Hall’s AEW Collision Review 2.1.25

Collision
Date: February 1, 2025
Location: Propst Arena At Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We have two weeks to go before we get to Grand Slam and the top of the card has come together. The show has some more spots to fill in though and we’ll start taking care of that this week. As for this week, we have a Mid-South street fight, despite not being in the Mid-South (well, at least the wrestling version). Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Hook/Samoa Joe vs. The Patriarchy

Wayne shoulders Hook down to start but gets suplexed for his efforts. Joe comes in but misses a charge into the corner, allowing Sabian to kick away. That doesn’t work for Joe, who runs Sabian over and hits the backsplash. Hook comes back in but gets taken into the wrong corner so the villains can take over.

Sabian grabs a chinlock as Schiavone rattles off the rest of the card, sounding more robotic than ever. A double suplex gives Wayne two but Hook is over to the corner without much trouble. Joe comes back in, hits the release Rock Bottom out of the corner, and MuscleBusters Sabian for the pin at 8:59.

Rating: C. This was what it needed to be, with Joe getting in there and smashing through everyone as soon as he got the chance. That’s the point of someone like Joe, as he is an absolute monster when he gets the chance. Joe vs. Cage could be interesting, though Joe should have something to do with Chris Jericho first.

Post match Christian Cage comes in with the metal contract and lays the winners out.

Cope thinks Jon Moxley is always whining about something and was stupid to hide the World Title in a briefcase. He wants Moxley at Revolution. Logical, but dang that’s a long time to sit through this feud.

The Beast Mortos vs. Adam Priest

The discus lariat and the spinning piledriver finish Priest at 44 seconds. Yep.

Post match here is Max Caster to say he doesn’t want to fight, but he does want to issue his first open challenge.

Max Caster vs. Rush

Rush isn’t having any of this waiting around to start and pounds Caster into the corner to start. The Bull’s Horns finishes at 1:03. Yep again.

Post match Rush and Mortos, with Dralistico get in the ring so Rush can do his catchphrase.

The Outrunners think the Learning Tree need to dig two graves.

Outrunners vs. Learning Tree

Big Bill is here with the Learning Tree. Jericho pokes Magnum in the eyes to start and takes those eyes into the corner for some raking. Floyd comes in for some alternating atomic drops and the villains are cleared out to the floor. Bill gets in a big boot for a cheap shot though and we take a break.

Back with Floyd getting to clean house but the Mega Powers elbow takes too long. Jericho gets the Walls on Floyd but Magnum comes back in with a suplex. NOW the Mega Powers elbow can connect, only for Bill to break up Total Recall. Keith small packages Floyd for the pin at 8:21.

Rating: C+. Maybe I was stupid for thinking they could do something with the Outrunners, but here they are losing to bigger teams. I know they weren’t going to be AEW Tag Team Champions, but they could have beaten some biggish team in a funny feud. Instead, they are the latest stars to be sacrifice on the altar of Jericho.

Post match, Big Bill beats up the Outrunners again. A double chokeslam through the table is loaded up but Bandido comes in for the save. Keith goes through the table instead.

Kyle Fletcher wants to even the score with Mark Briscoe. They’re set for next week.

Buddy Matthews again challenges Kazuchika Okada, who isn’t interested. B******* ensues.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Harley Cameron

Taya jumps her to start and stomps away in the corner, only to get kicked in the head. Back up and the sliding German suplex drops Cameron and we take a break. We come back with the fans chanting FEEL THE WRATH and Cameron hitting a Canadian Destroyer. Cameron misses a Swanton but gets speared, only for Cameron to roll her up for the pin and her first AEW victory at 7:34.

Rating: C. Now THIS is what AEW needs to do more often. It wasn’t some stunning upset or total nonsense, but one of the most popular stars in the promotion got a clean win. They still have time to do this on the way to Grand Slam where Cameron likely gets to lose to Mercedes Mone. Not a particularly good match, but it was what the fans wanted to see and it went well.

We get a sitdown interview with Ricochet, who is happy to be here among the best around. Then the fans turned on him and threw toilet paper at him. Swerve Strickland thought it was a good idea to join the fans booing him. Cue Strickland to say he could end Ricochet but that would disappoint fans in Atlanta. Strickland talks about how the two of them have a long history and now it is going to be a fight, which Ricochet can’t win. Ricochet talks about how he doesn’t care about the fans and they’ll see each other in Atlanta. Nice stuff here, as they’re making this feel like a showdown.

Here is Toni Storm to say that she has been playing the role of Toni Storm for the last six weeks. Naturally no one got this because she’s such a great actress. She has to run away after Mariah May broke her heart and now she has seen everything she has. May is a “shambolic b****.” and her time is over. At least they’re winking at the fact that it wasn’t a big surprise.

Video on Christopher Daniels.

Harley Cameron is outside of Mercedes Mone’s dressing room….and whips out a Mone puppet for some outstanding ventriloquism. Mone comes in to mock Cameron for being a loser who doesn’t get to ride the money train. Sweet goodness this woman is talented.

Video on Daniel Garcia.

TNT Title: Daniel Garcia vs. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Lee Moriarty

Garcia is defending and Moriarty’s ROH Pure Title isn’t on the line. Feeling out process to start with neither going much of anywhere. We get the parade of holds with neither being able to get very far, meaning it’s another standoff. Moriarty gets sent outside so the other two can get kicked in the face. A big dive drops O’Reilly and Garcia and we take a break.

Back with Moriarty hitting an Eat Defeat/Downward Spiral combination for two each. Some double teaming takes Moriarty down until an exchange of kicks leaves everyone down. Garcia hammers away at both of them in the corner. With O’Reilly down, Garcia gets the Dragon Slayer but O’Reilly breaks it up. Moriarty’s associate Shane Taylor punches Garcia into the Border City Stretch but Garcia reverses into the jackknife cover for the retaining pin at 11:31.

Rating: B-. This was mostly just a nice wrestling match, but CAN WE STOP PINNING RING OF HONOR CHAMPIONS??? If you don’t want O’Reilly to lose here then fine, but don’t put another champion in there to take the fall. Heck you had Shane Taylor RIGHT THERE on the floor to take the fall instead. This is one of those things that Tony Khan does far too often and it drives me insane.

Post match Shane Taylor Promotions surround O’Reilly and Garcia but the Undisputed Kingdom makes the save.

Video on Penelope Ford vs. Thunder Rosa.

Hologram is walking the streets and seems to have electrical powers.

Megan Bayne vs. Hyena Hera

Bayne powers her into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs to start and hits a pump kick for a knockdown. An F5 finishes Hera at 1:25. That’s how she should have debuted rather than being just another name in the Casino Gauntlet.

Lio Rush might take up Darius Martin’s challenge. Maybe.

Mariah May is ready to watch Toni Storm vs. Queen Aminata.

Kris Statlander apologizes to Willow Nightingale over their issues. Nightingale says it’s time to focus on herself, but Statlander pulls out their friendship bracelet, showing it was never broken.

Death Riders vs. FTR

Street fight and FTR jumps them in the crowd to start fast. The weapons are brought in rather quickly and the Riders fight back, with Cash being sent into the steps to put him down. Harwood is sent into them as well and Moxley puts him in a chair for a kick to the face and two, as “Mid-South Street Fight” apparently means falls count anywhere. Yuta chairs Harwood in the ring and here is Moxley with some pliers. Cash fights up and helps clean some house but Moxley pliers Harwood’s nose…and we take a break. Because of course.

We come back with Moxley pouring out the thumbtacks, only to get powerbombed onto them. Cash and Yuta fight over a suplex before Cash settles for a suicide dive. Moxley Death Riders Cash on the floor and puts a table up in the corner. The double suplex is broken up and Harwood hits a brainbuster for a needed breather.

Harwood grabs Moxley low, only for Marina Shafir to come in and grab Harwood low. Shafir grabs a choke but gets sent through the table in the corner for his efforts. A piledriver sets up a Sharpshooter on Moxley so here is Claudio Castagnoli for the save. Cue Jay White and Cope to even things up, with Yuta getting piledriven through the announcers’ able for the pin at 16:51.

Rating: B-. Quite the fight here and it’s nice to see the Riders lose, but at the same time, it was quite a bit of the same stuff that we have seen in this kind of a match before. The match did come a bit out of nowhere, though apparently this was the last minute replacement for Powerhouse Hobbs due to his injury, so fair enough. Good stuff here, but the Death Riders in general are just not that interesting.

Post match the Riders keep up the beating but get taken out, with a Shatter Machine and spear dropping Moxley. The Conchairto is broken up to end the show.

 

Results
Hook/Samoa Joe b. The Patriarchy – MuscleBuster to Sabian
The Beast Mortos b. Adam Priest – Spinning piledriver
Rush b. Max Caster – Bull’s Horns
Learning Tree b. Outrunners – Small package to Keith
Harley Cameron b. Taya Valkyrie – Rollup
Daniel Garcia b. Lee Moriarty and Kyle O’Reilly – Jackknife rollup to Moriarty
Megan Bayne b. Hyena Hera – F5
FTR b. Death Riders – Spike piledriver through the announcers’ table to Yuta

 

 

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7.5

The final score: review Good

The 411

Nice enough show here, even if the audience is going to be crushed by the Royal Rumble. The last two non-squash matches were pretty good and I liked them throwing in some shorter matches to keep things moving. It’s not a show you need to see, but it was perfectly enjoyable.