AEW Dynamite
Fyter Fest – Night 1
Episode 40
#AEWDynamite
Original Air Date: July 1, 2020
Event Date: July 1, 2020
(aired live on TNT)
City: Jacksonville, FL
Venue: Daily’s Place
Commentary: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Chris Jericho (1 – 4)
Ring Announcer: Justin Roberts
Intro Video
“Dynamite” by No One Hero
Ring Area
Jim Ross welcomes us to Fyter Fest and introduces tonight’s guest commentator, “Le Champion” Chris Jericho.
Match 1
Wardlow & MJF vs Luchasaurus & Jungle Boy w/ Marko Stunt
(referee: Rick Knox)
Result: Luchasaurus pins Wardlow after a standing moonsault
Time: 11:01
Match Thoughts
Very good match. This was WAY better than MJF and Jungle Boy’s match from Double or Nothing. Jurassic Express came into the match angry, and Jungle Boy went right after MJF. For the most part MJF paired with Jungle Boy and Wardlow paired with Luchasaurus, and both of those match-ups were very entertaining. They would, of course, use double-team moves and distractions, but Jurassic Express was far better than MJF and Wardlow in that regard tonight. This was a lot of fun, and it was a great way to kick off Fyter Fest.
Video
Coming next week… the All Elite Wrestling Puppy Battle Royale.
Ring Area
As we come back from a commercial break, Sonny Kiss is trying to hold Joey Janela back as he tries to fight Lance Archer. Kiss manages to get Janela to back off, and Archer and Jake Roberts just laugh.
Video
A look at the feud between Hikaru Shida and Penelope Ford.
Match 2
AEW Women’s World Title Match
Penelope Ford w/ Kip Sabian vs Hikaru Shida (AEW Women’s Champ)
(referee: Aubrey Edwards)
Result: Hikaru Shida wins via pinfall after a running knee strike
Time: 11:18
Match Thoughts
Very good match. Penelope Ford looked as good or better than I’ve ever seen her in this match. The story between Ford and Shida had Shida fighting angry, and that allowed Ford to take advantage of mistakes and lack of concentration by the champ. Ford cheated a lot during the first few minutes of the match, and that served to make Shida even more angry while slowing down her attacks at the same time. Later on, Shida started to hit some big moves, but that’s when Ford showed resilience that we haven’t really seen her have in AEW up to this point. I really enjoyed the finish, and I was kind of surprised by how much I liked this match. I think Shida is great, and I think Ford opened some eyes tonight.
Technique by Taz
Taz explains Jon Moxley’s Paradigm Shift, and why it probably won’t work on Brian Cage.
Match 3
TNT Title Match
Jake Hager w/ Catalina Hager vs “The American Nightmare” Cody (TNT Champ) w/ Arn Anderson
(referee: Mike Posey)
Result: Cody wins via pinfall by pinning Hager while Hager has him in the arm triangle
Time: 14:15
Match Thoughts
Very good match. The TNT Title has felt special since it’s been in Cody’s hands, and this match was no exception. The brief buildup to the match worked well to make it feel like and old-school battle for the championship. Hager came into the match with his MMA prowess being emphasized, and Cody came in with the feeling of an old-school wrestler. The match itself was quite good, and it used both men’s strengths to great effect. Hager dominated large portions of the match with his size and skill, and Cody endured while using his pro-wrestling brain to chip away at Hager as the match went on. The finish was nice too, especially if they want to continue this feud.
Video
Darby Allin shows off some more skateboarding stunts.
Ring Area
Orange Cassidy comes out to the stage and sits beside the commentary table.
Match 4
Santana & Ortiz vs Private Party w/ Matt Hardy
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Marq Quen pins Santana after Gin & Juice
Time: 10:50
Match Thoughts
Very good match. Both teams looked good tonight, but Santana and Ortiz looked great. Santana and Ortiz were working as a team the entire match, and they had multiple extended sequences of fantastic double-team attacks. Private Party looked good too, but their offense mostly came in shorter bursts (after being beat up for a long time). Matt Hardy did have an influence at ringside, but you could also see his influence in the ring with some of the moves Private Party did. Private Party and Matt Hardy are an interesting pairing, but I was really pulling for Santana and Ortiz tonight.
Ring Area
After the match, Jericho has had enough of Orange Cassidy sitting down and doing nothing. Jericho tries to attack Cassidy, but people immediately run out and restrain Le Champion. Cassidy slowly walks away while Jericho yells at him.
Backstage
Dasha Gonzalez welcomes Adam Page and Kenny Omega. The tag champs say they like Best Friends, but they aren’t worried about losing the title to them.
Ring Area
Taz and Brian Cage come out and head to the ring. Taz says Jon Moxley politicked his way into getting his title match against Brian Cage pushed back to July 15. Taz says if Moxley wanted to be here next week, then he would be here. He’s not sick, he’s just scared of Brian Cage.
Match 5
AEW World Tag Team Title Match
Best Friends vs “Hangman” Adam Page & Kenny Omega (AEW Tag Champs)
(referee: Aubrey Edwards)
Result: Adam Page pins Trent after the Buckshot Lariat
Time: 15:19
Match Thoughts
Very good match. It feels like the journey for tBest Friends to this title shot has taken forever. I suppose that’s because they were one of the few teams that were able to compete together during a lot of the earlier empty arena shows. Whatever the reason, I was really looking forward to this match. I also knew I was going to like it before the bell even rang, because Trent had his mom drop him and Chuck off at ringside in her minivan.
Both teams looked great, but Best Friends were the better team. Page and Omega basically worked alone in the ring except for a few times when they did a few double-team moves after a tag. Of course, Page and Omega are both great on their own, so they were still very effective, but Best Friends were the better tag team tonight. Chuck Taylor in particular pulled off some huge and vicious moves tonight (and I think they were all against Kenny Omega). I like this match a lot, and I’d love to see it happen again sometime.
Ring Area
After the match, FTR (who had been watching from the stage) enter the ring and offer a couple of beers to the tag champs. The champs accept. Well, one of the champs accepts. FTR takes offense as one of their beers is poured out, and they start to get hot. The Young Bucks come out to the ring sto calm things down as the show comes to an end.
Show Impressions
This was a very solid show. Even though I might have wanted different results for some (but not all) of the matches, every match tonight was very entertaining. I’m looking forward to next week!
Match of the Night
Best Friends vs Page & Omega
I was looking forward to this one the most, and it delivered. I really think the tag division is the most interesting and entertaining division in AEW.