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AEW RAMPAGE TV REPORT
MAY 20, 2022
RECORDED AT THE FERTITTA ARENA HOUSTON, TX
AIRED ON TNT
REPORT BY PATRICK MOYNAHAN, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
AEW Rampage Announcers: Excalibur, Taz, and Chris Jericho
Ring announcer: Justin Roberts
– The opening of Rampage aired. Excalibur welcomed us with, “It’s Friday night, and you know what that means!” Excalibur was joined by Taz and Chris Jericho.
(1) FUEGO DEL SOL & EVIL UNO & PRESTON VANCE vs. HOUSE OF BLACK (Malakai Black & Brody King & Buddy Matthews)
Brody King and Evil Uno kicked things off right at the start of the show. Uno took King to the corner, then nailed him with a stiff chop to the chest. King came right back and was able to turn the tides, then tag in Black. Uno and Black went back and forth until Uno knocked Black down and tagged in Vance. Vance and Unop double teamed Black, which ended in a belly-to-belly suplex by Vance on Black. Black took Vance down with a leg capture into a heel hook, but Vance fought out of it.
Del Sol tagged in but was met with a huge clothesline by Black. Matthews tagged in and came off the top rope onto Del Sol. Matthews focused on Del Sol’s arm, then did the Penta hand sign in a mocking fashion. Del Sol somehow made the tag back to Uno, who was caught on the wrong side of a 3-1 disadvantage. King, now the legal man, went for a powerbomb but Uno escaped and tagged Del Sol. King knocked Del Sol off the apron and against the guardrail. [c]
Vance got the hot tag and took out each member of House of Black, including clotheslining King over the ropes. Things broke down from here, with Vance getting a near pinfall on Black as the crowd chanted “10.” Black hit a rising knee, but Vance caught Black and Matthews in a double choke. Matthews was thrown to the outside as Black locked Vance in a leg lock. Uno broke things but Black kicked him to the chest, then threw him outside. Vance nailed Black with a discuss lariat but failed to make the cover. King and Uno each tagged in.
Uno initially took it to King, but couldn’t get him up for a powerbomb. King countered, then attacked Del Sol and Vance. King hit Uno with a huge clotheslined then hit his Gonzo Bomb for the win.
WINNERS: House of Black in 10:30
– After the match, Death Triangle made their way to the ramp. There was something on the ramp covered in a black cloth. Penta slowly took it off which revealed a tombstone with “House of Black” and the Double or Nothing logo on it.
(Moynahan’s Take: Great opening 6-man with the obvious, but right team going over cleanly. I’m not stoked for the DoN 6-man match, but that’s more due to feeling this feud has gone on forever more than anything.)
– Lexy Nair was backstage with Gunn Club and Acclaimed. They showed recent clips of Anthony Bowens getting injured as each member asked Billy what they’d do now. Billy said once Bowens got back, they’d have a big scissor party.
(Moynahan’s Take: Is this for real? The Acclaimed is clearly moving down multiple pegs with this awful stuff.)
– Tony Schiavone was backstage with FTR, who responded to Roppongi Vice’s recent challenge. FTR said they’d take them on during this week’s Dynamite.
(2) SHAWN SPEARS VS. BIG DAMO
Big Damo, the former Killian Dane, made his AEW debut. Spears bailed to the outside early on. Damo followed but Spears caught him with a kick to the face. Damo shook it off and hit a big crossbody on the floor. Excalibur said Damo was chosen by MJF, who wanted this to be a showcase for Spears. Damo took Spears down, then hit a cannonball senton. He missed a Vader Bomb follow up, which allowed Spears to expose his knee and strike Damo to the face. Spears hit the C4 for the win.
WINNER: Shawn Spears in 2:00
– After the match, as the crowd chanted “Wardlow,” Spears said Wardlow would be the one locked in a cage with Spears, Giant Killer.
(Moynahan’s Take: A likely outcome but a bit of surprise seeing Killian Dane make an appearance on AEW Rampage.)
– The Undisputed Elite were backstage. Adam Cole congratulated Kyle O’Reilly for his recent Owen Hart Tournament win, and said they were the two best wrestlers in the tournament. O’Reilly said Cole was one of his best friends and was excited to face him in the finals. Matt Jackson turned his attention to the Hardys, and officially challenged them to a match at Double or Nothing.
(3) RED VELVET vs. KRIS STATLANDER – Owen Hart Cup Tournament Quarterfinal
Ruby Soho joined commentary for this match, as she will face the winner in the next round. Statlander picked Velvet up in a press slam, then removed one arm to show off her power. Statlander caught Velvet, then threw her to the side with ease. Velvet caught Statlander with the ring apron, as Jericho announced her as this week’s Sports Entertainer of the Week. [c]
Velvet landed the Final Slice finish but Statlander kicked out at two. Statlander hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Velvet got another close count as Jade Cargill, Mark Sterling, and Keira Hogan looked on. Velvet got a roll up, but Statlander reversed it and got the tree.
WINNER: Kris Statlander in 8:30
– Cargill and The Baddies attacked Statlander after the match, until Soho hit the ring to make the save. Cargill took out Soho from behind as Anna Jay then ran down and evened the odds.
(Moynahan’s Take: I feel like I say this about one match every week, but this match was severely cut short due to nearly four minutes of commercials smack dab in the middle of it.)
– A training video aired hyping up the Double or Nothing Buy-In match between Sterling/Nese vs. HOOK/Danhausen.
– Men of the Year and Dan Lambert were in the ring. Ethan Page said bad things happen when people cross them, then Sky called out Sammy to bring his belt. Sammy and Tay Conti were shown on screen with the TNT title, along with a sledgehammer. Sammy proceeded to smash the title until Frankie Kazarian appeared and helped destroy the title even more. Sammy ended by saying “this match is going to happen,” whether they like it or not.
(Moynahan’s Take: Okay so is Kazarian still a face and Sammy/Tay are as well, or is Kazarian only aligning with them to get back at Sky, with Sammy/Tay remaining heels? And now the TNT title is destroyed so are we expecting to get yet another version of this belt? I don’t get it!)
– Tony Schiavone was backstage with Britt Baker and Toni Storm as they were prepared to face off in the Owen Hart Tournament Finals on Dynamite this week. Storm left Baker in silence as she outright said there better not be any outside interference in their match.
– Mark Henry was backstage on split screen with tonight’s main event’s competitors. Henry announced that it was “time for the main event.”
– On Rampage next week, Excalibur announced Statlander vs. Soho in the other Women’s Semifinal Owen Hart Tournament match.
– Excalibur then ran down the Double or Nothing card. Jade Cargill interrupted via a backstage interview, and challenged Anna Jay for the TBS title at the PPV, which Excalibur announced as official. He then officially announced The Hardys vs. Young Bucks and House of Black vs. Death Triangle as other new matches for the PPV.
(4) JON MOXLEY & BRYAN DANIELSON vs. DANTE MARTIN & MATT SYDAL
William Regal joined commentary as Jake Hager stood behind Jericho during this match. Danielson and Moxley attacked before the bell, and Moxley took Sydal to the outside. In the ring, Danielson took it to Martin. Moxley tagged in and continued the onslaught on Martin. Moxley hit a suplex, then covered for a two count. Danielson tagged back in and focused on Martin’s leg.
Jericho and Regal went back and forth on commentary as Danielson and Moxley continued the vicious attack on Martin. Moxley missed a charge in the corner, which allowed Martin to tag in Sydal. Sydal hit a series of moves on Moxley, while following each up with a quick pin attempt to no avail. Sydal was thrown to the outside, which allowed Danielson to come off the apron with a running knee. [c]
Sydal was still outside as Moxley locked him in a sleeper. Inside the ring, Martin was perched on the top rope as Danielson climbed to the top and took him down with a double underhook, then transitioned it into the LeBell Lock. Martin slowly inched his way to the ropes but Danielson cut him off. Martin then used his leg to reach the rope for the break.
Danielson went to town with a series of kicks to Martin’s chest to the delight of the crowd. Moxley tagged back in as Sydal took out Danielson with a roundhouse. Sydal and Martin then double teamed Moxley. Sydal went to the top and came down on Danielson on the apron. Martin came off the top onto Moxley for a close two count until Danielson broke it up in time. Moseley went for his finish, but Martin evaded it and shit off the ropes. Moxley caught him in a choke and got a near pinfall. Martin went back to the top and missed a dropkick. Moxley caught him and hit a piledriver for a very close two count. Moxley and Danielson hit stereo elbow strikes on Sydal and Martin until Moxley hit the Paradigm Shift for the win.
WINNERS: Jon Moxley & Bryan Danielson in 12:30
– As Moxley and Danielson were leaving the ring, JAS attacked them on the ramp as the show went off the air.
(Moynahan’s Take: Great main event for AEW Rampage, with Moxley and Danielson getting most of the offense advantage. Martin looked good in the time he was given, with Regal complimenting him at one key moment.)
FINAL THOUGHTS: This AEW Rampage flew by, which is usually a good sign for how solid of a show it was. While I’m sure Double or Nothing will be solid, as seemingly all AEW PPVs have been thus far, I just can’t shake the feeling of how poor much of the build for most of these matches has been. For my full thoughts on this, make sure to check out this week’s Wrestling Night in America, as I’ll be joining Greg Parks. We’ll run down Double or Nothing in addition to talking about the weekly news. Until next week, where we’ll get a live Rampage episode.
NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S AEW RAMPAGE TV REPORT: 5/13 AEW RAMPAGE TV REPORT: Sky vs. Kazarian for TNT Title, Death Triangle vs. Butcher & Blade & Marq Quen, Ruby vs. Riho, Spears vs. Boulder
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