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Darby Allin held his first world championship defense, and it was a car crash on AEW Dynamite (Apr. 22, 2o26). That’s to say that the action was a car crash. Allin is going full steam ahead on this title reign, and his body was wrecked with abandon. The show also featured MJF setting his sights on a second title belt, Chris Jericho with new partners, the Death Riders saving Will Ospreay, and more from Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon.
Darby Allin is car crash theatre
Allin put the AEW World Championship on the line against Tommaso Ciampa in the main event. The match was PPV level action. Even though there was never any doubt that Allin would retain, the pace was breakneck, and the physicality was intense. Plus, Ciampa was a bloody mess.
AEW hyped the bout proper with a backstage promo from Ciampa explaining that he has never been more ready for this moment. The night is about passion and showing that glass ceilings are imaginary. Ciampa did a great job illustrating the magnitude of this opportunity.
AEW also aired a video package about Allin doing it his way. I’d like to imagine that the audio is Allin actually crooning this tune [Editor’s note: It’s Sammy Davis, Jr].
Of course, we couldn’t start the main event without MJF throwing a tantrum. He demanded the world title be returned. Allin replied as if speaking to a toddler with a firm, “No.” When MJF demanded a rematch right now, the answer was the same. Allin told MJF to put something on the line if he wants the rematch. Allin is putting is body on the line until it gives out. That was a key line to foreshadow the upcoming action. It’s not a surprise that Allin will conduct his business that way, but it still needs to be said for story purposes. The scene closed with a funny bit when Ciampa kissed MJF on the cheek.
The match was intense from the get-go. Ciampa wrestled with aggression, while Allin threw his body around without concern. The champ leaped for a flying crossbody outside onto Ciampa crashing through the timekeeper table. That contact busted open Ciampa to bleed profusely during the fight.
Ciampa took a page from Allin’s book to possibly hurt himself more than his opponent. Make no mistake. Allin was in pain from the avalanche Psycho Driller down to the floor, but Ciampa appeared to be in even more pain. Whether that reaction was real or just selling, it played into the story of the finish.
Ciampa emptied his arsenal of offense, and Allin kept kicking out. He survived knocking his head on the exposed turnbuckle steel, a crisp running knee finisher, a backbreaker, and another running knee. Ciampa decided to get cute by grabbing Allin’s legs for the Scorpion Deathlock. That was his vital error. Allin swiftly reversed the submission. Ciampa showed grit in withstanding pain from his previously banged up backside, but he was unable to escape the hold. Allin forced Ciampa to tap out.
Allin demands to be a fighting champion. Brody King is up next week.
That match was a car crash of excitement. The avalanche Psycho Driller to the floor was insane. They went into PPV style overdrive with Allin kicking out of dramatic near falls. For my preference, that was a touch too much at the end to feel like a performance rather than a wrestling match. Ciampa is no scrub, and his offense blitz should have been enough to win. At least, AEW let Ciampa look like a badass for surviving so long in the Scorpion Deathlock. But I digress. Allin showed tremendous will to win, and that’s the story moving forward. He backed up the words from his promo to be a fighting champion the only way he knows how. Allin fully expects his title reign to be short as his body breaks down in the coming weeks. That’s why this is car crash theatre. It will be a fun ride while it lasts.
Let’s jam through the rest of Dynamite. Catch up on all the details with excellent play-by-play from Claire Elizabeth.
MJF’s new target. The former world champion opened the show with a promo pleading his case for justice on the Seattle Screwjob. Kevin Knight interrupted to silence the whining. Trash talk led to Knight putting his TNT title on the line. MJF was ready to go. The referee arrived to the ring. Before the opening bell could ring, MJF dipped out at the last second and said that match will be next week.
The wordplay was slick leading from one idea to the next. For example, Knight said that MJF has been handed everything, so he will continue that trend to hand him an ass-whooping. There was also good logic for why MJF is now interested in the TNT Championship. Knight pumped up the value of the belt, so MJF bit. He is also motivated out of pettiness to take Knight’s success away. The cherry on top was MJF selling his readiness to fight. I really thought we were getting a bonus match here. MJF pulled a fast one with basic yet quality heeling. Anticipation was built for Knight to cash in that ass-whooping.
Chris Jericho’s new partners. Jericho will wrestle the Demand on Collision, but he needs partners. Ricochet mocked Jericho for burning every bridge. Jericho pointed out that he doesn’t need friends to be his partners. He only needs to find partners that also hate Ricochet. They also did the bit where Jericho trademarked Ricochet’s phrase about beating him up every week. Funny little promo exchange. I like the logic setting up the mystery partners.
The pay-off was worth it. Later in the show, Renee Paquette caught up with Jericho to reveal the Hurt Syndicate. Damn, that’s a big splash for Jericho’s partners.
Mark Davis defeated Will Ospreay. Dunkzilla was a beast smashing Ospreay with brute force. Nigel McGuinness had a good line referring to Ospreay with catlike agility, such as setting up this cannonball off the stage.
This match had a surprising finish. Davis heavily focused on Ospreay’s injured neck. He hit three backdrop suplexes in a row. The real doozy was Davis executing a pilediver in the ring. Ospreay had his foot on the ropes for the break on the pin. Davis doubled down for a piledriver on the apron. Ospreay wasn’t moving like a cat anymore. The referee ordered the medic to check on him, and the match was waved off due to doctor stoppage.
This result is one of the rare shockers on Dynamite. I did not expect Ospreay to drop this match, so I was fully surprised at the outcome. It’s smart though. Much like Allin, Ospreay is running his body ragged. And it’s coming against heavyweight bruisers no less. It could be different if Ospreay was competing against wrestlers with a finesse style. Davis battered Ospreay early and often charging like a bull with shoulder blocks. Davis picked up a huge win, and his stock is back on track. With the discussion in recent recaps about the medic checking on wrestlers, AEW swerved here for the doctor stoppage. It was becoming an overused cliche. That’s a nice change of pace to restore the value of tension in those future moments.
As surprising as the result was, I was even more surprised by the aftermath. Davis was setting up another piledriver, then the Death Riders surrounded the ring for the save. Davis backed down. Jon Moxley ordered his men to carry Ospreay to the back. The seeds were planted last week with Marina Shafir scouting Ospreay for a report back to Moxley. This presents an intriguing hook for next week to find out why.
Brody King defeated Lio Rush. Power versus speed. Lio was pesky, but King was never in real trouble. King grabbed Lio for a swinging side slam, and that turned the tide. King followed for a cannonball and the Gonzo Bomb to win. Early on, Lio rammed King into the barricade. King favored his left shoulder throughout the match, so that could be something to keep an eye on. Especially since King called out the winner of the world title bout. Even though King is proud of Allin, that won’t stop him for going after the world title.
The clash of styles was interesting. King earned a solid win. Yes please on King challenging Allin. Lio was in demon mode. The weirdo character has my curiosity. I like how Lio’s movement is unique. However, my patience is growing thin on the lack of explanation for Lio’s new attitude. Professional wrestling can be ridiculous in a good way, and that’s why I’m open to hearing the backstory.
Hikaru Shida defeated Mina Shirakawa. This match came about when Mina accused Shida of being untrustworthy and a potential suspect in the attack on Toni Storm. The ring story was Mina weakening the legs to set up the figure four. She exploded for offense on a spinning backfist, flying dropkick, flying slingblade, and locked in the figure-four. Shida was prepared and rolled the submission to the ropes for the break. Mina argued with the referee, and this is where the finish came into play. Shida tried to take advantage of the distraction by crawling to her kendo stick. Mina saw the trick in motion, and she snatched the weapon instead. When Mina reared back, Kris Statlander took the kendo stick away. Shida blasted Mina with a jumping knee and the Falcon Arrow to win. Statlander wanted a fair fight, so she made an ‘oops’ face when it caused the finish. Shida gave Statlander a big hug.
The match did a good job of blending action into developing the storyline. The pieces came together to produce questions that need answers. Shida was clearly going to cheat. Mina was going to give her preemptive payback. Statlander’s good deed caused chaos, and now she may have to deal with Mina. Statlander’s reaction was amusing in a Steve Urkel ‘Did I do that?’ way. Shida laid it on thick with that hug. Is Statlander warming up to Shida? Can Shida be trusted? Will Harley Cameron help Mina dish out wrath? There are a lot of little soap opera angles to explore. Also of note, Nigel McGuinness accused Tony Schiavone of attacking Timeless.
Samoa Joe defeated Cody Chhun. Quick win via musclebuster. Hook applauded Joe’s success on stage. This appearance needed a promo from Joe. It’s great to see Joe back on TV, but the squash didn’t build any hype to see what happens next for the Opps.
Notes: Adam Copeland wants another crack at FTR for the AEW tag titles, so he offered a proposal for a street fight at Double or Nothing. If C&C lose, then the team will retire. Cope tried to appeal to FTR’s ego for them prove that they truly are the greatest tag team. Hmm, I’ll pass on Cope’s idea. Maybe if the last PPV bout was real tag team wrestling then I would feel different. As great as that match was, it was so chaotic that it was basically on the level of a street fight. The rematch feels redundant to me. I’d prefer that the Young Bucks get in on the action for a three-way.
Kazuchika Okada believes that Konosuke Takeshita will never become the greatest, because the Rainmaker is standing in his way.
Alex Windsor wants a piece of Thekla and the Sisters of Sin, but Jamie Hayter wasn’t there. Persephone was in a fighting mood and offered to team with Windsor. AEW announced Thekla and Skye Blue as the opponents on Collision.
Stud of the Show: Darby Allin
The world champ took a brutal beating, partially from Tommaso Ciampa and partially from himself. Allin set the tone for his run at the top.
Match of the Night: Mark Davis vs. Will Ospreay
The world title bout was a banger. This one was more my style of preference. Ospreay is always fantastic, and Davis was an excellent powerhouse opponent. Sprinkle in drama on the finish.
Grade: A-
This episode was smooth in connecting promo lines as well as the action having purpose for the story.
Share your thoughts about AEW Dynamite. How do you rate it? What were your favorite moments from the show? Who impressed you the most?
