Athena finally gets a big AEW moment
Those who don't keep up with Ring of Honor might not have any idea of how amazing Athena has been over the past few years. Despite her unprecedented success in Ring of Honor, Athena has been used extremely sparingly on AEW television. But after winning the women's casino gauntlet match and earning a future AEW Women's World Title shot at All In Texas, Athena is sure to start becoming a major player on AEW Dynamite and/or Collision.
The casino gauntlet matches are always a lot of fun as they highlight a large number of competitors and usually give them all an opportunity to shine for a few moments. This one was no different and was wide open as to who might come out the winner.
Athena, a native of Texas, came out to one of the largest pops of the match, and was able to pick up the win by pinning Mina Shirakawa. Shirakawa is just 6 weeks removed from challenging Toni Storm for the AEW Women's Title at AEW Double or Nothing, further proving that Athena is beyond ready to be a mainstay in the AEW women's division.
Athena winning the casino gauntlet match was the right choice. It all but guarantees that she will be in a more consistent role on AEW television, ensuring more people will be able to see just how great the ROH "Forever Champion" really is.
Swerve Strickland and "Hangman" Adam Page bury the hatchet.......for now
When "Hangman" Adam Page won this year's Owen Hart Men's Tournament, earning a shot at Jon Moxley for his AEW World Title, it was clear that he was going to have to make some alliances to even up the odds against Moxley and his Death Riders. But the alliance that made the difference in Page's win at AEW All In Texas came from the most unlikely of places.
"Hangman" and Swerve Strickland have engaged in the most intense and heated rivalry in AEW history for nearly the past two years. However, they seem to have come to a mutual understanding of the reasoning behind each other's actions, as it was Swerve who hand-delivered the chain to "Hangman" that allowed Page to defeat Jon Moxley and secure the AEW World Title for the second time on Saturday night.
While Page received help from multiple people that allowed him to get the job done against Moxley, Swerve's help was a big surprise because of the disdain that the two have had for each other and how personal their feud has been.
Even though things seem fine between Strickland and Page for now, it is not destined to last long. Besides the underlying tension that will always be there, Page now has the AEW World Title, a belt that Swerve covets. This is all but a guarantee that the two will clash again, and it wouldn't be a surprise if it's sooner rather than later.
Adam Cole and Dustin Rhodes took us through a wide range of emotions
As cool as big wrestling moments are, real-life moments will always surpass them. The TNT Title match gave us one of each on Saturday.
The cool wrestling moment was Dustin Rhodes pulling off a huge upset by winning the TNT Title in a four-way match that featured Rhodes, Sammy Guevara, Daniel Garcia, and the clear odds-on favorite, Kyle Fletcher.
Rhodes, a 56-year-old Texas native, rolled up Daniel Garcia, scoring the surprising victory that earned him his first AEW singles title. Rhodes sat in the corner and wept before celebrating with friends and family in the ring with his newly won TNT Title. It was a nice moment for a man who gives his all for AEW, both in the ring and behind the scenes.
However, this moment was only made possible because of Adam Cole's misfortune.
Cole was scheduled to defend his TNT Title in a singles match with Kyle Fletcher before having to vacate the TNT Title due to not being medically cleared to compete. Cole came out before the match to address the crowd and shared that he was going to need to take some time away, and the future of his in-ring career was uncertain.
Time will tell what the future holds for Adam Cole. The most important thing is Cole's health. Here is to hoping that Adam Cole will make a full recovery and we will see him back on AEW television, happy and healthy in the near future.