Ring Of Honor
Date: March 5, 2026
Location: WJCT Studios, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

And then everything changed. Apparently from now on, the show is going to be taped from this studio, with multiple weeks already in the can. That could make for some better focus around here, but there is also the chance that this is going to result in the shows being even longer with more mostly tossed out there matches. We can hope for the best though so let’s get to it.

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

Opening video.

Video on Persephone.

Persephone vs. Sara Leon

Persephone grabs a headlock to start and elbows Leon in the face to put her down. Back up and Leon’s chops don’t do much good, with Persephone taking over on the arm instead. A fall away slam sets up a hammerlock but Leon manages a headscissors into the ropes. Leon German suplexes her for two but Persephone is back with a missile dropkick for the same. A Razor’s Edge doesn’t work for Persephone so she hits a spear, followed by the Razor’s Edge for the pin at 5:37.

Rating: C. Commentary kept hyping up Persephone’s shot at the CMLL Women’s Title on Friday so this was a glorified warmup match. Leon got in some offense here and did well enough, but this was all about Persephone getting ready for Mercedes Mone. Not a bad match, but pretty much the same kind of thing that you would see on any of the older shows. That’s hardly the best way to start off a new era, if if the match was ok.

Komander vs. Sidney Akeem

They take turns spinning out of wristlocks to start and we get a handshake, with Akeem pulling him into a waistlock. Akeem flips out of a sunset flip and hits a running Meteora to put Komander down. A running shooting star press gives Akeem two but Komander is back up with a spinning high crossbody for the same. Komander superkicks him to the apron, where Akeem pops up and over a baseball slide for a dive to the floor (geez). Back in and Akeem flips away from some shots but gets sent outside for a suicide dive. Cielito Lindo finishes for Komander at 5:55.

Rating: B-. The match was all over the place as Akeem continues to look like a human video game character. The kinds of things he can do in the ring are absolutely insane and while he’s hardly a top star, there is pretty much no one else who can keep up with him. It’s worth a look, especially with Komander being one of the few people close to what he can do.

Video on Bustah And The Brain (Jordan Oliver/Alec Price). They’re described as “on the rise”. Their career record in ROH/AEW: 0-5.

Top Flight vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Their respective friends are here too. Darius takes Gibson down by the arm to start and they’re quickly on the mat for a technical off. Back up and Darius hits a dropkick, meaning it’s already time for a double tag. Dante comes in for a hurricanrana to Drake, who goes to the hair to pull Dante down. It’s back to Gibson, who is taken into the wrong corner so Top Flight can pick up the pace.

Darius is back in and gets cut off on the apron, allowing Drake to elbow him in the face for two. A suplex gets Darius out of trouble and it’s back to Dante to start flipping and kicking. The springboard high crossbody gets two on Drake with Gibson making the save. Everything breaks down and Isla Dawn jumps Zayda Steel on the floor. Darius is dropped as well as Steel fights back to go after Dawn. Back in and the double underhook double DDT finishes Gibson at 9:25.

Rating: B-. Another fun match, though forgive me for not believing that these teams are on the way up the ladder. Top Flight has been around for the better part of ever and never accomplished anything of note, which is rather frustrating. The Veterans aren’t much better, but you can probably pencil in a six person tag out of this thing.

Post match Top Flight goes to leave but walk past Big Bill and Bryan Keith, apparently now known as Paid In Full.

Paid In Full vs. Darian Bengston/Kiran Grey

Keith throws his gear at Bengston to start and shoulders him down for two. Bengston’s comeback is cut out with a spinning forearm to the face and it’s off to Bill. A running splash in the corner hits Grey and Bill does it a second time for extra oomph. Back to back big boots finish Grey at 2:47. Total squash.

Video on Athena vs. Maya World, with a Proving Ground match being set for next week.

Josh Woods vs. Nathan Cruz

Pure Rules. An early cross armbreaker sends Cruz straight over to the ropes for his first break before Woods works on a hammerlock. Back up and Cruz is sent crashing out to the floor, with a suplex bringing him back inside. The armbar goes on again but this time Cruz takes him into the ropes, with Woods being pulled into them for a break. Not a Rope Break but a break. A neckbreaker puts Woods down for two and a belly to back suplex gets two. Cruz’s sleeper is countered into an armbar with Woods using his legs to make Cruz tap at 4:23.

Rating: C+. As usual, Woods looks good in these things and can do some rather impressive technical stuff, but it only gets him so far when he’s barely ever around. If nothing else, it would be nice to see him go after the Pure Rules Title, just so it can be defended in a way that isn’t “the challenger doesn’t know the rules”. That finisher certainly looked good as I can go for someone using a unique way to torture their opponent.

Tommy Billington and Adam Priest are going to get to the Swirl and Jay Lethal, but they have something else to do this week.

Tommy Billington/Adam Priest vs. Workhorsemen

Priest uppercuts Henry down to start and it’s already off to Billington. Drake breaks up a double suplex though and Billington is taken outside for a piledriver on the floor. Back in and Priest gets caught in the wrong corner. Drake gives him a suplex and it’s back to Henry for some ripping at the face. Priest escapes but Billington is still down on the floor (that’s nice to see for a change) and Drake hits Priest in the face again.

The villains take turns beating on Priest in the corner again but Billington is back in for the save. Everything breaks down and back to back dives take the Workhorsemen down on the floor. Back in and Billington manages a rollup to pin Henry (that didn’t look great as Billington seemed to let go early) at 7:45.

Rating: C+. At least Priest and Billington are getting a push and are in an actual feud. That’s a heck of a lot better than what you would get otherwise, as there is something to be said about having two wrestlers actually doing something rather than running on the treadmill that is the tag division. The Workhorsemen are good in their spots, but they’re firmly locked into those spots and that isn’t going to change anytime soon.

Mina Shirakawa vs. Zayda Steel

Christopher Daniels is here with Steel. Shirakawa slides into the dance to start so Steel goes around her for a quick spank and dance of her own. Back up and Shirakawa pulls her into something of a Texas Cloverleaf and drops her into a backbreaker. The block of the Figure Four is blocked and Shirakawa gets it on, with Steel making the rope rather quickly.

A neckbreaker gives Steel two and a running knee in the corner rocks Shirakawa again. They trade the big forearms until Steel hits a running elbow against the ropes, only for Shirakawa to do the same. A missile dropkick and the top rope Sling Blade give Shirakawa two but Steel is back with a dropkick. Shirakawa just decks her with a spinning backfist though and the Figure Four finishes Steel at 7:47.

Rating: C. Hey look: Steel loses again. That’s almost all she does around here (and in AEW) and it’s getting more and more difficult to care about her. I’m not sure how many more matches she’s going to lose but odds are it’s going to be several, all while she’s “climbing the ladder” or whatever the latest term is around here.

Post match respect is shown.

Billie Starkz seems to have attacked Deonna Purrazzo and Athena says this is a message/warning to Maya World. Ignore that Purrazzo seems to be smiling her head off.

Bang Bang Gang vs. MxM Collection

Robinson sticks his finger in his nose for Mansoor’s tip to tip touch, earning himself a hair pull. An armbar puts Mansoor down and into the ropes, meaning Robinson is back up with an atomic drop. Gunn comes in and gets his eyes raked, only to hit Mansoor low. It’s off to Madden to hammer on Gunn in the corner so Robinson makes a blind tag. The Gang starts taking turns to stagger Madden, who suplexes both of them at once.

Mansoor comes in to stomp away, with Madden adding the running hips to the face. A belly to back suplex puts Gunn down and a side slam/running legdrop combination gets two. Madden misses a middle rope elbow though and it’s back to Robinson, who runs into a boot in the corner. Mansoor gets crotched on the top rope for some bouncing, with Madden hitting a double spear for the save. A double suplex drops Madden though and Mansoor gets thrown onto him. Robinson’s forward DDT finishes Mansoor at 12:01.

Rating: C+. So I guess the Gang is another team who is being added to the rotating roster around here because that’s what this place needs. Robinson is still a ball of charisma but as usual, there’s only so much that can be done with Robinson and one half of the Gunns. The team just feels like some scraps thrown together and that isn’t likely to go very far.

La Faccion Ingobernable brags about being undefeated as a tag team but they have to defend the belts. Therefore, it’s open challenge time for any former Tag Team Champions to come after the belts. And there’s the kind of thing that makes this weekly show feel useless. Commentary spends the entire show talking about how someone can win to move up in the title standings and all that, but instead it’s “anyone can come get a shot”. In other words, all of the previous matches mean nothing, because “eh screw it, open challenge time”.

Lacey Lane vs. Robyn Renegade

Renegade takes over with the power game to start so Lane does a rather springboardy wristdrag. Lane hits some running kicks in the corner but Renegade is back with a springboard stomp of all things. A sitout gordbuster gives Renegade two but Lane is back up with some running shots to the face. What looks like a Nightmare On Helm Street (which looked like it had a camera edit) gets two on Renegade, followed by something like an AA into a legdrop to finish for Lane at 5:17.

Rating: C. This was another match on a show with a lot of them. I’m really not sure what else there is to say here, as neither of these two have anything going on and it’s hard to believe that they’re going to have anything going on. Maybe Lane gets a TV Title shot or something, but it’s not like there’s any story there. That’s the problem with so many matches around here, as they’re just things that happen rather than matches that go anywhere.

Matt Menard vs. Shane Taylor vs. Lee Johnson vs. AR Fox

The winner gets an immediate title shot at a mystery championship and this is under elimination rules. Menard and Taylor start things off, with Taylor powering him into the corner. That has Menard bailing away a few times but getting dropped with a running shoulder. It’s off to Johnson vs. Fox for an exchange of quick escapes and counters until Taylor comes back in. A Tower Of London to the floor plants Johnson hard but Menard is back in to slug away on Taylor. Everything breaks down and Taylor punches Menard in the jaw for the elimination at 6:09.

Taylor takes Fox into the corner but gets low bridged down to the floor. Fox dives over the top onto both of them but Taylor is back in for running splashes in the corner. That doesn’t last long either though as Fox rolls Taylor up for the pin and elimination at 8:47. Johnson immediately rolls Fox up for some near falls, followed by Fox’s tiger bomb for two more.

The Swanton hits raised knees though and they trade some rapid fire kicks. Johnson hits a brainbuster and they’re both down (with their heads on the other’s arms, which should probably be a double pin. Johnson suplexes him hard and a frog splash gets two but Fox is back with a quick slam. The 450 gives Fox the pin at 13:34.

Rating: B-. This was another match that felt rather long and is designed to set up another match on this show, which feels rather crammed on at the end. Fox winning is a nice way to go as there is something to be said about having him fight like this and then win a title as a way to end the show. The other three were fine as well here and it was nice to see Menard getting hit in the face.

And now, a title match, with Fox pulling the announcement out of a box.

AEW International Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. AR Fox

Fox is challenging and we are again reminded that Okada is the greatest tournament wrestler of all time. I still have no idea what that has to do with a non-tournament match but that’s what we need to be told over and over. Okada dropkicks him into the corner to start as commentary tries to say Okada is wrestling on short rest as well after winning the Trios Titles last night (despite him not having that belt or being announced as such due to the taping schedule).

Fox gets choked on the rope and a DDT plants him on the floor. Back in and another DDT gives Okada two but he misses a charge and gets sent to the apron. That means a running DDT from Fox, followed by a kick to the face. An Air Raid Crash onto the knee sets up the top rope elbow to give Okada two. Back up and Fox kicks him in the face, followed by a 450 for two more. Okada misses a few Rainmakers but his the dropkick, setting up the Rainmaker to retain at 5:44.

Rating: C+. Well that happened. The bigger star came in, beat up the tired challenger, kicked out of his finisher, and retained the title. It was deflating to have Fox lose like that after his big win as it was little more than a quick loss. Maybe like, let the match be built up for a bit and get some time on another show?

Overall Rating: D+. Nope. I’m not sure what this was supposed to be, but it was more of the same mess that has gotten Ring Of Honor in its current place. This was supposed to be some new era of the promotion and NOT ONE OF THE EIGHT TITLES THIS SHOW HAS TO OFFER is on the line?

No no, instead your big moment is an AEW star coming in (unannounced of course) because Heaven forbid the Women’s Title, World Title or even the Six Man Titles are defended (I mean, none of them have been defended since Final Battle, three months ago). Instead, it’s the usual bunch of matches, most of which are just wrestling for the sake of wrestling. The show ran two hours because every single thing (even down to Josh Woods vs. Nathan Cruz and Lacey Lane vs. Robyn Renegade) absolutely had to be here.

Ring Of Honor isn’t a wrestling promotion. It’s Tony Khan getting to pretend that he owns two promotions because he thinks it’s impressive while putting on the least important weekly show he can imagine. As usual, this absolutely isn’t a problem from the wrestlers, but rather spending two hours with almost nothing involving Ring Of Honor taking place. I’m sure TV is coming though. Any…what is it, year now?

Results
Persephone b. Sara Leon – Razor’s Edge
Komander b. Sydney Akeem – Cielito Lindo
Top Flight b. Grizzled Young Veterans – Double underhook double DDT to Gibson
Paid In Full b. Darian Bengston/Kiran Grey – Big boot to Grey
Josh Woods b. Nathan Cruz – Leg armbar
Tommy Billington/Adam Priest b. Workhorsemen – Rollup to Henry
Mina Shirakawa b. Zayda Steel – Figure Four
Lacey Lane b. Robyn Renegade – Fireman’s carry slam into a legdrop
AR Fox b. Shane Taylor, Lee Johnson and Matt Menard last eliminating Johnson
Kazuchika Okada b. AR Fox – Rainmaker

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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Ring Of Honor
Date: February 19, 2026
Location: Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, Australia
Commentators: Caprice Coleman, Ian Riccaboni

We’re down in Australia for at least some of this show, which means the crowd should be hotter than usual for a change. In theory that could be having a title match tonight, as that isn’t the case with this show most of the time. If nothing else, it does seem like we’re on the way towards Bandido defending the World Title against Blake Christian. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Zayda Steel vs. Johnnie Robbie

Christopher Daniels is here with Steel. Robbie kicks her hand away on the handshake and gets headscissored into the corner for her efforts. A kick to the ribs slows Steel down so she grabs a Stunner to put Robbie on the floor. Robbie trips her down and takes away in the corner, followed by the camel clutch. That’s broken up as well and Steel hits a rolling kick to the face for the pin at 2:40. The kick looked good, but Steel is starting at the bottom of a long climb after losing so many matches to start her run around here.

Video on Skyflight vs. TMDK.

Skyflight vs. TMDK

TMDK (Che Cabrera/Bad Dude Tito/Shane Haste) are from New Japan. Darius clears Haste out to start and it’s quickly off to Sky. That’s fine with TMDK, who send him outside for the double stomping. Haste’s cannonball gets two and he grabs a chinlock to keep Sky down. Sky is right back up to bring in Dante for the springboard high crossbody on Haste. Everything breaks down and Cabrera gets caught in the wrong corner, where a tornado DDT plants him for two. Top Flight hit stereo dives to the floor and Sky’s TKO finishes Cabrera at 5:13.

Rating: C+. It’s nice to see Skyflight actually winning something for a change, as they tend to lose almost everything they do. The team could easily be put into a title hunt, or even win some belts here and there, but for some reason they tend to be jobbers to the stars most of the time. This isn’t some game changing win, but it’s better than nothing.

Mark Davis vs. The Tuckman

Tuckman ducks some right hands to start and actually grabs a headlock. That’s broken up though and Davis starts firing off the chops. Tuckman’s attempt at a slam doesn’t work and Davis sends him into the corner for a running forearm. An armdrag sends Davis to the apron though and Tuckman dropkicks him outside for a dive. Back in and the slam sets up a cutter for two on Davis, who has had it with this. That means Thunderstruck finishes Tuckman at 5:07.

Rating: C+. Bad name aside, Tuckman got to showcase himself a bit here and that was nice to see. This was a case of Davis trying to catch Tuckman, who ran around and got in a bit of offense here and there before finally getting caught. It’s not exactly a novel idea but they did the formula well.

Sisters Of Sin vs. Frankie B./Aysha

Blue backs B up against the ropes to start but B takes her down for a basement clothesline. Aysha comes in and gives Hart a Shining Wizard for two and B comes back in. This time Blue trips her from the floor though and Hart hammers away. A DDT gives Hart two but B manages to knock Blue down, allowing the double tags to Aysha and Hart. Everything breaks down and Hart sends the two of them into each other, setting up a double superkick for two on B. Aysha makes a save and B drops Hart with a spear. A superkick puts Aysha down though and the assisted swinging Side Effect finishes for Blue at 7:19.

Rating: C+. Aysha made a good fired up comeback in there and B had some nice offense as well. The Sisters are at least an established team and can work well together so this was a nice way to let the unknown team show off a bit. Nice enough match here and better than I was expecting.

Dalton Castle/Outrunners vs. Will Kiedis/Sam Osborne/Jack Osborne

Castle says he encountered a whole tree full of cockatoos. Kiedis and Magnum start things off with Kiedis posing at him. That earns him an arm crank and it’s off to Floyd for a running knee. Sam comes in for a running shoulder in the corner as the villains start taking over on Floyd. Kiedis even trips him from the floor but Floyd avoids a charge in the corner.

The needed tag brings in Magnum to clean house and it’s a bulldog/running clothesline combination. The Mega Powers Elbow is broken up though and a toss cutter gets two on Floyd. A clothesline/backbreaker combination puts him down again but he’s right back up with a knockdown of his own. Castle comes in for the suplexes but gets triple teamed down. Castle and the Outrunners hit triple slams and NOW the Mega Powers Elbow connects for the pin on Jack at 7:22.

Rating: B-. Another fun tag match here, which shouldn’t be a surprise given that Castle and the Outrunners were involved. They’ve become a good team in recent weeks and, as usual, I could go for seeing them getting to do more. That could be as simple as “hey, these guys have won a bunch of six man matches and they should get a title shot”, but that seems more complicated than it should be for whatever reason.

Charli Evans vs. Mina Shirakawa

Evans works on the arm to start and sends Shirakawa into the corner for a running boot. Shirakawa is back up with some rapid fire kicks and sweeps the leg for a slingshot corkscrew dive. Evans blocks the Figure Four attempt and grabs a very bridging fisherman’s suplex for two. The Shining Wizard is blocked but Evans turns the Figure Four over. Shirakawa is right back with a missile dropkick into the top rope Sling Blade for two. Shirakawa strikes her down and the Glamorous Driver finishes Evans at 8:31.

Rating: B-. This was another case where Evans was giving it all she had in her big chance and that was cool to see. Shirakawa needed a win after her long stretch of losing and that is going to need to change on the main roster. I’m not sure what she could do, as it’s not like there are a bunch of titles she could be going after at the moment.

Robbie Eagles vs. Shawn Dean

Eagles double wristdrags him down to start and then sends Dean into the corner for some…horn mockery? Dean bails out to the floor and avoids the dive, only to come back in for a running shoulder. Eagles gets hammered down into the corner and a Bronco Buster (dubbed the BBC, which has Riccaboni confused) gives Dean two. A running elbow in the corner drops Eagles but another Bronco Buster misses. Eagles’ running kick to the chest gets two and he kicks away at the leg. A 619 to the leg puts Dean down again and a 450 onto the leg sets up the Ron Miller Special (reverse Figure Four) for the win at 7:32.

Rating: C+. Eagles is an established name from Australia and it makes sense to put him out there as the feature attraction. There is pretty much no reason to have him beat a champion, but at least it was a singles match instead of a six man. This was at least a fast paced match with Eagles taking apart the leg to win so it went well as a main event.

Overall Rating: B-. That was a Ring Of Honor show all right, with little in the way of stories advancing, but with some good action. Having the guest stars here helped a lot, but there is only so much you can do with one random match after another. That has been a problem for years around here, and now we’re going to be over eighty days since six titles have been defended (or over 200 in the TV Title’s case). What are they supposed to do if the titles they have floating around mean nothing? Anyway, good action here, as the Australian wrestlers were working hard in their chance.

Results
Zayda Steel b. Johnny Robbie – Spinning kick to the face
Skyflight b. TMDK – TKO to Cabrera
Mark Davis b. The Tuckman – Thunderstruck
Sisters Of Sin b. Frankie B/Aysha – Assisted swinging Side Effect to Aysha
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Sam Osborne/Jack Osborne/Will Kiedis – Mega Powers Elbow to Jack
Mina Shirakawa b. Charli Evans – Glamorous Driver
Robbie Eagles b. Shawn Dean – Ron Miller Special

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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Collision
Date: February 7, 2026
Location: Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

It’s another title match tonight as the new TNT Champion Tommaso Ciampa is defending in a three way match against Claudio Castagnoli and Roderick Strong. Other than that, the Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Eddie Kingston/Ortiz continues (for some reason) in an eight man parking lot brawl. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Young Bucks vs. Gates Of Agony

The winners are in a three way #1 contenders match on Dynamite. Liona shoves Matt down to start so Nick comes in and charges into a slam from Kaun. Everything breaks down and the Bucks take over by sending the Gates outside. The stereo dives are pulled out of the air and it’s off to a double nerve hold on Matt back inside.

The Gates hit each other by mistake but Nick’s running flip dive is cut off as well. That means the Bucks can be rammed into each other and a headbutt drops Matt as we take a break. We come back with Matt sliding between Kaun’s legs and making the tag off to Nick to clean house. A high crossbody gets two and everything breaks down (meaning the referee gets to just stand there) as the Bucks take over.

The Bucks come off the top at the same time for stereo near falls but Liona is back with a double Samoan drop. The Gates hit their own dives onto the floor (because they can do that), followed by a wheelbarrow cutter for two on Matt. Nick is back in to help with the BTE Trigger for two, with Kaun making the save. The TK Driver finishes Kaun at 13:56.

Rating: B. It’s a good match, though the idea of getting anywhere closer to the Bucks vs. FTR again makes my head hurt. The Bucks got to do their usual stuff so it was entertaining enough, though I still don’t see much of a reason to get interested in them. It’s a good example of match quality not making the biggest impact, as they continue to just be there, often in a prominent spot.

Post match FTR and Stokely Hathaway pop up on screen. Hathaway can’t believe that in the year of our lord Beyonce Knowles, the Elite still wants to hold all of the gold like in the good old says. Dax Harwood says that’s the problem with the good old days: they’re not here anymore, unlike FTR, who are the top guys. And they’re out.

Video on the TNT Title triple threat.

Brody King is ready to win the World Title next week.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Here is Kris Statlander to announce the stipulation for her rematch with Thekla. Cue Thekla to spear her down though, with the Triangle Of Madness holding Statlander to the mat. Thekla whips her with the belt and promises to make things toxic no matter what. The villains go to leave but Statlander calls Thekla a stupid b**** and makes it a strap match.

Kyle Fletcher wants the TNT Title back and here is Kazuchika Okada for a quick pep talk.

Scorpio Sky vs. Kevin Knight

Christopher Daniels, Leila Grey and Mike Bailey are here too. They stare at each other to start and we get an SCU chant, which doesn’t impress Knight. The fight over a lockup goes around the ropes but doesn’t get either very far. A test of strength lets Sky shoulder him down and they exchange nipups. Knight makes fun of Sky’s lack of hair and gets chopped into the corner but Knight sends him outside.

The big dive drops Sky on the ramp and we take a break. We come back with Sky planting him down for two but Knight’s small package gets the same. A DDT gives Knight two more but Sky catches him on top with a superplex. Knight is right back with a springboard clothesline, followed by the UFO Splash for the pin at 11:44.

Rating: C+. This was kind of a weird one, as it felt like they were having something of a personal issue, despite the two of them not having any important interactions in a good while. I do like Knight winning a match on his own though, as he’s quite fun to watch. At the same time, given that most of the team wrestles in singles matches at the moment, I have no idea why Knight/Bailey/Hangman Page are the Trios Champions. Then again, the Opps barely ever defended them anyway so this does at least continue the tradition.

Hook says Samoa Joe is out injured so in the time being, he’s the new captain of the Opps. Sure. I completely believe that this will be the thing that gets Hook over after years of trying.

Mina Shirakawa vs. Viva Van

Shirakawa works on the arm to start but Van flips away and does Shirakawa’s dance. Some knees to the face put Shirakawa down and Van snapmares her into a chinlock. That’s broken up and Shirakawa starts firing off the kicks. A Stunner to the leg over the rope sets up a slingshot dive but Van blocks the Figure Four. Back up and Van’s flipping kick to the head gets two but Shirakawa is back with the top rope Sling Blade. They trade strikes to the head until the Figure Four finishes Van off at 5:42.

Rating: C-. This was a bit of a disappointment, as it felt like Van was wrestling in slow motion and not exactly working smoothly. It doesn’t help that Shirakawa is just kind of floating around at the moment while her partner teams with Orange Cassidy. She needs something to do, and a five minute match on Collision isn’t exactly much to see.

Death Riders vs. Sky Flight

Jon Moxley is on commentary. It’s a brawl to start with the men going outside while Shafir easily wrestles Steel down. The leglock is reversed into a quick choke and Steel gets two off a small package. A distraction from the floor lets Shafir get in another knockdown but it’s off to Dante Martin to take over. That lasts all of ten seconds before Yuta pulls him down into a chinlock and we take a break.

We come back with Yuta holding Martin up top and raking his back. One heck of a chop puts Yuta down though and the top rope flip dive connects. Yuta is back with a bridging German suplex into the elbows to the head but Martin fights up again. Steel comes in to take over on Shafir and even gets in a shot to Yuta on the apron. Shafir pulls Steel out of the air though and Mother’s Milk (with Shafir yelling at the camera and treating Steel like an afterthought in a nice touch) finishes at 9:21.

Rating: B-. This was basically a warmup for the Riders before their big hair vs. hair match next week and naturally Steel needed to take the loss. That’s all she’s done since showing up around here, which is apparently the new favorite way to debut stars. At the same time, Martin (and Sky Flight in general) feel even less important than ever, which is quite the feat.

Post match the Riders go for Steel’s hair but Toni Storm and Orange Cassidy make the save.

A man hits on Alex Windsor and Jamie Hayter, earning himself a beating. They dub themselves the Brawling Birds.

After Dynamite, MJF went nuts and ranted about all the people coming for his title, which he’ll keep. He’s at his most dangerous when his back is against the wall and that will be the case next week.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Thekla vs. Brittnie Brooks

Thekla knocks her down to start and finishes with the spear at 28 seconds.

Post match Thekla whips Brooks with the strap and…no one makes the save.

Video on Jon Moxley vs. Konosuke Takeshita next week for the Continental Title.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Eddie Kingston/Ortiz/Rascalz vs. Grizzled Young Veterans/Big Bill/Ortiz

Parking Lot Brawl. Kingston throws in a trashcan full of weapons and charges in as the brawl is on with a fast start. A missed shot breaks a car window and Bill kicks a side view mirror off. We settle down to general chaos until the Rascalz hit Hot Fire Flame off the top of a car. Bill takes over again with the heavy forearms before tossing Xavier over the top of a car for a big crash.

We take a break and come back with Keith and Xavier fighting over a hammer until Wentz and Xavier fight into the back of the limo. Kingston cleans house with a stick and Xavier shooting stars off the limo roof. Bill is up again to start wrecking everyone and Wentz is chokeslammed through a windshield (with a camera suddenly inside the car). Some double teaming drops Bill on the concrete and a double suplex drops Keith on the top of the limo.

The Veterans get in a slugout with Kingston and Ortiz, with Kingston getting choked. Ortiz is up with a cable of some kind but Isla Dawn pops up to hit Ortiz in the head with a sheet. Myron Reed (the third Rascal) pops up with a flip dive off a car before stealing Dawn. Kingston DDTs Gibson onto the car for the pin at 12:31.

Rating: C+. Ok then. I mean what else am I supposed to think here? Kingston has destroyed the Veterans for the entirety of their feud and he did it again with this match. I’m not sure why this match needed to exist, as it felt like AEW wanted to do another parking lot brawl and then put the feud into the match as a result. It was your usual good carnage, but I had no reason to care about any of these people.

Post match Schiavone has trouble remembering how many people were in the match.

Roderick Strong says he needs to change things around here but Mark Briscoe interrupts. Briscoe thinks Strong has what it takes to win the title, but he wants a title shot against the winner. Strong appreciates that, though he’s not in the Conglomeration.

TNT Title: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Roderick Strong vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Only Ciampa is defending. Castagnoli is knocked outside to start fast and the other two are left to strike it out. Strong is sent flying over the top, with Castagnoli easily catching him to show off a bit. Back in and Ciampa kicks Castagnoli in the face but Strong is back with a jumping knee to Ciampa. Castagnoli hits his running shots in the corner but Ciampa grabs a Downward Spiral/DDT to drop both of them.

A double suplex drops Castagnoli and the other two get to strike it out a bit. They all head outside with Strong chopping away against the barricade and a charging Castagnoli is sent into said barricade. Naturally Castagnoli is fine enough to drop Ciampa face first onto the announcers’ table as we take a break. We come back with Castagnoli striking Ciampa down again and muscling him up top.

Strong pulls Castagnoli down though and dropkicks Ciampa out of the air. A backbreaker sets up the Stronghold, with Castagnoli making the save. Castagnoli gets to show off a bit with a double suplex but Ciampa is right back with a DDT. The Fairy Tale Ending gets two on Castagnoli but the running knee is cut off. Castagnoli’s Swing is broken up as well and an uppercut hits Strong for two. Strong’s jumping knee drops Castagnoli but Ciampa’s running knee knocks Strong silly to retain at 11:43.

Rating: B. So this was the match designed to prove that Ciampa’s win last week wasn’t a fluke. That’s a fine way to go as Ciampa was more than good enough to hang in there. It made for a strong main event with Castagnoli getting to show off the insane power. Strong can work well with anyone as well and that made Ciampa look even better retaining. Odds are he loses it to a big name soon, but at least they’re starting somewhere.

Post match Kyle Fletcher comes out to hold the title, which he hands back to Ciampa. Fletcher asks how it feels to know that Ciampa will never fill his shoes. He wants the title match next week and it seems to be set for Dynamite (I’m assuming Ciampa kissing him on the cheek counts) to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was the run of the mill Collision, with good action but little that felt important. The opener and main event both felt big enough that it made for a good show, though as usual, it’s not exactly a show you need to see. At least next week is Grand Slam so things should feel bigger. The show looked good on paper and lived up to the hype, though it had its usual Collision issues.

Results
Young Bucks b. Gates Of Agony – TK Driver to Kaun
Kevin Knight b. Scorpio Sky – UFO Splash
Mina Shirakawa b. Viva Van – Figure Four
Death Riders b. Sky Flight – Mother’s Milk to Steel
Thekla b. Brittnie Brooks – Spear
Eddie Kingston/Ortiz/Rascalz b. Grizzled Young Veterans/Big Bill/Ortiz – DDT onto a car to Gibson
Tommaso Ciampa b. Roderick Strong and Claudio Castagnoli – Running knee to Strong

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

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

WWE Vault Grab Bag III
Commentators: Trevin Adams, Mister Saint Laurent, Byron Saxton, Gordon Solie, Wade Barrett, Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund, Billy Graham, Ron Trongard, Lord Alfred Hayes, Joey Styles

We’ll do this again, as there are so many matches released on the Vault and I want to take a look at them. As a result, I get to put together something like a playlist of random matches. This makes for some interesting options and hopefully that is the case again here. There are no connections to these matches and that makes it more fun. Let’s get to it.

From Millennium Final (a German exclusive PPV).

European Cup: Sting vs. Kevin Nash

It’s a tournament final and boxer Axel Schultz is guest referee. Nash powers him into the corner to start and hits the elbows, including the framed one for good measure. Sting goes for the leg to take him down and the referee (in a hat) keeps checking on Nash, who has to tell him that it’s cool. Back up and Nash gets in a shot in the corner before booting a Stinger Splash away. Snake Eyes sets up the running crotch attack on the ropes for two, followed by a side slam for the same. Sting fights out of the chinlock, knocks him down and grabs the Scorpion Deathlock for the fast tap at 5:39.

Rating: C-. It was pretty clear that they didn’t want to do much here and they got out pretty quickly. That’s fair enough as Nash had already worked earlier in the show and the fans were going to go nuts for anything anyway. It was basically a quick “send them home happy” match and the fans are going to cheer for Sting no matter what.

From Evolve 63 (I told you these would be random).

Ethan Page vs. Drew Galloway

Anything goes and Galloway is of course better known as McIntyre. Page takes him down by the legs to start and the fight is on fast. They go outside with Page throwing a trashcan at him but Galloway avoids a ram into the wall. Instead Page kicks him in the face and they go up some steps, with Galloway getting in a low blow but Page knocks him back down.

A chair to the back keeps Galloway in trouble and Page suplexes him on the floor to make it worse. They fight towards the entrance with Page hitting a superkick but getting dropped hard onto the floor. Galloway sends him back into the ring and it’s time for a piece of the barricade to be thrown inside. Some chairs are tossed in as well but Page uses the delay to fight up and grabs a small ladder.

The ladder is thrown inside but page takes too long and gets chaired down again. The ladder is set up and Page gets powerbombed off for two in a big crash. Galloway can’t piledrive him onto a pair of open chairs, as Page backdrops him onto the chairs for two instead. An RKO is shoved into the chairs though and the Futureshock onto the chair gives McIntyre the pin at 14:53.

Rating: B. They did a nice job of beating each other up, though they never quite got to that next level where it felt like two people who hated each other trying to take the other out. If nothing else, it’s weird seeing Page in a big time serious singles match but he did well enough. Galloway is of course awesome at pretty much anything he does and it makes sense that WWE would want this version of him back.

We go to Florida in 1978 for a press conference, showing NWA President Eddie Graham announcing an NWA World Champion Harley Race vs. WWWF World Champion Billy Graham title vs. title match at the Orange Bowl in Miami on January 25, 1978. They both have to put up $25,000 and the purse goes 70/30. They’re both ready to win (and I know it’s them because the “hello, my name is” tags) and prove that they’re the best, with Gordon Solie having some wine. Apparently the referee is still up for debate.

At a later date, we get a face to face exchange of promos, with both of them saying pretty much exactly what you would expect. Race says he has heard this kind of thing time after time from someone who wants to be where he already is. Graham better be ready for the toughest fight he has ever had. That’s fine with Graham, who takes his shirt off to show his muscles. Race says he doesn’t need any of that because he’s already the best.

We go to the match, with special referees Gorilla Monsoon and Don Curtis. It’s pouring rain and we only see clips of the match, including the two of them fighting over a top wristlock. Graham wins the power battle and hits a running shoulder and we’re clipped to Page hitting a piledriver before tying up the leg. We’re clipped again to Graham getting the first fall with a bearhug, which is apparently 40+ minutes into the match.

Another clip shows them crashing out to the floor and Race suplexes him back in to tie the score. Graham is busted open and Race grabs a sleeper, which is broken up with a rake to the eyes. We’re clipped again to Race dropping a headbutt for two but Graham’s back elbow gets the same. Race gets the sleeper again and time expires with Graham basically out cold. I won’t rate it as it was only about seven minutes of sixty, but it was an old school slow paced fight which probably wasn’t overly great.

From Florida Championship Wrestling, January 31, 2010.

Rotundo Brothers vs. Usos

That would be Bo (Bo Dallas) and Duke (Bray Wyatt) vs. Jules (Jey) and Jimmy (Jimmy). Bo and Jimmy start things off with Bo grabbing some early rollups for two each. The front facelock has Jimmy slowed down and a middle rope clothesline sends him outside. The chase on the floor allows Jules to get in a cheap shot and hammer Bo down into the corner. A running Umaga Attack connects for two and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up and a double elbow from the Usos sets up…uh, well actually a double elbow from the Usos.

Something like a Demolition Decapitator gets two and the double headbutt sets up a sliding chinlock (ok then). Bo fights up with a quick powerslam and it’s off to Duke to clean house. A headbutt that looked a bit low gets two with Jimmy making the save as everything breaks down. Bo is knocked outside and a double Samoan Spike (looked more like a double chop) finishes Duke at 5:20.

Rating: C. This is a perfect example of “oh that match happened?” and then you realize why it isn’t that well known. All four of them were still new at this whole thing so there was only going to be so much to be seen anyway. The Usos were basically getting what they would become, while the other two were miles away from their more famous versions. That’s the point of developmental though and develop they all did.

Dark match from before Monday Night Raw, July 28, 1998.

Minoru Tanaka vs. The Fallen Angel

Yes it’s Christopher Daniels, yes he has hair, and yes it’s a weird look. Tanaka kicks at the leg to start but Angel go up the corner to yell at the fans. Back down and Tanaka kicks away some more before a cross armbreaker sends Angel over to the ropes. A headscissors does the same but this time Angel is back with a spinebuster. Angel slowly pounds him down and yells at the fans some more but Tanaka is back with some more kicks.

The spinning kick misses though and Angel grabs a spinning belly to belly for two. What would become the Angel’s Wings connects and the fans certainly like that one. The cover gets two, plus a bell, with the referee having to call it off. Tanaka hits a dropkick and a backdrop driver for two each, followed by a German suplex for the pin at 5:03.

Rating: C+. This is one of those matches where you could see that both guys had something to them and they would get there with some more time and experience. At the same time, it’s kind of interesting that Daniels never got a run in WWE. You would think it would have happened at some point but he just never got there (while doing fine elsewhere). On the other hand you have Tanaka and….yeah I’d say he did pretty well.

From Madison Square Garden, June 16, 1984.

Sgt. Slaughter vs. Iron Sheik

Boot Camp match, meaning anything goes and falls count anywhere. Slaughter gets a big pop while Sheik (with Ayatollah Blassie) is booed out of the building. Slaughter runs in and beats on Sheik with the helmet as they’re certainly starting fast. Sheik gets whipped with the riding crop and the fans are going absolutely nuts. Some stick shots to the throat have Sheik in more trouble and a headbutt with the helmet makes it even worse.

The slingshot sends Sheik into the corner but he reverses a whip, allowing Slaughter to do his signature crash over the corner. That’s good for two on the floor and it’s so weird to see this kind of thing in the WWF. Back in and Sheik whips him with a belt before going with some simple choking. Slaughter manages to fight back up and sends him outside, followed by a hard shot to the back inside. Sheik’s boot to the head doesn’t get him very far and Slaughter punches him down for a double breather.

Slaughter sends him crashing out to the floor, where a backbreaker gets two. They’re quickly back inside where Sheik loads up the boot (uh oh), with Slaughter blocking the ram into said boot. Instead Sheik sends him into the post and it’s time to start the spitting. Slaughter is busted open so Sheik bites at the head and kicks him with the loaded boot. Slaughter fights out of the corner and hits a middle rope…uh, flying kick to the head (almost a Stomp), with Sheik being busted open as well.

The big right hands, including the wind up version, drop Sheik for two (with the referee getting back inside to count, as it’s a fight otherwise) but the Slaughter Cannon is cut off. Sheik hits the gutwrench suplex for two more, followed by a regular suplex for another two. With nothing else working, Sheik takes his boot off but walks into the Slaughter Cannon. Slaughter grabs the loaded boot, loads it even more, and knocks Sheik silly for the pin to blow the roof off the place at 15:58.

Rating: A-. I wasn’t expecting much from this but they beat the fire out of each other and the fans were totally hooked. Slaughter was on fire at this point and it was great to see him getting this kind of a reception. At the same time, the Sheik was more than holding up his end. I know he gets all of the attention for being insane, but he can absolutely hang in there with anyone. This was great and absolutely worth seeing.

Dark match from before the November 23, 2007 Smackdown.

Drew McIntyre introduces this one, saying it’s a dark match that everyone wanted to see, though it should probably have stayed in the Vault.

Nasty Boys vs. Drew McIntyre/Dave Taylor

This is an infamous one. The Boys certainly take their time getting to the ring and Sags makes sure to pose a lot on the floor as Knobbs drives Taylor into the corner to start. Taylor does it right back to him as the fans certainly like the Boys. Knobbs hammers away with right hands and grabs a hiptoss. The Boys send McIntyre and Taylor into each other and it’s off to McIntyre, who wants Sags.

McIntyre gets sent hard into the corner for some chops, followed by a hard running clothesline for two. Knobbs comes back in for an elbow drop and the Pit Stop makes things even worse for McIntyre. A hard pumphandle slam gives Sags two and it’s back to Taylor for some uppercuts. Sags avoids a charge and McIntyre runs into Taylor, allowing Sags to come back in for a fireman’s carry/facebuster combination. Ignoring that Sags completely misses McIntyre’s head and Knobbs just drops him, it’s enough for the pin at 5:20.

Rating: D+. There’s a reason this match is more infamous than famous and a lot of it is due to the Boys apparently being very rough with McIntyre. They were also out of shape and then spent a LONG time celebrating after the match, to the point where the start of Smackdown was rushed. If you watch it on its own, it’s just a not very good tag match, but this was all about the behind the scenes stuff and details.

From Madison Square Garden, June 25, 1988 (this is on a bunch of home video releases but let’s see it again).

WWF Title: Randy Savage vs. Ted DiBiase

Savage, with Elizabeth (to counter DiBiase’s Virgil), is defending in a cage. DiBiase jumps him to start fast and Savage is sent into the corner, which just fires him up (like it takes a lot). The comeback is cut off with an elbow to the face though and DiBiase stomps away again. It’s way too early for an escape attempt though and Savage sends him into the corner over and over.

Savage ducks his head though and gets hit in the face as Elizabeth is doing her usual worried face. There’s the fist drop from DiBiase (which always looked great and does here again) but it’s still way too early to climb out. Savage is sent hard into the cage and then dropped with a clothesline but he’s able to cut off DiBiase’s climb again. Virgil earns his pay by going up to stop Savage’s escape attempt though and they’re both back down.

This time Savage reverses a whip into the cage and gets a needed breather. Another climb is cut off by Virgil and DiBiase is there to hammer away. Savage’s clothesline puts both of them down again and he goes for the door, with DiBiase making his own save this time. This results in Graham suggesting that Elizabeth gain about 80lbs of muscle so she can be more valuable in these situations.

With that disturbing image out of the way, it’s a double clothesline to leave both of them down again. They both go up a different corner and of course Virgil is there for the save. A suplex puts DiBiase down and an atomic drop sends him into the cage again. Savage goes for the door and Virgil slams the door onto his head.

DiBiase tries to get out and gets pulled back inside so they can slug it out from their knees. Another ram into the cage puts DiBiase down again and Savage climbs, with Virgil cutting him off AGAIN. This time a fan even climbs the cage and is quickly pulled down, leaving Savage to get in a double noggin knocker and drop down to retain at 12:21.

Rating: B+. This was one of those matches where it felt like a fight between two guys in a structure designed to make it more violent. There weren’t very many matches like this one from this era and this is one of the best, as you had two incredible talents who worked very well together. They feuded for a long time and this was probably their best match, which is quite the accomplishment.

From ECW Wrestlepalooza 1998.

TV Title: Sabu vs. Rob Van Dam

Van Dam is defending and Bill Alfonso is officially managing both of them. As a bonus, crooked referee Judge Jeff Jones is in refereeing the match. Sabu dives for the legs to start but can’t get anywhere, leaving Van Dam smirking a bit. The fourth or so attempt works but Van Dam is right back up to miss a kick to the head. Van Dam takes him down with a quickly broken headscissors and they bounce off the ropes a bit for the standoff.

Alfonso approves and Van Dam does the Sabu pose before offering a pat on the back. Actually hang on as Van Dam gets the mic to say they’re not going to fight because they have a plan. We get a tease of double teaming Jones but Sabu kicks Van Dam in the face to take over, with the plan apparently being dropped. A slingshot flipping legdrop gets two on Van Dam and Sabu sends him to the floor for the flip dive.

Back in and the single arm camel clutch goes on, with Van Dam looking…well about the same really. With that broken up, Sabu flips over him, followed by Van Dam doing the same (albeit to Sabu rather than himself). Van Dam kicks him down and hits the corkscrew legdrop for his own near fall. Naturally Alfonso is suddenly a huge Van Dam fan, which is a perfectly logical move for him.

The surfboard has Sabu in more trouble and the slingshot legdrop on the apron connects, with Van Dam crashing out to the floor. Back in and Van Dam grabs a half crab, with Alfonso’s whistling getting all the more annoying. The rope actually gets Sabu out of trouble so Van Dam kicks him in the face. That lets Van Dam bridge a table between the apron and the barricade but Sabu is right there with a dive. The triple jump dive is loaded up but Van Dam gets off the table, only for Sabu to hit a big dive into the crowd anyway.

Back in and Sabu pelts a chair at Van Dam’s head so they’re already back on the floor. Van Dam fights back but Alfonso won’t hold a chair for him, with Alfonso saying he’ll call it down the line and be a winner no matter what. Smart move really, in a Bobby Heenan at the 1989 Royal Rumble way. Sabu is back up with a crotching onto the barricade into an Asai moonsault. The triple jump moonsault misses back inside though and Alfonso is pro Van Dam again.

Van Dam knocks him outside for a crash and there’s the big no hands flip dive for the cool visual. A suplex from the apron through a table is blocked and Sabu’s not great looking springboard moonsault hits Van Dam in the ropes. Van Dam is sent back onto the table as Joey Styles is having a hard time believing that these two are friends. Sabu uses the chair as a stepping stone to the ropes, setting up a DDT onto the table.

Back in and Sabu throws the chair at Van Dam’s head again, setting up a hurricanrana through the table. This means a lot more waiting around as they get to whatever they have in mind next, which is the main theme of the match. Van Dam fights back and catapults him throat first into the bottom rope, setting up a top rope legdrop onto the chair onto Sabu’s face. They go outside (again) where Sabu gets in a hurricanrana off the barricade. Back in and a quick Van Daminator gives Van Dam two and the Five Star connects for the same in a rare kickout.

The monkey flip out of the corner sends Sabu crashing onto the chair for an arrogant two. That’s not good for Sabu, who hits an Arabian Facebuster onto the back of the head for two of his own. Another table is loaded up but it’s already broken so Van Dam kicks him through the rest of the thing.

Van Dam brings in another table and kicks him onto it, followed by a heck of a chair shot to the head. The Five Star through the table only gets two (good grief) and a lifting Pedigree gives Van Dam the same. Sabu is back up with some kicks into a slingshot legdrop for two of his own as they’re somehow getting even slower. A split legged moonsault gets two, as does Sabu’s Arabian press…and time expires at 30:02 (close enough).

Rating: C-. There were some great spots in there, but it was ridiculous to see the two of them kicking out time after time. It was cool to see them doing their stuff, even with Sabu’s usual sloppiness, but they were really dragging near the end and spent far too much of the match selling. I liked the idea of Alfonso calling it right down the line and wanting to leave with the champion, but that wasn’t enough to overcome the annoying aspects here.

Post match they seem to be ok.

Overall Rating: B. As usual it’s hard to give this an overall rating as it’s not meant to be a regular show, but with some actual rarities and two classics, I’ll definitely take this one as an entertaining set. Granted it helped that I picked the matches included, but it was mostly good stuff. As usual, the WWE Vault is one of the best things going in wrestling today and hopefully that continues for a long time to come.

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

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: January 8, 2026
Location: eSports Stadium Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s time for a regular show this week after three in one week. That’s quite the lineup, but last week did feature a heck of a swerve in the featured tag match. Hopefully they can follow up on that, as it’s certainly an interesting story. As usual, there are pieces in ROH that can work, but they need the right presentation. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at Jay Lethal’s turn last week.

Opening sequence.

Aaron Solo vs. Ace Austin

They go with the grappling to start with Austin taking him down into a headscissors. Solo reverses into a headlock but Austin breaks it up and kicks him in the back. That earns Austin a trip to the floor though and Solo hits a slingshot dive. Back in and we hit the front facelock, followed by a running dropkick for two.

They head out to the apron, where Solo is sent outside for a kick to the chest. The Fold is blocked so Solo is catapulted into the corner, where he bounces right back out with a double stomp for two. Solo’s charge in the corner misses though and Austin hits a nice springboard spinning kick to the face. The Fold finishes Solo at 7:35.

Rating: C+. I like Austin a good bit, but dang it shouldn’t be taking him seven and a half minutes to get rid of Solo. I’ll take that over a loss though, as at least he’s getting some ring time and starting to establish himself. Just maybe let him be a bit more dominant next time around?

Athena knows she is the best in the world but she keeps having to deal with problems. She has a massive target on her back and she kept failing to prove her greatness in 2025. Who is she if she can’t bring home any gold for her minions? How did she get in this position? The only person she can depend on is herself.

Cru vs. Will Allday/Jay Alexander

Lacey Lane is now with Cru and Andretti starts with Allday. Hold on though as Allday springboard kicks Rush off the apron and hands it off to Alexander. Everything breaks down and Cru hits stereo dives to the floor. Back in and Cru goes with the misdirection to take Alexander down. Allday’s missile dropkick hits Alexander by mistake and a double Falcon Arrow finishes Allday at 2:19. This has been your reminder that Cru is in fact still around.

Christopher Daniels talks about how Leila Grey is out of action for a long time with an injury. Now though, Zayda Steel is taking her place. I’m not sure how well that is going to fit but it’s something.

Darius Martin/Zayda Steel vs. Lee Moriarty/Trish Adora

Mixed tag and the rest of their teams are here. Moriarty works on a cravate to start before taking Martin down by the arm. With that going to a standoff, Adora comes in to take over on Steel, including a mocking arm crank. Steel is back with a sunset flip but the referee is distracted, meaning no count. They trade kicks to the face and it’s back to the men. Everything breaks down and Steel jumps onto Adora to hammer away, followed by a Canadian Destroyer to Moriarty. Shane Taylor offers a distraction though and Steel gets dropped with the Lariat Tubman for the pin at 6:15.

Rating: C+. So Steel joins the team and loses ten minutes later. Great to see that kind of a start, as they made sure she gets no momentum for the debuting team. But at least Adora, who is pretty much exactly where she was years ago, gets a pin. I’m sure that will put her in titl….oh you get the idea already.

We look back at Madison Rayne’s retirement match last week.

Billie Starkz/Diamante vs. Reiza Clarke/Shay Karmichael

Athena is here with Starkz and Diamante. Karmichael and Starkz lock up to start with the former yelling a lot. Starkz takes Karmichael into the corner and it’s a double toss to send her crashing down for two. Clarke comes in and gets caught with a quick Stunner, leaving Diamante to hit a rolling cutter to pin Karmichael at 3:48.

Rating: C. Pretty much a total squash here with Starkz and Diamante getting to dominate the jobbers to please Athena. That’s all this needed to be and now we get to see what is next for them. In theory it’s a run towards the Women’s Tag Team Titles and I’m not quite sure I see that actually happening.

Cru says they’re back with new member Lacey Lane.

Rachael Ellering/Demo Diamond/Delynn Cavens vs. Premiere Athletes

Daivari and Cavens start things off with Cavens being taken into the corner for the double beatdown. Nese’s bridging northern lights suplex gets two, with the rather tall Diamond making the save. Denali comes in to stare at him and it’s off to Ellering, with Denali not being impressed. Some running shoulders don’t do much to Denali, who drops her with a big boot. Everything breaks down and a chop block puts Diamond down, leaving Nese to pumphandle driver Cavens for the pin at 4:30.

Rating: C. And now I’m sure the Premiere Athletes will be launched into the stratosphere, just like I’m sure they will be after every single win they have. They’ve been around since the beginning of Ring Of Honor and do just about the same things they did at the start. Yet they’re still trotted out there, thankfully with Denali there to at least change the act just a tiny bit. Either drop them, change them up in a big way or do something with them already.

Frat House vs. Dalton Castle/Outrunners

Magnum and Garrison start things off with Magnum grabbing a hiptoss. It’s off to Floyd for a running knee and a double hiptoss. Garrison drives him into the corner and a grab of the leg from the floor lets Karter hit a clothesline. Floyd gets sent into the corner for the beating, including a collection of choking. Vance and Floyd collide, followed by the tag off to Castle for the house cleaning. A triple slam drops the villains and the Mega Powers Elbow into the Bang A Rang finishes Karter at 6:01.

Rating: C+. At least Castle and the Outrunners are fun and seem to be having a good time out there. It makes for some more entertaining matches, though the Frat House lost its charm a long time ago. It’s also not a great sign that a match this short was one of the best on the show, though maybe it moves them closer to a title shot.

Johnny TV and Taya Valkyrie aren’t happy with Red Velvet, as Valkyrie wants a title shot. Velvet just happens to be there to offer Valkyrie a Proving Ground match.

MxM Collection vs. Von Erichs

Oh joy the Von Erichs are back. I had forgotten how pathetic these losers were. Mansoor gets shouldered down to start and a double dropkick does it again. The Collection takes over on the floor, with Ross’ hand being crushed underneath the steps. Ross’ cowboy hat is stolen as the Collection keeps working on the hand, which is put in the turnbuckle for a kick from Mansoor.

A big boot gets Ross out of trouble and the tag brings in Marshall to clean house. Marshall’s running clothesline in the corner sets up a pop up powerslam but Madden is back in for the save. A leg lariat Hart Attack connects but the Centerfold is broken up. Ross’ hand is fine enough to claw slam Mansoor for the pin at 6:32.

Rating: C. This has been the latest example of the Von Erichs living off their family name because they aren’t good enough or interesting enough to do anything on their own. The idea of having the Von Erichs continue their legacy in Texas is fine, but the team couldn’t be less interesting if they tried. The “aw shucks, we’re just two good old boys from TEXAS” stuff is terrible and we’re probably going to be stuck with them while this whole residency goes on.

We look at LFI winning the Tag Team Titles at Final Battle. Probably not a good sign that we need a reminder about a month later.

Kiran Grey vs. Sammy Guevara

Guevara flips him off to start, marking the first and only time anyone has ever done that in wrestling. Grey sweeps the leg to start and they fight outside with Grey sending him hard into the barricade. Back in and a clothesline turns Guevara inside out but he knocks Grey out of the air. The GTH ends Grey at 2:38. This was the “get Guevara some momentum back, even though he really didn’t have any in the first place, after he lost to Bandido on Dynamite because there was no one but Guevara to take that loss” special.

Swirl vs. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest

Jay Lethal is here with the Swirl. Johnson and Billington start things off with Johnson cutting off a charge in the corner. Priest comes in to chop Christian hard in the corner, causing Christian to fake a knee injury. That lets Johnson get in a cheap shot from behind to take over, with Lethal adding a strut. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Priest gets up to hit a clothesline, allowing the tag off to Billington.

Everything breaks down and Johnson gets spiked for two. The half crab has Christian in trouble and Johnson gets crossfaced at the same time. Johnson powers up and Death Valley Drivers Billington onto the other two for the save. Christian hits a 450 for two on Billington, earning Billington a toss to the floor. A suicide headbutt drops Priest on the floor, leaving Billington to Tombstone Johnson. Christian is back in to drop Billington though and the Vanilla Choke Zero gets the tap at 10:12.

Rating: B-. Above all else, it was nice to have a story that actually felt important. This is by far the biggest story in Ring Of Honor and it was a fine way to go to move things forward. Christian winning the World Title doesn’t sound like the worst idea, though it might take some time before we finally get there.

Post match the big beatdown is on to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I cannot get my head around how they manage to make this show so uninteresting week to week. There are some watchable enough matches, such as the main event, but so much of the problem is Ring Of Honor/AEW has gone out of its way to show just how unimportant a lot of these people really are. That was on full display here, as it feels like you could have seen some of these matches at any point in the last year plus. That makes for a very tedious show and it took me more than a few sittings to watch this one. Please either shorten the thing or put in more effort on the stories, because this was drek.

Results
Ace Austin b. Aaron Solo – The Fold
Cru b. Will Allday/Jay Alexander – Double Falcon Arrow to Allday
Trish Adora/Lee Moriarty b. Darius Martin/Zayda Steel – Lariat Tubman to Steel
Diamante/Billie Starkz b. Shay Karmichael/Reiza Clarke – Rolling cutter to Karmichael
Premiere Athletes b. Rachael Ellering/Demo Diamond/Delynn Cavens – Pumphandle driver to Cavens
Dalton Castle/Outrunners b. Frat House – Bang A Rang to Karter
Von Erichs b. MxM Collection – Claw slam to Mansoor
Sammy Guevara b. Kiran Grey – GTH
Swirl b. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest – Vanilla Choke Zero to Billington

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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Collision
Date: January 3, 2026
Location: eSports Stadium Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone

It’s the start of another residency as Collision will be here for a few weeks at least. That can make for some interesting crowd reactions but at least this seemed to be a pretty nice venue the first time around. Hopefully that is the case here again as we’re starting with Darby Allin vs. Wheeler Yuta. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

The Timeless Love Bombs, Dante Martin, Shelton Benjamin and Darby Allin are ready to fight.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Clon vs. Angelico

Angelico works on the arm to start and they trade legsweeps, allowing Clon to pose. A running clothesline drops Angelico and a step up moonsault gives Clon two. They trade chops until Clon hits a Pele kick, followed by a torture rack bomb (ala Hologram) for the pin at 3:29.

Rating: C+. They didn’t have time to do much here, but Clon did look good. I’m not sure how long it’s going to be before Hologram gets back, but it should make for a pretty awesome showdown if they do it right. For now though, they did a nice job to start the anticipation, with Clon having a dominant debut.

Post match Clon stomps on Angelico’s partner Serpentico but Komander runs in for the save.

Jon Moxley talks about how you get something special out of the Continental Classic and the title has a very high price tag. He’s getting ready to face Shelton Benjamin on Dynamite and while there is pretty much nothing he does better than Benjamin, it’s going to take a lot more than hurting him.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Timeless Love Bombs vs. Hyan/Maya World

Shirakawa and World start things off with Shirakawa getting in a bit of dancing. World gets taken down and it’s quickly off to Storm vs. Hyan. The Bombs start taking turns beating on Hyan, with Storm dropping Shirakawa onto her for two. A running hip attack sends Hyan outside and Shirakawa hits a big dive to take them both out on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Shirakawa being dropped onto World’s knees for two. That doesn’t seem to do much though as Shirakawa gets over to Storm for the house cleaning. A bulldog into a basement dropkick cuts Storm off though and a Blockbuster/Russian legsweep combination gets two. Shirakawa comes back in with a double missile dropkick and Storm hits the running hip attack. Storm Zero finishes World at 9:07.

Rating: B-. World and Hyan are starting to get a bit more comfortable around here and that’s nice to see. They’re a fine team to add to the division and while they have a long way to go, it’s better than nothing. At the very least, the keep the bigger teams from losing important matches so nice job on bringing in some extra names.

Post match respect is shown but the entrances for the next match cut off the Bombs’ celebration.

Marina Shafir/Megan Bayne vs. Rache Chanel/Londyn Dior

Points for the themed jobber names. Shafir strikes Dior down to start and it’s quickly off to Bayne for the shoulders in the corner. Everything breaks down and Chanel is Fate’s Descented into Mother’s Milk (Shafir: “Give it to me baby.”) for the tap at 1:27.

The Don Callis Family beat up some jobbers in the back and Josh Alexander gives Hechicero a pep talk.

Komander vs. Hechicero

For a TNT Title shot. Hechicero wastes no time in pulling him down into la majistral for two, with Komander getting his own rollup for the same. They trade cradles into a near fall into a standoff but Komander sends him outside. Back in and Hechicero takes him into the corner, where Komander comes out with a rather springboardy hurricanrana. Komander sends him outside again and tries a slingshot hurricanrana, which is countered into a toss powerbomb into the barricade.

We take a break and come back with Komander kicking away but getting rolled into a bow and arrow. That’s switched into an armbar to keep Komander in trouble but he gets to the rope. Hechicero hits the arm and he falls outside, with Komander hitting the big rope walk dive. Back in and a sunset bomb gives Komander two but Hechicero is back with the swinging hammerlock backbreaker. Komander gets in a knockdown of his own and goes up, only for Clon to run in and shove him off the top. Hechicero hits a running knee, followed by a spinning arm trap rollup for the win at 13:36.

Rating: B. Much like the opener (albeit a good bit longer), this was an entertaining match between two people who know how to do this style. Hechicero winning makes for a better match for Mark Briscoe anyway, as he already has the whole ordeal with the Don Callis Family. As usual Komander is good for a solid match even in defeat and this was fun stuff.

Max Caster and Anthony Bowens are on assignments to build them up as a team, including saying nice things about each other and going on a scavenger hunt. It doesn’t work well as they keep getting in arguments, with Caster using a bunch of hand sanitizer.

Here are Eddie Kingston and Ortiz for a chat. After Kingston acknowledges two birthday fans in the crowd (that’s a nice touch), Kingston thanks Ortiz for keeping him from quitting this company over and over. They’re coming for the Grizzled Young Veterans, but Kingston keeps getting mad at Tony Schiavone for not holding the mic up (Kingston: “Flair must have hated you.”).

Big Bill and Bryan Keith laugh off the idea of Kingston having someone to watch his back. For now though, they want to take out JetSpeed, as someone has put a bounty on JetSpeed. Commentary thinks it’s Don Callis.

JetSpeed vs. Big Bill/Bryan Keith

Bailey and Keith start things off with Bailey elbowing him down. Keith cuts off a tag attempt though and everything breaks down, with Keith being sent outside. Some kicks put Bill on the floor but he’s back in with a swinging Boss Man Slam to Bailey. Eye gouging on the floor has Bailey in more trouble and we take a break.

We come back with Bill missing some charges in the corner, allowing the tag off to Bailey. The comeback doesn’t last long though as Bill kicks him in the face, with Knight having to make the save. Stereo dives take the villains down again but Keith strikes away at Bailey for two. Bailey kicks Keith down though and the UFO Splash finishes for Knight at 12:04.

Rating: C+. Nice tag match here, though it’s frustrating to see Knight and Bill brought back just to take another loss. At the same time, at least it was to a team like JetSpeed, who already have some success together. It’s a fine enough match and JetSpeed can do the high flying thing rather well, with Knight being a treat to watch.

The Grizzled Young Veterans are ready to fight Eddie Kingston and Ortiz, including threats to Kingston’s knee.

Video on the Hangman Page/Swerve Strickland vs. the Opps, setting up Wednesday’s lights out match.

Dante Martin vs. Shelton Benjamin

Christopher Daniels and MVP are here too. Benjamin shrugs off a lariat to start so Martin goes with a takedown instead. That’s enough to send Benjamin outside, only to have Benjamin come back in with a hard shoulder. Martin tries to go up top but gets knocked off to the floor as we take a break. We come back with Martin diving into a backbreaker and we see that Martin ignored a chance to walk out during the break, even asking if Benjamin’s mother raised a b****. A suplex sends Martin flying and the superkick finishes him off at 10:44.

Rating: C. This was pretty much an extended squash and that’s what it should have been with Benjamin set for his big match with Moxley next week. Benjamin is someone who has quite the reputation and has been treated seriously in AEW, so it wasn’t much of a step up to the next level. I’m rather pleased that he smashed through Martin like this, as that’s what makes perfect sense in this case.

Post match MVP asks for some applause for Martin and Benjamin shakes his hand, allowing Martin to leave in peace. With Martin gone, MVP talks about how Jon Moxley is a tough man, but Benjamin is different. Benjamin is going to hurt Moxley. This match has me intrigued.

Sammy Guevara is tired of the wrong people getting chances and wants to be World Champion. Bandido comes up and says he can have a shot.

Tony Schiavone reads a statement from Stokley Hathaway, who was injured at Worlds End and is at the Vivian Banks Medical Center, where he has over $400,000 worth of bills. See Tony Schiavone, who has nothing to do after the show but drink, to help pay them off.

Here’s what’s coming on Dynamite.

Darby Allin vs. Wheeler Yuta

Jon Moxley is on commentary. Allin knocks Yuta to the floor to start, where a Marina Shafir distraction lets Yuta get in a cheap shot. Back in and Allin dropkicks him into the corner but Yuta gets in a backdrop to send Allin face first down. We take a break and come back with Allin hitting a springboard elbow but Shafir interferes again.

This time it’s enough to get an ejection but here is Toni Storm (Moxley: “SHE’S NUTS!”) to cut her off. Daniel Garcia joins us at ringside as Yuta gets a Scorpion Deathlock. That’s escaped so Yuta catapults him into the corner, with Allin coming back with a double stomp. The Coffin Drop connects for two, as Allin pulls him up and grabs the Scorpion for the tap at 11:40.

Rating: B-. The match didn’t feel overly important, though I did get a solid laugh out of Moxley’s reaction to Storm. Allin making relatively quick work of Yuta is fine, as he gets to move on to his requested match with Pac. It works well enough for a Collision main event, which is often the case for Allin.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a show where it was more about setting things up for later rather than what happened here. That’s a fine way to go, as the upcoming Dynamite is feeling like a major show. Sometimes you need a show like this to get things ready and it worked well enough. It’s not a show that you should go out of your way to watch, but there is far worse wrestling to spend two hours watching.

Results
Clon b. Angelico – Torture rack bomb
Timeless Love Bombs b. Hyan/Maya World – Storm Zero to World
Marina Shafir/Megan Bayne b. Rache Chanel/Londyn Dior – Mother’s Milk to Chanel
Hechicero b. Komander – Arm trap rollup
Shelton Benjamin b. Dante Martin – Superkick
Darby Allin b. Wheeler Yuta – Scorpion Deathlock

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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Collision
Date: December 6, 2025
Location: Greater Columbus Convention Center, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness, Ian Riccaboni

It’s still Continental Classic season and that means we’ll still be seeing some rather quality matches. We’re still pretty early in the tournaments and it can be interesting to see who goes where. In addition, Ricochet is ready to defend the National Title, which could make for something fun. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Continental Classic Blue League: Orange Cassidy (0 points) vs Roderick Strong (0 points)

Strong wins an early grapple off to start but Cassidy grabs the foot to slow him down. Cassidy can’t do much from there but eventually manages a headlock to grind Strong down. A spinning backbreaker can’t get Strong out of trouble as Cassidy stays on the headlock. They head outside with Strong hitting another backbreaker to really take over, followed by another back inside.

We take a break and come back with Cassidy hitting a spinning DDT. Cassidy makes what counts as a fired up comeback and sends Strong outside for the rams into the buckles. A high crossbody is countered into a powerslam to give Strong two and Cassidy is back with a slingshot tornado DDT. Another tornado DDT gives Cassidy two but Strong gives him another backbreaker. Cassidy’s rollup gets two and he manages the Stundog Millionaire. Strong tries another backbreaker but Cassidy slips out and cradles him for the pin at 13:24.

Rating: B. They had a hard fought match here and that’s what you want to see in something like this. Cassidy gets the win to get on the board, which isn’t overly surprising as Strong isn’t someone who gets a big push in this kind of a tournament most of the time. Good opener here, which is always nice to see.

Blue League Standings

Claudio Castagnoli – 6 points (3 matches remaining)
Konosuke Takeshita – 3 points (4 matches remaining)
Orange Cassidy – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Jon Moxley – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Mascara Dorada – 0 points (4 matches remaining)
Roderick Strong – 0 points (3 matches remaining)

Post match, Strong storms off.

Darby Allin is officially out of the tournament due to injuries and Jack Perry is taking his place.

Allin talks about how the Death Riders are winning the war because they’re out here doing pushups. He was wrestling Kevin Knight and he couldn’t feel his legs. It was the first time he was ever scared and while he’s never seen eye to eye with Perry, go win the whole thing. He’s not sure about his own future though.

Here is FTR, with Stokely Hathaway, for a chat. Hathaway is happy with his win but he has to address what happened this week on Dynamite. The fans boo him out of the building over and over, but Hathaway makes it clear: they want the Bang Bang Gang right now. Wheeler says that the Gang will always be Billy’s boy and Mr. Toni Storm (Robinson’s “is that a bad thing?” look is great).

Harwood brags about FTR’s all time success and they’re willing to let Robinson touch the belt because he’s a man of his word. Gunn says he’s the son of a Hall Of Famer. Robinson is the son of a carpenter, Wheeler is the son of his first cousin, and Harwood is just a son of a b****. Gunn brings up beating FTR recently and now they want a title match. Apparently the match is officially set for the United Kingdom next week, with the Gang promising to TOUCH the belts.

The Death Riders are ready to destroy Mark Briscoe and take the TNT Title.

Continental Classic Blue League: Claudio Castagnoli (6 points) vs. Mascara Dorada (0 points)

They fight over a lockup to start and neither can get very far. Dorada handles his own in a wrestle off until Castagnoli gives him a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Back up and Dorada flips around a lot until Castagnoli is sent outside. Castagnoli cuts off a dive with an uppercut and Dorada is dropped onto the barricade as we take a break.

We come back with Castagnoli going for the mast but the Swing is escaped rather quickly. Castagnoli gets caught with a quick headscissors and Dorada sends him outside rather quickly. A top rope armdrag sends Castagnoli down again so a rollup can get two back inside. Castagnoli’s tilt-a-whirl cuts Dorada off as we’re halfway through the time limit. A rather spinning headscissors brings Castagnoli down but he’s right back up to try a superplex. That’s broken up as well and Dorada’s shooting star press is good for the pin at 12:00.

Rating: B-. I’m a bit surprised by the result here but it’s good to see Dorada get a win. He’s shown that he can hang in the ring with just about anyone but at some point that has to translate into some wins. It doesn’t matter as much in the tournament, though it’s certainly better than nothing. Castagnoli was never going to run the table in this thing anyway, so getting the loss out of the way is fine.

Blue League Standings

Claudio Castagnoli – 6 points (2 matches remaining)
Konosuke Takeshita – 3 points (4 matches remaining)
Orange Cassidy – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Mascara Dorada – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Jon Moxley – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Roderick Strong – 0 points (3 matches remaining)

Earlier today, the Timeless Love Bombs and the Babes Of Wrath sat down for champagne. Storm talked about how she and Shirakawa love each other no matter what and she’s beaten both Babes. Cameron says the Babes have wrath but Shirakawa says they’re here for the titles. A toast is had.

Here is Swerve Strickland for a chat. Swerve talks about how he’s freshly back from three months out due to injury. When he was champion, he made it clear that he was going to bring everything and that brings him to Samoa Joe. Swerve beat him the last time they fought and now he has to go through a bunch of people to get to the Opps. It doesn’t matter though as Joe will fall.

That brings him to Hangman Page, and Swerve is willing to have his back for one night at Winter Is Coming. Cue Josh Alexander of all people to say this is Don Callis’ house. Why isn’t Swerve looking for revenge on the people who hurt him? Alexander thinks he should get the title shot so a match is set for Winter Is Coming….and Katsuyori Shibata sneaks in to chop block Swerve’s recently repaired knee.

Mercedes Mone does NOT want to talk about last night’s loss at Final Battle and now it’s time for some revenge.

TBS Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Leila Grey

Grey is challenging and has Christopher Daniels with her. Mone jumps her to start fast and sends Grey outside, with a Meteora off the apron hitting Daniels. Back in and Grey slugs away but gets sent face first into the buckle. Grey’s bulldog out of the corner is blocked and we take a break. We come back with Grey hitting a running knee in the corner but Mone pulls her into the Statement Maker for the tap at 5:49. Not enough shown to rate but they didn’t waste time with Mone getting back to winning.

Post match the hold stays on until Daniels breaks it up, earning himself a low blow.

Eddie Kingston talks about how he’s been doing this for twenty five years and he doesn’t like Samoa Joe taking wrestlers down the wrong path. That all starts with the World Champion and Kingston wants it to change for the good. He’s not just doing this for the title but to show people how to do it the right way, as AEW was supposed to be.

The Triangle Of Madness have jumped a bunch of women. They’ll be in Cardiff.

National Title: Ricochet vs. Ace Austin

Ricochet, with the Gates Of Agony, is defending. Austin’s headlock doesn’t last long to start so he tries it again, which is broken up just as well. Ricochet is sent outside before getting la majistraled for two back inside. That’s enough for Ricochet to grab the bell hammer but the Gates trip Austin down so Ricochet can take over.

We take a break and come back with Ricochet missing a running dropkick in the corner, allowing Austin to drop a leg. After avoiding a Gates distraction, Austin hits a springboard clothesline into a doctor bomb. Ricochet is back with a dropkick into a standing shooting star press for two. The Spirit Gun misses though and Austin grabs a small package for two. A superplex into a running stomp gives Austin two more but he almost runs into the referee. Ricochet hits a quick clothesline into Vertigo to retain at 10:04.

Rating: B-. They only had so much time here given the commercial but Austin was able to showcase himself a bit. At the same time though, it’s still freshly into Ricochet’s title reign and the fans dislike him enough that he should hold onto the belt for a good while. Nice enough match here and a good way to feature both of them.

Post match FTR runs in to beat down Austin with the Bang Bang Gang making the save. The Gang holds up the titles, meaning they have to touch them, as FTR demanded never happen again.

Continental Classic Blue League: Jon Moxley (0 points) vs. Konosuke Takeshita (3 points)

Non-title. Feeling out process to start and they go to the mat with Moxley’s headlock not lasting long. Takeshita reverses into a leglock before they trade shoulders. A running elbow takes Moxley down and he seems to be favoring his recently injured ankle. Said ankle is rammed into the barricade and it’s a dragon screw ankle whip back inside.

We take a break and come back with Takeshita staying on the leg in the corner but Moxley goes after Takeshita’s ankle. A stomp on the apron rocks Takeshita and a double clothesline leaves both of them down. They trade forearms until Moxley’s running clothesline drops Takeshita hard. Moxley’s ankle lock sends Takeshita over to the ropes and he knocks Moxley outside. Takeshita can’t get a running start due to his ankle but a second attempt sets up a big running flip dive.

The Blue Thunder Bomb sends Moxley through the announcers’ table and he has to dive to beat the count. Unfortunately he dives right into a frog splash from Takeshita for another near fall but Moxley is back with a cutter. A double middle finger sets up the Paradigm Shift but Takeshita gets a foot on the rope. Moxley charges into a knee for two and a running knee into Raging Fire gives Takeshita the pin at 17:48.

Rating: A-. Well dang that worked. This started slowly and then turned into a heck of a fight, though I’m almost scared as it felt like they were teasing a Moxley face turn out of this whole thing. I get why that would be the case but the idea of this version of Moxley as a hero is disturbing. Otherwise, Takeshita’s incredible run continues, as he can basically do no wrong at this point.

Blue League Standings

Claudio Castagnoli – 6 points (2 matches remaining)
Konosuke Takeshita – 6 points (3 matches remaining)
Orange Cassidy – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Mascara Dorada – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Jon Moxley – 3 points (2 matches remaining)
Roderick Strong – 0 points (3 matches remaining)

Overall Rating: B+. Rather solid show here as the Continental Classic continues to deliver. This was about a bunch of people having solid matches, plus Mone running through Grey. It’s still relatively early in the tournament so this can keep going for a bit, though that main event is going to be hard to top. Solid show here, as it mainly focused on one thing, which is often where Collision works best.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Roderick Strong – Rollup
Mascara Dorada b. Claudio Castagnoli – Shooting star press
Mercedes Mone b. Leila Grey – Statement Maker
Ricochet b. Ace Austin – Vertigo
Konosuke Takeshita b. Jon Moxley – Raging Fire

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

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

Collision
Date: November 15, 2025
Location: Erie Insurance Arena, Erie, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness, Matt Menard

We’re done with Blood & Guts and a week away from Full Gear, which is going to be needing some extra time to get ready. There is a good chance that things will be coming together here thanks to some fallout from earlier this week. Hopefully Collision lives up to its reputation with solid matches, which is certainly an option. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

We run down tonight’s card.

Long Blood & Guts recaps.

Death Riders vs. Tommy Billington/Jay Lethal/Adam Priest

Hold on though as Daniel Garcia gets in a fight with Matt Menard before the bell. Menard is taken out by the medical team so Jon Moxley takes his place, as we can’t go four days without hearing from him after Blood & Guts. Garcia gets taken into the corner to start and pummeled in the head before it’s off to Yuta. Lethal works on Yuta’s arm before it’s back to Garcia, who gets double elbowed in the face. Billington gets low bridged to the floor though and we take a break.

We come back with Billington still in trouble, with the Riders hitting some running shots in the corner. Pac’s Tombstone gets two, thankfully with Lethal making a save. Billington is able to fight his way off the top and adds a nice missile dropkick (even Moxley is impressed), only to get sent outside again. Back in and the much needed tag brings in Lethal to clean house, including a Lethal Combination to Yuta. Garcia saves Pac from the Figure Four but Lethal accidentally Lethally Injects Billington. The Brutalizer finishes Lethal at 10:53.

Rating: C+. Rather Collisiony Death Riders match here, with little doubt about who was going to win but it got some time anyway. There is only so much you can get out of something like this, especially with the team showing pretty much no ill effects from Blood & Guts. Lethal and company have barely been together for a few weeks now and it’s not like they seemed to be some hot new team anyway.

Post match Pac talks about how awesome it was to watch Darby Allin burn. The challenge is officially on for Full Gear. What is this? Four straight pay per views of Allin vs. the Death Riders?

The Don Callis Family is ready for Mark Briscoe, both tonight and at Full Gear.

Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa are in the back with Storm saying that while she dies every day, the other team hurt the woman she loves. Vengeance is sworn.

Mark Briscoe vs. Mark Davis

The brawl is on to start fast and Briscoe hits a running Blockbuster off the apron. Davis breaks up the Bang Bang Elbow though and starts hammering away back inside. A top rope superplex gives Davis two and we take a break. We come back with Briscoe fighting of an abdominal stretch but getting knocked right back down instead.

Some chops wake Briscoe up and he wins a slugout off a running forearm. The Froggy Bow hits raised knees though and Davis heads outside to grab a chair. Naturally that takes too long though and Briscoe is up with a step up running flip dive. Back in and the Froggy Bow finishes Davis at 11:17.

Rating: C+. Briscoe continues to be one of the better stars around here as he is able to work well with anyone. At the same time, this was another match where it felt like we were waiting around for the inevitable finish. Briscoe is ready for his big title shot next week, and having him beat up Fletcher’s only so successful partner won’t give him a ton of momentum.

Scorpio Sky, with Christopher Daniels, wants the TNT Title back.

Josh Alexander breaks Michael Nakazawa’s ankle and challenges Kenny Omega for Dynamite.

Here is MxM TV for their Casting Call (open challenge with any combination of the team).

Taya Valkyrie vs. Tay Melo

Melo chops away in the corner to start but Valkyrie takes her into the corner the sliding German suplex. That’s shrugged off and Melo is up with a flip dive to the floor, followed by the TayKO for the pin at 2:14.

Post match Marina Shafir comes in to deck Melo and chokes her out but Toni Storm runs in for the save.

Video on Hangman Page vs. Powerhouse Hobbs from Dynamite (a great match), setting up Page vs. Samoa Joe in a cage at Full Gear.

TNT Title: Kyle Fletcher vs. Scorpio Sky

Sky, with Christopher Daniels, is challenging and his offer of a handshake is kicked away. A wristlock works a bit better for Sky but Fletcher pulls him into one of his own. Fletcher gets back into the corner so he bails out to the floor, allowing Sky to steal his cape. Back in and it’s Sky working on the arm before goldbricking his way into a rollup for two.

A running forearm puts Fletcher outside again, where he drops Sky onto the apron. Fletcher even boots Daniels in the face, with the medics coming out to check on him as we take a break. We come back with Sky fighting out of a chinlock and telling Fletcher to bring it. Sky unloads with right hands in the corner and sends him outside for a quick hurricanrana off the apron.

Back in and a dragon screw legwhip drops Fletcher again, followed by a slingshot cutter to the apron. Granted it’s more the top of Fletcher’s head than anything else but that could have been rather painful otherwise. The half crab is broken up as Fletcher makes the rope and Fletcher hits a running boot in the corner. The brainbuster retains the title at 15:11.

Rating: B. While it was as predictable of a result as possible, it was at least a harder hitting and more interesting match. That’s good to see and not at all surprising, with Sky being someone who can do just about anything. Fletcher needs some momentum on the way to Full Gear and a hard fought match with a former champion isn’t a bad way to go.

Post match Sky gets beaten down, with SkyFlight and Mark Briscoe running in for the save. Briscoe tells Fletcher to give the title some kisses and hugs, because it’s coming home with him at Full Gear. Fletcher reveals he’s one win away from the all time defense record in a single reign. That’s not exactly important but I’m sure we’ll hear about it over and over.

The former Acclaimed, the Bang Bang Gang, Big Bill/Bryan Keith and the Outrunners are ready to fight for $200,000 at the Full Gear Kickoff Show.

We get a By The Numbers look at Mercedes Mone vs. Kris Statlander.

Riho/Alex Windsor vs. Hyan/Maya World

World backs Riho into the ropes to start but gets caught with a running knee in the corner. Windsor comes in but can’t get the Sharpshooter. Instead she settles for a running clothesline in the corner, followed by a running flip dive off the apron. We take a break and come back with Riho slipping out of a suplex and handing it off to Windsor. Everything breaks down and Hyan gets hit from behind, allowing Riho to grab a crucifix bomb for the pin at 7:49.

Rating: C. Hyan and World replace a team who were complaining about only having three minutes in the ring and get more than double that time shortly thereafter. That feels like a bit of a rub in the face and if so, good for AEW. Riho and Windsor get their warmup win before they’re in the tournament, which suggests that they shouldn’t be in the tournament in the first place yet here we are.

Post match Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa pop up on screen to say they’ll be facing Riho and Windsor in the first round. Violence is promised in the form of a bloody good time.

After Blood & Guts, the Conglomeration is thrilled that Kyle O’Reilly made Jon Moxley submit.

That’s enough for Moxley to get off commentary and grab the mic to challenge O’Reilly for anytime, anyplace.

Tay Melo respects Toni Storm and wants to fight Marina Shafir.

La Faccion Ingobernable/FTR vs. Juice Robinson/Jet Speed/Bandido

Bandido and Harwood start things off with Hardwood uppercutting away. A snap suplex drops Bandido and it’s off to Wheeler, who gets taken down by a spinning high crossbody. Bailey come sin and is quickly dropped, allowing Guevara to go up, drop back down, and hits a basement superkick. That doesn’t get Guevara very far as it’s off to Knight vs. Rush, with Knight having to clothesline his way out of trouble.

Robinson comes in to clean house with atomic drops and spinebusters, at least until Rush nails him with a forearm. Bandido and Bailey hit stereo Asai moonsaults to the floor and Knight’s DDT gets two on Harwood as we take a break. We come back with Bailey hitting a missile dropkick but getting caught in a belly to back DDT. The moonsault knees get Bailey out of trouble and the big tag brings in Bandido to clean house.

The frog splash gets two on Rush, who apron superplexes Bandido for two, with Bandido being stuck on his own. That doesn’t last long and it’s Bandido left alone with Rush. The Bull’s Horns are countered into a German suplex but Rush headbutts Bandido for a double down. Guevara hits a huge moonsault onto Robinson and Wheeler Gory Bombs Knight onto the apron. Bailey misses the moonsault knees on the apron but Bandido 21 Plexes Rush for the pin at 14:38.

Rating: B. Another exciting match with good action, though very little in the way of interest. It felt like a case where someone looked at the locker room and threw together whomever happened to be around into an eight man tag. In other words, it’s a perfect way to wrap up this particular edition of the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Here’s the thing about this show: it was perfectly fine from a wrestling perspective. At the same time, it was a show that you absolutely did not need to watch, with little (though some) storyline advancement other than a few challenges being laid out. It’s a show where you would probably have fun if you’re a diehard AEW fan and love anything they produce (nothing wrong with that), but if you’re looking for a show that moves things forward, just wait for Dynamite.

Results
Death Riders b. Tommy Billington/Jay Lethal/Adam Priest – Brutalizer to Lethal
Mark Briscoe b. Mark Davis – Froggy Bow
Tay Melo b. Taya Valkyrie – TayKO
Riho/Alex Windsor b. Hyan/Maya World – Crucifix bomb to Hyan
Bandido/Juice Robinson/Jet Speed b. FTR/La Faccion Ingobernable – 21 Plex to Rush

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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Ring Of Honor
Date: August 14, 2025
Location: Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

With Death Before Dishonor two weeks from tomorrow, things need to pick up a bit, as usual. The World Title match is officially set, but with three shows to go, that’s all we have. In theory we’ll get something else this week, though you never can tell with how things go on this show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Volador Jr./Difunto/The Beast Mortos/Hechicero vs. Spanish Announce Project/Alex Zayne/AR Fox

Lance Archer is here with Volador and company. Angelico and Hechicero start things off with Hechicero dancing out of a lockup. They trade legsweeps and covers for two each and it’s off to Fox vs. Difurto. Some takedowns don’t go very far so Fox grabs a swinging suplex, allowing the double tag to Mortos and Zayne. Mortos gets taken down for a running backsplash and it’s time for Serpentico vs. Volador. Serpentico sends him outside but Archer gets in a trip from the floor, allowing the villains to beat Serpentico down.

With Serpentico knocked outside, Angelico comes in and gets knocked outside as well. Zayn comes in and gets sent outside as well, meaning Fox is able to try his luck. This one works a bit better, including some cutters to drop Mortos and Difurto. Zayne is back in with a top rope splash for two on Hechicero as everything breaks down. Hechicero faceplants Zayne though and ties up his arms for a very rolling cradle and the pin at 9:29.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of putting too much in one match. Hechicero is coming up on a World Title match in just over two weeks and while he got the fall here, he was in the middle of a wild eight man tag. Wouldn’t it make more sense to have him go out there and pin someone, like say Zayne for instance, in a singles match to make him feel like more of a threat? As usual, the CMLL stars are entertaining, but it’s one random match after another with little ever feeling like it’s building anywhere.

Post match the villains keep up the beatdown but Bandido, Brody King, Tomohiro Ishii and Hologram make the save.

The Premiere Athletes are ready to face a team from CMLL, though Ariya Daivari’s idea of wearing a mask doesn’t work.

Willie Mack vs. Gringo Loco

They fight over a wristlock to start and then exchange cartwheels to escape takedown attempts. Back up and Loco jumps over him for a hip swivel, only for Mack to hit a running shoulder for one of his own. Did you get that they’re mirroring each other? I wasn’t sure if that and commentary explaining it every three seconds was making it clear enough. Loco knocks him down again but has to stick the landing on the switchfoot moonsault. Mack Stunners him into a running kick to the face, followed by the frog splash for the pin at 6:55.

Rating: C+. It was two bigger guys hitting each other with some flashy offense, which works well for a bit but doesn’t have the most staying power. At the same time, it doesn’t help that neither of them feel like they’re likely to go anywhere. Loco has been getting some more ring time in the Chicago residency, but that doesn’t make him much more interesting.

Lance Archer vs. Ren Jones

Archer jumps him in the aisle and beats him up around ringside. They go inside for the Black Out and the pin on Jones at 41 seconds. I’ve long since lost count of how many times Archer has done this but it’s losing its charm.

Video on Xelhua vs. Lee Moriarty.

We look at Toni Storm and Athena’s brawl from this week’s Dynamite.

Mina Shirakawa, who has been out of action since All In, wants to face Athena for the Women’s Title at Death Before Dishonor. Athena has sixty eight wins but she can’t sixty ni….never mind. Remember that Shirakawa is the Interim Women’s TV Champion so it might be time for another double champion!

Taya Valkyrie vs. Leila Grey

Johnny TV and Christopher Daniels are here too. Valkyrie poses to start and is quickly sunset flipped for an early near fall. TV gets in a quick trip as we’re again promised that the Women’s Pure Title tournament is coming (four months or so now). Valkyrie takes her outside for a bit before working on the arm back inside. Grey fights up with a faceplant and a Stunner gets two. TV offers a quick distraction so Daniels cuts him off, leaving Grey to hit another Stunner. This one sets up a dragon sleeper for the tap from Valkyrie at 5:29.

Rating: C-. Another match from more people who are jockeying for position for some title which has been coming for months now. That’s in addition to the Women’s Title (champion going after another title), the Women’s TV Title (champion injured) and Interim Women’s TV Title (champion going after another title). Maybe either slow down a bit or find a better way to present your women.

Willie Mack wants the TV Title and as luck would have it, Nick Wayne is RIGHT NEXT TO HIM, being surprised that Mack would say that. Wayne doesn’t seem scared.

Main Man Oro vs. Tomohiro Ishii

Oro is better known as Oro Mensah from his NXT days. Oro strikes away to start but gets knocked out of the air. That earns Ishii a kick to the chest and another to the back and we’re already into the chinlock. Back up and they strike it out until Ishii hits a hard clothesline. Oro grabs a tornado DDT across the top rope but Ishii blasts him with another clothesline. The brainbuster finishes Oro at 4:40.

Rating: C+. Oro got in a bunch of offense here and that was nice to see, though Ishii shrugging it off and hitting his finisher for the pin was a bit odd. Ishii getting a win is fine, though Oro didn’t do much to stand out here. He was athletic and high flying, but that would be the case for all kinds of people on this show. Maybe find something that makes you stand out more. Or stop signing so many people with similar styles.

We get a SPECIAL EPISODE tomorrow. Just in case this wasn’t enough you see.

Xelhua vs. Lee Moriarty

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning that if Xelhua wins or survives the ten minute time limit, he gets a future title shot. Xelhua works on the arm but gets reversed into a quickly broken abdominal stretch. Back up and Xelhua works on the arm again but Moriarty takes him down by the leg. That’s broken up so Moriarty goes for the arm, sending Xelhua over to the arm.

Xelhua ties up Moriarty’s legs and arms, meaning Moriarty uses his first rope break. Moriarty is fine enough to hit a springboard clothesline for two before tying up the arms again. Xelhua’s second rope break gets him out, meaning it’s a leglock to make Moriarty use his second break as well. The Fang into the Border City Stretch has Xelhua in more trouble, only for him to escape on his own this time. The Stretch is broken up again and Xelhua ties up the arms as time expires at 10:00.

Rating: B-. The fans being rather quiet for this sums up the problem: there is little reason to care about this match. Xelhua has had one match in ROH before this, which was two weeks ago against someone else who isn’t around here. It doesn’t help that this wasn’t the title match, but more or less a glorified dress rehearsal. Odds are this sets up a rematch for Death Before Dishonor,

The rematch is made for Death Before Dishonor to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. On one hand I do appreciate something being announced for Death Before Dishonor, but the pay per view is still feeling incredibly slapped together. Mina Shirakawa being back for revenge on Athena is fine, but the Pure Rules Title hasn’t felt important in years and this isn’t changing that issue. Other than that, we had a lot of guest stars and people who don’t make regular appearances around here, which makes this show feel like it could have been one (short) email rather than an hour long broadcast. The action is fine, but the show feels like the afterthought of afterthoughts and that’s been old.

Results
Volador Jr./Difunto/The Beast Mortos/Hechicero b. Spanish Announce Project/Alex Zayne/AR Fox – Spinning cradle to Zayne
Willie Mack b. Gringo Loco – Frog splash
Lance Archer b. Ren Jones – Black Out
Leila Grey b. Taya Valkyrie – Dragon sleeper
Tomohiro Ishii b. Main Man Oro – Brainbuster
Lee Moriarty vs. Xelhua went to a time limit draw

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

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Dynamite
Date: June 11, 2025
Location: Theater Of The Clouds At Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Commentators: Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni, Taz

We’re back with another four hour block of AEW this week with Dynamite and Collision airing back to back under the name of Summer Blockbuster. Last week’s double length block ram out of steam in the end and hopefully they have paced it better this time. The big deal this week is Swerve Strickland vs. Will Ospreay so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Christopher Daniels tells Hangman Page that he can’t fight the Death Riders on his own. Daniels says he has some friends who can help Page if he’ll make some amends, with Page seemingly thinking about it. The Death Riders follow Page.

Opening sequence.

There is a cool setup here with the commentary desk opposite the hard camera.

Will Ospreay vs. Swerve Strickland

Prince Nana is here with Strickland. The fans HOLY S*** the intro and Strickland offers a handshake, with Ospreay eventually agreeing. They actually fight over the handshake until Ospreay starts flipping around and grabbing an armdrag. Strickland misses a legsweep and we get an early standoff. Strickland gets in a shot to the face to bust Ospreay’s nose so he comes back with a running hurricanrana.

Ospreay grabs the hand and fires off some chops so Strickland knocks him down with a single shot to show things are a bit more serious. Back up and Ospreay sends him to the floor but Strickland sticks the landing. That sets up a missed slingshot dive and Strickland grabs a suplex for two back inside. The armbar goes on but Ospreay strikes his way out. The Phenomenal Forearm sends Strickland outside again and this time the Sasuke Special connects as we take a break.

Back with Ospreay knocking him down again but the Oscutter is countered with a neckbreaker (that was great). Another neckbreaker is broken up so Strickland superkicks him out to the floor. Back in and Ospreay is draped over the top rope for the double stomp to the back and two. A running knee and the Hidden Blade both miss so Strickland tries to pull him into a suplex. That’s reversed into the Stundog Millionaire and Strickland slaps on the short armscissors.

Ospreay powers out of that as well and the Cheeky Nandos Kick sets up the poisonrana. Now the Oscutter can connect for two and they both need a breather. Strickland heads outside so Ospreay Hidden Blades him through the ropes (ouch) and we take another break. Back again with Ospreay’s kicks to the head getting on Strickland’s nerves. They go up with Ospreay pulling him down by the arm before grabbing a triangle choke.

That’s reversed into a failed Styles Clash attempt so Strickland hits a (Hangman Page) Deadeye for two. A quick Hidden Blade gives Ospreay a near fall of his own but he can’t follow up. They get to their knees and slug it out, with Ospreay laughing and doing the British version of Hulking Up.

Strickland strikes him back down though and hits the Swerve Stomp for two but Ospreay gets in a shot to the face. The Stormbreaker gets two so Ospreay teases the Tiger Driver 91, which is countered into a Vertebreaker. Strickland kicks him out to the apron and loads up the Swerve Stomp to the apron…and the time limit expires at 30:00.

Rating: B+. Oh of course this was really good. These are two of the most talented stars in all of AEW and they had time to do a long match together. It was one of those things that was all but guaranteed to be awesome and they made it work very well. Odds are these two are going to team up sooner or later and this might have been the catalyst to make that happen.

Post match Strickland says he is in so much pain and he wants to finish the match. Strickland wants sudden death but here are the Death Riders instead (Ospreay didn’t get to answer Strickland’s challenge). They surround the ring but here are the Young Bucks to jump Strickland instead. The Bucks handcuff Strickland to the ropes and start firing off the superkick. The thumbtacks shoes are loaded up but Ospreay runs in and takes the bullet, allowing the Bucks to leave. And there is the moment that will get them together.

Kazuchika Okada…is cut off by Don Callis, who thinks some of his guys should be facing Kenny Omega. The Family comes in and Okada calls Callis b****. This story REALLY does not need Callis.

MVP shows us the Hurt Syndicate attacking Komander and taking his mask.

Mistico vs. Blake Christian

Lee Johnson is here as well. Christian flips him off to start and grabs an anklescissors. Mistico grabs the hand and goes up but gets pulled back down in a heap. Christian stomps away until Mistico comes back with a handspring elbow. A dive to the floor takes Christian out again, followed by a springboard high crossbody back inside. Johnson offers a distraction though and Christian kicks him down. Christian goes up top and gets caught with a super Spanish Fly to give Mistico the pin at 4:12.

Rating: C+. This was a weird way to go as Christian controlled most of the match and Mistico didn’t get to do much that made him stand out. I know he’s going to be getting the big moment next week in his home arena and he absolutely should, but this was the definition of “it was ok”. Mistico didn’t show anything special here and I’m not sure why they booked it this way.

Post match the Hurt Syndicate comes out so MJF can say he’ll face Mistico. For one night only, MJF is dusting off the red, white and blue because he is a patriot. The big American flag (with MJF faces instead of stars) and streamers fall but Mistico says he’ll see him next week in Arena Mexico. Mistico says something in Spanish, so MJF calls him Sloppy Sin Cara. The brawl is on so the Hurt Syndicate comes in, with Jet Speed (Mike Bailey/Kevin Knight) and Mascara Dorado coming in for the save.

Hurt Syndicate vs. Mascara Dorado/Jet Speed

MVP is on commentary and this was a scheduled match. The Syndicate jumps them to start and MJF punches Dorado down. Dorado gets in a shot of his own and hands it off to Bailey to fire off the kicks. A low bridge sends Dorado outside though and we take a break. Back with Dorado diving over for the needed tag off to Knight.

A spinning splash gives Knight two and we get a showdown with Jet Speed against the champs. Bailey is quickly planted with a spinebuster and it’s off to MJF, who spikes Bailey for two. Bailey fights up and brings in Dorado, who gets speared down by Lashley. Everything breaks down and Jet Speed clears the ring, setting up big dives to the floor. MVP gets in a cane shot to Bailey though and MJF’s lifting hammerlock DDT finishes at 11:24.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure about this Hurt Syndicate stuff with MJF, as after the “will they/won’t they” part was done, a lot of the intrigue was gone. Maybe they have a nice twist coming up, but there was only so much you could get out of this. Granted I’m always a sucker for seeing Bailey get beaten up.

Post match the Syndicate beats them down again and MJF takes Dorado’s mask. Cue Mistico to make MJF tap to La Mistica.

Here is Hangman Page for a chat…but the Death Riders jump him in the entrance. They beat him down and tape up his mouth (come on, he’s not that bad of a promo) before taking him to the ring. Jon Moxley apologizes for this in advance but wants a real conversation. This is Page’s time and All In is everything for him.

Moxley doesn’t like the millennial cowboy and Page has been searching for something for a long time. In four weeks, Page needs to step up and become what he is supposed to be or he can get out. Page lunches at him and gets beaten down so the Opps run in for the save. Page says he has come too far to just fall, and swears vengeance tonight. Well at least that should be something for Collision.

Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford vs. Tay Melo/Anna Jay

Jay wants and receives Bayne to start but then hands it off to Melo. Not that it matters as everything breaks down anyway and Ford pulls Melo to the floor. Melo gets sent into the steps, leaving Bayne to splash Jay in the corner. Jay slugs away at Ford to get out of trouble but gets booted down by Bayne as we take a break.

Back with Melo coming in to clean house, including a running knee for two on Ford. Melo fires off three running boots to Bayne and sends her outside, where Jay nails a middle rope dive. Back in and Jay chokes Bayne, leaving Melo to hit the TayKO (I think that’s what it was called at least) for the pin on Ford at 10:22.

Rating: C+. Remember like two months ago when Bayne was this brand new unstoppable force and looked like a can’t miss prospect? Well now she’s just the big strong woman in a tag match to get Melo over again after two years away. That’s not the best way to use her, but it happens to a lot of people in AEW. Hopefully this is just a short term thing though, because it feels like quite the waste of a great prospect.

We take a long look at Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada, focusing on their time in Japan. Eh if it’s all you’ve got.

Tony Schiavone is in the ring for the contract signing between Omega and Okada. With both champions present, we see the (rather nice) new unified title. Okada signs with no issue but Omega has something to say. Omega talks about how it is almost seven years since their last match and he barely recognizes himself in that video package. He wants them both to leave it all in the ring at All In and signs.

They shake hands and say some things that we can’t hear….and here is Don Callis. He wants one of his guys in the match but Omega says he’s beaten the Family and if they want a title shot, get back in line. This is Omega vs. Okada….and Okada hits Omega with the belt because he’s part of the Family. Okada hits him in the ribs with a rod and Omega does a stretcher job to end the show. Let me put this simply: No. No no. No no no, no no. No and may I add, NO. THIS DOES NOT NEED DON CALLIS. He doesn’t need to be involved in every thing that AEW does. Drop this as soon as possible because Okada vs. Omega doesn’t need him.

Overall Rating: B. The opener is more than good enough to carry this show as a fourth of the entire thing is on an awesome match. The six man was fine enough and the main event segment worked until Callis got in there. This was a good show overall, and while I don’t really want to see the second half of the night, at least they’re getting ready for All In and that’s what the focus needs to be on for a good while.

Results
Swerve Strickland vs. Will Ospreay went to a time limit draw
Mistico b. Blake Christian – Super Spanish Fly
Hurt Syndicate b. Mascara Dorado/Jet Speed – Lifting hammerlock DDT to Bailey
Anna Jay/Tay Melo b. Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford – TayKO to Ford

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

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