Power Book III Raising Kanan Season 3 Episode 4 Recap & Review “In Sheep’s Clothing”With Special Guest – Keemie Cakes – Host of The Chronicles of Power Podcast over at @pvtlstdPower Book III Raising Kanan Season…
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE: Holiday Bash was broadcast live from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK!
Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!
Continental Classic: Gold League Standings!
Jon Moxley (12)
Swerve Strickland (9)
Jay White (9)
RUSH (6)
Mark Briscoe (0)
Jay Lethal (0)
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Mogul Embassy’s Swerve Strickland (9) vs. LFI’s Rush (6)!
Rush and Swerve grappled to the mat, chain wrestling. Rush got to his feet and landed big chops. Both men used arm drags, resulting in a stalemate early on. Rush knocked Swerve out of the ring and followed up with a running flip over the top and down onto Swerve. Rush’s leg was all taped out and he began to limp slightly after landing on Rush.
Out of nowhere, Swerve jumped on Rush and applied an arm bar. Rush escaped but Swerve went to work on Rush’s injured let, pulling him down with a dragon screw leg whip. Ref Aubrey Edwards checked on Rush, who was writhing in pain.
Rush grabbed Swerve’s leg, tripping him up and Swerve landed hard on the edge of the ring. Swerve fired back with a German Suplex on the arena floor, but Rush retaliated with a shotgun dropkick, knocking Swerve into the barricade.
Back in the ring, Rush and Swerve stunned one another with rolling elbow strikes. They each went to boot the other and they knocked the other down to the mat, with both competitors having the same idea. Rush was looking for the Bull’s Horns, but his leg gave out on him. Swerve grabbed Rush’s legs and applied a stretch muffler. Rush countered with a cradle for a near fall.
Rush put Swerve in a straitjacket arm lock and then spiked Swerve with a piledriver for a two-count. They traded chops on the apron. Swerve charged at Rush, but Rush sent Swerve flying with a belly-to-belly suplex. Swerve landed hard on the arena floor, as Rush used Swerve’s own momentum against him.
Rush struggled to climb to the top turnbuckle. Rush went for a senton, but Swerve moved out of the way. Swerve hit Rush with a 450 splash, but Rush managed to kick out of the pin attempt. Swerve smashed Rush with a brain buster for a two-count. Swerve connected with the House Call kick. Swerve rocked Rush with the Swerve Stomp from the top and pinned Rush!
“Tip your cap off to Rush. He kept it competitive with an injury, but Swerve pulled off the victory,” said Taz.
Chris Jericho was backstage with an important announcement!
Jericho: “Last week, on the Thursday after Dynamite, Kenny Omega ended up in the hospital after suffering the effects of diverticulitis. And as he shared on social media, we now have the news that Kenny Omega is out of AEW indefinitely.
“We don’t know how long or how short that’s going to be. But one thing that’s affected is the Golden Jets’ opportunity to become the AEW World Tag Team Champions by beating Ricky Starks and Big Bill at Worlds End. And while we decide what we’re going to do in the meantime, the most important thing is Kenny’s health. And I just wanted to let you know. We’re all pulling for you Kenny.
“We’re pulling for you Kenny, the AEW fans as you can hear, the entire locker room, and most importantly, me. And take as long as you need to get healthy, but when you come back, we’re all going to be here and I’m going to be waiting for you. And the Golden Jets will resume. Goodnight and goodbye, but only for now. We’re pulling for you Kenny. We’ll see you soon.”
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Jay Lethal (0) vs. Mark Briscoe (0)!
The fans chanted “Dem Boys! Dem Boys!”
Mark used an inside trip into a side headlock on Jay Lethal. Lethal slapped Mark Briscoe in the face. Mark smiled and chopped Jay in the chest. Lethal hip tossed Mark and then dropkicked him in the face.
Lethal and Mark jockeyed back and forth for position on a vertical suplex, but Lethal won the battle. Jay Lethal followed up with a tope suicida, knocking Mark Briscoe into the safety rail. Lethal tried for another tope, but Mark caught him and countered with a vertical suplex on the arena floor.
Lethal clocked Mark with the Lethal Combination! Lethal was looking for the King’s Elbow, climbing to the top. Mark met him up there, tried for a superplex, but Lethal brought his base down and rocked Mark with an elbow to the back of the neck. Mark knocked Jay off the turnbuckles with his Redneck Kung Fu. Mark pulled up a steel chair, ran across the ring and used the chair as a launching pad to fly over the top and land on Jay outside the ring!
Lethal hoisted up Mark in a torture rack, transitioning to a back breaker. Lethal dropped an elbow from up top and Briscoe kicked out at the two-count! Mark countered the Lethal Injection. Mark Briscoe nailed Lethal with a fishermen’s buster for a near fall.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Mark planted Lethal with a Death Valley Driver. Mark tried for the Froggy Bow but Lethal countered. Jay Lethal spiked Mark with the Jay Driller for a near fall! Briscoe blasted Lethal with a burning hammer, followed up with the Jay Driller, and pinned Jay Lethal!
Reach for the sky, boy!
“Look at this, a standing ovation, deserved for both men,” said Taz.
Footage was shown from earlier of the week of AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF being inducted in the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame!
A vignette aired of Wardlow!
“Max, we are getting closer to your world ender. Soon the world will see you broken. Max, the payment for your sins cannot be delayed any longer. And I will be the one to bring the devil to his knees!” said Wardlow.
Samoa Joe came out to the ring!
The fans chanted “Joe! Joe! Joe!”
Samoa Joe: “My name is Samoa Joe. And once again I have come here seeking answers. Last week I was asking the right questions but maybe I wasn’t asking the right questions. Even though Roderick Strong may be the dimmest bulb on the Christmas tree, he brings up a good point.
“Week after week, we are assaulted by the devil, and it seems are illustrious World Champion isn’t the only victim. As a matter of fact, for some odd reason, Hangman Adam Page was a victim. And then we think back to the malicious attack on our World Champion, and it seems every time the devil attacks someone, we get plenty of footage of them getting stomped out, but our World Champion was just found gingerly laid down in the back passed out. Very conveniently on the ground. So once again I have come asking the right questions, but maybe not to the right people. So MJF, why don’t you come out here right now!”
AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF walked down the ramp to the ring!
MJF: “Cut my music! Joe, let me get this straight. So, I get jumped in the back by a bunch of goons, I get hit in the back by a beer bottle, and you’re out here accusing me of being the man behind the mask. The devil. Is that correct?”
Samoa Joe: “Correct.”
MJF: “That’s really interesting, Joe. I recall that you said you were going to protect me in our main event going out to Long Island for the World Title. Matter of fact, I think you said, ‘From hence forth, MJF, you are my property.’ So ‘No Show Joe’ it’s become pretty clear that you care about your property about as much as you care about your diet.
“So, if we’re throwing accusations around, Joey, I got some accusations of my own. So, I get jumped in the back, the goons surround the ring, but I don’t recall them laying a finger on you, Joe. So, let’s see. I don’t like you. Now, I don’t trust you. So, why am I waiting until December 30th at Worlds End when I can end your world right now?”
MJF shoved Samoa Joe. A swarm of masked men ran into the ring and Samoa Joe and MJF had to beat them away! MJF and Samoa Joe fought off the masked assailants but even more came over the barricade and surrounded the ring. MJF and Samoa Joe were back to back and had to work as a unit because the entire ring was surrounded by masked men!
The arena lights went dark!
The man in the devil mask appeared on the big screen! There was a graphic scrawled across the screen that read:
“Where can you go? Who can you trust? Next week, will you accept a challenge…for your ROH World Tag Team Championship? Are you a hero, Max?”
MJF: “Joe, I know what you’re going to say. You’re going to say no again. But I made a promise to my best friend that I would defend those tag team titles, no matter what, until he comes back.”
Samoa Joe: “We accept! Seems the best way to handle a devil is with our bare hands. Next week we beat his boys’ asses!”
“Allies again for a moment,” said Taz.
“Wow, blockbuster announcement as MJF and Samoa Joe united in the face of this devil. But at Worlds End they will not be partners. Champion MJF, challenger Samoa Joe on pay-per-view, one week from Saturday,” said Excalibur.
Renee Paquette was backstage with the Best Friends—Kris Statlander, AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, Trent, and Rocky Romero!
Rocky: “Renee, I just spent 329 days as a CMLL World Historic Welterweight Champion until last week when I lost it. But I’m just looking for new international opportunities and I just want to bring gold around this waist.”
Orange: “Oh, ok, I get it. Fine. I’ll see you Friday, Rocky.”
Renee: Sounds like it’s official for this Friday on Rampage. Orange Cassidy versus Rocky Romero for the AEW International Championship.”
Saraya vs. Riho!
Winner faces “Timeless” Toni Storm for the AEW Women’s World Title at AEW Worlds End!
AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Ruby Soho was watching the match from backstage.
Riho charged at Saraya, but Saraya rolled out of the ring. Riho followed Saraya and rocked her with her innovated offense. Saraya hid behind an AEW security guard and then hit Riho with a cheap shot. Saraya swung Riho into the ringside barricade, bouncing her off it!
Riho countered a suplex attempt with an inside cradle for a near fall. Riho brought down Saraya with a Northern Lights Suplex for a two-count. Riho jumped off the top rope with a double stomp and followed up with charging double knees, pinning Saraya and becoming the #1 contender for Worlds End!
Luthor carried Toni Storm to the ring. Storm got in the ring and Riho began to clobber her with strikes. Riho blasted Storm with a Tiger Faint Kick but out of nowhere Mariah May smashed Riho with the AEW Women’s World Title Belt!
Tony Schiavone read a prepared statement from TNT Champion Christian Cage!
Tony Schiavone: “Schiavone, you’d better read this statement word for word. As the biggest, hottest, and most talked about star in AEW, I have no double the hole my absence has left in your lives. After my career-defining victory over Adam Copeland, I decided to take my prodigy Nick Wayne on a well deserved vacation.
“I understand that the Rated R Superstar has challenged me to a No Disqualification Match at Worlds End on December 30th. So just to put all your tiny minds at ease, I want everyone to know that I will make my triumphant return this Saturday live on TNT on Collision, where I will address Adam Copeland and address any lingering questions people may have about what’s transpired a couple of weeks ago on Dynamite in Montreal. I expect nothing less than a hero’s welcome upon my return. Sincerely the TNT Champion, the Patriarch of AEW, Christian Cage.”
AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF was walking backstage!
Max stopped in his tracks when he saw a black mask on the floor. It was right in front of the Mogul Embassy’s dressing room. MJF knocked on their door. Prince Nana opened the door and Max grabbed him!
Max: “Explain this black mask! What the hell is it?”
Swerve walked out into the hallway and Max let Prince Nana go.
Swerve: “Be careful handling my property. Nice to finally see you out. I feel like you’ve been ducking me my whole time here in AEW.”
MJF: “Shane Strickland! Swerve! Look at you, man. See a lot of people don’t know this but we’ve got a big history. We used to do these long car rides on the road every single week when we were trying to make a name for ourselves on the independents. And now look at you! All grown up! All the momentum in the world, beating some of the biggest stars this company has to offer. Man, I’m so proud of you. However, I haven’t been ducking you.
“The reason you and I haven’t made eye contact in this place is because unfortunately there’s levels to this. And you’re just not on mine. And to make matters worse, I don’t hear your theme music. Therefore, neither is your star power.”
Swerve: “It’s funny you brought up those car rides, those were amazing. You remember that. You were the best chauffeur I ever had in my life. Thank you, man. Let’s go back to the interaction between you and William Regal years ago. Didn’t you bring up an email about a tryout that you just failed at and turned you into the whiny little guy that you are today? Yeah, you’re right, there are levels to this. You do tryouts. I sign contracts. And be careful how you talk to me. Because the last person that did, I hung him outside the ring in front of 13,000 people by a chain.”
MJF: “Solid monologue, bro. You’re starting to get so good at talking. I’m proud of you. But you talk about Hangman an awful lot. It’s almost obsessive. Now it’s funny you’re talking about respect because I’m your World Champion, kid. So, I think you need to check your tone and watch your mouth. But I do have a question for you. I find a couple things odd. Let me run them by you.
“You hate Hangman. More than anything you want to be AEW World Champion. So, putting those things together when I’m really thinking about it, why wouldn’t you frame Hangman with a beer bottle. Why wouldn’t you consistently try to get inside my head? And your goons in the Mogul Embassy are jumping people creating a clear path for you to finally be a world champion, be on top like yours truly. So, are you the devil? A part of me really hopes so. You say this is your house. Well, you’re looking at the Big Bad Wolf of professional wrestling. And when I feel like it, I’ll blow your house down. And then while I’m at it, I’ll break both your arms so you can always swerve while you drive.”
Swerve: “I ain’t the devil you’re looking for, but you keep waving that championship in front of me, I’m gonna be the one to bring you hell.”
Prince Nana opened the door and Brian Cage and the Gates of Agony stood behind Swerve!
Samoa Joe walked up to MJF, put his arm around him, and said to Swerve, “Well what is all good on this side of the hood, my friends? My associate and I have business elsewhere.”
Swerve: “Go handle it.”
Roderick Strong (with The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) vs. Komander (with Alex Abrahantes)!
Roddy used a leg sweep to trip Komander and grounded him. Roderick smashed Komander with a running knee strike. Roddy rocked Komander with stiff chops to the chest. Komander leveled Roddy with a dropkick.
Roddy knocked the wind out of Komander with a back breaker. Komander dodged a charging knee from Roddy. Komander cracked Roddy with a round kick. Komander stunned Roddy with elbow strikes. Komander connected with a Phoenix Splash for a near fall on Roddy!
Komander climbed back to the top, but the Kingdom pulled Roderick out of harm’s way to the arena floor. Komander did a backflip and wiped out all three men on the floor! Komander went for a springboard, but Roderick countered with a jumping knee strike to Komander’s face! Roderick finished off Komander with the End of Heartache and pinned Komander!
After the match the Kingdom passed out signs to the fans that said: “MJF is the Devil”!
After the match Renee Paquette interviewed Roderick Strong in the ring!
Roderick Strong: “Oh Renee! I’m so happy you’re here! Samoa Joe, please listen to me! It is so, so obvious now that Max is the devil. I mean look, Hangman mentions Max as the devil, and he gets taken out. C’mon Joe, it’s time to wake up. It’s time to believe me. Samoa Joe is my best friend by proxy. Joe listen to me!”
Main Event Time! Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley (12) vs. Bullet Club Gold’s Jay White (9)!
Jim Ross returned tonight to provide his main event analysis!
Moxley went for the sleeper right away. Jay White escaped but Moxley nailed him with the hammer and anvil elbows Moxley sat out with a piledriver for a near fall on Switchblade.
Jay White whipped Moxley into the steel ring steps outside the ring. Jay White stomped on Mox in the corner. Moxley slugged Jay White. Moxley back dropped Jay White on the ramp. Moxley chomped on the head of Jay White. Mox charged at Jay, but Jay dodged it and then clipped Moxley’s legs.
Moxley absorbed forearms from Jay White. Mox set Jay White on the top turnbuckle. Moxley gouged at White’s back, digging his fingers into Jay White’s flesh. Moxley superplexed Jay White. Moxley hit a lariat on White, knocking him over the top rope. Mox followed up with a tope suicida. Moxley may have buckled his knee when he landed, immediately grabbing his knee.
Jay White countered a suplex and planted Moxley across the steel ring steps! Jay White grabbed two steel chairs. The ref admonished White and Jay White tossed one of the chairs in the ring. The ref went to grab the chair in the ring, unbeknownst to him that Jay White had a second chair. Jay White smashed the chair into Moxley’s leg.
Moxley jumped into the ring, barely beating the 10-count. Moxley countered the Blade Runner with a Paradigm Shift for a near fall! Jay White wiped out Moxley with a dragon screw leg whip. Moxley smashed Jay White with a knee strike for a two-count!
Moxley grabbed White and planted him with a cutter! Jay White fired back with a sleeper suplex for a near fall! Jay White spiked Mox with the Kiwi Crusher! Moxley fired up and fired back with a lariat! Moxley curb stomped Jay White! Switchblade escaped the Death Rider! Jay White drilled Mox with the Blade Runner and scored the pin!
“Jay White beats Jon Moxley! What a hell of a match!” said Jim Ross.
“And now we know one week from tonight in the Gold League Finals it’ll be a three-way match! Jay White and Swerve Strickland and Jon Moxley! There’s no man with a clear tiebreaker win over the other so it’ll have to be a three-way match one week from tonight,” added Excalibur.
After the match, Swerve Strickland walked onto the ramp and stared at Moxley and Switchblade in the ring! Moxley managed to get to his feet, but Jay White clipped him from behind!
“That changed the game,” said Jim Ross.
“This could be disastrous for Jon Moxley,” replied Excalibur.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, FL!
This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!
Don’t miss AEW Collision: Holiday Bash on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, TX featuring:
-TBS Champ Julia Hart & Skye Blue vs. Thunder Rosa & Abadon!
– Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo vs. ROH World Champ/NJPW Openweight Champ Eddie Kingston!
-AEW World Trios Championship Match!
The Acclaimed & Daddy Ass (c.) vs. Top Flight & Action Andretti!
– Continental Classic Blue League Match!
Daniel Garcia vs. Brody King!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
For the first time in AEW history, All Elite Wrestling heads to Oklahoma and the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City! With WORLDS END just ten days away, the last bouts of the Continental Classic Gold League will go down Wednesday night, setting up the Finals in Orlando next Wednesday on DYNAMITE!
Jon Moxley versus Jay White, Swerve Strickland versus RUSH, and Jay Lethal versus Mark Briscoe are all on tap for this Wednesday with the potential for some intriguing results to be explored shortly. Suffice to say, while Jon Moxley may not be as comfortable as his twelve points would make it seem. In addition, Roderick Strong goes one-on-one with Komander, Saraya faces Riho for the right to challenge Toni Storm on the line, and we will hear from both AEW World Champion MJF and his WORLDS END challenger Samoa Joe!
DYNAMITE gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, to catch highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as the newest CONTROL CENTER, and don’t forget to check out one of the best professional wrestling events of the year FINAL BATTLE 2023 over at ROH Honor Club (www.watchroh.com)!
For the last week, Moxley has been on top of the Continental Classic’s Gold League with 12 points, but as soon as the night begins on Wednesday, there’s the possibility that he will not get any higher and could even end up sharing the top spot depending on how RUSH/Swerve plays out. It’s a sure thing that Jon Moxley will end up in the Finals of the Gold League next week in Orlando, it’s just a matter of what things will look like once the former 3-TIME AEW World Champion gets there. The man who could stop Moxley from being the undisputed points king of the Gold League is none other than “Switchblade” Jay White!
Now White has managed, on his own merit and without BULLET CLUB GOLD involvement, to bounce back from his loss to Swerve Strickland and win his last two tournament bouts to net a total of nine points. Those wins have put him on the precipice of tying up the top spot with Moxley at twelve points, all “Switchblade” has to do is repeat the performance he had against Moxley in their 2019 G1 Climax bout for New Japan. That night, in the first and last singles match between the two prior to this Wednesday, it was White who took home the victory en route to his loss in the tournament finals against Kota Ibushi, and helped stifle Moxley’s strong push towards winning the B Block that year.
Will this Wednesday be a repeat of that outcome with a “Switchblade” Jay White victory? Or will we see Moxley run the table, net 15 points, and head to Orlando to meet one of the several possibilities that await him in the Gold League Finals? What are those possibilities? Read on to see how this half of the Continental Classic could play out…
Swerve Strickland(9) vs. RUSH(6)
Undaunted; that is what Swerve Strickland appears to be following his loss to Jon Moxley last week, a loss that kept him from claiming the position as points leader in the Gold League, at least for the time being. Strickland seems to garner motivation from loses such as that one, loses he can learn from to become a better competitor, loses that push him to improve and come back stronger. When that loss comes against one of the best in the game, well there is a great deal to take away form it but it call comes down to if a competitor is capable of seeing their flaws and getting better, or if they’re only capable of placing blame elsewhere. In this instance, Swerve seems completely capable of seeing where he went wrong to insure he doesn’t make the same mistake when he and Moxley meet again, and the possibility is very real they could fight against next week in the Gold League Finals.
The match of it breaks down like this: Moxley is at the top of the field with 12 points but both Jay White and Swerve Strickland could move up to into a tie with the former 3-Time AEW World Champion, and “Switchblade” would be doing so at the expense of Moxley. Should Moxley lose to Jay White, and Swerve beat RUSH, then we have ourselves a three-way tie at the top with each man sporting 12 points. Should Moxley win, he is the undisputed points winner of the Gold League and it’s just a matter of whether Swerve or RUSH wins this fight. See RUSH saved himself last week with that victory over Jay Lethal, staying alive for another week, but entirely dependent on how others perform in these last matches to make it to the second spot in the finals, and even then he won’t be alone.
As stated, a Moxley win nets 15 and makes him the king of the Gold League in terms of points, whereas a “Switchblade” victory ties them up at 12. Should Swerve win to get 12, he’s either tied with Jay White at 12 or there’s a three way tie at 12, but if RUSH wins to bump to 9 points, then both he and Swerve sit at 9 with the potential that Jay White could also end up at 9, creating a three way tie for the second spot in the Gold League Finals. Either that or, worst case scenario for the two men in this match, White wins and RUSH wins, tying “Switchblade” up with Moxley at 12 points, and insuring a rematch between the two in the Finals. That’s just scratching the surface of what could happen without looking at the possibility of draws in either match!
There are a multitude of ways this could go down, but nothing will be for sure until the final bell rings on the last Continental Classic match of the night! The only thing we know for certain at this moment is that neither of the men involved in the third Continental Classic bout of the night will be a factor in the Gold League Finals…
Mark Briscoe(0) vs. Jay Lethal(0)
Here we have two men with, on paper, nothing left to fight for in the Continental Classic. They both lost their previous four matches, have scored zero points despite their best efforts, and yet in the face of what could be a depressing, heartbreaking situation leading either man to throw in the towel, Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe have found something to fight for: honor.
The history of these two men dates back twenty years to the formative days of each man’s career, and even saw The Briscoes face the Special K duo of Lethal (then Hydro) and Deranged as part of a Gauntlet Match for the ROH Tag Team Titles at GLORY BY HONOR II in 2003. The two would have their first singles match of record at GATEWAY TO HONOR 2011, a Proving Ground match during Lethal’s 1st ROH World TV Title reign, and would go one-on-one several more times in ROH, with Lethal getting the victory in all but one situation, and only because that one time ended in a No Contest.
In AEW they’ve had one match, back on the January 25th edition of DYNAMITE, a bout to honor the late Jay Briscoe, and one of the most emotional matches ever presented on AEW television. Mark finally got a victory over Jay Lethal on that night, and as sweet as that may have been, ultimately the fight was about honoring the memory of our fallen brother more than about who actually won the contest.
Though they’ve had their issues, primarily stemming from Lethal’s choice to associate with The Jarretts, Sonjay Dutt, and Satnam Singh, Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe are still bonded, through shared history, through the fights they’ve had together, and through their experiences with Ring of Honor. There’s something unique to those men and women who came through the ROH ranks during the first twenty years, especially those who were there in 2002 when The Murphy Rec Center in Philly was the home of honor. Mark and Jay are two such competitors, and it seems they found their reason to fight this Wednesday night by looking back to that history, focusing on those letters, and putting Honor before everything else.
ONE-ON-ONE…
Roderick Strong vs. Komander
Roderick Strong is clearly just picking fights now that he’s decided to get back into active competition; he did it with Action Andretti and now he’s doing it with Komander, a man who did nothing more than have the audacity to show up and show out at both FINAL BATTLE 2023 (www.watchroh.com) and on last week’s RAMPAGE. Komander may not have been on the winning end of either Survival of the Fittest 2023 or that epic Trios Match, but he absolutely showed he’s got the tools to be a top tier player in AEW or ROH, as well as add more titles to a mantle already holding the AAA World Cruiserweight Championship.
So it will be this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE that Roderick Strong and Komander go head-to-head in their first meeting, and there’s little doubt that The Kingdom will be close at hand. Wherever Roderick goes, so too do Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, and Komander might want to bring some back-up of his own to even the odds lest he fall victim to a piledriver and a…groin…punch from Bennett to soften him up for Roddy!
WORLDS END OR BUST…
Riho vs. Saraya
***WINNER FACES AEW WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPION TONI STORM AT WORLDS END***
When she last stepped onto the AEW stage Riho back in April, it was with the dual purpose of fighting for the AEW Women’s World Championship held at the time by Jamie Hayter and in defense of the AEW Women’s locker room in the face of The Outcasts. Unfortunately the former AEW Women’s World Champion failed in both missions, losing to Hayter on the April 5th edition of DYNAMITE, and being decimated by The Outcasts one week later following a tag match loss to Ruby and Toni Storm.
So it came as no surprise that, upon her return to the fold, Riho’s first order of business was last week’s match with Ruby Soho, a match that ended in Riho’s favor, and now this week it continues with a bout against Saraya. Not only is it a fight with the Outcast member, but it is also one upon which the future of the AEW Women’s World Championship hangs!
See to the winner of this contest on Wednesday night go the spoils of fighting “Timeless” Toni Storm at WORLDS END with the AEW Women’s World Championship at stake! So there is still the possibility for Riho to achieve one of the goals she first set for herself last Spring; as for the other one, well The Outcasts did a grand job of imploding all by themselves, starting with Toni Storm being blackballed from their stage, and continuing with this separation of Saraya and Soho:
So that will be the question this Wednesday won’t it? Can Saraya pull off this all-important victory by herself, without Ruby Soho in her corner, or has she pulled Anna Jay into her corner based on their mutual issues with the entire Cool Hand Ang/Ruby situation? After all, Anna was Saraya’s side a week ago when she interrupted Parker and Menard’s words before their tag match in Montreal…
When last we saw AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF, he was face down on the concrete after apparently being struck in the head with a beer bottle. The conclusion was made by Samoa Joe that the presence of the beer bottle meant Hangman Page was responsible, and the confrontation earlier in the night between the former AEW World Champion and the current further reinforced Joe’s beliefs.
Well the last time we saw Samoa Joe, he was standing face-to-face with that former World Champion and telling Page straight up that he knows Hangman was responsible for the attack on Max and thus, presumably, was also the man behind the devil’s mask that’d been stolen from MJF’s bags weeks ago.
At the end of the night last Wednesday, fans all witnessed Hangman end up another victim of The Devil’s masked men, this time in the parking lot outside the arena, and essentially eradicating any notion that Page was still a suspect. After all, if it’s possible to believe Hangman staged his own assault, than one must accept the possibility that MJF staged his own, or Jay White staged his, or that even The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn stage theirs. Occam’s Razor would suggest removing any victim of The Devil or his ilk from suspicion, and looking elsewhere for suspects.
So perhaps this Wednesday night, when we hear from both champion and challenger, we will all get fresh illumination on the subject. Perhaps MJF saw something or heard something during his attack that points a finger in the right direction, any clue would help unravel this tangled web, and perhaps allow MJF to focus solely on this impeding fight with Samoa Joe.
DYNAMITE debuts in Oklahoma City, OK this Wednesday night Paycom Center and we’ve got the three final bouts in Continental Classic: Gold League on tap! Jay White and Jon Moxley, the winless Mark Briscoe versus the winless Jay Lethal, and RUSH fighting Swerve! Plus former ROH Women’s World Champion Riho battles Saraya for the right to move on to a WORLDS END championship fight with Toni Storm, Roderick Strong will be in action against Komander, and we will hear from both AEW World/ROH World Tag Champion MJF and Samoa Joe!
The bouts begin at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, just be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel for all the highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as this week’s CONTROL CENTER!
Worlds Will Collide on January 13th, You Won’t Believe Who Is Showing Up News / December 18, 2023 / by IMPACT Wrestling Staff Order Hard To Kill Get tickets On Saturday, January 13th, TNA Wrestling…
Tonight’s AEW COLLISION: Winter Is Coming was broadcast from the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, TX!
It’s Saturday night and you know what that means! Saturday night’s alright for fighting!
Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly and Tony Schiavone were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo (9) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli (3)!
Claudio Castagnoli locked up with Andrade and back him into the corner. Andrade powered out and rammed Claudio with a shoulder block. Claudio fired back with a standing clothesline. Andrade connected with a crossbody for a two-count.
Andrade jumped over the top rope to Claudio on the arena floor, but Claudio countered with a European uppercut. Andrade used two dragon screw leg whips, but Claudio couldn’t be contained and blasted Andrade El Idolo with a pop up European uppercut.
Claudio hurled Andrade around the ring with the Big Swing! Claudio applied the sharpshooter. Andrade escaped and reversed the sharpshooter into a figure four!
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen that!” said Tony Schiavone.
Claudio used his upper body strength to reach the bottom rope and force the ref to break the hold. Andrade climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Claudio met him up there. Andrade took down Claudio with a sunset flip powerbomb. Andrade charged at Claudio and crashed into him with a running knee strike. Andrade exposed the top turnbuckle but Claudio superplexed him. Andrade rallied back with two suplexes of his own. Andrade blasted Claudio with a pump kick and then a spinning back elbow for a near fall!
The fans chanted “A-E-W! A-E-W!”
Claudio knocked Andrade off the top turnbuckle and Andrade landed hard on the exposed turnbuckle. As the ref turned his back to put the turnbuckle pad back on, Claudio cracked Andrade with a low blow. Claudio followed up with a Gotch style piledriver and pinned Andrade!
“Claudio stays alive, and this tightens things up in the Blue League!” said Kevin Kelly.
Abadon vs. Jazmin Allure!
Abadon grounded and pounded Allure. Jazmin retaliated with a thrust kick, but Abadon absorbed it. Abadon ended things with the Black Dahlia and pinned Allure.
The arena lights went out! Julia Hart appeared in the ring and dangled the TBS Championship in front of Abadon.
Abadon lunged at Julia and then nailed Julia with a running knee strike. Abadon picked up the TBS Championship. Skye Blue ran into the ring and attacked Abadon! Skye Blue held Abadon while Julia hit Abadon.
Thunder Rosa charged into the ring and hit Skye Blue! Julia Hart and Skye Blue retreated out of the ring. Rosa offered her hand to Abadon and Abadon accepted!
AEW World Trios Champions The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass were backstage with Renee Paquette!
Daddy Ass: “You know, Renee, I don’t mean to cut you off, but we have the problem. The problem is Daddy Ass and the Acclaimed are now pissed off. You might have knocked us down, but the problem is we got back up!”
Max Caster: “Calm down. What Billy means is we’re coming for whoever’s under that Devil mask. And MJF, we’re friends, but now I want nothing to do with you. Because you put us in danger, and you didn’t care.”
Anthony Bowens: “What it boils down to is there’s a group of individuals that tried to end our careers. So, consider this the Acclaimed’s search and destroy mission because we’re going to beat your goofy asses the second we figure out who you are! And on top of that, Renee, we’re going to get back to being the best damn Trios in all of AEW history because everyone loves the Acclaimed!”
Top Flight and Action Andretti interrupted them! They said they wanted to clarify that they weren’t the ones who attacked the Acclaimed. They issued a challenge to the Acclaimed. Bowens said he appreciated it, but “wrong place, wrong time. Challenge accepted for next week on Collision. Be ready to fight.”
AEW International Title Match!
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy (c.) vs. “Bounty Hunter” Bryan Keith!
Orange tried mind games, but Keith chopped at Cassidy. Orange ran off the ropes, but Keith countered with a boot to Orange’s head. Orange Cassidy fired back with a tornado DDT and then a tope suicida to Bryan Keith!
Bryan Keith headbutted Orange and followed up with an exploder suplex off the top rope. Orange countered a gut wrench suplex attempt with a Beach Break for a near fall on Bryan Keith! The Bounty Hunter fired back with a stunner for a near fall on the champ. Cassidy rolled up Keith out of nowhere and pinned him!
Orange offered his hand, but Keith slapped it away. Bryan Keith then tipped his hat at Orange out of respect.
A vignette aired of “The Redeemer” Miro!
“I am the Redeemer. I don’t want to fight Andrade because he is my wife’s client. I want to fight him because he is an a——! His losing to Claudio in this tournament brings him one step closer to being eliminated. I am done avoiding people to please my wife. I am ready to kill everyone to please myself. I fought the light for so long that I let my darkness consume me. This is the word of the Redeemer.”
Lexy Nair was backstage with Komander to interview him!
They were interrupted by Roderick Strong and the Kingdom—Mike Bennett and Matt Taven!
Roderick Strong: “Hey, despite all the good things she’s saying about you, you didn’t win last night, and that’s not good. You see, I am a former Ring of Honor Television Champion. And a Survival of the Fittest winner.”
Matt Taven: “I won the TV Title my very first night under contract.”
Roderick Strong: “So I just wanted to let you know this. I myself am looking to get back on the horse, pun intended. And fellas, I think I found my next victim: Komander!”
FTR—Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler came down to the ring!
Cash Wheeler: “House of Black, let me say first and foremost, if you have a problem with us, no more magic, no more sneak attacks. Come out here and speak to us face to face. I’ll tell you I think your problem is you’ve seen the success we’ve had in the past three years here in AEW. We came here and we’ve had the best run of our careers.
“We have been the Ring of Honor, the Triple A, the New Japan, and two-time AEW World Tag Team Champions. And you two, you’re still just unrealized potential. I think you’re mad at yourselves. I think you see the success that Brody has had in the Continental Classic and you’re jealous of that. I think you’ve seen the success that Julia has had and you’re jealous of that. But you’re not going to take your anger out on yourselves. You’re not going to direct it at yourselves. You’re going to direct it at the living legends.”
Dax Harwood: “You can say we’re not the best looking, and that’s ok. You can say we’re not the flashiest. I’ve even heard we’re hard to do business with. But there’s one thing that you can’t say about FTR and that’s we’ll back down from a fight.
“I don’t mind taking an ass whooping. Half of my life I’ve fought men for money. And that’s ok but I do have a problem with a sucker punch from behind. And I’m going to lay out a challenge, first time ever. House of Black—”
Dax’s microphone went dead and then the arena lights went dark!
The House of Black appeared on the big screen. Buddy Matthews told FTR that they were here to prove a point that no one in the back has FTR’s back. “Mark Briscoe, he won’t save you. Dax, your wife, your kid, they won’t save you. Everyone you love won’t save you. But I want to direct this question to Cash. Who loves you? All these people love Dax, but who loves you? I’ll tell you who loves you. We love you. We embrace you. We welcome you. We welcome both of you. Be in our family.”
Malakai Black: “See there’s this thing, this constant here, that this is personal. It’s not personal. No, this is what happens when we have to prove a point so aggressively that it even hurts us. Because this is love. Because let me ask you this question. When we attacked you, who came to save you? No one. So, did we lie? No, we did not lie.
“And if I were to make it personal, I would have a picture of you, of your wife, and your daughter, and I would do this to it.”
Buddy held up the picture while Malakai lit it on fire.
Malakai Black: “Symbolic. Like it or not, we’re your family now.”
Texas Street Fight Match!
Kris Statlander & Willow Nightingale vs. Mercedes Martinez & Diamante!
Mercedes smashed a bottle over Willow’s head! Kris spiked Diamante with a DDT onto a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire. Kris and Willow rammed Mercedes with a metal step ladder!
Mercedes cracked Willow with a crowbar across the back. Mercedes booted Willow in the head. Willow pounced Diamante and then smashed a board against Diamante’s back. Statlander rocked Mercedes with Saturday Night Fever for a near fall!
Diamante cracked Kris with a briefcase. Diamante opened the briefcase and dumped the contents all over the mat—shards of glass and thumbtacks! Mercedes dug Kris’ face into the tacks. Mercedes power bombed Willow off the apron and through a table on the arena floor!
Kris Statlander had her hand wrapped with a steel chain. Statlander hit the knockout blow on Diamante and then pinned her!
Renee Paquette was backstage with AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm and Mariah May!
Renee said whoever won between Saraya and Riho would face Storm at World’s End, and she asked Storm if she had a preference of who she faced.
Storm: “Not really.”
Renee asked Mariah if there was any update on who were debut opponent might be.
Mariah May: “Well Tony Khan helped me apply for my American wrestling license so very soon and Miss Storm you were sensational on commentary on Dynamite. And I was hoping you could commentate my first match.”
Toni Storm: “Darling, I am very busy.”
Mariah May: “That’s okay. Maybe you could check it out and offer some pointers.”
Toni Storm: “Darling, I am very busy but next time I hold a seminar you’ll be the very first to know. And as for Riho and Saraya, go ahead and go out there and slap each other around. Rip each other’s hair out. And at Worlds End I’ll be facing either one of two bland baldies.
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champion “The Machine” Brian Cage (with Prince Nana)
vs.
Kerry Wright!
Cage clobbered Kerry right out of the gate! Cage German suplexed Wright. Cage power bombed Kerry and then crushed him with the Drill Claw, scoring the pin!
“Who’s going to stop that monster?” asked Kevin Kelly.
Lexy Nair interviewed Brian Cage, the Gates of Agony, and Prince Nana backstage!
They said they were on a roll, this was Swerve’s house, but they were living in it.
“Limitless” Keith Lee interrupted.
Keith Lee: “Congratulations are in order. However, to celebrate, you can tell him, my patience runs thin, and time is running out.”
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
ROH World Champion/NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
vs.
Daniel Garcia (0)!
Matt Menard joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Daniel Garcia and Eddie Kingston traded chops. Eddie used a back heel trip on Garcia. Daniel Garcia stunned Kingston with a dragon screw leg whip off the apron. Kingston fired back with a belly to belly suplex. Kingston nailed Garcia with a DDT.
Kingston blasted Garcia with machine gun rapid fire chops. Kingston was like a man possessed. Garcia mocked Kingston. Garcia got his second wind and broke through the defense of Kingston. Garcia applied a kneebar on Kingston, but Kingston managed to reach the ropes.
Garcia put Kingston in a leg lock, but Eddie grabbed the ropes and escaped one more time. Garcia charged at Kingston, but Kingston countered with an exploder and then a spinning back fist for a two-count!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Garcia rocked Kingston with a suplex. Kingston’s leg gave out and Garcia grabbed him and hurled him with another stiff suplex for a near fall. Kingston fired back with a half and half suplex and then a spinning back fist and scored the pin on Garcia!
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
House of Black’s Brody King (6) vs. Blackpool Combat Club’s Bryan Danielson (6)!
Danielson kicked at Brody’s legs. Brody went after Bryan’s surgically repaired eye. Brody chopped Danielson in the throat! Brody splashed Danielson in the corner with a cannonball!
Brody smashed Danielson’s head across the announcers’ desk. Brody whipped Danielson into the steel barricade. Brody put Danielson on a chair and then splashed him, sandwiching Danielson between himself and the barricade!
Danielson was able to regain some momentum with a diving knee off the apron. Danielson hit a missile dropkick. Danielson returned to kicking Brody and inflicting damage to Brody’s knee. Brody retaliated with a lariat off the second turnbuckle.
Brody was looking for a cannonball, but Bryan tripped up Brody and applied a single crab. Brody kicked himself free, stunning Danielson. The American Dragon chopped away at big Brody with round kicks. Danielson grabbed Brody’s wrists and began stomping on him. Danielson switched to the hammer and anvil elbow strikes. Brody mustered the strength for a Death Valley Driver on Danielson for a near fall.
Danielson used his trademark knee strike on Brody, but Brody kicked out at one! Brody smashed Danielson with a lariat for a near fall! Danielson smacked Brody in the face with the running knee and then caught him in the back of the head with another knee strike, finally scoring the pin on Brody King!
“What a battle,” said Tony Schiavone.
“Bryan Danielson has inched forward to nine points,” added Kevin Kelly.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
All Elite Wrestling returns to Garland, TX and our home for the last four years at the Curtis Culwell Center! It’s the first time COLLISION has emanated from this great venue, and with WORLDS END fast approaching, that means more Continental Classic action in the Blue League! We saw Brody King take his first loss in the tournament on DYNAMITE, falling to Andrade El Idolo in each man’s third League bout, and boosting El Idolo up to the top spot with 9 points.
This week the Blue League continues with Claudio Castagnoli taking on Andrade, ROH World & NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston fighting an old rival in Daniel Garcia, and Bryan Danielson facing the immense challenge of Brody King! The bouts begin at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and the best way to get ready is to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, for highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from last week’s COLLISION, the latest CONTROL CENTER, and so much more!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: BLUE LEAGUE…
Standings
Andrade El Idolo (9)
Brody King (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
Daniel Garcia (0)
Daniel Garcia (0) vs. Eddie Kingston (3)
The Continental Classic is getting down to the wire, we’ve passed the halfway point, and unfortunately for Daniel Garcia there is no way for him to win the Blue League on points, nor even come in second in order to battle it out with the points leader for that spot in the Continental Classic Finals at WORLDS END. All Garcia can do now is play spoiler to those with hope in their hearts, and with enough points to potentially get them to the Blue League Finals.
One of those men who has to hold onto hope right now is Eddie Kingston, an opponent Garcia has battled many times over the last two years, because after dropping his first two Blue League bouts, Kingston finally scored his first three points last week over Claudio Castagnoli.
But with Bryan Danielson, as well as Brody King, at six points and Andrade El Idolo at nine points, Kingston finds himself with two must-win bouts left in the league, and also dependent on the failings of others. Save the possibility of a draw, either Danielson or King will walk out of Saturday with nine points to their name, and Kingston has lost to both of them already. With the other bout pitting Castagnoli against Andrade, either Claudio walks with six or Andrade with 12, the latter result puts that top spot in the league totally out of Kingston’s reach, with only a hope of second place to hold onto.
Now this is where things get very interesting, the possibility of ties and what draws could potentially do to shake up the entire Blue League, but the bottom line for the ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion is that he must defeat Daniel Garcia to have hope, he must defeat Andrade El Idolo in his next match to have hope, otherwise Kingston’s gamble with his two championship titles will have failed.
But is it a failure to risk it all in order to achieve something greater? Is that willingness to fail actually what makes a person great? Is it brave or foolhardy for an athlete to look at their future and be willing to gamble everything at the risk of walking away with nothing? Only at the end of this road will Eddie Kingston be able to answer that question for himself…
Bryan Danielson (6) vs. Brody King (6)
In his first two matches in the Continental Classic, Brody King showed the world just how dangerous an individual he can be. Generally competing in tags and trios with his fellow House of Black devotees, Brody took it to Eddie Kingston and Claudio Castagnoli with a fierceness. That first match with Kingston kind of shook up the competition as many thought Eddie, as the ROH World and NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion, would come into the tournament strong. Instead Brody dropped “The Mad King”, and moved onto Claudio Castagnoli, who was coming off a strong win on Daniel Gacris. Just as he did with Kingston, Brody King handed Castagnoli his first loss in the tournament, shocking the world once more with his dominance in singles competition, and with eyes on his third bout against Andrade El Idolo.
But Brody’s power and capacity for violence were no match for Andrade’s cunning as El Idolo took advantage of an exposed turnbuckle, cracked Brody’s head against the steel, and ended up with the victory of The House’s behemoth. Every man coming into this tournament did so knowing loss was a possibility, if not an inevitability, so King will take the defeat as a lesson and move forward with no excuses into his last two fights. For better or worse, Brody King has to meet former multi-time World Champion and Blackpool Combat Club member Bryan Danielson in his next fight.
Bryan has been through a bit of hell during 2023; from the litany of injuries sustained after REVOLUTION 2023’s Iron Man Match with MJF to his broken arm from FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023 against Okada to the fractured orbital bone suffered at the hands of both Okada and Orange Cassidy, the body of “The American Dragon” has gone through the ring.
And yet he never stops, Bryan Danielson never yields, and that is why he is a part of this tournament in spite of how much his body has endured. It seems with Danielson that no matter what his body may feel, his mind is strong, his will is iron, and his drive to compete is inevitable. That’s why he went through three Continental Classic matches in a week against Eddie Kingston, Daniel Garcia, and Andrade El Idolo. The first two were victories for Dragon, hard-fought, still victories nonetheless, but then came Andrade and his willingness to do something that the other two competitors did not: attack the eye.
With a relentless aggression, Andrade went after Danielson’s eye to the point that many wondered if Dragon would even be able to fight the match through to its end, but anyone who questioned that clearly doesn’t know the heart of Bryan. He fought through to the bitter end, taking the pain and punishment Andrade dished out, never stopping his fight, but ultimately succumbing. So now that the man who many thought would run the table with a perfect bracket has tasted defeat, what is his road to the finals? What is Brody King’s?
Obviously for both victory here is the goal, putting the winner at nine points in the Blue League, and potentially tied with Andrade El Idolo depending on how his battle with Claudio sways. If that’s the case, it comes down to the final match of the League for each, for Bryan that is actually fellow BCC member Claudio Castagnoli while for Brody King it is Daniel Garcia, someone who holds a victory over Brody from earlier this year. Win or lose, both men are still in the fight to win the Continental Classic, but whoever walks out of this with hand raised will be just a bit more comfortable in their position…that is if anyone is in position to walk away from this fight. Add in the fact that Bryan Danielson had a Fight Without Honor war last night at ROH’s FINAL BATTLE 2023 that ended with Mark Briscoe dropping “The American Dragon” with a Jay Driller to win the match, and it’s really questionable how Danielson is even capable of walking into this one, much less expecting to walk out the winner!
Claudio Castagnoli (3) vs. Andrade El Idolo (9)
Though some may have questioned whether or not Andrade El Idolo was wise to take on CJ Perry for his management, it’s hard to question the results as El Idolo is undefeated thus far, with victories over Daniel Garcia, Bryan Danielson, and Brody King just this past Wednesday on DYNAMITE. In each case Andrade has looked strong, dominant even, and as evidenced in both the Danielson and Brody King matches, willing to do anything it takes to secure that victory. In Bryan’s case it meant attacking that eye injury, and in King’s making use of the exposed turnbuckle, either way it ended with points for Andrade, enough to put him at the top of Blue League with just two matches left.
As for Claudio, he had a great first outing against Daniel Garcia to score his three points, but then ran into the brick wall of Brody King, and stumbled once more in his DYNAMITE: GRAND SLAM 2023 rematch with Eddie Kingston. The latter likely stung greater than the former given the ill will between Kingston and Castagnoli, but the Brody loss is still a loss and Castagnoli finds himself in the same hole as Kingston.
Claudio’s path to possibly make the cut for League Finals means defeating Andrade and, in his final match, his own Blackpool Combat Club brother Bryan Danielson. Even that would only net him nine points, leaving The Swiss Superman also dependent on the outcome of other matches in order to be one of the last two men standing for the Gold League Finals in Orlando on December 27th. Andrade is obviously in the Gold League driver’s seat, but he could end up fighting for that second place spot if he drops this match and his final bout with Eddie Kingston. No one in this Blue League should let themselves get too comfortable…especially considering four of these six men fought at ROH’s FINAL BATTLE 2023 event last night. All but Andrade El Idolo and Brody King went through a fight, so it will be very intriguing to see how those may effect these three bouts!
AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
“Freshly Squeezed” Orange Cassidy(c) vs. “The Bounty Hunter” Bryan Keith
Last night at FINAL BATTLE 2023, Bryan Keith came into ROH for the very first time with nothing more than an opportunity to qualify for the ROH World Television Championship Survival of the Fittest Elimination bout. “All” Kieth had to do was beat Jack Cartwheel on the ZERO HOUR to get there.
Well he did that, and in the span of the seven minutes that fight lasted, Bryan also won over the ROH faithful in Garland, TX. Then “The Bounty Hunter” stepped into the Survival of the Fittest Finals and hung in there for seventeen minutes, eliminating Lee Moriarty in the process before Kyle Fletcher took him out, and Bryan Keth solidified himself as a force to be reckoned with anywhere he goes.
Obviously someone took notice because Orange Cassidy, the 2-Time AEW International Champion, actually stepped up to “The Bounty Hunter” and offered him an opportunity to challenge for the title this Saturday night on COLLISION! Now Orange is coming into this off a fight of his own, teaming up with The Von Erichs on RAMPAGE to beat Cool Hand Ang, Daddy Magic, and Jake Hager, but that took far less a toll on the champion than FINAL BATTLE 2023 did to his challenger!
Can Bryan Keith upset the defending champion this Saturday night in Garland, and continue to show the world what he brings to the table inside that squared circle? Will OC’s own challenge backfire on him come COLLISION?
All Elite Wrestling has called Garland, TX and the Curtis Culwell Center home since 2019, and for the first time we are bringing COLLISION action to town! The Blue League tournament action heads into its fourth round with Castagnoli versus Andrade, Kingston battling Garcia, and Danielson tackling King! COLLISION begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to get prepared for it all, drop by the official AEW YouTube channel to watch highlights from this week’s editions of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from the last COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
Power Book III Raising Kanan Season 3 Episode 2 Recap & Review “Flipmode”Power Book III Raising Kanan Season 3 Episode 3 Recap & Review S3E03 *SPOILERS*Power Book 3 Raising Kanan Season 3 Episode 3Power Book III…
Winter is coming to Arlington, TX this Wednesday night when All Elite Wrestling debuts at College Park Center! All roads lead to Long Island for WORLDS END on December 30th, but the way there is increasingly fraught with peril for everyone in the Continental Classic, as well as AEW World Champion MJF, his scheduled challenger Samoa Joe, and anyone else around the champ!
Three more matches in the Gold League will go down on Wednesday night with Rush facing Jay Lethal, Mark Briscoe battling Jay White, and the two unbeatens, Jon Moxley and Swerve Strickland, putting that on the line in their first-ever meeting! Plus Ruby Soho takes on the returning Riho, Roderick Strong gets back in action with a fight against “Hangman” Adam Page, and we will hear from the #1 Contender to MJF’s AEW World Championship, Samoa Joe! DYNAMITE begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so drop in on the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s various social media platforms, to watch highlights from last week’s episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as the newest CONTROL CENTER!
One would be hard-pressed to find a man on a bigger role right now than Jon Moxley, he’s won 13 of his last 15 singles matches, including that Steel Cage Match with Kenny Omega and being the one to end Orange Cassidy’s historic first AEW International Championship reign. His two losses were quite painful to be honest, losing that same championship to Rey Fenix and failing to reclaim it from “Freshly Squeezed” in their rematch, but Mox has rebounded spectacularly with this three victories in the Continental Classic: Gold League thus far. RUSH, Mark Briscoe, and Jay Lethal have all fallen at the hands of the 3-Time AEW World Champion and even though we’ve all heard it from the horse’s mouth just how he is hurting, Mox is going to keep fighting until there’s no breath left in his lungs.
Swerve is also on quite a roll of his own, winning nine of his last ten singles bouts, the loss in that situation coming at the hands of Bryan Danielson and there is absolutely no shame in losing to “The American Dragon”. Now Strickland might put that loss squarely on the shoulders of Hangman Page, but the reality is that all the former AEW World Champion did was prevent Swerve from cheating to win. Now the nature of this tournament removed the Prince Nana factor from the equation, but rather than be a hindrance, it has instead allowed Swerve to prove just how good he is without the assistance of The Mogul Embassy. Victories over Mark Briscoe, Jay White, and Jay Lethal have bolstered Swerve already massive go, but also demonstrated that he’s got the ability to be truly great on his own. And now it will be put to the test this Wednesday night when the only unbeaten men in the Gold League go head-to-head for the very first time!
Swerve Strickland and Jon Moxley are both on the precipice of winning the Gold League, the only man that can possibly match them is Jay White, but he requires a lot of pieces to fall into place in order to make that happen, not the least of which is beating Moxley in their final League match. That’s a story for another week though, and another fight, this one will either set a definitive top dog in the Gold League with a three point victory, or leave things all tied up with a one point draw. One will have twelve points, or both will have ten, those are the only two ways this can go, and all eyes will be watching to see how it plays out.
Rush (3) vs. Jay Lethal (0)
With just three points to his name, “El Toro Blanco” is one of three men in this tournament on the outside looking in; mathematically speaking, there is no way for the head of La Faccion Ingobernable to move to the front of the line save both Jon Moxley and Swerve Strickland forfeiting their last two matches. Even if two current leaders of the field went to a draw in their bout this Wednesday, and Moxley lost in his last bout to Jay White while RUSH beat Swerve in theirs, the best he could hope for is nine points to their ten. Still, stranger things have happened, and “El Toro Blanco” is fighting with the hope that one of those things takes place between now and the finals of the Gold League!
As for Jay Lethal, the “Franchise of ROH”, he has taken his zero point total very hard, and there was obviously not a whole lot for Jeff Jarrett or Sonjay Dutt to say about the matter. So while Lethal is eliminated from any possibility of winning this tournament, he can still score some sort of moral victory by winning at least one of his remaining battles, and in the case of Rush, he can do it with a win over a man he’s never beaten in RUSH. Their only singles encounter, a ROH World Championship match at the 19TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW in March 2021 ended with a RUSH victory, their one Four Corner Survival ended with neither as the victor, and their Eight-Man Tag ended with LFI having the upper hand.
Coincidentally, before any of their matches against one another, there was a period of time in 2019 where the two men actually fought side-by-side, and even challenged for the ROH World Six-Man Titles together with Jeff Cobb. Yet now they stand as foes once again, Lethal’s first chance to redeem that 2021 championship defeat, and his second-to-last opportunity to put any points on the board before the Continental Classic comes to a close. Will Lethal be able to overcome his disappointing run so far, or will this be another night that drives him further towards the edge?
Jay White (6) vs. Mark Briscoe (0)
One month ago, just ten days before “Switchblade” Jay White fought MJF at FULL GEAR 2023 for the AEW World Championship, he went one-on-one with Mark Briscoe for the very first time. Now the two had some history dating back to Jay’s NJPW excursion spent with Ring of Honor, and even fought in a tag team affair as recently as June 2022, but that evening was their first singles bout, and after fourteen minutes, it went the way of Jay White. That sent “King Switch” to his championship match on a high note, not one that led to him claiming the title as his own, but a loss that has perhaps served to stoke White’s fires with this Continental Classic.
With two victories under his belt, and two matches still to go, the possibility exists that Jay White could actually end up in a tie for the Gold League crown. He just needs to win out in this match, as well as in his final bout with Jon Moxley, and hope that, regardless of the Swerve/Moxley outcome, Strickland also blows his final match in the tournament against RUSH. The situation is possible, but it all hinges on “Switchblade” beating Mark Briscoe.
So knowing he’s completely eliminated from the tournament, what does Mark Briscoe stand to gain from these last two matches with Jay White and Jay Lethal? Well right here, with this “Switchblade” rematch, Mark has the opportunity to redeem his loss a month ago, and play spoiler for any hopes the head of BULLET CLUB GOLD has at winning the Gold League. If White loses this Wednesday night, all hope he had of snaking into a tie for the top spot will be so much dust in the wind thanks to the 13-Time ROH World Tag Team Champion! Can Mark do that? Can he find it within himself to score a win even though nothing is a stake save personal redemption? If there’s anyone in this tournament who has that heart, it’s Mark Briscoe!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: BLUE LEAGUE…
Standings
Brody King (6)
Andrade El Idolo (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (3)
Daniel Garcia (0)
Andrade El Idolo (6) vs. Brody King (6)
This Wednesday night the Blue League of the Continental Classic will come to DYNAMITE for the first time, and with it comes a battle of the two top men in standings! On paper there may be a three tie between Brody King, Andrade El Idolo, and Bryan Danielson, but the reality is that Bryan’s six points are the result of three matches in the Blue League while King and El Idolo have had just two thus far. That changes on Wednesday night when those two warriors collide in their third Blue League match, the halfway point of the tournament, and a rematch of their June 24th COLLISION bout that ended with a DQ victory for Andrade El Idolo after Buddy Matthews interfered on Brody’s behalf.
That will not be the case on Wednesday since, as we all know by now, outside interference in the Continental Classic will not be tolerated, a rule that thankfully has been obeyed by all parties involved thus far. That leaves the powerhouse of The House to deal with the man who had him dead to rights back in June when Buddy’s involvement was the only thing that saved Brody from tapping to the Figure Eight. Will DYNAMITE see Andrade finish the job that was so rudely interrupted at the beginning of the Summer, or will Brody King continue his monstrous run through the Blue League competition to ascend to the top of the mountain with nine points?
Hangman hasn’t stepped into the ring since his unforgettable Texas Death match against Swerve Strickland, a fight he lost, but will forever be etched onto Adam’s soul as one of the most life changing he’s ever had. Where does he go now? It seems his mission is to insure Swerve never achieves his own championship dreams, but now there’s also a little bit of MJF in the mix because, quite frankly, the AEW World Champion is seeing the devil in everyone…
Roderick Strong, since being (questionably) injured by Samoa Joe in the Grand Slam Eliminator Tournament finals back in September, has only fought twice, both just about a month ago, and spent most of his time being wheeled around by The Kingdom while yelling quite unnecessarily. One of those matches, the fight with Action Andretti, saw Strong land rather painfully on that neck that he’s been nursing for three months, giving him further excuses to not fight, but it looks like Roddy is finally putting himself back in the mix!
There’s a rich history between Roderick Strong and Adam Page, one dating back to the earliest years of Hangman’s career, and even saw Page serve as Roddy’s young boy in Ring of Honor when Strong was part of a group known as The Decade. It has been nine years since their last one-on-one fight, ROH’s FINAL BATTLE 2014 event to be exact, and seven-plus years since they last shared at ring at ROH/NJPW GLOBAL WARS 2016. So much has changed for both men, especially for Hangman whose stock has risen so much from those young boy days to that of a former AEW World and World Tag Team champion.
This Wednesday night their paths merge once more as each forges ahead with their careers into the great unknown. Is their future the AEW World Champion? Is it something else neither has found yet? Page still has Swerve in his focus, Roderick is still rather obsessive where it comes to anything around Adam Cole, but is that all there is for them?
When we last saw Riho inside an AEW ring it was as another victim of The Outcasts, when they were a united trio, after they’d already beaten her and Skye Blue in a tag team bout. Following the match, Riho was assaulted, spray painted, and dropped with a Triple Powerbomb, never getting a chance to even the score with her assailants.
This past week on DYNAMITE though, after Toni Storm’s victory over Skye Blue, Riho returned to the AEW stage and went straight for the AEW Women’s World Champion! Though Toni may longer have an affiliation with The Outcasts, she was still part of the scenario that put Riho out of AEW action, and the fact Toni’s the reigning champion furthers the incentive for Riho to target her first.
But that doesn’t mean the other women involved are in store for their own comeuppance as well, and that begins this Wednesday night in Arlington when Riho goes one-on-one with Ruby Soho! It’s the first time these two warriors have gone to battle since Ruby eliminated Riho from the 2022 Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament, given Riho even more incentive to even the score with this Outcast! Will Riho manage to do that this Wednesday night, or will Ruby have Saraya at her side to tip the scales?
Samoa Joe had promised to keep Maxwell Jacob Friedman intact heading into their AEW World Championship bout, but it’s hard to do that when the champion is doing nothing to keep himself safe. He’s already banged up from his title fight against Jay White at FULL GEAR 2023, but that hasn’t stopped MJF from continuing to pursue a fight at every opportunity, especially where this Devil and his masked men are concerned.
That’s what led to Samoa Joe standing in the ring waiting for the arrival of his temporary partner, saw him stuck in the ring while a group of masked men surrounded it, and then just as abruptly left all by himself to watch a video of MJF laid out, apparently with bottle smashed across his head based on the wreckage left around him.
So where is Samoa Joe’s head at after all that, knowing he’s only a couple weeks away from WORLDS END, and MJF constantly in jeopardy of not being up for the fight? We will hear from the most dangerous man in professional wrestling this Wednesday in Arlington!
THE GOLDEN JETS…
Coming off a hard-fought victory over “All Ego” Ethan Page, Kenny Omega was laid out by Big Bill and left for dead on the COLLISION stage, a message to Omega and Chris Jericho as they sit with a guaranteed AEW World Tag Team Championship match in their pocket. Both Jericho and Omega have paid physical prices for earning that shot, though Omega may have paid a more personal one given that it came at the cost of beating his supposed best friends at FULL GEAR 2023, and this week on DYNAMITE we will hear from the #1 Contender’s regarding Ricky Starks and Big Bill! Will this be the day they call their shot, and name the site of their title match?
DYNAMITE debuts in Arlington, TX this Wednesday night at the College Park Center featuring three more bouts in the Gold League of the Continental Classic! We’ve got a battle of the 9-Pointers in Swerve Strickland and Jon Moxley, the winless Mark Briscoe fighting Jay White, and Rush taking on Jay Lethal as the latter tries to stay in contention! In addition, former ROH Women’s World Champion Riho returns to action against Ruby Soho, Roderick Strong is back in the fight opposite Hangman Page, and Samoa Joe will be in the house after watching his WORLDS END foe get laid out apparently by AEW’s Devil.
The bouts begin at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, just be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel for all the highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as this week’s CONTROL CENTER!
As we reach the halfway point, things are heating up with the Continental Classic in both the Gold and Blue League with both Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal eliminated from victory in the Gold, Daniel Garcia (depending greatly on Saturday night) stands on the precipice of suffering the same fate in the Blue following his loss on RAMPAGE, and Eddie Kingston could end up in the same position depending on his COLLISION contest! We are heading full speed toward WORLDS END on December 30th, but there’s a lot of story to be told before All Elite Wrestling gets onto Long Island, and Montreal plays host to the next chapter!
In a clash of Canadians, “All Ego” Ethan Page goes head-to-head with Kenny Omega in their first-ever contest, Willie Mack steps up to defend his friend AR Fox against Wardlow, an old rivalry renews between Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Martinez, and the Blue League continues with Claudio versus Kingston and Danielson versus Andrade! The night begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to best get prepared for it, visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, to catch highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from last week’s COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC: BLUE LEAGUE
Standings
Brody King (6)
“The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (6)
Claudio Castagnoli (3)
Andrade El Idolo (3)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston (0)
Daniel Garcia (0)
ROH World Champion/NJPW STRONG Eddie Kingston (0) vs. Claudio Castagnoli (3)
The history between these two men is well-documented; former training partners, as well as former roommates, whose bad blood blossomed long ago and spilled all over the independent wrestling landscape in the years before Castagnoli left that landscape to ply his trade elsewhere. It was never laid to rest, never settled, and the truth was, even after Eddie Kingston finally defeated Claudio Castagnoli at GRAND SLAM 2023 to win the ROH World Championship, that animosity wasn’t going to fade away even if the two men planned on never fighting each other again.
Unfortunately for Kingston and Castagnoli, their plan to never have to fight one another again became impossible as soon as the brackets were set for the Continental Classic and both were positioned in the Blue League. That made a conflict inevitable, whereas if they’d been kept in separate leagues then the finals would’ve been their only possible meeting place. Instead this Saturday night on COLLISION, in their third tournament matches, the ROH World & NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion will fight the man he dethroned for the former, only this time no title will be at stake, rather three points in the league and the potential for Kingston to be mathematically eliminated from tournament victory. That loss would be a blow more devastating than any other he’s experienced thus far because not only would it mean Kingston is out of contention in the Continental Classic, it also means that he has effectively lost both the ROH World Championship and the NJPW STRONG Openweight Title.
He may have the championship sobriquet attached to his name until December 29th, but if Kingston is eliminated from this tournament before WORLDS END, its a meaningless distinction and he’ll only have himself to blame for putting both titles into the mix to create this modern North American Triple Crown! Can Kingston ward off elimination with a second consecutive victory over Claudio Castagnoli? Or will “The Swiss Superman” bounce back from his loss to Brody King with yet another victory over “The Mad King”?
Bryan Danielson (6) vs. Andrade El Idolo (3)
The last time these two men met in combat was on the October 21st edition of COLLISION, and also the last singles match Bryan Danielson had before the orbital bone injuries he sustained just four days later in that DYNAMITE tag team bout against Okada and Orange Cassidy. It took nearly 19 minutes of fierce battle, but “The American Dragon” managed to topple Andrade on that night to emerge the victor. Now this Continental Classic tournament has given Andrade an opportunity to even their score…
It’s common knowledge that Bryan Danielson comes into this fight still healing from that eye injury, but it didn’t stop him from defeating Eddie Kingston last week in Bryan’s first tournament bout, it didn’t stop him from beating Daniel Garcia on RAMPAGE less than 24 hours ago, and it isn’t going to prevent Danielson from giving it his all against Andrade either. Much like how Danielson had to be wary of Kingston’s spinning back fist when it came to protecting the eye, this time around he needs to be cognizant of that deadly spinning back elbow Andrade employs to knock his opponents senseless. If that connects, not only could it mean the end of Danielson’s bid for three more points, it could mark the end of his participation in this tournament as a whole thanks to another re-fractured orbital bone…
A CANADIAN CHALLENGE…
“The Cleaner” Kenny Omega vs. “All Ego” Ethan Page
For the very first time in their careers, “All Ego” Ethan Page and “The Cleaner” Kenny Omega will go one-on-one after Ethan challenged AEW’s only Triple Crown winner to see who was the better Canadian! Back in June, when AEW came to Hamilton, Ontario for the first time, Ethan stepped up to give AEW World Champion MJF a run for his money in an impromptu title bout, and now he’s making another stand in the Great White North by calling out one of the most influential athletes of this generation!
Omega has had a rough 2023, losing four of his last six singles matches beginning with the night Don Callis stabbed him in the head inside a Steel Cage, and constantly being on the wrong end of an assault from Callis’ Family, but he’s now won three straight in tag team and multi-man affairs, including beating his own best friends The Young Bucks to steal their guaranteed AEW World Tag Title match while apparently sending them off to lick their wounds.
In Montreal, will Omega continue to get himself back on track or will it be Ethan Page’s time to step up to the plate and knock it out of the park?
FOR A FRIEND…
Wardlow vs. Willie Mack
Willie Mack and AR Fox have ties that run deep, back some ten years to shows in Mexico, even include the two men reigning as champions together as part of a trio back in 2015, and those ties have led Wardlow to putting himself in the path of “The War Dog”! For Wardlow, the path ends at MJF’s grave, but the AEW World Champion has a whole lot on his plate and his former bodyguard is going to have to get in the queue. Until then, every one who slows Wardlow down from getting to his goal is going to suffer, and he intends to make Willie Mack the next victim!
TIME FOR A FIGHT…
Mercedes Martinez vs. Willow Nightingale
Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Martinez have a rivalry that has spanned a half-decade, crossed across multiple companies, and across the United States. It began in 2018 in the Berwyn Eagles Club and picked back up in 2022 at ROH’s SUPERCARD OF HONOR event when the two competed for the Interim ROH Women’s World Championship. Both those singles matches were won by Martinez, as was their first AEW bout, a tag team match on COLLISION in August where Martinez and Diamante topped Willow and Kris Statlander. A Trios bout on the ZERO HOUR of ALL OUT 2023 finally saw Nightingale, with Hikaru Shida and Skye Blue as her partners, get that first victory over Mercedes who had ROH Women’s World Champion Athena and Diamante as her allies, and she would score another win over Martinez in a tag match for the Kitsune Women’s Wrestling promotion a few weeks later.
But nothing has brought an end to this rivalry, and the insistence of Mercedes and Diamante to engage with the woman Willow calls friends has kept them in each other’s lives as well. So it comes to blows once again this Saturday night on COLLISION in the third singles match between Nightingale and Martinez! After scoring the last two victories in their rivalry, can Nightingale finally get her first one-on-one win over Mercedes Martinez?
The Blue League tournament action continues, Mercedes Martinez and Willow Nightingale clash, Wardlow goes into battle with Willie Mack, and in a first-ever battle, Ethan Page meets Kenny Omega! COLLISION gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to get prepared for it all, drop by the official AEW YouTube channel to watch highlights from this week’s editions of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from the last COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
Tonight’s episode of AEW DYNAMITE was broadcast live from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC!
Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and “The Human Suplex Machine” Taz were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
It’s Wednesday night and you know what that means!
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley vs. LFI’s Rush!
Rush chopped at Moxley and Moxley returned fire! Mox changed levels and kicked Rush, but Rush countered with a belly-to-belly suplex. Mox came down hard on his shoulder with an awkward landing, his shoulder and arm being caught under Rush’s body.
They brawled outside the ring and Mox whipped Rush over the barricade. Moxley pursued Rush through the fans. Rush gouged Moxley’s eyes and then smashed a drink over Moxley’s head. Back in the ring they traded more strikes. Rush stomped on Moxley in the corner and then booted Moxley in the face.
Rush taunted Moxley, but Moxley flipped him off in response. Rush scoop slammed Moxley for a near fall. Moxley rallied back with a big cutter to Rush. Moxley rocked Rush with a lariat in the corner. Moxley superplexed Moxley for a two count.
Outside the ring, Moxley charged at Rush and Rush countered with a belly-to-belly suplex, sending Mox flying into the steel barricade. Rush returned Moxley to the ring and Moxley spiked Rush with a DDT.
The fans chanted “Moxley! Moxley! Moxley!”
Rush blasted Moxley with a stalling piledriver. Rush superplexed Moxley for a near fall. Moxley got to his feet and rocketed out of the ring with a tope suicida at Rush! Both men returned to the ring, barely beating the ref’s 10-count.
Moxley and Rush collided in the ring, Rush resorting to a headbutt, knocking Mox down. Rush was looking for the Bull’s Horns, but Mox rocked Rush with the King Kong Lariat and the Death Rider. Rush kicked out of the pin attempt, and then Moxley transitioned to the bulldog choke and put Rush to sleep!
“That’s how you do it, with the proper fundamentals,” said Taz.
“Rush is frustrated. He woke up and heard Moxley’s music playing,” added Excalibur.
Renee Paquette interviewed Roderick Strong and The Kingdom on the ramp!
Roderick Strong: “Renee! It’s obvious that Max is going to put his dagger into the heart of my best friend by proxy Samoa Joe. But you know, Joe is a big boy, and if life has taught me anything, actions have consequences. And tonight, Joe is going to put his hand on a hot stove and it’s going to burn.
“Renee, you sound crazy! Every decision has consequences. Look at me! This is my life. I’m in this wheelchair because of decisions I’ve made. This is my life every single day! And I will live with the consequences of my decisions until now!”
Roderick Strong stood up from the wheelchair and began to walk!
Roderick Strong: “I will no longer suffer consequences for my decisions. I will no longer be held back by this wheelchair! This wheelchair has held me back for far too long. Far too long.”
Renee Paquette was backstage outside of AEW World Champion MJF’s locker room, hoping to get a word with him!
“Hangman” Adam Page walked by, unaware that Renee was doing a live shot. She transitioned to interviewing Page, who hasn’t been seen since his Texas Death Match with Swerve Strickland.
Adam Page: “I got hit in the back of the head with a cinder block and then choked unconscious. So, I could not fly for a few weeks. I’m glad you caught me, because there is something I need to say to you, Swerve, and to the world. Swerve you broke into my home. You went into my son’s room. It took Prince Nana, it took Brian Cage, but you beat me in a Texas Death Match on pay-per-view. I can concede, I can recognize when I’ve lost.
“And you have beaten me. But Swerve at Full Gear I took something from you that you will never get back. And I think we are bound by something bigger than either of us. And I think you should know this is not over. And Swerve I know what you want more than anything from this life. And I promise because of what you’ve done to me that you will never have it.”
MJF walked out of his locker room.
MJF: “Howdy Seabiscuit. I just wanted to say to you, bravo on that match at Full Gear against Strickland. I mean it was so impressive to see two guys battle it out to see who could get more STDs.”
Page: “Honestly I don’t have 30 minutes to stand here for you to talk to me like you normally do, so Renee, if this is your interview, have at it.”
Page walked off.
MJF turned to Renee: “The reason that I have to go out there for 30 minutes is to wake the crowd up after they have to deal with somebody like you putting them to sleep.”
Page turned around and came back to MJF!
Page: “Is there something else you want to say to me?”
MJF: “Funny you ask. My memory is not all that great, Renee, I’ve been hit in the head a few times. I think the last time you and I saw eye to eye was when I verbally bent you over in front of Bret Hart at Double or Nothing.”
Page: “Yeah, yeah, I think you were talking about a match where I buckshotted you and threw you over the top rope. Was that the one?”
MJF: “That’s a good memory. See what I remember is the first time I won the Dynamite Diamond Ring, but I can’t recall who I beat. I think it was this white trash hick. Renee, do you remember who I beat for the Dynamite Diamond Ring, because it’s escaping me.”
Page: “You know, I think it was me, and I think it made me so upset I had to console myself by becoming the World champion instead.”
MJF: “Oh yeah, that reign was fantastic. Lasted about six months, right? The thing is my reign has been well over a year.”
Page: “Well I’m sure you’re really proud of that. And I’m sure you’ll continue to be proud of it until you’re 70 years old, at home, by yourself, telling your ninth cat about your one year title reign.”
MJF: “Funny stuff. You want to get honest here Hangman. You know what I think? I think out of everybody in this locker room, there’s one guy I think…I think you’re the devil.”
Page: “The devil? The masked guy? You think I’m running around in a Party City mask? I have known you for a long time, Max, and as long as I have known you, you have been a manipulator, Max. Just be honest with me, Max. It’s probably just you, right? You put on a mask, you run around, you attack your opponents, you pretend you attack yourself. I don’t know what the deal is but it’s just you. Be honest with me.”
MJF: “You want honesty? How about I honestly beat the living crap out of you!”
Hangman got into MJF’s face, but Samoa Joe intervened.
Samoa Joe: “Easy there, he’s my responsibility now. And MJF, what is wrong with you? We have other issues tonight that do not involve him.”
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
Mark Briscoe vs. Mogul Embassy’s Swerve Strickland!
“This is a must win match for Mark Briscoe,” said Excalibur.
“He’s facing elimination here tonight,” replied Tony Schiavone.
Briscoe used an arm drag on Swerve and followed up with an inside trip and a headlock. Briscoe connected with a high boot into the jaw of Strickland. Mark hit a tight Russian leg sweep on Swerve.
Swerve managed to rally back with a diving uppercut to Briscoe’s neck. Swerve followed up with a delayed neck breaker. They exchanged strikes on the apron. Mark clocked Swerve with a kick, knocking him to the floor. Briscoe charged at Swerve and Swerve backdropped him over the barricade. Swerve superplexed Briscoe off the barricade and onto the arena floor!
Back in the ring, Briscoe rang Swerve’s bell with redneck kung fu. Briscoe was on target with an elbow strike and then a high boot in the corner. Briscoe nailed Swerve with a fisherman’s buster for a near fall.
Swerve turned the corner with a German suplex. Swerve cracked Mark with a roundhouse kick for a two-count! Swerve climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Mark knocked Swerve off his perch with a big uppercut. Briscoe connected with a lariat for a near fall. Swerve had the Jay Driller scouted and countered with the House Call kick! Swerve tried for a 450 splash, but Mark raised his knees to counter! Briscoe tried for the Froggy Bow, but Swerve raised his knees to counter!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Mark was looking for a Jay Driller on the apron, but Swerve countered with a Death Valley Driver! Swerve climbed to the top turnbuckle and hit the Swerve Stomp, scoring the pin on Briscoe!
“Nine points for Swerve Strickland,” said Excalibur.
“Briscoe deserves a lot of credit, putting his body out here, but he was not able to get the victory,” said Taz.
Renee Paquette was backstage with Mariah May!
Mariah: “The meeting last week with Tony Khan went really well. He’s watched all of my work in Stardom. He loves Japanese wrestling. I mean, he’s not an idiot, he signed me. And we planned my debut. We want it to be as good as it can possibly be, bring some much needed glamour to AEW.”
Renee: “You guys planned your debut. Can you give me information on who your first opponent is going to be?”
Mariah: “Renee, that’s none of your business, because tonight is all about ‘Timeless’ Toni Storm. Her first title defense, I’m going to be there, watching, studying.”
AEW World & ROH World Tag Team Champ MJF & Samoa Joe
vs.
The Devil’s Masked Men!
Samoa Joe made his entrance first, by himself. The Devil’s masked men surrounded the ring as the lights flickered. Joe was surrounded on all four sides. The lights went out completely. When the arena lights came back on, the devil’s masked me were nowhere to be seen, and Joe was standing alone in the ring.
“Is this supposed to be a warning message to Samoa Joe?” asked Excalibur.
The masked Devil appeared on the big screen, and then live footage began to show from backstage while Samoa Joe watched on. MJF had been knocked out and his body was unconscious on the cement floor, a broken bottle nearby. Samoa Joe sprinted up the ramp to the back.
After a commercial break, Jon Moxley was backstage!
Moxley: “I’m humble before God and my mother, but look, I know exactly who I am. I know exactly what I’m capable of. I expected to be 3 and 0. I expect to be 5 and 0. I expect to win the Continental Classic because I’m the ace of the world.”
Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana walked onto the scene.
Swerve: “9 and 0, 9 and 0. It’s going to take more than those crappy new kick pads that you have on to stop the momentum that I’m on. As you saw in L.A., I’m willing to do whatever it takes to win, at all costs, it don’t matter who’s in my way. Remember that.”
Mox: “Good! Me too!”
Swerve: “See you in Texas.”
TCM host Ben Mankiewicz introduced “Timeless” Toni Storm ahead of her match!
AEW Women’s World Championship Match!
“Timeless” Toni Storm (c.) (with Luther the Butler) vs. Skye Blue!
Mariah May was watching from ringside.
Toni Storm had a tight headlock on Skye Blue. Toni Storm blasted Blue with a stiff shot. Toni bounced Skye’s head against the broadcast booth. Storm hit the hip attack against Blue and the barricade!
Blue connected with a dropkick and then a rising knee strike. Blue got a near fall on Storm after a diving crossbody press. Storm blocked Skye Fall and nailed Blue with a German suplex. Blue dodged the hip attack and fired back with a thrust kick on Storm. Skye Blue cracked Toni Storm with her own version of the hip attack!
Skye Blue rocked Toni with the Code Blue for a (very) near fall! Toni delivered headbutts to Skye Blue, stopping Skye in her tracks. Storm superplexed Skye Blue! Storm used the hip attack, went for the Storm Zero, but Skye countered with a roll-up! Storm reversed the roll-up and pinned Skye Blue!
After the match, Riho’s music hit, and Riho ran down to the ring! Storm charged at Riho, but Riho dodged Storm and dropkicked the champ out of the ring! Luther carried “Timeless” Toni Storm away from the ring.
Continental Classic Gold League Match!
“Switchblade” Jay White vs. Jay Lethal!
Lethal and White locked up as the fans chanted “Let’s go Jay!”
Lethal went to strut and White capitalized, hitting Lethal from behind. Lethal hip tossed White and then dropkicked him. Jay White went to work on Lethal’s leg. Jay White spiked Lethal with a DDT for a near fall.
Lethal retaliated with a tope suicida. Back in the ring Lethal put White into a torture rack. Lethal hit the elbow drop from the top rope for a near fall! Jay White suplexed Lethal into the turnbuckles. Jay White followed up with a brain buster for a two-count!
White sent Lethal flying with a sleeper suplex. Lethal tried for the Lethal Injection but Jay White countered it, going right back to Lethal’s knee. Lethal countered the Blade Runner but White put his weight on Lethal and scored the pin!
“A heartbreaking loss for Jay Lethal,” said Excalibur.
Main Event Time! TNT Championship Match!
“The Patriarch” Christian Cage (c.) vs. “Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland!
Copeland smacked Christian Cage with an open hand shot! Copeland rammed Christian into the broadcast booth over and over. Christian begged Copeland to stop, pleading for mercy. Copeland intercepted a low blow and stomped on Christian’s hand!
Copeland whipped Christian Cage into the barricades. Christian grabbed Copeland and drove his throat into the steel ring post! Copeland blocked the pendulum kick between the ropes. Copeland hit a clothesline, jumping off the turnbuckles and knocking Christian off the apron!
Christian used a drop toehold, driving Copeland’s face into the ring steps. Christian landed a frog splash for a near fall on Cope! Copeland countered the spear with the Impaler for a two-count! Christian was looking for a superplex, but Copeland knocked him down with a head butt. Adam Copeland nailed Christian with a running powerbomb for a near fall!
“That was an impressive kick out by Christian Cage,” said Taz.
Copeland countered the Kill Switch attempt, planting Christian Cage for a near fall. Copeland locked on the crossface but Christian managed to reach the ropes with his boot to force the ref to break the submission.
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Adam Copeland hammered Christian Cage’s head on the mat with forearm shots. Christian jumped over Copeland’s spear attempt with a leapfrog and then clocked Copeland with the Kill Switch for a two-count!
Copeland dodged the spear attempt from Christian, and as Copeland moved, he inadvertently knocked down the referee. As the ref had his back turn, Christian kicked the ref with a low blow. Christian grabbed his championship title and swung it at Copeland, but Copeland avoided it. Both men went for spears and collided into one another!
“Both men went for the spear!” said Excalibur.
“The referee is still down,” added Taz.
Nick Wayne’s mother, Shanna Wayne, walked to the ring. She got into the ring, grabbing the TNT title!
“She’s torn,” said Excalibur.
Shanna Wayne smacked Copeland in the head with the belt!
“What the hell did she just do?” asked Tony Schiavone.
“She made a decision, that’s what she did,” replied Taz.
Christian planted Copeland with the Kill Switch. Christian placed Copeland’s head on the championship and then stomped on Copeland’s neck! Christian Cage covered Adam Copeland and pinned him.
“One of the worst things I’ve ever seen,” said Tony Schiavone.
“This is scary and Christian Cage has sunk to a new low,” replied Excalibur.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE: Winter Is Coming on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the College Park Center in Arlington, TX!
This Friday tune in to AEW RAMPAGE at 10pm ET on TNT!
Don’t miss AEW Collision on Saturday on TNT at 8/7c from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC featuring:
-Continental Classic Blue League Match: Bryan Danielson vs. Andrade El Idolo!
-Continental Classic Blue League Match: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Eddie Kingston!
– “All Ego” Ethan Page vs. Kenny Omega!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
Last week on DYNAMITE the AEW faithful bore witness to the next round of Gold League bouts in the Continental Classic, including Jon Moxley and Swerve Strickland raising their point total to six as “El Toro Blanco” Rush scored his first three, leaving Jay White with three, while Jay Lethal, as well as Mark Briscoe, have zero to their name. In addition, AEW World Champion MJF was challenged by the devil-masked individual to unite with Samoa Joe for a tag team bout, and Toni Storm was informed she’d be putting AEW Women’s World Championship on the line in Montreal!
This Wednesday night, as AEW brings DYNAMITE to the Bell Centre in Montrealfor the very first time, we will see the next three bouts in the Gold League, as well as two huge championship matches! Swerve battles Mark Briscoe, Jon Moxley takes on Rush, and Jay Lethal goes head-to-head with Jay White as some jockey for the top spot while others attempt to stave off mathematical elimination! “Timeless” Toni Storm will put her championship on the line for the first time in this third reign as she faces one of her most persistent foes in Skye Blue, and, in the face of 40-plus years of friendship, TNT Champion Christian Cage will face “The Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland!
DYNAMITE kicks off at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so be sure to visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s assorted social media platforms, to get catch up on highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as this week’s CONTROL CENTER!
AEW TNT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
“The Patriach” Christian Cage(c) vs. “Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland
It has been more than thirteen years since the last time Christian Cage and Adam Copeland stood across the ring from one another waiting for the first bell to ring that signifies the start of their one-on-one clash. The site of that fight was the Air Canada Center in Toronto, and it came to a conclusion with an Adam Copeland victory, just as it had sixteen other times over their twenty-six singles bouts on record. Though the two men would find their way back to a partnership for a handful of matches in 2011, the neck injuries that should’ve ended Adam’s career, and actually kept him out of the ring for nine years, ended their tag team bond.
Despite Copeland grinding through a grueling recovery, struggling and fighting to get back into the ring in January 2020, the two life-long friends only stood in the ring during a match one more time prior to WRESTLEDREAM in Seattle, and somewhat ironically that was a one night only affair as Christian Cage was forced to step away from in-ring activity in 2014 due to his own medical concerns, and not resuming his in-ring career until that first match for AEW on March 31, 2021.
So in addition to the friendship that begun some 40 years ago, in addition to all the wars they’d fought together as friends, as partners, and even as foes, Adam and Christian were also bonded by the pain of nearly losing their dream as a result of their bodies betraying them. But so too were they bonded by overcoming all odds and fighting their way back to making that dream a reality when there was no rationale reason for either man to still be competing, much less doing so at the highest of levels they are still doing at this point in their careers.
And yet here they are, despite all that connective tissue, standing as far apart as they have ever been with an seemingly insurmountable gap between their desires for AEW. Copeland came here with the dream of standing side-by-side with his best friend and finishing out their careers showing the world why they’ve long been considered one of the best tag teams of their generation, why they were such a game-changing force in tag team wrestling, and just being able to enjoy everything they’d worked so hard to accomplish.
Christian, on the other hand, came to AEW to get as much distance as possible between he and Adam and to establish himself as far away from any notion of the team they used to be once upon a time. He came to be his own individual, and Copeland coming to AEW only served, in Cage’s mind, to cast that shadow over his accomplishments since REVOLUTION 2021, not that great deal of Christian’s accomplishments deserves accolades. He betrayed Jack Perry and Luchasaurus, then turned Luchasaurus on Perry and made the former World Tag Champion into his lapdog, and even though he helped lead Luchasaurus to the TNT Championship, he didn’t even the man to hold his own championship while simultaneously claiming himself as the true TNT Champion. Then, when the opportunity came, Cage robbed Luchasaurus of the TNT Championship to officially make it his own.
He turned Nick Wayne against Darby Allin, as well as his own mother, humiliated Luchasaurus, robbed him of his name, rechristened the man Killswitch as an homage to himself, and threatened to break the neck of his supposed best friend after Adam Copeland came to AEW with a hopeful reunion in his mind. Christian disrespected Copeland’s family, a family that Adam considered him a part of, and has sacrificed both Killswitch and “The Prodigy” Nick Wayne in order to save his own skin. The fact that Christian Cage is proud of those accomplishments goes to show just what kind of man he’s devolved into since his arrival in AEW, it just took Sting shaking some sense into him for Adam Copeland to realize just who his supposed best friend truly was at heart.
So now this Wednesday night in Montreal, they will fight, and Christian’s prized TNT Championship will be on the line! Interestingly enough, though Copeland leads Cage in victories in their one-on-one collisions, it is Cage who has a razor thin edge when titles at stake. Nineteen times on record they’ve fought one-on-one over a championship, ten of those have been won by Christian Cage, but the last four by Copeland, although it has been a dozen years since the last of those championship contests.
While these men may be more familiar with each other than anyone else in AEW could hope to be, neither is dealing with the same man with whom they captured seven tag team titles together. Each has been changed by their experiences, experiences that should’ve brought them closer together than ever, but instead have seen them driven further apart than ever before. If there was ever any hope for this friendship to find a place of healing, it will likely be dashed Wednesday night on DYNAMITE. Some bridges can’t be rebuilt after the fire, some sins are not forgivable…
AEW WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH…
“Timeless” Toni Storm(c) vs. Skye Blue
While “Timeless” Toni Storm may still be basking in the glow of becoming a 3-Time AEW Women’s World Champion, apparently recovering from Hollywood parties and hobnobbing with stars, the rest of the division has had their eye on being the first challenger to her throne, and it looks like Storm will have to deal with a familiar foe for her first defense!
Skye Blue has been a consistent thorn in the side of Toni Storm since the beginning of 2023, and there’s not a woman in AEW the defending champion has faced more in one-on-one matches. Five times they have gone head-to-head inside the squared circle, two of those in championship matches, and all five have gone in favor of Toni Storm. Even the Four Way Title match at HOUSE RULES: HUNTSVILLE over the summer, a bout that also involved Anna Jay and Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D, came to an end with Storm pinning Sky. In fact, in the nine total fights these woman have been involved in, Toni holds a 7-2 lead on her challenger, with both of Skye’s victories coming in tag team bouts, though neither conclusion saw Skye pin Toni to get the victory.
The last fight between the two woman went down two months ago on DYNAMITE, and once again it was Skye who fell in defeat, but her transformation over the last several months may be the key to Skye finally claiming, not just a victory over Toni Storm, but also her first AEW Women’s World Championship! Will fans see another Storm/Blue sequel laid out by “The Timeless One”, or will Skye Blue rewrite the script for a whole new take on their franchise? Tune in Wednesday night to see who claims the crown as best lead in the AEW Women’s Division! And just announced as a special guest:
One is a man riding high with two consecutive victories and six points to his Continental Classic tally while the other is a man who has twice tasted defeated, meaning zero points on his record for this tournament. The former is Swerve Strickland, the latter Mark Briscoe, and this Wednesday night in Montreal, they will meet in their first-ever singles match and for just the second time in their careers!
That one previous clash between these two men took place a lifetime ago, and a continent away, when Shane Strickland teamed up with the late Ryan Smile at RevPro’s SUMMER SIZZLER 2017 event in a losing effort against Jay & Mark Briscoe. So much has changed for both these men in the six years since, especially for Mark as he forges forward into the world of singles wrestling after the tragic loss of brother Jay back on January 17th of this year.
Singles wrestling isn’t a foreign concept for Mark, after all he has been in the game for 23 years, years that including some hellacious singles matches against his own brother for one, but doing singles work exclusively, now that is uncharted territory for “The Sussex County Chicken” and perhaps why he is taking the losses as good as he can. Mark knows competing in this tournament isn’t the easiest path, that he’s faced with five of the best in the world in this Gold League, but that doesn’t mean he’ll back down or fold up shop. It’s motivation to get better, to keep pushing, and to continue fighting on for the Briscoe name.
Between Mox and Rush, Mark has already thrown down with two of the heaviest hitters in the Gold League, and now he’s got the red-hot Swerve on his plate who proved unquestionably with that Texas Death Match that he’s got the same grit as Mark’s previous two opponents. Getting those first three points out of this one is going to be a grind for Chicken, but that’s what he does and Swerve best not underestimate as he pursues nine points. After all, Mark is a cornered animal now, a loss here mathematically eliminates him from the competition, and you know what they say about cornered animals…
Jon Moxley (6) vs. Rush (3)
This one is going to hurt, and going to hurt both men involved even more than they are already hurting. We all heard it straight from Moxley himself in the interview embedded above, he is aching and sore and sick and tired, but sick and tired of being sick and tired but fighting is what he does, what he knows, and it’s Moxley’s way through the pain wracking his body.
Similarly, the AEW faithful witnessed Rush gut out a victory over Mark Briscoe last week despite clearly going through some intense leg pain throughout the contest. For a minute it seemed as if the doctor might stop the match, but “El Toro Blanco” fought to his feet, threw down with Mark, and found the way to his first three points in the Continental Classic.
Now these two hard-hitting forces will collide in a rematch of their AEW Interim World Title Match that took place at FIGHT FOR THE FALLEN 2022 on July 27th, as well as the Texas Tornado Tag from the 2/15/23 DYNAMITE that saw The BCC of Mox and Claudio defeat Rush and Preston Vance. Everyone knows the kind of fight these to men bring to the table, and how each seems to feed off getting hit by their foes, but as this tournament gets deeper, as their bodies break down further, and WORLDS END gets closer, will their strategies change? A win for Rush will tie him up with Mox at three points, one for the former 3-Time AEW World Champion could potentially put him at the top of the heap with nine depending on how Swerve’s fight plays out. Every win is crucial, but this week marks the halfway point, and no one can afford to take an “L”…
Jay Lethal (0) vs. Jay White (3)
This is one part Continental Collision contest and one part rubber match as, over the course of their careers, Jay Lethal and Jay White each hold a singles victory over the other. For Lethal, his victory over the future “Switchblade” came at ROH’s GLOBAL WARS 2017, NIGHT 2 event during Jay’s stateside excursion from the New Japan Dojo. There were other bouts involving the two, eight-mans and Three Way’s and Four Corner Survivals, even a trios bout in Korakuen Hall, but that October 13th fight in Pittsburgh was their lone singles until “King Switch” came calling five years later.
From December 2021 through April 2022, Jay White held what he called “The U.S. of Jay Open Challenge Series” during NJPW STRONG broadcasts, a five match series where he first battled Swerve, as well as Christopher Daniels, Chris Sabin, and “Speedball” Mike Bailey. In the second match of the series Jay Lethal answered the call, and on 2/19/22, fell before “Switchblade”.
That bring us to this Wednesday night, the halfway point of the Continental Classic with two matches in the rear view mirror and two waiting down the road, but only one of these two men is on the scoreboard. With a shady victory over Rush, but a loss to Swerve, “Switchblade” Jay White sits with three points while Lethal, following losses to Moxley and Swerve, has a zero beside his name.
So not only are these men fighting for the next three points, they are also fighting for dominance in their series of matches, and in the case of Jay Lethal, desperation to get on the board at all. Should Lethal lose again here, and if Moxley and/or Swerve win, well “The Franchise of ROH” will mathematically be eliminated from winning the bracket.
WHAT IS MJF THINKING…
AEW World & ROH World Tag Champion MJF and Samoa Joe
Given his physical condition, the face that he’s got to fight Samoa Joe at WORLDS END in twenty-four days, and that he’s still carrying the ROH World Tag Team Titles on behalf of himself and Adam Cole, is it wise for MJF to enter into a fight this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE, especially when he has no idea who whose foes actually are?
And what good is Samoa Joe’s promise to keep MJF intact for their fight on December 30th if the AEW World Champion isn’t taking care of himself? Perhaps that’s why Maxwell feels emboldened to take up this tag team fight against an unknown entity, perhaps he’s just lost the ability to use his common sense, whatever the case, this is certainly not the same MJF who spent most of his AEW career avoiding the fight as much as possible. After all, this is the guy who skated by with just six matches in 2019, two of those being Battle Royales, and may see more ring time this year than in the last two combined! Now MJF is running towards the fight, his physical health be damned, and it may fall on Samoa Joe to protect the man from himself if the former AEW World TV Champion hopes to actually see their scheduled World Title Fight in a few weeks.
If not underneath the guise of The Devil, will we all see who’s under the black masks this Wednesday night on DYNAMITE? Or will that be a mystery that continues to haunt Maxwell Jacob Friedman as struggles to keep the AEW World Champion in his grasp?
DYNAMITE comes to Montreal’s Bell Centrefor the very first time, and with it comes two massive championship fights, as well as the next three fights in the Gold League! We will see Swerve Strickland take on Mark Briscoe, Jon Moxley throw down with Rush, and Jay Lethal fight Jay White, plus “Timeless” Toni Storm defends her AEW Women’s World Championship against Skye Blue! And in one of the most anticipated fights in All Elite Wrestling, TNT Champion Christian Cage will fig “The Rated R Superstar” Adam Copeland with his coveted title on the line!
The night begins at 8pm ET/7pm CT live on TBS, as well as at AEWPlus.com for international fans, so drop in on the official AEW YouTube channel for all the highlights from recent episodes of DYNAMITE, RAMPAGE, and COLLISION, as well as this week’s CONTROL CENTER!
Tonight’s AEW COLLISION was broadcast live from the Erie Insurance Arena in Erie, PA!
It’s Saturday night and you know what that means! Saturday night’s alright for fighting!
Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly and Tony Schiavone were the broadcast team for tonight’s event.
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
The House of Black’s Brody King
vs.
The Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli!
Brody and Claudio, both known for their power, began the match by blasting one another with forearms. Brody hit Claudio with a lariat, not afraid to utilize the cast on his injured arm.
“I don’t know if this is for pride or what, but neither man is going down,” said Tony Schiavone.
Brody pump kicked Claudio, taking down Claudio with a big boot to the face. Claudio came back with a body slam and then knocked Brody over the top rope and to the arena floor with a clothesline. Claudio followed up with a running European Uppercut.
Claudio whipped Brody into the steel barricade. Brody charged back with a lariat and then removed the steel padding on the barricade. Brody hurled Claudio back into the exposed barricade. Back in the ring, Brody clobbered Claudio with a scoop slam and a running senton splash.
Claudio rallied back with European Uppercuts to Brody in the corner. Claudio went for the Giant Swing, but Brody pushed him away. Claudio shot back with a double foot stomp for a near fall. Claudio rocked Brody with a pop up European Uppercut!
“He lifted him a good two feet off the mat!” said Nigel.
Claudio grabbed Brody in the Giant Swing! Claudio applied a sharpshooter. Brody crawled to the ropes, forcing the ref to break the hold. Brody managed to German Suplex Claudio and followed up with a running cannonball in the corner. He covered Claudio but Claudio kicked out at one! Claudio hit a Canadian Destroyer on Brody and covered him, but Brody kicked out at one!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Brody spiked Claudio with a piledriver for a near fall! Brody leveled Claudio with a massive lariat and pinned Claudio!
“I’m wondering if it may have been that cast on the forearm shot,” said Kevin Kelly.
Abadon vs. Kiera Hogan!
Hogan hit a shotgun dropkick on Abadon. Abadon battered Hogan in the corner. They charged at Hogan, but Hogan moved and connected with a thrust kick. Kiera Hogan followed up with a dropkick for a near fall. Abadon used a sidewalk slam on Kiera Hogan. Abadon stunned Hogan with a cutter!
Kiera Hogan nailed Abadon with a neck breaker. Abadon fired back with a knee strike. They planted Hogan hard on the mat with the Black Dahlia and pinned Hogan!
The arena lights went dark. When they came back on, TBS Champion Julia Hart was in the ring, smiling at Abadon. The lights went dark again, and this time, when the arena lights turned on, Julia had vanished!
Alex Marvez interviewed Samoa Joe backstage!
Samoa Joe was interrupted by Roderick Strong and the Kingdom!
Roderick Strong: “Joe, listen, I’m willing to forgive you for trying to end my career by trying to break my neck, not once, but twice. I know you have that World title match with Max, but this is clearly a trap. Max is the devil. But listen, my best friend Adam says he likes you, and you’re a good friend of his. So, it’s his best friend that makes you my best friend by proxy. Listen, Wednesday is just a set up. His goons are going to beat the crap out of you. He’s not even here right now. He’s probably plotting exactly how they’re going to do it. Will you listen to me?”
Samoa Joe smirked and walked off.
Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
Andrade El Idolo vs. Daniel Garcia!
Matt Menard joined the broadcast booth for this match.
Andrade applied a side headlock. Garcia shoved him off, but Andrade came off the ropes with a shoulder block. Andrade hit a big cross body press on Garcia. Andrade jumped over the top with a plancha to Garcia.
Garcia used a pair of dragon screw leg whips on Andrade. Garcia rammed Andrade into the barricade. Garcia climbed to the top turnbuckle, but Andrade shoved him off the perch. Garcia tumbled hard onto the arena floor.
Garcia rallied back, tying Andrade into the Tree of Woe and then hammering on Andrade’s knee. Garcia blasted Andrade with a running dropkick and then a brain buster for a near fall! Garcia missed a lariat and Andrade countered with two suplexes. Garcia escaped a third attempt from Andrade, jumping on Andrade’s back with a sleeper. Andrade climbed to the top rope with Garcia on his back. Andrade superplexed Garcia! Andrade followed up with a series of suplexes, an homage to Eddy. Andrade finished off Garcia with the flatliner and pinned him!
“Andrade cracks the scoreboard,” said Tony Schiavone.
Willie Mack was backstage with some words for Wardlow!
Willie: “See Wardlow, I know you’ve been going through a lot of things these past few weeks. But you don’t put your hands on my friends. So, I’m going to have to reach out and touch you. So next week, we’re going to have to do the damn thing in the ring. So, pack your lunch because I’m a big boy!”
Roderick Strong came to the ring with the Kingdom—Matt Taven and Mike Bennett!
Roderick Strong: “I just wanted to say something to Samoa Joe. Listen to me dude. Everything I said back there was true. Max is the devil, and you are going to find out very soon. Those three dweebs in the ring, Matt and Mike are going to beat their ass. And I want to dedicate this to my best friend, Adam, whether he wants me to or not!”
The Kingdom—Matt Taven & Mike Bennett
vs.
The Iron Savages— “Sauce Boss” Beefcake Boulder & “Dirty Bulk” Bronson!
Boulder knocked down both members of the Kingdom with a cross body. He choke slammed Bennett on the apron. Taven cracked Bronson with a thrust kick. Boulder tried for a moonsault, but Taven rolled out of the way.
Bennett nailed Bronson with a Death Valley Driver and Taven followed up with Just the Tip of the Knee strike! They spiked Bronson with a piledriver, and Taven scored the pin. Roderick Strong jumped into the ring after the match and wiped out the manager of the Iron Savages!
Lexy Nair was backstage with “All Ego” Ethan Page!
Ethan Page: “Ever since losing to MJF in my home nation of Canada, I have had to regroup. I have gotten into the best physical condition of my life. I’ve been in Ring of Honor racking up wins. I want to be the king of Canada. But right now, that crown is sitting on someone else’s head. I want you, Kenny Omega, next week on Collision!”
Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal
vs.
House of Black’s Malakai Black & Buddy Matthews!
Sydal jumped off the top turnbuckle, but Buddy grabbed him and nailed him with an elbow. Sydal fired back with a high kick to Buddy’s head. Daniels tagged in and they exhibited great tandem offense on Buddy.
Malakai wiped out Daniels with a moonsault to the floor! Sydal tagged in and connected with a missile dropkick on Black. Malakai cracked Sydal with an elbow to the back of the head. Buddy blasted Daniels with a meteora, and Sydal had the same idea, taking down Black with a meteora of his own!
Black swept out Daniels’ legs, and then Buddy curb stomped CD! Black ended it with a high roundhouse kick to Daniels’ head and pinned Daniels!
“That kick rocked the jaw of Christopher Daniels!” said Tony Schiavone.
The arena lights went out! They came back on and FTR’s music was playing! Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler walked to the ring!
Malakai Black: “Before you both do anything, I assume that the both of you are here because you joining the House of Black. The only people that have been here for the both of you is the House of Black. I have done a lot of things, but not once have I told a lie.”
Dax Harwood went to pick up the microphone and Buddy rushed in and kicked him. Dax was curb stomped. It was all a ruse by the House of Black. Buddy held down Dax, so he was forced to watch as Malakai Black cracked Cash with a roundhouse kick!
Malakai Black: “You see not one single person is coming for you. Boy, were my predictions right last week. No one is coming for you.”
Dax flipped off Black, and then Black rocked Dax with a devastating spin kick to the head!
Renee Paquette had an exclusive Collision interview backstage with AEW Women’s World Champion “Timeless” Toni Storm!
Toni Storm: “Skye Blue, if I have any advice for you, it would be for you to walk backwards. Because the only time they have anything nice to say about you is when they are taking pictures of your bottom. You can be the first challenger for my belt!”
After a commercial break, Skye Blue responded to “Timeless” Toni Storm!
Skye Blue: “Toni, I have met you through every one of your phases, but this midlife crisis is the most pathetic one by far. But you haven’t met this Skye Blue. So, bring your little butler, bring your little blonde bimbo, and whatever 1940s crap you’ve got up that robe, because nothing is going to stop me from taking that championship.”
AAA Mega Champion El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Kip Sabian!
Vikingo shocked Sabian with a kick and then an arm drag off the ropes. Vikingo went for a tope, but Sabian had an answer, drilling Vikingo with a stiff kick to the face. Kip followed up with an Arabian moonsault.
Vikingo connected with a spinning kick to Kip. He followed up with a torture rack knee lift strike to Sabian. Vikingo came off the ropes with a 360 phoenix splash from the other side for a near fall on Sabian!
Sabian climbed to the top turnbuckle and jockeyed for position with Vikingo. Sabian took down Vikingo with a hurracanrana. Vikingo rallied back with a tornillo from the top and then a running knee strike! Vikingo pinned Sabian after a 630 splash!
Lexy Nair was backstage with “Limitless” Keith Lee!
Shane Taylor and Lee Moriarty interrupted Keith Lee.
Shane: “I know you’re not dumb enough to look past me. Last year’s tag match didn’t solve anything for me. So, I say this year we give the people the fight they really want to see. Shane Taylor versus Keith Lee one on one at Final Battle!”
Keith Lee: “Challenge accepted. And I’ll see you later, too, Lee Moriarty.”
Lexy Nair interviewed CJ Perry!
“The Redeemer” Miro interrupted, trying to walk past CJ and into the locker room of her client, Andrade El Idolo.
CJ Perry: “Miro, you can’t go in there. I know you think bad things will happen. I need to do this. You picked your god. And now I have to prove myself. By winning this tournament, I will start to be on that path that will help me. If you want to go in there, I can’t stop you, you’re a grown man. But please, if there’s any love that you have for me, please let me do this and find my own way. And if I mean anything to you, don’t lay a hand on my client. Can you please do that?”
Miro: “My god is gone. If he was still with me, I’d be in this tournament ripping the spine out of Andrade. But I promise you I won’t lay a hand on your client. You have my word.”
Main Event Time! Continental Classic Tournament: Blue League Match!
The Blackpool Combat Club’s “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson
vs.
ROH World/NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston!
Danielson fired off a chop to Kingston’s chest. Kingston retaliated, knocking Danielson off his feet! Danielson’s view was limited as he was wearing an eye patch over his injured eye. Danielson pulled back on Kingston’s arm, driving his knee into Kingston’s back.
Danielson German Suplexed Kingston. Danielson booted Kingston in the face. Danielson slid out of the ring but Kingston back suplexed Danielson on the arena floor! Danielson headbutted Kingston and dropped Kingston with a missile dropkick.
Danielson applied the Le Bell Lock. Kingston escaped, mounted Danielson, and began to ground and pound Danielson. Kingston cracked Danielson with a spinning back fist for a near fall! Kingston grabbed a two-count on Danielson after a vertical suplex. Danielson stunned Kingston with a round kick to the top of the head.
Danielson battered Kingston with a barrage of kicks. Eddie tossed Danielson with a half and half suplex. Danielson blocked a spinning backfist and then dumped Kingston on his head with a suplex!
The fans chanted “This is awesome! This is awesome!”
Danielson grabbed Kingston’s wrists and began to stomp Kingston’s head! Kingston flipped off Bryan Danielson. Bryan nailed Kingston with the running knee strike and pinned Kingston!
“Beautiful in its brutality,” said Kevin Kelly.
Catch AEW DYNAMITE on TBS next Wednesday live at 8/7ct from the Bell Centre in Montreal, QC!
And remember…the home of professional wrestling is All Elite Wrestling!
Between an action packed edition of RAMPAGE Friday night, and the Gold League bouts that went down Wednesday during DYNAMITE, this has already been quite the exciting week for All Elite Wrestling! Add in impending TNT Championship clash between Christian Cage and Adam Copeland now set for Montreal at the Bell Centre, and it would be a satisfying week in AEW action if it ended now.
But thankfully it isn’t over yet, because this Saturday night, when AEW makes their Erie, PA debut at the Erie Insurance Arena, the Continental Classic continues with action in the Blue Blue, including the first bouts for Bryan Danielson and Andrade El Idolo as they take on ROH World/NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston and Daniel Garcia respectively! Plus, in a battle of unbeatens, Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli will lock up with The House of Black’s Brody King after the former scored a huge victory over Kingston last week.
The Blue League tournament action gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to get prepared for it all, visit the official AEW YouTube channel, as well as AEW’s other social media platforms, to catch highlights from this week’s DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from last week’s COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
CONTINENTAL CLASSIC TOURNAMENT: BLUE LEAGUE…
The BCC’s “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson(0) vs. ROH World/NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston(0)
This may very well be the most intriguing match-up taking place on Saturday night; Eddie Kingston is coming off a loss to Brody King last week in their first tournament bouts, while “The American Dragon” is coming into this one having suffered a fractured orbital bone just over a month ago. The loss to Brody was certainly a rough pill to swallow, not because King is a lesser opponent in any way, but because of the fact Kingston put both his ROH World Championship and NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship into the mix for the winner of the Continental Classic. It is not a good first step for the reigning champion to lose out the gate, but from watching his post-match interview, Kingston is trying to be a better version of himself than he would have been in the past. He knows his flaws, he publicly acknowledges them, and is telling the world he will not follow that path to self-destruction again.
Bryan Danielson, on the other hand, is clearly full of piss and vinegar, coming in as confident as ever despite his injury costing him the last month of his career. It’s the first injury that’s kept Bryan out, hopefully his last, and certainly not the first time his eye was the problem. Credit for that goes back to 2007’s series of matches with former ROH World & GHC Heavyweight Champion Takeshi Morishima, particularly ROH’s MANHATTAN MAYHEM II event. Yet as he did then, Danielson is determined to fight on, taking whatever precautions he is required by medical staff, but still game for the fight to come each and every night. Best be wary though when he’s fighting a man like Kingston whose signature is a spinning back fist liable to crack that orbital bone into powder if it connects; yet Danielson seems to see the ROH World Champion as the same individual he first one-on-one with in Taylor, MI back in 2010. Despite everything Eddie has accomplished in the last 13 years, Bryan Danielson clearly does not respect the man, that much Bryan made clear when he joined commentary on Wednesday night.
And while Bryan may also hold an AEW win from RAMPAGE #12 when both entered the 2021 World Title Eliminator Tournament, that does not mean he’s fighting an Eddie with the same mindset he had then. Danielson know faces a man who has achieved his dreams, he’s fought in NJPW’s G1 Climax, he’s claimed two championship titles this year, and he knows the responsibility on his shoulders as a result. Eddie, despite “Mad” being part of his sobriquet, is not crazy or unhinged or out of control, he knew the risks when he threw his titles into the mix, and after feeling the sting of loss a week ago, he’s not about to fall deeper into that hole.
If he does, eventually he won’t be able to climb out, and that’s not just a statement on his points total…
The House of Black’s Brody King(3) vs. The BCC’s Claudio Castagnoli(3)
The two victors from last week’s Blue League bouts are set to meet in singles competition this Saturday night for the very first time! Never a tag, never a trios, certainly not a one-on-one, this will mark the first time The House of Black’s Brody King and the Blackpool Combat Club’s Claudio Castagnoli ever share the ring, and that is an exciting prospect!
Not only are there implications for their respective units, the issues raised between The House and The BCC that began when Malakai attacked Bryan Danielson weeks ago, but it also means one man in the Blue League is going to hit six points while, potentially, two individuals remain at zero and two others gain their first three points.
On paper this is a battle of two of the biggest men in AEW, but they are not big in the same way; where Claudio is strength, muscle, and finesse, Brody King is power, size, and brutish. Claudio is schooled in various disciplines of professional wrestling from his years traveling the globe while King is akin to a Bruiser Brody ripped into the 21st Century, and unleashed upon hapless foes. Yet within that brutish offense, is a speed unexpected from a man looking like Brody King, a true “don’t judge a book” situation for professional wrestling, though the same could’ve been said for Claudio prior to his BCC entry. Most assumed him a devotee of a more pure approach to the fight, but his time with Mox and company has shown how adept “The Swiss Superman” is at violence.
In this battle of The House versus The BCC, for leadership in the Blue League, who will fold?
Andrade El Idolo(0) vs. Daniel Garcia(0)
It was only a few weeks ago that Daniel Garcia and Andrade El Idolo had their first right as CJ Perry watched on from ringside, but now that the Continental Classic has begun, their rematch has a much greater wrinkle than the management of Perry. Both Andrade and Garcia enter into this fight with zero points to their name, but in the case of the former, that’s because it is also his first fight in the Blue League whereas the latter fell to Claudio Castagnoli a week ago.
As heard from Garcia’s own mouth, the young man is struggling with that loss and how it makes him feel. The word “loser” kept falling off his tongue as he spoke, and though he did lose, that does not make Garcia a loser. Eddie Kingston lost, Jay White lost, Jay Lethal and Mark Briscoe have lost twice, given how many fights a man goes through in this tournament, losing is nearly unavoidable but it seems as if that is weighing on Daniel Garcia’s mind. It’s similar to Eddie’s struggle, but perhaps the experience difference is allowing Kingston to push through while Garcia seems on the precipice of getting stuck in that mindset.
If he allows that to become the case, Andrade El Idolo will run all over Daniel Garcia this Saturday on COLLISION and earn his first three points in the Continental Classic, but if the man once called “Red Death” can find the confidence he had before entering the fray, before the losses to MJF, Miro, and Andrade dampened his fighting spirit, he will be deadly. The man who once slayed “The American Dragon” could become the man who raises AEW’s Triple Crown comes WORLDS END (https://www.allelitewrestling.com/aew-event/aew-worlds-end) or he could be the man who ends the Continental Classic with a goose egg next to his name…
ONE-ON-ONE…
Abadon vs. Kiera Hogan
It’s been a little over a month since Abadon clashed with Hikaru Shida in that memorable “Fright Night Fight” over the AEW Women’s World Championship, and this Saturday night “The Living Dead Girl” is back in action on COLLISION!
Her opponent this evening is one which she’s never competed against before, “The Girl on Fire” Kiera Hogan! It’s also been a couple months since Hogan has been inside the AEW ring, though she’s done well for herself with ROH ON HONOR CLUB, and is looking to make an impact to get into the title hunt.
It’s a battle of two athletes looking to break through to that next level and earn their first championship here in All Elite Wrestling. Add up those wins and soon that opportunity will come…
This Saturday night All Elite Wrestling makes their Erie, PA debut at the Erie Insurance Arena with three huge Continental Classic: Blue League match-ups, featuring a clash of three-pointers in Claudio Castagnoli and Brody King, as well as two men in Bryan Danielson and Andrade El Idolo fighting in their first tourney bout. The former will take on Eddie Kingston while the latter meets Daniel Garcia in a rematch of their recent COLLISION confrontation.
The Blue League tournament action gets underway at 8pm ET/7pm CT on TNT, and to get prepared for it all, drop by the official AEW YouTube channel to watch highlights from this week’s editions of DYNAMITE and RAMPAGE, as well as events from the last COLLISION, and the latest CONTROL CENTER!
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