Several AEW wrestlers are set to appear in the next season of “Carpool Karaoke: The Series.”
AEW’s Britt Baker, Christian Cage, Bryan Danielson, MJF, Powerhouse Hobbs, CM Punk, and Ruby Soho will be featured as a grouping for a season five episode of “Carpool Karaoke: The Series.” The season premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday, May 27.
The other groupings that will be appearing during the season are:
Actor Simu Liu & actress Jessica Henwick
Murray Bartlett, Alexandra Daddario & Sydney Sweeney of HBO’s “The White Lotus”
TikTok stars the D’Amelio family (Charli, Dixie, Heidi & Marc)
Actress/musician Zooey Deschanel & Jonathan Scott of “Property Brothers”
Brazilian superstar Anitta & rapper Saweetie
“Carpool Karaoke: The Series” is a spinoff of the Carpool Karaoke segment from “The Late Late Show” with James Corden.
“The Apple TV+ series doesn’t feature Corden, and instead pairs and groups different celebrities with one another to go for the musical ride of a lifetime — with personal playlists, sing-alongs, visits to their favorite locations and surprises for unwitting passersby,” Variety wrote.
“Carpool Karaoke: The Series” first premiered in 2017. John Cena appeared on a season one episode, while WWE-themed episodes were part of season two and season three.
The trailer for the new season is available to watch below:
— Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (@RealBrittBaker) May 7, 2022
From the still, it appears that Baker and Cole will be host Jon Taffer’s reconnaissance team on the episode. The premise of the show involves Taffer sending in a team to do surveillance on a struggling bar to expose flaws in the business. Taffer then renovates and rebrands the bar, and re-trains the bar’s staff.
An episode description for Sunday’s show from Paramount’s website:
Jon heads to Tampa, Florida to help save an owner who has suffered personal loss and health scares while trying to single-handedly keep his struggling bar afloat.
Bar Rescue is in its eighth season. It debuted in 2011 on Spike TV, which was later rebranded Paramount Network.
Baker and Cole are both participants in the Owen Hart Foundation Tournaments. Cole will face Dax Harwood on Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite, while Baker will face a mystery opponent in her first round matchup, with a date still to be announced.
Kyle O’Reilly and Britt Baker have qualified for their respective AEW Owen Hart Foundation tournaments.
O’Reilly defeated Jungle Boy on tonight’s episode of Dynamite to qualify for the men’s tournament. He defeated Jungle Boy clean with a flying knee drop off the top rope. Baker, meanwhile, defeated Danielle Kamela by submission with the lockjaw.
Both the men’s and women’s tournaments begins in May and ends at Double or Nothing on May 29.
Baker was accompanied to the ring tonight by Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth of the Pittsburgh Steelers. After she won her match, she cut a promo running down the women’s division and promised victory in the Owen Hart Foundation tournament.
Samoa Joe was the first to qualify for the men’s tournament on the April 6 edition of AEW Dynamite, defeating Max Caster. The next men’s tournament qualifier will take place on this Friday’s AEW Rampage, where NJPW’s Tomohiro Ishii will face Adam Cole.
In the women’s tournament, Toni Storm, Jamie Hayter, Hikaru Shida, Red Velvet, and Ruby Soho have all qualified.
The Bryan & Vinny Show is back with our full recap of both AEW Dynamite, an excellent show, and NXT 2.0, which was not an excellent show and had some very not-excellent moments but still had three good wrestling matches so that’s an improvement. A fun show as always so check it out~!
Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive is back with tons to talk about including BRITT BAKER, AEW Dynamite recap from Wednesday night, STUPID SHIT BRYAN HAS DONE, lots of F4W INSIDER SCOOPS and tons more. A fun show as always so check it out~!
Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back with tons to talk about including the WWE vs. MLW lawsuit, ratings, AEW and NXT 2.0 recaps including the Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa cage match and title change, New Japan Cup and tons more. A fun show as always so check it out~!
What an awesome night of wrestling. Join on-camera personality Denise Salcedo as she recaps and reviews the March 16th edition of AEW Dynamite: St. Patrick’s Day Slam! This features Thunder Rosa winning the AEW Women’s World Championship!
Topics:
— Thunder Rosa wins AEW Women’s World Championship
— Hangman Adam Page teams with Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus
In the main event of tonight’s Dynamite, Rosa defeated Baker in a cage match after a fire thunder driver into thumbtacks. Weapons were used frequently throughout the match, with Baker at one point falling into a pile of chairs off the top rope. The finish had Baker going for her lockjaw submission, but Rosa bit Baker’s hand. Rosa slammed Baker’s hand into the tacks, dropped Baker with a powerbomb, then planted her with the fire thunder driver to win the championship for the first time.
This ends Baker’s run as AEW Women’s Champion after 291 days, defeating Hikaru Shida on May 30, 2021 at Double or Nothing.
Baker and Rosa’s best known match is their Lights Out match that took place on the March 17, 2021 edition of Dynamite, which Rosa won. The two rekindled their rivalry in the weeks leading up to AEW Revolution on March 6 of this year. At Revolution, Baker was able to retain the championship thanks to help from Rebel and Jamie Hayter, who were not seen during tonight’s cage match.
Thunder Rosa has earned another shot at the AEW Women’s World title, and will get it next week inside a steel cage.
Rosa defeated Leyla Hirsch on tonight’s Dynamite to become the next title challenger for Britt Baker. After Rosa won the match, Tony Schiavone announced that the title match will take place at next week’s St. Patrick’s Day Slam edition of Dynamite.
After the announcement, Britt Baker appeared backstage and cut a promo saying she thought it was a conspiracy that Rosa was getting another title match so soon. She also said that she didn’t want “carny riff-raff” like Rosa becoming champion.
The two had faced off at AEW Revolution this past Sunday. The match had frequent interference from Baker’s associates Jamie Hayter and Rebel. The finish had Rosa taking out Rebel with a spear to the floor, then taking out Hayter with a lariat on the outside, only for Baker to pin Rosa when she returned to the ring following a curb stomp.
Hirsch defeated Kris Statlander at the Buy-In pre show Sunday, setting her and Rosa up as the next potential challengers for Baker’s title on tonight’s show.
Editor’s Note: The following is an opinion-based preview and reflects that of the writer and not of our website.
The importance of Cody Rhodes can not be overstated.
The magnitude of his contributions to both AEW and North American pro wrestling as a whole is tremendous. He is a major reason for the current landscape of wrestling in this country. AEW does not exist without him and he is as big a part of their success as anyone. Our personal feelings towards him are just that: personal.
But clearly, Turner Broadcasting thought, and possibly thinks, enough of him to give him his own reality show and feature him on a game show. People who don’t matter and don’t move the needle don’t get that kind of opportunity. Cody wants to be remembered as his father is: someone who had as big of an impact beyond what happens between the ropes. And maybe he won’t be as universally loved as his dad, because who can be, but the impact he had had is just as big.
So the Code-man is gone, the Codyverse is no more, and that leaves a lot of space to fill. Will we, the weekly viewer of AEW, miss what he brought to our screens? Short answer, probably not. The longer and more complicated answer? We probably will. All the talk of Cody putting himself over is largely unwarranted, considering how often he lost big matches. He put over MJF at the expense of him ever being able to wrestle for the AEW World title. Without a contract, he put on an all-time great ladder match with Sammy Guevara.
Even if something was totally unnecessary — like setting himself on fire — he was willing to do it. He was willing to do it because of his legacy. He wants to be remembered like his father is, not just as a wrestler, but as someone who had an impact beyond what happened between the ropes. And say what you want about him personally, his booking, and whatever else, but starting a critically acclaimed wrestling promotion from nothing is as legacy-defining as it gets.
All of this might look silly if he winds up coming back in some capacity, but that’s showbiz, baby. Nevertheless, the show must go on. The two biggest matches have no title attached to them, but all the title matches are still good. This is a good card and heck, maybe even a great one!
Face of the Revolution Ladder match for a future AEW TNT title shot: Keith Lee vs. Wardlow vs. Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Ricky Starks vs. Orange Cassidy vs. Christian Cage
If I could bottle the feeling I got when Ricky Starks did his Keith Lee impression, I would carry it with me everywhere. Whenever I need a hit of dopamine, I would just watch that three-second video. Lee gives voices to all the NPCs in Final Fantasy and reads their dialogue out loud. Lee wears a pageboy cap just to unnecessarily doff it at people he makes eye contact with. What I’m saying is that Keith Lee is a cornball: a very good wrestler, but still a cornball.
Usually in a ladder match, there is one, maybe two, hefty boys and the rest are lighter dudes who fly around and bump like crazy. The big guys are the base and the little guys are the style. But this might be the thickest ladder match in history with hoss after hoss after hoss. AEW hosses are still not quite full hosses. Billy Gunn towers over 95% of the roster for God’s sake, but this match has three 100% USDA grass-fed sirloin hosses. Lee is huge! Hobbs is big! Wardlow is also big! I do feel bad for Cassidy and Starks because they are going to get tossed around like crazy.
Lee has to win this. There’s a world where Wardlow does, but somehow he doesn’t need it. Whenever he finally turns on MJF, he’s immediately a top babyface with the proverbial rocket on his back. Lee winning here immediately establishes him as a huge deal and if they want him to live up to the hype Tony Khan gave leading up to his debut, he needs to be a huge deal.
Prediction: Keith Lee
AHFO (Andrade El Idolo, Matt Hardy & Isiah Kassidy) vs. Sting, TNT Champion Sammy Guevara and Darby Allin in a trios tornado match
I was hoping this would move to the pre-show, but alas, this made the main show. The AHFO is a dumb thing even though I like everyone in it. I’m much more interested in Andrade as a solo act and much, much, more interested in him getting some kind of push toward the top of the card. I’ve written many a word on this site about the wonders of Andrade (he was part of the best match I’ve ever seen live) and I have a feeling I’ll be doing it again later. I’m going to save some space and hit you with five minimally spicy thoughts about this match and the TNT title:
Glad to see Sting is healthy!
Sammy needs to ditch the two belts! He only has one title!
Do people like the cue card gimmick? Who is the audience for that!?!
Matt is just waiting for Jeff.
Where is Miro? I miss God’s Favorite Champion. 🙁
Prediction: AHFO
Chris Jericho vs. Eddie Kingston
LeonardoDicaprioNowYouHaveMyAttention.gif. This was the definition of whatever until Jericho and King finally went face-to-face and cut whole-ass promos on each other. The ten-minute “sports entertainment” segment both sports entertained me and sold me on the match. No more backstage sniping, no more clever quips. Two beefy boys in the ring having it out on the microphone. You love to see it.
As he frequently does, Jericho said a whole bunch of words leading up to this. But something he said threw me with how right he was. He is the biggest deal in AEW. Beating him is beating the top guy in the company. Bryan Danielson is better, CM Punk might be more popular and Hangman Page is the champ, but Jericho, political affinities and all, is still the biggest deal. He’s the Hall of Famer and is in the discussion for best wrestler of all time.
It’s been a while since Jericho was cutting a promo not in service of himself or trying to get a bad catchphrase over – looking at you ‘GFY’ – and it’s nice to see him engaged with something that isn’t purely self-serving. There’s some truth to what he was saying, too. We are imperfect, impermanent creatures and it is our nature to doubt ourselves.
Indulge me here for a second. Is the reason Eddie never got into great shape because he believed, in his heart, he couldn’t do this? Did he doubt his substantial gifts? If he got rid of one of his hangups or perceived faults, he wouldn’t have a reason for his failure. It wouldn’t be “Oh Eddie is talented but he doesn’t have the right look” and is instead “Oh Eddie just doesn’t have ‘it’.” Being forced to confront your inadequacies head-on is terrifying and it certainly makes sense for him, or anyone, to try and avoid them. Often, the scariest thing any of us can do is try. Jericho held a mirror up to Eddie’s insecurities and they smacked him right across the face. I can’t wait to see these two go at it.
When wrestling is good, like it is here, it can let us explore deep human emotions. It’s great! They should do more of it!
Prediction: Kingston
Bryan Danielson vs. Jon Moxley
The Purveyor of Violence vs. its Poet Laureate is a match worthy of the pay-per-view price on its own. If this was the only match on the card, I would gladly pay full price for it. Danielson is a supreme being — a pure aspect of pro wrestling delivered to an undeserving world. He is as close to perfection as it gets: a wrestler working at an S+ tier level while not overshadowing the rest of his peers. It’s a tough line to walk, but somehow Bryan does it better than anyone. He walked into AEW and immediately started doing some of the best work of a historically great career.
Where Bryan is elegant and calculating, Moxley seems to make it up as he goes. Unpredictable, frenetic and appearing unpolished, he is the chaos to Bryan’s order. Compared with Bryan’s surgical precision that wastes no movement and spares no limb, Moxley almost looks sloppy, almost haphazard. But that’s just who he is. He doesn’t care about technical precision; he just cares about hurting whoever he’s in the ring with.
Look at the two of them when they have gone face-to-face. Bryan barely moves when he talks, delivering his message calmly. Moxley can’t sit still. He’s moving constantly, pacing around the ring, gesturing at the crowd and gesturing at Bryan. He can barely keep the words in his mouth. He’s like a shark; if he slows down or doesn’t get the conflict he so desperately wants, it’s all over.
(Before I get to the match prediction, can someone please tell me when Bryan’s theme song got a chorus with vocals? Apparently, this version of his theme has been around since September which seems…impossible? Surely he did not come out to this when he wrestled Adam Page? There is no way! (He did not, I checked.) I am both professionally and recreationally medicated, but there is no way I missed this. If anyone can tell me when Bryan started using this entrance at a show, I will buy you one (1) large cheese pizza no questions asked. If you know, let me know and I’ll hit that Venmo for the ‘za.)
As different as they are stylistically, these guys are both at the absolute apex of what they do. That’s what makes this match such a treat. They are two guys that just want to fight, two guys that just want to bleed together. Guys being dudes, what’s better than that? What’s better is what comes next: the potential pairing of these two. Them teaming up and creating the next generation of violence in AEW could be the best thing the company has ever done. I’ve gone back and forth on this, but I can’t see Moxley losing and then partnering with Bryan. It just goes against his fundamental alignment.
Prediction: Moxley
CM Punk vs. MJF in a dog collar match
We witnessed a perfect wrestling promo on February 23rd — one that had a single, perfectly timed tear. It was a promo that deftly subverted our expectations…at least for a week. I kept waiting for MJF to pull the rug out, except he never did. How many times have we seen a version of the promo that flips the last 15% on its head? Not this time. Young Maxwell stood on the rug with us and made us uncomfortable. And who is he to make us feel something? To make us feel anything other than loathing and disgust? Impossible. For someone who hasn’t won a title in AEW, Max has done a whole lot. But on February 23rd, he did something implausible. He made us relate to him. That’s what made this past Wednesday work so well.
Everything about it hit the right notes. The telltale white t-shirts. Punk questioning his role/alignment in all this. The unsure handshake turned hug. The callback to Punk’s 2005 ROH promo on the day Tony Khan acquired ROH. Just beautiful. It all worked — a masterclass of pro wrestling. The build to this has been exceptional to the point that it’s overshadowing most of the rest of the card.
After all of this, MJF has to win. He needs to come out on top so he can move from smarmy heel to full-on evil megalomaniac. I’ve gone back and forth a bit on MJF but not in terms of how talented he is because goodness gracious, is he talented. But I like him so much more when he leans away from the expected “you people are fat” and “Cleveland has ugly women” stuff. Anyone can do that. Anyone can refer to Punk as “Phil” and get a muted “oooooh” from the crowd, but Max has shown he is capable of so much more. His ability on the microphone is so far beyond that and he proved it in the shadow of WWE of all places. He wins on Sunday and starts his path towards dethroning Hangman.
Prediction: MJF
TBS Champion Jade Cargill vs. Tay Conti for the title
The introduction of green into Cargill’s gear and presentation is perfect for non-coitus-havers like me. Of course, she’s wearing shades of green as she’s money, people are jealous of her, etc, etc, etc. But what I specifically appreciate is the wink to the main criticism of her in the fact that she’s, well, green. A lack of experience shouldn’t immediately be a critique of a performer. Sure, there are cases where someone is clearly not ready for their spot, but that’s not the situation here. The ringwork is coming along and everything else is more than ready.
As quickly as Jade is growing, Conti has come a long, long way herself. Not even her staunchest of supporters could have claimed to see this coming when she was in WWE NXT. She’s spoken openly about how hard that experience was for her and how freed she feels in AEW. No one does their best work in a stifling environment and it’s great to see her flourishing. She gets better each time she’s in the ring and works a style that is unique both to who she is and her background.
The first person to beat Jade needs to be a big deal. It should be a big deal! It’s the chance to really make someone a star. The first person to put an L on her ledger should be made on the spot. It’s just not here because it’s just too soon.
Prediction: Jade
AEW Tag Team Champions Jurassic Express vs. reDRagon vs. The Young Bucks in a three-way title match
As I age with an alarming lack of grace, more and more I’m appreciating the difference between the critical good and the casual good like the popcorn movie type of good and the kind of good that requires nothing from you. There’s a difference between sitting down and watching Now You See Me – the wildly underrated *magician* caper from 2013 – and watching Funny Games or the end of Oldboy. One requires nothing of you and one requires significantly more of an active brain.
The more I have to stretch my hips in the morning, the more I’m appreciating these simpler pleasures. Does this make me sound kind of like an a**hole? Sure! But there are levels to this and enjoying them for what they are, let us (me) enjoy them even more.
Jurassic Express is a reasonably enjoyable action flick. Some people do what they do better, but the crowd just eats them up. They might not be my cup of tea, at least the reptilian half, but they serve a purpose and their matches always have a hot crowd. The people love them, even if I don’t. And you’ve got to give the people what they want. This formally, and sadly ends my crusade against Luchasaurus…unless he gets a big singles run. If that’s the case, I am BACK, baby.
This match is going to absolutely rule. PPV Young Bucks are always great and ReDRagon always delivers in big matches. The spots will be plentiful and the thigh slaps robust. Maybe this is a bit of an upset, but I think ReDRagon winning opens up the tag division for more compelling matchups – mainly them vs FTR – and that’s where we go Sunday.
Prediction: ReDRagon
AEW Women’s Champion Dr. Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa for the title
Is it time for Britt’s reign to end? She’s closing in on a year with the belt and this feels like the first time it could reasonably end. She is still the best overall performer in AEW. The sheer force of her talent has made her run with the title memorable, but none of the feuds have been great. This one is different. These two had the best women’s match in AEW history. Taking it a step further, it was probably the best North American women’s match since Bayley/Sasha in Brooklyn. I still can’t help but feel like this should have more heat. These two should be doing everything they can to get their paws on each other. Something is missing here and I can’t quite put my finger on it. Regardless, a rematch between these two should be electrifying.
As great as Britt is as a performer, Rosa isn’t far behind. She’s intense in the ring and so passionate outside of it. Listen to any interview she’s done and it immediately becomes clear just how much this means to her and how seriously she takes her craft. She’s unique, she’s different and she’s magnetic. Comparing her and Britt on the mic isn’t fair because Britt outclasses everyone there, but Rosa is just as good everywhere else.
This is one of the places where a title change makes sense. Britt is great with the title, but has proven she doesn’t need it to be over. She’s made no matter what. This is a chance to put the belt on someone new that the crowd is firmly behind.
Prediction: Thunder Rosa
AEW World Champion “Hangman” Adam Page vs. Adam Cole for the title
When a world title match is like the fifth best match on the card, you know the card is a banger.
Booking a pure babyface champion is so much harder than booking a heel. Page hasn’t been as prominent on weekly TV as some other champions, but the booking he has been a part of has been fantastic. His two matches with Danielson deserve all the praise they have received and then some. It’s easy to give Danielson most of the credit in those because he’s Bryan Danielson, but you can’t have a classic without both parts bringing it. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are only as good as the peanut butter and thejelly together.
The criticism of Cole’s booking is just wild to me. Losing a gimmick match to arguably the most popular wrestler in the company is just that: a loss. If losing one match and getting a world title shot is a burial, then bury my shell at wounded knee. People have to lose matches. The same people that complain about so-and-so being buried are the same people that complain about WWE’s penchant for DQ finishes and rematches. If you want wins and losses to matter, then everyone is going to lose at some point. Not everyone can hold the title at the same time.
Page’s long-fought coronation didn’t happen just for him to lose his first PPV defense. Between the Bullet Club, The Elite and ReDRagon, Cole has far too much on his plate already. Adding a title to that would be way too much. Page closes Revolution the same way he closed Full Gear: as AEW World Champion.
Ahead of their AEW Women’s World Championship match at Revolution, Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa will face off in tag team action.
AEW has announced that Baker & Jamie Hayter vs. Rosa & Mercedes Martinez will take place on tonight’s Dynamite. The episode is Dynamite’s go-home show for Revolution.
In storyline, Baker hired Martinez to attack Rosa during the semifinals of the TBS Championship tournament. Rosa then defeated Martinez two weeks ago on Dynamite. After the match, Martinez hesitated to join Baker and company in an attack on Rosa. Martinez was then ambushed from behind by Hayter.
Last week during a contract signing on Rampage, Martinez came to Rosa’s rescue and ended up putting Hayter through a table to end the segment.
Baker is defending her AEW Women’s World title against Rosa at Revolution this Sunday.
The updated lineup for tonight’s Dynamite is as follows:
AEW World Champion Adam “Hangman” Page and Dark Order’s John Silver & Alex Reynolds vs. Adam Cole and reDRagon (Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish)
A Casino Tag Team Battle Royale with the winner advancing to the three-way AEW Tag Team title match at Revolution
AEW Women’s World Champion Britt Baker & Jamie Hayter vs. Thunder Rosa & Mercedes Martinez
Ahead of All Elite Wrestling’s Revolution pay-per-view this Sunday, I had the opportunity to chat with “La Mera Mera” Thunder Rosa.
Rosa will be challenging Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D for the AEW Women’s World Championship. While Rosa has had monumental moments during her time with the company, such as being one of the first women to ever main event AEW’s flagship show Dynamite in the historic Unsanctioned Lights Out with Baker back in March 2021, and making it to the semi-finals of the TBS Women’s Championship tournament, Rosa has never held gold in AEW.
If Rosa were to win the AEW Women’s World Championship at Revolution, she would become the promotion’s first ever Mexican-born American champion.
When asked how she would feel if she won the championship and what winning would signify to her and her career, she pointed out what it would mean representation-wise.
“…When was the last time that a Mexican born wrestler [won] a major title in a major company? And it’s not only about being Mexican, being a Latina, when is the last time that a Latina that not only represents Mexicanas but represents so many other countries; I cannot tell you how many Nicaraguans, Costa Ricans, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, they stop at my table and say ‘You represent me.'”
Rosa compared the idea of winning the Women’s World Championship to graduating from college.
“This is not only an achievement for Thunder Rosa and the Cervantes family, this an achievement for so many people of color that struggle every single day in their own way doing their dreams and they finally achieve the major one. It’s like when your kid goes to college and he graduates, it’s kinda like the same thing. That [winning the AEW Women’s World Championship] will be graduation.”
In AEW, there have been four previous AEW Women’s World Champions: Riho, Nyla Rose, and Hikaru Shida, who eventually lost the championship after holding it for 372 days to Dr. Britt Baker.
While each champion has brought something new to the women’s division, Rosa argues there has never been a champion like her.
“When I was the NWA champion, I was a fighting champion, I went out everywhere and I defended that thing during COVID. I found a way to make it relevant and I want the AEW women’s division to be kinda like what Kenny Omega was doing, I would love to do something like that. I think we haven’t had a champion like that and I think I have what it takes to be that. I have the grit, I have the determination, I have the consistency, everything is developing with Thunder Rosa.”
Rosa further elaborated on some of the criticisms she has heard from others in regards to her promo work and notes that she has not only been working on that but she has also been working on her English.
“A lot of people criticize me because they say I can’t cut promos, you guys haven’t seen the promos that I have cut. On TV, things get edited, I’ve been working so hard on my English too, my dictation, and how smart I sound. I am not cursing as much in Spanish, when my time comes, when I become a champion I want you guys [the fans] to see it.”
While Rosa’s hard work could be rewarded on Sunday by winning the championship belt from Baker, there’s always the possibility that Baker will retain. Regardless, Rosa emphasized that she is prepared for any possible scenario.
“It can be a coin toss too, I am prepared for everything. I am prepared for success and I am prepared for failure, because failure will prepare me for whatever the bigger thing is. I know that I am not gonna fail, but if that happens, believe me, this is not the last that you’ve seen of Thunder Rosa. I am always ready to win, but I am also prepared for the unknown and I want people to understand that.”
Rosa informed me that the thoughts running through her mind ahead of the show is not so much her opponent Baker, but rather what kind of champion she would be if she had her desired outcome become a reality.
“A real leader. That’s what I have been working on in the last two years, how to become a real leader that leads with passion, with compassion, that is ready to take on challenges, that is ready to build other people up, that is ready to represent. I think this is the most important part, to represent others instead of just representing me. I am ready to represent the people. They call me ‘ the people’s champ’ and I am the people’s champ. I am serious. Is that trademarked? Because if not I am probably gonna start using it (laughs).”
There is a lot of history between both Rosa and Baker. Their Unsanctioned Lights Out match was praised by many and not only elevated their careers, but also sent a message that women can be main eventers and that women can wrestle. I asked Rosa about her thoughts on the growth of the AEW Women’s division since that match.
“We are demanding more stories for ourselves, we are ready to work and we wanna put the work in and that’s the stuff that I hear a lot in the locker room at AEW. We are all ready to work, we’re all ready to make each other look good and we’re all ready to be part of the change of 2022.”
The AEW women’s division features many women of different backgrounds, ages, etc. Rosa spoke about her age and body candidly, sharing that while she does put a lot of pressure on herself, she feels she is only getting better and better every year.
“Maybe I put too much pressure on myself but I think if I don’t do that, it’s a disservice to what has happened to me. There’s a lot more young people in the roster that can move a lot faster, that have a lot more time on their hands, and I don’t. I am about to be 36, my body hurts a lot when I wrestle because I am pretty physical. I wanna make sure that whatever time I have left in the ring, it’s gonna be at my peak. Every year I am getting better and better. I want to be the Serena Williams of professional wrestling, [because] the older she gets, the better that she gets. Because that’s what we do, we’ve been working our whole lives to achieve something and she has worked since she was a little girl and I worked since I was 14 to achieve my dreams and I haven’t stopped working, so we’re gonna do this until the wheels fall off…”
Rosa is no stranger to hard work and spoke emotionally about how she has lived the idea of the American Dream.
“I lived the American Dream, everything that I have, like you see all this stuff that I have, I have because I have worked my ass off for it. Nothing, absolutely nothing has been handed to me. Nothing.”
Rosa was recently in Los Angeles this past weekend for Game Changer Wrestling and talked about the fan interactions she had.
“I get so emotional because in LA, having girls that look like me, the brown girls and all types of girls that come and they say ‘I follow wrestling because of you, you make me follow wrestling, you make me believe in wrestling’ it’s so important and it’s so important that people know I am real and that what I am doing.”
Her discussion on doing this ties this back in to explain her reasonings and motivations for wanting to win the AEW Women’s World Championship.
I am doing this because I believe in this, and I believe in change. Even though a lot of the time I am not in the spotlight or on the big shows, being on Elevation and Dark, every time that I come out and people go nuts and I am just like ‘Oh, is this me? Is this happening to me?’ And it is happening for me. Again, it’s because they see how real Thunder Rosa is and how she works for what she wants and she believes in what she is working for. I think that can make anybody a little scared and a little afraid because you can be under a spotlight, you can have all the accolades, you can have everything, but sometimes you can’t have that emotional connection that other people have and that’s what makes an opponent dangerous, because you start getting in people’s heads. [They say] ‘she has nothing, she’s just a song, that’s the reason people get so pumped up,’ No, it’s not a song, I am a whole vibe b*tch, a whole f’n vibe, and if you don’t believe it, every single city I go to, it doesn’t matter who’s in there, Thunder Rosa comes and they feel the thunder. It’s like 100%.”
You check out my entire conversation with Thunder Rosa below.
The AEW World and Women’s World championship matches have been announced for Revolution.
It was confirmed on tonight’s Rampage that Hangman Page will defend the AEW World Championship against Adam Cole, while Britt Baker will defend the AEW Women’s World title against Thunder Rosa. Both matches will take place at Revolution on March 6 in Orlando, Florida.
After defending the AEW World Championship against Lance Archer two weeks ago on Dynamite, Cole emerged from the back and had a staredown with Hangman to close out the show. A promo on this week’s Dynamite had Cole confront Page, saying that throughout their careers, people had always called Adam Page the “other Adam”. Cole started to leave when reDragon attacked Hangman from behind. This led Cole to join the beatdown.
Baker and Rosa have reignited their feud in recent weeks, with Baker hiring Mercedes Martinez to take out Rosa. After Martinez failed to beat Rosa in a no DQ match on this week’s Dynamite, Baker, Jamie Hayter, and Rebel jumped Martinez and beat down both her and Rosa.
The current card for Revolution is as follows:
Adam Cole vs. Hangman Page for the AEW World Championship
Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa for the AEW World Women’s Championship
CM Punk vs. MJF in a dog collar match
Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus defend the AEW World Tag Team titles against two other teams. Those teams will be decided in two battle royals that will take place during the next two weeks on Dynamite.
Face of the Revolution ladder match featuring Wardlow, Powerhouse Hobbs, and Keith Lee
It’s a FUN FRIDAY! Join on-air personality Denise Salcedo as she breaks down the February 4th editions of WWE SmackDown and AEW Rampage! Plus lots of news! Join for a fun and entertaining live stream!
Topics Rundown
SmackDown:
Denise on the WWE pop-up shop
Denise on Eddie Kingston interview
Thoughts on SmackDown overall
Goldberg returns, will face Roman Reigns
Quick recap of SmackDown winners & losers
Ronda Rousey picks Charlotte Flair for WrestleMania match
AEW Rampage:
Adam Cole defeats Evil Uno, post-match promo
Sammy Guevara..Darby Allin
Thunder Rosa vs. Mercedes Martinez storyline analysis
Time to chat AEW DYNAMITE BEACH BREAK! Join on-air personality Denise Salcedo as she covers the show, shares her honest thoughts and provides in-depth analysis on all the stories and characters. Plus she also incorporates commentary from the live audience!
