AEW Collision: Spring Break Thru Review - April 16, 2026

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Young Bucks Saved Adam Copeland from AEW World Tag Team Champions FTR and RPG Vice

Copeland mentioned that Christian Cage wasn't present because he was still recovering from the match, so hopefully he's not gone for long assuming their feud with FTR is continuing into Double or Nothing. Much like what we got on Wednesday's Dynamite, this was another simple segment that established that the Bucks are still in the AEW World Tag Team Championship mix. I wouldn't be shocked to get Copeland and Christian vs. RPG Vice before then.

The Young Bucks def. The Rascalz (Zachary Wentz and Myron Reed)

I liked that the Bucks were already out in the ring for this match after being involved in the opening segment. This was exactly the sort of match I was looking forward to The Rascalz having when they signed with AEW. Granted, they lost, but it made more sense to keep the Bucks rolling coming off their victory at Dynasty. This was a really enjoyable outing and I appreciated that it got an ample amount of time.

AEW World Trios Champions The Conglomeration (Kyle O'Reilly, Roderick Strong and Orange Cassidy) def. Lethal Twist (The Swirl and Jay Lethal) in an AEW World Trios Championship Eliminator Match

I can't remember seeing too many Eliminator matches involving the Trios champs. I'm sure we've gotten at least one or two in the past, but none come to mind. Some will make the argument that this may as well have been a title match, but then my first question would be, what would Lethal Twist have done on AEW TV to earn a shot at the straps? This was a solid showcase for The Conglomeration.

Kris Statlander and Hikaru Shida def. Big Anne and Danika Della Rouge

I still have no idea what the point of this pairing is with Statlander and Shida aside from keeping Statlander busy for the sake of keeping her busy, but I hope it's leading to something interesting for the two of them. It would be lazy for them to be put into the tag team division, but that might be where we're headed. Regardless, this was a perfectly fine squash match that didn't overstay its welcome.

AEW Continental Champion Jon Moxley def. ROH World Television Champion Nick Wayne in an AEW Continental Championship Proving Ground Match (ROH World Television Championship Was Not Defended)

While it was weird to see Wayne face a fellow heel in Moxley, it made sense in this situation because Wayne was in his hometown (or at least his home state). We never got a proper payoff to his storyline with Christian from last year, but oh well. It's almost impossible to care at this point. To their credit, they had a quality contest, even though was the outcome never in doubt.

Pac def. Lio Rush

Rush's new character isn't exactly for me, but I applaud his effort to try something different. If the crowds don't take to it (and I have a feeling the AEW audience will), then they can move on. I don't think my mind will change, but time will tell. He and Pac managed to have a well-worked match despite the dumb character stuff and Pac acting scared. Rush will have to win eventually if they want him to be taken somewhat seriously.

Brody King, Mascara Dorada and Mistico def. Ricky Gibson, Cole Rivera and KC Riff

Well, this was random. Dorada and Mistico have great chemistry as partners and I wouldn't mind seeing them team up more often going forward, but throwing King in there with them came out of nowhere (unless I missed something). This was decent, but I have no desire to see King challenge for the AEW World Trios Championship right now, so hopefully this was just a one-off.

AEW Women's World Champion Thekla def. NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Alex Windsor (NJPW Strong Women's Championship Was Not Defended)

I'm surprised they set this up on Wednesday and did it a day later on Collision, but it did feel more like a television attraction than a pay-per-view-worthy feud. That said, I'm glad it got the main event spotlight. It wasn't a barn burner by any means, but they had a damn good match. I'm curious who Thekla moves on to now that she's wiped out The Brawling Birds in under one week.

Overall Show

I'm glad they went with airing Collision on Thursday this week so it didn't have to air opposite of WWE WrestleMania (I believe that was the case last year, too). I've had plenty of praise for Collision this year and this was another thumbs-up episode. Between the star power, the championship main event and the storyline development, there was enough going on to make the two hours worthwhile.

SEE MORE: Collision Reviews