AEW Dynamite Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights From March 19
The Liberty First Credit Union Arena in Omaha, Nebraska hosted the March 19 edition of AEW Dynamite, featuring a massive world title rematch.
At Revolution, Christian Cage's cash-in interrupted Cope's world title clash against Jon Moxley. The Patriarch was out of the picture for Wednesday's Street Fight sequel.
A Fatal 4-Way would determine the next challenger for international champion Kenny Omega. Who would emerge victorious between Ricochet, Orange Cassidy, "Speedball" Mike Bailey and Mark Davis?
Kris Statlander and Megan Bayne collided in a rematch of their epic heavyweight bout from February. AEW women's world champion Toni Storm was sure to be watching this one closely.
Mercedes Moné put her TBS Championship on the line against the first ROH women's world TV champion Billie Starkz. Could Starkz pull off a huge upset?
All Elite Wrestling promised an action-packed show that would set the stage for Dynasty's biggest title matches on April 6.
No. 1 Contender: Ricochet vs. Orange Cassidy vs. Mike Bailey vs. Mark Davis
After a competitive contest, "Speedball" Mike Bailey caught Mark Davis with a roundhouse kick then went for a backslide. Ricochet slipped in to cover Davis as well, causing a double pin decision.
Afterward, the referee announced that both men had won based on the result, leading to a triple threat against International champion Kenny Omega at Dynasty.
Everyone played their roles well in this chaotic match. Orange Cassidy took the brunt of the offense while Davis was the powerhouse bruiser.
Bailey relied on his speed and tricks. Ricochet trusted in his smarts. Both men benefited from their skill sets to take the victory.
It was a wild contest that was laid out so well to maximize the talent with likely more time than they would have gotten if AEW had a full roster available.
This is the best possible option for the end of this tournament. Speedball advances in his second AEW match. Ricochet is the villain in this story and continues to cheat his way to victories.
Omega will thrive with these two men involved, and he can pick up an impressive victory in the early stages of his title reign.
Result
Bailey and Ricochet def. Davis and Cassidy by pinfall to earn a shot at the International Championship at Dynasty.
Grade
A
Notable Moments
- Don Callis joined commentary after walking out with his reluctant client Davis.
- Ricochet ruined a striking exchange between Bailey and Cassidy just as Speedball was just about to pick up the speed with Freshly Squeezed.
- Ricochet jumped on commentary, stealing Excalibur's headset, to say he was biding his time to find his moment.
- Cassidy argued one of his pinfall attempts was a two-count not a one-count, mocking the classic referee argument.
- Ricochet was so hated by the crowd that Taz wondered if he might have more heat than Callis.
- Bailey hit Cassidy with a Shooting Star Press then Ricochet threw him out and hit Freshly Squeezed with his own Shooting Star. It only got two.
TBS Championship: Mercedes Moné (c) vs. Billie Starkz
Mercedes Moné found a dangerous challenge to her TBS Championship in Billie Starkz, who nearly pushed her to her limit.
After a near-fall for the challenger, The CEO caught her with the Statement Maker for the submission win.
The build to this match was a few awkward backstage segments, but the match itself was unsurprisingly quite good. It was one of the best women's matches on Dynamite in a while.
The obvious chemistry between Moné and Starkz should be explored further, even if the real goal was to continue pushing The CEO and Athena closer together.
For those that do not watch Ring of Honor, this was a great re-introduction to Starkz, who will be an integral part of the AEW women's division down the line.
Fans now wait with bated breath for when the ROH women's world champion arrives to set up one of the biggest dream matches in AEW.
Result
Moné def. Starkz by submission to retain the TBS Championship.
Grade
B+
Notable Moments
- AEW aired a hype video for Starkz ahead of her title match, showcasing her ROH success.
- The CEO ducked outside to avoid Starkz, but the challenger hit her with a senton bomb to the floor followed by another in the ring for a near-fall.
- Tony Schiavone called out that while Starkz is 20 years old, this was her 500th career match.
- Starkz nearly knocked out The CEO with a wheelbarrow smash on the top turnbuckle followed by an electric chair driver. Moné barely got her foot on the rope.
- Later, Renee Paquette interviewed The CEO, who mocked Starkz' mentor.
AEW World Championship - Street Fight: Jon Moxley (c) vs. Cope
Jon Moxley and Cope brutalized each other until The Death Riders arrived. The Rated-R Superstar sent Wheeler Yuta through a table then FTR took out Claudio Castagnoli and Pac.
Marina Shafir came out for the save, but Willow Nightingale took her down. Kip Sabian distracted Cope for Wayne's World from Nick Wayne followed by a Bulldog Choke for the knockout win by Moxley.
Afterward, Dax Harwood refused to help Cope up and walked out, leaving only Cash Wheeler and Willow to check on him.
It was obvious early on that this was the format these two should have gone with at Revolution. Even if it was never going to compete with that card, this was far more interesting.
These two men brawled and pulled out a wild collection of weapons to hurt each other. They kept a steady pace without ignoring the physical damage of their brawl.
The back shot on Spike is one of the most brutal spots AEW has ever delivered, and it is not working for many. It was genuinely hard to watch the referee help remove it from Moxley.
The interference was over the top but appropriate, just missing Jay White, though he may have not been able to make the travel.
FTR continue to tease turning heel, especially Harwood. It was more surprising seeing him walk out on Cope over Undisputed Kingdom on Collision.
Overall, this was a successful end to this story that will likely be forgotten for the most part in a couple months as bigger fan favorites step up to next challenge Moxley.
Result
Moxley def. Cope by knockout to retain the AEW World Championship.
Grade
B
Notable Moments
- Cope started this fight in the parking lot, brawling with the champion in a production truck.
- Moxley blasted Cope with a Paradigm Shift on the announce table before the contest headed to commercial.
- Prince Nana watched backstage without Swerve Strickland, who was still recovering from Moxley's attack on Collision.
- Cope battered Moxley with Spike then suplexed him onto it. The weapon stuck to the champion's back.
- The Hurt Syndicate promised to continue dominating in a pre-taped vignette.
- MJF delivered a promo in the backstage area, promising an answer to MVP next week, while also warning that he was coming after the AEW World Championship.
Will Ospreay vs. AR Fox
After an impressive showing from AR Fox, Will Ospreay ducked a 450 splash and hit the Hidden Blade for the victory.
It is possible the original plan was for Ospreay to stay out of the ring for a while longer to sell the damage from the Steel Cage match.
The Aerial Assassin certainly worked like he was still hurting, almost struggling to keep up with his opponent.
It was a fun match for Ospreay, who has not had enough of those recently. With this focus on delivering in the big moments, it was nice to just see him flow against a competitor looking to level up by working with him.
This was easily the weakest match of the night, a rare statement for an Ospreay match, but it also speaks to the quality of the Dynamite card this week.
Result
Ospreay def. Fox by pinfall.
Grade
C+
Notable Moments
- Ospreay and Fox traded off handstand counters to cutters and kip-ups, showing their similar athleticism.
- Fox ducked a Hidden Blade then hit a cutter. The two battled around the corner, ending with Fox hitting a top rope Flatliner.
- With Renee Paquette backstage, Hangman Adam Page announced he would join the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament while warning Swerve Strickland that he would not let him be men's world champion again.
Kris Statlander vs. Megan Bayne (w/ Penelope Ford)
After a war of powerhouses, Megan Bayne threw Kris Statlander into Toni Storm outside then hit her with the Fate's Descent on the floor and in the ring to win.
After the result, Storm taped her right fist and brawled with The Megasus. When officials broke it up, The Timeless One grabbed a mic and challenged Bayne for Dynasty.
It is rare to see the women main event in AEW. Especially with the AEW World Championship match earlier, this could have been an apology for not letting the woman main event at Revolution.
Statlander and Bayne certainly worked with the expectations of the spot. This was a better bout than their first clash, which was already good on its own merit.
In particular, these two flowed down the stretch, hitting big strikes and throws back and forth to sell how close they are in terms of talent and will.
The women deserve more opportunities to shine like this. It was a hot finish to a great show that solidified a rising star.
Giving Bayne a more definitive victory over Statlander establishes that The Megasus could truly be a threat to Storm at Dynasty.
It is more likely that Storm will be the first to hand her a loss, but it would be a massive statement for AEW to give Bayne the world title so soon into her AEW run.
Result
Bayne def. Statlander by pinfall.
Grade
A-
Notable Moments
- Storm joined commentary. She pointed out that Bayne has remained quiet so far in AEW, possibly teasing a big promo segment coming.
- Ford first got involved to distract Statlander and set up Bayne to knock her off the top rope. When she tripped Statlander later, she got thrown out.
- Statlander and Bayne traded German suplexes and kept standing back up to keep fighting.
Overall Show
While AEW has struggled recently to find the perfect balance of action and promos on Dynamite, a limited roster forced the issue this week.
This felt like a pay-per-view level show, delivering on every single match with plenty of time given to everyone.
The promo segments were kept to the backstage area to focus on what made each match on the night special.
The Fatal 4-Way was wild fun with a creative finish. Mercedes Moné found a great foil in Billie Starkz, who she pushed to one of her best-ever performances.
The AEW World Championship Street Fight was an appropriately brutal final chapter for Cope and Jon Moxley, even if the shot with Spike is certain to draw criticism.
Will Ospreay had the filler match of the night, a fun diversion to keep the action rolling and let AR Fox shine for a bit.
Kris Statlander pulled out her best offense to put over Megan Bayne as the new dominant force in the women's division, setting the stage for an intriguing clash with Toni Storm.
This was a night to remember that set two world title match and an exciting International Championship clash for Dynasty at the same time.
Overall Grade: A+