AEW Collision live results: Winter is Coming
An International title match will take place on Saturday’s Collision, a special Winter is Coming edition of the show.
Orange Cassidy will face Bryan Keith after he issued a challenge on Friday’s ROH Final Battle. Keith, after losing a Survival of the Fittest match for the ROH TV title, said he would continue to hunt for gold. Cassidy told him if he wanted his gold, he’d see him on Collision.
Keith defeated Jack Cartwheel to qualify during ROH Final Battle Zero Hour, but was the fourth person eliminated in the six-man elimination match.
Three more matches will take place in the Continental Classic Blue League. Brody King will face Bryan Danielson, Andrade El Idolo will face Claudio Castagnoli, and Eddie Kingston will face Daniel Garcia. Idolo is currently in the lead in the block with 9 points, with King and Danielson behind him with 6 points.
Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale will face Mercedes Martinez and Diamante in a street fight.
Live coverage begins at 8 pm ET.
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The pre-show promos saw words from the Continental Classic competitors and Orange Cassidy. Sir Elton John welcomed us to Collision, as Tony Schiavone, Kevin Kelly, and Nigel McGuinness were on the call live from Garland, Texas.
Continental Classic Blue League Match – Claudio Castagnoli [6] defeated Andrade El Idolo [9]
This was such smart, simple wrestling here. Andrade continually tried to win with what worked against Brody King on Dynamite, but instead got a taste of his own medicine when Castagnoli took the low road to beat him. Castagnoli’s win keeps both him and Eddie Kingston alive for now in the Blue League.
During Andrade’s entrance, we saw our Spanish announce team which included former Women’s Champion Thunder Rosa. These two started this match with a heavy lockup, followed by shoulder blocks where neither man budged. Castagnoli got low-bridged to the floor but quickly got back to the ring to boot Andrade down. Andrade countered a corner charge, then hit a high crossbody. Andrade and Castagnoli avoided each other’s big moves before Andrade sent Castagnoli to the floor. Andrade went to follow him with a plancha but got drilled with a European uppercut.
Andrade cut off a corner charge with a pair of Dragon Screw leg whips, but Castagnoli caught Andrade with a Swiss Death uppercut for a nearfall. After a commercial break, Andrade evaded another corner charge before hitting a pair of bodyslams and a flying forearm. Andrade set up the double knees in the corner, but Castagnoli ducked before snatching Andrade up in a Giant Swing.
Castagnoli transitioned into the Sharpshooter, but Andrade reversed it into a Figure Four. Castagnoli dragged his way to the ropes to break the hold. Andrade made his way to the top rope, pulling the turnbuckle cover off the same way he did against Brody King. Castagnoli wouldn’t go into the buckles, so Andrade transitioned into an Avalanche Code Red for a nearfall.
Andrade hit the double knees in the corner for a nearfall. Andrade went to the top rope, pulling another turnbuckle cover off, but Castagnoli hit an uppercut and took Andrade down with a superplex. Andrade hit the Two Amigos, but Castagnoli countered the third with an uppercut. Andrade tried to force Castagnoli into the turnbuckle, but Castagnoli fought him off. They traded chops until Andrade hit his back elbow for a nearfall.
Castagnoli fought off the Hammerlock DDT, bringing Andrade to the top rope with one of the exposed buckles. Andrade set up Castagnoli for a Hammerlock DDT on the exposed buckle, but Castagnoli swept Andrade’s legs out from under him. The referee put the pad back on the turnbuckle, allowing Castagnoli to hit Andrade with a knee to the groin before hitting the Neutralizer for the win.
We got a recap of Gold League action from this week’s Dynamite.
Abadon defeated Jazmin Allure
The story here was the post-match, with Skye Blue joining up with Julia Hart and Thunder Rosa making her return to the ring.
Abadon scored a quick win with the Black Dahlia DDT.
After the match, the lights went out. TBS Champion Julia Hart appeared when the lights came up. She laid the title at Abadon’s feet, but instead of taking the belt, Abadon tackled Hart and started a brawl. Abadon laid out Hart with a knee and posed with the title, but Skye Blue made her way to the ring. She appeared to come to help Abadon but hit them as soon as they turned their back. Blue and Hart beat down Abadon until Thunder Rosa made her way from commentary to help run them off. Abadon and Rosa shook hands as the crowd chanted Welcome Back at Rosa.
AEW World Trios Champions The Acclaimed were in the back with Renee Paquette, returning to TV after the attack from the Devil’s Advocates – trademark pending – a few weeks ago. They were upset about the attack, with Caster saying that they wanted nothing to do with MJF since he got them involved in his mess. Bowens said they were going to hurt whoever hurt them and get back to being the best Trios Champions they could be. Top Flight & Action Andretti walked in, clarifying that they didn’t attack The Acclaimed. They challenged The Acclaimed for a Trios Title match, with Bowens accepting for next week’s Collision.
(After last night’s excellent trios match on Rampage, I’m rooting for Top Flight and Andretti. The Acclaimed has had their run, and it’s time to move on.)
AEW International Title Match – Orange Cassidy (c) defeated Bryan Keith to retain
This was a great showcase for Keith, who has made quite a statement for himself these last two nights in Texas. The Texas crowd treated him like a big deal, which made the upset feel believable at times.
Keith came out to Still Tippin’ by Mike Jones, his theme on the independent scene. They recapped Keith’s participation at ROH Final Battle last night, scoring a win on Zero Hour before scoring an elimination in the Survival of the Fittest match later in the night. Cassidy later challenged Keith to take his title from him, leading to this match being made.
Keith chopped Cassidy once he put his hands in his pockets, but Cassidy dropped him with a dropkick. Keith sent Cassidy to the apron, and after Cassidy rolled back into the ring, Keith dropped him with a big boot. After a commercial, Keith was clubbering on Cassidy in the corner. Cassidy fought off a Tornado DDT to hit one of his own. Cassidy followed Keith to the floor with a dive.
Cassidy went to the top rope before Keith headbutted Cassidy and hit an Avalanche Exploder. Keith hit a running knee before Cassidy countered a Tiger Driver with a Beach Break for a nearfall. Cassidy fired up with kicks before superkicking Keith, but Keith came back with a knee strike and a Yakuza Kick. Keith hit Diamond Dust on Cassidy for a nearfall. Cassidy countered the Tiger Driver into the Mouse Trap to score the flash pin and retain the title.
After the match, Keith refused a handshake but tipped his hat to Cassidy in respect.
Tony Schiavone noted that today would have been the 44th birthday of Brodie Lee, who passed away in 2020. They wished his family well during this time.
Miro was backstage. He wondered whether it was CJ Perry poisoning him, or her poisoning Miro. He didn’t want to get caught up in drama, but he did want to fight Andrade El Idolo because “he is an a**hole.” He said that with Andrade’s loss tonight, he was one step closer to being eliminated, and one step closer to being redeemed.
Komander was backstage with Lexy Nair, who noted his impressive performances on Rampage and Final Battle last night. Roderick Strong & The Kingdom interrupted, with them noting that Komander lost both those matches. Strong said that he found his next victim.
FTR made their way to the ring, beat up after last night’s Fight To Honor Jay Briscoe. Wheeler called out the House of Black, saying that he believed them to be jealous of FTR’s success. He said that they looked at Brody King and Julia Hart’s success and took their frustration out on FTR. Harwood said that FTR can be called a lot of things, but they can never be accused of avoiding a fight. They challenged the House of Black to a match before Harwood’s mic got cut and the lights went out.
Malachi Black and Buddy Matthews appeared on the screen. Matthews said that no one, not Mark Briscoe or their families, would save them. Matthews said that Harwood got all the shine in FTR while no one loved Wheeler. Black asked who saved FTR when they got attacked. No one. They could make things as personal as they wanted because FTR had no help. The House of Black took out a photo of Harwood and his wife and daughter and lit it on fire. FTR ran to the back as Black told them that they were family now.
(FTR did a good job of trying to make sense of the House of Black’s motivations in starting this feud. I’m not sure why Mark Briscoe wouldn’t help FTR, but maybe that’s a way of noting that he wouldn’t be involved here.)
We got a video package highlighting Keith Lee and his win over Shane Taylor at Final Battle. Afterward, Lee told Lexy Nair that Taylor wasn’t the “him” he was referring to.
Texas Street Fight – Kris Statlander & Willow Nightingale defeated Mercedes Martinez & Diamante
The end of the year women’s street fight didn’t disappoint, as these women beat each other bloody here. This was a wild brawl and a good win for Statlander and Nightingale. I hope that these women end up back in the title scene after this short diversion.
Statlander and Nightingale came out in dress attire with a briefcase, similar to Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield from Pulp Fiction. They brawled to the floor, where Nightingale accidentally cannonballed into Statlander before Martinez drilled her with a glass bottle. Statlander took a hesitation dropkick from Diamante but avoided a shot from a barbed wire baseball bat. Statlander hit a DDT on Diamante onto the bat.
Statlander threw Martinez into the barricade before helping Nightingale move the ring stairs. A bloody Diamante came off of the stairs but got caught and slammed into the stairs. Martinez threw a stepladder at them, but they caught it and ran the ladder into her.
In the ring, Martinez clubbed at a bloody Nightingale with a tire iron before Statlander fought her off. Another miscommunication allowed Martinez to take Statlander to the top rope before dropping her into chairs with a Spider Suplex. After a commercial break, Martinez hit Statlander with a main event spinebuster through a plywood board.
Nightingale fought two-on-one as Statlander was out on the floor. Nightingale pounced Diamante into a plywood board, then hit her with the board until it broke. Martinez hit Nightingale with a chair to send her to the floor, but Statlander came in with a chair of her own. Statlander hit Saturday Night Fever on a road sign, but Diamante cut her off with the briefcase.
Diamante opened up the briefcase to reveal thumbtacks and glass before Martinez shoved Statlander face-first into the tacks. Nightingale fought back in with a pipe before Martinez powerbombed her through a table at ringside. Statlander hit Diamante with a chain-assisted lariat on Diamante, who fell in the tacks, to score the win.
“Timeless” Toni Storm & Mariah May were backstage with Renee Paquette, who announced that this Wednesday on Dynamite would see a #1 contender’s match between Saraya and Riho for a Women’s World Title match at World’s End. Storm had no preference for the challenger. May noted that Tony Khan helped her apply for her American wrestling license, so her debut would be coming soon. She asked Storm to do commentary for her debut match, but Storm blew her off.
Adam Copeland spoke in a pre-tape. He said that at this point in his career, he should be able to see anything coming. Being that close to gold made him want it even more, so he challenged Christian Cage to a No Disqualification match for the TNT Title at World’s End.
Brian Cage (w/ Prince Nana) defeated Kerry Wright
Cage obliterated Wright, lifting him multiple times before tossing him overhead with a fallaway slam. Cage hit a powerbomb before spiking Wright with the Drillclaw for the win.
The Mogul Embassy was backstage with Lexy Nair. Cage said it was time for him to get some respect and get all of his stuff in. Prince Nana said that Swerve was gonna win the Continental Classic and that the Mogul Embassy was in the money. They were leaving when Keith Lee stopped them. Lee told Cage to tell “him” that his patience was running out.
(All those snarky comments about Lee and Swerve Strickland never getting their blowoff match seemed to have paid off.)
Continental Classic Blue League Match – Eddie Kingston [6] defeated Daniel Garcia [0]
The stakes were high, and the crowd reflected it as these two fought for their tournament lives. Garcia fought a good fight, but Kingston was simply the better man. With this win, Kingston controls his destiny next week, as a win in his last League match against Andrade El Idolo gets him a spot in the Blue League semi-final.
The announcers noted that a loss here would eliminate Kingston and guarantee the loss of both of his titles. Matt Menard was on commentary. During the opening exchanges, it was announced that next week Thunder Rosa would return to the ring in a tag team match. It would be Rosa and Abadon vs. Skye Blue & Julia Hart.
The two men traded chops until Kingston hit an STO that sent Garcia to the apron. Garcia hit a back kick to Kingston’s leg before hitting a Dragon Screw off of the apron. Garcia stomped on Kingston’s leg until Kingston fired back with a belly-to-belly suplex. Kingston hit a DDT as we went to commercial.
After the break, Kingston peppered Garcia with strikes before hitting the machine gun chops in the corner. Garcia asked for more, with Kingston obliging. Garcia defiantly did his dance, so Kingston chopped him until the referee pulled him out of the corner. Garcia kept dancing, then ducked a corner charge and fired up on Kingston in the corner.
Garcia went back to the knee with a Dragon Screw before locking on a knee bar. Kingston got to the ropes and got Garcia in position for a suplex, but Garcia transitioned to an ankle lock. Kingston made it to the ropes again. Garcia charged at Kingston, but Kingston hit an Exploder suplex into the corner. Kingston followed up with a Backfist, but Garcia kicked out.
The crowd chanted This Is Awesome as Garcia hit a pair of Saito suplexes for a nearfall. Kingston rolled away as Garcia tried to lock on a Dragon Tamer submission, with both guys throwing palm strikes in the corner. Kingston hit a half-and-half suplex before landing a second Backfist to score the win and stay alive.
Continental Classic Blue League Match – Bryan Danielson [9] defeated Brody King [6]
Danielson’s eye continues to be the prime story with his matches, as his opponents are feeling less and less guilty about going after it. Danielson chopped down the monster and finally beat him with the Busaiku Knees, but Danielson looked so much worse for wear coming out of this match. The last week of tournament action will see five men still alive. Danielson and Andrade are in with either wins or draws, while King, Castagnoli, and Kingston need wins and some help regarding head-to-head tiebreakers. Another great episode of Collision.
Danielson went after King’s leg with kicks as the announcers noted that Danielson was having trouble with double vision after his recent workload. King went after the eye before chopping and kicking Danielson down for a nearfall. King ripped at the eyepatch, exposing the bandage around Danielson’s eye before splashing him in the corner. King hit a cannonball to Danielson in the corner, forcing Danielson to roll to the floor.
King followed Danielson and threw him head-first into the announce table before flinging him into the barricade. King chopped Danielson into a chair before hitting a running crossbody into the barricade. After a commercial break, King hit a Bossman Slam for a nearfall. King brought Danielson to the floor for another crossbody, but Danielson dropkicked King’s knee and sent him into the barricade.
Danielson hit a running knee off of the apron before landing a shotgun dropkick in the ring. Danielson was bleeding from the eye as he hit King with a running dropkick and kicks to the leg. Danielson brought King to the top rope, but King crotched Danielson on the top rope and hit a lariat that sent Danielson spinning to the mat for a nearfall.
King went for another cannonball, but Danielson countered that into a single-leg crab. King kicked his way free. During this match, Roderick Strong vs. Komander was announced for Dynamite. Danielson hammered King’s leg with kicks before knocking him down with a head kick. Danielson stomped King’s head in, then hit the hammer-and-anvil elbows. King fought through them to hit a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall.
Danielson fought out of the Gonzo Bomb, then evaded a corner charge to hit a Busaiku Knee, but King launched Danielson out of the cover at one. Danielson hit the middle kicks to a defiant King, but King flipped Danielson inside out with a lariat for a nearfall. Danielson countered a powerbomb with an inside cradle for a nearfall. Danielson hit two Busaiku Knees, then a third to the back of the head to score the win.
Next week, the final week of Blue League action sees Bryan Danielson [9] vs. Claudio Castagnoli [6], Brody King [6] vs. Daniel Garcia [0], & Andrade El Idolo [9] vs. Eddie Kingston [6].