Rey Fenix is vacating the AAA Latin American and Cruiserweight Championships.
Fenix posted to Instagram on Monday that he is too busy with other promotions to defend the titles. He won both belts at Triplemania XXX Tijuana on June 18, 2022, in a five-way match against Taurus, Laredo Kid, El Hijo del Vikingo, and Bandido.
“Thanks to all the fans @luchalibreaaa this is not goodbye, but see you soon,” reads a translation of Fenix’s post.
Luchablog gave the following update on the situation involving Fenix and AAA.
“On Instagram, Rey Fenix announced he’s vacating both the AAA Latin America and Cruiserweight Championships. He’s done wrestling in AAA for now, too busy with other promotions. Fenix won these titles June 2022 and never defended them,” Luchablog wrote.
“AAA thought Fenix was coming to Friday’s TV taping to defend (and likely lose) one of the titles to Puma King, then belatedly found out there’s a ROH PPV that day. The Mexico City TripleMania press conference is tomorrow; AAA will likely announce a match for one or both belts.”
AAA thought Fenix was coming to Friday's TV taping to defend (and likely lose) one of the titles to Puma King, then belatedly found out there's a ROH PPV that day.
The Mexico City TripleMania press conference is tomorrow; AAA will likely announce a match for one or both belts
Fenix is also a former AAA Mega Champion, Fusion Champion, and has twice held the promotion’s tag titles along with his brother, Pentagon Jr. The brothers are currently ROH Tag Team Champions as well. They were voted Tag Team of the Year in the 2019 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards and Fenix was also voted Mexico MVP in 2019 & 2020 as well as Best Flying Wrestler in 2020 and 2021.
Fenix has not performed for AAA since last December. However, Pentagon was defeated by QT Marshall in an Ambulance Match on Saturday’s Triplemania show in Tijuana.
Thursday’s Ring of Honor on HonorClub will feature an NJPW Strong Women’s title defense.
Willow Nightingale will defends against the returning Rachael Ellering, making her first ROH appearance since October 2016.
Griff Garrison takes on Lee Moriarty in his first match since last October due to an injury that required surgery.
Ahead of her opportunity at an AEW Women’s title shot on Friday, Mercedes Martinez will take on VertVixen.
In a Proving Ground match, ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Embassy (Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona) face Marcus Kross, Eli Isom & Cheeseburger.
Two trios matches will be featured as Dark Order’s Evil Uno, Alex Reynolds & John Silver face The WorkHorsemen (JD Drake & Anthony Henry) and Shane Taylor while Darius Martin, Action Andretti & AR Fox battle Sonny Kiss, Jeeves Kay & Slim J.
The rest of the card features Rey Fenix, Matt Sydal, Kiera Hogan and more.
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Ian Riccaboni, Nigel McGinness and Caprice Coleman were on commentary from Orlando, Florida.
Kyle Fletcher defeated Christopher Daniels
Good back-and-forth action. Daniels took Fletcher down with a modified flat liner off the middle ropes and locked in a Koji Clutch, but Fletcher made it to the ropes to force a break. Daniels and Fletcher took turns dropping each other on their heads with suplexes. Fletcher countered an STO and went for a spinning piledriver, but Daniels countered with a cradle. Fletcher escaped an Angel’s Wings attempt and caught Daniels with a spinning tombstone to get the pinfall. Solid match. This is Fletcher’s 3rd win in a row, which is the old ROH days used to get you in the conversation for a title shot. The code of honor was adhered to after the match.
Matt Sydal defeated Zack Clayton (w/ Cole Karter) (3:04)
Karter distracted Sydal as he came off the top with a crossbody and Clayton caught him with a spinning powerslam for a near fall. Sydal countered a slam with a DDT and came off the top with a meteora to get the pinfall. After the match, Sydal called out ROH Television Champion Samoa Joe. Samoa Joe v. Matt Sydal for the TV title was made later in the show.
Dralistico (w/ Jose the Assistant) defeated Willie Mack (7:40)
Mack offered Dralistico a handshake to start, but Dralistico only offered one finger in response. Dralistico hit a tope con hilo out of the ring and a senton in the ring for a near fall. Mack came back with a running shining wizard and hit a tope con hilo on Dralistico and Jose on the floor. Jose grabbed Mack’s foot to keep him from getting back in the ring, and Dralistico tied up Mack in the ropes and came off the top with a kick for a near fall.
Mack and Dralistico exchanged strikes and kicks in the center of the ring, with Mack finally getting the edge with a spinning leg lariat. Mack caught Dralistico with a pop-up fall away slam, and Mack popped up with a standing moonsault for a near fall. Mack came off the top with a splash, but Dralistico got his knees up at the last minute. Mack caught Dralistico with a pop-up uppercut. Jose got on the apron to distract Mack and the referee, allowing Dralistico to hit a low blow and then the Incinerator Knee to get the pinfall. Good match but a bad finish.
Tony Khan has a huge announcement
Khan came out to announce Matt Sydal vs. Samoa Joe for the ROH Television Title. He then brought out the new ROH Board of Directions to help him do some of the backstage work in ROH: Stokely Hathaway (who looks like he’s doing a disingenuous babyface gimmick) and Jerry Lynn. Khan sure loves his announcements.
Caprice Coleman sang his own made-up lyrics for Nightingale’s music, and I hope he’s paying Taz some residuals for stealing his gimmick. Nightingale got a fisherwoman’s suplex for a near fall. Ellering hit an STO and a spinning legdrop off the ropes for a near fall. Nightingale and Ellering exchanged chops in the corner. Nightingale came off the middle ropes with a dropkick to get a near fall. Ellering caught Nightingale with a black hole slam for a near fall. Nightingale came back with the pounce and a cannonball in the corner. Nightingale caught Ellering with a spinebuster, then locked in a Camel Clutch to force a tap out.
ROH Six-Man Champions The Embassy (Brian Cage & The Gates of Agony) defeated Cheeseburger, Eli Isom & Marcus Cross in a Proving Ground match(4:57)
In a Proving Ground match, if the challengers get a time limit (10 minutes) draw or win the match, they will earn a title shot. Isom put up a fight for about a minute before Page caught him with a superkick. Isom came back with a jawbreaker on Loa and made the tag to Cheeseburger. Cheeseburger tried but the Gates of Agony ate him up and gave nothing. Khan missed a splash in the corner and Cheeseburger got the tag, but the match fell apart and the Embassy just destroyed all three of their opponents. Cage and Tanga Loa tossed Isom into a power bomb from Bishop Khan and got the pinfall. This was a glorified squash.
Mercedes Martinez defeated VertVixen (4:23)
VertVixen got a dropkick early, but Martinez kipped up and floored her with a clothesline.VertVixen had the offense for a while, but Martinez came in the corner with a charging forearm and hit an anarchist’s suplex for a near fall. Martinez hit VertVixen with a forearm to the back of the head, then locked in an inverted surfboard to get the submission.
Lee Moriarty defeated Griff Garrison
Garrison is back after an injury, trying his hand at singles. Moriarty dominated the match early by working over Garrison’s shoulder. Garrison came back and caught Moriarty with a spinning powerslam, then hit a twisting forearm for a near fall. Garrison tried to pick Moriarty up for an Angle Slam, but Moriarty raked Garrison’s eyes and rolled him up for a pinfall.
Kiera Hogan defeated Robyn Renegade (4:32)
Hogan hit a legdrop for two. Renegade worked over Hogan’s arm. Renegade locked in an overhead wristlock, but Hogan made the ropes to force the break. Hogan came back with a series of forearms and flying axehandles before stomping a mudhole into Renegade in the corner. Hogan followed up with a sliding dropkick and a running hip attack, and Robyn slid to the floor. Charlette Renegade (not her twin sister but very much a lookalike) ran in to help. Hogan dropped to the floor to take them both out, then brought one of the Renegades back in the ring and finished them off with a superkick to get the pinfall.
After the match, Athena ran in and attacked Hogan with a kendo stick. But that backfired, and Hogan got the kendo stick and beat Athea out of the ring. Hogan held up Athena’s ROH Women’s title to taunt Athena.
Dark Order (Evil Uno, Jon Silver & Alex Reynolds) defeated Shane Taylor and The WorkHorsemen (JD Drake & Anthony Henry)
A slugfest broke out during the handshake between both teams to start the match. Reynolds took a lot of punishment from Taylor and Drake in the corner. Drake hit a belly to belly suplex on Reynolds, and Shane Taylor followed up with a big splash for a near fall. Drake hit a cannonball in the corner, then Taylor and Drake did a tag team stunner for a near fall. Anthony Henry came off the top rope with a double stomp,
Reynolds got the tag to Uno. Uno sent Drake to the floor with a boot, then stomped away at Henry in the corner. Uno hit a suplex on Henry for a near fall. Taylor and Uno exchanged strikes in the middle of the ring a battle which Taylor easily won. But a miscommunication spot lead to Drake hitting his own partner Taylor with a boot. Uno hit Henry with a Sky High. The Dark Order gave Henry a triple team windmill slam. Reynolds and Silver hit their rapid-fire finisher on Drake to get the pinfall.
– After the match, the Righteous with new member Stu Grayson (formerly of the Dark Order) were interviewed by Dasha Fuentes. They were not impressed with the Dark Order. The Righteous will have a match next week.
AR Fox, Darius Martin & Action Andretti defeated The Trustbusters (Sonny Kiss, Slim J and Jeeves Kay) (6:00)
There sure are a lot of trios in ROH. Sonny Kiss press slammed Andretti out of the corner, then hit a standing moonsault for a near fall. Kiss split into a legdrop for a near fall. Slim J got the tag and ran right into a boot from Andretti. Darius Martin tagged in and hit Slim J with a forearm. Darius gave Slim J a pump handle into a facebuster for a near fall. Kiss hit a spinning kick on Martin, and after an assisted slice break, Daivari came off the top with a splash for two. AR Fox came in and hit a couple of cutters, then Martin and Andretti hit a double steam slam on Daivari to get the pinfall.
The Kingdom (Mike Bennett & Matt Taven) (w/ Maria Kanellas) defeated El Cobarde & El Dragon
Two minutes into the match, Bennett got busted open. Dragon took both guys to the floor with a hurricanrana. Cobarde and Dragon had their chances, but this was another glorified squash match in a series of them. Bennett and Taven won with the Proton Pack. After the match, Maria kissed her bloodied husband to celebrate the victory.
The ROH Board of Directors announcement
Hathaway suggested Action Andretti vs. the entire Embassy, but Jerry Lynn whispered his own suggestion to Tony Khan, making an ROH Six-Man title match with the Embassy against Andretti, AR Fox, and Darius Martin. Khan then brought ROH Tag Team Champion Rey Fenix out for the main event.
Rey Fenix (w/ Alex Abrahantes) defeated Gravity (10:38)
Gravity is Bandido’s brother and making his ROH debut. Gravity dressed like an astronaut for his entrance but took the astronaut suit off for the match. Fenix locked up Gravity on the mat, and twice it looked like Gravity tapped out, but the ref never acknowledged it and the match continued. Gravity countered a suplex attempt with a small package, but Fenix escaped and floored Gravity with a superkick. Gravity hit a springboard crossbody over the ropes to the floor for a near fall.
Gravity hit Fenix with a powerslam and a standing moonsault for a near fall. Fenix hit a sit-out burning hammer for a near fall. Fenix tied Gravity up into a crucifix on his own back, then spun him around like an airplane spin for a near fall. Gravity and Fenix exchanged a series of cradles for near falls.
Gravity deadlifted Fenix into a power bomb off the mat for a near fall. Gravity missed a splash off the top, and Fenix ran the ropes to give Gravity a kick to the head for another near fall. Gravity hit a crucifix driver for another near fall. The crowd chanted “This is awesome!” for a match that actually deserved it tonight.
Fenix and Gravity exchanged chops in the center of the ring. Fenix hit the pop-up cutter, then finished off Gravity with the sit-out tombstone to get the pinfall. This was a great main event.
Final Thoughts:
This was my first Ring of Honor show. No show needs to be two hours of glorified squashes. It felt like I was watching AEW Dark from 2021, and that’s not a good thing. A 60-minute show would be a lot easier to digest.
Next week:
Samoa Joe defends the ROH TV title against Matt Sydal
The Embassy defends the ROH Six-Man titles against AR Fox, Action Andretti & Darius Martin
Willow Nightingale will defend her NJPW Strong Women’s title for the second time on this Thursday’s 12-match Ring of Honor on HonorClub.
The challenger is former Impact Knockouts Tag Team Champion Rachael Ellering who will be making her return to ROH for the first time since October 2016.
The show will also feature the return of Griff Garrison. He faces Lee Moriarty in his first match since last October in either AEW or ROH due to an injury.
The show also features Rey Fenix vs. Gravity, an ROH Six-Man Tag Team title Proving Ground match, Kyle Fletcher, Dark Order, Dralistico, and more.
Here’s the lineup, taped last weekend in Orlando, Florida:
NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Willow Nightingale defends against Rachael Ellering
Matt Sydal vs. Zack Clayton
Dark Order (Evil Uno, Alex Reynolds & John Silver) vs. The WorkHorsemen (JD Drake & Anthony Henry) and Shane Taylor
ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Embassy (Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona) vs. Marcus Kross, Eli Isom & Cheeseburger in a Proving Ground match
Kiera Hogan vs. Robyn Renegade
Mercedes Martinez vs. VertVixen
Darius Martin, Action Andretti & AR Fox vs. Sonny Kiss, Jeeves Kay & Slim J
Griff Garrison vs. Lee Moriarty
Kyle Fletcher vs. Christopher Daniels
Dralistico vs. Willie Mack
The Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) vs. El Cobarde & El Dragon
Zack Sabre Jr. will return to Ring of Honor TV on HonorClub Thursday to defend his NJPW TV title once again.
After appearing on the revived debut show, the inaugural NJPW TV Champion will put the gold on the line against AR Fox in pursuit of his seventh title defense.
In a no DQ Fight Without Honor match, The Kingdom’s Mike Bennett and Matt Taven will face Darius Martin and Action Andretti.
Former ROH Women’s Champion Mercedes Martinez returns to action off the injured list for the first time since last December when she goes one-on-one with Ashley D’Amboise.
Former ROH Tag Team Champions Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal will continue their reformed run as they face Cole Karter and Zack Clayton.
In a high-flying affair, Rey Fenix will take on Gringo Loco.
Other action includes Willow Nightingale vs. Madi Wrenkowski, Lady Frost vs. Miranda Alize, and several tag team matches.
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– The show started with Dasha backstage with Willie Mack and Ninja Mack. They showed respect to each other and made the decision to team together.
This week’s Ring of Honor was taped at Universal Studios in Orlando, FL. Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman, and Nigel McGuinness were on the call.
Rey Fenix (w/Alex Abrahantes) defeated Gringo Loco
This was a great opener to the show. Loco was a great pickup by ROH, as his basing allows these high-flyers to really shine.
These two started off quickly, avoiding each other’s offense before Fenix scored the advantage with several kicks. Fenix sent Loco to the floor with an armdrag before following him outside with a springboard dive. Fenix hit a frog splash in the ring for a nearfall. Loco caught Fenix on a rolling move, picking him up in a gorilla press before slamming him down.
After going for the mask, Loco dropped Fenix with a facebuster for a nearfall. Fenix fought Loco off with a pair of thrust kicks before hitting his spinning back kick in the corner. Fenix followed up by running on the top rope to kick Loco in the head before landing another splash for a nearfall. Loco cut Fenix off, but Fenix hit the rewind kick through the ropes.
Fenix brought Loco to the corner and went for a rolling cutter, but Loco caught Fenix with a cutter of his own for a nearfall. Fenix scored with a rolling Frankensteiner for a nearfall before drilling Loco with a superkick. Fenix brought Loco to the top rope before hitting a double jump rana for a nearfall. Fenix brought Loco back to the top rope, but Loco knocked him down before hitting a step-up twisting Destroyer for a nearfall.
Loco brought Fenix up on his shoulders, but Fenix pulled him down with a poisonrana. Fenix hit the rolling cutter to win.
– Dasha was backstage with The Wingmen, Peter Avalon and Ryan Nemeth. They mock the Iron Savages and want to prove that ROH is Wingmen Country. Good luck with that.
– Ian Riccaboni announces that Katsuyori Shibata will defend his title against his protégé Alex Coughlin in two weeks on ROH television from Las Vegas.
Willow Nightingale defeated Madi Wrenkowski
Nightingale was in firm control to start, landing a senton. Wrenkowski got a boot in on Nightingale before choking her over the ropes. She brought Nightingale to the apron and covered her up with the apron itself, landing heavy strikes.
Back in the ring, Nightingale fired up, hitting a splash in the corner before hitting the spinebuster. Wrenkowski fought out of the Babe With The Powerbomb, forcing Nightingale into the corner. Nightingale caught Wrenkowski in powerbomb position, but Wrenkowski took her down by the head Billy Kidman-style for a nearfall. Nightingale moved out of the way of a boot and hit the Pounce. Nightingale followed that with the Babe With The Powerbomb for the win.
Iron Savages (Boulder & Bronson) (w/Jacked Jameson) defeated The Wingmen (Peter Avalon & Ryan Nemeth)
Jameson led the Savages out with an energetic introduction, hyping up the crowd for the Savages. Riccaboni noted that Nemeth will be playing Gino Hernandez in the new Von Erich movie that MJF also plays a part in. Currently, Nemeth was getting pounded on by the Savages. Nemeth desperately tagged out to Avalon, who got the advantage after Nemeth chop-blocked Bronson.
Nemeth took some time to swivel his hips, which was met with a spinebuster from Bronson. Boulder tagged in and ran wild on the Wingmen, landing a double flapjack. Boulder went for a moonsault, but Avalon moved and hit a splash of his own for a nearfall. Boulder repeatedly pressed Avalon to kick out before dropping both Wingmen with a crossbody. Bronson tagged in and scored the win after getting electric chair dropped onto both Wingmen.
Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal defeated Cole Karter & Zack Clayton
Daniels and Sydal got the advantage first, scoring an offensive combination on Karter. Clayton tagged in but met the same fate and took an offensive combo for a nearfall. Karter cut Sydal off on the ropes, allowing Clayton to hit a lariat on Sydal. Karter and Clayton worked over Sydal for a while, with Karter sending Sydal off the top rope into a powerslam from Clayton. Karter hit a splash for a nearfall that Daniels broke up.
Daniels tagged in and ran wild, landing a bulldog/clothesline combo. Karter cut off an Angel’s Wings attempt, bringing Sydal in to send Karter out. Daniels hit the STO as Sydal landed a dive on Karter on the floor. Daniels got the win with the Best Moonsault Ever.
Lady Frost defeated Miranda Alize
Both of these women maximized their minutes here. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of them in this women’s division.
A quick start to this one, as Alize drilled Frost with a rana before booting her in the gut. Alize hit a strong face wash boot in the corner, but only scored a one-count. Alize talked trash, but Frost hit a jumping knee and a cartwheel cannonball in the corner for a nearfall. Alize came back with a release suplex for a nearfall. Alize hit a Tiger Driver for a nearfall.
Alize set up a neckbreaker, but Frost fought out and cartwheeled into an Air Raid Crash. Frost went to the top rope and hit a corkscrew moonsault for the win.
Cheeseburger and Serpentico got started, with Cheeseburger getting the better of Serpentico with technical maneuvers. Angelico broke up Cheeseburger’s momentum before tagging in and showing off his llave submissions. SAP worked over Cheeseburger until he got a tag out to Isom. Isom ran wild, hitting a dive on Serpentico on the floor.
Luther booted Isom on the floor while the referee was focused in the ring. Angelico caught Cheeseburger in a leg vine submission for the quick submission win.
NJPW World Television Title Match: Zack Sabre Jr. defeated AR Fox to retain
All NJPW World TV Title matches have a 15-minute time limit, with the title remaining with the champion in the case of a draw. It was announced that the winner would defend the title against Jeff Cobb at NJPW Dominion on June 4th.
After an opening exchange, Fox caught Sabre with the double dropkick combo in the corner for an early nearfall. Fox sent Sabre to the floor and hit the superman dive to the floor. Fox hit a springboard dropkick for a nearfall. Sabre got a hold of Fox’s arm and slammed him down.
Sabre started the work on the arm, manipulating his wrist while in an armbar. Fox tried fighting back, but lost Sabre on an Irish Whip attempt due to the bad arm. Sabre did more work on the arm, twisting Fox into an armbar that Fox fought off. Fox caught Sabre with a jumping clothesline. Fox booted Sabre twice before hitting a swinging suplex for a nearfall.
Sabre went back to the arm, dropping Fox to all fours and stomping on his elbow. Sabre hit the Penalty Kick for a nearfall. Sabre toyed with Fox, allowing Fox to fight back and send Sabre to the floor. Sabre cut off a dive, but Fox superkicked him in the ropes. Fox hit a pendulum DDT for a nearfall. Fox brought Sabre to the top rope, but Sabre caught him in the Cobra Twist on the top rope. Fox popped back up, hitting the Lo Mein Pain for a nearfall.
At the 10-minute call, AR Fox went to the top rope, but Sabre rolled to the floor. Fox followed him with a big dive to the floor. Back in the ring, Sabre avoided a 450 and caught Fox in a European Clutch for a nearfall. Sabre started ripping at Fox’s legs, catching Fox in the Orienteering With Napalm Death submission for the win and his 7th successful defense of the title.
– In the ring, Dasha interviewed Sabre after his win. He said that he saw a chance to make history as the first NJPW World TV Champion, and he took it. He declared himself the best champion in wrestling, and the most active TV Champion in wrestling. ROH TV Champion Samoa Joe came out taking offense to this. Joe offered a fight against Sabre right now, but Matt Sydal and Christopher Daniels made their way to the stage. Daniels stated that he, Joe, and Sabre have all held TV Titles, but Sydal was overdue for a title shot of his own. Sabre offered up a tag team match, with a TV Title shot on the line for Sydal and Daniels if they won. Everyone seemed to agree, with Sabre saying that afterward, they’ll figure out which champion is better. I’m excited about all of these potential matches.
The Gates Of Agony (Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona) (w/Prince Nana) defeated Dalton Castle & Boy Brandon
This stems from the mystery attack on Boy Brent last week. Boy Brandon started off with Kaun and got the better of him in a grappling exchange. Kaun then tagged in Liona, who tackled Brandon and threw him with abandon. The Gates threw Brandon around for a while until Brandon caught Kaun with a low flatliner. Kaun cut him off and sent him into the ropes where Liona booted him.
The Gates clubbered on Brandon more until Brandon crotched Liona on a splash attempt. Castle got the hot tag and ran wild with offense. Liona took a half dozen splashes from Castle and Brandon, but Liona kicked out at one. Brandon got caught on a dive, with Kaun taking out Castle with a gutbuster. Liona and Kaun landed a double facebuster on Brandon for the win.
Shane Taylor & The Workhorsemen (Anthony Henry & JD Drake) defeated Midnight Heat (Eddie Pearl & Ricky Gibson) & Schaff
Henry caught Pearl with a heavy kick to the midsection for the first advantage in the match. Drake tagged in and flattened Pearl with a senton and a Vader Bomb. Schaff tagged in and used his size to run wild, but Taylor dropped him with a lariat. As the Workhorsemen took out Pearl and Gibson, Taylor hit the Package Piledriver for the quick win.
– Dasha was backstage with Vincent & Dutch. Quickly, Stu Grayson entered the frame to wonder why they’d been watching him lately. Dutch and Vincent said that while the Dark Order brought him back, they were also holding him back. The Dark Order came in to drive them away, but Grayson decided to give Vincent and Dutch one chance to impress him.
Mercedes Martinez defeated Ashley D’Amboise
Martinez couldn’t keep a hold on D’Amboise early on until she caught D’Amboise with a rolling forearm. Martinez hit the Three Amigos for a nearfall. Martinez clubbered on D’Amboise until D’Amboise avoided a corner charge. D’Amboise fought back until she walked into a spinebuster for a nearfall.
D’Amboise countered a Fisherman’s Suplex into a rollup for a nearfall. D’Amboise threw a bunch of strikes at Martinez. D’Amboise caught Martinez with a forearm in the ropes, then followed it up with a Burning Hammer for a nearfall. Martinez caught D’Amboise with a curb stomp, then scored the submission win with the Dragon Sleeper.
Fight Without Honor: Action Andretti & Darius Martin defeated The Kingdom (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) (w/Maria Kanellis-Bennett)
This was one hell of a battle in this main event. Everybody took a beating in this one, and they did some sick spots here too. This is one to seek out for sure.
The Kingdom menaced Andretti on the ramp, but Martin jumped them from behind to kickstart this match. The plunder came out quickly, with Bennett catching a double dropkick with a chair in the face. Taven took a drop-toe hold into the chair, with Martin launching off of Taven’s back for a dropkick to Bennett. Andretti and Martin clubbered on Taven with weapons as he was trapped in a garbage can, but Maria involved herself, allowing Taven to dropkick a ladder into their faces. Martin got on the apron, but Maria hit a low blow, allowing Bennett to drill Martin with a chair.
Bennett got lacerated but didn’t let that stop him from hitting a spinebuster to Andretti on top of a trash can. Taven hit Just The Tip on Martin with a ladder in his face, but the Kingdom brought out a table to do more damage. They went for the big Doomsday Device to the floor, but Martin moved, leading to Taven taking out Bennett. Andretti hit an Arabian Press to both Kingdom members on the floor.
Back in the ring, we got a train of offense that left Dante Martin standing. Taven took down Martin with a chair to the back. The Kingdom hit a Hail Mary to Martin on top of chairs. Andretti fought out of the Proton Pack, hitting a bulldog on Taven. Andretti put Taven on a table, hitting a springboard 450 throu…onto the table. Andretti finished the job, suplexing Taven through the table for a nearfall that Bennett broke up.
Bennett and Andretti traded strikes, leading to Bennett hitting a spear and a DVD through the table. Martin fought his way up, but Taven dropped him with the Purple Thunder for a nearfall. Andretti and Martin got sent to the floor. Maria hit Martin with a pipe and held him up for chops from Bennett. Bennett went for the rebound forearm, but Martin moved, and Maria took the shot instead.
Martin and Andretti fired up, dropping Taven on a chair. They hit Bennett with a Doomsday Device off of the ladder to win. After the match, The Kingdom offered a handshake, which was accepted.
ROH World Champion Claudio Castagnoli defeated Serpentico
Rey Fenix (w/ Alex Abrahantes) defeated Gringo Loco
Kiera Hogan defeated VertVixen. ROH Women’s Champion Athena watched from ringside and shoved Hogan afterward.
Kyle Fletcher (w/ Mark Davis) defeated AR Fox. This was a great match that the crowd was into.
Iron Savages (w/ Jacked Jameson) defeated The Wingmen (Ryan Nemeth & Peter Avalon)
Willow Nightingale defeated Hyan
The Kingdom (Mike Bennett & Matt Taven) (w/ Maria Kanellis) defeated Ninja Mack & Willie Mack
ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Embassy (Brian Cage, Kaun & Toa Liona) (w/ Prince Nana) defeated Lucky Ali, Victor Benjamin & Adam Priest
Mercedes Martinez defeated Dream Girl Ellie
ROH TV Champion Samoa Joe & NJPW TV Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Matt Sydal & Christopher Daniels
Penta El Zero Miedo (w/ Alex Abrahantes) defeated Slim J (w/ Sonny Kiss, Ari Daivari & Jeeves Kay)
Skye Blue defeated Miranda Alize
Rocky Romero defeated Titus Alexander
The Righteous (Vincent & Dutch) & Stu Grayson defeated LSG, Marcus Kross & Vary Morales
Shane Taylor (w/ The WorkHorsemen) defeated Tracy Williams (w/ Rhett Titus)
ROH Women’s Champion Athena defeated Promise Braxton. Post-match, Hogan saved Braxton from a beatdown and left Athena laid out.
Dralistico (w/ Jose The Assistant) defeated Tony Deppen
Ashley D’Amboise defeated Danielle Kamela
Darius Martin & Action Andretti defeated Cole Karter & Zack Clayton
Blake Christian defeated Nick Comoroto
Diamante defeated Trish Adora
AR Fox defeated Anthony Henry (w/ JD Drake). Post-match, Drake attacked Fox and Shane Taylor joined in until FTR made the save to clear house. Eddie Kingston also joined them to talk to the crowd and send everyone home happy. He revealed he is having hernia surgery this week and believes he will be back in six weeks.
AEW roster member and Ring of Honor Tag Team Champion Rey Fenix is taking some time off to heal up from injuries.
Dave Meltzer reported the news in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, saying Fenix is “banged up.” No timeframe for his return, nor the specific ailments, was mentioned.
Fenix’s hiatus began following the Lucha Brothers’ successful title defense against Powerhouse Hobbs & QT Marshall at this month’s AEW Battle of the Belts IV.
The Meltzer news was a confirmation of a PWInsider report last week which stated that Fenix appeared to be hurt following the match. He did not appear at AAA Triplemania last weekend either. It’s unclear if an injury was suffered during the match or if he went into it already hurting.
Fenix and Penta El Zero Miedo won the ROH Tag Team titles nearly a month ago at ROH Supercard of Honor in a multi-team ladder match.
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.
After some reported visa issues, the Lucha Brothers are set to return to action for AEW tonight.
The promotion announced that Rey Fenix & Penta El Zero Miedo will wrestle in Laredo Texas, but did not state it would be for Dynamite.
That means they will either appear on AEW Dark Elevation prior to the main show or on this week’s Rampage taped afterward.
On an edition of Wrestling Observer Radio last week, Dave Meltzer said working visas have been an issue throughout the wrestling industry which is why Mexican stars like Penta, Fenix and Bandido didn’t wrestle last week in El Paso, Texas.
The two have been out of action since they and PAC lost the seventh match in the best-of-seven series against The Elite on January 11th, dropping the AEW Trios titles in the process.
Bandido hasn’t appeared since his January 17th Dynamite loss to Bryan Danielson. His visa status is unknown.
AEW has revealed the bracket for the World title eliminator tournament set to conclude at Full Gear on November 19.
Eight participants have been announced for the tournament, with one first round match set for the November 9 Dynamite, and three set for the November 11 Rampage.
The tournament semifinals will take place the following week, with the finals set for Full Gear. The winner will receive a title shot at Winter is Coming on December 14.
The first round matches:
Eddie Kingston vs. Ethan Page — November 9 Dynamite
Bandido vs. Rush — November 11 Rampage
Ricky Starks vs. Lance Archer — November 11 Rampage
Brian Cage vs. Dante Martin — November 11 Rampage
Bryan Danielson won the 2021 AEW World title eliminator tournament, defeating Miro in the finals at Full Gear. Danielson went on to face Hangman Page for the title at Winter is Coming in December in a match that went to a time limit draw.
Lucha Libre AAA has revealed Hijo del Vikingo’s challenger for Triplemania XXX: Mexico City.
At a press conference on Friday, it was announced that Rey Fenix will challenge Vikingo for the AAA Mega Championship at the Mexico City Triplemania event. It was said that Fenix won a vote among fans on social media to earn the right to face Vikingo.
Kenny Omega was shown as finishing in second in the fan vote. Konnan recently said on his Keepin’ it 100 podcast that Omega is unable to appear at Triplemania due to his AEW suspension.
Vikingo has been AAA Mega Champion since winning the title at Triplemania Regia last December. Fenix was previously Mega Champion from August 2018 to October 2019.
Triplemania XXX: Mexico City is being held on Saturday, October 15. It’s the last of three Triplemania pay-per-views this year celebrating the 30th edition of the event.
The full card for the PPV was announced at Friday’s press conference:
Mask vs. mask match (Ruleta de la Muerte finals): Pentagon Jr. vs. Villano IV
AAA Mega Champion Hijo del Vikingo defends against Rey Fenix
Hair vs. hair match: Pagano vs. Cibernetico
AAA Reina de Reinas Champion Taya Valkyrie defends against Kamille
AAA Trios Champions NGD (Sanson, Cuatrero & Forastero) defend against Psycho Clown, Laredo Kid & Bandido and Johnny Caballero (the former John Morrison), Brian Cage & Sam Adonis in a three-way match
Dragon Lee & Dralistico vs. Arez & Willie Mack vs. Myzteziz & Komander vs. Latigo & Toxin for a future AAA Tag Team title shot
Copa Bardahl Triplemania (Microman, Chessman, Taurus, Sexy Star, Nino Hamburguesa, Mr. Iguana, Lady Shani, Flip Gordon, Diva Salvaje, Jessy Ventura, Aerostar, and a surprise entrant)
Marvel Lucha Libre match: Team Leyenda America vs. Team Terror Purpura
AEW has revealed seven of the eight participants in the Casino Ladder Match at All Out.
Tony Khan announced on Twitter that Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta, Penta Oscuro, Rey Fenix, Rush, Andrade El Idolo, and Dante Martin are entered into the match. There will also be a “joker” entrant to be revealed on the show.
“This Sunday at ALL OUT, the Casino Ladder Match winner will earn a future shot at the @AEW World Championship!,” Tony Khan wrote on Twitter.
AEW All Out takes place Sunday, September 4 from Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The announced lineup for the show is as follows:
Bryan Danielson vs. Chris Jericho
AEW World Trios Championship finals
AEW Interim Women’s World Championship: Toni Storm vs. Britt Baker vs. Jamie Hayter vs. Hikaru Shida
TBS Champion Jade Cargill defends against Athena
AEW Tag Team Champions Swerve In Our Glory defend against The Acclaimed
Jungle Boy vs. Christian Cage
FTR & Wardlow vs. Jay Lethal & Motor City Machine Guns
Casino Ladder Match
Ricky Starks vs. Powerhouse Hobbs
Claudio Castagnoli vs. Wheeler Yuta vs. Penta Oscuro vs. Rey Fenix vs. Rush vs. Andrade El Idolo vs. Dante Martin vs. TBA in a Casino Ladder Match
A new match featuring stars from Lucha Libre AAA has been added to the Ric Flair’s Last Match card.
Starrcast announced that a four-way match has been added to the show, which will take place on July 31 in Nashville. Rey Fenix will face Laredo Kid, Taurus, and Bandido.
Promotions from across the world are participating in the card, including Impact and New Japan Pro Wrestling. The show, which is being presented by Jim Crockett Promotions, will take place at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium and will stream on FITE TV.
Jim Crockett Promotions Presents: Ric Flair’s Last Match (Sunday, July 31) —
Ric Flair’s last match (match to be announced)
Impact World Champion Josh Alexander defends against Jacob Fatu
Impact Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace defends against Deonna Purrazzo and Rachael Ellering in a three-way match
Rey Fenix vs. Laredo Kid vs. Taurus vs. Bandido
The Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) vs. Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin)
Killer Kross (w/Scarlett Bordeaux) vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr.
Happy Friday! Join on-camera personality Denise Salcedo as she recaps both WWE SmackDown and AEW Rampage!
Topics include Andrade vs. Rey Fenix with the AEW formation of La Faccion Ingobernable, more matches added to Forbidden Door, and the continued build towards Money in the Bank!
Andrade El Idolo vs. Rey Fenix, plus three additional bouts have been announced for Friday’s AEW Rampage episode.
The match against Fenix will be Andrade’s first singles bout on Dynamite or Rampage since losing a coffin match to Darby Allin in April. He did appear in the Casino Battle Royale on the June 8 Dynamite, then defeated Frankie Kazarian on Dark: Elevation in a match that aired this week.
Also announced for Rampage, United Empire’s Jeff Cobb will face FTR’s Cash Wheeler. Both will take part in a triple threat match for both the ROH and IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team titles as Forbidden Door, with United Empire facing FTR and Roppongi Vice.
Hook vs. The DKC from NJPW’s LA Dojo, plus Serena Deeb and Mercedes Martinez tagging against unnamed opponents are the other matches set for Friday’s show, which is being taped tonight.
Due to the partnership between NJPW and CMLL, AAA contracted wrestlers Andrade El Idolo, Penta Oscuro and Rey Fenix will not appear at this month’s AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door pay-per-view.
LuchaBlog first reported the news Monday, saying Andrade was booked at one point and then removed from the show. Bryan Alvarez noted that with Penta and Fenix, it’s been known they wouldn’t be able to work the show “for a long time.”
AAA and CMLL are rival promotions in Mexico. Luchablog insinuated on Twitter that it was CMLL who forced NJPW’s hand:
As of this writing, neither Fenix nor Penta have tweeted anything about the situation
LuchaBlog also noted that there are apparently issues between Andrade and AAA over a canceled booking that wasn’t communicated properly that cost him an opportunity (and money) to work somewhere else. Andrade deleted a tweet replying to Konnan who tweeted the following:
We have nothing to do with NJ or. CMLL arcane decisions
At this point, the issue won’t affect FTR who are the current AAA Tag Team Champions. The creative direction appears to be a three-way with Roppongi Vice and new IWGP Tag Team Champions Great-O-Khan and Jeff Cobb at the Sunday, June 26th PPV. The AAA titles haven’t been mentioned in the buildup.
