AEW Women’s World Champion Hikaru Shida and several others are showing their support for the #StopAsianHate campaign online. Over the last year, there has been a signifcant rise in racially motivated violence against Asian-Americans.
“Racially motivated violence and other incidents against Asian-Americans have reached an alarming level across the United States since the outbreak of COVID- 19,” reads a United Nations report released last year. “Chinese Americans and other Asian-Americans, including Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Filipino, and Burmese descent, among others, have been subject to racist, xenophobic attacks.”
The advocacy group “Stop AAPI Hate” noted over 2800 reported incidents of anti-Asian racism in the United States from the start of the pandemic to the end of 2020.
“Between March 19, 2020 (when Stop AAPI Hate began collecting reports) and December 31, 2020, Stop AAPI Hate received over 2,808 firsthand accounts of anti-Asian hate from 47 states and the District of Columbia,” a statement released by the organization reads.
For more information or to report an incident, please visit the Stop AAPI Hate website here.
Wrestlers Support #StopAsianHate
In the wake of these incidents and the recent shootings in Georgia, several wrestlers have been showing their support for the #StopAsianHate hashtag online.
America is so full of hate. The senseless violence against our Asian American community once again showing how broken we are. Let's be diligent and protect our Asian Brothers and Sisters.
This is the GoFundMe account for the sons of Hyun Jung Kim — one of the many victims in the Atlanta shooting. Both of her sons are now alone in the US and will need to fend for themselves.
The bloody Lights Out match between Thunder Rosa and Britt Baker closed out last night’s special St. Patrick’s Day Slam edition of AEW Dynamite. Following the match, Tony Khan took to Twitter to comment on the bout.
“What a great main event, thank you to everyone who joined us tonight for the Lights Out Match, Thunder Rosa vs. Dr. Britt Baker, the culmination of a classic rivalry as a 4 month story paid off in one of the greatest & most memorable main event matches ever on AEW Dynamite!” Khan Tweeted.
Thunder Rosa also took to Twitter following her match with Britt Baker last night.
“My goal in life has always been to champion things for those women who don’t belong, who are ostracized and criticized, for those who are push aside and not taken serious. This win was bigger than me. It was for you! Never allowed anyone to tell you don’t belong…” Rosa Tweeted.
Britt Baker also took to Twitter following last night’s main event.
AEW Women’s Champion Hikaru Shida also commented on the show. She referred to recent comments she made to SI.com about the division being able to carry the show. Shida defeated Rosa at the All Out PPV last September.
I told you in Sports Illustrated interview,
“We’re proving our division has the power to carry the show” #AEWDynamite#AEW
Tonight on Dynamite, Thunder Rosa and Britt Baker will face off in a Lights Out match to headline the show. AEW’s women’s division experienced some growing pains since the onset of the promotion but seems to have really hit a new stride as of late. Tony Khan recently spoke to the Sporting News about the growth of the division.
“I think we’ve seen great development of the women’s roster since AEW launched,” Khan said during the interview. “Wrestling fans voted Dr. Britt Baker the most improved wrestler in the world last year for 2020, in the Wrestling Observer awards, and she’s been a great leader in the women’s division. She’s been a great leader in the women’s division and we’ve added great talent internally.”
Khan then listed a few names that AEW has been able to acquire that have helped the division grow.
“I think Red Velvet’s come in and done a really good job for us, and Serena Deeb has come in and not only been great for us, but then as a full-time AEW contract wrestler, went out and won the NWA women’s title. Serena, Red Velvet and Leyla Hirsch are great examples of people who weren’t here at the beginning, who I think have upgraded our talent, and stepped in and become really great additions.”
Tony Khan Praises Tay Conti & Others
Tay Conti was also specifically mentioned by Khan during the interview.
“Tay Conti is somebody who I’ve always thought had tremendous potential — she has vastly improved and I think she could be a front-runner this year, potentially, to break out and be one of the most improved wrestlers in the world. I think she had all the tools and all the personal charisma that it takes to be a great wrestler. She always had everything it took, and now with more experience, more reps and great coaching, we’re seeing that.”
AEW signed several big-name male stars right out of the gate. Marquee female wrestlers equivalent to Chris Jericho, Kenny Omega, and Jon Moxley simply weren’t available in the free agency pool when AEW started. Since then, however, they’ve added to the roster through free agency and worked to grow stars in the division.
“The women’s division, we signed a lot of great wrestlers and we’ve seen some development but we’ve also had a lot of huge movement in free agency since then,” Khan continued.
“I think now for our women’s division, for us to have great new stars with buzz who have really added to the show in the past six months or a year, it really helped us a lot. I’m so excited for the main event this week of the Lights Out match with Dr. Britt Baker versus Thunder Rosa, which is one of my favorite stories we’ve ever told on all of AEW, really.”
New AEW signee Christian Cage recently spoke to Sports Illustrated. Captain Charisma stated during the interview that he was happy to join All Elite as he felt they would present his character in a way befitting of a legend.
“[Jon] Moxley is a good friend of mine, and he was saying, ‘You’re a free agent; you should at least have a conversation with Tony Khan,’ so I did” Christian Cage began.
“Listening to the things Tony thought I could bring to the table and how he thought I could help, providing me the right platform at this stage in my career, it all made sense,” Cage continued. “In less than a week, it was a done deal.”
Christian Cage also discussed why he left WWE back in 2005. As you may remember, Christian joined TNA during the mid 2000s to try and prove that he could be a main event player in a promotion.
Christian Cage on Leaving WWE
“When I left in 2005, I was kind of pigeonholed into a certain spot [in WWE]” Christian Cage revealed. “And that wasn’t going to change unless I changed it myself,” Jay Reso mentioned.
“So I bet on myself. I knew that I had the talent and I was confident in my ability” Cage claimed. “I wasn’t content with where I was at, and I knew I had more to give.”
Cage appeared on last week’s episode of AEW Dynamite, confronting and attacking AEW Champion Kenny Omega. Although it has not been confirmed if that is a match AEW are considering going forward; it shows that the company believes the 47 year old Cage will be considered as a main event talent.
Do you want to see Christian Cage fight for the AEW Championship? Let us know in the comments
Leyla Hirsch has officially signed with All Elite Wrestling.
On Monday afternoon, the company’s president, Tony Khan, announced the signing on social media by writing the following:
“Congratulations and welcome aboard officially to @LegitLeyla Hirsch, I’m thrilled to have you signed to @AEW,” he wrote. “Thank you very much to Leyla and to all of you great fans who support @AEWonTNT for making this possible!”
Since last October, Hirsch has been wrestling regularly for AEW as she made her promotional debut in a losing effort against Hikaru Shida on an episode of AEW Dark. She continues to work Dark episodes in addition to appearing on AEW’s flagship show, Dynamite, on TNT.
She most recently worked the AEW Women’s World Title Eliminator tournament where she ended up losing to Thunder Rosa in the first round.
Hirsch broke into the business in 2017 where she regularly competed in CZW in addition to training in their dojo. She also worked for various promotions such as Stardom, Beyond Wrestling, and wXw. Hirsch also competed on a Bloodsport card last October.
Britt Baker will face Thunder Rosa in a Light’s Out match on Dynamite this week. The match has been announced as the main event of St. Patrick’s Day Slam. Technically, it has already been taped and will air on Wednesday but Baker spoke with SI.com recently about the match’s importance.
“There is only one chance at having the first-ever women’s main event, and I get to be part of it. This is a match you’re going to remember for a long time,” Baker said during the interview.
Baker responded when questioned about Hikaru Shida not being featured in the first-ever women’s main event on Dynamite. Baker feels she’s the biggest start in the division no matter who is the champion.
“I truly believe I am the biggest star of the women’s division,” Baker continued. “You could put me in the main event with one of Kenny Omega’s broom girls, and people are still going to watch it. I want to put all eyes on me when I come on TV.”
“This is a show that has the likes of Jon Moxley, Cody Rhodes, Matt Hardy, Penta and Eddie Kingston, and I’m the main event. Part of me can’t believe this is happening, while the other half is saying, damn right, it’s happening.”
Baker continued to say that her and Thunder Rosa will go all out this Wednesday night and put on a special show.
“You can say it’s because of Thunder Rosa; you can say it’s because of me, but we are going to add a lot of respect to the women’s division this Wednesday on Dynamite. We’re going to go all out,” Baker continued.
“We both have a different vision of who is pioneering this women’s division. Someone has to win; someone has to lose, but it’s going to be a fight. I promise this is going to be a can’t-miss main event match that people will be talking about for years.”
Dr. Britt Baker: “This is a show that has the likes of Jon Moxley, Cody Rhodes, Matt Hardy, Penta, and Eddie Kingston, and I’m the main event. Part of me can’t believe this is happening, while the other half is saying, damn right it’s happening.”https://t.co/G0b7AR7wam
Chris Jericho and other Van Halen fans are upset with the Grammys over what many are calling an inadequate tribute to Eddie Van Halen at this year’s awards ceremony. The legendary guitarist passed away in October from a stroke. He was 65-years-old.
A 15-second tribute to Eddie Van Halen aired on the Grammys last night. Many fans feel this was not a fitting tribute considering the contributions he made to the music industry. One of those upset with the lack of tribute was Chris Jericho, who evidently missed what little tribute did take place.
“I was the perfect age to love Van Halen. Because when the 1984 album came out, I was 13 or 14 years old. I was their demographic,” Jericho said during an interview last year. “I remember seeing Van Halen in 2007 and Eddie was having an exceptionally good night. And I was like, ‘Yeah. That’s the reason why they call him the greatest of all time. He’s absolutely the greatest.’ His legacy is being the greatest guitar player of all time in my opinion. And it’s not even close.”
AEW Revolution has smashed the company’s buyrate records of previous PPVs, and has generated a revenue of at least $5 million. The show brought in 125,000 buys worldwide, including both traditional and digital platforms namely B/R Live, FITE, and traditional pay-per-view outlets. The previous buyrate record was set by AEW’s Double or Nothing 2020 pay-per-view event with an estimated 105,000 buys. According to Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics, the show generated just over $5 million in revenue, with $2.4 million of it going to AEW. The rest will go to its domestic and international broadcast partners.
It was initially reported by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Revolution grossed over $6 million and it’s well on its way to make $7 million once the total is calculated. The Wrestlenomics report features a breakdown of various revenue streams for the PPV such as PPV buys, ticket and merchandise sales, accounting for $5 million for AEW. It took estimatedly $1 million to produce Revolution for the company.
“Yeah, it was really deflating to do so much preparation, test the explosions, have them be impressive in the rehearsal, and then have it be something so much different than what was promised,” Kenny Omega said about the Revolution finish. “It made me appreciate everyone who worked hard and did their part even more, though. But like you said, we really wanted to have a good one, and we added real barbed wire to help with the feeling of danger so we really risked a lot. Again, I loved the match; glad we did it, sucks about the finale.”
Kurt Angle had fun with the rumors of him joining AEW and competing for the promotion when the Big Show teased the signing of a Hall Of Famer worthy talent for Revolution. While Christian ended up being the big reveal, it doesn’t end the possibility of the Olympic Gold Medallist joining the AEW roster somewhere down the line.
On the latest episode of his The Kurt Angle Show podcast, the former WWE star talked about the rumors of Big Show potentially wrestling for the company. When asked if we could ever see him coming to AEW to wrestle, he replied negatively:
“I don’t think so, I texted Big Show and said congratulations on signing with AEW and he said ‘Oh man, I feel like I’m 25.’ I was like holy s–t, you’re going to wrestle? He didn’t answer me, but he said he felt like he was 25 again, I guess that means he’s going to wrestle, I don’t know.”
Kurt Angle also talked about how surprised he was with Big Show’s AEW signing and he said that he thought Paul Wight would remain with WWE for the rest of his life. While the former Raw General Manager declined the possibility of wrestling for AEW, he did not completely rule out the possibility of making an appearance for the company.
Do you see Kurt Angle making an appearance for AEW somewhere down the line? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Kenny Omega will take on Rich Swann in a Title vs. Title Match at Impact Wrestling’s Rebellion pay-per-view event on April 24. Swann defeated Moose on Saturday night’s Sacrifice event to become the Unified Impact World Heavyweight Champion. Impact Wrestling officially sanctioned the TNA World Heavyweight title on February 23 after Moose began calling himself “Mr. TNA,” claiming to represent the company’s history. Now that Swann has defeated Moose, he has become the undisputed world champion of Impact, with the Impact World title being referred to as the Unified World Championship.
Executive Vice President Scott D’Amore announced during last week’s Impact that the champion of the company would go on to face AEW World Champion Kenny Omega at Rebellion in a Title vs. Title Match on April 24.
Following his loss to Rich Swann, Moose said that he would take some time off to revaluate and think about what he plans to do in the future. “Tonight I proved that I’m undoubtedly the Best Big Man in professional wrestling and one of the best wrestlers In the world. I came short of becoming the undisputed champion. Will take time off to reevaluate the past Rebuild Refocus Rebrand and think about the Future.” Kenny Omega also reacted to the result of the match, posting the following:
Rich Swann and Kenny Omega have faced each other in the ring before, most recently at Impact’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view event in January where Omega teamed up with then-Impact Tag Team Champions The Good Brothers to defeat Swann, Chris Sabin and Moose.
Kenny Omega has made it known that he wants to collect more titles, and if he defeats Rich Swann at Rebellion then he would become the Impact Champion too. Speaking on his future defense against Omega, Swann said, “I’m from Baltimore, Maryland. I’m not afraid to step into the ring with no man. I fear no man and I only fear one thing. The thing is, that is not one thing that I would ever fear. If he (Kenny Omega) wanted to step into the ring and do a Unification… We’ve it. We’ve seen seen him go into Mexico and he beat Loredo Kid in AAA. Do I think he could come into my house and do what he did there? I don’t know. Time will tell.”
The Acclaimed’s Anthony Bowens is expected to miss up to 2-months due to recent knee surgery. This was first revealed by Tony Khan in a media scrum to promote AEW Revolution. Bowens himself commented on the injury recently.
“What you’ve seen the last 4 months was me basically wrestling on 1 leg. I can’t wait to get back full throttle. Don’t worry though, there’s still plenty of Acclaimed content coming your way each week. I’m excited for everyone to get to know us/me a little better outside the ring,” Bowens Tweeted.
The other member of the Acclaimed, Max Castor, competed in the Face of the Revolution ladder match on Sunday’s PPV.
Bowens hasn’t wrestled since early February. The Acclaimed dropped a match to Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Chris Jericho on an episode of Dynamite taped on February 4th, 2021.
Bowens is an 8-year pro having been trained by Pat Buck in New Jersey. He and Castor were signed to multi-year deals with AEW in November.
“I started 2020 trying to do anything I could to get to noticed by AEW and I ended it by main eventing Dynamite. Unreal. Like us or not The Acclaimed have arrived and we are here to stay,” he Tweeted in December.
“Critically Acclaimed” by The Acclaimed OFFICIAL VIDEO is now live!!!
Get to know us both a little better with the first single off The Acclaimed Mixtape Volume 1 (Coming Soon).
All Elite Wrestling was in a tough spot when the mega-hyped Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match ended with technical difficulties. SEScoops correspondent Jake Jeremy argues on YouTube that #AEW? made the best of a bad situation on this week’s #AEWDynamite? with their followup angle.
Check out our opinion editorial video below and let us know how you felt about the way that AEW reacted to the AEW Revolution ending botch on this week’s episode of Dynamite.
“Honestly, I’m glad neither guy came out with a serious injury because it was a really scary match and they both really put their health at risk for a huge PPV main event,” Khan said. “I think it was awesome, it was a great spectacle and I think we’re all lucky that the bomb going off in the end didn’t really hurt anybody, that Kenny’s big masterplan, that he built a dud [explosion].”
“The basic explanation is that Kenny’s ring set to explode, his plan as a heel who built this thing with a hammer and nails as we saw, that the final bomb just didn’t go off,” Khan concluded.
What would you like to see us produce for video content on YouTube going forward? Let us know in the comments
Former WWE Executive Director of SmackDown and WCW President recently discussed the finishing ‘Wednesday Night War’ between NXT and All Elite Wrestling.
“I have a hard time when people talk about the Wednesday Night Wars, they’re not the Wednesday Night Wars” Bischoff stated on 83 Weeks. “Two shows head to head does not a war make. A good war is when all boats rise with a high tide, when it lifts the entire industry.”
Eric Bischoff on WCW vs WWF
Bischoff then discussed the comparisons between the 90’s war between WCW and the WWF. “That’s what we saw here, even though the WWF was suffering in some respects, their business was improving markedly so in other respects because of Nitro.”
“I think sometimes that gets lost in the gang warfare of wrestling relations” Bischoff continued. “Meaning if you’re a fan of WWF you couldn’t be a fan of WCW, if you’re a fan of WCW you hated WWF, if you’re a fan of AEW you can’t stand NXT, if you’re a fan of NXT you can’t stand AEW, that’s silly horse s–t that people subscribe too. It doesn’t necessarily make a war, what makes a war is when you’re competing against each other, forcing each other to improve your product and then you’re watching the audience grow in response. Therein lies a good war.”
credit 83 Weeks and a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
The Shaquille O’Neal & Jade Cargill vs. Cody Rhodes & Red Velvet match took place earlier this month on an episode of AEW Dynamite and received rave reviews.
This was the in-ring debut under the AEW banner for the NBA Hall of Famer. The AEW Executive spoke about the contest during an appearance on Action Sports Jax On ESPN690.
In addition to the limited experience of Shaq, Velvet and Cargill were also green, which is totally understandable for fans to have low expectations, according to Rhodes.
He said he is part of the hardcore audience as well, but he’s always surprised when people doubt him because he never does anything without a gameplan and being extremely organized. He noted that he took on a lot of responsibility with completely new talent.
“After it was over, I can tell you, he’s got the bug. It happens. I’ve seen it happen to older wrestlers. I’ve seen it happen to people coming for the first time. Stephen Amell, very similar situation. He’s got the bug. We didn’t converse much, but I said, ‘I think you’re a wrestler now,’ and I really mean that. I’d love to have him back.”
Rhodes continued by noting that there are obvious matches that fans want to see and Shaq is taking training seriously, which is a good thing. He brought up how Shaq brings more eyes to AEW’s product and perhaps those fans will stay.
There’s no word yet on when Shaq might work another match.
AEW put out another great PPV in Revolution which was main evented by the Barbed Wire Death Match between Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley featuring some pretty extreme moments.
However, the disappointing finish to the event overshadowed the efforts of everyone involved and the failed ring explosion which was hyped up by the company led to a lot of criticism from the fans.
The reigning AEW champion and the Executive Vice President Kenny Omega broke his silence on the dud during an interview with Wrestling Observer Newsletter and he admitted that it was a deflating experience:
“Yeah, it was really deflating to do so much preparation, test the explosions, have them be impressive in the rehearsal, and then have it be something so much different than what was promised.”
Kenny Omega Arrives at AEW Revolution (Photo: AEW)
Kenny Omega On Death Match Preparation
Omega continued by explaining how they worked hard on the different aspects of the match to make things entertaining and it sucked for it all to end in a disappointing finale:
“It made me appreciate everyone who worked hard and did their part even more, though. But like you said, we really wanted to have a good one, and we added real barbed wire to help with the feeling of danger so we really risked a lot. Again, I loved the match; glad we did it, sucks about the finale.”
Kenny Omega is not the only person involved to have commented on the finish of the show and both Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston also cut a promo on the AEW champion during this week’s episode of Dynamite.
AEW will debut a new show on YouTube this coming Monday, March 15th, 2021. AEW Dark: Elevation will be hosted by Tony Schiavone and Paul Wight. Tony Khan recently revealed the lineup of matches for the premiere episode.
The main event will see former AEW Women’s Champion Riho vs. Maki Itoh. The full lineup is as follows:
Riho vs. Maki Itoh
Jungle Boy vs Danny Limelight
Max Caster vs. Dante Martin
Tay Conti vs Ashley Vox
Will Hobbs vs. Brandon Cutler
*Update*
AEW has since announced the following additional matches will also take place:
Red Velvet vs. ‘The Real Mean Girl’ Dani Jordyn
Ray Lyn vs. Abadon
Leila Grey vs. Diamanté
Skyler Moore vs. Big Swole
What is AEW Dark Elevation?
Cody Rhodes recently detailed how AEW Dark: Elevation is different from AEW Dark in an a pre-Revolution media call.
“It’s going to be similar to Dark, but there should be more of a focus on individuals who are part of our roster,” Rhodes explained. “Tony Schiavone is the one who is spearheading that. I think you’re gonna see some one-to-one pieces, some sit-down interviews.”
“I think you’re gonna see a little bit more of a character insight, not unlike you see with American Ninja Warrior or even my other show on TBS, Go Big Show,” Rhodes continued.
“So I think that, and a few other items, of course, the biggest item being Paul Wight, will separate AEW Dark Elevation from its predecessor, AEW Dark.”
AEW President Tony Khan Hypes AEW Dark Elevation Premiere
In addition to the huge main event @Riho_gtmv v. @maki_itoh for the debut of Dark: Elevation, the card includes great matchups like Jungle Boy v. Danny Limelight, Dante Martin v. Max @CasterShow, @TayConti_ v. @ashley__vox, Brandon Cutler v. Powerhouse Hobbs, + much more action!
WWE Hall of Famer and former TNA star Booker T recently discussed Christian Cage making his way to the All Elite Wrestling roster. Cage was revealed at this past Sunday’s AEW Revolution event, ‘signing’ in-ring to confirm that he was now a member of the AEW team.
“I didn’t see it coming, but I didn’t not see it coming either,” Booker T said on the Hall of Fame podcast. “It was one of those deals where Christian has always been a guy that writes his own script. [That’s] in terms of ‘it’s not working out here, let me go try it out over there.’”
“Maybe the grass is greener on the other side” Booker T continued. “Or maybe I just need a change up. Christian, after you saw him in the Rumble, looked pretty good. The brother looked like he can still go. He’s my brother man, we’re tight like that. Some guys man, they feel like they still got something left in the gas tank and they want to go. They don’t want to be told no.”
Booker T on Christian Cage
Booker T also lamented the fact that this may be the last time that he gets to work alongside Captain Charisma. Christian Cage and Booker T were both part of the WWE Backstage show which aired on FOX; although right now the future of that show appears to be up in the air.
“If it was the last time him and I worked together on WWE Backstage, I just wanna say I’m gonna miss him” Booker T stated. “Christian was always like my right hand man, always a guy I loved to be around, always the guy that wasn’t going to be the sore thumb at the party. He is a guy who’s taken every finisher better than anybody else.”
Christian Cage has joined AEW with his new catchphrase being ‘Out Work Everyone.’ The former WWE Intercontinental, World Heavyweight and TNA Champion will be looking to put on some stellar performances as he heads into the twilight of his career.
Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston addressed the final explosion during their explosive barbed wire deathmatch on AEW Revolution that ended up being a dud on Dynamite this week. While the final explosion proved to be a let-down because of a technical glitch, the two credited it to inferior workmanship by Kenny Omega.
Eddie Kingston said that he was expecting a big explosion and revealed why he came out to protect Kenny Omega. He revealed that the reason he stayed down was because the explosions triggered an anxiety attack in him. Kingston bought up his time he spent sitting in a jail cell getting ready for court where guards told him he was going to be shipped off to Rikers Island, which triggered an attack in him for the first time.
“And everything went black. That’s what happened. Go ahead, make fun of it. Call me a coward, less of a man. I’m not speaking for you and I’m not speaking to you. I’m speaking to those that understand where I’m coming from,” Kingston said, explaining his selling of the weak explosion.
Eddie Kingston then asked Kenny Omega if he thought it was funny playing a prank like that on them. Jon Moxley told Kingston that he believes that Omega was legitimately trying to blow them up, he didn’t really plan a weak explosion to scare them. The two then jokes that Impact Wrestling paid for the bomb.
Jon Moxley also equated Kenny Omega to being Wile E. Coyote. “Let me ask you a question, when that bomb came in the mail did it come in a box with big, bold letters that said ‘ACME’ on it? I’ve made more explosive volcanoes in fourth-grade science class, what the hell was that?”
“Honestly, I’m glad neither guy came out with a serious injury because it was a really scary match and they both really put their health at risk for a huge PPV main event,” Khan said. “I think it was awesome, it was a great spectacle and I think we’re all lucky that the bomb going off in the end didn’t really hurt anybody, that Kenny’s big masterplan, that he built a dud.”
“The basic explanation is that Kenny’s ring set to explode, his plan as a heel who built this thing with a hammer and nails as we saw, that the final bomb just didn’t go off,” Khan concluded.
We are only 3 months into 2021 but Christian Cage already has had an eventful year. He first made his in ring return after 7 years at Royal Rumble and since then, he has made the big decision to sign with AEW.
Discussing the hype AEW had created for him before his big debut at Revolution event, Christian revealed that he was surprised as well because he hadn’t signed the contract at the time:
“I didn’t know. As far as I knew at that point in time, it was going to be a complete secret, and I was going to show up, and it was going to be a complete surprise, honestly, on Wednesday, there was nothing signed.
So, it was a shock to me when I heard it,” said Christian, “Tony [Khan] and I hit it off fairly quick. We felt comfortable enough to definitely to get something done and worked out at that point.”
The former world champion also commented on the length of his AEW deal and said “It’s a long-term deal, I’m not here for just a couple of matches now, like, I’m here for the long haul.”
Apart from this, Christian discussed things such as the opponents he is looking forward to facing in AEW and his Royal Rumble return. You can check out some more highlights from his interview here.
MJF has formed a new stable of his own featuring stars such as FTR, Wardlow, Shawn Spears, and Tully Blanchard after getting kicked out of the Inner Circle.
Chris Jericho had announced an Inner Circle War Council for this week’s episode of Dynamite after he and the former MLW star failed to capture the tag team titles at the Revolution PPV this past Sunday.
The segment then saw the former world champion teasing some changes to the group and as they were discussing their next move, Sammy Guevera showed a video of MJF. In the video, the AEW star was trying to convince Jake Hager, Santana, and Ortiz to go against Jericho and telling them that it was time to remove Y2J from the leadership. MJF told the guys to get Jericho after the reveal but they sided with the former WWE star instead. However, MJF came prepared and he revealed that he had been building a group of his own this whole time.
It appears we will get a feud between these two groups in the coming times and it would be interesting to see if this stable helps MJF in reaching the main event status and capture the world title in future.
All Elite Wrestling returns with an all-new episode of AEW Dynamite from Jacksonville, FL. This show will feature fallout from Sunday’s AEW Revolution pay-per-view, including Kenny Omega retaining the AEW World Championship and the signing of Christian Cage.
It will be interesting to see how AEW addresses the controversial conclusion of the Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match.
AEW is advertising the following items for this week’s TNT broadcast:
TNT Champion Darby Allin will defend against Scorpio Sky. The SCU member won the “Face of the Revolution” ladder match to earn this title shot.
Matt Jackson of the Young Bucks vs. Rey Fenix of Death Triangle
Hikaru Shida, Thunder Rosa and Ryo Mizunami team up against Dr. Britt Baker, Maki Itoh and Nyla Rose in six-woman tag-team action.
Cody Rhodes will be in action
Ethan Page vs. Lee Johnson
Plus, we’ll hear from Christian Cage and the Inner Circle will hold their “War Council” to announce some changes to the group.
Join us here later tonight for our AEW Dynamite Results and Takeaways feature.
Ethan Page made a surprise debut at AEW Revolution
He will compete against a member of Cody’s Nightmare Family on Dynamite
One of the surprise appearances at AEW Revolution saw former IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Champion ‘All Ego’ Ethan Page make his company debut.
Ethan Page was the secret competitor in the AEW ‘Face of The Revolution’ ladder match. Page joined Cody Rhodes, Scorpio Sky, Penta El Zero Miedo, Lance Archer and Max Caster in the match.
The match was eventually won by Scorpio Sky as he grabbed the ‘brass ring’ that was hanging above the ring.
AEW has now confirmed that Ethan Page will be in action on tonight’s episode of AEW Dynamite. The company sent out a tweet noting that the former IMPACT star will be taking on Nightmare Family member Lee Johnson.
QT Marshall will be in Johnson’s corner for tonight’s bout.
Christian recently appeared on Renee Paquette’s Oral Sessions podcast where he opened up about the circumstances leading to his in-ring return and his signing with WWE’s rival promotion.
The AEW signing of the former world champion is a bitter-sweet deal for his fans as he will get to compete against a plethora of exciting talent but it also means that we will probably never get to see him having a proper reunion with Edge.
Though they did get to share a moment at Royal Rumble in January when Christian made his in ring return. During the interview, he revealed Edge’s reaction to his comeback:
“Well, he was one of the very few people who knew. When I told him what I was thinking, he was very supportive,” he noted. “When you get to that point where you think it’s gone, and then it comes back, it’s like what just happened?
“When he came back at Royal Rumble from the year previous, he’s always been good at keeping his nerves in check. I’ve never seen him nervous before. And he was super nervous for that Rumble.” recalled Christian, “I was there to lighten the mood. And he kind of did the same for me. It’s just reverse roles. He’s a great sounding board.”
Apart from this, the former WWE star talked about his AEW signing. He explained that he has no animosity towards his former employers and that joining AEW was just the better choice for him.
With it being reported that NXT could be moving to Tuesday nights, some believe the Wednesday Night Wars could be over soon. Cody Rhodes recently commented on that possibility during an interview with Action Sports Jax for ESPN Jacksonville 690AM.
“Not trying to sound braggadocios, we have destroyed them [NXT] for over a year now in that space. Them leaving, perhaps that opens up a different viewership for us on Wednesdays,” Rhodes said on the show.
“I’m not assuming moving to Tuesday nights, is a true white flag. I’ll wait and see.”
Cody Rhodes On NXT Moving To Tuesdays
Cody Rhodes continued to talk about AEW’s attitude toward NXT.
“We’re not reactionary to their booking and won’t change anything we do with what they decide to do on Wednesdays,” Cody continued.
“There are a lot of smart people who work for WWE and perhaps they are planning something else, maybe it’s Wednesday Night Raw for all I know. I’m not assuming their white flag, moving to Tuesday nights, is a true white flag. I’ll wait and see.
“In the interim, we’ll continue to come up with new content, great stories, and make new kings and queens on our roster,” Cody said before stating AEW does not talk about competition backstage.
“If you’re ever backstage at AEW no one is talking about our competition.”
You can listen to this Cody Rhodes interview at Apple Podcasts.
Christian Cage is Renee Young’s guest on the latest episode of the Oral Sessions podcast. Hot off his AEW debut at Sunday’s Revolution pay-per-view, Christian goes in-depth about his experience getting medically cleared after 7 years away from the ring, his jump to AEW and much more.
Returning To WWE, Jumping To AEW
Christian said when he returned at the Royal Rumble in January, he wasn’t nervous at all. However, he was nervous at AEW Revolution. He doesn’t know why, but he suspects the nerves were related to the new environment.
The PPV began at 8pm (Eastern) and he showed up after 7pm. He went straight onto his bus and did not mingle with anybody. He felt like the new kid in class. He really wanted to live up to the hype set by Paul Wight and AEW.
It felt great to appear in front of the AEW crowd. Obviously, these times are not ideal due to the pandemic. However, the people who were in attendance were loud. Wrestling at the ThunderDome was cool, but there’s nothing like a live audience.
When he signed with AEW, he did not know how he’d be introduced. He wasn’t signed when Paul Wight announced a ‘huge huge star’ would be at the PPV.
Christian says he will be a full-time performer. If he didn’t have the confidence to go at 100%, he wouldn’t be in AEW. He’s coming back to show the world he’s one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all time.
Getting Medically Cleared
He feels like his body has been preserved for 7 years. He’s in a great place mentally and physically.
Christian visited the University of South Florida Concussion Center in June 2020 in hopes of getting medically cleared. He went there on his own and did not tell anybody about the visit. He figured, if the doctors tell him he needs to stay retired, nothing would really change.
After undergoing rigorous medical examinations, his doctor told him, “You crushed these tests.” He was average or above average on all the scores related to his brain. He didn’t fail any of the tests. The doctor told him, “You’re good to wrestle again.”
At this point, he knew it was time to get the rest of his body in peak physical shape. Edge referred him to Nutrition Solutions, a meal prep company. He built a minimalist gym in his garage and trained hard using basic weights, kettle bells and an assault bike. He’s also doing a lot of planks.
As he was getting into shape, he got a call from WWE around September/October. He spoke with Vince McMahon and told him the news about getting medically cleared. Vince was very happy for him. They had a few good conversations. Christian told Vince he still wanted to get his body into better shape and they left things there. Edge was very supportive about his journey.
Who He Wants To Work With In AEW
Christian says he’s with AEW for the long haul. He’s not here just to wrestle a couple matches. He sees a lot of people in AEW that he wants to work with, including:
Jon Moxley: Moxley has told Christian that he’s learned a lot from working with him in WWE. “At some point, he and I are going to do something together.”
Kenny Omega: Christian has never met Omega, but is familiar with his work. Renee added that Omega is a tough nut to crack. She’s been around him a few times but hasn’t gotten to know him.
Darby Allin: Christian says he’s got the Jeff Hardy “cool” factor.
The Young Bucks: He knows the Young Bucks grew up as fans of the Hardy Boyz and Edge & Christian. Renee suggested that we might see The Young Bucks vs. Matt Hardy & Christian.
MJF: Christian says Max is super talented and “gets it.”
Christian added that he still hasn’t wrapped his brain around all the possibilities that await him in AEW. He can’t wait to get started. In addition to wrestling, he’s also excited to contribute behind the scenes. He spoke very highly of Pat Patterson and his role in WWE.
