Results
- Andrade El Idolo def. Nick Wayne & Jungle Jack Perry (AEW National Championship) (14:20) (Recommended)
- Bandido, Brody King & Speedball Mike Bailey def. Kyle Fletcher, Brian Cage & Jake Doyle (13:50)
- Maya World def. Persephone (TBS Championship) (10:00)
- Jon Moxley def. Komander (AEW Continental Championship) (13:01)
- Ricochet, Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona def. Orange Cassidy, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly (AEW World Trios Championships) (10:56)
Fallout from Redemption’s main event
This week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, from the Masonic Temple Theatre in Detroit, Michigan, opened with new footage from Sunday’s Redemption pay-per-view main event. In case you missed it: Ospreay seemingly left the Death Riders and stopped them from attacking All In opponent Kenny Omega. Moments later, Omega ended up attacking Ospreay.
In this new footage, we saw the Jon Moxley-led faction backstage watching the end of Sunday’s main event post-match. Moxley was shouting at the TV, trying to warn Ospreay that he needs to “take him [Omega] out before he gets you.”
Moxley became irate after, just like he warned, Ospreay got attacked by Omega, who dropped him on Sunday with a One-Winged Angel. Moxley addressed a camera in the locker room, saying: “Will Ospreay is truly on death ground.” For Moxley, who thought Ospreay’s lack of aggression was hurting him recently, this was a vindicating moment.
We then go outside tonight’s venue, where Ospreay was seen running into the Death Riders. Daniel Garcia started trying to say something to Ospreay, but then got dropped by an elbow from the Briton.
Moxley held back the rest of his faction from jumping Ospreay. “Are you sure you want to do that?” he said.
“You don’t get to pull the trigger for me,” said Ospreay, referring to the planned attack on Omega. He handed over his Death Riders patch. “I’m out.”
Moxley let Ospreay walk, saying he seemingly has it all figured out.
As Ospreay walked away, he was stopped by Hangman Adam Page, who told him, “If you need anything, let me know.” Ospreay brushed him off, saying he has a lot on his plate. “I can’t trust Kenny, so I can’t trust you. So I appreciate it [but] I’m going to do this on my own.”
Page stopped Ospreay from walking away. He said he believes in him and wished him luck at All In. This was a strong follow-up to Sunday’s angle. I particularly liked the footage of the Death Riders backstage from the PPV.
Andrade retains National title in electric three-way
The first match of the night saw AEW National Champion Andrade El Idolo defend his title for the first time, meeting Nick Wayne and Jungle Jack Perry in a three-way match. Andrade earned this title off Mark Davis over the weekend. Perry was aiming to become the first-ever two-time National champ with a win here.
This one worked a hectic pace to start, as many expected. Perry gave Wayne a bulldog on the floor, then Andrade hit Perry with a dive. Andrade did his usual selfie with a lucky lady at ringside before returning his focus to the fight. Wayne used a barricade to give the champ a nice Sliced Bread.
Just after the show returned from a break, Perry took Andrade off the ring apron with a huricanrana. Wayne then came through the ropes with a Canadian Destroyer to Perry, putting them both on the floor along with Andrade. This justifiably caused a “holy s***” chant from the Detroit crowd.
Wayne put Andrade back in the ring, connected with a top-rope frogsplash then a “Prodigy-Plex” brainbuster. Perry got back into the ring to break up a pin attempt. A striking exchange between these three ended with Andrade dropping both of his opponents with double clotheslines.
Andrade scored a meteora double knees in the corner to Perry for a near fall. The fight went to ringside, where Perry landed four dives in a row, with the last being a top-rope moonsault. Back in the ring, a Liger Bomb from Perry to Wayne caused a two-count.
Andrade tried for a top-rope frogsplash to Wayne, but the youngster put his knees up to counter the move. A beautiful Phoenix Splash from Wayne connected to Andrade, but a follow-up pin attempt was stopped by Perry.
Andrade knocked Perry out of the ring with a spinning back elbow, then countered a move from Wayne into the DM for a pinfall win in 14 minutes. Andrade is still your AEW National Champion. An electric match between three ballers in front of a hot crowd. No better way to get a TV program started, I feel.
In a post-match interview, Tony Schiavone broke the news to Andrade that a Casino Gauntlet Match will take place at All In, with the winner getting a world title opportunity. A qualifying match to decide who enters first in that gauntlet will take place next week in Andrade’s home country of Mexico on Dynamite. Andrade was asked if he’s interested. The National champ said, “How you know?” to end the segment.
Backstage, the Brawling Birds called for a matchup against tag champs Lena Kross and Megan Bayne. Seems logical that they’ll cross paths at All In.
Speedball scores tag win ahead of TNT title match
An interview backstage with the Don Callis Family focused on issues between Kyle Fletcher and Kevin Knight. Fletcher said that, unlike Knight, he won over the weekend. Knight worried that Fletcher will drop his title when he faces Speedball next week. Fletcher assured Knight that such a result won’t happen. Kazuchika Okada, who has also been teasing problems with Fletcher recently, entered the frame to say, “Kyle is right. The International title will stay within the family.” Stay with Fletcher, or with the family? Interesting choice of words here from the Rainmaker.
Trios action was next: Kyle Fletcher, Brian Cage and Jake Doyle faced off against the team of Speedball Mike Bailey and Brodido. This match mainly served as a way to tease next week’s Fletcher & Bailey showdown.
Cage caught Bandido out of the air and powerbombed him into a ringpost as the show went to a break. Nasty! Brody King received a hot tag after the show returned and got a near fall after giving Cage a cannonball in the corner. He tagged in Bailey, who tried for his Ultima Weapon, but Cage got out of the way. Cage powerbombed Bailey into a corner of the ring then tagged in Fletcher.
The heel trio picked on Bailey. A series of moves ended with a running knee strike from Fletcher. Brodido got into the ring to break up a pin, but were cleared out right after by Cage and Doyle. Bailey and Fletcher traded pin attempts. A Liger Bomb from Fletcher was escaped by Bailey, who hit the Ultima Weapon. A follow-up spinning head kick was stopped by Fletcher, who tossed Bailey like a lawn dart into a middle turnbuckle. Bailey countered a follow-up move from Fletcher into a spinning back kick, dropping them both.
In next was Doyle and Bandido. The ROH World Champion scored an impressive slam on Doyle, then a huge frogsplash. Doyle surprisingly shot up to his feet after this move, slammed Bandido, then dropped him with a body block. A quick sequence featuring everyone in the match included Bailey hitting Fletcher with a springboard moonsault to the outside.
The focus went back to Doyle and Bandido. The luchador nearly scored a pinfall from a roll-up. A 21-Plex from Bandido was stopped by Doyle, who countered with a forearm. Bailey got a blind tag. As Doyle was wrestling for control with Bandido, Bailey came off the top rope with an Ultima Weapon knee strike to Doyle’s back. They then rolled up Doyle for the pinfall win in nearly 14 minutes. Really fun tag preview here. Looking forward to Bailey vs. Fletcher for sure. Hoping we get more Brodido going forward.
Statlander helps Maya World defend TBS title
In a pre-taped interview, we saw AEW World Tag Team Champions Cope & Cage in a sit-down face-to-face with the Young Bucks, who they’re facing at All In. A TV in the background with a Montreal Canadiens logo gave away that this was recorded over the weekend and not in Detroit (not that it matters). This segment started respectful but got a little more intense once they both got down to talking about their upcoming clash.
In her first appearance since becoming TBS Champion, Maya World defended against CMLL’s Persephone in the next bout.
World tried for a pair of crafty roll-up pins as the show came back from a break. The champ hit a double-stomp to Persephone’s stomach then earned a near fall with a Shining Wizard. Persephone sent World out of the ring with a fallaway slam, then connected a speedy tope suicida to the floor.
After some back and forth, World got back into the match with a DDT onto the floor. Back in the ring, Persephone connected with a Rainmaker-esque lariat. Persephone bridged a German Suplex into a pin attempt, but it wasn’t enough to put away the champ. World dropped Persephone with a double-stomp to the chest then a moonsault out of the corner.
It was at this point that former TBS champ Hikaru Shida showed up at ringside. Just as Persephone was about to capitalize on this distraction, Kris Statlander showed up at ringside and distracted her! After these delays, World caught Persephone with her bridging fallaway slam into a pinfall for the win in 10 minutes. Awesome work from these two; Persephone deserves more opportunities like this.
Mad that he lost the AEW National Championship, Mark Davis challenged Will Ospreay to a match at Grand Slam: Mexico. The promo here was rough but that should be a fun trilogy bout between them.
Willow, Moné talk All In showdown
Renee Paquette was in the ring for the next segment, hosting an interview with new AEW Women’s World Champion Willow Nightingale. After some pyro and confetti, Nightingale got emotional on the mic. “You guys are far too kind,” Nightingale said, fighting tears.
Nightingale addressed how she had to overcome doubters: “People would look at a girl like me, and they just wouldn’t get it … But this past year, I’ve made you guys, apparently, very happy.”
Nightingale said her mom helped pull her out of a dark place after she was injured earlier this year. “You can stay down, or you can fight,” Nightingale recalled her mom saying to her.
Nightingale got more serious for a moment and addressed the camera: “If life has been kicking you around, don’t you dare give up. Don’t you do it, okay? Keep fighting, keep pushing through. Because sometimes the comeback is better than the dream!”
As we all expected, this was eventually cut off by Mercedes Moné, Nightingale’s All In opponent. Moné showed up with a contract for their Wembley match, which she demanded Nightingale sign. Nightingale signed the contract, then the two women briefly shoved eachother.
Nightingale asked what Moné’s problem was. She asked if Moné is mad because she remembered Nightingale is the one who ended her TBS title reign. Then she had another guess: Maybe Moné is mad because “I have the one championship that you just can’t get.”
Moné said she hates Nightingale because her name is “written all over my story.” Moné said she will end Nightingale’s fairytale at All In. “I’m not going to just take that title. I’m going to take that smile too,” said Moné before shoving Nightingale. Divine Dominion showed up as backup for Moné, causing a three-on-one beatdown. The tag champs dropped Nightingale with a double chokeslam. The Brawling Birds came in for the save, preventing the attack from getting any worse.
Moxley retains against Komander
The co-main event of the night saw AEW Continental Champion Jon Moxley face Komander. It’s been a strong few weeks for Komander, who has put on many fun performances on AEW TV as of late (most notably his bout against Kyle Fletcher a few weeks back).
Moxley got caught with a tope suicida from the luchador as the show went into a break. There was a hilarious exchange after the show returned, as a flippy combination in the ring from Komander was cut short by Moxley, who flipped him off then scored a sudden cutter. Just past the halfway point in this match, Komander draped Moxley on the ropes then scored a guillotine leg drop off the top rope. A near fall emerged after Komander caught Moxley with a 450 splash.
Moxley was booted out of the ring, allowing Komander to deliver his always beautiful tightrope walk and dive to the outside. Back in the ring, a springboard moonsault was dodged by Moxley, who hit a Curbstomp, Death Rider, then sleeper hold for submission win. Decent piece of work from these two. Komander has really reminded fans how fun he is in recent weeks.
Backstage, the Bang Bang Gang challenged The Dogs and Death Riders to an eight-man tag match for Collision.
The Demand win trios gold
The final match of the night saw The Conglomeration’s Orange Cassidy, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly defend the AEW World Trios Championships against Ricochet and the Gates of Agony.
The Demand jumped The Conglomeration before the bell, causing a huge ringside brawl before the match officially started. Ricochet delivered a big dive off the ramp onto all three members of The Conglomeration then tossed Cassidy into the ring to get this one officially underway.
The Conglomeration were closing in on a win late, but were distracted by a sudden run-in by their opponents from Sunday, The Lethal Twist! Blake Christian hit Cassidy with a title, allowing Ricochet to put him away with the Spirit Gun for a pinfall win in 10 minutes. The Demand are your new AEW World Trios Champions. This was a fine match. The Demand were due to have something of importance happen to them, so I like that they got the nod.
A post-match attack was stopped by Brody King and Hangman Adam Page. The segment ended with Page giving Jay Lethal a Buckshot Lariat, a move we haven’t seen in quite some time.
Will Ospreay promises to ‘pull the trigger’ at Wembley
The final segment of the night saw AEW World Champion Kenny Omega come out and address his All In bout against Will Ospreay. Before Omega could even get a full sentence out, Ospreay came to the ring.
Omega went back to comments from months back, when Ospreay said he thought Omega gave up on going after the world title. “Does this look like I gave up?” he said to Ospreay.
Omega said he repeatedly warned Ospreay about the Death Riders, and he ignored him each time. “What’s your excuse now that [has] blown up in your face?” he asked Ospreay.
“What’s my excuse? I came back too early from my neck surgery because all I could think about was revenge,” Ospreay said. Ospreay said he felt he “shortchanged” his supporters when he came back and wasn’t the same wrestler as before.
He said nobody was there for him but Moxley. Omega wasn’t on mic but was heard disputing this. Ospreay got blunt for a second and admitted he liked being a Death Rider. It reminded him of what it was like being in a faction, like in his NJPW days.
“But that is where it ends. I don’t share the same philosophy that the Death Riders have … I know how I can become a world champion, and that’s by being the best.”
Omega went back to Sunday, when Ospreay stopped the Death Riders from attacking him. Omega said that, when he got up, he realized that Ospreay hesitated and considered actually doing it. Omega slapped Ospreay.
“I thought you were my friend,” Omega said. “I was your friend,” Ospreay replied.
Omega slapped Ospreay a few more times, telling him he’ll always be a step behind. “In case I haven’t gotten my point across to you,” Omega said before slapping Ospreay again. Ospreay dropped Omega with a right hand. He set up for a Hidden Blade… But then pulled back, showing some remorse.
“You put your hands on me, I will kick the s*** out of you,” Ospreay warned Omega. Ospreay said everyone’s asking the same question about him: “Can he pull the trigger?”
Ospreay closed out the segment:
“You’re damn right I can pull the trigger … I want you at your best, no excuses. The best versus the best. I’m gonna pull the trigger, and I’m going to do it when it matters the most. I’m going to do it when the title’s on the line. And when I pull the trigger, you’re gonna see it coming.”
Incredible. I’ve been quite critical of Ospreay and (especially) Omega’s promo skills, but this was one of the best talking segments AEW have produced in some time. This week’s episode kicked this Omega and Ospreay rivalry into a higher gear than ever, and we still have lots of time to go until they finally face off. Love it.
Final thoughts
This was a stellar episode of Dynamite. While I might’ve cut one match to keep this show from ending at a bloated two-and-a-half hours, the in-ring action was consistent and the two world title segments were excellent. Hard to ask for a better way to start the promotion’s road to All In.
