AEW COLLISION FEUD TRACKER: Evaluating the top new and ongoing feuds including Punk vs. Joe, House of Black vs. Acclaimed, Hobbs vs. Miro, Elite vs. Bullet Club Gold

C.M. Punk vs. Samoa Joe

Samoa Joe murdered another enhancement talent in short order and then cut a very good angry Samoa Joe promo. The promo foreshadowed Joe showing up in the main event and attacking Punk. Yes the production missed the shot but in a weird way I think it made it feel less planned. Cameras shouldn’t always be in place to conveniently catch sneak attacks. Digressing, I expect Punk to officially respond to and accept Joe’s challenge for All In. Given its long, storied, and well-respected history, this feud basically sells itself.

Grade: A+

C.M. Punk vs. Ricky Starks

I assumed that the Ricky Starks-Punk feud ended after the match for the fraudulent title, but now I’m not so sure. Starks cut an impassioned heel promo that didn’t exactly get booed by the Greensboro crowd. Starks has been suspended from in-ring competition for 30 days which means he will miss All In and All Out. He has however acquired a manager’s license. To me, that means Starks will be managing someone who will be his proxy in the feud with Punk. Who that is, I’m not entirely sure, but I hope it’s someone who would benefit from Starks cutting promos for them.

Grade: B+

House of Black vs. The Acclaimed

The House of Black had unsurprisingly good match with CMFTR. Earlier in the night The Acclaimed won a WCW Saturday Night-esque elevated squash against The Iron Savages. Billy Gunn’s absence was noticeable. It was kind of sad when Bowens reflexively went to say “Scissor me, Daddy Ass” only to remember Daddy Ass wasn’t there. On Dynamite, HOB ambushed The Acclaimed and stole Billy’s boots. The stage has clearly been set for Billy Gunn, in the year of our Lord 2023, to receive an uproarious reaction when he returns and un-retires. I think the match probably happens at All Out as opposed to Wembley, but the outcome remains the same. The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass topple the HOB, and Billy Gunn gets one last, improbable run with a title.

Grade: A+

Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Miro

Hoss fight incoming! Hobbs needs to be redeemed after his recent string of losses, therefore he challenged The Redeemer. Simple and to the point. Not so simple, the involvement of the Q.T. Marshall and his Goof Troop of associates. Q.T. is desperate to get Hobbs back into the fold, but Hobbs wants nothing to do with him. That didn’t stop Q.T. from sending out Aaron Solo and Nick Comoroto to jump Miro. Hobbs had no interest in helping Miro (not that he needed it), but he’s not trying re-affiliate himself with that clown car either. At some point Hobbs and/or Miro have to definitively dispatch of these knuckleheads so we can get to these guys just wailing on each other.

Grade: B+

Bullet Club Gold vs. The Elite

Both Bullet Club Gold and The Elite are both offshoots of Bullet Club so it’s kind of natural that they’d feud. BCG cut a promo on the Elite on last week’s Collision and then showed up to Dynamite to ambush Kenny Omega as part of an alliance with Don Callis. That set up one hell of a trios match for All In: Bullet Club Gold & Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi & “Hangman” Adam Page. Beyond All In, I have to wonder if Punk’s infantile ego will allow the big bad Bucks to appear on Collision given that he’s banished lowly Ryan Nemeth and the Head of Talent Relations Christopher Daniels from the show simply because they’re friends with them. If he can’t handle it, this feud probably moves primarily to Dynamite.

Grade: B+

Kris Statlander & Willow Nightingale vs. Mercedes Martinez & Diamante

These four had a really good tag match in a good slot on last week’s Collision. The heels went over as they should’ve to build heat into the feud. This week Nightingale and Diamante go one-on-one. It’s very simple; no reinventions of the wheel necessary. The only thing I wonder what title match we get out of this.

Grade: A-

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