All In 2026
Date: August 30, 2026
Location: Wembley Stadium, London, England
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We have finally arrived at the biggest show of the year and that means we should be in for some major happenings. The show has a special two hour Buy In and the usual huge card, which should make for a pretty awesome night. There are a lot of British wrestlers challenging for titles, including Will Ospreay going after Kenny Omega’s World Title. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: The Opps vs. Lio Rush/The Rascalz

Rush is now in a rainbow poncho and runs around on all fours, as is his custom. The suicide dive connects on the floor but Andretti takes Rush down back inside. A double backbreaker and running shooting star from Andretti gives Bowens two and it’s off to Shibata. That means Rush can get over to Xavier to come in and take over. Everything breaks down and Reed breaks up a double whip, only to get dropkicked into a suplex.

Reed kicks and Stunners his way out of trouble, setting up the running diving cutter to send Andretti out to the floor. Back in and we hit the parade of knockdowns, via a selection of strikes and throws. Bowens gives Xavier the running Fameasser, followed by a wind up hanging DDT. Rush gives Bowens the springboard Stunner into the Final Hour for the pin at 9:06.

Rating: B-. This was basically a way for Rush to get his momentum back after he lost the ROH TV Title last week. It’s a match with a bunch of people flying around and getting in a spot here or there, which is about all you can do in a match like this. Rush continues to be so weird that it’s hard to not pay attention to him so this went well enough.

Zero Hour: Sisters Of Sin vs. Kris Statlander/Harley Cameron

Cameron and Blue shove each other around to start until it’s off to Statlander. That means Cameron can be dropped onto Blue for two but Hart gets in a middle rope hurricanrana. Statlander shrugs that off and Cameron is back in to catch Hart on the apron. Back up and Hart grabs Cameron from the ropes and snaps the arm across the top, allowing Blue to get in a running knee for two.

Statlander is back up and strikes away, with a double cover getting two. Hart gets in a quickly broken Black Widow and it’s back to Cameron, who is taken down with a swinging neckbreaker. A crucifix driver gets Cameron out of trouble and everything breaks down, with all four being knocked down. Back up and Statlander gets in a quick Staturday Night Fever to pin Hart at 9:54.

Rating: C. This match was thrown onto the card last night after an attack on Collision and that didn’t give them much time to really make it work. Cameron can have a weird partner of the week and make it work with anyone as she’s more than charismatic to pull the idea off. It’s another match that belongs on Collision, but if everyone has to get on the show (because reasons), it makes as much sense as anything else.

Zero Hour: Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Boom & Doom/Hurt Syndicate

The rest of the Promotions and Big Justice are here too. Benjamin and Moriarty go face to face to start and it’s Benjamin glaring at Moriarty for daring a chop. Benjamin slams him down and it’s off to Boom & Doom to do the same. That just earns Marshall a trip to the apron for a string of shots to the back.

Moriarty slaps on an assisted Abdominal stretch until the cheating chain falls apart. Marshall flips over for the tag to AJ, who is dropkicked down for two. Dean gets in the Bronco Buster but AJ clotheslines his way out of trouble. That means it’s off to Lashley for the running clotheslines, followed by a spear to Taylor on the floor.

A running powerslam gets two on Dean, with Bravo making a questionable save. Bravo and Dean get in a belly to back neckbreaker combination but Benjamin is back in with an ankle lock. That’s broke up so it’s time to go after Taylor, with an assisted Powerboom planting him hard. The good guys are up with the string of strikes and Justice even gets in for a spear. The Dominator finishes Bravo at 11:24.

Rating: C+. This went about as well as it could have as, again, there were so many people involved in a single match. That’s been a problem for a long time around here and it’s continuing on the Kickoff Show, which already has twenty wrestlers in three matches. There is only so much you can do to get attention in that span and it only kind of worked here, even with the Syndicate getting to dominate.

Post match the Syndicate gets a $50,000 check from the Rizzler, which seems to work for them.

Bryan Danielson joins commentary.

Zero Hour: Maya World vs. Persephone

World is defending as Persephone’s CMLL Women’s Title isn’t on the line. World’s headscissors takes Persephone down to start and a springboard version does it again. Persephone is back with a corner clothesline and some stomping but gets knocked outside. The dive off the apron gives World two back inside but Persephone ties her up with a leglock.

With that broken up, Persephone grabs a Samoan driver for two and a fall away slam sends World flying again. World pops up with a springboard Stunner though and they’re both down. They go up top for a fall away slam and the tabletop suplex gets two on Persephone, who has to grab the rope. Cue a masked woman to shove World off the top though and the Razor’s Edge gives Persephone the pin and the title at 11:09.

Rating: C+. That’s a surprise title change as World didn’t feel like she was ready to drop the thing, but at the same time Persephone does seem to be a project for AEW. I’m curious about the interference as it could be just about anyone (Ted Arcidi is always an option) and that gives World another option of something to do. It wasn’t a great match, but it opens some doors and that’s always nice to see.

Post match the masked person is….back inside to give World the Lockjaw, as it’s Britt Baker. Well dang that’s a big surprise.

Thekla climbs onto the Zero Hour desk and confirms that she is back. She’s here to drink and watch the show closely because she’s coming for Willow Nightingale no matter what.

Persephone is glad to have a good doctor watching her back. Britt Baker comes in to say she’s glad to be back because she has some new perspective. They don’t seem to like Thunder Rosa either.

Trios Titles: Roulette Royal

Hangman Page/Brodido are defending and this is a Royal Rumble, with timed (intervals not listed) entrances and all three members having to be tossed. The Bang Bang Gang (Jay White/Colten Gunn/Austin Gunn) are in at #1 (of seven total teams) and the Dogs (Clark Connors/David Finlay/Gabe Kidd) are in at #2. They start with the exchange of right hands but the Gang spends too much time posing and get punched down. The Gang gets beaten down and the Demand (Ricochet/Bishop Kaun/Toa Liona) are in at #3.

The Dogs and the Demand get in an argument though and the Gang fight back up. Colten is sent to the apron though and a spear gets rid of him for the first elimination. The Conglomeration is in at #4 as the ring is starting to get full. Cassidy of course takes his time to get in as his partners beat various people up, only to get caught by Liona. Austin is launched into a cutter and knocked out, leaving White alone for his team. We slow down a bit and the Death Riders (Claudio Castagnoli/Wheeler Yuta/Pac) are in at #5.

After the bouncing circle, they get inside with Marina Shafir joining them for a showdown with Roderick Strong, who gives her a backbreaker. Oh he’ll be hearing about that later. The Conglomeration strikes at Pac and it’s Page/Brodido (Brody King/Bandido) in at #6. The three of them get in as Cassidy is holding onto the post to stay out of the way in a smart move. Nine people get stacked up in three corner and the champions fire off cannonballs. A bunch of people get together to toss King but it’s Page getting caught in the corner or running shots from just about everyone else.

O’Reilly and Strong seem to have been tossed at some point in there, leaving Cassidy alone. White is almost thrown out but hangs on and grabs the rope in a smart move. Cassidy is brought back in and splashed but he fights out of the corner. White is still alive with a sleeper suplex as the Cages send Cassidy…well beyond the apron actually but he gets back inside. Kidd bashes his own head into the buckle because reasons and Cassidy is back up with a string of Orange Punches.

Cassidy is the only one standing and falls down as we go off the air with about thirty seconds left in the Zero Hour. We come back to the regular show with Swerve Strickland and….the new Level (Kofi/Austin Creed in a less than stunning yet still cool enough surprise) are in at #7.

The Level and Strickland take over on Yuta but get jumped by the Demand. A springboard Doomsday Device hits Kofi but the Level is back up to strike away at Liona. That means the Gates are knocked out and Cassidy sends Yuta to the apron, where Yuta grabs him with a choke. That’s broken up and another Orange Punch gets rid of Yuta, only for Ricochet to dump Cassidy and clear some of the ring out. Strickland cuts off Bandido’s 21 Plex to Castagnoli and there’s the required Page vs. Strickland showdown.

A Buckshot Lariat off the back of Strickland hits Ricochet but the Dogs spear both of them down. Bandido gets piledriven and tossed, as does Connors. White and Finlay go over the top and to the apron, with White eliminating him but getting pulled out by Finlay to eliminate the Gang. Page gives Castagnoli the Deadeye but gets sent to the apron and is dropkicked out by Ricochet, meaning the champions are gone.

Strickland flips Ricochet out to eliminate the Demand and we’re down to Strickland, Kofi, Creed, Kidd, Castagnoli and Pac. Kofi is sent out but hangs on by his feet, with Prince Nana helping him hand walk back inside. What used to be known as Daybreak hits Kidd and he’s gone and a double clothesline eliminates the Riders to give Strickland and the Level the titles at 40:07.

Rating: B-. You know what you’re getting with a 21 man Royal Rumble and it’s not like Creed/Kofi were big surprises. Once it was confirmed that they would be involved, there was no reason to think anyone else was leaving. It’s not like these titles have any kind of a lasting legacy and losing them pretty quickly is hardly some terrible thing. Fun match, though stretching it out to be on the start of the main show was a bit tedious.

Quick note now that the show has started: it might only be about half full (which is still a ton of people) but the stadium looks great. This feels like a major show on a big stage and that’s what they’re going for by running the venue.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Brawling Birds vs. Lena Kross/Megan Bayne

Kross and Bayne are defending. Bayne shoulders Hayter down to start but a double shoulder drops Bayne as well. Everything breaks down and they go to the floor, with the Birds actually losing the brawl. Back in and Hayter gets caught in the corner, with Bayne standing on her throat.

Kross gets the sliding German suplex for two but Hayter clotheslines her way out of trouble. Windsor chops away at Bayne and Blue Thunder Bombs Kross for two. That earns Windsor some running shots in the corner and Bayne sends her flying with a release German suplex. Everything breaks down again and the Birds grab stereo German suplexes.

They all knock each other down again and it’s Bayne up to German suplex both Birds at once. Hayter gets in a double DDT but it’s a running boot into a German suplex to drop her again. Divine Intervention gets two with Windsor breaking the cover and another German suplex drops Bayne. The Haytebreaker sets up Two Birds One Stone to finish Kross for the titles at 11:40.

Rating: B-. This was the result I had the most confidence in all night as there was no reason to believe that the Birds were losing. Kross and Bayne had held the titles long enough and the Birds winning would be the feel good moment. They didn’t overthink it (save for spamming the German suplexes) and it was pretty much exactly what it should have been.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley vs. Nigel McGuinness

Moxley is defending and this is the finals of a tournament where the champion was involved because that’s a thing we spent most of a month doing. McGuinness is coming in with a bad ankle as well so Moxley already has a target. They go with the wrist battle to start and McGuinness backs him up against the ropes for the break. Moxley gets smart by going for the leg and McGuinness uppercuts him out to the floor.

Back in and McGuinness starts in on the arm, setting up quite the arm stretch. With that broken up, Moxley goes after the leg and McGuinness gets creative by offering his back to protect his own ankle. Moxley works on the leg and hammers away in the corner before unwrapping the tape on McGuinness’ ankle. McGuinness gets smart again by grabbing the tape and wrapping it around Moxley’s face to escape.

A missed charge in the corner lets McGuinness grab the Tower Of London for two but Moxley is right back with the LeBell Lock. That’s reversed into the same thing from McGuinness, with Danielson making sure to compare their grips. Moxley escapes again and stomps on the ankle, which just wakes McGuinness up for the exchange of forearms. A pair of lariats put Moxley down but McGuinness can’t follow up.

Moxley’s rebound lariat is cut off with a lariat from McGuinness, which of course has Moxley popping up for the bulldog choke. McGuinness drives his chin into the arm to escape and the London Dungeon goes on but Moxley rolls out into an ankle lock. McGuinness escapes again so Moxley grabs the same hold, followed by a running Stomp. Another ankle lock makes McGuinness tap at 17:13.

Rating: B. Forgive me for not getting excited about Moxley getting to be the tough submission star, again, and retain his title, again, after we had a tournament for the sake of a wrestler getting to show how awesome Moxley is, again. I know McGuinness winning here was the longest of long shots and they shouldn’t have changed the title, but dang I’m over Moxley. He’s presented as the ultimate fighter in every aspect and it gets more than a bit tiresome. Just do something else with him already. Like send him on vacation.

As for the match itself, this was McGuinness trying to think his way through the injury and survive until he could find an opening but he made the mistake of trying to brawl with Moxley. Throw in the submission game and Moxley was too much for him. Some of the stuff McGuinness was doing out there was brilliant but it just wasn’t enough in the end.

International Title: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kazuchika Okada vs. Kyle Fletcher

Fletcher is defending and this is the Don Callis Family match, as Takeshita has been thrown out of the team while the other two are still in but don’t get along a lot of the time. Fletcher knocks Okada outside and Takeshita looks stunned in a funny opening. Okada is back up and pulls both of them outside for a double hanging DDT, followed by the running dive. Back in and Okada knocks Takeshita down and flips off the crowd, only for Fletcher to come in and flip him off from behind.

Fletcher knocks Takeshita down and then Okada gives Fletcher a brainbuster, only to walk into a Rainmaker from Takeshita. Fletcher’s Raging Fire drops Takeshita and all three are down off the stolen finishers. The screwdriver is brought in and Takeshita German suplexes Fletcher while rolling Okada up at the same time. Now Takeshita grabs the screwdriver but can’t commit a bad case of murder.

Instead he knees Fletcher for two with Okada getting up to kick at both of them. Okada gets double teamed to the floor so Takeshita and Fletcher can slug it out, only to get rid of Okada again. Fletcher hits the turnbuckle brainbuster on Takeshita….but gets Rainmakered by Okada for the pin and the title at 13:12.

Rating: B. Good enough here and I liked that it didn’t run as long. They had told their story and Okada stole the pin at the right time. Hopefully this is it for the multiway feud (it won’t be, at least not entirely) as they all need to just find something else to do. It’s a solid match and didn’t overstay its welcome, which is a perfectly acceptable result here.

Post match Fletcher reluctantly raises Okada’s hand.

Casino Gauntlet Match

There are an unknown number of entrants at unspecified intervals with the winner of the first fall getting a future World Title shot. Andrade El Idolo is in at #1 and MJF is in at #2 and since they hate each other, the brawl is on in a hurry. MJF fights up and struts a bit, setting up a crotch to the face. Andrade is back up, takes his pants off, and hits his own thrust to the face. We pause for the photo with the woman and here is Nick Wayne to poisonrana Andrade on the floor as he’s the #3 entrant.

MJF wants an alliance with Wayne but here is Mike Bailey in at #4 to start firing off the kicks. Bailey kicks Wayne down and MJF is sent outside, leaving Bailey and Andrade to hit big dives. They’re all down on the floor and it’s Tommaso Ciampa in at #5…but he takes so long posing that Chris Jericho is in at #6 to jump Ciampa on the way to the ring. Jericho fires off a bunch of right hands to clear the ring so MJF comes in to mock him. That earns him the Walls, with Mark Davis coming in at #7 to break it up.

Davis starts snapping off the piledrivers, including one to MJF, with commentary being surprised at the kickout. Komander (or Mistico according to Justin Roberts) is in at #8 for his rope walk flip dive. NOW Roberts gets the name right and Komander hits the Cielito Lindo for two on Ciampa. Mistico is in at #9 (Roberts: “You guessed it!”) but Daniel Garcia is in at #10 to jump Mistico on the ramp.

Mistico is back up and gets to clean house before staring it down with Komander. A quick La Mistica has Komander in trouble but MJF makes the save. MJF blocks Garcia’s piledriver and Bailey is back in for the save. Ciampa knees Bailey for two and Jack Perry is in at #11. Perry gets to clean house and Snare Traps Ciampa until Wayne makes a save of his own.

Davis is back in and Perry actually gives him a piledriver before Jericho is back in with the Judas Effect to MJF. Wayne’s Phoenix splash lands on Davis’ face so MJF shakes Wayne’s hand…and then kicks him low. The Heatseeker plants Wayne but Andrade is back in with Dia de los Muertos to MJF and pins Wayne at 21:07.

Rating: B. On one hand, it was a lot of the same people you would have expected in this match with pretty much nothing in the way of surprises. At the same time, the right person won and that should make things more interesting for whomever leaves as World Champion. Andrade is on a roll right now and putting him in a title match is a good idea. Just don’t have him have to defend the shot or something as that’s rarely interesting.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Adam Copeland/Christian Cage

Copeland and Cage are defending in what is a battle of the best teams of their generations (that uh, might be up for debate). Cage and Nick start things off and everything breaks down in a hurry, with Nick getting stomped down in the corner. The Bucks are right back up with the running bulldogs, completely with high fives. That means Cage gets caught in the wrong corner with the Bucks starting in on the arm.

That doesn’t last long as it’s already back to Copeland, who is superkicked down just as fast. Copeland is fine enough to piledrive Matt on the apron (Taz: “That’s a game changer.” Not in AEW it isn’t.). Cage neckbreakers Nick for two and chokes on the ropes but misses the right hand. That’s enough for Matt to get in a kick from the apron and Copeland’s spear is sent into the buckle. Matt gives Copeland a jumping stomp to the back and Backstabbers Cage out of the corner, setting up Risky Business for two.

Copeland is right back up with a half crab but Matt gets out and heads to the apron. Another spear is loaded up but Nick flips away and grabs a Stunner on Cage on the floor in a slick counter. Back in and Matt suplexes both of them at once but Nick’s leg gives out on the Meltzer Driver. Cage is back up with a Twist Of Fate to Matt, setting up a 3D for two more. A double superplex drops Matt but Nick 450s onto both of them for the big crash. The Bucks try the BTE Trigger but Copeland spears Cage by mistake for the failed save attempt.

Now the BTE Trigger hits Cage for two, with the kickout freaking Matt out. Another Meltzer Driver is speared out of the air and the Killswitch into a pop up spear gets two more on Nick. Cage: “F***!” The belt is brought in but the referee takes it away, allowing Cage to pull out what looks like a wrench. A shot to the leg keeps Nick in trouble but Matt rolls Cage up for two. The wrist brace to the head knocks Matt silly and another spear retains the titles at 20:07.

Rating: B+. This was another rather great match and I’ll take the Bucks losing another shot at the titles. I’m not sure how much of a dream match this was (though that term is horribly overused) but it did wind up being pay per view worthy with Cage and Copeland still having incredible chemistry. Rather good match here and I’m not sure who is next for the champions. Just not a ladder rematch. Please.

Post match the Motor City Machine Guns come out for the staredown. Yeah that works. Then FTR comes out to join everyone. Yeah that’s not as interesting. Then it’s New Level, because only having a belt each isn’t enough.

TNT Title: Kevin Knight vs. Darby Allin

Knight is defending in a falls count anywhere match after attacking Allin after he lost the World Title and then attempting to murder Allin (a few times). After skateboarding down to the ring, Allin dropkicks Knight into the corner but gets choked back down. Knight takes too long loading up a table (of course) and is knocked down with a suicide dive. Allin has to dive over the steps but gets taken down, allowing Knight to put him on the announcers’ table.

There’s the springboard dive onto Allin onto the table for two and it’s time to throw in some chairs. That takes too long as well though and Allin sunset bombs him onto the chairs for the crash. Cue the Don Callis Family to take Allin out though and load up a ladder. Knight is dropped onto the chairs and let’s tape his hands together. Steven Borden runs in for the save with a good dropkick but gets powerbombed through the table. Allin is back up with a top rope hurricanrana, even with his hands still taped back.

Cage superplexes him though and ties him in the Tree Of Woe…and the lights go out. The fans go nuts as Sting is back for the save and Allin bats Knight into the Scorpion Death Drop. Borden loads up a ladder and climbs at the same time as Sting, with Borden telling his dad that he has this. Borden’s big dive takes the Family out and then brawls to the back, with Sting joining them. Allin and Knight go to the stage and Allin climbs the set for a huge Coffin Drop through Knight and through the floor. Knight is put on a stretcher but gets crushed with another Coffin Drop to give Allin the title at 15:47.

Rating: B-. Ok so this was a weird one, as the people who weren’t involved were the stars. The deal with Borden doing the dive so his father didn’t have to was a great moment and it’s cool to see Sting getting to do that with his son rather than Allin. At the same time, I am so utterly over Allin trying to find another way to do his insane dives or whatever ideas he has that day. He does them so often and it is just not interesting for me anymore but he got his revenge here and can move on to get blown up another day.

We recap Willow Nightingale defending the Women’s Title against Mercedes Mone. Basically Mone seems to blame Nightingale for all of the bad things that have happened in her career so it’s time for her to get revenge and the title.

Women’s Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale, with a broken hand, is defending and Mone comes out with a bunch of ballet dancers. On the other hand, Nightingale has a storybook theme of a knight who kept getting knocked down but kept getting up and smiling. As a bonus, Nightingale has chest cannons (exactly what they sound like) which are likely a Dolly Parton reference. Mone is sat on the top to start and gets slapped out to the floor, with Nightingale taking her out with a dive.

Nightingale is getting a bit confident so Mone goes after the hand, only to be sent crashing into the barricade. Back in and Mone pulls a turnbuckle pad off and sends Nightingale into the steel for two as things slow down. Mone takes her down by the arm and cranks away a bit, setting up a camel clutch. That’s broken up so Mone grabs the Three Amigos, with the third seeing them to go the apron.

Nightingale suplexes her down to the floor for the big crash though and they both have to beat the count. The slugout goes to Nightingale as Mone seems to have a broken nose. A missile dropkick gives Nightingale two and Mone’s Backstabber gets the same. Mone grabs a wristlock to really crank up the pain but Nightingale takes her up top for a super Spanish Fly. The Cannonball misses though and Mone powerbombs her into the corner. The Meteora is broken up as well and Nightingale forearms her down.

A moonsault gives Nightingale two more but she gets caught in the Mone Maker, with Mone driving her into the exposed buckle before slamming her down. Nightingale kicks out again and Mone’s face is just covered in blood. Back up and Nightingale knocks her into the referee so Mone sends the bad wrist into the announcers’ table. Mone takes the glove off and bends the fingers back but stops to pick up the belt.

That’s enough for Nightingale to send her into the steps and get in a belt shot of her own. The Babe With The Powerbomb connects for a rather delayed near fall so Nightingale hits an (exposed) buckle bomb. A superbomb is countered into a hurricanrana but Mone reverses another Babe With The Powerbomb into a Statement Maker, with the arm trapped, for the tap and the title at 21:53.

Rating: B. Yeah of course Mone won. I’m not sure why I thought she was ever in danger because Mone has to win because otherwise we might forget that she is a million times better than everyone else. As usual, Mone is the biggest star in the division and we have to remember it, no matter how popular Nightingale was getting. Thank goodness Mone got another big accomplishment, as she just doesn’t have enough to get the point across.

We recap Will Ospreay challenging Kenny Omega for the World Title. Ospreay is back from a broken neck and wants to win the big one in his home country. The idea was that they were fighting to see who was best but then Omega started messing with Ospreay’s mind by bringing up their past and Ospreay’s family, which sent Ospreay over the edge. Omega went a bit nuts as well and feels like a villain coming into this.

AEW World Title: Will Ospreay vs. Kenny Omega

Ospreay is challenging with a video narrated by his mother, talking about how far Ospreay has come and never gave up. Ospreay walks through the back and finds Henare, Akira Francesca and Callum Newman, but stops to get the Union Jack from Jon Moxley. On the other hand, Omega has a video about his career, plus the Young Bucks, Brandon Cutler and Michael Nakazawa with him, which goes nicely with the Assassins Creed (or so I’m told) entrance.

They take their time staring at each other before locking up and trading chops against the ropes. Ospreay pops up from a shoulder and grabs a hurricanrana, followed by a running knee out to the floor. The required dive puts Omega down again and the fans rather approve of Ospreay. Back in and a Phenomenal Forearm is countered into a gorilla press slam, allowing Omega to crank on the neck.

Omega chokes in the corner and hits a backbreaker to move on to the other end of the spine. A nasty neckbreaker lets Omega take the pad off of the turnbuckle bar, with the neck being crushed against the steel again. Ospreay is fine enough to hit the Phenomenal Forearm and a pair of enziguris gets two. The standing corkscrew moonsault hits raised knees but Omega is sent outside for a dive. They fight out to ringside and Omega loads up a table, which can’t possibly end well.

Ospreay fights back and shoves the referee down, allowing Omega to get in a monitor shot to the head. The bleeding Ospreay is sitout powerbombed onto the table, which is good for a nine, with Omega smashing him with a V Trigger on the way back inside. A dragon suplex drops Ospreay onto the apron and Omega yells at the camera. Omega knocks him silly again and it’s a missile dropkick to the back of the head back inside.

A V Trigger in the corner looks to set up a super One Winged Angel but Omega has to settle for a German superplex. Omega fires off some hard knees to the head and some snapdragons have Ospreay in more trouble. Another V Trigger is loaded up but Ospreay scores with a much needed Hidden Blade. Back up and Omega starts firing off some boxing style punches, earning himself a hard headbutt. Ospreay hits a heck of a punt to the head and a hard elbow to the back of the head.

Omega has to get up at nine, where a Hidden Blade connects to give Ospreay two more. Back up and Ospreay rolls him into the Styles Clash for another near fall but Omega knees him out of the air. They get up and slug it out until Omega hits a poisonrana, with Ospreay popping back up to his feet. Omega grabs a Tiger Driver 91 and the fans go rather quiet. The One Winged Angel connects….for two in quite the moment. Well at least he didn’t kick out at one.

Omega sits next to him on the ropes and hits another big running knee, only to get Tiger Driver 91’d to leave them both down again. Ospreay can’t stand up so Omega knees him in the head again but a running version is blocked. Ospreay’s own One Winged Angel gets one, as do a Hidden Blade and Stormbreaker. Another Hidden Blade gives Ospreay the pin and the title at 34:47.

Rating: A-. The fans going silent at the Tiger Driver 91 was a great moment and while this took some time to get going, it turned into an awesome back and forth match by the end. I never quite bought Omega having a realistic chance to retain the title but they had enough hard hitting violence that it worked. Heck of a main event here, with AEW doing exactly what they should have in crowning Ospreay on his home soil.

Ospreay celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Yeah it’s a rather good if not great AEW show. Film at 11 and all that. The stadium looked very nice and the crowd was huge, but I’m not sure if it got up to that epic level that some AEW events reach. The main event was great and there were some very good parts throughout, but this didn’t so much feel like an all time major show as much as a really good show taking place in a big stadium. Certainly good, but not in their upper tier of shows.

Results
Lio Rush/The Rascalz b. The Opps – Final Hour to Bowens
Harley Cameron/Kris Statlander b. Sisters Of Sin – Staturday Night Fever to Hart
Hurt Syndicate/Boom & Doom b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Dominator to Bravo
Persephone b. Maya World – Razor’s Edge
Swerve Strickland/New Level won Roulette Royal last eliminating the Death Riders
Brawling Birds b. Lena Kross/Megan Bayne – Two Birds One Stone to Kross
Jon Moxley b. Nigel McGuinness – Ankle lock
Kazuchika Okada b. Kyle Fletcher and Konosuke Takeshita – Rainmaker to Fletcher
Andrade El Idolo won the Casino Gauntlet match – Heatseeker to Wayne
Adam Copeland/Christian Cage b. Young Bucks – Spear to Matt
Darby Allin b. Kevin Knight – Coffin Drop onto a stretcher
Mercedes Mone b. Willow Nightingale – Arm trap Statement Maker
Will Ospreay b. Kenny Omega – Hidden Blade

 

 

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We have arrived. This is the biggest AEW show of the year and once again we are over in England at Wembley Stadium where tens of thousands of fans are going to be in the house. As big as the stadium may be and how high the capacity may be, that is absolutely nothing to sneeze at and AEW deserves credit for drawing that many people. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Trios Titles: Royal Roulette

From what I can tell, this is a gauntlet match for the titles, with basically every trio in AEW at the moment, plus a wild card entry. Now I don’t think there’s much of a secret as to who is going to be in the wild card spot, but that has never stopped AEW before. As usual, this would be better off as a one off six man tag, but why do that when you can have another twelve people in a match instead?

I’ll go with the wild card team winning the titles here, in the form of Swerve Strickland and whatever New Day will be called in AEW. Assuming they’re the wild cards, there is almost no reason to not have them win the titles. I’m still not sure why they need to be involved in a trio (it worked so well with Odyssey Jones) but I guess the Bucks have the tag match sewn up so here we are.

Kickoff Show: TBS Title: Maya World(c) vs. Persephone

Champion needs challenger, challenger pins champion in tag match, title match ensues. It’s a story that has worked for the better part of ever in wrestling and it should work fine here. World has done well enough as champion but is feeling a bit like Rocky Maivia in his first reign, in that she is just kind of there with the title and having random matches. This might not help things, but at least she’s on the show.

I don’t see any reason to think that the title reign is already ending so I’ll go with World to retain here. It’s the most logical choice of the two and while Persephone feels like someone AEW wants to feature, she already has the CMLL Women’s Title and I don’t think I can take another double champion at the moment. World retains here and hopefully moves on to something more important.

Kickoff Show: The Opps vs. The Rascalz/Lio Rush

Here we have the first “does this really need to be here” match of the card, as the Opps continue to be a thing that exists for whatever reason. I’m not sure why Tony Khan insists on keeping the team around when Samoa Joe isn’t there to lift them up but how else will Hook fail to get over? This is also fallout from Rush losing the ROH TV Title to Action Andretti thanks to the Opps, because that’s a thing that happened.

I’ll take Rush and company to win here, even if there isn’t much for any of them to do. It’s probably a way to set up Rush’s rematch against Andretti for the title, which doesn’t really need to happen but how else are we getting eight more people on the show? There isn’t much of a need for this to be one of five pre-show matches but how else can Ring Of Honor be included here?

Kickoff Show: Kris Statlander/Harley Cameron vs. Sisters Of Sin

I’ll take more Cameron and Statlander so this is hardly a terrible thing, but it feels like filler on Collision rather than a match that needs to be happening here. Statlander and Cameron aren’t exactly a regular team but Cameron could get fans cheering for her in a coffin and the Sisters are a ready made heel act. It’s not exactly a complicated idea here and it should be fine.

Uh we’ll go with…..eh the Sisters I guess. It’s such a nothing match that it doesn’t really matter which way you go and that’s not the best feeling. Cameron tends to lose more often than win on the big stage but this is about all she can do at the moment. I still don’t see how AEW couldn’t find something better for her to do but that’s a list that we absolutely don’t have time to cover. I’ll take the Sisters here in a “someone has to win” situation.

Kickoff Show: Boom & Doom/Hurt Syndicate vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

And where would we be without the Costco Guys? It feels like these guys were a big deal for about five minutes and that was well over a year ago but here they are again. It’s another case of putting people on the show for the sake of getting them on there and now that we’re having as many matches on the Kickoff Show as we had on this week’s Dynamite, it’s kind of hard to get enthusiastic about another one.

Of course I’ll take the good guys to win, with the Syndicate getting some more momentum before a big showdown with the Promotions. There’s nothing to get excited about with this one, but I’m sure the Rizzler will be there to do his oh so funny face. That really does feel like the only thing this match has going for it and that’s hardly enough to get my interest up. But then again, something something celebrity star power I guess.

Women’s Title: Willow Nightingale(c) vs. Mercedes Mone

I wanted to get this one out of the way first because it has the potential to make me the angriest. I’ve made no secret about the fact that I’m not a fan of Mone. She’s incredibly talented and feels like a star, but she’s often presented as being light years ahead of the rest of the division. Nightingale already put Mone over to end a short title reign and it does not need to happen again.

While I don’t believe that it’s happening, I’ll take Nightingale to retain here. I know she’s injured and Mone is likely winning anyway, but Nightingale has made a connection with the fans and it would be a shame to see her lose again so Mone can get yet another accolade that won’t make her feel any bigger. Nightingale needs to win here and would benefit a lot more and I’ll say she will, though I won’t be surprised if/when Mone gets another big moment.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Lena Kross/Megan Bayne(c) vs. Brawling Birds

So there is going to be a theme to this show as there is a good chance that a lot of British wrestlers will pick up titles. That very well may start here, as the Birds are more than good enough to be the first team to stop Kross and Bayne. The only guaranteed thing here is that it’s going to be a heck of a fight and that is exactly what it should be with the British team involved.

There is no reason to think that the champions will retain here so I’ll go with the Birds taking the titles. Kross and Bayne are the monster champions and that means it is going to take a special team to stop them. A very British team in the most famous stadium in England is about as perfect as it can get. That’s exactly what should happen here and I’ll go with that, as the titles change hands.

TNT Title: Kevin Knight(c) vs. Darby Allin

This is Falls Count Anywhere and Knight has gone the extra mile with Allin, attempting to murder/injure him multiple times in the same segment. I know Allin gets attacked a lot but this was extreme even for him. Therefore we’re doing a match for revenge, and to allow Allin to do some kind of insane thing at the stadium. You know, as he does pretty much every time he’s around.

I’m actually going to go with Knight retaining here, as Allin is as made of a man as you can get in AEW and Knight could get a lot more out of retaining over a former World Champion. It is far from a guarantee as Allin needs to get revenge and such, but he can do that without taking the title. The TNT Title doesn’t mean anything to Allin here so let Knight keep it and get more out of the thing.

Tag Team Titles: Adam Copeland/Christian Cage(c) vs. Young Bucks

This is the dream match of the show and it falls firmly into the “yeah I guess” category that a lot of so called dream matches hit these days. That’s just the way it goes as I’m not sure how many people were clamoring for this in the first place. That being said, it should work out well as the Bucks can be very entertaining and the champs know how to do the old person version of their match.

As sick as I am of the Bucks, there isn’t much of a reason to believe that they’re going to lose here, so I’ll say new champions. Copeland and Cage winning the titles was a big moment but they haven’t exactly done much with the belts. That’s what happens with a lot of these title reigns, and now they can put the Bucks over so the Bucks can continue to be the biggest, most amazing team in AEW history because of course they are.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Nigel McGuinness

So here we have the finals of a tournament, which has taken almost an entire month, and ended up with Moxley defending the title against a British challenger. In short, why have one match to set up a title defense when you can have fourteen of them? That’s where we are now and it leads to an interesting final, which should go one way but will probably go another.

In theory, this should be McGuinness winning the title but that would imply Moxley has to lose, which won’t happen, so I’ll say Moxley wins to retain. He has to you see because he needs to be in the next tournament for this belt later on in the year. I’m still not sure why this tournament, or title for that matter, needs to exist, but at least Moxley can get a big win that he hasn’t had in at least a week.

Casino Gauntlet

Remember when this was the most fun that AEW had? So much of that was due to the surprise entrants that you would see, but lately it has just been the regular midcard group and that’s not the most thrilling. Anyway the winner here gets a World Title shot at some point, but since we don’t know who all is involved, I’m kind of limited in the guesses that I can make.

The one entrant announced who makes the most sense here is MJF so I’ll go with him, though it would be rather hilarious if the match ended while he was on the way to the ring or something like that. Andrade El Idolo is an option, but he needs to continue his rather unnecessary National Title reign. There is always the chance that it’s someone we don’t know yet winning the thing, but I’ll go with MJF of the entrants involved.

International Title: Kyle Fletcher(c) vs. Kazuchika Okada vs. Konosuke Takeshita

This is the most Don Callis focused match on the card and thankfully it’s pretty much the only thing they’re doing here. The feud has been going on in some form for the better part of a year now and somehow this still doesn’t feel like the blowoff. The idea is that Fletcher and Okada are both part of the Family and want to keep the title between them but they might not trust each other, which gives Takeshita an opening.

I think I’ll go with Fletcher retaining, as he hasn’t been the champion for very long and while Takeshita thwarting the team’s plans makes more sense, odds are the feud isn’t even close to over with anyway. Fletcher feels like someone AEW wants to make into one of their bigger names and that could go well, though I don’t think he loses here. There is a good chance he does lose, but I’d call that much uncertainty a good sign.

AEW World Title: Kenny Omega(c) vs. Will Ospreay

I do these things for every pay per view and occasionally, there are times where I have no idea what is going on with one of the matches. In this case though, I’m getting a little bit of a break. I’m not bothering to try and build up suspense for this match, as, at least in theory, it should be the biggest layup in the history of AEW, as even their screwiness shouldn’t be able to get in the way.

It doesn’t matter if Ospreay loses all of his limbs and nose. His deformed face and torso with the bleeding stumps will be put on top of Omega for the pin and the title to the roar of the British crowd. There is no reason to think that anything else is going to happen here and there is nothing else that should happen here. The match has been built up and Omega has gotten his big title reign to show he’s still go tit. Now make Ospreay champion already.

Overall Thoughts

I’m really not sure what else to say about this show. It’s AEW’s Wrestlemania and there will be tens of thousands of fans in a massive stadium eating up everything thrown at them. AEW has done a great job of turning this into a spectacle and this year they have the card to back it up. If they can make this work, they’re going to be fine and it should be a massive success, as long as Ospreay ends the show holding the title. Now don’t screw it up.

 

 

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

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We’re back to what might be the signature AEW pay per view and the card is certainly big enough. As usual there are a lot of matches and people on this show, with quite a few of them involving high stakes. That includes the main event, which is the rare mask vs. title match. We also have some wacky gimmickery on the docket so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Megan Bayne/Lena Kross vs. Zayda Steel/Viva Van

This is one of the non-title five minute deals as Bayne and Kross get to toy with the two of them for a bit before destroying them. That doesn’t make for the most interesting matches, but it does help when the match is guaranteed to be relatively short. Van and Steel could be any two breathing humans here and it wouldn’t make much of a difference, which is kind of the point.

Of course I’ll take Bayne and Kross to win, as there is no reason to suggest that a makeshit pair, including Van with her one win ever in Ring Of Honor, is going to score the upset. Kross and Bayne are waiting on real challengers to show up and there is a good chance that won’t be until we get to Wembley with the Brawling Birds. For now, they run through another thrown together team in short order.

Kickoff Show: Death Riders vs. Opps

This is a fine example of the “let’s get everyone on the show” match, as there is little reason for the match to be happening other than to fill in time on a pre-show. At least the teams have been having some issues, but it is a little difficult to get excited over a match involving Wheeler Yuta and Hook. It’s a match that feels like it could open any given edition of Collision and that only means so much.

We’ll flip a coin and say the Opps win here, as they could use the victory. This is especially true of Anthony Bowens, who is still new to the team and would benefit from picking up a win. It’s not like Yuta or Daniel Garcia are going to be hurt by taking a loss and Claudio Castagnoli will be there to keep things from getting too dull. The match should be ok, though it’s something that could easily be dropped.

Kickoff Show: Boom & Doom/Conglomeration vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

And we’ll wrap up the pre-show with ten more people in a match, including a way to get QT Marshall of all people on the card. I’m really not sure how much value there is to have Big Boom AJ on the show again but he’s here one more time, likely with his son again as well. Other than that we have the Promotions, who might as well be AEW’s version of the Job Squad given their success rate.

Naturally I’ll take the good guys to win here, as there is really no reason to suggest something else is going to happen. Hopefully they keep this quick, as it’s a match that doesn’t serve much of a purpose on an already crowded show. I’m not sure what the appeal is if having AJ around anymore, but at least it’s mainly just once in awhile and rarely outside of something like this.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Samoa Joe vs. Will Ospreay

So here we have one of the first matches of the tournament and as usual, the two of them have been doing something to set up the match. Joe wanted Ospreay to join the Opps but Ospreay has been training with the Death Riders instead. That’s a fine enough way to go and hopefully they have enough of a story to make this work. Ok to be fair, there is almost no way that Ospreay vs. Joe won’t work in the first place.

I’ll go with Ospreay to win here, as he is fresh off the new training with the Death Riders and is going to be doing some fresh things in the ring. Joe is someone who can work with anyone and it should be a blast to see these two wreck each other for a good while. I can’t imagine Ospreay losing in a tournament with the right to challenge for the World Title in his home country on the line so I’ll go with Ospreay winning here.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Bandido vs. Swerve Strickland

We might as well do the other first round match as well and as usual, the Ring Of Honor World Title hasn’t been mentioned in the slightest. That’s hardly a surprise, as Bandido’s match at Dynasty didn’t see it mentioned whatsoever either. Hopefully the title either moves on or becomes a thing people actually want. Anyway, this is about moving forward towards All In and that should be going in one way.

I can’t imagine this goes anywhere other than Strickland going over, as he’s that much of a bigger star in AEW. Bandido can do just about anything in the ring with anyone but Strickland is someone who should be going forward. It’s going to be a rather awesome match either way due to their impressive talent, though it winds up with Strickland beating Bandido and moving on.

Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Athena vs. Mina Shirakawa

These two have had some recent interactions in Ring Of Honor, which is better than nothing. This is one of the trickier matches, as both of them tend to lose their bigger matches in AEW. That leaves this as a more of a sad tossup than anything else, as I could see either moving on to lose in the next round. They both need a win of their own though and one stands out more than the other.

I’ll take Athena to win here, as she has the crazy long title reign to make her seem important. Unfortunately that tends to mean absolutely nothing in the long run, but at the moment she’s higher up than Shirakawa. Neither is going to win the whole thing, but Athena going over makes a lot more sense. Now just find a way for Athena to get up to the main roster already because GOOD GRIEF ALREADY!

Women’s Title: Thekla(c) vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Kris Statlander vs. Jamie Hayter

Ah yeah we have title matches on this show too. This is kind of a weird way to go but there is something about having so many challengers trying to take the title. Thekla has done rather well for herself in recent months and become one of the best things in all of AEW. I could go for seeing her keep the title for a good bit longer, though I’m not entirely sure that’s going to happen.

While I could see one of the other three taking the belt here, I’ll go with Thekla retaining. If nothing else, that’s partially due to wanting to see her do her insane yet entertaining promotions from week to week. She’ll have to lose the title one day and that might not be until All In, so for now we’ll go with her stealing the win to retain, possibly with an assist from the rest of the Triangle Of Madness.

Tag Team Titles: FTR(c) vs. Adam Copeland/Christian Cage

This is an I Quit match after FTR beat Copeland and Cage in Canada earlier this year. Since it’s a rematch, Copeland and Cage are putting up their careers (as a team) and that should make it a bit more interesting. In theory it should guarantee how the result goes, though that isn’t always the way AEW goes. I’m kind of curious to see how it goes, which is more than I could say about their first match.

I’ll go with the sake of sanity here and say that Copeland and Cage win the titles and get their big moment. If nothing else, FTR has held the titles for a very long time now and there isn’t much for them to do at the moment. It’s time for someone new to get in the title picture and naturally that means giving the titles to a team who are almost a hundred years old combined. The Canadians win here after things get rather violent.

Chris Jericho/Hurt Syndicate/Elite vs. Demand/Don Callis Family/The Dogs

Oh boy here we go. We have fourteen people in this version of Stadium Stampede and I’m not exactly looking forward to this. These matches wind up being fun, but at the same time it might as well be a short film. This is AEW’s version of a cinematic match as it’s all about doing whatever insanity they get together and think of this time around. Hopefully they don’t go insane with the time, but it’s an AEW pay per view.

I’ll go with the good guys winning here, even if it’s a total guess as to who is going to win this thing. The match is designed to be a big spectacle and nothing more, so hopefully they don’t go too far (ok you know better) and then we move on. If nothing else, Jericho can actually get a win without having to get the win himself. It could be fun, though I’m more than a bit uninterested.

International Title: Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Konosuke Takeshita

This is one of the longer built matches on the card, as it has been teased for the better part of ever. They had a match back in the Continental Classic, about five months ago, though that was part of a tournament rather than the grudge match they’ve both been wanting. I’m curious to see how it goes, as Okada is capable of having a rather good match if he’s trying. If that’s the case, it should work here.

I’m expecting one of them to be kicked out of the Don Callis Family and that person is going to leave without the title. In this case, I’ll take with Okada retaining the title here, likely with Don Callis turning on Takeshita and setting up a third match down the line. Okada has already held the title for way too long and ultimately Takeshita will take it from him, but I’ll go with AEW waiting a bit longer to pull the trigger.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly

Here we have another AEW trope: a rematch from a long match from less than a week ago with possibilities of the rematch going even longer. That’s the case here, as we’re just waving the title’s time limit rule (again) after the two of them went to a twenty minute time limit draw on Dynamite. That’s not the most promising thing, though I’d bet on seeing a lot of forearms exchanged, which must be good right?

I’ll go with Moxley retaining here, as the solution for Moxley seems to be “he can have long matches and wins because he’s awesome”. Last year Moxley kept tapping out to O’Reilly but not he even better so he won’t do that again. That seems to be the story here and odds are Moxley needs to get his win back. It should be hard hitting, but you kind of know what you’re getting with Moxley most of the time.

AEW World Title: Darby Allin(c) vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Title vs. hair and…I have no idea where to go here. The idea seems to be that Allin is wearing himself out with the title defenses, though I’m still not sure I can imagine MJF getting the title back so soon. That’s one of the things that makes a match that much more interesting, though Allin’s title reign has already worn me down on him. The matches have been fun, but I don’t really need to see him going crazy long again. So who wins here?

Geez where does this go? The logical way to go would see to be MJF but I’ll go with the twist of Allin retaining and MJF losing his hair. Maybe Allin loses the title soon after, but him losing here seems so simple. MJF losing his hair has some great potential and I could see him going there, but I’m not sure I need to see him get the title back. I’ll take Allin retaining here, though with a grant total of no confidence.

Overall Thoughts

This is a heck of a card and there could be some rather good matches on it, though as usual the idea of how long these matches are going to go is just draining. I’m interested in some of them though and Double Or Nothing does tend to be one of the better shows on AEW’s calendar. The wrestlers will definitely put in the work though, and that’s going to help this go a long way.

 

 

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

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Revolution 2026
Date: March 15, 2026
Location: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s another big AEW pay per view and the main event features Hangman Page challenging MJF for the World Title in a Texas Death Match. That’s in addition to Jon Moxley defending the Continental Title against Konosuke Takeshita and the Young Bucks facing FTR. Again. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Boom & Doom vs. The Infantry

The rest of Shane Taylor Promotions are here with the Infantry while Big Justice and the Rizzler are here with Boom & Doom. The Infantry jumps them to start fast but an enziguri into a powerslam drops Bravo. Marshall’s big running flip dive takes out some of the villains on the floor but Bravo knocks Marshall down. Back in and Dean takes Marshall down, setting up a slingshot Vader Bomb.

Bravo goes outside to yell at the Rizzler before going back inside for the Bronco Buster on Marshall. That doesn’t do much good as it’s off to AJ for some slams, with Bravo making a save. The double stomp misses though and Marshall is back in with a double cutter. Shane Taylor low bridges Marshall outside but goes over to steal Wayne Brady’s hat. Brady slaps him in the face so Taylor pulls him over the barricade. That earns him a glare from the Rizzler so Justice hits a spear. AJ’s dive takes Taylor down and the Boomsday Device finishes Bravo at 7:41.

Rating: C. And people wonder why no one cares about the Ring Of Honor titles, as this is what happens to the Six Man Champions. That being said, this was the kind of entertaining opener that is a fine way to go, as the celebrity gets a win with Brady getting involved for a bonus. It’s not like the Infantry or the Promotions have anything of value in the first place so the loss isn’t a big deal.

TBS Title: Willow Nightingale vs. Lena Kross

Nightingale is defending and gets powered down to start fast. The exchange of shoulders doesn’t work for Nightingale, who is backed into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs. Kross drops her face first onto the buckle for two and stomps away, only to miss a charge into the corner. A pump kick cuts Nightingale off again and Kross German suplexes her for two.

They head outside where Nightingale drives her against the barricade but gets dropped arm first onto said barricade. Back in and Nightingale fights out of the chinlock and starts hitting the clotheslines. A middle rope dropkick puts Kross down but Nightingale is slow to get up as well.

The rapid fire corner clotheslines and a spinebuster give Nightingale two and one heck of a chop puts Kross on her knee. Kross is fine enough to hit a TKO for two but Nightingale knocks her into the corner. Nightingale’s Cannonball misses but so does Kross’ split legged moonsault. Kross tries a Jackhammer, which is reversed into a backslide to retain the title at 10:59.

Rating: C+. The good thing here is Nightingale gets a singles win, as Kross dominated most of the match. That’s more than I was expecting from her, as Nightingale retaining the title makes more sense. That shoulder issue could come back to haunt Nightingale later though and there is a good chance that is a way to give us some new champions. For now though, it’s a good result for Nightingale, which is nice to see.

Post match Megan Bayne runs in for the beatdown so Harley Cameron comes in with a pipe for the save.

Zero Hour: National Title: Battle Royal

Ricochet, Jack Perry, Tommaso Ciampa, Trent Beretta, Rocky Romero, Dralistico, Rush, Scorpio Sky, Daniel Garcia, Anthony Bowens, Katsuyori Shibata, Juice Robinson, Austin Gunn, Ace Austin, El Clon, AR Fox, The Beast Mortos, Lio Rush, Komander, Johnny TV, Dalton Castle

Ricochet is defending and it’s a standard battle royal, with Perry debuting a new bus because that is an idea that needed to be brought back. Everyone brawls on the floor before anyone bothers to get in, with Perry beating Ricochet up against the barricade. Fox goes up for the big inverted flip dive onto the pile on the floor as no one has been in the ring yet.

A now bald Lio Rush (a horrible look for him) gets inside and bounces around before hitting a suicide dive. Komander walks the rope for a big flip dive and a bunch of people finally bother getting inside. Perry keeps going after Ricochet as Robinson fires off some snap jabs. Romero gets crotched on top but does his sliding dance, allowing Robinson to toss him out for the first elimination.

La Faccion Ingobernable and Bang Bang Gang get in a brawl and Rush tosses Gunn. Mortos gives Austin the pop up Samoan drop so Lio comes back in for some crawling kicks (McGuinness is right in calling him Gollum). Fox fights back on Clon and Lio as everyone else is still brawling on the floor. Clon manages to kick Fox out but gets sent to the apron by Robinson.

The also bald TV is knocked out and we get a Sky vs. Shibata slugout. Bowens cuts Sky off with the jumping Fameasser and Sky is eliminated. We finally get a decent amount of people inside and Ciampa knees Lio out. Shibata has to fight back against La Faccion and manages to easily knock Dralistico off the top for the elimination. Ricochet comes back in to Spirit Gun and toss Bowens but gets jumped by Dalton Castle, who is double teamed and eliminated.

Mortos misses a charge and is gone as well so Komander goes up top for the rope walk. He manages to save himself and get rid of Beretta but Garcia rips the mask off and Komander is out. Garcia is kicked out as well and it’s Rush vs. Austin for a bit. The cocky kick lets Rush take him to the apron and chop away but Robinson knocks Rush out. Shibata and Robinson brawl on the apron so Rush comes back in, only to be tossed again.

Ciampa knees Austin out but gets punched out by Robinson as Zero Hour ends, meaning that, again, the pay per view starts with the end of the Zero Hour main event. Perry comes back in and throws out Clon and apparently we’re down to Perry vs. Ricochet. They slug it out and trade big shots to the face until Ricochet flips out of a German suplex. Ricochet gets sent to the apron, where Perry tries a sunset bomb for no logical reason. He manages to save himself though and a poisonrana gets rid of Ricochet to make Perry champion at 22:54.

Rating: C+. There was good action, but it fell into the annoying trend of modern battle royals by having so many people on the floor. If you want to do Perry vs. Ricochet for the title then do so, but otherwise it was a bunch of people getting a change to do their stuff while most of the other participants weren’t even there. That makes for quite the weird battle royal, especially when these two have been the focus of the title since it was introduced.

Post match Perry celebrates with his family for the nice moment.

We recap FTR defending the Tag Team Titles against the Young Bucks. They’ve fought on and off for years but this time FTR attacked the Bucks’ brother to make it personal. Therefore, the Bucks want the titles and revenge.

We get a video from the Bucks’ family, explaining how awesome the Bucks are for various reasons.

Tag Team Titles: FTR vs. Young Bucks

FTR, with Stokely Hathaway, is defending and come out in Boston Celtics colors to annoy the Los Angels fans. Matt and Harwood trade slaps to the face to start and the Bucks clear the ring rather quickly. The brawl heads outside for a bit before the Bucks knock the champs to the floor again. The big dive is cut off though and Nick is sent face first into the announcers’ table.

A spike piledriver drives Matt into the apron and he comes up holding his shoulder/neck. Another spike piledriver is broken up though and Nick’s superkick gets a quick two on Wheeler. Nick still can’t get over to Matt, as Wheeler pulls him to the floor. The PowerPlex is broken up as Nick knocks Harwood (both bloody) off the top. Matt, whose shoulder is messed up, comes in to start cleaning house and a double suplex gets two on the champs. Matt is knocked outside again though and his neck is giving him problems.

A young member of the Bucks’ family sends Matt back into action, where he is quickly dropped onto the apron. That just makes him go up for a high crossbody for two on Harwood as Nick is too bloody to get back up. Harwood tries his own superkick but gets caught in a Sharpshooter, with Nick doing the same thing to Wheeler. Those are both broken up so the Bucks start firing off their kicks.

A slingshot sitout powerbomb drops Matt for two but Nick breaks up a double suplex. Instead FTR are both suplexed from the apron to the floor and it’s a quadruple crash on the outside. They all beat the count back in and it’s time for the four way slugout from their knees. The Bucks fire off superkicks to escape so Stokely jumps out of his wheelchair for a distraction. That means a Shatter Machine can get two on Matt, followed by a spike piledriver for the same.

FTR fire off their own superkicks to Nick and there’s a BTE Trigger, with Nick kicking out at one. The comeback is on, with a Shatter Machine sending Wheeler outside. The real BTE Trigger gets two on Harwood, with Wheeler making a diving save. Nick takes out Stokely and now the TK Driver can connect for two but FTR is back up with a spike piledriver. The super Shatter Machine retains the titles at 19:42.

Rating: B+. Again, the quality was never in doubt here, as these teams do work incredibly well together. That’s what deserves the focus here, as FTR gets another win to firmly establish themselves s the best team in the company. I could go for not seeing these teams together for a long time, but I’m not sure who is going to be next for the titles.

Post match the champs celebrate…and Adam Copeland is back. As is Christian Cage, the latter of whom comes in from behind to blind Wheeler. The Killswitch hits Harwood and there’s one to Stokely as well. The Canadians hold up the Tag Team Titles but stop to stare at the Bucks. This is going to wind up as a ladder match isn’t it?

We recap Toni Storm vs. Marina Shafir. They’ve had some brawls, with Shafir often choking her out. Now it’s time for a showdown with no interference.

Toni Storm vs. Marina Shafir

Everyone is banned from ringside. Shafir jumps her to start and fires off a hard kick to the chest for a knockdown. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Shafir lets go to judo throw her down. Storm invites more kicks so Shafir provides, followed by a leglock. That’s pulled into a choke, which Shafir breaks in a hurry. Shafir shrugs off a German suplex and kicks her down again but can’t get a German suplex off the apron.

Instead it’s a belly to back suplex on the floor but Storm gets smart by stomping on the bare foot. Back in and Storm hits a DDT to leave them both down. Storm gets up and strikes away, setting up the running hip attacks in the corner. Shafir tells her to bring it so it’s a third hip attack into Storm Zero for two. Mother’s Milk is broken up and Storm bites Shafir’s chest (yep), setting up a small package for the pin at 9:47.

Rating: B-. It was hard to imagine Storm losing here as she’s one of the biggest stars in the division’s history (if not the biggest) while Shafir has never really shown much interest in being a singles star. Storm made it rather insane to beat Shafir, with that bite being….well it fits for Storm, as weird as it was. I’m not sure what is next for Storm, as I don’t see much in the idea of her vs. Thekla for the title. For now though, at least she survived again.

Post match Storm goes to leave…but Ronda Rousey shows up for the big staredown. Security breaks it up, but Shafir comes back in for a shot to knock Storm down. Rousey and Shafir leave through the crowd.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Moxley is defending with no time limit. They go with a test of strength to start with Moxley driving him into the corner to hammer away. Takeshita is back with a running clothesline and the right hands in the corner as the fans certainly approve. Takeshita knocks him outside for a running boot up against the barricade but Moxley slides back inside. That means a quick suicide dive can connect, allowing Moxley to boot him out of a chair. Back in and Moxley bites above the eye, meaning it’s time to work on the leg (a totally logical progression).

The dragon screw legwhip sets up a half crab, with Takeshita having to dive over to the ropes. The Figure Four sends Takeshita over to the ropes again and he’s able to reverse the Death Rider into the kneeling Tombstone. A wheelbarrow suplex doesn’t do much to Moxley so Takeshita knees him in the face, which works a lot better. Moxley’s choke is countered into a Blue Thunder Bomb for two, with Takeshita’s knee slowing him down. They go to the apron, where Moxley pops back up with a stomp to the floor, allowing him to flip off the fans.

Back in and a piledriver gives Moxley two before he unloads with right hands to bust Takeshita open. A Gotch style piledriver gives Moxley two so he grabs a crossface. Takeshita escapes that as well and sends him into the corner for the running knee. The exploder suplex sets up another running knee to give Takeshita two and Moxley’s cutter…has no effect.

Instead it’s a Paradigm Shift to put Takeshita down for a double breather. They trade big suplexes until Moxley’s running lariat gets one. The Death Rider is broken up and Raging Fire connects to give Takeshita two (the first time it hasn’t finished). Back up and the Death Rider gives Moxley the big two of his own so he takes Takeshita up for a super Death Rider…for two more. With nothing else working, Moxley chokes him out and traps the arm to retain at 23:33.

Rating: B+. Yeah you knew these guys were going to beat the fire out of each other, which is the point of these two getting together. Moxley gets the win to even things up a bit so the Continental Classic loss is covered. At the same time, we probably need to move on from Death Riders vs. the Don Callis Family, as it hasn’t exactly felt like much of a feud. That’s a pretty big win for Moxley, as it’s not like the Family has any big names left for him.

Post match Moxley offers respect and, after teasing leaving, Takeshita accepts the handshake. Moxley goes to leave but the lights go out again and it’s…Will Ospreay. That’s such a big surprise that Moxley comes back to ringside, with Ospreay decking him. The Death Riders’ save is cut off but Moxley escapes. Yeah that’s a pretty big return.

Willow Nightingale is banged up but ready to fight for revenge and the titles.

We recap the Women’s Tag Team Title match. Lena Kross and Megan Bayne teamed up in Australia and now it’s time for them to go after the belts.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Babes Of Wrath vs. Lena Kross/Megan Bayne

The Babes are defending, with Nightingale nursing a rather banged up shoulder. The champs get taken down to start, with Nightingale being sent outside. A suplex takes Cameron down and Bayne drops a leg for two. Kross can’t fight her way out of trouble but she can manage a tornado DDT. Nightingale tags herself in but the arm is very banged up.

A Pounce puts Bayne down and Nightingale plants Kross as well. Stereo fall away slams put the champs down and double clotheslines do it again. Cameron is sent outside and a superkick drops Nightingale. Bayne’s running clothesline sets up a double chokeslam to give us new champions at 4:56.

Rating: C. That’s about how this should have gone, as the champions were coming in banged up and Bayne/Kross were able to capitalize on the injury. There was no need for the Babes to hold the titles much longer and it gets rid of the pesky double champion thing. It wasn’t much of a match, but I do appreciate a shorter pay per view fight for a change.

We recap Brody King vs. Swerve Strickland, which is about determining the most dangerous man in AEW.

Brody King vs. Swerve Strickland

King wins an early slugout but charges into a well timed House Call. Swerve puts him on the apron for a double stomp and manages to hoist him up for a ram into the post. It’s already time to peel back the floor mat but King is able to drop Swerve back first onto the barricade. Back in and King unloads with some loud chops but Swerve saves himself in the corner.

King’s fingers get twisted in the turnbuckle rod so King bends his back around the entire post. Swerve gets dropped on his back again and another slam sends him into the exposed concrete. They’re back up to strike it out on the apron, with Swerve going to the knee. A sitout powerbomb on the apron has King in trouble for a change and it’s time to go into the corner, where a buckle pad has been removed.

Swerve can’t manage the stomp into the buckle, with King getting in a high crossbody. Instead Swerve is sent into the corner with the exposed buckle, where King gets in a Cannonball for two. They go back outside, where Swerve counters the Ganso Bomb into a Vertebreaker on the concrete for a nine count. The Swerve Stomp only gets one so Swerve hits three straight House Calls for the win at 14:19.

Rating: B. They had a good fight here and the result wasn’t exactly a surprise. King has been on a roll lately but it makes a lot more sense for Swerve to get a win out of him. They beat each other up and it felt like a fight, which is how this should have gone. Good brawl here, with Swerve continuing his roll.

Post match Swerve loads up the cinder block but Kenny Omega returns for the save.

We recap Thekla defending the Women’s Title against Kris Statlander. Thekla beat Statlander to win the title but Statlander is sure she can win. Therefore tonight, it’s 2/3 falls.

Women’s Title: Thekla vs. Kris Statlander

Thekla is defending and it’s 2/3 falls. An early shove makes Statlander give chase on the floor and she takes over back inside. Thekla gets a boot up in the corner but the upside down choke is blocked. Instead Statlander superplexes her into a sliding lariat for two but Thekla spiders away from another clothesline. The whipping is loaded up so the referee takes it away, only for Thekla to grab a rollup with ropes for the first fall at 4:31.

Statlander runs her over to start the second fall, with a suplex dropping Thekla on the floor. Thekla is dine enough to send her into the steps as things slow down again. Back in and now the upside down choke works for Thekla but as usual, can only last so long. Statlander gets up and grabs a fireman’s carry, only for Thekla to catch her up top. They head back outside, where Thekla is sent into the barricade, followed by some swinging whips into said barricade. Back in and Statlander’s Falcon Arrow gets two but Thekla is back with a Black Widow. That’s reversed into Staturday Night Fever though and we’re tied up at 13:42.

Thekla has to go to the eyes to get away from Statlander. The referee is bumped and Thekla whips out the belt, only for Statlander to take it away. Statlander whips away and hits another Staturday Night Fever but there is no referee. Back up and Statlander grabs the strap but this time the referee is up to take it away. The spear sets up two stomps to retain the title at 17:08.

Rating: B-. That’s how it should have gone, as Statlander has already had multiple runs as champion. Thekla has exploded in recent weeks and it’s great to see her getting this kind of a win. There are multiple women who could come after the title, and seeing Thekla work with any of them sounds like quite the treat.

Trios Titles: Don Callis Family vs. Mistico/Jet Speed

Mistico/Jet Speed are challenging and the fans are rather pleased as Mistico starts with Okada. A headscissors drops Okada so it’s off to Knight (who, like Bailey, is in a Mistico mask), who gets sent into the wrong corner. Davis gets in a choke but Knight escapes and brings in Bailey for the running hurricanrana. It’s right back to Mistico to clear the ring, setting up the suicide dive.

A triple dive is broken up and Knight is picked up and tossed outside onto his partners. Davis takes off Jet Speed’s masks and it’s Knight getting stomped down in the corner. Bailey is tossed into a kick to the chest for two but Mistico is back up (as we’re just not doing the tagging thing here) with some headscissors. Jet Speed come back in to help clear the ring and we settle down to Okada vs. Mistico.

That doesn’t last long either as everything breaks down again so Okada and Knight hit stereo dropkicks. Okada flips Knight off so Knight bites the finger, which is far smarter than most people come off when Okada does the same thing. Mistico is back in with a tornado DDT to Fletcher and the challengers all plant the Family on the apron.

Back in and Bailey’s shooting star press gets two on Fletcher and the Ultimate Weapon gets the same, with Davis making the save. Davis is back up to drop Jet Speed and gives them both a piledriver, with Mistico making a save of his own. Knight is back up with the springboard clothesline to Davis and La Mistica takes Fletcher down. Knight’s UFO Splash pins Davis for the pin and the titles at 17:20.

Rating: B. This was the insanity that you see on most AEW shows and in this case it wound up with a surprise title change. As usual, the Trios Titles don’t exactly mean much as they go from team to team, often with thrown together teams winning the belts. At least the match was fun though, with pretty much nonstop action throughout. Since there is no real trios division, this is about as good as it’s going to get and that’s not a bad thing.

Post match we get the big announcement that Mistico is All Elite. The celebration goes on for a good while.

We recap Bandido vs. Andrade El Idolo. They both wanted a fight so here we go. Bandido’s ROH World Title isn’t on the line because…well because it pretty much means nothing.

Bandido vs. Andrade El Idolo

Non-title. They go with the grappling to start and trade flip ups for an early standoff. Some standing switches result in Andrade doing the tranquilo pose in the ropes so Bandido tries to remove his pants. That doesn’t work so well, as Andrade jumps him for taking so long. Bandido is able to send him outside for a running hurricanrana off the apron. Back in and Bandido’s springboard is powerbombed out of the air and Andrade takes off his own pants. We pause for a rather impressed female fan to get a picture with Andrade before the chinlock goes on back inside.

Back up and Bandido reverses a suplex into a cutter before German suplexing him into the corner. They trade forearms from their knees until Bandido sends him hard to the floor. The suicide dive connects but a frog splash hits raised knees back inside. They trade rolling suplexes with Bandido getting the better of things, setting up a shooting star press for two more. Bandido goes up again but gets knocked outside, where Andrade moonsaults down onto him for a big crash.

Back in and the double moonsault gives Andrade two, followed by the running knees in the corner for the same. Bandido is able to catch him up top with the flipping fall away slam, setting up the X Knee. The 21 Plex is cut off with the spinning knee to give Andrade two but Bandido hits a ridiculous spinning kick to the back of the head. Now the 21 Plex can connect for two in a rare kickout so Bandido tries it again, only to get elbowed in the face. A super DM gives Andrade the pin at 20:57.

Rating: A-. This was a heck of a match, with the two of them beating the heck out of each other. I have little reason to believe that Andrade will keep giving this much effort for very long, but I’ll absolutely take it while it lasts. Bandido continues to be great at just about everything he does and they had another great match here. Awesome stuff.

We recap the Dogs vs. Darby Allin/Orange Cassidy/Roderick Strong. Both sides kept adding members so it’s time for a six man tag, which is under Tornado rules because of course it is.

The Dogs vs. Darby Allin/Orange Cassidy/Roderick Strong

Tornado Tag. The brawl starts on the floor with Cassidy getting an early two off a small package to Connors. Strong and Kidd chop it out in the ring until Connors backbreakers Allin to put him outside. Allin is right back up with a springboard double elbow but Connors spears Allin through the ropes and out to the floor. Back in and a Doomsday Device drops Allin for two so the Dogs use the tag ropes to tie him in the corner by the throat.

Cassidy is left alone with all three so he slowly chops away, earning himself a string of knockdowns. Strong is back in for the save, including picking up Cassidy and throwing him at the Dogs. A wheelbarrow DDT lets Connors be dropped onto raised knees and Cassidy heads outside. Cassidy finds some scissors to cut Allin free, meaning it’s a Coffin Drop take out the Dogs on the floor.

The Stronghold has Connors in trouble and Allin grabs the Scorpion Deathlock on Kidd, only for Finlay, with Cassidy on his back, to make the save. The big brawl is on and Allin is thrown outside, leaving Connors to spear Cassidy. Kidd and Allin fight on the ramp, with Allin skateboarding onto the back of his head. Cassidy has to save Strong as Kidd is apparently zip tied to the stage. That means Allin can suicide dive Finlay, leaving the End Of Heartache to finish Connors at 12:24.

Rating: B-. It was another wild match, though that only means so much when I saw the same thing about half an hour ago. While I like the dream team (or close enough to one) getting the win, the Dogs have not exactly been the most successful team right out of the gate. They can still correct course, but dang they’ve lost quite a bit early on.

We recap Hangman Page challenging MJF for the World Title in a Texas Deathmatch. Page is the #1 contender but wants to end this between them forever. Therefore, if Page loses, he can never challenge for the title again.

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

MJF is defending in a Texas Deathmatch, meaning you win by submission or your opponent not being able to answer a ten count (pins don’t count). Page is played live to the ring by a snazzy trumpet player and already has barbed wire wrapped around his knee. We get a video of MJF as a cowboy riding a horse and then relieving himself on Page’s grave. MJF even comes out in Terry Funk cosplay as he’s feeling the cockiness here.

They go straight to the slugout, with MJF hiding behind the referee and then bailing out to the floor. Page beats him into the crowd until they come back to ringside, where MJF gets in a trashcan lid shot. A crotch to the head knocks Page down so he suckers MJF into a chase, meaning it’s a trashcan lid to MJF’s head. It’s time for the staple gun (oh here we go) but first Page finds a piece of paper to slice up MJF’s fingers.

The paper (which has something written on it that I can’t read) is stapled to MJF’s chest and then ripped back out, allowing Page to pull out a window. MJF gets in a cheap shot and breaks the window, leaving the glass shattered on the mat. Page slams him onto said glass (commentary approves) and then drags him over the glass (commentary approves again) as it’s time for a lot of screaming.

Page whips out the barbed wire to gouge at MJF’s bloody head and then pulls it around MJF’s mouth. The table is pulled out as MJF is already looking destroyed. MJF gets in a cheap shot and cuts open Page’s head with the shard of glass. Now Page is dragged over the glass so MJF grabs a broom to clear the ring. Page takes the broom away and breaks it over his knee but MJF hits him with the broken piece and has a seat in a chair. MJF busts out the big syringe and stabs Page through the cheek, giving us some shots of a disturbed crowd.

Page, with the syringe still hanging out of his mouth, fights up and grabs another chair, this one wrapped in barbed wire. That takes too long as well and Page is dropped onto the chair for a rather lengthy count. MJF sets up a table at ringside but the Heatseeker is countered into a Deadeye, with Page’s knee landing on the barbed wire chair. That’s only good for a nine and Page chairs him in the back. MJF bails outside and avoids Page’s moonsault, allowing him to pelt the barbed wire chair at Page’s head.

The Heatseeker onto the barbed wire chair is broken up so Page Deadeyes him off the apron through the table to leave everyone down. They both beat the count and MJF Tombstones him off the apron through another table. They both beat the count again and pull themselves up for the big punch off. MJF ducks the Buckshot Lariat and pokes him in the eye so they knock each other down.

They both roll outside and it’s time for the light tubes (erg). The ring doesn’t work anymore so they go up to the stage, with both tubes being broken over MJF. Page kicks him down the ramp and it’s time for the skewers. They fight over stabbing the other in the head, with MJF getting the wood shoved into his scalp. That and a Buckshot Lariat get nine so Page kicks him in the face. Page pulls out a chain and some collars as it’s now a Dog Collar match.

Page knocks him down again and loads up another table on the floor. And a barbed wire board, just because. They fight on the apron until MJF uses the chain to toss Page through both the board and table. The count is beaten again and they go up to the stage, with Page belly to bellying him onto some equipment for the explosion. Page uses the chain to drag MJF back to the ring but a low blow breaks up another Buckshot Lariat. A belt to the head brings Page back to life but MJF uses the Diamond Ring and knocks Page silly. Page is choked over the ropes and can’t beat the count at 46:37.

Rating: B-. Yeah no. Between the extreme nonsense (I hate that stuff and always have) and the match going ridiculously long, this did not work very well. They beat each other up rather well and it was a violent, bloody fight, but it’s not a great sign when you could chop off around twenty minutes and not lose much. I’m well aware some people love this style, but it’s not my thing and I wanted this to end far before it actually did.

MJF stands on Page and poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This show had some very, very good parts, but as usual, I’m rather exhausted after it’s over. The main event certainly tried but after that long of a show, they probably should have chopped it down a bit. Andrade vs. Bandido was excellent and most of the matches were rather good, with the surprise returns certainly feeling important.

Ospreay being back is huge and Copeland/Cage are big enough (not my thing but that’s a different situation), which added some extra flavor to the whole thing. It’s definitely more good than bad, but after almost six hours of AEW on the fifth straight day of Tony Khan’s wrestling, I need a long break from this style, which is the case after pretty much every AEW pay per view.

Results
Boom & Doom b. The Infantry – Boomsday Device to Bravo
Willow Nightingale b. Lena Kross – Backslide
Jack Perry won a Blackjack Battle Royal last eliminating Ricochet
FTR b. Young Bucks – Super Shatter Machine to Matt
Toni Storm b. Marina Shafir – Small package
Jon Moxley b. Konosuke Takeshita – Rear naked choke
Megan Bayne/Lena Kross b. Babes Of Wrath – Double chokeslam to Nightingale
Swerve Strickland b. Brody King – House Call
Thekla b. Kris Statlander 2-1
Mistico/Jet Speed b. Don Callis Family – UFO Splash to Davis
Andrade El Idolo b. Bandido – Super DM
Orange Cassidy/Darby Allin/Roderick Strong b. The Dogs – End Of Heartache to Connors
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Hangman Page – Choke over the ropes with a chain

 

 

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Ring Of Honor
Date: December 26, 2025
Location: Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s a special Boxing Day edition, logically called Boxing Day Brawl. That should mean a big special show, with the Pure Rules Title on the line as Lee Moriarty defends against Komander. Other than that, it’s hard to say what we might be getting around here, as tends to be the custom. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

James Drake vs. Eddie Kingston

Zack Gibson is here with Drake and insults New York City, which brings Kingston out with a chair to smash both of them. Drake gets up and jumps Kingston to officially start things off, with commentary saying we have to make sure it’s a fair beginning. After one of them got smacked with a chair.

Kingston chops his way out of the corner but a neckbreaker is cut off. A kick to the head misses for Drake though and Kingston pulls him into the Stretch Muffler. Gibson offers a distraction though and Drake is back with a middle rope dropkick. Kingston is back with another neckbreaker but Drake’s running dropkick in the corner gets two. Drake goes up but dives into an exploder suplex, setting up the DDT to give Kingston the pin at 5:33.

Rating: C. The match wasn’t exactly in doubt, but it served as a way to give the fans something to cheer over because the loudmouthed heel. That’s a smart path to take on the opening match on a show like this as it’s worked forever in wrestling. If nothing else, Kingston needs the reps to get back to his old self after being out for so long.

Post match Gibson jumps Kingston and Drake adds a low blow. Drake’s top rope dropkick leaves Kingston laying and the villains talk a lot of trash.

Santa Claus is in the ring before the next match but the Premiere Athletes interrupt. Claus isn’t a fan of the team (who apparently helped with his weight loss) so Stori Denali gives him a chokeslam.

Premiere Athletes vs. VSK/Jon Cruz/Ashley Vox

Nese poses at VSK to start but VSK jumps over him and poses as well. Cruz comes in and gets taken into the corner to keep up the beating before it’s off to Vox. The chokeslam is broken up and Nese hits a dive over the top, leaving Denali to chokeslam Vox for the pin at 3:29.

Rating: C-. Well that was in fact a Premiere Athletes squash and that’s pretty much what they do a good chunk of the time. I’m not sure what makes this one any different than how they do it most of the time but here we are. Denali continues to be impressive, albeit in rather short sports. I’m just not sure what the three of them can do anytime soon.

Komander, wearing a backpack, is ready to face Lee Moriarty for the Pure Title.

Video on Athena/Mercedes Mone challenging the Babes Of Wrath for the AEW Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Mina Shirakawa vs. Rebecca Scott

Commentary says Shirakawa is trying to get back in Women’s TV Title contention. Why wouldn’t she want to go after Athena? She’s already lost to Athena as well so why go after the midcard title? Shirakawa gets to dance to start before dropping her with a Sling Blade. A top rope Sling Blade connects as commentary says Shirakawa took the Interim Women’s TV Title to new heights. As in the title she held for three months and successfully defended one time??? I love Riccaboni but he says some questionable things at times. The figure four makes Scott tap at 2:01.

Jay Lethal wants to team with Bandido to get rid of the Swirl. Sure.

Swirl vs. Alec Price/Jordan Oliver

Christian cuts Price off to start and sends Oliver outside. That doesn’t last long as Oliver is back in for a Fameasser but the Swirl knocks both of them to the floor. The flip dive connects for Johnson so the Swirl gets to pose a bit. Back in and Christian chinlocks Oliver, who manages to fight up for something of a hip attack. Price comes in to clean house, including a springboard clothesline to drop Johnson. A rebound clothesline does the same to Price and something like a springboard Steiner Bulldog (close enough) gets two. Price is sent outside though and it’s the Lethal Brainbuster to finish Oliver at 6:37.

Rating: B-. Oliver and Price are a good enough team to warrant another look and despite being presented as boring or uninteresting, Swirl is more than fine in the ring. If nothing else, it was nice to have something a bit more competitive on the show, even if there was no reason to believe Oliver and Price were going to win. Bring them back though, as the tag div…ok there pretty much isn’t a tag division but it would be nice to have them around again.

Zack Gibson vs. Bryce Donovan

Donovan is fresh out of the WWE ID Program and gets taken down to start. Back up and Donovan gets in a running clothesline, only to get kicked out to the floor. They get back inside and Gibson kicks him down, setting up a neck crank. Donovan fights up and hits a running clothesline into a swinging Boss Man Slam for two. A charge in the corner misses though and it’s a middle rope Codebreaker to drop Donovan. Gibson clotheslines him for the pin at 5:15.

Rating: C. During the match, Gibson vs. Eddie Kingston was announced for the Worlds End Zero Hour. That made this match the warmup for tomorrow, which probably wasn’t needed after Gibson laid Kingston out earlier tonight. Donovan showed about the same talent that was on display in the ID Program, meaning bringing him back won’t make much of a difference one way or another.

Dalton Castle and the Outrunners are jumped by MxM TV, who want a Fight Without Honor next week.

Boom & Doom vs. Frat House

Big Justice, Aaron Solo and the rest of the Frat House are here too. Karter ducks Marshall to start and poses, meaning it’s Marshall being taken into the corner for some shots to the head. That’s broken up and AJ comes in for a quick powerslam to Garrison. Back up and Garrison chokes on the rope, with Marshall trying to come in, allowing Karter to get in a cheap shot.

A belly to belly suplex gets AJ out of trouble and the tag brings in Marshall to clean house. Marshall hits a big running flip dive to the floor but a cheap shot earns him a group stomping on the floor. Back in and Garrison’s armbar keeps Marshall in trouble, allowing Karter to kick him down. Garrison misses a splash in the corner but AJ is knocked off the apron.

A flapjack/big boot combination gets two on Marshall, who is sent outside. Big Justice and Solo won’t let him get smashed by a chair but they all do get ejected. Back in and Marshall Downward Spirals Garrison, allowing the tag off to AJ. The Powerboom is broken up and everything breaks down, with Garrison breaking it up. A Powerboom/Blockbuster combination finally finishes Karter at 12:01.

Rating: C+. Well that was rather long, which isn’t the most positive way to describe a Frat House match. AJ isn’t likely to lose any match he’s in and his novelty has already worn off. He’s perfectly fine, but that doesn’t make for the most thrilling time in the ring. The match was acceptable enough, but it wasn’t exactly anything different than what you would expect from AJ and company.

Lee Moriarty is ready to beat Komander again, as he tends to do with everyone.

Lio Rush vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Shibata won’t shake hands to start but will take over with a knuckle lock. That’s broken up and they run the ropes until Rush gets two off a rollup. Shibata takes him outside for a suplex on the floor, followed by a ram into the barricade. They head back inside, with Shibata getting kicked right back to the floor for a suicide dive. Shibata is fine enough to grab a suplex but the springboard Stunner brings him right back down for two. The Final Hour is broken up though and it’s a low blow to set up Shibata’s cross armbreaker for the tap at 6:11.

Rating: C+. Rush was bringing his usual energy here and it made for a fairly nice match while it lasted. That being said, Shibata as a heel isn’t exactly interesting, especially when he’s currently doing something as part of a team in AEW. I have no idea why he’s in Ring Of Honor, though he’s now 21-0 and nowhere near a title match, though that’s a bit too logical around here.

Pure Title: Lee Moriarty vs. Komander

Moriarty is defending and bounces out of an early hammerlock attempt. Komander gets out of a cross armbreaker and a Border City Stretch, the latter of which is from the first rope break. Moriarty’s wristlock is broken up and Komander backflips out of the corner for a staredown. That earns him a spinning faceplant and Moriarty is looking rather confident.

A waistlock keeps Komander down and it’s off to a seated abdominal stretch, complete with a stomach claw. That’s broken up and Komander goes to the ropes (not for a break) so Moriarty pulls on a regular abdominal stretch. Komander breaks out of it again and tries a springboardy armdrag, which is reversed into an STF. That means the second rope break before Komander dropkicks the leg out. A running DDT gives Komander two and he walks the ropes into a crossbody.

The Fang gives Moriarty two more as Komander uses another rope break. The Border City Stretch is countered into a rollup for two and a standing Spanish Fly gives Komander the same. Moriarty is sent outside for a heck of a springboard moonsault but bangs up his own ribs in the process. Back in and poisonrana gives Komander two, followed by a cross armbreaker to make Moriarty use his first rope break. Cielito Lindo hits raised foot though and a Gory Special in the ropes makes Komander give up at 14:37.

Rating: B-. It was the usual fine Moriarty match and that’s about all. While Komander did feel like someone who could take the title and the match was built up, it feels like Moriarty is going to finally drop the thing on a much bigger stage. At least it felt like a main event and was treated like one though and that helps a lot.

Overall Rating: C. Apparently this qualifies as some kind of a special episode around here, with one match that felt big and I guess Boom & Doom as the second biggest match on the card. Other than that, it was just the usual cast of characters doing the same stuff they do so often around here. That’s why Ring Of Honor is such an afterthought so much of the time, and if this special is any indication, it’s going to remain that way for a long time.

Results
Eddie Kingston b. James Drake – DDT
Premiere Athletes b. VSK/Jon Cruz/Ashley Vox – Chokeslam to Vox
Mina Shirakawa b. Rebecca Scott – Figure four
Swirl b. Alec Price/Jordan Oliver – Lethal Brainbuster to Oliver
Zack Gibson b. Bryce Donovan – Clothesline
Boom & Doom b. Frat House – Powerboom/Blockbuster combination to Karter
Katsuyori Shibata b. Lio Rush – Cross armbreaker
Lee Moriarty b. Komander – Gory Special in the ropes

 

 

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