It’s Wednesday, you know what that means. AEW All In is firmly behind us, and now we’re already on the road to All Out. The quick turnaround for pay-per-views has created an interesting booking situation for Tony Khan. Furthermore, only one match was announced for the show days prior which was the International title match between Orange Cassidy and Penta El Zero Miedo. However, as it got closer to showtime, Khan announced multiple matches to get excited about. This includes the NJPW Strong Openweight title being defended as Eddie Kingston (c) faces off against one of his opponents from All In, Wheeler Yuta. Jon Moxley will face off with Komander in what should be a fun clash of styles. Finally, the women are in trios action as Britt Baker, Hikaru Shida, and Kris Statlander face off against Emi Sakura, Nyla Rose, and Marina Shafir.
JON MOXLEY DEFEATS KOMANDER:
Moxley started this match all guns blazing with a thunderous big boot from the get go. Mox went all out with his strikes, causing Komander to bleed from his mouth within minutes. The match was a bit short compared to other Dynamite openers because soon after the commercial break, Moxley was able to submit Komander to pick up the victory.
ORANGE CASSIDY VIDEO PACKAGE:
In the lead up to his match event match, Cassidy proclaimed that he will not take a break even after what was a brutal Stadium Stampede match from the weekend. If the valiant champion can survive Penta, he will then conquer Moxley at All Out this Sunday. Cassidy has kept his nonchalant demeaner but he claims he’s not the same man that started with AEW four years ago.
YOUNG BUCKS, FTR, AND BULLET CLUB GOLD SEGMENT
After the fantastic trilogy match between FTR and The Young Bucks at All In, we were able to see a post-match segment from the locker room. The Bucks were clearly frustrated after their match and soon after they were quickly confronted by FTR. Dax asked the Bucks why they refused their handshake. The Bucks were regretful and claimed that the heat of the moment got to them. Not many more words were exchanged until Bullet Club Gold stormed into the room and began to antagonize the four men. Jay White challenged the Bucks and FTR to an eight-man tag. The match is set for All Out!
TONI STORM BACKSTAGE INTERVIEW
Toni Storm was extremely paranoid as she was being interviewed by Renee Paquette. Storm feels as if she has nobody to trust after the events at All In. Saraya and Ruby Soho aren’t on good terms with Storm which has caused Storm to fall further in the mud. Storm is continuing this great character work and it’ll be interesting to follow her story as the weeks go on.
CHRIS JERICHO & SAMMY GUEVARA PROMO
Jericho made his way to the ring and called out his protégé Sammy Guevara to the ring. Jericho apologized for pushing Guevara after the match and offered a handshake to bury the hatchet. Guevara accepted. However, the pair began to bicker and make passive aggressive jabs at each other, soon after. Attempting to extinguish the fire he caused, Jericho announced that he wants to reunite Le Sex Gods and go after the tag team titles. Their quest for the titles will begin next week.
BLACKPOOL COMBAT CLUB BACKSTAGE PROMO
Moxley flocked by Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta cut a short promo which was highlighted by his claim that a lot of wrestlers have bark but whoever walks out on Sunday with the International title, is the man with the biggest bite. Focused and driven promo from Moxley, as always.
NJPW STRONG OPENWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP: EDDIE KINGSTON DEFEATS WHEELER YUTA
Kingston, who was clearly beaten up from the Stadium Stampede match, made his way to the ring to face off against the BCC’s Yuta. The two had a decent match which was expected. Kingston did a fantastic job selling his elbow which was the big theme of the match. The final sequence was fantastic with the first spinning back-fist not putting Yuta down which caused Kingston to hit a monster second spinning backfist to get the win. Castagnoli helped Yuta to the back after the match, never giving Kingston the satisfaction of eye contact throughout.
MJF AND ADAM COLE BACKSTAGE SEGMENT:
Similar to the Young Bucks segment from earlier, we were once again able to see a post-match segment from All In. Adam Cole came to MJF’s locker room to talk to his best friend after their historic main event. Fans learned that MJF is taking a week off and will return for All Out where the ROH Tag Titles will be defended against the winners of a Battle Royal on Rampage. MJF will also defend his title on AEW Grand Slam in September against the winner of a tournament that will begin next week.
SAMMY GUEVARA BACKSTAGE INTERVIEW
Guevara was interrupted by Don Callis while being interviewed by Renee Paquette. Callis couldn’t get far before Guevara stopped him from playing his mind games. It seems that this story with Callis and Jericho is far from over.
ADAM COLE, RODERICK STRONG & THE KINGDOM LIVE PROMO
Cole was celebratory in his promo as he touted AEW All In has a huge success despite his loss in the main event against MJF. Roderick Strong soon interrupted and came out with The Kingdom. Strong was at his best here coming off as extremely whiny and childish. The Kingdom even cut good promos as they ran down Adam Cole for being selfish and constantly using the people he surrounds himself with. Good points were made by the heels which makes this an even more layered story. Strong announced he will be entering the Grand Slam tournament and will defeat MJF for the World title.
PENTA PROMO:
Penta plans to defeat Orange Cassidy and then seek revenge against Jon Moxley for taking out his brother Rey Fenix. Penta promises to make Moxley bleed.
SHANE TAYLOR VIGNETTE
Shane Taylor will get an opportunity to win championship gold as he will face Samoa Joe for the ROH Television title. A singles match on PPV is not easy to come by, therefore, Shane Taylor has a lot to prove.
BRITT BAKER, HIKARU SHIDA, AND KRIS STATLANDER DEFEAT EMI SAKURA, NYLA ROSE, AND MARINA SHAFIR
The match wasn’t a memorable on but the biggest thing to note is Baker accidently hitting Shida which gave the heel team the advantage just before Statlander was able to gain control and get the victory. Shida didn’t look pleased with Baker after the match. Ruby Soho then came for the attack and she layed out her All Out opponent, Kris Statlander.
DON CALLIS & KONOSUKE TAKESHITA BACKSTAGE SEGMENT
Backstage, Callis gives Takeshita some pointers on how to target Kenny Omega leading to their match at All Out, this Sunday. Callis uses the screen to show x-rays of Omega and which body parts to isolate, which was a great touch. As a last resort, Callis mentioned that a little help from that infamous screwdriver could come into play.
THE ACCLAIMED & BILLY GUNN PROMO
After their big Trios Championship victory at All In, The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn came to the ring to have a celebratory ribbon cutting ceremony. The trio also revealed new titles that don a pink strap with scissor-like edges on them, that might be a first for any wrestling belt ever!
INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP: ORANGE CASSIDY (c) DEFEATS PENTA EL ZERO MIEDO
At this point, it’s impossible for Cassidy to have a bad match. During a show that was largely skippable, Cassidy and Penta killed it in their main event. Cassidy is getting more and more desperate as the weeks go on which has been a joy to watch. Just like his other defenses, there are spots in the match that make you feel that surely this is it. After the second fear factor from Penta, the graphic of Penta and Moxley for All Out could’ve popped up right then and there, but that wasn’t the case. Cassidy kicked out and rolled Penta up for the win. After not moving for a while, Cassidy asked for a microphone and a chair. Cassidy cut an impassioned promo, something viewers have never seen before. His body hurts, he was doubted his whole life, but he’s still here and he’s wrestling week in and week out. Cassidy ended his promo with “My name is Orange Cassidy, and I don’t have a catchphrase”. Cassidy has been AEW’s MVP this year and this match along with the post-match promo shows exactly why. Before the show went off the air, Moxley made his way to the ring and stood nose to nose with Cassidy. After pushing his face, Cassidy threw a punch with the little he had left. Moxley smirked liked a madman and walked away. We are in for something special between these two at All Out.
