Welcome to the next stop on the Bryan Danielson dream match tour. Tonight, he will be facing Bandido on his path to an Iron Man match against MJF. I guess there will be some other things going on tonight, as well. Let’s get right to the action.
Orange Cassidy (champion) vs. Jay Lethal (challenger) – AEW All Atlantic Championship Match
Orange Cassidy forgoing tradition and enters the ring first as champion. Tony Khan has issued a statement that if anyone interferes on Lethal’s behalf, Sonjay Dutt will be fired. That doesn’t stop Jeff Jarrett, Satnam Singh and Dutt from grabbing a seat in the front row. Dutt has to restrain Jarrett from jumping the barrier. Danhausen, appearetly making some extra money as an usher, checks the tickets. He wants them thrown out. The Best Friends then come down the row, eyeing the seats Dutt and company are in. Danhausen comes to ringside, after changing out of his usher’s shirt.
Lethal drives Cassidy into the ring apron and tosses him off the ring post. In the ring, Lethal slams Cassidy to the mat and goes up top. Cassidy rolls around the ring to avoid the elbow drop. Orange slams Jay into the turnbuckle. The champ goes up top and hits a cross body. He follows with Stun-dog Millionaire and a DDT, but can’t get the cover. Cassidy leaps into a backbreaker, but is able to avoid the Lethal Injection. Jay counters the Orange Punch and is able to hit the Lethal Injection. Orange rolls out of the ring.
In the front row, Dutt creates a distraction, but Danhausen intercepts the guitar. Cassidy hits the Orange Punch in the ring and covers Lethal to get the three count.
Winner…and still AEW All Atlantic Champiom…via pinfall: Orange Cassidy
Satnam Singh hits the ring with Jarrett. Dutt stops Jarrett from smashing the guitar over Cassidy, who gives Dutt the little kicks. Lethal and company retreat.
Top Flight vs. The Young Bucks
Dante Martin and Nick Jackson go move for move and try to hit drop kicks at the same time. Matt tags in to chop Dante in the throat. Darius makes a blind tag and Matt gets taken down with a double team. Matt catches Darius and catapults into a kick from Nick. Dante takes a backstabber.
After a commercial break, Dante needs a tag, but Darius gets swept off the apron by Nick. Dante gets double teamed with a bulldog drop kick combination. Nick goes up top and with Matt they hit Risky Business. Dante counters a lariat with a head scissors and is able to get the tag to his brother. Darius cleans house. Matt kicks out of the pin after a diving cross body. Nick catches Darius with a superkick, but Dante is able to make a tag. Darius yanks Nick off the apron as Darius slips out of a piledriver. Top Flight with the powerbomb nosedive combo, but Nick is able to break up the pin. Nick with a face buster to Darius and follows with a destroyer. Darius kicks out. The Young Bucks hit a Doomsday Device, but Dante breaks the pin. Dante springboards into a double super kick from the Bucks on the floor. Darius ducks the BTE Trigger and is able to role up Matt to get the win out of nowhere.
Winners via pinfall: Top Flight
The Gunns are in the ring, claiming they are the best tag team in the world. The aren’t happy that the Acclaimed embarrassed them last week, but they are the ones responsible for making the Acclaimed popular and the champs. The champs come out and the Gunns want the music cut. Max Caster gets the microphones cut in the ring and raps away, taking shots at the Gunns. They hit the ring and the brawl begins. Billy Gunn separates all four men. He calls out his sons for being entitled and wants the champs to start acting like champs. Next week, Billy Gunn is going to make everyone go to family therapy.
Hangman Adam Page tells Renee Paquette that he is feeling fine. He understands the nature of wrestling and if Moxley has something to say he can say it to his face. Page would like to mend some fences and leave it at that.
Jake Hagar w/the JAS vs. Ricky Starks
Hagar powers Starks into the corner and then mocks him. Starks gets a boot up and chops away at Hagar. Ricky steals Jake hat. Hagar intercepts a sliding drop kick and then nails him with a big boot on the floor. Hagar catches Starks in the corner, but Starks drops down, sending Hagar to the floor. Ricky connects with a springboard cross body. Starks gets his boots up on a Hagar bomb and follows with a DDT. Starks takes out Matt Menard on the apron. Hagar accidently takes out Angelo Parker, which allows Ricky to spear Hagar and get the pin.
Winner via pinfall: Ricky Starks
Starks escapes through the crowd to avoid attacks from the JAS.
After the commercial break, backstage, Chris Jericho calls out Ricky Starks, but next weeks Jericho has demanded a match between him and Sammy Guevara against Starks and Action Andretti. Guevara tells Daniel Garcia he can take his spot next week if Daniel can beat Starks on Friday.
Bryan Danielson vs. Bandido
The Fresno crowd is firmly behind Bandido. Danielson fights out of a head scissors lock and counters into a leg lock. Bandido locks in a surfboard. Danielson slips free and reverses into his own surfboard. Bandido is able to fight it off, but not before getting his knees slammed into the mat. Bryan with a sunset flip, but Bandido rolls through. Bandido with a pin, but Danielson is able to use his core strength to bridge up and head butt his way free. Bandido with a stalling hip toss and then locks in a hold. Bryan breaks free and retreats to the floor. Bandido flies over the top to take him out. Bandido springboards off the top rope but right into a kick.
After a commercial break, Bandido with a face buster. The two trade chops to the chest. Bryan goes up and over in the corner, but Bandido is waiting with a thrust kick. Bandido picks up Bryan for the delayed vertical suplex and drops him. Danielson blocks a frog splash by getting his knees up. Bryan transitions into the Lebell Lock. Bandido is able to get a foot on the ropes to break the hold. Danielson delivers kicks to the chest, but Bandido blocks the round kick. Bandido hits a knee strike and goes for the 21 plex. Bryan lands on his feet and takes down Bandido with a toe hold. A back body drop sends Bandido to the floor. Danielson with a jumping knee strike from the apron.
Bandido takes Danielson up top and drops him with slam. He follows with the 21 plex but can’t get the pin. The two trade strikes in the middle of the ring. Bryan counters a brain buster into an arm bar, but Bandido is able to lift Danielson. Bryan shoots off the ropes, connects with the Psycho knee and covers to get the win.
Winner via pinfall: Bandido
After the match, MJF pops up from backstage. He feels under appreciated. He hears the fans that don’t think he is deserving. MJF wants Bryan that the closer he gets to the title match, the more MJF is going to reveal his true self.
Saraya isn’t happy with Shida throwing a kendo stick in the ring last week. Toni Storm talks her down, but Saraya tells Shida to stay in the back.
Next week Brian Cage will take on Bryan Danielson. Cage is fired up and is about to tell Renee his thoughts when MJF interrupts. He is willing to pay Cage to break Danielson arm. MJF slaps Cage in the face. The champ was just trying to motivate Cage.
Toni Storm w/Saraya vs. Willow Nightingale
Storm goes in for a handshake, but slaps Willow across the face. Stork knocks her from the ring with a hip attack. Shida walks to the ring with a kendo stick in hand. Willow with a kick to the chest in the ring and follows with a spine buster. Willows misses a cannonball in the corner and Storm hits the hip attack. Willow sends Toni across the ring with the pounce. She hits the cannonball and makes the pin. Storm kicks out. Saraya leaps the apron. The distraction allows Storm to roll up Willow for the win.
Winner via pinfall: Saraya
Willow appeals to the ref, only to get jumped by Saraya. Storm joins in on the beating. Ruby Soho runs down to make the save and Shida just looks on.
Stokely Hathaway wants to Jungle Boy to know that they aren’t done with him.
Konosuke Takeshita tells Renee Paquette that he has learned a lot. Takeshita doesn’t trust MJF and launches into Japanese.
Darby Allin (champion) w/Sting vs. Kushida (challenger) – TNT Championship Match
Kushida tries to fight off an arm bar from Darby, who locks in a head lock. The champ takes Kushida down with a shoulder block. Kushida with a hip toss that he follows with a drop kick. Allin goes to the floor, where he slams Kushida into the barricade. Kushida catches Allin on a coffin splash. Darby hits the Code Red, but Kushida kicks out. Allin goes up top and takes out Kushida’s friends from the LA Dojo. Kushida drives Allin into the floor with a cross arm breaker.
After a commercial break, Allin unloads with strikes. Kushida with a kick. Allin hits a scorpion death drop. Kushida knocks Allin to the floor and drops a knee from the apron. Allin hits Kushida with a stunner on the apron and both men are down. Darby grabs a chair. He batters Kushida until he collapses into the chair. Allin goes up top, but Kushida counters the shotgun drop kick into an armbar. Kushida returns to the ring, as the ref keeps counting. Allin beats it, but then goes back to the apron. Kushida drags Allin to the top with a wrist lock and slams him to the mat. Kushida wants the Hoverboard Lock, but Allin is able to lock his hands. The LA Dojo guys want Sting to throw in the towel. He has no intentions of doing that. Allin rolls through, blocks Kushida and gets him into a deep cover for the three count.
Winner…and still TNT Champion…via pinfall: Darby Allin
After the match, the two shake hands. That’s the show, see you in seven.
AEW Dynamite 1/18/2023
Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Aside from the debut of Kushida, there wasn’t anything special about tonight’s Dynamite. It should surprise no one that Bryan Danielson and Bandido put on a banger of a match though. That and Kushida taking on Darby Allin are all that’s worth checking out.
