AEW Rampage Review - August 5, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

​AEW Interim World Champion Jon Moxley def. Mance Warner in an AEW Interim World Championship Eliminator

This wasn't a No Disqualification match, but it might as well have been. Both of them specialize in the hardcore style, so while this was a standard singles match, they still managed to incorporate blood and chairs (they didn't actually use the latter but they tried). I know Moxley loves getting color, but I don't think it was actually necessary here. That aside, this was a very enjoyable opener and Warner impressed me with what he could do. Does AEW need him on their roster? I'm not too sure about that, but he definitely made the most of this opportunity even though the outcome was never in doubt.

Konosuke Takeshita def. Ryan Nemeth

Takeshita has had quite a few matches since arriving in AEW, but believe it or not, this actually marked the first win he's picked up on AEW TV. And yes, they already announced that he'll challenge Claudio Castagnoli for the ROH World Championship (which is sure to be a banger) at Saturday's Battle of the Belts III special, so he probably should have won on TV more prior to this point. Nonetheless, this did what it needed to and was a quick squash to showcase the talented Takeshita.

Madison Rayne def. Leila Grey

Rayne just debuted in AEW earlier this week and already she's wrestling for them. I don't know if she'll be a regular in the ring, but I'm fine with her competing on occasion. Unfortunately, this was a rough outing. Rayne has been staying active over in IMPACT, but she was never known for her amazing in-ring ability and Grey is still improving, so this was not good. I honestly fear for her upcoming AEW TBS Championship match with Jade Cargill on Wednesday's Dynamite.

AEW World Tag Team Champions Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland def. Tony Nese and Josh Woods in a Street Fight (Non-Title)

This feud has been brewing in recent weeks, but I truthfully could not bring myself to care about it. I maintain Lee and Strickland feel like transitional champions and the duo of Nese and Woods does not interest me at all if Mark Sterling will be their manager. That's coming from a fan of Woods and I believe he has potential, but he hasn't been established and I can't imagine anyone in the audience cared about him here. They had an enjoyable main event and although the stipulation was unnecessary, at least they made the most of it.

Overall Show

Tony Khan probably saw how poor Rampage was performing in the ratings and decided to add some star power to the show this week in the form of Moxley vs. Warner and a Street Fight main event. Both bouts were entertaining and Rayne's in-ring debut for AEW was notable despite not being all that great. Throw in a Takeshita squash and you have a thumbs-up edition of Rampage that was less of a chore to sit through than usual.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews