The John Report: AEW Dynamite 01/28/26 Review
This week’s AEW Dynamite features Kris Statlander facing Thekla, FTR defending the AEW Tag Team Titles, Kenny Omega in action, and more.
This was AEW Dynamite episode #330 from the H-E-B Center in Austin, Texas. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. Let’s get to it.
It’s Wednesday, and you know what that means. Excalibur was on commentary with Tony Schiavone and Taz. I miss Bryan Danielson.
Kenny Omega vs. Rocky Romero
This was called a “massive match” by Excalibur. Really? I don’t remember the last time Rocky Romero won a singles match on this show. It’s a ridiculous statement. Anyway, I did like that the bell rang two minutes into the show. Start a wrestling show with action. Good. I like that. Omega splashed Romero against the turnbuckle and Omega sent Romero out of the ring. Omega hit a slingshot cross body block over the top onto Romero on the floor. Back in the ring, Omega hit a leapfrog leg drop and a facebuster into the mat. Romero bailed to the floor, then back in to hide behind the referee and Romero hit Omega with strikes. Romero hit a neckbreaker. Romero hit two clotheslines, and Omega hit a boot to the head. Romero kicked Omega into the turnbuckle. Romero did some dancing for some reason and Omega hit him with a knee to the head. Omega hit a Snapdragon Suplex and V-Trigger knee. Omega hit a One Winged Angel for the pinfall win after 4 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Kenny Omega
Analysis: *1/2 A squash match just like it should be. I didn’t know AEW could book those properly, but they just did. The spot where Romero posed on the other side of the ring and waited for Omega to knee him was dumb comedy. Anyway, it was an easy night at the office for Omega.
Kenny Omega Interview
Kenny Omega was interviewed by Tony “Bright Yellow Shoes” Schiavone, who claimed that Omega was a top four contender for the AEW World Title along with Swerve Strickland, Andrade El Idolo and “Hangman” Adam Page. Tony said that two wrestlers will face off on Dynamite in Australia in two weeks and the winner of that will face MJF for the AEW World Title at Revolution. Omega said he hasn’t felt this good in years. Omega said that this is supposed to be the place where the best wrestle. Omega said whether it’s somebody he hates or somebody he loves, this is just business and he will become the Heavyweight Champion of the World.
The former AEW World Champion “Hangman” Adam Page joined his buddy Omega in the ring. Page said that, truth be told, after all these years, he’d rather be beside Omega than against him. Page said with the World Title at stake, then so be it. Page said he looked past Samoa Joe and he thought about defending that championship against Omega. Page said that because of Hook and a kick to the balls by MJF, he lost his chance to get his championship. Page told Omega he will not be the next champion. Page said it won’t be Andrade or Swerve because the next champion will be him.
Swerve Strickland joined the promo party and walked out to the ring with Prince Nana. Swerve said he was not the one pinned in that 4-way at Worlds End, so he has as much of a right at the World Title as Page does. Swerve said his mission remains the same because he’s going to come back and get that World Championship. Swerve said he didn’t care who he had to stomp out, ravage, and go through to get what he wanted. Swerve said it can be against anybody and he does mean anybody. Omega said that he is astute at reading the room and as much as Hanger and him are eyeing the belt, he feels like there’s some animosity. Omega said it sounds like Swerve is looking for a fight. Swerve said more than you will ever know.
Don Callis walked out onto the ramp and he was booed heavily. Callis said that Swerve won’t be undefeated for much longer since Andrade will pin him tonight and end that undefeated streak. Callis told Omega that when Andrade beats Swerve, he’s coming for Omega. Callis said that he’s got a little something for Hangman. Callis said they’re going to understand that the Don Callis Family runs this show.
Omega said that Don talks about what they have to worry about. Omega said that maybe Callis should be worrying about himself and Omega chased Callis to the backstage area.
Analysis: They are doing a nice job of putting over the importance of the AEW World Title by having so many big names talk about wanting to win the AEW World Title. Everybody made some valid points in their promos with Page, Swerve and Omega as former champions, so they all have credibility when they talk about how they deserve a shot at the champion.
A video aired about the Kris Statlander-Thekla feud, with some promos from each woman and their friends. Willow and Harley said they’ll put their Women’s Tag Team Titles on the line against Julia Hart and Skye Blue on Collision as long as they stay out of the Stat-Thekla match.
Jon Moxley vs. Ace Austin
Moxley is the AEW Continental Champion, and if Austin wins, then he gets a shot at the title. Ace took control with an armdrag and a dropkick that knocked Moxley out of the ring. Ace was on the apron as he kicked Moxley on the floor. They went on a picture-in-picture break.
(Commercial)
The match continued with a superplex, and both guys were down after that. Moxley hit a clothesline and Ace hit a clothesline of his own. Ace hit a Russian legsweep and a leg drop. Ace hit Moxley with repeated clotheslines against the turnbuckle. Ace missed a springboard kick, so Moxley hit him with a stiff clothesline. Ace and Moxley exchanged pin attempts for multiple two kicks. Ace hit a spin kick to Moxley’s head and Ace hit a double foot stomp like move for a two count. Moxley punched Ace a few times, then Ace broke free and Ace hit a springboard kick to the face for two. Ace charged with a Cutter. Moxley hit the Death Rider lifting DDT for the pinfall win. It went about 10 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Jon Moxley
Analysis: *** A solid TV match that featured plenty of offense from Austin, even though everybody watching knew he had no chance to win the match. Moxley’s Cutter and Death Rider were enough for Moxley to win easily.
After the match, Konosuke Takeshita walked into the ring and faced off with Moxley. The announcers mentioned that Takeshita beat Moxley in the Continental Classic, so he was likely mentioning that. Davis and Doyle from the Don Callis Family attacked Moxley, who had no help. Takeshita walked away from it. Poor Moxley was out on the mat by himself with nobody trying to help him to end the segment.
Analysis: It looks like a Moxley-Takeshita match is coming soon, which I certainly don’t mind. They are awesome.
(Commercial)
TNT Championship: Mark Briscoe vs. El Clon (w/Don Callis)
The announcers claim Clon is undefeated, even though I don’t think I’ve seen him win a match. I only watch Dynamite, though, so his wins are on other shows. The masked man Clon got some offense early, but Mark was able to send Clon out of the ring. Callis joined commentary as Mark headbutted Clon on the floor. Mark tossed a chair into the ring, so then Mark wanted to jump off the chair, but Clon was back in the ring. Mark hit a clothesline to knock Clon out of the ring. Mark kicked Clon on the floor. Mark hit a cannonball off the apron onto Clon on the floor. Clon trapped Mark against the ring apron and hit a dropkick to take control. Clon kicked Mark on the floor. They went to a PIP break.
(Commercial)
Clon was in control with kicks, and Clon jumped off the ropes, leading to a moonsault for a two count. Mark hit Clon with an uppercut to knock him off the turnbuckle to the floor. Mark hit a somersault dive through the ropes onto Clon on the floor. Clon superkicked Mark in the ring. Mark came back with jabs to the jaw, and Clon came back with a roundhouse kick. Mark and Clon hit a double clothesline. Mark and Clon did the “stand and throw strikes” spot, leading to Mark hitting an overhead suplex. Mark hit a clothesline and a suplex. Mark went up top and hit a Froggy Bow for a two count. Mark went for the Jay Driller, but Clon was able to counter it by landing on his feet. Clon hit a Pele Kick to knock Mark out of the ring. Clon hit a one-legged moonsault off the ropes onto Mark on the floor. Clon went up top and hit a double foot stomp. No pin attempt. Clon tried a lifting move, Mark fought out of it and Clon kicked Mark in the head. Mark got a ROLLUP OF DEATH~! and leaned forward for the pinfall win after 12 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Mark Briscoe
Analysis: ***1/4 A good title match to show that Mark Briscoe is a resilient champion. There were some impressive moves in the match by El Clon, but it didn’t feel like a match that would lead to a title change. Since Mark won with the ROLLUP OF DEATH~! instead of his finisher, it puts over Clon as a guy who is tough to beat.
Mark Briscoe did a promo saying he’s not going to be doing any ducking or dodging. Mark said that they’re going to be back in Texas on Saturday night. Mark said he likes doing a TNT Open Challenge, but he said nobody from the Don Callis Family because he’s tired of them.
The lights went out. A graphic was shown of a beating heart on the screen. That led to the debut of Tommaso Ciampa as the words “Psycho Killer” appeared on the screen. Ciampa got a huge ovation from the fans since they know him from his WWE run. There was a big reaction for Ciampa. When Ciampa got into the ring, he told Briscoe he is coming for that and Briscoe held his title up. Ciampa kissed Briscoe on the cheek and left. The graphic was shown on the screen for Briscoe facing Ciampa on Collision this Saturday night. Ciampa kissed his daughter at ringside before making his way to the back.
Analysis: That was cool. Welcome to AEW, Tommaso Ciampa. It was well known that Ciampa was leaving WWE since he said it on social media, so going to AEW felt like a viable option for him. Great addition to the company. Ciampa is a talented veteran who can really go in the ring and he’s an excellent talker as well. Ciampa can also help out younger talent since he’s an experienced wrestler who can thrive as a babyface or a heel. Nice addition by AEW.
(Commercial)
Kazuchika Okada, the AEW International Champion, and Kyle Fletcher were interviewed by Renee Paquette. Okada said he wanted to face Kyle in the finals of the Continental Classic so the Continental Title could stay in the Don Callis Family. Okada said he didn’t mean to hurt him and he said he was sorry. Fletcher said he was mad at Okada, but it takes a big man to admit his faults and Fletcher accepts his apology. They shook hands.
Let’s Hear from MJF
The AEW World Champion Maxwell Jacob Frieman made his entrance in dress clothes and the Triple B around his waist. MJF asked Taz why they have them working in a dump like this. That drew boos. MJF told the fans to listen while he speaks, but here comes Brody King with the interruption. MJF told the crowd to shut up with the barking.
MJF said that you would think with big ass ears then you would listen, but King is as deaf as he is stupid. MJF said that they can bark all they want, but MJF wants to speak to him like men, so they were both in the ring. The fans chanted “Brody” for King. MJF said that if you want a shot, then you need to beat somebody that matters, yet here is King following him around like a lost puppy. MJF said that King followed Malakai Black and it really terrified him the way they turned lights on and off. MJF said that King followed around Buddy Matthews and he mocked him for not striking fear in opponents. MJF mocked Buddy for having a bad ankle. MJF said that now King follows around a complete loser named Bandido. MJF said he had an idea so that maybe King should follow him around. MJF said he could use a guy like him. MJF said that he’s never met a Liberal man who looks more like a Nazi, and that drew laughs and harsh reactions. MJF said they’ll fix that with a suit and a scarf. MJF told King it was just a dream to beat Max for the AEW World Title. Max said in order to be champion of the world, you need to be a leader like MJF. MJF said that King is nothing more than a follower.
King said he didn’t need to follow anybody. King said that he has friends, which MJF has never had. King said that MJF is right that King didn’t beat anybody credible for a shot at the AEW World Title. King said he talked to Tony Khan and they came up wit ha challenger for him to face for a shot at the World Title. King said next week they will have an Eliminator Match and when King wins, he’ll earn a title shot at Grand Slam Australia where he’ll become the leader that this company needs. Taz said that was unfair. King left while MJF was shocked. The graphic was shown on the screen.
Analysis: This has been building up for a few weeks, so it made sense to do the match next week. The Eliminator thing is something that they like to do to have somebody earn a title shot by winning a non-title match. I think King could beat MJF in the Eliminator match, but I don’t expect a title change if King gets the title match. With that said, I am happy that King is in the title picture with MJF because I think he belongs in a spot like that.
A video aired about The Young Bucks talking about going back to the old roots, saying they are bringing back the tassels and the superkick parties. They said they’ll do what made them The Young Bucks, and they invited the tag teams to a superkick party.
Analysis: I like The Young Bucks way more as heels compared to when they are babyfaces. Their heel characters are way more interesting. The babyface act is so bland and boring.
AEW Women’s World Championship: Kris Statlander vs. Thekla
Thekla teased a handshake, then she pulled her hand away and slapped Kris in the face. Kris trapped Thekla by the ropes, hit her with forearms to the back and Kris hit a leg drop to Thekla’s back. Kris gave Thekla a delayed vertical suplex on the floor. The referee Bryce Remsburg wasn’t counting them out on the floor because…AEW? Kris went back into the ring to break the non-existent count and Kris went back out to catapult Thekla into the steel steps. Kris posed on the apron like a dumbass, so Thekla kicked Kris off the apron to the floor. Thekla hit a double foot stomp on Kris’ back. They went to a PIP break.
(Commercial)
The match continued with Thekla trying a choke against the ropes, but Kris powered out of it and sent Thekla face first into the turnbuckle. Kris hit a running forearm and a running knee with a leg slap, and a sitout slam for a two count. Thekla went to the apron and kicked Kris in the head to knock her into the ring. Thekla went up top, jumped over Kris and Kris hit a clothesline. They went onto the turnbuckle where Thekla hit a Spider Suplex from the turnbuckle. Thekla jumped off the top with a cross body block on Kris on the floor. Back in the ring, Thekla hit a Spear and Excalibur mentioned she pinned Kris with that two weeks ago in a tag, but there was no cover here. They exchanged strikes, Thekla even spat in Kris’ face, and Thekla wrenched on Kris’ arm. Thekla hit the Stomp for a two count. Thekla charged right into a superkick. Kris went for a move, but Thekla reversed it for two. Thekla avoided a clothesline. Kris hit a gutwrench Powerbomb and Wednesday Night Fever for the pinfall win after 11 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Kris Statlander
Analysis: ***1/2 A very good title match that was competitive the whole way. Kris is easy to like as a hard-working babyface who has been with AEW since the beginning. I think Thekla has been built up well as a heel. There were a few moments where Thekla really got going, and the crowd thought maybe she would win, so it’s good that the fans are buying into her as a championship threat. I think sometimes these women in AEW need to slow down and sell a bit more because they often get up so quickly after big moves. Sell more and make those big moves feel like a bigger deal.
After the match, Willow Nightingale and Harley Cameron joined Kris Statlander in the ring. Megan Bayne and Penelope Ford looked on from the entrance, so Bayne is either going after Statlander or they are going for the Women’s Tag Team Titles.
Don Callis spoke about the Don Callis Family goals with Kyle Fletcher and Konosuke Takeshita standing behind him. Callis spoke about how they are going after gold with Andrade going for the AEW World Title and Okada is already the International Champion. Callis told Takeshita he needs to forgive Okada and then Takeshita can take the Continental Title from Moxley. Callis said that Fletcher is synonymous with the TNT Championship, and Fletcher is waiting for whoever the champion is. Callis said that Davis & Doyle are about to squash FTR for the Tag Team Titles. After Callis left, Takeshita asked Fletcher if he forgave Okada, and Takeshita left while Fletcher was frustrated.
(Commercial)
A video aired about “Jungle” Jack Perry coming after Ricochet’s AEW National Title. Perry said he’s coming after everything Ricochet has since Ricochet’s group took out Luchasaurus.
The AEW National Champion Ricochet was shown earlier in the day as Toa Liona and Bishop Kaun were beating up Perry. Toa and Kaun were throwing Perry into objects backstage. Ricochet said that it doesn’t seem like Perry is answering any questions. Toa and Kaun slammed Perry through a table. Ricochet said that this is what happens when you try to take what it is.
Analysis: A decent feud for AEW’s 5th singles title. There are too many titles.
AEW World Tag Team Championships: FTR – Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler (w/Stokely) vs. Davis & Doyle
They are both heel teams. Mark Davis and Jake Doyle won a match two weeks ago to earn a title shot. Stokely is in a wheelchair and joined commentary.
Doyle ran over Cash with two shoulder tackles and a jumping body block. Doyle sent Cash into the turnbuckle. Davis tagged in with a double shoulder tackle. When Dax tagged in, Davis met him with a hard chop to the chest. Davis and Dax exchanged chops, followed by Davis hitting a senton splash. Cash sent both heels out of the ring and tried a suicide dive, but D&D caught him. D&D tossed Cash onto Dax on the floor.
(Commercial)
Davis and Dax exchanged chops and Dax’s chest was scarred from all the chops. Davis hit a leaping enziguri and a lariat. Cash tagged in with a powerslam on Doyle, but Doyle came back with another body block to knock Cash down. Doyle splashed both opponents, Davis splashed both opponents and Doyle set up Dax on the top rope. Cash pulled Doyle off the turnbuckle and hit a DDT on the apron. After taking that DDT on the apron, Doyle literally told Cash Wheeler that he tore his biceps. You could see Doyle’s left arm hit the apron hard. Davis knocked down Cash on the apron. Doyle went to the floor, holding his arm, because he was unable to continue. Dax tripped up Davis on the apron with a belly-to-back suplex. Cash hit a Superfly Splash off the top rope. The referee was talking to the wrestlers, likely to tell them about how Doyle was unable to continue due to injury. Davis clotheslined Cash out of the ring. Davis put Dax in a sleeper and that’s when Jon Moxley showed up with Marina Shafir. Danny Garcia distracted the referee, so Moxley hit Davis with the Continental Title. FTR hit Shatter Machine on Davis for the pinfall win. It went about 10 minutes.
Winners by pinfall: FTR – Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler
Update: Jake Doyle suffered a torn biceps injury. That’s going to put Doyle on the shelf for 4-6 months, most likely, so that sucks for his tag team. I enjoyed them together.
Analysis: *** They were on their way to an exciting tag team match, and then Doyle was taken out of it. The announcers didn’t even mention that Doyle rolled to the floor, or that he left the match. It took four guys to beat Davis, considering Garcia did the distraction leading to Moxley’s title belt attack, and then FTR finished off Davis after that. Moxley got payback for D&D attacking him earlier.
Orange Cassidy was interviewed by Renee Paquette, who asked about his issues with Wheeler Yuta. Orange said that he’s unrecognizable compared to who he used to be. Yuta walked up to Orange trash his looks. Marina Shafir walked in and Toni Storm walked up to her to say that Marina will be in deep shit when they have a match. Storm danced away with “citrus boy” or whatever she called Orange. I don’t know. Strange. Let’s just move on.
The Swerve Strickland-Andrade El Idolo main event was next.
(Commercial)
Swerve Strickland (w/Prince Nana) vs. Andrade El Idolo (w/Don Callis)
They did a routine where they did hurricanranas and landed on their feet. Swerve went for the House Call kick, but Andrade avoided it and the fans chanted “AEW” for that gymnastics routine. Swerve went to the middle turnbuckle while Andrade was down, but Andrade showed he was ready for it. Swerve jumped off the ropes and hit a hurricanrana on Andrade out of the ring. Swerve went for a dive on the floor, but Andrade avoided him. Andrade sent Swerve into the steel steps. Andrade saw a hot chick in the crowd and took a photo with her. She gave him her number. She’s a women’s wrestler and he put her number in his pants. Andrade, don’t propose marriage to her. The last one didn’t work out that well.
(Commercial)
Andrade hit Swerve with a forearm to knock him out of the ring. Andrade hit a springboard twisting dive over the top onto Swerve on the floor. Back in the ring, Andrade did the double jump moonsault spot that he does in every match for a two count. Swerve and Andrade battled by the turnbuckle, where Swerve gave Andrade a Death Valley Driver on the apron. Ouch. They went over to the barricade where Andrade countered Swerve with a back body drop onto the top of the thin barricade. The referee, Aubrey Edwards, wasn’t counting them out of the ring even though they were out of the ring for about two minutes. After the backdrop spot, the inept referee started counting. The refereeing “logic” in this company continues to be a problem, as the wrestlers got back in before the slowest ten count ever. When they got back into the ring, Andrade hit his spinning back elbow to the jaw for a two count. Andrade charged, but Swerve was back up with a House Call kick to the head for two. They were on the turnbuckle again and this time Andrade hit a Reverse Rana from the turnbuckle. Andrade hit the running double knee attack for two. Andrade never wins with that, but the fans thought that might be it. Andrade hit a DDT for a two count. Swerve countered a move and hit a jackknife pin for two. Andrade countered a move for a two count. Swerve hit a House Call kick to the head. Swerve tried a move, but Andrade grabbed the referee’s arm, and Andrade hit a low blow kick. Andrade hit his DM neckbreaker for the pinfall win after 15 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Andrade El Idolo
Analysis: ***3/4 Great main event between two talented veterans. When the match started, I felt like Andrade needed the win more, so I’m glad it happened for him. Andrade winning in a cheap manner also protects Swerve a bit since Andrade had to cheat to beat him. If Swerve won, then that would have been fine, but I think Andrade winning was the right move. It also shows that Andrade is willing to do anything to get a win, and that gives him more credibility as a heel going forward.
Next week on AEW Dynamite in Las Vegas: Kenny Omega vs. Andrade El Idolo, AEW National Championship – Ricochet vs. Jack Perry, MJF vs. Brody King.
Analysis: Good lineup for next week. That’s very strong.
The AEW World Champion MJF was interviewed by Renee Paquette, who asked about his match with Brody King next week. MJF said King isn’t going to beat him. Kenny Omega interrupted, saying one more week, one more win, and then he’ll see MJF for that at Revolution. Omega wanted a handshake, but MJF walked away instead. Andrade approached MJF and said he wanted that AEW World Title, so MJF walked away.
MJF left the building and “Hangman” Adam Page was out there before MJF could get into his car. Page just stared at him. MJF went into the car, and the car drove away. The camera focused on Page and that ended the show.
Analysis: It’s another way to show that there are multiple challengers coming after MJF’s AEW World Title.
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Three Stars of the Show
- Andrade El Idolo
- Swerve Strickland
- Kris Statlander
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The Scoreboard
This Week: 7.75 out of 10
Last Week: 7.25
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Final Thoughts on AEW Dynamite
I enjoyed the show. Better than last week, and good matches all night long. Swerve and Andrade had a terrific main event with a finish that I liked a lot because it gives Andrade a win over a top guy. The Statlander/Thekla match was great. Most of the matches were just okay and predictable for the most part.
There wasn’t a lot of talking other than the MJF-Brody King promo to set up their match for next week. They are doing a nice job of building contenders for the AEW World Title.
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Thanks for reading. Go Toronto Raptors, and Toronto Maple Leafs. You can contact me using any of the methods below.
John Canton
Email: [email protected]
Twitter/X: @johnreport