Category: AEW

AEW Rampage Preview 6/10/22

One of the most celebrated in-ring performers of his generation and an eye-popping pro wrestling prospect will make their AEW in-ring debuts on tonight’s episode of “Rampage”.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Will Ospreay will be in a trios match alongside Aussie Open against the Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champions FTR and Trent Beretta. Ospreay, Aussie Open, and their United Empire stablemate Aaron Henare attacked Beretta and FTR on Wednesday’s “Dynamite”.

Ospreay is a former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion in NJPW and is almost universally recognized as one of the best professional wrestlers in the world today. Ospreay is also the leader of NJPW’s United Empire stable, which added Aussie Open late last year. Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis are rising stars in the world of tag team wrestling. They joined NJPW in April after building their reputations in Australia and Europe.

The following line-up is announced for tonight:

  • Eddie Kingston vs. Jake Hager
  • Kris Statlander vs. Red Velvet
  • FTR & Trent Beretta vs. Will Ospreay & Aussie Open
  • The in-ring debut of Satnam Singh, teaming with Jay Lethal
  • We hear from Hook and Danhausen

Chris Jericho And MVP Clashed In A Hotel After Dynamite This Week

Apparently Chris Jericho and MVP was involved in a heated verbal altercation.

The Wednesday Night War might have come to an end when NXT moved to Tuesdays nights, and there might be friends on both sides, but there is still a healthy competition between WWE and AEW. While some wrestlers might not care which side is doing better than the other and mean it, others very much do. That was reportedly made evident in a hotel lobby during the early hours of Thursday morning after Dynamite this week.

According to Wrestling Observer‘s Dave Meltzer, Chris Jericho and MVP came to verbal blows in a hotel in Houston, Texas. “Jericho was talking to Matt Hardy and MVP shows up. Most people didn’t know what was up and thought he was kidding around until it became clear he wasn’t kidding,” Meltzer explained. Apparently the argument may have hinged on an issue between the two that dates back 18 months.

Apparently no punches were thrown, nor was there a physical altercation of any kind, but it seems likely that might have been the case had the two not been separated. “Nothing bad happened even though it was a tense situation. Jericho did tell him that he doesn’t fight jobbers when he got in the elevator ad MVP was screaming it in the lobby,” Meltzer went on to say.

Jericho and MVP will have shared a WWE locker room in the past, but not for a very long time. By the time MVP returned for his latest stint in WWE during the 2020 men’s Royal Rumble, Jericho had already become All Elite. In fact, it has been more than 12 years since the two were in the same match together. Coincidentally, that match was the 2010 Royal Rumble.

As for why the two of them don’t get along to the point that they openly fought, at least verbally, remains unknown. What would happen if the two of them had been allowed to fight, that’s anyone’s guess. MVP seems like a pretty tough guy, but apparently Jericho once managed to restrain Goldberg backstage, so he’s definitely not someone you’d want to mess with if it can be avoided.

Source: TheSportster

Will Ospreay Debuts On AEW Dynamite, Leads United Empire Invasion

Cheeky Englishman Will Ospreay and his United Empire comrades ambushed FTR and Trent Beretta on this week’s AEW Dynamite on TBS.

Will Ospreay made his All Elite Wrestling debut when he and his United Empire cronies (Aaron Henare, Mark Davis, and Kyle Fletcher) ambushed FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) and Trent Beretta on this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite on TBS.

It all went down at the Cable Dahmer Arena in Kansas City, Missouri on Wednesday, June 8. The segment began with Trent Beretta cutting a promo in which he addressed the ROH World Tag Team Title match from the May 25 edition of Dynamite, which ended in a double disqualification when United Empire member Great-O-Khan and Jeff Cobb interfered, allowing FTR to retain the gold while screwing Roppongi Vice in the process.

FTR came to the ring and informed Trent that he needs to take his grievances up with “Will Ospreay’s bitch boys” in United Empire … and then the man himself arrived on the scene.

Former IWGP Heavyweight Champion appeared on the ramp, which distracted FTR and Trent long enough for Aaron Henare and Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) to ambush the trio from behind. Ospreay got involved in the ensuing brawl which allowed United Empire to maintain the upper hand and leave their enemies reeling. Ospreay hit Rent with a Hidden Blade and the UE celebrated as the segment drew to a close.

Later in the night, it was announced that Ospreay and Aussie Open would take on FTR and Trent in trios action on this week’s Rampage.

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Ospreay was sidelined with a neck injury last May and was forced to relinquish the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship he’d won the previous month at Sakura Genesis. Ospreay sustained the injury during a match against Shingo Takagi, who would go on to defeat Kazuchika Okada for the vacant championship at Dominion on June 7.

The Essex boy shocked the wrestling world when he gatecrashed NJPW’s Resurgence event which emanated live from The Torch at LA Coliseum in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, August 14. The 28-year-old revealed that he was medically cleared to compete and proclaimed that he was the rightful IWGP World Heavyweight Champion since he never actually lost the title.

Source: TheSportster

AEW Introduces All-Atlantic Title, First Champion To Be Crowned At Forbidden Door

A brand new title that was unveiled on Wednesday night and the plans for how a new champion (AEW All-Atlantic Champion) will be crowned were revealed. Yes, there’s going to be another tournament, but this one’s a little different, and it’s already underway.

The match to decide the first-ever All-Atlantic Champion will be a Fatal 4-Way. Eight wrestlers will get the opportunity to qualify through four different matches, the first of which took place on Wednesday night. Buddy Matthews faced off against Pac, with the latter booking his spot, and a chance to become the first All-Atlantic Champion, at Forbidden Door.

Since it’s an AEW championship, three of the spots will be going to AEW wrestlers. The other two qualifying matches will feature Ethan Page battling against the returning Miro, and Malakai Black versus Penta. The fourth spot will go to a New Japan star, giving someone from the promotion the chance to become the first All-Atlantic Champion. Who exactly will get that opportunity is yet to be announced.

The All-Atlantic championship will be the sixth title introduced to AEW, joining the World, TNT, Women’s, TBS, and Tag Titles. Tony Khan has already revealed there will be Trios Titles added in the future, and has considered bringing in Women’s Tag Titles too. The introduction of the All-Atlantic Championship came as quite a surprise, and will likely fill a similar role to the one the Intercontinental Title does in WWE.

Source: TheSportster

AEW Dynamite Preview 6/8/22

The chase for the interim AEW World Championship begins on tonight’s “Dynamite” from the Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence, Missouri. (Kansas City area)

Tonight’s show will open with a battle royal. A list of participants has not been announced. However, an ad for tonight’s show mentions a “star-studded field” while showing images of Penta Oscuro, Miro, Powerhouse Hobbs, Sammy Guevara, Darby Allin, and Wardlow.

The following line-up is announced for tonight:

  • Battle Royal to face Jon Moxley in the main event
  • Jon Moxley vs. Battle Royal winner
  • Hangman Page vs. David Finlay

CM Punk Announces Injury, Interim AEW World Champion To Be Crowned

Just five nights after capturing the AEW World Championship at the Double or Nothing pay-per-view in Las Vegas, CM Punk announced that he has an injury that will require surgery.

Punk appeared live on Friday’s “Rampage” to make the announcement.

“When I got here earlier today, I pulled up to the arena and every bone in my body was screaming at me to turn around and go home and go hug my wife and Larry [my dog],” Punk began. “And when I say every bone in my body, I mean even the broken ones. But my brain told me to stay, and my gut told me that everybody here live deserved an explanation – so here I am.

“Since I stepped foot here in All Elite Wrestling, I told you I would give you my all till the wheels fell off. I got good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?”

Punk continued, “The last thing I ever want to feel is that I’m letting any one of you down. The last thing I ever wanted to do was leave you feeling disappointed. So I hope thus far, I haven’t made you feel that way.

“I have loved every single second I’ve been in this ring, every single time I’ve been in this ring in front of all of you has been a gift I never thought I’d be able to experience again.”

Punk revealed he requires surgery to repair an injury.

“So, here’s the bad news – I’m injured and need surgery. A couple of things are broken. The biggest one is my heart because I love nothing more than to perform for all of you, and I wanted to go on one hell of a run. That’s the bad news.

“The good news is, I can still do all that. I told you I was going to go till the wheels fall off, and the wheels are still there, they haven’t fallen off. It’s just that one of them happens to be broken. I’ve come back from worse, I’ve felt better than I feel today, but I’m also here to tell you that I’ve felt a hell of a lot worse.”

Punk then referred to the situation as just “a bump in the road” before putting over AEW’s talented young roster. He added that he didn’t want to hold up the company and will relinquish the title. In conclusion, Punk promised to come back bigger, faster, stronger, and hungrier than ever before. You can see the entire promo segment below.

AEW later announced that an interim AEW World Champion will be crowned. A battle royal will be held on Wednesday’s “Dynamite” with the winner advancing to face the #1 ranked contender Jon Moxley later that same night. The winner of that match will advance to compete for the interim AEW World Championship at the Forbidden Door pay-per-view on June 26.

Although CM Punk didn’t specify the nature of the injury, he had a noticeable limp during an off-camera segment with MJF earlier this week on “Dynamite.” It’s possible that he suffered the injury during a six-man tag team match where Punk & FTR defeated Max Caster & The Gunn Club. He was also not wearing one of his boots during a backstage photo with FTR.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Rampage Preview 6/3/22

“AEW Rampage” is back in its regular timeslot and broadcasting live tonight from the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California.

The arena is located just miles away from Rancho Cucamonga, the hometown of The Young Bucks. They’re scheduled to be in action tonight against their longtime rivals the Lucha Brothers.

The following line-up is announced for tonight:

  • TNT Championship Match: Dante Martin vs. Scorpio Sky (c)
  • Lucha Bros. vs. The Young Bucks
  • Athena vs. Kiera Hogan

Miro Returns To AEW, Defeats Johnny Elite On Dynamite

“The Redeemer” ended his seventh-month AEW hiatus to face John Morrison on the June 1 edition of Dynamite on TBS.

Miro returned to AEW, cut a promo on God himself, and defeated Johnny Elite on this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite on TBS.

It all went down at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, California on June 1. The segment in which Miro made his long-awaited return began with hometown boy Johnny Elite making his way to the ring ahead of the match with a mystery opponent. The mystery was soon revealed when the man known as “The Redeemer” appeared on the big screen in a pre-taped promo vignette.

In his promo, Miro resumed his war with God and vowed to take God’s home by force … make of that what you will. The Bulgarian’s music started playing after the promo concluded, and Miro made his way to an AEW ring for the first time since last November.

In the ring, Miro made fairly short work of his fellow former WWE Superstar, finishing Johnny off with the brutal Game Over submission maneuver.

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Miro has reportedly been nursing a hamstring injury for some time, which explains why he has worked a match since losing to Bryan Danielson at Full Gear on November 13.

According to Fightful Select (subscription required and recommended), Miro injured his hamstring prior to taking a hiatus from in-ring duties, which is why his leg was bandaged up during his last few matches. There was no official word from either Miro or AEW regarding recovery time, but the former TNT Champion appeared in a hype vignette on the Christmas Day (which also happens to be Miro’s birthday) edition of Rampage.

As you might recall, The artist formerly known as Rusev won the TNT Championship after defeating Darby Allin in the main event of the May 12 edition of AEW Dynamite on TNT. Miro plowed through veterans like Lance Archer and demolished upstarts like Dante Martin during his 141-day reign, but lost the title to Sammy Guevara on the September 29 edition of AEW Dynamite.

Source: TheSportster

MJF Asks Tony Khan To Fire Him As AEW Cuts His Mic On Dynamite

Max Friedman asked AEW to fire him during a passionate shoot (?) promo on the June 1 edition of AEW Dynamite on TBS.

MJF picked up a mic on live TV for the first time since the news of backstage hostility between himself and AEW higher-ups broke … and he did not disappoint. It all went down at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on June 1. The man who lost, emphatically, to his former valet Wardlow at Double Or Nothing last Sunday came to the ring during this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite on TBS and made his feeling known to the world.

Speaking as Max Friedman (his real name) MJF cut a (presumably) worked-shoot promo in which he rated about how he isn’t being paid what he deserves because AEW president Tony Khan can’t stop spending money on ex-WWE guys. He had a lot to get off his chest, and he held nothing back. MJF also pointed out that there were some important Warner Bros. Discovery execs in attendance, and seemingly threatened to derail the show in an attempt to get under TK’s skin. Mission accomplished.

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Toward the end of the segment, MJF begged Tony Khan to fire him as he didn’t want to wait another two years to leave AEW (his contract expires in 2024). He cussed a whole bunch and whatever he said was bleeped out on the TV feed … and then the production team cut his mic and the show went to commercial break.

According to those in attendance, AEW World Champion CM Punk came out to confront MJF during the commercial break, but MJF fled through the crowd.

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Source: TheSportster

AEW Dynamite Preview 6/1/22

Coming off the heels of its “Double or Nothing” pay-per-view on Sunday, AEW is in southern California for the first time ever. Tonight’s episode of “Dynamite” is being held at The Kia Forum in Inglewood, California. One of the biggest crowds in AEW’s history is expected.

The following line-up is announced for tonight’s “Dynamite”:

  • AEW Tag Team Champions Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus, Christian Cage, Darby Allin & Matt Hardy vs. Bobby Fish, Kyle O’Reilly, Hikuleo & The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson)
  • Daniel Garcia vs. Jon Moxley
  • Dr. Britt Baker & Jamie Hayter vs. Ruby Soho & Toni Storm

Behind the scenes, Tony Khan recently revealed that Warner Bros. Discovery executives are expected to be at tonight’s “Dynamite”.