By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Dot Net reader Jason Biagi attended the All In event on Saturday in Chicago, Illinois and sent the following report.
Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks came out and tried out the pyro and smoke. Then they introduced Road Warrior Animal who came out on a Harley motorcycle. Then they had Hot Topic toss out free merch to the rabid crowd.
“SCU” Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky vs. ROH Tag Champions Jay & Mark Briscoe in a non-title match: Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky came out dressed as Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed respectively. The Briscoes made their entrance wearing war paint.The Briscoes double teamed Sky from the beginning until he made a hot tag to Kaz. Kaz kicked out of the Black Tiger Bomb while Sky leveled The Briscoes with a suicide dive. The Briscoes regained the edge and hit Kaz with the Jay Driller followed by the Froggy Bow but Sky broke it up. The Briscoes set up Kaz for the Doomsday Device but Kaz caught Mark Briscoe in midair with the Spanish Fly for the win. Great start to the show.
The “Over Budget” battle royal for a shot at ROH Champion Jay Lethal: The participants were Colt Cabana, Marko Stunt, Rocky Romero, Ethan Page, Tommy Dreamer, Cheeseburger, Jordyn Grace, Moose, El Hijo Del Chico, Billy Gunn, Austin Gunn, Jimmy Jacobs, Punishment Martinez, Chuckie T, Trent Barretta, Hurricane Helms, and Brian Cage. Bully Ray came out of the crowd and powerbombed Chico through a table and took his place. It came down to Grace, Bully, Cabana, and Cage. Cage was eliminated by Grace, then Cabana teamed with Grace to deliver the Whassup? spot to Bully. Bully eliminated Grace shortly thereafter. Colt tried to toss Bully using a chair but Colt got eliminated instead. Bully thought he had won but Chico, who never entered the ring and thus was still eligible, attacked Bully ,removed his mask and revealed himself as Flip Gordon. Flip then eliminated Bully to win the match and the ROH title shot later in the card.
MJF vs. Matt Cross: MJF worked over Cross’ left arm the majority of the match, even delivering a package shoulderbreaker. Cross rebounded with a handspring cutter then put MJF away with a shooting star press.
Stephen Amell vs. Christopher Daniels: Jerry Lynn was the ref. Both men tried to humiliate the other by outwrestling one another. Amell pulled out a table, trying to avenge being put through a table by Daniels in the past. Amell hit a drop kick and an l and later hit an impressive coast to coast dropkick.He then put Daniels on the table. Amell flew off the top to the outside but missed Daniels and crashed through the table. Lynn rolled both men back in the ring and Daniels got in his face. Lynn shoved Daniels into a roll up by Amell for a near fall. Daniels recovered, hit the BME and pinned Amell. Amell did okay but was clunky in spots. Amell and Daniels shook hands at the end.
Tessa Blanchard vs. Britt Baker vs. Chelsea Green vs. Madison Rayne: Tessa greeted both Magnum T.A. and Tully Blanchard on her way to the ring. All four women worked their asses off here. Green hit her jumping Unprettier on Baker and Rayne then leveled Tessa with a Destoyer. But Tessa came back to hit a hammerlock DDT on Green for the win. All four women hugged. Great stuff.
Nick Aldis vs. Cody for the NWA Championship: Cody brought out Diamond Dallas Page and Tommy Dreamer with him. Aldis brought Jeff Jarrett, Shawn Daivari, and Tim Storm with him. Earl Hebner was the ref. Aldis and Cody shook hands to start. Cody hit a suicide dive in Aldis but Aldis suplexed Cody on the floor. Cody went for CrossRhodes but Aldis countered. Cody went for a springboard but Aldis hit him with the ring that Cody gave him. DDP came out to help a bloody Cody. Daivari shoved DDP who responded with a Diamond Cutter. Cody missed a moonsault and Aldis hit a splash for a near fall. Cody put Aldis in a figure four but Aldis reversed that. Aldis powerslammed Cody on the floor. Cody went for an Alabama slam but his back gave out. Cody did hit the slam but missed a disaster kick. Aldis powerbombed Cody then applied the Cloverleaf which Cody eventually got to the ropes to break. Aldis hit a piledriver and went up top for an elbow. Brandi shielded her husband but Aldis came off anyway and hit them both. Cody hit a disaster kick and CrossRhodes for a very near fall. Cody went for a Vertebreaker but Aldis countered. Aldis tried a sunset flip but Cody sat down and pinned Aldis clean. The roof came off. DDP, Dreamer, and Brandi celebrated with the new champion. The crowd chanted “Dusty”. Awesome moment.
Hangman Page vs. Joey Janela (w/Penelope Ford) in a Chicago Street Fight: Both men exchanged dives early and Page leveled Janela with a moonsault to the outside. Page tossed Janela into a an open chair for a near fall. Janela smashed Page into a barrel then leaped off the barrel and somersaulted onto Page in the crowd. Page later vaulted the guardrail to hit Janela with a Buckshot Lariat. Janela hit a Death Valley Driver into the corner. Page dropped Janela on a ladder in a painful spot. Ford attacked Page and gave him a Stunner then dove into Page outside. She put Page in a table and Janela elbow-smashed him through it. Page and Janela fought on the stage where Page powerbombed him off the stage through another table. Page hit another Buckshot Lariat and Rite Of Passage but Ford broke it up. Ford hit Page with something in a garbage bag and was revealed to be cowboy boots. Page superkicked Ford and grabbed a telephone to smash Janela. They fought on a ladder where Page hit an insane Rite Of Passage off the ladder through a table. Page then pinned Janela. Afterward, Joey Ryan confronted and superkicked Page.
Jay Lethal vs. Flip Gordon for the ROH Championship: Flip came out with Brandi Rhodes and Lethal came out in full Macho Man gear with Lanny Poffo tossing poems on frisbees. Flip and Lethal went at each other aka Savage vs. Steamboat at WrestleMania 3. Flip hit three straight dives to the outside and twisting frog splash inside. Lethal avoided a 450 splash and hit the Lethal Combination. Flip hit a knee strike and a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. Lethal hit three Macho Man elbows but Flip kicked out. Flip hit a gorgeous twisting moonsault for 2. Lethal caught a springboarding Flip with a top rope cutter then finished off Flip with the Lethal Injection. Good match but the crowd was a little worn out after the Street Fight. Afterwards, Bully Ray came out and attacked Flip, Lethal, and Poffo. Colt Cabana came out to help and with Flip and Lethal, drove Bully through a table with a Shield-like triple powerbomb.
IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega vs. Penta El Zero in a non-title match: Omega slapped Penta to start and dove onto Omega outside. Penta interrupted Omega’s Terminator routine and dove on him again. Omega hit a cross legged brainbuster and a snapdragon but not the One Winged Angel. Omega hit three V-Triggers but Penta came back with a half nelson pumphandle driver and a package piledriver on the apron. Omega hit a V-Trigger and a package piledriver of his own. Penta bent Omega’s arm then hit a second package piledriver for a near fall. But Omega would rally with a reverse huracanrana, a V-Trigger, and the One Winged Angel to win. Great match. Afterward, the lights went out. They came back on and Penta attacked Omega but he unmasked revealing himself to be Chris Jericho. The crowd went nuts. Jericho hit two Codebreakers on Omega and said he’d see Omega on the Jericho Cruise.
Kazuchika Okada vs. Marty Scurll: Tiger Hatori was the ref. Scurll had difficulty moving the heavier Okada but Scurll managed to toss Okada outside and superkick him from the apron. Scurll finally managed to hit a brainbuster and a superplex but when he tried for a Kevin Nash style Jackknife,Okada hit him with an Air Raid Crash neckbreaker. Scurll perservered and Jackknifed Okada. Later,Okada looked to have Scurll beaten after a Tombstone piledriver but Scurll refused to stay down. Okada grabbed Scurll for the Rainmaker Lariat but stopped to spell out 205 on his hand. Scurll grabbed Okada as he was doing five and snapped his fingers. Scurll then hit a Rainmaker of his own then locked in the chicken wing. Okada countered into a pin for a near fall. Scurll tried the chicken wing again but got hit with two Rainmaker Lariats that finished him off. Another terrific match.
Rey Mysterio, Rey Fenix, and Bandido vs. “The Golden Elite” Kota Ibushi and The Young Bucks: Mysterio came out dressed as Wolverine. Really cool outfit. The non-stop high flying spot fest we knew it would be. Fenix hit a somersault cutter on Matt Jackson. Nick Jackson hit a combo bulldog/dropkick on Fenix and Bandido. Matt stopped Mysterio from hitting him with the 619 and set up the Meltzer Driver but Fenix and Bandido broke it up. The Bucks and Ibushi hit a new version of More Bang For Your Buck. Matt suffered a 619 by Mysterio, a tumbling Destroyer by Fenix and a reverse Rana by Bandido. But the Bucks double superkicked Mysterio and Fenix off the apron then hit the Meltzer Driver on Bandido to win. Whew…
After the broadcast was done. Mysterio thanked the Jacksons for letting him be a part of history. All six men hugged and thanked each other. All members of Bullet Club came down along with the Jackson’s families. Matt said that their vision of what pro wrestling is doesn’t happen without the fans. He said it was his and his brother’s favorite moment in their careers. Cody said that all of us are pro wrestling and that the idea for All In went from impossible to undeniable. Kenny Omega said that he was just a piece of the incredible puzzle that Cody and The Bucks envisioned. Cody was amazed that just about everyone in the Sears Centre was still there. Matt said if the fans wanted this again, they would go “double or nothing.”
I see no reason why the Bucks and Cody can’t repeat this a year from now. They now have the blueprint for an event that can only be categorized as a smashing success, from the production to the conventions to the match quality. The only iffy match was Amell vs. Daniels, but since Amell is not a wrestler per se, even that match did it’s best. A wonderful experience that I’m glad I was a part of.
Check below for All In wrestler Britt Baker’s appearance on the latest Pro Wrestling Boom Podcast with Jason Powell. Dot Net Members will hear Jason Powell’s audio review of All In today.
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