0 of 3
After months of buildup and weeks of storytelling and big moments, AEW All Out weekend is finally upon us. However, before we get to the pay-per-view, All Elite Wrestling had one more stop to make before the show with Friday's Rampage.
This week's show took place in the Now Arena, which will also house the All Out PPV on Sunday. With Wednesday's Dynamite and Week 3 of Rampage also taking place in Chicago, AEW fans in Illinois have been making up for lost time caused by the pandemic.
Before he battles CM Punk on Sunday, Darby Allin faced Daniel Garcia on Friday. Sting was at ringside for Allin while 2.0 supported Garcia. Punk watched it all go down from the commentary table.
We also saw Malakai Black continue his feud with The Nightmare Family as he took on Lee Johnson, and Kris Statlander had an uphill battle when she faced Jamie Hayter and Rebel in a handicap match.
Let's take a look at everything that happened on the go-home episode of Rampage before All Out.
1 of 3
The first match of the night featured The Nightmare Factory's Lee Johnson taking on Malakai Black. Surprisingly, Johnson didn't have anyone from the group with him.
Black was clearly in his head as Johnson hesitated to make contact at first. When they finally locked up, Johnson hit the first strike, which just seemed to make Black angry.
He took Johnson down with a sweep kick and backed him to the corner. A stiff back elbow took Johnson down as the show cut to a break. We returned to see Johnson take Black down with a suicide dive.
He followed up with a frog splash but didn't go for a cover. He picked Black up, but the Dutch Superstar countered and hit a huge running kick to the face. He unloaded on Big Shotty with a flurry of punches before grabbing a chair from under the ring.
He put the chair in front of Johnson and dared him to use it as he turned his back. As Johnson slowly stood up, Black uncorked a spinning kick to the face for the win.
Grade: B
Analysis
This match was simple and effective. It didn't have 1000 different moves or many high-flying spots, but it told a concise story about Black and his feud with The Nightmare Factory.
Johnson has improved a lot since joining AEW. He has bulked up a bit and is beginning to look like a pro wrestler. He may not have won but he put up a good fight.
The outcome of this match was never in question, but predictability isn't always a bad thing if it makes sense for the story being told. Black looked like a dominant bully which is exactly what was supposed to happen.
2 of 3
Before she battles Britt Baker for the AEW women's title on Sunday, Statlander had to go through Rebel and Hayter in a handicap match on Rampage.
Hayter started in the ring while Rebel went to the apron. She locked up with Statlander and they had a physical exchange before Hayter took control with some help from Rebel.
Baker was directing traffic as her proteges kept the alien cornered. She caught a kick from Rebel and began to make a comeback. She dropped Hayter on top of Rebel and ran corner to corner with strikes for both women.
Statlander showed off her power with a slam to both women at the same time. She locked Rebel in a unique submission for the win.
Grade: B-
Analysis
Like Black vs. Johnson, this was short and to the point. Statlander looked great defeating two women at once, but she didn't have an easy time with it, so Rebel and Hayter didn't look like jobbers.
Some of the moves Statlander used were unique and interesting, which is something that popped Jericho on commentary a few times. She has versatility that is just starting to really show itself.
It was good that this didn't end with Baker and her crew beating Statlander up. We don't need that in every go-home segment.
3 of 3
Garcia and Allin had a brief promo exchange before the match got going. Allin backed Garcia to the corner and they started trading slaps before Allin took him down by the legs for some punches.
2.0 backed off as Allin followed him out of the ring. He lined up and tried to run Garcia over but ended up hitting a table when he moved out of the way. Sting took out 2.0 when they tried to attack him.
Garcia whipped Allin into the steel steps but when they got back into the ring, the painted grappler took him down into an armbar. He pulled Garcia out of the ring and slammed his arm into the steps.
They ended up on the top rope where Garcia hit a huge superplex for a two-count. We returned from a break to see Allin just starting to make a comeback when Garcia grabbed him in a sleeper in the corner.
Allin managed to climb to the middle rope with Garcia on his back and dropped him to break the hold. CM Punk laughed when Allin hit one of his old signature moves.
Allin was able to score the win with a nice combination. As soon as it was over, 2.0 rushed the ring. Sting helped out until Punk put down his headset and walked down to the ring. Allin took out both men by himself and had a staredown with Punk to end the show.
Grade: B+
Analysis
This was a fun match that somehow managed to not feel like a foregone conclusion the moment it started. We all knew Allin would win, but it also seemed like AEW might pull a swerve in some way.
Punk not needing to help Allin was the right move. He doesn't need to save his opponent and Allin taking out 2.0 by himself made him look dangerous.
This was probably the best episode of Rampage from a wrestling standpoint. Every match was good to great. If this is a preview of All Out, we are in for a great show on Sunday.
"results" - Google News
September 04, 2021 at 10:03AM
https://ift.tt/3n5yu6m
AEW Rampage Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from September 3 - Bleacher Report
"results" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2SvRPxx
https://ift.tt/2Wp5bNh
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "AEW Rampage Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from September 3 - Bleacher Report"
Post a Comment