5 Factors to Focus on Going into AEW Fyter Fest

Although it hasn't been included yet on a Matt Hardy Being The Elite sketch, the phrase "go-home show" is indeed a "Term of the Inside," part of a peculiar lexicon that professional wrestling calls its own. It's used to describe the final television show prior to a major live event, in this case two weeks of Fyter Fest airing free on TNT the next two Wednesday nights.

It's a pay-per-view-quality collection of matches, one worth getting excited for. But did this go-home show do the trick, potentially driving record ratings? Or will Fyter Fest fizzle and end up being just two average episodes of a struggling television show?

A lot rode on Wednesday's Dynamite, and I have five thoughts that might help us figure out whether AEW can pop a rating when it needs to.

1. The Scourge of Covid-19

Professional wrestling has been living on borrowed time when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic. It was the first sport back, and an eventual outbreak felt inevitable. This was the week it finally reared its head, with AEW champion Jon Moxley missing the show as a precautionary measure.

"Moxley did come into contact with somebody with COVID-19," announcer Excalibur explained to the television audience. "He is also quarantined."

While the announce team praised his unselfishness, Moxley's Fyter Fest opponent, Brian Cage, and mouthpiece Taz were less impressed.

"[Cage is] the individual that came to work," Taz said. "He came to work and compete. You are sitting on your ass at home with some bulls--t excuse."

It was a sizzling promo and a cool touch by AEW to make denying the dangers of the coronavirus a heel move. The open question is whether Moxley will be able to perform. If he continues to test negative, he should be free to compete—but the close contacts put the title bout in question.

In today's world, it's probably safe to assume every match is doubtful until you see the competitors stepping into the ring.

2. The Squash Match

AEW has brought back the squash match, a bout designed for one of the performers to get a showcase win instead of a competitive challenge. In the days of yore, when I was a young man, wrestling television was made up almost exclusively of these kinds of contests, designed to get you excited enough to see two stars square off that you'd make the trek to your local arena and plop down some hard-earned cash for a ticket to see a show.

Back in yesteryear, that was how the business of wrestling worked economically—the money was made at the box office. Television was simply an extended advertisement for the live events.

The arrival of WWE's Raw changed all that. Guaranteed television-rights money became a major economic driver and soon replaced live events in the corporate hierarchy. With big money came the need to draw big ratings. That meant big matches and the end of the squash.

Seeing them slowly return makes my heart sing. There's something special about watching Hikaru Shida destroy a hapless foe with a running knee or Brian Cage literally get in some reps by bicep curling some poor ham-and-egger.

I wouldn't want to see these matches overwhelm the exciting back-and-forth bouts that have helped define the AEW era. But they are definitely a nice change of pace.

3. It's Time for FTR to Deliver on the Hype

For years it was enough for FTR to talk a good game. Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood declared themselves the best tag team in the world and dined on fading memories of their run in NXT back when it was still very much a developmental territory.

There were always excuses for why they didn't thrive in WWE, whether it was the promotion's seemingly eternal disdain for tag team wrestling or the indifferent approach to booking an act that very much seemed to believe it could matter if only someone would let it.

The time for talk, however, is over. In AEW, Wheeler and Harwood will get consistent television time and the opportunity to work a fast-paced, hard-hitting bout built to make them look like the stars they believe they are.

So far, the result has been mixed. They've delivered fun matches with The Butcher and The Blade and SCU, but nothing that really stands out in a crowded tag team scene.

It's easy to talk the talk. Now is the time for FTR to walk the walk. If Wheeler and Harwood are the best on the planet, now's the time to show it. In 2020 that doesn't come down to creative or a sinister corporate presence holding them back—it's up to the men looking back at them in the mirror. And that's how it should be.

4. Cody, Hager and a Big-Fight Feel

In recent weeks, the divide between some of the creative forces in AEW has become more public and visible. The fun, high-spot-oriented wrestling of The Elite and comedy stylings of Orange Cassidy stand in stark contrast to the ultra-serious, sports-oriented approach of the TNT champion Cody.

As if to circle that idea and go over it with a highlighter just to be sure people notice, Cody's go-home moment was a press conference and face-off right out of the world of professional boxing or mixed martial arts. He and his coach Arn Anderson took questions from the "press" and gave heartfelt, thoughtful answers.

And, while things devolved and a glass of water was thrown when Jack Hager finally arrived, things never truly got out of control. It felt like, well, it felt like sports, a welcome change in a promotion that can sometimes be a little too goofy for its own good.

5. Orange Cassidy May Be Wrestling's Next Big Star

It's hard to know exactly how the audience is responding to Orange Cassidy's unlikely main event push. Although popular as a side attraction since AEW's launch, accepting someone as a midcard attraction is quite different from accepting them as a legitimate main eventer.

The crowd obviously loves Cassidy—but does it want to see him in a serious fight like the one that closed this show with Chris Jericho?

The final image AEW fans saw going into Fyter Fest was Cassidy, blood pouring out of his right ear and staining his iconic white T-shirt. He stood over a fallen Jericho as a conquering hero. Is he one? Or is this a short-lived experiment destined to fail?

The answers to those questions will come at Fyter Fest—now just a single week away.

Jonathan Snowden covers combat sports for Bleacher Report.