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Adam Copeland Reacts To First AEW PPV Match

adam copeland aew face paint

Adam Copeland said he felt like a kid again while competing in his first AEW pay-per-view match.

The opening match of the AEW Full Gear pay-per-view in Los Angeles saw Adam Copeland team up with Sting & Darby Allin against the trio of TNT Champion Christian Cage, Luchasaurus & Nick Wayne. The trio of Copeland, Sting & Allin were joined by two-time WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair, who has said he will be by Sting’s side during his final matches leading to the retirement match at Revolution in March 2024.

There was also an interesting look for Copeland during the match. While Sting is known for painting his whole face and Allin is known for painting one side of his face, Copeland also painted the right side of his face for the match. It’s not something Copeland usually does, but it shows how much teaming with Sting & Allin meant to him.

It will likely come as no surprise that the team of Sting, Allin & Copeland had a dominant performance. They worked very well together as Copeland hit a Spear on Luchasaurus and Allin hit a Coffin Drop leading to the pinfall win.

On Instagram, Adam Copeland shared a message as well as some photos from the match. He noted that the match had him feeling like a kid again even though he recently turned 50 years old.

“I’m 50 years old. In the second and not really supposed to be happening, final act of my wrestling career. Last night I felt like the 17-year-old kid stepping into that concrete like boxing ring at Sullys Gym back in 91. To feel so excited and have so much fun at this stage of my career is such a gift. To perform in The Great Western Forum for the first time, see names like Jimi Hendrix and The Doors painted on the entrance wall, man.”

“To team with @darbyallin who is one insanely (key word insane) talented dude, who by the way hopped on a redeye after this match to go train in Nepal to climb Mount Everest, is invigorating.

“To team with one of my idols @stinger in his last match in California. To share the same space and be a peer of his, well 12 yr old Adam wouldn’t be able to fathom that. Hell 50 yr old Adam doesn’t. LA, you brought it. That was a bucket lister. Thank you.”

Christian Cage Avoided Contact With Adam Copeland

One of the key selling points of the match was the idea of Adam Copeland getting his hands on his best friend for 40 years, the TNT Champion Christian Cage. It was Christian who said that he wanted to break Adam’s neck and end Copeland’s career for good, which set off Copeland to accept this match even though he originally said he didn’t want to fight Christian.

Throughout the match, any time that Copeland tagged in, Christian would tag out. Any time that Copeland got anywhere close to him, Christian would find a way to run away.

At the end of the match when Copeland’s team finished off Luchasaurus, Christian had already left through the crowd with his TNT Title.

AEW is clearly building to a massive Adam Copeland-Christian Cage showdown at some point, but at least Full Gear, Christian managed to avoid the wrath of his best friend.