AEW All In notes: MJF & FTR retain their titles at London’s Wembley Stadium

After a spirited match between the two, AEW World Champion MJF is still the champion after defeating Adam Cole in the main event of Sunday’s All In at London’s Wembley Stadium.

While the match featured neither man turning on the other as some expected, there were moments between the two where that nearly came to be. Late in the match, Roderick Strong appeared to assist Cole, hitting a low blow to MJF that surprised the challenger. Cole instinctively hit a Panama Sunrise and his Boom strike to the back of MJF’s head that only got a slow two count as referee Bryce Remsburg was recovering from being hit with his own Panama Sunrise.

Strong tossed the title belt to Cole in hopes he would use it, but Cole refused after initially thinking about it. MJF got the pin with an inside cradle as Strong left in disgust. Afterward, Cole sat in the corner irate and MJF tried to make good with him, but Cole simply tossed the Ring of Honor Tag Team titles MJF handed him that they won earlier on the show. MJF turned his back as Cole had done weeks ago, saying if all Cole cared about was the title, he should do what he needs to do. Cole thought about it and then the two hugged it out, celebrating to end the show.

The two had a physical match where Cole would take advantage of MJF’s reluctance to go to wherever he needed to in order to win. Cole hit a sheer drop brainbuster on MJF on the steel steps at one point, later dropping MJF with a tombstone on the announce table after MJF couldn’t do the same out of friendship.

The match was restarted after both men hit each other with a clothesline (“double clothesline!”) which led to a double pin. Cole asked MJF for another five minutes which MJF refused, saying they needed to go as long as it took to declare a winner.

MJF continues the title reign that started last November while Cole is now 0-1-1 against MJF. They also share the aforementioned ROH Tag Team titles.

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No new matches were announced for next Sunday’s AEW All Out, nor for this Wednesday’s Dynamite.

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In what can best be described as wild and violent bloodbath, Orange Cassidy, Eddie Kingston, Best Friends and Penta El Zero Miedo were successful in the Stadium Stampede match, picking up the win over the Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta) and Santana & Ortiz.

The end came when Cassidy nailed Castagnoli with an Orange Punch via a sticky taped fist adorned with glass. 

The bout was more of a hardcore match than the previous Stampedes as barbed wire boards, tables and ladders were used in addition to skewers to Moxley’s head by Penta El Zero Miedo.

At one point, Penta appeared to be injured following a Moxley piledriver spot on a chair as medical personnel brought him to the back. However, it was planned as he later emerged as his Penta Oscuro character, delivering a sunset bomb off a ladder to Santana even after several rungs of the ladder broke beforehand.

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In their trilogy match, AEW Tag Team Champions FTR retained the titles with a win over the Young Bucks, denying the Jackson brothers their company-record third title reign.

Both teams emptied out the tank, using several of their signature moves against each other including a Shatter Machine by the Bucks and the FTR Trigger by the champions.

In the end, Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler countered a Meltzer Driver with a mid-air Shatter Machine to get the pin and successful title defense. Afterward, FTR offered their hands in respect but the Bucks declined and walked away.

It’s FTR’s sixth title defense in their second reign with the titles.

Other Notes:

  • Sting & Darby Allin came out to Metallica’s “Seek & Destroy” which Sting used during part of his run in WCW from 1999-2001.
  • Flash Garments and DJ Whoo Kid came out with Swerve Strickland with Garments rapping Strickland’s entrance music.
  • Saraya came out to Queen’s “We Will Rock You” along with multiple members of her family as part of her entrance.
  • Grado made his AEW on-screen debut during the pre-show, joining Paul Wight and Anthony Ogogo to lay out Jeff Jarrett, Satnam Singh, Sonjay Dutt & Jay Lethal as the heels were running down UK wrestling. Stateside, Grado worked primarily for Impact Wrestling.