AEW Collision: January 11, 2025
January 12, 2025 1:38 PM - Season 2, Episode 28 - Subscribe
"Rated FTR" and Jericho's Learning Tree continue to circle each other like two old boxers starting a fight in an alley, which leads to collateral damage. Hangman Page draws Christopher Daniels into further down the spiteful spiral, Daniel Garcia continues to distinguish himself in title defenses, and Harley Cameron moves towards that special niche marked "crazy as a loon but surprisingly babyface".
Quotes taken from Wrestling Observer
Cope defeated Big Bill
"Cope went for the Spear, but Bill moved, and Cope hit the turnbuckle. Bill followed up with the Big Boot for a nearfall. Cope countered a chokeslam with an Impaler DDT and cut the Redwood in half with a spear, but Bill kicked out to a big reaction from the crowd. Bill goozled Cope, but Cope pushed the referee out of the way and kicked Bill in the groin before hitting another spear. Cope hit the trademark Moxley hammer-and-anvil elbows before choking Bill out for the win. Jericho & Bryan Keith jumped Cope after the match, but FTR ran down to make the save.
This was a very good return to singles action for Cope, as he and Big Bill had a quality opener here. However, I wouldn’t have had the guy stepping up to Jon Moxley use a low blow to beat a guy at Big Bill’s level. It felt cheap, as it took away from a quality match and victory here. I also would’ve just had Harwood vs. Jericho start here since they were both already out there."
Hangman Page Challenges Christopher Daniels
PAC defeated Komander (w/ Alex Abrahantes)
"After the match, Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta made their way to the ring, with the announcers talking about how Castagnoli wanted payback after Komander’s Christmas Dynamite upset over him. The Outrunners made the save for Komander, and this time, the upcoming match started right then and there. This was a very good showcase for Komander, who PAC had real trouble with before giving himself the slightest of openings and snatching on the Brutalizer. I may have thought about giving Komander the win to set up a trios title challenge, but I understand keeping the Death Riders strong."
Death Riders (Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta) defeated The Outrunners (Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd)
"We got a pinning predicament with Yuta and Floyd, ending with Floyd stuffing a Seatbelt attempt for a nearfall. Castagnoli screamed at Yuta to finish the match but got annoyed and dragged Yuta to the corner to force a tag. They hit the Giant Swing dropkick, but a bit of confusion on the legal man allowed Floyd to break the cover. A Yuta cutoff allowed Castagnoli to drop Floyd with a Gutwrench Superplex, and a Rocket Launcher got the win for the Death Riders. This was the best straight-up tag match I’ve seen the Outrunners have in their AEW run, as the crowd was hot for them here against a main event act in the Death Riders."
Mariah May defeated Harley Cameron
"AEW may have a prospect with Harley Cameron. She’s very charismatic, and she did well here against the World Champion. Cameron has new music, which was urging fans to 'feel the wrath of Harley Cameron.' [...] May was still in control when we came back from commercial, scoring a nearfall with a headscissors off of the top rope. Cameron came back with a hairmare before running wild with strikes. Cameron hit a pumphandle back suplex for a nearfall. Cameron stuffed the Storm Zero with a jackknife for a nearfall, but May came back with a running knee and a Storm Zero for the win."
Christopher Daniels Answers Hangman
"He watched as Page went through the worst year of his life, and watched as the rest of Page’s friends deserted him. He tried to help Page out but was only met with violence. Daniels was angry that Page asked what he had done in the business, running down his resume as a former AEW World Champion and an architect of two separate wrestling promotions. He was AEW before AEW existed, and he would add beating Hangman Page to his resume."
Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) squashed Trevor Blackwell
"After a commercial, Brody King & Julia Hart were backstage with Lexy Nair. He was interrupted by Cope, who said that he respected King after their run-ins over the last year. Cope said that it was time for King to take the reins and run."
TNT Championship Match – Daniel Garcia (c) defeated Katsuyori Shibata
"This was a great defense for Garcia here. He tried to match Shibata at Shibata’s own game, and while Shibata remained a step ahead of him for most of the match, Garcia was able to outwrestle The Wrestler and get a win with his signature Jackknife cradle. I would have main evented the show with this to signal that the TNT Title is worthy of main eventing an episode of TV."
Chris Jericho defeated Dax Harwood
"Jericho got to the ropes, and as the referee was dealing with Harwood, Jericho went for a belt shot and missed. Jericho popped the referee in the eye and moved out of the way of a diving headbutt. Jericho hit Harwood with the ROH Title but got a long nearfall out of it. Jericho landed the Judas Effect for the win. After the match, the rest of the Learning Tree ran out to beat down Harwood. Cope & Cash Wheeler ran down to make the save before the Death Riders made their way to the ring to handle FTR & Cope. The Outrunners came down to even the numbers, and most of the guys fought to the floor.
Cope laid out PAC with a spear, but Jon Moxley appeared and dropped him with a Paradigm Shift. Marina Shafir brought two chairs to set up a Con-Chair-To to Cope before Powerhouse Hobbs made his way to the ring, bursting through all of the heels on the floor. He went face-to-face with Moxley before laying out Castagnoli with a spinebuster. Moxley hit Hobbs with a chair, but Hobbs didn’t budge and knocked the chair out of Moxley’s hands. Hobbs chased Mox to the outside before Shafir cut Hobbs off. Wheeler Yuta went to jump Hobbs, but Hobbs put him through the announce table with a uranage. Hobbs motioned for the title as the show went off the air.
This was a decent Jericho match with a sloppy and cold finish. I would had Cope vs. Big Bill in this spot instead. The post-match angle was why this match was the main event, with the Rated FTR/Learning Tree TV feud tying into the bigger Rated FTR/Death Rider angle. They did a good job of setting Hobbs up as a challenger for Moxley, having Moxley show a semblance of fear against the big man."
Quotes taken from Wrestling Observer
Cope defeated Big Bill
"Cope went for the Spear, but Bill moved, and Cope hit the turnbuckle. Bill followed up with the Big Boot for a nearfall. Cope countered a chokeslam with an Impaler DDT and cut the Redwood in half with a spear, but Bill kicked out to a big reaction from the crowd. Bill goozled Cope, but Cope pushed the referee out of the way and kicked Bill in the groin before hitting another spear. Cope hit the trademark Moxley hammer-and-anvil elbows before choking Bill out for the win. Jericho & Bryan Keith jumped Cope after the match, but FTR ran down to make the save.
This was a very good return to singles action for Cope, as he and Big Bill had a quality opener here. However, I wouldn’t have had the guy stepping up to Jon Moxley use a low blow to beat a guy at Big Bill’s level. It felt cheap, as it took away from a quality match and victory here. I also would’ve just had Harwood vs. Jericho start here since they were both already out there."
Hangman Page Challenges Christopher Daniels
PAC defeated Komander (w/ Alex Abrahantes)
"After the match, Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta made their way to the ring, with the announcers talking about how Castagnoli wanted payback after Komander’s Christmas Dynamite upset over him. The Outrunners made the save for Komander, and this time, the upcoming match started right then and there. This was a very good showcase for Komander, who PAC had real trouble with before giving himself the slightest of openings and snatching on the Brutalizer. I may have thought about giving Komander the win to set up a trios title challenge, but I understand keeping the Death Riders strong."
Death Riders (Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta) defeated The Outrunners (Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd)
"We got a pinning predicament with Yuta and Floyd, ending with Floyd stuffing a Seatbelt attempt for a nearfall. Castagnoli screamed at Yuta to finish the match but got annoyed and dragged Yuta to the corner to force a tag. They hit the Giant Swing dropkick, but a bit of confusion on the legal man allowed Floyd to break the cover. A Yuta cutoff allowed Castagnoli to drop Floyd with a Gutwrench Superplex, and a Rocket Launcher got the win for the Death Riders. This was the best straight-up tag match I’ve seen the Outrunners have in their AEW run, as the crowd was hot for them here against a main event act in the Death Riders."
Mariah May defeated Harley Cameron
"AEW may have a prospect with Harley Cameron. She’s very charismatic, and she did well here against the World Champion. Cameron has new music, which was urging fans to 'feel the wrath of Harley Cameron.' [...] May was still in control when we came back from commercial, scoring a nearfall with a headscissors off of the top rope. Cameron came back with a hairmare before running wild with strikes. Cameron hit a pumphandle back suplex for a nearfall. Cameron stuffed the Storm Zero with a jackknife for a nearfall, but May came back with a running knee and a Storm Zero for the win."
Christopher Daniels Answers Hangman
"He watched as Page went through the worst year of his life, and watched as the rest of Page’s friends deserted him. He tried to help Page out but was only met with violence. Daniels was angry that Page asked what he had done in the business, running down his resume as a former AEW World Champion and an architect of two separate wrestling promotions. He was AEW before AEW existed, and he would add beating Hangman Page to his resume."
Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) squashed Trevor Blackwell
"After a commercial, Brody King & Julia Hart were backstage with Lexy Nair. He was interrupted by Cope, who said that he respected King after their run-ins over the last year. Cope said that it was time for King to take the reins and run."
TNT Championship Match – Daniel Garcia (c) defeated Katsuyori Shibata
"This was a great defense for Garcia here. He tried to match Shibata at Shibata’s own game, and while Shibata remained a step ahead of him for most of the match, Garcia was able to outwrestle The Wrestler and get a win with his signature Jackknife cradle. I would have main evented the show with this to signal that the TNT Title is worthy of main eventing an episode of TV."
Chris Jericho defeated Dax Harwood
"Jericho got to the ropes, and as the referee was dealing with Harwood, Jericho went for a belt shot and missed. Jericho popped the referee in the eye and moved out of the way of a diving headbutt. Jericho hit Harwood with the ROH Title but got a long nearfall out of it. Jericho landed the Judas Effect for the win. After the match, the rest of the Learning Tree ran out to beat down Harwood. Cope & Cash Wheeler ran down to make the save before the Death Riders made their way to the ring to handle FTR & Cope. The Outrunners came down to even the numbers, and most of the guys fought to the floor.
Cope laid out PAC with a spear, but Jon Moxley appeared and dropped him with a Paradigm Shift. Marina Shafir brought two chairs to set up a Con-Chair-To to Cope before Powerhouse Hobbs made his way to the ring, bursting through all of the heels on the floor. He went face-to-face with Moxley before laying out Castagnoli with a spinebuster. Moxley hit Hobbs with a chair, but Hobbs didn’t budge and knocked the chair out of Moxley’s hands. Hobbs chased Mox to the outside before Shafir cut Hobbs off. Wheeler Yuta went to jump Hobbs, but Hobbs put him through the announce table with a uranage. Hobbs motioned for the title as the show went off the air.
This was a decent Jericho match with a sloppy and cold finish. I would had Cope vs. Big Bill in this spot instead. The post-match angle was why this match was the main event, with the Rated FTR/Learning Tree TV feud tying into the bigger Rated FTR/Death Rider angle. They did a good job of setting Hobbs up as a challenger for Moxley, having Moxley show a semblance of fear against the big man."
Everyone may be keeping officially mum on whether Malakai Black is leaving AEW or not, but since Julia Hart has gotten over all on her own, Will Ospreay's talking up Buddy Matthews, and now Cope explicitly telling Brody King to "take the reins" for himself? For sure, Malakai's bags are already packed and waiting at the hotel.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 8:41 PM on January 13
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 8:41 PM on January 13
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posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 1:41 PM on January 12