wrestling / TV Reports
Pantoja’s AEW Continental Classic 2025 Night 10 Review
Image Credit: AEW
Loading...AEW Continental Classic Night 10
December 25th, 2025 | Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan, New York
It’s the final night of block play! We’ll find out who joins Konosuke Takeshita in the playoffs, everyone is in action, and we’ll set the stage for World’s End.
Gold League: Jack Perry [6] vs. Kyle Fletcher [6]
With the Gold League trapped in a six-way tie, it’s lose or go home for everyone. This had, as I expect all Gold League matches to have tonight, some back and forth stuff early as they are playing up the block being relatively equal. Kyle targeted Jack’s bad ankle but took his first real bit of control with an apron powerbomb. He kept up that level of brutality throughout the commercial break and Jack was really having issues with his foot. His shoe was even removed at one point. Jack fought back valiantly until he ate a Brainbuster on the aisle. Commentary hammered home that a win for Jack would be a miracle given the damage he’s taken. We hit the 15:00 call and Kyle wrenched down on the exposed ankle, only for Jack to turn it into the Snare Trap. Kyle looked like he was going to pass out but he got his finger on the bottom rope to survive. They both had close calls late until Kyle hit another Brainbuster that ended this in 19:18. Easily the best singles match I can recall Perry having. Kyle is on a hell of a role too. I really liked the story and Jack as a fiery underdog like this is his best role. [****]
Kyle has clinched a playoff spot.
Blue League: Konosuke Takeshita [10] vs. Mascara Dorada [6]
Takeshita has clinched and could literally just leave and take a countout loss. A win for Dorada would move him into second and he’d need Claudio and OC to lose to advance. Interestingly, there was no Don Callis on commentary and Takeshita acted differently because of it. He helped Dorada up and shook his hand after an exchange. That said, he was still confident, brushing off shots and carrying himself like a dude with 10 points. Dorada missed a dive outside and took a shot going into the commercial break. Returning, he took to the skies again to get back into this, hitting a beautiful moonsault to the outside. Back inside, he added stuff like a Poison Rana but Takeshita managed to cut him off with a big lariat. Dorada had one big close call on a pinning combination and I got a sense of desperation from him that was good to see late. I love that stuff in a tournament setting. That was his last shot though as Takeshita nailed him with a knee and won with Raging Fire in 11:40. Just some good pro wrestling and Takeshita’s dominance continues. [***½]
Blue League: Claudio Castagnoli [7] vs. Roderick Strong [0]
Man, I watched both these guys wrestle for ROH many times in this very building. A win for Claudio seals his spot in the playoffs. I know how these tournaments are booked and there’s no way that final Mox/OC match ends up with no stakes so I think that took the drama out of this. So thankfully, they didn’t make this some dragged out match. Claudio pounded on Roddy outside and attempted to get a cheap countout victory. Roddy beat the count and randomly got going, reeling off a series of jumping knees that managed to keep Claudio down for three after 3:22. The Roddy win was obvious though I think it was oddly done. Claudio has been a beast and he loses to a few knees that didn’t even seem that impactful. Still, I like that Roddy caught him by surprise and that Claudio choked. [**]
Gold League: Kevin Knight [6] vs. PAC [6]
Again, if you lose, you’re out. PAC needs to win and have Okada lose to advance. Knight needs to win and have Speedball lose to qualify. Right from the start, PAC was using his power game to wear down Knight. After a bit, Knight was fed up with taking a beating and stepped up to PAC, looking to even the score. It might sound weird but I liked that this went to commercial in the middle of the action in the ring. Far too often do we get a dive outside or something that perfectly sets up a commercial. Here, it came right after a near fall. It gives things a more natural and realistic feel. Anyway, when they came back, the two were still trading big shots. It was Knight’s speed against PAC’s strength. PAC seemed to grow more frustrated that he couldn’t keep Knight down, especially with the Brutalizer. PAC also hit one of the biggest belly to belly suplexes you will ever see, while Knight hit a very impressive superplex. They were getting near the time limit and just started trading forearms before both men picked up near falls. In the final minute, PAC went for Black Arrow and Knight got his knees up. Both went for flash pins until PAC applied the Brutalizer but Knight didn’t tap out, giving us a time limit draw at 20:00. That was great. Knight might be the MVP of the tournament and I really liked the drama they built here. [****]
Blue League: Jon Moxley [6] vs. Orange Cassidy [6]
The winner joins Takeshita in the playoffs. These two have a notable AEW history, including headlining a PPV together. The first half or so of this felt pretty basic. The stuff they did was mostly fine yet it felt inconsequential even though there were stakes. It felt like I was watching Moxley vs. OC in a house show match. They worked through the commercial break, as expected, and started trading shots upon return. I will say, the crowd, which was really good for a lot of this, were kind of subdued here. They teased a double countout before both guys got going with their big moves like the Gotch Style piledriver and Orange Punch. Unlike the previous match, when they let us know that there were “five minutes remaining,” it felt like it took a while to get there. In the end, OC had his ankle lock attempt countered into an inside cradle at 17:03. Almost no reaction for that win. It was a solid match, yet totally forgettable. [***]
Gold League: Kazuchika Okada [6] vs. Mike Bailey [6]
The winner joins Kyle Fletcher in the playoffs. While I appreciate the way this was booked, the outcome here was painfully obvious as A) Okada wasn’t going to lose to both JetSpeed members and B) Speedball wasn’t getting a PPV spot over the Continental Champion, especially given the Okada/Takeshita story. Also, they met at Double or Nothing (***¾). Speedball bothered Okada early with his quickness and was actually doing really well heading into the commercial break. That said, it was a rather typical Okada start and once it returned from break, the pace picked up. Speedball hit some aerial moves and his tornillo to the outside was really cool. They nailed it so smoothly which you don’t often see with that kind of spot. His moonsault knee stomp on the apron was also cool. When Bailey hit Ulita Weapon, Okada wisely rolled outside to avoid getting pinned. Bailey got a few other close calls and countered the Rainmaker, only for Okada to counter that into a pin that won things in 16:02. A hell of a main event that did great work to make it somewhat dramatic. [***¾]
Kyle Fletcher vs. Jon Moxley and the highly anticipated Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kazuchika Okada at World’s End.
| Blue League | Points | Gold League | Points |
| Konosuke Takeshita | 13 (4-0-1) | Kyle Fletcher | 9 (3-2) |
| Jon Moxley | 9 (3-2) | Kazuchika Okada | 9 (3-2) |
| Claudio Castagnoli | 7 (2-2-1) | Kevin Knight | 7 (2-2-1) |
| Orange Cassidy | 6 (2-3) | PAC | 7 (2-2-1) |
| Mascara Dorada | 6 (2-3) | Mike Bailey | 6 (2-3) |
| Roderick Strong | 3 (1-4) | Jungle Jack Perry | 6 (2-3) |
