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AEW Double or Nothing PPV Results: 5-30-21
(4) ANTHONY OGOGO (w/Q.T. Marshall) vs. CODY RHODES (w/Arn Anderson)
The announcers talked about Ogogo’s boxing history and how he is 70 percent blind in his left eye. Cody went after Ogogo’s arm early after avoiding an opening right swing by Ogogo. Ogogo grabbed the ropes and then landed a body shot. Cody went down. Ogogo landed an Olympic slam for a two count. Cody sold the body shot before landing a powerslam. He then grabbed at his abdominal area before getting up. Ogogo stomped Cody to the mat off the ropes. Ogogo gloated before dropping a flying elbow for a two count.
Marshall punched Cody from ringside, leading to a near fall by Ogogo. Cody avoided another elbowdrop, then punched away at Ogogo’s punching hand. Ogogo came back with a slam and anotehr two count. Arn gave Cody a pep talk and strategy session. Cody landed a running bulldog, then played to the crowd. Ogogo came up bleeding above his right eye. Cody hit a Cody Cutter. Ogogo surprised Cody with a big right as they were battling on the top turnbuckle. Cody went down hard. Ogogo gathered himself and landed a top rope frog splash. He clutched his ribs, injured in training, and made the cover. Cody kicked out.
Cody came back with a dropkick and then applied a figure-four leglock mid-ring. Ogogo broke it up with a punch. Cody dropped back and the ref counted his shoulders down for a two count. Ogogo turned Cody over, forcing Cody to release. Ogogo countered Cody and landed two punches – one to hte body and another to the jaw. Ogogo got Cody a gut-wrench toss for a two count. Ross talked up how hard Ogogo trained for the last 18 months. Schiavone said he was showing them a lot. Ogogo pounded his chest. Cody came back with a vertibreaker for the three count. Ross said it wasn’t easy, but Cody took care of business. Cody tried to fire up the crowd afterward. They cheered him, but he worked for those cheers.
WINNER: Cody in 11:00. (*1/2)
(That worked pretty well in terms of ring work. Ogogo was green, but pulled off what he intended to do without embarrassing himself, a credit to both him and of course Cody, too. I’m curious where they go from here with Ogogo. He didn’t seem super-heelish, but he was cocky at various times. The problem is the crowd just didn’t care that much. They were happy to see Cody, but they didn’t seem invested at all in the storyline, which was heavy-handed and grandiose but not particularly well-built. Cody worked very hard to get the crowd cheering for him after the match.)
(5) MIRO vs. LANCE ARCHER – TNT Title match
Archer came out alone. When Miro walked down the ramp, Archer dove at him. They brawled on the ramp and then into the ring. Archer took Miro down with a boot, then walked the top rope. They battled at ringside. Miro slammed Archer into the barricade. Archer came back and rammed Miro into the ringpost and then slammed Miro through a table at ringside.
Back in the ring, Archer controlled for a while until Miro avoided an Archer moonsault. Miro landed a leaping spin wheel kick and played to the crowd. He stomped the mat. Jake Roberts showed up on the ramp with a big bag. Miro battled Jake, kicked Archer as he charged, then shook the bag and tossed it 50 feet onto the stage. Ross called it sick. The fans booed.
Archer took over against Miro. Ross suggested they do a Best of Five or Best of Seven however this turns out. Miro kicked the middle rope between Archer’s legs, then landed a sidekick to the head. He let out a big yell and stomped Archer’s back. Then he went for a camel clutch, but Archer fought it, so instead he fell back and pulled back on Archer’s head. Archer passed out.
WINNER: Miro in 10:00 via ref stoppage when Archer passed out to retain the TNT Title. (***)
(This wasn’t nearly as long as other matches, but it totally worked for its place on the card and the style of fighting, which was all out from the start with big moves. Ross saying he wants to see it again might indicate they’re going to continue with this despite Miro’s clean win in this first match. Good to see AEW going with clean finishes.)
(6) HIKARU SHIDA vs. DR. BRIT BAKER (w/Rebel) – AEW Women’s Title match
They had a staredown. Baker threw the first punch. Shida threw a barrage of knees. Baker came back and tossed her to the mat. They stood and circled each other. There were dueling chants early of “Let’s Go Shida! / DMD!” Shida took control in the ring with a body scissors. Baker avoided a Shida dropkick and dropped to the floor. Rebel laughed in her face. A minute later Shida leaped off the ring onto both Baker and Rebel.
Baker went on sustained offense including a curb stomp and butterfly suplex. The announcers talked about the dominance of Shida over the last year. Shida made a comeback with a barrage of forearms and punches in a mount. She rammed Baker’s head into the top turnbuckle a few times. Then she landed running knees, then raked at Baker’s face. Schiavone said that’s so unlike Shida. She scored a two count. Schiavone said Baker was in real trouble. She applied a stretch muffler, but Baker reached the bottom rope quickly. Baker then caught Shida with a sling blade followed by Air Raid Crash for a near fall. Shida fought off Baker’s attempt at her finisher, then gave her a German suplex.
Shida stayed on Baker with aggressive offense and carried her to the top rope. She set up n Avalanche Death Valley Driver, but Baker slipped free. She shifted to a superplex for a near fall. Baker surprised Shida with a roll-up for a near fall. Shida applied a stretch muffler. Rebel stood on the ring apron and held up the new title belt. Shida released her hold and yelled at her. Rebel swung her crutch at Shida, but she hit Baker by mistake instead leading to a believable near fall. Shida gave Baker a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. When Rebel stood on the ring apron again, the ref kicked Rebel out of ringside. Meanwhile, Baker tried to hit Shida with the belt, but Shida blocked it. Baker superkicked the belt into Shida’s head, then curb stomped her on the belt, and scored a dramatic, believable near fall. Baker then applied her finisher, but Shida countered with a leverage two count. Shida charged and landed a jumping knee strike followed by a running knee for a near fall. Baker used a crucifix to score a quick two count. She then applied her Lock Jaw for the tapout win. Ross talked about it being a great match with a lot of great counters. Schiavone gave Baker a hug on the stage.
WINNER: Baker in 17:00 to capture the AEW Women’s Title. (***1/2)
(AEW isn’t doing a lot of shenanigans, so if the point of doing all of that in this match was to try to turn the crowd against Baker before she won, I’m not sure why they had Schiavone hug Baker afterward and the announcers tout the quality of the match without talking about Baker using the belt as a weapon in the lead up to the finish. The match overall, though, was really exciting. Yes, there were a handful of sloppy or mistimed spots, but nothing that was a big deal to halt the fan investment in the action.)
(4) ANTHONY OGOGO (w/Q.T. Marshall) vs. CODY RHODES (w/Arn Anderson)
The announcers talked about Ogogo’s boxing history and how he is 70 percent blind in his left eye. Cody went after Ogogo’s arm early after avoiding an opening right swing by Ogogo. Ogogo grabbed the ropes and then landed a body shot. Cody went down. Ogogo landed an Olympic slam for a two count. Cody sold the body shot before landing a powerslam. He then grabbed at his abdominal area before getting up. Ogogo stomped Cody to the mat off the ropes. Ogogo gloated before dropping a flying elbow for a two count.
Marshall punched Cody from ringside, leading to a near fall by Ogogo. Cody avoided another elbowdrop, then punched away at Ogogo’s punching hand. Ogogo came back with a slam and anotehr two count. Arn gave Cody a pep talk and strategy session. Cody landed a running bulldog, then played to the crowd. Ogogo came up bleeding above his right eye. Cody hit a Cody Cutter. Ogogo surprised Cody with a big right as they were battling on the top turnbuckle. Cody went down hard. Ogogo gathered himself and landed a top rope frog splash. He clutched his ribs, injured in training, and made the cover. Cody kicked out.
Cody came back with a dropkick and then applied a figure-four leglock mid-ring. Ogogo broke it up with a punch. Cody dropped back and the ref counted his shoulders down for a two count. Ogogo turned Cody over, forcing Cody to release. Ogogo countered Cody and landed two punches – one to hte body and another to the jaw. Ogogo got Cody a gut-wrench toss for a two count. Ross talked up how hard Ogogo trained for the last 18 months. Schiavone said he was showing them a lot. Ogogo pounded his chest. Cody came back with a vertibreaker for the three count. Ross said it wasn’t easy, but Cody took care of business. Cody tried to fire up the crowd afterward. They cheered him, but he worked for those cheers.
WINNER: Cody in 11:00. (*1/2)
(That worked pretty well in terms of ring work. Ogogo was green, but pulled off what he intended to do without embarrassing himself, a credit to both him and of course Cody, too. I’m curious where they go from here with Ogogo. He didn’t seem super-heelish, but he was cocky at various times. The problem is the crowd just didn’t care that much. They were happy to see Cody, but they didn’t seem invested at all in the storyline, which was heavy-handed and grandiose but not particularly well-built. Cody worked very hard to get the crowd cheering for him after the match.)
(5) MIRO vs. LANCE ARCHER – TNT Title match
Archer came out alone. When Miro walked down the ramp, Archer dove at him. They brawled on the ramp and then into the ring. Archer took Miro down with a boot, then walked the top rope. They battled at ringside. Miro slammed Archer into the barricade. Archer came back and rammed Miro into the ringpost and then slammed Miro through a table at ringside.
Back in the ring, Archer controlled for a while until Miro avoided an Archer moonsault. Miro landed a leaping spin wheel kick and played to the crowd. He stomped the mat. Jake Roberts showed up on the ramp with a big bag. Miro battled Jake, kicked Archer as he charged, then shook the bag and tossed it 50 feet onto the stage. Ross called it sick. The fans booed.
Archer took over against Miro. Ross suggested they do a Best of Five or Best of Seven however this turns out. Miro kicked the middle rope between Archer’s legs, then landed a sidekick to the head. He let out a big yell and stomped Archer’s back. Then he went for a camel clutch, but Archer fought it, so instead he fell back and pulled back on Archer’s head. Archer passed out.
WINNER: Miro in 10:00 via ref stoppage when Archer passed out to retain the TNT Title. (***)
(This wasn’t nearly as long as other matches, but it totally worked for its place on the card and the style of fighting, which was all out from the start with big moves. Ross saying he wants to see it again might indicate they’re going to continue with this despite Miro’s clean win in this first match. Good to see AEW going with clean finishes.)
(6) HIKARU SHIDA vs. DR. BRIT BAKER (w/Rebel) – AEW Women’s Title match
They had a staredown. Baker threw the first punch. Shida threw a barrage of knees. Baker came back and tossed her to the mat. They stood and circled each other. There were dueling chants early of “Let’s Go Shida! / DMD!” Shida took control in the ring with a body scissors. Baker avoided a Shida dropkick and dropped to the floor. Rebel laughed in her face. A minute later Shida leaped off the ring onto both Baker and Rebel.
Baker went on sustained offense including a curb stomp and butterfly suplex. The announcers talked about the dominance of Shida over the last year. Shida made a comeback with a barrage of forearms and punches in a mount. She rammed Baker’s head into the top turnbuckle a few times. Then she landed running knees, then raked at Baker’s face. Schiavone said that’s so unlike Shida. She scored a two count. Schiavone said Baker was in real trouble. She applied a stretch muffler, but Baker reached the bottom rope quickly. Baker then caught Shida with a sling blade followed by Air Raid Crash for a near fall. Shida fought off Baker’s attempt at her finisher, then gave her a German suplex.
Shida stayed on Baker with aggressive offense and carried her to the top rope. She set up n Avalanche Death Valley Driver, but Baker slipped free. She shifted to a superplex for a near fall. Baker surprised Shida with a roll-up for a near fall. Shida applied a stretch muffler. Rebel stood on the ring apron and held up the new title belt. Shida released her hold and yelled at her. Rebel swung her crutch at Shida, but she hit Baker by mistake instead leading to a believable near fall. Shida gave Baker a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. When Rebel stood on the ring apron again, the ref kicked Rebel out of ringside. Meanwhile, Baker tried to hit Shida with the belt, but Shida blocked it. Baker superkicked the belt into Shida’s head, then curb stomped her on the belt, and scored a dramatic, believable near fall. Baker then applied her finisher, but Shida countered with a leverage two count. Shida charged and landed a jumping knee strike followed by a running knee for a near fall. Baker used a crucifix to score a quick two count. She then applied her Lock Jaw for the tapout win. Ross talked about it being a great match with a lot of great counters. Schiavone gave Baker a hug on the stage.
WINNER: Baker in 17:00 to capture the AEW Women’s Title. (***1/2)
(AEW isn’t doing a lot of shenanigans, so if the point of doing all of that in this match was to try to turn the crowd against Baker before she won, I’m not sure why they had Schiavone hug Baker afterward and the announcers tout the quality of the match without talking about Baker using the belt as a weapon in the lead up to the finish. The match overall, though, was really exciting. Yes, there were a handful of sloppy or mistimed spots, but nothing that was a big deal to halt the fan investment in the action.)