AEW Rampage Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From Jan. 5
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- Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale in action
- Wheeler Yuta vs. Komander
- Hikaru Shida vs. Anna Jay
- The Hardys and Mark Briscoe vs. The Butcher, The Blade and Kip Sabian
Rampage. ROH
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage and recap of AEW Rampage on January 5.
We are still dealing with all of the fallout from the Worlds End pay-per-view on December 30, but the men and women of AEW are also looking to start 2024 on a high note.
Here is the lineup of matches AEW advertised heading into Friday's episode of Rampage:
Let's take a look at what went down on this week's show.
The Hardys and Mark Briscoe vs. Butcher, Blade and Kip Sabian
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- All of Briscoe's little yells and screams can be unintentionally hilarious.
- The Blade did the thing Roddy Piper always used to do when he had someone in a headlock and he would hold onto their hair when they tried to shoot him off into the ropes.
- The Butcher trying to stop Matt from doing his hand gesture was kind of funny.
Rampage. AEW
After last week's show changed up the formula, Friday's Rampage was back to opening the show with the participants in the first match already in the ring and ready to fight.
Briscoe and Sabian started for their teams with an energetic exchange before the Hardys tagged in for a double-team suplex.
Matt and Jeff are legends who will forever be known as one of the tag teams that changed the game, but we have to accept that they have to work a different style than they used to due to age, injuries and other factors.
This was a decent trios bout that gave a handful of talented wrestlers some screen time and a few fun moments for the live crowd. It's not going to steal the show, but it was fine for what it was.
The Hardys and Briscoe picked up the win with the announcers immediately talking about their potential as a full-time trio chasing the titles, so we may see them go after The Acclaimed soon.
Result: The Hardys and Mark Briscoe defeated The Butcher, Blade and Kip Sabian
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale vs. Local Talents, Anna Jay vs. Hikaru Shida
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- Hardcastle's real last name is Copeland, which is hilarious because Adam Copeland used to go by the name Sexton Hardcastle before signing with WWE.
- Mimi trained at the Monster Factory and has had previous appearances in Ring of Honor and on AEW Dark and Elevation.
- Jay opted for much brighter gear than she usually wears, which might be a sign of a potential babyface turn. Or it might be nothing. We overthink things sometimes, especially when it comes to wrestling.
Rampage. AEW
Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander vs. Local Talents
Willow and Stat had a match against two local talents named Kennedi Hardcastle and Notorious Mimi. Stokely Hathaway gave Statlander a big introduction but did not do the same for Willow. This wasn't as quick as a lot of squash matches, but it was definitely still a squash. Willow and Stat scored an easy win.
Result: Incomplete
Grade: Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale defeated the local talents
Anna Jay vs. Hikaru Shida
The second women's match of the night featured Jay and Shida competing in singles action. During a backstage segment, Jay indicated she wants to do this on her own instead of having Daddy Magic and Angelo Parker by her side. Harley Cameron whispered an offer in Parker's ear that interested her.
Shida ended up getting the win in a decent performance, but there was one big mistake that took the wins out of their sails.
At one point, Jay rolled Shida over into a pin and the ref clearly pulled his hand up from counting the three long before Shida kicked out. It was obvious that Shida kicked out late.
Result: Hikaru Shida defeated Anna Jay
Grade: C+
Notable Moments and Observations
Komander vs. Wheeler Yuta
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- White tights must be so hard to keep clean. It was weird seeing both guys wearing them.
- They did a good job zooming in on Komander's hand when he reached for the rope during the break so we could see it on the little screen during picture-in-picture.
Rampage. AEW
The main event of this week's show was a huge clash of styles for the Ring of Honor Pure Championship as the high-flying Komander challenged the BCC's Yuta.
Yuta is a striker and submissions specialist and Komander is a luchador who appears to defy gravity, but they were evenly matched in size and speed, so there was no clear advantage heading into the match.
This was a pretty competitive match with a quick pace right from the get-go. Both men had to use their first rope break before the commercial and Komander used his second while the show was playing in picture-in-picture.
Komander had exhausted all three of his rope breaks with more than 10 minutes left to go, so Yuta was firmly in control. When he tried to grab the rope while he was in a submission, the ref couldn't do anything about it and Komander was forced to tap out.
This didn't have as many high spots as the usual Komander match, but it was entertaining nonetheless.
Result: Wheeler Yuta defeated Komander
Grade: B
Notable Moments and Observations
The Final Word
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Wheeler Yuta and Komander.AEW
This week's Rampage was an average episode of Rampage. Whether you see that as a good or bad thing is up to you.
It had the usual squash match, some filler and a solid main event, but the thing that made this week's episode was the inclusion of two women's bouts.
AEW has made a concerted effort to feature more women on television and more storylines across the division, and so far, 2024 is off to a good start.
There are a handful of non-title stories going on while both champions have their hands full with at least one challenger, which is great because AEW has a wealth of talented women on its roster.
If you only see one match from the show, make it Yuta vs. Komander. Shida vs. Jay was decent but the missed three-count stood out and kept it from being a standout performance for Jay.
Grade: C+
