By Don Murphy, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@DonThePredictor)
AEW Collision (Episode 156)
Colorado Springs, Colorado, at Broadmoor World Arena
Simulcast live August 8, 2026, on TNT and HBO Max
[Hour One] Tony Schiavone opened the show and ran down the rules for the AEW Continental Challenge Cup. There is no outside interference and no time limits. The first round and quarterfinal matches will be blind draws. The semifinals will take place on Dynamite on August 26 in Glasgow, Scotland. The final match takes place at All In at Wembley Stadium, and the winner becomes the new Continental Champion.
Don’s Take: WrestleTix listed the venue as having 2,028 tickets distributed for the event. The peak capacity for the building is 9,250. For comparison, AEW last ran the venue for the June 7, 2023 Dynamite, with 2,988 tickets distributed.
Schiavone was joined on commentary by Nigel McGuinness and Paul Wight as a video aired recapping this past week’s Dynamite from Mexico City. Arkady Aura was the ring announcer…
1. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Ace Austin in a Continental Cup tournament first round match. The match was even to start and spilled to the floor, where Castagnoli dropped Austin neck-first over the ringside guardrail and threw him into the guardrail on the opposite side. Austin retaliated with a kick from the apron, followed by a dive onto Castagnoli on the floor. [C]
Castagnoli held the advantage. Austin made the comeback, and it was fun action down the stretch, particularly when Austin reversed a big swing attempt into a leg lock submission, and Castagnoli converted a victory roll into a takedown. In the end, Castagnoli caught Austin coming off the ropes, hoisted him in the air, and delivered the European uppercut for the win…
Claudio Castagnoli defeated Ace Austin in 12:06 to advance in the Continental Cup tournament.
Don’s Take: This was fun, and I’m down for meaningful matches on Collision in the form of a summer version of the Continental Cup. The outcome was expected, and I’m wondering if we’re headed for a Castagnoli/Jon Moxley showdown.
A video recapped the Will Ospreay/Mark Davis street fight from Dynamite… [C] A video recapped last week’s Collision when the Motor City Machine Guns made their debut…
2. “The Brawling Birds” Alex Windsor and Jamie Hayter vs. Viva Van and Vertvixen. This was a basic squash, with the heels getting in some brief offense. Hayter and Windsor finish Vertvixen off with their “two birds, one stone” finisher.
“The Brawling Birds” Alex Windsor and Jamie Hayter defeated Viva Van and Vertvixen in 3:10.
After the match, the music for the AEW Women’s Champions, Megan Bayne and Lena Kross played. Windsor and Hayter looked at the entrance ramp, but the champions entered through the crowd and attacked. The champions put Windsor through a ringside table with a double chokeslam…
Don’s Take: I liked giving the challengers a showcase win, while putting heat on the heels as they build to the match at All In.
A video recapped Chris Jericho, Mistico, and Darby Allin beating Kazuchika Okada, Kevin Knight, and Hechicero on Dynamite…
Darby Allin challenged Kevin Knight to a Falls Count Anywhere match for the TNT Championship at All In…
3. Orange Cassidy vs. Matt Sydal in a Continental Cup tournament first round match. Christopher Daniels accompanied Sydal on the stage and headed to the back. The two shook hands to start. It was even to start until both men exchanged blows on the top turnbuckle. Each landed a blow to the other simultaneously, and they both fell to the floor. [C]
Down the stretch, each landed several near falls on the other. Of note, Cassidy hit a Stundog Millionaire, a DDT, and a Michinoku Driver, all for near falls, while Sydal converted an attempted Orange Punch into a roll-up for a near fall. The finish saw Cassidy hit Beach Break for the win.
Orange Cassidy defeated Matt Sydal in 11:32 to advance in the Continental Cup tournament.
Don’s Take: Another expected outcome, but it was a crowd-pleasing match.
Jon Moxley was backstage with Claudio Castagnoli. Moxley called Castagnoli a machine for travelling from Mexico to Colorado, and that altitude was a myth. Moxley said he is stripped naked of his Continental Championship and is ripe for the picking. He spoke about his first-round opponent, Jack Perry, and said that he always had a soft spot for him, but tonight in the eight-man tag, he’s on the wrong team. He called the Bang Bang Gang, Perry’s partners tonight, a wild hair on his ass and that it would be a bad night for them. Castagnoli added, “against the world.”
4. “The Rascalz” Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz (w/Myron Reed) vs. Steven Fuerte and Aaron Solo. This was a quick squash with Xavier and Wentz hitting Hot Fire Flame on Fuerte for the win.
“The Rascalz” Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz defeated Steven Fuerte and Aaron Solo in 1:31.
After the match, Xavier took the mic and talked about how great they were as a trio and a tag team. Reed said they were also great in singles action and called out Mike Bailey for their match…
5. “Speedball” Mike Bailey vs. Myron Reed. The two shook hands to start and exchanged moves. Bailey dove onto Reed on the floor. [C] Bailey delivered kicks to Reed on the apron.
[Hour Two] A lot of action down the stretch, including two impressive cutters from Reed to Bailey for near falls. Reed missed the No Cap Splash, and Bailey hit the Green Tea Plunge for the win.
“Speedball” Mike Bailey defeated Myron Reed in 9:45.
Don’s Take: Both Rascalz matches were fine, but they’re going to have to do a lot of work to make them relevant again. Bailey is always fun to watch.
Clark Connors and David Finlay cut a backstage promo on Finlay’s Continental Cup Tournament Match on Dynamite against Jay White. Finlay said White couldn’t survive him and said that he’d put White on the shelf for good. Finlay said that even if it’s Claudio Castagnoli or Jon Moxley, it’s every man for himself in the tournament. Finlay then ran off the names of teams they are better than…
6. TBS Champion Maya World and Hyan vs. Persephone and Hikaru Shida. As the match started, three additional qualifying matches were announced for next week’s Collision. Roderick Strong will face Kyle O’Reilly. Brian Cage will face Hechicero and Nigel McGuinness will face Katsuyori Shibata.
The babyfaces had the early advantage. Persephone and Shida punched World when she attempted a dive through the ropes. [C] Persephone worked over Hyan, who eventually made the hot tag to World. Tons of action and near falls down the stretch, including a Falcon’s Arrow attempt by Shida on Hyan for a near fall, which was broken up by World. In the end, Shida caught Hyan with a shoulder breaker for the win.
Persephone and Hikaru Shida defeated TBS Champion Maya World and Hyan in 9:47.
Don’s Take: This was fine, though this particular program isn’t doing much for me.
Lexy Nair was backstage with TNT Champion Kevin Knight. Knight said maybe he’d give Darby Allin what he wants but said that the only reason that Allin won in Mexico was because of Chris Jericho. Knight challenged Jericho to a TNT Championship match on Dynamite to wipe the blemish off his record. [C]
The broadcast team showed highlights of Konosuke Takeshita in the G1 Tournament.
7. Jack Perry and “The Bang Bang Gang” Austin Gunn, Colten Gunn, and Juice Robinson vs. “The Death Riders” Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, Pac, and Daniel Garcia (w/Marina Shafir). The opening minutes were controlled by the babyfaces, who sent the heel team to the floor. Moxley had poked Robinson in the eye, but Perry drop-kicked him out. [C]
Yuta and Garcia worked over Robinson, who made the hot tag to Perry. Perry cleaned house by going right after Moxley. As a reminder, Moxley faces Perry on Dynamite in the first round of the Continental Cup Tournament. Once again, tons of action down the stretch. The Gunns had Yuta set up for the 310 to Yuma, but Shafir distracted the referee. Clark Connors and David Finlay ran out and crotched Austin Gunn on the ring post. Yuta low-blowed Colten, and Garcia held him so that Yuta could hit a running Busaiku knee for the win…
“The Death Riders” Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, Pac, and Daniel Garcia defeated Jack Perry and “The Bang Bang Gang” Austin Gunn, Colten Gunn, and Juice Robinson in 13:09.
Don’s Take: AEW, I implore you. Let’s skip to the end of this terrible program with the Dogs and the Bang Bang Gang. That said, I am glad they didn’t foreshadow the outcome of the first-round match between Perry and Moxley.
Mike Bailey was backstage and talked about his match against Kyle Fletcher at Grand Slam Mexico. He said that even though he lost, he got a big win tonight over Myron Reed and feels he still has momentum. He challenged MJF for Dynamite to determine the number two entrant in the Casino Gauntlet Battle Royal at All In. Nick Wayne entered and said that Bailey would fail as always and said he would also take the opportunity against MJF…
The announce team threw to nice still photos of Dory Funk Jr., who passed away earlier this week at age 85… [C]
Don’s Take: One of the greatest wrestling families in history. Dory was not only one of the legendary NWA Champions but was also instrumental in training many of the talents we’ve enjoyed over the years. My condolences to his friends and family.
Shane Taylor Promotions was backstage with Lexy Nair and “The Hurt Syndicate” MVP, Bobby Lashley, and Shelton Benjamin. Taylor wanted to acquire the Syndicate’s services and offered them a down payment, saying there’s more where that came from. MVP said that Taylor had their attention and they’d be in touch.
Don’s Take: Ugh…this is what you’ve reduced the Hurt Syndicate to?
The following matches were confirmed for Wednesday’s Dynamite: Kevin Knight vs. Chris Jericho for the TNT Title, Nick Wayne vs. MJF vs. Mike Bailey in a Triple Threat for the No. 2 spot in the Casino Gauntlet, Jay White vs. David Finlay in a Continental Cup first-round tournament match, and Jack Perry vs. Jon Moxley in a Continental Cup first-round tournament match…
Jack Perry was backstage with the Bang Bang Gang. He said there would be no outside interference and it would just be him and Jon Moxley, one-on-one on Dynamite. Perry said that with one less, Moxley would lose the Continental Championship and be out of the tournament. He added that he would show Moxley what a sweet kid he was. Robinson screamed about Finlay facing White on Dynamite with no interference…
8. Eddie Kingston vs. Jake Doyle in a Continental Cup tournament first round match. Ortiz accompanied Kingston, and Trent Beretta accompanied Doyle. Both returned to the back. The early part of this match featured Doyle showcasing power moves, with Eddie returning the favor with strikes and chops. Action spilled from the ring to the outside. [C]
More of the same down the stretch. Kingston missed with the Hurricane back fist, enabling Doyle to power bomb him for a near fall. Doyle hit some strikes, and Kingston retaliated by hitting the Hurricane on the second attempt, followed by the dragon sleeper for the submission.
Eddie Kingston defeated Jake Doyle in 11:57 to advance in the Continental Cup tournament.
Kingston celebrated, and the winners’ bracket was shown as the show came to an end…
Don’s Take: I like both men, but I feel that at this point, Doyle has the better upside for this tournament. Kingston is always a crowd favorite, but he hasn’t been out from behind the paywall in some time, and I think the opportunity to put him on a serious run has passed.
This was a good episode without much news, with three meaningful matches, along with some developments that add to the build for All In. If only it could be this way year-round.
That’s all for me for tonight. Will Pruett’s review of tonight’s episode is available for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons). And I’ll be back again with another review and, of course, predictions for the upcoming major events. Until then, enjoy wrestling!
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