{"id":219519,"date":"2026-07-19T13:08:47","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T18:08:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=219519"},"modified":"2026-07-19T13:08:47","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T18:08:47","slug":"aew-collision-hits-misses-7-18-mercedes-promo-lacking-substance-knight-retains-against-ar-fox-ospreay-shines-in-a-showcase-match-perry-and-nick-wayne-deliver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2026\/07\/19\/aew-collision-hits-misses-7-18-mercedes-promo-lacking-substance-knight-retains-against-ar-fox-ospreay-shines-in-a-showcase-match-perry-and-nick-wayne-deliver\/","title":{"rendered":"AEW COLLISION HITS &#038; MISSES (7\/18): Mercedes promo lacking substance, Knight retains against AR Fox, Ospreay shines in a showcase match, Perry and Nick Wayne deliver"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-21917555\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p>To help add context, my &#8220;Hits&#8221; are ordered from best to worst. Collision wasn&#8217;t built around lengthy matches or shocking twists this week. Instead, AEW made efficient use of its television time by reinforcing several championships, developing key characters, and continuing to build anticipation for Redemption. Let&#8217;s get to the Hits.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>HITS<\/h3>\n<p><strong>KEVIN KNIGHT AND AR FOX KEPT THEIR FOOT ON THE GAS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Not every championship match needs to go 20 minutes. This one was a fireworks factory from the opening bell, with Kevin Knight and AR Fox wrestling at a relentless pace that never let up.<\/p>\n<p>Their styles complemented each other perfectly, creating a sprint that stayed exciting without overstaying its welcome.<\/p>\n<p>I also thought AEW made the right booking decision. With Fox set to face Darby Allin and Kenny Omega in the coming weeks, there was no reason for him to push Knight to the limit in a lengthy title match. Instead, AEW gave Fox the opportunity to showcase the athleticism and creativity that make him such a valuable part of the roster while allowing Knight to continue strengthening his TNT Championship reign.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes less is more. This match knew exactly what it wanted to be, and both wrestlers delivered.<\/p>\n<p><strong>WILL OSPREAY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Like the TNT Championship match earlier in the night, this didn&#8217;t need to go long to accomplish its objective.<br \/>\nAdam Brooks gave Will Ospreay enough resistance to make the match competitive, but the real story came after Brooks spat in Ospreay&#8217;s face. Rather than ending things immediately with the Hidden Blade, Ospreay repeatedly drove the strike into Brooks before forcing him to submit.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-3129138589\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>It was a subtle but effective piece of character development. Ospreay has always wrestled with intensity, but recently, there&#8217;s been a more ruthless edge to him. He&#8217;s no longer satisfied with simply winning\u2014he wants his opponents to remember him.<br \/>\nAEW could have booked this as a straightforward showcase victory, but instead used the closing moments to reinforce Ospreay&#8217;s evolving mindset. Even in a match that lasted less than ten minutes, viewers learned something new about one of the company&#8217;s biggest stars.<\/p>\n<p><strong>JACK PERRY AND NICK WAYNE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Jack Perry and Nick Wayne are two of AEW&#8217;s young homegrown talents, and it was refreshing to see them given meaningful television time together.<\/p>\n<p>I enjoyed the match, even if I thought both wrestlers still had another gear they could have reached. The action was smooth, the crowd remained engaged, and both men looked comfortable in their featured roles.<\/p>\n<p>I was especially happy to see Nick Wayne back wrestling on AEW television. He&#8217;s continued to grow over the past year, and every opportunity like this helps him develop into a more complete performer.<\/p>\n<p>This wasn&#8217;t a match designed to steal the show, and it didn&#8217;t need to. It accomplished its goal by giving two young talents another chance to showcase themselves while continuing Jack Perry&#8217;s momentum.<\/p>\n<p><strong>MAYA WORLD&#8217;S REDEMPTION<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Sometimes the best championship matches aren&#8217;t built around who the champion is\u2014they&#8217;re built around why the challenger needs to win.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-2494545570\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>That&#8217;s how I feel heading into Hikaru Shida versus Maya World at Redemption.<\/p>\n<p>Maya World came up short against Mercedes Mon\u00e9 in the Owen Hart Cup Final, but the loss established that she belongs in AEW&#8217;s biggest matches.<\/p>\n<p>There&#8217;s something fitting about Maya potentially capturing the TBS Championship at an event called Redemption. Falling short in one of the biggest matches of her career, only to rebound by winning her first AEW singles championship, would feel like a natural next chapter in her story.<\/p>\n<p>Whether AEW ultimately pulls the trigger or not, they&#8217;ve given fans a reason to become emotionally invested in Maya&#8217;s journey. That&#8217;s exactly what a championship program should do.<\/p>\n<p><em>ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW&#8230;<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Check out the latest episode of the &#8220;All Elite Conversation Club&#8221; with Joel Dehnel and Gregg Kanner, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spreaker.com\/episode\/all-elite-conversation-club-dehnel-kanner-discuss-omega-winning-the-aew-world-championship-on-dynamite-and-how-it-shapes-all-in-more--72930400\">CLICK HERE<\/a> to stream (or search \u201cpwtorch\u201d on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"All Elite Conversation Club - Dehnel &amp; Kanner discuss Omega winning the AEW World Championship on Dynamite and how it shapes All In, more\" src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?episode_id=72930400&amp;theme=light&amp;playlist=false&amp;playlist-continuous=false&amp;chapters-image=true&amp;episode_image_position=right&amp;hide-logo=false&amp;hide-likes=false&amp;hide-comments=false&amp;hide-sharing=false&amp;hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>MISSES<\/h3>\n<p><strong>AEW SKIPPED AN IMPORTANT RECAP<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>One of the things I praised AEW for last week was how effectively the company used highlight packages and video recaps to connect its programming. That&#8217;s why this week&#8217;s omission stood out.<\/p>\n<p>Hangman Page&#8217;s return on last week&#8217;s Collision was one of the show&#8217;s defining moments, yet this episode never took even a minute to revisit it. I&#8217;m not asking AEW to replay the entire promo, but a brief highlight package would have reinforced the importance of one of the company&#8217;s biggest stars and reminded viewers where his story currently stands.<\/p>\n<p>AEW has shown it&#8217;s capable of using these recaps effectively, which is why this one felt noticeable by its absence. If AEW wants Collision to feel like essential weekly viewing, moments like Hangman Page&#8217;s return deserve to carry over from one episode to the next.<\/p>\n<p><strong>MERCEDES MON\u00c9&#8217;S LIVE PROMO NEEDED MORE SUBSTANCE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;ll always encourage AEW to feature more live promos. They help break up the in-ring action and give wrestlers an opportunity to connect with the audience in a different way.<\/p>\n<p>That&#8217;s why this segment left me wanting more.<\/p>\n<p>With Mercedes Mon\u00e9 appearing in her hometown, it felt like there was an opportunity to give her something meaningful to say. Instead, the promo lasted less than two minutes and didn&#8217;t add much to her current direction or create additional anticipation for what&#8217;s next.<\/p>\n<p>If that was the goal, a pre-taped backstage interview would have accomplished the same thing. Live promos should advance a character or a story in a way that only a live setting can.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m glad AEW continues to put a microphone in Mercedes&#8217; hands. I just hope the next time they do, she&#8217;s given more to work with.<\/p>\n<p>FINAL SCORE<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Hits: 4<\/li>\n<li>Misses: 2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>FINAL THOUGHTS<\/h3>\n<p>AEW continued laying the groundwork for Redemption PPV. A couple of presentation choices kept the show from reaching another level, but the overall direction remains encouraging.<\/p>\n<h3>WRESTLING HISTORY<\/h3>\n<p>On this day in 1993, Ric Flair defeated Barry Windham at WCW Beach Blast in Biloxi, Mississippi, to capture his record ninth NWA World Heavyweight Championship, adding another milestone to one of the greatest careers in professional wrestling.<\/p>\n<h3>PODCAST PLUG<\/h3>\n<p>Be sure to check out the Collision Caf\u00e9 I host with PWTorch\u2019s Taylor Halley, available exclusively to PWTorch VIP members.<\/p>\n<p>Did you know you can read an ad-free, silky-smooth-loading version of this website with a PWTorch VIP Membership? Also, unlock 35+ years of archives including nearly 2,000 PWTorch Weekly Newsletters dating back to the late 1980s, hundreds of retro radio shows from the 1990s, and two decades of podcasts including Post-PPV Roundtable Podcasts dating back to the mid-2000s. Plus, new VIP-exclusive articles and podcasts throughout the week, fully compatible with the native Apple Podcasts app.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/govip\/\">CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON VIP MEMBERSHIP<\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Wade Keller Post-show (7\/15) - AEW Dynamite w\/Keller &amp; Adams\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0vU0EancQV8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-3345622274\"><div id=\"pwtor-790715497\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>To help add context, my &#8220;Hits&#8221; are ordered from best to worst. Collision wasn&#8217;t built around lengthy matches or shocking twists this week. Instead, AEW made efficient use of its television time by reinforcing several <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2026\/07\/19\/aew-collision-hits-misses-7-18-mercedes-promo-lacking-substance-knight-retains-against-ar-fox-ospreay-shines-in-a-showcase-match-perry-and-nick-wayne-deliver\/\" title=\"AEW COLLISION HITS &#038; MISSES (7\/18): Mercedes promo lacking substance, Knight retains against AR Fox, Ospreay shines in a showcase match, Perry and Nick Wayne deliver\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":219520,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,28,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-219519","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-specialists_hitsandmisses","category-specialists"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2026\/07\/Screenshot-2026-07-19-at-1.07.26-PM.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/219519","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=219519"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/219519\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":219521,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/219519\/revisions\/219521"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/219520"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=219519"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=219519"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=219519"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}