SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
AEW RAMPAGE TV REPORT
AUGUST 12, 2022
RECORDED AT THE TARGET CENTER, MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.
AIRED ON TNT
REPORT BY PATRICK MOYNAHAN, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
AEW Rampage Announcers: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Chris Jericho, and Tony Schiavone
Ring announcer: Justin Roberts
– The opening of Rampage aired, and JR welcomed us to the show. Ross was joined by Excalibur and Tony Schiavone.
Garcia cut him off. Garcia called Danielson his hero but said his hero sounds like he is prepared to lose and is coming up with excuses. Garcia said Danielson will have to call him the greatest technical sports entertainer on the planet after he ends his career on Dynamite. Danielson said what really pisses him off is “that sports entertainment bullshit.” He said Garcia was a name he mentioned when starting the Blackpool Combat Club. He asked Garcia if he wanted to be the best technical sports entertainer on the planet or if he wanted to be the best technical wrestler in the world, then dropped the mic and left.
(Moynahan’s Take: Interesting to have Rampage open with an in-ring showdown like this. It was good but a bit too over-hyped by JR on Dynamite earlier this week. That said, I am looking forward to their 2 out of 3 showdown on this coming Dynamite.)
– Clips of C.M. Punk’s return on Dynamite were shown.
(1) SAMMY GUEVARA & TAY MELO (c) vs. DANTE MARTIN & SKYE BLUE – AAA Mixed Tag Team Championship
Guevara and Martin started things off and wrestled on the mat. Guevara hit him in the face with a knee. Martin fought back with his own knee to the stomach, then a chop to Guevara’s chest. Melo tagged in, which made Blue tag in as well. Blue flew off the top onto Melo but Melo came right back with a hip toss. Melo and Blue trade slaps. Melo took Blue to the mat and synched in a leg lock, which turned it into a neck crank. Blue hit Melo with a kick to the face but Guevara tripped her from the outside, which allowed Melo to hit a pump kick to the face. [c]
Blue had Melo in a pin attempt but Melo kicked out in time. Martin and Guevara tagged in and Martin met him with a double leg takedown. Guevara went to the outside, and Martin followed with a tope. Back inside the ring, Martin’s foot was grabbed by Melo but Martin hit a Destroyer on Guevara for a close two count. The crowd chanted “this is awesome” as Guevara made a comeback. Blue tagged in and took out Guevara but was met with a kick by Melo, who hit Tay-KO for the win.
WINNERS: Samy Guevara and Tay Melo in 7:30
(Moynahan’s Take: A great ending sequence and an overall solid tag match. I need to see more of Martin and Guevara 1-1 please.)
– The Lucha Bros. were shown talking about coming back in the upcoming Trio Tag Team Title Tournament and said the Death triangle was about to be reunited. They’ll face Will Ospreay and Aussie Open on Dynamite on August 24.
(2) PARKER BOUDREAUX (w/Slim J) vs. SONNY KISS
Boudreaux immediately took out Kiss from the bell. He followed up with shots in the corner but missed a charging follow up. Kiss hit a few shots to Boudreaux but was caught with a choke slam. Boudreaux drove Kiss to the mat for the quick win.
WINNER: Parker Boudreaux in 1:00
(Moynahan’s Take: A quick squash. Nothing more nothing less.)
– Andrade and Rush were backstage with Private Party. The two teams were at odds as Andrade walked off.
(3) BEARDHAUSEN (Danhausen & Erick Redbeard) vs. THE GUNN CLUB (Austin & Colten w/Billy)
Redbeard and Colten kicked things off. Austin quickly tagged in but fared no better than his brother. Danhausen tagged in to the delight of the crowd. Austin quickly took him down. [c]
Gunn Club maintained control but Danhausen finally tagged in Redbeard who took down both members of Gunn Club. Redbeard hit a double cross body on Austin and Colten on the outside, then hit a spinning back kick on Austin inside the ring. Colten broke up a pin attempt and the Gunn Club attempted a double suplex. Redbeard reversed, however, and hit his own suplex on both men. Danhausen tagged in but was hit with a Famasser and Gunn Club picked up the win.
WINNERS: The Gunn Club in 8:00
(Moynahan’s Take: This was fine, and Redbeard actually received a solid reaction from the crowd., After the match. Billy told his sons they needed to toughen up and they’ll have another match on Dynamite this coming week. Stokely Hathaway was shown at ringside passing his card to the Gunn Club.)
– Swerve and Keith Lee were backstage with Lexy Nair. They basically called out Private Party and said they’d put the Tag Titles on the line against them.
– Hook came to the ring to speak with Tony Schiavone. Schiavone asked if the FTW title was always an open challenge and Hook replied “yup.” Zach Clayton came to the ramp to cut things off and called himself a reality superstar. He said he’d take the title off Hook and take it back to NJ where it belongs. Clayton challenged Hook to a match on next week’s Rampage.
(Moynahan’s Take: Um, OK?)
– Mark Henry was backstage on split screen with Best Friends and Trustbusters. Daivari said Cassidy was one of the most talented wrestlers on the AEW roster. He questioned why Cassidy would want to stay with Best Friends. Cassidy was about to say Henry’s line, and Henry cut him off. Henry announced that it was “time for the main event.”
– Excalibur ran down this next week’s Dynamite and Rampage card. New matches included Gunn Club vs. Varsity Blonds on Dynamite. On Rampage, Swerve and Lee will face Private Party in a Tag Team Title match, and Trustbusters will face Best Friends in the Trios Tournament.
(4) ORANGE CASSIDY vs. ARI DAIVARI (w/Parker Boudreaux & Slim J)
Daivari called for a quick timeout and told Orange he’d give him one last chance to join his team. He then told Orange to lay down so he could pin him. Orange looked to oblige but then slowly rolled away. Orange rolled from one side of the ring to the other, and ended in a hug from Best Friends. Back inside the ring, Daivari took control but Orange hit a dropkick, then a kip up to the delight of the crowd. Daivari hit a neck breaker from the apron. [c]
Daivari had a sleeper locked in as Orange started to fade. Orange drove Daivari into the corner to break the hold and the two hit a double clothesline to rock one another to the mat. Orange went to the top but Daivari cut him off. Daivari tried throwing him to the mat but Orange fought him off. Daivari then tried a superplex but Orange again drove him back.
The two fought back and forth until Daivari kicked Orange, then hit a neckbreaker. Orange came right back with a counter and the two men were down on the mat. Orange hit a thirst kick but couldn’t hit Orange Punch. Daivari countered it into a pin but Orange kicked out. Orange hit a DDT to plant Daivari then went to the top and hit a diving DDT for a close two count. Best Friends and Trustbusters went at it on the outside, Orange hit a tope on Trustbusters, then went to the top. Daivari cut him off and took him down and went for a cover for two.
Orange finally hit Orange Punch for the win.
WINNER: Orange Cassidy in 12:00
– After the match. Sonny Kiss hit the ring and attacked Orange and aligned with the Trustbusters.
(Moynahan’s Take: Very nice main event with Cassidy coming out with a solid win. I’m sure many people are confused by the all of a sudden faction of the Trustbuster, but at least Daivari looked good in defeat. Kind of nice to finally see Sonny Kiss align with a group and hopefully land a solid angle after years with the promotion.)
FINAL THOUGHTS: They certainly fit a lot into this episode of Rampage. It ended up being a solid show but nothing truly stood in all honesty. That said, go out of your way to watch the main event as it did over exceed expectations. With just a few episodes left until All Out, it feels like we should be getting as much of a build to that show as possible, so let’s hope we see something ramp up on next week’s show.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.