Collision
Date: February 28, 2026
Location: Mission Ballroom, Denver, Colorado
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone

We’re getting closer to next month’s Revolution and that should be the focus for the next few weeks, including this show. The pay per view now has a main event with MJF defending the World Title against Hangman Page in a Texas Deathmatch, with MJF talking about the match this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Here is a ticked off MJF to get things going. We’re not starting this show until Revolution is fixed so he wants Tony Khan out here right now because a Texas Deathmatch is NOT happening. Cue Kevin Knight instead, saying he sees MJF trying to hide while Knight has been out here getting the job done. Knight says he has better fashion and swagger than MJF but he’s also the future and here and now. MJF isn’t impressed…but gives Knight a World Title shot on Dynamite anyway, promising to make Knight history. Well that worked.

Mark Briscoe wants to face Tommaso Ciampa again but tonight, Ciampa is facing Jay Lethal, who beat Ciampa for the ROH TV Title (I was at that show).

Death Riders vs. Don Callis Family

Eight man tag with Jon Moxley on commentary as the feud continues. Garcia and Romero start things off with Garcia avoiding a dropkick and hitting a basement version of his own. It’s off to Castagnoli vs. Alexander with Alexander blocking a Swing attempt. Castagnoli throws him down with the gutwrench suplex so Archer comes in to take over.

Everything breaks down and we get the parade of knockdowns. Archer hits a chokeslam but gets taken down by Yuta. The big flip dive lets Yuta wipe out the pile at ringside and we settle down to Pac kicking away at Beretta. Romero is back in with a missile dropkick to knock Pac off the apron and we take a break. We come back with Alexander chinlocking Pac, who gets up with a rebound German suplex. That’s enough for Castagnoli to come back in and fire off the uppercuts.

It’s already back to Yuta, who gets dropped by some jumping knees. Archer gives him a chokeslam and Yuta has to fix his hat to hide the baldness. Marina Shafir comes in to choke Archer, who breaks it up in a hurry. The Riders are back in to strike away at Archer, including a string of shots in the corner. The Fastball Special gets two, with the Family making the save. They brawl back to the floor and it’s Yuta’s running knee to finish Romero at 15:20.

Rating: B-. This is the big team feud in AEW at the moment and it wouldn’t shock me to see it go all the way on to either Anarchy In The Arena or Blood & Guts (or both). It’s smart to use the lower level wrestlers in the fall for a change, as it isn’t like Romero is going to be hurt by a loss. Nice match here, which might be due to Don Callis himself being nowhere in sight.

Post match Moxley gets in the ring to celebrate but Konosuke Takeshita runs in for the brawl.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Jay Lethal

The Swirl is here with Lethal. They go technical to start and a headlock takeover is broken up, giving us a standoff. With that not working, it’s time to slug it out until Ciampa grabs a belly to back suplex. Blake Christian offers a quick distraction though, allowing Lethal to hit his own suplex. Lethal shoulders him down and there’s the strut before Ciampa is sent outside. That means Ciampa can take out the Swirl, only to get wiped out with a suicide dive.

We take a break and come back with Ciampa catching him on top with a chop. Lethal knocks him right back down but the Figure Four is countered into a small package. The Lethal Combination puts Ciampa back down but Hail To The King is countered into a crucifix for two. Lethal grabs a cutter and tries the Lethal Injection, which is cut off with a basement dropkick. Ciampa kicks away and hits the running knee for the pin at 9:20.

Rating: B-. Again, this is where Lethal is at his best, as he can help boost up anyone around here. That’s certainly a good thing for Ciampa, who is already doing well establishing himself in his new surroundings. It would be nice to see him get another title shot, though I’ll take him being on his own for a change after so long in a tag team in WWE.

The IInspiration are here and seem to want to fight the Brawling Birds on Dynamite.

Video on Clark Connors.

Brawling Birds vs. Gypsy Mac/Tyra Russamee

Hayter forearms away on Mac to start and sends her to the corner for the tag to Russamee. Windsor hammers her down in a different corner and it’s back to Hayter with a running boot into a backbreaker. The double chops and double shoulders set up a Hart Attack (Two Birds One Stone, a rather clever name) for the pin on Russamee at 3:01.

Rating: C. Total squash here but I’m liking the Birds thus far. They’re both talented women who had nothing better to do and it’s nice to see them getting a chance. Hayter just hasn’t been quite the same since returning from her terrible injury so this is good for a rehab assignment. Maybe it works long term, as it’s not like there are a lot of teams to jump over.

Video on a four way tag match for $200,000 next week. I guess that’s a thing again.

Kyle Fletcher/Kazuchika Okada vs. Top Flight

Christopher Daniels is here with Top Flight and Don Callis is on commentary. Okada and Darius start things off as Callis explains the idea of Okada, the senior man in the team, giving the younger men a hard time. A double big boot drops Darius, who pulls himself back in to dropkick Fletcher. Dante comes in and gets knocked outside, where Okada gives him a DDT as we take a break.

We come back with Dante fighting his way out of trouble but Okada is in to cut off the tag. Said tag goes through about five seconds later and it’s Darius coming in to clean house. Fletcher misses a charge into the corner and Darius comes back in to kick him into a German suplex. Darius and Fletcher strike it out until Okada comes in for the dropkick. The Rainmaker drops Darius and Fletcher adds the brainbuster for the pin at 9:40.

Rating: B. This got going near the end but ultimately it was what Top Flight does best: putting in a solid effort but coming up short against a bigger name team. Unfortunately that has been their situation for far too long now and there isn’t much hope that they’ll shake the funk. I’m sure this will lead to even more of the tease of Okada vs. Takeshita, which has only been teased for the better part of ever thus far.

Post match Fletcher declares himself and Okada as the best champions in AEW history and a challenge is issued. Cue Jet Speed, who beat them in singles matches in the Continental Classic. A tag match is teased, along with Okada getting a World Title shot once Knight wins the thing, and a Trios Title match. General thought: SWEET GOODNESS THERE ARE TOO MANY TITLES AROUND HERE.

Darby Allin and Orange Cassidy want to fight the War Dogs.

Toni Storm vs. Zayda Steel

Storm’s early headlock takeover doesn’t get her very far so she tells Steel to give her some running shoulders. Steel can’t put her down so it’s a hurricanrana to send Storm into the corner instead. The running knee staggers Storm, who is right back with a suplex. A Codebreaker sends Storm outside for a suicide dive, followed by a high crossbody for two back inside. Three straight German suplexes knock Steel silly and the hip attack into Storm Zero finishes her off at 3:32.

Rating: C+. Steel got in some offense here but she has been little more than cannon fodder since coming to AEW. I get the idea that you don’t want some rookie becoming one of the big players around here, but there has to be something of a middle ground between that and her one singles win. Other than that, Storm would seem likely to be facing Marina Shafir in a big showdown soon, which should be good.

Post match Shafir comes in for the brawl, with Wheeler Yuta joining in. Storm fights back and steals Yuta’s hat, revealing a mostly bald head, though the hair is already starting to grow back in. At least they did it early enough.

Hook is recruiting for the Opps and Anthony Bowens offers his services. That’s only a maybe though, because Bowens might not be enough of a killer. Hook talking is not a great idea.

Sisters Of Sin vs. Kris Statlander/Thunder Rosa

Rosa hammers away on Hart to start and takes her down, only to be driven into the corner. Blue comes in for a double flapjack but gets sent into the wrong corner as well. That’s broken up so Hart comes back in and gets reverse slammed. Statlander’s big suicide dive is cut off though and we take a break.

We come back with Statlander catapulting Blue into Hart in the corner, allowing Rosa to come back in. Blue jawbreaks her way out of trouble and everything breaks down. The superkick gets two on Statlander, with Rosa diving in to make the save. They slug it out from their knees but the super swinging Rock Bottom is broken up. Staturday Night Fever drops Hart and Rosa’s package powerbomb gets the pin at 10:17.

Rating: B-. The Sisters remain little more than lackeys for the rather awesome Thekla and that’s a pretty solid choice for them. I’m not sure how that’s going to go for their future but the trio deal does seem to be the right idea. Rosa and Statlander feel like two singles stars working as a team, meaning they’ll likely stay this way for the time.

Post match here is Thekla, who says if there is one thing she can’t stand, it’s two dumb b******. She’s ready to beat Rosa, who should just retire already. Give it up for the past of the women’s division because it belongs to her. Yeah she’s good at this.

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Andrade El Idolo

Don Callis is on commentary as they fight over a lockup to start. Andrade tries to pick up the pace but gets caught on top, where Ishii can’t hit an early superplex. Instead Andrade gets two off a high crossbody, with Callis saying he has his eyes locked onto Andrade’s physique at all times.

Ishii gets dropkicked out to the floor, where he drops Andrade onto the apron to take over. Back in and Andrade’s big boot gets two and they’re already back on the floor. Andrade sends him into the announcers’ table and stops for a photo with a fan as we take a break.

We come back with Ishii fighting up, leaving Callis so frantic that he gets back on commentary. Andrade’s Three Amigos get two but he misses the running knees in the corner. Ishii’s German suplex is shrugged off so he headbutts Andrade down. A missed charge sends Ishii face first into the buckle and the running knees knock him silly for two. The double moonsault gets two more but the DM is blocked. Instead Andrade’s spinning back elbow gets two, followed by the DM to pin Ishii at 14:04.

Rating: B-. Yeah it was fine, but you know what Ishii is going to do most of the time. He’s pretty much just playing the greatest hits these days and that’s only going to get him so far. Andrade is on his way to a match with Bandido, which should make for a good use of both of them at the pay per view.

Post match Bandido comes out for the staredown with Andrade and the match is announced for Revolution. There’s no word on if the Ring Of Honor World Title will be on the line, which would be about as appropriate as you could get for that title.

Overall Rating: B. This show did a nice job of setting some things up for the future or simply advancing a few things that were already established. That’s often the best you can get out of Collision and I’ll take it over what we got last week. This did a nice job and the tag match was rather good stuff. Nice show this week.

Results
Death Riders b. Don Callis Family – Running knee to Romero
Tommaso Ciampa b. Jay Lethal – Running knee
Brawling Birds b. Gypsy Mac/Tyra Russamee – Two Birds One Stone to Russamee
Kyle Fletcher/Kazuchika Okada b. Top Flight – Brainbuster to Darius
Toni Storm b. Zayda Steel – Storm Zero
Kris Statlander/Thunder Rosa b. Sisters Of Sin – Package powerbomb to Hart
Andrade El Idolo b. Tomohiro Ishii – DM

 

 

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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Dynamite
Date: February 25, 2026
Location: Mission Ballroom, Denver, Colorado
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Nigel McGuinness

We’re almost to Revolution and the big story this week is finding out what kind of stipulation we’ll be having for the World Title match. MJF gets to pick the stipulation for his match with Hangman Page, which could be just about anything. Other than that, we need to add some more things to the card so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

The Babes Of Wrath and Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford are ready to fight, with Lena Kross ready to help the villains.

We look back at FTR attacking the Young Bucks’ family on Collision so tonight it’s Mile High Madness.

Jon Moxley vs. El Clon

Non-title Eliminator match. They go with the grappling to start and Clon takes it to the mat, where his headscissors is quickly broken up. Back up and Clon’s running shoulder doesn’t do much so he puts Moxley down with a dropkick instead. Moxley is right back up to knock him outside for a beating against the barricade. Back in and a crash landing gives Moxley two and it’s off to something like a reverse Kofi Clutch, with Clon making the rope. Clon hammers away in the corner so Moxley rolls outside, where he gets taken out by a dive.

We take a break and come back with Moxley fighting out of a seated abdominal stretch and rolling outside again. This time Clon boots him in the face but Moxley fights back for a ram into the barricade. That and a suicide dive have Clon in more trouble and the big clothesline drops him again inside.

Clon flips over him in the corner and immediately has to escape the bulldog choke. Moxley is sent outside again, this time for a heck of a step up moonsault to the floor. Back in and Clon dives into a cutter (that looked good too) but pops up to drop Moxley again. The top rope double stomp gives Clon two but Moxley reverses into a Death Rider. The Paradigm Shift gives Moxley the pin at 16:16.

Rating: B+. It’s amazing how much easier it is to watch a Don Callis Family match when there’s no Don Callis. This was an interesting mesh of styles as Moxley would hit him really hard but Clon would pop back up to do a big dive. I got into this despite having no interest in Clon most of the time. Rather good match here and a hot opener to the show.

We look back at Swerve Strickland turning evil again on Kenny Omega last week.

Prince Nana comes in to say Swerve doesn’t care about his $100,000 fine and introduces Swerve, who stands on the announcers’ table. Swerve knows that some people don’t like what he did last week but he had to prove how dangerous he can be. He made a killing taking out the Elite over the last year and that takes him back to All In, where he talked to Hangman Page. Does he feel bad about what he’s done? Back then he said yes, but now he realizes he needs to go back to that way to get back on top.

Brody King is ready to take out Mark Davis on his path back to the World Title. Bandido approves.

Orange Cassidy vs. Gabe Kidd

Kidd stomps away in the corner to start and sends Cassidy crashing into the corner. A quick small package gives Cassidy one and he sends Kidd into a turnbuckle. Oddly enough, Kidd seems to like that and punches Cassidy out for two as we take a break. We come back with Cassidy’s tornado DDT being blocked and Kidd shoving him over the top. Cassidy starts posing a bit to mess with Kidd, which is enough for Cassidy to grab a Stundog Millionaire.

The top rope DDT gives Cassidy two and a spinning DDT puts Kidd down again. The Orange Punch is countered into a stacked up powerbomb to give Kidd two more and he blasts Cassidy with a clothesline. Back up and Cassidy goes with the lazy strikes and a Beach Break gets a quick two. Kidd hides behind the referee to avoid the Orange Punch though, allowing him to rake the eyes. A jumping piledriver finishes Cassidy at 10:14.

Rating: B-. Kidd beat him up pretty well here and beating Cassidy still feels like a big deal. Kidd is still getting established around here and he’s good enough as the slightly crazy guy who gets in violent fights. I’m not sure how much different that is than Moxley, but it’s pretty much what Kidd does.

Post match Clark Connors comes in to hammer Cassidy but Darby Allin makes the save with the skateboard.

Thunder Rosa gets a Women’s Title match next week and Kris Statlander says she’ll be in the corner. Just be careful. When asked why she cares so much, Statlander has nothing to say.

Kevin Knight vs. Mansoor

Mansoor actually takes him down to start and stomps away in the corner. An atomic drop into a spinebuster connect to let Mansoor miss a moonsault. Knight is back with a running hurricanrana and DDT, setting up the UFO Splash for the pin on Mansoor at 2:55.

Post match Knight says he knows Hangman Page will win the World Title and he’d love a shot. Makes sense.

Tony Schiavone is in the ring for the decision on the Revolution World Title match stipulation. Hangman Page and MJF come to the ring, with MJF telling the fans to keep it quiet. MJF recaps the idea of Page not being able to challenge again if he loses and references doing the same thing to Cody Rhodes. After throwing his gum into the crowd (“in the trash”), MJF suggests a coin toss to decide the stipulation. If Page wins, it’s a Texas Deathmatch, but if MJF wins, it’s a one way No DQ match, meaning MJF can do whatever he want but Page can be disqualified.

Page is on and talks about the variety of things he could do in a Texas Deathmatch. If Page can’t beat a piece of s*** like Page, he doesn’t deserve to be champion. MJF then wins the coin flip…but Page wants to see the coin. Jet Speed, Brody King and Bandido come out to cut off his escape and of course it’s a two sided coin. Therefore, according to Tony Khan, it’s a Texas Deathmatch. Fair enough here, as this made sense from all sides.

We look back at the Brawling Birds’ debut.

The Birds are happy with their win and don’t give a f*** who they have to fight.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford vs. Babes Of Wrath

The Babes are defending. Bayne and Nightingale start things off with Nightingale winning an exchange of shoulders. Ford comes in and gets clotheslined in the corner, setting up the double backsplash to give Cameron two. The champs clear the ring but Bayne gets back up for a double suicide dive. Ford goes up for a moonsault but lands between Nightingale and Cameron (who go down anyway), with Ford’s knee not looking great on the landing.

We come back with Ford nowhere to be seen and Cameron fighting out of trouble to hand it back to Nightingale. Some corner clotheslines have Bayne down on the floor and the running flip dive off the apron connects. The Babe With The Powerbomb is blocked but Lena Kross comes into hit Nightingale with a belt for the DQ at 8:07.

Rating: C+. This is a hard one to grade as the injury changed everything they had going. Hopefully Ford isn’t hurt too badly as a knee injury of any kind can be devastating. It’s kind of hard to imagine that the titles were going to change hands here, and hopefully that ending sets up a rematch where Ford can stay healthy.

Post match the beatdown ensues with Bayne getting one of the belts.

Brody King vs. Mark Davis

Don Callis is on commentary. They chop it out to start with Davis going to the eyes to take over. A slam puts Davis down but King is back as the fans are chanting “F*** DON CALLIS! F*** ICE TOO!”). King hits a Death Valley Driver but gets sent crashing out to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with King winning the exchange of forearms and sending Davis outside. The suicide dive connects and a running crossbody drives Davis into the barricade. Back in and the cannonball connects but Davis slips over his back into a chinlock. That’s broken up in a hurry so they trade suplexes, followed by a clothesline from Davis to leave both of them down. Back up and King hits a pair of clotheslines of his own for the pin at 10:15.

Rating: B-. This was a straight up hoss fight and that’s a good way to use both of them. They got to beat each other up for a few minutes here and that’s always going to work with stars their size. I’m not sure what is next for King, but he’s on a roll right now and AEW would be smart to follow up on what he’s doing.

Post match Bandido comes out to check on King, who says he wants to face Swerve at Revolution. Bandido wants a fight of his own there so here is Andrade El Idolo.

Kyle Fletcher dubs his title Pinkie and Kazuchika Okada comes in to say they’re both champions, unlike Konosuke Takeshita. Okada wants to team up on Collision and yes they have a team name, because that’s the most important thing in the world these days.

Jack Perry/Young Bucks/Rascalz vs. The Demand/FTR

Anything goes and the villains jump Perry during his entrance. The Bucks and Rascalz run in and the brawl/match are on with Perry’s music still going. We go triple screen as the Rascalz hit some dives to take out the Demand, leaving FTR and the Bucks to brawl in the crowd. Stokely Hathaway is used as a weapon to knock Matt down the steps but Matt is back up to pour trash on Harwood.

Perry takes out Ricochet and Kaun on the floor but Liona Pounces him over the barricade. Matt beats up FTR in the crowd as everyone else (like you can tell) is back at ringside. The Gates throw Xavier down inside and we take a break. We come back with Myron Reed coming out with a fire extinguisher to save Xavier and clean some house. FTR catches his flip dive and drops him onto the announcers’ table but Perry is up with a vacuum.

A top rope DDT gives Perry two on Liona with Kaun making the save. The Bucks are back in with a trashcan for the save and the Swanton onto the trashcan onto Harwood connects. FTR bails away from the threat of superkicks and it’s time to set up a table. Liona’s double fall away slam is broken up with some dropkicks to the knees and Xavier shooting stars onto a bunch of people on the floor. Perry is backdropped over the top and through the table at ringside, leaving Wentz to get dropped with a headbutt.

A double powerplex into a springboard 450 gets two with most of the good guys making a save. FTR and the Bucks trade DDTs until the Rascalz give Ricochet a double Spanish Fly through another table. Some superkicks and a sunset bomb put Liona through another table and FTR is tossed through yet another. The BTE Trigger and an assisted running knee from Perry finish Ricochet at 18:59.

Rating: B. I enjoyed this about as much as I was going to as I’m not interested in any of the feuds in the match and I’m over these wild matches that feel more like big brawling segments. They did live up to the madness concept and that was fun, but dang I feel like I’ve seen a match like this every few weeks.

Overall Rating: B. The opener and main event were good and I rather liked the coin flip deal, just for the sake of it making sense. It’s a rather solid show this week with a fun main event and some matches being set up for Revolution. While it didn’t feel like the biggest Dynamite, the show flew by (a shorter overrun compared to previous weeks helped) and it was a nice use of two hours.

Results
Jon Moxley b. El Clon – Paradigm Shift
Gabe Kidd b. Orange Cassidy – Jumping piledriver
Kevin Knight b. Mansoor – UFO Splash
Babes Of Wrath b. Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford via DQ when Lena Kross interfered
Brody King b. Mark Davis – Lariat
Jack Perry/Young Bucks/Rascalz b. The Demand/FTR – Assisted running knee to Ricochet

 

 

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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Dynamite
Date: February 18, 2026
Location: Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Bryan Danielson

We’ve got a big match this week, as Kenny Omega will be facing Swerve Strickland. That is the kind of match that could easily be on the upcoming Revolution card but instead we have it this week. At the same time, we are getting ready for the pay per view, meaning MJF and Hangman Page need to go face to face this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Mina Shirakawa wants the TBS Title.

Willow Nightingale knows that it’s tough to be a double champ but may the best woman win.

Megan Bayne says she deserves gold.

Swerve Strickland needs to beat Kenny Omega.

Omega says Strickland is in his way.

Orange Cassidy has a replacement partner for Roderick Strong: Tomohiro Ishii.

Jon Moxley vs. Mark Davis

Non-title. Feeling out process to start with Davis grabbing a waistlock to little avail. Instead Davis tries some chops, which have Moxley chopping right back. A sunset flip is broken up with a sitdown splash and a sliding forearm in the corner knocks Moxley silly again. They go outside where Davis hits some rather loud chops but Moxley ducks one of them, which hits the post instead.

The suicide dive connects and Davis’ hand is bleeding (that’s a rare one) as the fans are way behind Moxley. Naturally Moxley bites and stomps on the cut as we take a break. We come back with Moxley biting the cut again and superplexing Davis down. A PK gives Moxley one and they strike it out, with Davis using the bad hand.

Davis gets smart by using an enziguri but the clothesline is countered with a jumping cutter. Back up and Davis manages to hit the clothesline, followed by a gutwrench piledriver of all things for two. Moxley shakes a lot and escapes a choke, allowing him to avoid a running enziguri. The stomp doesn’t leave Davis down for very long so they’re back up to trade clotheslines. Moxley pulls him into the bulldog choke for the win at 14:00.

Rating: B-. They did a nice job of beating each other up as Moxley is always going to be in for a big brawl. Davis still feels a lot better as a tag guy but it’s not his fault his partner got hurt. I can go with having him around for something like this, but he’s going to be better off with someone helping him out.

After winning on Collision, Hangman Page praised Andrade El Idolo but says he’s coming for MJF and the World Title at Revolution.

Here are FTR and Stokely Hathaway to complain about the Young Bucks. The Bucks coined the phrase FTR but now they’re the second best team in AEW’s history. Hathaway is sick of doing the same things over and over and they hate everyone around here. He insults the Bucks over and over…and here they are to superkick FTR. Hathaway (still in his wheelchair) gets superkicked as well and the Bucks want their title shot at Revolution.

After losing at Collision, Brody King says getting so close to winning the World Title and losing makes him want it that much more. On February 25, he’s getting back in the title hunt. I’ll avoid making a joke about the bag of ice on his knee.

TBS Title: Marina Shafir vs. Megan Bayne vs. Mina Shirakawa vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale is defending and Penelope Ford is here with Bayne. Shirakawa is sent outside to start, leaving Bayne and Shafir to double team Nightingale. That’s broken up as Nightingale sends them outside for the cannonball off the apron, only for Shirakawa to hit a dive of her own. Back in and Nightingale gives the villains a double Codebreaker but Bayne is able to snap off a super hurricanrana. Shirakawa is sent crashing out to the floor and we take a break.

We come back with Shirakawa striking away and Bayne accidentally hitting Shafir. Nightingale fires back with three straight spinebusters before she and Bayne drop each other with a double clothesline. Bayne clears the ring and hits a big dive to the floor but Shafir breaks up the pin attempt. A powerbomb puts Shafir down on the floor but Nightingale puts Bayne down back inside. Shirakawa is right there with a missile dropkick and kick to the head for Nightingale. That lets her load up the Figure Four, which Nightingale reverses into a small package to retain at 11:15.

Rating: B. They got rolling here and it turned into quite the spectacle for all four. Nightingale gets to retain again and that’s always nice to see, even if it still feels like she has no need to be a double champion. At the same time, Shirakawa’s fall continues, as she loses the match not long after losing some of her hair. That’s just a bad run, unlike this good match.

Video on Grand Slam.

Commentary pays tribute to WWE director Kerwin Silfies, who passed away at 75. That’s rather touching.

Here are Hangman Page and MJF for their face to face showdown. MJF says he isn’t going to cut some cutesy wrestling promo to sell Revolution. The truth is that he hates everything about Page, from his attitude to his wrestling, and he hates the fact that the fans think Page is the main character of AEW. What makes it even worse though is that MJF has lost to Page twice.

Page is just a lucky shot and on March 15, MJF’s birthday, MJF is going to prove it. Page talks about how the fans carried him to two World Titles and says MJF basically stole the belt. The reality is Page hates MJF far worse than MJF hates him, because they’re so much alike. MJF’s desperation for love and acceptance feels just like Page and they have both always needed the fans’ reception. He wants to end this at Revolution for good so it needs to be something different.

MJF can think of a stipulation because Page already has his own, and the people can pick. MJF thinks he hears Texas Death but SHUT UP because this is going to be a regular match. Page is willing to sweeten the pot a bit: if he loses, he never challenges for the World Title again. MJF says that’s a deal, but he wants a week to think about his stipulation. That’s fine with Page, who wants Texas Death. They definitely raised the stakes, but hopefully they have a good stipulation because otherwise it could be quite the mess.

The Death Riders still hate the Don Callis Family and a challenge is issued for Collision. As for Revolution, Jon Moxley wants Konosuke Takeshita, no time limit. That’s not exactly under Continental Rules there Mox.

Orange Cassidy/Tomohiro Ishii vs. Gabe Kidd/Clark Connors

Cassidy has to duck a big swing from Kidd to start and immediately hands it off to Ishii. Kidd wastes no time in taking Ishii into the corner and it’s off to Connors, who dares to try chopping. That just ticks Ishii off and Connors gets double chopped in the corner (Ishii is a bit more into it than Cassidy) before everything breaks down. Cassidy gets chopped down and Ishii is sent into the announcers’ table as we take a break.

We come back with Ishii and Kidd chopping it out until Kidd bites the head. Something like a Pounce puts Kidd down and they slap each other in the face over and over. Kidd hits a hard running lariat to put Ishii down and it’s back to Connors, who drops Ishii again. Ishii, who is favoring either his back or hamstring, manages a belly to back suplex and brings Cassidy back in. Everything breaks down and Kidd is sent outside, where Darby Allin kidnaps him into the crowd. Ishii grabs the brainbuster (really a suplex but it’s understandable as he seems injured) to pin Connors at 9:53.

Rating: C+. This was kind of a messy match, though that might be due to Ishii getting hurt. They kind of had to go to the ending in a hurry, though they got the big deal with Allin in and that’s all that matters. It’s certainly better than having Allin get beaten up all the time, as he has a reason for revenge here and is actually taking it for a change.

The Don Callis Family beat up a bunch of people in the back and accept the Death Riders’ challenges, both for Collision and Revolution. Kazuchika Okada comes in to say he’s here because he’s a champion while Konosuke Takeshita couldn’t even show up. Andrade El Idolo comes in to say he wants the World Title. Don Callis wants the CMLL World Title for the Family.

Hook wants to bring some new members into the Opps.

Brawling Birds vs. B3cca/Viva Van

Windsor hammers on Van in the corner to start and quickly powers out of a headlock. A sunset flip takes Van down and Hayter comes in for a running boot to the face. The Birds chop away in the corner but Van slips out of a double suplex. B3cca comes in and gets catapulted into an Irish Curse. A Hart Attack finishes for Windsor at 3:58.

Rating: C. Total squash here and that’s a nice start for the Birds. They’re pretty much two women with nothing else to do being thrown together and that’s a tried and true way to build a tag division. It was just a small sample size but it was a good way to start, so maybe they have something here.

Renee Young brings in Kris Statlander, who wants the Women’s Title back, and Thunder Rosa, who is back and cleared to return. That’s good to hear.

Kevin Knight vs. The Beast Mortos

Mike Bailey is here with Knight, who avoids a charge to start and sends Mortos crashing out to the floor. Knight slingshots over the post and takes Mortos down as we take a break. We come back with Mortos sending him outside for a running flip dive, which is quite the sight. Back in and the pop up Samoan drop gives Mortos two but Knight hits a great looking dropkick. A jumping clothesline drops Mortos again and Knight even manages a slam. The running splash gets two and Knight plants him with a running DDT. The UFO Splash gives Knight the pin at 8:36.

Rating: B-. They did some good stuff here, which shouldn’t be a surprise, and they didn’t waste any time. Knight continues to feel like a star in the making, with some outstanding athleticism. At the same time, I have absolutely no idea why Page/Jetspeed are the Trios Champions, as I don’t remember the last time they were even together on TV.

Video on Will Ospreay.

The Demand wants the Trios Titles. Say on Collision. They go to their dressing room, where they find a knife in the door. Eh must be nothing.

Swerve Strickland vs. Kenny Omega

Prince Nana is here with Swerve. They fight over a lockup to start with Swerve knocks him down. Omega is back with a running shoulder so Swerve slaps him in the face. Swerve is knocked outside but it’s way too early for the Terminator dive. They head outside with Omega chopping away and moonsaulting off the barricade as we take a break. We come back with Omega grabbing a suplex to put them both down.

You Can’t Escape gives Omega two and he drops Swerve face first onto the top turnbuckle. The snapdragon drops Swerve for two more but he manages to send Omega into the buckle right back. The Vertebreaker is countered though and Omega grabs a snapdragon on the apron for the big knockdown. Swerve is able to escape a snapdragon from the apron to the floor but then has to flip out of a German suplex to the floor.

That lets Swerve grab a suplex on the floor as they’re both starting to feel this. Back in and a 450 in the general vicinity to Omega’s back gets two but Omega is able to hit a running knee in the corner. The snapdragon superplex plants Swerve for two but he pulls the referee into the V Trigger (though it might have been due to her checking on Swerve’s banged up shoulder).

The One Winged Angel is countered into the House Call but there is no one to count. Instead it’s a Swerve Stomp to the apron before Swerve catapults him throat first into the exposed turnbuckle. Another Swerve Stomp gets two from another referee but Omega grabs another snapdragon. The poisonrana looks to set up the One Winged Angel but Swerve escapes for the House Call. Big Pressure finishes Omega at 20:10.

Rating: A-. These two had a pay per view quality match and I’m still not sure why it wasn’t on the pay per view. Swerve was definitely going more violent here, though I’m not sure how easily he would be able to turn heel. Either way, it was a heck of a match and definitely worth a look, as Swerve gets to show how good he can be in a huge match.

Post match Swerve beats Omega down even more and even hangs him over the top rope with the chain. A Vertebreaker through the announcers’ table ends the show.

Overall Rating: B. The main event is great and the TBS Title match was worth a look, but the rest of the show wasn’t quite as awesome. The good thing is that they’re setting up Revolution, which has the potential to be quite the show. They still have some time to add a few things in and I’m curious about what is next for Swerve. For now though, the excellent main event more than carries the show.

Results
Jon Moxley b. Mark Davis – Bulldog choke
Willow Nightingale b. Marina Shafir, Megan Bayne and Mina Shirakawa – Small package to Shirakawa
Brawling Birds b. B3cca/Viva Van – Hart Attack to B3cca
Kevin Knight b. The Beast Mortos – UFO Splash
Swerve Strickland b. Kenny Omega – Big Pressure

 

 

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