AEW Rage Results: Winners, live scores, reaction and highlights from July 21
0 out of 4
Rage.AEW
Welcome to Bleacher Report’s coverage and recap of AEW Rampage on July 21st.
This week’s show went head-to-head with the final hour of ROH Death Before Dishonor, so Tony Khan was splitting his audience a bit on Friday night.
This show featured three matches, but the main event was the big attraction. Battle Royal Rampage featured over a dozen stars competing for a shot at the TNT Championship.
We also saw Kris Statlander take on the TBS title against Marina Shafir, and Johnny TV teamed up with QT Marshall and Aaron Solo to take on The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass.
Let’s see what happened during Friday’s show.
Royal wrath
1 out of 4
Royal wrath.AEW
The opening match on this week’s show was the Royal Rampage to find a new #1 contender. 1 for the TNT Championship. The match started with two men in each ring. Swerve Strickland and Nick Wayne were in the ring on the blue ropes, while Darby Allin and Jay Lethal were in the ring on the red ropes.
Other stars such as Minoru Suzuki, Brian Cage and The Butcher entered the match at regular intervals. It took a while before anyone was eliminated, so the rings kept filling up as each new competitor arrived.
Battle Royals are harder to rate than normal matches because they aren’t necessarily about the quality of the wrestling. These matches are all about individual points and eliminations, so it all depends on how many memorable moments the match produced.
All elite wrestling @AEW
Powerbomb. Skateboard.
Look #AEWRampage on TNT! @SwerveConfident pic.twitter.com/bzYCt3N3ft
Allin seemed to be the main focus of many competitors in this match, but he ended up surviving them all to win it all by finally eliminating Swerve.
The first part of this was nothing special, but it picked up in the back when we started to see more eliminations.
Winner: Darby Allen
Rank: C+
Notable moments and observations
- Sonjay Dutt always acts like she’s had six Red Bulls. It’s hilarious.
- This match had two rings because they were still set up by Blood and Guts.
- Suzuki took so long with his entrance that the next guy was about to come out when he finally got in the ring.
- This match featured several people who also appeared on the ROH PPV on Friday because it was taped on Wednesday with Dynamite.
- If WWE’s Royal Rumble and WCW’s World War 3 had a baby, it would be Royal Rampage.
- Swerve helping Wayne eliminate Big Bill was a fun moment.
- There are dangerous spots, and then there are silly spots. Allowing yourself to be bombed on the wheels of a skateboard is a stupid point. This is more dangerous than most of what we saw during Blood and Guts.
The assessees against QTV
2 out of 4
Rage.AEW
Anthony Bowens, Max Caster and Billy Gunn battled Marshall, Johnny TV and Solo in a three-way match that also had Harley Cameron in the ring.
QT and Daddy Ass traded some quick moves early in the match to show that even though they are the biggest members of their respective groups, they still have some gas in the tank.
They really picked up the pace in the second half, but some of the multiplayer spots we saw seemed a little too contrived instead of feeling spontaneous.
Still, it was a solid performance that gave The Acclaimed a win before they take on the trios champions this weekend, so it was effective in that regard.
Winners: The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass
Rank: B-
Notable moments and observations
- The Acclaimed will face The House of Black for the Trios Championship at Collision, so it made sense to give them a win here, but it’s a little strange that Johnny TV is already losing this early in his AEW run.
- Solo’s surname used to be spelled Solow. It feels unnecessary to drop the W. It made his name more recognizable.
- Marshall had a big bandage on his back from an ambulance match he had in AAA last weekend.
- Caster’s rap about Cameron was a bit off, even for him.
Chris Statlander vs. Sapphire Navy
3 out of 4
Rage. AEW
The main event of the show was the TBS Championship match between Statlander and Shafir. Nyla Rose accompanied Shafir to the stage, but did not stay in the ring for the match.
Shafir gave up a small size, but she didn’t let that whip her and drop Statlander with a few judo throws.
This is definitely the most dangerous Shafiri has looked in an AEW ring. It feels like she’s finally putting all the pieces together to combine her MMA and wrestling skills into one skill set.
Although Shafir put up a good fight, it was never going to end any other way than Statlander raising his hand.
Winner: Chris Statlander
Rank: C+
Notable moments and observations
- AEW should have given Statlander a special version of the TBS title, They have for a group of TNT champions, so it seems only fair.
- Wrestling in bare feet is one thing, but wearing socks and shoes to the ring only to take them off is weird.
The Final Word
4 out of 4
There was a stretch where Rampage didn’t feel like watching the match, but over the last few months, we’ve seen an increase in effort and quality on the show.
Unfortunately, not every episode can be a classic. Most of the shows over the past couple of months have felt more relevant, but this week’s show fell flat.
Allin earning a shot at the TNT title was the biggest moment of the show. “The Acclaimed” and “Statlander” winning matches was logical, but also extremely predictable.
With SmackDown and Death Before Dishonor also on Friday night, there was a total of six hours of wrestling between the three promotions. It wouldn’t be surprising if a lot of people skip Rampage this week.
Grade: C
