By Don Murphy, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@DonThePredictor)
AEW Collision (Episode 137 – Slam Dunk Sunday)
Taped March 18, 2026, in Fresno, California, at Save Mart Arena
Simulcast March 22, 2026, on TNT and HBO Max
Tony Schiavone and Nigel McGuinness were on commentary. Ring announcer Arkady Aura introduced the opening match…
1. Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong vs. Jay Lethal and Lee Johnson (w/Blake Christian). Of note, Johnson and Lethal did not receive a televised entrance. As the match started, Tony Schiavone briefly mentioned the passing of original Midnight Express member Dennis Condrey at age 74.
Don’s Take: My condolences to the friends, family, and fans of Condrey. I have fond memories of the Midnight Express with Condrey being an integral part of the team’s success.
Strong and Cassidy worked over Lethal to start. Cassidy tagged in and got the better of Johnson for a bit. The momentum shifted when Strong missed a dive on the floor and was tackled by Lethal. In the ring, Cassidy went for a dive onto Lethal and was stopped by a clothesline from Johnson. [C]
The heels continued to have the advantage over Cassidy. At one point, Lethal tied Cassidy in the Tree of Woe and distracted the referee, allowing Christian to hit a 619 on Cassidy. Lethal perched Cassidy on the top rope and distracted the referee again. Christian attempted to attack Cassidy again, but Cassidy kicked him off and made the hot tag to Strong, who cleaned house.
All sorts of action down the stretch. There was a nice sequence where Johnson hit a brainbuster, followed by a Lethal flying elbow for a near fall. The finish saw Christian climbing the apron to grab Storm and Cassidy, knocking him off with an Orange Punch. Cassidy dove onto Lethal on the floor while Strong hit Johnson with a knee strike, followed by a backbreaker. Strong threw Cassidy onto Johnson for the pin.
Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong defeated Jay Lethal and Lee Johnson in 10:47.
After the match, Strong took the mic and said he owed the fans an explanation. He said he was in the Conglomeration because of Kyle O’Reilly, and when O’Reilly was no longer there, he felt he needed a change. He then realized he needed to change and officially announced himself as a member of the Conglomeration.
Clark Connors and David Finlay appeared on the big screen. Connors said that Strong used every trick in the book to hold him down for three seconds. Finlay said that three seconds may work for Strong’s girlfriend, but it doesn’t work for them. He added that putting them closer to death only makes them feel more alive. Connors challenged them to a tag team match next week and told Strong and Cassidy to get their affairs in order.
Don’s Take: Strong is back with the Conglomeration? All is right with the world! In seriousness, while I want this program with the Dogs to end, a mid-card tag team featuring Cassidy and Strong isn’t a bad thing.
A video recapped Willow Nightingale’s storyline shoulder injury in her match with Lena Kross at Revolution, followed by Kross and Megan Bayne defeating Nightingale and Harley Cameron to win the AEW Women’s Tag Team Titles. Nightingale and Cameron congratulated Kross and Bayne on winning the titles and challenged them to a rematch.
2. AEW Women’s Tag Team Champions “Divine Dominion” Megan Bayne and Lena Kross vs. Alex Gracia and Vipress in a non-title match. Schiavone announced that Tony Khan has made Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong vs. David Finlay and Clark Connors official for Dynamite. This was a squash match with Bayne and Kross working over both Gracia and Vipress. Bayne and Kross finished Vipress with a double chokeslam. [C]
AEW Women’s Tag Team Champions “Divine Dominion” Megan Bayne and Lena Kross defeated Alex Gracia and Vipress in a non-title match in 1:44.
Don’s Take: A basic squash match for the newly crowned champions. As an aside, both WWE and AEW are missing the mark with tag team names. The “Divine Dominion?”
3. Tommaso Ciampa vs. Lio Rush. This was even to start, with Ciampa getting the upper hand going into the commercial by knocking Rush off the apron with a running knee. [C]
More fast-paced action down the stretch, with Rush gaining several near falls on Ciampa. In one fun spot, the two traded blows, only to start biting each other’s hands. In the end, Rush kicked out of Project Ciampa, but Ciampa immediately followed up with a running knee strike for the win. [C]
Tommaso Ciampa defeated Lio Rush in 11:08.
Don’s Take: This was a good match, and it was good to see Lio Rush back in action, even though his eyes look freaky and he seems to be adopting some kind of unstable persona. I’m interested to see what direction they take Ciampa’s renewed heel character in.
A video previewed this upcoming week’s Dynamite, which includes Swerve Strickland vs. Kenny Omega, and MJF’s appearance…
4. Mike Bailey, Kevin Knight, and Mistico vs. “The Don Callis Family” Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander, and El Clon for the AEW Trios Titles. Even action to start. Heading into the commercial, the babyfaces dove onto the heels on the floor. [C]
Takeshita had the advantage over Bailey, who eventually made the hot tag to Knight. Knight cleaned house and tagged in Mistico. Mistico hit a flurry of offense on El Clon. Lots of action down the stretch, with Mistico finishing El Clon off with his Tornado Arm Bar finisher.
Mike Bailey, Kevin Knight, and Mistico defeated “The Don Callis Family” Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander, and El Clon in 13:13 to retain the AEW Trios Titles.
The show went quickly off the air…
Don’s Take: A fine, crowd-pleasing main event with Takeshita teaming with the Callis “B” squad. I continue to wish they’d do more with Josh Alexander, but it is what it is. All signs point to Takeshita’s exit from the Don Callis Family being imminent.
Another simple, yet missable hour of wrestling. I’m one of those who feel it’s OK to occasionally preempt a show, rather than phoning it in with filler. And on nights when you’re airing after a game that’s going to run late, it wouldn’t kill WBD to start the show on time on HBO Max, and then air it after the game ends on the network. But that’s really an issue for those of us staying up late to cover it.
That’s all for me for now. Will Pruett’s combo review of the Slam Dunk shows will be available either late tonight or on Monday morning for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). I’ll be back in the coming weeks. Until then, enjoy wrestling!
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