AEW Collision live results: Two title matches
Two title matches highlight tonight’s AEW Collision from Chicago.
ROH World Women’s Champion Athena defends against relative newcomer Alex Windsor.
In his first title defense, new TNT Champion Dustin Rhodes defends against ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty.
In a Tag Team title eliminator tournament match, Austin Gunn and Juice Robinson of The Bang Bang Gang take on Big Bill and Bryan Keith.
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TNT Champion Dustin Rhodes defends against Lee Moriarty (w/ Shane Taylor)
Moriarty refused to shake the hand of Rhodes, rejecting the Code of Honor, though this isn’t ROH, but it still elicited boos. Moriarty looked to use his technical ability to get the better of Rhodes in the early parts of this match, rolling from a school boy into a Border City Stretch, but Rhodes made the ropes quickly. Moriarty hit the ropes and Rhodes hit a deep arm drag and then sent Moriarty to the floor with a lariat over the top rope.
Rhodes worked over the arm of Moriarty with arm wringers and knees to the arm. Moriarty managed to hit a dragon screw while Rhodes was in the ropes, attacking the knee, and Moriarty immediately targeted this new weakness with a knee breaker. Moriarty hit a second dragon screw, grounding the larger Rhodes. As Rhodes tried to fight out, Moriarty hit another dragon screw and started to get booed for it, which is good. There was a really great spot in the break on Fite that saw Moriarty grab Rhodes by the leg and smash his foot into the guardrail, and it made a loud thudding sound that got a lot of boos.
Moriarty hit a DDT on the leg, but Rhodes fired up and started hitting chops and strikes. Moriarty picked the leg, but Rhodes shoved him to the floor. Moriarty came right back in and kicked Rhodes in the hamstring. Rhodes got the fans clapping for him as he checked a kick and started hitting punches while limping. Moriarty hit a flatliner into the middle turnbuckle and then charged Rhodes, but Rhodes hit a powerslam.
Rhodes hit a Manhattan Drop on Moriarty, but Moriarty responded with another attack on the knee. Rhodes went to the ropes and Moriarty ducked down, and Rhodes hit a Canadian Destroy followed by the Cross Rhodes, which Moriarty took a great bump for, but Moriarty got his foot on the ropes. Rhodes hit a Final Cut, but he went down on his knee and couldn’t make the cover, allowing Moriarty to recover. Moriarty hit a hard kick to the head of Rhodes for a two count before locking on an ankle lock. The battle to get the rope break here was an example of the great selling from Dustin Rhodes.
Rhodes moved out of the way of a helluva kick in the corner, and Rhodes setup the Shattered Dreams, but the referee stopped him. Moriarty flew out of the corner with a busaiku knee for a 1-count. Moriarty went for the figure four leg lock and Rhodes cradled Moriarty and got the pinfall for the win.
Match Result: Dustin Rhodes defeated Lee Moriarty to retain his TNT title
This match was nothing fancy, but it was everything I love in a basic wrestling match. Rhodes’ selling mad Moriarty look very dangerous, and on any other night, he might have won, which was the story they were going for.
–Don Callis came down to the ring with Kyle Fletcher, and Fletcher said he did not need to attack Rhodes right now because of the bad shape Rhodes was in after the match. Fletcher said that he was owed a one-on-one shot at the TNT championship, and that he refused to let Rhodes give another shot at anyone, and was demanding a shot next week. Rhodes agreed to give him a title shot, but it was going to be in a Chicago Street Fight for next Thursday on Collision.
–The Gunn Club cut a promo, with a recap airing of Colten Gunn getting injured, and Juice Robinson and Austin Gunn were going to take it to Big Bill & Bryan Keith for injuring Colten, and that they were going to advance and tag the tag titles. This was a really good recap and promo.
–Tony Schiavone did a tribute to Hulk Hogan, talking about his impact in the WWF in the 80s, and his impact in igniting the Monday Night Wars in WCW with the NWO, and he also offered his condolences to Hogan’s family, talking about how they are in incredible pain right now, and that people should think of them in this time. This was very nice.
–Lexy Nair was backstage and looking to interview Toni Storm, and as she ran up, the screen went black and white, which was great. She hyped up Athena and Alex Windsor, said she was going to beat Athena, and then ran away off into the distance as the interview ended. That was incredible.
Big Bill & Bryan Keith vs. Gunn Club (Austin Gunn & Juice Robinson) in a AEW Tag Team Eliminator tournament match
Keith and Robinson started the match, as Juice hit a shoulder tackle that popped the crowd. Gunn and Robinson immediately started double teaming Keith. Keith fled and tagged out to Bill, who took his time coming into the ring, towering over Austin Gunn. Bill shoved Gunn away, and Gunn tried to shove Bill and failed. Gunn grabbed the foot of Bill, trying to take him down, but Bill responded with an elbow drop. Bill missed, and Gunn got up but ate a big boot. Bill then sent Robinson crashing to the floor, and started working on the knee of Austin Gunn, trying to do what he did to Colten the week before, locking on a half crab.
As they came back from break, Bill was doing a dance on the apron that can only be experienced, and not described. You must see this. Gunn hit a great lariat on Keith that dropped him, he almost made the tag out to Robinson, but Bill was tagged in and ran across the ring and hit Robinson, preventing the tag. Bill missed a splash in the corner, and got low bridged by Gunn. Gunn hit a back body drop over the ropes on Keith, and crawled as hard as he could to Robinson, who tagged in to a roar from the crowd.
Robinson dropped Keith with several punches and tried to knock Bill off the apron, but Bill couldn’t be moved. However, as Bill walked over the ropes to confront Robinson, Robinson pulled the ropes up, crotching Bill, which would stop anyone. Robinson hit a cannonball in the corner on Keith for a 2-count. Keith managed to hit a snap suplex, but Austin Gunn leaped in on one leg to break the pinfall.
Bill sent Robinson flying into a knee from Keith, forcing Gunn to break up the pinfall again. Gunn saved Robinson from a double team, and Robinson hit Bill with the Left Hand of God and and a Frankensteiner on Keith, who rolled through into a sunset flip, but Gunn came in and rolled them backwards and Robinson got the pin over Bryan Keith.
Match Result: Gunn Club defeated Bryan Keith & Big Bill to advance in the AEW Tag Team title eliminator tournament
–A good hype video aired for The Young Bucks vs. The Outrunners in the tournament next week on Dynamite.
–Shane Taylor was with Lexy Nair to talk about the loss of Lee Moriarty, but Don Callis walked up and said that he was going to work with Shane Taylor Promotions tonight to help them win the $400k 8-Man Tag Team match tonight, and that he would take $300k and leave $100k for The Infantry. Shane Taylor was not pleased with this offer, but Callis walked away before he could say anything.
Max Caster vs. Anthony Bowens (w/ Billy Gunn) in a Max Caster Open Challenge
Caster looked very upset about Bowens challenging him, and Bowens went right after Caster, beating on him in the ring as the fans started to chant for Caster, which annoyed Bowens. Gunn told him to focus, and Bowens kept beating on Caster, and the crowd started to boo Caster, which seems to be the point of this segment with how they were doing it. Bowens picked up Caster’s trademark and broke it, as Bowens screamed that Caster was not the best wrestler alive before hitting a Fameasser and a superkick. Bowens hit the Mollywhopper and pinned Caster in just over 3 minutes.
Match Result: Anthony Bowens defeated Max Caster
Bowens continued to attack Caster after the match, leading to Gunn throwing Bowens of Caster. Gunn was checking on Caster, and Bowens stood up and looked like he was going to attack Gunn, but he decided against it, and left to boos.
–Lexy Nair was with Nick Wayne, Kip Sabian, and Mother Wayne, asking what they should be called now, and Wayne said they were no longer the Patriarchy. He did not say what their new name was, as AR Fox came up to them and challenged Wayne and Sabian to a tag match tonight (so I will continue calling them the Matriarchy until we get an official name). Wayne promised to staple a photo of his family to Fox’s face again, which is a reference to a match he had against Swerve and Fox a long time ago.
Don Callis Family (Hechicero & Lance Archer) & The Infantry (Sean Dean & Carlie Bravo) (w/ Trish Adora) vs. The Outrunners (Turbo Floyd & Truth Magnum) Tomohiro Ishii, & Hologram
As Hechicero came out, they showed a fan dressed as Jushin Thunder Liger, and Tony said quietly, “Liger came a long way to get here,” which was hilarious. Ishii and Hologram made Bravo pay for trying to fight them. Hechicero tagged in and exchanged some really great technical wrestling with Hechicero. Hologram was very over in this match, as he hit an incredible headscissors that sent Hechicero crashing into the corner on the wrong side of the ring.
Turbo Floyd tagged in, and The Outrunners hit a double dropkick on the Infantry while Lance Archer came in and tried to intimidate Floyd. Archer hit a crossbody on both Outrunners and dropped them, and Archer caught Hologram coming off the top rope trying to hit a hurricanrana, but he powered Hologram back up and hit a powerbomb as they went to an ad break.
When they came back from the break, Tomohiro hit a vertical drop brainbuster on Lance Archer to a roar from the crowd. Hologram and Bravo exchanged some moves and Hologram tagged out to Turbo Floyd, who hit a series of scoop slams on The Infantry. The Outrunners hit a combo clothesline and bulldog on The Infantry. Hologram hit an incredible flying hurricanrana off the top rope on Hechicero followed by an incredible suicide dive that saw Hechicero fly backwards into the announce table and Hologram be suspended in the air against Hechicero’s body, and Don Callis fled from the announce table.
The referee got bumped in here somewhere and Shane Taylor came over and started brawling with Ishii, which led to Paragon running out to help them and drove away Taylor. The Outrunners then hit their finisher on Bravo for the pinfall in an excellent party match.
Match Result: The Outrunners, Tomohiro Ishii & Hologram defeated Hechicero, Lance Archer & The Infantry
The Triangle of Madness (Julia Hart, Skye Blue & Thekla) vs. Rachel Ellering, Mazzarati & Laynie Luck
Julia Hart started the match with Laynie Luck, locking up, and Hart took her to the ropes and did a rope walk old school attack. Blue tagged in and hit Luck with a running knee. Blue sent Laynie to the floor, and Thekla came around the corner of the ring with a spear. Hart and Blue hit a double team move, with Blue and Hart bridging Mazzarati across their shoulders, and then Hart senting Mazzarati into a uranagi from Blue. That looked cool. Thekla hit a curb stomp on Mazzarati for the pinfall.
Match Result: The Triangle of Madness defeated Rachel Ellering, Mazzarati & Laynie Luck
–Queen Aminata came down and chased the Triangle of Madness off, but Megan Bayne ran down to the ring and attacked Aminata from behind. Aminata noticeably had black makeup around one of her eyes where Hart spit the black mist last week. Bayne hit a running Liger Bomb on Aminata, and the Triangle of Madness posed over the downed Aminata.
–Stokley Hathaway was backstage with Lexy Nair and AEW security. Hathaway said that the supposed good guy, Adam Copeland, hired thugs to pick on him and beat down FTR after the match, when they were tired. Hathaway said that FTR was going to win the tag tournament, and they were going to stand over the broken bodies of the Gunn Club next week. He said this while lifting his crutch and clearly standing on both legs, and Lexy Nair said “Aren’t you injured?” Hathaway quickly put the crutch back under his arm, looked at her furiously, and walked away as the crowd laughed. That was classic heel work.
–Tomohiro Ishii and Hologram were with Lexy Nair and as she was asking the two men who do not speak what they were going to do with the $200k they earned in the tag match, Kyle O’Reilly came in and said that they should go out partying at a Brazilian Steakhouse and Brazilian waxes (yes, he said this) for Roderick Strong’s birthday. Roddy did not look down for this, and walked away as O’Reilly continued his Conglomerating. This was funny.
The Matriarchy (Nick Wayne & Kip Sabian) (w/ Mother Wayne) vs. AR Fox & Angelico
Early in the match Angelico tagged in and as Sabian slapped Angelico in the back of the head, he distracted him, letting Wayne hit an uppercut that allowed them to begin double teaming him as they went to ad break. When they came back from break, Angelico hit a punch on Sabian and tagged out to Fox. AR Fox came in, taking out Wayne, skinning the cat over the ropes into a dropkick on Wayne and hitting a cutter on Sabian. Fox hit an incredible senton bomb on Wayne for a 2-count.
The fans were loudly chanting AR Fox’s name, making me think they really need to start doing something with him, as he gets over in every match he is in. Sabin came flying into the ring and hitting a missile dropkick on Angelico before hitting a cannonball and Wayne hit a moonsault to the floor on Fox. Wayne demanded to be tagged in, leading to the crowd booing and Sabian looking displeased at it. Wayne hit Angelico with a Killswitch for the pinfall.
Match Result: The Matriarchy defeated AR Fox & Angelico
–Kris Statlander was with Renee Paquette, and Renee speculated that she was there to talk about Willow Nightingale. Statlander congratulated Willow Nightingale, blowing confetti into Renee’s face, saying that Nightingale wanted to be done with Statlander, but she should be thanking Statlander for getting between her and the Death Riders, and many other things, before saying that she was glad to be done with Nightingale because no one can stop Stat. This was a really good promo, where Statlander showed a lot of fire.
ROH Women’s World Champion Athena (w/ Billie Starks) defends against Alex Windsor
This match did not waste any time in heating up as both women started fast with an intense lock up and hard exchanges of strikes and mat wrestling, ending with a huge forearm from Athena. Windsor hit a series of arm drags and a dropkick to Athena. Athena yanked the hair of Windsor, hit the roles, and flipped through a hip toss, but ate a lariat to the back of the head and another dropkick from Windsor.
Athena did an AJ Styles kick up into a headscissors, and both women started a striking battle on the apron that the fans really got into. Athena then hit a protoplex on the apron on Windsor, and Windsor crashed to the floor. Athena sent Windsor crashing into the guardrail, and hit a knee lift while arguing with the referee. Windsor hit a headbutt on Athena that dropped her, and then hit a running clothesline.
Windsor hit a Russian Leg Sweep and a clothesline for a 2-count. Athena bit the leg of Windsor to escape a powerbomb and hit a superkick before flipping Windsor into a Koji Clutch in the middle of the ring. That was awesome. Windsor fights out and rolls up Athena for a pinfall attempt, but Athena immediately kicks out and hits a backdrop driver for a 2-count. Athena and Windsor started fighting on the floor, and Windsor dumped Athena face first on the apron with a wheelbarrow, and then on the floor with that same wheelbarrow, as Starks looked on very afraid.
Starks grabbed the leg of Windsor, and Windsor sent Starks flying into the steps, giving Athena enough time to hit a suicide dive and then a shotgun dropkick that sent Windsor crashing into the guardrail. Athena picked up Windsor and stood on the guardrail with her and they both exchanged forearms until Athena fell off, but landed by her and hit a powerbomb off the apron onto the floor on Windsor. Athena sent Windsor into the ring and hit the O Face for the win.
Match Result: ROH Women’s World Champion Athena defeated Alex Windsor to retain
Athena and Alex Windsor were determined to steal the show tonight, and they succeeded. This match was awesome, and worthy of its main event spot. Athena and Windsor were clearly very motivated, and Athena is maximizing her TV time by doing matches like this.
–Billie Starks & Athena started to beat down Windsor after the match, with Athena sending Windsor crashing into the ring steps. As Athena was going to do more damage, Toni Storm ran down to make the save, taking out Starks, and then sending Athena into the ring and hitting the hip attack. Starks attacked Storm from behind and Athena tried to hit the O Face, but Windsor made the save and Windsor and Storm cleared the ring and posed as the show went off the air. Great closing angle that presumably sets up a tag team match in the future.
Final Thoughts:
This show had three matches that are worth watching – the opener with Dustin Rhodes & Lee Moriarty, the party match 8-man tag, and Athena vs. Alex Windsor. If you have to watch only one match, make it the main event though. There was a lot of promos on this show too, along with good recap videos. Good episode tonight.
AEW Dynamite for this Wednesday:
- AEW World Champion Hangman Adam Page defends against Jon Moxley
- The Young Bucks vs. The Outrunners
- MJF Will Appear
AEW Collision for next Saturday:
TNT Champion Dustin Rhodes defends against Kyle Fletcher in a Chicago street fight