(AEW)
By Gavin Axelrod
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) rolled into North Carolina Wednesday night for its second-last show of 2021.
The show saw Ruby Soho and Nyla Rose meet in a TBS Title semi final match, the Pinnacle take on Darby Allin, CM Punk and Sting in the main event and Orange Cassidy take on Adam Cole.
Elsewhere on the card we saw Malakai Black defeat Griff Garrison, Wardlow beat Shawn Dean, Britt Baker’s holiday celebration and the announcement for Hangman vs Danielson II on Jan. 5.
As always Gavin Axelrod and Joseph Casciaro have you covered on all things Dynamite!
Familiar faces in new places
(AEW)
Adma Cole was victorious Wednesday night over Orange Cassidy, but it came with a little help from his friends.
Bobby Fish made a beeline for the ring as Orange Cassidy began to gain momentum. As Fish distracted the referee, Kyle O’Reilly made a shocking debut in AEW and attacked Cassidy. This allowed Cole to regain the upper hand and put his opponent away for the win.
Cole, Fish and O’Reilly acknowledged each other after the match as chants of “Undisputed” rained from the crowd. However, The Young Bucks made an appearance and seemed to be confused about what was happening.
Fish and O’Reilly literally turned their backs to The Bucks, but Cole dealt them a low blow by leaving them high and dry in the ring. Instead, he chose to retreat with Fish and O’Reilly.
Soho punchers ticket to TBS tournament Final
(AEW)
Wednesday's match between Ruby Soho and Nyla Rose was a great bout between two of the best women’s wrestlers in the company.
Rose had the audience fooled when she hit her signature Beast Bomb and it appeared she had the win. However, Soho was able to kick out and extend the match.
Soho then reversed Rose’s momentum and was able to hit her finisher out of nowhere for the win. While it was a night for Soho to celebrate, she left the match holding onto her shoulder, which could be the sign of an injury.
She’ll await the winner of next week’s clash between Jade Cargill and Thunder Rosa in the final on Jan. 5.
Main Event Mayhem
(AEW)
The main event of Wednesday’s show wasn’t for everyone.
Some would describe it as a messy car crash, while others might say it was a barnburner. But if there was one thing AEW got right with this match, it was how they booked MJF and CM Punk. The two rivals didn’t touch once in this match and every time they had the chance to, MJF ran away.
Another highlight of this contest was Sting’s CM Punk paint. Whoever drew that up deserves a raise.
Sting, Allin and Punk sent the crowd home happy by earning the victory. It was certainly surprising to see Dax Harwood sacrifice himself, rather than let MJF take the pin.
Next week: It’s AEW’s final Dynamite of 2021, featuring Santana, Ortiz and Eddie Kingston against 2point0 and Daniel Garcia, Adam Cole, Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly take on Best Friends and more!