Collision
Date: July 19, 2025
Location: Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness, Colt Cabana

We’re done with All In and back in the normal time slot, with the promise of must see TV in the form of comments from new TNT Champion Dustin Rhodes. That could go in a few different ways but for now at least it seems they have something in mind for the next few weeks. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Tony Schiavone is in the ring to bring out Dustin Rhodes for a chat. The fans think Rhodes deserves it and he wishes his dad was here. His dad told him to “keep stepping” and he has remembered it for a long time because it means being persistent. One day he hit rock bottom but the one thing he has never done is tell himself that he isn’t good enough. Getting back up is what keeps himself going every day. He is now the face of TNT and he will give his all every week.

Cue Don Callis and Kyle Fletcher to interrupt, with Fletcher saying this should be his celebration. The only thing Rhodes has done is sign his own death certificate because the title belongs to Fletcher. Rhodes talks about the times he has come short with this title but now he’s here because he pulled off what Fletcher couldn’t.

Callis says Rhodes is a great wrestler and a better man but the high that he is still chasing is being champion. So what happens when Fletcher takes the title? Callis will save a place in the Family for him, because it’s better than being the third wheel in his horrible family. The fight is on and Rhodes easily clears the ring. In theory Fletcher takes the title from Rhodes sooner or later, but you never can tell with Rhodes. Fletcher might pin Rhodes and Rhodes will get another title as a result.

Video on Willow Nightingale vs. Kris Statlander.

AR Fox vs. Ricochet

Ricochet bails to the floor to start and then comes back in to spin around Fox. Back in and Fox scares him out to the floor, where Fox takes him down again. Cue the Gates Of Agony but Fox drops Ricochet on the apron again for a running flipping double stomp. Back in and a spinning belly to back suplex drops Ricochet again but the Gates drop Fox on the apron.

We take a break and come back with Fox fighting back and hitting his Swanton. They trade some rollups for two each until Ricochet muscles him into a Death Valley Driver for two. The Spirit Gun misses so Fox ties him in the ropes for the slingshot Canadian Destroyer for two of his own. The Gates offer a distraction though and Fox misses the 450. Now the Spirit Gun can finish Fox at 11:17.

Rating: B-. Fox is firmly in the “he’s going to be entertaining” mode and has been for a few months now. That’s the kind of thing that can be rather valuable, and now it seems that AEW is giving Fox more of a chance. On the other hand you have Ricochet, who is his usual self and finding something with the Gates behind him. Having him take the TNT Title from Rhodes wouldn’t be the worst idea either.

We look at Hangman Page beating Jon Moxley at All In and the fallout on Dynamite.

We go to commentary…where the Death Riders jump Colt Cabana and bust him open. Cabana gets hung with a chain and the villains leave through the crowd.

Kris Statlander is ready to face Willow Nightingale because she is a wrestler. Wheeler Yuta comes in and tells her that champions bounce back. Statlander is not pleased.

Megan Bayne vs. Tay Melo

Everyone is banned from ringside. Bayne fires shoulders in the ribs to start and then drops her with a clothesline. Melo pulls her into a Fujiwara armbar and then a triangle choke, which is broken up with the usual spinebuster. Back up and Bayne sends her outside as we take a break.

We come back with Melo firing off some running forearms and a German suplex drops Bayne. The running knee is blocked so Melo switches to a guillotine choke, which is reversed into a Falcon Arrow for two. Melo is back with a running knee into a Canadian Destroyer for two of her own. Bayne isn’t having this and hits a running clothesline, followed by a running Liger Bomb for the pin at 9:55.

Rating: B-. This is more like it from Bayne, who survived a fired up comeback from Melo before putting her away. Bayne is the monster of the division at this point and it should be interesting to see where she goes from here. Odds are she has to beat up Anna Jay as well, but then it might be time to have her go after the winner of Athena vs. Toni Storm. Just give her something involving gold, as it would be an appropriate part of her look.

Sky Flight is still looking for a fight when Don Callis comes in. Christopher Daniels says they’re not looking for management, but rather competition. Anytime.

Alex Windsor took Athena to her limits so now she’s All Elite.

Alex Windsor vs. Taya Valkyrie

Valkyrie has Johnny TV and the MxM Collection with her. Valkyrie knocks her down and hits a running corner clothesline to start fast. Back up and Windsor takes her down by the arm for a basement dropkick before knocking Valkyrie into the corner. They trade quickly escaped leglocks before Windsor’s discus lariat gets two. A Sharpshooter makes Valkyrie tap at 3:12.

Rating: C+. Windsor was fine enough here, but not exactly anything that stood out. I’ll take that over nothing though, as occasionally you need to bring in some fresh faces. Beating Valkyrie still means enough so it’s a good first win, as Windsor is already feeling a bit better presented than Thekla.

Post match Athena pops up in a balcony and says Windsor didn’t take anyone to her limit so get out of there. Athena says it’s time for her to take over and mocks Toni Storm’s voice and posing. Cue Storm to challenge Athena to come fight right now, but Athena says Storm gets to face Billie Starkz on Dynamite. Works for Storm, who storms the balcony, sending Athena running away. Athena comes off like a star, which makes waiting this long to bring her up all the more frustrating.

Billy Gunn comes in to see Anthony Bowens, who thinks they’re on different pages. Gunn says Bowens is obsessed with Max Caster, but he has a slump buster next week. Bowens is in.

Big Bill/Bryan Keith vs. Cru vs. Gates Of Agony vs. Gunns

For $200,000 and Juice Robinson is here with the Gunns. Austin jabs away at Rush to start but Andretti comes in for a double team to bring him down. Kaun comes in but walks into a dropkick, allowing Keith to come in. The Gunns double team Keith down, meaning it’s off to Bill (the fans approve). Everything breaks down and they brawl to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Colton fighting out of a wristlock but Rush takes out most of the potential taggees. Bill gets to come in though and house is cleaned, including a running boot to knock Kaun off the apron. Some big boots on the floor drop various people until Liona tackles Bill over the announcers’ table. Back in and Austin takes over but cue Ricochet to pull him to the floor. Open The Gates finishes Andretti at 9:48 to give the Gates the money.

Rating: B-. You know pretty much exactly what you’re going to get with this kind of a match, but I’m not overly interested in the money deal for the winners. AEW has been using that more and more often lately and that feels like quite the waste when they have a bunch of titles hanging around. Heck the Hurt Syndicate has been begging for competition, but instead of going after a title shot, these teams are fighting for money that won’t likely play any kind of an important role. I don’t get this and hopefully this deal fades away a good bit.

Video on the end of the Patriarchy, with Cope wanting Christian Cage to turn it around.

Here is Max Caster for the usual.

Max Caster vs. Kyle O’Reilly

Roderick Strong is here with O’Reilly, who kicks Caster outside. Caster grabs the mic and wants a chase, only for Strong to offer a trip. O’Reilly kicks away on the floor but Caster goes for the eyes back inside. Caster tries a sunset flip and gets cross armbreakered for the tap at 2:18.

Juice Robinson calls out Ricochet for costing the Gunns but Big Bill comes in for a brawl.

Rush vs. Katsuyori Shibata

They glare at each other to start and go straight to the slugout, with Shibata chopping him into the corner. Rush’s big forearm sends Shibata out to the floor and Rush rams him into various hard objects. Back up and Rush stops to yell at the crowd, allowing Shibata to hit a knee to the floor.

We take a break and come back with Shibata hammering away, followed by a front facelock DDT for two. They fight over rolling suplexes until Shibata gets two off three in a row. An exchange of German suplexes doesn’t go to either of them and Shibata misses the PK. Rush knocks him into the corner and hits the Bull’s Horns for the pin at 10:18.

Rating: C+. Well, Rush and LFI as the next challengers for the Trios Titles isn’t the worst idea, though I’m not sure when Samoa Joe is going to be back to defend the things anyway. As tends to be the case, the Trios Titles are often in need of challengers and Rush/LFI might be next. It nothing else, it’s weird to see Shibata job clean like this, but it could be leading elsewhere.

Post match the beatdown is on but Powerhouse Hobbs makes the save.

Don Callis Family vs. Jet Speed/Mascara Dorada/Bandido

Bandido and Hechicero waste no time in slugging away at each other to start, with Hechicero managing to knock him down. They trade places so Bandido hits a basement superkick. Back up and Bandido hits a kicks him down again, meaning it’s off to Dorada vs. Archer. The villains take over on Dorada, leaving some dropkicks and a superkick to put the villains down. Stereo dives connect but Alexander suplexes Bailey down back inside.

We take a break and come back with Knight dropkicking his way out of trouble. It’s back to Bandido to clean house but Hechicero is right there with some running knees in the corner. Hechicero manages a double down though and Archer comes in to to break various people. Everything breaks down and Bandido German suplexes Alexander but Archer runs him over. Knight dropkicks Archer to the floor and Romero hits a running Sliced Bread for two. Jet Speed hit stereo dives, leaving Bandido to 21 Plex Romero. Dorada’s shooting star press finishes at 12:38.

Rating: B. Yep, that was exactly what I was expecting and that’s not a bad thing. AEW knows how to do this match in their sleep and even had Romero take the fall, which is the main reason you have him in a match like this. It’s another fun one, as AEW has figured out the formula for something like this and it works.

Bandido and Hechicero yell at each other to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a very Collision-esque Collision, as they focused on a lot of lower level stuff, had some bigger names make a few cameos, and included some good enough action. Collision tends to be a show that I never look forward to but always winds up being entertaining. I could go for making it feel more important, though what we get is working well enough.

Results
Ricochet b. AR Fox – Spirit Gun
Megan Bayne b. Tay Melo – Running Liger Bomb
Alex Windsor b. Taya Valkyrie – Sharpshooter
Gates Of Agony b. Big Billy/Bryan Keith, Gunns and Cru – Open The Gates to Andretti
Kyle O’Reilly b. Max Caster – Cross armbreaker
Rush b. Katsuyori Shibata – Bull’s Horns
Jet Speed/Bandido/Mascara Dorada b. Don Callis Family – Shooting star press to Romero

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: July 16, 2025
Location: Byline Bank Argon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Taz, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

We are done with All In and it was a very good night for our heroes. Hangman Page is the new World Champion and the Young Bucks are out of power, which means we could be in for a whole new ball game around here. It also means that we are about five weeks away from Forbidden Door so it’s time to get things ready. Let’s get to it.

Here is All In if you need a recap.

Tony Schiavone brings out Hangman Page for his first big speech after the title win. As usual, Schiavone bails so Page can be alone in the ring, making me wonder why he was even there in the first place. Page says that the fans chanting YOU DESERVE IT are the ones who really deserve it. Fans: “WE DESERVE IT!” Oh come on man don’t encourage them. Anyway Page talks about how the fans are the ones who wanted a grassroots approach to pro wrestling and they are the ones who brought AEW into being.

The people here do it for the fans rather than the title, which earns a THANK YOU HANGMAN chant. Page thanks people like Orange Cassidy, Jay White, Adam Copeland, the Opps, Bryan Danielson and Darby Allin. He also needs to thank Will Ospreay, who made wrestling fun again. Finally though…and the fans know where this is going. Page doesn’t know if this person helped for himself, AEW, or even Page himself, but thank you to Swerve Strickland. Page has a wife and two kids who love him and he is the World Champion. Good opening here, as Page gets to take his victory lap.

Long recap of All In.

The Young Bucks had to Uber to the show.

Kyle Fletcher vs. Mascara Dorada

Fletcher boots him in the face to start and hammers away at Dorada. Back up and they trade some flips until Dorada sends him into the corner, followed by a dropkick. Dorada sends him to the floor for a big dive, only to get caught with a swinging Side Effect back inside. We take a break and come back with kicking him in the head, setting up a running headscissors.

A shooting star to the floor drops Fletcher again and Code Red gives Dorada two. The super brainbuster doesn’t work for Fletcher so Dorada snaps off a spinning super anklescissors. Dorada’s 450 gets two and a superkick into another anklescissors sends Fletcher into the buckle. Fletcher is right back with a lawn dart into the corner and the brainbuster gives Fletcher the pin at 10:56.

Rating: B-. Fletcher gets a win and there is a good chance that it is a foot forward on the path towards a shot at Dustin Rhodes. That’s the way it should go, and probably should have gone in the first place, but at least we’re on the way there. Dorada is solid in the ring and can make anyone look better, which was what he pulled off here.

Schiavone says that we’ll hear from Dustin Rhodes on Collision. Schiavone: “MUST SEE TV!” NBC is cringing over that one.

The Young Bucks are given the cold shoulder by Marina Shafir and find their tiny dressing room. Don Callis comes in with an offer to do business. The Bucks won’t join the family but they do hug Callis. Because Callis has to be involved with everything.

MVP is begging for a legendary tag team to step up and challenge the Hurt Syndicate for the Tag Team Titles. MJF shouts about being the best in the world and being better than Hangman Page. If Page is the main character, MJF can be the villain because nice guys finish last.

Josh Alexander/Hechicero/Young Bucks vs. Jet Speed/Bandido/Brody King

The Bucks don’t get pyro, have a bare bones Titantron video, and are listed as “they used to be EVP but now they’re not!”. Alexander headlocks King to start before a running clothesline has no effect. King chops him in the back and it’s off to Hechicero vs. Bandido. Hechicero gets taken down a few times to start fast and a hurricanrana does it again. A double dropkick puts the Bucks down on the floor and Jet Speed hit stereo dives.

Back in and the Bucks get to clean house, including a Doomsday kick to Knight as we take a break. We come back with Knight fighting out of trouble but the Bucks cut off the tag attempt. The Bucks try the EVP Trigger but stop because they can’t use the name anymore. Knight fights up and brings Bailey in to clean house, including a missile dropkick to Matt. King comes back in to clothesline Alexander to the floor, followed by a Cannonball to Hechicero.

Bailey Asai moonsaults onto the Bucks and Knight springboard clotheslines Knight. Back in and some superkicks send King into a German suplex from Alexander but Matt superkicks Nick by mistake. Bandido X Knees Nick but the 21 Plex is countered. The TK Driver drops Bandido and Hechicero grabs a choke for the win at 13:36.

Rating: B. I’m not sure about having the Bucks win so soon after their big loss at All In, but at least it was more about Hechicero vs. Bandido more than anything else. The Bucks being a bit less focused and stupid was a good idea. Now just don’t have them do anything important anytime soon and things will be better.

Here is Cope, so we pause for the fans to sing his song. Cope thanks the fans and says no, of course he didn’t save Christian Cage. He doesn’t know what is wrong with Cage but he is proud of the Patriarchy. No, he came back at All In because he wanted to get his hands on FTR. They were the first people he called when he was getting back in the ring and they wanted to be Rated FTR.

But then FTR started complaining about being in Cope’s shadow. They put him on the shelf for four months and those are four months he doesn’t have. Cope is back to get rid of FTR, but here is Stokely Hathaway, with security, to interrupt. Hathaway doesn’t like Cope and apparently Cope using Spike got THREE anonymous letters sent to AEW.

Therefore, if Cope interferes in an FTR match, he is officially fired. So go find a hobby and leave FTR alone. Cope says Hathaway looks like a fat Oompa Loompa, and what a shame it would be if that caught on. Hathaway said Cope couldn’t get near FTR, but he can get near Hathaway, who is dropped with a spear. They’re planting the seeds for the Cope and Christian reunion and….I’m kind of interested but it’s only getting me so enthused.

Mark Briscoe says MJF ducked and dodged him like a b****, leading to Briscoe not accomplishing either of his goals at All In. MJF brought up Jay Briscoe and now Mark is going to make him pay for his sins.

Thekla vs. Willow Nightingale vs. Queen Aminata vs. Kris Statlander

For $100,000. Nightingale and Aminata are knocked outside to start, leaving Thekla to escape Statlander’s suplex. Thekla kicks away but Nightingale and Aminata are back in to slug it out inside. Aminata does her hips to the face deal but Nightingale is back up with a Rack Attack to Thekla. Back up and Thekla hits a big dive to the floor and we take a break.

We come back with Thekla doing a sit up in the Tree of Woe and giving Aminata a spider superplex. The string of knockdowns leave Nightingale standing until she is knocked out as well and everyone is down. Nightingale is back up to plant Thekla for two but Statlander drives Nightingale into the barricade. Cue Julia Hart to mist Aminata and Thekla hits a Stomp for the pin at 10:42.

Rating: C+. The whole “this match is for a bunch of money” is becoming a bit too common thing lately, as it’s not like they have much meaning after the match is over. Maybe have people winning these matches and get closer to title shots? On top of that, Thekla vs. Aminata is still only so interesting and hasn’t really been doing much for the still new Thekla.

Here is Toni Storm in a balcony for a chat. She lists off all of her nicknames before saying that this tramp is still the champ. Storm thanks Mercedes Money for going all in with her but she warned Mone that if she made one mistake, she would eat Mone alive. Storm: “Well darling you were delicious!”

If Mone wants to come back for seconds, this buffet is always open for seconds. Unfortunately Luther was injured in the line of duty and it’s going to require reattachment surgery. Athena cuts her off and brags about her own abilities before saying that Storm’s demise is at hand. Storm: “If you are able, I will bend you over the table.” Athena feels different as a challenger and that is a very good thing.

The Patriarchy says they are now the Matriarchy and Christian Cage is now beyond his expiration date. Nick Wayne brags about being the youngest champion in company history and Cage created this monster.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Quintero

Non-title and the dropkick into the Rainmaker finishes at 1:02.

Post match Okada calls Swerve Strickland a b**** for screwing the Young Bucks. Cue Strickland to interrupt and ask what Okada meant, but Okada bails. I’d call that a good next challenger for Okada.

Death Riders vs. Mark Briscoe/Powerhouse Hobbs/Hangman Page

Hobbs goes after Castagnoli to start and fires off the clotheslines in the corner. Page comes in and gets to face Yuta, who is easily sent into the corner corner. We take a break and come back with Hobbs pulling Yuta out of the air but a cheap shot puts him down. Hobbs gets sent to the floor, where Marina Shafir gets in a cheap shot.

Moxley sends him into the steps and comes in for a running boot before handing it right back to Yuta. That doesn’t go as well and it’s off to Briscoe to clean house. Shafir cuts him off on top though and Moxley grabs the Paradigm Shift on the floor. We take another break (two hours and four minutes into the show) and come back again with Moxley grabbing an STF on Briscoe.

That’s broken up and Briscoe fights back, including a missile dropkick. Page comes back in with a pop up sitout powerbomb for two on Yuta and flips out of a Doomsday Device. The moonsault to the floor hits Yuta but Moxley breaks up the Buckshot Lariat. Instead Hobbs makes the save and Page rolls Castagnoli up for the pin at 17:42.

Rating: B. Good match here, with Page getting the win to keep things going after his title match. What matters the most is that Page and company won the match and beat the Death Riders again. It’s a solid way to wrap things up, but now we have to see what is next for Page, which could be a few different challengers. The Death Riders on the other hand probably have to deal with Darby Allin, which could be quite the next step in their downfall.

Post match the Death Riders beat Page down but Darby Allin pops up in the rafters. The distraction lets Page get in a Buckshot Lariat to Moxley. Allin looks down to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. All In was a heck of a show and they had a good follow up as a result. I’m not sure that it needed a nearly fifteen minute overrun after the longest pay per view ever, but AEW is going to take their time no matter what happens. I’m curious to see where things go from here though and there was enough good action here, so this worked well as the next step after their biggest show of the year.

Results
Kyle Fletcher b. Mascara Dorada – Brainbuster
Young Bucks/Hechicero/Josh Alexander b. Jet Speed/Brody King/Bandido – Choke to Bandido
Thekla b. Willow Nightingale, Queen Aminata and Kris Statlander – Stomp to Aminata
Kazuchika Okada b. Quintero – Rainmaker
Hangman Page/Powerhouse Hobbs/Mark Briscoe b. Death Riders – Rollup to Castagnoli

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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All In 2025
Date: July 12, 2025
Location: Globe Life Field, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Tony Schiavone

It’s the biggest show of the year and that should make for some special moments. The main event is all about the World Title, with Hangman Page challenging Jon Moxley in a Texas Death Match. Other than that, Will Ospreay and Swerve Strickland can get rid of the Young Bucks’ power, albeit while risking something of their own. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Sons Of Texas/Von Erichs

Trish Adora and Kevin Von Erich are here too. Guevara flips over Bravo to start and kicks him in the face before it’s quickly off to Marshall. Bravo gets taken into the corner and Ross comes in, only to be taken into the wrong corner. Dean comes in for the running flip dive to the floor, allowing Taylor to hit some running splashes on the floor.

Anthony Ogogo and Kevin Von Erich nearly get into it but some other members of the Rhodes family come in to scare Ogogo off. Back in and Rhodes hits Cross Rhodes but everyone else comes in for the brawl. The villains are all sent into each other though and the four way claw goes on. Ogogo comes in so Kevin claws him and it’s a quadruple submission for the win at 7:13.

Rating: C. This was the Texas special match and of course the match wasn’t about the Six Man Tag Team Titles because those things have been forgotten. Other than that, the match was completely acceptable, with the quadruple Claw being a nice way to wrap it up. The fans get a nice moment and that’s all it needed to be.

Zero Hour: Big Boom AJ/Hologram/Kyle O’Reilly/Tomohiro Ishii vs. Don Callis Family

It’s a brawl to start with the good guys striking away in the corner (everyone but Ishii does right hands, while he does chops because of course). AJ takes over on Romero for something like a Demolition Decapitator before it’s off to Hologram vs. Hechicero. That doesn’t last long as Archer throws O’Reilly to the floor before shoving Big Justice (AJ’s teenage son).

Back in and Beretta and Romero take turns hitting running strikes to put O’Reilly down again. The rebound lariat gets O’Reilly out of trouble and it’s off to Hologram to pick up the pace. Hechicero cuts him off with a Spanish Fly before Ishii comes in as well. Ishii can’t brainbuster Archer so AJ comes in to clothesline Archer to the floor. Romero gets launched over the top onto Archer as everything breaks down again. AJ’s powerbomb is broken up so Hologram hits a running rope walk flip dive to the floor. Justice comes in to spear Romero, setting up the Powerboom to give AJ the pin at 12:50.

Rating: C+. The winners were never in doubt here but it worked perfectly fine. Let the fans have a fun moment with the Costco Guys getting their stuff in and Hologram doing his thing. It’s not like Romero or Beretta are going to be hurt by another loss so just let the whole thing do what it was supposed to do.

Zero Hour: Outrunners vs. FTR

Rematch from a week or so ago when FTR won. Harwood and Magnum go to the mat to start before everything breaks down. The Outrunners clean house, with a flying headscissors taking Wheeler over. Back up and Harwood starts in on Floyd’s leg, including a quickly broken Figure Four. The chinlock goes on to keep Floyd down but he jawbreaks his way to freedom.

They crash out to the floor but Harwood is back in to take out the knee and cut off another tag. Floyd double DDTs his way out of trouble, though it’s still not enough to get over to Magnum. Wheeler tries to come in so the referee cuts him off, meaning the referee misses the tag. Said tag goes through a few moments later though and it’s Magnum coming in to fire off the corner clotheslines.

Everything breaks down and a high crossbody from Magnum sets up a jackknife rollup to give Floyd two. A sunset flip gets two more but neither team can hit a Shatter Machine. Total Recall hits Harwood but Stokley breaks up the cover. The distraction lets Harwood get a rollup (with feet on the ropes and being held) for the pin at 16:16.

Rating: B-. The match was good enough, but I’m not sure how this changes anything from where we were after their first match. FTR being better than the Outrunners isn’t a surprise, but this was another loss for the Outrunners as their status continues to dwindle. It wasn’t bad at all, but it feels like we have covered all of this before.

And now the show proper.

The opening video talks about the important moments that can define a promotion. We then shift into a look at the biggest matches on the show.

As has been the case before, the set and presentation are incredible as it looks on par with Wrestlemania.

Trios Titles: Opps vs. Death Riders

The Opps are defending and it’s a brawl to start fast. Most of them head outside, leaving Shibata and Kidd to chop it out inside. The exchange keeps going until stereo clotheslines put both of them down. Joe comes in to headlock Yuta before the corner enziguri knocks Yuta silly, allowing Hobbs to hit the delayed suplex. It’s off to Castagnoli to unload on Yuta in the corner but Joe comes in to plant Castagnoli down.

Kidd offers a distraction though and Castagnoli sends Joe outside. Back in and Castagnoli chokes on the ropes before grabbing a reverse chinlock. That’s broken up and Joe hits a backsplash, allowing the tag off to Hobbs to clean house. The spinebuster gets two on Castagnoli but Kidd offers a distraction, allowing Castagnoli to hit Swiss Death.

A Doomsday Device is countered into a powerslam to pull Yuta out of the air for a big crash. Everything breaks down again and Castagnoli swings Hobbs into the barricade. Shibata comes in and shrugs off a belly to back suplex before handing it back to Joe for the slugout. Joe’s powerslam gets two on Kidd and Hobbs breaks up the Fastball Special. Joe MuscleBusters Yuta to retain at 14:29.

Rating: B-. Bit of an odd choice for the opener but the fans are always going to respond to Joe. If nothing else, it was nice to see the designated loser of the team take the fall, as there was certainly no reason for Kidd to do it. The Trios Titles are still kind of unnecessary, but at least the champs are looking dominant.

Post match the Death Riders beat the Opps down, with Joe’s neck getting Pillmanized.

We recap the Men’s Casino Gauntlet Match, which is mainly about Mark Briscoe vs. MJF as we don’t know a bunch of the entries.

Since there will be a men’s and women’s version, here are the Casino Gauntlet rules:

• Unknown number of entrants
• Untimed entrance intervals
• First fall wins the match, meaning it could end at any time, including before everyone enters
• Winner gets a World Title shot at any time

Men’s Casino Gauntlet Match

Marc Briscoe is in at #1 and MJF is in at #2. MJF rolls him up for some early near falls before sending Briscoe face first into the buckle. Back up and Briscoe chops away but can’t get the Jay Driller as Ricochet is in at #3. Ricochet and MJF team up to beat on Briscoe in the corner before stopping to pose.

Bandido is in at #4 so MJF bails to the floor, leaving Bandido to gorilla press Ricochet. Briscoe is back up with a clothesline to Bandido and the running apron Blockbuster drops MJF. Ricochet takes Bandido to the floor as Konosuke Takeshita is in at #5. Ricochet comes back in to strike away at Takeshita before Bandido takes Ricochet’s place in a rematch from last night’s Supercard Of Honor. Back up and MJF powerbombs Bandido into a backbreaker for two before going after the mask.

Mistico is in at #6 and MJF knows this isn’t good. A handspring elbow takes MJF down and Mistico’s springboard wristdrag does the same to Takeshita. Mistico hits a big dive to the floor before grabbing La Mistica on MJF. Briscoe makes the save by grabbing his own Fujiwara armbar on MJF, which is broken up as well. Josh Alexander is in at #7 and gives Bandido a World’s Strongest Slam onto the apron. Takeshita hits a running dive and it’s Anthony Bowens in at #8.

Bowens goes right after Alexander before the reverse Angle Slam hits Ricochet. Briscoe is back up to slug it out with Bowens, who sends him out as well. Alexander and Takeshita are back up to lay Bowens out but Roderick Strong is in at #9. Strong is taken down by Alexander and Takeshita as well, with Brody King coming in at #10.

King gets to clean house for a bit, including a string of corner Cannonballs. One of them gets two on Strong before King and Bandido start double teaming Ricochet. A frog splash gets two and the returning (and clean shaven) Juice Robinson is in at #11. Robinson full nelson slams Ricochet for two but here are the Gates Of Agony to save Ricochet. The shooting star press gets two on Robinson but the Gunns are back to go after the Gates. 3:10 To Yuma drops Ricochet and Robinson gets two off a rollup, with MJF breaking it up. Kota Ibushi is in at #12 and starts firing off the kicks to clean house.

A standing moonsault gets two on Bowens and it’s the Beast Mortos in at #13. Mortos gets to wreck some people, including a big clothesline to Takeshita. Strong’s efforts to reunite with Mortos don’t work but Mistico is back in for the save. Bandido breaks up Vertigo and gives Ricochet the X Knee.

A series of knockdowns lets Strong tiger bomb Takeshita for two and Robinson suplexes King for the same. Strong’s End Of Heartache gets two on Ibushi and Bowens is sent onto the ramp…as Max Caster is in at #14. Caster takes forever to get to the ring, where Briscoe hits the Jay Driller on Strong. Not that it matters as MJF steals the pin for the title shot at 34:55.

Rating: C. The match was ok, but that’s a very long time when you could pretty easily cut an entrant or two out to save some time. A show that already has quite a few matches on the card including a nearly thirty five minute match feels like a bit much. All that being said, MJF winning is a good way to go, as he could do a lot with a contract like that. Only he and Mark Briscoe felt important and that’s all it needed to be.

Stokely Hathaway reveals that FTR will be on commentary for the Tag Team Title match. This really warranted its own segment.

We recap the TNT Title match. It was supposed to be Adam Cole defending against Kyle Fletcher but Cole is not medically cleared, meaning we’re getting a four way for the vacant title.

Here is Cole, who apologizes but says he is not medically cleared. He doesn’t want to say this is his retirement because his head isn’t clear right now but….and we pause for some tears. Cole thanks the fans for their support and for being here for AEW no matter what. The rest of the Paragon comes out for a group hug and Cole does his pose one more time. Well that’s horrible to hear and hopefully it’s nothing life threatening.

TNT Title: Dustin Rhodes vs. Kyle Fletcher vs. Sammy Guevara vs. Daniel Garcia

For the vacant title and Garcia hugs Cole on the way to the ring. Rhodes and Guevara suplex Fletcher to start so he sends Rhodes outside and follows him for a breather. Garcia and Guevara have something of a dance off until Fletcher breaks it up. Rhodes is back in to go after Fletcher and Guevara gives Garcia a Spanish Fly from the apron to the floor (to no reaction, as that Cole announcement sucked the life out of the place).

Back in and Fletcher and Garcia both grab a Figure Four, both of which are turned over. Fletcher and Garcia slap it out until both holds are broken. Garcia rolls some superplexes to Guevara (as you do) before superplexing Garcia and Fletcher at the same time. Rhodes is right back with a Canadian Destroyer into the Cross Rhodes for two on Fletcher. Back up and Fletcher is tied up in Shattered Dreams position, with the other three getting to take turns kicking him low.

Garcia goes with a Boston crab to Guevara, who breaks out and hits a quick GTH, with Rhodes making the save. The Dragon Tamer is broken up and Fletcher powerbombs Guevara onto the apron but Guevara is back up with a top rope cutter. Garcia Dragon Tamers Rhodes…who reverses into a small package for the pin at 15:26, making Rhodes a triple champion.

Rating: C+. If you can figure out the need for Rhodes to get this kind of a push as a triple champion at this stage in his career, you’re way ahead of me. In theory I guess the idea here was to give the fans someone from Texas getting a big win, though I would hope that there is a better option available. Other than that, this was more about Cole’s deflating announcement, which was absolutely terrible.

Post match the rest of the Rhodes family and the Von Erichs come in to celebrate.

We recap Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland vs. the Young Bucks. The Bucks have been abusing their authority as Executive Vice Presidents so it’s time for the good guys to fight back. In this case, that means that if the Bucks lose, they are no longer EVP’s, but if Ospreay and Strickland lose, neither can challenge for the World Title for a year.

Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland vs. Young Bucks

Ospreay has an Assassin’s Creed themed entrance while Strickland comes out to his old Ain’t Nobody theme, as sung live by former WWE personality Jojo Offerman. The Bucks get to come in on a boat, with a proclamation talking about everything they have done with AEW. Ospreay and Nick start things off but it’s quickly off to Swerve vs. Matthew. Everything breaks down and the Bucks strike away at Strickland to take over.

Ospreay gets sent outside for a heap on the floor as commentary keeps praising the Bucks. Back in and Strickland is suckered into the ring, allowing the Bucks to stomp away. The idea here is that the Bucks are an experienced team and Ospreay/Strickland are trying to figure it out. The slingshot X Factor gets two on Ospreay but he gets in a shot of his own, allowing the needed tag off to Strickland.

Everything breaks down and stereo hurricanranas send the Bucks outside. Ospreay and Strickland hit stereo dives, followed by corkscrew dives (off the same post, one to the floor and one to the ring) for two on Matt. Back in and the Bucks score with some flip dives but Ospreay Hulks Up and hammers away, only for Matt to knock both heroes down. Matt’s Buckshot Lariat is countered, setting off a crazy fast paced series of strikes, with stereo Canadian Destroyers planting Ospreay and Strickland, who bounce back up with a Hidden Blade and House Call to leave all four down.

Back up and the Bucks take them to the top, which is reversed into a pair of Styles Clashes. A Stormbreaker/Swerve Stomp combination hits Matt but Nick superkicks Nana on the floor. Back in and a low blow drops Ospreay, followed by a TK Driver to Strickland on the outside. More Bang For Your Buck hits Ospreay for two but Strickland makes Matt kick Nick in the face.

Ospreay’s Hidden Blade hits Strickland by mistake though and the EVP Trigger gets two. The TK Driver hits Ospreay for two more so the Bucks fire off a bunch of superkicks. Strickland gets between them so he’s superkicked down, only to block the EVP Trigger. A Swerve Stomp/Tombstone combination plants Matt for two and he saves Nick after a Hidden Blade. The Hidden Blade/House Call combination finishes Matt off at 25:52.

Rating: B+. This was a very Young Bucks style match, meaning it was rather entertaining with some insane spots, many of which seem designed to make the Bucks look as good as possible. That being said, the important thing here is that the Bucks lost and they lost clean, in a high stakes match. That’s exactly what should have happened here and it happened in a very fun match, with Swerve and Ospreay working well together.

Women’s Casino Gauntlet Match

Kris Statlander is in at #1 and Megan Bayne is in at #2. They fight over a suplex to start until Bayne muscles her up with a Falcon Arrow for two. Statlander is back up with a kick to the head and her own Fate’s Descent as Willow Nightingale (to a BIG reaction) is in at #3. Nightingale avoids a kick from Statlander to start and hits a basement crossbody but a double chokeslam puts Nightingale down.

Tay Melo is in at #4 and reverses Bayne’s Fate’s Descent into the Rings Of Saturn. Penelope Ford (here with Bayne and not in the match) loads up a Doomsday Device but Harley Cameron (also not in the match but in a mask) pops up to cut her off. Thekla is in at #5 for some running boots to Nightingale but gets dropped by the Tay KO. The Babe With The Powerbomb gives Nightingale two and everyone is down as Julia Hart is in at #6.

Hart’s moonsault hits Bayne and Statlander and a Black Widow has Bayne in more trouble. That’s broken up and Thekla does her spider thing as Queen Aminata is in at #7. Aminata slugs it out with Thekla as Skye Blue (here with Hart but not in) gets in a slugout of her own. Hart and Thekla do stereo spider deals in the corner as Mina Shirakawa is in at #8. Shirakawa takes out Blue and puts her in the Figure Four for the tap…which means nothing because, you know, she’s not in the match.

Athena (big pop for the hometown girl) is in at #9 and takes out Hart and Blue in the aisle on the way to the ring. Athena gets to clean a bunch of house until Thunder Rosa (who lost to Athena last night) is in at #10. Rosa dropkicks Athena a few times and grabs a choke, with Aminata breaking it up. We get a string of running headscissors until Syuri, a very talented star from Stardom, is in at #11. Syuri strikes away (as is her custom) and stands tall for a bit until Alex Windsor is in at #12.

A hanging DDT and Angle Slam plant Syuri but she’s right back with a wheelbarrow bulldog to drop Syuri. Windsor and Syuri trade German suplexes with pretty much everyone else running in for the save. Almost everyone pairs off to slug it out before heading outside. Melo screams a lot until Statlander powerbombs Bayne onto the pile at ringside. Back in and Rosa chops away at Shirakawa, who gets up top for a Sling Blade. Shirakawa strikes away at Rosa and tries the Figure Four but Athena is in with the O Face to pin Shirakawa at 27:02.

Rating: B-. I do like the ending, as Athena winning the match is hopefully a step towards the main roster and a run on top. Her Ring Of Honor title reign is more than enough to warrant her that spot and it’s nice to see her getting to do this. The rest of the match was longer than it needed to be, as you could have easily cut out an entrant or two without missing much. Good action, but on a show that is already running really long, this would have been a logical place to trim off some time.

We recap the Tag Team Title triple threat. The Hurt Syndicate wanted competition so Jet Speed got a title shot, followed by the Patriarchy being added to make it a three way match. That was a good move, as there was no way I was buying Jet Speed as threats to win the titles on their own.

Tag Team Titles: Hurt Syndicate vs. Jet Speed vs. Patriarchy

The Syndicate, with MVP/MJF and rapped live to the ring, is defending, and FTR is on commentary. The challengers get knocked to the floor to start with the Syndicate taking over without much trouble early on. Jet Speed is sent into the barricade and Lashley stomps away on Bailey back inside. Bailey kicks away at Lashley to little avail so it’s off to Christian, with Wayne pulling him outside for a save.

Jet Speed hit stereo dives onto the champs and then double boot Wayne down for two. Back up and Benjamin sends Knight face first into the steps. Bailey does his bouncing kicks to Wayne but gets planted with a spinebuster. A release German suplex sends Bailey over the top and crashing onto a pile at ringside in a unique spot.

Back in and Benjamin slams Bailey a few times but he gets in a shot to the face. Christian comes in for a save but gets lifted by Lashley, only for Bailey to kick his leg out for the save. It’s back to Knight (yeah we’re doing tags now) to pick up the pace with Wayne before an assisted hurricanrana brings Benjamin out of the corner.

Benjamin is back up with some release German suplexes to Knight before Wayne’s World hits Bailey on the apron. Christian frog splashes Knight for two with MVP making a save before it’s back to Lashley to clean house. Jet Speed do a kind of Doomsday Device dropkick to send Wayne outside, leaving Lashley to yell at FTR. Back in and the spear to Christian retains the titles at 18:59.

Rating: C+. And here we have the first match where the length was really getting annoying. I cannot fathom a world where it should take the Hurt Syndicate nearly twenty minutes to beat these guys and it felt like they were stretching for the sake of stretching. That’s not a good feeling to have as this could have been wrapped up in about half the time to the same result.

Post match FTR gets in the ring to go after Christian but the Patriarchy gets in to break it up. Then Wayne turns on Christian and lays him out with an Unprettier, leaving even FTR stunned. The Conchairto is loaded up but Cope returns and….does his full entrance before coming to the ring for the save with the spiked 2×4. Cope cleans house and helps Christian up, telling him to go find yourself.

We recap Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Mone for the Women’s Title. Storm is one of the most successful stars in the history of the women’s division while Mone is the undefeated TBS Champion and feels unstoppable. Storm is the only person who can do something about it and that gives us a showdown.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Mone

Only Storm is defending and Mone comes to the ring with a bunch of cheerleaders. Storm on the other hand has a video featuring a variety of time pieces, from clocks to an hourglass, for a pretty basic idea. They fight over a lockup to start and shove each other away, which works so well that they do it again. Both of them head to the apron but Storm is sent back inside, where she does some dancing kicks. The Mone Statement sends Storm straight to the ropes and she knocks Mone outside.

Back in and Storm does Mone’s dance before getting on Luther’s shoulders to send Mone crashing off the apron. Mone knocks her off the apron with Luther making the catch, only for Mone to take both of them down with a running Meteora. Back in and the running knees connect in the corner, followed by a figure four necklock to keep Storm in trouble. Storm gets up and it’s a German suplex to give Mone two.

That doesn’t work for Storm, who is back with a Thesz press and right hands, followed by a fisherman’s suplex for two. Mone grabs a Fujiwara armbar but Storm escapes and hits a backbreaker. Storm blocks a cross armbreaker and catapults her throat first into the bottom rope for a nice counter. Storm Zero gets two so she grabs a crossface chickenwing. That’s broken up with a bite of the arm so they fight over a Tombstone until Mone pulls her into a kneebar.

Storm gets another escape and they slug it out until an exchange of rollups gets two each. The Mone Maker gives Mone two and Storm’s tiger driver gets the same. Mone misses the middle rope knees and Storm flips her over into a faceplant for two. Storm grabs her own Mone Statement, followed by three straight Storm Zeroes…for two more. Mone is sat in the corner for the hip attack but she reverses into a small package for another near fall. An STF has Storm in trouble but she sends Mone into the corner for the hip attack. Storm puts her on the top, gives her a kiss, and hits a super Storm Zero to retain at 24:13.

Rating: B. Well, they didn’t do it. Or I guess they did. I’m not sure which it is, but what matters the most is that Mone lost. My biggest issue with her has been that she felt unbeatable and that was corrected here, so well done. It was another good match with both of them working hard, though I could have gone without the three straight Storm Zeroes for the near fall. Other than that though, solid fight with both of them working hard.

We recap Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada, title for title. They’ve had a legendary series of matches and it’s time to do it again. The match is winner take all, with the winner getting a special title, but the titles are going to stay separate, with the Continental Classic coming again later this year.

Jim Ross is on commentary, which is nice to see after all of his health issues.

Unified Title: Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada

For the inaugural title, Kota Ibushi is here with Omega and Don Callis is here with Okada. Omega also gets a special entrance, with what appear to be druids singing his song. They take their time to start and then lock up as the fans certainly seem interested. Omega backs him into the ropes for some slaps to the chest but gets driven into the corner. Okada charges into some raised boots though and the running Fameasser sends Okada outside.

A big dive takes Okada down but Omega misses a high crossbody back inside, banging up his injured midsection. Omega fights back but his moonsault hits raised knees to put him in trouble again. Okada puts him on top for a dropkick out to the floor. Callis gets in a few cheap shots and a DDT on the announcers’ table plants Omega again. Back in and another DDT gives Okada two but Omega manages to knock him outside. That means the big running flip dive, with Callis running away in fear.

A missile dropkick gets two on Okada back inside and they go up top, with Omega muscling him up for a superplex. The abdomen is still messed up though and it’s a delayed near fall as a result. Back up and Okada snaps off a dropkick before the top rope elbow connects. Okada drops another elbow before grabbing Omega’s hand and striking away. That lets Omega fire back, including a powerbomb and V Trigger for two.

They go up top and Omega grabs a super snapdragon, with Okada turning a bit, landing partially on his face. Okada is right back up with a discus lariat for two and a German suplex gives Omega the same. Cue Rocky Romero for a distraction so Ibushi takes him out, leaving Omega to hit the One Winged Angel.

Callis pulls the referee out at two so another one comes in, with Omega hitting a V Trigger. Okada escapes another One Winged Angel and nails the Rainmaker for two. Back up and Omega hits the V Trigger, only to get caught with the dropkick. Callis teases coming in but Okada hits a powerslam, followed by the Rainmaker for the pin at 30:32.

Rating: B+. Well, it was rather good, but it wasn’t exactly the epic showdown that it was hyped up as being. That being said, they’re both a good few years older and more banged up since their original series, so it’s not like they were working under fair expectations. They had a very good match and Okada winning makes more sense, though I’m not sure what is next for Omega. Either way, the hype was certainly there and it was absolutely good, so we’ll call this enough of a win.

We recap Hangman Page challenging Jon Moxley for the World Title. Moxley has basically taken the title hostage and everyone wants to get it away from him, with Page being something of the chosen one to take it back. The match is a Texas Death Match, which in this case basically means you win by knockout or submission only and anything goes.

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley is defending. Page gets played live to the ring, with a guitarist playing his old music. As a bonus, he’s wearing white so you know the blood is coming. On the other hand, Moxley and the Death Riders drive their truck into the stadium so it must be serious. They go straight to the slugout with Page getting the better of things and stomping away in the corner.

Back up and Moxley hammers down right hands in the corner but misses a fork shot. Instead Page takes it away and grabs a triangle choke to stab Moxley in the head. That doesn’t do much, as Moxley is right back to rib at Page’s head, with Marina Shafir getting in a bite. Page is busted open and Moxley plants him onto a barbed wire chair. Page gets the chair, which is booted back into his face for another knockdown.

A table is sat up at ringside and Moxley hits a cutter before pouring out a bucket of broken glass. Moxley drags Page over the glass (ouch) and then piledrives him onto it, which still isn’t enough for a ten count. Shafir throws in some more chairs and Moxley sets them up, but has to block a superplex attempt. That means scraping something over Page’s back but Page slips out and turns the chairs around, with the backs together.

A powerbomb onto the chairs has Moxley in a lot of trouble so Wheeler Yuta comes in for a chair shot to Page’s back. That earns Yuta a shot to the face so Shafir gets up. Page Death Valley Drivers her through the ringside table and the Deadeye sends Moxley into the glass. The Death Riders pull Page out and load up another table so here is Will Ospreay to try a save. That’s broken up and Ospreay is piledriven onto the floor. Ospreay’s neck is Pillmanized and he gets taken out as Moxley suplexes Page through a pair of barbed wire tables at ringside.

Back in and the slug it out until Moxley hits another piledriver into the bulldog choke. The Death Rider onto an open chair drops Page again for nine. Wheeler Yuta brings in the plastic bag but we get a video from Darby Allin, who is ready to come after Moxley. Cue a man in a mask to give Moxley a running knee and YES it is indeed Bryan Danielson. A dive takes out the Death Riders and Allin repels down from the ceiling.

Allin Coffin Drops onto the Death Riders, leaving Page to Deadeye Moxley through a table. Shafir helps Moxley up as the Young Bucks come in to EVP Trigger Page. It’s time to bring in a bed of nails (of course) and Page is Paradigm Shifted onto the bed. Naturally he gets up so Shafir goes for a chain, which is cut off by Prince Nana. Cue Swerve Strickland to chain various people down and then hand it over to Page. Some chain shots have Moxley in trouble and the Buckshot Lariat sends Moxley onto the nails. Page hangs him over the ropes with the chain and Moxley taps at 35:55.

Rating: B. To get it out of the way, what matters the most here is the fact that the title change hands. Moxley has been champion for such a long time and it has been horrible to sit through. Page taking the title is the most important part here and they got that part right. I’m not wild on how they got to that point as the violence got more than a bit ridiculous, with the bed of nails being rather stupid. The result is the important part here though and that makes up for a lot of the issues the match might have had.

Post match Page (eventually) gets the briefcase open and pulls the title out for the big celebration. Page can barely stand up to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. First and foremost, it’s a rather good show. There is nothing on the main card that is bad and they gave us the big happy endings that the show show needed. That’s the important part of the show and overcomes a good many of the issues the show has. It was a good effort all around, though there wasn’t that one match that really stood out above the rest.

As usual, the biggest problem is the length, as it took me three different sittings to get through the whole thing. There are parts of the show that could have been dropped (the TNT Title match taking place elsewhere would have been nice, or cutting at least a few minutes off the Casino Gauntlets or the Tag Team Title match). That being said, the time wasn’t as big of a detriment here as it has been in the past, which is very nice to see.

Overall, this was a good show and they got the important parts right. AEW has been needing a big happy ending for a good while and we got that, plus the Bucks losing as a bonus. In short, they got the important stuff right and I’ll take that over just about anything else. Everything looked great and the fans were happy, so I can definitely call this a strong show.

Results
Sons Of Texas/Von Erichs b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Quadruple submission
Hologram/Big Boom AJ/Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly b. Don Callis Family – Powerbomb to Romero
FTR b. Outrunners – Rollup to Magnum with feet on the ropes
Opps b. Death Riders – MuscleBuster to Yuta
MJF won the Men’s Casino Gauntlet Match – Jay Driller to Strong
Dustin Rhodes b. Kyle Fletcher, Sammy Guevara and Daniel Garcia – Small package to Garcia
Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland b. Young Bucks – Hidden Blade/House Call combination to Matt
Athena won the Women’s Casino Gauntlet Match – O Face to Shirakawa
Hurt Syndicate b. Jet Speed and the Patriarchy – Spear to Cage
Toni Storm b. Mercedes Mone – Super Storm Zero
Kazuchika Okada b. Kenny Omega – Rainmaker
Hangman Page b. Jon Moxley – Choke with a chain

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

It’s time for the biggest AEW show of the year and the biggest they have ever held in America. The main event very well may change the course of AEW, as Hangman Page is trying to end the reign of terror from Jon Moxley. Other than that, we have the usual variety of title matches, with all kinds of things already set for the show. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: FTR vs. Outrunners

We saw this earlier in the month on Collision and now it’s time to do it again rather quickly. The idea was that the Outrunners got close to beating FTR but couldn’t quite get there and they want to run it back to try again. That should make for a good match, but at some point the Outrunners need to actually win something or those reactions are going to start getting weaker in a hurry.

That being said, outside of some interference or shenanigans, I can’t imagine FTR losing here, so we’ll go with the Outrunners taking another defeat. At the end of the day, FTR seems primed to go after the Tag Team Titles again sooner or later and that isn’t going to happen if they lose a match to a glorified comedy team. FTR goes over here, likely with some cheating after a tough match.

Zero Hour: Big Boom AJ/Hologram/Kyle O’Reilly/Tomohiro Ishii vs. Don Callis Family

Here we have another match where the result doesn’t seem overly likely to be in double. The Costco Guys are fine as the celebrity involvement and it works well to see them in the ring like this. At the same time, you have Hologram, who doesn’t lose, which takes away even the tiniest bit of drama this match might have had. That’s not something you like to see, but at least it’s on the Kickoff show.

Of course I’m taking the thrown together team to win here, likely with Trent Beretta or Rocky Romero taking the fall. This is probably the easiest match to call all night as there is no reason to believe that the Callis B Team (because they have enough members to have a B Team) has a chance. The match should be fun, as long as I don’t have to put up with too much of the Rizzler.

Zero Hour: Sons Of Texas/Von Erichs vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Yeah there is it. For those keeping track, Dustin Rhodes and the Von Erichs have now had the titles for 350 days, with their most recent title defense taking place back in April. Prior to that, their previous title defense was the day after they won the belts in the first place. They’re on the same team here with an extra name being added, but for some reason they can’t have a token title defense here just to get the belts on the line.

Since the show is in Texas, naturally I’ll take the Texans to win here, as Shane Taylor Promotions were just being hyped up as ready to start doing something again. Therefore, it’s time for them to lose again, likely to the “popular” team. I’m sure the fans will likely them well enough, but we’re very possibly coming up on Rhodes setting the record for longest individual reigns with two titles. I have no idea why, but apparently being from Texas is enough.

TNT Title: Adam Cole(c) vs. Kyle Fletcher

It’s a nice feeling when there really isn’t a choice for the weakest match to start the main card. Cole has been presented as a big deal with the title, but Fletcher is looking for a big win. That is the kind of thing that makes for a major moment, as they’re making for an important collision. Cole and the Paragon have been fighting the Don Callis Family, but this might be where things fall apart.

I’ll take Fletcher to win the title here, as it feels like they are on the way towards doing something a lot bigger with him. At some point he needs to validate that with something more than just the ROH TV Title. Beating Cole would feel like an important moment, especially at the biggest show of the year. Let him win and see where he can go from here, while also giving Callis something to brag about for the team.

Tag Team Titles: Hurt Syndicate(c) vs. Jet Speed vs. The Patriarchy

Sweet goodness it is amazing how much adding the Patriarchy has helped this match. The Syndicate is so much ahead of just about every other team in AEW so they’re going to need some special odds to give them a real threat. This is about as good of an idea as they have to make it work, which seems to be going well. I’m not sure if that means it’s going to mean a title change, but at least there is some more intrigue.

That being said, I’ll take the champs to retain here, as it’s hard to imagine them losing to anyone, even with the odds being against them. Bobby Lashley having a bad knee still isn’t enough to make me think that Jet Speed could beat anyone and I can’t quite picture the Patriarchy winning either. The Hurt Syndicate gets to use the size and power to win here, which they should be doing again.

Trios Titles: Opps(c) vs. Death Riders

This is the logical way to go for a title match, as the Death Riders, albeit in a different form, are former champions. I do like what they’ve done with the Opps, as seeing Powerhouse Hobbs getting at least something to do should have taken place a LONG time ago. It’s more interesting than Hook would have been in the role, which is a nice upgrade to see. This is going to be a different kind of fight though and I’m not sure how this is going to go.

As much of a possibility as a title change might be, I think I’ll take the Opps to retain here. Joe getting to smash through people is always worth seeing and while I can imagine AEW wanting to push Gabe Kidd, there are better ways to do that than by throwing him into a trio to win some belts. Hopefully this is a hard hitting fight, and that’s the best way for the whole thing to go, likely with the Opps retaining.

Men’s Casino Gauntlet

And now we get to the confusing stuff, as it’s really hard to predict a match where you don’t know who is involved. There are a few interesting options out there already and unfortunately that’s about all we can go on here. Mark Briscoe and MJF are going to be starting the match, which in a way is the best spot to have as while you’ll be out there longer, the match being able to end at any time can make things all the more interesting.

Based only on the six names that we have, I’ll actually go with Ricochet stealing the win here. Ricochet is the kind of guy who could get a lot out of having a title shot hanging over someone’s head and that’s what it should be. MJF is always an option to win here, but other than that, it’s hard to guess with so few names officially announced. Ricochet stands out over what we have though and that has me interested enough.

Women’s Casino Gauntlet

So remember what I said about the issues with the men’s version of this match? Well this one is even worse, as there are even fewer names advertised. I have almost no idea who to go with here as it’s basically “pick one of the two names announced (Kris Statlander or Megan Bayne) or the mystery field. That’s a really hard pick to make, so this is the shot in the dark match of the night.

I’ll go with Bayne here, though again it’s a match where we know two entrants out of whatever number we’ll wind up with here. Bayne getting to smash through everyone in front of her is a good idea as she has already wrecked the midcard in recent weeks. Let her get back into the title scene and see where she can go, as there is a chance to see her get into the title scene very quickly.

Swerve Strickland/Will Ospreay vs. Young Bucks

This is the stipulation match of the night, as the Bucks are putting up their Executive Vice Presidencies against Ospreay and Strickland being able to challenge for the World Title for a year. Earlier this week, it seemed that Strickland Ospreay were on enough of the same page to give the Bucks a run for their money, but there is no guarantee that will be enough to put them over the most successful team AEW has ever had.

Unfortunately we’re at a coin flip here, as I could see AEW going either way. I’ll take….Ospreay and Strickland winning here, though it’s the kind of a pick where I have no reason to believe I’m right. The Bucks have been built up to the point of getting to lose something big and this is about as huge as they can get. Just let them finally give something up while also keeping your main event scene intact. I’m not convinced that’s how it’s going to go, but it’s the right way to go.

Continental Title/International Title: Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Kenny Omega(c)

They were so close. The term “winner take all” was giving me hope that they were going to get rid of one of the titles they had running around but alas no, as Tony Khan has confirmed that not only will the titles stay separate, but the Continental Classic will reset the Continental Title in a few months. That’s not the way I was hoping for things to go, but it’s quite the AEW way of doing things.

Omega makes more sense here, as Okada needs to lose a big match at some point, with a loss to Omega making the most sense. The big appeal here is flashing back to what these two did about seven or eight years ago, which is a risky move to make given how they have been going lately. I can imagine that the two of them are going to work as hard as they can and the match should be rather exciting, but the title situation takes away a lot of the spark I had coming into this one.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm(c) vs. Mercedes Mone

The more I think about this, the more I’m thinking I want Mone to win. I don’t care about what Mone has done in AEW and I still find her fairly uninteresting, but there is something glorious about the idea of “and then she beats everyone and wins all of the titles”. That’s how I played No Mercy back in the day and getting to see it on a national stage could be hilarious in a way.

I’ll take Mone to win here, as her thing is “she wins all the time”. Storm has been champion for a long time (combined) now and while she needs something new to do, I have a bad feeling that the something is chasing Mone for a bit before moving on to something else. Mone losing is something that needs to happen, but I’m thinking AEW is going to ride the Mone train until….I have no idea really.

AEW World Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Hangman Page

This is a Texas death match and I have no idea where it’s going. Moxley should have lost the title about five months ago but it feels like AEW is building towards some big moment with him. There should be no bigger moment than this show, but at the same time, it feels like we are coming up on Darby Allin being the one to take the title. There is always the chance that Swerve Strickland could cost Page here, or someone else could run in (my money would be on Jack Perry) to screw him over.

That being said, I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Page wins the title. I’m almost perversely hoping that I’m wrong just to be able to laugh at AEW, but to say it is time is an understatement. Page has been set up to win this title and there is no reason to stick with Moxley. I’m completely believing that I could be wrong here, but Page needs to get the title and send the fans home happy.

Overall Thoughts

This is the day that AEW has been building towards for a long time now and it’s time to knock it out of Globe Life Park. The previous editions of All In have gone well before and hopefully they can do it again here. AEW’s history with pay per views gives me hope with this one, but dang they need to wrap it up with the Death Riders/Young Bucks already. If they don’t do that, or at least one of those two things, I don’t know where they’re supposed to go next. Get it right.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Collision
Date: July 10, 2025
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s the last show before All In and that means it is time for the final push. That doesn’t always go as usual with Collision though as this show is so often based on what happens in the ring. Maybe there is a chance that is different this time though as All In is the biggest show of the year so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Don Callis Family vs. Paragon

Fletcher and O’Reilly start things off with an exchange of running shots. That means it’s off to Cole to work on Beretta’s arm before a belly to back neckbreaker drops Beretta. Paragon takes turns stomping away in the corner until Fletcher offers a distraction. Beretta takes over on Strong, who gets caught in the wrong corner. Romero’s Forever Lariats don’t last forever as Strong rolls away to bring in O’Reilly to clean house. Everything breaks down and O’Reilly hits some running shots off the apron. Romero cuts him off with a suicide dive though and we take a break.

We come back with Fletcher getting in a cheap shot to Cole on the apron. O’Reilly and Beretta clothesline each other, allowing Strong to come in and clean house. A Razor’s Edge spun into a cutter (cool) drops Romero but Fletcher is back in to make the save. The big tag brings Cole back in to clean house and he (intentionally) sends Beretta into the corner so Fletcher can come in. A half and half suplex drops Cole, who is right back with the Panama Sunrise for two. The Boom is cut off but O’Reilly and Strong are back in to take Romero down. Now the Boom can finish Romero at 13:40.

Rating: B-. That’s a very AEW style six man match and I can go with that as a way to open the show. The ending doesn’t exactly have me confident that Cole is going to retain the title on Saturday, but getting it on Fletcher is a good idea. If nothing else, it was nice to see the Paragon actually win, as they feel like they’ve lost a good deal lately.

Post match Cole and Fletcher have their big staredown, with Don Callis saying “don’t take the bait”. Fletcher backs down.

We get some special footage from after Dynamite, which is basically a promo from Jon Moxley and Gabe Kidd, who don’t think much of the talent around here. Kidd wants to face his mentor, Katsuyori Shibata, which he will do tonight.

We get a Technique By Taz video, looking at Mistico’s La Mistica. This is the kind of “real sports presentation” that works very well, especially with Taz, who sounds like he knows what he’s talking about.

We look at Scorpio Sky returning last week, along with Christopher Daniels, Top Flight and Leila Grey. Apparently they’re called Sky Flight.

Mistico vs. The Beast Mortos

Mistico starts fast and snaps off a running hurricanrana, followed by a springboard version. Mortos is sent outside for a hard suicide dive, which works so well that Mistico does it again. Back in and a springboard wristdrag drops Mortos again but he’s right back up with some corner clotheslines. A snap powerslam and neck crank have Mistico in more trouble as we take a break.

We come back with Mistico scoring with another running hurricanrana, followed by a handspring elbow for two. Mortos plants him down but Mistico is right back with a running sunset flip for two of his own. The pop up Samoan drop gives Mortos two and a Tombstone Codebreaker gets the same. Back up and they slug it out until Mistico grabs a running Canadian Destroyer. Mistico suplexes him into the corner and La Mistico finishes Mortos at 10:54.

Rating: B-. I don’t think there was exactly much doubt about the result here, as it was a way to have Mistico get in the ring and beat someone with a name. At the same time, it isn’t like Mortos ever wins anything of note, so Mistico only gets so much. Mistico is going to feel like a big deal no matter what due to his star power, so putting him on the show if possible is a no brainer.

Post match MJF pops up in the mask he stole from Mistico, saying he’s going to beat Mark Briscoe in three seconds. Then he’ll keep collecting Mistico’s masks until we see his face.

Mark Briscoe says he’s coming to win the Casino Gauntlet match, which is business. The stuff with MJF is personal though and he’s getting madder and madder after Dynamite. He has to beat up MJF. This was a serious Briscoe and he sold it well.

After Dynamite, Hangman Page wanted to talk about what happened, but not with Renee Paquette. Instead, he walks up to Swerve Strickland’s dressing room and lets himself in. Will Ospreay is there too and gets beaten them, but Swerve and Page say it’s ok. Prince Nana leaves too and they’re alone together. Page isn’t here to ask for help, but rather sits down and throws a chain on the floor.

Swerve is willing to listen and Page says he had nothing to do with the Young Bucks at Dynasty. What Swerve did to Page’s family though can never be forgiven. He thinks Swerve deserved what was done to him, and that’s why Page regrets it. Page wants to know if Swerve regrets what Swerve did to him. After everything that has happened, yes, he does regret it.

Page stands up and says his family will be at All In, with Swerve saying he’ll stay clear of them and hopes they have a good time. Page says he believes him and goes to leave, but Swerve stops him. Swerve wanted his family to live in the house that Page burned down, but maybe it was time to let go of the past. With Page gone, Swerve looks at the chain. Well that was intense and felt like a major step forward in their saga.

Here is Jon Moxley, with Marina Shafir, to ask what that was about. Page is no cowboy, but rather a *censored*. Moxley isn’t going to make any apologies after Saturday.

FTR/Patriarchy vs. Outrunners/Jet Speed

This is billed as an All Star match and…yeah not seeing that here. Bailey and Wayne start things off with Wayne being sent into the corner for some begging off. Knight comes in for a double big boot, with Wayne being sent outside. Back in and Christian knocks Knight into the corner for a hard chop but Knight manages a nice dropkick. Wheeler comes in and gets taken down with a springboard armdrag.

It’s off to Magnum, who is quickly dropped in the corner with some uppercuts. Magnum hands it off to Floyd for a spinning belly to back suplex and everything breaks down. Knight gets low bridged to the floor though and we take a break. We come back with Knight fighting out of trouble but Wayne cuts off the tag. That doesn’t last long as Magnum comes in, with Floyd helping to clean house.

The Megan Powers Elbow hits Wayne but Cage gets in a posting. The standing Sliced Bread hits Magnum to put him in trouble and the villains take turns beating him down. Magnum gets over for the tag to Floyd, but the referee doesn’t see it to keep up the beating. Wheeler grabs a cobra clutch but Magnum fights out and gets in a double knockdown. The hot tag brings in Bailey to clean house, including a standing shooting star press for two on Harwood.

Bailey’s springboard moonsault to the floor takes out a bunch of villains and it’s time for the parade of knockdowns. The Shatter Machine is broken up though and Bailey sunset flips Harwood for a VERY close two. Total Recall sends Christian outside and Knight’s spinning splash finishes Harwood at 18:02.

Rating: B. This picked up a lot at the end and that’s what you want out of this kind of a match. I do like that the Hurt Syndicate didn’t get involved here, as they are already more than established. FTR getting back into the title picture is a good idea as they are such a successful team, though I’d hope FTR vs. the Syndicate is saved for a special moment.

Big Boom AJ is back and wants the Don Callis Family. Big Justice and the Rizzler come in to meet Hologram and Tomohiro Ishii. The Don Callis Family comes in to issue the challenge, with Kyle O’Reilly coming in to even the score. The match seems to be made. Eh fine for a Zero Hour match, which is what it will likely be.

FTR wants revenge on the Outrunners and issue a challenge for Zero Hour.

Katsuyori Shibata vs Gabe Kidd

They go right to the slugout to start with Shibata hitting a running boot in the corner. They’re quickly on the floor, with Kidd getting the better of things but getting booted off the apron for his efforts. Another running shot against the barricade has Kidd in trouble but he hammers away back inside for a needed breather

We take a break and come back with Shibata shrugging off some chops to hit some of his own. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Kidd snaps off a Saito suplex for two and they trade big forearms. Shibata gets the better of things and hits some loud chops but has to go after an invading Wheeler Yuta. Kidd’s low blow into a piledriver finishes Shibata at 9:27.

Rating: B-. While Kidd has made an impact in AEW, he hasn’t felt like any kind of a major star. That was on display here, as beating Shibata only means so much. They went back and forth for a fine enough match, but this wasn’t the kind of thing that was going to make me all the more interested in Kidd.

Willow Nightingale/Thunder Rosa/Mina Shirakawa/Queen Aminata vs. Athena/Thekla/Megan Bayne/Julia Hart

Kris Statlander is on commentary. Athena and Shirakawa start things off With Athena taking over and getting in her required trash talk. A Sling Blade lets Shirakawa dance a bit ant it’s off to Rosa. Athena gets two off a quick rollup and Nightingale comes in for the corner clotheslines. Bayne throws Rosa and Shirakawa at the same time (as you can do) and Nightingale is knocked outside as we take an early break.

We come back with Nightingale giving Hart a Death Valley Driver, allowing Animata and Thekla to come in for a change. Animata headbutts Thekla into a neckbreaker and Shirakawa hits a big dive to the floor. Hart’s moonsault hits Nightingale for two, before Hart and Thekla hit stereo spider superplexes. Thekla is pulled outside for a whip into the barricade, leaving Nightingale and Hart in the ring. Shirakawa knees Hart into the Babe With The Powerbomb for the pin at 12:41.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure who is going to win the Casino Gauntlet match (partially because I don’t know who is in it) and that’s a nice feeling to have. Matches like this do offer a bit of momentum and Nightingale winning is certainly a nice possibility. Whomever it is, hopefully they don’t wait long to use their title shot, as the waiting around can kill off momentum in a hurry.

Post match the brawl is on again, with Tay Melo and Anna Jay running in to join the brawl and end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Much like this week’s Dynamite, the biggest issue here was avoiding losing steam before the pay per view. Other than the Hangman/Swerve segment, most of this stuff was skippable, but if you do watch it, you won’t be wasting your time. All In is all that matters here and this didn’t weaken my interest in the show, so we’ll call that a success.

Results
Paragon b. Don Callis Family – Boom to Romero
Mistico b. The Beast Mortos – La Mistica
Outrunners/Jet Speed b. FTR/Patriarchy – Spinning splash to Harwood
Gabb Kidd b. Katsuyori Shibata – Piledriver
Willow Nightingale/Thunder Rosa/Mina Shirakawa/Queen Aminata b. Athena/Thekla/Megan Bayne/Julia Hart – Babe With The Powerbomb to Hart

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: July 9, 2025
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

It’s the last Dynamite on the way to All In and that means there is not likely to be much before we get there. Odds are we’ll get some fine tuning this week, plus some big go home promos to make things a bit more important. Other than that, there is a good chance of some preview tag matches so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Mercedes Mone for her final comments about Toni Storm before Saturday. Mone wants to keep this civil but sounds rather condescending at the same time. Storm pops up on screen but Mone wants her face to face. This brings Storm to the ring with some champagne so Mone suggests a toast. That doesn’t work though as Storm doesn’t think much of Mone’s flattery, as it is as genuine as a spray tan in a rain storm. She thinks Mone is talking down to her like an underdog, which makes her a two faced fraud.

Mone doesn’t like that and says the more hatred the fans give her, the more motivated she becomes. Mone calls herself the alpha, the omega, and everything in between. Storm says none of that matters because legacies mean nothing. All that matters is the time when they face off, because Mone deserves every title in wrestling…except this one. They drink a toast and Storm tells her to “eat s*** b****”. The brawl sends Mone running, with Storm stealing her hat. I’m still having trouble believing that Storm has a chance, but at least she got in a little something here.

Jon Moxley talks about Hangman Page beating him in a Texas Deathmatch before but that was a long time ago. Moxley finds Page pathetic but Page has one chance to do this so don’t blow it. Page is all the way in.

Bandido/Brody King vs. Kyle Fletcher/Konosuke Takeshita

Don Callis is on commentary as Takeshita kicks King in the face to start. It’s already off to Fletcher, who is dropped with a hard shoulder. Bandido comes in for a running basement kick to the face, setting up the Bandido vs. Takeshita staredown. Everything breaks down and Takeshita hits a dive, followed by the same thing from King. Back in and Fletcher superkicks King, followed by a double kick to the face to put King on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Bandido fighting out of a chinlock. A DDT plants Fletcher and King comes in for the running Cannonball in the corner. Fletcher knocks King down as well though and it’s a double breather. Bandido comes in to hurricanrana Takeshita for two but Takeshita knocks him into the corner. A middle rope superbomb is countered into a hurricanrana but Fletcher makes the save. Everything breaks down and King misses a charge into the barricade. Back in and Bandido’s twisting flip dive off the top is forearmed out of the air. Raging Fire finishes Bandido off at 12:14.

Rating: B-. Take two teams who have some issues and let them have some time to get things ready for Saturday. There wasn’t much of a story between Takeshita and Bandido, which is a problem when they are two days from their title match. At least they’re doing something here, which is more than you get on the Ring Of Honor show.

The Outrunners aren’t happy with their loss to FTR but they’re not giving up.

FTR meets the Patriarchy in the back, with Christian Cage promising to win the Tag Team Titles. Stokely Hathaway doesn’t like that FTR isn’t in the title match but doesn’t think much of the Patriarchy either.

Ricochet vs. Blake Christian

Christian gets an insert interview and promises revenge. Christian hammers away in the corner to start and then does it again on the floor. Ricochet gets the chase on the floor though and jumps Christian on the way back inside. That’s shrugged off as Christian knocks him outside again, setting up the suicide dive as the fans actually approve of Christian for once.

Ricochet is right back with a shot of his own as the Gates Of Agony are here to watch. We take a break and come back with Ricochet kneeing him out to the floor but charging into a Spanish Fly. A 450 gets two but Christian goes after the Gates. That lets Ricochet hit the Spirit Gun into Vertigo for the pin at 7:33.

Rating: C+. Was this supposed to be Christian getting a face turn? I’m really not sure why that would be seen as a good idea, but it could be little more than a way to make Ricochet look like a villain. Putting the Gates with Ricochet is as good of an idea as they have at the moment, as I’ll take that over trying to make the Gates into a serious team again.

Post match the Gates plant Christian.

MJF, with the Hurt Syndicate, is ready for Mark Briscoe but they find a message from Jet Speed, apparently having stolen the title belts. MVP: “Someone is about to die.”

Video on Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada, looking at how we got here and the song saying “this is the end.”.

Here are Mark Briscoe (who borrows a sign saying that MJF has a tiny pickle) and MJF for a chat. Briscoe mentions the pickle thing, which MJF calls one of the stupidest things he has ever seen. MJF tells Briscoe to not throw rocks at someone with a machine gun (Roddy Piper line) and wants him to take a walky walk back to his meth lab in Delaware.

Briscoe says we’re on the way to All In so that’s a** whipping day, but tonight it’s about the talking. He’s proud to be a redneck and someone who has worked hard to put every dollar in his pocket. Briscoe is a very rich man in a lot of ways, but MJF is morally bankrupt and has no soul. He knows that MJF is going to talk some garbage about Jay Briscoe so go ahead. Instead MJF praises Jay, but he actually pities Jay.

While Jay is up in Heaven, he has to watch what Mark has become. After being part of one of the best tag teams of all time, Mark has become a joke. If Jay was here, he would say that it should has been Mark in the accident, and that’s enough for the fight to be on. Cue the Hurt Syndicate but Jet Speed jumps them from behind. The Syndicate is actually beaten down for once, which isn’t something you often see. The Patriarchy comes in to help take out the Syndicate too, including a Conchairto to Lashley’s knee. The Patriarchy being in the match is a big boost, as Jet Speed looked like the weakest challengers imaginable.

Megan Bayne vs. Thekla vs. Queen Aminata vs. Tay Melo

For the #2 spot in the Casino Battle Royal. Bayne kicks Thekla in the face to start and sends her outside but is tossed out to join her. Thekla dives onto Melo and Bayne but Aminata dives onto all of them for the bigger crash. We take a break and come back with Melo and Aminata messing up something but Bayne is back in to run them over anyway. Melo and Aminata double team Bayne until Thekla is back in to break it up.

Bayne loads up Fate’s Descent but instead throws Thekla over the top onto the other two. A big dive takes them all out again but Melo is back in with her spinning knee to Bayne. Thekla spears Melo, only to get dropped by Aminata. The running knee drops Thekla as Anna Jay and Penelope Ford get in a fight on the floor. That lets Bayne hit a running Liger Bomb to pin Aminata at 9:29.

Rating: C+. This was a good way to make Bayne look like a monster as she runs through three women at once. Aminata was fairly clear to take the loss and that’s not a bad role for her. At the same time you have Thekla, who is off to a bit of a rocky start. She’s not bad whatsoever, but she hasn’t done much of anything yet and that’s a weird start.

Post break, Aminata jumps Thekla in the back but they’re quickly separated. Mark Briscoe comes in to rant about MJF, with vengeance being sworn.

Samoa Joe vs. Wheeler Yuta

Yuta goes after the arm to start and is taken to the mat with ease. Back up and Joe easily wins a test of strength, followed by the walk away spot to leave Yuta crashing. Joe does it again, seemingly by mistake, on the floor and we take a break. We come back with Joe winning a slugout but Yuta breaks up a MuscleBuster attempt. Yuta’s suicide dive into an elbow gets two before he goes after the arm. Joe shrugs that off and boots him down for two, setting up the Koquina Clutch for the tap at 8:21.

Rating: C+. This was what it should have been as well, with Joe shrugging off pretty much everything that Yuta threw at him before grabbing the choke. Yuta isn’t going to be able to hang with someone like Joe, and that’s exactly what we got here. Joe is still someone who could be put up into almost any spot at any time and he looked like a monster again with this kind of win.

Post match Gabe Kidd runs in to take out Joe but the Opps run in for the save.

Opps/Will Ospreay/Hangman Page vs. Young Bucks/Death Riders

Page jumps the four of them to start but gets double teamed down by the Bucks. Ospreay springboards in with a high crossbody and it’s Matt getting caught in the corner for a running dropkick. The assisted moonsault gets two and the fight goes out to the floor. Page’s big moonsault connects and we take an early break.

We come back with Castagnoli missing a charge into the post, allowing Ospreay to snap off a suplex. The tag brings in Page to clean house until Castagnoli knocks him down. It’s off to Hobbs for the big forearm off with Castagnoli, with Hobbs getting the better of things. The corner clotheslines have Castagnoli in more trouble as everything breaks down again. The Bucks fire off the superkicks and the Riders powerbomb Hobbs through a table. Moxley chokes Shibata out at 10:39.

Rating: B-. This was a bunch of people out there at once with little more than a few sequences to fill in the time. That’s a perfectly fine way to go before the major show on Saturday as it is pretty much just a preview. I’m a bit surprised that Swerve Strickland wasn’t involved here, but odds are he’ll show up before the show is over.

Post match the beatdown continues until Moxley grabs a chain. The big beatdown is on and the Bucks have the plastic bags. Hold on though as Swerve Strickland pops up on the video screen, where he crushes the Bucks’ customized limo. Samoa Joe is back in to help fight back as the good guys get up. Castagnoli cuts off the Buckshot Lariat and the villains bail. The Bucks go to see their limo, wondering how they could ever financially recover from this. Swerve jumps on them for the brawl and the good guys stand tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show wasn’t supposed to add anything new, as All In was already set up. There was no reason to try to add some last minute idea and they didn’t bother going in that direction. Everything is set for Saturday and it’s a good way to help push everything towards the big goal line at All In. Not a great show, but it was what it needed to be.

Results
Kyle Fletcher/Konosuke Takeshita b. Bandido/Brody King – Raging Fire to Bandido
Ricochet b. Blake Christian – Vertigo
Megan Bayne b. Thekla, Queen Aminata and Tay Melo – Running Liger Bomb to Aminata
Samoa Joe b. Wheeler Yuta – Koquina Clutch
Young Bucks/Death Riders b. Hangman Page/Opps/Will Ospreay – Bulldog choke to Shibata

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Collision
Date: July 5, 2025
Location: Toyota Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s the 100th episode and we are also just a week away from All In. That means we’re going to be having quite the busy week, as there are a lot of things that need to get done. Hopefully the quality is still there with the show as well, though you never quite know what you’re getting around here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Here is Adam Cole to get things going. He thanks the fans for being here for 100 episodes and calls them the best audience he has ever wrestled for in his career. Cole says he’ll hold onto that title through this year and beyond but here is Kyle Fletcher to interrupt. Fletcher says the next 100 episodes of this show belong to him. Fletcher talks about losing to Cole at All In 2023 and it was the worst night of his career. Now he has killed that version of Fletcher and now he wants to make Cole feel just as bad.

No one deserves the title shot as much as he does but here is Daniel Garcia to interrupt. When you talk about the future of AEW, you better be talking about him. Cole says Garcia can have a title shot anywhere, but he’ll lose. The idea of a triple threat is thrown out but Fletcher wants this one on one. Fletcher says he’s beaten Garcia, who says that everyone has beaten him (maybe not the best thing to point out). Garcia and Fletcher are already fighting tonight so let’s make it for a title shot at All In. Works for Cole. This was a long way to set up the main event.

Toni Storm is ready to take out Mercedes Mone and keep the big shiny belt around her waist.

Shelton Benjamin vs. Nick Wayne vs. Kevin Knight

Their respective seconds are all here too and Knight has bad ribs coming in. Knight clears the ring to start but Benjamin pulls him outside. Benjamin sends the bad ribs into the barricade so Wayne can steal a near fall but Knight is back up to cradle Benjamin for the same. Back up and Benjamin gets dropkicked out to the floor, leaving Wayne to knock Knight down.

We take a break and come back with MVP arguing with Mother Wayne. Benjamin powerbombs Nick but Knight springboards in with a sunset flip (nice) for two. A double superkick drops Benjamin, leaving Nick and Knight to slug it out. Benjamin is sent outside and Nick hits a big flip dive, followed by Knight’s springboard double clothesline to drop both of them. Back in and Benjamin gets the ankle lock but Nick breaks it up with Wayne’s World. Knight comes off the top with the UFO to break it up and pins Benjamin at 10:23.

Rating: B-. This was a nice way to set up the now three way Tag Team Title match at All In, which is a lot better than the regular tag match. There is only so much that you can get out of Jet Speed getting the title match so adding the Patriarchy is a good idea. I still don’t believe that the titles are in danger, but this should be an upgrade.

The Death Riders challenge the Opps for the Trios Titles at All In.

Mark Briscoe/Hologram/Mistico vs. Don Callis Family

Mistico gets double teamed to start with Romero working on the arm. Back up and a rope walk wristdrag brings Romero down, followed by a running hurricanrana. It’s off to Briscoe who loads up the chair, but Beretta cuts off the step up dive. A drop toehold sends Briscoe face first into the chair for two and we take a break.

We come back with Hechicero avoiding Hologram’s superkick so Hologram snaps off an anklescissors to take him down. Back up and Hologram is thrown into a Canadian Destroyer to plant Romero but Hechicero Spanish Flys Hologram for two. A running knee gives Beretta two as everything breaks down.

Mistico comes off the top rope with something like a tornado DDT to Hechicero and a hurricanrana puts Beretta on the floor. Beretta suplexes Hologram but Briscoe is back in to low bridge him to the floor. The running flip dive takes out Romero on the floor, leaving Briscoe and Hologram to hit their step up flip dives onto Beretta and Hechicero. Back in and La Mistica makes Romero tap at 17:04.

Rating: B. This was the usual “take a bunch of people and let them fly around the ring for awhile”. It’s an entertaining match and I can always go for Briscoe getting a win like this, though I have no idea what Hologram is supposed to be. Other than the local luchador who has fun matches, he never really moves up or down the card. After so long, it would be nice to see that change a bit.

Post match the winners celebrate (with Briscoe rocking some air guitar for Mistico’s song) but MVP and MJF pop up on the screen. MJF doesn’t like either Mistico or Briscoe and tells the fans to go back to counting food stamps. MVP insults Mistico in Spanish and MJF agrees.

Some AEW stars did some things at a recent NASCAR race, including Swerve Strickland driving the pace car. Anything that gets AEW associated with more mainstream sports is a good thing.

Here is Max Caster, who does not like the fans singing along with his song. He instead tries to get them to chant THIS CROWD SUCKS and asks who will be answering the challenge this week. We get a video of Scorpio Sky of all people, as he is back in training and accepting the challenge.

Scorpio Sky vs. Max Caster

Caster jumps Sky to start and is knocked down just as fast. A TKO ends Caster at 55 seconds.

Ricochet doesn’t want to talk about his interactions with the Gates Of Agony. He walks off and finds the Gates, who have attacked Blake Christian.

Willow Nightingale vs. Vipress

The spinebuster looks to set up the Babe With The Powerbomb but Vipress slips away. That earns her the Pounce into the Babe With The Powerbomb for the pin at 1:26.

Anthony Bowens is banged up after his loss when Billy Gunn comes in. Bowens says thank you for helping him now, but Gunn tells him that it doesn’t happen overnight. Bowens wants to win the Casino Gauntlet and Gunn tells him to trust him. Works for Bowens.

FTR vs. Outrunners

Harwood takes Floyd into the corner to start and gets punched in the face for his efforts. It’s off to Wheeler, who takes Magnum into the corner but some clotheslines have him in trouble. Floyd comes in for an assisted faceplant but Wheeler drops Floyd. A suplex gets Floyd out of trouble though and it’s back to Magnum to clean house. The Mega Powers Elbow is broken up though and we take a break.

We come back with Magnum busted open and getting brainbustered to make it worse. Wheeler misses a running dropkick in the corner but he gets over to break up the tag to Floyd. A high crossbody gets Magnum out of trouble but Harwood is back in with a Razor’s Edge/neckbreaker combination.

Naturally Magnum gets up to knock both of them down and make the hot tag off to Floyd. House is quickly cleaned and now the Mega Powers Elbow hits Wheeler for two. A sunset flip gets two on Wheeler, followed by the Shatter Machine for a VERY near fall. Back up and the regular Shatter Machine hits Floyd for the pin at 18:26, with Stokely Hathaway holding Magnum’s foot to cut off the save.

Rating: B-. I think the idea here was to have the Outrunners get elevated by working a long match with FTR, but the Outrunners are just feeling a bit dated. The fans are still cheering for them, but they lose every big match and only feel like a bit of a threat to win. At the same time, FTR needs something bigger to do, though I’m not sure I can picture them going after the titles again.

Tay Melo/Anna Jay/Queen Animata/Thunder Rosa vs. Athena/Julia Hart/Megan Bayne/Thekla

Aminata and Thekla start things off with a running headscissors taking Aminata down. Rosa comes in to face Athena, who hands it off to Bayne instead. Bayne powers her into the corner but misses a charge, allowing Rosa to hit a running dropkick. Aminata comes in with a top rope double stomp and it’s already back to Rosa as we take a break.

We come back with Hart hitting a spider superplex to Rosa. That doesn’t get her very long though as Rosa pops up and brings in Melo to clean house. Everything breaks down with Rosa diving off the apron to take out Athena. Cue Skye Blue to take out Melo, leaving Jay to avoid a charge in the corner. Penelope Ford offers a distraction though and Bayne hits a running Liger Bomb for the pin at 10:19.

Rating: C+. It wasn’t quite a random match, but Bayne has already smashed through these women a few times. I can go with watching Bayne wreck people though as she does it really well, but again she needs to move up the ladder a bit. At the same time, Rosa looked strong on the way to what is likely a loss to Athena at Supercard Of Honor, but I’ll take what I can get.

Video on Alex Windsor, who is coming back from a knee injury.

Kyle Fletcher vs. Daniel Garcia

Don Callis and Adam Cole are on commentary and Fletcher takes him into the corner for some dancing. A headlock has Garcia in trouble but he fights up for a running shoulder. Some right hands in the corner rock Fletcher and they go to the floor, where Garcia gets in a shot of his own. Back up and Fletcher hits him with a lawn dart into the barricade to bust Garcia open.

We take a break and come back with Garcia hitting a suplex onto the apron. A running dropkick against the barricade connects and Garcia’s top rope superplex, leaving them both down. Fletcher is back up with a sitout powerbomb for two and he tries a running knee, which is countered into the Dragontamer. The rope is reached and they crash out to the floor, where Garcia hits an apron powerbomb. Garcia beats the count but Fletcher gives him a Helluva Kick into a brainbuster for the pin at 14:40.

Rating: B-. Another good match here and in this case it sets up a title match at All In, where Fletcher should be moving on to become the new champion. At the same time, Garcia is sliding down the card and hopefully the solution isn’t a heel turn. This worked well enough for a main event and they didn’t stay too long, which is always nice to see.

Overall Rating: B. This was a good show with the action working well throughout. It was an attempt to have a big milestone show and that went rather well all things considered. They did some good work setting up a few details for All In and you don’t get that kind of a show very often around here. Throw in some solid action and I’ll take this every week.

Results
Kevin Knight b. Shelton Benjamin and Nick Wayne – UFO to Benjamin
Mistico/Mark Briscoe/Hologram b. Don Callis Family – La Mistica to Romero
Scorpio Sky b. Max Caster – TKO
Willow Nightingale b. Vipress – Babe With The Powerbomb
Megan Bayne/Thekla/Athena/Julia Hart b. Tay Melo/Anna Jay/Thunder Rosa/Queen Aminata – Running Liger Bomb to Jay
Kyle Fletcher b. Daniel Garcia – Brainbuster

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: July 2, 2025
Location: Toyota Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni, Taz

It’s the 300th episode of the show and we are rapidly approaching All In. The show is mostly set but we also have a bit more to cover on the way there. That includes this week’s TBS Title match as Mercedes Mone gets to defend against Mina Shirakawa. That could make for some interesting situations so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Hangman Page to get things going. He has said enough about his match against Jon Moxley already because he is going to win the title. You can tie him up and hang him but you will have to kill him before he lets this chance pass him by. He knows the Elite and the Death Riders are coming for him so let’s make this a Texas Death Match. Cue Jon Moxley, who says Page wants to put all the chips on the table. No. That isn’t what Page wants, because Moxley says he is going to lose.

Page isn’t going to win because he doesn’t want to win. Page doesn’t want everything that comes with the title. People call themselves the “best in the world” but that’s “basic b**** s***” to Moxley, because Page isn’t good enough to go into a Texas Death Match. The brawl is on and Page whips out a fork, which draws in the Death Riders for the save. Moxley bails as Castagnoli and Yuta lay Page out.

Hold on though as Page gets up, saying he’s still standing. That brings Moxley back but the Opps are waiting there to cut them off. Marina Shafir tries a briefcase shot but Page takes it away, demanding the stipulation be made in exchange for the briefcase. Now Moxley is in. Page goes to leave but says he needs to show he’ll do anything to beat Moxley, so he Buckshot Lariats Shafir. I’m almost scared for what this means for All In, but the result is all that matters.

Toni Storm talks to one of the stars of the upcoming Superman film, who used to wrestle.

TBS Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Mina Shirakawa

Mone is defending and Toni Storm is on commentary. The chase is on to start and Mone catches her coming in for a stomping. Shirakawa’s rollup gets two as the fans are split. Back up and Shirakawa cuts off a leapfrog and stops for some dancing. Mone knocks her down and hits the middle rope Meteora for two before tossing Shirakawa outside. We take a break and come back with Shirakawa jumping over the referee to dive onto Mone, who is right back with the Statement Maker.

That’s reversed into a Figure Four but Mone rolls out to the floor for the break. A hurricanrana to the floor takes Mone down and a DDT makes it worse. Mone is back up with a Meteora off the apron and they go back inside to trade forearms. Another Meteora and a sunset bomb into the corner gets two but Shirakawa reverses a middle rope Meteora.

The Figure Four sends Mone over to the ropes so Shirakawa grabs a top rope Sling Blade. Shirakawa hits her in the back and front of the head, setting up the Glamorous Driver for two. Back up and Mone grabs a Tombstone into a gutbuster for two of her own before grabbing a small package to retain at 14:20.

Rating: B. I’m not sure how much drama there was here because, you know, Mone never loses. Odds are that’s what happens again at All In and then…I have no idea where it goes from there. Mone stopped interesting me a long time ago and while her matches are far more good than bad, I could go for the tiniest bit of drama in the result.

Post match Mone decks Shirakawa again and takes out Storm as she tries to make the save. That’s not enough so Mone throws champagne in Luther’s face.

The Young Bucks have their own customized limousine (on Tony Khan’s dive) and they go on a tour of their childhood homes.

Casino Gauntlet Qualifying Match: MJF vs. AR Fox vs. Anthony Bowens vs. Brody King

For the #2 spot in the match. MJF immediately hands King money to take a dive but King throws it down, which sends MJF bailing to the floor. King beats up the other two without much trouble, including the running crossbody to Fox against the barricade. MJF sits in on commentary as Fox is back in with a skin the cat into a dropkick to King.

Back up and Fox hits a springboard inverted flip dive to take King down. King hits a dive of his own to drop both of them but MJF is back up to steal some covers as we take a break. Back with MJF running the ropes to taunt Bowens but King takes him down. King clotheslines Bowens and Fox down and we get a quadruple breather. Bowens is up with a Blockbuster to King to make him DDT MJF, followed by a spinning DDT for two on Fox.

King’s Cannonball misses MJF, who hits a running knee to Fox. MJF grabs a chair, which King punches into his face, setting up a triple Cannonball in the corner for two. Fox is back up with a 450 for two of his own but MJF hits Bowens with the hammerlock DDT. MJF says BRODY SUCKS but gets caught in the hanging sleeper. King Ganso Bombs Bowens so Fox breaks it up, only to get caught in the Salt Of The Earth to give MJF the win at 13:01.

Rating: B-. I could go a long, long, long time without a three or four way qualifying match for…pretty much anything really. Anyway, this did have more drama than the opener, because the prize of being #2 in the Casino Gauntlet is far different than just not being in the gauntlet whatsoever. King looked like a monster, Fox was his usual entertaining self, Bowens is talented and MJF stole a win as he said he would. Pretty much as expected here.

Post match Mark Briscoe comes out to say that MJF will be getting an uninterrupted a** whipping in Dallas. Before then though, he wants MJF to come to the ring on his own for a talkie talk, and if he has anything next to his pickle, he’ll do it. Cue Jet Speed to go after the Hurt Syndicate, who come back and lay them out. Jet Speed keeps getting up and keep getting beaten down as the destruction continues. Kevin Knight gets up again and challenges Shelton Benjamin for Collision. Jet Speed is not feeling like serious challengers, though I’m not sure who would at this point.

Young Bucks/Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kyle O’Reilly/Bandido/Roderick Strong

Bandido takes Takeshita down to start and gives him the finger gun to the face. Matt comes in with a top rope spinning armdrag before the Bucks elbow O’Reilly down. We hit the parade of strikes to the face until Bandido hits a big dive to take the Bucks out on the floor. Takeshita takes him out with a dive of his own though and we take a break.

We come back with Strong getting the tag to clean house, followed by O’Reilly doing the same. Matt is back up with some rolling northern lights suplexes and Takeshita Blue Thunder Bombs Bandido to leave everyone down. A pop up sitout powerbomb gets two on Bandido but he’s back up with a super flipping World’s Strongest Slam for two of his own.

Nick flips out of the 21 Plex though and a double superkick into a wheelbarrow suplex drops Bandido for two more. O’Reilly breaks up the superkick party but the second round takes him down. A triple knee to the face sets up Raging Fire to give Takeshita the pin on O’Reilly at 11:48.

Rating: B. This was the party match of the week and it isn’t like O’Reilly and Strong have much status to lose so the result is fine. The Bucks don’t need a win but Takeshita gets to look strong on the way to his Ring Of Honor World Title match next week. Other than that, this was a way to give the fans something entertaining that has become the standard in AEW and that makes sense for an anniversary show.

Post match Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay run in to clear the Bucks out. They still want the EVP titles on the line because the people can get the power back. The Bucks so no, but Ospreay sweetens the pot by saying if the Bucks win, Swerve and Ospreay can’t challenge for the World Title for a year. Swerve is in as well and the match is set.

Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland vs. The Beast Mortos/Dralistico

Mortos and Dralistico rush the ring to start fast and Ospreay is knocked to the floor. Swerve kicks away at Mortos and hits the rolling Downward Spiral but Mortos sends him to the floor. Mortos hits a big rolling flip dive to take the heroes out and we take a break. We come back with Ospreay getting the tag to clean house, including a big flip dive to take out Dralistico. Mortos backbreakers Ospreay into a top rope double stomp from Dralistico for two, with Swerve making the save. Back up and a Swerve Stomp/Stormbreaker combination hits Mortos, leaving Dralistico to get Styles Clashed into a House Call for the pin at 8:42.

Rating: C+. Ok so the result was never really in doubt here, but it makes all the sense in the world to have the new superhero team get a win. They have a heck of a showdown coming up in less than two weeks so getting the experience together is a must. I’m not sure which way the All In match will go and that’s a nice feeling, even if it means the Bucks winning feels possible.

Kota Ibushi vs. Kazuchika Okada

Non-title and Don Callis is here with Okada. A shove to the face annoys Ibushi to start and Okada bails to the floor. Back in and Okada pats him on the chest before bailing outside again. A cheap shot from behind drops Ibushi but he knocks Okada outside for a slingshot dive. Okada manages a ram into the steps though and we take a break.

We come back with Ibushi hitting a dropkick and kicking him down, setting up a standing moonsault for two. A running knee drops Okada again but he’s back up with a flapjack to cut Ibushi off. The top rope elbow hits Ibushi again and there’s the middle finger to the camera. Okada knocks him into the corner and hammers away, where Ibushi fights up.

The Rainmaker is ducked and Ibushi hits a hard clothesline of his own. Ibushi’s phoenix splash is countered into a German suplex but the Rainmaker is countered (again) into a kick to the head. They go up top and Ibushi hits a super tiger driver, say it with me, for two. Okada is back on his feet 33 seconds later and counters a sunset flip into a rollup for two more. The big dropkick into the Rainmaker finishes Ibushi at 14:47.

Rating: B-. That super tiger driver being little more than a throwaway move didn’t help here, but at least it seems that Ibushi won’t be getting a Superman push. He’s looked better in his return, but he only means so much in AEW outside of being Kenny Omega’s friend. Okada looks like more of a killer going into All In, and that should make the winner take all match that much better.

Post match the Don Callis Family comes in for the beatdown but Kenny Omega returns with a chair for the save. Ibushi and Omega beat Trent Beretta down and celebrate to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Rather strong show this week, with a bunch of fine tuning or adjusting being done to the All In card. That’s in addition to a nice slate of matches this week, making it quite the good use of TV. All In is pretty much everything for AEW and they need to knock it out of the park. Getting the setup right is a big part of that and they took some very nice steps in that direction this week.

Results
Mercedes Mone b. Mina Shirakawa – Small package
MJF b. Brody King, AR Fox and Anthony Bowens – Salt Of The Earth to Fox
Young Bucks/Konosuke Takeshita b. Roderick Strong/Bandido/Kyle O’Reilly – Raging Fire to O’Reilly
Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland b. The Beast Mortos/Dralistico – House Call to Dralistico
Kazuchika Okada b. Kota Ibushi – Rainmaker

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Collision
Date: June 26, 2025
Location: ShoWare Center, Kent, Washington
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re rapidly closing in on All In and this week features another Thursday show, which is a good way to go and I would love to see it become permanent. Other than that, FTR is going to be talking to the Outrunners after what happened last week. Hopefully we get to see something on top of that so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Tony Schiavone brings in the Outrunners and FTR, with Stokely Hathaway, for a face to face chat. Hathaway thinks FTR should be getting a Tag Team Title shot but they have to be dealing with this first. He is FLABBERGASTED at the Outrunners’ actions and Cash Wheeler is the same. They have done all kinds of things for the Outrunners but the second FTR starts looking out for themselves, everyone has a problem with it.

We see a video of the four of them working together before Dax Harwood talks about the Outrunners becoming a big deal. Then they got a title shot and what happened? The Outrunners embarrassed themselves and that’s when everyone started seeing them as a comedy act. Harwood yells at the fans for cheering for the Outrunners, who turned their backs on FTR. This little shtick might make them money, but it will never make them FTR money because the Outrunners aren’t that good.

FTR goes to leave but hold on though because Truth Magnum sees all of these Outrunners shirts and knows the people believe in them. The Outrunners believed in FTR and then they got dropped in a hurry. They want a fight but Hathaway says we’ll do it next week. I like the idea of tying up the loose end of their issues and history, though I’m not sure if this was worthy of the opening spot of the show.

Dynamite recap.

Patriarchy vs. Big Bill/Bryan Keith

Keith and Wayne start things off with Wayne backing away into the corner to start. They fight over hammerlocks with Wayne’s shot to the face making Keith smile. Cage comes in and gets to face Bill, which has Cage thinking twice about things. Bill shoves him face first into the mat so Wayne gets to try his luck instead. Everything breaks down and Bill and Keith clear the ring, with Keith hitting a big dive.

We take a break and come back with Cage chopping at Keith with the reverse layout DDT getting two. Keith gets in a shot of his own and Bill comes back in to wreck various people. The spinning Boss Man Slam hits Wayne and the Patriarchy is sent into each other. Hold on though as Bill goes outside to beat up Kip Sabian and Mother Wayne offers a distraction. Keith powerbombs Wayne but Mother Wayne offers a distraction, allowing Cage to make the save. Bill misses a charge into the post and Cage spears Keith down to break up another powerbomb. Wayne kicks Keith in the head for the pin at 12:45.

Rating: C+. The more I see of Keith and Bill, the more I like them, though they’re kind of directionless at the moment. At the same time, the Patriarchy going for the Tag Team Titles could be a spot on the way towards their split. That might be a long way off, and it’s not like the Hurt Syndicate has any other major challengers at the moment (no, Jet Speed are not major challengers).

Josh Alexander is ready to win the TNT Title.

Post break, Christian Cage praises Nick Wayne but they run into MVP. He thought it was a nice debut and their first step towards coming for the Tag Team Titles. MVP tells them not to do it, but Cage says never trust a criminal, especially one like MVP who got caught. MVP isn’t impressed and says good luck, because they’ll need it. That doesn’t sound great.

Brody King/Templario vs. Rocky Romero/Hechicero

Hechicero and Templario start things off with Templario taking him down. Back up and Hechicero hits a running knee in the corner and it’s off to King vs. Romero. King takes over and brawls out to the apron with Hechicero. That doesn’t last as King comes back in for a double clothesline and a backsplash as we take a break.

Back with Templario faceplanting Hechicero and bringing King back in to clean house. King’s cannonball gets two on Hechicero but what looks like a Hart Attack is broken up. Romero and King go to the floor and Templario wheelbarrow suplexes Hechicero for two. King comes back in to chop Templario down but he misses a charge into the corner. Everything breaks down and Templario takes Hechicero down with a dive to the floor. The Ganso Bomb gives King the pin on Romero at 10:14.

Rating: B-. It was a fun match, or at least as fun as something involving Romero can be. King and Templario teamed well enough for someone who were out there together for the first time, though it just makes me miss Buddy Matthews all the more. Hechicero continues to do some amazing stuff in the ring, but sticking him with the Don Callis Family isn’t helping things.

Video on Mercedes Mone vs. Toni Storm. Mone is ready to win while Storm responds with a silent movie…which Mone destroys. Mone’s boots have Storm’s picture on the bottom and she’s ready to take out Mina Shirakawa next week.

Toni Storm is ready to beat up Mercedes Mone but Mina Shirakawa promises to get revenge next week. Storm wants Shirakawa to save a piece for her.

Megan Bayne vs. Vertvixen

Penelope Ford is here with Bayne, who knocks Vertvixen into the corner for some shoulders to start. Vertvixen’s shot to the face just annoys Bayne and it’s a running clothesline into Fate’s Descent for the fast pin at 1:47.

Anthony Bowens is officially in the Casino Gauntlet qualifying match next week and he’s ready for a new strategy with Billy Gunn.

TNT Title: Josh Alexander vs. Adam Cole

Alexander is challenging and has Trent Beretta with him. Alexander goes for the leg to start but gets taken down into a hammerlock. That’s reversed into a front facelock before Alexander sends him into the buckle a few times. A fireman’s carry doesn’t work for Alexander as Cole grabs a neckbreaker (or cutter according to Tony) for a breather. Back up Alexander sends him to the apron for the running crossbody to the back as we take a break.

We come back with Cole hitting some running shots to the face, followed by a Backstabber for two. The Panama Sunrise is countered into a flapjack and Alexander fireman’s carries him on the middle rope, which is broken up with some elbows to the head. Now the Panama Sunrise connects for two but Alexander drops down before the Boom can launch. Alexander is back up with the ankle lock, which Cole breaks up rather quickly. A bridging German suplex drops Cole but Alexander’s neck gives out on the bridge. Cole is back up with the Boom to retain at 12:35.

Rating: B-. Cole and the Paragon vs. the Don Callis Family is a fine enough way to go and it gives Cole a string of opponents to come after the title. This was a good way to have Cole get a title defense, even if Alexander’s stock continues to drop. In theory the Family needs someone who is there to take a fall, though they seem to have that spot covered in droves already.

AR Fox confronts Ricochet in the back when the Gates Of Agony jump Fox. Ricochet approves.

Queen Aminata vs. Skye Blue

Julia Hart is here with Blue. They run the ropes to start and Hart grabs Aminata’s foot from the apron so Blue can take over. Aminata shrugs that off and hits a headbutt, only to be sent head first into the apron. Blue hammers away on the floor and we take a break. We come back with Aminata hitting a running boot in the corner.

A fisherman’s neckbreaker is broken up and Blue’s fall away slam gets two. Aminata is back with her hips to the face deal and knees Blue out to the floor. Ford offers a distraction though and Aminata gets sent into the steps, allowing Blue to hit a top rope dive. Back in and Code Blue is blocked, setting up Off With Her Head to give Aminata the win at 8:33.

Rating: C+. And Blue’s return continues to go pretty much nowhere, which is a shame as she was starting to take off before her injury. Aminata continues to be a perfectly fine hand in the ring, but they’re going to need to change something up with her before she feels important. The in-ring talent is there, but she’s been treated like a lower level star for a long time now.

Post match Hart and Aminata have a staredown but Thekla comes in for the beatdown on Aminata. Anna Jay and Tay Melo make the save. Cue Megan Bayne and Penelope Ford for the big staredown. Putting Thekla with the lower level of the division isn’t likely going to make her feel like a star in the slightest.

Daniel Garcia and Matt Menard are cut off by Rocky Romero, who says the Don Callis Family has no issues with Garcia. Romero suggests that Garcia’s friends are just trying to get what they can out of him. Garcia doesn’t seem convinced.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Kyle Fletcher vs. Kyle O’Reilly

They go to the mat to start with Fletcher rolling away for a standoff. Fans: “THIS IS KYLE!” O’Reilly knocks him to the floor but Fletcher is back in with a knockdown as the various Kyle chants continue. A cross armbreaker has Fletcher bailing over to the ropes and sending O’Reilly to the apron for a running knee.

We take a break and come back with Fletcher slamming him down a few times while holding onto the arm. O’Reilly pulls him into a triangle choke before they kick each other down for a double breather. Back up in and O’Reilly strikes him down before grabbing a guillotine choke. That’s broken up so O’Reilly kicks him away as we’re back to the KYLE chants. O’Reilly bends the leg around the ropes and adds a top rope knee drop to really rock Fletcher.

A top rope knee to Fletcher’s knee gets two and O’Reilly grabs some weird leglock. Fletcher escapes and gets outside, where he nails a loud superkick. O’Reilly is back up with a running dropkick off the apron into Fletcher in a chair. Cue Lance Archer to boot O’Reilly in the face though and a Michinoku Driver gives Fletcher two. A running knee into the brainbuster finishes for Fletcher at 13:31.

Rating: B. While it felt like a lot of this match existed for the sake of allowing the fans to do their KYLE chants, the match was a hard hitting, back and forth fight. Fletcher wasn’t going to lose to O’Reilly, but I’ll take Fletcher having to put in the effort to get there. Solid main event here, with Archer being there to help protect O’Reilly a bit.

Post match O’Reilly gets beaten down again but the Paragon and Daniel Garcia run in for the save.

Overall Rating: B-. Pretty nice show this week, with the main event being the strongest part. As tends to be the case though, this show only felt so important, with most of the stories being on the lower side of things. That’s still stuff that needs to be addressed, but having two straight hours of it can be a bit tiring. I’ll take this for a special edition of the show though, with the title match and main event both being solid.

Results
Patriarchy b. Big Bill/Bryan Keith – Kick to Keith’s head
Brody King/Templario b. Rocky Romero/Hechicero – Ganso Bomb to Romero
Megan Bayne b. Vertvixen – Fate’s Descent
Adam Cole b. Josh Alexander – The Boom
Queen Aminata b. Skye Blue – Off With Her Head
Kyle Fletcher b. Kyle O’Reilly – Brainbuster

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Dynamite
Date: June 25, 2025
Location: ShoWare Center, Kent, Washington
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Ian Riccaboni

The road to All In is getting rather short and that means it is time to fill up the rest of the card. With the top of the show mostly set, there is still a lot that needs to be done. There is a good chance that we’ll get a lot of it done this week, hopefully with the action to back it up on the way. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Mercedes Mone jumps Toni Storm and Luther in the back and they come into the arena. Mone calls her a stupid little b****, setting up the Bank Statement. Mina Shirakawa makes the save.

The Young Bucks move Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay’s match to now instead of in the second hour.

Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland vs. Lee Johnson/Blake Christian

Ospreay runs to the ring with his boots half laced, taping his wrist and putting his elbow pad on. Strickland is at least a bit more put together as Ospreay and Christian start things off. Christian charges into a boot in the corner and a double big boot drops Johnson. The Phenomenal Forearm is loaded up but cue the Young Bucks for a distraction, allowing Christian to knock Ospreay to the floor.

We take a break and come back with Christian giving Ospreay the strutting Old School wristdrag. Ospreay fights out of trouble without much of a problem and hands it off to Strickland to clean house. Chasing The dragon drops Christian and the House Call gives Strickland the pin at 9:25.

Rating: C+. The idea here was that the new kind of friends were caught off guard by the match (which they were having but had earlier than expected) but then they just had a pretty run of the mill match. Johnson and Christian were never putting them in any danger and the only issue was when the Bucks offered a distraction. It was a fine idea but didn’t really make anything different.

Post match Ospreay and Strickland have to be held back from the Bucks so they get back inside the ring. Strickland is tired of dealing with the Bucks and suggests a tag match at All In. Ospreay wants to up the stakes, with the Bucks’ Vice Presidencies on the line. Then Strickland dives onto the security and the good guys stand tall. So the Bucks are going to insist Ospreay and Strickland put up something too right?

We look at the return of Kota Ibushi last week.

The Bucks suspend Strickland for the week. The Don Callis Family comes in and they both want Kazuchika Okada to win at All In. And to hurt Kenny Omega of course. Okada and Konosuke Takeshita have a staredown and the fans approve.

Kota Ibushi vs. Trent Beretta

They go up against the ropes to start before Ibushi takes him to the mat to work on the arm. Trent sends him outside for a running cheap shot from Rocky Romero. Back in and Ibushi grabs a powerslam, followed by a standing moonsault for two. Trent is right back with a running knee into a Gotch style piledriver for two of his own. Ibushi snaps off some snapdragons and traps the arms to set up a jumping stomp to the chest. The big knee to the face finishes for Ibushi at 7:22.

Rating: B-. Well Ibushi is back and he was….fine. It was the same kind of match that a lot of people on this show, even down to the knee to the face for the finisher. I’ve never found Ibushi even remotely special in AEW and that was on full display again here. I don’t dislike him but there’s just nothing about him that makes me care. Even repeatedly hitting Beretta in the face. Now if he had done that to Romero, we might be getting somewhere.

Post match Kazuchika Okada comes out for a staredown but walks away without getting physical.

Jon Moxley talks about how Hangman Page has lost who he is. Page has talked about how he isn’t special and that makes Moxley sick. Moxley wants Page to reach out and grab what he deserves. At All In, Page will see what a real World Champion looks like.

Ricochet interrupts AR Fox and suggests that Fox join his new team. Say tonight, against Jet Speed? Fox is a bit anxious, but he’s in.

Ricochet/AR Fox vs. Jet Speed

Knight and Ricochet start, with the latter wanting Fox to watch and learn. This leaves Ricochet caught between both Knight and Bailey for some double teaming. Bailey is sent outside for a big running flip dive from Fox though and the villains (or the team with a villain) take over. Back in and Fox hits a clothesline to drop Knight but Fox and Ricochet are sent to the floor. Stereo dives take them out and we take a break.

We come back with Ricochet trying to talk his way out of trouble, leaving Fox to get kicked in the face. Bailey’s running shooting star press hits Fox for two as everything breaks down. Fox grabs the rolling Downward Spiral but Ricochet drops to the floor rather than tag. Knight drops Fox and hits the spinning frog splash for the pin at 9:40.

Rating: C+. Jet Speed hasn’t been around very long and they’re a fine enough team, though I’m still not wild on Bailey. There is nothing that makes me want to see him and pairing him with the talented Knight isn’t it. Other than that, Ricochet turning his back on someone he had been paired with for less than ten minutes makes sense for him, as he has to find the perfect partner.

Post match Jet Speed say they want to rescue the Tag Team Titles. Knight sings part of MVP’s WWE theme song and says they want the titles at All In. The Hurt Syndicate comes in to take them out. The beating goes on for awhile until Jet Speed is sent through a table. With that out of the way, MVP has the Hurt Syndicate’s music played and they go to the ring. MVP says if Jet Speed can get up, they can have the title match at All In.

MJF gets the mic and MVP has to tell the crowd to be quiet. Next week, MJF is in a qualifying match for the Casino Gauntlet match all All In. MJF says hit their music but here is Mark Briscoe to interrupt instead. Briscoe doesn’t want to hear MJF talk all night and the producer told him to get MJF out of here because we have stuff to get to. MJF doesn’t care because unlike Briscoe, they are actually stars.

These people can relate to Briscoe because they grew up ugly and poor. Briscoe loses if he gets in, so go back to Delaware and pick up chicken s***. Briscoe talks about MJF going through a lot as a child so the Word Of The Day is empathy. Maybe MJF is trying to overcompensate for having a tiny kosher pickle for thirty years. MVP cuts MJF off and yes, we get a KOSHER PICKLE chant. So the Syndicate will get out so Briscoe can lose in peace. I like Briscoe vs. MJF, but Jet Speed getting the title shot at the biggest show of the year makes my head hurt.

Casino Gauntlet Qualifying Match: Mark Briscoe vs. Bandido vs. Roderick Strong vs. Konosuke Takeshita

The winner is the #1 entrant and Bandido’s Ring Of Honor World Title isn’t on the line. Taz tries to make this a four way international deal before realizing there are two Americans and having to stop himself. Takeshita shoulders Bandido down to start and gets nowhere so they go outside. Strong punches Briscoe out of the air but Briscoe is back up with an apron Blockbuster to Bandido. Strong drops Briscoe again though and we take a break.

Back with Strong giving Briscoe a nice dropkick into a backbreaker but getting clotheslined by Bandido. That means an Undertaker situp from Bandido but Takeshita shoves him off the top. Briscoe misses the Froggy Bow and gets rolled up for two, leaving Takeshita to kick Strong in the face. Bandido and Briscoe both hit something off the top, with Briscoe decking Bandido and covering Takeshita for two.

Takeshita breaks up the 21 Plex and German suplexes Bandido and Briscoe at the same time. Strong makes a save of his own but charges into Takeshita’s Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Bandido is back in with the X Knee to Takeshita and a German suplex sends him to the floor. Strong knees Bandido in the face and hits End Of Heartache but Briscoe drops the Froggy Bow for the pin at 11:04.

Rating: B. They were starting to roll near the end there and they had a bonus of not having the champion take the fall. Briscoe getting the first spot in the match is at least something for him to do and now we get to see who else is in the match. Good, fun match here though and it’s nice to see Briscoe do something other than losing for a change.

Adam Cole issues an open challenge to any member of the Don Callis Family for Collision.

Casino Gauntlet Qualifying Match: Kris Statlander vs. Athena vs. Willow Nightingale vs. Thunder Rosa

The winner is the #1 entrant and Athena’s Ring Of Honor Women’s Title isn’t on the line. Statlander sends Athena into a boot to the head from Rosa, who sunset flips Statlander for two. Athena snaps off a headscissors to Statlander and we get a Tower Of Doom less than two minutes in.

We take a break and come back Rosa running over Athena a few times before Nightingale Death Valley Drivers Athena. Statlander faceplants Rosa at the same time, leaving us with Statlander vs. Nightingale. They forearm it out until Athena breaks it up, earning herself a double suplex. Rosa is back in to send them both down before faceplanting Athena. Back up and Athena orders Billie Starkz (her Minion) to get the title but gets sent into the steps.

Athena is fine enough to suplex Rosa off the steps but cue Marina Shafir to distract Nightingale. Cue Wheeler Yuta to jump Nightingale, who Pounces the heck out of him. That’s enough of a distraction for Staturday Night Fever to finish Nightingale and give Statlander the pin at 10:47.

Rating: B-. Again, at least they didn’t pin the champ. Statlander vs. Nightingale continues to be one of the more interesting feuds in the women’s division and it doesn’t seem like we’re close to wrapping it up. As a bonus, it seems that we are going to be seeing Athena vs. Thunder Rosa at Supercard Of Honor, assuming they bother advertising anything in advance.

Video on Nick Wayne and Christian Cage wanting the Tag Team Titles.

FTR isn’t happy with the Outrunners for chasing them off on Collision. Stokely Hathaway wants to deal with this and suggests a tag match on Collision this week.

Hangman Page vs. The Beast Mortos

Page works on the arm to start and a running shoulder just annoys Mortos. Instead Mortos hits some running corner clotheslines but Page hits one of his own. A triangle clothesline sends Mortos outside and a fall away has him crashing into the corner as we take a break. Back with both of them missing a clothesline until Page’s connects for two. Page’s sitout powerbomb gets two but he misses the moonsault out to the floor. Mortos runs him over and grabs the pop up Samoan drop for two back inside. Page gets in a shot of his own though, setting up a discus lariat into the Buckshot Lariat for the pin at 9:52.

Rating: C+. This was a bit of a weird choice for the main event, as while it was smart to get Page on the show, it didn’t feel important in any way. Page continues to win on the way to the pay per view, though it’s a good example of a match that could have been done in about four minutes. Otherwise, it was just keeping things going to extend the show’s run time.

Post match the lights go out and here are the Young Bucks to give Page the EVP Trigger. Cue the Death Riders so Jon Moxley can choke Page with a chain. The Opps run in with chairs and Will Ospreay joins them to chase the Death Riders off. Moxley promises to show the world what a real World Champion looks like to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. It wasn’t quite the same as last week (which would be far from a fair comparison) but instead focused on All In. The show is starting to fill out and we can see most of what is coming there. They added a title match and gave us the first entrants in the Casino Gauntlet matches. It might not be the most interesting show on its own, but it checked some things off of the All In list.

Results
Will Ospreay/Swerve Strickland b. Lee Johnson/Blake Christian – House Call to Christian
Kota Ibushi b. Trent Beretta – Knee to the face
Jet Speed b. Ricochet/AR Fox – Spinning frog splash to Fox
Mark Briscoe b. Roderick Strong, Bandido and Konosuke Takeshita – Froggy Bow to Strong
Kris Statlander b. Athena, Willow Nightingale and Thunder Rosa – Staturday Night Fever to Nightingale
Hangman Page b. The Beast Mortos – Buckshot Lariat

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