Omega, Okada renew hostilities in eight-man tag on Dynamite on TSN2
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Famous rivals Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada face off for the first time in nearly seven years as part of an all-star eight-man tag. Plus, "Hangman" Adam Page meets Kyle Fletcher in the Owen Hart semis. You can catch AEW Dynamite LIVE on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on TSN2, the TSN App, and TSN.ca.
AEW International Champion "The Cleaner" Kenny Omega, Mark Briscoe, "Speedball" Mike Bailey and Kevin "The Jet" Knight vs. The Elite (AEW Continental Champion "The Rainmaker" Kazuchika Okada, Nicholas Jackson and Matthew Jackson) and Ricochet
The rivalry that helped define the late 2010s in New Japan Pro-Wrestling is renewed for the first time in AEW when Kenny Omega faces off with Kazuchika Okada on opposite sides of an all-star eight-man tag-team match. Omega teams up with Mark Briscoe, Mike Bailey and Kevin Knight to take on Okada, his Elite stablemates, Nicholas Jackson and Matthew Jackson, and Ricochet. Omega and Okada's history is a storied one. In early 2016, Omega assumed the mantle of Bullet Club leadership with the group turning on AJ Styles. His emergence as the point man in the faction coincided with his move from the junior heavyweight to the heavyweight division. Later that year, Omega announced his presence on the heavyweight stage when he defeated Hirooki Goto in the G1 Climax Final to become the first gaijin to win the tournament and earn a shot at Okada's IWGP World Championship in the main event Wrestle Kingdom 11 at the Tokyo Dome. Their match was a nearly 50-minute masterpiece. The two men put on one of the greatest matches of all-time, but Omega ultimately came up short with Okada retaining his title with a Rainmaker. New Japan's top prize would continue to elude Omega. At Dominion in June of 2017, Omega and Okada would meet again after the latter issued a challenge, calling him his strongest possible challenger. This time, Okada would hang onto his title in a 60-minute time-limit draw that surpassed their first encounter. The third time would be the charm for the Winnipeg native. The following year at Dominion 2018, Okada once again asked to face Omega after Omega had defeated him in the 2017 G1. This time, Okada asked for a best-of-three falls, no time-limit match. The bout was, perhaps, the best match in recent NJPW history. Just before the half-hour mark, Omega turned a Rainmaker attempt into a roll-up only for Okada to reverse into a cradle to claim the first fall. Nearly 20 minutes later, Omega finally connected with a One-Winged Angel to even the match at one fall apiece. With both men utterly gassed, Omega powered Okada up at the hour-mark for another One-Winged Angel after blocking a Rainmaker. But Okada was at the ropes and Omega couldn't make a pin, collapsing with fatigue. As both men got to their feet, Omega found a second wind and drilled Okada with a V-Trigger before lifting him up for one more One-Winged Angel to put him away to capture the world title. Wednesday night's match will feature Omega and Okada's first encounter in nearly seven years. Emotions will run high with the match also marking the first time Omega has stepped into the ring with former best friends, the Young Bucks, since they and the rest of the Elite laid him out at the height of his diverticulitis. While Omega's opportunity for revenge against the Jacksons and his rivalry with Omega will be top of mind, there are four other men in the match capable of stealing the show in the form of Briscoe, Bailey, Knight and Ricochet. The action will undoubtedly be fast and furious. Which of these two quartets will emerge victorious?
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Owen Hart Foundation Cup semi-final match: "Hangman" Adam Page vs. "The Protostar" Kyle Fletcher (w/ Don Callis and "The Murderhawk Monster" Lance Archer)
A date with Will Ospreay at Double or Nothing hangs in the balance as Adam Page faces off with Kyle Fletcher on Wednesday night in the Owen Hart semis. The winner of the tournament earns himself an AEW World Championship shot in the main event of All In at GlobeLife Stadium in Arlington, TX in July. Page advanced to the semis with a victory over the debuting Josh Alexander two weeks ago on Dynamite. After the match, Page was waylaid by both Alexander, who aligned with the Don Callis Family, and Fletcher, who put an exclamation mark on the beating with a vicious brainbuster. On last week's Dynamite, the team of Brody King and Ospreay fell to Alexander and Konosuke Takeshita in tag-team action. The win wasn't enough for the Don Callis Family, who continued to attack Ospreay and King after the match. Page attempted to intervene, but was jumped from behind by Roppongi Vice (Trent Beretta and Rocky Romero). As the assault on Page, Ospreay and King continued, Fletcher made his way down to ringside where he once again hit the brainbuster on the Hangman. While Fletcher, who defeated Mark Briscoe at Dynasty to advance to the semis, and Page have never met in a singles match before, it's clear that the former has the edge heading into the bout after having gotten the better of the former AEW World Champion two weeks in a row. But an angry Hangman is a dangerous one. Page has vowed to get the world title back around his waist and he knows how big an opportunity winning the Owen would be. Page came as close as he could last year, losing in the final to Bryan Danielson, who would go on to main event All In and win the AEW World Championship at Wembley Stadium. The problem for Page, of course, will be the presence of the Don Callis Family. While Mark Davis and Brian Cage might be injured, the likes of Takeshita, Alexander, Beretta, Romero and Lance Archer will undoubtedly be available for some dirty work to ensure their stablemate picks up a victory. A win for Fletcher would set up another meeting with mentor-turned-enemy Ospreay. The two have had a series of brutal matches dating back to last fall with the most recent coming at Revolution when Ospreay emerged victorious in a hard-hitting cage match. With Ospreay holding a 2-1 edge in singles matches, Fletcher would love nothing more than to even their series on the way to earning a world title shot. Can the Hangman reach his second straight Owen final or will the Protostar set up another date with Ospreay?
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AEW Women's World Title Eliminator match: "Timeless" Toni Storm (c) (w/ Luther) vs. "The Pink Striker" Miyu Yamashita
Nobody can accuse Toni Storm of not being a fighting champion. Willing to take on all comers, Storm defeated Queen Aminata in a hard-fought World Title Eliminator this past Saturday night on Collision. She will once again put a title shot on the line on Wednesday night against an opponent who is no stranger to gold in the form of Miyu Yamashita. "The Pink Striker" makes her return to AEW for the first time in nearly three years. The 30-year-old Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling star is a four-time holder of the Princess of Princess Championship, the top title in the promotion. She is currently a co-holder of the Princess Tag Team Championship alongside Maki Itoh as the interestingly named 121000000. A 13-year pro, Yamashita has taken on the likes of Megan Bayne, Aja Kong, Jordynne Grace and Nicole Matthews. In intergender matches, she's faced off with Mike Bailey, Joey Janela and Nick Wayne. But what's most interesting about Yamashita as an opponent for Storm is that she is the only woman in the history of AEW Women's World Title Eliminators to actually win one. At a TJPW show in July of 2022, Yamashita defeated then-AEW Women's World Champion Thunder Rosa to earn a championship match. Weeks later on the July 27 Dynamite, she put up a valiant effort, but ultimately fell to Thunder Rosa. Yamashita has done it before and knows she can do it again and that should be a sobering prospect for Storm. The champion will be undaunted, though. Since regaining the world title for a fourth time from Mariah May at Grand Slam Australia, she is undefeated in singles matches. As stiff a test as Yamashita poses, Storm is up for it. Can Yamashita earn herself another title shot or will Storm keep rolling over the competition?
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Maxwell Jacob Friedman appears
What more can MJF do to ingratiate himself to the AEW World Tag Team Champions the Hurt Syndicate? Having finally won over Shelton Benjamin on last week's Dynamite, the former AEW World Champion thought he made headway with Bobby Lashley by offering him a sportscar. Lashley gladly accepted the car, but still blew off MJF's attempt to join the faction. Does Friedman have another trick up his sleeve? And speaking of the Hurt Syndicate...
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We'll hear from the AEW World Tag Team Champions The Hurt Syndicate ("The Almighty" Bobby Lashley and "The Standard of Excellence" Shelton Benjamin (w/ Montel Vontavious Porter)
While MVP and Shelton Benjamin have okayed the addition of MJF to the Hurt Syndicate, Bobby Lashley is still very much a no and it's unclear if anything can be done to persuade him otherwise. On top of dealing with what he considers to be a nuisance in Friedman, Lashley wants competition. Since winning the tag titles in January, Lashley and Benjamin have run over the Gunns (Austin Gunn and Colten Gunn), the Outrunners (Truth Magnum and Turbo Floyd), the Learning Tree (Big Bill and Bryan Keith) and, most recently, the Gates of Agony (Toa Liona and Bishop Kaun). What's next for the two imposing veterans?