AEW Rampage and Battle of the Belts IV Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction Highlights
Welcome to Bleacher Report's coverage and recap of All Elite Wrestling Rampage on October 7.
This episode was two hours long and marked the fourth Battle of the Belts special, so there was plenty of gold on the line.
PAC worked double duty Friday when he defended the trios titles alongside The Lucha Bros and his All-Atlantic Championship in a singles bout.
We saw Jade Cargill defend the TBS Championship and FTR put the Ring of Honor tag titles on the line. We also saw The Blackpool Combat Club in action in a big trios match.
Let's take a look at what happened during Friday's double-length episode of Rampage.
Blackpool Combat Club vs. Rush and Private Party
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Rush, Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen were in the ring when the show began. Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta got their own entrances for the opening bout.
Rush and Moxley seemed to focus on each other for most of the match, but the other four men put in some excellent work to provide some fun spots and entertaining sequences.
This bout definitely did not have a cohesive story, and it was hard to keep track of who was legal and who wasn't after a while, but it was still a highly entertaining sprint that had the crowd on its feet.
Yuta scored the submission victory for his team and celebrated with Moxley, The Swiss Superman and William Regal. This was a smart way to kick off the show.
Winners: Blackpool Combat Club
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
- Chris Jericho had some good lines on commentary. He has been yelling less lately, which is making him much more entertaining.
- Moxley has a good German suplex. It looks dirty and rough, but he actually hits it very clean.
- Quen hit a beautiful 450 splash on the ramp.
- It might have taken a little longer to set up than he would have liked, but Castagnoli spinning both members of Private Party at the same time was impressive.
Varsity Blonds vs. Tony Nese and Josh Woods
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This was little more than a squash match. Tony Nese and Josh Woods defeated Brian Pillman Jr. and Griff Garrison in short order. This whole segment was really just done to set up The Acclaimed coming out to mock Nese and Woods while Mark Sterling talked about how his clients deserve a title shot.
This was one of those segments that was probably fun for the live crowd, but it didn't actually accomplish anything.
Winners: Tony Nese and Josh Woods
Grade: D+
Anna Jay and Tay Melo vs. Madison Rayne and Skye Blue
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Jericho Appreciation Society members Anna Jay and Tay Melo were out first for their match against Skye Blue and Madison Rayne.
While Blue and Rayne definitely had some moments of offense, the majority of the match was controlled by Tay and Jay.
After the 23-year-old took the brunt of the damage dished out by the other team, Rayne came in from a hot tag and cleaned house for a little while.
However, Tay and Jay's teamwork was too much to overcome. Jay scored the win with the Queenslayer on Blue.
Winners: Anna Jay and Tay Melo
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Blue took a nice bump when she was tripped off the apron to the floor.
- Tay and Jay do a good job playing a heel team. They do a lot of little things to garner heat.
- Rayne hit a very nice northern lights suplex on Jay.
- After Blue hit a crossbody, she rolled off of Jay before she actually kicked out of the pin. It was a bit of a sloppy moment.
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Death Triangle vs. Dark Order (Trios Titles)
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The pre-match interview with Mark Henry referenced Brodie Lee and his influence on the Dark Order. PAC even paid respect to Brodie before telling his opponents they would lose.
As soon as the bell rang, all six men began to brawl. John Silver, Preston Vance and Alex Reynolds cleared Penta and PAC out of the ring so they could focus on Rey Fenix, but the luchador did not make it easy for them.
This was was all over the place in the usual way trios matches in AEW are, but they did a slightly better job of tagging in and out than the previous trios bout on the card.
Jose and Rush came out to distract the referee and hand PAC the ring bell hammer so he could use it on Reynolds. After using the weapon, The Bastard applied the Brutalizer for the win.
Winners: Death Triangle
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
- Penta's Joker gear is some of the best gear in pro wrestling.
- Vance's masks have gotten significantly cooler in 2022.
- When Reynolds hit a double Stomp to PAC, he almost landed right on PAC's head when they both fell down.
- Silver has the best hot tag in pro wrestling. When he gets on a roll, he's unstoppable.
Trent Beretta vs. PAC
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As soon as the trios match was over and Battle of the Belts began, Trent Beretta came out to face PAC in what was the Englishman's second title bout of the night.
PAC still seemed like he had a lot of energy, but the challenger still took control almost immediately thanks to being the fresher competitor.
PAC set up a table near the stage, but Beretta ended up putting him on top of it instead. The champ rolled off before his opponent could launch himself off the stage, so Beretta was able to take him down another way.
These two put everything into this match, which is even more impressive when you remember everything PAC did in his previous bout. Both men looked great and showed the kind of chemistry that would make you think they had worked together a million times.
PAC ended up being able to use the hammer without the ref seeing it, so he picked up the pin. Orange Cassidy ran down to attack him, but PAC escaped before taking too much damage.
Winner: PAC
Grade: A-
Notable Moments and Observations
- PAC has an underrated superkick. It always connects well and looks smooth.
- The baseball slide dropkick Beretta hit looked brutal.
- The avalanche brainbuster is one of those moves that looks good but can easily go wrong in so many ways. Thankfully, PAC is a pro.
- The spot when PAC flipped into Beretta's arms for a piledriver was incredibly well done.
Jade Cargill vs. Willow Nightingale
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Willow Nightingale got a chance at the TBS Championship when she took on Cargill. The Baddies were at ringside to provide some support and whatever distractions she might need.
They had a bit of a slow start but ended up having a pretty good, competitive match that saw both women hit some impressive moves.
While Willow came close, Cargill was able to hit her finisher to retain the title.
Winner: Jade Cargill
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
- Willow's entrance music is a lot of fun. You can see fans light up when she comes out on the stage.
- The way Nyla Rose stole the TBS belt and ran away with it was hilarious.
FTR vs. Gates of Agony
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Toa Liona and Kaun had a big opportunity in the main event when they battled Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler for the ROH Tag Team Championships.
Kaun and Harwood started for their teams with a simple lockup as they struggled for control. The match had tons of action both in and out of the ring, but Gates of Agony seemed to have control for more time than FTR.
FTR was able to hit Liona with the Big Rig, but they were unable to get the win from it. Harwood still scored the pin with a backslide.
The ending of the show saw Brian Cage join his ROH allies to attack FTR, but Wardlow and Samoa Joe ran down to make the save. This was a solid main event to cap off a fun night of action.
Winner: FTR
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
- The Gunn Club wearing outfits to mock FTR was the funniest thing we saw all night.
- The AEW barricades need to be reinforced better. Being a fan in the front row is a good way to get a bruised knee when someone is sent into the barricade.
- Liona being too big to get up for the Big Rig was a good spot because when FTR hit it a moment late, the crowd popped even louder.
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