Adam Page Defeats Bryan Danielson, Retains AEW World Title on AEW Dynamite
"Hangman" Adam Page defeated Bryan Danielson on Wednesday night's episode of AEW Dynamite to retain the AEW World Championship.
Page retained the title after hitting Danielson with the Buckshot Lariat.
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Both men were bloodied in this brutal match, which nearly ended after Danielson ducked a previous Buckshot Lariat attempt and hit the champion with a running knee:
Page also hit Danielson with a Dead Eye on the floor:
In the end, Page outlasted Danielson to keep the belt.
Wednesday marked the second encounter between Page and Danielson with the AEW world title hanging in the balance after their first meeting failed to produce a winner.
Page and Danielson first locked horns on the Winter Is Coming edition of Dynamite on Dec. 15, and while they had a classic encounter, a 60-minute time-limit draw left their situation unresolved.
The build to that match saw both Page and Danielson achieve some major accomplishments and establish themselves as two of AEW's top stars.
After chasing the title throughout AEW's existence, Hangman finally became AEW world champion at Full Gear in November, beating Kenny Omega in the main event.
On that same show, Danielson defeated Miro in the finals of the AEW World Championship Eliminator Tournament to become No. 1 contender. Danielson also beat Dustin Rhodes and Eddie Kingston en route to that distinction.
It initially seemed like Page vs. Danielson was going to be a battle between two of AEW's top babyfaces, but Danielson underwent a surprising transformation.
The American Dragon confronted Page on the first episode of Dynamite after Full Gear and seemed to have taken on a heel persona, as he criticized Page and his friends in Dark Order.
Danielson then proceeded to face and decimate several members of Dark Order in subsequent weeks, viciously stomping their heads in an effort to send a message to Hangman.
It was a shocking turn of events given that Danielson arrived in AEW at All Out in September to a hero's welcome.
The change to his character brought a much-needed edge to the rivalry with Page, however, and played a big role in the success of their first match.
As expected, Wednesday's rematch was excellent as well, but this time there was a definitive finish with Page successfully defending his AEW world title.
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