While it wasn’t in an AEW ring, current roster member Matt Sydal quietly returned to action over the summer for the first time since May 2024 — something that seems impossible in today’s social media age.
Sydal competed against the 58-year-old Ultimo Dragon in July at the France-based ABC 15eme Festival International De Catch. Dragon picked up the win.
It was Sydal’s first in-ring action since May 2024 when he fell to Konosuke Takeshita in two minutes on Dynamite. He has yet to wrestle since.
The reason for his absence was surgery on his right foot after what he called “a decade of suffering.” The 42-year-old had surgery to both break and re-fuse three bones in addition to having hardware to set his toes into his joints.
While still listed on the AEW roster, it’s unclear if there is interest from Tony Khan in bringing him back. He has been part of the company since September 2020’s All Out and has wrestled more than 100 matches for the brand in addition to 19 matches in Ring of Honor.
While active on X in retweeting AEW posts, Sydal never tweeted about his return.
Matt Sydal said that after more than a decade of what he called suffering, he is finally getting surgery on his right foot that will put him on the injury shelf for some time.
Sydal announced the news on X Friday, saying that his surgeon will have to break and re-fuse three bones in addition to using hardware to set his toes into his joints.
He thanked AEW fans and their medical staff and was optimistic for his future, saying “the best is yet to come.” He did not reveal how long he expects to be out of the ring.
The 41-year-old was last in action in late-May, losing a two-minute match to Konosuke Takeshita on AEW Dynamite. He has kept a regular schedule through battling through the longtime injury, competing in 19 matches this year in both AEW and ROH in addition to an appearance alongside the Blackpool Combat Club for CMLL.
Stemming out of AEW Dynamite, two new matches are set for Sunday’s Zero Hour pre-show for AEW Dynasty as Trent Beretta will take on Matt Sydal while Orange Cassidy will team with Katsuyori Shibata against Shane Taylor & Lee Moriarty.
Beretta threw a chair at Sydal’s head on Wednesday’s Dynamite as the latter tried to aid Cassidy from a post-match attack by Taylor, Anthony Ogogo & Moriarty.
While the two have shared the ring 16 times in the past, this will be the first-ever singles clash for the two veterans. The two actually teamed together in the AEW Blind Eliminator tag team tournament in July 2023, losing to Big Bill & Brian Cage.
Sydal is looking to snap an eight-match losing streak in AEW while Beretta has lost seven straight in AEW.
The tag match will see Cassidy attempt to gain a measure of revenge alongside Shibata who has also been feuding with Shane Taylor Promotions in recent weeks.
Here’s the current lineup for the pay-per-view in St. Louis, Missouri:
AEW World Champion Samoa Joe defends against Swerve Strickland
AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm defends against Thunder Rosa
Ladder match for the vacant AEW Tag Team Championship: The Young Bucks vs. FTR
TBS Champion Julia Hart defends against Willow Nightingale
AEW Continental Champion Kazuchika Okada defends against PAC
AEW International Champion Roderick Strong defends against Kyle O’Reilly
FTW Champion Hook defends against Chris Jericho
Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay
Adam Copeland, Mark Briscoe & Eddie Kingston vs. Malakai Black, Brody King & Buddy Matthews
Pre-show: AEW Trios Champions Max Caster, Anthony Bowens & Billy Gunn vs. ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions Jay White, Austin Gunn & Colten Gunn in a title unification match
Pre-show: Trent Beretta vs. Matt Sydal
Pre-show: Orange Cassidy & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Shane Taylor & Lee Moriarty
Fresh off a defeat to former AEW Tag Team Champions FTR on AEW Rampage, El Hijo del Vikingo & Komander will team up again to try to get back on track.
The duo will take on former Ring of Honor Tag Team Champions Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal as part of this Thursday’s ROH on HonorClub.
Vikingo and Komander have teamed three times before, defeating The WorkHorsemen in July, losing to then-ROH Tag Team Champions Aussie Open in August, and then losing the aforementioned FTR bout.
Daniels and Sydal haven’t had much luck in sparse AEW matches since reuniting this year which has also carried over to ROH where they are 0-3 dating back to May.
In another new bout announced for Thursday, the Bollywood Boyz will return to ROH after getting squashed in 40 seconds by The Gunns on AEW Dynamite as they face The Boys in a battle of brothers.
Trent Beretta will look to get back in the winner’s circle as he faces Peter Avalon.
Here’s the current announced lineup for Thursday:
ROH World Champion Eddie Kingston defends against Dalton Castle.
The Boys (Brandon & Brent Tate) vs. The Bollywood Boyz (Harv & Gurv Shira)
El Hijo del Vikingo & Komander vs. Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal
Trent Beretta vs. Peter Avalon
The Outrunners in action
Marina Shafir in action
Leyla Hirsch & Rachael Ellering vs. The Renegades (Charlette & Robyn)
Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal vs. Aussie Open is one of six matches announced for next week’s Ring of Honor TV.
After defeating The Outrunners on this week’s ROH TV, Daniels & Sydal were challenged by Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis of Aussie Open to a future contest. That match was made official for next week’s episode.
Ahead of challenging Samoa Joe for the ROH TV title at Supercard of Honor, Mark Briscoe will be in action on next week’s show against Tony Nese.
In a women’s division contest, Skye Blue will take on Lady Frost on next week’s episode.
Continuing the issue between Top Flight and The Kingdom, Darius Martin will be in singles action against Matt Taven next week.
The Trustbusters will face AR Fox, Blake Christian, and Metalik in a trios bout on next week’s show.
Also announced, Silas Young will take on Shane Taylor.
Next week’s lineup:
Ring of Honor TV, Thursday, March 23, 7 p.m. Eastern time on Honor Club —
Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal vs. Aussie Open
Mark Briscoe vs. Tony Nese
Skye Blue vs. Lady Frost
The Trustbusters vs. AR Fox, Blake Christian & Metalik
In what is billed as a student vs. teacher match, Lee Moriarty will take on Matt Sydal on next Friday’s Fight for the Fallen edition of AEW Rampage.
During Friday’s Rampage, Moriarty was taking on Sydal charge Dante Martin in singles action. After a competitive match, Moriarty grabbed the middle rope on a roll-up to help him get the pin, raising the ire of Sydal.
After the match ended, Sydal challenged Moriarty to a match next Friday as Moriarty was being courted by manager Stokely Hathaway.
The 27-year-old Moriarty teamed with Sydal frequently in late-2021 and early-2022 with Martin joining them in occasional trios matches.
The 39-year-old Sydal enters the match on a three-match winning streak. He was last seen in action teaming with Martin in a mid-June Dark: Elevation match against QT Marshall.
That’s the only match to be announced for next Friday’s show which will be taped after Wednesday’s Dynamite debut in Worcester, Massachusetts.
High flyer Matt Sydal hasn’t been seen in an AEW ring, or any ring, since mid-February and he revealed the reason why on Saturday: a dislocated knee.
Thanks for the birthday love. đđđ A brief update: I dislocated my knee a few weeks back which is why I havenât been active in AEW. In good news, there were no tears in my acl or pcl. Gonna do some meditating then BRB better than ever. đ§żđ§żđ§ż
Sydal, who is celebrating his 39th birthday Saturday, said in the tweet that he suffered no tears in either his ACL or PCL. He gave no timetable for his return.
While he didn’t specify whether the injury was suffered in a match or otherwise, his last in-ring action was in a nine-minute indie match in Poland on February 19th. Since debuting in AEW at All Out in September 2020, Sydal has primarily wrestled for AEW with only a handful of indie bouts.
In recent months, Sydal has been teaming with young prospects like Lee Moriarty and Dante Martin in either tag team matches or trios action.
Sydal’s brother, Mike, has also been on the sidelines since last October when he was pulled from a tag team match on Rampage due to an undisclosed injury. He hasn’t wrestled anywhere since and it’s unknown if he remains under any kind of contract.
This week’s AEW Dark featured seven matches taped at Universal Studios in Orlando, headlined by Matt Sydal vs. Serpentico.
Varsity Blonds defeated Guillermo Rosas and Marcus Kross
Brian Pillman Jr. started off against Kross, but couldn’t get much done so he tagged out to Griff Garrison who immediately came in and delivered a boot to Kross. Rosas tagged himself in and poked Garrison in the eye when the referee wasn’t looking which led to a small period of success for himself and Kross. Pillman eventually came in on the hot tag and delivered a dropkick to Kross, followed by a clothesline in the corner.
Garrison came in shortly after and delivered a reverse body slam which got the Blonds the victory.
The Wingmen (Peter Avalon, JD Drake, Cezar Bononi & Ryan Nemeth) defeated Rohit Raju, Karam, Sotheara Chhun and Caleb Teninity
If nothing else, this match made me laugh.
The Wingmen all jumped the opposing team as the bell rang, clearing the ring. When The Wingmen went to celebrate, Raju and company led the charge and jumped them from behind before celebrating themselves.
Avalon and Raju eventually focused on the actual task at hand. Avalon wore him down in the corner, exchanging tags with Nemeth. The Wingmen spent a long time celebrating, allowing Chhun to get back into the match. Shortly after, all of The Wingmen hit their finishers on Chhun and pinned him for the victory.
Skye Blue defeated Ruthie Jay
I have high hopes for Blue in AEW, but this wasn’t the best display of her skills.
Blue did a great cartwheel fake out pump kick to start the match. Blue was slow in between offensive maneuvers, allowing Jay to have a moment of hope when she had Blue down in the corner. This didn’t last long though as Blue won shortly after with a flatliner that looked to land rough.
Nick Comoroto (w/ The Factory) defeated Lamar Diggs
Diggs actually came in with some powerful offense and had Comoroto backpedaling, but that momentum was halted quickly after Comoroto delivered a impressive standing suplex. Marshall, who was standing on the outside, delivered a cheap shot to Diggs as he was recovering.
Diggs had some crowd support when he was attempting a comeback, but Comoroto didn’t let it go far, pinning him after hitting a spinebuster.
10 (w/-1) defeated Ben Bishop
Bishop had a clear size advantage on 10 who quickly got frustrated after not being able to perform any of his power moves. Bishop took advantage of the frustration and nailed 10 with a side slam.
Bishop then hoisted up 10 for a power bomb, but it was reversed. 10, with the support of -1, bulldozed Bishop with a impressive spinebuster before following up with the full nelson submission that ended the match.
Del Sol and Ali exchanged wrist control early on. Del Sol jumped through hoops to escape the hold, but it would cost him as Ali delivered a kick to the back.
Ali motioned through his “greatest hits” moveset, delivering a pull-up suplex while Del Sol was down in the corner. Ali got too cocky though as Del Sol made his comeback quickly and spiked his opponent with a tornado DDT for the pinfall victory.
Matt Sydal defeated Serpentico (w/ Luther)
Luther screamed at ringside which distracted Sydal and allowed an opening for Serpentico. Serpentico dumped Sydal to the outside, allowing Luther to drop the seasoned veteran on the barricade. Serpentico didn’t do much with Luther’s distractions though as Sydal turned the match around back in his favor with a series of meteoras.
Sydal stuck Serpentico with a roundhouse kick after “Snakeman” failed to hit a 450 splash. Sydal followed up with a lightning spiral which scored him the victory.
Itâs Monday and you know what that means: a seven-match AEW Dark: Elevation taped last Wednesday at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio, with Tony Schiavone, Paul Wight and Mark Henry on the call.
Lance Archer (w/ Jake Roberts) defeated Chase Oliver
This was Oliver’s debut and it started with Archer dragging him to the ring. Archer (44-9) destroyed Oliver from beginning to end, beating him with the Blackout in a squash. This was another win for him ahead of his World title Texas Death Match with Hangman Page.
After the match, Archer cut a promo about coming back and wanting the World title and Hangman Page. Archer ended his promo with his iconic “Everybody dies” catchphrase.
Brandi Rhodes (w/ Arn Anderson) defeated KiLynn King
This was a homecoming match for Dark and Dark: Elevation regular King. She had the height advantage and used it to her advantage at the onset. Rhodes asked Anderson for advice on how to deal with King, but that didnât work at all. Rhodes eventually targeted Kingâs legs to slow her down and change the flow of the match. Rhodes won with the Stretch Mark submission, upping her career record to 15-3.
Jay Lethal defeated Casey Carrington
This was the AEW debut for Carrington. Lethal started with a suicide dive, followed by the Ric Flair strut. Lethal dominated as Carrington was outmatched at every opportunity. A Macho Man elbow and the Lethal Injection got him his fourth AEW win of the year. He moves on to face FTW Champion Ricky Starks this Friday on Rampage.
Anna Jay defeated Nikki Victory
This was Victory’s AEW debut. Jay (24-11) won this short match by submission with the Queenslayer.
Dante Martin, Lee Moriarty & Matt Sydal defeated Aaron Solo, Nick Comoroto & QT Marshall (w/ Anthony Ogogo)
The Factory began by hitting Sydal, Moriarty and Martin from behind before the bell rang while their backs were to them. Sydalâs speed eventually forced Solo to tag Comoroto which once again changed the flow in favor of The Factory. Comoroto also showcased his strength by lifting Martin only using one arm.
Ogogo interfered in favor of The Factory until the ref kicked him out. The Factory then isolated Sydal from Moriarty and Martin and took turns beating him up. Sydal used an impressive tijeras to finally escape and tag Martin who cleaned house.
The Factory used a triple combo to almost win the match, but Martin was able to kick out and the crowd went nuts. Martin hit the Nosedive on Solo to pick up the win.
This marked the debuts for Navarro and Meyers while this was Soho and Rosa’s second straight outing as a team and that experience working together helped them dominate here. Meyers took both a Future Kick and a fire thunder driver as Rosa and Soho won the match.
After the match, Mercedes Martinez came out to stare down Rosa ahead of their Rampage match this Friday.
Penta El Zero Miedo (w/ Alex Abrahantes) defeated Serpentico
Penta got the best reaction of the episode as the crowd went bonkers when he came out. On a side note, when Penta did his first “zero miedo,” he cursed in Spanish so fans that speak Spanish will really pop for that. Serpentico also talked in Spanish and said “maldita sea” meaning “damn it.”
This match was a great showcase for the argument that Penta (and Fenix as well) could be great players in AEW as singles stars. Penta picked up the win after hitting the Fear Factor won the match, increasing his overall record to 58-28.
Final Thoughts:
This was an enjoyable episode of Elevation. The best match of the night was Moriarty, Sydal and Martin vs. The Factory, but Serpentico vs. Penta was also fun and another match to check out.
Itâs Monday and you know what that means: an eight-match AEW Dark: Elevation taped last Wednesday at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, DC. Tony Schiavone, Paul Wight and Mark Henry were on the call.
Leyla Hirsch defeated Brittany Blake
This was Blake’s debut. Hirsch (28-12) was rolling early, but Blake turned things around and had control until Hirsch countered a crossbody into a knee strike to end things.
Private Party (w/ Matt Hardy) defeated Action Andretti & Myles Hawkins
Private Party (27-17) isolated Hawkins and were on top until Andretti got a hot tag that was ended quickly. Marq Quen hit a shooting star press on Andretti to pick up the win.
For those interested, the commentary team once again explained Andrade’s 51% purchase of HFO, the faction name changing into AHFO and Matt Hardy remaining as CEO of the group. So, there you go.
Brandi Rhodes defeated Willow Nightingale
This was a good showcase for Nightingale who won the hearts of the crowd really quickly. Even still, Rhodes (14-3) won with a modified crossface.
Men of The Year (w/ Dan Lambert) defeated Logan Easton LaRoux & Mike Fowler
Scorpio Sky hit the TKO on LaRoux to win this squash. After the match, Lambert ordered Page to deliver Egoâs Edge to Fowler.
Red Velvet defeated Janai Kai
Kaiâs gear paid homage to Bruce Leeâs iconic yellow/black jumpsuit from the movie Game of Death. Kai had a great showing, showcasing her Muay Thai-inspired kicks. Velvet (43-20) turned the tide with knee strikes and ended things with her new finisher (Just Desserts) for the win.
Ortiz & Santana defeated Breaux Keller & Goldy
This was the AEW debuts for both Keller and Goldy. They got in more offense than expected, but their advantage ended after Ortiz hit several clotheslines on Keller. Santana hit a devastating lariat on Keller to end the match and improve their record to 31-10. This was an important win ahead of their trios match with Chris Jericho against 2point0 and Daniel Garcia on Wednesday.
Ruby Soho & Thunder Rosa defeated Jordan Blade & Leva Bates
This was the AEW debut for Blade. Rosa won with the Peruvian necktie on Blade in a match that definitely took place.
Team Taz (Powerhouse Hobbs and FTW Champion Ricky Starks) defeated Lee Moriarty & Matt Sydal
Team Taz started out dominating thanks to Hobbsâ power. Starks and Hobbs isolated Moriarty for a while. Sydal got the hot tag and was able to turn things around, especially with his knee strikes and kicks. Sydal and Moriarty targeted Hobbsâ legs to slow him down, but it was not enough. Starks hit an assisted spear on Moriarty to pick up the win.
After the match, Starks cut a promo calling out Dante Martin. Martin came out and tried to clean house, but the numbers game was against him until Sydal and Moriarty evened the odds.
Final Thoughts:
Most matches served their goal of helping improve records for the AEW contracted stars. Both Kai and Nightingale had good showings and should definitely return for more matches. The main event between Team Taz vs. Sydal & Moriarty was the match of the night and worth giving it a watch.
Two new title matches have been added to Saturdayâs Battle of the Belts card on TNT.
Dustin Rhodes will step in for his brother Cody as it was announced that Cody is not medically cleared to compete. Dustin will wrestle Sammy Guevara for what is being billed as the interim TNT Championship. In addition, Ricky Starks will defend the FTW Championship against Matt Sydal.
It was announced by AEW on Thursday evening that due to medical protocols, one of the matches for Battle of the Belts had to be changed. In a video package that aired on Rampage, Dustin talked about the opportunity to compete for the title, while Guevara said it didnât matter who he ends up facing as he will walk out of Battle of the Belts with gold.
In addition to the two new matches, Britt Baker will defend the AEW Womenâs title against Riho. Tony Khan on Twitter announced tonight that there will also be a house show card held prior to the live show on TNT.
TONIGHT on TNT #AEWRampage @ 10/9c, Iâll announce a change due to medical protocol to TOMORROWâs Battle of the Belts! Rampage tonight will be a great hour on TNT! In addition to tomorrowâs live #AEWBOTB I also plan to book a stacked house show card for the loyal fans in Charlotte
A new match has been announced for Wednesday’s Winter is Coming episode of AEW Dynamite. In singles competition, Wardlow will take on Matt Sydal.
Both Sydal and Wardlow appeared in the Dynamite Diamond Battle Royale on this past Wednesday’s Dynamite, a match won by MJF and Dante Martin.
Wardlow has not lost a singles bout or a tag match since dropping a match to Chris Jericho in the fourth labour of Jericho match on the August 11 Dynamite. He is 6-0 in tag bouts and 8-0 in singles matches since his loss to Jericho.
AEW Dynamite Winter is Coming airs Wednesday, December 15 at 8 p.m. Eastern time from Garland, Texas. The show will be headlined by a Hangman Page vs. Bryan Danielson AEW World Championship match.
Also on the show, MJF faces Dante Martin for the Dynamite Diamond ring. MJF will be looking to win the ring for the third consecutive year.
Additionally, Hikaru Shida will be in action against Serena Deeb.
Two matches have been announced for the Friday, October 29 episode of AEW Rampage.
Lio Rush and Dante Martin will team against Matt Sydal and Mike Sydal. Rush has been acting as a mouthpiece for Martin in backstage segments on AEW programming. On Saturday’s Dynamite, Rush said that Martin is a big money player, so he had gone to AEW GM Tony Khan to make a match for Rampage against the Sydals.
Also set for Rampage is a semifinal match in the AEW World title eliminator tournament.
Bryan Danielson will take on Eddie Kingston. Danielson defeated Dustin Rhodes on Dynamite to advance in the tournament. Later in the show, Kingston defeated Lance Archer to advance.
The October 29 Rampage episode will be taped on Wednesday, October 27 at the Agganis Arena in Boston.
Here is the announced lineup:
AEW World title eliminator tournament semifinals: Bryan Danielson vs. Eddie Kingston
Lio Rush & Dante Martin vs. Matt Sydal & Mike Sydal
AEW returns for the first of two nights of live programming from Miami, Florida, with Friday featuring both Rampage on TNT and a Buy In pre-show on YouTube.
The pre-show will see Bryan Danielson take on Minoru Suzuki for the first time since 2004 in New Japan Pro Wrestling. This will be Danielson’s third singles outing in AEW and the second for the New Japan star who debuted with a loss to Jon Moxley last month.
The pre-show will also have Bobby Fish vs. Lee Moriarty and Tay Conti vs. Santana Garrett.
Rampage will be headlined by CM Punk vs. Matt Sydal, their first match since 2005 on the indies. Punk will look to run his AEW record to 4-0 while Sydal will be looking for his first singles win since July.
The rest of the show will see Ruby Soho take on The Bunny while Chris Jericho, TNT Champion Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager team up against Men of The Year (Ethan Page & Scorpio Sky) and the debuting former UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos, flanked by Jorge Masvidal and Dan Lambert.
**********
The Buy In.
Excalibur, Taz and Ricky Starks are on commentary.
Tay Conti (w/ Anna Jay) defeated Santana Garrett (4:50)
Kinda surprised they didnât open with Danielson & Suzuki. This match won the first quarter-hour for NXT against AEW (seriously).
The crowd was behind Conti, who ducked a clothesline and took Garrett down to the mat headfirst. Conti missed a pump kick in the corner, but got it on the second try and Conti fired up. She followed up with a series of pump kicks in the corner, and Garrett stumbled out of the corner and into the DDT-Tay. Conti got the win.
– Recap of the Men of Year/American Top Team/Dan Lambert storyline. Lambert has excelled on the microphone since his debut, and plenty of clips of his great work are shown. Excalibur points out that the Men of the Year and American Top Team have gotten the physical advantage. This package did a great job building up the Rampage main event. Excalibur and Tony Schiavone also spent a lot of time building up Jorge Masvidal, who will be in the American Top Team corner tonight. I think that might be foreshadowing.
âThe Infamousâ Bobby Fish defeated Lee Moriarty (7:54)
Fish got his first win in AEW over Moriarty, who looked very impressive despite the loss.
Big chant for Bobby at the start of the match. Moriarty and Fish exchanged angle locks early. Moriarty switched up to an armlock, and Fish fought out of that with fists and backed Moriarty in the corner for an elbow. Moriarty continued to tenaciously work over Fishâs arm. Fish finally powered Moriarty into the corner and hit a sliding lariat. Dueling âLetâs go Bobby!/Letâs go Lee!â chants from the crowd. Fish hit a slingshot senton for a near fall, then followed up with a snap suplex for another near fall.
Fish buried a knee in Moriartyâs gut and then locked in a keylock. Moriarty battled out of the move and caught Fish with a clothesline, then went back to attacking the arm. Moriarty hit a flying back elbow, a gamingiri and then a sliding dropkick on Fish for a near fall. Fish came back with a round kick and a backdrop suplex for a near fall. Fish went for go behind, but Moriarity attacked the arm again and did a backdrop suplex of his own. Fish hit a running knee strike, then gave Moriarty an exploder suplex into the ropes before taking him out with a round kick to the head for the win. This turned into quite the match.
– A video package hyped the Buy In main event between Bryan Danielson and Minoru Suzuki.
Bryan Danielson defeated Minoru Suzuki (19:14)
Danielson and Suzuki delivered a classic match.
With over 30 minutes remaining in the broadcast, the crowd and TV audience got the full “Kaze Ni Nare” expreience. The match was announced with a 30 minute time limit. The crowd was hugely behind Danielson and greeted him with very loud “Yes!” chants. The bell rang and the crowd chanted “AEW!”
Danielson worked an arm lock on Suzuki while the crowd chanted âThis is wrestling!â Suzuki quickly transitioned out of that into an abdominal stretch, then transitioned into a chinlock. Danielson countered and went for a knee bar, but Suzuki got to the ropes. Both men got to their feet and Suzuki taunted the fans a bit.
Danielson got an ankle pick and went for the dragon screw legwhip, but Suzuki escaped. Danielson gave Suzuki a hard kick, and Suzuki was not impressed. So Danielson unloaded with a forearm that sent Suzuki back into the ropes. Suzuki came back with a hard chop. Suzuki taunted Danielson, who unloaded on Suzuki with a round kick. Suzuki responded with another chop. Danielson came back with another front kick. Finally, Suzuki absolutely flattened Danielson with a forearm that knocked Danielson to the mat and elicited a âHoly Sh!tâ chant from the crowd.
Danielson got up and nailed Suzuki with a series of kicks, then rained down on him with elbows and forearms. Suzuki got into the ropes and caught Danielson with the juji gatame in the ropes, then took Danielson and the fight to the floor.
Back in the ring, Suzuki worked over Danielson while the crowd engaged in âLetâs go Bryan!/Su-ZU-KI!â chants. Suzuki did nasty things to Danielsonâs arm on the way to locking in a hammerlock, which Danielson broke by getting to the ropes. Danielson tried to escape to the floor, but Suzuki followed. Suzuki tried to whip Danielson into the post, but Danielson countered and sent Suzuki into the post headfirst. Danielson followed up with a running knee strike off the apron to the floor.
Back in the ring, Danielson unloaded onto Suzuki with front kicks. Danielson grabbed Suzuki by the arms and stomped Suzuki. Then Danielson locked in the Cattle Mutilation and rolled into a pinning combination for a near fall. Danielson backed Suzuki in the corner and hit chops and kicks in the corner, then followed up with a running dropkick in the corner. Suzuki countered with a kick in the corner of his own, then hit the place kick⌠but Danielson popped right up! Suzuki went for it a second time, and Danielson got up again. The third time was enough to keep Danielson down for a two count.
Suzuki allowed Danielson to recover, and Danielson won another battle of strikes. Suzuki countered and locked in a Fujiarwa arm bar, but Danielson got to the ropes. Suzuki allowed the ref to distract him, and this allowed Danielson to go for the LeBelle Lock, then into a pinning combination, but Suzuki got his feet on the ropes. Justin Roberts made the 15 minute time call.
Both men got back to their feet while the crowd chanted âFight Forever!â and Iâm totally on board.
Suzuki and Danielson went back to exchanging forearms. Suzuki put his hands behind his back and gave Danielson a free shot, and Danielson was more than happy to oblige. After Danileson jarred Suzuki with a particularly nasty forearm, Suzuki responded in kind and both guys went back to exchanging forearms, and a double slap knocked both guys down.
âIf you arenât watching this on YouTube, youâre dumber than a box of rocks!” exclaimed Taz.
Suzuki and Daneilson kept exchanging forearms while the crowd chanting âSi!â for Danielson and âNo!â for Suzuki. Suzuki locked on the sleeper, but Danileson escaped. Suzuki went for the piledriver, but Danielson backdropped Suzuki, ran the ropes and caught Suzuki with a flying knee. Danielson got the pin.
Absolutely epic.
– With five miinutes to go, a recap of CM Punk’s AEW debut and a package on the Matt Sydal/CM Punk match. Sydal and Punk both got their first big breaks in the midwest, and Sydal was coming into the business just as Punk was becoming the first big midwestern independent star.
Sydal is making his entrance as the Buy In ends and Rampage begins!
Rampage
CM Punk defeated Matt Sydal (14:44)
The match aired with no commercial breaks and it was awesome.
Of course, the crowd was hugely behind Punk. They started with a handshake and show of respect before the lock up. Punk is 4-0 against Sydal in previous meetings, the last in 2010.
The commentators pointed out that Sydalâs plan might be to try and blow up Punk. Sydal got Punk in a bow and arrow, but Punk escaped and slammed Sydal. Punk tried to slam Sydal again, but Sydal slid out and hiptossed Punk and caught him with a kick.
Sydal got Punk in a chinlock, then turned that into almost a stump puller that he rolled into a pinning combination for a near fall. Sydal followed with a series of kicks to Punkâs leg, and worked on Punkâs knee. Sydal went for the lightning spiral early, but Punk slid out and hit a dropkick for a near fall. Punk followed up with a leg lariat and went for a hangmanâs neckbreaker, but Sydal rolled through and caught a kick. Sydal followed up with a sliding knee strike in the corner.
Punk went to the apron and Sydal went after him, but Punk caught Sydal and slammed him on the apron. Ouch. Back in the ring, Punk hit a slingshot senton for a near fall. Punk hug Sydal in the tree of woe and went for a sliding dropkick, but Sydal pulled himself up. Punk and Sydal battled to the top rope, and both guys knocked each other to the floor.
Both guys got back in the ring before the ten count and exchanged strikes. Punk tried for a suplex, but Sydal countered with a knee strike and got a nearfall. Sydal went for the lightning spiral, but Punk countered with a hangmanâs neckbreaker. Punk followed up with a knee strike in the corner and a short arm clothesline for a near fall. Punk went to the middle rope, but Sydal caught him with a jumping rana for a near fall.
Sydal locked on a ankle lock and then transitioned into a straight jacket. Punk countered into the Anaconda Vice, but Sydal got to the ropes. Punk went for the Pepsi Twist, which Sydal escaped. Sydal blasted Punk with a roundhouse kick and hit the lightning spiral (which the commentary team had been putting over all night as a match ender), but it only got two.
Sydal went to the top, but Punk got to his feet and avoided Sydalâs attack. Sydal went for a crucifix, but Punk countered the move with the GTS. Punk got the pin.
Punk didn’t look like he’s lost a step to me.
– John Silver challenged the Super Kliq on behalf of the Dark Order. “Those sons of a gun!” “Uh, that’s the Gunn Club.”
Ruby Soho defeated Bunny (9:45 w/ break)
Following Bryan/Suzuki and Punk/Sydal, this match pretty much died with the live crowd.
Bunny drop kicked Soho while her necked was wedged against the turnbuckle. Bunny then yanked Soho off the ropes and Soho smacked her neck against the turnbuckles. Neither of those bumps looked fun to take. After a commercial break, Soho made a comeback. Bunny caught Soho with a german suplex off the middle ropes for a near fall. Bunny went for her finish, but Soho countered into a backslide and got the pin.
After the match, Penelope Ford attacked Soho. Ford and Bunny double teamed Soho and Ford knocked her out with the brass knuckles.
– Rundown of Upcoming Shows: In addition to what has been previously announced for Dynamite tomorrow night, Kiera Hoga is taking on Penelope Ford and Jon Moxley is taking on Wheeler Yuta. On Rampage next week, the TBS title tournament brackets will be announced, there will be a first round match for the World Title Eliminator Tournament and Pac takes on Andrade El Idolo.
Mark Henry moderated a face-to-face segment with American Top Team and the Inner Circle.
Jorge Masvidal & Men of the Year (w/ Dan Lambert & Jorge Masvidal) defeated Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager (11:25)
The crowd was hot for this match.
Lambert immediately went heel on the crowd for singing âJudasâ and demanded the crowd sing his team to the ring as well. Shockingly, they did not. Other members of the American Top Team were shown in the crowd.
Scorpio Sky brutalized Guevara with elbows to start, but Guevara came back with a spring kick off the ropes and a dropkick. Jericho got the tag and so did Dos Santos, who looked huge next to Jericho. Dos Santos brutalized Jericho with fists but looked kind of clumsy in his first exchange. Dos Santos looked more comfortable out there as the match went on. Hager got the tag and the advantage with a takedown. Dos Santos came back with a knee and got the tag to Scorpio.
Jericho got the tag and dropped to the floor to confront Lambert and Masvidal. The other members of Men of the Year attacked Jericho on the floor, and the show went to a picture-in-picture break with Jericho in trouble.
Back from break, Dos Santos power slammed Jericho for a near fall. A pretty good powerslam, too. Ethan Page missed a kick and Jericho caught him with an enziguri, then got the tag to Guevara. Guevara hit a double springboard cutter on Sky and a Spanish fly on Page. Jericho came back in and hit a springboard dropkcick on Page, a double axehandle on Sky and then the Lionsault for a near fall. Everything broke down with Hanger and Dos Santos fighting on the floor. Guevara and Page did some kind of crazy highspot that the cameras missed (I know because the crowd popped huge for whatever it was), while Hager put Dos Santos through a table on the floor with an uranage.
Back in the ring, Jericho went for the codebreaker, but Sky countered into a TKO attempt. Jericho countered that and got the Walls of Jericho. Paige VanZant left her seat and jumped on the apron to distract the ref. This allowed Masvidal to run in an hit a running knee on Jericho. Scorpio got the pin.
After the match, VanZant took selfies while all the members of American Top Team and Men of the Year beat down Jericho. Santana and Ortiz ran in to chase off the members of Lambertâs crew. The crowd chanted for the Inner Circle as the show closed.
Final Thoughts:
This was such a great night of AEW action. Danielson/Suzuki is well worth seeking out, as is Punk/Sydal. The Inner Circle/American Top Team angle is definitely leading to some kind of mulitman match, if not a Jericho/Masvidal match. And Paige VanZant is a fantastic heel.
A commercial-free match is set to open tonight’s AEW Rampage.
AEW’s Tony Khan has announced that CM Punk vs. Matt Sydal will be kicking off Rampage tonight, and the match will be presented without commercials. The first half hour of tonight’s Rampage on TNT is going against the final half hour of WWE’s “Supersized” edition of SmackDown on FS1. The last half hour of SmackDown will also be commercial-free.
Khan tweeted: “Thank you to you great wrestling fans whoâve supported @AEW on TNT for over 2 years now, & because of you fans & your support, weâre opening tonightâs LIVE #AEWRampage with @CMPunk (3-0 #AEW record) vs. @MattSydal (21-9 #AEW record), AND that match will be commercial free on TNT!”
Tonight’s Rampage is taking place at the James L. Knight Center in Miami. The venue is also hosting a special live Saturday edition of Dynamite tomorrow.
Before tonight’s Rampage goes on the air, there will be a special The Buy-In pre-show airing on YouTube starting at 9 p.m. Eastern time. Here’s the full card for tonight:
The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara & Jake Hager) vs. Men of the Year (Scorpio Sky & Ethan Page) & Junior dos Santos
