AEW Rampage: St. Patrick's Day Slam Review - March 17, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

AEW TNT Champion Powerhouse Hobbs def. Rey Fenix

As lazy as the open challenge gimmick has become in wrestling, Fenix was the perfect first opponent for Hobbs. They had super fun chemistry together and had a very entertaining outing. Their styles meshed nicely and the crowd was into the action because the two of them kept the pace consistent throughout. I've seen some say that this might be Hobbs' best singles match to date in AEW and I might agree with that. More of this and less of the QTV crap, please.

Taya Valkyrie def. Ava Lawless

Rampage is so meaningless at this point that I would've preferred to see Valkyrie make her in-ring debut on Dynamite so more people could have seen it. Hopefully her feud with Jade Cargill is furthered on Dynamite most weeks and isn't relegated to Rampage. This was a straightforward showcase for Valkyrie as it should have been. She's a great get for AEW's women's division assuming she doesn't completely disappear from programming after this rivalry runs its course.

Jericho Appreciation Society ("Daddy Magic" Matt Menard and "Cool Hand" Angelo Parker) def. The Bollywood Boyz

This wouldn't be the first time these teams have faced off on a Friday night show at 10 p.m. eastern time, as they have a history from their time on the now-defunct WWE 205 Live. Bollywood Boyz are obviously Canadian, so that's why they were used here and I thought they made the most of their opportunity despite there being nothing out of the ordinary about the match. Menard and Parker are being build up for a match with The Acclaimed, so that was why this happened.

Daniel Garcia def. AEW World Trios Champion Brody King

Did Rampage really need to be headlined by these two after they already headlined Dynamite? This felt like an excuse to get Chris Jericho out in front of the Winnipeg crowd again and the match itself was just a backdrop. They had a well-wrestled affair, but both guys are heels, so it's not like the crowd had an incentive to cheer one of them over the other. The bloom is off the rose with Garcia at this point, so I would've preferred to see King win, but it's possible Jericho Appreciation Society aren't done in the AEW World Trios Championship picture. Ugh.

Overall Show

I rarely watch Rampage live, so I didn't know that this show apparently aired after midnight on the east coast because of basketball. Needless to say, I don't think this edition of Rampage was worth staying up for. Hobbs vs. Fenix was a blast, but everything else was business as usual. What's a shame is that I thought Dynamite had its best show in weeks on Wednesday, but Rampage is clearly still Rampage and the crowd was exhausted after the opener (and after having sit through Dynamite as well). For a St. Patrick's Day Slam show, only the TNT title match felt somewhat special.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews