SI.com’s Week in Wrestling is published every week and provides beneath-the-surface coverage of the business of pro wrestling.
Blood & Guts comes to Boston
Wrestling will return to its roots on Wednesday night.
Though All Elite Wrestling was founded just four years ago, the company takes pride in honoring the industry’s past. Of course, it aims to do so in a spectacular fashion, which is the origin of its Blood & Guts match.
Blood & Guts pays tribute to the WarGames matches, a concept created by the late Dusty Rhodes in 1987. Unlike WWE’s WarGames, AEW’s version holds true to the rules that were first implemented in Jim Crockett Promotions.
After AEW’s first attempt was thwarted by the pandemic, the company first featured the match in May 2021 pitting The Inner Circle against The Pinnacle. Last year’s Blood & Guts was The Jericho Appreciation Society against the Blackpool Combat Club, Eddie Kingston, Santana and Ortiz. Wednesday night marks the third and most star-studded Blood & Guts bout yet, featuring the BCC—along with a newly returned Pac—and Konosuke Takeshita against The Elite, who will be joined by former IWGP world heavyweight champion Kota Ibushi.
Missing from the action is Bryan Danielson, who is still recovering from an arm injury he suffered last month at the Forbidden Door pay-per-view. Yet there is still incredible firepower for the main event on this week’s Dynamite, as Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, Claudio Castagnoli and Jon Moxley headline AEW’s inaugural visit to the TD Garden in Boston.
“I f---ing love TD Garden and Boston,” says Moxley. “What a building, what a crowd. It’s going to be f---ing awesome.”
On Saturday, Moxley competed in the NAGA Cincinnati Grappling Championship, representing Powell MMA and Fitness and his coach Adam Powell, winning a gold medal at the highly respected grappling tournament. Now he steps back into his sweet spot in the ring, which will be a gory, bloody mess during the Dynamite main event.
“We’re going after the best, or at least the supposed best, in The Elite,” says Moxley. “The freaking company is named after them. Blood & Guts is our chance to plant our flag as the most dominant group in AEW.
“I’m f---ing excited as all hell to bring something very unique—our version of Blood & Guts—to those fans and all the history of pro wrestling in Boston. I don’t know if anyone in The Elite has ever wrestled in the TD Garden before.”
Moxley is correct: Neither Omega, the Bucks, Ibushi nor “Hangman” Adam Page have ever wrestled at the Garden in Boston. Site of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s first WWE title victory at WrestleMania 14, this is a chance for AEW’s top stars to create their own history in Boston.
Omega has wrestled in Boston, including AEW’s first trip to the city in the fall of 2019 (at the 7,200-seat Agganis Arena on the campus of Boston University). Yet this will be his first time in the Garden, as well as his inaugural Blood & Guts match.
“I’ve wrestled in Boston, but this is my first time at TD Garden, so it’s very cool,” says Omega, who is only days removed from his superb Triplemanía bout against Vikingo. “Up until my cage match against Moxley on Dynamite, I’d never been in a cage match. For years and years and years and years, that always eluded me. This is an even more rare opportunity with the double ring and double cage, and it’s another cool test for me.”
The recent additions add new elements to the match. Pac is a long-standing rival of Omega’s, but that is countered by Ibushi, who is Omega’s longtime Golden Lovers tag partner.
All the components should add up to a highly compelling wrestling match, one that intends to live up to its name.
“It opens up even more possibilities for creativity,” says Omega. “There is the story with the BCC, and the new opponents added to the story make it even more compelling.”
The (online) week in wrestling
- To their credit, Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar have combined to work an outstanding program together since the night after WrestleMania. Following the loss to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania, the next step on Rhodes’ redemption tour will be a victory against Lesnar at SummerSlam.
- Vikingo defeated Kenny Omega in a spectacular bout on Saturday at Triplemanía. The finish was especially meaningful, as Omega had relinquished AAA’s mega championship due to injury, so there is no doubt that this is now Vikingo’s belt.
Kenny Omega vs. El Hijo del Vikingo AAA Mega Title match highlights #AAA #TriplemaniaXXXI pic.twitter.com/Lfm2w7zIp9
— FAR (@FAR5222) July 16, 2023
- Trinity is the new Impact Knockouts champion, defeating Deonna Purrazzo by submission in a hard-hitting bout at Slammiversary. Alex Shelley retained the world title, defeating Nick Aldis and setting up a program with the returning Josh Alexander.
.@TheTrinity_Fatu is the NEW Knockouts World Champion!
— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) July 19, 2023
Order the #Slammiversary replay on @FiteTV: https://t.co/XpOeF6NFBo pic.twitter.com/UyTAeo48fl
- The FTR vs. Jay White and Juice Robinson tag match from last week’s Collision was incredible. Not only was it one of the best matches of the year, but it also helps build the foundation of Collision as the show attempts to be a legitimate piece of the industry, which is no small feat on Saturday nights.
- Ricky Starks defeated CM Punk in the finals of the men’s Owen Hart Cup tournament on Collision, which saw him hold the ropes to get the leverage needed to beat Punk. Hopefully this is the start of something meaningful for Starks.
- Ian Riccaboni called Collision, and his addition to AEW is a huge gain.
Hey! I heard from a lot of folks today regarding this. I just want to say the AEW's team is first class.
— Ian Riccaboni (@IanRiccaboni) July 16, 2023
Hosting wrestling on cable has been a dream of mine. I am thrilled about the creative approach that gives me both that and Saturdays with my family. ❤️ https://t.co/L3f7beIUDS
- Last week’s Scenic City Invitational was a success, and 1 Called Manders was crowned winner.
All the miles
— 1 Called Manders (@1called_manders) July 16, 2023
All the hard times
All the sacrifices
All worth it #ThankYou #SCI2023 pic.twitter.com/g1XJlWfNua
Catching up with Bianca Belair and Montez Ford
Bianca Belair and Montez Ford are rarely on screen together, so it was refreshing to see the real-life husband and wife attend ESPN’s ESPY Awards together last week.
At the event, they were asked if they would ever team together.
“That’s a goal of both of ours,” says Belair. “We travel together, we work together, we’re always together, so it’s just being true to ourselves. We eventually want to be on screen together, in and out of the ring.”
“Like a Mr. and Mrs. Smith type thing,” adds Ford. “That would be amazing.”
Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports
Belair exists in a new place right now in WWE. After a lengthy run as champion, she is currently the hunter instead of the hunted, looking to reclaim the gold from Asuka.
“I’m chasing after it,” says Belair. “Now I can show off my hunger and my drive.
“I got very used to being champion. It got to the point where my title was my best accessory, it was with me even more than my purse. It feels very weird not having it.”
Ford is in a different spot. He and Street Profits tag partner Deangelo Hawkins have not worn tag team gold since January 2021, and a lengthy reign with the tag belts would help elevate their place in the company.
“Definitely want to win the undisputed tag team championships,” Ford. “The Usos had it, Kevin and Sami have it now, and that’s something we need to do. When we had our title reign, it wasn’t in front of crowds. We had a whole title reign in the ThunderDome. We want that run in front of the crowd.”
When asked about dream opponents, Ford was quick to share three tag teams he would have loved to wrestle.
“The Rockers, Harlem Heat, and DX,” says Ford. “That would be a nice chance to face our bosses.”
Tweet of the Week
.@maki_itoh on why she finds New York scary:
— Himanshu Doi (@Himanshu_Doi) July 17, 2023
"One time I went New York. Then Mickey Mouse talking to me, "Take photo! Together take photo!" So I take photo. Then they say, "Hey! Tip! Give me the tip!" Oh wow! You offer me! Why I need to pay? So I just run away!"#tjpw #伊藤麻希 pic.twitter.com/KTke3irJ0M
Has anyone else had this experience? It’s also harrowing when the characters take their masks off.
Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter@JustinBarrasso.
