Last Saturday night, the second annual “Double or Nothing” pay-per-view event, was truly a milestone for All Elite Wrestling. Fans witnessed the debut of Brian Cage, the crowning of the first ever TNT Champion when Cody bested Lance Archer and was bequeathed the belt from the legendary “Iron” Mike Tyson. We saw the crowning of a brand new Women's World Champion with Hikaru Shida's defeat of Nyla Rose, and were privy to a physical war between AEW World Champion Jon Moxley and Mr. Brodie Lee in which the champion retained his title.
And best not forget the marvelous spectacle that was the Stadium Stampede between The Inner Circle and The Elite. It was an absolute must-see battle, sprawling across the entire TIAA Field complex, off into the concourse, around, over, and behind the bar, even in a swimming pool! The replay is available right now at BRLive (Order Here) for international customers, and it is not to be missed!
So what will unfold this week on “Dynamite” in the aftermath of that landmark PPV event? Tune in to TNT at 8pm EST/7pm CST when we hit the airwaves LIVE with the absolute best wrestling product on television! And did we mention Tyson will be in the house again?
BATTLE ROYAL...
**WINNER RECEIVES TNT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH ON 6/3**
Being the first champion is an historic occasion, and this past Saturday night Cody and Lance Archer embraced that moment. In what can only be described as a knockdown, drag-out fight between two supreme athletes, they showed the world just how important it was to become the first TNT Champion, and truthfully, just how much hate had evolved in rapid fashion. Ultimately it was Cody who had his hand raised in victory, who earned the right to be called THE FIRST, but it may be a label that he only enjoys for eleven days.
This Wednesday night there will be a Battle Royal, and to the winner goes a TNT Championship match with Cody scheduled to take place on the June 3rd edition of “Dynamite”. Who will be the on to emerge from this chaos as the first challenger to “The American Nightmare”? Just looking over the roster, we could see Darby Allin take another crack at Cody to finally get that elusive win. Perhaps Dustin Rhodes will get this rematch from “DoN 2019”, or Shawn Spears can avenge his TNT Tournament defeat. Janela, Orange Cassidy, Luchasaurus, Colt Cabana, Wardlow or maybe even MJF himself; an opportunity to wrest the TNT Championship from Cody in his first defense may be too much for any individual to pass up. Perhaps even Lance Archer will throw his name in the hat for one more crack at Cody's skull.
No doubt, Cody will be watching this one go down as he starts to game plan for June 3rd and begins to establish his legacy as the TNT Champion.
THE INNER CIRCLE PEP RALLY...
Saturday night at “Double or Nothing”, fans worldwide witnessed as The Elite gelled together for the first time in ages to defeat The Inner Circle in the Stadium Stampede. Albeit not the most traditional of match structures, it marked a turning point in the Elite/Inner Circle saga, and seemed to signify a change in the relationships between Kenny Omega, Adam Page, and The Young Bucks. But this is not a tale of triumph right here, this is about The Inner Circle and how they plan to bounce back from the loss. Suffice it to say that it's 100% on-brand for Chris Jericho to do this with a pep rally.
So when you think of a pep rally, what comes to mind? Cheerleaders? Rah rah speeches designed to boost the team spirit and raise the morale? Sometimes you'll even get the band playing the team fight song with games, dance contests, maybe even prizes for the winners!
Is this what Le Champion will have on tap for his team? Just what will an Inner Circle pep rally look like? We shall find out on Wednesday night LIVE on TNT!
THE PATH OF CAGE...
Saturday night, the first ever Casino Ladder Match took place at “Double or Nothing” with a future shot at the AEW World Title up for grabs. Janela, Cassidy, Sky, Kazarian, Luchasaurus, Cabana, Sabian, and Allin were all announced prior to showtime, with one entrant left a mystery to be revealed during the course of the match.
When the clock expired on the two minute timer, and the final competitor made his way out from the tunnel accompanied by Taz, it was a shock to all that Brian Cage had arrived in All Elite Wrestling. Excalibur referred to him as a machine, and he would demonstrate why as he flung bodies this way and that, even climbing the ladder with OC on his back, before the other men in the match united to bury Cage under a mountain of plunder.
It wouldn't hold Taz's new charge down for long as Cage would burst out of the casino chip topped pile, go toe-to-toe with Luchasaurus, and decimate Darby Allin via ladder toss before ascending to the top of the ladder and claiming the future World Title shot for his own. All that Cage had to do was wait to see if it would be Jon Moxley or Mr. Brodie Lee, and find out when he would have his opportunity.
The answers to both would come for Cage that night as fans witnessed Moxley defeat Lee via referee stoppage to retain his World Title, and then it was announced during the Post-Show Scrum (Watch Here) by Tony Khan that Cage will receive his title match at the 2020 “Fyter Fest” for which details will be announced this week on “Dynamite”!
Quite an auspicious debut for Brian Cage, and what a challenge he represents for Jon Moxley, one entirely unlike Chris Jericho, Jake Hager, or Mr. Brodie Lee. Tune in Wednesday night for all the details!
THE BUCKS ARE BACK IN TOWN...
Matt Hardy & (#5) The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) vs. Joey Janela & (#3) Private Party (Marq Quen & Isiah Kassidy)
Coming off a huge night at “Double or Nothing” for all involved, this wild six-man tag that's going down on “Dynamite” is going to be an exciting one! The Young Bucks are returning to “Dynamite” for the first time in over two months, their first traditional match since “Revolution” back on February 29th, and their first time uniting with Matt Hardy as well. And a little icing on the cake, it also offers Matt and Nick a crack at Private Party, the duo that handed them an upset loss in the World Tag Team Title Tournament last October. Now mind you Matt Jackson is coming into this with banged up ribs, Nick Jackson spent the last couple months on the mend from The Inner Circle's assault, and Matt Hardy had a very...transformative...night on Saturday with the Stadium Stampede.
On the other side, Private Party narrowly missed out on their chance to be the #1 Contenders for the World Tag Titles when they lost to The Best Friends on “The Buy-In”, and Joey Janela went through a bit of physical hell after signing up for the Casino Ladder Match at the zero hour following Rey Fenix's injury. Still, even with the last minute entry, Janela came out of the gates hot and never let up.
And you can bet that will be the situation here as well. All six of these men are going to come out ready to go Wednesday night; one side on a roll from the triumphant PPV experience, and the other looking to rebound from their unsuccessful ventures.
LADDER MATCH FALLOUT...
SCU (Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky) vs. The SuperBad DeathSquad (Kip Sabian & Jimmy Havoc w/ Penelope Ford)
It's common knowledge that in a Ladder Match situation, all the rules are thrown out the window save the one that dictates how a competitor wins the match. Climb up the ladder, retrieve the item (in this case the Casino Chip), win; pretty straight forward, but with a great deal of leeway for the competitors involved.
So it was no surprise that The SuperBad Death Squad (Jimmy dubbed the unit on his Twitter, it fits) took full advantage of the situation by having both Havoc and Ford lend their assistance to Kip's cause at “Double or Nothing”. Ultimately it would be for naught, Brian Cage would emerge the victor, but it certainly proved frustrating and tipped the scales in Sabian's favor in the early goings.
Still, there needed to be a reckoning, and it comes on Wednesday night. Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky, the first two men who entered into the Ladder Match and had to try to set their friendship aside for the duration, will hop back into tag team action with receipts aplenty for Kip Sabian and Jimmy Havoc! And with neither team currently in the top five rankings, a win here would certainly go a long way towards moving one unit into the picture!
And speaking of that tag team title picture...
TAG TEAM CONTENDERS...
During the “Buy-In” pre-show last Saturday night, The Best Friends of Chuck Taylor and Trent firmly established themselves as the top contenders for the AEW World Tag Team Titles held by Kenny Omega and “Hangman” Adam Page. Chuck and Trent fought their way to the number one spot in the May 20th tag team rankings, and guaranteed the title shot with the victory over Private Party embedded above. All that remains is to set the date for the title match, and see if The Best Friends can replicate the successes they've had against Private Party, Jurassic Express, Havoc/Sabian, and even Omega when he had Michael Nakazawa as a partner. They're currently on a five match win streak, have won six out of their last seven, and have far more ring time as a team than Page and Omega, especially in the last several months.
When the time comes for the title bout, will it be the time that Chuck and Trent prove they are the best tag team in AEW? With Page finally out of the woods and back in action, hopefully fans will get this collision sooner than later!
AND NEW....
Saturday night, after weeks of sitting at the top spot in the Women's rankings, Hikaru Shida finally stepped up to the plate against Nyla Rose for the AEW Women's World Title, and boy did she ever hit a home run! After a hellacious No DQ fight, Shida finally put The Native Beast's shoulders down for the three count and became the 3rd ever AEW Women's World Champion! And while Shida got her chance to celebrate with some ice cream after that fact, it is now back to business as the champ will compete live on “Dynamite” this Wednesday night! Shida will no doubt be feeling it still after the punishment she endured at “DoN”, could this be an opportunity for one fortunate competitor to shock the world and knock the champ down in her first match after claiming the title?
THE GOOD DOCTOR...
As was announced late last week, Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D suffered a very serious injury that forced her on the sidelines for “Double or Nothing”, causing her to miss the scheduled bout with Kris Statlander. It gave Penelope Ford an opportunity to step up to the challenge, but she was ultimately beaten by the #2 Contender in the Women's rankings. A fact that surely disappointed Baker even though she had pressing concerns of her own with the injury.
As seen in the video above, fans were given a rundown of the injury specifics by Dr. Sampson, and speculation runs anywhere from six weeks to three months for recovery time, maybe even longer. Being the role model that she is, Britt has elected to let the world, and all her fans, know the timetable herself on Wednesday night during “Dynamite”. What does the future hold for the good doctor?
“Dynamite” comes to you LIVE this Wednesday night on TNT at 8pm EST/7pm CST with the television debut of “Iron” Mike Tyson, the details of this year's “Fyter Fest” event, Cody's first challenger, and more! We are kicking year two off with a bang that fans will not forget, and be sure to check out the Pre-Game Show on our official YouTube channel prior to the start of TV!