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Photo courtesy of AEW.
For two weeks, All Elite Wrestling presented Fyter Fest, pay-per-view caliber cards featuring the brand’s best stars in competitive matches. All major stars, that is, with one important exception: AEW champion Jon Moxley.
Former dean Ambrose was forced to lose his appearance after his wife, WWE presenter Renee Young, tested positive for COVID-19. But if we’ve learned anything about AEW in the year that has been a part of our lives, it’s that owner Tony Khan will move mountains to make sure fans get what they want.
Enter the fight for the fallen.
After consecutive extravagances, it could have been good for AEW to take a breather and offer a disposable show to allow the talent to regain its balance. Instead, he built a star card around Moxley’s long-awaited coincidence with Brian Cage, creating a third cable show as good as the PPV fight offered anywhere else on the planet.
Fyter Fest was a difficult act to follow, but Fight for the Fallen somehow managed to usurp it, presenting the incredible kind of action bell-by-bell that no one else in the pro fight can match.
It was a great victory for AEW overall. But not everyone can truly be a winner, even on such a good card. Some, even those with their shoulders nailed to the mat, appeared more convincing than ever. Others, sometimes despite being the official winner, lost ground.
Click as we break down the actual winners and losers of AEW’s Fight for the Fallen.
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Photo courtesy of AEW.
After an incredible tackle alongside cheerleaders for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sonny Kiss managed to put his face on the game and fought the AEW TNT champion in a way that no one else has during the short reign of Cody Rhodes. Kiss may be best known for his dance moves and twerking in the ring, but when he wants, the man can hit with the best.
He brought the fight to Cody with an aggressiveness we’ve never seen from him, even shoving the cameraman at a time when his blood was really high.
While Kiss deserves the accolades that found him right away on social media, the truth is, Rhodes shouldn’t have struggled so much with a fighter who has failed time and time again in undercard singles games. As cool as it was for Kiss, for Cody the night could only be a disappointment.
Sure, he left with his TNT title. But how long will it be true considering his schedule, fracturing the relationship with the other members of The Elite and a very frustrated Arn Anderson?
Cody earned a spot at the top of the class with the best year of his professional career. But the rest of the AEW roster has lived up to and has improved its games to match it. Winning the TNT title was just the beginning, but keeping it can be a chore in the coffin of his career.
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Photo courtesy of AEW.
Since the first time Cody and the Young Bucks skewered Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood in Being the elite, FTR has been an enemy of the state for many AEW fans. In the days (and years) that followed, Wheeler and Harwood interviewed after interview slyly criticizing our heroes’ good faith fight. Worse yet, many in the fandom seemed to take his words seriously.
As a wise man once said, “It’s still real to me, damn it!” With FTR, I can’t help it. I am a fan first and a journalist second. Partly because it’s possibly illegal here on the World Wide Web and mostly because I’m not smart enough to keep my story clear, I’m not going to lie to you, I wanted to hate the duo.
Instead, after a month in the promotion, I find myself in love with FTR. The truth is, Wheeler and Harwood are as good in the ring as they say they are, a pleasant surprise in a world where horns are often more sizzling than steak.
Better yet, despite the harsh words on the internet, they are the perfect match for teams like the Bucks and the Lucha Bros, with whom they destroyed the house here.
At this point, I would be a fool not to look at myself in the mirror and admit that I was wrong. FTR is great. I hate Wheeler and Harwood that’s why, but I’m man enough to bear the loss here. Even better: His excellence will make everything sweeter when one of my favorites finally hits that smug look on their faces.
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Photo courtesy of AEW.
Yes, Chris Jericho stole the show once more by comment. He managed to coin a new nickname for him (the “Demo God”) and getting everyone in the ring closer in a way that is authentic to their character. It’s a tightrope, one that walks better than anyone in wrestling.
But it’s hard to call a man a “winner” when he spends nearly an hour sitting in a $ 7,000 jacket that’s drenched in orange juice, forced to towel-dry his arch-rival’s face.
Jericho could have won the game last week. This week, however, Orange Cassidy managed to upload the AEW icon.
I, for my part, cannot wait to see what follows between the lazy hero of the promotion and his villain who surpasses the achievements.
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Photo courtesy of AEW.
Poor Kenny Omega. Clearly he thought this would be his night. He purchased three beers to repair his relationship with FTR and arrived in the ring wearing a T-shirt, fully anticipating an easy victory.
Instead, he ended up covered in beer and pushed to the breaking point by a Jurassic Express team that didn’t go to bed easily for anyone.
Omega pinned Marko Stunt’s shoulders to the carpet with the Winged Angel. But the mental cost was perhaps too high and she lost the battle with her demons and attacked Marko after the match.
You always have the feeling that Omega keeps things together with a very thin thread. And that thread is fraying more and more per week.
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Photo courtesy of AEW.
Vickie Guerrero has been seen at AEW events for months and has become a regular part of the promotion’s online life as one of her most prominent WWE converts. A formal role with the company seemed inevitable, and at Nyla Rose, AEW has found what seems like a perfect fit.
A person as charming as he comes behind the scenes, on camera Guerrero is a natural heel. When he left WWE, he had forged a legacy of his own, his immortal husband Eddie is now only part of a story he has spent years telling.
While still a work in progress, the women’s division is fast becoming a place where elements of sports entertainment will be an important part of the narrative.
Britt Baker has become one of the most compelling characters in all struggles with her new persona. With Guerrero for her size, it may be time for Rose to join her as the kind of enduring character that helps propel the divide into the unknown.
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Photo courtesy of AEW.
Things were looking really bad for Brian Cage. Caught in Jon Moxley’s arm, the portly man showed no inclination to tap. And how could he? What was at stake was as high as possible, and Cage, like many of the best fighters, is too stubborn to give up.
However, here’s the thing: Sometimes a fighter has to be saved from himself. Cage did not want to resign. I respect that. But he needed to do it. An arm is no joke, and Moxley could have done the challenger serious, even permanent, damage if he hadn’t conceded the match.
Luckily for Cage, veteran Taz was there to rescue his fighter from harm. He threw an orange towel to stop the match, showing more courage and honor than most MMA cornerbacks who seem very happy to leave their fighter on their own devices.
No, Cage did not leave with victory. But he will fight again another day. And so he owes a lot to his coach.
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