Tag: AEW

Jon Moxley Returns To AEW, Cuts Passionate Promo On Dynamite

Last night’s episode of AEW Dynamite kicked off with a powerful promo from Jon Moxley, who just returned to the company following a stint in rehab.

Jon Moxley is BACK! And he’s got a thirst for blood.

The former AEW Champion made his long-awaited return to AEW on this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite. It all went down in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, January 19. Mox’s music hit as soon as the show kicked, and the fans went wild. Mox hit the ring, grabbed a mic, and got down to business by dealing with a heckler who yelled some lame insult at Mox. Quick as a flash, Mox told the guy to “go f**k” himself.

https://twitter.com/WrestlingSheet/status/1483969744508125186

Mox then cut a passionate, heartfelt promo. He addressed his demons, celebrated his ongoing recovery, and then put the AEW locker room on notice. “You thought I was dangerous before? These days all I drink is blood!” Mox said. The crowd popped and Mox left the area via the crowd as the opening segment drew to a close.

Later in the night, “All Ego” Ethan Page challenged Moxley to a match at Beach Break which goes down next Wednesday.

Last November, Moxley entered an alcohol treatment program that necessitated a hiatus from the world of wrestling. As a result, Mox was forced to pull out of scheduled appearances with AEW, GCW, and NJPW.

At the time, AEW president Tony Khan took to Twitter to announce that Mox was undergoing treatment for alcohol addiction. “Jon Moxley has allowed me to share with you that he is entering an inpatient alcohol treatment program,” Khan tweeted on the evening of Tuesday, November 2. “Jon is a beloved member of the AEW family. We all stand with him and Renee, and all of his family and friends, as he shifts his focus to recovery,” he added.

Mox’s last match was against Jimmy Jacobs at an indie show on October 30. His last AEW match was a victory over Ten in the first round of the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament on October 27.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1483969523384475652

Source: TheSportster

AEW Dynamite Preview 1/19/22, Jon Moxley Returns

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite on TBS will air live from the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, DC.

Dynamite will be headlined by the return of Jon Moxley. The former AEW World Champion has been away since November after entering himself into treatment for alcohol use. There is no word yet on what Moxley will be doing tonight.

* Jon Moxley returns from three month hiatus

* CM Punk vs. Shawn Spears

* Serena Deeb vs. Skye Blue

* FTR vs. Brock Anderson and Lee Johnson

* Sting and Darby Allin vs. The Acclaimed

* AEW TNT Champion Cody Rhodes makes his return

* Adam Cole and AEW Women’s World Champion Britt Baker vs. Orange Cassidy and Kris Statlander

* Malakai Black and Brody King vs. Varsity Blondes (Brian Pillman, Jr. and Griff Garrison)

The Briscoes Comment On Potentially Signing With WWE Or AEW

ROH World Tag Team Champions The Briscoes recently spoke with Busted Open Radio about the potential of them working for WWE or AEW. While the talk has largely been about them and AEW, the popular duo believes they could make an impact for Vince McMahon.

WWE

“I mean, I think that we would definitely survive,” Jay said. “Because at the end of the day you’ve got to get in that ring and ring the bell.”

Mark Briscoe added, “I think that we would survive and thrive. Vince McMahon likes money, and shoot when we get in-between those ropes, that’s what we are going to do, we are going to make your company money. I think that’s the bottom line, not trying to sound cocky or anything.”

“We are very confident in our abilities, especially right now we are at the top of our game,” Jay added. “So, really man, anywhere we go, we are going to definitely like he said, survive and thrive.”

The style of The Briscoes is very unique and certainly different from anything in WWE right now. However, the tag team believes that is what is needed right now. The fighting style is something they both think fans want

“When people are sitting around, and you’ve got a wrestling fan that has wrestling on TV, and he has his friends over and there not wrestling fans. What are you going to show them to get them to become wrestling fans? You can’t be showing them this clown s–t, man,” Jay stated. “You’ve got to show them something that they can get into, some real s–t.

“And professional wrestling as we all know, there’s so many different flavors of professional wrestling,” Mark added. “But you can’t have certain flavors showcased for such a high percentage of the time. You’ve got to have a fight, that’s what wrestling is, a fight. That’s got to be your staple, that’s got to be your backbone. Your backbone can’t be comedy or this that and the other you’ve got to have fighters out there.”

AEW

If they joined AEW. With the company having a huge roster, Jay made it clear that they wouldn’t be taking a backseat to anybody.

“That’s the thing man, if it does happen, when and if, everybody else is going to have to take a backseat. That’s just going to be the way it is,” Jay Briscoe said. “Once we get in there, ya’ll know what we’re going to do. Once they see we do us and FTR and we whoop their ass, they aren’t going to have no choice but to put us regularly on their television program.”

The Briscoes have been undergoing a war of words online with FTR recently. Despite the fact that they do not like Twitter, the duo admitted that they need to do it at this point in their careers.

“We’re just keeping it real, man. I don’t even like to get on the damn Twitter, man,” Jay Briscoe said. “It just sucks you in, I don’t like to get too involved but at this point in our careers, we’ve got to do what we’ve got to do. So, we just putting it out there and letting them know, ‘we’re here.’”

“Especially like, it wasn’t five minutes after the Ring Of Honor news hit. Back when it did hit, when your boy, Dax, Big Dax just tweeting Briscoes, nothing but Briscoes,” Mark added. “So we can’t sit there, yeah, ‘Briscoes, huh, Briscoes, what’s up?’”

The Briscoes also believe they will be sure to make a big impact if they do join the company. The team are confident due to the fact they’re trying to provide for their families. This means they will do whatever is needed.

“I think once we make that splash, they’re going to want to see it again and again,” Jay Briscoe stated. “So, I ain’t really too worried about that. At the end of the day we’re providing for our families. So we’ve got to do what we’ve got to do. But, I don’t think we’ve got to worry about riding the bench.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Cody Rhodes Is Reportedly A Free Agent

AEW TNT Champion Cody Rhodes is reportedly a free agent.

Rhodes’ AEW contract reportedly expired at the end of 2021, technically making him a free agent, according to Fightful Select. Rhodes has been working without a contract since then.

Rhodes’ status as a free agent has been known by many within AEW for a few weeks now.

There is no word on when Rhodes is expected to sign a new AEW contract, but we will keep you updated. You can click here for what Rhodes recently had to say to Sports Illustrated about his future with the company.

Rhodes, who also works as an Executive Vice President for AEW, became a three-time TNT Champion by defeating Sammy Guevara for the title back on the Holiday Bash edition of AEW Rampage on December 25. He was scheduled to defend against Guevara in a rematch at Battle of The Belts on January 8, but was pulled from the show due to a medical issue. Guevara defeated Dustin Rhodes to become the Interim AEW TNT Champion at Battle of The Belts instead.

Rhodes is scheduled to make his return on this week’s AEW Dynamite from Washington, DC, but there’s no word on when the title match with Guevara will take place.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Rampage Preview 1/14/22

Tonight’s AEW Rampage on TNT was taped earlier this week from the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina.

* An appearance by Jay Lethal

* A special look at Thunder Rosa and Mercedes Martinez

* Adam Cole vs. Trent Beretta

* Shawn Spears vs. Andrew Everett

* Penelope Ford, The Bunny and Nyla Rose vs. Red Velvet, Kris Statlander and Leyla Hirsch

* AEW World Tag Team Champions Jurassic Express defend against John Silver and Alex Reynolds

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express To Begin Farewell Retirement Tour Against Top AEW Tag Team

WWE Hall of Famers The Rock & Roll Express are retiring from tag team competition.

Ricky Morton took to Twitter this week to announce that he and Robert Gibson will begin their farewell tour on Saturday, January 22 when they wrestle AAA World Tag Team Champions FTR at a Big Time Wrestling event in Spartanburg, SC.

Morton noted that he and Gibson will continue to make appearances together, but they are retiring from wrestling as a tag team. Morton wants to spend more time teaming with his son, Kerry Morton, and work with other up & coming talent.

“Rock & Roll Express Farewell tour begins January 22nd, 2022. I want to focus more with Kerry and behind the scenes in the wrestling business. #onelastride,” he wrote. “Specify, Robert and I are retiring from tag team wrestling together. Not appearances/signings. I would like to continue to tag team with my son and work with the younger generation in this glorious business.”

After the match against FTR, Morton will then wrestle Matt Cardona at GCW’s The Wrld On GCW the next night from Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. Morton is also scheduled to team with 2 Cold Scorpio to wrestle Effy and Allie Katch at this Friday’s GCW Notorious event in Detroit. Morton is then scheduled to compete in the 26th annual ECWA Super 8 Tournament on Saturday, March 26 in Morganville, NJ.

Morton and Gibson began teaming together in the early 1980s. The legendary tag team has held gold in more than a dozen promotions. They were inducted into the NWA Hall of Fame in 2006, the WWE Hall of Fame in 2017, and the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2021.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Brody King Revealed As House Of Black Member During AEW Dynamite Debut

Malakai Black’s tag team partner Brody King has finally debuted on AEW after parting ways with Ring Of Honor.

Former Ring Of Honor star Brody King was revealed as a member of Malakai Black’s ‘House Of Black’ during the former’s AEW debut, which occurred on this week’s edition of Dynamite on TBS.

It all went down at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina on Wednesday, January 12. Penta El Zero Miedo had just scored a pinfall victory over Matt Hardy when he got on the mic to call out Malakai Black. The lights went out, and when they came back on, Black was standing in the ring. Black attacked both Penta and Penta’s hype man Alex Abrahantes but Varsity Blondes (Griff Garrison, Bryan Pillman Jr., and Julia Hart ) made the save and prevented Black from doing any more damage … for a few seconds at least.

Black laughed in the face of his three assailants, and then the lights went off for a second time. When they came back on, Brody King was standing in the ring. Black and King beat everyone up and stood tall as the segment drew to a close.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1481452869626826752

Brody King is a 34-year-old professional wrestler who cut his teeth in the Southern California independent scene while training at the prestigious Santinos Bros Academy in Los Angeles. Something of a late bloomer, King wrestled his very first match in 2015, but his rise to indie stardom was swift. In 2018, he made his Ring Of Honor as a member of Marty Scurll’s heel faction Villain enterprises.

The following year, King and his Villain Enterprises teammate PCO captured the ROH World Tag Team Championship when they defeated The Briscoes (Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe) at ROH’s 17th Aniversary Show. The very next evening, King became a double champ when he and PCO teamed up with Scurll to win the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Title from The Kingdom (Matt Taven, TK O’Ryan & Vinny Marseglia).

Earlier this year, King reunited with his old friend Malakai Black when Black made his shocking return to PWG after a five-year absence at the promotion’s Mystery Vortex VII event. Known collectively as The Kings Of The Black Throne, Brody King and Malakai Black defeated Black Taurus & Demonic Flamita PWG Threemendous VI to win the vacant PWG World Tag Team Championship.

Source: TheSportster

AEW Dynamite Preview 1/12/22

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite on TBS will take place from the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. This will be the Raleigh debut for the company.

* CM Punk vs. Wardlow

* Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Dante Martin

* Hikaru Shida vs. Serena Deeb

* Interim TNT Champion Sammy Guevara defends against Daniel Garcia

Taya Valkyrie Wants A Spot In The AEW Owen Hart Tournament 

Former Impact and NXT star Taya Valkyrie (Franky Monet) says she’s interested in working at AEW and thinks she deserves a spot in the Owen Hart tournament.

AEW’s inaugural Owen Hart Cup tournaments are set to kick off in a few months, and some wrestlers are starting to lobby for places … including former Impact and NXT star Taya Valkyrie (Franky Monet).

During a recent East Coast Autograph Auctions appearance, Valkyrie implied that she would jump at the opportunity to join AEW if offered.

“Of course, I would go to AEW. I mean, they are doing something different,” she said. “A lot of my peers and my best friends, my brothers Fenix and Pentagon are over there. So why not? Let’s wait and see what happens,” Taya teased.

La Wera Loca then commented on the possibility of her participating in the Owen Cup, saying that she deserves a spot as she shares a nationality with the man to whom the tournament is dedicated.

“I mean, as a Canadian, I think that I should definitely be in the Owen tournament,” Taya said. “I was trying to think what Canadian girls are part of AEW. I want to say Allie is probably the only one? So I think there needs to be more Canadians in that scenario. So, I would absolutely love to.”

AEW’s partnership with The Owen Hart Foundation was announced last September. Both the men’s and women’s Owen Hart Cup tournaments will be taking place in May 2022 with each final happening at this year’s Double Or Nothing. No competitors have been announced, but we’ll be sure to keep you posted with new developments.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1439967601854226434

Taya Valkyrie signed with WWE in February of last year and was soon repackaged as Franky Monet. She and several of her now-former co-workers were released by WWE on Thursday, November 4 allegedly due to budget cuts necessitated by the Covid-19 pandemic (although as we reported, WWE generated $256 Million in revenue in that quarter).

Source: TheSportster

AEW Battle Of The Belts Preview 1/8/22 (Updated) – Cody Rhodes Confirms COVID-19 Diagnosis

AEW Battle of The Belts will air this Saturday on TNT at 8pm ET, live from the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, NC. The local start time is 7pm ET, indicating that they may tape other matches before the show.

In a video package, it was revealed that Cody Rhodes will not compete at Battle Of The Belts due to “medical protocol” and that his brother Dustin Rhodes will take his place. Dustin and Sammy Guevara will compete to determine an interim TNT Champion

*  AEW Women’s World Championship: Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D. (c) vs. Riho

*  AEW TNT Interim Championship: Dustin Rhodes vs. Sammy Guevara

* FTW Championship: Ricky Starks (c) vs. Matt Sydal 

Cody Rhodes confirmed that he tested positive for Covid-19.

Cody provided an update for both he and Brandi Rhodes, his wife. In it, he mentions how multiple family members have tested positive and are quarantining with them.

“I appreciate everybody reaching out. Brandi and I are in isolation with family that have unfortunately tested positive for Covid. It’s been a scary time dealing with such a strong virus and the complications that can come with it. We are doing all we can to nurse and protect the family during this time. I will remain in quarantine as long as needed.

“Everyday is more encouraging,” Cody Rhodes continued. “Thank you immensely for your support and respect for our privacy. Thank you to AEW for understanding and allowing me to be where I am needed today, and for still allowing the TNT Title to be represented. I look forward to being back soon. All the love in the world!”

Rhodes also posted a pro-vaccine message to his Instagram Stories on Thursday morning, possibly when he first discovered the positive test results. At the time, he wrote “Please get vaccinated – if not for yourself, for the young kids/babies who can’t defend themselves as easily from Covid.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.