AEW held the first of two weekend House Rules live events Friday, kicking off the action in Corbin, Kentucky, at the Corbin Arena.
Tony Khan was in attendance and came out to do a promo during the event.
FTW Champion Hook defeated Ethan Page to retain
Christopher Daniels & Shawn Spears defeated The Boys (Brent & Brandon)
Toni Storm defeated Billie Starkz
Darby Allin & AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy defeated Big Bill & Lee Moriarty
Powerhouse Hobbs defeated Pat Buck
ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli defeated Brian Pillman Jr. in a Proving Ground match
AEW Tag Team Champions FTR defeated The Gunns to retain
AEW will stay on the road Saturday for another House Rules event in Salem, Virginia, that will mark the in-ring return of Hangman Page after the former AEW World Champion was taken out recently by the Blackpool Combat Club.
Here’s the announced lineup for tomorrow:
Hangman Page vs. Big Bill
TNT Champion Wardlow defends against Lee Moriarty
Toni Storm vs. Skye Blue
Darby Allin & AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy vs. Powerhouse Hobbs & QT Marshall
The Lucha Brothers and El Hijo del Vikingo will be in trios action on this Friday’s early edition of AEW Rampage.
The three stars will take on Powerhouse Hobbs, QT Marshall and Aaron Solo after the events of Wednesday’s trios battle royale where Hobbs eliminated Rey Fenix, Penta El Zero Miedo and Vikingo after Fenix and Penta eliminated Marshall and Solo.
Fenix and Penta have had their issues with Marshall and Hobbs over the last month with the then-TNT Champion defeating both in singles action with Marshall attacking their manager Alex Abrahantes afterward.
After defending against Taya Valkyrie last Wednesday, TBS Champion Jade Cargill will be in action against an opponent to be named as she looks to keep her undefeated record alive.
The new additions join the previously announced Firm Deletion cinematic match at the Hardy Compound that will see The Hardys, Hook and Isiah Kassidy take on Stokely Hathaway, Ethan Page, Big Bill and Lee Moriarty.
Mark Briscoe will return to singles action against Preston Vance.
The show will air at 6:30 PM Eastern due to the NHL playoffs.
Here’s the full card:
The Firm Deletion: Matt & Jeff Hardy, Hook, Isiah Kassidy vs. Ethan Page, Stokely Hathaway Big Bill & Lee Moriarty
Lucha Brothers (Penta El Zero Miedo & Rey Fenix) & El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Powerhouse Hobbs, QT Marshall & Aaron Solo
The TNT title will be on the line on next Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite as Powerhouse Hobbs will defend against former champion Wardlow.
After Hobbs defeated Silas Young on Wednesday’s show in an open challenge, Wardlow made his surprise return and destroyed Hobbs’ new car, flipping it over with a forklift. The two eventually brawled in the arena before Wardlow threw Aaron Solo through a table.
It was Wardlow’s first appearance since the March 8th Dynamite when Hobbs defeated him for the title and aligned with QT Marshall.
Hometown hero Britt Baker will return to Pittsburgh to team with AEW Women’s Champion Jamie Hayter against rivals Ruby Soho & Toni Storm as their intense feud continues.
On Wednesday, Baker and Hayter came out to aid Skye Blue and Riho after Storm and Soho defeated them and attacked them after the match, joined by Saraya. A brawl ensued afterward.
Here’s the current lineup for Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania:
TNT Champion Powerhouse Hobbs defends against Wardlow
Jamie Hayter & Britt Baker vs. Ruby Soho & Toni Storm
For the second straight week, the TNT title will be on the line on a special Saturday edition of AEW Rampage.
Powerhouse Hobbs will look for the second defense of his TNT title when he faces Penta El Zero Miedo. Penta will be looking for revenge for Rey Fenix and Alex Abrahantes following the events of last week’s Rampage.
In her second AEW match, Taya Valkyrie will take on Leila Grey. When Valkyrie debuted last week and confronted TBS Champion Jade Cargill, she delivered Cargill’s own Jaded to Grey.
Brody King will face Jake Hager of the Jericho Appreciation Society after Daniel Garcia picked up a tainted win over King last Friday.
Former AEW Tag Team Champions The Acclaimed will battle former ROH Tag Team Champions The Kingdom.
Ricky Starks threw out an open challenge for tonight to Juice Robinson after the Bullet Club member took him out on Dynamite.
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Taped from Independence, Missouri.
Jim Ross, Excalibur and Tony Schiavone were on commentary.
Powerhouse Hobbs (w/ the cast of QTV) defeated Penta El Zero Miedo (w/ Alex Abrahantes) to retain the TNT Championship (10:33)
Hobbs and Penta exchanged strikes in the opening, and Penta knocked Hobbs to the floor with a dropkick. Penta tried to follow up with a tope, but Hobbs cut him off with a forearm. Harley (the woman from QTV) took video of the match on her phone while Hobbs threw Penta into the ringpost. Doesn’t she know she can DVR the show?
Hobbs tossed Penta about the ringside area, into the ring barricades. Back in the ring, Hobbs dropped a Bret Hart style elbow for a two. Penta tried to catch Hobbs with a kick, but Hobbs grabbed his foot and yanked him into a backbreaker. While Hobbs distracted Aubrey Edwards, Marshall tied Penta’s mask onto the bottom rope. He didn’t stay tied up for long though. Hobbs delivered a delayed vertical suplex for a near fall.
After a split screen break, Penta took Hobbs down with a sloppy slingblade, then caught Hobbs with a back stabber for a near fall. Hobbs gave Penta the Big Ending for a near fall. Harley was blatantly recording the whole match with her phone. Penta escaped Hobbs’ attempt at the Town Business, kicked Hobbs to the floor and caught him with a tope con hilo. Penta dodged Hobbs and sent him into the steps Penta dropped down on Hobbs from the top rope with a pair of double foot stomps, one on the ring apron and one on the ring. All that only got Penta a two count.
Penta setup Hobbs for the Fear Factor, but Marshall got on the apron with a chair to distract him. Solo jumped in and attacked Penta, and Penta took him out with the Fear Factor. Hobbs decked Penta with the TNT title belt, then hit the Town Business for the pinfall.
After the match, Hobbs and Marshall tried to beat on Abrahantes some more, but Rey Fenix ran in with the hammer to chase them off.
Hobbs beating two-thirds of Death Triangle is a seriously good start to his TNT title reign. Hopefully PAC is next.
– Highlights from last week’s Dynamite led to a package on Kenny Omega’s match with Jeff Cobb for the IWGP United States Championship next week.
– Ricky Starks came to the ring for a confrontation with Juice Robinson. Robinson came out to the ring but turned his back, and Starks tried to chase him down. Robinson got away from Starks because he didn’t want to fight in Missouri. Robinson wanted the match in New York City. The next date AEW has in New York is April 5th, and Starks/Robinson match was made official for that show in a later segment.
– Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett ran down all the ways that AEW referees have screwed them out of titles they were cheating to win with their dastardly enforcement of the rules.
Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) defeated Jake Hager (w/ a hat that he likes) (6:15 aired)
Hager’s hat got a bigger pop than either wrestler.
Slugfest to start, while JR put over Hager’s MMA credentials. The fight went to the floor, where both guys threw each other into the ring barricades.
After a break, King caught Hager with a blackhole slam for a near fall. King went for a piledriver, but Hager countered with an ankle lock. King kicked free and caught Hager with an avalanche, but Hager ducked the cannonball. Hager tried for the Hager bomb, but King got his feet up into Hager’s face. King hit a discus lariat for a near fall.
Anna Jay ran in and attacked Julia Hart. This distracted King for a minute, but he still caught Hager with the “All Seeing Eye” (kind of an inverted/sit-out death valley driver) for the pinfall.
It seems like the Jericho Appreciation Society and the House of Black feud will continue.
– Swerve Strickland (and a rapper named Tek 9) promised to win the war with Keith Lee with help from a new “affiliate” he wouldn’t expect.
Sterling had the cease & desist order with him to keep Valkyrie from using the “Road to Valhalla” finishing move. Excalibur clarified on commentary that the cease & desist order is not a court order; just a threatening letter. Since I’m not a lawyer, I’ll take his word for it.
Valkyrie pinned Grey with the Road to Valhalla in short order. After the match, Sterling confronted Valkyrie with the cease & desist, and Valkyrie gave him the Road to Valhalla as well. I can’t wait to see Sterling in a neck brace for the next three months.
Rundown of next week’s Dynamite:
Kenny Omega v. Jeff Cobb for the IWGP US Title
Willow Nightingale v. Ruby Soho
Matt Hardy v. Jack Perry
Dalton Castle & The Boys v. Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta
Orange Cassidy v. The Butcher for the AEW International Championship
Adam Cole v. Daniel Garcia
Matt Menard and Angelo Parker for the Jericho Appreciation Society joined the commentary team for the main event.
The Acclaimed (w/ Billy Gunn) defeated The Kingdom (w/ Maria Kanellis Bennett) (9:10)
Mike Bennett and Max Caster started out, and the Kingdom got the advantage after a distraction from Maria. Matt Taven hit a middle rope dropkick on Caster for a near fall. Acclaimed caught Bennett with a back-stabber/neckbreaker combination for a near fall. The Acclaimed gave Bennett the Scissor Me Timbers, then dumped Taven to the floor.
The Kingdom got the heat on Caster during the split-screen break. Taven caught Caster with a superkick and Bennet followed up with a spear for a near fall.
After the break, Taven hit a spin kick for a near fall on Caster. The Kingdom directed a crotch chop at Billy Gunn, which drew him onto the apron. Maria distracted Caster, and the Kingdom hit another double team on Caster. Maria tried to slip her team one of her boots to use as a weapon. Gunn chased Maria up the ramp, and Top Flight met her there to escort her to the back. “Maria didn’t have to leave!” complained JR. Gunn took out Bennett with a clothesline on the floor.
Meanwhile in the ring, the ref caught Taven with the boot, and Anthony Bowens got the hot tag. Bowens made the comeback on Taven and took out Bennett with a superkick. Bowen hit a rolling elbow on Taven, delivered the Arrival, and Caster followed up with the Mic Drop for the pinfall. Solid tag match.
Parker and Menard gave the Acclaimed a standing ovation upon the victory. During the match, they announced they’d be taking the Acclaimed out for a night on the town on Chris Jericho’s dime, so expect some skits on Dynamite.
The TNT will be on the line for the second straight week on AEW Rampage as Powerhouse Hobbs defends against Penta El Zero Miedo.
This week’s show will air on Saturday at 10 PM Eastern due to U.S. soccer coverage on Friday.
Hobbs successfully defeated Penta’s brother Rey Fenix on last week’s Rampage which also saw QT Marshall take out Alex Abrahantes after the match. Penta answered Hobbs’ open challenge as he looks for revenge.
Taya Valkyrie will look to go 2-0 in her early AEW run as she faces Leila Grey. She notably delivered Jade Cargill’s Jaded finisher to Grey after making her debut last Wednesday.
After losing to Jericho Appreciation Society member Daniel Garcia last week thanks to Chris Jericho’s bat, Brody King of the House of Black will look for revenge as he takes on JAS member Jake Hager.
In tag team action, former AEW Tag Team Champions The Acclaimed will take on former ROH Tag Team Champions The Kingdom for the first time.
After issuing an open challenge to Juice Robinson, Ricky Starks will be on hand to see if the Bullet Club member accepts.
Here’s the current lineup:
TNT Champion Powerhouse Hobbs defends against Penta El Zero Miedo
A new match has been added to Saturday’s AEW house show in Ohio.
After Powerhouse Hobbs retained the TNT Championship on Rampage against Rey Fenix, it was announced on AEW’s Twitter account he would next defend the championship against Christopher Daniels at AEW’s House Rules even in Troy, Ohio.
“There is no rest for TNT Champ #PowerhouseHobbs after facing Rey Fenix on #AEWRampage, his Open Challenge has been answered by @facdaniels for #AEWHouseRules TOMORROW NIGHT in Troy, OH!,” the tweet reads.
Hobbs won the championship last week on AEW Dynamite, defeating Wardlow thanks to the help of QT Marshall. Marshall and Aaron Solo, who appeared on QTV with Marshall and Hobbs, were in the corner of Hobbs on Friday. After the match, Marshall dropped Fenix’s manager Alex Abrahantes with a diamond cutter.
AEW House Rules, Saturday, March 18 —
Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley & Claudio Castagnoli vs. The Firm’s Big Bill & Lee Moriarty
TNT Championship: Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Christopher Daniels
Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. vs. Anna Jay
Orange Cassidy & Darby Allin vs. The Butcher & The Blade
Powerhouse Hobbs will defend the TNT title for the first time as he faces Rey Fenix on Friday’s St. Patrick’s Day Slam edition of AEW Rampage.
Fenix answered Hobbs’ open challenge on Wednesday after Hobbs defeated Wardlow for the title last week.
The show will air late on Friday night following NCAA men’s basketball tournament coverage on TNT.
Days after debuting on Dynamite in a staredown with TBS Champion Jade Cargill, Taya Valkyrie will make her promotional in-ring debut against Ava Lawless.
After the events of Wednesday’s Trios title match main event, the House of Black’s Brody King will take on Daniel Garcia of the Jericho Appreciation Society in their first-ever singles meeting.
Matt Menard & Angelo Parker of the JAS will take on the returning Bollywood Boyz as Parker & Menard look ahead to a future match with The Acclaimed. Both teams wrestled several times against each other in WWE NXT.
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Taped in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, it’s St. Patrick’s Day Slam!
Excalibur, Tony Schiavone and Paul Wight were on commentary.
Rampage airing 2 hours later than usual after Jungle Boy kinda buried the show on Dynmaite isn’t the best look.
Powerhouse Hobbs (w/QT Marshall & the “QTV Crew”) vs. Rey Fenix (w/ Alex Abrahantes) for the TNT Championship (about 14:00)
The “QTV crew” was Aaron Solo in a powder blue blazer, and the unidentified girl from the QTV segment on Wednesday was taking a video of the match with her cell phone. Fenix took to the air early and knocked Hobbs off his feet with a quebrada. Hobbs caught Fenix with an overcomplicated powerslam for a near fall. On the floor, Hobbs whipped Fenix into the ringside barricade. Back in the ring, Hobbs whipped Fenix into the turnbuckle and stepped on his throat. Hobbs hit a delayed vertical suplex for a near fall. Hobbs clamped on a nerve hold while the match went to break.
After the break, Fenix fought out of the nerve hold with kicks. Fenix tried to run the ropes, but Hobbs yanked him into a powerslam for a near fall. Fenix tried for a german suplex, but Hobbs elbowed out of it. Fenix hit the german suplex on the second attempt and got a near fall. Fenix hit a cutter for a near fall. Fenix walked across the top rope and hit a plack kick on Hobbs, but Hobbs came back and pounced Fenix into the corner. Hobbs hit the spinebuster for another near fall. Fenix hit a pair of hook kicks and both men were down.
Fenix recovered first and hit the frog splash for a near fall. Fenix hit three superkicks and tried for another rolling cutter, but Hobbs caught him with a spinebuster. Hobbs then hit the Town Business and got the pinfall.
After the match, QT Marshall gave Abrahantes the Diamond Cutter.
– Adam Cole cut a prmo about his return match on March 29th. His opponent is still unknown.
– Stu Grayson cut a promo from the hospital where Evil Uno was recovering from the concussion, suffered at the hands of Jon Moxley. Grayson is back in AEW and he challenged Jon Moxley for Dynamite Wednesday.
Taya Valkyrie defeated Ava Lawless (1:17)
Valkyrie won after an ugly spear and her version of the Jaded Slam. After the match, Jade Cargill and her entourage took notes on Valkyrie.
– A vignette of Matt Hardy & Ethan Page trained Stokley Hathaway for his match next week against Hook.
Matt Menard & Angelo Parker defeated The Bollywood Boyz (5:41 aired)
During the match, it’s announced that Powerhouse Hobbs will defend his TNT Title against Christopher Daniels at the house show in Troy, Ohio tomorrow night.
Practically the whole match took place during the split screen break. After the break, one of the Bollywood Boys got the hot tag, but was quickly finished off with a double-team implant DDT.
– Don Callis greeted Konosuke Takeshita with flowers and a Japanese drummer when he arrived at the Winnipeg airport.
– A 30 second video package hyped up Wednesday’s match between Kenny Omega and El Hilo Del Vikingo.
On Dynmiate Wednesday:
Jon Moxley v. Stu Grayson
Toni Storm v. Skye Blue
The Gunn Club v. Top Flight for the World Tag Titles
Hook v. Stokley Hathaway
Kenny Omega v. El Hilo Del Vikinko
Daniel Garcia (w/ Chris Jericho) defeated Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) (12:22)
Garcia kept running away from King, until Garcia caught King with a dropkick to the knee. King caught Garcia with an avalanche in the corner and a hard chop, and Garcia dropped to the floor to flirt with Julia Hart. She was unimpressed, and King whipped Garcia into the ringaside barricades. King set up on a chair and hit a crossbody. Garcia tripped up King and sent him headfirst into the ring stairs.
After a commercial break (during which Garcia dominated), King hit a black hole slam and a piledriver for a pair of near falls. King chopped Garica so hard in the corner that even Jericho was selling them. King hit a cannonball in the corner for a near fall. Garcia countered another piledriver attempt by clipping King’s leg, then went for a sleeper. King escaped and hit a discus lariat. Garcia escaped a gonzo bomb and Garica went for a Bost… er, Walls of Jericho to pop the crowd. Garcia forced a rope break. Jericho popped King with his bat behind the ref’s back, and Garcia locked in a Dragon Sleeper to get the KO victory.
Final Thoughts:
This show felt two hours long, and not in a good way.
The following are AEW Rampage and AEW: Dark Elevation spoilers taped as part of their debut in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Wednesday.
AEW Rampage (Friday)
Powerhouse Hobbs defeated Rey Fenix. After the match, Hobbs grabbed Alex Abrahantes, which allowed QT Marshall to drop Abrahantes with a diamond cutter.
Taya Valkyrie defeated Eva Lawless. Jade Cargill, Leila Grey, and Smart Mark Sterling were taking notes on stage.
Matt Menard and Angelo Parker defeated The Bollywood Boyz.
Daniel Garcia defeated Brody King. The finish of the match had Chris Jericho attack King with a baseball bat.
This was Hobbs’ first title defense since defeating Wardlow for the title on last Wednesday’s Dynamite.
This was Valkyrie’s AEW in-ring debut after appearing on Dynamite to confront TBS Champion Jade Cargill.
AEW Dark Elevation (Monday)
Skye Blue defeated Taryn From Accounting
Jake Hager defeated Adam Knight
Emi Sakura defeated Zoe Sager
Brandon Cutler defeated Jason Geiger
The Firm (Matt Hardy, Ethan Page & Isaiah Kassidy) defeated Sebastian Wolfe, Massive Damage & Mo Jabari
Top Flight defeated Shaun More & Michael Allen Richard Clark
ROH Women’s Champion Athena defeated Taylor Rising
Athena was coming off a successful title defense over Willow Nightingale on last Thursday’s Ring of Honor TV.
Jabari wrestled on the October Dark filmed in Toronto and co-founded Dungeon Wrestling with Bret Hart’s sons, Blade and Dallas.
Powerhouse Hobbs will make his first TNT Championship defense on Friday’s AEW Rampage St. Patrick’s Day Slam episode.
Hobbs declared an open challenge for Rampage, which Rey Fenix answered during Wednesday’s Dynamite show. Hobbs defeated Wardlow to win the TNT title on last week’s Dynamite.
Also announced for Rampage, newly-signed Taya Valkyrie will make her AEW in-ring debut against an unnamed opponent. Valkyrie appeared on Dynamite to confront TBS Champion Jade Cargill after Cargill defeated Nicole Matthews in an open challenge.
The Bollywood Boyz are also set for tag team action on Friday’s episode, as Harv Shira and Gurv Shira will face Matt Menard and Angelo Parker of the Jericho Appreciation Society.
Friday’s Rampage will have a special start time — 11:30 p.m. Eastern time, or following the conclusion of TNT’s coverage of the NCAA men’s college basketball tournament.
The lineup:
AEW Rampage St. Patrick’s Day Slam, Friday, March 17 —
TNT Championship: Powerhouse Hobbs defends against Rey Fenix
Taya Valkyrie in action
Bollywood Boyz (Harv Shira & Gurv Shira) vs. Jericho Appreciation Society (Matt Menard & Angelo Parker)
Hobbs defeated Wardlow to win the title for the first time on Wednesday in a falls count anywhere last man standing match. The finish of the match had Wardlow going for a powerbomb by the announcer’s desk when QT Marshall attacked him from behind with a steel chair. Marshall continued to attack him with the chair and helped Hobbs get up on his feet. Together, they powerbombed Wardlow off the stage and onto a nearby platform. After Wardlow failed to answer the ten count, Hobbs was awarded the win.
Wardlow had just won the championship this past Sunday at AEW Revolution, defeating Samoa Joe. The previous week on Dynamite, Hobbs won the Face of the Revolution ladder match, earning the TNT Championship match for the following week.
It was noted on commentary during the finish of the match that QT had promised Hobbs the championship months ago, and what he did Wednesday was fulfilling the promise. QT has been off television in recent weeks, with vignettes for something called “QTV” airing on AEW Dark and AEW Dark: Elevation. QT wore a QTV shirt on Wednesday’s show while helping Hobbs.
John LaRocca and I are back with a brand new Fight Game Podcast.
We kicked off the show with our thumbs up/thumbs down segment, followed by our thoughts on seeing AEW Dynamite live from getting to the Cow Palace to seeing the AEW production for their live shows.
Other topics:
How old and outdated the Cow Palace looked
Our views of the live action
What happened during The Elite segment with the House of Black
Our split opinion on the ladder match craziness
Some wrestlers doing comedy during an important promo segment
The Casino battle royal being one of their worst important TV segments in a long time
The rushed feeling to the Daniel Bryan and MJF show-closing segment
Then, Chris Samsa and Jeremy Finestone joined me to go over our New Japan Cup bracket in hopes that it’s the greatest bracket of all time. Video of live bracketology is here.
You can subscribe to The Fight Game Podcast on Apple Podcasts and follow us on Spotify or click below to listen.
Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed some of the big moments in the Face of the Revolution ladder match that took place on AEW Dynamite Wednesday.
The show had Powerhouse Hobbs winning the brass ring, earning himself a TNT Championship match next week against either Samoa Joe or Wardlow, depending on who leaves Revolution as champion. Meltzer noted that although people in San Francisco were into a Northern California guy like Hobbs, they were also into Konosuke Takeshita winning at one point.
“As much as they wanted [Hobbs] to win, when Takeshita had the chance to win, they were really behind him” Meltzer said.
Meltzer and Alvarez also had praise for Komander, who made his AEW debut in the match and stood out by running across the ring ropes unassisted at several points during the match. But they also pointed out some dangerous spots, including Action Andretti attempting to hit a falcon arrow on Sammy Guevara, but ended up botching the move.
“These guys are killing themselves, trying to impress the fans…they’re going so far,” Meltzer said.
Other participants in the match included Eddie Kingston and Ortiz, who brawled to the back early in the match, and AR Fox.
Powerhouse Hobbs is next in line to get a TNT title shot.
Hobbs won the Face of the Revolution ladder match on Wednesday’s Dynamite, earning himself a TNT Championship match on next week’s show. The finish had Hobbs knocking Konosuke Takeshita off the ladder, then climbing it himself to grab the brass ring on the top, winning the match. He’ll either face Samoa Joe or Wardlow depending on the outcome of their match at AEW Revolution on Sunday.
The match featured a ton of crazy spots, mainly by the likes of Action Andretti, Kommander, and Sammy Guevara. Konosuke Takeshita, AR Fox, Eddie Kingston, and Ortiz were also in the match, though Kingston and Ortiz ended up brawling to the back early on.
Some of the highlights included Kommander running across the ring ropes and doing a big dive, wiping out the rest of the participants in the match. Sammy Guevara also hit a dive off the top of a ladder onto Andretti, with Daniel Garcia aiding him.
AEW Fight For The Fallen was a stacked show with lots of good matches, shocking moments, and some news!
Tune into Speak Now Pro Wrestling hosted by Denise Salcedo to hear her review of the show. Denise includes funny commentary and analysis of the show while also engaging with live viewers.
Starks defeated Hook’s occasional partner Danhausen following a spear and then again issued an open challenge to anyone for the belt. Surprisingly, Team Taz member Hook’s music hit and he came out to silently accept the challenge.
The match was short as Hook got in his usual amount offense in before Starks rallied with a spear. He went for his Roshambo finisher, but Hook reversed it into his Redrum submission, getting the quick tap for the win and his first-ever title.
Before leaving the ring, Hook fist bumped Starks in a show of respect. After the commercial break, Starks was cutting a fiery promo about how this was his time, flanked by tag team partner Powerhouse Hobbs.
Out of nowhere, Hobbs nailed Starks and then delivered a spinebuster as Taz (on commentary) was confused as to what Hobbs was doing and why.
Since debuting in December 2021, Hook is undefeated at 10-0 in singles action and 11-0 overall — all in AEW.
