AEW World Champion Jon Moxley will appear on Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite to deliver a promo. A promo by the winner of the All Out main event was announced during Saturday’s PPV.
Moxley retained the AEW World title at All Out, defeating MJF. Moxley won by pinfall after using the Paradigm Shift while MJF’s second, Wardlow, accidentally diverted the referee’s attention.
The stipulation for Moxley vs. MJF stated that Moxley was banned from using the Paradigm Shift, but did not specify that Moxley would lose the title if he did so.
Lance Archer won the Casino Battle Royale at All Out to earn a future AEW World title shot. Archer was shown watching the main event from the stands and could be Moxley’s next challenger should MJF not get an immediate rematch after Moxley violated the stipulation.
MJF posted two tweets about the main event result after the show: “We aren’t gonna talk about the fact he cheated?!?!?!?!” and “F*ck wardlow. My bad, not like I was in a brutal war or anything. Actually….f*ck all of you.”
AEW has revealed the name and date for their next pay-per-view.
During All Out tonight, a video aired announcing that Full Gear 2020 will take place on Saturday, November 7. This will be AEW’s second annual Full Gear PPV.
The promotion’s first Full Gear event was held at Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland last November. It was headlined by Jon Moxley defeating Kenny Omega in an unsanctioned lights out match. Chris Jericho, who was the AEW World Champion then, also retained the title against Cody at that PPV after MJF turned against Cody and threw in the towel.
Full Gear will be AEW’s fourth PPV of 2020. Revolution, Double or Nothing, and All Out were the company’s first three PPVs of the year. Double or Nothing and All Out were both held at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tonight’s All Out PPV had a socially distanced crowd that was limited to a maximum of 15 percent capacity.
Matt Hardy was injured in a scary moment during his Broken Rules match against Sammy Guevara at All Out.
Guevara speared Hardy off a scissor lift and through a table near the beginning of their match at tonight’s pay-per-view, but Hardy’s head missed the table and hit the concrete. The commentary team said that Hardy was out of it. Referee Aubrey Edwards went to count to 10, but Hardy made it to his feet and tried to continue the match despite not being in any condition to do so. Edwards then separated Hardy and Guevara, put up the X sign, and called for AEW doctor Michael Sampson to check on Hardy.
The bell was called for and the match was stopped, but it ended up being restarted and Hardy and Guevara began brawling again. The match ended quickly after that, with Hardy and Guevara climbing up scaffolding and Hardy knocking Guevara off to get the win.
Our Bryan Alvarez tweeted later in the show that Hardy was on his way to the hospital. AEW also gave an update on Hardy’s condition. Tony Schiavone said on commentary that he talked to Sampson about what happened. Sampson said he asked Hardy if he was okay and Hardy responded that he was. It was said that Sampson cleared Hardy to continue the match and it was restarted. Schiavone noted that Hardy and Guevara will both be alright.
AEW later clarified that Sampson did examine Hardy before he cleared him. Schiavone said AEW officials would never restart a match otherwise.
Hardy’s wife Reby tweeted after the injury: “Let me be absolutely f*cking clear. There is NOTHING entertaining about a concussion. Shame on everyone in that goddamn building.”
The stipulations of the Broken Rules match were that it was a last man standing match where the finish could take place anywhere, there had to be a winner, and Hardy would leave AEW forever if he lost.
FTR defeated Hangman Page and Kenny Omega tonight at All Out, ending Omega & Page’s reign after 228 days. The finish came when Omega accidentally v-triggered Page, allowing FTR to hit a spike piledriver after getting rid of Omega. Page kicked out, but did not kick out of a second.
After the match, Omega grabbed a chair and looked at Page, appearing as if he were about to attack Page. When Page got up, Omega let him fall to the ground and walked off, leaving Page by himself in the ring.
Omega stormed off backstage, blowing off The Young Bucks who tried to talk to Omega to calm him down. Omega got into a car and asked the Bucks if they were coming. The Bucks didn’t, leaving Omega to exit the arena by himself.
Page & Omega won the titles on January 21, 2020 during the Chris Jericho Rock ‘N’ Wrestling Rager cruise, defeating SoCal Uncensored (Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky).
Kip Sabian will announce his ‘best man’ for his upcoming wedding on this week’s Dynamite, while a TNT title match has also been announced.
Sabian and Penelope Ford were shown on tonight’s All In event, with Sabian announcing that they were getting married, and it will take place live on AEW Dynamite. Sabian mentioned that with every wedding, there is a bachelor party, and the best man is usually the person who sets up the bachelor party.
Interviewer Alex Marvez asked Sabian who his best man was. Sabian said he would introduce him on Dynamite this week.
Dustin Rhodes, meanwhile, will get a TNT title match against Brodie Lee this Wednesday. Rhodes got the shot after his team defeated the Dark Order tonight at All Out, with Dustin pinning Cabana.
After the match, Tony Schiavone made the announcement to Rhodes. Dustin, shocked, said this was the first time in a while he’s had a shot at the gold and promised to bring hell to Brodie Lee.
Matt Sydal made his AEW debut as part of the Casino Battle Royale at tonight’s All Out pay-per-view.
Sydal was the mystery entrant in tonight’s battle royal. He entered as the final participant and made it to the final three of the match before being eliminated by Eddie Kingston.
After Sydal entered, there was an unfortunate moment where he slipped on the top rope when going for a Shooting Star Press on Will Hobbs. Sydal looked to be uninjured after the slip.
Lance Archer eliminated Kingston to win the Casino Battle Royale. Archer will get a shot at the AEW World Championship at some point in the future. AEW World Champion Jon Moxley is defending his title against MJF at All Out tonight.
Trent Barreta, Christopher Daniels, Jake Hager, The Blade, Fenix, Frankie Kazarian, Hobbs, Chuck Taylor, Santana, Ortiz, Billy Gunn, Penta El Zero M, Brian Cage, Ricky Starks, Darby Allin, Shawn Spears, Kingston, The Butcher, Sonny Kiss, Archer, and Sydal were the entrants in the Casino Battle Royale.
Sydal, who has wrestled for WWE (as Evan Bourne), Impact Wrestling, ROH, NJPW, and more throughout his career, has also been announced as appearing for ROH as one of the participants in their Pure title tournament. Sydal is facing Delirious in the first round. The tournament will begin airing on ROH television next weekend.
Lance Archer will get the next AEW World title shot.
Archer won tonight’s 21 man battle royal, last eliminating Eddie Kingston. The two ended up on the apron, trying to eliminate one another. Jake Roberts, The Butcher, and the Blade were all at ringside trying to help their respective man. Archer finally was able to grab Kingston and chokeslammed him to the floor, with both Butcher and Blade breaking Kingston’s fall.
As a result of tonight’s win, Archer will get a future AEW World title match. The championship is set to be defended later tonight, with champion Jon Moxley defending against MJF.
Archer’s last high profile title match was at Double or Nothing in May, losing to Cody in the TNT title tournament finals.
Matt Sydal, who was the final entrant in the battle royal, made his AEW debut and was among the final four in the match before being eliminated by Kingston after Archer gave Sydal the blackout
This was a clunky opener with a couple of strange spots. It got good once they began trading near falls near the climax.
Janela attacked Serpentico at the opening bell. Serpentico cut him off and sent him crashing into Kiss on the apron.
Serpentico worked Janela over. There was a weird spot where Serpentico went to the top rope as if he would hit a senton but jumped down and hit a stomp instead. Serpentico then went back up top and tried the senton but Janela got his knees up.
Janela came back with a death valley driver and a blue thunder bomb for a near fall. Janela missed a moonsault. Serpentico hit a thrust kick and a DDT for a near fall.
Serpentico took the ref. Janela ran the ropes. Luther was supposed to trip Janela but missed his ankle on his first attempt at grabbing the ankle.
Janela hit a fisherman buster off the top for a near fall. Janela then hit a top rope elbow for the pin.
Private Party defeated Alex Reynolds & John Silver
A very good match. Some good near falls in this one as well.
Silver and Kassidy began. Kassidy usually gets the hot tag while Quen is worked over but they deviated from that pattern here. Kassidy got cut off and Reynolds and Silver went to work on him.
Quen got a hot tag. Silver blocked the Silly String. Silver hit a running knee to Quen and a helicopter spin neckbreaker for a near fall.
Reynolds tagged in. Reynolds and Silver hit a tandem suplex into a jackknife cover for a two count.
Quen hit a Pele kick on Silver. Kassidy made it back to the apron and tagged in. Kassidy and Quen hit the Gin and Juice and Kassidy pinned Silver.
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All Out —
Tooth and Nail match: Big Swole defeated Dr. Britt Baker (w/Reba)
The audio quality on BR Live for this match was not good. The match was worse. What a strange choice to open the show.
Swole arrived at Baker’s dental office. Reba checked her in. Swole wandered around the building. Baker appeared in the background like a horror movie villain.
They brawled around the office. Baker hit Swole with a framed diploma. They brawled outside and on top of a dumpster. Reba was trying to help Baker and got tossed in the dumpster. They did a couple of near falls.
They brawled back inside. Baker trapped Swole on a chair. She tried to attack with a dental drill and tried to stab Swole with a novocaine needle.
Swole grabbed the needle and stabbed Baker in the leg with it. Reba, still covered in trash from the dumpster, started freaking out. Swole hit Dirty Dancing on Reba, punching through another framed diploma.
Swole strapped an anesthesia mask on Baker and Baker passed out for the finish.
The Young Bucks defeated Jurassic Express
This 100000 percent should have been the opener. Excellent match. The story with Matt and Nick is that they’ve become more aggressive since kicking Hangman out of The Elite.
Both teams went back and forth at the outset. Jungle Boy tried a springboard tornado DDT on Matt. Matt blocked and hit his northern light suplex sequence.
Matt and Jungle Boy tried a tandem suplex spot over the top to the floor but they couldn’t quite pull it off. Matt dumped Jungle Boy over the barricade. Jungle Boy just beat the count back inside. From that point, The Bucks cut Jungle Boy off and began working him over.
Marko Stunt tried to interfere with a crutch but ate a superkick from Matt on the outside. Luchasaurus got a hot tag. He connected with a moonsault press off the apron to the floor.
Both teams jumped in as things got chaotic. Luchasaurus hit a chokeslam on Nick. Jungle Boy hit Matt with a poison rana. Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus hit the Extinction Level Event on Matt. Jungle Boy covered for a two count.
In the highlight spot of the match, Luchasaurus sent Nick over the barricade, then hit a springboard dive from the top rope over the barricade onto a group of extras.
Jungle Boy hit a springboard but right into a Matt superkick. Matt covered for a near fall. Nick hit a superkick for a near fall.
Matt and Nick hit the BTE Trigger and Matt pinned Jungle Boy.
Casino Battle Royale: Lance Archer won to earn a future AEW World title match
The rules here were four groups of five entering at three minute intervals, then one final entrant. Eliminations were over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor or the stage.
Trent, Christopher Daniels, Jake Hager, The Blade and Rey Fenix were in the first group.
They put some good workers in group one and there was some solid action.
Frankie Kazarian, Will Hobbs, Chuck Taylor, Santana and Ortiz were in the second group.
Santana and Ortiz hit Taylor with a baton on his way to the ring. Hobbs tossed Blade after Fenix hit Blade with a kick. Hager tossed Daniels.
Billy, Penta El Zero M, Brian Cage, Ricky Starks and Darby Allin made up the third group.
Billy hit a Fameasser on Hager and hit some crotch chops. Cage tossed Billy right away. Allin hit a code red on Starks, then tossed Fenix. Santana tossed Taylor.
Shawn Spears, Eddie Kingston, The Butcher, Sonny Kiss and Lance Archer were the final group.
Spears took his time getting into the ring, first joining the announce table, then stalling on the stage. Tully Blanchard walked out and gave Spears a loaded glove.
Kiss dumped Hager. Cage threw out Kiss. Trent eliminated Santana. Archer threw out Trent and Ortiz.
Matt Sydal was the final entrant.
Sydal climbed to the top rope to hit his big shooting star press on Hobbs, then promptly slipped and crashed to the mat. Poor guy.
Penta got thrown out. Kazarian got tossed by Archer. Cage accidentally hit a lariat to Starks. Allin threw out Starks.
Starks pulled a body bag from under the ring. Cage put Allin in the body bag with tacks and threw him over the top rope to the stage.
Sydal and Spears fought on the apron. Sydal hit a double stomp off the post to Spears and Spears fell off the apron.
Hobbs hit a spinebuster on Sydal into some tacks. Archer hit Hobbs with a pounce. Cage and Archer traded power strikes. Hobbs and Cage fought on the apron. Archer eliminated both with a dropkick.
The final four were Kingston, Butcher, Archer and Sydal.
Sydal tossed Butcher. Archer hit Blackout on Sydal. Kingston threw Sydal off the apron.
Kingston and Archer were the final two. They fought on the apron. Blade ran out to help Kingston and grabbed Archer’s ankles. Archer kicked him away.
Jake Roberts tried to scare Kingston with a snake. Archer tossed Kingston off the post onto Butcher and Blade for the final elimination.
Broken Rules match: Matt Hardy defeated Sammy Guevara
This was beyond bizarre.
They began the match in the adjoining football stadium. Guevara tried to hit Hardy with a golf cart but missed.
Hardy hit a DDT on a picnic table in the stadium concourse.
They climbed onto a scissor lift. Guevara speared Hardy off the lift. They were supposed to crash through a table. They hit the table but it appeared that Hardy’s head hit concrete on landing.
Referee Aubrey Edwards gave the dreaded X sign.
They tried a couple of spots but Hardy couldn’t maintain his balance. Aubrey again gave the X sign.
Dr. Sampson intervened. They rang the bell. Hardy appeared to regain his senses and cut a promo on Guevara.
The announcers began addressing this as if it were a real-life injury situation.
All of a sudden, they cut back to Hardy and Guevara as they brawled into the arena.
Hardy and Guevara climbed a truss. Hardy hit a right hand. Guevara fell off through a crash pad and was counted out.
If Hardy was really knocked out on the scissor lift spot, the match should have been stopped. It appeared Aubrey tried to stop it.
It was incredibly irresponsible to let the match continue if Matt was knocked out that badly moments before. If the knockout was a work it was really tasteless.
Your choice, irresponsible or tasteless.
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AEW Women’s World Championship match: Hikaru Shida defeated Thunder Rosa to retain the title
A very good match. Shida is great. Rosa is a superstar.
They opened by trading palm strikes. Rosa went for an ankle lock but Shida immediately made it to the ropes.
They had a striking battle. Shida connected with a knee lift on the outside. Shida grabbed a chair and set it up for a launch pad for a running knee. Rosa beat her to the punch and hit her own running knee off the chair.
Rosa sent Shida into the apron and posted her. Rosa hit a drive-by kick on the apron. Rosa went to work on Shida’s back after the attack on the outside. Shida hit a running knee but kept selling her back.
Shida hit a vertical suplex and a high kick for a pair of near falls. Rosa blocked a falcon arrow and rolled Shida up for a two count.
Rosa hit a running clothesline in the corner and a swinging dropkick in the corner. Rosa kicked Shida to the stage. Rosa teased a DVD on the stage but Shida blocked.
They fought to the top rope. Shida teased a superplex to the stage. Rosa blocked and hit a DVD on the apron. Rosa got a near submission off an armbar. Rosa went up top but got cut off with a superplex.
Shida hit a meteora off the second rope to the stage. They did a countout tease. They traded strikes from their knees.
Shida hit a backbreaker for a near fall and then hit a running knee strike for the pin.
**********
Alex Marvez interviewed Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford.
Ford said they’re getting married. Sabian said they’re getting married live on Dynamite. First, though, Sabian will have his bachelor party and reveal his best man this week on Dynamite.
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Dustin Rhodes, Scorpio Sky, Matt Cardona & QT Marshall (w/Brandi Rhodes & Allie) defeated Mr. Brodie Lee, Colt Cabana, Stu Grayson & Evil Uno (w/Anna Jay)
This felt like a good TV tag match. Not sure that it needed to be on the show but it was good.
Dark Order attacked as the faces made their enrance and we were off to the races right away.Dustin got some shine. Marshall missed a QT Special and got cut off and worked over.
Cardona got a hot tag and hit Radio Silence and a tope con giro. Sky was in for a couple of spots including a TKO. Anna Jay and Brandi jumped in. Brandi speared Jay.
Dustin and Lee tagged in. Lee hit a big lariat on Dustin. Lee then tagged Cabana in, having set him up for the victory.
Cabana missed a moonsault. Dustin then rolled Cabana up and pinned him.
JR had a line here about Anna Jay having a wardrobe malfunction. He was also disrespectful to both women in the Shida/Rosa match earlier with two specific lines if you were listening. JR apologized on Twitter but also told people to “lighten up.”
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Tony Schiavone interviewed Dustin after the match and informed him that he had been booked to face Lee for the TNT title on Wednesday.
Dustin said they won the match for Cody tonight and he can’t wait to have a chance to have gold again. He said he’s bringing hell with him against Lee on Wednesday.
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AEW World Tag Team Championship match: FTR (w/Tully Blanchard) defeated Kenny Omega & Hangman Page to win the titles
As far as an individual performance goes, this may have been Omega’s best outing in AEW.
The match itself felt like an extremely long series of moves, back and forth, with no real flow as to which team had the upper hand. There’s a way to tell the story that the teams are evnly matched and still have it make sense.
Omega and Page worked on Cash at first. Dax and Cash then worked on Page. Omega got a tag and hit you can’t escape on Cash. He also used a v-trigger, a kotaro krusher and a terminator dive. JR of course crapped all over Omega doing a dive.
Page and Omega did some double team spots. Page hit a German on Cash. Omega hit a v-trigger for a near fall. Omega and Page went for Last Call but Dax blocked.
Omega got cut off and had his right leg worked over with dragon screws. Dax and Cash hit double diving headbutts.
Page and Omega made a comeback. Page missed a Last Call. Omega accidentally hit a v-trigger on Page. Omega had his right leg chop blocked.
FTR hit the Mind Breaker spike piledriver but Page kicked out.
They hit a second Mind Breaker for the pin.
I’m a big fan of FTR. If you put a gun to my head I’d tell you the best tag match I’ve ever seen was FTR vs. American Alpha at TakeOver: Dallas. This just didn’t do anything for me.
**********
After the match, Tully celebrated with FTR in the ring over a fallen Page. They left two beer cans next to Page in a mocking toast.
Omega climbed into the ring with a wooden table. He teased using it on Page. Page collapsed at Omega’s feet. Omega kicked the beers out of the ring.
They did a long tease of Omega turning before he simply walked to the back.
The Bucks met Omega in the back. Omega walked out and Matt and Nick followed him. The Bucks wanted to talk to Omega. He wanted to leave.
Omega gave the Bucks an ultimatum, get in the car with him or not. They didn’t. Omega left.
This was underexplained.
Is Omega leaving The Elite? Why did The Bucks not go with him, didn’t they kick Hangman out of The Elite?
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Mimosa Mayhem match: Orange Cassidy defeated Chris Jericho
This was a strange cocktail, a mix of a brutal brawl that left Jericho bloody and a lot of teasing falls into pools of orange juice and champagne.
There were mimosa vats on two sides of the ring.
Jericho went for a quick win with a codebreaker and a Liontamer attempt. Cassidy escaped. Jericho hit Cassidy with a table and broke a platter over his head. They did several mimosa bump teases.
They brawled to the floor and Jericho ended up bleeding.
Back on the mimosa platform, Jericho put Cassidy through a table. Cassidy hit Jericho with an ice bucket. They did some mimosa teases.
Cassidy hit a Michinoku driver and an Orange Punch. Cassidy hit a running PK and a swing DDT for a two count.
Jericho hit another codebreaker but Cassidy kicked out. Jericho teased lawn darting Cassidy into the vat but Cassidy blocked.
Cassidy blocked a razor’s edge into the mimosa.
Cassidy hit two Orange Punches and Jericho fell off the post into the vat.
Well done. Like a true WCW veteran, Jericho found a way to do a job without doing a job.
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Full Gear was announced for November 7.
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A fan tried to grab Moxley as he made his way to the ring through the stands.
AEW World Championship match: Jon Moxley defeated MJF (w/Wardlow) to retain the title
MJF used a headlock takeover and taunted the crowd. Moxley sent MJF outside and hit a suicide dive. He dropped MJF crotch-first on the barricade.
The tide turned when MJF dropped Moxley shoulder-first on the apron. MJF went after the laeft arm and shoulder from there. Moxley sold like his shoulder was dislocated.
MJF continued working on the shoulder and sent Moxley crashing off the apron into the barricade. Moxley hit a slingshot on MJF, sending him into the post. MJF bladed and bled like crazy. Moxley tried to pop his shoulder back in which was a nice bit of selling.
Moxley hit an x-plex for a near fall. Moxley bit at MJF’s bloody forehead. MJF hit a double stomp to Moxley’s left arm. MJF used the Salt of the Earth. Moxley forced a rope break.
MJF hit the Heat Seeker. Moxley kicked out at two. MJF went for a second Heat Seeker. Moxley blocked and hit an air raid crash for a near fall.
They traded slaps from their knees. Moxley hit some knees and headbutts as they got back to their feet.
MJF took the ref and used the distraction to hit a thumb to the eye. Moxley used a sleeper. MJF took the ref again and hit a low blow for a near fall. This spot would have worked with a bigger crowd on a different night.
MJF hit Cross Rhodes for a two count.
Wardlow took the ref and threw MJF the Dynamite Diamond ring. Moxley cut MJF off and hit the Paradigm Shift as Wardlow still had the ref. The tried to sell this like a big screwup by Wardlow. Moxley then covered for the pin.
I’m not a big fan of babyfaces cheating. Why do the stipulation? Just do the match.
Aside from that, this was an old school world title match that featured good work from everyone involved. The show was too long but that’s not the fault of either of these guys.
Ahead of tonight’s show, AEW announced that Joey Janela (w/ Sonny Kiss) vs. Serpentico (w/ Luther) has been added to tonight’s pre-show. The pre-show will also feature Private Party vs. The Dark Order’s 3 & 4 (Alex Reynolds & John Silver).
Britt Baker and Big Swole’s “Tooth & Nail match” was originally set for the pre-show, but AEW’s Tony Khan announced yesterday that it was being moved to the main card. Baker vs. Swole will be a cinematic match taking place at Baker’s dental office. It’s a no DQ and falls count anywhere match.
Janela vs. Serpentico is the 11th match announced for tonight’s show. The pre-show will begin at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the pay-per-view main card then starting at 8 p.m. Eastern. Here’s the updated list of matches:
AEW World Champion Jon Moxley defending against MJF
AEW Women’s Champion Hikaru Shida defending against Thunder Rosa
AEW Tag Team Champions Kenny Omega & Hangman Page defending against FTR
Mimosa Mayhem match: Chris Jericho vs. Orange Cassidy
The Dark Order (Brodie Lee, Evil Uno, Stu Grayson & Colt Cabana) vs. Dustin Rhodes, QT Marshall, Scorpio Sky & Matt Cardona
The Young Bucks vs. Jurassic Express (Luchasaurus & Jungle Boy)
Broken Rules match: Matt Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara
Tooth & Nail match: Britt Baker vs. Big Swole
Casino Battle Royale
Private Party vs. Alex Reynolds & John Silver (pre-show)
AEW has announced a change to the lineup for this Saturday’s All Out pay-per-view.
The “Tooth & Nail match” between Britt Baker and Big Swole has been moved to the All Out card. A tag match has been announced to take its place on the pre-show, with Private Party facing The Dark Order’s 3 & 4 (Alex Reynolds & John Silver).
Baker vs. Swole being moved to the main card was announced via a tweet from AEW president and CEO Tony Khan: “Hey let’s just make All Out tomorrow night the best wrestling ppv we can possibly do. Now on the main ppv card: Dr. Britt Baker v. Big Swole in the 1st ever Tooth & Nail Match emanating from Dr. Baker’s dental office, anything goes, no DQ + falls count anywhere. See you tomorrow!”
Baker vs. Swole will be a cinematic match.
The All Out pre-show will begin at 7 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday. The main card will then start at 8 p.m. Eastern. Here’s the updated list of announced matches for the show:
AEW World Champion Jon Moxley defending against MJF
AEW Women’s Champion Hikaru Shida defending against Thunder Rosa
AEW Tag Team Champions Kenny Omega & Hangman Page defending against FTR
Mimosa Mayhem match: Chris Jericho vs. Orange Cassidy
The Dark Order (Brodie Lee, Evil Uno, Stu Grayson & Colt Cabana) vs. Dustin Rhodes, QT Marshall, Scorpio Sky & Matt Cardona
The Young Bucks vs. Jurassic Express (Luchasaurus & Jungle Boy)
Broken Rules match: Matt Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara
Tooth & Nail match: Britt Baker vs. Big Swole
Casino Battle Royale
Private Party vs. Alex Reynolds & John Silver (pre-show)
Note: The following is an opinion-based preview and reflects that of the author.
AEW is back with a Labor Day pay-per-view for all of us beautiful babies, one where some of us can even go in person.
That seems like a real bad idea. Well, it’s not a “have a concert in Sturgis during Bike Week” bad, but it’s definitely not great, Bob. Wrestling is helped tremendously by a live crowd. A good crowd is as much a part of the match as the wrestlers involved, making good matches great and great matches legendary. I’m just worried about everyone, that’s all. Please wear your masks and be careful if you’re going and don’t risk it all for a stale pretzel and some grapes if you don’t need to.
As always, we aren’t getting cheated on this show when it comes to wrestling as there are a ton of matches on this card. AEW really likes to pack their PPVs with as many matches as possible, and this one has nine. Even with that many, they typically do a really nice job pacing their shows and the matches all get the time they deserve.
Overall, All Out is a bit lacking compared to some of their previous offerings. The matches at the top lack juice and the tag team title match is overshadowed by a team that isn’t even in it which is not ideal. However, as always, we soldier on, and we preview each match of All Out — even the pre-show!
Pre Show: Big Swole vs. Britt Baker in a Tooth and Nail match
Dr. Britt Baker is putting on a master class on how to stay relevant without ever wrestling. The Roll Model stuff is great. The Michael Jordan thing is great. Her ineptitude is great. Her relationship with Tony Schivaone is the greatest. She deserves everything that is coming to her and we really want to see her get it.
The question is do we really care that Big Swole is the one to deliver the comeuppance? Up until this Wednesday, I wasn’t sure. But then Baker continued to do the Lord’s work by using the wrestling Holy Trinity: a pizza, a crutch, and a submission on the floor and suddenly, I really wanted Big Swole to ruin her return.
AEW loves these WCW adjacent stipulations. I have no idea what a tooth and nail match is and I can’t even hazard a guess. Apparently, it’s a cinematic match in a dentist’s office, so I’m officially intrigued!. Swole is still looking for a signature win or even a signature moment in AEW. The closest thing so far was her “Where to, doctor?” line a few months back. That changes Saturday when she makes the dentist need a doctor.
21-man Casino Battle Royale for an AEW World Title shot
These are usually pretty good, convoluted rules aside. They really like to make things harder for themselves, don’t they? As always with these types of matches, here are some bullet point thoughts on everyone announced for the match as of Thursday night:
Shawn Spears: Still doing this, huh?
Billy Gunn: Sure.
Austin Gunn: Right.
Jake Hager: Whatever.
Santana: So great. He could easily be a singles star.
Ortiz: Great in a different way, but could not be a singles star.
Lance Archer: The biggest, tallest, meanest guy in AEW is deserving of a win.
Eddie Kingston: He has an Incredible presence and is wholly captivating. He demands your attention.
Darby Allin: Still spooky and still skating. Time off TV hurt his shine a bit, but he might get it back on Saturday.
Ricky Starks: He is an actual star. He carries himself like one, talks like one, and wrestles like one.
Brian Cage: Half as good as Starks but twice as big.
Pentagon Jr: Not nearly as good as his brother, but often the more memorable of the two.
Rey Fenix: He was going to be the biggest star in the last battle royal and is still the biggest star in this one.
The Butcher& The Blade: One of my pals knows them and says they are great dudes so I always root for them. But, they are lumped together because they equally have no shot.
My heart wants Starks to win as someone totally new and fresh at the top would be great. But, he’s headed directly into a program with Allin. I was picking Fenix to win the last one before he got hurt, so let’s say he gets the win this time.
The Dark Order (Brodie Lee, Colt Cabana, Evil Uno and Stu Grayson) vs. Matt Cardona, Scorpio Sky, and The Natural Nightmares (Dustin Rhodes and QT Marshall) (w/Allie)
There’s always one match on every AEW card that I just can’t be bothered with. That is this match. I get the stakes but who cares? The NIghtmare Family is beyond corny and cringeworthy. Cody isn’t a babyface anyway, so why should we care if he gets beaten up? We definitely don’t care if QT “Why am I on tv?” Marshall is involved. Sky is good though. Actually, everyone in the Dark Order is really good too, but now is not the time for vengeance. The no-longer-spooky guys take this one.
The Young Bucks vs. Jurassic Express
Gotta have the Bucks on the ol’ PPV, right? All of my Bucks criticism will be retracted if they superkick Luchasaurus all the way out of the company. Is Jurassic Express popular? Reggie Miller was talking about them on an NBA broadcast this week and I just about fell off the couch. This does not warrant much space on the internet. The Bucks keep their newly found ‘edge’ and win this easily.
Matt Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara in a Broken Rules match where Hardy leaves AEW with a loss
Hardy and Guevara are filling the emotional void that exists without a Cody match. It will be interesting to see how AEW handles a match like this without using some of Cody’s favorite tropes. This is either going to end with Hardy adopting Sammy or them getting married. He cares about Sammy in a way Chris Jericho doesn’t but Sammy is rejecting that. There is actually some depth to this storyline, and we really love it, don’t we folks?
This feud has really heated up since Sammy returned, and, as AEW loves to do, it has included more than its fair share of blood. It started (perhaps) unintentionally when Sammy split Matt open with a chair and continued with Matt returning the favor a few weeks later. None of the other matches on the card feel this personal, so these two should really go at it.
This is an odd one though as the stipulation only goes one way. This isn’t a true loser leaves town match as the only person who has a chance to leave AEW is Hardy. Considering he just signed, that can’t be happening. Unless this is his transition off of television into a backstage role, it’s hard to see him losing. That said, being the reason Hardy is off TV would be a great way to keep the hate for Sammy growing. The Spanish God wins this.
Chris Jericho vs. Orange Cassidy in a Mimosa Mayhem match
“This match can be won by pinfall, submission, or throwing your opponent into a tank of mimosa.” Right, cool, got it.
Look, I get AEW wants a blowoff to this feud with a stipulation match, but this is just a bridge too far. It takes everything I have to not just insert ‘fonzijumpingshark.gif’ here and calling it a night. Imagine if this was in WWE and the reaction if Otis was in a Smoked Meat Steel Cage match or something similar. People would be posting screenshots of them cancelling the WWE Network. (Just a reminder: you can like something and still criticize it.)
Even though the concept is egregiously stupid, this will probably be fine. Jericho will make it tolerable and Cassidy will bring Wrestling Twitter to their collective knees by doing something slightly above average. As SummerSlam had the subtitle “You’ll never see it coming”, the subtitle for this would be “The overexposure of Orange Cassidy by the Covid King Chris Jericho” or something like that.
Prediction: Cassidy wins, but who cares. This is just way too corny.
AEW Women’s Champion Hikaru Shida vs. NWA Women’s Champion Thunder Rosa for the AEW title
For all its criticisms, and there are many, this is a cool thing AEW is doing. Bringing more eyes to not only their women’s division, but the women’s division of another company, is great. They’ve really created a collaborative environment with independent wrestlers and this is a continuation of their relationship with the NWA, one that brings far more attention to the NWA than it does to AEW. Their acknowledgment of a world outside of theirs is a small thing, but a refreshing one.
Rosa is good at this. Shida is good at this. Logic would suggest that this match will be really, really good. Shida has pulled good matches out of far worse opponents, and this is one of her more talented opponents. If she can pull a good match out of Nyla Rose, think of what she can do with a more talented dance partner. That’s what Thunder Rosa is. She has come a long, long way from her Lucha Underground days and is a certifiable star.
The video packages have been great and they have done a good job introducing Rosa to the audience and presenting her like an actual threat. The only issue is that she works with the NWA. I said earlier the collaboration is great, but I hope that doesn’t lead to a wonky non-finish of some kind, something that often happens in matches like these. Since Shida is the one who works for the company putting on the PPV, she retains here.
AEW Tag Team Champions Kenny Omega and Adam Page vs. FTR
Even when they aren’t in the match, the Bucks pervade the tag team division of AEW. Why am I writing about the Bucks when this match has nothing to do with them? Well, dear readers, I am here to tell you that nothing in the AEW tag team division happens without them. Instead of just continuing with Omega and Page feuding with FTR, the Bucks had to get involved.
We had to have the embarrassingly bad scene where Page is kicked out of The Elite. (Never mind that he wanted out months ago.) The Bucks had to kick him out. The only appropriate ending to that scene was Page throwing both Bucks through that mirror and into a different dimension. But, no. They had to get involved and had to get their shine.
It’s been a fait accompli since FTR joined AEW that they were heading for a collision with the Bucks. That match is there, that match is money, and that match needs to happen. It just stinks that this match is really just a speed bump on the way to that, and will most likely result in the end of the Omega/Page team. Something that could redeem the situation is Omega turning full heel while Page gets a monster babyface push. The more likely outcome is the Bucks getting involved and costing Omega and Page the belts.
All of this distracts from what will probably be the best match of the night. Omega and Page have been doing work for months, and the skills of FTR have never been in question. The title change seems obviously telegraphed here, but sometimes the simplest answer is the right one. FTR leave as new champs. Say yeah.
AEW World Champion Jon Moxley vs. MJF
I have finally decided that MJF is good. It’s not a decision that came easily, but every man reaches a point where they must take a stand. My stand is that MJF is objectively good and Moxley is objectively much, much better.
The issue with this match is that the entire lead up has made MJF look weak. Yes, he is supposed to be the weasley heel. I am, unfortunately, well aware of how pro wrestling works. He just never looked strong on his own. There was never a point during this feud where he stood up on his own and posed a credible threat. The fake injuries and lawyer are things that someone should be doing once they are established as the heel champion, not when they are chasing the belt.
Even the final shot of him standing tall, wearing Mox’s blood, was not something he did on his own. Wardlow beat him up. Wardlow was the one who looked strong. Even though he is undefeated, he actually does need to look strong. His win streak isn’t a Goldberg one that started slow but ultimately had him beating credible threats. MJF has beaten the joke that is Marko Stunt and something called Griff Garrison. Mox beat Brodie Lee, who squashed Cody. Mox beat Jake Hager, a shoot MMA fighter. I know Max hasn’t lost, but he’s largely beaten D and F tier wrestlers.
Mox is just better. He is better in both kayfabe and real life. Max might be the future, but Mox is the present and closes the show with the belt.
AEW has released the lineup for their special Friday night edition of Dark with the Dark Order a major part of the show leading into Saturday’s All Out.
In a preview for an eight man tag Saturday, the Natural Nightmares (QT Marshall and Dustin Rhodes) will face 5 (Alan Angels) and 10 (Preston Vance) of the Dark Order in a featured match. This will Vance’s first match since May as he underwent undisclosed surgery on his arm in June. The Nightmares will team with Scorpio Sky and Matt Cardona to face Dark Order members Mr. Brodie Lee, Colt Cabana, Evil Uno, and Stu Grayson on the pay-per-view.
The stable will also be part of two other matches as Alex “3” Reynolds and John “4” Silver will face the team of Shawn Dean and Brandon Bullock, and the aforementioned Cabana will face Zack Clayton in singles action.
The rest of the lineup:
Darby Allin will face Luther for the first time ever.
Lucha Bros will take on Angel Perez and Ryzin.
Butcher & The Blade will face Faboo Andre and D3.
Ivelisse will take on KiLynn King who is still looking for her first AEW win.
Allie (w/QT Marshall) will face Red Velvet who is still looking for her first AEW win.
AEW president and booker Tony Khan did a one-hour long media call Thursday afternoon, hitting on a variety of topics from this Saturday’s All Out to Brock Lesnar to booking philosophies and more.
Click below on the red ‘Right click save’ button to listen for free.
Here’s some of the highlights:
He was asked about free agent Brock Lesnar and said he couldn’t comment while putting over how he’s a great fighter and wrestler and that he doesn’t get enough credit.
He said he expects All Out to be the best wrestling show since the pandemic started.
While putting over their COVID testing and everything that went into it, he said, “I thought Double or Nothing kicked the crap out of WrestleMania.”
He said the FTW Title will be defended and that he’s working on a “pilot” on how to make it different than the World or TNT titles.
He said the reason Big Swole vs. Britt Baker is on the Buy In pre-show is that his philosophy is to put big names and stars in front of more viewers to help drive PPV buys. He confirmed the match will be cinematic in nature due to Baker still recovering from her injuries.
He talked about his relationship with NWA president Billy Corgan and how the connection between the two was initially helped by Chris Nowinski. At this point, no other NWA talents are scheduled to be part of AEW, but he thought having Thunder Rosa involved made sense for both sides. He said the Rosa-Serena Deeb match from Wednesday was a home run and talked about Deeb came into the picture.
He discussed how they keep surprises just that, saying a very small circle helps control things getting out there, adding “There’s a lot more surprises ahead for you in the upcoming weeks.”
Khan said he held back on the go-home show, focusing on more wrestling in the first half and more storyline in the second half.
He discussed their protocols and decision to bring fans back into the building in limited numbers.
He said the Dynamite after All Out is going to be “really, really good” with some surprises.
Saturday’s Matt Hardy-Sammy Guevara Broken Rules match is a last man standing-style affair with a loser leaves town stipulation for Hardy.
As first discussed on last night’s Wrestling Observer Radio, the Britt Baker vs. Big Swole “Tooth and Nail” match on Saturday’s All Out pre-show will be cinematic in presentation.
AEW President Tony Khan confirmed the news Thursday during a media call, saying the main reasons are that Baker is still recovering from her injuries and that they will have live fans in attendance, insinuating that they want to give her more time to get the ring rust off.
Khan also answered criticism about the match being on The Buy In, saying they want to put stars on the pre-show to help sell the PPV which is a philosophy of the company’s. At this point, it’s believed Baker vs. Swole will be the sole pre-show match.
On WOR, Dave Meltzer said he believed the setting was going to be at Baker’s dental office. The stipulations, if there are any, weren’t explained when it was announced on Wednesday’s Dynamite.
The two have been feuding for months but this will mark Baker’s first return to action since her knee was injured during a May episode of Dynamite.
MJF stood tall over AEW World Champion Jon Moxley at the close of last night’s All Out go-home edition of Dynamite.
After Moxley dispatched MJF’s lawyer Mark Sterling, Wardlow and MJF hit the ring and bloodied Moxley with MJF’s Dynamite Diamond ring. Wardlow stared at the title belt while MJF peppered Moxley with strikes. MJF then took the belt and posed with it as the show ended.
Thunder Rosa defeated Serena Deeb in women’s division action. Rosa will face Hikaru Shida for the AEW Women’s World Championship at All Out.
Participants in Saturday’s Casino Battle Royale brawled after a promo segment between Taz, Jake Roberts, and Eddie Kingston broke down into violence.
Sammy Guevara and Matt Hardy taunted each other with cue cards on the Dynamite stage. The two will do battle in a Broken Rules match at All Out.
Chris Jericho and Orange Cassidy had one final showdown before Saturday’s Mimosa Mayhem match.
FTR confronted Kenny Omega as he gave an in-ring interview. Hangman Page then entered to further muddy the waters as to where Page & Omega’s loyalties lie before they defend their AEW World Tag Team titles against FTR at All Out.
The Young Bucks & Jurassic Express defeated Private Party & SCU in an eight-man tag. As a result, The Bucks will face Jurassic Express in a tag match on Saturday.
The Dynamite opener saw Santana & Ortiz score a victory over Best Friends.
For more of what you missed from last night, including Britt Baker attacking Big Swole, scroll below.
