Ring Of Honor
Date: May 14, 2026
Location: SoFi Center, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s the night before Supercard Of Honor and this is the second Ring Of Honor show of the week. The bonus show from Tuesday was a big preview for Supercard and it worked out pretty well. There is a good chance that this will be a slightly longer version of that, though the TV Title is on the line here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Tuesday’s show if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Maya World/Lacey Lane/Yuka Sakazaki vs. Marina Shafir/Athena/Billie Starkz

Athena flips out of Sakazaki’s hiptoss to start and they’re already in a standoff for a handshake. Shafir comes in and easily takes Sakazaki down so it’s off to Lane, who has to escape a choke. We get the fight over a six woman suplex with Athena’s team getting the better of things. Everything breaks down and Athena holds up World and Lane at the same time until a superkick knocks them all down.

Sakazaki gets caught in the wrong corner and Athena hammers away but also runs over to the corner to knock the other two off. Starkz comes in for two but Sakazaki fires off some elbows to Athena. That’s not enough for the tag though as Sakazaki gets pulled back into the middle.

A discus forearm drops Athena so Shafir comes in, leaving World and Athena to brawl on the floor. Sakazaki gets over for the tag to Lane, who cleans house and Death Valley Drivers Lane for two. Shafir and World brawl on the floor until Sakazaki takes them both out with a dive. Lane and Starkz trade kicks to the head with Starkz getting the better of things. The Swanton connects but Athena tags herself in and steals the pin at 11:28.

Rating: B-. Take a bunch of people in a title match and put them into a six woman tag with a few others thrown in to fill out the card. It’s a good preview for the match and Athena gets to look strong on her way into what is probably her toughest title defense to date. Athena almost has to lose tomorrow night I’ve been saying that for….years now?

Tommy Billington/Adam Priest vs. Death Riders

Of course it’s Wheeler Yuta/Daniel Garcia and Jon Moxley/Pac are with them. Garcia takes Billington down and gives him a quick kick, which has Billington annoyed. Priest comes in and Garcia hands it off to Yuta, likely out of fear. A double suplex drops Billington ribs first onto the top rope and a knee drop gives Garcia two. Yuta ties up the leg and Priest gets knocked off the apron to prevent a tag that wasn’t even being attempted.

Billington pops up and runs over for the tag (that was sudden), allowing Priest to clean house. The half crab goes on and Yuta’s kicks just annoy Priest, who grabs the same hold on him instead. Priest lets go to slug it out with Garcia and Yuta’s running knee misses. Billington gets piledriven and an STO/running knee combination finishes Priest at 10:37.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of a technically acceptable match which wasn’t overly interesting because neither team is doing anything. Billington and Priest had that feud with the Lethal Twist to boost them up a bit and now they’re stuck in the same place as so many other teams. On the other hand you have Garcia and Yuta, who are on every hand because the Death Riders have to be involved in everything.

Added to Supercard Of Honor: Mark Davis defending the AEW National Title against Xelhua.

Satnam Singh vs. CD Bennett/James Tapia

Singh throws them around and hits the double crossbody before shrugging them off again. The double chokeslam finishes for Singh at 1:32. This is something that is mainly for the live audience so they can see the giant but since EVERYTHING MUST BE FILMED AND AIRED around here, this is what we get.

Angelico vs. Josh Woods

Pure Rules. They fight over arm control to start with Woods spinning around and grabbing a snapmare. Angelico grabs the arm and that makes Woods accidentally back into the ropes for the first break. Woods is mad enough to drive Angelico into the corner and then plant him down, where Angelico gets in a kick to the head. That’s shrugged off and Rolling Chaos Theory finishes Angelico at 3:44.

Rating: C+. Yeah cool. Now that Woods has been built up as the most amazing technical wrestler anywhere, how many months do we wait before he gets his title shot? I’m going to go with fewer than whomever gets the random title match at the pay per view, because Ring Of Honor likes to play the REALLY long game with title shots. Or they do the opposite and hand them out at random. Either way, there is pretty much no need for one Pure Rules Title, let alone two.

Post match Woods goes after the arm and beats up Serpentico as well. Nigel McGuinness runs in for the save, but Woods bails from the threat of a fight.

Red Velvet talks about going way back with Viva Van and knows how hard Van has worked to get here. Velvet has carried this division on her back (What division?) and it’s time for Van to step in the ring with the backbone of this division (WHAT DIVISION?). Yeah that’s all well and good. Forgive me for not thinking that someone who is 1-17 in Ring Of Honor is a threat to the title.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Eddie Kingston/Ortiz/Mance Warner vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

The Promotions are defending and it’s a big brawl before the bell. Ortiz and Bravo start things off and it’s off to Warner for some Snake Eyes. Kingston comes in to shoulder Taylor to no avail so Kingston goes with a shot to the face instead. A suplex doesn’t work though and Taylor takes him into the corner for some clubberin.

Dean adds a Bronco Buster into a chinlock, with Kingston getting back up. Kingston chops away at Taylor and manages to plant him off a charge. Warner comes in to clean house, including the big poke to Bravo’s eyes. Everything breaks down and Warner’s running knee gets two on Bravo. Christian XO offers a distraction though and it’s a belly to back suplex neckbreaker combination to finish Warner and retain the titles at 8:52.

Rating: C+. This was every “champions vs. thrown together team” title match that you would see. It’s the same idea of most of the Pure Rules Title matches: the champions are more experienced and know how to do this kind of match so they retain the titles. If only there were a few challengers who had done this same kind of match over and over as well, they might actually have some more interesting challengers.

Video on Blake Christian vs. Bandido.

Blake Christian vs. Evil Uno

This is Christian’s first singles match in Ring Of Honor this year and he has the rest of the Lethal Twist with him. Christian jumps him to start fast and gets knocked into the corner for some rapid fire clotheslines. Uno’s piledriver is countered with a backdrop though and Christian gives him a basement dropkick out to the floor.

Back in and a springboard elbow puts Uno down and Christian gets to talk trash. Uno comes back with a running boot into a DDT for two, only for Christian to send him into the ropes. Christian puts on the Bandido mask but the 21 Plex is blocked. Instead it’s a Lethal Injection into a Shining Wizard into the Vanilla Choke Zero to give Christian the win at 4:15.

Rating: C. Well, it’s better than not having him wrestle before the title match. I have no idea why I’m supposed to care about Christian’s singles success when he hasn’t done it for about five months but that’s the likely co-main event for the show. Uno was just cannon fodder here and that’s what he should be in bigger matches.

Post match Christian promises to win the World Title.

Lee Moriarty gives Ace Austin a Pure Rules Title shot.

Austin is undefeated in Ring Of Honor and even though he’s lost in AEW, he’s getting better! It’s inevitable that he’ll be a champion and it will happen tomorrow.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kaci Lennox

Non-title Pure Rules Proving Ground match. The bigger Lennox tries to go with the power to start but has to get out of a piledriver attempt. Back up and Lennox knocks her into the corner for some trash talk, followed by a clothesline for two. Purrazzo has had it with this though and pulls Lennox into the Fujiwara armbar for the win at 3:36.

Rating: C-. This was in fact Purrazzo doing the Pure Rules thing that she has proven she’s great at for…like a year plus now? I’m really not sure why we needed to see her do it again and the match didn’t have time to get anywhere. At least Purrazzo has an actual feud coming up at Supercard, which puts her further than most of her other title defenses.

Post match Diamante runs in and hits Purrazzo with the belt before giving her a Fujiwara armbar.

Outrunners/Dalton Castle vs. Baby Keef/Charlie Malachite/Xander Maddox

Magnum and Malachite fight over a headlock to start until Magnum chops him into the corner. For some reason Keef comes in to try some shots to the back, meaning the Outrunners get to beat up all three of them at once. Castle comes in to fire off the suplexes and it’s a triple slam to Malachite. There’s the Mega Powers Elbow to give Castle the pin at 3:14.

Rating: C. Cool now the Outrunners and Castle, who have been winning six man matches for months on end, get their title match right? I mean of course they probably won’t because that’s not how Ring Of Honor works, but it’s certainly the logical way to go. Otherwise, it’s just the same win that they get ever time, albeit against an opponent named Baby Keef this time.

Athena is ready to win but Billie Starkz comes in to ask what that was about. Athena doesn’t want to hear about this because she has kept Starkz around for three years now and it’s time for everyone to acknowledge what she has done. Starkz is annoyed but thanks her, with Athena telling her to follow the plan tomorrow night.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Hyan vs. Zayda Steel

Maya World and Christopher Daniels are here too. They trade small packages to start and pop up for a standoff. Hyan nails a basement dropkick but gets sent face first into the buckle. Steel knocks her outside, where Hyan blocks a suicide dive and hits a suplex on the floor. Back in and Steel pulls her into an STF so Hyan crawls to the rope, which she grabs with her teeth. That lets them trade rollups for some near falls until Hyan blocks an Unprettier attempt. Instead Steel grabs a swinging Unprettier for the pin at 5:04.

Rating: C+. This was a case where something had to be covered and they did it in a rather simple way. That’s not a bad thing either, as Steel or Hyan going forward is fine. If nothing else, it was nice to have a match that felt like it had some stakes, as it’s hard to imagine that Athena leaves with the title. Why not Steel? I mean other than she’s still relatively new and feels like a longer term project, but at least she’s in there.

Post match respect is shown.

TV Title: AR Fox vs. Nick Wayne

Fox is challenging and Wayne’s associates are here with him. They start fast with an exchange of rollups for two each until Fox slingshots in for an anarchist suplex. Wayne bails to the floor where he catches Fox with a shot to the ribs. That just earns him a step up moonsault from the middle rope, allowing Fox to clothesline away back inside. Kip Sabian crotches Fox on top though and Sliced Bread off the steps drops Fox on the floor. Mother Wayne adds some choking and Nick’s legdrop gets two.

The seated abdominal stretch keeps Fox in trouble but he’s right back up with a running hanging DDT. Fox pulls him into a cutter and hits a package powerbomb for two more. Nick is right back with a standing Sliced Bread for two of his own and a shot to the back keeps Fox in trouble. Code Red gives Nick two more but Fox seems to get ticked off. Fox knocks him outside for the big running flip dive but the Swanton hits raised knees back inside. Back up and Fox grabs a small package out of nowhere for the pin and the title at 12:58.

Rating: B. Cool. I was wrong about Ring Of Honor never doing anything with Fox and it’s nice to see him get some gold. That’s a nice surprise and rather long overdue, but it also gives you a reason to believe that someone could get a title win out of nowhere. It’s not like Nick was doing anything with the title so this is a nice change of pace.

Post match Lio Rush (he’s crazy again) pops up issue the challenge for the title for Supercard and the match is immediately made. Please don’t put it on Rush. Please?

Premiere Athletes vs. Ernest R. Alexander/Jacey Love/Ricky Martinez

Because this show can’t just end already. Nese backs Alexander into the corner to start and gets in some quick jumping jacks. Alexander tries to do the same and gets clotheslined down, allowing Daivari to come in to hammer away. Denali drops Love onto the turnbuckle but Love gets over to Martinez. That earns him a beatdown of his own and Denali chokeslams Love for the pin at 3:29.

Rating: C-. The Athletes are the perfect example of “they’re just kind of here” in Ring Of Honor. They don’t have feuds and they don’t have anything to go after at the moment, but they’re around almost every week. I have no idea why anyone would want to see them that often, but that has been the case since Ring Of Honor came back.

Bandido vs. Action Andretti

Non-title Proving Ground match and this is Bandido’s first singles match in Ring Of Honor since September. Bandido flips around to start but Andretti sticks the landing on a hurricanrana attempt. Back up and Bandido sends him into the corner, earning a handshake from Bandido. Andretti sends him into the corner and does a quick dance before knocking Bandido outside.

That means the big flip dive can connect and Andretti grabs a belly to back suplex for two. Bandido muscles him up and over with a suplex though and adds a corkscrew high crossbody. The frog splash misses for Bandido so Andretti gives him a hurricanrana for two more. Back up and Bandido grabs the one armed gorilla press for two and Andretti flips into the X Knee for the pin at 7:45.

Rating: B-. Oh yeah Bandido works here. Given that he hadn’t wrestled in Ring Of Honor for nearly four months, it was kind of hard to remember. The match was fast paced enough, but dang it’s hard to get interested in this after two hours tonight alone. Bandido vs. Christian doesn’t feel important, but at least Bandido was here to promote the match.

Post match Blake Christian comes out to throw Bandido the mask, because he only cares about the title.

Overall Rating: C. This was a Ring Of Honor show and while it felt important for the sake of the big push towards Supercard, this and Tuesday’s show combined for about three hours. That doesn’t make me want to watch the pay per view, but rather take a break from Ring Of Honor. It was like they had to cram the build for Supercard into the last two shows and that doesn’t make for a fun way to go. This show felt WAY more important than usual, but trim off a good forty five minutes (it wouldn’t be hard) and maybe do some of this stuff over the last two weeks instead of two days. You know, what Ring Of Honor won’t do.

Results
Marina Shafir/Athena/Billie Starkz b. Maya World/Lacey Lane/Yuka Sakazaki – Swanton to Lane
Death Riders b. Tommy Billington/Adam Priest – Running knee/STO combination to Priest
Satnam Singh b. CD Bennett/James Tapia – Double chokeslam
Josh Woods b. Angelico – Rolling Chaos Theory
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Mance Warner/Ortiz/Eddie Kingston – Belly to back suplex neckbreaker combination to Warner
Blake Christian b. Evil Uno – Vanilla Choke Zero
Deonna Purrazzo b. Kaci Lennox – Fujiwara armbar
Outrunners/Dalton Castle b. Baby Keef/Charlie Malachite/Xander Maddox – Mega Powers Elbow to Malachite
Zayda Steel b. Hyan – Swinging Unprettier
AR Fox b. Nick Wayne – Small package
Premiere Athletes b. Ernest R. Alexander/Jacey Love/Ricky Martinez – Chokeslam to Love
Bandido b. Action Andretti – X Knee

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

Dynasty 2026
Date: April 12, 2026
Location: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back on pay per view for what doesn’t feel like the biggest show. That’s been the case before though and things have wound up going rather well so maybe they have another one up their sleeves here. The main event is MJF defending the World Title against Kenny Omega so let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Alex Windsor vs. Marina Shafir

Windsor’s New Japan Strong Women’s Title isn’t on the line. They go right to the slugout to start with Windsor taking her down. Shafir can’t get the armbar all the way in but there’s enough damage to put Windsor in trouble. Another armbar on the ropes sends Windsor outside and Shafir sends her hard into the barricade. Back in and a judo throw takes Windsor down and Shafir steps on her face, which has the fans rather upset.

A whip into the corner has Windsor in more trouble but she manages to send Shafir outside for a breather. Shafir gets back inside and is shouldered down a few times but blocks a Sharpshooter attempt. Back up and another armbar has Windsor in trouble and they strike it out again. A kick to the face puts Windsor down and they get a double breather. Windsor tells her to bring it before grabbing….call it a t-bone DDT for the pin on Shafir at 8:42.

Rating: C+. This was almost a squash until Shafir came out of nowhere with the surprise pin. I do like Windsor winning here though, as Shafir is kind of locked into her spot as one of the Death Riders’ enforcers and doesn’t really need to win anything. On the other hand you have Windsor, who could be turned into a title contender pretty quickly if need be. I’m not sure why this was on the pre-show, as it had enough of a story to be a main roster match, but they got the result right.

Zero Hour: Kamille vs. Big Anne

So Kamille attacked Willow Nightingale and ruined the open challenge for the TBS Title so she gets this instead, ending her 500+ day hiatus from AEW. Kamille stomps away in the corner and hits a pump kick, followed by a torture rack powerbomb for the fast pin at 1:25 to complete the squash. Cool. Now do something with her.

Post match a taped up Nightingale comes in and gets beaten up again.

National Title: Mark Davis vs. Jack Perry

Perry is defending. Davis throws him down to start and knocks Perry’s flying shoulder out of the air. Back up and Perry dropkicks him to the floor but Davis grabs a dive out of the air. That’s escaped as well and Perry hits a quick 619 around the post. They get back inside, with Perry getting knocked back into the corner for a running elbow and backsplash to give Davis two. The chinlock goes on but Perry is right back up to low bridge him to the floor.

Perry grabs a Sliced Bread out of the corner but can’t grab a piledriver. Instead Davis sends him to the apron for a big running shoulder and a suplex slam drops him onto the apron. The piledriver is broken up back inside though, with Perry eventually swinging around into a DDT. Perry hits his own piledriver for two but Davis is back with an enziguri. A quick hurricanrana is enough for Perry to retain the title at 8:30.

Rating: B. I liked this one way more than I was expecting to, as they told a good story out there. It was Perry in over his head physically so he had to pick some shots where he could. That wound up working well, partially because Davis is becoming pretty awesome at being a powerhouse. Good stuff here and a rather nice surprise.

Zero Hour: Women’s Tag Team Titles: Hyan/Maya World vs. Megan Bayne/Lena Kross

Kross and Bayne are defending and Kross knocks World down to start. World pops right back up and brings in Hyan to face Bayne. A hurricanrana out of the corner takes Bayne down but she knocks both of them outside without much trouble. Bayne’s suplex sets up a basement crossbody for two and some running pump kicks in the corner drop Hyan for two. Hyan manages to low bridge Bayne to the floor but it’s still not enough for the tag.

Bayne misses a charge into the post though and it’s back to World to pick up the pace on Kross. Everything breaks down and a running knee into a neckbreaker drops Kross for two. That doesn’t last long as Kross kicks her way out of trouble and Bayne fall away slam/Samoan drops the challengers. The double chokeslam is broken up and World is back with a double DDT. Hyan dives onto the floor and World adds a moonsault onto both villains. A TKO gets two on Kross but Bayne boots World into a German suplex. The double chokeslam retains the titles at 10:38.

Rating: B-. The champs had to break a sweat here and I’ll take that as a nice surprise. Hyan and World aren’t a successful team and were little more than cannon fodder here but at least the action wound up being good. I’m not sure who is going to take the titles from Kross and Bayne, but this was closer than I was expecting.

And now, the show proper.

Konosuke Takeshita/Kazuchika Okada vs. Young Bucks

Don Callis is on commentary. Takeshita shoulders Nick down to start so it’s off to Okada, who shakes Takeshita’s hand on the way in. Okada’s slingshot hilo connects but Nick is up with the springboard wristdrag/armdrag combination. Matt comes in to sunset flip Nick, who German suplexes Takeshita at the same time. The TK Driver is loaded up but Nick headfakes Okada into missing a dropkick in a funny spot.

Matt gets knocked down and Takeshita grabs a chinlock, leaving Callis to call for getting Matt’s eye (he’s offering money). Callis goes after Matt’s eye on the floor and Okada is over to pull Nick to the floor, meaning there’s no tag. That lets Okada grab the Bucks’ gear for some posing (Callis: “What a fiery young babyface!”) but Matt manages to knock both of them down. Nick comes in to make the rapid fire comeback and the fans certainly approve.

The Bucks are sent to the apron but come back with stereo sunset flips into Sharpshooters. That leaves Okada and Takeshita facing each other and slapping one another in the face rather than tapping. They eventually make the ropes so the Bucks take them down with the superkicks. A top rope elbow and Swanton get a double near fall but Okada breaks up another TK Driver attempt. The Family hit a Tombstone each and Matt gets sent flying with an overhead release German superplex.

Nick is back in for the save and everyone is down again. Okada is up with his falling top rope elbow to Nick but it’s a sunset flip into a German suplex to put everyone down again. Takeshita’s running knee drops both Bucks but he can’t cover as the fans are rather enthused. Back up and they slug it out until Okada hits Takeshita and they forearm each other.

Matt gets between them and then sends them into each other so Takeshita’s running knee hits Okada. Takeshita breaks up the BTE Trigger but Okada Rainmakers him by mistake. The BTE Trigger gets two on Okada…and Takeshita leaves him to take the TK Driver for the pin at 20:12.

Rating: B+. This got rather good and they were doing a nice job of tying the story between Takeshita and Okada into the match. There was only so much of a reason for these teams to fight so having the Family fighting among themselves (again) was a good idea. If nothing else, we might finally gets the Takeshita vs. Okada grudge match, which has been built for…ever?

Post match Takeshita leaves and Callis is livid.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Ricochet. Jericho returned, Ricochet didn’t like it, the match was set.

Chris Jericho vs. Ricochet

The Gates Of Agony are here with Ricochet. Jericho takes him down to start fast and mocks Ricochet a bit, followed by his stolen camera deal. Ricochet flips into his pose and gets chopped down, setting up Jericho’s running bulldog. The Lionsault is shoved off though and the Death Valley Driver plants Jericho on the apron. Jericho is sent shoulder first into the post and Ricochet nails his slingshot dropkick in the corner.

The bad arm is bent around the ropes, with Liona getting in some pulling of his own. Ricochet cranks on the arm but Jericho gets back up to avoid a dropkick. Now the Lionsault connects but the Walls attempt is countered. A kick to the back lets Jericho try it again, only for Liona to offer a distraction so Kaun can send him into the corner. Jericho fights up and they slug it out from their knees but Ricochet grabs the Detonation Kick.

Vertigo gets two so Ricochet goes up and gets crotched back down almost immediately. Ricochet kicks him away and tries the shooting star press but gets Codebreakered out of the air for two instead. The Walls go on so of course the Gates get involved for the save. Jericho dives onto all three of them and hits a Judas Effect on Kaun. That doesn’t get rid of Liona though, who is right there with a running clothesline. Back in and Ricochet hits a shooting star press for two, followed by a Spirit Gun. That’s not enough for a cover though, as Ricochet adds a Lionsault for the pin at 19:12.

Rating: B. This had its moments and I was a bit surprised by the result, but I’m more worried about this being the high point for Jericho’s return. There is a good chance that he goes to find some new lackeys to help him deal with the Gates and that’s not the best sign for his future. It was a nice return and the fans liked it, though I’m worried about how long those good feelings are going to last.

We recap Darby Allin vs. Andrade El Idolo. Allin wants the World Title and MJF has paid the Don Callis Family to stop him. Therefore, if Allin wins here, he gets the title shot.

Darby Allin vs. Andrade El Idolo

Idolo powers him into the corner to start so Allin comes back with a rather aggressive headlock. That’s broken up rather quickly and Idolo pulls him into a surfboard to have Allin in some early pain. Idolo is up with the Tranquilo pose in the ropes so Allin gets smart by knocking him to the floor. A woman at ringside inspires Idolo to fight back and grab a suplex while walking Allin up the steps.

Now it’s time to meet said woman, allowing Allin to take him out with a dive. They fight into the crowd and go up the steps, with Allin dropkicking him back down. Allin throws him back inside (after three minutes and fifteen seconds on the outside because countouts are a thing of the past) and gets caught in the Three Amigos, with the third sending him into the corner. Andrade’s running knees miss though and Allin grabs the flipping Stunner. They go up top with Allin grabbing…some kind of a flipping slam into a crossface, which sends Idolo into the ropes.

Idolo heads back outside and gets caught with a suicide dive, though Allin hits the announcers’ table instead. A bite to the head has Idolo in more trouble and they slowly get back inside. Andrade goes to the apron and suplexes Allin to the floor, because of course he’ll take that bump.

Back in and the running knees hit Allin in the corner for two so Idolo takes his (I’ll let you guess whose) pants off. The double moonsault gets two on Allin but he’s back up with a Scorpion Death Drop out of the corner. The Coffin Drop gets two, with Idolo having to grab the referee’s arm. Back up and the spinning elbow gives Idolo two but Allin grabs a quick Last Supper for the pin at 16:33.

Rating: B. Allin seems to be on his way to the main event scene and that’s pretty overdue. There are very few wrestlers who get the same kinds of reactions as Allin and it was nice to see him not do a bunch of stupid stuff. Allin has the wrestling abilities to make something like this work and he did rather well here, though Idolo loses something without the pants.

We recap FTR vs. Adam Copeland/Christian Cage for the former’s Tag Team Titles. Copeland and FTR were really close but FTR turned on him, even attacking his wife. Copeland left for a bit and came back with Cage to reform their famous team to get revenge. And the titles. FTR did attack Cage’s arm on Dynamite so he’s coming in banged up.

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

FTR, with Stokely, is defending. Copeland and Wheeler won’t shake hands to start so the four way brawl is on. The Canadians take over and it’s a side slam/reverse DDT combination to put Harwood down. We settle back down but FTR takes over on Copeland anyway, with Harwood grabbing a chinlock. Wheeler misses a charge in the corner though and it’s off to Cage, who puts both champions in the ropes.

Cage stands on their back and a low blow cuts Harwood off. FTR is sent outside for a big dive out to the floor, which sets up the Unprettier for two as Wheeler makes the save. Cage’s arm is wrapped around the post and slammed into the post, followed by the seated armbar. The piledriver is broken up and Cage blocks the PowerPlex. A Swan Dive hits Harwood and it’s back to Copeland for the top rope clothesline.

Copeland and Cage load up a PowerPlex of their own but Cage’s splash hits knees. Harwood’s does as well though and we get stereo crossfaces on FTR. Those are broken up so Wheeler tries to bring in a title, which knocks Copeland silly. A 3D gets two on Harwood as Copeland is busted open. Stokely’s distraction sends Copeland running into the Shatter Machine, with Cage shoving Stokely into the cover for the save.

Copeland is back up with a spear for two and Cage goes to grab a chair. That earns him a posting and a toss over the announcers’ table, leaving Copeland to slug it out with FTR. That’s reversed into FTR’s version of the Young Bucks’ kicks, only for Copeland to spear both of them down. Back up and Copeland charges into the Shatter Machine to retain the titles at 21:05.

Rating: B. The match had the good moments you would expect as Copeland and Cage still have their chemistry together but having them lose here is quite the surprise. It felt like a layup to change the titles in the big moment for the Canadian fans but they went the other way instead. Copeland was the big star here, which isn’t a surprise, though Cage did look good in his return. FTR is still a heck of a team, but I’m not sure who is supposed to take the belts. As long as this doesn’t lead to another ladder match (it probably will), it should work out.

We recap the TNT Title match. Kyle Fletcher is injured, Casino Gauntlet match, end of recap.

TNT Title: Casino Gauntlet

For the vacant title with random intervals, first fall wins (can happen at any time so there is no guarantee of how many entrants you’ll get) and Tommaso Ciampa in at #1 and Rush in at #2. They slug it out to start and seem to enjoy an exchange of chops. Rush gets the better of things and knocks him into the corner for the cocky kick to the face. Ciampa is back up with a running knee in the corner and it’s Bandido in at #3.

Bandido starts fast with a running clip dive to Ciampa and a frog splash hits Rush, with Ciampa making the save. Rush is back up to throw Bandido down and go for the mask as Mike Bailey is in at #4. As usual, that means Bailey gets to clean house, with a running shooting star press hitting Ciampa for two. Rush chops Bailey down and El Clon is in at #5. Clon gets to fire off some kicks but we’re already up to Pac in at #6.

Pac’s corkscrew moonsault to the floor takes out a bunch of people and we get a Pac vs. Bandido vs. Bailey showdown. Hurricanranas abound and it’s Daniel Garcia in at #7. Garcia tries some fast rollups but gets superkicked by Clon for two. Anthony Bowens is in at #8 and gives Clon the running Fameasser. The wind up DDT out of the corner drops Pac for two and it’s Kevin Knight in at #9.

Jet Speed gets the better of the fight against the Death Riders and knock them to the floor for the stereo dives. Rush is back in to unload on Bowens in the corner and Bandido’s 21 Plex hits Garcia for a VERY close two. Wheeler Yuta is in at #10 and joins the pile, with Ciampa superplexing Knight onto a bunch of people. Pac throws Bailey back inside but Garcia is back with the Dragontamer to Bailey. Knight breaks that up with the UFO Splash and pins Garcia for the title at 21:21.

Rating: B. I love the result as Knight has felt like he has been ready to jump up to the next level for a long time now. Having him hopefully break out on his own is a good idea as we get to see where he’s going. At the same time, the match was fun but these things haven’t nearly reached the heights of the first editions. There were no surprising names here and it felt more like a big scramble, which isn’t quite as fun. Thankfully we aren’t seeing them as often, but throw a few curve balls in there next time.

We recap Jamie Hayter challenging Thekla for the Women’s Title. Thekla attacked Hayter when she arrived and now Hayter wants revenge.

Alex Windsor wishes Jamie Hayter luck.

Women’s Title: Thekla vs. Jamie Hayter

Thekla, with the Sisters Of Sin, is defending. Hayter slugs her down to start and hammers away but Thekla hits a quick spear to send Hayter outside. They trade right hands against the barricade with Hayter getting the better of things and trying a rather delayed suplex on the ramp.

She also tries one off the ramp but Thekla fights out and knocks Hayter down the ramp in a heap. Thekla’s big dive to the floor connects and a slap to the face drops Hayter again. The Black Widow is broken up as Hayter gets over to the rope so Thekla kicks her hard in the face. Hayter manages a suplex on the ramp and fires off some running clotheslines in the corner.

A Liger Bomb gives Hayter two and a Tombstone connects for the same. Hayter catches her up top with the spider suplex, followed by a top rope double stomp to the back. Hayter’s chokebreaker looks to set up the Hayterade but Thekla reverses into a rollup, while grabbing the rope, for the pin at 16:33.

Rating: B-. Another good one here, with Hayter feeling like just enough of a threat to take the title. That’s all this needed to be, as Hayter was little more than a filler on the way to the next really big challenger. I’m not sure who that is going to be, but Hayter is being built up rather well with these title defenses.

Post match Alex Windsor runs out and protests the rope hold but gets nowhere.

We recap Will Ospreay vs. Jon Moxley for the latter’s Continental Title. Moxley and the Death Riders hurt Ospreay’s neck so it’s time for more revenge.

Continental Title: Will Ospreay vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley is defending. The bell rings and Ospreay hits the Hidden Blade about a second later but doesn’t cover. Another Hidden Blade puts Moxley on the floor so Ospreay follows him for a hanging neckbreaker from the apron. Back in and Moxley tries a triangle choke, which is countered into a powerbomb. They head back outside with Ospreay loading up the steps but missing a running knee. Moxley snaps off a sleeper suplex back inside and things slow down a bit.

Back up and they slug it out before heading to the apron, where Ospreay takes over. Ospreay’s springboard is knocked out of the air though and they chop it out again. Ospreay tries a Spanish Fly but gets pulled into the bulldog choke. That’s broken up as well and Ospreay flips out of a belly to belly superplex. Some kicks to the face rock Moxley, who grabs a Paradigm Shift, only to get Hidden Bladed for a double down.

The referee almost gets bumped before Ospreay grabs a Styles Clash into a bulldog choke of his own. That’s broken up but Ospreay hits a third Hidden Blade, only to come out with his arm banged up. They head outside again, where Moxley hits a piledriver onto the steps. Ospreay beats the count so Moxley hits a Stomp and two Paradigm Shifts…for two. The Death Rider retains the title 18:12.

Rating: B. That ending is a bit of a surprise, but I’m assuming the idea here is that Ospreay was going too far after revenge and his body couldn’t hold up. That feels like more of a long term story, though it’s quite the move to have Ospreay lose here. Moxley is being built back up into the evil Superman and I’m not sure who is supposed to take the title from him. Either way, another good match.

Darby Allin is getting his World Title shot on Dynamite.

The Dogs won the Trios Titles last night on Collision. Now the Conglomeration wants the titles and have a mystery partner to come after them.

Trios Titles: Conglomeration/??? vs. The Dogs

The Dogs are defending but we cut to a Conglomeration sitcom set. Roderick Strong comes in (Orange Cassidy wants more sleep) but Kyle O’Reilly pop in to be the mystery partner. Makes sense. The Dogs break down the set and do various unpleasant things to the couch. O’Reilly takes Finlay down to start and sends him into the corner for the rapid fire kicks. Everything breaks down and the Conglomeration sends them outside to hit some dives.

The Dogs take over again and Cassidy gets sent into the corner as we settle down a bit. That doesn’t last long as Cassidy fights up and brings Strong in to clean house. Strong gets double teamed to put him in trouble but hang on as Kidd seems to be injured. The medics check on him as Strong fights up and hands it off to O’Reilly for the real comeback. The kicks abound and an ankle lock makes Connors tap the titles away at 9:50.

Rating: C+. This was fine and O’Reilly was a nice bonus (not the biggest surprise but that’s ok), though Kidd’s injury might have cut things short. Hopefully he’s ok as you never want to see someone get hurt, especially when the Dogs were finally starting to win a bit. The Conglomeration are fine as the new champions, as they’re certainly popular enough to hold the titles.

We recap MJF vs. Kenny Omega for the former’s World Title. MJF is the rather cocky champion and Omega wants the title back. Let’s go.

AEW World Title: Kenny Omega vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Omega is challenging. They circle each other for a bit to start before MJF tries an early Salt Of The Earth. That’s reversed into a rollup for two and Omega scares him out to the floor (oh yeah they’re going long). Back in and Omega snaps off a hurricanrana to send MJF outside again, this time for a slingshot dive. MJF drops him onto the barricade but Omega moonsaults off of it for the knockdown. A table is stomped onto MJF but Omega takes too long setting up the table.

That lets MJF get in a knockdown and the chinlock goes on back inside. An Alabama slam gives MJF two so he fakes a knee injury and grabs a piledriver for two on Omega. MJF’s V Trigger misses and Omega grabs a snapdragon, setting up the Fameasser from behind of two. MJF bails outside again and gets taken out by the big running flip dive. Back in and MJF bites in the corner but can’t hit a super Tombstone. Instead Omega fights back..but gets caught with a poisonrana.

Omega pops up with a running knee for two and they’re both down. The Heatseeker is blocked so MJF settles for the slingshot cutter for two instead. Omega breaks up You Can’t Escape and hits a V Trigger for two of his own. MJF escapes You Can’t Escape but gets hurricanranaed out to the floor. The means a moonsault from Omega and they both need a breather on the floor. Back in and MJF goes after the stomach before stereo crossbodies leave them both down again.

Omega’s dropkick gets two…and a super One Winged Angel knocks MJF silly. Omega can’t cover due to the stomach though and MJF manages to roll outside. Back in and another snapdragon gives Omega two so he tries another One Winged Angel. That’s reversed into a Cross Rhodes and a package piledriver for a rather near fall and MJF is ticked off. MJF slowly strikes away but Omega gets mad and beats him down in the corner, setting up a heck of a V Trigger.

The One Winged Angel is broken up though and the referee gets bumped. A low blow puts Omega down and MJF finds the Dynamite Diamond. The big shot misses and it’s another One Winged Angel…and another referee comes in to count two. That counts as kicking out of it for the first time, though it should have an asterisk. They go to the apron where MJF hits him in the stomach with the ring. A Tombstone through the table sets up the Heatseeker to retain at 38:50.

Rating: B+. It did feel like this big epic struggle and MJF beating Omega is going to be a big deal for him. The match probably went a bit longer than necessary, but the result was the right call as Omega can come back and win the title later. MJF gets to continue to establish himself as this big villain and it’s working well so far. Omega might not be as great as he was before, but he can still put on a heck of a performance. Great main event here, which isn’t a surprise.

MJF poses on his throne to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was another very good show, with the main event and a lot of other things delivering. At the same time, it was another show where I was just wanting it to be over with about an hour and a half to go. That’s par for the course for AEW, along with having a bunch of rather awesome matches. On on top of that, the villains won most of the top matches, which is quite the choice for a show like this. It’s a show worth a look, though as usual you might want to watch it in shifts, which isn’t the greatest feeling.

Results
Alex Windsor b. Marina Shafir – T-bone DDT
Kamille b. Big Anne – Torture rack powerbomb
Jack Perry b. Mark Davis – Hurricanrana
Megan Bayne/Lena Kross b. Hyan/Maya World – Double chokeslam to Hyan
Young Bucks b. Don Callis Family – TK Driver to Okada
Ricochet b. Chris Jericho – Lionsault
Darby Allin b. Andrade El Idolo – Last Supper
FTR b. Adam Copeland/Christian Cage – Shatter Machine to Copeland
Kevin Knight won the Casino Battle Royal – UFO Splash to Garcia
Thekla b. Jamie Hayter – Rollup while holding the rope
Jon Moxley b. Will Ospreay – Death Rider
Conglomeration/Kyle O’Reilly b. The Dogs – Ankle lock to Connors
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Kenny Omega – Heatseeker

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

It feels like we just had Revolution as AEW doesn’t often do such quick turnarounds. As a result, this show doesn’t feel quite as big as others, though the main event does seem important. So far there aren’t a ton of matches on the card and that gives me some hope, though I have no reason to believe that will last. There is some interesting stuff on the card thus far though so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Alex Windsor vs. Marina Shafir

Here we have the seconds for Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley having a match, which isn’t an awful idea. Windsor has been built up in recent weeks, though that has been as part of a tag team. At the same time, she’s coming off as tough enough to give Shafir a fight, which is hopefully what we’ll be seeing. At the same time, Shafir has been doing a bit more as a singles star in her own right so this could be trouble for Windsor.

It’s a singles match with a tag wrestler so I’ll go with Shafir to win here. It makes more sense for her to get the win as Ospreay can get the real win later. If nothing else, this could set up Shafir getting a partner to face the Brawling Birds. I’m not sure if this is the right choice for a Kickoff Show match, but at least it is set up rather than just a thrown together fight between slightly associated people.

Kickoff Show: Women’s Tag Team Titles: Megan Bayne/Lena Kross(c) vs. Hyan/Maya World

This was set up on Collision as Hyan and World (combined AEW record as a team: 0-5) just announced they were coming for the titles. As usual, winning and losing matches means pretty much nothing around here so this is what we’re getting. I’m fine with Bayne and Kross getting a title defense in, but even an open challenge would have been better than a team with no actual wins together getting the shot.

Of course I’ll take the champions to retain, as Hyan and World’s two match winning streak in Ring Of Honor (it only took them two and a half months) isn’t enough to make me think they’ll pull the upset. Hyan and World are hardly a bad team, but they’re not ready for this kind of a match no matter what they do. I’m not sure why they’re getting the shot, but just go with it and let the champs win a squash.

Kickoff Show: National Title: Jack Perry(c) vs. Mark Davis

This was thrown onto the card on Collision and it doesn’t have much of a build. That’s not a terrible thing as the title is little more than AEW’s version of the TV Title, which is perfect for a random title match. At the same time, Davis has been doing well enough as of late so throwing him out there for the shot is perfectly logical. If nothing else, Perry could use a title win after Ricochet’s time with the title was kind of a mess.

I’ll take Perry to retain here, as there is no reason to believe that Davis is going to get the title so out of nowhere. Perry getting to beat a big powerhouse should work well as he did that for a long time as Jungle Boy. Davis has that rather good looking piledriver and it’s enough of a weapon to make it feel like Perry is in jeopardy. Either way, Perry retains here in what could be a good match.

Women’s Title: Thekla(c) vs. Jamie Hayter

They’re in a weird spot here, as Hayter feels like she is mainly there as a replacement for Toni Storm. At the same time, Hayter is a former Women’s Champion and has the power game to be a perfectly acceptable challenger. Much like Windsor though, she’s mainly been doing tag stuff in recent months and that doesn’t give her the greatest momentum coming into the match.

I’ll take Thekla to retain here, as she’s doing rather well as champion thus far and it’s hard to imagine her dropping the title so soon. She’s also fresh off a feud with a powerhouse in Kris Statlander and I can’t quite imagine her dropping the title to a wrestler that similar to the one she beat for the title. It’s not a total guarantee that Thekla will win, but it’s what winds up happening.

Trios Title: The Dogs(c) vs. Conglomeration/???

The Dogs won the suddenly hot potatoing titles on Collision, which doesn’t quite make sense given their win/loss record but it’s not like these titles have the most logical history in the first place. After the match, the Conglomeration popped up on screen for the challenge, suggesting they’ll have a third man. Since this division isn’t a thing, that’s enough to set up a title match.

While the titles have been bouncing all over the place in recent weeks, I’ll still go with the new champions retaining. I’m assuming that it’s going to be the returning Kyle O’Reilly as the third man so it wouldn’t be the most out of nowhere pairing, but the Dogs need the win a lot more than the Conglomeration. If nothing else, I could go for the titles actually being successfully defended for more than 18 seconds.

Andrade El Idolo vs. Darby Allin

If there is some sanity around here, this should be wrestling 101. Allin is someone the fans have been behind since AEW started and it makes sense for him to want to go after the World Title. If he beats Idolo here, he gets the title shot, which is something that makes all the sense in the world. It’s an idea that has been done for years, but AEW doesn’t always do things that traditional way.

In this case, I’ll take AEW to do the right thing and have Allin win. While I’m sick of all of his antics and “hey look at me get hurt again!” stuff, he’s about as over of a face as there is in AEW. He has a connection with the fans and putting someone like that in the World Title picture writes itself. Hopefully it winds up working out, but it starts out by having Allin beat Idolo here in what could be a heck of a match.

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

This is a thing and yes the show is taking place in Canada, which should be the big telling point of the whole match. Cage had his arm Pillmanized on Dynamite though and that isn’t going to make things any easier. At the end of the day, this feels like one of the biggest layups on the entire card and in this case, it feels like something that we’re actually going to be seeing.

So yes, I’ll take what feels obvious and go with Copeland and Cage winning the Tag Team Titles. FTR is long established as one of the best teams in AEW history so it’s not like a loss here is going to hurt them. I’m not sure I want to see what feels like the upcoming Copeland/Cage vs. Young Bucks match that has been teased, but for now we’ll at least get step one with new champions.

Young Bucks vs. Konosuke Takeshita/Kazuchika Okada

We might as well get the Bucks out of the way here too. This is more about Takeshita/Okada, as the two of them have been teasing having a big fight for the better part of ever but have only had the Continental Classic match back in December. They’re certainly taking their time here, but it seems that they get to fight each other at Double Or Nothing if they win here.

That being said, I can’t imagine the Bucks losing to a team who can’t get along (talent aside) and the loss can further Okada vs. Takeshita. The match has to happen sooner or later one way or another and this seems to be the catalyst for making it happen. The Bucks can win here and the other two can fight later on while the Bucks likely move back into the title picture. Because of course.

Chris Jericho vs. Ricochet

Yes he’s back and no the fans don’t seem interested. Jericho being back for the first time in about a year is quite the big moment, though having him as a good guy for a change is a big change. I’m not sure where that’s going, but you can almost guarantee Jericho will have a stable around him sooner rather than later. He needs a match to get him going again though and that’s what we have here.

At the end of the day, there is pretty much no reason to believe that Jericho will lose…and that gives me pause. It would make sense for Jericho to win here but he has a history of going in the opposite direction every so often. I just don’t think they’ll do that here though and I’ll take Jericho to win. It’s not really interesting in any way, but it’s the right move for this situation.

TNT Title: Casino Gauntlet Match

Right now, we only have two participants announced so it’s hard to guess about who will really win. The good thing is that AEW is certainly not lacking in talent to go after the title so this could be a rather stacked match. Hopefully we get some surprises in there as well, as those are the kinds of things that make the match that much more fun. The title is vacant coming in though, and that leaves the door wide open.

There are only so many realistic options to pick from and I’ll go with Tommaso Ciampa, as he has been on a roll since he came in to AEW. Hopefully he gets to keep that going and gets Silvie back, as that’s way too good of a name to not let him keep using it. This is one of those matches that could go in a bunch of directions though and I have no idea who will be involved, but I’ll hope for Ciampa, who has made me a fan in a short time.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Will Ospreay

This is one of those simple ideas that AEW seems to understand rather well. Moxley is back to being a full on villain and Ospreay is the definition of a superhero in wrestling. In this case, Ospreay wants to get some revenge of his own and that should make for a heck of a fight. Moxley can bring it on the big stage and I could go for seeing what he can bring out of Ospreay here.

The match is all about Ospreay wanting to get his hands on Moxley for his injuries last year, but that might get him in trouble here. While I don’t think Ospreay is going to get disqualified, I don’t think he’s going to get the title. I’ll even say this goes to a time limit draw, with Moxley keeping the title and Ospreay gets a rematch for more revenge in a bigger match. For now though, Moxley keeps the belt but takes a beating in the process.

AEW World Title: Maxwell Jacob Friedman(c) vs. Kenny Omega

The idea here is that Omega’s health isn’t holding up and he isn’t what he was before. At the same time, even a diminished Omega is not someone who should be sweating MJF. The thing is, that has been the case with MJF since he won the title the first time and it’s where he tends to thrive. What matters the most is that this feels like a pay per view main event and they should be able to deliver on it.

As much as I think Omega is going to wind up with the title again one day, I don’t think it happens here. While Omega probably doesn’t have much time left in the ring, I’m not seeing the reason to take the title off of MJF so soon. That is going to be a huge moment for someone and Omega isn’t in need for that kind of a win. MJF retains here and gets to soak in the hatred of the Canadian fans.

Overall Thoughts

This card doesn’t feel like some blow away show, but it has the potential to do some good stuff. If they can live up to the usual hype, they’re going to be fine as a few of these matches could steal the show. Then again there is always the chance that more stuff will be added to the card (future edit: yep) to water it down, but at least the version of the show coming into the weekend looks pretty good.

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: April 11, 2026
Location: Rogers Center, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

It’s the night before Dynasty and we have something of a warmup title match this week. The Trios Titles are on the line as Mistico and Jet Speed defend against the Dogs, who have barely won anything but get a title match anyway. Other than that it’s likely time for the final hard sell to the pay per view so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Trios Titles: The Dogs vs. Mistico/Jet Speed

Mistico and Jet Speed are defending and get jumped by the Dogs to clear the ring to start. Back in and Bailey flips away from Kidd but gets knocked out to the floor. Mistico gets back in to grab a headscissors to send Connors outside. Kidd runs back in to take Mistico down but all six are back inside for the slugout. The champions all hit dives to the floor so they load up more, only to get knocked down as we take a break.

We come back with Knight fighting to his feet and bringing Mistico back in, meaning more dives can put the Dogs down again. Bailey hits a moonsault to the floor and Knight drops Finlay but the UFO Splash is broken up. Kidd piledrives Mistico but Bailey is back up with the Ultimate Weapon to put Kidd down. A straitjacket sunset flip gets two on Kidd, who is right back with a heck of a clothesline. Connors picks Bailey up for a suplex and a top rope spear gives us new champions at 13:39.

Rating: B-. It was the kind of wild match you would expect from these guys and while the Dogs don’t have the best win/loss record, it wasn’t like Mistico was going to be a regular around here. The titles are hardly some mega serious thing so having them bounce around might be the best option for them. They still don’t really need to exist but this is better than having them sit on a shelf for months at a time.

Post match Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong pop up on screen for a challenge, suggesting they have a third. Kyle O’Reilly I’m guessing?

Will Ospreay introduces the United Empire and then says they won’t be there at Dynasty. Ok then.

Kris Statlander/Hikaru Shida vs. Ava Lawless/Gigi Rey

Shida strikes away at Lawless to start and puts her down with a Falcon Arrow. Statlander comes in with some suplexes to Rey and Staturday Night Fever finishes at 1:40.

Post match Shida isn’t happy with Statlander tagging herself in to win the match.

Hyan and Maya World are getting a Women’s Tag Team Title shot at Dynasty. Their AEW record as a team: 0-5.

Jon Moxley says no one can hang with the Death Riders and if Will Ospreay is so determined to break his neck again, so be it.

Rush vs. Anthony Bowens

For the #2 spot in the Casino Gauntlet. They trade headlocks to start and then shove each other a bit. The exchange of strikes goes to Rush but Bowens is back up to send him outside. Rush is sent into various things, including the steps, but he whips Bowens into the barricade and we take a break.

We come back with Rush hitting a basement dropkick to the back of the head before they strike it out again. Rush misses a kick in the corner and gets caught with a hanging wind up DDT for two. Back up and Rush sends him into the corner but the Bull’s Horns is broken up. A running dropkick sends Bowens outside, where Rush sends him into the barricade. Back in and the Bull’s Horns finishes Bowens at 11:10.

Rating: B-. They had a hard hitting match here, but what mattered the most was the fact that either of them could have pulled this off. Bowens winning wasn’t out of the question as Rush hasn’t been the most consistent star in AEW. Odds are Bowens will be in the match anyway, but in this case the numbers actually matter so he’s at a disadvantage. Oh and is Bowens to the Opps still a thing?

The Brawling Birds are ready for their singles matches at Dynasty, as they want revenge and the Women’s Title.

Hurt Syndicate vs. Andy Anderson/Mo Jabari

Lashley shoves Anderson into the corner to start and gives him a delayed vertical suplex. Benjamin comes in and gets annoyed at Jabari’s chops. That earns him a knee to the head, followed by a spear to Anderson. Benjamin superkicks Anderson for the pin at 2:19. Total squash.

Mina Shirakawa and Harley Cameron are sad that their partners are gone. They opt to drink instead.

Young Bucks vs. Don Callis Family

Hechicero/Clon for the Family. Matt and Clon start things off with Matt grabbing a wristdrag/headscissors combination to put the Family down. The Bucks hit some dives, only for Hechicero to knee Matt in the face back inside. The rather spinning rollup gives Hechicero two, followed by the spinning backbreaker for the same.

We take a break and come back with Matt rolling the northern lights suplexes. Nick comes in with a double high crossbody and everything breaks down. The Bucks go with stereo sunset flips into stereo Sharpshooters, which are quickly broken up. The Family grabs a pair of bridging rollups for two each and everyone is knocked down for a breather. Back up and Clon flips out of a DDT, only to get superkicked down. Hechicero throws Matt into a choke with Nick making the save. The EVP Trigger misses but the Bucks are right back with the TK Driver to finish Clon at 14:49.

Rating: B. This was little more than a way to get the Bucks on the show, which is all it needed to be. The Bucks are one of those acts who are able to pop the crowd just by being in the ring and that’s what we got here. It’s a good enough match too, even with the D-list Family opponents.

We look at Chris Jericho and Ricochet’s meeting on Dynamite to set up their match at Dynasty.

International Title: Myron Reed vs. Kazuchika Okada

Okada is defending and both of their associates are here too. Okada misses a clothesline in the corner to start and sends Reed to the apron. That’s fine with Reed, who is back with a springboard kick to the face. A springboard is blocked though and Okada dropkicks him out to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Okada hitting a DDT for a cocky one but the falling top rope elbow hits raised knees. Reed ties him in the ropes for a slingshot legdrop as Don Callis is starting to panic. Okada is sent outside and taken out with a dive but comes back in with the Air Raid Crash onto the knee for two. Now the top rope elbow can connect but Reed is right back up with the diving cutter to the floor. Back in and Reed’s springboard 450 hits raised knees and the Tombstone into the Rainmaker retains the title at 11:22.

Rating: B-. Reed was able to get in some stuff here but it wasn’t quite what he’s done before. At the same time, he has been treated as the singles star from the Rascalz, which isn’t the worst move. He’s one of those guys who puts everything into his matches and that makes for a nice feeling. At the same time, Okada is (still) gearing up for his match with Takeshita and this was a way to keep him warm.

Willow Nightingale wants some of the new talent to come after her title.

Lena Kross and Megan Bayne are ready for Hyan and Maya World.

Dynasty rundown.

Thekla/Marina Shafir vs. Brawling Birds

Thekla and Shafir jump them during the entrances and the brawl heads to the floor before the opening bell. Hayter gets choked with part of the barricade but Windsor drops Shafir onto the apron. The bell rings (the fans don’t seem thrilled) with the Birds getting beaten up again as we take an early break.

We come back with Windsor fighting her way out of trouble and bringing in Hayter to clean house. Thekla catches her in a Black Widow as everything breaks down again. All four are knocked down for a bit until Shafir is up to strike it out with Windsor. A shot to the face staggers Shafir and a quick Two Birds One Stone finishes her off at 9:01.

Rating: C+. There is nothing wrong with taking two PPV matches and having them do a tag match together to build it up. That’s all it needed to be here and it worked out fine enough. The Birds winning gives Hayter just enough momentum to make her feel like a bigger threat to the title. It’s not exactly a main event level match, but I’ll take what I can get.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a fine enough show, with just a show that got us over the final stretch to Dynasty. They added in a few matches to make the PPV card even bigger because we have to do that but nothing really big was changed. That’s all it needed to be and the show went by rather easily.

Results
The Dogs b. Mistico/Jet Speed – Suplex/top rope spear combination to Bailey
Kris Statlander/Hikaru Shida b. Ava Lawless/Gigi Rey – Staturday Night Fever to Rey
Rush b. Anthony Bowens – Bull’s Horns
Hurt Syndicate b. Andy Anderson/Mo Jabari – Superkick to Anderson
Young Bucks b. Don Callis Family – TK Driver to Clon
Kazuchika Okada b. Myron Reed – Rainmaker
Brawling Birds b. Thekla/Marina Shafir – Two Birds One Stone to Shafir

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

Dynamite
Date: March 18, 2026
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Bryan Danielson

We’re done with Revolution and the big story is…well that could be a few things really. There were several returns with Adam Copeland/Christian Cage, Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega returning. That’s in addition to MJF retaining the World Title, meaning Hangman Page is no longer allowed to challenge for the belt. Other than that, it’s time to start getting ready for Dynasty so let’s get to it.

Here is Revolution if you need a recap.

Revolution recap.

Will Ospreay vs. Blake Christian

Since there is no one in the company who can do this other than the person chasing the ROH World Title. Christian bails out to the floor to start before coming back inside to fight over wrist control. Ospreay knocks him down and snaps off a running hurricanrana to send Christian outside. A slingshot dive takes him out again and Ospreay tosses him back inside, allowing Christian to hit a running flip dive.

Ospreay shrugs that off and hits a springboard clothesline for two so Christian is back with a clothesline of his own. A stomp to the back sends Ospreay outside, with Christian hitting a diving tornado DDT. Back in and a 450 and cutter give Christian two each and he loads up his own Hidden Blade. That’s cut off of course though and Ospreay hits the real Hidden Blade for the win at 7:23.

Rating: B-. Ospreay is back and this was basically just a way to get him back in the swing of things. Now he can move on to his first important match, likely at Dynasty. Christian could have been anyone here and that’s about how the likely #1 contender to the ROH World Title is seen most of the time.

Post match Ospreay calls out Jon Moxley and threatens to snap his neck with his bare hands. Cue Moxley through the crowd so Ospreay charges into the crowd and the brawl is on. Pac comes in for the save and Ospreay is caught in the Brutalizer.

The Bang Bang Gang come out for a match but we pause for Ospreay to dive onto Moxley again.

Death Riders vs. Bang Bang Gang

The Riders jump them to start but Robinson takes Yuta into the corner for some left hands. Yuta rakes the eyes though and it’s off to Moxley to stay on the eyes. Robinson fights out of trouble and hands it off to Austin for the rather speedy kicks. Austin sends Moxley outside for the running dive and we take a break.

We come back with Austin grabbing an STF on Austin, which he quickly switches into a Crossface. That’s broken up and Austin gets over to Robinson so it’s time to clean house. The left hands have Yuta down and Austin goes up, only to dive onto raised knees. Austin is able to fight up with a springboard spinning kick to the face and everything breaks down. A cutter takes Robinson down and Yuta dives onto him, setting up the Paradigm Shift for the pin at 11:10.

Rating: C+. This was about what you would expect, though it seems that Moxley is now the full on heel version again, which is quite the quick shift. Austin and Robinson both got in a bit of offense before losing and that didn’t make for the most interesting match. At least Yuta got beaten up a bit, which is always fun.

Gabe Kidd isn’t scared of Darby Allin.

Kidd wants Allin to meet him in the parking lot.

Kenny Omega wants to face Swerve Strickland one more time and if Strickland is so confident, he can put that #1 contendership up.

Gabe Kidd goes to the parking lot where Darby Allin tries to run him over. The brawl is on with Allin getting the better of things and throwing him in the trunk. Then Allin gets in the car and drives onto a pile of trash, which flips the car over. Allin breaks out of the window and then pops the trunk so that Kidd falls down in a heap. Since there is an anvil case next to them, Allin puts him on the case and wheels him inside for their casket match.

Gabe Kidd vs. Darby Allin

Casket match. Allin wheels him into the arena and opens the case, pulling out his skateboard and a straitjacket as this is going to be really stupid. Kidd is tied up in the straitjacket and put in a chair but manages to kick him low. The jacket isn’t entirely tied so Kidd can choke and bite at the same time. Allin is bleeding a gusher and Kidd slams the casket lid on Allin’s fingers.

We take a break and come back with Allin biting Kidd and giving him a super Code Red. Allin gets the arms tied up tighter and hits a Scorpion Death before going up top. Kidd kicks the referee into the ropes for the crotching though and a powerslam puts Kidd down again. They go to the casket again and Allin bites the nose, followed by a skateboard shot. Back to back Coffin Drops set up a suicide dive to knock Kidd into the casket and give Allin the win at 9:59.

Rating: C+. Yeah sure. I have no idea what to say about this as it started with Allin’s latest stupid stunt and then Kidd wrestled most of the match in a straitjacket, like any good villain should. This was the latest thing that feels like Allin had a dumb idea and got to do it on national TV. I stopped caring about his weird ideas a long time ago and this didn’t make it any better. The guy has talent and a weird charisma that could make him a top star but instead we have to see whatever stupid thing he thinks of this week and it’s been old.

Post match Allin says he’s coming for the World Title.

Video on Jack Perry leaving his house in the new Jurassic Express and riding to the show (as driven by the one armed Luchasaurus), though not before he feeds a squirrel. Once at the arena, he runs into the Young Bucks, who are ready for their six man tag tonight.

Here is Prince Nana to introduce Swerve Strickland, who sits in a chair. Strickland talks about power, which he didn’t get even after winning at Revolution. The reality is that power can be more important than titles. He’s spent most of his life fighting against people with power and that brings him to Kenny Omega. There is no reason for him to face Omega, except for one thing. Omega has power, so if he wants to face Strickland again, he can put up his EVP title, with Strickland getting the spot if he wins.

Mike Bailey talks about the work that he has had to put in to get where he is today and he’s willing to keep doing it.

Mike Bailey vs. Mark Davis

Davis charges at him to start but Bailey kicks away. That only gets him so far but Bailey is back with a middle rope dropkick. Bailey kicks at Davis but can’t knock him off the apron. A legsweep does send him to the floor though and Bailey hits a dive as we take a break. We come back with Bailey in trouble but catching Davis on top with the kicks to the chest. A powerbomb out of the corner puts Davis down but he’s back up to win a strike off.

Bailey kicks him in the head though and they’re both down again. Davis is up first and hammers away, followed by a toss powerbomb for two. Another powerbomb is escaped so Bailey kicks him in the head again but Davis is back with a running clothesline. Bailey kicks him into the moonsault knees, followed by the Ultimate Weapon for the pin at 10:51.

Rating: B. I’m far from a Bailey fan but he was doing well here, as it was a classic monster vs. smaller guy deal here. Bailey kept chopping away (or kicking away in this case) until the giant went down and that’s something that will work almost every time. This was better than I was expecting and that’s always nice to see.

After Revolution, MJF dubbed himself Mr. Revolution, even though he felt every bit of pain from his match. It was all worth it though and he won it the day he turned 30. He has twenty years to go and Hangman Page will be staying in the midcard where he belongs. Now that this is out of the way, he’s going to Disney World.

Kazuchika Okada laughs off the idea of the Young Bucks being his family, because the Don Callis Family is what matters. Well not Konosuke Takeshita.

Marina Shafir vs. Mina Shirakawa

No Holds Barred. Toni Storm was supposed to be in Shirakawa’s spot but was attacked earlier today. Shirakawa comes out with a barbed wire bat and gets in a shot to the knee but Shafir takes it away from her. Shafir says she doesn’t need a bat and gets kicked down for running her mouth too much.

A champagne bottle is brought in but Shafir knocks it away and plants her down to take over. Shafir flips the fans off and we take a break. We come back with Shirakawa knocking the (open) champagne bottle out of her hands but taking too long to load up a chair. Shirakawa is able to faceplant her onto the chair though and a missile dropkick puts Shafir down again.

The top rope Sling Blade onto the chair gets two but the Figure Four is cut off. Shirakawa has to break out of the Mother’s Milk so Shafir grabs a table. The strike out on the apron goes to Shafir, who suplexes Shirakawa through the table. Back in and Shirakawa gets the bottle to crack her over the head, followed by Storm Zero for the quick pin at 10:53.

Rating: C+. Commentary was pointing out that this style isn’t geared to Shirakawa and that was getting clear when things got a bit more violent. At the same time, they were in a weird spot as Storm was pulled out of this match for whatever reason. I’m not sure how much interest there is in having Storm vs. Shafir again now, but maybe they’ll move in a different direction, as they should.

Andrade wants the World Title but gets a briefcase full of money from MJF. Don Callis calls in to say that the deal is to get rid of Darby Allin. Andrade doesn’t seem convinced.

Don Callis Family vs. Young Bucks/Jack Perry

Okada flips the Bucks off to start so Perry gives him a quick dropkick. Beretta and Romero come in but get cut off by the Bucks, who clear the ring. The Bucks hit their dives and Perry adds a moonsault to take the Family down again. Back in and Perry gets caught in the wrong corner, with Okada hitting the Air Raid Crash onto the knee. We take a break and come back with Perry fighting out of trouble and bringing in Matt. The threat of a superkick sends Okada outside and it’s time for the string of northern lights suplexes.

The Bucks both go up and come down onto Romero and Beretta, setting up the superkicks. Romero and Beretta are back with the jumping knees though, only for the Bucks to come back with stereo Sharpshooters. Perry adds a quickly broken Snare Trap but Okada is back in to break up the TK Driver. The Family load up stereo Tombstones but get bitten low, giving us a triple small package for two each. The Bucks hit a BTE Trigger to Romero, setting up Perry’s running knee for the pin at 12:06.

Rating: B. As usual, the best thing they can do here is keep things moving as it made for an entertaining six man. Perry and the Bucks work well together, partially just due to their experience as a team. At the same time you have Romero, and I can’t imagine he gets in the ring for much of a reason other than to put someone else over.

Post match the Bucks say they blew it at Revolution and have to admit that FTR was the better team. The Bucks’ dad told them to remember who they are and work their way back to the top. Cue Adam Copeland and Christian Cage, with Copeland saying they shouldn’t hang their heads after a match as great as the one they had at Revolution.

Copeland knows what it’s like to hate FTR, which is why he and Cage are challenging for the titles at Dynasty. Cage says if they win, they get a bunch of money and prove their greatness. Cue FTR and Stokely, with FTR coming straight tot he ring and getting beaten up. The Bucks hold the titles but hand them to the Canadians, who pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. There were some good parts to the show but it only got so far. Ospreay’s return is nice to see, but the idea of Copeland and Cage winning the titles (even in Canada) doesn’t do much for me. The Allin stuff was even worse, which somehow left Bailey to pick up the slack. It’s a weird show, but that is often the case after an AEW PPV.

Results
Will Ospreay b. Blake Christian – Hidden Blade
Death Riders b. Bang Bang Gang – Paradigm Shift to Austin
Darby Allin b. Gabe Kidd – Kidd was shut in the casket
Mike Bailey b. Mark Davis – Ultimate Weapon
Mina Shirakawa b. Marina Shafir – Storm Zero
Young Bucks/Jack Perry b. Don Callis Family – Running knee to Romero

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

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

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

Zero Hour: Boom & Doom vs. The Infantry

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

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

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

TBS Title: Willow Nightingale vs. Lena Kross

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

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

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

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

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

Zero Hour: National Title: Battle Royal

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Tag Team Titles: FTR vs. Young Bucks

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Toni Storm vs. Marina Shafir

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

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

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

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

Continental Title: Jon Moxley vs. Konosuke Takeshita

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Brody King vs. Swerve Strickland

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

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

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

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

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

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

Women’s Title: Thekla vs. Kris Statlander

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Bandido vs. Andrade El Idolo

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

MJF stands on Page and poses to end the show.

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

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

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

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

We’re back on pay per view and as usual, there is quite the massive card. In this case, the show is headlined by Hangman Page challenging MJF for the World Title in a Texas Death Match, but there are several other titles on the line. That’s pretty normal around here, as is having awesome pay per views, so hopefully they can continue the trend. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Boom & Doom vs. The Infantry

This is the “get Big Boom AJ on the card” match and naturally there are no other options for opponents than two thirds of the Ring Of Honor Six Man Tag Team Champions. This is likely going to be the same as every AJ match has been thus far, meaning it’s going to be a lot better left on the pre-show than anything else. It’s not a match that is going to hurt anything and that makes it the easiest to watch of these three.

Of course I’ll take AJ and Marshall to win, there is no reason for the Infantry to beat the celebrity wrestler. Just let them do their thing and hits the catchphrase with AJ’s son and the Rizzler being there (because that’s still a thing) and we move on. It’s the definition of a harmless match and would be fine as a one off Kickoff Show match, but even as one out of three, it should be ok.

Zero Hour: TBS Title: Willow Nightingale(c) vs. Lena Kross

Since modern wrestling absolutely loves the idea of double champions, this is the first of two title defenses for Nightingale, with Kross being a challenger in both of them as well. This is a good example of a match that should be a Collision main event rather than on the card, but we have to beef the numbers up somehow due to reasons of that’s how AEW tends to work.

I’m actually kind of split on this one, as it would be a bit weird to have Kross lose here if she has another title shot later in the night. At the same time, I’m not sure how much sense it makes to have Kross win the title so soon into her run. Maybe this ends with some sort of interference, but I’ll take Nightingale to retain the title here, as she’s so adorable in general I don’t want her to lose.

Zero Hour: National Title: Battle Royal

So as usual, we only know a few of the participants in the match, which means we could be in for quite the collection of surprises. Ricochet is defending and that should be fine, though you never know what you’re going to see in something like this. Having the title on the line in a battle royal is a way to get the title off of Ricochet without him taking a (nother) pin so they might have an out.

Since we don’t know so much of the field, and the members we do know are not much, I’ll take Ricochet to retain. It’s the kind of thing that can give him a lot of bragging points going forward and that is where he tends to shine. He has to lose the title at some point, but shutting him up with a one on one loss sounds more effective. He’ll keep the title for now at least.

Toni Storm vs. Marina Shafir

These two have been teasing a big fight for a long time now and we’re finally getting to see it take place. That hasn’t really made it feel must see, as Shafir is mainly just a valet/enforcer and Storm is…ok I’m still working on that but she’s different. What matters the most is that this could be quite the intense fight, but I’m not sure where it is going to go in the end.

Despite a feeling that it’s going the other way, I’ll take Storm here. At the end of the day, Shafir has never really shown any interest in becoming a singles star and beating Storm would rocket her up towards the top of the division. Storm overcoming the odds of another monster here makes sense, especially if she’s getting back into the title picture. It feels like Shafir could win, but I’ll take Storm.

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

So this has been built up for a few weeks, as Cassidy has been dealing with the Dogs and finding a single friend to help in the form of Allin. That only got him so far as there were three Dogs, so thankfully Strong popped up to even things out. Now we have a six man tag as a result, though it definitely feels like something that belongs on Dynamite rather than here on pay per view.

I’ll go with the Dogs to win here, as there is pretty much no reason to have them come together and lose in their first big man as a trio. The team is fun together and they’re against a makeshift group of good guys. Let the Dogs win so they can get their feet under them and maybe take the Trios Titles down the line, as at least they’re an actual team rather than some people thrown together.

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

Speaking of makeshift teams in the title picture, we have Mistico and Jet Speed getting a title shot despite having no history as a team. It’s pretty new for Jet Speed, as they won the titles while teaming with Hangman Page, basically from scratch. This feels like a way to get Mistico on the show, and fair enough, but it doesn’t do the titles much good in the process.

I don’t see any reason for the titles to change hands here so we’ll go with the champions retaining. Ultimately, Jet Speed and Mistico aren’t a team and Mistico isn’t going to be around full time (then again neither are the titles), so let the Family retain for a change. It should be a fast paced and entertaining match, but there is no reason to think the titles are changing hands here.

Bandido vs. Andrade El Idolo

Shockingly enough, there is no indication that the Ring Of Honor World Title is on the line here, as I guess Andrade has no interest in the thing. They really seem to just be fighting for the sake of having a fight, which is hardly a great reason to have a pay per view match. Basically it was Bandido’s partner had a match and Bandido wanted one too and here we are.

I don’t see a reason for Bandido to win here, as Andrade is on a roll and Bandido is basically there to add a banger to the card. That’s hardly a great reason to run the match, but at least it should be entertaining. Hopefully it lives up to the hype and leads to a rematch for the title that is right there. It would be even worse for Andrade to beat him and then move on, though there is a very good chance that’s what happens.

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

Here we have the second of Nightingale’s title defenses against Kross on the night, which is a pretty weird way to go. This one doesn’t feel so certain though, as the Babes have had the titles for a pretty long while now and it might make sense for them to lose. If nothing else, there is a good chance that Kross does something to weaken Nightingale in their first match to make this an easier victory.

I think I’ll go with the titles changing hands here, as if nothing else, Bayne needs to win something already. She’s an absolute monster but that doesn’t mean much if she never wins a prize. The Babes are more than solidified as a top team so changing the titles is an acceptable result. It should be a fun match, but in theory this is where the titles finally change hands.

Women’s Title: Thekla(c) vs. Kris Statlander

This is 2/3 falls because the show just wasn’t long enough already. These two have been feuding for the better part of ever already and it is high time for the thing to be over. In theory this is going to be the last match between them and the angle on Collision did help boost it up a bit. Ultimately the problem comes down to the fact that Thekla has exploded in recent weeks and that’s a big issue for Statlander.

I’ll take Thekla to retain here, likely two falls to one, as there is pretty much no reason to put the title back on Statlander. She had a lengthy enough run as champion and Thekla is absolutely feeling like the bigger star. Go with the hot hand at the moment, hopefully with something other than that still not so great looking spear, and let Thekla retain on the big stage.

Continental Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Konosuke Takeshita

This is one of the bigger matches on the card and it has no time limit, which is almost a scary concept. The good thing is that these two can work very well together on the big stage and if they can make that happen again here, we should be in for a heck of a match. Moxley won the title late last year but couldn’t beat Takeshita, which has been giving him quite the issue.

I’ll go with Takeshita winning the title here though, as Moxley and the Death Riders have mostly dominated the feud with the Don Callis Family and it might be time for the Family to get their big win. It’s a match that absolutely could go either way and I’m probably wrong. The good thing is that it should be an absolute war, which is what you want to see out of these two.

Tag Team Titles: FTR(c) vs. Young Bucks

Yes again. I know this is the big, all time tag feud in AEW but I stopped caring about everything they were doing a long time ago. The good thing is the match is pretty much guaranteed to be a hit, which is about all you can ask for here. This is going to be treated as one of the biggest matches on the card and that does make sense, so hopefully they can live up to the considerable hype.

Since we’re in southern California and it hasn’t happened in a bit, I’ll go with the Bucks to win the titles here. It might not be what I want to see, but the team tends to get a big run with them every year or two. That makes sense given their status in AEW and in theory it is where they’re going here. It should be a heck of a match, with the Bucks winning making the most sense.

Brody King vs. Swerve Strickland

I waited for this one as it’s the match that interests me the most. At the end of the day, these two could beat the living daylights out of each other and that should be a heck of a match. What matters here is having King look like a star against a big name like Strickland, who has already been crazy successful in AEW. This should be quite the showdown and it has all of the potential.

As much as I’d love to see King get a big win, Strickland seems to be on the way back into the World Title picture following his heel turn. Odds are Strickland wins here after one heck of a fight and that has me more than interested. The good thing is they are getting the big chance on the biggest stage and both have been on a roll as of late. Strickland wins, but it’s after an awesome match.

AEW World Title: Maxwell Jacob Friedman(c) vs. Hangman Page

This is another Texas Death Match as Page officially has a signature match (at least it isn’t a bull rope match). The catch here is that if Page loses, he can never challenge for the World Title again. That seems like it’s setting things up to go one way, though it’s also giving me something of a doubt. It feels like everything is set up for MJF to lose, only to retain the title in a shocker.

Therefore, I’ll go with my pick most likely to be wrong and say MJF retains here, possibly with some shenanigans costing Page the match. While I absolutely cannot imagine the idea of Page never challenging for the title again, it just feels too safe for Page to win here. It feels like something where we’re going to see a swerve (not the Strickland kind) and that’s what I’ll take.

Overall Thoughts

Make no mistake about it: this show is going to be long. That’s the AEW way and they’re going to make it happen again here. The card has thirteen matches (yes including the pre-show), with one of them being 2/3 falls and another being no time limit. This is setting up to be a very long show, but the potential for some great stuff is there. AEW has earned the benefit of the doubt, but I’m going to need a nap when they’re done.

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: March 14, 2026
Location: San Jose Civic, San Jose, California
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s the night before Revolution and it’s time for the final push towards the show. That’s what we’ll be doing here, with the usual assortment of matches around here, likely including a bunch of Don Callis Family members. Other than that, we might even get an extra match or two added to the card. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

El Clon vs. Kevin Knight

They start fast with Knight knocking him outside to start, only to crotch himself on the ring skirt on a dive. Clon suplexes him on the floor and takes it back inside to work on the leg. Knight manages a quick sitout spinebuster and an elbow to the face gets two. Now the slingshot dive connects for Knight and we take a break.

We come back with Clon hitting a backbreaker to send Knight outside, where a step up moonsault connects. Back in and Knight catches him on top with a superplex, followed by a nice dropkick to put Clon down again. Clon’s sitout powerbomb gets two, as do Knight’s rollup and backslide. Knight drops him again though and it’s the UFO Splash for the pin at 12:25.

Rating: B-. As usual, Knight pretty much steals the show no matter what he does as he’s one of the smoothest in-ring stars AEW has. He’s talented and getting his chance to shine, thankfully on his own without Mike Bailey. Clon is doing well too, but I’m not sure what else he’s supposed to do but have random matches until Hologram gets back for their big showdown.

Video on the Trios Titles match at Revolution.

The Babes Of Wrath are ready to retain their titles and make Megan Bayne/Lena Kross glitter like cotton candy.

Komander vs. Mark Davis

Davis throws him around to start and blocks the very springboardy hurricanrana. Komander sends him to the apron for a running superkick but Davis knocks him down again. We take a break and come back with Komander striking away and running up top for a missile dropkick. Davis bails out to the floor and there’s the moonsault to take him down again.

Back in and one heck of a running elbow drops Komander, who gets slammed down hard for two. A quick hurricanrana sends Davis into the corner where a springboard sunset bomb gets two more. The 450 hits raised knees though and Davis knocks his head off for two. Komander is back up with an octopus, followed by a 619 (Schiavone: “Area Code Kick to the head.”) but Davis blocks Cielito Lindo. The piledriver finishes for Davis at 11:55.

Rating: B-. Davis is someone who is making the most out of his chances and that is awesome to see. He’s a big power guy and that is the kind of thing that will always have a spot around a promotion, especially one focused on smaller wrestlers. Nice match here, with Davis looking like a killer who survived Komander’s rapid fire stuff.

The Dogs are ready to hurt Roderick Strong and company.

We run down the Revolution card.

Video on Mascara Dorada.

Various people are ready for the National Title battle royal.

Triangle Of Madness vs. Tatevik/Viva Van/Karisma

Blue kicks Tatevik into the corner to start and it’s off to Hart for a forearm. Thekla hits the spear for the pin at 1:06.

Post match Thekla rants about how she is tired of hearing about Kris Statlander. She’s tired of Statlander making challenges and running away, so here is Statlander to take out the rest of the Triangle. Thekla gets dropped as well and Statlander takes off her own belt, telling Thekla to beat her with it. This proves to be a bad idea as Statlander is quickly beaten down but gets up, even with the welts on her back. Instead Thekla hammers away on her and throws in some spit. Thekla leaves and Statlander gets up, saying Thekla should be afraid of what Thekla has to do to keep her down.

Marina Shafir says Toni Storm is getting into a level of violence she doesn’t understand.

The Demand vs. Bang Bang Gang

Austin speeds around Kaun to start, including an armdrag to take him down. A drop toehold and kick to the back set up a legdrop to keep Kaun down. Gunn comes in to strike away at Kaun, followed by a jumping Downward Spiral to an invading Ricochet. Liona offers Robinson an easy path inside, with Robinson slapping him in the face.

The crossbody is pulled out of the air but Robinson slips out and sends him outside. The dive is pulled out of the air again, only for Austin to hit a big running dive as we take a break. We come back with Austin in trouble, with the Demand taking turns crushing him in the corner. Austin manages to send Ricochet outside and hit a springboard missile dropkick to Liona.

It’s back to Robinson and house is cleaned as everything breaks down. A cutter out of the corner drops Robinson though and Ricochet’s top rope splash gets two. Austin and Robinson strike away at Liona and we hit the parade of knockdowns. Gunn hits a Fameasser to Kaun but Ricochet is back in with the Spirit Gun for the pin at 14:34.

Rating: B. This was another wild match and it’s nice to see Ricochet actually win (granted without getting the pin) for a change. His title is going to be in danger tomorrow and thankfully it’s a battle royal, so there was no reason to have him take a pin here. The match was more fast paced action and it worked out well, even if it didn’t feel overly important.

Post match the Gang gets beaten down again and Ricochet promises to retain his title in the battle royal.

Jack Perry stabs a board and wants to win the National Title in the building where he used to watch wrestling as a kid.

Toni Storm is laid on what appears to be a blanket and talks about knowing what the circus is like around here. At Revolution, Marina Shafir finds out that she is just a performer in her final act.

Lena Kross vs. Mina Shirakawa

Megan Bayne is here with Kross, who pats Shirakawa on the head to start. Shirakawa rolls her into the corner but gets sent flying with a fall away slam. A missed charge sends Kross crashing to the floor but she drops Shirakawa face first onto the apron. We take a break and come back with Shirakawa working on the leg, setting up a slingshot dive for two. The Glamorous Driver is broken up so Shirakawa grabs the top rope Sling Blade for two more. A rather hard German suplex puts Shirakawa back down though and a Jackhammer gives Kross the pin at 9:50.

Rating: C+. Kross needed the win before her title shot tomorrow, which makes me wonder why she’s getting a shot in the first place. At the same time, it’s yet another loss for Shirakawa, who has quite the collection of them lately. I still have no idea how this is the best use of her, but you can all but guarantee her losing every time she gets in the ring.

Video on MJF vs. Hangman Page.

Andrade El Idolo vs. Mascara Dorada

Don Callis is on commentary. Andrade kicks the handshake away to start and takes Dorada down without much trouble. A running shoulder drops Dorada again and they trade standing switches, with Dorada missing a moonsault as Andrade does Tranquilo in the ropes. Dorada headscissors him outside, where Andrade gets in a shot of his own but stops to flirt with another fan.

Back in and Andrade’s tilt-a-whirl backbreaker gets two but Dorada spins into a crossbody to put Andrade down for a change. Andrade is sent outside for a slingshot hurricanrana, setting up a top rope DDT onto the apron. The Asai moonsault is blocked though and we take a break. We come back with Andrade getting the better of an exchange of forearms but getting caught with a pop up dropkick. A springboard hurricanrana takes Andrade down and a Code Red gets two.

Andrade’s Three Amigos get two and he goes up, only for Dorada to snap off a spinning super hurricanrana. Dorada sends him outside for a running corkscrew dive, followed by a 450 for two back inside. They slap it out from their knees until Andrade catches him in the ropes for the reverse Spanish Fly. The running knees in the corner give Andrade two but Dorada is back with some kicks to the head. A spinning Canadian Destroyer out of the corner looks to set up the shooting star press, with Andrade rolling to the apron. Back in and Andrade knocks him down, setting up the DM for the fast pin at 18:49.

Rating: B. Yeah of course this was good stuff, as Andrade is actually trying at the moment. That’s not something that is likely to last very long, but at least we’re getting something good for the time being. At the same time, Dorada is always worth a look, which was certainly the case again here. Pretty solid main event.

Post match Bandido comes in for the staredown but the Don Callis Family jumps him. Brody King makes the save but gets jumped by Swerve Strickland. Bandido and King fight back to clear out the villains to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was the kind of show that was all about the in-ring action, which made for a heck of a two hour stretch. At the same time, it only felt like so much of this really mattered for Revolution, but if the card is set, there is no need to push it too far. You don’t need to watch the show, but you would have had a pretty great time if you did.

Results
Kevin Knight b. El Clon – UFO Splash
Mark Davis b. Komander – Piledriver
Triangle Of Madness b. Tatevik/Viva Van/Karisma – Spear to Tatevik
The Demand b. Bang Bang Gang – Spirit Gun to Gunn
Lena Kross b. Mina Shirakawa – Jackhammer
Andrade El Idolo b. Mascara Dorada – DM

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

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

Ring Of Honor
Date: March 13, 2026
Location: Tucson Arena, Tucson, Arizona
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s a special episode that is so special it was mentioned with less than twenty four hours’ notice. The big story here is that the Trios Titles are actually being defended, with Shane Taylor Promotions putting the titles on the line for the first time since winning the things back in December. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Shane Taylor Promotions vs. TMDK

The Promotions are defending and no, this version of TMDK (Mikey Nicholls/Robbie Eagles/Shane Haste) have never teamed as a trio in Ring Of Honor. It’s a brawl to start and Eagles clears the ring for a running flip dive through the ropes. A belly to back neckbreaker combination gets two on Bravo back inside but Eagles gets crushed on the apron for his efforts.

Eagles is beaten down in the corner and a springboard Vader Bomb gets two. That doesn’t last long and it’s a tag to bring in Haste, who is rather intense during his comeback. The Marcus Garvey Driver is countered and Eagles gives Taylor Sliced Bread. TMDK takes over on the Infantry until Haste gets dropped with a middle rope leg lariat. The double stomp retains the titles at 8:36.

Rating: C+. Ok. I mean what else am I supposed to say? There was no build to this match, the titles are barely ever defended and the challengers literally had no record as a three man team in Ring Of Honor. This was the latest example of “here’s a match that we pulled out of a hat”, which is the specialty of the house around here.

Post match the beatdown stays on until Big Boom AJ and QT Marshall (facing part of the Promotions at Revolution) make the save.

We look at Persephone winning the CMLL Women’s Title from Mercedes Mone last week.

Persephone vs. Jen Savani

No entrances for either, as this was taped before Persephone had the title. Persephone takes her down into a rollup to start and is looking rather cocky. Savani’s knee is countered and Persephone hits a spear. A bridging backslide gives Persephone two and a superkick drops Savani again. Savani catches her on top but Persephone flips over her for the Razor’s Edge and the pin at 3:34.

Rating: C. Persephone has become something of a treat around here, partially because she’s been around enough to establish herself a bit more. She’s rather talented and can look dominant in her matches, which makes her beating Mone for a title a nice result. This was basically a squash though and that worked well for a quick appearance.

Big Boom AJ and QT Marshall are ready for the Infantry at Revolution. And the Rizzler might be there too!

Beef vs. Rush

They trade big shoulders to start until Rush hits a running dropkick. Beef comes back with big right hands and they fire off big chops. Rush knocks him into the corner for the cocky kick to the face and the Tranquilo pose. A staggered Beef is knocked outside and whipped into the barricade a few times. Back in and the Bull’s Horns finishes for Rush at 4:50.

Rating: C+. Beef was as intense as usual to start but the match turned into the squash you were probably expecting. As usual, Rush feels like a big star when he’s around, but that doesn’t happen enough to make the biggest impact. I get why Ring Of Honor throws him on the shows when they can, though it doesn’t happen enough to matter much.

Serpentico vs. Wheeler Yuta

Yuta, now in trunks, works on a headlock to start but gets pulled down into a cradle for two. Serpentico takes him down for a basement elbow to the face and works on the arm for a few seconds. Back up and Yuta grabs the mask to take him down and the double arm crank is on. Serpentico gets up for a jawbreaker into a hurricanrana out of the corner, followed by a superkick. Yuta pops back up with a German suplex and the hammer elbows. The running knee and seatbelt pin Serpentico at 5:34.

Rating: C. Yuta was his usual self here, with the fans getting on him a bit more for the shaved head, even if it grew back in rather quickly. As usual, it was a perfectly fine match that doesn’t feel like it matters in the slightest. Yuta is someone else who pops in and out of here but doesn’t really move up the ladder, which is the case for a lot of people around Ring Of Honor.

Ace Austin vs. KM

Austin kicks away at the bigger KM to get him down, setting up a running basement dropkick. KM fights up and starts talking trash but gets kicked down again. Austin’s knee drop rocks KM again, followed by a Death Valley Driver. The Fold finishes for Austin at 3:13.

Rating: C. I still like Austin quite a bit but he’s already feeling like the latest victim of “hey he’s cool” and then he’s not doing anything for weeks at a time. At least he got a pretty dominant win here, with the Fold always looking cool. KM isn’t much, but his size will keeps him around, even in this kind of a spot, for a good while.

Danielle Kamela vs. Marina Shafir

Shafir powers her into the corner to start and then ties up the legs without much effort. Kamela fights up and gets in an ax handle to the back, which has Shafir smiling. Shafir kicks her down and then uses a foot choke in the corner. Kamela manages a running neckbreaker but Mother’s Milk makes her tap at 4:27.

Rating: C. The idea here was to get Shafir in the ring before her big match with Toni Storm at Revolution. That’s a fine enough way to go, but you know what you’re getting with Shafir so it isn’t like this added much. Kamela (the former Vanessa Borne in NXT) certainly has charisma so this could have been far worse.

RPG Vice/MxM Collection vs. Eddie Kingston/Ortiz/Top Flight

Kingston and Romero start things off, with Romero taking him up against the ropes for some dancing. A knockdown means more dancing, which has Kingston chopping away. Ortiz comes in to work on the arm and a hip swivel annoys the Collection. Beretta gets the tag and is armdragged into an armbar.

The Collection comes in to put Ortiz down and strike the pose, only for Mansoor to be taken into the wrong corner. Kingston’s neckbreaker gets two and it’s off to Darius, who gets chokeslammed from the apron to put him in trouble. Kingston goes to get a chair but gets caught, with everything breaking down for a bit.

We settle down to Madden working over Darius in the corner before Beretta comes in for a Death Valley Driver. The Collection cuts the other three off and the villains hit a string of elbows. The four way pose is broken up and Darius gets in a dropkick and the tag brings in Dante to clean house. Vice cuts Dante off with a double jumping knee but Dante is over for the tag to Ortiz. Everything breaks down and Kingston’s DDT into Ortiz’s top rope splash finishes Mansoor at 11:47.

Rating: C+. This was the biggest match of the show by far and it was perfectly fine. There’s pretty much nothing to it that made it feel important, though Kingston is always worth a look no matter what he’s doing. At the same time, I’m not sure I get the appeal of Ortiz. He’s fine, but he really just makes me want to watch TNA to see Mike Santana.

Overall Rating: C. In theory, the idea here was to have a special show on the big pay per view weekend and get fans to watch Ring Of Honor. That only works so well when you had to watch Ring Of Honor to know about the show, but that’s more effort than Ring Of Honor usually gets. As usual, the wrestling was perfectly fine and not much more, though this show felt like a bunch of stuff not good enough to make the regular show, which says quite a bit. I have idea why I would need around two and a half hours of Ring Of Honor in two days, but we’re just lucky that way I guess.

Results
Shane Taylor Promotions b. TMDK – Double stomp to Haste
Persephone b. Jen Savani – Razor’s Edge
Rush b. Beef – Bull’s Horns
Wheeler Yuta b. Serpentico – Seatbelt
Ace Austin b. KM – Fold
Marina Shafir b. Danielle Kamela – Mother’s Milk
Eddie Kingston/Ortiz/Top Flight b. RPG Vice/MxM Collection – Top rope splash to Mansoor

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

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

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

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

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

Death Riders vs. Don Callis Family

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

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

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

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

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

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Jay Lethal

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

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

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

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

Video on Clark Connors.

Brawling Birds vs. Gypsy Mac/Tyra Russamee

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

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

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

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Kyle Fletcher/Kazuchika Okada vs. Top Flight

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

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

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

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

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

Toni Storm vs. Zayda Steel

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Sisters Of Sin vs. Kris Statlander/Thunder Rosa

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Andrade El Idolo

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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