AEW Dynamite Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights from Feb. 12

AEW Dynamite delivered multiple championship matches and heated encounters for its February 12 edition at the H-E-B Center in Austin, Texas.

Claudio Castagnoli, Pac and Wheeler Yuta of The Death Riders defended the Trios Championships against Adam Cole, Kyle O'Reilly and Roderick Strong of The Undisputed Kingdom.

Austin and Colten Gunn returned to action by challenging for the World Tag Team Championships held by Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin of The Hurt Syndicate.

Following heated words last week, MJF and Dustin Rhodes went to war one-on-one. "Hangman" Adam Page was set to appear and certain to keep a close eye on The Salt of the Earth.

Kris Statlander and Penelope Ford renewed an old rivalry, while Megan Bayne continued her dominant start to her All Elite Wrestling run.

Cope would be in attendance and likely to make his presence known to world champion Jon Moxley.

What would AEW deliver to continue building momentum toward Grand Slam: Australia and Revolution?

Max Caster tried to hide in the crowd after "Hangman" Adam Page answered his challenge. Once The Cowboy had dragged him to the ring, he won quickly with a Buckshot Lariat.

This was a quick and effective payoff for last week's conflict between Page and Caster. It was exactly as long as it should have been: an entertaining squash.

The Best Wrestler Alive is struggling in his weekly open challenges, but he is also getting regular TV time to establish himself post-Acclaimed.

Hopefully, Anthony Bowens will get his own spotlight soon. He remains the more obvious star to come out of The Acclaimed.

Result

Page def. Caster by pinfall.

Grade

C

Notable Moments

—Caster continued to harp on his "best wrestler alive" moniker before and during the match, even holding up his trademark after the victory.

—Ricochet delivered a confident promo on Swerve Strickland after his win. Prince Nana tried to convince The Mogul to move on from The One and Only.

After wild trios action, Claudio Castagnoli and Pac distracted the referee as well as Adam Cole and Roderick Strong, allowing Wheeler Yuta to steal the win with a low blow to Kyle O'Reilly.

Unsurprisingly, six of AEW's best workhorse wrestlers delivered a great contest. It was especially pleasing to see how well the two teams played in the trios format.

It was chaotic and energized. Every possible double- and triple-team sequence was utilized. O'Reilly and Strong continue to shine as a duo.

This was never going to be a moment for The Death Riders to be dethroned, but Undisputed Kingdom could be the team to beat them with more story development.

AEW's trios division has been mostly rebuilt on Collision where Undisputed Kingdom picked up important wins ahead of this title match.

No matter what show, though, this division still needs a strong focus. This is the first time The Death Riders have defended the titles since November.

They are on TV too often to spend that much time unchallenged. Hopefully, that will change soon.

Result

Death Riders def. Undisputed Kingdom by pinfall to retain the Trios Championships.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

—The crowd was heavily behind Undisputed Kingdom, especially loving Strong's hot tag sequence.

—Castagnoli frequently ran in behind the referee's back to save his allies.

—Pac and Castagnoli had to save Wheeler after he took a High-Low from Strong and O'Reilly.

—Daniel Garcia, "Daddy Magic" Matt Menard and "Cool Hand" Angelo Parker made the save when The Death Riders tried to take cheap shots after the match.

Samoa Joe, Hook and Katsuyori Shibata dominated their opponents, winning quickly with a Muscle Buster to Jon Cruz.

The Samoan Submission Machine then laid out a challenge to The Patriarchy for next week's Dynamite.

After the emphatic trios bout that preceded it, this was barely even a match, but it did set the stage for a welcome Joe promo.

Christian Cage's feud with Hook was growing stale, but adding Joe and Shibata to the mix has made it all worth it.

Matches like this also set the stage for raising the trios division as a whole, particularly since the winner of next week's match could be a future title challenger.

Result

Joe, Hook and Shibata def. Cruz, Aaron Solo and Rosario Grillo by pinfall.

Grade

C

Notable Moments

—Joe explained this trio is one that always handles their issues with violence.

—The crowd loved Joe's line calling Christian a "chicken ass," chanting it back until Joe answered with a bawk.

Chris Jericho called out Bandido, who answered for a showdown. Bryan Keith helped in a sneak attack, but The Outrunners ran off The Learning Tree and Bad Apple.

Big Bill threatened to take out Bandido alone, but Powerhouse Hobbs arrived to plant The Redwood with a chokeslam.

The battle lines have been drawn between The Learning Tree and the group's primary rivals, and this story is far more effectively elevating the babyfaces.

In particular, Hobbs has looked truly dangerous any time he battles Bill, and an eventual match between them has main event or pay-per-view potential at this stage.

Playing off Bandido's "bounty" gimmick has allowed him to quickly rebuild his spot on the roster. Hopefully, this eventually leads to him getting a shot at reclaiming the ROH World Championship.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

—Jericho ran down Keith backstage for failing to take out Bandido on Collision.

—Cope and Jay White caught Jon Moxley and Marina Shafir backstage and stole the AEW World Championship briefcase.

—In retaliation, Shafir attacked Willow Nightingale, and Moxley promised carnage in his revenge.

—The Rated R Superstar and The Switchblade said they would allow Moxley to have his briefcase back if he met them at the end of the night.

MJF was pushed to the brink by Dustin Rhodes, but after hitting The Natural with his own Final Reckoning, MJF transitioned into the Salt of the Earth then a crossface for a technical knockout.

MJF sent Bryce Remsburg running after the win and then locked back in the Salt of the Earth until "Hangman" Adam Page made the save. Officials struggled to stop the brawl that went into the crowd.

The Salt of the Earth and Rhodes had a good-old-fashioned wrestling match. It was a technical story-driven brawl where the veteran showed he has "still got it."

Throughout the match, MJF found himself frustrated with the resilience of The Natural, who tapped into an old persona to nearly take the win.

The dastardly heel again found a way to win, but he will have a much tougher time stopping the incensed Hangman.

It was nice to see this feud explode on Dynamite after all the teases. The extended brawl showed how much these two men hate each other and need to fight.

This will be a money match for Revolution that might just steal the whole show.

Result

MJF def. Rhodes by TKO.

Grade

A

Notable Moments

—Page interrupted MJF's interview. The Salt of the Earth told The Cowboy he didn't believe he had what it took to be the bad guy.

—In a pre-match interview, Rhodes promised victory for his home town of Austin.

—MJF teased a Cross Rhodes, but The Natural countered with one of his own.

—The Salt of the Earth teased using a steel chair. After Remsburg took it away, Dustin hit him with a Shattered Dreams and Final Reckoning.

—After officials broke him and Hangman up, MJF called Page a coward, only for The Cowboy to return and keep brawling.

Maya World could barely scratch Megan Bayne, who finished the match quickly with a sitout F5.

This was a quick squash on a night with multiple, but at least AEW is not only keeping Bayne relevant but also booking multiple women's matches on Dynamite.

The squash matches for Bayne have made their point, and it is time to do more with Megasus. That seems to be the plan after teases of potential feuds with both Thunder Rosa and Kris Statlander.

Result

Bayne def. World by pinfall.

Grade

C

Notable Moments

- AEW showed highlights of Bayne laying out Rosa on Collision.

- Statlander interrupted Bayne's walkout for her entrance.

Penelope Ford showed off her speed and athleticism, but the power of Kris Statlander was too much, hitting Wednesday Night Fever for the win.

Afterward, Ford knocked Statlander out of the ring followed by Bayne laying her out with an F5.

Since the result was entirely expected, Ford did the absolute most she could to stand out in this contest.

This was as good as The Bad Girl has looked since returning, clearly helped by working with one of the best in AEW. Statlander is the best match-up for most of the AEW roster.

The star power of the AEW women's division has never been stronger, and there is simply no more room on Dynamite or Collision to limit opportunities for this roster.

Statlander was out of the ring for a few weeks, and her absence was missed. Luckily, AEW has clearly set the stage for her next rival, and it is a match that will be special.

Megan Bayne may not have the pedigree of Statlander, but AEW has done enough to sell her as the new powerhouse of the division, fighting the standard bearer.

Result

Statlander def. Ford by pinfall.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

- It was not fully clear in this moment, but Excalibur teased that Ford and Bayne could work together with recent mutual enemies.

- Harley Cameron delivered a rap to Mercedes Moné using The CEO's theme, but she shut it down to get serious, talking up what this opportunity meant to her.

The Gunns got closer than expected against The Hurt Syndicate, but an emphatic Spear from Bobby Lashley sealed the victory all the same.

Afterward, Brian Cage and Lance Archer arrived to clap for the champions' impressive win while threatening a new challenge.

A hot Austin crowd made this match in a big way. The Gunns were rolling with a crowd that was fully behind cheering Austin and Colten Gunn.

Nothing in the action was mind-blowing, but both teams played well to the crowd energy, hitting explosive offense throughout.

Lashley and Shelton Benjamin picked up a nice first win as champions, establishing themselves quickly as fighting champions.

Their popularity also allows them to play heel or face depending on the opponent, so the stage is truly set for The Hurt Syndicate to dominate the division for a while with fresh competition.

Result

Lashley and Benjamin def. Austin and Colten by pinfall to retain the World Tag Team Championships.

Grade

B

Notable Moments

- MVP went off on commentary for not setting up the booth for him to join them.

- The crowd was strongly divided early with loud "We Hurt People" and "Gunns Up" dueling chants.

- Austin caught Shelton with a Famouser for a close near-fall.

- MVP barely stopped Lashley from charging The Death Machines.

"The Rated R Superstar" Cope and Jay White headed to the ring with Jon Moxley's AEW World Championship briefcase. Cope brought out Spike to break the briefcase open.

The Death Rider's leader agreed to face The Rated R Superstar for the championship at Revolution. Cope then smashed the lock on the briefcase as The Death Riders descended.

The Death Riders got the briefcase back before the championship was revealed, but Cope caught Moxley with a Spear to stand tall with The Switchblade.

This was an effective way to keep The Death Riders vs. Cope and White story rolling. The briefcase has been a spot of contention for a while, so teasing opening it made for a solid hook.

The sudden commitment to The Rated R Superstar and The Switchblade as the duo over using FTR is an odd move though as their partnership remains tenuous.

It could lead to a fun twist though if White does turn on Cope before or at Revolution.

The goal was to set up a reason for Moxley vs. Cope to be made official, and it was. The main issue to tackle next is making this feud feel bigger than Swerve Strickland vs. Ricochet and Hangman Adam Page vs. MJF.

Grade

C

Notable Moments

- Moxley nearly used Spike on The Switchblade but took a Spear instead.

- Mariah May delivered a final heated promo on Toni Storm, promising to prove she "is not real".

The centerpiece of Dynamite was the rivalry of Hangman Adam Page and MJF, and AEW certainly delivered in elevating that angle to new heights.

Even with two strong title matches, it would have made sense to main event with MJF vs. Dustin Rhodes, especially given the electric aftermath.

While The Death Riders story is chugging along better than it was, the hype around the angle pales in comparison to Page vs. MJF as well as Swerve Strickland vs. Ricochet.

Add in Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay vs. The Don Callis Family, which took a backseat on this show to be a focus at Grand Slam: Australia.

A major positive is that this show reinforced the strength of AEW's women's division, which is delivering two hot matches into Grand Slam.

Megan Bayne is finally leveling up with her eyes set on Kris Statlander and Thunder Rosa. Once Grand Slam's championship matches are settled, there are plenty of interesting angles to develop into Revolution.

For each strong match on this night, there was a somewhat unnecessary squash, but the overall result of the show was a positive, leading the way into Grand Slam as a show to remember.

Grade: B-