AEW Rampage Review - August 13, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Christian Cage def. AEW World Champion Kenny Omega to Win the Impact World Championship (AEW World Championship Wasn't Defended)

This was every bit as fun as I expected it to be given how great both guys are. Omega can undoubtedly be a goofy heel more often than not, but he's still stellar in the ring, while Christian isn't looking his age whatsoever. He's somehow found a way to turn back the hands and continue to kill it against a variety of opponents. The uncertainty surrounding the outcome added to the electricity that much more and the crowd was white-hot for everything they did. I wasn't super fond of the interference from The Young Bucks and Jurassic Express, but I understand it was done to protect Omega in defeat and not give away a clean finish before they face off again for the AEW World Championship at All Out. And yes, as of now, I expect that match to go on as planned. I'm still not sold on Omega losing his first singles match in almost two years to Christian, but they made it out to be a big deal and it was an awesome moment for Christian, who came out of retirement earlier this year and is now a world champion again.

AEW TNT Champion Miro def. Fuego Del Sol; Sammy Guevara Announced That Fuego Is All Elite

I don't watch Sammy Guevara's vlog at all, but even I'm aware of the underground following Fuego has developed over the last year through the enhancement matches he's worked on the Dark shows. He's won only once (why not keep him win-less and make his first big win a huge deal?), but the people still love him everywhere he goes and Pittsburgh was no exception. He hit his finisher three times on Miro, but Miro kicked out and beat Fuego mere moments later. Considering the time left in the show, this was pretty much what it needed to be. Fuego ended up getting an AEW contract out of it anyway via Guevara afterward which made for a really nice, emotional moment.​

AEW Women's World Champion Britt Baker def. Red Velvet

Of course, the sole reason why this headlined the show was because Baker hails from Pittsburgh, not because this was a barn burner compared to the opener. That said, it was still an entertaining main event. The crowd was wildly behind Baker, who was basically the babyface in this bout, and Velvet was wise to embrace being the heel. They gave it a good effort and didn't go longer than they needed to. Kris Statlander is clearly getting the next title shot, most likely at All Out, and we also found out that Jamie Hayter will be Baker's "backup" going forward. I'm only slightly familiar with who Hayter is, but hopefully we'll get a better idea of what she's capable of very soon.

Overall Show

We've long anticipated a true second show for AEW and it lived up to the hype. It didn't need to feature any short of huge debut because I'm sure those are coming very soon (possibly next week at The First Dance), but having all these matches contested for championships was smart for the first night as well as ensuring there wasn't any filler. There were memorable moments, Omega vs. Christian was top-notch and the hour absolutely flew by. If Rampage can simply be a mini version of Dynamite with faces we don't tend to see all that much on Wednesdays along with established star power, then it should be a success. My only nitpick was that Chris Jericho was almost unbearable to listen to on commentary. Hopefully the four-man booth was a one-week thing and it will be down to either three or (ideally) two men next week.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews