Five matches are set for tonight’s AEW Rampage from Spokane, Washington, including faction warfare between two of AEW’s key stables.
The Conglomeration’s Orange Cassidy & Kyle O’Reilly will team up against The Undisputed Kingdom’s Matt Taven & Mike Bennett in this week’s featured contest. The Conglomeration has been tied up in a feud with The Learning Tree as Mark Briscoe defends his ROH World title against Chris Jericho at Saturday’s WrestleDream.
That feud will continue on the show as Bryan Keith of The Learning Tree goes one-on-one with Rocky Romero after a staredown on Wednesday.
Ahead of his two-of-three falls match with Hologram Saturday, The Beast Mortos of the rebooted LFI will take on The Butcher.
Kris Statlander, who has got TBS Champion Mercedes Mone’s attention, and Lance Archer, now under the leadership of Don Callis, will each be in action against enhancement talent.
The show will be the final stop before Saturday’s pay-per-view.
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The Conglomeration (Orange Cassidy & Kyle O’Reilly) defeated The Undisputed Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett)
Cassidy and Bennett traded offense until Cassidy’s taunting quickly enraged Bennet. Tagging himself in, Taven hoped to use the Undisputed Kingdom’s combined efforts to stop Cassidy, but that only resulted in a double clothesline to Bennett. O’Reilly tagged himself in so Cassidy could recuperate. Bennet & Taven teamed up on O’Reilly but he outsmarted them.
Cassidy attempted a double-crossbody, which was caught mid-air. O’Reilly saved him and applied a leg and arm hold on Bennett (to which Cassidy politely offered a dainty kick). The pair later kicked Bennett into the turnbuckle, with Cassidy hoping for a pin, broken by the 2-count. After clotheslining each other, Cassidy and Bennett made their tags. Taven had a hot tag, the freshest man in the match. His momentum was thwarted by a Stun-Dog Millionaire and a Rolling Elbow from Cassidy and O’Reilly respectively. Bennett tried a Rolling Elbow of his own and chopped the chest of O’Reilly.
A brawl ensued, with everyone trading their signature strikes and maneuvers. O’Reilly maintained a Guillotine Choke on Bennett while Cassidy fended off Taven. Bennett tapped out, with O’Reilly and Cassidy being the victors.
I don’t typically give The Conglomeration and The Undisputed Kingdom enough credit, but they both put in an excellent opening performance. Poor Bennett though, he got the brunt of the offense. Cassidy seems to be accepting his Conglomeration more, and I’m finally beginning to enjoy them as a team.
– Mercedes Mone and Kamille backstage segment, Mone announced Kamille would be present for Kris Statlander’s match
– The Acclaimed made their entrance but were attacked by MxM Collection, Mansoor declared MxM Collection to have a surprise in their corner and touched tips
– Kris Statlander promo vignette, rechristened herself as a born-again
– Rocky Romero and The Conglomeration promo
Kris Statlander defeated Amira
Starting the match with a vertical suplex powerslam, Statlander swiftly dispatched Amira with a Friday Night Fever and got the 3-count within mere minutes after the bell.
There’s nothing insightful to add other than that Statlander makes just as good a squash wrestler as she is a plunder match and brawler.
– Chris Jericho promo
The Beast Mortos defeated The Butcher
Roderick Strong joined the commentary booth as Mortos’s strength and agility saw him gain the upper hand against Butcher. With a flurry of strikes and dodges, Mortos followed up with a snap-mare, but Butcher managed to swing some momentum his way. Charging after Butcher, Mortos accidentally swung himself over the top rope and spilled to the outside. Slamming Mortos onto the steel steps and fighting dirty, Butcher confidently picked at Mortos in the ring.
The two brutes charged at each other, finally knocking the other down. Mortos aimed for a top rope dive on Butcher, but he evaded, attempting a Jackhammer which resulted a 2-count. Mortos found that another top rope move would be a benefit after he performed a flying headbutt on a horizontal-prone Butcher for the win.
A nice hoss match. Thankfully this wasn’t some sort of squash that would typically make Butcher look like a complete geek. He put on a great performance against Mortos and I’d love to see more between them.
– Harley Cameron promo
“The Murderhawk” Lance Archer defeated Matt Brannigan
Brannigan flexed confidently to Archer, who bravely pushed him to a nearby corner. Imploring Brannigan to hit him back, Archer delivered a lariat. Throwing himself at Brannigan back in the corner three times, Archer flipped him over to another corner in a blink-and-miss-it moment.
Clutching Brannigan from the top rope, Archer courageously sent his opponent to the mat with a Blackout and got the 3-count pin.
Yet another good squash match. Hopefully, the newly active Archer will find more dynamic and heart-stopping matches soon.
– Jake “The Snake” Roberts and Los Faccion Ingobernables promo
Bryan Keith defeated Rocky Romero
An irate Romero overwhelmed Keith, leaving him no room to find an opening. Romero, seeking a Hurricanrana on the steps, was countered by Keith with an Exploder on the floor outside the ring. Using referee Aubrey Edwards as a shield, Keith applied a hold which Romero spiritedly pushed against. Reinvigorated through adrenaline, Romero’s goals were dashed by a knee after an unsuccessful double-underhook for a 2-count.
Battling on the top rope, Romero sent himself and Keith flying onto the mat, but Keith escaped to the outside. Dragging him back in, Romero became victim to a blindsided attack by Big Bill. Keith finished the match with a Diamond Dust.
– Post-match, The Conglomeration entered the ring to fend off Bryan Keith and Big Bill as the show went off the air.
Romero made for an enthralling foil to Keith’s underhanded tactics that kept me hooked. I knew he’d lose, but that’s a testament to his tenured experience and Keith’s unique writing style—a small man fighting like a big man. Funny how Big Bill and Bryan Keith’s work outside of Chris Jericho’s 2024 presence make for an exciting experience.
