AEW Rampage live results: Jon Moxley vs. Mance Warner

Ahead of his title defense against Chris Jericho next Wednesday, AEW interim World Champion Jon Moxley will face promotional newcomer Mance Warner in a title eliminator match.

If Warner wins, he earns a future title shot. He made his debut on Thursday’s Dark: Elevation with a win over Serpentico.

Friday’s edition of AEW Rampage will be live from Grand Rapids, Michigan, as they are taping Saturday’s Battle of the Belts III afterward.

The AEW Tag Team titles will be on the line as Swerve Strickland & Keith Lee defend against Tony Nese & Josh Woods in a street fight. Woods attacked Lee backstage on a recent Dynamite as Strickland was defeating Nese and Mark Sterling in a handicap match.

New signee and women’s coach Madison Rayne will make her AEW debut as she takes on Leila Grey in an angle that played out on Thursday’s Dark: Elevation.

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Live! from Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone were on the call, with William Regal for the opener.

Jon Moxley defeated Mance Warner in an AEW Interim World Title Eliminator Match (11:40)

Warner is from Bucksnort, Tennessee, and Schiavone and Regal name dropped famous residents of Bucksnort Dutch Mantell and Bunkhouse Buck. The brawl started on the floor and all around ringside. Moxley suplexed Warner onto a set up steel chair. They exchanged chops, and Warner dropped Moxley crotch-first on the ring barricade, then clotheslined him off the barricade.

Back in the ring, Warner and Moxley exchanged chops. Moxley attacked Warner’s leg with a dropkick, took him down with a dragon screw leg whip and locked in a figure four. Warner escaped with an eye poke. Warner whipped Moxley into the corner and caught him with a sliding boot. The fight went to the floor, where Warner whipped Moxley into the ring stairs and crowd barricade. Warner then suplexed Moxley onto a steel chair. Moxley mounted a brief comeback and tried to piledrive Warner on the stairs, but Warner countered with a DDT on the stairs. Moxley gave way too much offense to an outsider (if Warner hasn’t been signed to AEW). 

After a split-screen break, Warner stomped on Moxley’s leg. Warner planted Moxley down with an ugly spinebuster for a near fall. Moxley had a small hardway cut on the side of his forehead. Warner found some chairs under the ring but when he tried to use one, Moxley punched it into Warner’s face, injuring his own right hand and arm. The crowd chanted for tables and Warner came up bleeding on the floor. Moxley followed up with a tope suicida.

Back in the ring, Moxley superplexed Warner. Moxley couldn’t execute the hammer and anvil elbows with his right side, and Warner came back with a high knee. Moxley locked Warner in a kimura, kicked in his teeth, dropped him with a piledriver, kicked in his teeth some more, and then choked Warner out for the submission. 

Moxley now moves on to Quake at the Lake to face Chris Jericho. 

– Backstage at Dynamite on Wednesday, Lexi Nair tried to interview Ricky Starks after his confrontation with Powerhouse Hobbs. Of course, she was interrupted by QT Marshall and The Factory. They offered Starks a spot in the Factory (for his protection), with Aaron Solo making the offer based on their history before they got to AEW. Starks was not interested. 

Konosuke Takeshita defeated Ryan Nemeth (w/ Peter Avalon) (1:36)

I guess someone realized Takeshita has never gotten a win on TV. Takeshita hit a flying clothesline on Nemeth. Avalon tripped up Takeshita, but Takeshita stilled dropped Nemeth with a Blue Thunder bomb. Takeshita hit a running knee strike to get the pin. Avalon tried to jump Takeshita after the match, and Takeshita hit him with a knee strike as well. Takeshita looked great going into his ROH title match with Claudio Castagnoli. 

– Another Lexi Nair interview from Dynamite with Orange Cassidy and the Best Friends. The Best Friends and Cassidy agree to form a trio and enter the Trios title tournament. Danhausen wanted to join in the trio as well. 

Madison Rayne defeated Leila Grey (w/ Stokley Hathaway) (8:25)

The match went about two minutes before the show went to a split-screen break. The only thing of note was Hathaway jumping on the ring stairs like a petulant child to distract Rayne.

After the break, Rayne fought her way out of a chinlock and got a near fall with a Northern Lights suplex. Rayne went for a ripcord stunner, but Grey countered with a sit-out side slam for a near fall. Both women look about a step or two out of sync with their moves. They exchanged forearms. Grey tried a sit out facebuster, but Rayne escaped and hit a sliding lariat. Rayne the hit the “Cross Raynes” (like the Cross Rhodes) for the pin.

Jade Cargill came out after the match to invite Rayne to accept her open challenge on Wednesday. Keira Hogan tried to run in and attack Rayne, but Rayne hit her with the Cross Raynes as well. Cargill’s Baddies weren’t particularly bad tonight. 

– In a pre-taped segment, The Lucha Bros challenged Rush and Andrade to make their match on Wednesday “Lucha rules.” 

– Mark Henry interviewed the principals in the main event, and Keith Lee got in a great line about how Nese and Woods would just be a stepping stone to a properly ranked tag team.

– In Excalibur’s rundown of upcoming shows, the Wednesday Dynamite match between Lucha Bros v. Andrade & Rush was announced as tornado tag match. Cargill v. Rayne for the TBS Championship was made official for Wednesday.

AEW World Tag Team Champions Keith Lee & Swerve Strickland defeated Tony Nese & Josh Woods (w/ “Smart” Mark Sterling) in a Friday Night Street Fight (12:53)

(I do not believe the tag team titles were on the line in this match. It was never announced as a title match, only as a “Friday Night Street Fight.”)

The match started on the floor, and didn’t get into the ring until during the split-screen break. Strickland sent Nese into a chair with a stepover toehold. Lee dropped Woods with a double overhand chop. Nese threw his “Premier Athlete’s” protein powder in Lee’s face. Strickland kicked the protein powder in Nese’s face and whipped him into the steel ring steps. Strickland whipped a toolbox at Nese’s head, but Nese got out of the way and the toolbox broke against the steps. Lee got the powder out of his eyes with a bottle of water, but the Nese flew off the apron with a broken tool box. Woods sent Strickland into the stairs with a twisting suplex. The show went to a split-screen break.

During the break, a pair of tables were set up on the outside. Woods and Nese tried to powerbomb Strickland through the tables, but he escaped. Lee avalanched Nese and Woods, then hip tossed Nese into Woods. Sterling hit Lee with a chair from the outside but it didn’t phase him. Nese and Woods DDT’d Lee into the chair and they both tried to cover him, but Strickland hit a 450 onto the pile to break up the pin attempt in a great spot. 

Nese set up a table in the ring. Sterling hit Strickland from behind with a wrench, and Woods set up Strickland on the table. Lee pulled Woods out of the ring, and hit Nese with a headbutt. Sterling tried to come off the top on Strickland, but Lee caught him, Strickland moved and Lee put Sterling through the table.

Outside the ring, Woods teased German suplexing Lee from the apron through the table. Nese hit Lee with a superkick and Woods actually hit the German suplex off the apron through the tables! This left Strickland and Nese in the ring. Strickland gave Nese a high back body drop onto a pile of chairs, then came off the top rope with a double stomp onto Nese to get the pinfall. 

Strickland and Lee celebrated to end the show. 

Final Thoughts: 

They put stars on the show tonight, but I don’t think this show will be enough to cure the recent ratings woes. It was a foregone conclusions who would win both the main events. The Rayne debut wasn’t anything special. Takeshita got a much needed win against weak competition. 

But it felt like a completely skipable show.