It’s Wednesday, you know what that means. After two consecutive Sundays on pay-per-view, Dynamite is back to normalcy. However, normalcy doesn’t mean that the card isn’t stacked. Newly crowned International Champion Jon Moxley puts his title on the line against AR Fox. The Dynamite Grand Slam tournament also kicks off with Roderick Strong facing off against Trent Beretta as well as a battle between two friends in Darby Allin and Nick Wayne. TBS Champions Kris Statlander is also set to defend her title against Emi Sakura.
ORANGE CASSIDY PROMO
Give this man his flowers. What a title run and what a performer. Cassidy soaked up the cheers in the middle of the ring and vowed that he will be here every week even if he’s not the champion.
JON MOXLEY (c) VS AR FOXX (AEW INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP):
The match was a decent showing, AR Fox’s 450 splash wasn’t enough to put away Moxley. Moxley was able to get the job done in typical fashion. The match wasn’t a barn-burner by any stretch of the imagination, but it did make Moxley look like a dominant champion. Post-match, Allin came to console Fox. On the screen, Christian and Luchasaurus confronted Nick Wayne. Christian berated Wayne’s father once again, he also told the young prodigy that if he’s looking for a mentor, he should look into someone who is a champion.
KRIS STATLANDER (c) VS EMI SAKURA (TBS CHAMPIONSHIP):
Sakura started the match like a house on fire, dominating the offense early. It’s not often that Sakura gets a singles match on Dynamite but when she does, she impresses. This match was fresh breath of air in the women’s division. Statlander got the pinfall victory via Wednesday Night Fever.
RODERICK STRONG INTERVIEW:
Strong, still wearing his neck brace, flanked by The Kingdom, was asked about his upbringing by an interviewer behind the camera. Strong talked about his rocky childhood, and how pro wrestling was an outlet for him. Strong did it alone growing up, and he will win the Grand Slam tournament alone.
LE SE SEX GODS DEFEAT AUSSIE OPEN:
Aussie Open have been a welcome addition to the AEW tag division. Fletcher and Davis have played a key role in the MJF/Adam Cole storyline and have now had a great tv match with Jericho and Guevara. Multiple times in the match, Guevara came in with a last second save to help his partner. Jericho made both Fletcher and Davis look like a million bucks, taking all of their offense and even being on the receiving end of a few near falls. After a miscommunication where Jericho took Guevara out, Jericho was still able to hit the Judas Effect on Fletcher for the victory. However, Guevara was upset after the match and ended up pushing his mentor and walking off after security got involved.
RICKY STARKS VIDEO PACKAGE:
Highlights from the Ricky Starks vs Bryan Danielson Strap Match at All Out were shown on screen. Starks spoke passionately about the match and how he couldn’t be tapped out. Starks, while he is a heel, came off as a valiant warrior after what was a spectacular match from last Sunday.
DON CALLIS & KONOSUKE TAKESHITA INTERVIEW:
Callis announced that they are announcing their next target next week. An easel covered with a cloth was shown next to the duo, whatever it is, it will be revealed next week on Dynamite.
MJF LIVE PROMO:
These two have been blessed with the gift to gab, however the first few minutes of the back and forth was weak. The two resorted to childlike insults that seemed below them. The promo got back on track when MJF got fired up later on and told the story of Samoa Joe pushing a young MJF to the wall back in NXT. Joe ended up baiting MJF before attacking him with Adam Cole coming in for the save. Joe got the last laugh as MJF looked like he hurt his neck.
RODERICK STRONG DEFEATS TRENT BARETTA:
Strong has been playing the annoying friend to perfection for weeks. However, similar to Kurt Angle, Strong is able to turn it on and be a wrestling machine when the bell rings. Strong and Beretta had a good competitive contest. Strong picked up the victory via backbreaker.
BACKSTAGE WITH TONI STORM:
Renee Paquette asked Toni Storm about All Out. Storm resorted to pretending not to remember her actions which led to Ruby Soho’s loss against Kris Statlander. Paquette also announced that there will be a four-way eliminator match next week that Storm will be apart of. Storm’s character work is brilliant, and one would only assume that this madness will continue to progress as the weeks go by.
HANGMAN ADAM PAGE LIVE INTERVIEW:
Page, interviewed by Tony Schiavone, discussed his win in the All Out Over-Budget Battle Royal. Before he could go too far, Swerve Strickland interrupted. Strickland ran down Page and called him out for getting too comfortable and resting on his laurels. A frustrated Page walked away before being lured back. Page was then attacked by Brian Cage. This is the perfect program for these two wrestlers who need to be focal points of the show. Page has the potential to be the ace of AEW and Strickland is one of the best heels in the whole wrestling business.
DARBY ALLIN DEFEATS NICK WAYNE:
Allin and Wayne have very good chemistry, it’s clear that these two have been in the ring countless times together as they were both trained by Nick Wayne’s father, Buddy. After a couple of strikes from Wayne, Allin grabbed the mic and told Wayne to hit him like he actually wants to win the match. Wayne answered back with a thunderous super-kick and a near fall. A little later, Christian Cage and Luchasarus made their way out and joined commentary. In the closing stretch, Allin opted not to go for the coffin drop which almost cost him the match. However, Allin was able to get back on track and get the victory after a referee stoppage. Allin not wanting to hit the coffin drop but eventually viciously stomping on Wayne and almost separating his shoulder didn’t quite make sense. However, Allin will now move onto the semifinals of the tournament where he will face Roderick Strong on Collision.
