By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
AEW Collision (Episode 75)
January 4, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina at Bojangles Coliseum
Simulcast live on TNT and Max
[Hour One] Pre-taped promos aired with Mark Briscoe, Daniel Garcia, “The Learning Tree” Chris Jericho, Big Bill, and Bryan Keith, and “Rated FTR” Cope, Dax Harwood, and Cash Wheeler… The Collision opening aired…
Tony Schiavone and Nigel McGuinness were on commentary. Ring announcer Arkady Aura delivered introductions for the opening match while the wrestlers made their entrance…
1. Daniel Garcia vs. Mark Briscoe for the TNT Title. Matt Menard sat in on commentary as he continues to be the oddball personal color commentator for Garcia. It was noted that Briscoe beat Garcia in a Continental Classic tournament match.
Garcia did his dance at one point. Briscoe charged at him, but Garcia sidestepped him, sending Briscoe to ringside. Garcia held the ropes open for Briscoe, who opted to return through another side of the ring. Briscoe took a couple of shots at Garcia before suplexing him and covering him for a one count.
A short time later, Garcia mounted Briscoe in a corner of the ring and threw punches at him. Briscoe spun him around and knocked him down to ringside with a punch. Briscoe followed up with dropkick through the ropes. Briscoe hit a Blockbuster off the apron heading into a picture-in-picture break for TNT viewers or a full screen commercial break for Max subscribers. [C]
Briscoe set up for a suplex, but he and Garcia both tumbled over the top rope to the floor. Back in the ring, both men traded various strikes in the middle of the ring. Briscoe got the better of it initially, but Garcia avoided a chop in the corner in then hit Briscoe with a chop of his own.
Garcia mounted Briscoe in the corner and threw punches again. Briscoe threw Garcia off the middle rope, but Garcia dropkicked him and then mounted him in the corner and threw ten punches. Garcia put Briscoe down with a piledriver for a near fall.
Moments later, Garcia put Briscoe in the Dragon Tamer. Briscoe reached the ropes to break the hold. Both men ended up on the ropes. Briscoe punched Garcia off the ropes and then hit Froggy Bow for a near fall.
Briscoe followed up with a Jay Driller and had Garcia pinned, but Garcia put his foot over the bottom rope at the last moment. Briscoe set up for the move he used to beat Garcia in the Continental Classic, but Garcia slipped out and used a jackknife pin to get the three count.
Daniel Garcia defeated Mark Briscoe in 18:15 to retain the TNT Title.
After the match, Briscoe indicated that he came that close to beating Garcia, and then he shook his hand and pulled him off the mat. Briscoe raised Garcia’s arm and then Garcia returned the favor…
Powell’s POV: A good opening match that gave Garcia a win that he really needed. Garcia won the TNT Championship and then went 2-2-1 in the Continental Classic, which included the loss to Briscoe. Garcia’s other Continental Classic loss was to Kyle Fletcher, so I guess we’ll see if that leads to a title match between the two. On a side note, my Max streaming experience is off to a much better start than I had for Dynamite (I’m bouncing back and forth between Max and TNT). I had a lot of buffering and picture quality issues on Wednesday. I had a great streaming experience overnight on New Japan World for Wrestle Kingdom 19, and so far so good on Max tonight.
Wheeler Yuta started to deliver a backstage promo about Jay White while Jon Moxley and Marina Shafir were in the background. Moxley stopped Yuta and spoke about “FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler. Moxley spoke about how FTR are old school and representatives of the artform of tag team wrestling.
Moxley said FTR crossed a line by interfering in his business. Moxley said they paid a stiff price and the deed was done. Moxley said FTR created a new mess by teaming up with Cope. Moxley spoke about how Cope has defied the laws of nature to return to the ring. Moxley said survival comes at a cost in his world. Moxley said Rated FTR will find nothing good if they keep walking down his road and said it will be hell on earth…
Highlights aired of Jeff Jarrett’s retirement tease on Dynamite… Jarrett made his entrance and his opponent was already in the ring…
2. Jeff Jarrett vs. Aaron Solo. Solo jumped Jarrett from behind and then the referee rewarded him for it by calling for the opening bell. Solo put Jarrett down and then mocked his strut. Jarrett came back and hit The Stroke for the win…
Jeff Jarrett beat Aaron Solo in 1:30.
Powell’s POV: A quick showcase win for Jarrett. The live crowd was respectful, but Jarrett didn’t get as much of a reaction as he often does.
Lio Rush and Action Andretti were shown walking backstage while Schiavone said they would challenge for the AEW Tag Team Titles after a break… [C] Entrances for the AEW Tag Team Title match took place…
3. “Private Party” Marq Quen and Isiah Kassidy vs. Action Andretti and Lio Rush for the AEW Tag Team Titles. Kassidy was isolated by the challengers heading into a PIP break roughly five minutes into the match. [C] Andretti hit a Cutter on Kassidy for a good near fall.
Dante Martin, Darius Martin, and Leila Grey were shown in the front row eating popcorn and taunting the challengers to distract them. The champions and the challengers met in the middle of the ring and traded punches.
Quen tagged in and sent Rush to the floor where he was hit by Kassidy. Andretti performed a dive onto Kassidy, and then Quen executed a dive of his own onto both challengers. Back in the ring, Kassidy hit a Twist of Fate on Rush. Quen followed up with a shooting star press. Private Party had Rush beat, but Andretti broke up the pin.
Kassidy hit a cutter on Rush. Andretti scooped up Kassidy, who fought free and ended up on the apron. Kassidy threw a kick at Andretti and went for a sunset flip, but Andretti sat down on him. Rush reached in and held Andretti’s hand for leverage. Dante Martin hopped the barricade and dove to break up the leverage play. Kassidy reversed the pin on Andretti and got the three count.
“Private Party” Marq Quen and Isiah Kassidy defeated Action Andretti and Lio Rush in 13:40 to retain the AEW Tag Team Titles.
Powell’s POV: The finish was a bit clunky in that the referee had to work hard not to see Andretti touch the ropes and to miss Rush holding his hand for leverage, along with the Dante interference. The finish furthered Top Flight’s feud with Rush and Andretti, but it didn’t do anything for Private Party.
A video package recapped The Death Riders taking out Darby Allin, and Jon Moxley kicking him down a flight of stairs… The broadcast team said they didn’t know when we’ll see Allin again…
Schiavone hyped the Casino Gauntlet match for AEW Dynamite. The winner will challenge Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship in Moxley’s hometown of Cincinnati on January 15. Schiavone hyped the trios match as the main event… [C]
Lexi Nair interviewed Cope in the backstage area and asked him why he targeted Jon Moxley. Cope said that if you attack his friends, then you have a problem. Cope pointed to what The Death Riders did to Darby Allin and FTR. Cope said he heard Moxley say no one wanted to be AEW World Champion. Cope said he wasn’t there and then spoke about how he won’t hide the title belt and will wear it around his waist proudly.
[Hour Two] ROH Champion Chris Jericho interrupted the interview and told Copeland that he became a world champion again while Cope was gone. Cope asked Jericho why he was getting worked up.
Cope said he respects Jericho and said he even kinda likes him. Cope said this will be the fourth decade that they’ve faced each other, and it’s been 15 years since the last time. Jericho said he didn’t remember that and said their relationship must means more to Cope.
Jericho said he only remembers Cope getting hurt all the time. Cope said he would take the part about liking Jericho back now that he remembered he’s an asshole. After Cope made his exit, Jericho said, “Cope is a dope. Sick burn”…
Highlights aired of Jay White winning a Triple Threat to earn the first entry spot in the Casino Gauntlet match…
Entrances for the women’s match took place…
4. Deonna Purrazzo (w/Taya Valkyrie) vs. Toni Storm. Purrazzo and Storm shook hands before the match while Schiavone recapped some of their history while adding that Storm doesn’t seem to remember any of it. The match spilled over to ringside. Storm rolled Purrazzo back inside the ring, but then Valkyrie grabbed Storm’s foot. Purrazzo took advantage of the distraction and performed an odd dive onto Storm on the floor heading into a PIP break. [C]
McGuinness noted that Purrazzo was wearing the same gear she wore the first time she faced Storm in a match. Storm hit a hip attack on a seated Purrazzo, who came right back with a jackknife pin for a two count. Valkyrie provided another distraction, which led to Purazzo getting another near fall.
Purrazzo put Storm in a Fujiwara armbar. Storm reached the bottom rope with her foot to break the hold. Both wrestlers traded elbow strikes in the middle of the ring and followed up with other strikes. Storm used a DDT to get a two count.
Valkyrie grabbed Storm’s hair from behind while the referee was turned away. Storm punched her off the apron. Purrazzo rolled up Storm for a two count. Storm came right back with an inside cradle for the win…
Toni Storm beat Deonna Purrazzo in 9:20.
Powell’s POV: A fine match. I thought we might see Purrazzo steal a win with help from Valkyrie just to get another match out of this rivalry, but they went with Storm getting her sixth straight win since she returned instead.
Footage aired from Dynamite of Alex Marvez saying he hoped to get a word with Hangman Page, but he was in a heated discussion with Christopher Daniels. Marvez had the camera focus on the discussion.
Daniels told Page that he could be world champion and that he believes in him. Page said his belief doesn’t mean shit to him. Page said he needed Daniels at Worlds End. Daniels asked what he was supposed to do.
Page asked what Daniels has given the company and pro wrestling. Page said when he looks at Daniels, he sees an old man clinging on to a sport that left him behind a long time ago. Page said that if Daniels hadn’t lost his mind to old age, he would have hung it up five years ago while he still had an ounce of dignity. Page slapped Daniels. “That’s what I thought,” Page said before walking way.
Daniels yelled “Hangman” and then attacked Page and headbutted him repeatedly until his own head was bleeding. Daniels put the boots to Page…
Powell’s POV: That’s what AEW needs, another older guy beating up one of their younger stars. I assume that Page will get revenge, but this company has so many wrestlers under contract who could be getting the television time that is going to the older wrestlers who also work behind the scenes in AEW… [C]
Footage aired from Dynamite of The Acclaimed returning to the backstage area after losing to the Hurt Syndicate. A cameraman asking Anthony Bowens if they lost due to miscommunication. Bowens told the cameraman to ask Max Caster, who said the best wrestler alive was the victim of a two-on-one attack by a couple of cowards.
Bowens returned and called Caster on the best wrestler alive claims being bullshit. Caster said he’s the leader of The Acclaimed and he has to deal with Billy Gunn. Bowens said the only reason he hasn’t punched Caster in the face is because Gunn asked him not to…
The Beast Mortos and Brian Cage made their entrances. They cut to a Don Callis and Konosuke Takeshita promo that was recorded after Takeshita was victorious at Wrestle Kingdom 19 early Saturday morning. Kommander and Dante Martin made their entrances…
5. ROH TV Champion Komander (w/Alex Abrahantes) vs. Brian Cage vs. The Beast Mortos vs. Dante Martin (w/Leila Grey) in a “$100,000 high speed four-way Collision match.” Komander and Dante hit back to back dives from the top rope onto opponents on the floor.
Lio Rush ran out and hit Dante from behind and then ran him into the barricade. Action Andretti joined Rush as they stood over Dante and taunted him before making their exit. In the ring Mortos hit a popup Samoan Drop on Komander, but he didn’t cover him. Cage returned to the ring and hit a pump-handle face plant slam on Mortos going into a PIP break. [C]
Late in the match, Komander took out Mortos with a Poison Rana. Komander went for a springboard move on Cage, who caught him and hit him with an F5, Martin went for a sunset flip on Cage, who picked him up and turned him inside out with a clothesline. Cage followed up with a DDT style move and scored the pin…
Brian Cage defeated Dante Martin, Komander, and The Beast Mortos in a “$100,000 high speed four-way Collision match.”
Powell’s POV: Why was this match for $100,000? I think they said it’s because this is the first Collision simulcast. Why were these four wrestlers chosen? I have no idea, but I’ve said for years that financial prizes don’t mean much to the average viewer because it doesn’t affect them in any way. It’s fine if there’s some type of story that comes out of a wrestler winning money, but otherwise it’s a pretty empty stipulation.
“FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler were backstage talking with “The Rock-n-Roll Express” Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson. Harwood apologized for dropping Morton on his head. Morton said it was just another day at the office. “The Outrunners” Turbo Floyd and Truth Magnum showed up and claimed that Morton and Gibson owed them gas money from 1982. Morton said he didn’t think the Outrunners were even born in 1982. Morton said they were sorry if they did. The Ourtunners did their handshake with Morton and Gibson… [C]
The Learning Tree made their entrance for the main event followed by Rated FTR…
6. “Rated FTR” Cope, Dax Harwood, and Cash Wheeler vs. “The Learning Tree” Chris Jericho, Big Bill, and Bryan Keith. Schiavone said he didn’t think anyone sold out the host venue more than Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson. Schiavone also said this was the 100th match that Cope and Jericho have had together. Bill chokeslammed Wheeler onto Harwood heading into a PIP break. [C]
Cope and Jericho ended up in the ring together. Jericho offered a handshake. Cope accepted and then Jericho chopped him. Cope returned the favor and they went back and forth with more chops until Jericho raked the eyes of Cope.
A short time later, Cope went for a spear, but Jericho hit him with a Codebreaker for a two count. Schiavone mistakenly called it a Code Red, but he corrected himself. Cope was isolated by the heel trio. Cope eventually put Keith down and tagged out.
Wheeler entered and cleaned house on the heels, but he couldn’t get Bill off his feet until he hit him with a top rope crossbody block for a two count. Wheeler followed up with a tornado DDT for another two count.
FTR set up for a double superplex on Bill, who knocked them off the ropes. Harwood went back to working over Bill and eventually superplexed him. Wheeler followed up with a top rope splash and then Copeland hit a top rope elbow. Harwood covered Bill for a good near fall.
The babyface trio set up for a double Shatter Machine, but Bill escaped. Bill put Harwood down with a sidewalk slam for a near fall. Bill tried to splash Harwood, who moved. Jericho tagged himself in and took a brainbuster from Harwood for another near fall.
Harwood took Keith down and put him in a Sharpshooter. Jericho took Wheeler down and put him in the Walls of Jericho. Harwood and Jericho went face to face and eventually released the holds to slap one another.
Cope avoided a big boot from Bill. Cope speared Bill off the apron and then hit him with a top rope move. Wheeler hit Bill with a suicide dive. Harwood and Jericho fought in the ring. Harwood dropped Jericho and went up top, but Keith hit him with Jericho’s ROH Title belt. Jericho covered Harwood for another near fall.
Cope speared Keith off the apron. Harwood caught Jericho in an inside cradle for a two count. Jericho put Harwood down and went for a Lionsault and overshot him. FTR hit the Shatter Machine on Jericho, who was then speared and pinned by Cope…
“Rated FTR” Cope, Dax Harwood, and Cash Wheeler defeated “The Learning Tree” Chris Jericho, Big Bill, and Bryan Keith in 16:50.
Cope, Harwood, and Wheeler celebrated their win. Cope got a mic and told the North Carolina crowd that it was good to see them. Jon Moxley appeared on the big screen and said it’s a jungle out there and accidents can happen at any time.
Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson were shown taped to something backstage with their mouths taped. Moxley pulled the tape back on Morton’s face. Morton told Moxley that he doesn’t have the balls. Moxley laughed,
The Outrunners showed up to help, but Wheeler Yuta and Marina Shafir hit them from behind. Moxley, Yuta, and Shafir slipped out the back door before Cope, Harwood, and Wheeler arrived. Harwood hilariously asked where Mox’s crew went, completely ignoring the door right in front of him. The babyfaces figured it out. Cope and Wheeler headed out the door while Harwood freed Morton and Gibson, and then checked on The Outrunners…
Schiavone hyped the return of Kenny Omega, comments from MJF, and the Casino Gauntlet match for a shot at the AEW World Championship for Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite to close the show…
Powell’s POV: The expected result with the babyface trio closing out the second consecutive AEW show with a win. I couldn’t care less about the AEW Trios Titles, but I wonder if they are giving Rated FTR wins to set them up for a shot at those titles. The post match angle was very tame by Death Riders standards.
Overall, this was a solid edition of Collision. I had a few gripes along the way and I miss the stakes that the Continental Classic gave to a lot of matches, but this episode was better than most of the Collision shows the company was producing before the tournament. Will Pruett’s weekly audio reviews of AEW Collision are available exclusively for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). Let us know what you thought of the show by grading it below.
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Does Edge now win his matches with the Coping Mechanism?
He had the Edgocution, he could rename it the Copulation.