The Brandt Centre in Regina, Saskatchewan houses tonight’s episode of AEW Collision. I actually am surprised humanity let the name of Saskatchewan exist in lieu of something shorter to write. How do you Canadians exist like this? This is an affront to humanity. Bud do you know what isn’t an insult to all of Creation? Tonight’s Collision card! This show is short and filled mostly with semifinal matches for the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament and a Tag Team Title Eliminator Match! With that said, let’s get down to business!
FTR (c) vs Jay White and Juice Robinson (AEW Tag Team Championship Eliminator Match)
With the 2022 that FTR had and the history in Japan that Juice Robinson and Jay White had, this has all the capabilities to be a cool first outing for some of the many great talents in wrestling. With Bullet Club Gold attacking Ricky Starks for months, Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler seek to use their old-school ass-whoopin’ style against the ruffian rebels of wrestling. Should Jay and Juice get the win, however, they will receive a tag team title opportunity. It’s time to put up or shut up!
ROH Women’s Champion Athena vs Willow Nightingale (Owen Hart Cup Semifinal
Willow Nightingale and Athena had one of the best women’s matches of the year earlier in the new ROH TV run so far (back when it seemed effort was being put in). These women set social media aflame with how hard they hit and how well they contrasted each other. Now, the jovial Willow faces off against the spiteful Athena. Willow has nothing left to lose now after losing her NJPW Strong Women’s Championship on July 5 to Stardom’s Giulia, but Athena has so much momentum and this is her opportunity to show the world that it’s her world and we are just living in it. I hope they don’t hit each other too hard…
Ricky Starks vs Powerhouse Hobbs (Owen Hart Cup Semifinal)
God, I hope Taz is on commentary for this. As summer ended in 2022, the split of Team Taz was felt – HOOK became FTW Champion, Will Hobbs turned against Ricky, and Ricky was title-less and friendless. Now, almost a year later, they collide (heh) again with nothing to lose and everything to gain. This is likely to be an emotional match that will see one man propelled close to stardom and one man left to climb back up again.
CM Punk vs Samoa Joe (Owen Hart Cup Semifinal)a
Two men with a historic rivalry that echoes the reverence of Flair/Steamboat, Sting/Vader, Rock/Austin, and Okada/Omega. Two men whose careers went on drastically different paths. CM Punk has never beaten Samoa Joe, having left in 2006 for WWE, while Joe would leave for TNA/Impact. By the time Joe came to WWE, Punk was long-gone in controversial fashion until his return to wrestling in AEW, 2021. These men are older, wiser, more seasoned. They are also weaker and waning in the twilight of their careers. Could the passage of time aid Punk in triumph over an old rival, or will Joe’s dominance be evergreen? CM Punk’s run in 2021-22 was the stuff of dreams, while Samoa Joe is having an incredible 2022 and is one of my wrestlers of the year. This match already gives me chills; I wonder how I’m going to process it as they stare down before and after the bell.
Though the card for this show is small, it is filled with so much substance and I hope nothing is added (unless it’s a women’s match). Give these time to breathe and this Collision should be a hell of an episode.
Catch AEW: Collision tonight at 8ᴘᴍ ET/ 7ᴘᴍ CT on TNT.
