1/6 AEW BATTLE OF THE BELTS V TV REPORT: Acclaimed vs. Jarrett & Lethal, more

AEW BATTLE OF THE BELTS V REPORT
JANUARY 6, 2023
AT THE VETERANS MEMORIAL COLISEUM IN PORTLAND, OR
AIRED ON TNT
REPORT BY PATRICK MOYNAHAN, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Announcers: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

Ring announcer: Dasha Gonzalez

– Darby Allin was still celebrating his TNT title defense win from Rampage as the opening for Battle of the Belts V kicked off. JR, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and Chris Jericho welcomed us as they ran down the card.

(1) THE ACCLAIMED (Max Caster & Anthony Bowens w/Billy Gunn) vs. JEFF JARRETT & JAY LETHAL (w/Satnum Singh & Sonjay Dutt) – AEW Tag Team Championship (No Holds Barred)

Lethal and Jarrett attacked Acclaimed from before the bell. Lethal had the figure four on Bowens on the stage, then rolled down the ramp with it still locked in. Jarrett got a boot to the face by Bowens, who then hit a neckbreaker off the middle recipes for two. The crowd chanted “Oh, scissor me, Daddy,” as Bowens took it to Lethal. Caster tagged in as The Acclaimed hit a double suplex on Lethal for a short count. Caster took a swipe at Singh on the outside which riled him up. Jarrett stopped the Scissor Me Timbers attempt but was knocked off the apron by Caster for his troubles. [c]

Bowens hit a huge clothesline on Lethal as he fought his way back. Both men slowly tried tagging out, and Bowens finally made it to Caster who took out Jarrett with a thrust kick. Caster hit an Olympic Slam, then mimicked Kurt Angle before putting on an ankle lock. Lethal went to the top and took out the ref with an elbow drop. Billy Gunn ran in and clotheslined Lethal to the outside. Singh took out Caster and threw him into the steel steps. Bowens took Jarrett down but there was no ref to make the count before a new ref, Mike Posey, ran down. Jarrett kicked out in time. Jarrett had the guitar but Gunn tried taking it away before Jarrett hit him with a low blow. Bowens pulled out the boom box but Dutt took him down. Billy Gunn finally took the guitar away and nailed Singh with it. Singh didn’t go down as Jarrett hit the Stroke on Gunn.

Bowens and Caster double teamed Jarrett but Singh hit them with a double chokeslam. Singh then choke slammed Mike Posey, then ripped his ref shirt off and threw it to Dutt who put it on. Lethal hit Lethal Injection on Bowens and made the cover. Dutt made the count until Aubrey Edwards pulled him out. The crowd was hot for this whole thing. Aubrey broke Dutt’s pencil, then pushed Dutt out of the ring. The Acclaimed hit a double finish, with a Mic Drop to end it.

WINNERS: The Acclaimed in 15:00

(Moynahan’s Take: Amazing crowd throughout this one. The first half of the match was good but very standard, with no real “no holds barred” elements going on. That said, it certainly picked up in the second half, and the crowd ate it all up. Very fun match all around.)

– Powerhouse Hobbs was backstage with the Book of Hobbs. He said every ounce of blood shed and pain was in the book and added that everything that happened to him would happen to you (whoever that is.)

– Eddie Kingston and Ortiz were backstage and responded to the House of Black. They said they couldn’t figure out their riddles, before Ortiz questioned Kingston’s allegiance. Kingston responded by challenging House of Black at this week’s Dynamite.

(2) JADE CARGILL (w/Leila Grey) vs. SKYE BLUE – TBS Championship

Cargill mocked Blue before the bell, which led to Blue attacking Cargill. Cargill caught Blue in a crossbody attempt but Blue turned it into a crucifix pin for two. Blue got a second quick pin attempt for two before Cargill rolled to the outside to regroup. Cargill knocked Blue off the apron to the floor with a forearm. She followed it up with a kick right to the face of Blue, then choke slammed her on the ramp. Aubrey Edwards checked on Blue. Cargill was back inside the ring counting Blue out as Red Velvet made her way to the stage. Blue made it back into the ring right before ten. [c]

Blue hit a running knee strike, then nailed Cargill with a spinning kick. Cargill fired right back with the huge pump kick. Red Velvet made her way down to the ring and seemed to verbally help Blue get back into the ring. Velvet slapped Grey on the outside as Blue rolled Cargill ypo for a close count. Blue hit a superkick, then a Code Blue for a close two count. Blue went to the apron, and nailed Cargill with a knee strike. She jumped over the rope but Cargill caught her and turned it into her finish for the win.

WINNER: Jade Cargill in 9:00

(Moynahan’s Take: Really solid ending with a believable chance for Blue to take this one. The whole Cargill and Velvet feud is unnecessarily confusing to me, and I think a lot of people.)

– Lexy Nair was backstage with Stokely Hathaway, Big Bill, and Lee Moriarty. Hathaway spoke about their match this week against Hook and Jungle Boy. He said they’d put them in the dirt in L.A. this week. [c]

– Excalibur announced next week’s Rampage would see Kings of the Black Throne vs. Eddie Kingston and Ortiz.

– A video aired hyping a match between Tay Melo and Anna Jay vs. Willow Nightingale and Ruby Soho. A Street Fight for next week’s Rampage between the four women was then announced.

(3) ORANGE CASSIDY vs. KIP SABIAN (w/Penelope Ford) – All-Atlantic Championship

Both men started fast and traded moves in order to gain the upper hand. Cassidy fired away with a number of right hands until Sabian rolled to the outside to cool down. Sabian mocked Cassidy by putting on his glasses and singing “Zombie.” The Bunny skipped down the ramp as the three of them faced off with Cassidy. Sabian kicked Cassidy in the stomach then threw him into the ring. Sabian took Cassidy down on the outside as Danhausen came over and cursed Sabian to the delight of the crowd. Sabian bit Danhausen’s finger as Cassidy flew through the ropes to break things up. Cassidy hit a crossbody off the top and went for a DDT but turned it into a Stundog Millionaire. Sabian caught Cassidy coming through the ropes, then hit a neckbreaker off the apron. [c]

Sabian hit a running senton on Cassidy in the corner. He tried for a second but Cassidy moved in time. Both men climbed the ropes as Cassidy tried going for a Beach Break. Sabian cut him off but Cassidy was able to counter into a superplex. Bunny grabbed Cassidy’s foot and the ref ejected her. Both men collided in the center of the ring as Butcher and Blade appeared on the ramp. Danhausen tried fighting them both off alone but was unsuccessful. Blade and Butcher grabbed steel chairs from under the ring and sat down at the bottom of the ramp. Cassidy and Sabian exchanged shots. Sabian once again mocked Cassidy by hitting him with a soft slap, then a few soft kicks.

It only fired Cassidy up who exploded with forearms. Sabian came right back with more mocking, before headbutting Cassidy. Sabian hit a rising knee, then another. Sabian covered for two. Sabian threw Cassidy to the outside right in front of Butcher and Blade. Best Friends ran down to even the odds. Cassidy came off the top but Sabian countered with a corkscrew neckbreaker for two. Cassidy finally hit his spinning DDT, then hit a PK and a Beach Break for a very close two count. Cassidy accidentally hit the ref but was able to regroup and hit Orange Punch for the win.

WINNER: Orange Cassidy in 16:30

(Moynahan’s Take: This was good but for a main event of two solid hours of wrestling, I’m not sure it’s the match I’d end the night with. That said, once again, the crowd was alive throughout the match and really fired up toward the end.)

FINAL THOUGHTS: An entertaining hour of pro wrestling, and even better when coupled with the first hour of Rampage. That said, I’m still unsure what these Battle of the Belt shows are meant to be other than an hour of random title matches. I’d like to think these shows have more thought out into them down the road, but I have yet to see evidence of that. While the main event was solid, make sure to watch the opener if nothing else. Until next week, stay safe everyone!

CATCH-UP: 1/6 AEW RAMPAGE TV REPORT: Darby Allin vs. Mike Bennett, BCC vs. Top Flight, more