In a tweet responding to Jon Jones, Jake Hager wrote that the contract for their grappling match hasn’t been signed yet: “First of all it’s @AEWonTNT and undefeated @BellatorMMA heavyweight Jake Hager, secondly no terms have been discussed or contract signed. We can talk if terms are right.”
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UFC star Jon Jones is set for a grappling match against a member of the AEW roster.
“Breaking News!! I’m excited to announce I’ll be competing for the number one grappling organization in the world, Fury Grappling! December 9th I’ll be in New Jersey competing against WWE superstar and undefeated Bellator heavyweight Jack swagger,” Jones tweeted.
When someone responded pointing out that Hager is no longer in WWE and doesn’t use the name Jack Swagger anymore, Jones wrote: “Thanks, yeah I just found out today. Don’t really know much about him yet”
FURY Professional Grappling was launched by MMA promotion Cage Fury Fighting Championships earlier this year. The promotion’s grappling and MMA shows air on UFC Fight Pass.
This September, Jones was arrested in Las Vegas and charged with misdemeanor battery domestic violence and injuring or tampering with a vehicle.
Jones’ most recent UFC fight was in February 2020.
Hager and his Inner Circle stablemates (Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, Santana & Ortiz) defeated Men of the Year (Scorpio Sky & Ethan Page) & American Top Team (Junior dos Santos, Andrei Arlovski & Dan Lambert) in a Minneapolis Street Fight at AEW Full Gear last Saturday.
In four fights for Bellator, Hager has three wins and one no contest. He last fought in October 2020, defeating Brandon Calton by split decision.
A six-man tag featuring former UFC star Junior dos Santos is set to take place on a special Saturday edition of AEW Dynamite next week.
The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Jake Hager, and Sammy Guevara) will take on The Men of the Year (Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page) and Junior dos Santos. This will be Dos Santos’ first professional wrestling match.
On tonight’s Dynamite, Guevara successfully retained his new TNT title against Bobby Fish. Dan Lambert, along with Dos Santos, Paige Van Zant, and other members of American Top Team, came out and distracted Guevara long enough for him to get laid out. Fuego Del Sol ran out, but was laid out as well. Jericho and Hager then ran in to even the odds.
Lambert said he wanted the six-man tag for next week, when they are in Miami. He also said that Jorge Masvidal would be in his team’s corner. Jericho accepted the match.
Due to NHL coverage, the next episode of Dynamite will air live on Saturday, October 16. It will take place at the James L. Knight Center in Miami, Florida. AEW Rampage will air a day prior on October 15.
The feud between The Inner Circle and The Pinnacle continues on tonight’s AEW Dynamite.
Jake Hager of The Inner Circle takes on The Pinnacle’s Wardlow in an MMA rules cage fight Hager holds a real-life MMA record of 3-0 with a no contest.
Penta El Zero Miedo, Eddie Kingston and Frankie Kazarian will face Matt Jackson, Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson in a trios match.
Darby Allin will take on Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page in a handicap match.
Arn Anderson’s son, Brock Anderson, makes his official in-ring debut on tonight’s show. He will team with Cody Rhodes against QT Marshall and Aaron Solow of The Factory.
Orange Cassidy will be in singles action, taking on Cezar Bononi of The Wingmen.
Penelope Ford will take on Julia Hart in a women’s division contest.
A sit-down interview with Andrade El Idolo conducted by Jim Ross has also been advertised.
I loved this. It was completely unique and felt like a really big deal. Both men put in great performances.
This was a three-round fight with five minute rounds. Each fighter had a corner man. Fighters could only win by knockout or submission. It looked legit, octagon and all.
Neither man touched for the first minute. Wardlow pushed Hager against the cage. Hager went for a couple quick shots and landed two low kicks. He went for a double leg takedown but Wardlow gutwrenched him out with a quick throw. Hager came back and took Wardlow down, but released the hold and challenged Wardlow to fight.
Hager landed a second takedown and went for ground and pound, but Wardlow rolled out of it to separate. Wardlow caught another low kick and rocked Hager with a right hand before dumping him in the middle of the octagon. Hager escaped and both stood back up. They traded strikes, with Wardlow getting the advantage and landing a Superman punch. With the clock winding down, Wardlow tried to put Hager away, but round 1 ended before the stoppage.
The two men recovered with their corner men before the bell rang for round 2. Hager avoided a running knee and applied a waistlock, but Wardlow fought out with a wristlock, taking Hager down. Wardlow had the full mount and hit hammerfists before going for an armbar. Hager rolled through on the armbar and landed elbow stikes to Wardlow’s midsection before going for an armbar of his own.
Hager had a triangle applied, but Wardlow was just able to lift Hager up enough to break it. Hager transitioned into a standing ankle lock. Wardlow rocked Hager with an up kick and powerbombed him into the cage before hitting a running hurricanrana. Wardlow speared Hager down, but Hager countered into the head and arm choke. Wardlow slipped out before Hager fought out of a fireman’s carry and took Wardlow down with a uranage. He kept the head and arm choke applied as Wardlow flipped off Jericho, eventually passing out for the referee stoppage.
– After the night, Spears attacked Hager. Jericho got involved, leading to an all-out brawl, before MJF ran out and attacked Jericho’s injured elbow with the Salt of the Earth. AEW official Dean Malenko ran out to stop the fight, but was decked by MJF. Sammy Guevara’s music played and he ran out, chasing MJF to the back.
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Frankie Kazarian, Eddie Kingston, and Penta El Zero Miedo were backstage. Kazarian said tonight was all about vengeance. He’s hungry for revenge and thirsty for retribution. Kingston told his opponents to pray to their gods. Penta said “Cero miedo.”
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Team Taz (sans Brian Cage) was backstage. Taz said Starks’ disagreement with Cage needs to stop. Hobbs was upset because he was left alone last week. Taz challenged Hangman Page to take on Hobbs one on one next week.
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2-on-1 handicap match: Men of the Year (Ethan Page & Scorpio Sky) defeated Darby Allin
Page started off. Allin outwrestled him with his quickness, forcing him to tag in Sky, who Allin rolled up quickly for a two count. Allin fought off both opponentus until Page caught a Coffin Drop, allowing Sky to take him down with a forearm smash. Allin arm-dragged his opponents into each other and took them down with a Coffin Drop. Page tagged in and leveled Allin with a shoulder tackle.
It looked like Page was going to toss Allin into the front row like at Double or Nothing, but Allin slapped on a sleeper. Page threw Allin into the corners as the Men of the Year took control ahead of the break. Once back, they hit repeated backbreakers on Allin until Allin surprised Page with a small package for two. Allin countered a backbreaker with a Scorpion Death Drop.
Page reached Sky for a tag, then Allin “tagged himself” in, running wild on Sky. He hit a Code Red, but Page broke up the pin and planted him with a uranage. Allin ziptied Page’s feet together and sent him to the floor before rolling Sky up for repeated near falls. The over-the-top stunner followed. Allin then hit the Coffin Drop, but Page pulled Allin out of the ring.
Outside the ring, Page cut the ziptie from around his legs and sent Allin into the ring post. He tagged into the match and propped Allin up for a superplex, but Allin bit his way out of it, sending Page to the mat. Sky pulled out Allin’s legs and Page hit the Ego’s Edge for the win.
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A short video promo from the Wingmen aired before the match. Apparently Orange left them “on read.”
Orange Cassidy (w/ Best Friends) defeated Cezar Bononi (w/ The Wingmen)
Not sure what this was supposed to be.
Bononi attacked before the bell, then tossed Orange across the ring. Out on the floor, Nemeth sprayed Orange with self-tanner. Back in the ring, Orange briefly got control, but Bononi sent Orange back to the floor, where the Wingmen put a jacket on him.
Orange tripped Bononi running the ropes, sending him to the floor, but the Wingmen caught a dive. Statlander distracted the referee while the Best Friends assisted Orange on a dive, taking out the Wingmen. Bononi caught the diving DDT, but Orange turned it into a stunner and a rolling DDT. Orange took out Nemeth and Drake with the Orange Punch before doing the same to Bononi for the win.
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Jungle Boy was about to be interviewed by Alex Marvez, but Omega, Callis, and Nakazawa rolled up in a golf cart. Omega was without his expensive clothes and championships because Jungle Boy embarrassed him last week. He’s giving Jungle Boy a chance to make up for it with two knuckle sandwiches, trying to goad Jungle Boy into a fight. Jungle Boy said he’d prefer to beat Omega next week.
Omega offered a free punch, set up to do so, but Nakazawa attacked him with a laptop and Omega beat him up. Omega and Callis then escaped on a golf cart, leaving Nakazawa behind.
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Matt Hardy and the Hardy Family Office were interviewed by Alex Marvez about Christian Cage. Hardy said Christian was in violation of a contract, and that’s why Hardy keeps attacking him. Christian showed up trying to fight, but HFO pushed him int oa storage area and locked him in. Hardy gave Christian an out, telling him to retire by giving him a retirement check. He said if Christian keeps coming after him, he’ll end his career.
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Cody Rhodes & Brock Anderson (w/ Arn Anderson) defeated The Factory (QT Marshall & Aaron Solow) (w/ Nick Comoroto)
This was a lot of fun and gave the debuting Brock a Dynamite win. Brock looked really solid considering his experience level.
Brock and Solow started off. Brock avoided a swing and backed himself into the wrong corner, getting some coaching from Cody for his trouble. Solow taunted Brock but was taken down, leading to more chain wrestling. Marshall tagged in, but Cody wanted in as well, so Marshall escaped back to the floor. Cody took him out with a suicide dive but Solow was the legal man, gaining control after a stomp.
Cody fought out of the corner and tagged in Brock, who hit repeated shoulder strikes in the corner. He dispatched Solow with a gutwrench, but Marshall took him down with a double-A spinebuster ahead of the break. Brock reached Cody for the hot tag after the break, but Solow had the official distracted, allowing the Factory to hit a double team neckbreaker for two.
Marshall went for Cross Rhodes on Brock, who countered into a DDT. Cody got the hot tag and ran wild on Solow, hitting the Oklahoma Stampede and a flying headscissor. He locked Solow in the Figure Four, but Solow was at the ropes. They fought up top, but Marshall got involved, so Cody hit him with a destroyer. Solow rocked Cody with a cyclone kick, but Brock broke up the pin.
Brock tagged back in and helped Cody hit a step-up forearm before jackknifing Solow for the pin and win.
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Lance Archer and Jake Roberts cut a promo. Roberts said they were going to wait and pounce like a tiger, but Archer doesn’t know how to do that. Archer was pacing impatiently in the background, cutting off the promo early.
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Andrade El Idolo sit-down interview with Jim Ross
Andrade said he chose AEW because there are many stars, but he’s a superstar. JR talked about the championships in AEW, and Andrade said that they’re his next step. He’s working with Vickie Guerrero because she’s experienced and she is a Guerrero, so they have a great connection — but we have to wait, because they have a surprise.
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Hangman Page was with the Dark Order. He accepted Hobbs’ challenge for next week and was asked about the world title match next week, but he brushed it off and hyped up the Dark Order members – most notably, John Silver is back soon. He gave a toast to Evil Uno.
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Penelope Ford defeated Julia Hart (w/ Varsity Blonds)
They performed chain wrestling at the start. Ford used acrobatics to escape a headscissors before dropping Hart with a shoulder tackle. Hart came back with a dropkick and a running crossbody, but Ford tripped Hart up and hit a springboard knee drop into the commercial break.
Back from break, they traded strikes. Ford avoided a corner clothesline, but Hart rolled Ford up. Ford rolled out and took Hart down with a clothesline. She caught a kick and slapped Hart before hitting a fireman’s carry gutbuster. Hart rolled out of the way of a moonsault. Ford avoided a split leg drop and locked on an Indian deathlock, leading to the submission.
– After the match, Miro came out and asked Ford where Kip Sabian is. He mocked Ford by telling the Blonds to leave before attacking them. He and Pillman got into a scrap before being separated by officials.
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Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. and Rebel were backstage with Schiavone, but Vickie Guerrero interrupted. She’s not happy because she wants the championship around Nyla Rose’s waist. Baker and Rebel blew it off, but Baker and Rebel vs. Rose and Guerrero was sanctioned for next week.
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Next week’s Dynamite lineup (Saturday 06/26):
Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. & Rebel vs. Nyla Rose & Vickie Guerrero
TNT Championship: Miro vs. Brian Pillman Jr.
Hangman Page vs. Powerhouse Hobbs
AEW World Championship: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Jungle Boy
For Wednesday 06/30:
MJF vs. Sammy Guevara
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A video package contrasting FTR and Santana & Ortiz aired. They both have fought to get to where they are today. It’s difficult to recap but this was really good, pointing out how the two teams are both very similar and deeply different.
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Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling announced a partnership with a Toronto hotel, where Cargill’s opponents can stay when she knocks them out. Their discount code is “THATBITCH.” Sterling advertised Cargill for all of AEW’s programming, including Rampage, because she’s “that bitch.”
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Callis joined commentary. Nick Jackson was conspicuously absent.
Matt Jackson & Good Brothers (Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson) defeated Eddie Kingston, Penta El Zero Miedo, & Frankie Kazarian
Kazarian attacked at the bell. He rolled up Anderson for a quick two before downing him with a clothesline. Jackson got involved, but Penta fought everyone off and tagged in Kingston for a double team. Jackson avoided the spinning back fist and tagged Gallows in. The match broke down into a free-for-all with everyone brawling on the floor. A running crossbody from Jackson took out Kingston ahead of the commercial.
The Elite took control during the break, beating down Kingston in their corner. Kingston shrugged off some right hands from Jackson and peppered him with chops. An overhead belly-to-belly suplex allowed Kingston to reach Kazarian for the hot tag.
Kazarian ran wild on everyone, taking out all three members of the Elite. A springboard leg drop on Anderson got two. Kazarian countered a spinebuster and locked on a crossface chicken wing, but Gallows broke it up, allowing Anderson to hit the spinebuster.
Penta tagged in and took out Jackson with a backbreaker before hitting a tope con giro on both Good Brothers. A floating DDT got two. Kingston tagged in and Jackson was the victim of a parade of offense in the corner. Penta hit the Fear Factor, Kingston hit the Backdrop Driver, and Kazarian hit the Angel’s Wings, but Gallows broke up the pin.
A thrust kick from Penta to Anderson got two. Anderson fought out of Fear Factor and hit a neckbreaker before tagging in Gallows. The Good Brothers hit an assisted neckbreaker and Jackson hit a top-rope elbow drop for two. Kazarian broke up the Magic Killer and we got a parade of big moves, leaving Anderson and Penta in the ring.
Penta hit a backstabber and went to the top rope, but Nick Jackson ran out and sprayed Penta with aerosol. Anderson hit a top-rope Stun Gun for the win.
The Pinnacle emerged victorious in tonight’s Blood and Guts match that took place on AEW Dynamite.
In what ended up being a bloody match, the finish had Chris Jericho and MJF winding up on top of the Blood and Guts cage, with Jericho taking MJF down with the Walls of Jericho in a submission attempt. MJF low blowed Jericho and put him in an armbar. He then let go and dragged Jericho near the corner of the cage, threatening the other members of the Inner Circle that if they didn’t surrender, he would throw Jericho off the cage. Sammy Guevara then surrendered the match, giving The Pinnacle the win.
After the match, MJF paused, then grabbed Jericho and threw him off the cage anyway, with Jericho landing on a gimmicked pad near the entryway. AEW medical staff and the rest of the Inner Circle tended to Jericho as the show went off the air.
The build to the match started when MJF turned on Jericho and the rest of the Inner Circle (Jake Hager, Guevara, Santana, and Ortiz) to form The Pinnacle with Shawn Spears, Dash Harwood, Cash Wheeler, Wardlow, and Tully Blanchard. MJF’s new stable beat down The Inner Circle upon their formation. The Inner Circle later retaliated with a beatdown of their own, with Jericho later challenging The Pinnacle to the Blood and Guts match.
Jon Moxley made his World title defense against Kenny Omega official on last night’s AEW Dynamite.
After Omega signed the contract last week for their match at December 2nd’s Winter is Coming, Moxley put pen to paper on this week’s Dynamite. Before signing, Moxley laid Omega out with a Paradigm Shift.
Hikaru Shida defeated Anna Jay to retain the AEW Women’s World Championship on Dynamite. After the match, Abadon entered and left a blood stain on Shida’s title belt.
In the Dynamite opener, Hangman Page defeated The Dark Order’s John Silver. Dark Order’s Evil Uno made a recruiting pitch to Page after the match.
A week before Cody Rhodes and Darby Allin face Team Taz’s Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks, Taz choked out Rhodes with a Tazmission.
Chris Jericho and Jake Hager of The Inner Circle defeated SCU’s Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian after MJF hit Daniels with his Dynamite Diamond ring. Scorpio Sky saved Kazarian and Daniels from a post-match attack from the entire Inner Circle.
In the show’s final match, Butcher and Blade beat Death Triangle members PAC and Rey Fenix after an assist from Eddie Kingston. Kingston and his family assaulted Death Triangle after the match, but Lance Archer ran in to make the save and attacked Kingston.
For more of what you missed, including TH2 vs. Top Flight and Powerhouse Hobbs in action, scroll down.
Four matches, including an AEW Women’s title match, were announced for next week’s Dynamite.
Hikaru Shida will defend the championship against Anna Jay of The Dark Order. It was revealed that Mr. Brodie Lee (off-screen) demanded a title match for next week. Jay, along with John Silver, cut a promo tonight saying she was no longer a rookie, that she was in the Dark Order, and that she would win the championship.
Chris Jericho will also be in action next week, teaming with Jake Hager to take on SCU (Frankie Kazarian and Christopher Daniels). Jericho appeared briefly on commentary Wednesday and promised The Inner Circle would be back in action next week following their trip to Las Vegas.
In other matches:
Death Triangle members PAC and Rey Fenix will face The Butcher and The Blade. This comes after Penta El Zero M made the save for Fenix who had ran out to help PAC fend off a three-on-one attack from Eddie Kingston, Butcher and Blade after PAC’s win over Blade Wednesday.
Will Hobbs will be in action against an opponent to be named. It will be a follow-up to his heel turn to close out Dynamite as he aligned himself with Team Taz.
Jake Hager stepped into the Bellator MMA cage for the first time in more than a year Thursday night, picking up a split decision win over Brandon Calton to remain undefeated.
Two judges scored the fight 29-28 for Hager to give him the win in his first fight that went past the first round.
The fight looked like one contested between two heavyweights that are still learning how to punch with a combined five professional bouts and with no real gas tanks to speak of.
Both were bloodied up with Hager (3-0-1) looking more worse for the wear with cuts under his left eye, his nose, and his ear. His right eye was also swollen.
Calton (2-1) landed the most significant strike of the fight in the second round, a right hand that knocked Hager’s mouthpiece clear across the cage. He couldn’t follow up though and the round ended. Of note, Hager’s mouthpiece came out of his mouth every round.
Almost to form, Hager punched Calton low in the third round while the two were clinched up against the cage. The last time Hager fought ended in a no contest due to repeated low blows which he made into a calling card early in his AEW run.
Hager had the AEW logo on the front of his fight tights and wore an Inner Circle t-shirt to the cage. His fight was the featured prelim on the company’s YouTube pre-show.
The event was held at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun Arena where Bellator has held all of their domestic events since returning to post-pandemic action.
More than a year after he last fought, Jake Hager will be returning to the Bellator MMA cage in ten days.
MMA Junkie first reported Monday night that Hager (2-0-0-1) will return at Bellator 250 on Thursday, October 29th against fellow undefeated heavyweight Brandon Calton (2-0). Despite Hager’s notoriety as part of the AEW roster, the fight will be on the prelim portion of the empty arena show at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun.
The 38-year-old hasn’t been in the cage since a no contest against Anthony Garrett last October when he low blowed Garrett several times in the first round, something he later used in AEW.
Hager, who signed with Bellator in November 2017, has yet to see a fight go past the first round with submission wins in his first two outings. He has wrestled sparingly over the last few months in AEW, teaming with Chris Jericho.
Bellator 250 will be headlined by Gegard Mousasi vs. Douglas Lima for the vacant Bellator middleweight championship.
Three title matches headline night one of AEW Fyter Fest.
Cody will defend his TNT Championship against The Inner Circle’s Jake Hager. Cody has made three successful defenses of the TNT title after winning it at Double or Nothing against Lance Archer. Hager enters the match having lost three in a row. Those losses came against AEW World Champion Jon Moxley in a title match on Dynamite, to The Elite in the Stadium Stampede at Double or Nothing and in a trios match against Best Friends and Orange Cassidy last month on Dynamite.
Kenny Omega and Hangman Page will defend the AEW Tag Team titles against Best Friends. Omega and Page are undefeated in 2020 in tag team matches while Trent and Chuck Taylor will carry a 2020 record of 10-3 in tags into the match. Best Friends earned this title shot with a win over Private Party on the Double or Nothing Buy In show.
Hikaru Shida will defend her AEW Women’s World Championship against Penelope Ford. Ford is the number two ranked wrestler in the AEW women’s division. She comes into this match on a three-match winning streak and having defeated Shida in a tag match on Dynamite last month.
Private Party vs. Santana and Ortiz, plus MJF and Wardlow vs. Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus are also scheduled for tonight’s show. Chris Jericho will join the commentary team for the broadcast.
Our coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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The show opened with Jericho entering to join the commentary desk.
MJF and Wardlow then entered for the opener.
MJF cut a strong promo on Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus. He said he thought he and Wardlow had dispatched of Jungle Boy and his dinosaur once and for all. He ripped on Jungle Boy going through his daddy’s money and said Luchasaurus was greener than his tongue.
MJF said he finally understood why this match was made even though he and Wardlow had already beaten Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus. He said it’s because they’re in a ratings war and you can’t win without MJF on the front lines.
Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus (w/Marko Stunt) defeated MJF & Wardlow
This was a super opener.
Jungle Boy and MJF started off. Jungle Boy hit some strikes. He tried a hurricanrana off the apron but Wardlow caught him and MJF and Wardlow took control of the bout. They traded quick tags in working over Jungle Boy.
Jungle Boy finally made a hot tag to Luchasaurus who ran wild with tail whips and a variety of kicks. Wardlow and MJF traded powerful strikes. Luchasaurus hit a death valley driver into a double down.
MJF and Jungle Boy got tags. Jungle Boy hit three straight dives to MJF. He went for a springboard attack but Wardlow tossed him over the barricade. Luchasaurus hit Wardlow with a dive.
Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus hit a tandem cutter on Wardlow. Jungle Boy hit Wardlow with a poison rana. Marko Stunt took the referee. Luchasaurus hit a powerbomb on MJF. MJF hit Luchasaurus with a thrust kick. All four men went down.
Jungle Boy hit a destroyer off the back of Luchasaurus onto Wardlow. Wardlow tossed Stunt off the stage onto Jungle Boy on the floor. Wardlow hit a swanton bomb on Luchasaurus for a two count.
The finish saw MJF accidentally hit Wardlow with his Dynamite diamond ring. Wardlow avoided one accidental punch with the ring but MJF had his arm kicked into Wardlow’s face. Luchasaurus hit a series of kicks and pinned Wardlow with a standing moonsault.
A commercial aired for the AEW Dynamite Puppy Battle Royale which will air next week after Fyter Fest.
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Lance Archer and Joey Janela had a pull-apart in the crowd. I saw zero masks among the dozen or so fans that were shown in this shot.
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A Hikaru Shida and Penelope Ford hype video played. Both came off as big stars in this. Well done.
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AEW Women’s World Championship match: Hikaru Shida defeated Penelope Ford (w/Kip Sabian) to retain the title
Jericho called this the best match of Ford’s career and he was right. Both women were awesome here.
Referee Aubrey Edwards ejected Kip Sabian before the opening bell. Sabian took Shida’s kendo stick with him as he left.
Shida tried to repeat the quick win she picked up last week with a running knee strike at the opening bell. She tried for a falcon arrow but Ford slipped out.
The match went to the floor where they sent each other into the barricade. Back inside, Ford took over with a handspring back elbow in the corner and a boot in the corner. Ford hit a German into a bridge for a two count before a commercial break.
They traded strikes after the break. Ford hit an inverted DDT for a two count. They had a slap fight. Shida hit an enzuigiri. Ford hit a nice pump kick. Shida blocked a stunner and grabbed a sleeper. They botched a backbreaker spot but recovered well.
Shida hit a flacon arrow. Ford rolled through and cradled Shida for a near fall. Ford used a matrix back bend to avoid a diving attack off the top. Ford hit a stunner for a great near fall.
Ford rolled outside and grabbed the title belt. Edwards went out after her. Sabian ran in with the kendo stick. Shida ducked a kendo stick shot and hit Sabian with the stick.
Ford jumped back in and hit a stunner for a near fall. Shida hit a falcon arrow but Ford kicked out.
Shida then hit two running knee strikes for the pin.
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Taz broke down Jon Moxley’s double arm DDT in a video package.
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TNT Championship match: Cody (w/Arn Anderson) defeated Jake Hager (w/Catalina Hager) to retain the title
Cody entered wearing a new shirt that had an old school Great American Bash theme to it.
They started very slowly. They did some mat wrestling and traded ankle lock counters. Cody hit a springboard dive to the floor and things picked up a bit. Hager came back with some throws.
The match spilled outside. Hager went after Arn and shoved him against the barricade. Cody went after Hager but ended up taking a suplex on the floor before a commercial.
Catalina walked on Cody’s back during the break. After the break, Hager tried to post Cody. Arn got in his way. Cody used the distraction to post Hager.
Back inside, Hager used a sleeper. Cody walked the buckle to try to break the hold and got a two count but Hager kept the hold. Cody finally broke the hold and hit a springboard cutter off the top.
Remember when everyone started doing Spanish Flies about two years ago? The trend in wrestling right now is the pump kick. Everyone is using the pump kick. Cody used a pump kick here. Hager hit a Vader bomb for a two count.
Hager tried a second Vader bomb. Cody blocked and hit an inverted DDT for a two count. Hager hit a throw off the buckle for a two count. Hager used an ankle lock but Cody forced a rope break.
Here was the finish. Hager took the ref. Catalina slapped Cody. Hager went back to the ankle lock. Arn got in the ring and took the ref. Dustin Rhodes ran down and punched Hager. Cody went for Cross Rhodes. Hager blocked it. Hager hit a uranage and floated over into the arm triangle. Cody postured up and pinned Hager.
This match didn’t do anything for me. The TNT title time limit actually hurts Cody matches because his best matches are long brawls where he can spend a long time selling. I also can’t recall having seen Hager have a good outing in AEW yet.
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Hager jumped up after the match as though he had won. Hager thought Cody passed out in the hold and that’s why the bell rang.
Hager knocked out the referee. A bunch of referees and road agents ran in to get Hager out of the ring.
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A Darby Allin hype video played. He was skateboarding and stuff. It was okay. Precisely as much thought went into coming up with the content for this video as it seems from this description.
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Orange Cassidy sauntered in and sat next to the commentary team with his feet on the desk.
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Private Party (w/Matt Hardy) defeated Santana & Ortiz
There was some good action in this one. Isiah Kassidy was the star of the match, he was absolutely on fire tonight.
Quen and Kassidy ran wild early with some spectacular dives. Kassidy in particular hit a great dive to the floor. Santana cut Kassidy off with a backdrop. Ortiz tagged in and hit a DDT and Santana and Ortiz established control.
Quen got a tag during a commercial break and hit some dives before he was also cut off. Kassidy got tag and hit a crazy tornillo. Kassidy hit a swanton on Ortiz for a near fall. Quen tagged in and fell victim to some tandem offense. Ortiz made a cover and Kassidy made the save for Quen.
Santana took out Kassidy on the floor. Ortiz took the ref. Santana tried to use a mad ball on Quen but Hardy jumped on the apron and took it away.
Santana and Ortiz went for the Street Sweeper. Quen pulled Santana’s headband over his eyes and blocked the move. Private Party hit the Gin and Juice on Santana and Quen picked up the pin. Ortiz was just seconds late on making the save.
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Jericho and Cassidy had a pull-apart. I wouldn’t even have done this angle here. As far as generating interest in their match, nothing was going to top the angle that closed last week’s show. They should have just replayed that in some form. Jericho left the commentary desk for the rest of the show.
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The announcers previewed next week’s show.
Private Party vs. the winners of the tag title match tonight was added to the show.
Jon Moxley vs. Brian Cage for the AEW title was moved to two weeks from tonight, which will apparently be Fight for the Fallen.
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Taz and Cage entered for a promo. Taz said he’s not upset that the match was moved back a week.
Taz said Moxley didn’t want to come to Fyter Fest out of fear for the health of the staff and crew. Taz said that sounds good but he knows Moxley has been tested time and again at home and has tested negative. He said the only thing Mox is positive for is the chicken shits. Taz worked in a line here about AEW not running a “sloppy shop,” a jab at WWE. That’s well and good and I like Taz but he’s in a ring surrounded by people not wearing masks, so let’s not throw stones in our glass house.
Taz promised that Cage will take the title from Moxley’s “dumb ass” at Fight for the Fallen.
This was a great promo. Taz is making a strong case for best on interviews this year.
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Best Friends arrived for the main event in a nondescript vehicle. Trent’s mom was driving. She was later shown in the crowd during the match.
AEW World Tag Team Championship match: Kenny Omega & Hangman Page defeated Best Friends to retain the titles
Omega and Taylor started off. They had a very basic exchange before tagging out. Trent and Omega had a back and forth. Taylor and Trent double up on Page and got the first real advantage of the match.
Page made his own comeback. Page and Omega then went two on one against Trent. Omega hit a kotaro krusher. Page hit a standing shooting star press for a near fall. Omega and Page remained in control through a commercial break.
FTR came out to the stage with chairs and beers to watch the action.
Taylor got a tag and made a comeback. He suplexed Omega into Page on the floor against the barricade. Page and Trent got tags as the back and forth nature of the match continued. Page hit some lariats. Omega tagged in and hit a missile dropkick and a fisherman buster on Trent.
Omega went for you can’t escape but Trent got his knees up and blocked. Taylor tagged in and hit a spike piledriver on Omega. Page broke up the pin attempt.
Omega hit snap dragon suplexes on both Taylor and Trent. Page hit a rolling elbow on Taylor and powerbomb on Trent. Omega hit Trent with a v-trigger. Page covered for a two count.
Page and Omega went for Last Call. Trent dodged it and Trent and Taylor hit their Strong Zero on Page. Omega broke up the pin. Omega tried a One-Winged Angel on Taylor. Taylor blocked and hit a Michinoku driver. Best Friends did their hug spot.
Page hit a pump kick and knocked Taylor out of the ring. Trent and Page traded strikes. Trent blocked a sunset flip and sat down in a cradle for a two count. Page hit a deadeye on Trent for a near fall.
Page hit the Buckshot Lariat on Trent for the pin.
This was a very good main event.
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FTR came to the ring with beers after the match and offered them to Page and Omega. Page and Omega both accepted the beers. Page drank his. Omega doesn’t drink so he poured his out.
Wheeler and Harwood were upset that Omega poured out their beer and confronted him. The Young Bucks ran in to separate FTR and Page and Omega.
What a weird finish to the show. FTR vs. Omega and Page is a fine direction to tease. But there’s another show next week with a tag title match on it. Shouldn’t Private Party have been the team confronting Omega and Page tonight? Weird. But this was overall a very good show.
A TNT championship match has been set for Fyter Fest next month.
After Cody successfully retained the title tonight against Private Party’s Marq Quen, Hager came out and immediately went after Cody’s manager Arn Anderson. The two brawled, with Private Party and Matt Hardy coming in for the save. Santana, Ortiz, and Sammy Guevara came out resulting in a eight man brawl that had to be separated by the referees. Cody then said it was clear Hager wanted a shot, and would give it to him at Fyter Fest.
Cody won the championship last month at Double or Nothing, when he defeated Lance Archer in the finals of a tournament to crown the first TNT champion. Cody made his first successful title defense last week, when he defeated Jungle Boy. Another TNT title match will take place on next week’s Dynamite.
This year’s Fyter Fest will be a two week event that will take place on TNT during Dynamite’s normal time slot, running on July 1 and July 8.
The AEW World Championship will be on the line on tonight’s episode of Dynamite.
Jon Moxley will defend his title against The Inner Circle’s Jake Hager. This will be Moxley’s first defense since winning the championship at Revolution in February.
The Moxley vs. Hager match will be contested under no holds barred rules. Jim Ross has been advertised as doing commentary for the match, with Chris Jericho and Tony Schiavone doing commentary for the rest of tonight’s show.
The TNT Championship tournament also continues tonight with a quarterfinal bout between Lance Archer and Colt Cabana.
Sammy Guevara will face Sugar Dunkerton tonight. Dunkerton made his AEW debut on the episode of Dark that aired on March 24, working under the name Suge D.
Dunkerton appeared in the audience on last week’s Dynamite, drawing attention from Jericho on commentary. Jericho referred to Dunkerton as “Pineapple Pete.” The match graphic for tonight’s episode refers to Dunkerton as “Sugar D.”
Fresh off a victory over Billy Gunn on this week’s Dark, Shawn Spears will be in action this evening. Britt Baker has also been advertised against an unnamed opponent.
Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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The show opened with a strong Jake Roberts promo.
Roberts said that TNT must have had Archer in mind when they designed the TNT Championship. He said Archer turns heads when he walks into a room. He said Archer is 275 pounds of steel. He’s got a chip on his shoulder from being forced out of the country to make a living in Japan.
He said Cabana is good, but not good enough. He said when Archer wins the TNT belt, they’ll be one step closer to what they want.
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Jericho and Schiavone previewed the rest of the show for tonight.
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A Colt Cabana video package played. Cabana said that he’s a little over the top, a little silly sometimes, but he’s dominated around the world for fifteen years.
Cabana said he’s not looking past Archer. This was a strong promo from Cabana.
This was effective in that Archer looked like a killer.
Archer knocked down one of the wrestlers in the babyface crowd section on his entrance.
Archer went after Cabana with a forearm strike before the opening bell. Cabana fired back with chops. Archer cut Cabana off with power moves and began working him over.
Archer hit his version of a Vader bomb for a near fall. Archer took a stroll around the ring before a commercial break.
After the break, Archer missed a second rope splash. Cabana came back with an elbow strike, a flying apple and a splash of his own.
Cabana hit flip, flop and fly. Archer countered with a pounce and a chokeslam.
The finish saw Cabana block a charge into the corner. Archer powered Cabana up in the corner, then hit Blackout for the pin.
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Britt Baker cut a promo from her dental office. This was funny.
She said rule one of being a role model is always fight fair. She said Hikaru Shida didn’t fight fair when she gave Baker a deviated septum last week.
Baker said she fought on last week even without the usual support from her fans in the crowd.
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Ariel Helwani and Taz gave their predictions for the title match. Helwani picked Hager. Taz picked Moxley.
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Taz broke down Hager’s head and arm choke and the different grips that he uses in applying it. This included footage from Hager’s Bellator fights.
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Britt Baker defeated Cassandra Golden
Baker hit a kick to the kneecap and then a superkick to the chin.
Baker curb-stomped Golden over the bottom rope and pinned her.
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Ron Funches and Mike Goldberg gave predictions for the main event via video promo. Funches picked Moxley. Goldberg picked “his buddy” Jake Hager. Goldberg was a fountain of charisma and made sure to work in his catchphrases.
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A video promo aired for Double or Nothing on May 23.
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An Inner Circle segment titled “The Bubbly Bunch” played.
Santana and Ortiz ran down The Young Bucks. Sammy Guevara said he’s not a fake Latino. Hager said he’s going to beat the shit out of Moxley. Jericho did some comedy.
There are hits and misses in wrestling comedy. This was a miss.
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Sammy Guevara defeated Suge D
Guevara used a waistlock takedown. They did a comedy dance spot. Suge hit a nice armdrag. Guevara cut Suge off with a kick, then used a delayed vertical suplex for a two count.
Guevara missed a charge into the corner and Suge made a comeback. Suge hit some chops and uppercut forearms.
Guevara answered with a running knee, then hit an inverted GTS for the pin.
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Guevara cut a promo after the match. He said Suge D was light work.
He said in the first round of the TNT Championship tournament, he’s going to beat the shit out of Darby Allin, the face-painted weirdo.
Guevara went after Suge again after his promo. Allin ran in to make the save and Guevara retreated.
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MMA ref Big John McCarthy and Excalibur gave their predictions for the main event. McCarthy picked Hager. Excalibur picked Moxley.
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Kip Sabian (w/Penelope Ford) defeated Chuck Taylor
Jericho put over Ford’s leather pants.
The match began with a solid chain wrestling exchange. Sabian hit a springboard dropkick. The match spilled outside and Taylor hit an x-plex on the apron.
Taylor missed a moonsault. Sabian answered with a springboard dropkick for a two count. Sabian hit a penalty kick for another near fall. Cassidy took the referee and Sabian sent Taylor outside. Ford hit Taylor with kicks and forearm shots.
Sabian sat Taylor on the top rope and teased a dragon suplex off the top, which would be profoundly stupid in an empty arena. Taylor blocked and landed on his feet off a moonsault attempt.
Taylor used a falcon arrow and a sit-out powerbomb for a pair of near falls.
Taylor missed a double stomp. Sabian got a near fall off a draping suplex.
Taylor hit soul food for a near fall. Ford jumped on the apron to distract Taylor by taking her jacket off. Cassidy then jumped on the apron and took his jacket off. Tremendous.
Jimmy Havoc jumped out of the crowd and hit Cassidy with a DDT on the floor.
The finish saw Ford hit a flying headscissors off the top rope and Sabian rolled Taylor up for the pin.
This was one of the better empty arena matches you’ll see.
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We got some more main event predictions. Actor Dan Soder picked Moxley. Ortiz and Guevara picked Hager.
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Shawn Spears defeated Justin Law
Law took two of the most awkward bumps I’ve ever seen off snapmares.
Spears wasn’t taking Law seriously and gave him the opportunity to try to wrestle him from an amateur wrestling position. Law used the position to score a quick two count on Spears.
Spears hit some chops, then hit his C4 finisher for the pin.
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A pair of TNT tournament matches were announced for next week in Sammy Guevara vs. Darby Allin and Dustin Rhodes vs. Kip Sabian.
Jimmy Havoc vs. Orange Cassidy, Brodie Lee in action and Kenny Omega in action were also announced for next week.
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Bellator fighter Josh Thomson and Santana predicted that Hager will beat Moxley.
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AEW World Championship match: Jon Moxley defeated Jake Hager to retain the title
There was great effort from all involved here. This was the strongest Jim Ross performance in a long time and he did so without a color commentator.
All that said, this needed a crowd badly. No matter how hard he works, this was still Jake Hager in a 30 minute main event with zero crowd reaction. That’s tough sledding.
Moxley got a single-leg takedown and Hager pulled guard. Hager escaped. Moxley used a Fujiwara armbar to transition to a cross armbreaker attempt. Hager powered out and hit a strike.
Moxley tried an ankle pick. Hager rolled through and tried for an ankle lock. Moxley reached the ropes and Hager broke cleanly.
Moxley hit some chops, then used a wristlock to transition to a STF attempt. Moxley went for a kimura. Hager escaped and hit some stomps in the corner.
After a striking exchange, Moxley sent Hager outside and hit a plancha. Moxley followed Hager to the floor and locked on a cross armbreaker. Hager escaped with strikes before an ad break.
Hager threw Moxley into the barricade. Moxley raked Hager’s eyes and threw him over the barricade. Moxley went for a Gotch-style piledriver on concrete but Hager hit a backdrop instead.
They fought into the seats. Moxley locked on a figure four around a railing. Moxley gave up the hold and hit a series of chops.
Hager escaped a guillotine and dropped Moxley on a barricade as they continued to brawl throughout the building. Back at ringside, Hager sent Moxley into the ring steps.
Back inside, Hager missed a Vader bomb. Moxley connected with a Regal knee strike. After a double down, Hager hit a gutwrench powerbomb for a near fall.
After another commercial break, the two traded clotheslines. Hager blocked another Gotch attempt and used an ankle lock. Moxley rolled through into a cradle for a near fall.
Moxley caught Hager coming off the second rope and hit a DDT. He went for a cover but Hager rolled into his head and arm choke. Moxley reached the ropes for a break.
Moxley rolled to the floor. Hager followed him out and used a chair to attack Moxley’s abdomen. Hager wedged the chair between the middle and top turnbuckle. Moxley missed a charge and hit the chair. Hager rolled him up for a near fall before the final ad break.
Hager used the chair on Moxley’s left leg. Hager then applied an ankle lock. Moxley kicked Hager off.
Moxley hit a double arm DDT, but used it to apply a guillotine. Hager slid out.
They traded strikes. Hager hit a low blow. Moxley hit Hager with the chair.
Moxley then hit a Paradigm Shift on the chair and pinned Hager.
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Moxley cut a promo into the camera after the match. He said he’ll fight anywhere any time. He said AEW is the hottest promotion in the world.
An empty arena match for the AEW World title will take place in two weeks.
Jon Moxley will defend against Jake Hager in a no holds barred empty arena match on the April 15th edition of Dynamite. This follows altercations that have been taking place recently between both Hager and Moxley, including The Inner Circle powerbombing Moxley through a table off the stage.
A video aired tonight highlighting the feud between the two. Hager said he didn’t care that Moxley was AEW Champion as that doesn’t scare him. Moxley says he isn’t scared of Hager, but knows he could separate consciousness from his body. He said that Hager is just another Goliath that David will need to find a way to defeat.
The video also had comments from stablemates Sammy Guevara and Chris Jericho, who praised Hager.
Content for the next few weeks of Dynamite have been taped in recent days as a number of states have issued stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic. The show will also feature Lance Archer vs. Colt Cabana in a TNT Championship quarterfinal match.
Filmed before and after last Wednesday’s Dynamite in Jacksonville, Florida, this week’s edition of AEW Dark on Tuesday will feature six matches including several talents making their promotional debut.
Shawn Spears (w/ Tully Blanchard) & Robert Anthony vs. SCU (Christoper Daniels and Frankie Kazarian)
Spears continues his search for a permanent tag team partner with the former Egotistico Fantastico. The 37-year-old was in WWE developmental for several years and has also worked for Combat Zone and Resistance Pro. Spears has yet to win a traditional tag match in his AEW run (0-6).
Outside six-man tag matches with Scorpio Sky, this will be the first time Daniels and Kazarian have teamed together under the AEW banner.
Sonny Kiss and Joey Janela vs. Corey Hollis and Mike Reed
This is the first time Kiss and Janela have teamed up. This will be the promotional debuts for both the Alabama-born Hollis and the Florida-born Reed.
QT Marshall and Dustin Rhodes (w/Brandi Rhodes) vs. Matt Sells and Jon Cruz
The Nightmare Family members have teamed before in a winning effort over Peter Avalon and Shawn Spears on the February 19th AEW Dark. This will be the promotional debuts for the Georgia-born Sells and the Puerto Rico native who mainly works as Serpentico.
Colt Cabana vs. Brandon Cutler
This is the first time the two veterans have faced each other in a singles match.
Kip Sabian (with Penelope Ford) vs. Suge D
This is the promotional debut for the former Sugar Dunkerton while Sabian looks to get back on the winning track after losses (Joey Janela, Jurassic Express while teaming with Peter Avalon).
Jake Hager vs. Joe Alonzo
The Inner Circle member is looking to run his AEW singles record to 3-0 against the 22-year-old Alonzo who is making his promotional debut.
A new match has been announced for Revolution at the end of this month.
Dustin Rhodes will face Jake Hager in a singles match. It will be the first time that Hager has stepped foot into a AEW ring in a wrestling capacity.
The feud between the two extends as far back as October, when Jake Hager injured Rhodes’ hand by smashing it into a car door during a parking lot brawl. Dustin has since gone after the Inner Circle, including facing Sammy Guevara on two occasions.
On tonight’s episode of Dynamite, Rhodes scored the win over Guevara. After the match, Dustin called out Hager, saying that he’s a failure in MMA and he’s a failure here before he’s even started. It was here that Rhodes threw out the challenge for Revolution. Hager walked to the back, not responding,
Revolution will take place on February 29 at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois.
Due to low blows, Jake Hager’s third mixed martial arts fight ended in a no contest.
The AEW wrestler faced off with MMA journeyman Anthony Garrett in the opening bout of tonight’s Bellator 231 event from the Mohegan Sun Casino. The fight was stopped after less than two minutes when Hager connected with a hard knee to the groin, his second such illegal blow in 30 seconds. Referee Dan Miragliotta ruled it unintentional and declared the fight a no contest.
Hager had three of his Inner Circle stablemates — Santana, Ortiz & Sammy Guevara — cheering him on at cageside. There was an AEW logo on his banner as well. AEW was not mentioned on the broadcast, nor were the other wrestlers identified by commentators John McCarthy and Mike Goldberg.
Hager made his AEW debut on the Dynamite premiere and aligned with AEW World Champion Chris Jericho, Santana, Ortiz, and Guevara.
“We The People” was still part of Hager’s ring entrance tonight, despite the AEW promo where Jericho called the catchphrase dead.
Hager’s MMA record is now 2-0 with one no contest, while Garrett is at 4-2 with one no contest. One would think that Bellator would try to rematch them as soon as possible. Hager was a -700 favorite going into the fight.
