Will Ospreay Beats Roderick Strong, Wins AEW International Title At Double Or Nothing

Will Ospreay overcame Roderick Strong at AEW Double or Nothing to capture the International Championship. The “Aerial Assassin” had to endure interference from Mike Bennett, Matt Taven, and Wardlow but he would ultimately win his first title with the promotion with a Hidden Blade followed by Stormbreaker. 

Following his win over Bryan Danielson at AEW Dynasty, Ospreay vowed not to use the Storm Driver ’91 after seeing it had left a lasting impact on his opponent. That plot point came into play during his match with Strong, as he was implored by Don Callis to use the move on the already-downed champion. Ospreay reluctantly positioned Strong for the maneuver, but ultimately hesitated and sought to deliver Stormbreaker. However, Strong reversed out of it, landing a gut-check followed by a running dropkick which Ospreay managed to kick out of. 

There was a briefly scary moment during Matt Taven and Mike Bennett’s early involvement. Ospreay flipped out of a doomsday device position on the outside of the ring, but landed on the floor directly on his head. The match saw a brief pause after which, but he would continue the match as usual. 

Roderick Strong Attacks Kyle O’Reilly, Will Defend AEW International Title On Dynasty

The first-ever AEW Dynasty has an eighth match, and a sixth championship match, following the events of “Battle of the Belts X.” Roderick Strong will take on longtime friend Kyle O’Reilly for the International title at the April 21 pay-per-view, a match that took shape very suddenly after Strong won his Eliminator match against Rocky Romero.

Following Strong’s victory, O’Reilly came out to congratulate him — the two have appeared to be on cautiously friendly terms since O’Reilly returned to AEW but didn’t immediately elected to join the Undisputed Kingdom, the stable that includes both Strong and age-old O’Reilly frenemy Adam Cole. Strong, Cole, and O’Reilly were also members of both the “WWE NXT” stable Undisputed Era and the subsequent AEW stable known as The Undisputed Elite; their history goes back more than a decade to their days in pre-Tony Khan Ring of Honor. However, after O’Reilly helped Romero to his feet, Strong and the Undisputed Kingdom attacked Romero in a gang beat-down. When O’Reilly tried to stop them, Strong suddenly delivered a jumping knee strike, laying him out. The announcement of the match at Dynasty came shortly afterward.

It’s been more than nine years since Strong and O’Reilly faced each other in singles action, with their last one-on-one contest coming during the ROH Winter Warriors tour in 2015. They also met as opponents in a Four-Way Survival match, Strong’s third-to-last ROH performance before departing for WWE. He and O’Reilly were eventually multi-time “NXT” Tag Team Champions as part of Undisputed Era, both as a tag team and as part of the stable as a whole via the Freebird Rule. Dynasty will mark their first time sharing the ring together in AEW, as Strong’s AEW debut came after O’Reilly suffered the injury that put him on the shelf for 18 months.

Roderick Strong Wins International Title, Kyle O’Reilly Returns At AEW Revolution

Roderick Strong has won his first title in AEW.

At Sunday’s Revolution PPV, “The Messiah of the Backbreaker” wore down AEW International Champion Orange Cassidy, punishing the champion’s torso with his myriad of backbreaker. After the match, Kyle O’Reilly returned to AEW, looking disheveled and cagey. The Undisputed Kingdom offered O’Reilly a shirt, and a place in the faction, but O’Reilly whispered something to Strong and declined. Details on O’Reilly have been scarce over the past year, as he recovered from neck surgery. Adam Cole recently gave a vague update on his health in September, sounding optimistic.

A former WWE NXT North American Champion and Cruiserweight Champion, as well as ROH World Television Champion, the title marks Strong’s first title win since joining AEW in 2023. Strong spent much of his debut year in a neck brace, acting as more of a mouthpiece for his friend Adam Cole during Cole’s budding tag team with MJF. He was revealed, alongside The Kingdom and Wardlow as Cole’s associate in the Undisputed Kingdom, which revealed itself at AEW Worlds End.

Cassidy had been champion since October 10, his second reign with the International Championship. His initial reign is the longest in the young history of the title at 326 days, while his two reigns have added up to 471 days, the longest combined reign in the former All-Atlantic Championship’s history. Cassidy’s numerous defenses took a toll on his body, leaving him barely cleared by AEW medical staff for Sunday’s match.

Orange Cassidy Defeats Rey Fenix, Re-Gains AEW International Title On Dynamite

During the “AEW Dynamite” pre-show, AEW President Tony Khan announced that Jon Moxley had not been medically cleared to compete, so therefore, a new challenger was needed for the International Championship match that was scheduled to take place later in the evening. Upon the suggestion from HOOK, Khan offered Orange Cassidy the opportunity to face Rey Fenix for the title on Tuesday’s special edition of “Dynamite.” Cassidy previously lost the International Championship to Moxley at AEW All Out last month, and had yet to receive a rematch for the title up until this point.

The subsequent title match opened with a flurry of strikes from both competitors until Fenix gained the upper hand, nailing Cassidy with a Frog Splash for a nearfall. Both men continued to battle back and forth, with Fenix countering Cassidy’s Orange Punch with a superkick, to which Cassidy responded with a Beach Break. With Fenix’s momentum now halted, Cassidy connected with an Orange Punch to score the pinfall, crowning him as a two-time AEW International Champion.

Upon Cassidy’s victory, Fenix’s reign as champion comes to an end at 20 days. It’s currently unknown when Fenix (along with Moxley) will receive a rematch for the title.

Backstage News On Jon Moxley Concussion, Heat On Ref After AEW Dynamite Title Change

Jon Moxley has not been cleared to wrestle on “AEW Dynamite” after suffering a concussion during last week’s International title match against Rey Fenix, who was unexpectedly crowned the new champion after an audible called by both men in the wake of Moxley’s injury. AEW CEO Tony Khan announced the news on X (formerly known as Twitter). The update comes shortly after a new report about the situation’s wider ripple effects.

Fightful Select is reporting that Moxley’s injury — which happened early in the match and was reportedly not caused by the two Fenix Drivers that Fenix delivered at the end — and the ensuing audible wreaked havoc on AEW’s plans for not only this week’s “Dynamite” but Sunday’s WrestleDream PPV in Seattle, as well. According to the report, Moxley was supposed to retain the title and then be challenged by a non-AEW competitor. There is still no word on who was supposed to challenge Moxley, but the challenge and the surprise were both scrapped with Fenix holding the gold.

Fightful is also reporting that several sources claim AEW referee Rick Knox has significant heat backstage, despite being well-liked within the company. It’s unclear whether said heat stems from Knox’ failure to recognize the concussion or his failure to count the three for Fenix at the end of the match despite Moxley’s shoulders being down, forcing the final spot to be repeated and drawing visible anger from Moxley.

Khan did confirm that Fenix has been cleared to wrestle on Wednesday’s episode and issued an open challenge, which was quickly answered by Jeff Jarrett.

Backstage Update On AEW Star Jon Moxley’s Concussion, International Title Change

Following a rather awkward ending to the AEW International Championship Match between Jon Moxley and Rey Fenix at “AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam,” we learned Moxley suffered a concussion early in the match — after Fenix dove off the entrance stage onto the champ before the bell rang. 

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Moxley was all set to retain the International Championship, but at some point during the bout, an audible was called to change the finish of the match. As a result, Fenix delivered a Black Fire Driver to Moxley — only for AEW referee Rick Knox to pull up short on making the three-count, much to the dismay of fans and those watching at home. However, with the new plan in place, Fenix pulled Moxley to his feet once again, hitting him with yet another, securing the victory and winning the title unexpectedly.  

As for Moxley’s condition, he now finds himself in the concussion protocol. He’ll have to pass its tests before he’ll be medically cleared again to return to the ring, throwing any return up in the air. As we’ve seen in recent months, Adam Cole found himself on the sidelines for nearly an entire year — and almost called it quits — after dealing with the aftermath of a concussion. 

Criticism has poured in to AEW on the fact that the match was allowed to continue after Moxley was observed to have had his bell rung — particularly by the show’s commentary team. However, those involved in the match reportedly claim to have not recognized anything in Moxley that caused concern to stop the title defense.

Rey Fenix Defeats Jon Moxley, Wins AEW International Title On Dynamite Grand Slam

Rey Fenix is your new AEW International Champion. On Wednesday’s “AEW Dynamite Grand Slam” special, Fenix dethroned Jon Moxley as the titleholder following a hard hitting back and forth contest. The match ultimately came to a close when Fenix hit the Blackpool Combat Club member with a pair of piledrivers. The second piledriver was necessitated by the fact that the referee didn’t count the three after the first one, despite Moxley failing to kick out, resulting in the spot having to be re-done. Reports indicate that Moxley is believed to have suffered a concussion during the match.

While this may be the first time that Fenix has captured singles gold in AEW, he is a former AEW World Tag Team Champion and ROH World Tag Team Champion as one half of The Lucha Brothers alongside his actual brother, Penta El Zero Miedo. The two also held the AEW World Trios titles alongisde and PAC as Death Triangle.

Although Moxley only held the title for 17 days, he defended it on a handful of occasions against the likes of AR Fox, Action Andretti, and Big Bill. He had previously won the belt from Orange Cassidy at AEW All Out on September 3 in Chicago, Illinois.

Jon Moxley Ends Orange Cassidy’s Historic AEW International Title Run At All Out

While Orange Cassidy put up a good fight against Jon Moxley, he still lost his AEW International Championship to the Blackpool Combat Club member at Sunday’s AEW All Out pay-per-view. The match was what ended the PPV in Chicago and before the show closed, the crowd cheered for Cassidy.

Before losing tonight, Cassidy had a historic run as the AEW International Champion — 327 days. Cassidy won the title on October 12, 2022, after defeating PAC on “Dynamite.” As the champion, Cassidy defended the title over 30 times and against the likes of Lance Archer, NJPW star Zack Sabre Jr., Buddy Matthews, Jeff Jarrett, Rey Fenix, and Jay Lethal, and survived twenty other men in a Blackjack Battle Royale at this year’s Double or Nothing pay-per-view.

Tonight’s win marks Moxley’s first run as the AEW International Champion, though he is a former three-time AEW World Champion. He wasn’t the only member of the Blackpool Combat Club that was successful tonight either, Bryan Danielson won his strap match against Ricky Starks and Wheeler Yuta and Claudio Castagnoli won their match against Eddie Kingston and Katsuyori Shibata.

Why AEW Is Pushing Orange Cassidy So Strongly

AEW’s heavy push of Orange Cassidy as International Champion is designed to elevate the championship’s stature towards headlining status.

PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reports that the Tony Khan-helmed promotion has been “leveling up” the International Title for months, doing so so that it can be used on the upcoming Saturday evening brand, Collision. AEW’s new show is set to launch at a to-be-confirmed location on 17 June.

There is currently no indication that the International Championship will be exclusive to Collision, though AEW’s current promotion of it “was to ascend it to a more prestigious position.”

Cassidy featured heavily in AEW/Warner Bros. Discovery’s media materials as Collision was formally announced last week.

‘Freshly Squeezed’ has been International Champion for 222 days at the time of writing, having taken the gold from the inaugural champion PAC on 12 October 2022. He has thus far mounted a staggering 21 successful defences, putting the gold on the line several times each month, with Katsuyori Shibata, Buddy Matthews, Bandido, Jay Lethal, and Jeff Jarrett amongst his most notable scalps.

Cassidy’s latest successful defence came against the Jericho Appreciation Society’s Daniel Garcia on Dynamite’s 10 May episode.

Orange Cassidy Getting Unusual AEW International Title Defense At Double Or Nothing

Orange Cassidy has been defending his AEW International Championship against a seemingly endless parade of opponents over recent months. So, it seems to make sense that he would prefer a more efficient model of turning away title challengers.

After Cassidy stated that he would defend his championship against anyone who wants a shot, he learned during Wednesday night’s “Dynamite” that at least 20 individuals had approached AEW President Tony Khan to express their interest. In response, Cassidy offered to take on all of his would-be challengers at once.

“20, huh?” Cassidy said during a backstage interview on “Dynamite.” “That’s a lot … all right. I guess I’ll just fight them all.”

That will happen at the Double or Nothing pay-per-view on Sunday, May 28, where Cassidy will defend his title against 20 challengers in a Blackjack Battle Royale.

As of this writing, AEW has yet to announce the 20 participants who will try to dethrone Cassidy’s reign as AEW International Champion. Cassidy last defended his title against Daniel Garcia on the May 10 episode of “Dynamite” following a successful title defense against Bandido on April 26. 

In recent weeks, Cassidy has put away the likes of The Butcher, Dralistico, Buddy Matthews, and Gabriel Kidd at various televised events. He had become the inaugural-Atlantic Champion last October with a victory over PAC, and the title was renamed when AEW visited Canada for a pair of shows earlier this year.

Other confirmed title matches for Double or Nothing include AEW World Champion MJF vs. Sammy Guevara vs. Darby Allin vs. Jack Perry, AEW World Tag Team Champions FTR vs. Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal, TNT Champion Wardlow vs. Christian Cage, and AEW Women’s World Champion Jamie Hayter vs. Toni Storm. The event will also feature an Anarchy In The Arena match pitting The Elite against Blackpool Combat Club.