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AEW RAMPAGE 100 TV REPORT
JULY 7, 2023
RECORDED AT ROGERS PLACE IN EDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA
AIRED ON TNT
REPORT BY PATRICK MOYNAHAN, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Announcers: Excalibur, Chris Jericho, and Tony Schiavone
Ring announcer: Justin Roberts
– The opening of Rampage aired, and Excalibur welcomed us to the show. He was joined by Chris Jericho and Tony Schiavone.
(1) THE DARK ORDER (John Silver & Alex Reynolds & Evil Uno) vs. THE YOUNG BUCKS & “HANGMAN” ADAM PAGE
Nick and Reynolds kicked things off as Rampage 100 came on the air. The commentary team played up the Dark Order and Hangman Page’s recent fallout. Young Bucks and Page took an early advantage as they each took turns flying to the outside onto the Dark Order. Reynolds caught Matt with a back elbow but Matt responded with a series of northern lights suplexes. Silver ran in but Matt caught him as well and gave both members of Dark Order a northern lights suplex.
The Young Bucks hit a double team move on Reynolds who kicked out at two. Reynolds rammed Matt into Uno on the apron. Matt fell to the outside as Silver hit him with a pump kick. Uno tagged in and kept Matt in the corner as he tagged in Silver. All three members of Dark Order charged in toward Matt as Matt tried to take them out one by one. Mat evaded Silver and dove for a tag but Uno and Reynolds yanked Page and Nick off the apron. [c]
Matt knocked Reynolds off the top rope then dove off the top onto Silver and Uno. Matt fought off Reynolds before finally making the tag to Page. Page cleared the ring and caught Silver off the top as he went for a crossbody. Page went to the top and hit Reynolds with a huge clothesline for a close count. Page was thrown to the apron as Uno hit him with a running boot to the face. Page returned the favor with a running boot of his own. The Young Bucks held Uno off the apron which allowed Page to hit a running moonsault. Inside the ring, Nick hit Reynolds with a Canadian Destroyer.
Reynolds was triple teamed but was able to kick out of a pin attempt by Matt. The Bucks attempted the Meltzer Driver but Reynolds evaded it at first. He wasn’t able to a second time as the Bucks hit it. Uno broke up the pin in time. Page and Uno battled it out as Page nailed him with a running clothesline. The Bucks hit superkicks on all members of the Dark Order. Page attempted the Buckshot but Uno used the ref as a barrier. Takeshita diverted the ref from there which allowed Uno to hit a low blow. Claudio then ran in and attacked Page, which allowed Uno to get the win.
WINNERS: Dark Order in 13:00
– Takeshita and Claudio each had chairs in hand as Omega hit the ring with one of his own to run them off.
(Moynahan’s Take: A solid opener which had the remaining Dynamite crowd in it throughout. A nice continuation of the BCC vs. Elite feud all while weaving in the Hangman vs. Dark Order tension.)
– A new segment of QTV aired. They hyped up this Saturday’s Collision match between Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks. They also aired a short clip showing Johnny TV throwing music by The Acclaimed into the garbage before calling it trash. [c]
(Moynahan’s Take: I guess they haven’t heard my pleas for these segments to cease to exist.)
(2) SAMMY GUEVARA & DANIEL GARCIA vs. MATT HARDY & JEFF JARRETT – Blind Eliminator Tournament
Garcia and Hardy started things off, with Garcia getting the early advantage. Hardy hit a back elbow to take Garcia down before tagging Jarrett in. Jarrett and Hardy attempted a double-team move but Garcia quickly tagged out to Sammy. Jarrett hit a hip toss that took Sammy down, then strutted for the crowd. Sammy dove to the outside but hit Lethal instead of Jarrett. [c]
Hardy and Garcia each made the tag at the same time and fought in the center of the ring. Hardy rocked Garcia’s face across each turnbuckle pad, then went for a cover for two. Hardy caught Garcia on the ropes and hit a sit-down powerbomb for two. Hardy attempted a Twist of Fate but Garcia reversed and made the tag to Sammy who flew off the ropes but was nailed in the midsection by Hardy.
Lethal got onto the apron and told Hardy to use Jarrett’s guitar. Hardy refused as Sammy came from behind and knocked Hardy into Lethal who then fell onto Jarrett on the outside. Sammy had Hardy in the GTH as Garcia made a blind tag. Garcia made the cover for the win.
WINNERS: Sammy Guevara & Daniel Garcia in 8:00
– After the match, Brother Zay ran in to help Hardy who was getting beat down by his own teammates. Satnam Singh looked on before hitting Zay with a chokeslam. Lethal continued to take it to Hardy as Ethan Page ran in to assist Hardy and Zay. Page attempted Ego’s Edge on Lethal but Singh made the save in time.
(Moynahan’s Take: Although rather short, this match actually made me want more of an actual build up to any and all of this entire tournament. Without a proper bracket or build up to most of these matches, they just don’t get much interest from me.)
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(3) HIKARU SHIDA vs. “THE PROBLEM” MARINA SHAFIR
Shida took the early offense with a dropkick to Shafir. Shafir kicked away at Shida’s legs before whipping her down to the mat. Shafir kicked Shida across the chest then picked her up into a modified torture rack before dropping her for a close count. Both women hit counter strikes on one another as Shida won the battle.
Shida hit a running knee for a two count. Shida missed a dropkick off the top which allowed Shafir to attempt an ankle lock. Shida hit an elbow strike and a falcon arrow for two. Shida hit a spinning knee strike for the win.
WINNER: Hikaru Shida in 3:30
(Moynahan’s Take: YOUR (kind of) RAMPAGE SQUASH OF THE WEEK, which is a shame since I’d like to see more of both of these women.)
– Kris Statlander was backstage with Renee. She talked about being a fighting champion and said she’d put the TBS title on the line anytime, anywhere. She called herself the Defeater of the Undefeated. She ended with “Kris Stat is where it’s at.” [c]
– Mark Henry was backstage within a video package hyping tonight’s main event. Henry said it was “time for the main event.”
(4) BIG BILL & BRIAN CAGE vs. TRENT BERETTA & MATT SYDAL – Blind Eliminator Tournament
Cage and Sydal started things off. Cage missed a clothesline as Sydal used his speed. Cage dropped Sydal to the mat after kicking out of a pin attempt. Big Bill made the tag, as did Trent. Trent measured Big Bill and evaded a few moves, which allowed him to hit a few chest chops. Trent sent Big Bill to the outside after pulling down the ropes. He followed up by jumping through the ropes right into the arms of Big Bill, who chokeslammed Trent across the apron. Big Bill rammed Trent’s spine into the post, then hit a fall away slam on the floor. [c]
Sydal was trying to chop down Cage by kicking away at his legs. Sydal hit a roundhouse to Cage’s head, then nailed Big Bill with a kick. Cage went for the Drill Claw but Sydal reversed into a pin attempt for two. Trent held Big Bill across the ropes which allowed Sydal to come off the top. Cage fired back for his team by hitting a double clothesline on Trent and Sydal. Trent and Cage were on the outside. Trent was thrown into the barricade but charged right back by spearing Cage to the floor. All four men went back into the ring. Trent and Sydal went up to the top but each were caught by Cage and Big Bill respectively. Cage and Big Bill went for double pins but Trent and Sydal kicked out.
Big Bill and Cage collided when Sydal moved. Cage came right back with a discus lariat on Trent. He tried one on Sydal who moved in time and hit a rising knee. Sydal went to the top but Cage caught him and placed him on the top rope. Trent quickly climbed up and hit a suplex on Cage, then a piledriver. Sydal came off the top with a double knee to the face of Cage for a very close count. Big Bill slowly got back into the ring and hit a huge double clothesline on Trent and Sydal. He chokeslammed Trent, then clotheslined Sydal as Cage held him up. Cage covered for the win.
WINNERS: Big Bill & Brian Cage in 12:30
(Moynahan’s Take: A very fun main event. Something may just be here between Cage and Big Bill as a tag team. I don’t expect them to last through the next round but they certainly make a fun monster team.)
FINAL THOUGHTS: It took a few extra days to get around to watching this episode and I have to say, it was worth the wait. While not a spectacular episode, it was definitely a fun hour of pro wrestling. Go out of your way to watch the tag team and trios matches as they’re worth the 8-13 minutes of your time each. Until next week, stay safe everyone!
RECOMMENDED NEXT: AEW COLLISION RESULTS (7/8): Punk vs. Joe, FTR vs. Juice & Jay White, Willow vs. Athena, Lee & Strickland vs. Darby & Cassidy
OR CHECK OUT PROWRESTLING.NET’S REPORT: AEW Rampage results (7/7): Powell’s review of Hangman Page and The Young Bucks vs. The Dark Order, Hikaru Shida vs. Marina Shafir, two Owen Hart Cup tournament matches
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