Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE was broadcast from 1stBank Center in Broomfield, CO!
Yourbroadcast team was Excalibur and Taz!
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
AEW World Trios Championship Open Challenge Match!
The Acclaimed (c.)—Anthony Bowens, Max Caster, & Daddy Ass
vs.
Brother Zay & The Hardys—Matt & Jeff!
Bowens and Brother Zay locked up and chain wrestled. Bowens hit a shoulder block on Zay. Bowens blocked an arm drag but Zay took down Bowens with a hurracanrana. Bowens spiked Zay on the top of his head with a nasty leg drop.
Jeff tagged in and splashed Caster from the middle rope. Billy Gunn tagged in and hit Matt Hardy with a shoulder tackle. Matt sent Billy into the turnbuckles. Jeff jumped off Matt’s back and splashed Billy in the corner.
The Acclaimed grabbed the upper hand, with Bowens dropping the Scissor Me Timbers on Brother Zay for a near fall. Billy Gunn stomped a mudhole in Brother Zay in the corner. Billy attempted a splash, but Brother Zay dodged it, and Billy collided with the top of the post.
“The winners face TMDK this Sunday as part of WrestleDream: Zero Hour,” said Excalibur.
Jeff Hardy smashed Bowens and Caster with the Whisper in the Wind. Matt clocked Billy with the Twist of Fate. Jeff climbed to the top rope and connected with a Swanton Bomb on Billy, but Bowens was there to break up the pin attempt.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Brother Zay took down Billy Gunn with a quebrada. The Acclaimed countered a springboard from Zay. Bowens and Caster planted Brother Zay and scored the win!
ROH World Champion and NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston was backstage!
Sonjay Dutt, Satnam Singh, Jay Lethal, Karen Jarrett and Jeff Jarrett confronted Kingston. Jay Lethal interrupted Kingston and said Kingston was unfit to be ROH World Champion. Kingston laughed and walked away. Karen Jarrett said, “No one is laughing on this side.”
NJPW Strong Openweight Championship Match!
Eddie Kingston (c.) vs. Rocky Romero!
Rocky grabbed a wrist lock but Eddie reversed it. Rocky kicked Eddie in the midsection. Rocky rocketed outside with a tope suicida on Eddie Kingston. Rocky followed up with a second suicida. He tried for a third, but Kingston countered, catching Rocky and nailing him with a delayed vertical suplex on the arena floor.
Eddie charged at Rocky but Rocky countered with a jumping knee strike. Romero connected with a dropkick double stomp combination for a near fall on Kingston. Eddie hit a lariat and then followed up with machinegun chops. Rocky rocked Eddie with an avalanche sliced bread.
Rocky smashed Kingston with the forever clotheslines. Kingston clobbered Rocky with the spinning backfist and then forced Rocky to tap after applying the stretch plumb.
ROH Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata walked to the ring after Kingston’s victory. Shibata shook Kingston’s hand, a sign of respect ahead of their match against one another this Sunday at WrestleDream.
Aussie Open were backstage and said they are taking away the titles from AEW World Tag Team Champions FTR this Sunday at WrestleDream, proving they are the best tag team in the world!
The Righteous—Vincent & Dutch
vs.
Gunnar and Caleb Crush!
Dutch bulldozed Gunnar and Crush with double lariats. Dutch served up Bossman Slams to both members of the opposing team. Vincent finished things quickly, grabbing the pin.
Backstage Nick Wayne said he’d be facing Luchasaurus this Sunday during WrestleDream: Zero Hour!
Main Event Time!
Title Tuesday Opportunity Match!
Ruby Soho vs. Hikaru Shida!
The winner will get an AEW Women’s World Championship match on Dynamite Title Tuesday on October 10th.
Ruby pulled Shida’s hair and then peppered her with stiff shots. Shida answered with a strike of her own. Shida sent Ruby face first into the top turnbuckle pad. Shida hammered Ruby with strikes and then followed up with a missile dropkick off the middle rope.
Soho and Shida traded forearms in the center of the ring. Shida rocked Ruby with elbow strikes. Shida struck with a jumping knee and then a brainbuster for a near fall.
Shida launched off the ring steps with a missile dropkick onto Soho on the arena floor. Shida hoisted up Soho, carried her up the ramp, but Ruby escaped. They brawled on the ramp and fought back into the ring. Soho took down Shida with a suplex for a two-count.
Ruby grabbed the kendo stick. The ref saw it and pulled it away. She wanted to get caught, because as the ref turned his back, Ruby pulled out a can of spray paint. Shida tried to pull it away from Ruby, but in the process, they inadvertently knocked ref Paul Turner down. Ruby headbutted Shida and then wiped her out with Destination Unknown.
The ref was outside the ring recovering. Ruby grabbed the kendo stick and swung it, but Shida blocked it and whacked Ruby with it. Shida clobbered Ruby with the katana kick. Shida covered Ruby and ref Aubrey Edwards sprinted to the ring, but Ruby kicked out of the pinfall attempt!
Soho avoided the meteora. Shida hit the mat after a back heel kick from Ruby Soho. Soho sat out with a senton, but Shida got her knees up. Shida blasted Ruby with the Falcon Arrow, but Ruby kicked out before the three-count. Shida caught Ruby flush with the katana kick and scored the pin!
“What a match these ladies had! Awesome stuff!” said Taz.
After the match, AEW Women’s World Champion Saraya walked to the ring and taunted Shida!
Catch the four year anniversary of AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Stockton Arena in Stockton, CA!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA featuring:
-The Kingdom vs. The Best Friends!
-Andrade El Idolo vs. Juice Robinson!
-Julia Hart in action!
-Gates of Agony vs. Chris Jericho & Kenny Omega!
-All Star 8-Man Tag Match!
Bryan Danielson, Wheeler Yuta, & AEW World Tag Champs FTR
vs.
“Absolute” Ricky Starks, Big Bill, & Aussie Open!
This Sunday, witness history live on pay-per-view and order AEW WrestleDream!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
KENTA Challenges Chris Sabin for X-Division Title in IMPACT Return at Bound For Glory News / September 28, 2023 / by IMPACT Wrestling Staff Order PPV Get tickets After dethroning Lio Rush to become the…
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from 1stBank Center in Broomfield, CO!
Excalibur and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!
AEW International Championship Open Challenge Match!
Rey Fenix (c.) (with Alex Abrahantes) vs. Jeff Jarrett (with Karen Jarrett, Sonjay Dutt, Satnam Singh, and Jay Lethal)!
Rey Fenix hit a high crossbody press to the outside onto Jarrett as Jarrett was making his entrance. Fenix followed up with a moonsault for a near fall. Jarrett DDT’ed Rey Fenix after Satnam tried distracting Fenix.
Jarrett tripped up Fenix and Fenix rolled to the outside. Jarrett ordered his posse to swarm Fenix, but ref Aubrey Edwards stopped them. Rey Fenix fired back with a double foot stomp to Jeff Jarrett for a two-count. Fenix followed up with a thrust kick, trying to fight through the pain. Fenix ran the top rope and punted Lethal. Sonjay distracted the ref while Jarrett hit Fenix with a low blow!
Jarrett spiked Rey Fenix with the Stroke but Fenix broke the count when his boot touched the bottom rope. Jarrett tried to apply the figure four, but Fenix countered with a cradle and pinned Jeff Jarrett!
Footage was shown from Long Island with AEW World Champion MJF taking Adam Cole out on a boat trip to try to cheer up Cole after his recent leg injury.
MJF: “You were on the phone with Roddy a pretty long time.”
Cole: “Yeah, I was worried about him.”
MJF: “So long that you couldn’t come up to the ring with me last week?”
Cole: “Max, you didn’t bring me out here to hit me with the Dynamite diamond ring and then throw me overboard, did you?”
MJF: “No, no,” said Max, as he was hiding the ring behind his back.
Cole: “Having more than one friend is normal.”
MJF: “Plus last time I almost got caught when I was trying to throw someone overboard.”
Footage was shown from earlier in the week of Don Callis and Takeshita hunting for Ibushi in Tokyo!
Renee Paquette was in the ring to interview Don Callis and “The Alpha” Takeshita after their actions last week!
Don Callis: “I have something to say. I am so happy that Sammy Guevara is free of the toxic influence of Chris Jericho that I wanted to bring him out here myself. Ladies and gentlemen, the newest member of the Don Callis Family…Sammy Guevara!”
Sammy Guevara walked down to the ring.
Sammy embraced Don Callis in the ring.
Don Callis: “You want to know about Tokyo now? I said that Ibushi wasn’t safe so the Alpha and I went to Tokyo. I brought my personal camera crew, and we captured it all.”
Footage was shown of Callis and Takeshita invading Ibushi’s dojo. Takeshita attacked one of Ibushi’s students. Ibushi ran in and grounded and pounded Takeshita. Callis hit Ibushi with an umbrella. Takeshita blasted Ibushi in the head with a kettle bell! Callis screamed at Ibushi saying Ibushi wasn’t safe in Tokyo or in Seattle!
Don Callis: “The Don Callis Family has never been stronger with Takeshita, Will Ospreay, and Sammy Guevara going to WrestleDream!”
Sammy: “I’m the hero. Chris Jericho is the villain! For four years he was holding me back. I was champion without him. I did pay-per-views without him. Every time I would start to fly high, he would clip my wings. He was never going to pass me the torch. Chris Jericho is selfish. It is time for me to become the champion and the star I was meant to be.”
Don Callis: “At WrestleDream we are going to take everything from Omega, Jericho, and Ibushi until there is nothing left but the tears!”
Footage was shown from after Collision last Saturday of “Absolute” Ricky Starks!
Starks said he survived against Danielson. Wheeler Yuta approached Ricky and said Ricky was all style and no substance. Yuta challenged Starks to a match on October 1st in Seattle!
It was announced that Tony Khan signed a grudge match for WrestleDream between Ricky Starks and Wheeler Yuta!
3-Way Blind Eliminator Match for an International Title Shot Next Week!
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champion Nick Jackson
vs.
“The Machine” Brian Cage (with Prince Nana)
vs.
Claudio Castagnoli!
Brian Cage tossed Nick Jackson over the top rope and out of the ring! Claudio and Cage locked up for a test of strength. Claudio suplexed Cage! Brian Cage retaliated with a vertical suplex of his own.
Nick Jackson jumped back into the ring and wiped out Claudio and Cage at the same time! Nick then flew over the top rope and knocked both of them down on the arena floor! Nick displayed creative, fluid offense to clean house on both opponents!
Brian Cage planted Claudio with a German Suplex. Nick Jackson blasted Brian Cage with a bulldog. Jackson moonsaulted off the apron but Claudio caught him, and then Nick nailed him with a DDT! Nick Jackson splashed Brian Cage with a 450 for a near fall in the ring!
Claudio whipped Nick Jackson into the steel ring steps. Claudio put Brian Cage in the Giant Swing!
“It’s like he’s swinging a Volvo,” said Taz.
Brian Cage suplexed Claudio from outside the ring to the inside, while Cage was on the second rope! Nick drilled Claudio and Cage with superkicks. Claudio rammed Cage with a European Uppercut. Claudio clocked Cage with a lariat. Claudio transitioned to hammer and anvil strikes, punishing the jaw of Brian Cage. Claudio hit the Ricola Bomb on Cage. Nick springboarded with a hurracanrana onto Claudio and then landed on Cage, with Nick Jackson grabbing the pin fall victory!
Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champions Adam Cole & AEW World Champion MJF came to the ring!
Adam Cole was on crutches and his left leg was completely bandaged up.
MJF: “Cut the music! Ladies and gentlemen, the devil has arrived in Colorado. Adam Cole, talk to ‘em.”
Cole: “Who’s ready for story time with Adam Cole baybay? Unfortunately, this is a sad chapter in the story. Last week I got hurt. My ankle broke in three different places, and I tore ligaments last week. I have to go get surgery. There is nothing more soul crushing than hearing this, but I will do everything in my power to get back as soon as possible.
“But me and my good friend Max are the ROH World Tag Team Champions. And because we can’t defend these titles, we will have to relinquish—”
MJF: “Whoa, whoa, whoa! I didn’t wrestle twice in one night to win these and then have to relinquish our titles to the Righteous! Let’s keep it real. You wouldn’t be hurt if I didn’t need your help at Grand Slam. I know how much those ROH World Tag Team Titles mean to you. And I want to make sure that when you come back here, and you will, these will be waiting for you. Righteous, October 1st, I’m going to defend these titles against you in a handicap match and we are going to win!”
The Kingdom rolled Roderick Strong onto the ramp in a wheelchair!
Strong: “Adam! I need you now more than ever! It’s an emergency!”
MJF: “As much as I think Roderick Strong is a simp, I learned on the boat that he is your boy. I may not like him, but I know he’s your boy. Go do what you need to do, Adam, and I’ll be waiting for you when you come back.”
Cole hugged MJF. Adam Cole got on his crutches and walked up the ramp to Roderick Strong and the Kingdom.
MJF: “Everybody give it up one more time for Adam Cole. Now we all know I’m not a big fan of—”
“Switchblade” Jay White and the Bullet Club Gold walked onto the ramp, interrupting the AEW World Champion MJF!
“Switchblade” Jay White sent the Bang Bang Gang to the back and then walked to the ring himself.
Jay White: “Shut up, Max! We’ve all heard you talk enough. Everybody would like to hear this sweet, exotic accent for a change. Don’t worry, I sent everybody to the back. You can have your one on one time with the Switchblade and revel in your moment.”
MJF: “Boy, you must be smoking some strong Colorado grass. That mid mic work ain’t gonna work with MJF. You come at the king you’d better not miss. That first shot was a little hairy. Now Jay hear me out. In my career I’ve been compared to a lot of people. They say, ‘MJF is good but he’s no blank.’ And as my star rose the names got bigger and bigger and the goal posts moved. It never bothered me until I read, ‘MJF is good but he’s no Jay White.’
“It’s become very apparent why it offends me now that I’m standing in the ring with you. I’m like filet mignon. Much like when I’m inside this ring, the show is all about MJF because no one is on the level of the devil. Because I’m a generational talent, babe.
“And then there’s you. You are very talented, however, you’ve managed to convince the fans that you are also filet mignon when in reality you are tofu. Funny thing about tofu. It takes on the flavor of whatever you want it to. But you need to add something to it in order to trick yourself into believing it has taste. And you have been given everything. You were handed the keys to one of the greatest wrestling factions of all time. However, if I pluck it all away, I am left with nothing but boring, bland, tasteless tofu.
“And now here you are, Jay, trying to hop on my plate and trying to steal some of the champ’s flavor. I see through you, Jay. You are all hype. Allow me to give you some advice from a real top guy. If I were you, I would leave this ring and I wouldn’t keep talking smack to my poors. Because if you don’t, for the rest of your career, whenever our names are mentioned in the same sentence, it’ll read as follows: ‘Sure, Jay is good, but he’s no MJF,’ because I’m better than you and you know it!”
Jay White: “That’s what I came out here for, my very own personalized authentic MJF experience. But I have to be honest with you. I’m a little bit let down. Something’s a little bit off about you these days. I don’t know if it’s the injuries, but personally I think you’re distracted by Adam Cole.
“I just don’t think they love you like they love Adam Cole. And you know this whole situation with Adam Cole, it’s kinda my fault. Let me explain. If I didn’t temporarily end Adam Cole’s career after Forbidden Door 1, you wouldn’t have developed a soft spot for him, but I guess you got him back because he broke his ankle and that was your fault. And I’m sure your neck isn’t feeling good after Samoa Joe last week. So, I think I’ve been ruining your life for a little bit now. But I’m here to ruin your life in the flesh.
“You call yourself the devil. You need to find another level to stop me from taking that title away from you. You don’t seem so elite when compared to me. I’m the catalyst of professional wrestling. And I will be a truly elite champion when I pull that title away from your carcass!
“Don’t worry, Max, you will have your fans, they will have you, and I will have the Triple B, and you can all breathe with the Switchblade, because it’s still my era. This is the Switchblade Era because you’ve gone soft, and you know it!”
MJF: “You don’t have a clue what I’m capable of so why don’t I show you!”
Jay White tried to lure MJF in with mind games and then Jay White rolled out of the ring after getting under MJF’s skin!
Ahead of their 2/3 Falls Match for the TNT Title at WrestleDream, Jim Ross had a sit down interview with Darby Allin and new TNT Champion Christian Cage!
Christian Cage: “I’ve been the TNT Champion for months now and I proved I’m far superior to Darby Allin this past Saturday when I wrestled on Collision. I will walk out of Seattle as the TNT Champion because I know in my heart, Darby, that you’re nowhere near the man I am. You’re nowhere near the wrestler I am. I asked for this 2 out of 3 match because I want to see what you can do when you actually have to wrestle.
“Is your uncle going to be in attendance? What happened to him?”
Darby: “He’s dead. You think I’m afraid of dying? You think I’m afraid of losing? You cannot beat me. I’m going to win this Sunday.”
Christian Cage: “Why don’t you bring all the family. Bring Nick, bring Nick’s mother—”
Darby: “You want me to bring Nick so you can take advantage of him. I’ll tell him not to show up. If you had the balls, you’d tell Luchasaurus not to show up.”
Christian Cage: “He needs a man! I will always be the face of TNT! Get used to it!”
Four-Way WrestleDream Preview Match!
Austin Gunn
vs.
Matt Jackson
vs.
Orange Cassidy
vs.
Penta El Zero Miedo!
Partners were banned from ringside.
Austin sent Orange hard into the barricade. Matt Jackson DDT’ed Penta El Zero Miedo. Austin rolled up Orange from behind for a near fall. Penta connected with a thrust kick to Matt Jackson. Penta blasted Orange with a thrust kick. Austin ambushed Penta! Austin dropped Orange with a big right hand shot!
Orange peppered Austin with elbow strikes. Austin countered a hip toss with a neck breaker to Orange Cassidy. Penta nailed Orange with a destroyer. Matt Jackson hit a destroyer on Penta. Orange rocked Matt with a destroyer! Orange smashed Austin with a destroyer!
“All four men are on roller skates and all four men go down!” said Excalibur.
Matt Jackson wiped out Orange with the locomotion Northern Lights suplexes. Matt followed up with a double Northern Lights to Penta and Austin!
The fans chanted “A-E-W! A-E-W!”
Penta blocked the BTE Trigger from Matt. Penta took down Austin with a sling blade. Austin smashed Orange with the fame-asser from a near fall, almost stealing a victory. All three men superkicked Austin. Penta and Matt traded kicks. Orange pulped Matt Jackson with the Orange Punch and pinned him!
“Timing is everything and Orange’s timing was perfect,” said Taz.
The House of Black’s Julia Hart (with Brody King) vs. Willow Nightingale!
Willow’s left eye was bandaged up, a result of the mist attack last week from Julia.
Willow poured on the punishment, charging at Julia Hart and hitting her with a flurry of offense. Julia jumped on Willow’s back and grabbed at the bandage over Willow’s eye.
“Willow is fighting for purpose, not just for revenge,” said Excalibur.
Willow grounded and pounded Julia Hart. Willow body slammed Julia. Julia retreated out of the ring and crawled under the ring. Julia snuck up behind Willow and chop blocked her.
Julia locked in Heartless, but Willow reached the ropes, forcing the break. Willow pounced Julia out of the corner! Willow hoisted up Julia and placed her upside down in the corner. Julia dodged the cannonball splash. Julia hit the moonsault press and pinned Willow!
Julia placed Willow in the Heartless submission after the match! TBS Champion Kris Statlander sprinted to the ring to save her friend. Julia hid behind Brody King and laughed.
It was time for the contract signing between “Hangman” Adam Page & Swerve Strickland ahead of their match at WrestleDream!
The Elite and the Mogul Embassy were banned from ringside.
Renee Paquette was in the ring to help officiate the contract signing.
Swerve and Page sat across from each other at a table in the ring.
Swerve: “Before you sign that paper, I gotta admit I’ve been impressed with the fire you’ve been showing the past few weeks. But it’s a little too late for that. We are four days out from our match. Do you understand what you’re walking into? The lion’s den. This is unlike anything you’ve ever dealt with. We are two competitors who couldn’t be more opposite from one another. You are not the wrestler I am, and I am never going to be the wrestler you are. What’s a buckshot to a kill shot?”
Hangman: “It sounds like you’re fired up for this, and good, you should be. You said a few things to me a few weeks ago that stung. And I’ve had time to think about it. For a year and a half, every day that I came to work I felt there was a little dark cloud hanging over my head that I could not get rid of. And sure, the sun would shine. I beat Jon Moxley in a Texas Death Match. I reunited with my friends in the Elite. It felt like I should have been the happiest man in the world but every time I started to smile, that little cloud came back, and it started to rain.
“And I couldn’t do anything about it. I had a little umbrella next to me and as long as God let it rain on me, I didn’t open it. But that’s over with. I weathered the storm. And I am still here! And through that downpour it washed something out of me. I don’t know if it was hope, or passion, but it washed out of me. But I recognized it, and these people deserve more of me. They deserve the best of me. And I deserve it for myself. So, Swerve that’s what you’ll get in Seattle at WrestleDream. You’ll get the best of Hangman!”
Swerve: “That was quite beautiful, but it was the most pathetic thing I’ve ever seen. This isn’t a personal thing. It could have been anyone in the position that I want. Truth be told, I might have mental health problems because I make an enemy every single day. I am going to take this position from you at WrestleDream. And by the way, it rains an awful lot in Seattle.”
Hangman: “You tell me you want this spot. You’re telling me you want a main event spot? Swerve, I don’t know, we could sit here and go back and forth about whether these opportunities were handed to me, but for every opportunity I’ve had, I knocked it out of the park!
“So, Swerve, you tell me you want this spot? You’re damn right, you should want this spot. But you don’t have what it takes to fill my boots!”
Swerve slapped Hangman and then went to sign the contract! Hangman stabbed Swerve in the hand with the pen! Security had to keep the two men separated!
Backstage, camera crews filmed a gang of men dressed in black from head to toe, wearing masks, swarming “Switchblade” Jay White and attacking him! One of the attackers looked into the camera and cocked his head to the side. He was wearing a devil mask!
This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!
Catch the four year anniversary of AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Stockton Arena in Stockton, CA!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA!
And this Sunday, witness history live on pay-per-view and order AEW WrestleDream!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
“AEW: WrestleDream” PPV Available in Select Out-Of-Home Establishments this Sunday, October 1
Sept. 26, 2023 – AEW and Joe Hand Promotions will bring AEW’s highly-anticipated “AEW: WrestleDream” pay-per-view event to select out-of-home establishments across North American this Sunday, October 1 starting at 7 p.m. ET. The inaugural “AEW: WrestleDream” event will honor New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s (NJPW) founder, Antonio Inoki, on the one-year anniversary of his passing. To locate a participating establishment, fans in North America can check the Joe Hand Promotions website HERE. The card for “AEW: WrestleDream” includes the following exciting match-ups:
AEW World Tag Team Title Match: FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood) (c) vs. Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis)
AEW TNT Championship (Two Out of Three Falls): Christian Cage (c) vs. Darby Allin
AEW TBS Championship: Kris Statlander (c) vs. Julia Hart
ROH World Tag Team Championship: Better Than You Bay Bay (Adam Cole & MJF) (c) vs. The
Righteous (Vincent and Dutch)
ROH World Championship and NJPW Strong Openweight Championship: Eddie Kingston (c) vs. Katsuyori Shibata
Dream Match: Bryan Danielson vs Zach Sabre Jr.
Swerve Strickland vs Hangman Adam Page
Chris Jericho and The Golden Elite (Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi) vs. Don Callis Family (Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara, and Will Ospreay)
The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) vs. The Gunns (Austin Gunn and Colten Gunn)
vs. Lucha Brothers (Rey Fenix and Penta El Zero Miedo) vs. Orange Cassidy and HOOK
*Card subject to change “Through our collaboration with AEW to deliver these historic events for fans to enjoy in social settings,
we are committed to keeping the wrestling community connected throughout the year. We aim to foster
a collective love for the sport, forging enduring memories that will last a lifetime,” said Joe Hand, Jr.,
President of Joe Hand Promotions. AEW consistently orchestrates thrilling gatherings that unite fans in communal atmospheres. Enthusiasts
can anticipate witnessing this event at handpicked Dave & Buster’s and Tom’s Watch Bar venues. “AEW:
WrestleDream” will also illuminate screens in numerous esteemed movie theaters across the United
States.
ABOUT AEW
Founded by CEO, GM and Head of Creative Tony Khan in 2019, AEW is offering an alternative to mainstream wrestling, with a roster of world-class talent that is injecting new spirit, freshness and energy into the industry. “AEW: Dynamite” airs every Wednesday from 8-10 p.m. ET on TBS and attracts the youngest wrestling audience on television. The fight-forward “AEW: Rampage” airs every Friday from 10-11 p.m. ET on TNT, and the new “AEW: Collision” airs every Saturday from 8-10 p.m. ET on TNT. AEW’s multi-platform content also includes “Being the Elite,” a weekly behind-the-scenes YouTube series, and “AEW Unrestricted,” a weekly podcast series. 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 and entertainment, 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.
It’s the Biggest Event of the Year! IMPACT Wrestling Presents Bound For Glory LIVE October 21st on Pay-Per-View News / September 9, 2023 / by IMPACT Wrestling Staff Order PPV Get tickets IMPACT Wrestling presents…
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE: Grand Slam was broadcast from Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, NY!
Yourbroadcast team was Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni, and Tony Schiavone!
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
Darby Allin (with Nick Wayne) & Sting
vs.
TNT Champion Luchasaurus & Christian Cage!
Both teams started the match brawling. Darby dropkicked Luchasaurus out of the ring and onto the ramp. Darby threw his body at Luchasaurus. Sting and Christian brawled outside the ring. Luchasaurus whipped Darby into the steel ring post!
Luchasaurus worked Darby over, bodyslamming him and then sending him into the turnbuckles. Christian tagged in but Darby connected with a springboard press. Luchasaurus spiked Darby with a chokeslam. Christian attempted a diving headbutt, but Darby dodged it, rolling out of the way.
Sting tagged in and wiped out Christian with two lariats and a spinebuster. Sting blasted Luchasaurus with right hands and then delivered a Stinger splash to Christian and Luchasaurus in the corner. Sting and Darby hit Luchasaurus with a Scorpion Death-Coffin Drop combo!
Darby blasted Christian Cage with a shotgun dropkick. Nick Wayne jumped up on the apron and Christian turned toward him. Darby rolled up a distracted Christian Cage and pinned him!
“Christian’s eyes are locked on Nick Wayne,” said Excalibur.
“Cool Hand” Angelo Parker, Anna Jay, & “Daddy Magic” Matt Menard (with Jake Hager)!
Angelo Parker and Matt Menard played mind games with Hook, tagging in and out at the start of the match. Anna Jay tagged in so Kris Statlander entered the ring. Anna Jay connected with a kick in the corner on Kris. Statlander nailed Anna Jay with a delayed vertical suplex.
Parker snap suplexed Hook. Menard tagged in and he and Parker rocked Hook with tandem offense. Orange Cassidy came in and cleaned house on Parker and Menard with a dropkick. Cassidy hit Hager with a tope suicida. Hook, Cassidy, and Statlander triple suplexed Menard, Parker, and Jay!
Hook hurled Parker and Menard with T-bone suplexes. As the ref was distracted, Hager hit Hook. Orange Cassidy rocked Hager with a punch. Hook locked in the RedRum on Daddy Magic. Cassidy pulped Parker with the Orange Punch and pinned him!
Up next: Tony Schiavone interviewed Don Callis in the ring!
Takeshita walked down to the ring with Callis.
Callis: “I just want to say one thing. A few weeks ago, the wrestling world was abuzz at my so-called pursuit of Chris Jericho. I didn’t end up with Jericho, but I ended up with the man I really wanted, the newest member of the Don Callis Family, Sammy Guevara!”
Sammy Guevara joined Callis and Takeshita in the ring!
Sammy: “You know, Don, believe it or not, I hated you. I hated you for a long time. I hated you almost as much as the audience hates you. I thought you were trying to rip apart my family but really you were just showing me I never had one until now.
“So why did I do that to Chris Jericho on Wednesday? The reason I turned on Jericho is because for the past four years he’s been holding me back, taking me for granted, just like all of you! I don’t need the fans. I’m done trying to earn your love. I have a hot wife at home, a beautiful baby girl, and a fat, fat paycheck.
“Chris Jericho is dead to me, and I never want to see him again!”
Chris Jericho’s music began to play and out walked the Ocho!
Jericho charged into the ring and dished out shots to Takeshita and Sammy! Jericho turned his attention to Callis, but Takeshita battered Jericho with a steel chair. Sammy took the chair and swung it at Chris Jericho, punishing his former mentor!
Callis punched Jericho as Jericho was held back by Takeshita and Sammy. Don pulled out a screwdriver and was about to use it on Jericho when out ran Kenny Omega!
Kenny Omega, steel pipe in hand, came to the aid of Chris Jericho! The Don Callis Family retreated!
“Did Omega do it to thwart Callis or to save Jericho?” wondered Ian.
Alex Marvez interviewed Kenny Omega backstage!
Jericho interrupted Omega.
Jericho: “Jericho and Omega united to take out Callis. His worst nightmare is coming true. And Sammy, you are a true Judas. So, let’s unite and take out the Don Callis Family at Wrestledream?”
Omega: “Don, your Wrestledream on October 1st is going to be more like a nightmare.”
Best Friends—Chuck Taylor & Trent Beretta
vs.
The Hardys—Jeff & Matt
vs.
The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett
vs.
The Righteous—Dutch & Vincent!
The winner earns an ROH World Tag Title Match at Wrestledream.
A donnybrook broke out at the start of the match. Bennett rammed Taylor into the barricade. Taven went over the top with the Flight of the Conqueror. Best Friends jumped over the top and crashed onto the pile!
Jeff Hardy splashed Vincent. Dutch charged in but the Hardys sent him into Vincent in the corner. Dutch dropped Jeff Hardy with the Bossman slam. The Righteous went to work on Mike Bennett and then Matt Hardy.
Trent suplexed Dutch but Taven was there with a pump kick. Taylor caught Taven with a thrust kick. The Kingdom planted Taylor with the Hail Mary after a low blow from Bennett to Taylor. Jeff Hardy splashed Taylor with a Swanton bomb, but Vincent grabbed a blind tag. Vincent landed on Taylor with the Death From Above and pinned Taylor!
Taven and Bennett attacked the Best Friends with steel chairs after the match!
“They are unhinged!” said Ian.
AEW World Trios Championship Match!
The Acclaimed (c.)—Anthony Bowens, Max Caster, & Daddy Ass
vs.
The Dark Order—Alex Reynolds, Evil Uno, & John Silver!
Caster used a shoulder tackle to take down Reynolds. Caster followed up with a deep arm drag. John Silver tagged but Caster hoisted him up and rammed him into the Acclaimed’s corner. Daddy Ass tagged in, and he and Bowens dropped elbows on Silver. Daddy Ass scoop slammed Silver. Bowens was looking for the Scissor Me Timbers, but Reynolds knocked him to the arena floor.
Evil Uno stomped a mudhole into Caster in the corner. Reynolds raked the eyes of Max Caster. Reynolds rocked Caster with a short arm clothesline for a two-count. Caster made the tag to Daddy Ass and Daddy Ass threw haymakers at the Dark Order! Reynolds side stepped the Fame Asser, but Billy Gunn tagged out to Bowens.
Bowens nailed Reynolds with the Arrival. Caster hit the Mic Drop. John Silver broke up the pin. Evil Uno cracked Caster in the head with one of the Trios belts as ref Aubrey Edwards was distracted. Bowens planted Reynolds and scored the pin!
“A huge defense of the AEW World Trios Championships! Dark Order pulled out all the stops,” said Excalibur.
Skye Blue vs. The House of Black’s Julia Hart (with Brody King)!
Skye Blue nailed Julia with a knee strike. Skye followed up with a snap suplex for a near fall. Blue charged at Julia, but Julia dodged it and grounded and pounded Skye Blue!
Skye Blue fired back with a flurry of offense. Julia dazed Skye on the top turnbuckle. Julia superplexed Skye Blue and followed up with a standing moonsault press.
Julia countered the Skyefall and then clocked her with a shot to the back of the head. Julia forced Skye Blue to tap out after Julia applied the Heartless submission!
“Julia Hart remains undefeated in 2023,” noted Excalibur.
Julia Hart wouldn’t release the hold. Willow Nightingale sprinted to the ring to come to the aid of Skye Blue. Ian and Excalibur wondered if perhaps this was Julia’s plan all along, to lure Willow out.
Mike Santana vs. Iron Savages’ Bronson!
Bronson hit Santana with a cheap shot. Mike Santana fired back with big chops to Bronson’s chest. Santana dazed Bronson with a cutter and followed up with a discus lariat. Santana rocketed out of the ring with a tope suicida to Bronson!
Mike Santana splashed Bronson with a cannonball senton. Santana drilled Bronson, spiking him headfirst into the mat, and then pinned Bronson.
Ortiz walked onto the ramp and he and Santana had a stare down.
Main Event Time!
ROH World Six-Man Championship Match!
The Mogul Embassy (c.)—Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun, & Toa Liona (with Prince Nana)
vs.
The Elite— “Hangman” Adam Page, & The Young Bucks—Matt & Nick Jackson!
Hangman unleashed a series of strikes on Brian Cage. Hangman followed up with a shooting star press off the apron onto Kaun! Nick hit a destroyer on Brian Cage. The Elite were about to hit the BTE Trigger on Brian Cage when Swerve Strickland walked out onto the ramp and had a stare down with Adam Page.
Brian Cage suplexed Nick Jackson into the ring. Bishop blasted Matt Jackson with a backstabber.
“Great teamwork,” said Tony Schiavone of the Gates of Agony.
Matt Jackson jumped off the turnbuckles and hit a crossbody press on the Gates of Agony outside the ring. Matt tagged Hangman and Hangman hit a moonsault on Brian Cage for a near fall!
“So explosive is Hangman,” said Tony Schiavone.
The Bucks flew to the outside with topes to the Gates of Agony. Brian Cage smashed Page with a waterwheel drop for a two-count! The Bucks invited the Gates to a superkick party!
The Mogul Embassy wiped out the Elite with triple firemen’s carries. Toa splashed Hangman and Cage covered Hangman, but Nick was there to make the save. The Bucks blasted the Gates with superkicks. Hangman rocked the Gates with a double Buckshot Lariat! Page spiked Cage with a Dead Eye for a near fall.
Swerve distracted Page on the apron. Cage tried to finish Page with the Drill Claw, but Page countered, rolled up Brian Cage and pinned him!
And new ROH World Six-Man Champions…The Elite!
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from 1stBank Center in Broomfield, CO!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI featuring:
-Andrade El Idolo vs. “Switchblade” Jay White!
-AEW World Tag Team Championship Match: FTR (c.) vs. The Workhorsemen!
-RVD in action!
-Julia Hart vs. Willow Nightingale!
-3-Way match for the TNT Title: Luchasaurus (c.) vs. Christian Cage vs. Darby Allin!
-Texas Death Match: “Absolute” Ricky Starks vs. “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
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Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE: Grand Slam was broadcast live from Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, NY!
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!
Title vs. Title Match!
ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli (with Wheeler Yuta)
vs.
NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston!
Ian Riccaboni joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Claudio rushed at Eddie and booted him in the face. They traded chops and forearms. The fight spilled outside of the ring! Eddie whipped Claudio into the steel guardrail. Eddie headbutted Claudio but Claudio fired back with a lariat.
Back in the ring Claudio gut wrenched Eddie nearly into a doctor bomb, planting him hard on the mat. Eddie German suplexed Claudio. Eddie tried for a backfist, but Claudio countered with the crown of his head. Claudio back suplexed Eddie Kingston onto the ramp!
Claudio clotheslined Eddie over the top rope and back into the ring. Claudio double stomped down onto the left arm of Claudio. Eddie moved out of the way of Claudio’s diving headbutt.
Claudio battered Eddie in the corner turnbuckles. Claudio nailed Eddie with a TKO for a near fall. Claudio blasted Eddie with boots to the face. Kingston baited Claudio in and nailed Claudio with two suplexes for a two-count. Eddie fired off a straight right to Claudio’s jaw, knocking Claudio to his knees. Claudio answered with a right hand of his own.
Claudio staggered Eddie with European uppercuts. Claudio headbutted Eddie and followed up with a short arm lariat. Claudio went for the ricola bomb, but Eddie reversed it for a near fall. Claudio hit the ricola bomb, but Eddie kicked out at the two-count!
“This crowd coming unglued in support of their own Eddie Kingston,” said Excalibur.
Eddie clocked Claudio with three back fists and followed up with a Northern Lights Bomb for a near fall on Claudio. Kingston fired off another backfist and then powerbombed Claudio for the pinfall victory!
And new Ring of Honor World Champion Eddie Kingston!
Claudio extended his hand and Eddie accepted. The Code of Honor was adhered to.
“It’s a great moment in the long history of Dynamite,” said Tony Schiavone.
Footage was shown from earlier of the Kingdom watching over an ‘injured’ Roderick Strong in a hospital bed.
Adam Cole came to visit.
“Where have you been?” asked Matt Taven.
Cole said he got there as fast as he could.
Cole: “I’m glad you’re doing okay, but I have to go. Max has a huge match against Samoa Joe.”
Roderick Strong: “Just go. Just friggin’ go.”
Renee Paquette was backstage with Christian Cage and TNT Champion Luchasaurus!
Christian Cage: “Rampage: Grand Slam, we are going to walk through Sting and Darby Allin. And Darby I am ready to move on. I am bored with you. I have a little proposition for you Darby. This Saturday on Collision how about you step in the ring for a three-way match for the TNT Championship against me and Luchasaurus. If you want this shot, Darby, then Sting isn’t allowed at ringside.”
Chris Jericho vs. Sammy Guevara (with Monteasy)!
Monteasy rapped Sammy to the ring. Sammy was wearing a light up vest, an homage to Chris Jericho when he faced Shawn Michaels 21 years ago.
Sammy and Jericho exchanged chops right out of the gate. Jericho tripped and Sammy seized the moment with a corkscrew dropkick. Jericho hoisted up Sammy with an underhook and then hit a backbreaker. Sammy fired back with a corkscrew tornillo over the top rope onto Jericho on the arena floor.
Jericho countered a GTH attempt with the Codebreaker. Jericho suplexed Sammy off the apron and down onto the arena floor! Back in the ring Sammy lured in Jericho for a Spanish Fly for a near fall. Jericho retaliated with two nasty lariats.
Sammy grabbed Jericho and smashed his face with the Code Breaker for a two-count! Sammy charged at Jericho, knocking Jericho off the apron and onto the front of the announcer’s desk. Sammy jumped off the top rope with a moonsault onto Jericho. Sammy connected with a cutter.
“Both of these men have gone through a lot in a short amount of time,” said Tony Schiavone.
Jericho countered the GTH with the Walls! Sammy twisted his hips and escaped. Sammy cracked Chris with a rising knee strike. Sammy and Jericho jockeyed for position on the top turnbuckle. Sammy got the upper hand with a cutter off the top rope!
Sammy attempted a top rope lionsault, but Jericho countered by raising his knees. Jericho hit a running bulldog on Sammy. Jericho nailed Sammy with the lionsault for a near fall. Sammy caught Jericho with a GTH! Sammy went for the shooting star press, but Jericho countered with the Code Breaker and scored the win!
Jericho and Sammy hugged after the match. Sammy kicked Jericho with a low blow!
“What have you done, Sammy?” asked Excalibur.
Don Callis walked down the ramp and into the ring! Don Callis patted Sammy on the shoulder and the two men left the ring together.
Earlier in the day MJF pulled up to the arena in his exotic sports car with Adam Cole!
MJF had strong words for Samoa Joe. Adam Cole’s phone rang and when he answered, it was Roderick Strong. Cole told Strong to calm down and walked away from MJF to console Roddy.
Renee Paquette tried to interview Sammy Guevara and Don Callis backstage!
Don said all would be revealed this Friday on Rampage.
Daniel Garcia got in Sammy’s face, but Callis insisted they walk away.
AEW International Championship Match!
Jon Moxley (c.) vs. Rey Fenix!
Fenix met Moxley on the ramp and they began to brawl before the bell even rang. Fenix jumped off the ramp, over the cameraman, and onto Moxley on the arena floor!
Moxley rocked Rey Fenix with a forearm and then stomped him face first into the mat. Moxley grounded and pounded Rey Fenix. Moxley tossed Rey Fenix over the barricade. Moxley drilled Rey Fenix with a draping DDT onto the arena floor!
“Fenix is in a world of hurt right now from Mox,” said Taz.
Rey Fenix caught Mox flush in the face with a kick and then followed up with a cutter. Rey Fenix frog splashed Moxley for a near fall! Rey Fenix charged at Moxley, but Moxley wiped him out with a King Kong Lariat!
Fenix propped Moxley onto the steel barricade, draping him over it. Rey Fenix jumped off the top rope and landed on Moxley with a leg drop to the back of the head! Back in the ring Moxley regained momentum with a Gotch style piledriver. But Rey retaliated with a diving double foot stomp for a two-count.
Moxley curb stomped Rey Fenix on the stage ramp! Moxley spiked Rey Fenix with a piledriver for a two-count. Rey Fenix hit Moxley with a senton atomico and then a piledriver. Fenix hit a second piledriver and pinned Moxley!
And new AEW International Champion Rey Fenix!
AEW Women’s World Championship Match!
Saraya (c.) (with Ruby Soho) vs. Toni Storm!
Saraya slapped Toni in the face. Toni Storm smiled and chopped at Saraya. After a distraction from Ruby, Saraya capitalized with a thrust kick to Toni.
Toni swept out the leg of Saraya. As the ref was distracted, Toni Storm cracked Saraya in the head with a high heel shoe for a near fall!
Toni Storm pulled off the bottom turnbuckle pad. Toni had a can of spray paint, but Ruby grabbed it out of Toni’s hands and tossed it to Saraya. Saraya sprayed it in Toni’s eyes and went for the pin after a DDT, but Toni kicked out. Saraya grabbed Toni to ram her head into the exposed turnbuckle, but Saraya didn’t have the heart to do it.
Toni Storm grabbed Saraya, kissed her on the mouth, and then spiked her with the Storm Zero for a two-count! Saraya dodged the Hip Attack and nailed Toni with the Knight Cap, grabbing the pinfall victory!
Main Event Time!
AEW World Championship Match!
MJF (c.) vs. ROH World TV Champion Samoa Joe!
The fans chanted “He’s our scumbag! He’s our scumbag!”
MJF thumbed Samoa Joe in the eye. MJF jumped on the back of Samoa Joe, but Joe shrugged him to the mat. Tony Schiavone pointed out that Adam Cole was not ringside for Adam Cole’s match, despite Adam Cole promising MJF he’d be there for him tonight.
Samoa Joe began to work over MJF’s neck. MJF thumbed Samoa Joe in the eyes again. Joe ran MJF over with a boot to the head. Samoa Joe attempted the muscle buster, but MJF escaped. MJF staggered Samoa Joe with three short arm lariats. MJF went for a fourth, but Samoa Joe swung for the fences and nearly decapitated MJF with a lariat.
Samoa Joe headbutted MJF but MJF fired up and raked Samoa Joe’s back! MJF hammered Samoa Joe with punches to the head. MJF bit down on Samoa Joe’s forehead. MJF connected with the kangaroo kick!
MJF ran for a tope, but Samoa Joe countered with a kick. Samoa Joe spiked MJF with a Death Valley Driver on the apron!
“That’ll change your career, man,” said Taz.
Samoa Joe pulled a table out from beneath the ring. Samoa Joe pulled MJF out of the ring and planted him through the table!
“Samoa Joe can feel the AEW World Championship in his grasp,” said Excalibur.
Samoa Joe pulled the padding off the floor, exposing the concrete beneath it. Samoa Joe was looking for a piledriver, but MJF bit him. MJF attempted a piledriver, but he had to let go because his injured neck began to spasm. Samoa Joe stuck MJF with a piledriver on the exposed concrete!
Samoa Joe told MJF to give up, but MJF spat at Samoa Joe. MJF pulled out a Liger Bomb out of nowhere on Samoa Joe for a near fall!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Samoa Joe and MJF traded strikes in the center of the ring. Samoa Joe applied a sleeper. MJF pulled the ref in close and while the ref was distracted, MJF kicked back with a low blow to Samoa Joe. MJF pulled out the Dynamite Diamond Ring from his trunks.
MJF was about to clock Samoa Joe with the Dynamite Diamond Ring, but Samoa Joe pulled the ref in front of him, and the ref spotted the illegal object! As ref Paul Turner threw the diamond ring to the outside, Samoa Joe kicked MJF with a low blow!
Samoa Joe nailed MJF with the muscle buster but somehow MJF kicked out at the two-count! Samoa Joe applied a sleeper. Adam Cole sprinted down to the ring and tried to motivate MJF! MJF got to his feet! MJF applied the sleeper on Samoa Joe, but Joe shoved MJF into the corner. Adam Cole jumped onto the ring apron. Samoa Joe tried to take a swing at Adam Cole. As Samoa Joe and the ref had their backs turned, MJF used his wrist tape around Samoa Joe’s neck! MJF choked out Samoa Joe and the ref stopped the match, with MJF retaining! MJF dropped the evidence and Adam Cole quickly picked it up and hid it in his pocket.
Samoa Joe got to his feet, and he shoved Adam Cole. MJF jumped in between them, acting as a human shield. Samoa Joe offered his hand to MJF. Samoa Joe shook MJF’s hand, giving the devil his due.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from 1stBank Center in Broomfield, CO!
This Friday tune in to a stacked two-hour episode of AEW RAMPAGE: Grand Slam beginning at 10pm ET on TNT featuring:
The night is upon us; for the third consecutive year, All Elite Wrestling descends upon the historic Arthur Ashe Stadium for GRAND SLAM, and with it comes two hours of the greatest professional wrestling in the world live on DYNAMITE this Wednesday! After winning the Grand Slam Eliminator Tournament, ROH World TV Champ Samoa Joe will challenge MJF for the AEW World Championship while Toni Storm takes on her former Outcasts’ ally Saraya with the AEW Women’s World Championship on the line!
Plus, the long-standing grudge between Claudio Castagnoli and Eddie Kingston comes to the forefront when both men put their respective championships on the line in a title versus title fight, and two long-time friends collide for the first-time when Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara lock horns! And in his fourth championship fight in seventeen days, Jon Moxley will meet Rey Fenix in an International Championship fight!
DYNAMITE gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT LIVE on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for our international fans, so be sure to check in on the official AEW YouTube channel and watch the highlights from last week’s action during DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, plus the CONTROL CENTER, and more!
In the span of five days from 9/8 to 9/13, the ROH World Television Champion conquered three of the toughest competitors in All Elite Wrestling on path through the Grand Slam World Championship Eliminator Tournament. It began with Jeff Hardy on the 9/8 edition of RAMPAGE, continued with Penta El Zero Miedo the following night on COLLISION, and culminated in a 2023 Owen Hart Foundation Tournament rematch with Roderick Strong. Nearly thirty-five minutes of battle was what it took to get Samoa Joe to the precipice of the AEW World Championship, now he just has to complete the mission by taking Maxwell Jacob Friedman down this Wednesday night at DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2023.
For Joe, this is an issue that became more than just the desire to be AEW World Champion after MJF chose to attack Joe at ALL OUT 2023 following the ROH World TV Champion giving him a little shove as they crossed paths between matches. Given that MJF was coming out of a ROH World Tag Team Championship defense with a hurt neck, perhaps attacking the guy whose primary moves consist of either choking a man out or dropping them on their head with a Muscle Buster may not have been the brightest idea, but for Max it was about the insult of that moment, as well as an insult buried in their history.
As MJF tells it, and as video shows it, one day many years ago, long before Maxwell Jacob Freidman was a name on anyone’s lips, Samoa Joe showed him the kind of disregard that can often befall a rookie when engaging with their seniors. For Joe it was a moment he likely forgot about until MJF began to make his name thus leading the internet to incessantly share the clip, especially once Joe and Max came to share the same space here in AEW. But for MJF, much like his interactions with William Regal many years ago, it was not something that ever left his head space, and in truth something that helped to motivate Max to the heights he’s reached today. It’s pretty clear by now that MJF has had a career fueled by a mix of anger, self-loathing, a need for retribution, and false bravado.
In fact, it would be reasonable to say that it’s only through this friendship with Adam Cole that MJF has found a semblance of motivation based on more than just those things, based on discovering actual self-worth, and an appreciation for those who have supported him despite his massive shortcomings as a decent human being. So the fact that Joe chose to attack Adam Cole as his last statement to MJF prior to this fight, well that is something sure to push Maxwell back into his darkest places, deep into the devil inside, and to add those actions to the ones Samoa Joe committed in 2016 to further motivate his desire to smash the Samoan monster.
There’s just one problem: MJF’s neck, and that it represents a huge target for a man as merciless as the ROH World Television Champion. He will look to suplex Max on that weakened neck until MJF looks like a bobblehead, Joe will look to wrap his arms around that stem and squeeze it until no breath remains in the lungs of Maxwell Jacob Friedman, and he will aim to hoist Max from the top rope, his neck flush against Joe’s shoulder, and to drop the AEW World Champion down with a Muscle Buster to end the misery. Be it the Choke, the Muscle Buster, his signature Island Driver, a massive lariat, or even his underrated Brainbuster, Samoa Joe has a million ways to grind that injured neck of MJF’s to dust.
MJF is going to have to dip into every dirty trick he has in his book to survive this fight with the AEW World Championship still in his possession. Max’s devil will have to come out in all its wretched glory, and even then, it may not be enough to stop Samoa Joe from claiming his first AEW championship title. Just as was the case when he claimed the Ring of Honor Title on March 2003, it would be appropriate if Joe’s first AEW championship was the AEW World Championship, and at this point, in his condition, there may not be anything Max can do to stop Joe’s ascension.
This is a journey that has encompassed the last two decades in the lives of Claudio Castagnoli and Eddie Kingston, a journey that started during the dawning days of their wrestling careers, and with their first time sharing the ring somewhere in Indiana back in October 2004. They trained together, lived together, fought together, and most importantly, fought each other both inside the ring and out. From their first singles match back in January 2006, through eleven bouts across five different wrestling promotions, up to March 13, 2011, the scales tipped heavily in favor of Claudio with nine wins to Kingston’s two.
One of those bouts was a Respect Match where, upon losing, Eddie was supposed to tell Claudio he respected him, but instead Kingston told the man he did not respect him, and then leveled him with a spinning backfist. As Claudio lay there unconscious, Kingston’s last words to him as he left the ring were “I know you”, and later that night Double C proved Eddie right when he betrayed the entire promotion they were working for at the time, but this is why several weeks ago, Claudio claimed Kingston still owed him a handshake.
There certainly wasn’t going to be respect shown after what ended up being their last one-on-one bout for twelve years, not after the match ended with Claudio beating Eddie thanks to a chain-assisted European Uppercut, and then proceeding to whip him with a belt. Sadly for Kingston, there was a chance to rectify the situation as Claudio departed for “the land of make-believe” as Eddie called it, and did so in a fashion that only served to further infuriate “The Mad King”.
Thus when Claudio came to All Elite Wrestling to join The Blackpool Combat Club, making him an immediate ally of Kingston’s in the second Blood & Guts Cage Match, it infuriated Eddie and it was only due to his relationship with Jon Moxley that Eddie played nice throughout the bout. Still, the hate burned strong, the kind of hate that not time nor distance can quell, the kind of hate that follows both men wherever they go, even to ROH’s SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023 event where Kingston failed once more to defeat Claudio when the ROH World Championship was at stake.
It was a fight Kingston took injured, an injury that kept him on the shelf for three months, but the hate brought him back for FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023 and even united him with The Elite, men he despises but strange bedfellows and all that, to defeat The Blackpool Combat Club. Just like that, the war with Claudio picked up right where it left off, just as it had after a dozen years apart, and now it has brought them to this point, on Eddie Kingston’s home turf, in front of his family and loved ones, where he will put his NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship on the line against the ROH World Championship of Claudio Castagnoli. Two titles are on the line, but after two decades, this is a fight that means so much more than words can encapsulate, they can only hope to convey a fragment of what it all means.
Will this be the end? Can there ever be an end with hate that runs this deep, with disrespect this ingrained in their dynamic, and bonds shattered so completely? Are Eddie Kingston and Claudio Castagnoli destined for mutually assured destruction, or will Arthur Ashe Stadium finally be the place where their demons are exorcised?
Speaking of demons, just what has possessed Toni Storm in the weeks since she lost the AEW Women’s World Championship to Hikaru Shida, and had her psyche further fractured by the actions of her fellow Outcasts? Since their formation, it’s always been a lingering question of what may happen should multiple members of The Outcasts find themselves in contention for the AEW Women’s World Champions, and while Saraya, Ruby Soho, and Toni Storm all insisted that things would be fine between them, the reality reared its ugly head as ALL IN: LONDON drew closer.
Then that night, when both Saraya and Toni Storm were in the title match aiming to end Shida’s second reign as champion, it became clear as crystal just what mattered most, and that was getting the championship title around the waist of Saraya. It didn’t matter that Toni striking Saraya’s mother was completely accidental, a fight still broke out between the two Outcasts, and it didn’t matter that Ruby had done nothing in that moment but try to quell the situation, she still got laid out by Toni for her efforts, and it all ultimately led to Saraya pinning Toni to claim the AEW Women’s World Championship.
And then the wheels fell off, though The Outcasts seemed to keep it together for a few days prior to ALL OUT 2023, but that was clearly not the case as Toni Storm cost Ruby Soho the TBS Championship, or rather it be said, prevented Soho from cheating to defeat Kris Statlander, and instead made sure the playing field was a bit more level. That choice made it clear that Toni Storm was an Outcast no more, and her winning the Four Way Eliminator Match to earn this championship fight absolutely solidifies Toni’s excommunication from the group.
But what has Toni become in the last several weeks? She’s clearly not in the same head space she was prior DYNAMITE #200 when she lost the belt to Shida, but just what is this space Toni occupies now? Is this all a mind game? Is it something Saraya and Ruby Soho can even prepare for heading into GRAND SLAM 2023 for the champ’s first title defense? One has to figure that no one knows Saraya like Ruby and Toni, but do Ruby and Saraya know this Toni Storm? After working so hard to come back from a career-ending injury, and having the fans embrace her a year ago at GRAND SLAM 2022 only to turn their backs on what she brought to the table, walking out of Arthur Ashe still champion is essential to Saraya. Can Toni Storm crush that dream and become the first 3-Time AEW Women’s World Champion? Or will Saraya find a way to not only top her old friend, but also rub it in the face of all those who turned away from her since last year?
AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
Jon Moxley(c) vs. Rey Fenix
This Wednesday night, in a first-ever match-up, Jon Moxley will defend his AEW International Champion against one-half of the Lucha Brothers, a former AEW & ROH World Tag Team Champion, the incomparable Rey Fenix! As much as this is about the title, it’s also about revenge for Rey Fenix for what went down on the 8/9/23 edition of DYNAMITE between The Blackpool Combat Club and The Lucha Brothers, what was done to his brother in that match, and the injury that kept Fenix from competing in Stadium Stampede at ALL IN: LONDON.
Fenix has never held a singles championship in AEW, though he’s challenged Kenny Omega for the World Title, Hobbs for the TNT Title, Orange Cassidy for the All-Atlantic prior to its leveling up, even taking part in the Blackjack Battle Royale for the International Title at DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2023, but has yet to achieve that singles success to rival his tag team accolades.
So right here, this fight with Jon Moxley, it’s a chance to kill those two proverbial birds, Fenix can get his revenge for that Mox and The BCC did to him and his brother and claim his first AEW singles championship at the same time! Though Fenix prefers his competition honorable, he’s shown in the past a willingness to get down and dirty, even spilling blood in a fight with his own brother several years ago, so Moxley best be prepared for a man as willing to go there as he.
It is clear the defending International Champion intends to keep the same pace as the man he dethroned, likely aiming to surpass the lofty standard set by Orange Cassidy during his reign, but just like it did with “Freshly Squeezed”, eventually it will catch up to Moxley, the question is whether it will be sooner or later, and just who the man will be to lay him low? Will it be Rey Fenix this Wednesday night at GRAND SLAM 2023? Tune into TNT starting at 8pm ET/7pm CT to find out!
With a history dating back to the very first episode of DYNAMITE, looping from The Inner Circle to The Jericho Appreciation Society, Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara have been through a great deal together, most of it standing side-by-side. They went through the introduction of concepts like Stadium Stampede and Blood & Guts together, competed for the AEW World Trios Championship and were early challengers to the AEW World Tag Team Championship together, and even fought each other over the ROH World Championship at FULL GEAR 2022.
Though Sammy walked away from Jericho and The Inner Circle when it was needed for his own well-being, he came back to the fold when The Jericho Appreciation Society was born, and even spoke of his allegiance to “The DemoGod” when all the others in The J.A.S. abandoned the man for how they felt he took them for granted.
But even with the closest of friends, between the dearest of partners, there comes a time when not all is right, and when even brothers come to blows. That is what is about to happen this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE when, for the first time, Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara collide in singles competition! Though they’ve expressed their desire to unite and pursue tag team success, their egos, and pershaps even some ill will for recent events, has made it difficult for the two men to stay on the same page, even in victory. Perhaps Jericho feels that Sammy is more underling than equal, perhaps Guevara feels the student has surpassed the teacher, whatever the case may be, these two brothers came to the conclusion that the only way past their issues is to confront them with violence done unto each other.
So like a pair of Cain’s without an Abel in sight, Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara will lock horns inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, and we shall see if either survives to pursue their supposed tag team aspirations!
DYNAMITE begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT LIVE on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for our international fans, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel and catch up on highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well the newest edition of THE CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
Tonight’s AEW COLLISION was broadcast live from the Bryce Jordan Center in State College, PA!
Nigel McGuinness and Kevin Kelly were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
It’s Saturday night and you know what that means! Saturday night’s alright for fighting!
Blackpool Combat Club—Bryan Danielson & ROH World Champ Claudio Castagnoli
vs.
“Absolute” Ricky Starks & Big Bill!
Ricky Starks was playing mind games with Danielson and immediately tagged out to Big Bill before any contact was made. Big Bill shoved Bryan into the corner and chopped away at him. Danielson dropkicked Big Bill’s knee. Big Bill was thrown backwards into the corner. Claudio tagged in and Big Bill challenged him to a test of strength. Big Bill kicked Claudio in the midsection.
Claudio clocked Big Bill with a European uppercut. Big Bill hit Claudio and Danielson with a double clothesline and tagged out to Starks. Danielson walloped Starks with round kicks. Danielson unleashed a flurry of offense in the corner. Starks distracted Danielson long enough for Big Bill to sneak in a massive boot to Danielson’s head.
Claudio and Big Bill tagged in for their respective teams. Claudio served up multiple European uppercuts, staggering Big Bill. Claudio hoisted up Big Bill and then drove him down onto the mat for a near fall. Claudio was looking for the Big Swing, but Big Bill escaped and choke slammed Claudio for a two-count.
Ricky Starks tagged in, but Claudio grabbed him and twirled him around the ring like helicopter blades with the Big Swing! Danielson hit a tope suicida on Big Bill. Meanwhile, Starks transitioned into a DDT on Claudio for a near fall.
Starks charged at Claudio, but Claudio countered with a devastating uppercut for a near fall. Danielson tagged in and dished out his trademark kicks to Starks. Danielson applied the Le Bell Lock, but Starks escaped and speared Danielson. Claudio jumped in to break up the pin attempt.
Danielson went for a belly to back suplex from the top rope, but Starks shifted his momentum midflight. Starks connected with a low blow when the ref was distracted. Starks rocked Danielson with the roshambo and pinned Danielson!
The Young Bucks were backstage with “Hangman” Adam Page!
The Bucks and Page challenged the Mogul Embassy to an ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship match on AEW Rampage: Grand Slam next week!
Powerhouse Hobbs said no one is safe in the next chapter in the Book of Hobbs!
Hobbs: “No one is safe!”
“The Redeemer” Miro said Hobbs should be thanking him and they’ll have to meet again someday! There is unfinished business between the two of them Miro also questioned his God about the temptation of Miro’s hot and flexible wife.
AEW World Tag Team Championship Match!
FTR (c.)—Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood
vs.
Iron Savages—Bronson & Boulder (with Jakked Jameson)!
The fans chanted “FTR! FTR! FTR!”
FTR quickly hit the Shatter Machine on Jakked Jameson, who taunted Dax before the match began.
Bronson and Boulder drilled Cash with splashes, but Dax jumped in to break up the pin attempt. The Iron Savages rocked Cash with a back breaker and then a powerbomb for a near fall.
Dax Harwood tagged in, but Boulder knocked him down with a shoulder tackle. Boulder went for a moonsault, but Dax dodged it. FTR rocked Bronson with the Shatter Machine. FTR finished off Boulder with the Power and Glory combo, with Cash scoring the pin!
The Workhorsemen jumped into the ring after the match and challenged FTR to an upcoming title match. Aussie Open were watching backstage on a monitor.
Lexy Nair was backstage with Keith Lee!
The interview was interrupted by Shane Taylor and Lee Moriarty! Shane said Lee was the newest member of Shane Taylor Promotions. Things got tense between Keith Lee and Shane Taylor Promotions.
The Acclaimed’s Anthony Bowens (with Max Caster & Billy Gunn)
vs.
The Dark Order’s John Silver!
Before the match, John Silver grabbed a microphone.
Silver: “This contract you signed, I guess you didn’t read it, because it said Caster and Billy are banned from ringside. So hit the bricks.”
Silver attacked Bowens from behind. Bowens countered with strikes to Silver in the corner. Bowens body slammed Silver.
Bowens took down Silver with a leg lariat. Bowens and Silver exchanged forearms. Bowens blasted Silver with a clothesline. Silver fired back with explosive offense including a German suplex.
Bowens clocked Silver with a knee strike. Silver rolled out of the ring. Evil Uno climbed out from beneath the ring and blindsided Bowens! Silver took advantage of this, cracked Bowens and pinned him!
“What an upset!” said Nigel.
NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston was backstage!
Kingston said Claudio decided not to respect him. “He left potholes in that road that many of us had to clean up. Renee told me to fix it and I’ve been trying to fix it! You know what Claudio? This will be it. I don’t care, win or lose, this will be it! You think I’m going to let you come to New York and end this with my shoulders on the mat? You are out of your mind! All of New York has my back! You ain’t ready for the misery!”
Renee Paquette was backstage with Orange Cassidy and FTW Champ HOOK!
Orange: “We should do a tag match or something. Grand Slam?”
HOOK: “Let’s do it.”
Aussie Open—Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis
vs.
Pretty Boy Smooth & Wes Barkley!
The United Empire’s Aussie Open made quick work of their opponents and pinned Barkley after the pendulum spinebuster!
Davis: “FTR- you paying attention?”
Fletcher: “Yesterday we did the job in under a minute and I’m gonna guess we did it even quicker tonight! You talk about winning championships everywhere you’ve been, but so have Aussie Open. Right now, right here, we are calling our shot. October 1st, 2023, one year to the day since we last stepped into the ring together. Wrestledream. Seattle. Live on pay-per-view, AEW Tag Team Championships on the line or not, Aussie Open versus FTR!”
RJ City interviewed Toni Storm ahead of her match on Wednesday against AEW Women’s World Champion Saraya!
Toni Storm: “I haven’t changed. This business has. I thought this business was about being stars and making money. If it makes me the odd woman out, then so be it.”
Andrade El Idolo vs. Scorpio Sky!
Andrade offered to shake Scorpio Sky’s hand, but Sky declined. Andrade El Idolo worked over Sky’s arm. Sky tripped up Andrade and they chain wrestled. Andrade El Idolo punished Sky with a dragon screw leg whip. Andrade climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Andrade shoved him off, with Andrade’s back crashing onto the edge of the ring!
Back in the ring, Andrade pummeled Sky with a series of dragon screw leg whips. Sky rallied back with a flip over the top rope, crashing onto Andrade El Idolo. Sky got up, clutching his knee.
“Not the best of landings,” said Kevin Kelly.
Back in the ring, Andrade rocked Sky with a vicious back elbow. Andrade locked on the Figure Eight and Scorpio Sky tapped out!
Bullet Club Gold’s “Switchblade” Jay White walked out with the Gunns and Juice Robinson!
Jay White: “I wasn’t here last week but I was watching my boys. And I was watching you watching my boys. It looked like you were having a lot of fun watching the Bang Bang Gang. Andrade, these are my boys, you can’t have them.
“But I think you want that Switchblade spotlight. Everyone wants it, no one can handle it. How about next week you can learn firsthand that those lights are too bright? This is the Switchblade Era! And if that doesn’t work for you, we can do it right now.”
Security had to separate Andrade El Idolo and Jay White!
Tony Schiavone was backstage with ROH Pure champion Shibata!
(Via his iPhone translator) Shibata: “Today I am one of the best wrestlers in the world. October 1st at Wrestledream, I’m coming.”
Up next: The Hardys—Jeff & Matt
vs.
The Righteous—Dutch & Vincent!
“You can feel the momentum starting to build with Matt and Jeff,” said Kevin Kelly.
Vincent grounded and pounded Matt Hardy. Matt got up and rammed Vincent’s head onto the turnbuckles. Jeff tagged in and connected with a jawbreaker on Vincent.
Dutch got a blind tag and planted Matt with the Black Out slam. Matt rallied back with a Side Effect to Vincent. Jeff tagged in and cleaned house on the Righteous. Matt and Jeff knocked Dutch over the top rope with a double clothesline.
Jeff was looking for the Swanton bomb, but Dutch knocked him down. Vincent rocked Jeff and pinned him!
“Can you believe it! This is a night of upsets like no other!” said Nigel.
Dutch: “We are the Righteous. Two believers who see truth in the liars’ eyes.”
Vincent: “Speaking of truth, man, we just defeated one of the greatest tag teams in the world. And like it or not, man, the people in the world are just prisoners to false icons. Fooled by the con man. Listening to the devil on their shoulder. But I don’t believe in the devil, man. We are here to tell you the truth.”
Vincent made it clear that the Righteous wants a piece of the team of Better Than You BayBay.
Tony Schiavone was backstage with “Absolute” Ricky Starks and Big Bill!
Starks: “Bryan Danielson, next week on Collision it’s you and me in a Texas Death Match! I’m going to put a whole end to this fiasco that’s known as Bryan Danielson.”
Main Event Time!
TBS Championship Match!
Kris Statlander (c.) vs. Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D.!
Jim Ross joined the broadcast team to provide his main event analysis.
Statlander had the strength advantage and body slammed Baker. Britt fired back with a forearm. Things broke down and they traded strikes with one another. After dodging a sling blade attempt, Statlander powerslammed Baker for a near fall.
Statlander took down the champ with two sling blades! Kris rallied back with a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall. Kris planted her with another Bomb for a two-count. Baker curb stomped Kris.
Baker applied her surgical glove. Baker was looking for the Lock Jaw, but Kris blocked it. They got to their feet and traded shots again. Kris clocked Baker with a high kick, but Baker fired back with a thrust kick of her own. Statlander reared back and walloped Baker with a lariat.
Baker went for the Pittsburgh Sunrise, but Statlander blocked it. Kris went for a powerbomb, but Baker escaped. Baker planted Kris with the Angel’s Wings and followed up with a curb stomp for a near fall. Baker managed to apply the Lock Jaw, but Statlander cradled her and pinned Baker!
“That was a hell of a counter. She saved her championship,” said Jim Ross.
Julia Hart was seen watching from the rafters.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Grand Slam on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, NY!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
This Saturday night, All Elite Wrestling debuts in State College, PAat the Bryce Jordan Center on the campus of Penn State University for a Saturday night full of fighting! COLLISION features an AEW World Tag Team Championship clash defense pitting FTR against The Iron Savages, a titanic tag team tussle between The BCC and Ricky Starks/Big Bill, Dark Order’s Evil Uno versus The Acclaimed’s Anthony Bowens, The Hardys in action against The Righteous, and the TBS Championship at stake between Kris Statlander and Pennsylvania’s own Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D!
The show starts at 8:00pm ET/7:00pm CT on TNT and be sure to drop by the official AEW YouTube channel for highlights from this week’s episodes of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as the latest edition of CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
AEW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood)(c) vs.
Iron Savages (Bronson & Boulder w/ Jakked Jameson)
Cash and Dax laid out the Open Challenge for any young team in All Elite Wrestling to step up and show their worth, and the first duo to answer the call will be The Iron Savages of Boulder and Bronson with Jacked Jameson at their side! One would be hard-pressed to find two young wrestlers in the AEW locker room who have done more to transform themselves since first coming into the fold. Through hard work, discipline, some dirty bulking, and the direction of Jacked Jameson, The Iron Savages have developed into lean, mean, fit, and trim fighting machines. Defeating FTR would be the ultimate payoff to the fitness journey they’ve been on, but adding in the AEW World Tag Team Championship to that equation, well it is the stuff dreams are made of.
The defending champions know what kind of risk they take leaving an Open Challenge on the table, never knowing who will answer the call to fight, but it’s one Cash and Dax are willing to take in order to secure their legacy as the greatest tag team in professional wrestling today! Can Boulder and Bronson dash those hopes this Saturday on COLLISION?
TBS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
Kris Statlander(c) vs. Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D
Former AEW Women’s World Champion Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D laid out the challenge prior to Friday night’s TBS Championship bout between challenger Jade Cargill and champion Kris Statlander; she wanted the winner on COLLISION and to challenge for a championship which she hadn’t to date. All the Good Doctor had to do on RAMPAGE was sit back, watch the fight unfold, and begin to game plan for Saturday. If Jade Cargill reclaimed the TBS Championship, then Britt would clash with a woman she’d yet to share the ring with, in addition to challenging for said title for the first time. If Kris Statlander won, Baker would be facing a somewhat familiar foe, a woman she was 1-1 against in AEW, but one she hadn’t fought since ALL OUT 2021. Turns out it would be the latter who walked out of Cincinnati as the reigning TBS Champion…
So it shall be that the Good Doctor comes home to Pennsylvania, back to her alma mater where she graduated Class of 2013, and attempts to become the first woman to have held both the TBS Championship and the AEW Women’s World Championship. Nyla Rose is the only other former Women’s World Champion who has attempted that milestone, and she was turned away in her challenges to both Jade Cargill and Kris Statlander.
But for this woman who has proven herself as champion material, and who has long positioned herself as the face of the women’s division, this homecoming has to be one where she is also crowned queen. She’s been frustrated at every turn over the last few months, has yet to reclaim the crown of AEW Women’s World Champion, and needs this Saturday night to be the one where it all turns around. Kris Statlander, on the other hands, is on a tremendous roll ever since dethroning Jade Cargill and this COLLISION collision with Britt will mark her 14th title defense in a just over 110 days. It’s a remarkable streak, and one that Statlander isn’t about to let slip away already.
Who will walk away from this long-awaited rubber match and lay claim to the crown of TBS Champion?
TAG TEAM GRUDGE MATCH…
Blackpool Combat Club (Bryan Danielson & ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli)
vs.
Ricky Starks & Big Bill
Ricky Starks may have lost his Strap Match with Bryan Danielson at ALL OUT 2023, but the grit and guts he showed in that fight left enough of an impression on “The American Dragon” that he almost extended an offer to join The Blackpool Combat Club to Starks. Almost, but not quite, thanks to Big Bill dropping Danielson before the hand was quite extended, but Starks’ expressed his thoughts on the matter when he joined in on assaulting Bryan. Even the helping hand of Jon Moxley was laid low by the big boot of Bill, though Moxley would even that score this past Monday night in Cincinnati when he bested Bill in their International Championship match.
Even though a bloody Moxley won the match, in part thanks to Danielson stopping Ricky from interfering, Big Bill and Starks jumped straight on the attack after the bell, with Claudio Castagnoli’s arrival being the only thing that really stemmed the assault. All that is what’s brought us to this tag team match pitting the ROH World Champion and “The American Dragon” against “Absolute” and Big Bill! It’s a big game of revenge on COLLISION when this tag team clash hits the ring!
It’s clear The Dark Order have issues, they’ve been struggling for so long to achieve the promise of glory, have fought and bled and challenged for championships, but have only seen their numbers dwindle over time, and the key successes not go their way. But after their Fight Without Honor victory over The Righteous and former friend Stu Grayson at ROH’s DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR 2023 event in July, something seemed to click with The Dark Order.
They promised a return to their roots, to once again find what made them a feared force in the past, and it seems they’ve chosen The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass as their target for this mission. The fact that they reign as the AEW World Trios Champions doesn’t hurt their goals either, after all no member of The Dark Order, save Mr. Brodie Lee, has held a championship in All Elite Wrestling, and this trio of Uno, Reynolds, and Silver has proven quite successful in that field.
But in order to get there, they are expected to prove themselves to the reigning champions, and that begins this Saturday when Evil Uno takes on Anthony Bowens in a rare singles match for each! Can this Dark Order founder show The Acclaimed why he and his ilk are worthy of a shot, or will Bowens shut that down with a quickness?
-The Hardys (Jeff & Matt) vs. The Righteous (Dutch & Vincent)
-And More!!!
COLLISION debuts at the Bryce Jordan Center in State College, PAthis Saturday night with a loaded edition of our Saturday night fights! Both the AEW World Tag Team Championship and the TBS Championship will be at stake, plus The BCC fights Ricky Starks & Big Bill, Evil Uno and Anthony Bowens collide, The Hardys battle The Righteous, and Scorpio Sky returns to action against Andrade El Idolo! The night begins at 8:00pm ET/7:00pm CT on TNT so swing by by the official AEW YouTube channel for highlights from this week’s episodes of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as the latest edition of CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE was broadcast from Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, OH!
Yourbroadcast team was Excalibur, Chris Jericho, and Tony Schiavone!
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
The Lucha Brothers—Penta El Zero Miedo & Rey Fenix—and The Hardys—Matt & Jeff
vs.
Jay Lethal, “The Last Outlaw” Jeff Jarrett, The Butcher & The Blade!
“Interesting to see how these guys work together,” said Tony Schiavone.
Fenix blasted Lethal with a missile dropkick. Fenix took Butcher down with a thrust kick to the head. Jeff Hardy tagged in and worked over Butcher’s shoulder. Matt Hardy tagged in and dropped an elbow on Butcher’s arm. Matt continued to work over Butcher’s arm. The Hardys double suplexed the Butcher and then the Blade.
After some interference from Sonjay Dutt, Butcher and Jay Lethal got the advantage on Matt Hardy. Lethal drove Matt spine first into the corner.
Jeff Jarrett nailed Matt Hardy with a Russian leg sweep. Blade tagged in and nailed Matt Hardy with strikes in the corner. Matt Hardy desperately needed to make a tag as he was isolated by the opposing team. Rey Fenix tagged in and cracked Blade with a kick and then a rolling cutter! Fenix ran the top of the ropes and punted Lethal and Jarrett in the head!
Penta El Zero Miedo flipped over the top rope and wiped out Butcher, Lethal and Jarrett on the floor. Alex Abrahantes knocked Sonjay Dutt off the apron. Alex poked Kip Sabian in the eyes. Alex jumped off the top rope but was caught by Satnam Singh.
Rey Fenix and the Blade traded strikes in the center of the ring. Rey Fenix planted the Blade right on his head and scored the victory via pin!
Satnam Singh nailed Jeff and Matt Hardy at the top of the ramp. The Righteous—Vincent and Dutch walked out and stared at the Hardys.
Renee Paquette interviewed Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D., backstage!
Baker said the last few months haven’t gone as she’d planned. Baker said she is championship material and she said she is going to become the first female to hold the AEW Women’s World Title and the TBS Title! “Whoever wins tonight, Jade or Kris, you’ll be wrestling me tomorrow night in the main event of Collision!” said Baker.
The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett
vs.
“The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal!
Mike Bennett chopped Daniels. CD fired back with a drop toe hold. Sydal tagged in and slammed Daniels on top of Bennett.
Matt Taven tagged in and was hit with a barrage of kicks from Sydal.
“Sydal’s kicks are lethal, man,” said Tony Schiavone.
Daniels tagged back in and worked over Taven. Bennett grabbed Daniels’ leg, allowing Taven to connect with a shot. Bennett ducked a roundhouse kick from Sydal. Taven splashed Daniels in the corner. Taven and Bennett used their combo finisher, the Proton Pack, and then Taven pinned Daniels.
Taven: “We have to rush back to the hospital. Our poor friend Roderick Strong is suffering. He’s in poor neck health. But I don’t blame Samoa Joe. I blame Adam Cole. So, what we want to do is take back what’s rightfully ours—the Ring of Honor Tag Team Titles!”
Bennett: “Roddy, we’re coming home baby!”
Renee Paquette was backstage to interview the Mogul Embassy!
Prince Nana: “The Young Bucks put their stinking feet in my face!”
Swerve Strickland: “Bucks, you have a whole different energy about you since appearing on my podcast. And Hangman, you ran to the Elite. We’re going to handle business. The Gates of Agony and Brian Cage against the Hung Bucks at AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam!”
AEW World Trios Champions the Acclaimed—Max Caster, Anthony Bowens, & Billy Gunn
vs.
Peter Avalon & The Outrunners!
Billy Gunn had Turbo Floyd in his grip. Turbo Floyd chopped Billy down. Peter Avalon chop blocked Billy but Billy tagged Bowens.
Bowens drilled Avalon with the Fame Asser. Billy body slammed Avalon. Bowens nailed Avalon with the Scissor Me Timbers. Billy followed up with a fame-asser. Caster hit the Mic Drop and pinned “Pretty” Peter!
The Dark Order walked onto the ramp after the match!
John Silver said the Dark Order wanted the Trios Championships! Evil Uno said one of them would face one of the Acclaimed tomorrow to prove they were worth the Acclaimed’s time.
Anthony Bowens said he’d accept the challenge and the Dark Order could select a member of their own to face off tomorrow night on Collision.
“Pick whoever you want,” said Bowens.
Aussie Open—Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis
vs.
Damian Chambers & Lord Crewe!
Davis and Fletcher swarmed Chambers and Crewe. Aussie served up the Aussie sandwich. Crewe was planted with the Coriolis and Fletcher pinned him!
“Wrestling like two men with a point to prove, Aussie Open dominant tonight,” said Excalibur.
Main Event Time!
TBS Championship Match!
Kris Statlander (c.) vs. Jade Cargill (with “Smart” Mark Sterling)!
They locked horns and went to a stalemate in the early goings. Jade hit Kris with a knee to the midsection. Britt Baker was watching the match on a monitor backstage.
Kris and Jade clobbered one another, trading lariats. Statlander caught Jade and body slammed her. Statlander jumped off the apron with a cross body, but Jade caught her and then slammed her onto the apron.
Jade and Kris jockeyed for position in the ring, battling over a suplex. Jade overpowered Kris and nailed her with a delayed vertical suplex.
“Great match, both women, leaving it all on the mat here,” said Tony Schiavone.
Statlander battered Jade in the corner with forearms. Kris followed up with a knee strike. Kris planted Jade with the Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall. Mark Sterling jumped on the apron. Kris ate a pump kick because of the distraction. Jade choke slammed Statlander for a near fall.
Jade tried for a spear, but Kris dodged it. Kris spiked Jade with an inverted Friday Night Fever and pinned Jade Cargill!
“An incredible back and forth battle but Kris Statlander leaves no doubt that she has earned the TBS Championship.”
After the match Jade and Kris hugged one another out of respect.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Grand Slam on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, NY!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Bryce Jordan Center in State College, PA!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, OH!
Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!
AEW International Championship Match!
Jon Moxley (c.) vs. Big Bill (with “Absolute” Ricky Starks)!
Moxley used some round kicks to try to topple Big Bill. Bill blasted the champ with a massive right hand. Big Bill followed up with overhand chops. Big Bill was taking the fight right to Moxley and manhandling him.
Moxley fired off two clotheslines, but Bill booted Mox in the head, knocking him out of the ring. Ricky Starks kicked Moxley outside the ring. Moxley reversed an Irish whip and sent Big Bill into the steel ring steps.
Big Bill sent Jon Moxley over the timekeeper’s table. Moxley was busted wide open! Back in the ring, Moxley regained momentum and dug his fingers into Big Bill’s flesh! Moxley superplexed Big Bill.
Big Bill hit the Bossman Slam on Jon Moxley for a near fall. Moxley and Big Bill traded shots in the center of the ring. Moxley countered a boot with a King Kong lariat for a two-count. Moxley punished Big Bill with the hammer and anvil elbow strikes. Moxley planted Big Bill with a cutter, but Big Bill rolled out of the ring. Moxley climbed to the top rope, but Ricky shoved Mox as the ref was checking on Big Bill.
Bryan Danielson sprinted to the ring and peppered Ricky Starks with right hands, evening up the odds! Starks whipped Danielson into the ring steps. Big Bill chokeslammed Big Bill for a near fall on Moxley.
“Mox is losing a lot of blood right now. It looks like a crime scene,” said Taz.
Big Bill tried to hoist up Moxley with a chokeslam, but Moxley countered with a submission hold and forced Big Bill to tap out!
After the match Ricky Starks and Big Bill tried to continue their attack. ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli ran down to help his BCC teammates. Starks was furious with these developments. Starks and Big Bill retreated.
It was announced that Moxley will put his title on the line next week on Dynamite against Rey Fenix!
Renee Paquette was backstage with Roderick Strong and the Kingdom!
Adam Cole interrupted the interview and said Strong wrestling Samoa Joe was a horrible idea.
Strong: “You’re only worried about Max. And you should be because after I beat Joe, I’m going to beat MJF next week. Because I am a wrestling legend!”
Tony Schiavone was in the ring soDon Callis and Konosuke Takeshita could reveal their next target!
Callis: “We just beat Kenny Omega twice in one week. Show some respect! We’ve been celebrating. I’ve learned a lot from Takeshita about Japanese culture. When you’re the top wrestler in a promotion, they call you the Ace. He’s better than Okada. Better than Inoki. When you beat Kenny Omega once, they call you the Ace. When you beat Omega twice in seven days, they call you the Alpha!
“Henceforth you will all refer to Takeshita as the Alpha. I never had the empathy thing. Because when you’re the Alpha, you don’t feel anything, you take. Kenny, beating you twice isn’t enough for us. We broke your body. Now we’re going to break your heart.
“I promise to reveal through our creation who the next target of the Alpha will be, and Kenny, this one is going to kill you. The next target is none other than the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kota Ibushi!
“And Kenny, I want you to know right now, we’re not just going to beat Ibushi, we’re going to butcher him. We’re going to burn him. And I’m going to love the fact that while we’re spilling his blood in the ring, you’re going to be at home helpless, watching like the pathetic cuck that you are.”
Alex Marvez was backstage with the BCC!
Danielson: “We love it when things escalate. So, here’s a challenge. This Saturday at Collision, Ricky Starks, Big Bill, you two against me and Claudio Castagnoli!”
Rey Fenix entered the fray and began to shout at Moxley, but Alex Abrahantes and the refs held him back. Meanwhile, Eddie Kingston laughed in Claudio’s face and said, “One more week!”
Renee Paquette was backstage with FTW Champion HOOK!
Orange Cassidy interrupted!
Orange: “I was walking around and saw Hook all mad about something. What do you have to be mad about?”
Hook: “You were a great champion.”
Orange: “Thanks, you are too!”
They fist-bumped and Orange said he was still so tired.
Women’s World Title Eliminator Four Way Match!
Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Nyla Rose vs. Toni Storm!
The winner will face AEW Women’s Champion Saraya next week at Grand Slam.
Nyle Rose plowed into Baker and Shida with double clotheslines. Toni Storm shoved Shida into Britt Baker, with Baker tumbling out of the ring. Shida followed up with a crossbody onto the women on the arena floor!
Shida nailed Baker with a brain buster. Baker was looking for a thrust kick on Shida, but Shida turned around and Baker stopped herself. Nyla Rose chokeslammed Britt Baker. Shida cracked Nyla with the Katana Kick. As Shida was going for the cover, Britt Baker blasted Shida with a thrust kick. Toni Storm saw the opening, rolled up Britt Baker, and pinned her, stealing the victory!
Renee Paquette was backstage with AEW Women’s Champion Saraya and Ruby Soho!
Saraya: “Congrats, Toni, you did it and you did it without us. But Toni lost everything to me. She lost her top spot, and she lost her mind. She’s crazy. But she’s also going to lose the match against me at Grand Slam and then she’ll be left with nothing!”
Up Next: Le Sex Gods— “The Ocho” Chris Jericho and “The Spanish God” Sammy Guevara had their face to face!
Jericho and Guevara will be wrestling each other next week on Dynamite: Grand Slam.
Jericho: “Next week, right here on Dynamite at Grand Slam in New York City, it’s Le Sex Gods going one on one, Jericho versus Guevara, for the first time ever. Lots of history between us. We’ve been together since the first episode of Dynamite.”
Jericho introduced a highlight package showing all the pivotal moments from Le Sex Gods’ history over the past four years.
“That was beautiful,” said Taz.
Sammy: “Chris, I have a confession. I still don’t know the lyrics to ‘Judas.’”
Jericho: “I saw a kid on one of the NWA pay-per-view prelim matches and I was blown away and told Tony Khan, we need to sign this kid Sammy. I knew he had what it took to be a big star and I wanted him to be with me so I could help him out as much as I possibly could.
“Over the years I’ve watched Sammy grow from a boy to a man. I’ve seen him win titles, get married, and now your wife is ready to give birth to a baby girl. I’m really proud of all you’ve accomplished over the past four years.”
Sammy: “I know the typical wrestling thing is to talk trash, but I don’t want to do that. I want to come out here before one of the biggest matches of my career and say thank you. Thank you for changing my life and for changing the lives of so many people in the back. Without Chris Jericho there is no AEW.
“But truthfully Chris, I didn’t come to this company to just be your sidekick. I want to become world champion. I want them to look at me the way they look at Mox or the way they look at you. I don’t want to be in your shadow, so that’s why I need to beat you next week.”
Jericho: “You were never brought in to be Chris Jericho’s side kick. You were brought in to be a main event player and you are getting closer and closer every week. And that’s why I told you that you have to do it on your own. Next week you have that opportunity. You have to beat me to get to the next level. But if you’re going to beat Chris Jericho, you’re going to have to be the best Sammy Guevara ever if you’re going to have a chance to beat me. But I don’t think you’re ready to beat me yet.”
Sammy: “And there it is. It’s whatever Jericho wants. So next week I’m going to beat you as this man, not the 2018 me at the NWA pay-per-view, but this Sammy is going to beat you, we’re going to shake hands, and we’re going to win some tag team titles.”
Jericho: “Let me make something perfectly clear, Sammy. Next week I’m going to give you the match of your life. And I’m not going to go easy on you. I’m going to beat the living hell out of you. And I expect the exact same thing from you.”
Sammy: “I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
Excalibur: “I think we might have a battle for the ages next week.”
Taz: “Sammy is a pro, and he knows what’s at stake.”
Clips were shown from after Dynamite last week with Renee Paquette interviewing MJF!
MJF was told he wasn’t cleared to wrestle until Grand Slam.
MJF: “There are two talents I want to make it to the finals because I hate their guts: Roddy Strong, if you make it through this tournament, I will rip your head off. You’re a manipulative person. Samoa Joe, you think I’m afraid of you? Nah. You might not realize this, but this New York Pitbull has got a lot of bite. If you wrestle me, I’m going to choke you out!
“Hangman” Adam Page vs. “The Machine” Brian Cage (with Prince Nana)!
Cage clocked Page with an elbow strike. Page retaliated with two big boots to Brian Cage. Hangman hit a lariat off the turnbuckles to the Machine. Hangman went over the top rope, but Brian Cage intercepted him. Page reversed a powerbomb with a hurracanrana, sending Brian Cage into the steel ring post!
Brian Cage nearly decapitated Page with a lariat. Page sent Cage into the ropes after a hurracanrana. Page hit the area code shot on Cage.
Swerve Strickland’s music hit, and Swerve walked out onto the ramp!
Cage took advantage of the distraction and hurled Cage from the ring apron on the outside to the inside of the ring with a German Suplex! Brian Cage powerslammed Page and followed up with a moonsault, but Hangman dodged it.
Hangman rocked Brian Cage with a lariat, the momentum carrying both men over the top rope and onto the floor. Hangman jumped off the top rope and Cage caught him again. Adam Page countered with a crucifix bomb.
Hangman climbed to the top turnbuckle and hit Cage with a moonsault on the arena floor! Hangman followed up with a big crossbody press for a near fall on the Machine. Brian Cage dazed Page with a German Suplex.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Hangman swept out Cage’s legs. Hangman attempted the Buckshot Lariat, but Cage countered, but Page fired back with a Deadeye in the center of the ring, scoring the pin!
“Hell of a match by these two men,” said Taz.
“If Swerve was mad before, he has to be pissed off now,” added Excalibur.
“Well, he poked the bear,” added Taz.
Hangman Page: “What passion, what drive, just oozing out of your body as you brood on top of the ramp as you watched me kick Cage’s ass. Last week you said you wanted my spot, but you sent Cage out. Last week I thought you had some balls but tonight I’m pretty sure you’re just keeping them stowed away in Prince Nana’s Burger King crown.”
Swerve: “What up, turd? Them sound like fighting words to me, Hangman. You think this’ll be solved tonight? We do this when I say, where I say. And it just so happens I chose the great state that birthed Swerve Strickland. October 1st, in the City of Seatle, WrestleDream. Me and you, Hangman. But I’m going to make sure you don’t get comfortable by the time you get there, isn’t that right Brian Cage?”
Brian Cage ambushed “Hangman” Adam Page from behind! The Young Bucks jumped into the ring and superkicked the Machine! The Bucks served up superkicks for Prince Nana as well!
Renee Paquette was backstage with Daniel Garcia!
Garcia: “I thought you came here to talk about me but you’re asking about Sammy or Jericho. Why don’t we talk about the career of Garcia”
Don Callis interrupted!
Callis: “The Don Callis family is going to create a Utopian Meritocracy—”
Garcia got in Callis’ face and did his dance, and then walked off!
Callis: “Wow, that’s money! Renee, that’s money!”
Don Callis chased after Daniel Garcia, grinning ear to ear.
Darby Allin & Nick Wayne
vs.
Matt Menard & Angelo Parker (with Jake Hager and Anna Jay)!
As the match started, Christian Cage and TNT Champion Luchasaurus walked onto the ramp and then joined the broadcast booth.
Christian Cage said Nick Wayne needed a better mentor than Darby Allin.
Nick Wayne clipped Matt Menard with an enziguri. Jake Hager grabbed Darby from outside the ring. Matt Menard powerbombed Nick Wayne.
Darby tagged in and nailed Menard and Parker with the Coffin Splash! He followed up with a dropkick in the corner on both men. Darby connected with a Code Red on Parker for a near fall.
“Darby has issues with the back from that Coffin Match, you can tell,” said Taz.
Nick grabbed a blind tag and walloped Parker with Wayne’s World. Matt Menard pulled Parker out of the pinning predicament. Darby flew off the apron with a senton on Menard. Darby hit the Coffin Drop on Parker and pinned him!
Christian Cage stood up, saying he was getting tired of these guys.
Christian Cage: “Very impressive victory. Nick Wayne, after I went home last week, I was scrolling through your mom’s Instagram account. Your mom doesn’t post enough bikini pics. But don’t worry. I sent her a special request on the side.
“There’s still a lot of talk about Darby and Sting’s win in London, and as the Franchise here, it’s embarrassing. Now I just want to remind everyone I did not take the loss for that match, and I didn’t have my regular partner with me. So, I propose next week, Darby Allin and Sting against me and Luchasaurus. If you’ve got the balls, I’ll see you in New York City!”
Main Event Time!
Grand Slam World Title Eliminator Tournament Finals!
ROH World Television Champion Samoa Joe vs. Roderick Strong (with The Kingdom)!
Samoa Joe applied a wrist lock and then headbutted Roddy’s hands, trying to neutralize Roddy’s infamous chops. Roderick Strong was wiped out with a shoulder tackle from Samoa Joe. Joe followed up with jabs in the corner, breaking down Strong in the corner.
Roddy rallied back with a quick kick to Samoa Joe’s face. Strong connected with a dropkick. Strong cranked on Joe’s neck. Samoa Joe nailed Roddy with the Manhattan Drop and followed up with a senton.
Samoa Joe powerslammed Roderick Strong for a near fall. Roddy escaped a powerbomb and staggered Joe with a shoulder tackle. Roddy blasted Joe with a knee strike underneath the jaw. Samoa Joe planted Strong with a uranage! Samoa Joe was looking for the Muscle Buster, but Mike Bennett jumped on the apron to distract Samoa Joe. Roderick Strong stunned Samoa Joe with the Sick Kick for a near fall.
“What a battle here,” said Taz.
Samoa Joe battered Roderick Strong out of the air and then applied the submission, forcing Roderick Strong to tap out!
Samoa Joe will be facing AEW World Champion MJF next week on Dynamite: Grand Slam!
Samoa Joe: “Oh Max! It seems my little prophecy has come true and next week, I go to your backyard and I’m coming for you. Because I’m going to beat you down and take everything you have kid. Everything.”
Adam Cole came down to the ring. Roderick fell to the mat, clutching his neck. The Kingdom told Adam Cole that this was his fault.
Excalibur questioned whether or not Roderick Strong was really injured or if this was a ruse.
The medical staff placed Roderick Strong on a backboard and stretchered him to the back. The Kingdom told Adam Cole not to follow them or Roderick to the back. Samoa Joe struck from behind, blindsiding Adam Cole and choking him out!
“I’m going to take everything from you, Max!” said Samoa Joe.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Grand Slam on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, NY!
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 Bryce Jordan Center in State College, PA!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
This Wednesday night All Elite Wrestling returns to Cincinnati’s Heritage Bank Center for a brand new DYNAMITE that will continue to give form to GRAND SLAM 2023 on September 20th! The Grand Slam World Title Eliminator Tournament Finals are going down between Roderick Strong and Samoa Joe, Hangman Page will go one-on-one with “The Machine” Brian Cage for a third time in their careers, Le Sex Gods will be in the building to discuss their collision at Arthur Ashe, and Jon Moxley returns home to defend his AEW International Championship against Big Bill!
DYNAMITE get underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT LIVE on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for our international fans, so be sure to check in on the official AEW YouTube channel and watch the highlights from last week’s action during DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, plus the CONTROL CENTER, and more!
GRAND SLAM WORLD TITLE ELIMINATOR TOURNAMENT FINALS…
ROH World Television Champion Samoa Joe vs. Roderick Strong
This is where Samoa Joe and Roderick Strong have spent the last week fighting to get to: the precipice of an AEW World Championship match, a first for either man, taking place at GRAND SLAM 2023 on September 20th. There is just one last step to take on this road, a matter of either Roderick Strong defeating a man he’s only beaten once in their eight singles matches, or Samoa Joe once more beating a man he only lost to once back in January 2005.
Both Joe and Roderick have plenty of motivation pushing them towards victory, Roderick’s well-documented issues with Adam Cole’s friendship with MJF and Joe’s issues with the disrespect thrown his way by the AEW World Champion, but for both men that’s putting the cart before the horse. There’s a fight taking place this Wednesday night in Cincinnati that takes precedent, and while 87.5% of their fights have gone Joe’s way, Strong may have deeper reasons to fight than he ever has before, even when it was the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament that was at stake.
This is about the AEW World Title, ultimately that is the most primary reason to fight, but it’s also about broken trust and shattered friendships, it’s about respect and disrespect, and it’s about Roddy shaking the monkey off his back to finally defeat Samoa Joe, but if that neck is actually as hurt as Strong, Matt Taven, and Mike Bennett have claimed, than “Mr. ROH” is just one Choke or Muscle Buster away from ending up back on the shelf.
WOMEN’S WORLD TITLE ELIMINATOR FOUR WAY…
Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Nyla Rose vs. Toni Storm
Take four former AEW Women’s World Champions, all with plenty of history binding them to one another, and throw them in the ring together to see what happens. Add in the additional factor of a World Championship match being at stake, and this is an explosive formula worthy of DYNAMITE. Baker beat Shida for her first championship, Shida beat Nyla Rose for her first and Toni Storm for her second, Toni Storm won a Four Way that included Britt and Shida to claim her first shot, and then there is the whole issue of The Outcasts and what they’ve been aiming for with the AEW originals since they first united. Now Nyla Rose may have been left alone in that Outcasts mission, most likely out of fear, but reclaiming the Women’s World Championship is something that’s always been part of Nyla’s own personal mission.
Speaking of The Outcasts though, it is abundantly clear that Toni Storm is on the outs with Ruby Soho and AEW Women’s World Champion Saraya, especially since she insured Ruby couldn’t cheat to beat Kris Statlander at ALL OUT 2023. So add in that drama, on top of that mixed in with these four women, and this is quite the intriguing bout set for this Wednesday night.
Which of these four champions will get their chance to reclaim the gold they once lost, or in the case of Toni and Shida twice-lost? Will Britt get to face down Saraya in the same venue where the AEW Women’s World Champion made her AEW debut, the woman who beat her at FULL GEAR 2022? Will Toni Storm end up in a fight with the woman who pinned her at ALL IN: LONDON to claim the title? Or will we see first-time fights in Hikaru Shida or Nyla Rose?
As he heads home to Cincinnati for his 3rd AEW International Championship defense in a week, Jon Moxley has to be feeling the effects of not only the two previous bouts, as well as the match at ALL OUT 2023 where he beat Orange Cassidy, but also the attack perpetrated by Big Bill on COLLISION while Ricky Starks choked the life out of Bryan Danielson with a BCC shirt just a few feet away.
This is the third year in a row that Cincinnati has welcomed AEW, the second at the Heritage Bank Center, and each year has presented Jon Moxley with a huge undertaking, but one in which he has proven victorious. The first year he fought Minoru Suzuki and walked away the winner after eight of the hardest-hitting minutes AEW has seen, while the second hosted an AEW World Championship defense as Hangman Page challenged Mox, with the challenger ultimately ending up on a stretcher after a vicious King Kong Lariat knocked Hangman out.
This year, with a new championship around his waist, Moxley comes home to face the indomitable threat of Big Bill, a man who laid out the International Champion with a single big boot last Saturday night. Now this isn’t their first engagement in singles competition, that took place in June 2019, but it is their first one-on-one encounter in All Elite Wrestling, having only met in a tag match during the HOUSE RULES: TROY event, some 75 miles north on I-75, back in March.
Moxley is hellbent on surpassing Orange Cassidy’s legacy as the best International Champion of all-time, which means defending the title more times than any champions in AEW history across all divisions, as well as holding it for more than 327 days (20 days shy of all three of Mox’s World Championship reigns combined). So that’s why Mox is on his third defense in a week, coming into it having won nine straight singles matches, and with an 11-3 record on the year in those ranks that includes a Steel Cage Match win over Kenny Omega.
As for Big Bill, most of his AEW competition has been in tag team and multi-man competition, but as a singles he’s run a 4-3 record on the year, including an International Championship loss to Orange Cassidy, and three wins in his last five bouts. Though he’s one of the most imposing figures on the AEW roster, Bill hasn’t tasted championship success yet in AEW, though he also united with Brian Cage to challenge FTR for the AEW World Tag Team Championship just over a month ago. Given his dominating presence, his strength and stature, it seems an inevitability that Big Bill will hold a title in All Elite Wrestling before too long.
Will that success come to Big Bill this Wednesday night in Cincinnati, or will Jon Moxley go three in a row in his hometown, as well as three in a row with International Championship defenses? Will Ricky Starks be the kind of presence in Big Bill’s matches the way Bill is in his? And if so, will there be any BCC at ringside to balance the scales? Tune into DYNAMITE this Wednesday night to see if we have a new AEW International Champion by night’s end!
As mentioned above, the last time All Elite Wrestling was in Cincinnati Hangman Page did not leave the arena on his own two feet, instead finding himself carted out on a stretcher and hoisted into an ambulance after a Jon Moxley lariat knocked him unconscious. Though Hangman would recover shortly thereafter, the fact that his last time in town ended the way it did had to be scratching at his brain as this event drew closer.
Well now the former AEW World Champion has an opportunity to redeem himself before the Cincy crowd when he enters into battle with ROH World Six-Man Champion Brian Cage for their third singles fight! Back in the spring of 2021, before AEW returned to a touring schedule, “The Machine” shocked everyone, including Hangman, when he beat Page on the April 28th edition of DYNAMITE. The loss came at a time when many fans felt Hangman was on the path to dethroning AEW World Champion Kenny Omega months before he actually did so at FULL GEAR 2021.
Hangman would rebound from that loss a month later at DOUBLE OR NOTHING 2021, beating Brian Cage in a twelve minute slobber knocker, and evening the score. Though the two would meet one last time in a tag match on the subsequent DYNAMITE, a match won by Hangman and Dark Order’s Ten it should be noted, they never had that rubber match to truly decide who was the better man.
Not until now at least; though Hangman was out there to address his victory in the Over Budget Charity Battle Royal, his presence in the ring last week turned into a confrontation with Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana, and ultimately an assault perpetrated by “The Machine”. So with that in mind, as well as the history between Page and his assailant, the rubber match between Page and Cage has been set for this Wednesday night in Cincinnati! Will this be a repeat of Hangman’s last trip to town, or can the former World Champion shake that monkey off his back and score a second victory over “The Machine”? The presence of The Mogul Embassy is all but certain, the only question is just how much of an impact they will have on this contest!
CALLIS’ REVELATION…
So what’s next for Don Callis and Konosuke Takeshita, the man that Callis has proclaimed as the “New God of Professional Wrestling”? Don has already stated, despite steering Takeshita towards two pinfall victories over Omega, and assisting in Will Ospreay’s victory over him at FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023, that he’s not done utterly dissecting the life of Omega and anyone who supports him.
So what does that mean, and how does it pertain to this revelation Callis has promised for this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE? Who is their next target in this mission to bleed Kenny Omega dry?
One of The Elite seems the obvious choice, the most accessible targets possible, and it wouldn’t be improbable for Don Callis to throw his lot in with someone like Prince Nana to have his Mogul Embassy do the dirty work on Hangman. After all, he did it with BULLET CLUB GOLD and Kenny, but that’s just a bit of speculation about where Callis will attack next. Thankfully the guessing game doesn’t need last long and Don Callis will tell us himself in Cincinnati…
It is official that Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara, men who’ve been bonded since the very first episode of DYNAMITE back in 2019, who’ve fought together as members of The Inner Circle and The Jericho Appreciation Society, and who’ve been in Stadium Stampedes and Blood & Guts together, that they will go one-on-one at GRAND SLAM 2023 for the very first time.
Now they fought one another in a Four Way for the ROH World Championship at FULL GEAR 2022, and they’ve been on opposite sides of a few tag matches over the years, but they’ve never just straight up fought each other in a singles match. September 20th will change all that, but before we get to Arthur Ashe, these two men will both be on-hand in Cincinnati to address what is about to happen. Though this was presented as a way for the two men to get past their problems, and move onto being tag team championship challengers, there’s more than a little bit of ego at play, so it should be quite interesting to see what thoughts Jericho and Guevara have to share!
Come Wednesday night All Elite Wrestling brings to you the absolute best professional wrestling on the planet, this time emanating from the Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, OH and it will shape the face of both the GRAND SLAM 2023 World Title match as well as the Women’s World Championship bout! Plus, Hangman Page and “The Machine” collide for a third time, Le Sex Gods will be in the house with words before their singles bout, plus hometown hero Jon Moxley returns to defend his AEW International Championship against Big Bill!
DYNAMITE begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT LIVE on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for our international fans, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel and catch up on highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well the newest edition of THE CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
Tonight’s episode of AEW RAMPAGE was broadcast from Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis, IN!
Yourbroadcast team was Excalibur, “The Ocho” Chris Jericho, and Tony Schiavone!
It’s Friday night and you know what that means!
Grand Slam World Title Eliminator Tournament Quarter-Final Match!
Jay Lethal vs. Penta El Zero Miedo!
Lethal and Penta began shoving one another. Penta escaped a wristlock. Penta El Zero Miedo connected with a thrust kick. They traded chops. Penta hit a double foot stomp on Jay Lethal.
Jeff Jarrett swiped at Penta’s foot from the outside, but Penta outsmarted him. Penta jumped over the top rope, but Satnam Singh caught him and smashed him into the ring post as the ref was distracted by Jeff Jarrett. Karen Jarrett tied the back of Penta’s mask onto the ropes. The ref saw it and ejected Lethal’s entire squad from ringside. Lethal stomped on Penta while the ref tried untying him.
Penta El Zero Miedo dropped Lethal with two sling blades. Penta crushed Lethal with a tope con hiro! Penta squashed Lethal with another foot stomp for a near fall. Lethal fired back with a Lethal Combination for a two-count.
Jay Lethal pulled Penta’s mask off! Penta immediately covered his face. Lethal tried to grab the guitar that Jeff Jarrett left behind, but Alex Abrahantes pulled it away from Lethal. Penta rocked Lethal with a backstabber and then spiked Lethal with the Fear Factor for the pin fall victory!
Sammy Guevara came out with a microphone with words for Chris Jericho!
Sammy: “You’re pissing me off and I want to punch you in the face.”
Jericho: “It’s funny you say that. I want to punch you in the face, too.”
Sammy: “I want to punch you right now.”
Jericho: “Let’s be honest here. We’re obviously getting on each other’s nerves and that’s okay because we’re brothers. We’re on our way to becoming AEW World Tag Team Champions but we still can’t seem to get over this little bit of animosity. We need to get this out of our system. Do you agree?”
Sammy: “I agree.”
Jericho: “So why don’t we have a match against each other. That way we can get all this crap out of our system.”
Sammy: “Now the question is where do you want to do that?”
Jericho: “How about one of the biggest shows in AEW history? New York City. Grand Slam.”
Sammy: “Hell yeah, let’s do it.”
Trios Match!
Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D., Hikaru Shida, & Skye Blue
vs.
Anna Jay, Taya Valkyrie, & The Bunny (with Penelope Ford)!
Skye rolled up Bunny for a near fall early on. Taya tagged in and blasted Skye with a forearm and then a chop. Sky hit Taya with a thrust kick and tagged in Shida.
Shida cleaned house and peppered Anna Jay with elbow strikes. Bunny tagged in but Skye Blue ran in to make the save. Taya speared Skye. Britt grabbed a tag and dropped the Bunny with a thrust kick. Baker suplexed Anna Jay. Shida and Britt inadvertently collided. Baker applied the Lock Jaw and forced the Bunny to tap out!
Baker tried to explain herself to Shida after the match, but Shida walked off.
The Young Bucks—Matt & Nick Jackson
vs.
Angelo Parker & Matt Menard (with Jake Hager)!
Nick and Matt used tandem offense on Parker and then on Menard, coming out of the gates hot. Matt hit a neck breaker on Parker and then Nick took down Daddy Magic.
Parker thumbed Matt Jackson in the eyes. Matt rocked Parker with a series of Northern Lights suplexes.
“Great strength,” said Tony Schiavone.
Matt Menard tagged in and suplexed Matt Jackson. The fans were taunting Jake Hager, chanting “Where’s your hat? Where’s your hat?”
Parker and Menard double teamed Matt Jackson. Parker got a near fall on Matt Jackson after a snap suplex. Nick Jackson tagged in and wiped out both opponents with a double crossbody press. The Bucks dished out a superkick party! They cracked Matt with the BTE Trigger and Nick grabbed the pin!
“A return to form for the Young Bucks, potentially building up some momentum in the tag team division,” said Excalibur.
Main Event Time!
Grand Slam World Title Eliminator Tournament Quarter-Final Match!
ROH World Television Champion Samoa Joe vs. Jeff Hardy!
Hardy hit Samoa Joe with a basement dropkick. He followed up with a diving lariat to take Joe down. Samoa Joe gouged Jeff’s eyes and then connected with jabs.
Jeff Hardy stunned Samoa Joe with a jawbreaker. Jeff attempted a running cross body, but Samoa Joe side stepped it. Samoa Joe sent Jeff Hardy crashing to the floor with a sliding dropkick.
Samoa Joe softened up Jeff Hardy in the corner with body shots. Jeff jumped off the top rope with Whisper in the Wind, throwing his entire body at Samoa Joe.
“A desperation move but it worked,” said Tony Schiavone.
Jeff Hardy hit a Manhattan Drop on Samoa Joe. Jeff dropped an elbow for a near fall on Samoa Joe. Jeff Hardy went for the Twist of Fate, but Samoa Joe had it anticipated. Samoa Joe locked Jeff Hardy in the submission Clutch and put Jeff to sleep!
“Samoa Joe is one step closer to MJF,” said Excalibur.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, OH!
Don’t miss AEW Collision live on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, OH featuring:
-We’ll hear from AEW Women’s World Champion Saraya & Ruby Soho!
– Grand Slam World Title Eliminator Tournament Semifinal Match: Roderick Strong vs. Darby Allin!
-We’ll hear from AEW World Trios Champions the Acclaimed & Daddy Ass!
-Bullet Club Gold will be in action!
-We’ll hear from “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson!
-AEW International Championship Open Challenge Match: Jon Moxley (c.) vs. Action Andretti!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
