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Swerve Strickland Wins World Title at AEW Dynasty

Bryan Danielson and Will Ospreay wrestled an outrageously captivating singles match, Jack Perry made the difference for the Young Bucks, and Kazuchika Okada starred in front of an electric crowd at Dynasty

Justin Barrasso

Make room for Swerve Strickland.

Fifteen years into his career, Strickland carved out a place for himself among the greats of professional wrestling at AEW’s inaugural Dynasty pay-per-view.

Swerve Strickland hits his Swerve Stomp
Swerve Strickland hits his Swerve Stomp / AEW

By force, Strickland defeated Samoa Joe, winning the AEW world title. After successful-but-short runs in NXT and WWE, Swerve established himself as a main-eventer in AEW, and the way he overcame Samoa Joe marked an incredible start to his first reign as champ.

Dynasty was an exceptional pay-per-view, carried by its final three matches. That stretch kicked off with Bryan Danielson and Will Ospreay crafting an absolute masterpiece, one with a captivating, complicated finish–and relentless action from start to finish.

Will Ospreay and Bryan Danielson
Will Ospreay and Bryan Danielson / AEW

The Young Bucks and FTR also delivered an outrageous ladder match. Full of risks, the Bucks prevailed with help from a friend–the returning Jack Perry, who has been off-camera for AEW since his backstage altercation with CM Punk at All In last summer.

The Young Bucks are three-time AEW tag team champions
The Young Bucks are three-time AEW tag team champions / AEW

In addition to those three matches, there was an outstanding opening bout between Kazuchika Okada and Pac. It reminded the viewing audience that Okada is a bona fide star, and there is no ceiling for him in AEW.

Here are the results:

  • Kazuchika Okada defeated Pac to retain the Continental Championship
  • The House of Black defeated Adam Copeland, Mark Briscoe, and Eddie Kingston
  • Willow Nightingale defeated Julia Hart to win the TBS Championship
  • International Champion Roderick Strong defeated Kyle O’Reilly
  • Chris Jericho defeated Hook to win the FTW Championship
  • AEW women’s champion Toni Storm defeated Thunder Rosa
  • Will Ospreay defeated Bryan Danielson
  • The Young Bucks defeated FTR in a ladder match to win the vacant AEW tag team titles
  • Swerve Strickland defeats Samoa Joe to win the AEW world championship

The inaugural Dynasty pay-per-view opened in magnificent fashion, with Kazuchika Okada–the former face of New Japan Pro-Wrestling–opening the card. He wrestled a phenomenal talent in Pac, making this one of the more notable opening pay-per-view matches in AEW history. No outside interference is allowed in Continental Championship title bouts, so this was a celebration of professional wrestling.

This was an outstanding opener, with Okada attacking Pac’s neck. It benefited greatly from the near-falls, giving credence to the idea that Pac was going to win. Even though it was fairly obvious that Okada was not going to lose his first title defense, it did not detract from it being a spectacular match. For all Pac’s brilliance, Okada was always one step ahead of him–and he even escaped Pac’s Epic Brutalizer, which Kenny Omega was unable to do in their first AEW singles bout in 2019. This was Pac’s first singles defeat since July, but it was a bout where both men looked tremendous.

Kazuchika Okada hits The Rainmaker
Kazuchika Okada hits The Rainmaker / AEW

A six-man tag was in the second spot of the card. You could make a convincing argument that this spot should have belonged to “Switchblade” Jay White and the Gunns against The Acclaimed (which White and the Gunns won, giving Bullet Club Gold both the AEW Trios belts and the Ring of Honor Six-Man titles), but instead it was Adam Copeland, Mark Briscoe, and Eddie Kingston against The House of Black. This match further set the stage for a feud between Copeland and Malakai Black. More imminently, it helped build Copeland and Brody King. Copeland excels in matches as the underdog, but with his size, that is going to be rare in AEW. It isn’t the case when he matches up with King, and the two have clear chemistry.

The finish was perfect. Black misted Copeland, then knocked him out with Black Mass for the victory. It made the end goal clear: Black will eventually challenge Copeland for the TNT championship.

TBS champion Julia Hart extended her reign with the belt at Dynasty by defeating Willow Nightingale. It was quick, clocking in at only six minutes, and the focus was Mercedes Moné–who is one of the biggest stars in professional wrestling. Moné arrived after Nightingale won the title–the giveaway was her family sitting ringside–setting up a title match next month at Double or Nothing in Las Vegas.

Personally, I would have gone a different route. Just like Okada won a belt almost immediately after his arrival, I would have done the same with Moné. But this is an excellent opportunity to build Nightingale into an even bigger presence in AEW. She has history with Moné, defeating her in the match where Moné busted her ankle (which, over a year later, remains Moné’s last match). A lot of potential exists here, and it should be compelling to see Moné back in the title picture.

Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Moné
Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Moné / AEW

Roderick Strong and Kyle O’Reilly delivered a back-and-forth upbeat match. This was extremely meaningful for O’Reilly, who was on the injured list for nearly two years due to complications following neck fusion surgery. The return was the real triumph for O’Reilly, who lost the match to Strong. Following the victory, Adam Cole returned–receiving a loud reaction from stepping out of his wheelchair, then celebrated in the ring with The Undisputed Kingdom.

Chris Jericho won his latest piece of gold, defeating Hook for the FTW title. The FTW rules effectively made this a no disqualification match, which led to a moment where Hook sent Jericho through a table. That generated a loud reaction from the crowd, which was predominantly anti-Jericho. If there were a time to turn Jericho heel, it feels like there is no better time than the present.

The finishing sequence saw Hook kick out of pinfalls after two straight Judas Effects, then flipped off Jericho. That led to Jericho knocking out a defiant Hook with a baseball, apologizing for his lack of discretion. A heel turn seems imminent, which would be the best move possible for Jericho.

Toni Storm defeated Thunder Rosa to retain the women’s title. It started off strong, with Rosa taking off her mask to show that she didn’t paint her face–which connected to Storm smearing the paint all over her face during the build to this match. A very physical match picked up its intensity when Rosa kicked out of a Storm Zero. After momentum was starting to turn in Rosa’s favor, Storm hit a low kick, and followed it up with another Storm Zero for the victory.

Toni Storm and Thunder Rosa
Toni Storm and Thunder Rosa / AEW

This stands as one of Storm’s best title defenses. Commentary highlighted how she has wiped away her competition, which makes you wonder if Britt Baker is returning.

The final three matches on this show were tremendous. That stretch began with Bryan Danielson against Will Ospreay. This match was an outlier on the card. Out of the nine matches on the pay-per-view, it was the only one not to feature a wrestler with a title.

Right from the beginning, the crowd provided an electric atmosphere. The early parts of this match were an Ospreay highlight reel, with the crowd soaking up every moment of it. The story developed as Danielson attacked Ospreay’s right elbow, seeking to neutralize his Hidden Blade finisher.

This was utter brilliance. The bout followed that story–Ospreay seeking gravity-defying moves, with Danielson looking to slow him down, like he did with a sensational top rope Tiper Suplex, and win the match. Even Danielson goading Ospreay into punching him made sense–Ospreay hit him with his injured his right forearm, causing further pain in his already damaged elbow.

Ospreay is undefeated since joining the AEW roster, and that was not about to change here. Yet that did not make Danielson connecting with his running knee any less significant, and the card exploded when Ospreay kicked out–and extended the match. And that was part of the beauty of this masterpiece: the focus was always on winning the match.

The finish was tough to watch. If it was a work, it was by design–further highlighting Danielson’s brilliance. Ospreay hit Danielson with his Tiger Driver, which it appeared he hit correctly. But that is another incredible aspect of a performer like Danielson–he makes everything feel real. Ospreay hit a Hidden Blade for the victory, and the focus afterward was on the injured Danielson.

Somehow, the Young Bucks and FTR were asked to follow Danielson-Ospreay. They accepted the challenge, and a very physical match ensued. The Bucks seized early control, leaving Dax Harwood a bloody mess, making all of FTR’s offense even that more meaningful.

There was nonstop carnage in this bout. A Power Plex off the ladders–an homage to Power and Glory–was live on in this match’s highlight reel. So will Nick Jackson’s 450 splash through a table, as well as Harwood’s piledriver on Matt Jackson on a ladder. Nick Jackson’s powerbomb off the ladder–which he springboarded onto–somehow did not rank in the match’s top-five highlights.

Jack Perry has returned to AEW
Jack Perry has returned to AEW / AEW

The first AEW three-time tag champions were about to be crowned when Harwood knocked Nick Jackson off the ladder, and he appeared to have the belts all to himself. That is when a masked man–wearing a Sting mask, who wrestled the Bucks a month ago in his final match–interfered, knocking Harwood off the ladder. Security cornered him, revealing him to be Jack Perry–and that was the opening Nick Jackson needed to climb the ladder and win the match.

If Jack Perry emerges as a star, then that will be a massive gain for AEW. It appears he is the newest member of The Elite, who enjoyed a very successful night at Dynasty.

The Young Bucks
The Young Bucks / AEW

In the main event, Swerve overcame every challenge Joe threw at him. It was symbolic of his career, where he continued to raise his level with every new opportunity. The finish was clean, with the most meaningful Swerve Stomp of his career leading to a victory.

Joe did in this match, just like he did his job as champion. But the baton has passed, and Swerve is now the new AEW world champion. Commentary highlighted Swerve as the first African American AEW world champion, a remarkable feat to achieve.

Dynasty put a spotlight on the significance of AEW. While it was a very different show than WrestleMania, that is exactly what it should have been. And all three company-defining matches–Danielson-Ospreay, Bucks-FTR, and Swerve-Samoa Joe–were all distinct and different. This show captured the ethos of AEW, perfectly illustrating the heartbeat of the five-year-old company.

Published
Justin Barrasso
JUSTIN BARRASSO

Justin Barrasso has been writing for Sports Illustrated since 2014. While his primary focus is pro wrestling and MMA, he has also covered MLB, NBA, and the NFL. He can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com and followed on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.