Welcome to Fightful.com's live coverage & discussion for AEW Dynamite for 1/12/22. We'll be bringing you full, fight-by-fight results of every match on the card.
— The show begins with the commentary team of Jim Ross, Excalibur and Tony Schiavone welcoming us to tonight's edition of AEW Dynamite. Adam Cole, Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish then make their way out to the ring. Cole asks who's ready for story time with 'Adam Cole Bay Bay' then says 2021 was a great year for him, O'Reilly and Fish and says 2022 will be even better. Cole says he's never been pinned in AEW and is yet to lose in singles competition. Cole says the most important thing is that he, KOR and Fish are back together and it's a new era in AEW. Matt and Nick Jackson interrupt and sarcastically thank them for the invite. KOR says nobody invited them to Jacksonville either and they didn't need their help last week. Matt says reDRagon is one of the best tag teams in the world but this is THEIR company. Matt says their new year's resolution is to get their AEW Tag Titles back. Fish says they have the same resolution and no tag team on the planet is going to stand between he and KOR and the tag team titles and that includes Matt and Nick. Cole steps-in and says a little friendly competition is exactly what they need and that's what makes them the best faction in the world. Orange Cassidy, Chuck Taylor, Trent, Wheeler Yuta and Kris Statlander then interrupt and make their way to the ring. Cole asks production to cut their 'stupid' music off and then asks Orange Cassidy what he could possibly have to say. Cassidy attacks Cole and the eight begin to brawl. Cole and Cassidy are left in the ring, Cole low blows Cassidy, Statlander stops Cole from kicking Cassidy but Britt Baker comes down and takes out Statlander which allows Cole to drill Cassidy with a knee to the back of the head. Cole tells the Bucks to kiss him, Baker stops them and plants one on Cole as Brandon Cutler cools everyone down with some mist as commentary announces that CM Punk will face Wardlow up next.
CM Punk vs. Wardlow (with MJF)
— Punk goes right for Wardlow but the big man keeps shoving him aside before laying Punk out with a clothesline. Wardlow backs Punk into the corner, misses an elbow, Punk switches momentum and unloads on Wardlow with few strikes but Wardlow, again, uses his power to his advantage and knocks Punk to the mat with a kick. Wardlow tosses Punk back into the corner then tosses him into another, misses the running clothesline, Punk looks for the GTS, Wardlow powers out, looks for the power-bomb symphony but Punk rolls out and slides out of the ring as we head to picture-in-picture. Punk gets back into the ring, works over Wardlow's arm but Wardlow powers right out and smashes Punk into the corner. Wardlow looks for an uppercut but Punk slides out and pushes Wardlow into the corner but is quickly tossed out of the ring and Wardlow plays up to the crowd as Punk recovers on the outside with MJF mocking him. Back in the ring, Punk gets tossed right back into the corner, Wardlow works him over, Punk's tripped to the mat and seated in the corner, Wardlow picks him up by the throat and sends him flying right back into the corner. Wardlow goes for a running clothesline, Punk boots him in the face but Wardlow throws him back. Wardlow goes for the power-bomb symphony but Punk slides out and starts chopping the big man in the chest. Punk's relentless with the strikes, goes up top and knocks Wardlow to the mat with a spring-board clothesline. Punk hits Wardlow in the corner with a flying knee but Wardlow catches him and plants him with a power-bomb. Wardlow picks him up and nails him with another massive power-bomb as MJF laughs on the outside. Wardlow lifts Punk for a third, hits it, immediately goes for a fourth, hits it, goes for a fifth and hits that one too. Wardlow puts his foot on Punk's chest, gets the 1, 2 but MJF tells referee Aubrey Edwards to stop counting and urges Wardlow to keep on the attack, to which the big man obliges. Wardlow lifts Punk for a sixth and he nails it. MJF yells on the outside for Wardlow to do another, the big man plants Punk with a seventh power-bomb. MJF's taunting the North Carolina crowd from the outside as Aubrey checks on Punk. Wardlow goes to the outside, drags Punk with him, MJF tells him to stop and clears off the time keeper's table and tells Wardlow to power-bomb him through it...and Wardlow does. MJF celebrates as Aubrey Edwards begins the 10-count. Punk struggles to his feet, MJF taunts him on the outside, Edwards is at an eight count, then nine but Punk crawls back in to avoid the 10. MJF gets on the apron and continues to direct traffic and tells Wardlow to power-bomb him again. Wardlow lifts Punk but Punk rolls him up for the 1-2-3 and the win!
Winner - CM Punk
— After the match, MJF looks on in disgust then tells production to cut Punk's music. MJF verbally chews out Wardlow in the ring, shoves him, Wardlow looks like he's on the brink of breaking, he grabs MJF's hand and Shawn Spears comes down and tries to mediate the situation and Wardlow exits the ring while Spears and MJF follow. Commentary announces that Powerhouse Hobbs will face Dante Martin after the break.
Powerhouse Hobbs (with Taz & Ricky Starks) vs. Dante Martin
— Martin goes flying at Hobbs and knocks him out of the ring right as the bell sounds. Martin goes up top and comes flying down but Hobbs catches him and nails him onto the outside floor with a spine-buster. Hobbs tosses Martin into the ring and slams him right down to the mat. Hobbs plants Martin with a front-suplex, slices his elbow across Martin's face, picks him up, Martin fights back but Hobbs lays him out with a big clothesline. Hobbs keeps on the attack and starts unloading punches Martin's forehead, Martin tries to fight back but Hobbs knocks him right back down to the mat. Hobbs looks for the torture rack, Martin slips out, bounces off the ropes but is met with a cross-body from Hobbs, who goes for the cover but Martin lifts the shoulders at two. Hobbs tosses Martin into the corner, starts yelling at him and clubs him with a forearm before tossing him into the corner and Martin flips over the top turnbuckle and out to the floor where Ricky Starks starts laying into Martin with kicks while Hobbs distracts referee Rick Knox and we go to a picture-in-picture. Martin gets back into the ring but is met with a sidewalk slam from Hobbs, who picks him up off the mat by his hair and nails him with a pair of bevy of right hooks. Martin fights back with an elbow to the jaw of Hobbs, then a boot to the face but Hobbs catches him and looks for the torture rack and Martin, again, slides out and drills him with an inziguri then a flying drop-kick off the top rope, looks for the cover but Hobbs kicks out at two. Hobbs rolls out of the ring and Martin follows him with a flying elbow from the top. Starks checks on Hobbs, Martin gets in the ring to recover, Hobbs gets to the apron, Martin takes him out with a side-kick, both men roll to the apron, Starks is about to attack Martin but Jay Lethal comes out of nowhere and takes Starks out, Hobbs gets distracted and Martin nails Hobbs with the nose dive and gets the three-count for the win!
Winner - Dante Martin
— Backstage, we see Chris Jericho, Jake Hager and Santana & Ortiz of The Inner Circle alongside Alex Marvez, who asks Jericho how they feel about being named PWInsider's 2021 Faction of The Year. Jericho says he's not surprised because since day one, they promised to take over this company and this country and to be the 'baddest band of blood brothers' in professional wrestling. Jericho says their brother Sammy Guevara is going to take out Daniel Garcia tonight and retain his TNT Championship. Eddie Kingston comes in and says he wants a piece of Garcia because of what he did to him and then asks Santana & Ortiz why they don't have the AEW Tag Team Titles yet, Jericho tells Kingston to shutup and says this is the big leagues, not the street of New York. Everyone except Jericho and Kingston walk off, Jericho says if 2point0 gets involved tonight, he'll kick their ass...and if Kingston gets involved, he'll kick his ass too. Kingston begs Jericho to fight him and they stare each other down as we head back to the ring.
— Out comes MJF, who says he hates to interrupt the show, even though he's the only star on it. MJF tells the crowd to keep their 'hillybilly mouths' shut. MJF says he knows Punk's watching backstage and says everyone knows that he got a fluke win over Wardlow tonight. MJF says next week, Punk will get the match he and everybody else has been waiting for and next week it's CM Punk vs. Shawn Spears before dropping the microphone and walking out to a chorus of boos.
— We then see Adam Cole, Kyle O'Reilly, Bobby Fish, and Matt & Nick Jackson backstage. Cole says they've whooped the Best Friends asses over and over that it's silly to even talk about. Cole says that includes Kris Statlander, who thought she could get one over on them but not anymore. Britt Baker comes in and says that she and Adam Cole would like to challenger her and Orange Cassidy to a mixed tag match next week on Dynamite.
— AEW World Champion Adam 'Hangman' Page now makes his way to the ring and we see a highlight package of him defeating Bryan Danielson on last week's show to retain his title. Page says in the past two months, he's spent 90-minutes in the ring with one of the best in the world and he's spilt enough blood to fill a battleship all for the 'ultimate prize' and the 'most important thing in professional wrestling' the AEW World Championship. Page says 90-minutes isn't enough and it's a new year and the records have reset and he needs a new challenge. American Top Team Owner Dan Lambert makes his way to the ring and says Page isn't a real champion like Dory or Terry Funk and now they have to deal with the 'East coast bourbon cowboy'. Page says he's looking for a new challenger and if Ethan Page or Scorpio Sky want a shot at the title, they can come tell him themselves but he doesn't wanna hear from the 'walking Facebook profile' Dan Lambert, who says he's actually out there to compliment Page and the two matches he had against Danielson are two of the best matches he's ever seen. Lambert says he admires Page because he 'didn't take the Cody Rhodes route' and get a title through backstage politics. Lambert says Page has earned everything he's gotten in this business except this 'gimmick' that he's been portraying and anyone of the Village People can put on some gear and pretend their a cowboy but that doesn't make them one. Lambert says he can do whatever he wants but pleads with Page to stop 'disrespecting' the likes of Dick Murdoch and Blackjack Mulligan and he's sick of guys from North Carolina and Virginia trying to 'steal their clout' and it just comes across of being 'completely full of cowboy shit'. Page says apparently growing up on a farm cleaning horse shit all day is just being full of cowboy shit and turning down a six-figure deal to come and start a new company is just being full of cowboy shit? Page says he's still looking for a challenge so Lambert should get into the ring and let him put his size 12 boots up his ass and show him how full of cowboy shit he truly is. Lambert says that's not gonna happen and he'll just make his way out. Lance Archer comes down and chases Lambert into the ring with a steel chair, Archer chokes Lambert but tosses him aside and takes out Page as Lambert scurries off. Archer unloads into Page with the aforementioned chair then lifts Page to the top rope and absolutely blasts Page with the blackout onto the chair.
— We then see Arn Anderson backstage with his son Brock alongside Lee Moriarty. Arn says this is horseman country and Tully Blanchard comes in and says if he wants that feeling again, he needs to ditch the deadwood. FTR, who join Tully, suggest a that they face Brock and Lee next week, to which they agree. Commentary then announces that Hiakru Shida vs. Serena Deeb is up next after the break.
Hikaru Shida vs. Serena Deeb
— Shida makes her entrance but is taken out by Deeb, who goes right for Shida's knee. Deeb continues the attack, nailing Shida's knee with a chair and then the steel steps. Once Shida finally gets in the ring, Serena uses the ropes to lock-up Shida's already damaged knee, Deeb rips off Shida's kneepad and slams it into the mat then locks-up a submission and the referee waves it off. What a beat-down by Serena Deeb.
Winner - Serena Deeb
— After the match, Shida yells at the ref for stopping the match, AEW officials come and check on her but Deeb comes right back with a kendo stick and continues the attack until the officials are able to separate her from Shida and we head to a commercial break.
— Back from the break and Matt Hardy is in the ring and says while he's sorry that Rey Fenix got injured, tonight, they're in his hometown and he's in front of his beautiful family and he is going to delete Penta and send him to the hospital to be with his brother.
Matt Hardy vs. Penta El Zero Miedo (with Alex Abrahantes)
— We have a 'delete' vs. 'Zero Miedo' off to start this one out. Penta takes off his glove and stops the delete signal and Hardy takes down Penta with a clothesline but Hardy walks directly into a super-kick. Penta sends Matt to the outside with a kick and tries to follow him with a dive through the ropes but Hardy stops him with a right hook and then tosses Penta into the barricade. Hardy drops an elbow from the middle rope, goes for a cover but Penta kicks out at two. Hardy continues the attack with an elbow, then a leg-drop and sends Penta shoulder-first into the turnbuckle. They both roll to the ring apron, Hardy hits a side effect, goes for the cover but Penta lifts the shoulders at two-and-a-half. Hardy goes up top, looks for a moonsault but Penta slides out and drills Hardy with the Fear Factor and gets the 1-2-3 for the win!
Winner - Penta El Zero Miedo
— After the match, Pent and Alex Abrahantes call for Malakai Black. The lights go out and Malakai appears. Malakai takes out Alex and then hits Penta with a super-kick and tries to rip his mask off, but the Varsity Blondes come down and make the save but Julia Hart tells them to stop. The lights go out for a second time and Brody King appears! Brody lays everyone out and then he and Malakai pose.
— Kris Statlander is backstage with Tony Schiavone but Leyla Hirsch interrupts and calls Statlander sefish, Red Velvet comes in and tells Statlander and Hirsch to get it together as the segment ends.
The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster) vs. Bear Country (Bear Bronson & Bear Boulder)
— Bear Country use their power to take the advantage early. They lift both Bowens and Caster and dump them on each other. Country work quick tags and double team moves but Bowens reverses momentum and drills Boulder with a drop-kick, Caster then comes flying off the top rope to take Boulder out again. Bowens lifts Bronson but can't keep him up and both men end up making a tag. Boulder takes out Bowens and Caster and launches both of them up into a double flat-liner. Bowens powers back to his feet and hits Boulder with an elbow but is quickly sent out of the ring by Boulder. Bowens is able to sneak in a rope to the throat on Boulder and Caster hits the Mic Drop and gets the three-count for the win!
Winners - The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster)
— After the match, Sting comes out and both Bowens and Caster back off but Darby Allin appears on the other side and Darby launches himself through the ropes with a skateboard and takes out Caster. Meanwhile, Sting nails Bowens with a baseball bat and then a Scorpion Deathdrop as he and Darby celebrate.
– We then see a video package featuring PAC, who says he has a different perspective and his vision has never been so clear and a card is revealed that says 'justice'.
— Matt Hardy's backstage and he says he's frustrated. Matt says something has to change. Andrade comes in and tells Matt that he needs to focus and hands him a water. Andrade wants to make a deal with Matt and both he and Matt head to his office and Matt tells Isiah Kassidy and Marq Queen to stay back. Commentary then says our main event will happen right after the break.
Sammy Guevara (C) vs. Daniel Garcia — Interim TNT Championship
— Both men brawl the second the bell rings. Garcia nails Sammy with a drop-kick to the back but Sammy returns fire and they exchange chops before Sammy tosses Garcia to the outside and follows him with a dive through the ropes. Back in the ring, Garcia hits a back-breaker, and Sammy rolls to the outside. Garcia grabs Sammy and drills him on the apron with a DDT, goes for the cover but Sammy lifts the shoulders at two. Garcia continues the attack and hits a running clothesline but Sammy hits one of his own before tossing Garcia into the corner. Sammy for a splash but Garcia rolls to the outside, Sammy kips up and drills Garcia with a back-flip off of the middle rope. Sammy goes right back up top but Garcia pulls his legs out from underneath him which causes Sammy's head to come down right on the turnbuckle. Guevara avoids the running strike in the corner and hits the Cross Rhodes on Garcia but the challenger kicks out at two-and-a-half. Sammy looks for a spring-board cutter but Garcia catches him, locks-in a sleeper, transitions into a pile-driver, goes for the cover but Sammy stays alive and kicks out at two. On the outside, 2point0 come out and jump Chris Jericho and Eddie Kingston, who also came down. Back in the ring, Sammy takes control, knocks 2point0 out on the outside and hits the GTS for the 1-2-3 and the win!
Winner - Sammy Guevara
— After the match, 2point0 try to attack Guevara but Chris Jericho and Eddie Kingston make the save but end up arguing face-to-face as the show comes to a close.
