Tag: Brian Cage

AEW Rampage results 05/05/23: The Hardys delete The Firm

Get all the details on The Firm Deletion and much more on Rampage.

Few things, even in the wild world of pro wrestling, are as reliably off the rails as a cinematic match filmed at the Hardy Compound. And folks, we’ve got one tonight on AEW Rampage.

Matt and Jeff Hardy, along with Isiah Kassidy, are looking to rid themselves of their ties to The Firm for good, and they’ve enlisted some pretty good assistance in the form of Hook. We mean, he’s a heck of a lot better than Stokely Hathaway on the other side.

While there’s no telling what we might get in The Firm Deletion, you can be pretty darn sure that what’s in store during the show-opening trios match that features the Lucha Bros. teaming with the most exciting luchador on the planet right now.

Let’s get to it.

AEW Rampage results for May 5, 2023:

  • El Hijo del Vikingo and the Lucha Bros. def. Powerhouse Hobbs, QT Marshall and Aaron Solo by pinfall when Penta pins Solo
  • Footage is shown of MJF throwing an expletive-laced tirade on Dynamite after he realizes he’ll have to defend his title in a four-way match, but it cuts to commercial in the middle
  • Chris Jericho says he couldn’t be a commentator tonight because of the recent “unprovoked” attack by Adam Cole and says he’s working on assurances that Cole won’t be in the same building next week on Dynamite
  • Jade Cargill vs. Gia Scott by pinfall in a matter of about a minute
  • Mark Briscoe has a match to worry about, but Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett want him to call FTR and get them a tag team title shot at Double or Nothing
  • Mark Briscoe def. Preston Vance by pinfall with the Jay Driller and is joined by his family in the ring
  • Dustin Rhodes is excited about AEW heading to Texas in two weeks, but unfortunately, Swerve Strickland and the Mogul Embassy haven’t forgotten about him, and Brian Cage lays him out
  • Julia Hart and Anna Jay used to be friends but now are definitely not, and will meet in the ring on Dynamite
  • A short video promo has Daniel Garcia and Orange Cassidy talking some smack to each other ahead of their title match next week
  • The Firm Deletion features: a time skip, fireworks, Ethan Page using a large tree branch as a weapon, Jeff Hardy choking Big Bill with a smaller branch, Stokely Hathaway seeing visions and nearly getting run over by a Power Wheels vehicle driven by Matt Hardy’s kids, Stoke getting tased in Matt’s home theater, Isiah Kassidy leaping off a garage, Stoke getting beaten up more by Matt’s family in their wrestling ring, and Page finally taking the pinfall before the winning team stands in the middle of a burning Jeff Hardy symbol

Report: Brian Cage remaining with AEW on new deal

Cage has been with AEW since early 2020.

Brian Cage will be staying with AEW and ROH for the foreseeable future.

Fightful Select (subscription required but worth it) reported today that Cage had agreed to “a long-term, multi-year deal” to remain with the company. His contract was first said to be close to expiring a few months ago, and he continued working without a contract following ROH Supercard of Honor last month until his new deal could be worked out.

The 39-year-old Cage has yet to hold any singles gold since joining AEW in early 2020, though he did have a run with the unofficial FTW Championship of just over a year starting in the summer of 2020. Cage is a former Impact World Champion, and currently holds the Ring of Honor World Six-Man Tag Team Championship with Kaun and Toa Liona.

What’s especially interesting about Cage re-signing is that Fightful has suggested on several occasions that people within WWE were trying to convince him to make the jump. The most recent report stated “WWE had some interest in Cage, but he ended up liking the offer made by AEW.”

Whether WWE failed to land Cage because of the de facto hiring freeze said to be in place at the moment or he simply felt more comfortable remaining in the promotion where he’s spent the last few years remains to be seen. At the very least, things are happening for him now creatively, with The Embassy, the stable that Cage has been rolling with in ROH, joining up with Swerve Strickland’s Mogul Affiliates last week.

AEW Dynamite results: Ruby wins but has had it with women’s division turmoil

Live AEW Dynamite results for Feb. 15, 2023 from Laredo, TX, including a three-way battle between Toni Storm, Britt Baker and Ruby Soho.

It’s time for the first part of a little Texas two-step for AEW. Tonight it’s Dynamite from Laredo, and the path to Revolution should start getting a bit more clearly illuminated.

But the highlight of tonight’s show should be the in-ring action, which will be plentiful and varied. The headline bout is a Texas Tornado tag team match (never more appropriate than when it’s, you know, really in Texas) that features Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli going up against Rush and Preston Vance.

Want an even bigger tag team match? We’ve got that too. Orange Cassidy, The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass are on one side of it, with Jeff Jarrett, Jay Lethal, Satnam Singh and Sonjay Dutt on the other.

The women’s division has been full of intrigue, and Ruby Soho has been in the middle of most of it. She’ll experience that in the most direct way possible in Laredo, as she’s slated to be in a three-way dance that also involves Toni Storm and Britt Baker. Is this the night where Soho will have to pick a side?

There’s much more, as well. Even AEW World Champion MJF will appear, even though he’s made it clear he’d rather not. Will be run scared again from his Revolution opponent, Bryan Danielson, or has he finally found his courage ahead of the pay-per-view?

AEW Dynamite results in 60 seconds:

  • Orange Cassidy, Daddy Ass and The Acclaimed def. Jeff Jarrett, Jay Lethal, Satnam Singh and Sonjay Dutt by pinfall
  • Bryan Danielson thinks MJF is scared and desperate, which … perhaps
  • Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli def. Rush and Preston Vance by submission
  • The Butcher and The Blade attack Hangman Adam Page backstage, who was busy watching the previous match
  • Wardlow tells Jim Ross a personal story about his dad and how Samoa Joe used some personal knowledge of his younger days against him
  • Mark Briscoe def. Josh Woods by pinfall
  • Adam Cole tells Renee Paquette when he’s cleared to return, he has a few ideas of who he’d like to face
  • MJF reluctantly makes his appearance to run down Danielson again, but Christopher Daniels won’t join in with him, even for big money
  • The Gunns brag about winning the tag team titles and say Revolution will be The Gunn Show
  • “Jungle Boy” Jack Perry def. Brian Cage by pinfall, but is confronted by a returning Christian Cage, who maces him and delivers the Killswitch on the ramp
  • The Acclaimed says they will invoke their rematch clause and take the tag team titles back at Revolution
  • The Elite talk NBA All-Star weekend and accept another challenge from Top Flight and AR Fox for Rampage
  • Hangman Adam Page def. Kip Sabian by pinfall
  • The Blackpool Combat Club comes to the ring and surrounds Page, and Moxley tells Hangman to let things go between them … but Page says they can settling things at Revolution, and Evil Uno ends up getting in Moxley’s face before Mox proposes a Texas Death match
  • Chris Jericho says another match for Ricky Starks isn’t going to happen, but Daniel Garcia looks forward to facing him Friday on Rampage
  • Stokely Hathaway says Hook broke his arm, and he and The Firm laugh it up when Tony Schaivone says Hook has been suspended pending investigation
  • Ruby Soho def. Toni Storm and Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. by pinning Baker

Please scroll down for more details on every match and major non-match segment.

AEW Rampage results: Orange Cassidy retains again

Get quick AEW Rampage results for the November 11, 2022 episode, featuring Orange Cassidy vs. Lee Johnson for the All-Atlantic Championship.

Who would have imagined that Orange Cassidy would be the hardest working champion in AEW? It doesn’t really fit his personality at all, but Freshly Squeezed is back at it again on AEW Rampage, defending his All-Atlantic Championship after several tough defenses just last week.

This time out, it’ll be Lee Johnson getting a shot at the gold. And speaking of gold, the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament was supposed to have all three of its remaining first round matches on tonight’s show. However, Ricky Starks isn’t cleared to compete, kicking his match with Lance Archer into next week.

We’ll still see two other tourney matches as Brian Cage takes on Dante Martin and Rush collides with Bandido. The winners of those matches will join Ethan Page in the semifinals after his victory on Dynamite.

Let’s check out what’s going down as we wrap up the week in AEW on TV.

AEW Rampage results in 30 seconds:

  • “Jungle Boy” Jack Perry wants to challenge Luchasaurus to a Steel Cage match face to face, but it doesn’t go so well when he ends up getting slammed onto a steel chair
  • Pac lectures the rest of Death Triangle again for not cheating like he does, saying they need to defend their trios titles by any means necessary
  • Brian Cage def. Dante Martin by pinfall in an AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament match
  • Lee Moriarty says he wants any champion in AEW … but even Stokely Hathaway loses some of his bravado when Hook shows up
  • Another promo video airs for the House of Black
  • Bandido def. Rush by pinfall in an AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament match after John Silver helped counteract interference from Jose The Assistant
  • Jake Hager made a challenge of some sort to Claudio Castagnoli
  • Nyla Rose def. Kayla Sparks by pinfall, but gets dropped by a pump kick from an angry Jade Cargill
  • Orange Cassidy def. Lee Johnson by pinfall to retain the AEW All-Atlantic Championship

Breaking down the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament bracket

We’re ready to tear up our bracket after Dynamite just like we often do after the first day of March Madness if we’ve got this wrong.

World championship eliminator matches, where a challenger has to beat the champ to get a shot at the champ’s title, aren’t cool. You know what is cool, though? Tournaments for a world championship opportunity, which is exactly what is kicking off this week with the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament.

The format couldn’t be simpler. It’s eight men vying for a chance to take on the AEW World Champion — which could be current holder Jon Moxley or MJF by then —at Winter is Coming in December. The first round matches are this week, one on Dynamite and three on Rampage, with the semifinals following next week ahead of the final, which will be part of the Full Gear card on Saturday, Nov 19.

None of the eight competitors have held the AEW World Championship, though several have had previous title shots. There are some of the usual suspects but some refreshing new faces as well.

Let’s break down the bracket ahead of the first round and see where we land.

First round: Eddie Kingston vs. Ethan Page

Eddie Kingston has a history with Moxley as both friend and foe, and another championship opportunity for him would likely be received warmly by AEW fans. Yet it feels like Ethan Page, who always felt like he was taking a backseat to partner Scorpio Sky in Men of the Year, may finally have found his footing in The Firm.

Is AEW ready to push Page harder? Giving him a win here only really makes sense if the company is committed to at least having him in the final. It’s hard to say for sure but it certainly might be his time.

Prediction: Page advances

First round: Bandido vs. Rush

This is a nice showcase for both men, put particularly Bandido since he is going to be sticking around as an AEW regular. He is a fantastic talent who should only get more love from the fans as they are exposed to more of his work.

Rush is great too, but has been on TV a fair amount over the past few months. A win for him is logical if Kingston wins the other quarterfinal on this side of the bracket, but since we’re rolling with Page, we’ll go with the face here.

Prediction: Bandido advances

First round: Lance Archer vs. Ricky Starks

Though Lance Archer hasn’t consistently been on AEW TV for a while, the company always treats him like a big deal when he’s around. Thus, his inclusion in the tournament is fine even though he’s barely been on Dynamite or Rampage for months.

So he’s moving on for sure, right? Not so fast. AEW just had Ricky Starks cut a promo last week touting his entrance in the tourney and positioning him for bigger things. Like Page, Starks is a very talented performer who simply hasn’t been given the push to prove it. It would be disappointing if AEW went to the effort to highlight that just to have him lose in the first round, whereas a victory over Archer would be huge for Starks.

Prediction: Starks advances

First round: Brian Cage vs. Dante Martin

This feels like the clearest first round match of the four. Brian Cage has recently been back on TV quite a bit, albeit on the ROH side as part of The Embassy. Dante Martin is the perennial “look great in a losing effort” guy and that would apply here once again.

The x-factor would be if Cage’s Embassy beef with Samoa Joe and Wardlow spills over into this bout, which could definitely happen. Otherwise, Cage should move forward.

Prediction: Cage advances

Semifinals

Page vs. Bandido wouldn’t really be a battle of contrasting styles as much as a showdown between two wrestlers who can do a little bit of everything. We haven’t even mentioned The Firm giving Page the edge, but it’s not hard to picture the faction lending the hand he’d need to overcome Bandido, who doesn’t have obvious friends to come to his aid since he’s still new to AEW. That could be the difference.

On the other side of the bracket, Starks and Cage have history as former Team Taz members who eventually had a falling out. Things are different now since Cage was (sort of) the fan favorite when he left the group and Starks is now in that position. Cage also has a team backing him whereas Starks doesn’t, but maybe this is where Joe and Wardlow show up to counter The Embassy. Either way, Starks making the final would be great for him.

Prediction: Page, Starks advance

Final

If it is indeed Page and Starks in the final, it could be a bellwether for what goes down in Full Gear’s main event. A Page victory makes more sense if it’s Moxley who retains, seeing as it would make for a more classic heel vs. face title match at Winter is Coming.

That said, MJF has been showing face tendencies of his own, and while it’s possible he’s simply going to show his true colors after he dethrones Mox — in which case having Starks win this tournament would be the way to go, particularly since Max and Ricky would be a really fun battle of dueling promos for a few weeks — it’s just as likely AEW wants him to keep leaning into that for a bit longer.

As well, MJF has had a falling out with The Firm that could carry over for another month if he wins the AEW World Championship and Page emerges here. For that reason, Page going all the way is the outcome we’ve talked ourselves into.

Prediction: Page wins the tournament