AEW Dynamite aired live from the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In addition to the takeaways below, Britt Baker picked up a win in her hometown and defeated Jamie Hayter.
Here are 6 takeaways from the show:
Lucha Bros Advanced To The Finals Of The Tag Team Tournament
Private Party (Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen) faced Lucha Brothers (Fenix and Pentagon) in the semi-finals of the AEW Tag Team Tournament. Quen connected with a Dropkick but Fenix battled back with an awesome German Suplex.
Kassidy tagged in and hit Pentagon with a Hurricanrana and then Private Party posed for the crowd. Quen tagged back in and hit Fenix with a flip off the top rope. Back in the ring, Kassidy hit Pentagon with an Enziguri and followed it up with a DDT.
Quen connected with a 450 Splash and went for the cover but Pentagon kicked out at two. Fenix tagged in and hit a massive Double Stomp to the back of Kassidy’s head. Fenix hit Kassidy with a Moonsault outside the ring as the crowd chanted “AEW!”.
Kassidy tagged in and hit a Hurricanrana and went for the cover but Fenix kicked out at two. Quen tagged in and made his way up to the top turnbuckle. Marq connected with a beautiful Shooting Star Press for a near fall.
Fenix took out Private Party with Powerbomb/ Leg Drop combo and tagged Pentagon in. Pentagon planted Kassidy with a Powerbomb over his knee and then isolated Quen in the corner.
Pentagon countered the Gin & Juice and hit Kassidy with a Destroyer. Fenix booted Quen in the face and then the Lucha Brothers hit a Piledriver/Double Stomp combo for the pinfall victory. Lucha Brothers have advanced to the finals of the AEW Tag Team Championship tournament.
This match was ridiculously entertaining and another great start for Dynamite. It was nearly impossible to keep up with all the spots that went down in this match and is definitely worth a rewatch.
SCU Advanced To The Finals Of The Tag Team Tournament
Dark Order (Evil Uno & Stu Grayson) faced SCU (Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky) in the semi-finals of the AEW Tag Team Tournament. Grayson and Kazarian started off the match. Stu started arguing with referee Aubrey Edwards and Evil Uno capitalized with a cheap shot.
Scorpio tagged in and Dark Order isolated him in the ring and dominated the next couple minutes of the match. Frankie tagged back in and hit Stu with a Dropkick in the corner. Sky tagged back in and quickly got knocked out of the ring. Evil Uno slammed Scorpio into the ring steps and rolled him back into the ring.
Inner Circle was then shown walking through the crowd with tickets and took a seat in a VIP section. Sky connected with a Neckbreaker on Uno and both men tagged out. Kazarian leveled Stu with a shoulder tackle and followed it up with a Leg Drop.
Dark Order battled back and took control of the match as Inner Circle ate popcorn and cheered them on. Grayson knocked Kazarian out of the ring and flipped onto him. Kazarian planted Grayson with a DDT and then delivered another one to Uno on the ring apron.
Frankie followed it up with a knee to the face and Sky covered Grayson for the pinfall victory. SCU will face Lucha Brothers in the finals of the AEW Tag Team Tournament next week.
Kenny Omega Picked Up A Win
Kenny Omega squared off against Joey Janela tonight on Dynamite. Omega dominated early and knocked Joey out of the ring. Kenny hit him with a Crossbody and brought Janela back into the ring.
Janela connected with an uppercut and hit Omega with a couple of chops in the corner. Joey followed it up with a Dropkick that knocked Kenny out of the ring. Janela hit Omega with a Crossbody of his own and rolled Omega back into the ring as Dynamite went to a break.
When Dynamite returned, Omega connected with a Moonsault and followed it up with a German Suplex. Janela battled back and climbed his way to the top rope. Janela hit an Elbow Drop and went for the cover but Kenny kicked out at two.
Omega hit Janela with a Snap Dragon Suplex and then a running knee for a near fall. Kenny hit the V-Trigger but Janela shrugged it off and hit a Fisherman’s Suplex. Joey turned Omega inside out with a massive Clothesline and went for the cover but Kenny kicked out at two.
Janela went for a Senton but Kenny got out of the way and Joey crashed on the ring apron. Omega hit a massive V-Trigger and then the One Winged Angel for the pinfall victory. Omega is now 4-3 in AEW.
Cody, Dustin, DDP & MJF Attacked Inner Circle In Their Luxury Suite
Tony Schiavone interviewed Cody in the ring but Inner Circle quickly interrupted with air horns from the crowd. Jericho grabbed a microphone and started booing into it. Cody stated that this isn’t like the other wrestling company that they came from and he can easily go up into the crowd and fight.
Jericho stated that Cody was nothing more than an entitled millennial bitch and Cody hopped out of the ring. Dustin Rhodes, MJF, and DDP joined the party and marched down the entrance ramp. The four hopped the barricade and started walking up the stairs towards Inner Circle.
Inner Circle retreated and shut the door to the luxury box. MJF handed Cody his scarf and Cody wrapped it around his hand. Cody punched through the glass and a brawl broke out. Police then escorted Cody, Dustin, MJF, and DDP out of the arena as Jericho shouted that Inner Circle had tickets.
Cody even shoved Jericho’s face into a container of Dip N Dots during the brawl.
AEW hit this promo out of the park and I simply cannot wait for Jericho versus Cody at Full Gear. There hasn’t been a dull moment in this week’s show so far.
The Young Bucks Defeated Best Friends & Accepted Santana & Ortiz’s Challenge
Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) battled Best Friends (Chuck Taylor & Trent). Oranga Cassidy accompanied Best Friends to the ring and got a couple of Superkicks for his troubles from the Young Bucks.
Best Friends dominated early and hit Nick Jackson with a Cutter. Nick battled back and knocked Chuck out of the ring. Matt tagged in and hit Trent with a Backbreaker. Young Bucks then mocked Best Friends and shared a hug in the middle of the ring.
Trent leveled Matt with a Spear outside the ring and Chuck connected with a knee to Nick’s face. Matt planted Chuck Tayler with a DDT on the apron and then got distracted by Orange Cassidy. Trent capitalized with a Dropkick and rolled Matt back into the ring as AEW went to a break.
When Dynamite returned, Chuck hit Matt and Nick with a Belly to Belly Suplex. Chuck followed it up with a Powerbomb and went for the cover but Matt kicked out at two. Chuck connected with a Falcon Arrow for another near fall.
Best Friends knocked the Young Bucks out of the ring and shared a hug in the ring. Orange Cassidy hit the Young Bucks with a Crossbody off the top rope as the referee was distracted.
Back in the ring, Best Friends went for the Doomsday Knee but Matt landed on his feet and hit a flurry of Superkicks. Nick took out Trent and Orange Cassidy with a flip and then Matt hit a Moonsault onto Chuck for the pinfall victory. After the match, the Young Bucks accepted Santana and Ortiz’s challenge and will face them at Full Gear.
Moxley Vs. PAC Ended In A Time Limit Draw
PAC battled Jon Moxley in the main event of this week’s Dynamite. PAC attacked Moxley during his entrance and hit him in the back with a steel chair. PAC started choking Moxley with his jacket as the crowd chanted “asshole!”.
PAC launched Moxley into the barricade and then got into the ring. The match started and PAC hit Jon with an Enziguri. PAC climbed to the top rope but Moxley rolled out of the ring. PAC flipped onto Moxley outside the ring and started taunting him. Back in the ring, PAC went for the cover but Moxley kicked out at two. PAC followed it up with a Dropkick for another near fall as Dynamite went to a break.
PAC booted Moxley in the head and followed it up with a Standing Shooting Star Press when Dynamite returned. Moxley planted PAC on the top of his head with a Bulldog on the apron. Jon and PAC traded punches in the middle of the ring and Moxley got the better of the exchange.
Moxley leveled PAC with a Clothesline and went for the cover but PAC kicked out at two. PAC rolled out of the ring and Jon hit him with a Suicide Dive. Back in the ring, Moxley connected with a Slam for a two count as Justin Roberts announced that there were five minutes of TV time remaining.
Jon applied the Cloverleaf in the middle of the ring but PAC grabbed the bottom rope to break the hold. Moxley climbed to the top rope but PAC Dropkicked the ropes to crotch Moxley on the turnbuckle. PAC planted Moxley with an Avalanche Falcon Arrow for another near fall.
PAC went back up to the top turnbuckle but Moxley got up. PAC hopped down and Moxley rolled him up for two. PAC booted Moxley in the face and knocked him out of the ring. PAC hit a 450 Splash off the apron and rolled Jon back into the ring. PAC climbed to the top rope and went for the Black Arrow but Moxley got out of the way.
Moxley went for the cover but PAC kicked out at two. Moxley hit the Paradigm Shift out of nowhere and went for the cover but PAC kicked out and the match ended in a time limit draw. Moxley planted the referee with the Paradigm Shift and said: “time limit my ass” as Dynamite went off the air.
I thought this week’s episode of Dynamite was the best one so far. The two hours flew by and I don’t have any complaints. The Tag Team Tournament has been excellent so far and I’ve really enjoyed the build between Jericho and Cody.
