AEW Dynamite Preview for September 16, 2020

Last week fans witnessed the legendary Dustin Rhodes give the fight of his life in an unsuccessful attempt to wrest the TNT Championship from the grasp of Mr. Brodie Lee and The Dark Order. The cagey competitor gave it everything he had, but Lee proved dominant and kept a hold on the title in his first defense. Jim Ross called it a “battle of attrition” and those words could not have been more true.

In addition, the next World Title defense for Jon Moxley was set for October 14th on the DYNAMITE ANNIVERSARY EDITION with Casino Battle Royale Winner “The Murderhawk Monster” Lance Archer getting his opportunity to become the third AEW World Champion. Tay Conti had an impressive outing against former Women's World Champion Nyla Rose, The Young Bucks got fined, Matt Hardy spoke to the masses, Jurassic Express got into it with FTR, and Miro shocked the world when he arrived in All Elite Wrestling!

This week we shall see a Parking Lot Fight, the NWA Women's Championship on the line, Moxley and Archer in the house, MJF in action, JurEx and FTR in a non-title affair, and much more! DYNAMITE hits the airwaves at 8pm EST/7pm CST on TNT, or on AEWPlus.com for our International audience.

***RANKINGS AS OF 9/9***

PARKING LOT FIGHT...

(#5) Proud-N-Powerful (Santana & Ortiz) vs. (#2) The Best Friends (Chuck Taylor & Trent)

This one nearly went down many, many months ago but the early days of the ongoing pandemic prevented it from happening when originally scheduled. Yet here we are, under drastically different circumstances for PnP and Best Friends, than we were at that time. The hostilities have escalated drastically, seen many violent assaults perpetrated by The Inner Circle duo upon Trent and Chuck, and have even pulled in Trent's mom. Her van ended up the victim of an assault from both graffiti and a sledgehammer, and the woman herself ended up a verbal target of Santana and Ortiz as well.

Chuck and Trent have proven the dominant team in terms of the record books, winning in a Trios match, an eight man tag, and ultimately a traditional tag on July 30th. That loss really elevated the hate and spiraled out into all kinds of violence against The Best Friends, as well as against their buddy Orange Cassidy, as witnessed last week on DYNAMITE:

On the eve of ALL OUT 2020, Santana and Ortiz picked up a victory on DYNAMITE but it didn't quell the violence, it only carried on into that September 2nd night, into the pay-per-view extravaganza, and into that video embedded right there from last Wednesday night.

It all comes to a head this week in a Parking Lot Brawl pitting Proud-N-Powerful against The Best Friends! Which team will get the decisive victory and put this bitter rivalry to bed? Another thing that springs to mind: both units are also in the hunt for the World Tag Team Titles now held by FTR, with spots in the Top 5 rankings, and getting the victory here could affect the chances of getting a shot at Dax and Cash in the future. For Santana, Ortiz, Chuck, and Trent, this one is not at all about championship contention, but the results will certainly play into that status.

NWA WORLD WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH...

Thunder Rosa (c) vs. Ivelisse

The NWA World Women's Champion has now entered the AEW ring for two bouts, and notched a one-and-one record for her efforts. The first time out proved to be a victorious contest over the very game Serena Deeb, a bout that had many pundits speculating Rosa could be the one to dethrone Hikaru Shida at ALL OUT 2020.

That would not prove to be the case when Rosa challenged for the AEW Women's World Title on pay-per-view, but she once again proved why she is a champion, and their title bout was hailed by many as the best wrestling match on the event. There can be victory in defeat, and even though it is nowhere near as satisfying, Thunder Rosa made that statement a reality on September 5th.

This week on DYNAMITE though, there can be no victory in defeat for the defending NWA World Women's Champion, defeat means that title becomes the property of AEW's Ivelisse. One-half of the Women's Tag Team Cup champions with Diamante, Ivelisse is no stranger to her foe of the week. The two have competed in a handful of matches over the years, mostly tag team situations, but in their lone singles encounter, albeit one that took place almost two years, it was Ivelisse who topped Rosa.

This Wednesday night will indeed be an historic occasion when an NWA championship is defended inside an AEW ring, and on TNT nonetheless! Which woman will prove the superior athlete and hold the championship high in victory?

NON-TITLE TAG TEAM ACTION...

AEW World Tag Team Champion FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood w/ Tully Blanchard) vs.

Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus w/ Marko Stunt)

As the newly crowned World Tag Team champions, FTR just wanted to celebrate their ALL OUT 2020 victory in front of the worldwide audience on DYNAMITE. It started all well and good, other tag teams out there to recognize the new champs, but quickly turned sour as the new champs ran down every team out there to acknowledge their accomplishment. It didn't matter if it was SCU, Private Party, The Gunn Club, or Jurassic Express, everyone was fair game for Dax and Cash to trash talk.

But when Luchasaurus, Jungle Boy, and Marko Stunt took umbrage with the dressing down, FTR tried to get the jump on JurEx, and ultimately bailed out of the ring to escape any consequences for their talk. Well, they didn't run far enough, as you can see in the video embedded above, and ended up with a cooler full of ice dumped over their heads while the rest of the division enjoyed some celebratory cake.

This week on DYNAMITE, FTR has a chance to get a little redemption for their much deserved humiliation when Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy clash in non-title action with the champions. For JurEx, it is the opportunity to earn a championship match by knocking Dax and Cash down a notch on Wednesday night. Not only could they earn a title shot, but also shove the insulting words FTR threw their way right back down the champs' throat.

THE INNER CIRCLE WANTS GOLD...

“The DemoGod” Chris Jericho & Jake Hager vs. Private Party (Isiah Kassidy & Marq Quen)

After his defeat in the Mimosa Mayhem match at ALL OUT 2020, Jericho bounced back on DYNAMITE last week in a No DQ tag team bout with Hager at his side. The pair put down Joey Janela and Sonny Kiss with some help from a fire extinguisher, and then, as seen in the video embedded above, declared their intent to challenge for the World Tag Team titles.

It marked the second victory for the pair in tag team action, the first coming back on July 16th over Jurassic Express, and as a tag team, Jericho and Hager certainly have the potential to work their way up into contention. But there are a great deal of talented teams vying for their own title opportunity against FTR, and Private Party are chief among those duos. Isiah and Marq have had their chance before, just as Jericho did with Sammy as his partner, but both have to work their way into that picture once again.

Jericho's aspirations of bringing championship gold back around his waist continue this week on DYNAMITE, and Private Party aims to play spoiler to that dream. But one question that has to be put out there pertaining to Jericho and Hager, what happens if it comes down to them and Proud-N-Powerful in terms of a title opportunity? Just food for thought...

SINGLES MATCH...

“Hangman” Adam Page vs. Frankie Kazarian

For the first time since July 16th when he beat Five, and just the second time since November of 2019, Hangman Page will step into the AEW ring all by himself. No Kenny Omega, no Young Bucks, no Dustin Rhodes, absolutely no one at his side or having his back for this singles match against one-third of SCU, one of the men he beat to claim the World Tag Team Titles earlier this year, Frankie Kazarian. But the guy who won the titles with Omega earlier this year, that guy is certainly lost in the sauce and scrambling to find his way after screwing over The Young Bucks, being tossed from The Elite, being ridiculed on TV and then beaten on PPV by FTR, then having Omega turn his back on Page and walking out with no desire to rekindle the partnership. Outside looking in, Adam Page is at rock bottom and still trying to dig deeper.

Other side of the ring, Frankie Kazarian is rolling into this singles match having won three of his last four one-on-one contests, with the defeat coming at the hands of AEW World Champion Jon Moxley in a non-title meeting. In that aspect, Kaz certainly has momentum on his side and in terms of headspace, he is also far and away in the lead there. This is a prime situation for Frankie to secure a win and build up that singles resume much like his partner Scorpio Sky has done in recent months.

As for Page, this is our first chance to see where he's at inside that ring after losing everything around him slowly but surely. We know that when he's outside the ring, Hangman has been drowning his sorrows to excess, but to date he's never let that affect is in-ring work. Eventually though, there's a tipping point, and Adam won't be able to compartmentalize anymore. That glass of whiskey becomes a few glasses becomes a bottle becomes everything, and there isn't room for anything or anyone else...

MOXLEY & ARCHER...

DYNAMITE is creeping on its one year anniversary, and part of the celebration of said landmark will be the next AEW World Title defense for Jon Moxley. His opponent that October 14th night, as a result of winning the 2020 Casino Battle Royale, will be none other than “The Murderhawk Monster” Lance Archer. And although Eddie Kingston has taken issue with that fact, citing that he was technically never eliminated from the match, it is Archer who is slated to receive the title opportunity nonetheless.

And with that declaration last week, the war of words has begun between the two men, well three really if we factor in the venom Jake Roberts spits whenever his mouth is moving. Aside from Jake though, we aren't talking about two competitors who like to run their mouths before the fight. Unlike Mox's last challenger, in Archer he's now faced with someone who would just as soon punch him in the face as utter a single syllable. It's the sort of fight Moxley relishes getting into, the type he has built a career upon by diving headfirst into the fray.

There is no concern over the next several weeks of either man looking for legal loopholes, getting moves banned, or having associates run interference. The bigger concern is whether or not these two warriors will make it another four weeks without decimating one another as soon as they are in close proximity. This week on DYNAMITE, we will hear from them both as their date with destiny draws nigh...

MJF IN ACTION...

Clearly after losing his first ever World Championship bid at ALL OUT 2020 and falling to the number three spot in the top five rankings, Maxwell Jacob Friedman is not in a good way. He may hold the purse strings for Wardlow at the moment, but is getting into the face and denigrating a guy like that really the smartest move MJF could make right now?

The answer to that is clear as crystal, so what is the smartest move Max could make if he wants to get back in the vicinity of the AEW World Title following the Mox/Archer clash? He can go out there and compete, go out to the ring, win his matches, and prove he is worthy of another title match. This week on DYNAMITE, the former top contender will have to begin the ascent once more, and if MJF can't make the climb, well he will no doubt find someone else to blame besides the man in the mirror.

THE BEST MAN, THE BRIDE, THE GROOM...

At ALL OUT 2020, Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford proclaimed they would introduce The Best Man for their wedding on the subsequent edition of DYNAMITE. Speculation of course began running wild about who would fill this uber-important role for the impending nuptials, but fans did not have to wait long to find out who it would not be.

Down goes Puf, down goes Brian Pillman Jr, and up comes an unexpected shock with one of the hottest free agents in professional wrestling, Miro! After some choice words for all those in ear shot, THE Best Man sternly stated “My name is Miro, and I am All Elite!”.

This week on DYNAMITE, we will hear more from “Superbad” Kip Sabian, Penelope Ford, and The Best Man Miro. Are they announcing a date set for the wedding? Tune in Wednesday night on TNT to find out just what is in store for this rather unexpected trio!

With our DYNAMITE ANNIVERSARY EDITION a month away, and our FULL GEAR 2020 pay-per-view event coming shortly thereafter, the landscape of AEW is going to be a wild one! Do not miss out on all the action each and every week on DYNAMITE! This week we are coming at you from our home slot at 8pm EST/7pm CST Wednesday night on TNT, and it is one loaded edition!

And if you're interested in seeing the DYNAMITE action live and in-person, you can join us at Daily's Place Jacksonville with the “DYNAMITE SEVEN” Season Pass! Score tickets for seven events through November, starting with the September 23rd show, for just $175 plus fees. They are on sale now by calling (904) 633-2000.