Supremo

I like to think I’m a bit of a litmus test for this show. I don’t normally bother with NXT, but I’m intrigued by CM Punk appearing and potentially winning the NXT Title. I’ll watch for the first time in ages. They've got a chance to convince me to watch more in the future. Just do something interesting or exciting. It’s going to be a shitty, screwy DQ finish, isn’t it?

I’m not particularly fussed about Blood and Guts, but the whole thing will be worth it if at a particularly violent point they cut to the New Level watching backstage, like this, baffled and terrified by the insanity they’ve signed up for.

Penta as Mr. Money in the Bank. Ethan Page as Intercontinental Champion. The Raw main event ending with Powerhouse Hobbs standing tall after Santana is revealed as his newest faction member. “This is…RAMPAGE!” The type of show that makes it all the more baffling that they’re so hell bent on counter-programming AEW. Imagine the state of this company if AEW had never existed! Austin Theory would probably be a seven-time WWE Champion by now! Didn’t John Cena announce in retirement that he wouldn’t wear the shorts/T-shirt/trainers/cap anymore? It would appear the weird android has glitched and forgotten about the December 2025 patch notes! The Cena announcement was suitably weird and stupid. Cena will always Cena. I’ve always thought that doomed final run was fitting, in that sense. He spent his whole career misreading the audience and failing to make a proper connection. For twenty years, all anyone wanted was for him to turn heel or sell a fucking loss, but all we ever got was SuperCena who’d either win or laugh off anything that might have actually made him dramatically interesting. And then when tenure and nostalgia finally turned the crowd in his favour, getting universally cheered, that’s when he decided to do a rubbish heel run. And then in his retirement match with Gunther - the one time everyone wanted to just see him win and walk off into the sunset - that’s when he decided to do that weird tap out as he smiled to himself. Ended his career exactly how he always would. Being a weird robot who could never assimilate with the human beings in the audience. Affirmative. Nice to know he remains the same in retirement. Putting his name to a tournament where it doesn’t matter who wins or loses, voted on by fans provided they’ve subscribed to the billion dollar’s Patreon. Absolute fucking oddball. Then. Now. Forever. That tidbit Randy Orton mentioned about being Dusty’s last televised match was cool. I’ll never get over the amount of history they could have mined, and the amount of video packages they could have made to promote Orton vs. Cody, only to decide on Pat McAfee cutting promos on the Internet Wrestling Community. Fair play to Cruz Montana. I’m not convinced this 946 thing has legs in the long term, but betting on yourself, leaving AEW and ending up doing a run-in during the Raw main event has got to be satisfying. You wonder how Ortiz feels watching this. What happened to Ortiz? Can’t even remember the last time he wrestled! I’m super intrigued in what the finish will be for Roman vs. Sami this weekend. At the time that Sami won the belt, I was convinced it was because he was willing to be the next victim of what I presume is Roman’s new contract, where he’s agreed to work more dates provided he beats every fucker clean. But given the landscape, surely this is the one time where they deviate from the norm? Sami’s been a revelation as Champion, easily the best thing in the company, and despite all the focus The 946 still don’t feel particularly over. It’d make all the sense in the world for The 946 to cost Roman this match and build some proper heat for Survivor Series. It’d suit Sami’s character, too. Imagine him walking around with that comedically massive belt, bragging about being the new Tribal Chief. Plus, Sami is literally the WWE Champion! Surely they aren’t going to allow him to look as big a chump as LA Knight did last month? Prediction: Hogan Reigns wins clean. Drops the leg for the one, two, three.

Seven years since NXT invaded Smackdown. Wild to look back and see how few of the supposed, “future of WWE,” ever actually amounted to anything in that company. Some might possibly suggest that their Developmental System is somewhat flawed. A clean shaven Swerve Strickland standing there feels like the biggest dropped bollock of all. What a fumble letting him go. No wonder they tried to tamper with his contract and bring him back once he proved himself in AEW. It’s not all bad, though. I can spot at least least two people who went on to feature in Wrestlemania Main Events.

Tombstone through some chairs on Wednesday, chucked down some stairs on Saturday, completed the New York Marathon on Sunday, and then flew to Jacksonville for an inevitable War Games bump through fire or some shit the following Wednesday. Craig David would never.

*15

Never normally watch NXT, but I’ve seen some clips of people falling over some crates backstage and landing in a spooky dimension that looks so shit I might have to give this show a go. I won’t be shocked if CM Punk wins the belt! Maybe I’m being a cynical prick, but I think beating Dynamite in the ratings and stealing the headlines from Blood and Guts by walking out as Champion might be too tempting an opportunity for Punk to pass up. Spite’s a strong emotion. Plus, with the way in which Sami Zayn is hitting such a home run as Champion on Smackdown, easily the best thing in WWE right now, maybe Punk realises he needs a new direction for a couple of months. Doing something similar to Becky Lynch, having a run with the belt whilst helping teach and get over the new talent might be the perfect soft launch for him eventually taking over NXT when Shawn Michaels moves into the Bruce Prichard position after Wrestlemania. Plus, if nothing else, think of how many weird, awkward hugs and Starbucks gift cards a four month NXT run allows! He’ll be like a pig in shit!

This is excellent. Christian Cage must be so proud of his son.

The freedom AEW gets with all these mad Dynamite overruns is another example of how their excessive approach is successful against all rhyme and reason. Those pay per view weeks are the best example. Again, traditionalists would say, “you’ve got a three hour TV slot you’re contractually obligated to fill, and then a five hour pay per view at the weekend, so we should probably keep the TV tight and get off the air as soon as possible.” But not Mad Man Tony, who’ll usually go an extra thirty minutes for the love of the game, which the TV execs don’t appear to have a problem with. A few extra thoughts on this week’s Dynamite… Steven Borden is quickly becoming the most exciting rookie since Kurt Angle. Considering his inexperience, the confidence he has cutting these promos is insane. He’s got it all. I love him. Is it true the other Sting Junior is also knocking about on the Independents? Does he show as much promise as Steve? This Stinger DNA needs to be studied in a lab. Of all his successes and everything that Jon Moxley/Dean Ambrose has achieved in this business, the work he’s done with Marina Shafir might be his greatest achievement. I still don’t think she has the chops between the ropes, but the aura and stature they’ve built with her is amazing. At one point she felt worthless. Now, she’s a superstar and feels like a legitimate threat to Mercedes. Is Shayna Bazler a free agent? Marina being such a success could be her way into AEW, which is wild to think about considering at one point Shayna felt like the natural talent and star of the group, whilst Marina just happened to be her and Ronda’s mate. Babyface Claudio going crackers, running about like he’s got a star on Mario Kart, is quickly becoming one of my favourite acts in pro-wrestling. Yet another example of Tony Khan re-conditioning fans to accept and enjoy his excessive tropes; I’m now hoping and praying we get the lights-switched-off-lights-switched-on thing at Full Gear. Claudio getting taken out on a stretcher thanks to a shillelagh is perfect. One of those angles where everything fits perfectly into place. In the midst of Anarchy in the Arena, it’s going to look like it’s curtains for the Death Riders. The Cut of the Last Outfit are going to threaten caving Moxley’s head in with the shillelagh. And then Tony is going to switch the lights off and on and it’s going to absolutely fucking rule. I assume he legally owns the name “Sheamus O'Shaunessy,” so can use that in AEW. I hope so. It’s a million times better than, “S. Farrelly.”

I don’t think there’s ever been a run of pay per views as good as AEW’s in 2026. You can put it up against any company, in any year. Almost without fail, every big monthly show they’ve ran has been a massive critical and commercial success, selling well, getting tonnes of praise, with crowds staying hot and usually peaking for the main event, despite them being the most bloated, ridiculously excessive affairs. It shouldn’t work but it has. Double or Nothing 2026 is the one that I remember the most. You’d think it’d be crazy to do both an “I Quit,” Street Fight and a Stadium Stampede on the same show, and yet it’s probably one of my top three pay views of all time. Turns out Tony was right and I was wrong. You can dine out on an All You Can Eat buffet time and time again. Delicious! “Four ridiculously violent weapons-based matches in the space of a fortnight, Jeremy? That’s insane!” This, from this week’s pre-Dynamite hype video, made me smile. The man is such a glutton for excess that he’ll even wear the baggiest trousers known to man! He looks like when they bunk off and try to buy alcohol in The Inbetweeners by wearing their Dad’s clothes!

The difference between Vince Russo and Tony Khan is that Vince Russo’s bullshit demonstrably didn’t work. By contrast, Tony’s been quietly proving himself right for quite some time when it comes to his excessive booking tropes. Traditionalists would say you should only book one hardcore match on each card, but then Tony regularly books multiple weapons-based matches on almost every pay per view, sometimes one right after the other, and it usually ends up working regardless how much it might make your Jim Cornettes cry. The Billionaire Excess method has clearly worked for AEW, so who am I to criticise it at this point? I just find it funny. Did they release any photos of what Halloween costume Tony was wearing on Wednesday? As soon as I saw Britt Baker as Miss Trunchbull from Matilda I was hoping to see Tony dressed as this legend. It’s his spirit animal! I bet he eats a full chocolate cake after every meal! ”Bruce! Bruce! Bruce!” ”Tone! Tone! Tone!” I wonder how much of him booking so many bonkers hardcore matches in quick succession is also rooted in spite. It already felt like they moved Blood and Guts to November to steal the headlines away from War Games. Add Anarchy in the Arena and Texas Death Trios and it’s going to feel positively comical when The Bloodline and The 946 settle the score by participating in WWE’s version of The Generation Game, where they take turns to jog down to the ring and tamely tap each other on the back with sponsored weapons. I’m in love with this Hangman/Swerve/New Level thing. Hangman and Swerve have done it again. Cannot wait to see the fun-loving Kofi and Creed trying to handle their mate being a murderous psychopath.

The bin bouncing back and Claudio catching it. Magical spot.

Bell Center, Montreal Canada, please.

Every day he grows ever closer to his final form.

This reminded me of Moxley being so in the moment at Wembley that he completely forgot about even celebrating with the cup, immediately storming off into the crowd after beating Nigel, with Marina having to grab the cup before running after him. Funny.

Ever since guys like Brock and Roman started working reduced schedules, I’ve thought they should batch record backstage segments to still give the illusion they’re there and keep the storylines going on weeks they can’t be arsed flying in. This week, it looks like they finally did it with Roman, but with it being WWE they still managed to do it as weird as fucking possible. Check out the promo half way through this. Are all four men in the same room? Is Solo performing in front of green screen? Are Roman and the Usos AI? The whole thing looks bizarre. Like a WWE2K cutscene. Stay normal, WWE.

I was going to suggest Matt Jackson could act as Nick’s manager/second throughout the tournament. I’m not even being a dickhead when I say being ringside, selling the story and action, is one of Matt’s greatest strengths. He was great during Omega vs. Ospreay at Wembley. The accepting nod to Hangman when he won his first World Title remains a company highlight, too. But then I remembered no-one is allowed at ringside and outside interference is banned for Continental Classic matches! Still one of the daftest rules they have. We now go live to Tony Khan in gorilla ahead of a non-Continental Classic match. Any fucker can bring and do whatever the fuck they want.

Love the Continental Classic! It gives me the same Christmassy feeling as catching, “Home Alone 2,” on TV, hearing, “Fairytale of New York,” on the radio, or Samoa Joe having a transitional run as AEW World Heavyweight Champion. I still hate that it’s fought for a belt that is otherwise defended in singles matches throughout the year. So stupid. It’d be so much better if the prize was a trophy, signalling some type of Title shot. The winner of the Continental Classic could fight for the World Title at Revolution, the same way the winner of the Owen Tournament now fights for the World Title at All In. It feels less likely than ever to happen now that FTR and the Machine Guns are in the middle of their Best of Five series, but I would have loved a Tag Team Continental Classic off the back of all these new teams coming in. Could’ve been a great opportunity to showcase how they have the best Tag Division in the world (not exactly hard compared to WWE, but still). The New Level, Machine Guns, FTR, Young Bucks, Fletcher and Knight, Darby and Borden, The Rascals, Brodido, Davis and Doyle, Austin and Colton Gunn. I’d have even signed Sheamus and reunited him with Claudio. Imagine the magic The Bucks could work with those two! Every time The Bucks try to retire Tony Khan brings in another team for them to deliver five stars with. I’ll take the next best thing to a Tag Team Continental Classic and have Nick Jackson enter it as a singles. I think he’s the most underrated wrestler alive and would love to see him mix it up with the rest of the midcard in fun singles matches. Ciampa and Andrade seem dead certs, both concluding what’s been miraculous years in AEW. I couldn’t give a shit about either of them twelve months ago. Now they’re staples of the upper-mid-card that I love watching. Ciampa especially is quietly stealing most pay per views he’s on! If we’re talking using the Continental Classic to conclude a miraculous year, Kenny Omega remains the pie-in-the-sky, dream entrant. I think he’s wasting his time pissing about in New Japan though, so I assume he’s out of the picture. It’s now or never for Adam Copeland. The most I’ve enjoyed him in AEW has been the fun exhibition matches in the Cope Open so I suspect I’d enjoy him in the Continental Classic, too. I’ve also decided I’d quite like him to turn heel this year, since that’s arguably his best role, so losing in the finals of this tournament could be the catalyst for that. Then in his anger he can turn heel on Will Ospreay and challenge for the World Title. Try and achieve what John Cena failed to do with his heel run at the end. Don’t give Cope the World Title though. Let’s not go crazy.

Overall, I think Okada made the right call signing with AEW rather than WWE.

“The cut of his jib?”

“The Last Outfit,” giving, “Pure Fusion Collective,” a run for its money as worst faction name of all time.

As amusing as Kevin is doing this stuff, there’s a real sense of having-your-cake-and-eating-it with WWE. They clearly trust Kevin and recognise that he’s one of the best performers, with one of the sharpest minds. But if they’re willing to give him the freedom to take the piss like this, why don’t they actually stop, listen, and consider not being so fucking weird? Spare a thought for Aleister Black. He must be gutted watching this. Extremely cheeky of the company to give him the sack, yet continue to host segments in his Pocket Dimension of Empty Nothingness. The scripting was dog shit, too. Remember the first promo they cut, where they specifically stated that they weren’t going to refer to insider bollocks? Now Kevin’s making references to CM Punk, “hating T-shirts,” based on CM Punk slagging him off for wrestling in a T-shirt thirty years ago. Rubbish.

Sammy having a belter, here. Presumably mixing up the order of the photos he attached to the Tweet, he appears to be suggesting 2026 has been a much better year for chucking his kid into the sea.

They should hesitate to use any weapons that don’t have a massive sponsor plastered on them. ”Where are the Slim Jim tables?” exclaims Kofi, as Hangman cracks him over the head with a barbwire chair. That’s a point. Has a Kofi ever bladed in the history of his career? I can’t recall it. Seeing him in a wild CZW match might be the maddest visual ever.

This clip is phenomenal. 1997 chaos distilled. These days, the whole thing would be so clean and tidy. Owen would get the win, the Headbangers would vanish, then the fat lads would run out and do the beatdown. That’d be it. Everyone would hit their marks. Here, Owen pins Mosh, who immediately jumps up and carries on fighting. During this bonkers no-sell of the finish, Davey is seemingly too pilled up to even notice his partner is being beaten up, so continues to pose and do cartwheels. And then as soon as the Headhunters come out you can sense Davey, Owen and even Vince himself give up on them mid-segment, leaving them to brawl with the Headbangers instead. Vince already slagging them off for their look is incredible. You can hear him immediately realise he has a pair of Vaders on his hands and isn’t about to waste anywhere near the amount of time on them that he did stinky Leon. What a fascinating mess of a segment. Pro-wrestling used to be better. You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone. *I keep watching the Bulldog cartwheel and it gets funnier every time. There’s a Gangrela Effect for you. I thought the British Bulldog was a normal, competent wrestler as a kid. It’s only watching his stuff back that he’s probably the funniest wrestler to ever live.