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AEW DYNAMITE REPORT
JULY 2, 2025
ONTARIO, CALIF. AT TOYOTA ARENA
AIRED LIVE ON TBS & MAX
Commentators: Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni, Nigel McGuinness
Ring Announcer: Justin Roberts
Attendance: WrestleTix reported earlier this week that 5,037 tickets had been distributed; arena is set up for 5,308. The arena has a capacity of 11,089 spectators when configured for concerts. This is the largest U.S. audience for Dynamite this year.
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PWTorch editor Wade Keller and PWTorch’s Chris Maitland to review AEW Dynamite LIVE tonight right after Dynamite. Join us and let us know your thoughts on Dynamite during the show.
Email our post-show at wadekellerpodcast@gmail.com with your comments and questions about Dynamite. We’ll read your emails live during the post-show.
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[HOUR ONE]
-After the Dynamite opening, Excalibur introduced the show and noted it’s the 300th episode.
-“Hangman” Adam Page came out and told Jon Moxley “you’d have to kill me before I let this chance pass me by.” He said he won’t the Elites or the Death Riders cost him the match, either. He said like all of Moxley’s matches, he knows they are coming, so he will welcome them. He yelled that he wanted this to be a Texas Death match. (That explains the numerous references to “death” in this promo.) Moxley’s entrance theme played and he made his way to the ring with Marina Shafir. Excalibur explained that a Texas Death match is no DQ, anything goes.
Mox entered the ring and said it appeared Hangman wanted to put all his chips on the table – your life, your health, your career. He then said Hangman doesn’t want to win because in reality, he’s happy where he is. He said he liked winning the Owen Hart tournament, but being at the very top of the mountain is for someone else. “I live for pressure,” Mox said. Fans chanted, “Shut the f— up.” He said people call themselves the best in the world, but “that’s basic bitch shit.” He said he is much more than that. He said he will show the entire world at All In exactly who he is and exactly what a World Champion looks like. He said Hangman doesn’t have inside of him what it takes to take the AEW World Title from him. He said he doesn’t have what it takes to go as far as he needs to in order to win a Texas Death match against him. He said he wouldn’t walk away from it.
Hangman slapped Mox. Mox tackled Hangman and punched away at him. Hangman reversed him and pounded away. He pulled out a fork, but Mox blocked it. Wheeler Yuta ran in, but Mox knocked him down. Shafir slapped Hangman several times. Hangman stood there and stared at her. Yuta grabbed Hangman’s leg. Claudio attacked Hangman. Mox left. Claudi gave Hangman a Neutralizer. Ian Riccaboni said they’re trying to humiliate Hangman.
When the Death Riders left, Hangman sat up and asked if that was the best they have. “Bitch, I’m still standing!” he said. Claudio began making his way back to the ring. Samoa Joe showed up and eyed Claudio. Yuta joined Claudio at the ringside barricade, but Powerhouse Hobbs and Katsuyori Shibata showed up. Shafir then wound up with the brief case, but Hangman blocked her swing and yanked it away from her, sending Shafir to the mat.
Hangman told Mox to be the champion he says he is. “Give me Texas Death!” he yelled. Mox then said, “You want it, you got it, Texas Death!” Excalibur said that match is just ten days away. Hangman said in all the excitement, he forgot to tell Mox that it’s a lie that he doesn’t have all it takes to win a Texas Death match. “In case you need a reminder I’ll do whatever it takes!” he said. He then gave Shafir his Buckshot Lariat. “What the hell,” said Taz.
-“Timeless” Toni Storm was with Rachel Brosnahan to promote “Superman.” Storm offered Rachel nicknames. Rachel the Metropolis Maven or Ravishing Raven.
(1) MERCEDES MONE vs. MINA SHIRAKAWA – TBS Title match
Storm made her entrance along with Luther. The bell rang 20 minutes into the hour. There was a cake and other food at ringside. They cut to a double-box break several minutes in. [c/db]
Mercedes countered a sharpshooter set-up into an inside cradle for the win.
WINNER: Mercedes in 15:00 to retain the TBS Title.
-When Mercedes attacked Mina afterward, Storm entered to check on Shirakawa. Mercedes then hit Storm from behind with her belt. She licked the icing on the cake and then threw a drink at Luther. She left with her title belt held high.
-Excalibur plugged the Okada vs. Ibushi match as the main event and other scheduled tag matches.
-They showed Matthew & Nicholas Jackson earlier in the day at an airport talking about celebrating the 300th episode of Dynamite. Matthew surprised Nicholas with a new limousine he said he bought with Tony Khan’s credit card. The back was filled with shoe boxes. Nicholas said it’s great having all that power. Matthew said they should ride around and enjoy childhood spots in their hometown that they were near. A video showed them driving to landmarks and reminiscing about their childhood. They swung on a swingset. Nicholas said they might be the only famous people from their town. [c]
-Another brief Jacksons video aired with them showing up at their childhood home. Matthew said it seemed bigger back in the day.
(1) MJF (w/MVP, Shelton Benjamin, Bobby Lashley) vs. BRODY KING vs. ANTHONY BOWENS vs. A.R. FOX – Four-way for the no. 2 spot in the Casino Gauntlet match
The bell rang 45 minutes into the hour. Excalibur said MJF had been trying to bribe Brody King on social media during the last week to take a dive for him in this match. They cut to a double box break at 4:00. [c/db]
MJF brought a chair into the ring at 11:00, but Brody punched the chair into MJF’s face. He scored a two count on MJF. Bowens and Fox got back in the ring, but Brody took down Fox and scored a two count. Fox landed a 450 splash on Brody a minute later for a two count. Bowens landed a spinning elbow to Fox’s chin. MJF gave Bowens a hammerlock DDT. MJF then went after Brody, but Brody blocked a Heat Seeker and put MJF in a sleeper. MJF’s eyes rolled back and Brody dropped him to the floor. Bowens kicked Brody and then Fox landed a draping DDT. Bowens gave Fox his Arrival and then played to the crowd. Fox knocked Bowens down and then Brody gave him a Gonzo Bomb. Fox broke up the cover. MJF then put Fox in his Salt of the Earth for the win.
WINNER: MJF in 13:00.
[HOUR TWO]
-The announcers noted MJF will open the Casino Gauntlet battle royal against Mark Briscoe. Briscoe came out and talked about getting his hands on MJF. He wore a t-shirt that said, “MJF Has a Tiny (Kosher) Pickle.” He took issue with MJF calling him a Blue Collar Bitch. He said he wears “blue collar” as a badge of honor, but he takes issue with “bitch.” He proposed to MJF for a talky-talk segment next week with each in the ring with a microphone. Fans chanted, “Talky talk!” MJF asked if fans were really chanting “Talky talk!”
Jet Speed came out and went after Lashley and Benjamin at ringside. They slingshot themselves onto them. Eventually, Lashley and Shelton took over after an attack from behind. MJF sat next to MVP at ringside. MJF said he had $100 on Hurt Syndicate. Kevin Knight pulled himself to his feet and yelled that they didn’t finish the job. Lashley and Benjamin returned to the ring and beat them down again with powerbombs. Knight stood up and yelled, “We won’t back down!” MJF yelled for them to stay down. Lashley and Benjamin returned to the ring and beat them up some more and yelled at them to “stay down.” They left again, but once they got to the stage, Knight said, “We’re still alive.” He said they might know how to hurt people, but they “need to learn how to kill us.” He told Benjamin he “hits like a bitch.” He challenged Benjamin to fight him one-on-one on Collision.
(Keller’s Analysis: The finish wasn’t obvious in the sense that MJF was the biggest star, but he didn’t have to be involved in the finish, and it was only for the no. 2 spot, not entry overall. It doesn’t give AEW something concrete to advertise in terms of who will for sure face off at the start. It’s good to see AEW utilizing Briscoe and doing so in a way the fans are eating up. We had to reset the Bitch-0-Meter twice already, plus we’ve had multiple wrestlers referring to needing to be killed, which usually feel kinda hack.) [c]
-They showed The Young Bucks arriving in their new custom limo with a “Founding Fathers” decal running along the side.
(3) THE YOUNG BUCKS (Matthew & Nicholas Jackson) & KONOSUKE TAKESHITA vs. BANDIDO & KYLE O’REILLY & RODERICK STRONG
The Bucks made their way to the ring first. This was billed as a “Heroes vs. Villains” match playing on the Superman theme. The bell rang 15 minutes into the hour. They cut to a double-box break at 3:30. [c/db]
Bandido landed a suplex off the top rope on Takeshita, with Matthew breaking up the cover. Chaos broke out with Takeshita going for a pin on Bandido and then the other four landing on them. Fans chanted, “This is awesome!” The Bucks and Takeshita delivered a three person EVP Trigger. Takeshita then gave O’Reilly a Raging Fire and scored a three count.
WINNERS: Bucks & Takeshita in 12:00.
-Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay charged into the ring. Excalibur said they challenged the Bucks to put their EVP titles at stake, but the Bucks wanted no part of it. Swerve said they didn’t get an answer to their challenge last week. Swerve said he wanted to clarify that it wasn’t them trying to become EVPs. Swerve joked he doesn’t trust Will Ospreay with those kinds of powers. He said he wanted the EVP powers to go back the people. He said Tony Khan is the only person who runs the company. Ospreay asked if they’re Young Bucks or Young (bleeps). He demanded an answer.
Nicholas said they don’t book stipulations. “We are EVPs, you aren’t. Hell no. Because what do we get out of this?” said Matthew. Taz said he agreed with Matthew. Ospreay said he had something they might be interested in. He told Swerve to trust him. He said if the Bucks beat them, then he and Swerve cannot challenge for the titles for a year. Swerve confronted Ospreay angrily. The Bucks took joy in their disagreement. Matthew said that was a deal, but Ospreay has to get Swerve on the same page. Swerve thought about it, then agreed to it.
(Keller’s Analysis: At first I thought the Bucks were saying they as a team couldn’t challenge for the tag titles, but that makes little sense. The stip is two of the top singles babyfaces can’t challenge for the World Title for a full year. Storyline-wise, I can almost buy the Bucks would agree to that since they also took note of Ospreay and Swerve not getting along because of Ospreay offering that. But given how much the Bucks flaunted their EVP status, I still don’t fully buy that they’d put that at risk for much of anything. But at least if they were going to, there is something at stake for them to “gain.”) [c]
(4) DRALISTICO & THE BEAST MORTOS vs. SWERVE STRICKLAND & WILL OSPREAY
Swerve and Ospreay were still in the ring. The bell rang 36 minutes into the hour. Swerve and Ospreay took control early and landed dives on opposite sides of the ring. Mortos landed a dive at ringside a few minutes later and they cut to a double-box break at 3:00. [c/db]
Riccaboni said a win here could go a long way to Ospreay earning Swerve’s trust going into All In. More rapid-fire moves eventually led to Ospreay landing a Styles Clash followed by a House Call by Swerve for a three count on Dralistico. Swerve and Ospreay shook hands and hugged afterward.
WINNERS: Ospreay & Swerve in 9:00. [c]
(5) KOTA IBUSHI vs. KAZUCHIKA OKADA (w/Don Callis, Lance Archer)
The bell rang 51 minutes into the hour. Fans chanted “Holy shit!” before the lock-up. Excalibur said they had to stick with a match of this caliber as long as it takes. Excalibur hyped FTR vs. The Outrunners, an eight-woman tag match, Kyle Fletcher vs. Daniel Garcia, and RPG Vice & Hechicero vs. Mistico & Hologram & Briscoe on Collision 100 on Saturday night.
They fought at ringside early. Ibushi blocked a DDT at ringside and rammed Okada into the ring apron. Okada gave Ibushi a drop toe hold into into the ringside stairs. They cut to a double-box break at 3:30. [c/db]
Ibushi made a comeback after the break with a dropkick. Callis said Ibushi and Omega are best friends and have supported each other. Ibushi landed a standing moonsault for a two count at 8:00. Ibushi landed a running knee strike for a two count.
[OVERRUN]
Okada took over, but Ibushi made a comeback after ducking a Rainmaker and then landed a short-arm lariat. Okada sold being stunned, but when Ibushi climbed the ropes, Okada popped up and gave him a German suplex. When he went for a Rainmaker again, Ibushi ducked again. Ibushi then landed a high roundkick. Fans chanted “Ibushi!” Ibushi gave Okada leaping Tiger Driver off the top rope for a near fall at 15:00. They went into leverage pins and reversals. When the ref made Ibushi break a hold in the ropes, Okada caught him with a clothesline followed by a high dropkick. He then delivered the Rainmaker for the three count. Callis raised Okada’s arm afterward.
WINNER: Okada in 18:00.
(Keller’s Analysis: Really good match. I was glad to see that Archer wasn’t instrumental in the outcome.)
-Afterward, Archer and Rocky Romero attacked Ibushi. Kenny Omega ran to the ring with a chair in hand. Riccaboni said they hadn’t see him since the Okada attack. He knocked the heels out of the ring. Trent Beretta was about to hit Omega, but Ibushi made the save. Omega and Ibushi teamed up to drive Beretta into the mat.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO OUR POST-SHOW PODCAST
JOIN US LIVE ON YOUTUBE TONIGHT FOR THE VIDEO-FORMAT OF OUR LIVE POST-SHOWS…
PWTorch editor Wade Keller and PWTorch’s Chris Maitland to review AEW Dynamite LIVE tonight right after Dynamite. Join us and let us know your thoughts on Dynamite during the show.
Email our post-show at wadekellerpodcast@gmail.com with your comments and questions about Dynamite. We’ll read your emails live during the post-show.
Subscribe to all of our free podcasts by searching “wade keller” and “pwtorch” in your podcast app of choice including Spotify and Apple Podcasts and most other iOS and Android apps.
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