It's almost Wednesday night, and you know what that means! Time for another exciting edition of AEW “Dynamite”, coming at you on TNT at 8pm EST/7pm CST , and continuing to offer the most exciting wrestling action available via your television screen!
Last week fans witnessed Cody advance to the semi-finals of the TNT Title, Shida and Baker have a match that became a bloody fight, Archer and Mr. Brodie both destroy their competition, and Matt Hardy extend an invitation to Chris Jericho.
This week AEW presents, not only the second Quarter-final match of the TNT Title Tournament with Colt and Archer, but also an AEW World Championship Match pitting Jon Moxley against his challenger Jake Hager. But the caveat here, what might be the biggest game changer, is that this one is coming under No Holds Barred stipulations inside the Empty Arena. Plus a slew of other bouts on top for you Wednesday night!
**RANKINGS AS OF 4/8**
AEW WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
EMPTY ARENA/NO HOLDS BARRED
JON MOXLEY(c) VS. (#1) JAKE HAGER
The very first defense for a World Champion is often just as important as the match in which the championship was won in the first place. A win in that first defense validates the original victory, proves it was not just a fluke, solidifies that combatant as truly deserving of being called champion, and marks the true beginning of a title reign. That being said, it's not often that first defense falls under THESE stipulations, and with two warriors the likes of AEW World Champion Jon Moxley and his number one contender Jake Hager.
We have seen Mox go through wars, Unsanctioned Lights Out ones with Kenny Omega and Joey Janela for examples, not to mention the general violence he has experienced since coming to AEW. The violence that nearly cost him his eyesight at the hands of Chris Jericho, that laid him out with a powerbomb off the stage by Hager, and saw Mox routinely assaulted by The Inner Circle during his pursuit of the AEW World Title. So to must we look at the violence perpetrated by Moxley himself; the key used to try and take the sight of Santana, the bottle of the bubbly broke across the skull of Jericho, even the glass table that met Omega's head and heralded the arrival of Moxley to “Dynamite”. He has experienced the violence, he has dealt it out, Jon Moxley is equally comfortable on both ends of that stick.
Hager has also experienced violence in his life; as a two-sport athlete in college, before choosing to focus on amateur wrestling, then inside the professional wrestling ring, and now also inside the cage for Bellator MMA. He is an All-American record holder on the amateur mat, inside the squared circle Hager has been a champion several times over, and has not been defeated in his MMA career. He is a dominant force in AEW, and a member in great standing of The Inner Circle, meaning he has several other man supporting him at the drop of a hat. But all that being taken into consideration, he has never experienced the level of violence Jon Moxley can bring under these circumstances. That being said...
Unrestrained, unrestricted, uncontrolled; we all know what that means when it comes Moxley, but we've never seen Jake Hager in that light. What darkness lies in that man's soul just waiting to be unleashed in a situation such as this World Title match? How much hurt can Hager bring down on his opponent when there isn't anything preventing him from opening up without consequence? And will it be enough to put down Moxley long enough to become the new AEW World Champion, and bring the title back into The Inner Circle? Questions to be answered this Wednesday night, and the announcing legend himself, Jim Ross, will be at the helm to call this main event!
TNT TITLE QUARTER-FINAL MATCH...
“MURDERHAWK MONSTER” LANCE ARCHER VS. COLT “BOOM BOOM” CABANA
Colt Cabana, Lance Archer, the two undefeated men who will square off in this week's Quarter-Final bout of the TNT Title Tournament, and they could not be more different. Colt Cabana is world traveled, just as comfortable with throwing elbows as throwing one-liners. He has toured the UK to adopt aspects of the British Styles of wrestling into his own, and he has traveled throughout Japan to experience the varied styles of wrestling there as well. Colt has flourished Stateside, acquiring championships from coast-to-coast, and served as an inspiration for many a wrestler to follow in his footsteps. His influence on the wrestling world, both inside and outside of the ring, cannot be stated enough, and he's pretty adept at commentary to boot.
Lance Archer may be a psychopath.
But that is not all he has to offer, no, see the Murderhawk Monster is also a world-traveled athlete, with a resume in Japan that is as impressive for the victories as it is for the path of destruction left in his wake. Archer has also collected his fair share of championships over the last 20 years, and now has his sights set on one more in the TNT Title. Near 7 feet tall, well over 250 pounds, with the veteran experience and the twisted mind of Jake Roberts guiding the path, Archer is truly a monster and has to be considered a favorite to win this entire tournament.
But Colt Cabana has faced monsters before in his career, including Archer, and found ways to come out victorious. Whether or not that will be the case here remains to be seen Wednesday night.
ONE-ON-ONE
“SUPERBAD” KIP SABIAN (W/ PENELOPE FORD) VS. CHUCK TAYLOR (W/ ORANGE CASSIDY)
Quite an intriguing match-up as one-half of The Best Friends goes into singles action, for just the second time in his AEW career, against “Superbad”. Sabian falls into that category of athletes who are supremely talented, they know it, and it makes them arrogant no matter what their win-loss record make look like here in AEW. Kip could win every match, or lose every match, and he would still present as cocky, confident, and entitled, but imagine how much more insufferable Kip would be if his 2020 record was over five hundred
None of those descriptors seem remotely applicable to Kip's “Dynamite” opponent this week: Chuck Taylor. If anything, pretty much every detail of Chuck Taylor, save his in-ring skill, is polar opposite of Sabian. Chuck is self-deprecating, humble, and endearing to others, someone you'd actually want to be around, and, in terms of AEW, someone who has fought hard his whole career to get where he is today. And although his AEW career has been very much tag team focused, one need only look at the battle with PAC to see just how capable Chuckie T is of standing on his own when the times comes.
Keep your eyes on this one.
A PROMISE...
“SPANISH GOD” SAMMY GUEVARA VS. SUGAR DUNKERTON (AKA PINEAPPLE PETE)
Go back and check out last week's episode of “Dynamite” and you will quickly pick up on just how annoyed Le Champion is with a certain group of individuals watching the matches at ringside. He labels them with creative nicknames, gets mad if they even breath wrong, and one individual in particular bears the brunt of that wrath: Pineapple Pete!
In truth, Pineapple Pete is independent wrestler Sugar Dunkerton, or Suge D as he is often billed, and who was recently seen on “AEW Dark” in a losing effort against Kip Sabian. A veteran of over 15 years, Dunkerton has wrestled all around the country, and spent a great deal of time the last several years competing in the United Kingdom. But between the Sabian match in March and (for better or worse) “Pineapple Pete”, Sugar has had his greatest exposure these last several weeks in AEW. Unfortunately for Dunkerton though, part of that exposure was raising the ire of the former AEW World Champion, and Sammy Guevara has taken it upon himself to set the things right.
Jericho has been saying for weeks that The Inner Circle is always on the same page, that they are a united front, and this is just another match that proves that fact. This is not Sammy's battle, it may not even be a battle at all in reality, but it is enough that Jericho was annoyed by “Pineapple Pete” last week to cause Guevara to promise he would take on this match. Is it the smartest move for Sammy to take on this match that he doesn't need to (yet requested) just as the TNT Title Tournament is getting underway? That's debatable, the risking of injury and whatnot for example, but clearly it is worth it for Sammy to appease Jericho.
And while this match may be one Guevara is considering a lock, it is the absolute biggest opportunity of Sugar Dunkerton's career and rest assured he is plenty aware of that fact. A victory here, on TNT, over a member of The Inner Circle, and right before Sammy starts his run in the TNT Title Tournament, it's the potential for a career changing moment. Can “Pineapple Pete” seize the opportunity?
SHAWN SPEARS IN ACTION...
“The Chairman” is coming off a loss in his Quarter-Final match-up of the TNT Championship Title Tournament last week, and a truly heartbreaking one at that seeing as how it was Cody who handed him the defeat.
This week for Shawn Spears it is time to, as the song goes, dust yourself off and try again. Time to get back in the saddle, to lace up those boots, to get back on the horse; take your pick of these old idioms and they all apply to the situation Spears finds himself in here in AEW. The TNT Title Tournament was not the launching pad Spears had hoped, but it is a lesson he can learn from, as it is certain Tully Blanchard has told him, and that experience can pay dividends starting this week. Whomever is standing across the ring from Spears come Wednesday night best be wary.
DR. BAKER LOOKS TO REBOUND...
The number four ranked women in AEW, Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D went through an absolute fight last week against Hikaru Shida. It left her battered, beaten, and bloodied, but also proved to the other women in the division, as well as to Baker herself, that she could get just as down and dirty as anyone else on the roster. At times, Britt even seemed to relish the crimson streaming down her face courtesy of Shida, and it certainly brought out a side of the good doctor fans had not seen before. Unfortunately for Baker, that added motivation of tasting her own blood, it wasn't enough to power her on to a victory over the top ranked woman in AEW.
So, as with Shawn Spears, so to does Britt find herself in a position to rebuild, and reclaim the position at the top of the mountain that she feels is rightfully hers. After all, how can you call yourself the face of the division when you aren't the one carrying the World Title with you?
PRE- & POST-DYNAMITE...
And make sure you tune into AEW's official YouTube page (Click Here) BEFORE and AFTER “Dynamite” hits the air to join the discussions! Alex Abrahantes brings you the “Dynamite” Pre-Show starting off at 6:30pm, while Taz and Excalibur bring to you the Post-Game immediately following “Dynamite”! It's your chance to hear the break down of the event before it happens, and analyze it after the fact with the voices of All Elite Wrestling!
With a World Title match on tap, a second Quarter-Final match in the TNT Title Tournament, and a whole lot more on tap, this is shaping up to be one explosive edition of “Dynamite” coming to you this Wednesday night on TNT at 8pm EST/7pm CST!