AEW Dynamite – June 3, 2026: Buckle Up (In Which I Go On A Page Long Rant About AEW)
Dynamite
Date: June 3, 2026
Location: Siegel Center, Richmond, Virginia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz
We’re less than a month away from Forbidden Door and that means we have a lot of the Owen Hart Tournaments to go. The tournaments will decide two of the bigger matches at All In and the finals will be taking place later this month at the pay per view. They both continue this week, including a mystery wildcard name so let’s get to it.
Here is Collision if you need a recap.
Rush is ready to win the World Title. MJF pops in to say he doesn’t buy it and gets beaten up as a result. Somehow this leads to the match being No Countouts. You know, because that changes so much around here.
Andrade El Idolo comes up to Rush, telling him to do it for the family.
AEW World Title: Rush vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman
MJF is defending and there are no countouts. Hold on though as MJF makes sure to point out that he beat Virginia’s Hangman Page and that the fans put the virgin in Virginia. Rush hammers away to start so MJF spits in his face and gets in a poke to the eye. Back up and Rush sends him outside for the running flip dive. Rush whips him into the barricade a few times and chokes with the camera cable to make it worse.
The charge is countered with a drop toehold though and Rush is sent into the chair. A charging MJF is backdropped over the barricade and through the timekeeper’s table and Rush stomps away back inside. The turnbuckle pad is removed but the referee blocks the ram, allowing MJF to send Rush into it instead. MJF hits a better than expected spinebuster but gets sent face first into the exposed buckle.
Back up and a running knee gives the bleeding Rush two, followed by a running dropkick for two. MJF is right back with a powerbomb backbreaker for two and we hit the quickly broken Salt Of The Earth. Rush heads to the apron and cuts off MJF with a headbutt before planting him on the apron.
We take a break and come back with the Bull’s Horns getting two, with MJF having to put a boot on the rope. A piledriver on the apron sees Rush’s arm give out and another running dropkick misses, sending Rush crashing through the barricade. MJF Tombstones him onto the broken barricade and grabs a LeBell Lock back inside. Rush flips off the camera and then passes out to retain MJF’s title at 18:34.
Rating: B. This was kind of a weird choice for the whole thing but it was nice to see Rush’s never ending string of wins actually turning into something. I’m not sure why MJF needed this kind of a win but it’s not like he has anything going on with Forbidden Door coming up. It wouldn’t stun me to see him not defend the title, and right now it isn’t like there is much to do there.
Post match MJF loads up a belt shot but Mark Briscoe runs in for the save. The Conglomeration is here to make sure MJF runs off.
Mark Briscoe vs. Lio Rush
The Conglomeration is still at ringside and freeze because Rush can’t see them if they’re not moving. Or something (your champions people). Rush says something in Briscoe’s ear to start and then does his dodging to get in Briscoe’s face. Briscoe charges into a boot in the corner and they go to the apron to shout a lot.
Rush chases him around on the floor (running on all course because Rush is weird and creepy and stuff) until Briscoe gets in a Blockbuster off the apron. We take a break and come back with Rush hitting a suicide dive and then mocking the Red Neck Kung Fu. They strike it out until Briscoe hits an Iconoclasm for two but the Jay Driller is blocked. The Cutthroat Driver finishes Rush at 9:12.
Rating: B-. So the crazy man, who is likely the next in line for the World Title shot, was running away in fear from a man who makes weird faces and runs around the ring like a dog. This was after the same running man scared the Trios Champions so badly that their best solution was to stand there like statues. All for the sake of someone who hasn’t won a match in AEW in over a year. But he’s weird and wacky so it’s all ok.
Post match Briscoe talks about his brother passing away and then having his own birthday a few weeks later. Instead of having birthday cake with his brother, he had to debut in AEW alone. Then he met some people who were down to conglomerate and it gave him some joy about being a wrestler again.
Then he crossed paths with MJF, who tried to take that joy away. Briscoe beat him once and MJF left so the joy was back. Now MJF Is back again and Briscoe wants the World Title. MJF calls himself the Devil, but the book says the Devil loses. Heck of a promo. Maybe next time don’t do it after he was running scared from a guy acting like a dog.
Video on Kevin Knight turning on Mike Bailey.
Here is the Triangle Of Madness, with Thekla explaining that she hates Stardom because they don’t like how she treated their stars. She wants the rest of her team to win gold, but she’s focused on Stardom. Thekla then climbs a ladder and spits on the Stardom logo.
The Death Riders work on Will Ospreay’s neck before he faces Mark Davis again. Jon Moxley comes in to say this is a different Ospreay coming after Davis. Moxley says Ospreay’s job tonight is to win, and he’s starting to see something change in Ospreay.
Andrade El Idolo vs. EK Manning
Spinning back elbow and DM finish at 39 seconds.
Post match Andrade says MJF just beat Rush, but does MJF think he can beat him? This brings out Don Callis and Jake Doyle to interrupt, which seems to have Andrade confused. After some quick praise, Callis introduces the newest member of the Family: Kevin Knight. And…that’s it. No explanation or anything. Just time for Knight’s title defense.
TNT Title: Mike Bailey vs. Kevin Knight
Knight is defending. Bailey is so mad at Knight for turning on him that he starts with a lockup. They run to the floor where Knight blocks a kick and sends him into the steps. Back in and Knight misses a springboard clothesline but avoids another kick. A clothesline sends Bailey outside again but he’s back up with a corkscrew moonsault. Back in and Knight avoids the Ultimate Weapon and hits a dropkick as we take a break.
We come back with Knight hitting a basement clothesline for two but Bailey finally connects with some kicks. Another kick sends Knight to the floor but he pops back up to shove Bailey’s moonsault down. Knight gets in a dive of his own, only for Bailey to connect with moonsault knees back inside. A backbreaker gives Knight two but Bailey kicks him in the head again. Bailey takes him up top so Jake Doyle offers a distraction, allowing Don Callis to get in a cheap shot. A super spinebuster (or something) puts Bailey down and the Crash Landing retains the title at 12:54.
Rating: B-. The match was fine and hopefully ends the Jet Speed stuff for good. That being said, way to take Knight, who felt like he could be a big deal, and put him in the Don Callis Family. I definitely look forward to him teaming with RPG Vice on Collision and being cannon fodder in whatever other feud Callis has that goes on for a year or so without getting to a point.
Post match Knight says that’s how you do it. He had to get rid of the dead weight….so he joined the Don Callis Family. And he wants to be World Champion too. There is nothing here to suggest that he needs to be part of the Family whatsoever.
The Dogs continue to mock Adam Copeland and Christian Cage, complete with kazoos. The Young Bucks come in to call them stupid and mock Finlay for being the world Bullet Club leader ever. Now that we have our required New Japan reference out of the way, a match seems likely for tonight.
MJF says Mark Briscoe doesn’t get a title shot.
Women’s Owen Hart Quarterfinals: Alex Windsor vs. ???
The surprise entrant is…the returning Mercedes Mone. She takes Windsor down without much trouble to start and hits a dropkick to cut off an early comeback. A basement dropkick connects for Windsor but Mone pulls her into the Statement Maker. That’s escaped so Mone grabs a Backstabber instead.
Windsor goes for the rope and knocks Mone to the apron, only for Mone to neckbreaker her to the floor. The Meteora off the apron puts Windsor down again and we take a break. We come back with Mone hitting Three Amigos but Windsor hits a running shot of her own. Windsor hits a running clothesline off the apron and blocks another Three Amigos back inside.
Mone gets planted but gets back up so they can head up top. Windsor is knocked down, setting up a top rope Meteora for two. The running Meteora in the corner only hits corner though and Windsor gets two off a rollup. The Backstabber cuts Windsor off though and the Statement Maker finishes at 12:26.
Rating: B-. I’m not a Mone fan, but she absolutely does feel like a big deal to have back. While I don’t want her to get right into the title picture, it’s hardly a horrible travesty to have her beat Windsor, who has mainly been in the midcard picture. This was a good enough way to bring Mone back, though I did forget how annoying it was to see her spamming the Meteora over and over.
Video on Tay Melo and Anna Jay going to a time limit draw with Megan Bayne and Lena Kross on Collision, setting up their title match on Collision.
Don Callis, with Kazuchika Okada, is glad to have Kevin Knight in the Family. Then he’s ready to see Mark Davis win the Owen Hart Tournament. Okada wants the International Title back.
Tommaso Ciampa takes credit for sending Chris Jericho home and says things have changed since Jericho had his big hiatus. Jericho can come back but it will only be worse, you stupid idiot.
Men’s Owen Hart Tournament Semifinals: Mark Davis vs. Will Ospreay
Davis’ National Title isn’t on the line (makes sense as he hasn’t actually defended it on an AEW show yet). Ospreay snaps off a running hurricanrana to start and hammers away in the corner, earning himself a rather big slam. Davis hits a running backsplash and grabs an abdominal stretch, which doesn’t last long. Instead Ospreay is back up with a handspring kick to the head and they head outside.
A kick to the head staggers Davis but he’s smart enough to move away before Ospreay can dive. Ospreay tries a tornado DDT off the apron and gets caught with a Crash Landing onto the announcers’ table. We take a break and come back with Davis getting slammed off the top for two, allowing Davis to chop away. That fires Ospreay up and he kicks Davis in the face a few times, setting up the 630 kick for two.
A German suplex drops Davis again and Ospreay gets in a springboard stomp to the arm. Davis reverses an armbar into a powerbomb though, followed by the piledriver for two. Another piledriver on the apron is blocked and Davis clotheslines him back inside. Ospreay manages a hurricanrana out to the floor with Davis beating the count. He dives back inside and Ospreay comes in from off camera with a missile dropkick in a great visual.
The Styles Clash connects for two but Davis is back up with a kick…which accidentally hits the referee. We’re 18 minutes into this match and 12 minutes into the overrun and now get a ref bump. There’s the Hidden Blade but there’s no referee so the Don Callis Family runs in for the save. The Death Riders make the save so Lance Archer is in to take them out.
Claudio Castagnoli, Brian Cage and Pac all get to run in for a save each until a springboard Oscutter hits Davis. Jake Doyle pulls the revived referee at two though so Marina Shafir jumps on his back. Doyle throws her down so Jon Moxley runs in to go after Doyle, allowing Pac to hit a big dive.
Then Kyle Fletcher runs in to break up the Stormbreaker but Konosuke Takeshita pulls him to the floor for a brawl. Davis grabs a screwdriver and gets hit with the Hidden Blade but there’s still no referee. OH MY GOODNESS JUST FINISH THE MATCH ALREADY! Another referee runs in for two and Davis spins Ospreay into a piledriver for two. Back up and Ospreay spins him into the Death Grounds for the tap at 23:05.
Rating: C. Buckle up because I’m probably going to go for awhile. I’m sure that I’ll be told that this was so awesome and such and yeah, the first two thirds or so were rather good. It was Davis getting to continue his awesome run and feel like a big threat to Ospreay, who he has beaten before. They were clicking for the most part and having a good match. But that’s not how things work around here.
No no, just having a good match isn’t enough. Instead, we needed to bring in about 12 people with three different stories for a big old spectacle. Writing up all of the people running in made me feel like I was seven years old and writing down all the superheroes and TV characters I’d want to come to my birthday party. I’m sure it was fun to have all those people run in because the two stables have about 18 people between them, but that doesn’t make for a good TV presentation.
But that’s how AEW has to be. This was the semifinals of a #1 contenders match and the World Title match from this whole tournament isn’t happening for almost three months. The semifinals had a dozen run ins, a ref bump and the return of the screwdriver. There was absolutely no reason for this match to be such a circus or go anywhere near this long. It was a spectacle for the sake of having all these people in there for STABLE WARZ (which is a totally original idea in AEW and not something they have driven into the ground over the years).
I’m sure this will probably tie into this year’s Blood & Guts and that had to be built up here. It’s not like there was any other place to do it outside of a tournament to go to another pay per view before we wait two months for the title match. This was just the semifinals too! What are they going to have for the finals? Nothing like this probably, because that’s the finals, where the wrestling is allowed to sell itself.
No, instead we had to have this be a big stable fight because that’s what Tony Khan thinks is good booking: throwing as much stuff out there as he can week after week whether it needs to be there or not. I liked most of this match and then it turned into something that felt like it belonged on a Vince Russo show. In short, just stop doing so much already, because you’re wasting what could have been a heck of a match.
Overall Rating: C. This show was one of the most frustrating things that I’ve seen in a very long time. As usual, the wrestling was good and I’m not taking any of that away from the wrestlers. They were out there working hard and some of the matches were rather nice, with the opener probably being the best on the show. That’s not the issue here and it rarely ever is with AEW.
This show featured some entertaining action, a heck of an emotional promo from Briscoe, a big return in Mone (I’m far from a fan but she is absolutely a big star around here and I can see why she’s in this spot so soon). It even set up a few possible options for World Title matches and got us closer to Forbidden Door.
You know what I’m going to remember about this show though? Mark Briscoe running away in fear from low level weird guy Lio Rush, who also scared the Conglomeration into standing still like statues. That’s in addition to Kevin Knight, who was looking like a potentially strong heel, joining the Don Callis Family because they just aren’t on the shows enough lately.
There’s also “it’s Forbidden Door season so you better know all these things about promotions from around the world because we get to have guest stars! This is totally different from when these wrestlers are here every month because crossovers are really important to the TV show for….they’re just awesome ok? Oh and don’t forget the main event, featuring more wrestlers than some pay per views, because an established story between two good wrestlers isn’t enough. We just needed those run-ins and other stories to be involved.
This week was everything that I can’t stand about Tony Khan’s booking rolled into one show. It was a bunch of ideas that I’m sure made he and his friends laugh their heads off making it to television, him getting to bring in a bunch of wrestlers from other promotions because he thinks that his e-fed ideas make for good shows, and, of course, MORE MORE MORE! Everything has to be more because that’s just how things work in Tony’s mind. Longer shows, more people, more action, more promotions, more everything.
I legitimately got annoyed at this show more than once, which is frustrating as AEW has been having some better efforts lately. Instead though, they revert back to form as Forbidden Door rolls around, because it’s about getting in a bunch of stuff that is there because the calendar says so. Next week’s show is about an hour and fifteen minutes from my house. I have the show written down on my things to do list and planned on going. This show might have convinced me otherwise, as the idea of paying to see something like this is almost scary. As usual, the wrestling was fine, but someone sedate Tony already.
Results
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Rush – LeBell Lock
Mark Briscoe b. Lio Rush – Cutthroat Driver
Andrade El Idolo b. EK Manning – DM
Kevin Knight b. Mike Bailey – Crash Landing
Mercedes Mone b. Alex Windsor – Statement Maker
Will Ospreay b. Mark Davis – Death Grounds
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AEW rarely does interference in its tournament matches; this was an exception. I thought, being a WWF fan, you were used to interference. You never once ranted about your Bloodline cinema or MFT, or about how a new wrestler gets domesticated every month.