AEW Rampage live in SLC (with a Haiku from me)

SALT LAKE CITY, UT.  – It’s Friday night and you know what that means?

(I thought this was from Wednesday night?)

It was and this recap is back by (oh, let’s say) popular demand. All Elite Wrestling presents Rampage where in the main event, Ricochet is looking to make an example of The Patriarchy’s Nick Wayne in the singles competition. We also have other matches that could not be covered by my live color commentary of AEW Dynamite at the Maverick Center.

Therefore…you’re welcome.

But let’s get to ringside as Justin Roberts introduces the First Match of the Night between…

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Shane Taylor and Lee Moriarty vs. The Gates of Agony (Toa Liona and Bishop Kaun) vs. The Undisputed Kingdom (Mike Bennett and Matt Taven)

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I should note that I stepped away as I was trying to grab a beer, only to find that the vendors were closing at 8 PM.    I’m sure there’s a rationale behind this, but let’s say this happened because…well, Utah.

This was a standard triple-threat match, and Roderick Strong was on commentary sporting his glorious trash ‘stache.  As for the action in the squared circle, Kaun and Liona were in the driver’s seat, but then Taylor and Bennett went to some chops and the big man shrugged them off.

He and Taven powdered out and then The Gates took turns against Moriarty, including setting up a double-team crucifix powerbomb for a two count.

The Undisputed Kingdom finally sent The Gates of Agony packing and then took turns working over Moriarty, and the end comes when Taven delivers a frog splash to pick up the pin and the win.

Your Winners via Pinfall:  The Undisputed Kingdom

Next up is women’s action between…

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Anna Jay vs Leila Grey

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Jay has definitely stepped up her game and her moves look crisp in the ring.  As for Grey…?

All I can say is that the former Baddie hasn’t found her footing since Jade Cargill left for greener pastures.  Sure, she is now part of Top Flight as a valet but she needs something else.   As for what I need to cover this match, here is a Haiku in Review™:

*ahem*

Jay outwrestles Grey

At every turn, and then

Grounds her with a pin.

Your Winner via Pinfall:  Anna Jay

At that point, most of the crowd had decided to head out to the exits.  I can’t say I blame them.  This is something that could’ve been handled earlier in the show when they were presenting Ring of Honor matches instead of later.

Then again, I am an armchair booker.

Now for something really different (and I mean that in every sense of the word), your next match is between…

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The Beast Mortos (with Dralistico and Rush) vs Beef (with JD Drake)

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The former Gnarls Garvin is making more of his time in AEW than he ever did when he was part of Major League Wrestling.  Something else I didn’t take into account was the way the crowd at The Maverik Center was behind the big guy, with “Beef” chants ringing out.  I hope AEW doesn’t dismiss that and give him some kind of push sooner rather than later.

As for the masked Mortos, he and his La Faccion Ingobernable cohorts at ringside made every effort to use his power and their number to ground Beef.

(Get it?  Ground “Beef.”  Eh?  EHHHH?

Okay, I’ll stop now.)

Mortos used his power and lucha libre skill, but could not keep big Beef down for the count.  Rush was becoming especially frustrated, to the point that because the crowd had thinned out you could hear the fans badmouthing the LFI member in Spanish.  I couldn’t get what was said between Rush and the fan, but I got the gist of the lingo.

In any case, Beef is keeping the massive Mortos down and lands a running bulldog for two.  He goes up the top turnbuckle, and then Dralistico distracts the ref while Rush sends the Kentuckian crashing down to the mat.

After that, Mortos puts away Beef with a Michinoku driver variation to claim the tainted victory.

Your Winner via Pinfall:  The Beast Mortos

After the match, Rush goes under the mat, and pulls out some extension cord.  He proceeds to add insult to injury on the prone Beef by whipping him and choking him out.

Now that brings up to the Main Event and the die-hard fans that waited patiently popped huge for…

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Ricochet vs. Nick Wayne (with Mother Wayne)

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There was just too much high-flying action to properly cover live but one thing is for certain, Wayne was able to keep up with Ricochet at every step of the match.

The fans were lapping up all the moves, including when Ricochet nailed a space-flying tiger drop to Wayne from the ring to the floor.

He tried to press on the attack, but Mother Wayne blocked him from doing any harm to her son.  That allowed young Wayne to take advantage of the opportunity, but Ricochet staged a comeback and delivered with his new falcon arrow finisher and then a high-risk maneuver to get the one, two, and three.

Your Winner via Pinfall:  Ricochet

After the match, Ricochet doesn’t have time to celebrate because Konosuke Takeshita makes his way out to the top of the ramp and holds aloft the AEW International championship.  Ricochet gestures that belt will soon be his.

At least that sent the fans home happy in Salt Lake City, so come by next week for more AEW Dynamite coverage.

TOP PHOTO: Ricochet vs Nick Wayne at AEW Rampage, taped at the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Wednesday, October 23, 2024. Photo by Tommy “Milagro” Martinez