A Classic Iron Man Match! FTR Returns! New Champs Crowned!
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AEW's first PPV of 2023 was tremendous. Despite a subpar build, the show over-delivered and then some. The company that has made a name for itself as the buffet of pro wrestling offered its fans a little bit of everything: incredible pro wrestling, emotional arcs, comedy, blood, a pop-inducing return, and a thrilling main event. Whatever tickles your fancy as a wrestling fan, Revolution had something for you.
The show was capped off by a 60-minute Iron Man Match infused with so much drama that William Shakespeare himself would have leapt to his feet in adoration.
Here are your winners and losers for AEW Revolution 2023.
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Winner: Ricky Starks Defeats Chris Jericho
The match's opening minutes played out like the build for this feud; formulaic, simple, and barely adequate. But the match between Ricky Starks and Chris Jericho devolved into a fun thrill ride of an opener.
After the standard fare heel work and heat segment, the wrestlers attempted to put the match away. Jericho went for a Codebreaker, which was countered into a powerbomb - a very impressive maneuver.
Later, Starks attempted his second Spear of the match, but that was countered by a Codebreaker. That's when the match got real hot.
Rick went for a moonsault but missed. The attempt came at a price as Starks found himself deep in the Walls of Jericho. Ricky, however, countered that into a single-leg Boston crab.
Sammy Guevara ran down to the ring (despite the JAS being banned) but he was met by Action Andretti. With the referee distracted by Andretti and Guevara, Jericho used the bat to nail Starks. Jericho went for the Judas Effect, but it was blocked!
Ricky Starks would defeat Jericho with his Roshambo finisher. The victory sealed another big win for Ricky in what is proving to be a strong 2023 for the young star.
Winner: Jungle Boy Closes The Lid On His Feud With Christian Cage
Jungle Boy Jack Perry would finally get his hands on his former mentor, Christian Cage, in a Final Burial Match. The first of its kind in AEW, this was essentially a casket match - only this time, it was done well!
Despite Christian's hilarious heel attire (a sleeveless turtleneck), this match was fueled with very believable emotion, stakes, and violence.
Jack was the aggressor early on, ramming Cage's head into the barricade and the steel steps. The two men worked their way up the ramp battle near the casket for several minutes.
The twists and turns that took place near the casket were awesome. Christian Cage came off like a villain from an action film that just wouldn't go away.
Jungle Boy was finally able to put his foregone father figure to bed after executing an assisted snare trap, using a shovel to crank back on Cage's head. Then, Jack Perry did what he couldn't do two weeks ago - he nailed Cage with a brutal Conchairto.
With moist eyes, he threw Cage into the casket and closed the lid, putting an end to this two-year saga.
Winners: House Of Black Defeats The Elite
The opening to the trios title match was just fantastic. Kenny Omega and Buddy Matthews went move-for-move with some breakneck mat work.
Malakai Black tagged himself in - and the mere image of Black and Omega in the ring together garnered a chorus of "This is awesome" chants from the crowd! A missed One-Winged Angel and a ducked Black-Out confirmed the fans' enthusiasm.
From there, the match was even more amazing than fans would expect (and expectations were high). Each wrestler looked phenomenal in this pedal-to-the-metal championship match.
After minutes of non-stop action, there were two brilliant teases to end the match. The first was Kenny Omega eating each finisher from the House of Black, starting with him selling the Black-Out better than any wrestler has before. The Bucks kept breaking up the pinfall attempts.
Moments later, it seems that The Elite were going to retain as they were hitting a plethora of super kicks and a BTE Trigger. But when the Bucks went for their Meltzer Driver, Nick Jackson was caught midair by a nasty-looking knee from Buddy Matthews. This left Matt Jackson alone to eat a Black-Out kick and Dante's Inferno. 1-2-3!
The House Of Black are your new AEW Trios Champions!
Loser/Winner: Women's Title Match / Ruby Soho Joins Saraya & Storm
It was pretty unfair to book the one women's match on the card to follow the epic trifecta of opening matches. Jamie Hayter, Ruby Soho, and Saraya put forth a valiant effort - but the crowd was undoubtedly catching their breath after.
The sequences between Soho and Hayter were great! The offense and counters between those two felt snappy and hard-hitting. Saraya, unfortunately, is still pretty rusty. She was the obvious weak link in the three-way match.
The right woman won, as Jamie Hayter got the pinfall victory on Ruby Soho.
After the match, Soho turned her back on Hayter and Britt Baker - hitting her finishers on each of them and siding with Storm and Saraya. This storyline was in need of closure or a new development - we would have preferred closure, but a new development will suffice for now.
Winner: Texas Death Match
As expected, the Texas Death Match between Hangman Adam Page and Jon Moxley was not for the faint of heart. Violence has been the constant in this hard-hitting rivalry.
In the build to this match, Hangman Adam Page mentioned that he "loathed violence." Jon Moxley on the other hand relishes in it. Well, it seems Moxley's thirst to push the brutality to the next level was his ultimate downfall in this harrowing contest.
Moxley constantly tried to introduce new weapons. In addition to the heavy use of barbed wire, Moxley incorporated chairs, bricks (yep, bricks!), and a thick steel chain.
The match concluded when that steel chain was draped all over and around Moxley's neck. Hangman Adam Page nailed a powerful Buckshot Lariat while the steel was around Jon's neck. Then, Page threw Moxley over the ropes and used the chain to hang the former champion. Jon Moxley tapped out as he gasped for air. A literal hanging was a fitting way for Hangman to end one of his most intense feuds.
Loser/Winner: Tag Team Title Match / FTR Returns
This was on the card for a clear purpose; a comedic break. While this kind of wrestling ain't for some - the crowd was popping and reacting to nearly all of it. The Acclaimed were hot as ever. Orange Cassidy and Danhausen were electric. Jarrett and Lethal were providing classic heel work. The crowd was into it -- and then, they went dead silent.
They went silent when The Gunns pinned Danhausen to retain the AEW Tag Team Championships. The team that nobody wanted to win inexplicably won again.
Thankfully, the silent crowd was brought back to life when FTR made their return! The former Tag Champs stormed to the ring and beat the holy hell out of the A** Boys. The inevitable title match between these two teams can't come soon enough.
Winner: The Iron Man Match; MJF vs. Bryan Danielson
The main event offered sixty-plus minutes of brilliant storytelling. A novella could be written about the intricacies in the character work and tension-building. In short - this match is a must-watch. Danielson continues to prove himself as one of the best to ever do it. And MJF (once again) cemented the fact that he's much more than just a mouthpiece, he's a generational worker in between the ropes as well.
The final minutes of the Iron Man match saw the wrestlers tied at three falls apiece. The wrestlers were dripping with blood. And the ring was dripping with drama. What's more impressive is after an entire PPV highlighted by high-octane work, this drama was almost entirely being generated by mat work.
It seemed that Danielson was going to be crowned the new AEW Champion as he had Maxwell locked in a single-leg Boston Crab, cranking down on MJF's injured knee. With one minute left to go in the match, Friedman was stuck in the middle of the ring. He hung on for dear life as the entire Chase Center crowd was popping, screaming, and shouting for MJF to tap! But he didn't. He held on - and the match was ruled a draw!
Not so fast... AEW homaged the WrestleMania 12 finish, and through Tony Schiavone, Tony Khan announced that the match would go to sudden death!
More drama ensued as MJF tried to find every way imaginable to cheat his way to victory. Finally, the champion nailed Danielson with an oxygen tank. Then, he used Danielson's own LaBell lock to secure the victory and retain his championship.
This match will go down as a classic and be studied for in-ring chemistry for years to come. An absolute barn-burner and a great way to end a great PPV.
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Full Match Results & Noteworthy Moments:
Pre-Show: Mark Briscoe & The Lucha Bros. def. The Varsity Athletes via pinfall. |
Ricky Starks def. Chris Jericho via pinfall. |
Jungle Boy Jack Perry def. Christian Cage in a Final Burial Match. |
The House Of Black def. The Elite to win the AEW Trios Championships. |
Jamie Hayter def. Ruby Soho and Saraya to retain her AEW Women's Championship. |
Ruby Soho attacked Jamie and Britt Baker and joined forces with Saraya & Storm. |
Hangman Adam Page def. Jon Moxley via submission in a Texas Death Match. |
Wardlow def. Samoa Joe via TKO to win the AEW TNT Championship. |
The Gunns def. Orange Cassidy & Danhausen, Jeff Jarrett & Jay Lethal, and The Acclaimed to retain the AEW Tag Team Championships. |
FTR returned to kick the ass of the Ass Boys. |
MJF def. Bryan Danielson in an Iron Man Match. MJF won in sudden death to retain the AEW World Championship. |
