mox and Mark slugged it out in the center of the ring. Briscoe used his redneck kung fu, chopping Moxley in the throat. Moxley chomped down on Briscoe’s head. Briscoe nailed Moxley with a neck breaker off the apron and onto the arena floor!

Moxley smashed Mark in the mouth with a big boot! Mark was busted wide open. Moxley spiked Briscoe with a piledriver for a near fall. Briscoe tossed Mox with a suplex. Moxley applied an arm bar on Mark, but Mark got his boot on the bottom rope to force the break.

Moxley nailed Mark with the Paradigm Shift, but Mark got right up and dropkicked Moxley! Briscoe used a Death Valley Driver to set up the Froggy Bow, but Moxley kicked out at two! Moxley escaped a J Driller attempted and planted Mark with the Death Rider for a near fall!

Moxley hit Mark with a half and half suplex. Moxley curb stomped Briscoe and pinned him after a second Death Rider! Moxley earned three points!

Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN!

Special Programming note: this Saturday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 7/6c and then COLLISION at 8/7c on TNT from the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, PA!

AEW Dynamite Preview for November 22, 2023

AEW Dynamite Preview for November 22, 2023

https://www.youtube.com/embed/FVdoH-SWzUc?si=SeoMoJ_l3HERzdR7

FULL GEAR 2023 saw two new champions crowned with Julia Hart claiming the TBS Championship from Kris Statlander, albeit by pinning Skye Blue, and Toni Storm kicking off her third reign as AEW Women’s World Champion at Hikaru Shida’s expense, as well as MJF, against all odds, officially completing one full year as AEW World Champion! Now with WORLDS END just over a month away on Long Island, all eyes turn towards AEW’s Thanksgiving Eve tradition and our return to Chicago for DYNAMITE!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/jZg8HMK656U?si=TE3bRGxjONR9btef

This year the focus falls on the kick-off of the Continental Classic, AEW’s first-ever Round Robin Tournament, with some seriously high stakes thanks to Eddie Kingston putting both the ROH World Championship and NJPW STRONG Openweight Title into the mix, and it all begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans. Be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted social media platforms, to get caught up on the action with highlights from FULL GEAR 2023, as well as recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this week’s CONTROL CENTER!

CONTINENTAL CLASSIC…

https://www.youtube.com/embed/bJEF8Wp4etk?si=81rLmqVhlVwZ7DUE

Earlier today, in the above embedded video, AEW/ROH President Tony Khan, along with Tony Schiavone and ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion, announced the field of 12 for the Continental Classic Tournament! There are two groups, Blue and Gold, with six competitors each, competing in a Round Robin Style Tournament that begins Wednesday night in Chicago, and will continue until the finals at WORLDS END on December 30th!

Already quite the intriguing situation with Bryan Danielson, Mark Briscoe, and Andrade El Idolo putting their names into the hat prior to the Selection Special, with a competitive fire burning strong in his heart, Eddie Kingston further amplified the prestige of the tournament by putting both the ROH World Champion and NJPW STRONG Championship at stake thus, along with the AEW Continental Championship, creating a new Triple Crown Championship awaiting the winner of this tournament.

Now as for the rules of this tournament, matches will be contested with a 20 minute time limit, there will be no seconds allowed at ringside, and outside interference will not be tolerated, which may throw a monkey wrench in how many of the competitors generally handle their business. In addition, the scoring system for the Continental Classic will be very straight forward and simple, with points being awarded as follows: 3 points for a win and 1 point for a draw. Here is how the two groups break down:

Blue Group

Andrade El Idolo

“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson

Brody King

Claudio Castagnoli

Daniel Garcia

ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston

Gold Group

Jay Lethal

Jay White

Jon Moxley

Mark Briscoe

Rus

Swerve Strickland

The first matches of the tournament will go down at Wintrust Arena as part of AEW’s Thanksgiving Eve tradition, and continue Saturday night in Pittsburgh!

THE GOLD GROUP…

Swerve Strickland vs. Jay Lethal

One of the most intriguing aspects of the Continental Classic Tournament is going to be the opportunity to see several first-time matches, and three of them are going down this Wednesday night with the opening bouts of AEW’s first-ever Round -style Robin Tournament!

Coming off a brutal, bloody Texas Death Match victory over Hangman Page at FULL GEAR 2023, Swerve Strickland will be in action for his first bout of the Continental Classic this Wednesday night in Chicago. Though there is not way he’s feeling anywhere near 100%, Swerve will have to find a way to be at the top of his game because his opponent in this first night of action will be “The Franchise of ROH”, a former 2-Time ROH World Champion and the second-longest reigning ROH World TV Champion in history thanks to Samoa Joe’s recent run, Jay Lethal! Lethal is no doubt coming into this bout far healthier than Swerve, and that may make the crucial difference in this contest, but another game changer for both these individuals, given how each generally approaches their matches, is that ban on seconds and outside interference. How many times have fans seen Jeff Jarrett, Sonjay Dutt, Satnam Singh, and Karen Jarrett play a deciding factor in Jay Lethal’s matches? On how many instances have The Gates of Agony, Brian Cage, or Prince Nana been involved in swaying Swerve Strickland’s matches? With this tournament, none of that will fly, leaving these two stellar athletes to rely solely on their skill inside the squared circle? Which of these men will notch their first points in the Continental Classic?

LFI’s Rush vs. BULLET CLUB GOLD’s Jay White

Just like Swerve, both “El Toro Blanco” Rush and “Switchblade” Jay White went through their own bit of hell at FULL GEAR 2023. In the case of Rush, it was the Four Team Ladder match for the AEW World Tag Titles and the punishment that sort of bout entails while for Jay White it was his bid for the AEW World Championship against MJF, although he and BC GOLD did their best to make sure it wasn’t MJF defending The Triple B.

While neither man was victorious in their efforts to become a champion in All Elite Wrestling, a new road to that goal begins this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE with the opening bouts in the Continental Classic. Another first-time bout, this head-to-head fight between the leaders of LFI and BC GOLD may be the show stealer given the skills of each involved, but as with the Lethal/Swerve bout, this is another contest between two men who often rely on their respective units to help determine the outcomes of a bout.

But unlike most outings with these two, there will be no Jose the Assistant, Preston Vance, or Dralistico at Rush’s side to interfere, nor a Juice Robinson, Austin Gunn, or Colten Gunn in Jay White’s corner to stick their nose in the business at hand. This continental classic is about putting the focus on the wrestling, and the fight between the two individuals vying for points, not the assorted seconds, managers, and stablemates polluting the competition with shenanigans.

With those elements removed, this is a bout between two elite level competitors and it will be quite intriguing to see who nets the three points in their first Continental Classic clash!

The BCC’s Jon Moxley vs. Mark Briscoe

Now this is going to be a fight between two men who love to throwdown inside the squared circle, and unlike the other two first-time bouts, this first-timer does not involve a competitor reliant on interference, managers, or seconds. Both Jon Moxley and Mark Briscoe are men who want the victory on their own merit, they want the win on their own skills, and not because someone else lent a hand.

For Mark Briscoe, a 13-time ROH World Tag Team Champion with his late brother Jay, this tournament is an opportunity to not only firmly stake his status in the singles division but also to claim the first singles championship (or rather championships) of his entire career! He’s challenged for the ROH World Title and the ROH World Television Championship several times during his twenty-plus years in ROH, but never captured those, nor any other singles title, and if he comes out of this tournament on top, he could claim three in one shot! He just may have the most difficult first match of the tournament by fighting Jon Moxley!

A 3-Time AEW World Champion, a former International Champion, and former 2-Time IWGP U.S. Heavyweight Champion, just to name a few of his accolades, Moxley is certainly a favorite to win this tournament and add three more championship to his name with the Triple Crown of the ROH World, NJPW STRONG Openweight, and AEW Continental Championships. With three members in the field, The Blackpool Combat Club are absolutely odds-on favorites to bring a tournament victory to their camp, and Jon Moxley is the first of the three to shoot for the three points.

These are two of the most unpredictable men in all of professional wrestling, and it is going to be a wild night when the two of them meet inside the squared circle for the very first time!

TONI STORM’S ACCEPTANCE SPEECH…

Last Saturday night at FULL GEAR 2023, fans witnessed as Toni Storm dethroned Hikaru Shida to reclaim the AEW Women’s World Championship for the third time. It was a fitting end to Storm’s Hollywood Homecoming, at least for her, and she did share some words with the AEW cameras following the bout:

Unfortunately, for those who had hoped she’d join the FULL GEAR Media Scrum following the conclusion of the pay-per-view, that would not be the case as Toni had other commitments to attend, but she very kindly gave Tony Khan a letter explaining her absence, one which RJ City was kind enough to provide for everyone to read:

Storm’s lack of appearing during the Media Scrum simply meant her adoring public just had to wait until this Wednesday night in Chicago, during AEW’s DYNAMITE Thanksgiving Eve tradition, to hear her Championship Acceptance Speech! Who will she thank? Who will she be wearing? Will the band have to play her off stage if she goes on too long? Tune into TBS this Wednesday night to hear what will surely be the most unforgettable acceptance speech in championship history from “Timeless” Toni Storm!

RECHRISTENING?

After falling to Darby Allin, Sting, and Adam Copeland at FULL GEAR 2023, TNT Champion Christian Cage has stated that this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, he is going to rechristen Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus.

So rechristen simply means “to rename” or “to change the name of”, which means Christian Cage has the intention of changing the names of his Patriarchy followers. What could he possibly hope to gain from this? And what names could he possibly choose for Luchasaurus and Nick Wayne?

On the heels of FULL GEAR 2023 AEW’s first-ever Round Robin Tournament, the Continental Classic, gets underway and will run from Wednesday night in Chicago through WORLDS END on December 30th. Tonight will see Mark Briscoe versus Jon Moxley, Swerve versus Lethal, and Rush/Switchblade kick off the tournament, with more to come this weekend in Pittsburgh, and it kicks off at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS! International fans can catch the action at AEWPlus.com, and everyone needs to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, to get caught up on the action with highlights from FULL GEAR 2023, as well as recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, COLLISION, and this week’s CONTROL CENTER!

AEW Full Gear 2023 Preview

AEW Full Gear 2023 Preview

https://www.youtube.com/embed/3P-p5lEqdhs?si=Of6MmM_xF1yKwKik&start=153

All Elite Wrestling returns to pay-per-view this Saturday night, November 18th, for FULL GEAR 2023 live from the fabulous KIA Forum in Los Angeles, CA! AEW’s return to the West Coast has already been an exciting endeavor, and now it comes to a head with multiple championship bouts, epic grudge matches, strained friendships, and the top shelf professional wrestling the world has come to expect from the athletes of All Elite Wrestling! Click here for all the details on how the AEW faithful around the world can watch our November tradition, then sit back, strap in, and get ready for a rocket ship of a ride in Cali!

AEW WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

MJF(c) vs. “Switchblade” Jay White

https://www.youtube.com/embed/K9_OyE5_z-E?si=IqJsvOfoNbN6znCY&start=61

On November 1st, just four days after beating Kenny Omega on COLLISION, Maxwell Jacob Friedman became the longest reigning AEW World Champion in AEW’s history, surpassing the 346-day marker set by “The Cleaner” between WINTER IS COMING 2020 when he beat Jon Moxley and FULL GEAR 2021 when he lost to Hangman Page. One week later, on the November 8th DYNAMITE in Portland, MJF defeated Daniel Garcia in a World Championship defense, thereby tying the mark of 9 successful defenses set by Moxley during his reign from REVOLUTION 2020 where be bested Chris Jericho to the aforementioned WINTER IS COMING 2020 loss.

These are two huge milestones in the history of All Elite Wrestling, as well as in the professional career of Maxwell Jacob Friedman, not to neglect his fifth consecutive victory where the Dynamite Diamond Ring is concerned, but unfortunately MJF has had to celebrate both this championship milestones without his precious Triple B, the AEW World Championship title. For weeks now “Switchblade” Jay White has been parading around with the physical title belt and using his possession of it to proclaim himself the real AEW World Champion. While White is certainly championship material, his status as a former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion is testament to that, he is not the AEW World Champion regardless of his physically holding the title belt.

While he’s not champion, what “King Switch” has been is a thorn in MJF’s side that he’s been unable to remove, a foe Max has been unable to get a leg up on, and man surrounded by three other men willing to get their hands dirty in order to lend “Switchblade” an assist when it is need. Jay White is also one of just two people who’ve pinned MJF’s shoulders to the mat since he returned to the fold at ALL OUT 2022, the other being Dax Harwood the night Better Than You BayBay challenged FTR for the AEW World Tag Team Championship. To say Jay White has the psychological edge heading into this fight would be an understatement, and though initially it seemed the Devil-masked individual, and their gang of black clad thugs, that have encircled this bout was MJF’s balance to everything White had done, it became clear after White’s victory over Mark Briscoe that they (a) The Devil was not MJF and (b) they were not on the side of the World Champion either. Even though their initial arrival on the scene was at the expense of Jay White, this time around they left The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass laying, even chucking Anthony Bowens through a window.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZONwtE0-V0A?si=N9e5Wy2pB2R6UoEU&start=201

So after everything that has gone done between MJF, his allies, Jay White, and BULLET CLUB GOLD, the two men will finally go one-on-one for the AEW World Championship! It’s MJF’s chance to become the most successful champion in AEW history by breaking Mox’s record, it’s Jay White’s opportunity to ascend to the throne in All Elite Wrestling just as he did in New Japan, and it plays out this Saturday night live on pay-per-view from the legendary KIA Forum!

AEW WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Hikaru Shida(c) vs. Toni Storm

https://www.youtube.com/embed/Bm5ZuEKY_S8?si=c-rfPF4V4B66t-JG&start=79

Though it’s been a little more than ten years since the very first time Toni Storm and Hikaru Shida stepped into the ring with one another, that fight from the REINA promotion is their lone fight away from All Elite Wrestling and a tag team one won by Storm and her partner.

It would be nine years before Storm and Shida saw each other inside the squared circle again, only now they were working as partners on DARK: ELEVATION #74, teaming with Willow Nightingale as their third to top Emi Sakura, Marina Shafir, and former AEW Women’s World Champion Nyla Rose. The two women would actually team up several more times in 2022, actually proving quite successful both as a team and a trio, but the AEW Women’s World Championship would enter the picture.

At ALL OUT 2022, with the title having been vacated as a result of Thunder Rosa’s injury, Toni Storm bested Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D, Jamie Hayter, and Shida to win her first title, acquired by pinning Hayter, and since she was not the woman pinned, lining up Shida for a title fight of her own. That first singles bout between the women would go down on TITLE TUESDAY 2022, and end with Toni Storm still the reigning champion.

The two women would go their separate ways, reconnecting in May 2023, but unlike Shida who had stayed true to the side of angels, Toni Storm had aligned herself with Ruby Soho and Saraya to form The Outcasts. The alliance-turned-rivalry would blossom into a Women’s World Championship match at the 200th episode of DYNAMITE and that fight would end with “The Shining Samurai” becoming a 2-Time World Champion. Sadly it was a short-lived title reign as Saraya would bring it to an end just 25 days later at ALL IN: LONDON, though not by pinning Shida, but rather by putting down Toni Storm to claim the victory. That pinfall on Toni would prove a breaking point for Storm’s role in The Outcasts as she began to spiral out into the woman we see now, and the Women’s World Champion defeating Toni at GRAND SLAM 2023 completely broke the camel’s back.

The Women’s World Championship would end up back in Shida’s possession after TITLE TUESDAY 2023, making her the first 3-Time champ in the division, but as for Toni Storm, a week prior to Shida’s win at DYNAMITE: 2023 ANNIVERSARY, we all witnessed Toni spiral out on RJ City before making her “Timeless” declaration.

Now lost in this “Timeless” Hollywood starlet delusion, Toni has declared this year’s FULL GEAR event as her “Hollywood Homecoming” and “Quest for the Gold”, heaping a great deal of the blame for her woes on Shida’s lap despite it being The Outcasts, Toni’s former friends, who caused much of that misfortune. As for Shida, while Toni has been experiencing this break from reality, she has posted three successful title defenses against Ruby Soho, Willow Nightingale, and that unforgettable Fright Night Fight with Abadon on COLLISION. Meanwhile Storm has not been inside the ring since an October 7th victory over Kiera Hogan, which means she may be well-rested and healed up from any nagging issues, but heading into FULL GEAR 2023 is she ready for a fight, especially the type of fight Hikaru Shida will undoubtedly bring?

https://www.youtube.com/embed/tVMDFAAaJkI?si=d_KMbv2CNEzXCz_5&start=201

The defending Women’s World Champion does not want this third reign to end as abruptly as the second, and thus she will throw every bit of her arsenal at “Timeless” Toni Storm to insure this go-round isn’t a repeat of the second. While she may hold the spot as longest-reigning Women’s World Champion of all-time at 372 days, so too does Shida hold the position for shortest with that 25 days reign, and if Toni beats her on Saturday night, she’ll also have the second shortest time with the title as well. That’s not the history Shida intends to make…

AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Orange Cassidy(c) vs. Jon Moxley

https://www.youtube.com/embed/OtJlr9pU-cw?si=IXvunlHsxf70l7ki&start=135

After 326 days and 31 championship defenses, Orange Cassidy had the AEW International Championship ripped from his waist by former 3-Time AEW World Champion Jon Moxley at ALL OUT 2023. It was a violent bout, one in which Cassidy was brutalized like never before in his career, but it was a beating that earned him the respect of Mox, not an easy thing to acquire by any means.

Unfortunately for Moxley, his time as International Champion did not come close to touching the records set by Cassidy during his reign because on his fourth defense of the title, just 17 days in, Rey Fenix dropped Moxley hard, and wrested the championship from The BCC member’s grasp. It was a shock to be certain, a win many considered an upset despite Fenix’s championship pedigree, and one that actually put Mox on the injury list for several weeks as far as AEW was concerned, though that didn’t stop the man from fighting for OTT in England and Ireland, for NJPW in Osaka, and at NJPW STRONG’s event at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, the home of FINAL BATTLE 2023.

Meanwhile, during the month that Moxley was kept on the sidelines before his OTT trip, Orange Cassidy had the opportunity to challenge Fenix for the International Championship, a one-on-one rematch of their 11/2/22 Three Way title fight early in Orange’s reign, and just like that fight, it ended with “Freshly Squeezed” getting his hand raised in victory. So not only was OC the longest-reigning International Champion in that title’s short life, not only is he the most successful champion in all of AEW history with those 31 defenses, but now he is also the only 2-Time Champion in the history of the International Title.

Seeming somewhat lost after losing the title to Mox, Cassidy seems rejuvenated by his reclamation of the championship, as if it helped salve the lingering injuries he’d sustained over those 326 days, and reinvigorated him for this second run atop the division. He’s already bested John Silver and Mox’s BCC brother Claudio Castagnoli in championship defenses, but this Saturday night at The KIA Forum, he’s got to get back into the fight with the man who battered him not that long ago.

It’s obvious that Cassidy wants this fight, why else would he have shoulder-bumped Mox after the show of respect Moxley gave him after their fight, provoking the man, almost rubbing it into his face that OC had taken the belt back from the man who beat Moxley. The situation began to blow up this past Wednesday on DYNAMITE as The BCC of Moxley and Yuta met Cassidy and HOOK in a tag team battle, and not only did The BCC defeat championship pair when Yuta pinned HOOK, but Moxley ate a straight shot from an Orange Punch and did not even go down to a knee! It very clearly shook OC to see his primary weapon have no effect on the man he’s got to fight on Saturday night; will we see the same reaction if Cassidy scores with an Orange Punch in the championship match, or can it actually put the 3-Time AEW World Champion and former International Champion down?

Moxley says FULL GEAR 2023 will be a course correction, a moment where he shows the world that Cassidy is actually who Jon Moxley says he is, and he puts the 2-Time International Champion back in his place. Will this be the case when the final bell rings, or will Cassidy do what he has done repeatedly since coming to All Elite Wrestling and show Jon Moxley he is as real as The BCC?

TEXAS DEATH…

“Hangman” Adam Page vs. Swerve Strickland

https://www.youtube.com/embed/jh3N9P-YOMQ?si=vzX6o3gxVyyvefob

Swerve Strickland came into this entire ordeal with former AEW World Champion Hangman Page with the intent of proving he was worthy of a top spot in the AEW pantheon. A former AEW World Tag Champion, just like Hangman, Swerve has relentlessly pursued that top tier status ever since violently parting ways with Keith Lee and nothing has deterred those aspirations, not even being locked in a coffin by Darby Allin and Sting.

So when Page and Swerve went into battle at WRESTLEDREAM, Strickland viewed it as his opportunity to snatch the spot while Hangman saw it as his moment to get back on track with his own career after spending a great deal of 2023 wrapped up in Elite business with Blackpool Combat Club and then, surprisingly, winning the ROH World Six-Man Titles from Swerve’s allies in The Mogul Embassy. But instead of Swerve proving his merits on his own, he resorted to an assist from Prince Nana and his crown to defeat Hangman, and shortly thereafter, when the opportunity arose to fight Bryan Danielson for a shot at TNT Championship, Swerve tried the same tactic. Thankfully Hangman was on the spot to stop that crime from being committed, but that only served to escalate the issues, and next thing Hangman knew, Swerve and Prince Nana were breaking into Page’s house.

That disturbing scenario is best left untouched, suffice to say that Swerve committed the heinous sin of dragging family into this issue that started as a professional jockeying for position, making it as personal as any issues experienced in All Elite Wrestling. We heard Hangman speak his mind about this, tearing Swerve down to the core with every bit of personal drama Strickland has experienced, and capping it all off by assaulting Nana since the two Texas Death combatants were forbidden from any physical content on DYNAMITE.

But that rule doesn’t extend beyond the borders of AEW…

At Pro Wrestling Revolver’s UNREAL event, as Swerve and Nana stood in the ring talking about the FULL GEAR 2023 fight, Hangman attacked out of nowhere, and promised that he would beat Swerve’s ass this Saturday night. Swerve chose to make this personal, messing with a man’s family, so much so that it led others like Penta El Zero Miedo to fight the him, but once Hangman chose to oblige Swerve and join him in the muck and mire, it was bound to get ugly. Fans have seen the former AEW World Champion in Texas Death before, he’s undefeated in that stipulation here in AEW, and that’s because he’s willing to get uglier and dirtier than anyone else when the fight comes.

Swerve led this into ugliness by his actions outside the ring, will he be able to get that ugly when the bell rings on Saturday night?

TRIOS MATCH…

Adam Copeland, Darby Allin, & Sting vs. TNT Champion Christian Cage, Luchasaurus, & Nick Wayne

https://www.youtube.com/embed/juHc9XJTbo4?si=L6rDvnovRBbJpaKn&start=153

It was a huge moment at WRESTLEDREAM when “The Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland arrived on the scene in All Elite Wrestling and stood side-by-side with Sting and Darby Allin in opposition to TNT Champion Christian Cage, Luchasaurus, and sadly also Nick Wayne. In the weeks since then, we have heard Sting announce to the world that he would bring his legendary career to its end at REVOLUTION 2024, we heard Copeland repeatedly say he would not fight his best friend, we saw Ric Flair come into the equation to ride this home stretch out with “The Icon”, and we’ve watched Christian Cage continue to be a horrible human being.

But after hearing Cage after being attacked by Cage’s “sons”, after hearing Christian threaten to break his neck, Adam Copeland has agreed to ride into battle alongside Sting and Darby Allin this Saturday night at FULL GEAR 2023! We witnessed these three men get their first reps in as a trio against The Righteous and Lance Archer, and though they looked very solid in action, they are still new to the idea of working with one another. In truth, it’s not all that different from the situation with Christian’s Patriarchy, much like Darby and Sting, Christian and Luchasaurus have spent a great deal of time together and formed their own dynamic, and much like Adam Copeland, Nick Wayne is a new ingredient to that formula. Unlike the Darby/Sting/Copeland trio though, The Patriarchy all fall under the direction of Christian Cage, they do not think for themselves, they follow the direction of their erstwhile father figure, and only his direction.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/hGfLifmY6z0?si=HFu6-Iscu1i8Vz4F&start=201

Their opponents are individuals, allies, friends; it’s not a case of Darby falling into a subordinate role just because of Sting and Copeland’s seniority or being led by their direction. This will be a trio operating on the same page but making use of their varied levels of experience, pooling their assorted resources and knowledge, and applying each other’s best attributes to the fights. There is obviously a concern about the history between Christian Cage and Adam Copeland, how all that friendship, those roads traveled together, those championships held as a team, the time spent with each other’s families, how will all that play into this Trios fight at FULL GEAR 2023? All of it has to be nagging at the back of Copeland’s skull, but will it effect his ability to fight? We will all see this Saturday night…

TAG TEAM BATTLE…

The Golden Jets (Chris Jericho & Kenny Omega) vs. The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson)

***TAG TEAM TITLE OPPORTUNITY VS. TAG TEAM BREAK-UP***

https://www.youtube.com/embed/d3hoOkxd5YQ?si=b-NQTJ04s3kP99tB&start=61

It was at WRESTLEDREAM that The Young Bucks earned a future shot at the AEW World Tag Team Titles at a moment of their choosing; they did so by defeating The Lucha Brothers, The Gunns, as well as the team of HOOK and Orange Cassidy. Since that PPV event, we’ve seen Nick Jackson lose to AEW International Champion Nick Jackson, The Young Bucks & Hangman Page lose the ROH World Six-Man Championship back to The Mogul Embassy after just one successful defense, and watched The Young Bucks completely lose their cool after that championship defeat.

Over the last few months we’ve also seen Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho form one of the most unlikely pairings in AEW’s history, brought together by their mutual issues with Don Callis and his Family, putting aside their own sordid history in order to fight against Callis’ relentless onslaught. Clearly this is not a situation that sits well with the brothers Jackson; call it jealousy over the relationship with Jericho or call it caution given that the history between Jericho and The Elite created Stadium Stampede, either way it is driving a rift between Omega and The Young Bucks.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/nC_dQ89iNi0?si=AnpJRE7S0EgkGe8u&start=381

Now we now from history that The Young Bucks do not deal well with their friends having other friends, we witnessed it many moons ago with Adam Cole and reDRagon, but when it’s a man such as Jericho with whom there was so much bad blood from the first year of AEW, it’s got to be infinitely worse. That is why this match is going down, after all when there’s an issue between professional wrestlers the best place to settle it is inside the squared circle, and why not amp up the stakes when both teams have something to lose?

And what are those stakes? If The Young Bucks win, then the existence of The Golden Jets comes to an end. There will be no more team of Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho, no more fighting the good fight together against a common foe, they will just be quits as soon as that bell rings. But if The Golden Jets win, then Matt and Nick will have to say goodbye to the World Tag Team Championship match they earned at WRESTLEDREAM! That opportunity will belong to The Golden Jets, no Young Bucks championship match on the horizon, just Jericho and Omega maintaining their dynamic to challenge whoever wins Saturday night’s Ladder Match. And what of the relationship between Omega and The Young Bucks? Well it has survived a great deal, and it has endured, but they haven’t been at this point before where so much hostility has put them at odds.

Previously that was Hangman with Omega trying to keep the peace as best he could for as long as he could; only now there is no cooler head trying to prevail, just four men looking to fight, and we shall see if the friendship between The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega can survive the ordeal.

TBS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Kris Statlander(c) vs. Julia Hart vs. Skye Blue

Kris Statlander is a breakneck pace as the TBS Champion; in the span of 174 days, Stat has successfully defended the title on 16 occasions against fourteen different women. For perspective, by that point in her historic TBS Championship reign, the longest title reign in AEW history across all divisions, Jade Cargill had only defended the title eight times while Orange Cassidy, the most successful champion across all divisions in AEW, was also heading towards his 17th defense against Dralistico.

This Saturday at FULL GEAR 2023, Statlander heads into her 17th defense against two foes she’s already beaten in one-on-one contests, but who she now must contend with in a Three Way situation. To make matters more intriguing, there is an entire other dynamic between Julia Hart and Skye Blue that has little to do with Statlander. Ever since Hart misted Skye, the latter has taken a turn towards the dark, so much so that there was absolutely a concern she’d walk through the doors of The House of Black and be lost to her friends forever. Though Skye would repeatedly rebuke the handshake of help of the TBS Champion, when the moment came between choosing between Willow Nightingale and Julia Hart, Skye turned and sprayed her own blue mist into the face of The House of Black’s Hart.

So with each woman’s position set, the light of Statlander, the dark of Julia, and the chaotic middle of Blue, they will now collide on Saturday night with the TBS Championship on the line! This will mark the first defense for Stat that’s involved multiple challengers, will that be the ticket to ending this potentially historic reign? Or will the strife between Julia Hart and Skye Blue be the key to the champion retaining her championship?

AEW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP LADDER MATCH…

Big Bill & Ricky Starks(c) vs. FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood) vs. LFI (Dralistico & Rush) vs. The House of Black (Brody King & Malakai Black)

A Ladder Match, only one other time in the history of AEW have the World Tag Team Titles been at stake in a Ladder match, and that was the night The Young Bucks beat Jurassic Express to start their defenseless 28-day second reign, as well as the night Christian Cage first stabbed Jack Perry in the back.

But four teams fighting to climb the rungs to championship status? That is a whole new ballgame, and one likely to end up in plenty of pain, suffering, and punishment! Just yesterday the AEW faithful witnessed the chaos that erupted between these eight men, especially Dax and Rush as they battled to a No Contest, now put that into a situation with no rules, the freedom to use weapons, and with a title at stake. This will be an intensely physical situation, and even though Ricky Starks is the one who laid the stipulation on the table, not necessarily the best one for the champions to retain their titles. They may not have to worry about a pinfall or submission happening to someone else to lose their status, but Big Bill and Ricky Starks constantly have to be concerned about stopping someone else climbing the ladder. There are six bodies besides theirs all with the same goal, but only one has to ascend to the top of the ladder and pull down the belts.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/MJWEFWa96Xo?si=Y6I9IAqzW7_FxyFT

Can the defending champions survive six other opponents, as well as the Ladder itself, or will they be hoisted on their own petard?

FULL GEAR: ZERO HOUR

ROH WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

Eddie Kingston(c) vs. Jay Lethal

ROH WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…

MJF(c) & Samoa Joe vs The Gunns (Austin & Colten)

ONE-ON-ONE…

Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli vs. House of Black’s Buddy Matthews

https://www.youtube.com/embed/mIUYRmccbWw?si=9neyQvr0H6nC-USo&start=326

All Elite Wrestling is back on pay-per-view this Saturday night with FULL GEAR 2023 coming to you live from the KIA Forum in Los Angeles! This PPV experience is loaded with multiple championship bouts, including a Four Way Ladder Match for the AEW World Tag Titles, as well as huge grudge matches, and all the elite class professional wrestling fans expect from an All Elite Wrestling pay-per-view! All the details on how to watch FULL GEAR 2023 can be found here, so if you can’t be there in-person, you have to join us through your preferred method for the greatest PPV experience professional wrestling has to offer! And don’t forget to join us for the FULL GEAR: ZERO HOUR prior to the start of the PPV where the ROH World Title and the ROH World Tag Team Titles will be defended!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/dtmF8EmydgE?si=mKnW65FrncexeWag&start=201

Big Gold Belt Podcast: First Time Matchup

Your Big Gold Belt Podcast is covering the week in wrestling including: -A look at AEW Full Gear Weekend -Who is AEW’s mystery signing? -What’s the expectations for the AEW Continental Classic? -What’s the future...

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