The TNT title open challenge continues as Cody puts the title on the line tonight.
A six-man tag team match is set for this evening and Chris Jericho returns to the table to give his insightful commentary.
Cody Rhodes will defend his title tonight against Marq Quen for the TNT championship. In tag team action Best Friends and Orange Cassidy square off against Jake Hager, Santana, and Ortiz. Chris Jericho returns to the booth to give us his insights on all the action inside and out of the ring.
AEW Dynamite kicked of the show this evening from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida with Chris Jericho serving as guest commentator. Le Champion was accompanied to the booth by Floyd, his trusty baseball bat.
FTR defeated The Butcher and The Blade via pinfall (stuffed piledriver)
The team of Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood aka FTR arrived to the ring in a vintage Chevy truck for their debut match in AEW. The Blade started things off against Dax Harwood. A pair of two counts by Harwood gained FTR the early momentum.
The Butcher and Cash Wheeler went toe to toe but The Butcher appeared unphased and used his strength to manhandle Wheeler. While The Blade distracted the ref, The Butcher choked Wheeler in the corner.
A brutal powerslam by The Blade on Wheeler gave the shifted the match in favor of the Butcher and The Blade. A brainbuster by Dax Harwood slowed down their opponents temporarily. The Blade issued a kick to the face of both Harwood and Wheeler which was not enough as Dax Harwood delivered a superplex from the top rope. Wheeler launched form the opposite top rope to earn a two count.
A pair of two counts from The Butcher and The Blade was not enough as FTR delivered a Goodnight Express to The Butcher. With the Butcher out of the ring FTR took advantage and won the match from the top rope as Dax Harwood held The Blade in a tombstone position as FTR picked up the win with a big double team piledriver.
Harwood said AEW is the pinnacle of wrestling and they are the pinnacle of tag team wrestling. The Young Bucks then interrupted, with Nick Jackson saying they were there to congratulate FTR on their great match. Matt Jackson thanked FTR for helping them out two weeks ago, but Matt said that The Bucks have carried tag team wrestling for the last 15 years.
FTR jumped The Bucks from behind. Jimmy Havoc and Kip Sabian ran in. Kenny Omega and Hangman Page sauntered in. FTR, Omega, Page and The Bucks cleared the ring to end the segment.
Dasha Gonzalez interviewed The Natural Nightmares, Brandi Rhodes and Allie. Dasha said that Natural Nightmares will face Omega and Page for the tag titles next week, but Brandi was upset that Allie was wearing QT’s Nightmare Family jacket. Marshall said that Allie is his girl and part of the family.
Dustin Rhodes told QT that he needs his head in the game next week and to get Allie out of his system and focus on their match next week.
Nyla Rose & Penelope Ford defeated Kris Statlander via pinfall (suplex)
Penelope Ford, accompanied to the ring by fiancé Kip Sabian to team with Nyla Rose, the native beast, to square off against Kris Statlander and AEW Women’s champion Hikaru Shida. Rose and Ford attacked their opponents before the bell could ring. Rose and Ford had Statlander in the ring as Statlander reversed it and sent Rose into the stomach of Ford.
Shida and Statlander exchanged tags quickly to try and gain an advantage on Nyla Rose.
Rose recovered to swing the momentum as she administered a powerslam and a stomp to the face of Statlander.
As we returned from a commercial break, we see Statlander brutalizing Rose with a kick to the face followed by a vicious forearm. Rose and Statlander tag their partners and Shida takes control of the match immediately. A drop kick by Shida from the top rope followed by a suplex led to a two count on Ford.
Nyla Rose is the recipient of another series of kicks from Statlander while Ford avoids one of her own and administers a stunner to Statlander. Shida enters the ring and delivers a knee to the chest of Ford and then climbs the top rope and gives a suplex to Rose. Statlander is able to draw a two count to Rose who somehow is able to get a shoulder up.
Nyla hangs both Statlander and Shida over the top rope delivers a double knee drop from the top rope. Kip Sabian attempts to interfere and Statlander dives through the ropes to take him out. While the referee is distracted Rose throws the belt into the ring and Ford hits Shida with the belt knocking her out and pins her with a suplex.
Darby Allin addresses his medical status stating he is not medically cleared to wrestle. Skater Tony Hawk says, “you don’t need a doctor’s note to skate here, you’re clear.” We see footage of Darby attempting several a skating stunt several times and eventually see him execute the stunt successfully.
Britt Baker states that her existence makes her the “roll model” and goes on to explain how she has been a victim all her life. The good doctor says she needs the respect to continue to be a “roll model” to fans and the AEW roster alike.
Best Friends & Orange Cassidy defeat Santana, Ortiz & Jake Hager via pinfall
Three members of the Inner Circle, Santana, Ortiz, and Jake Hager attack Best Friends and Orange Cassidy prior to the bell ringing. Jake Hager throws Cassidy on to the metal stage and is pummeled by Hager. Trent was the only member of his team in the ring as the Santana goes to work on Trent. Trent is able to tag and Chuckie T comes in to even the score.
Trent dives through the ropes to take out Hager and Chuckie T flips over the top rope and takes out Santana and Ortiz. Hager delivers a vader bomb drawing a two count on Chuckie T. Hager continues to work on Chuckie T in the corner as Santana and Ortiz join in on the action.
Cassidy back from the stage enters the ring against Hager. Freshly squeezed gave the kicks to the shins of Hager but is then thrown to the corner. Cassidy dives through the ropes to take out Hager and delivers a DDT to Ortiz. Santana delivers a cannonball off the back of Ortiz to Orange Cassidy. Freshly squeezed is able to maneuver out of a powerbomb and pin Ortiz.
Afer the match, the inner circle attacks their opponents as Jericho heads to the ring with his bat. Jericho delivers blows to the ribs of Trent and Chuckie T and strikes Orange Cassidy on the head with the bat opening a gash on his temple. Jericho retrieves bags of oranges from under the ring and place them in a plastic bag and assaulting Orange Cassidy with the sack of oranges. Jericho leaves after delivering his brutal beating by saying the following “…blood Orange Cassidy has just been juiced.”
Tony Schiavone attempting to talk to the Gunn Club when MJF interrupts the interview complaining that he, the number one contender, is a “great white shark swimming in a sea filled of minnows.” Billy Gunn interrupts MJF and an altercation nearly breaks out between Billy Gunn and Wardlow.
Sammy Guevara defeats Colt Cabana via pinfall
Sammy arrives to the ring riding his scooter and gives Cabana the middle finger to start the match. Colt Cabana takes control early with a series of chops to the chest of Sammy Guevara. Guevara scores an early two count as he gains momentum and taunts Cabana which backfires as Colt earns a two count.
Sammy employs a strategy of staying on the mat administering a choke hold to try and wear out Cabana. A devastating elbow staggers Sammy but Colt is unable to capitalize. A series of flying elbows allows Cabana to get back into the match. A misstep by Cabana as he was trying to climb the top rope allows Sammy to gain control and deliver a knee to the face of Cabana for the victory.
After the match, The Dark Order approach the ring and The Exalted One, Brodie Lee offers a hand up to Colt Cabana. The Dark Order then leave the ring area without a word. Colt then walks backstage enters the locker room of Brodie Lee. Sammy then proclaims himself “the best damn wrestler AEW has” as Matt Hardy walks to the ring. Hardy then tells Sammy he needs to get away from Chris Jericho. Hardy then transforms into Broken as Sammy leaves the ring.
We see a short video clip featuring Joey Janella where he is drinking in a bar pondering where his career is headed. As he is leaving the bar, he is picked up by Sonny Kiss.
Jon Moxley in the parking lot proclaims he is in a bad mood because Taz has been telling people that Brian Cage will defeat him at Fyter Fest. Mox says that he “is one miserable son of a bitch” and the fact that Taz and Cage think they can beat him pisses him off. Taz shows up to answer the challenge and Brian Cage attacks Moxley from behind. A brawl erupts in the parking lot with Cage getting the better of Mox. Taz intervenes saying they had sent a message. Cage throw Moxley into the back windshield of a car to end the segment.
Cody Rhodes addresses his match against Marq Quen and the open challenge to his TNT championship. He gives his rationale for the open challenge saying people have been critical of his skill set bell to bell. He praises Quen as a ferocious competitor who is highly motivated prior to the match.
Cody Rhodes defeated Marq Quen via submission (ankle lock)
The main event of the night is for the TNT championship. The American Nightmare Cody Rhodes against one half of the Private Party tag team, Marq Quen. As the competitors enter the ring, we see that Marq Quen is sporting a “BLM”, black lives matter arm band and Cody Rhodes is wearing a “WE ARE ALL FAMILY” shirt in support of LGTBQ youth.
Rhodes goes to work on the wrist of Quen early. Quen demonstrates his high-flying athleticism early by landing a drop kick as Cody came off the top rope. Rhodes applies a dragon sleeper to Marq Quen as he takes control of the match. Both men battle outside the ring as Cody still has the upper hand. Cody Rhodes goes to work on the injured ankle of Marq Quen to maintain control.
Quen was able to counter with a kick to the face of Rhodes before Cody responds with a kick of his own. Rhodes and Quen climb to the top rope where Cody is able to deliver a suplex from the top rope. Both men appear to be stunned as the action builds. Quen is able to score a two count despite his injured ankle. A DDT by Quen earns him a two count on Cody Rhodes.
Quen goes airborne over the top rope three separate times to knock Cody down outside the ring. Quen is able to score yet another near fall on Cody. Both competitors are visibly battered and fatigued. Cody rolls out of the ring onto the ramp which does little to deter Quen as he lands a 450 splash. Quen forces Rhodes back into the ring to continue the match. Quen attempts a shooting star on Rhodes who catches him in and applies an ankle lock. Quen is unable to reach the rope and taps out giving Cody the victory. A show of sportsmanship by both men at the end of the match as both competitors congratulate one another.
Jake Hager came down to the ring to confront Cody, when Arn Anderson tries to break it up Hager attacks Anderson. Hager slams Cody to the ground and poses with the TNT belt unaware that Marq Quen, Matt Hardy and Isiah Kassidy had come to even the score. Mutiple chair shots and a clothesline to Hager force him out of the ring. The Inner Circle arrive and enter the ring as a wild brawl ensues and the Inner Circle is forced from the ring.
Cody Rhodes then offers Jake Hager a title shot at Fyter Fest.