A live AEW Rampage will kick off two hours of action on Friday with Battle of the Belts VI coming right afterward.
Darby Allin will look to stake his claim to an AEW World title shot as he takes on Lee Moriarty. Allin is looking to keep pace with Jungle Boy and Sammy Guevara in pursuit of MJF.
After defeating Ethan Page on Wednesday following a title belt shot from Matt Hardy, FTW Champion Hook will rematch with Page.
Swerve Strickland will make an important announcement that will hopefully give some clues as to his future.
The Acclaimed, Matt Menard & Angelo Parker will be in eight-man tag team action while Julia Hart of the House of Black (and 20-match win streak) will take on Anna Jay A.S. of the Jericho Appreciation Society.
TBS Champion Jade Cargill and Taya Valkyrie will have a sit-down confrontation as the build to their eventual match continues.
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FTW Rules Match: Hook (c) defeated Ethan Page via submission
This match had FTW no-disqualification rules, falls-count-anywhere match. They brawled into the crowd early on. Hook used a T-Bone suplex to Page on the floor. Page would later powerslam Hook through a table at ringside.
Back in the ring, when Page went for a chair shot but Hook moved away and Page hit the rope instead, which ricocheted and hit Page in the face. Hook did a Twist of Fate onto the chair for two. Page hit a big pump kick. The finish saw Hook lock Page into Redrum (f.k.a. Tazmission) for the submission win.
Afterwards, Hook would T-Bone Page through a table in the corner.
QTV segment
QT Marshall's team did a bit where they spoof the TMZ set and gossip with each other about AEW business. They talked about their ROH Tag Title match later tonight. Aaron Solo pretended not to know how to pronounce "lucha libre," then Marshall said he wouldn't be dead doing any of that "flippy shit" in the match. When someone told Marshall to "break a leg" he replied with "Who am I, Dante Martin?" and then everyone started laughing all campy-like.
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Jericho Appreciation Society & The Acclaimed defeated LSG, Bobby Orlando & The Infantry
Jake Hager came out with JAS.
Max Caster rapped about JAS being more annoying than Marjorie Taylor Greene while they were coming out.
The Acclaimed did their "Scissor Me Timbers" double-team move on Orlando. Caster did The Mic Drop (frog splash elbow drop) for the win.
Despite winning together, the JAS with Jake Hager would attack the Acclaimed during their post-match celebration.
Swerve's PSA
Swerve said he had a public service announcement for everyone, that he'd announce his new "merger" (partner, possibly?) later tonight.
Darby Allin defeated Lee Moriarty (w/ Big Bill)
According to Jim Ross and Excalibur, yesterday, Darby Allin was run over by a car while skateboarding in New York City. He was cleared to wrestle for this match's though.
The Rhode Island crowd broke out into a loud "DAR-BY!" chant before the match.
They showed a picture-in-picture shot of Sammy Guevara and Tay Conti watching the match from a remote location.
Allin grabbed a headlock early. He earned a near fall when he hooked Moriarty into a La Casita pin. Another loud chant for Allin broke out.
Moriarty began took over from here. He worked over Allin's midsection. On the floor, he slammed Allin into the barricade. He'd go for a running kick next, but Allin moved out of the way, so Moriarty got crotched on the guardrail. When Allin threw him back in the ring, the ref went to check on Moriarty, so Big Bill Morrissey appeared and blasted Allin with a boot, keeping him laid out on the outside.
When the program returned from break, the crowd was again chanting for Allin. He exploded at Moriarty into the corner with a shotgun dropkick that sent Moriarty flying. When Allin went to the top rope for another attack, Big Bill appeared again, distracting Allin and causing him to crash onto the ropes.
Moriarty lifted Allin up in a vertical suplex and dropped Allin stomach-first over the tope rope. He'd follow up with a superplex, but Allin held on and locked Moriarty into a small package two. Moriarty went for a wrist-clutch pin but got two himself.
Allin hit a Code Red on Moriarty before taking Big Bill out with a dive through the bottom rope before finishing Moriarty off with a Coffin Drop for the win. Good match.
Before Allin could make it to the back, Swerve's music hit. An image for MOGUL AFFILIATES appeared on the monitor. Swerve appeared and offered Allin a handshake. The two have a history in the Pacific Northwest and on commentary it sounded like it'd be possible they could join up. Before Allin could shake Swerve's hand, Brian Cage appeared and decked Allin. He'd then LAUNCH Allin with a helicopter spin that saw Allin do two full rotations, I think. Prince Nana also appeared. It seems as if this is the new "merger" Swerve was talking about.
Jade Cargill & Taya Valkrie sitdown
The two had a sit-down "mediation" about the usage of Cargill's "Jaded" (or "Glam Slam") finisher which Valkyrie had already been using. Valkyrie insisted the champion show some more respect for history, but Cargill wasn't impressed. The two ended up in a shouting match with each other before things were broken up and the segment finished.
Julia Hart defeated Anna Jay
Jay attacked Hart before her introduction could finished. They brawled on the floor for the first few minutes. Hart whipped Jay into the barricade.
When the match spilled back out onto the floor, Anna Jay lifted Hart up in a power bomb, then let her hang down vertically before she slammed an upside-down Hart head-first into the barricade. The program cut to commercials at this point.
Jay was on offense for much of the break, but when the show returned, Hart had just regained the upper hand. She did a running basement elbow that connected with Jay's back. Jim Ross said she is Hart is AEW's youngest wrestler right now. She did a standing moonsault and earned a two for it.
Jay came back and earned a two-count before putting on the Queenslayer sleeper hold but she couldn't synch it in fully. Hart returned fire and fought Jay into the corner before placing her on the top rope. Hart was hanging in a Tree of Woe before pulling her body up to grab Jay and throw her into the ring. She'd then hit a nice moonsault press and earned two for it.
Jay would try for the Queenslayer again, but the two would end up falling out of the ring as they tussled for leverage. Jay rolled back into the ring and Hart was almost counted out, but when the referee wasn't looking, Hart appeared and spit poison mist into Jay's face. Back in the ring, she'd roll Jay into an inside cradle for the hollow win.
As Hart exited, Orange Cassidy's theme song sounded. This looked like it pissed Hart off. She eyeballed him as he went to the back.
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This wraps this week's edition of AEW Rampage. Follow along with our Battle of the Belts coverage for the rest of tonight's action.