AEW Dynamite: Summer Blockbuster comes to you live from the Andrew J. Brady Music Center in Cincinnati. The card for tonight features Jon Moxley defending his Continental Championship against Shane Taylor, Orange Cassidy squaring off against Andrade El Idolo, Owen Hart Foundation Tournament men’s and women’s quarterfinal matches, and much more!
AEW Dynamite Summer Blockbuster Card
- Swerve Strickland vs. Brody King – Owen Hart Foundation Men’s Tournament Quarterfinal
- Skye Blue vs. Maya World – Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament Quarterfinal
- PAC vs. Mark Briscoe
- We’ll hear from Tommaso Ciampa
- We’ll hear from TNT Champion Kevin Knight
- Jon Moxley (c) vs. Shane Taylor – AEW Continental Championship Match
- Orange Cassidy vs. Andrade El Idolo
AEW Dynamite Summer Blockbuster Results
Excalibur welcomes us to AEW Dynamite: Summer Blockbuster from Cincinnati.
Tony Schiavone is in the ring to get comments from Tommaso Ciampa.
We get a recap of Ciampa’s actions from last week’s Collision, where he used Jericho’s Liontamer to almost break his opponent’s back. Ciampa cuts Schiavone off and tells him to tell the fans in the building and watching at home that he is better than Jericho. Schiavone declines, and Ciampa grabs him by the throat, reiterating his demand or “I’ll break your back.” Schiavone obliges, but as he’s about to complete the sentence, Jericho’s music hits as Schiavone exits the ring.
Ciampa interrupts Jericho’s music and asks him what he has to say about last week. Jericho jokes that he finally gets to talk to someone with hair. Ciampa is irate. Jericho says they got off on the wrong foot and proceeds to introduce himself with, “Hi, I’m Jericho.” Ciampa says he knows who Jericho is. He hypes himself up, only for Jericho to call him “Tommy.” The crowd begins chanting “Tommy.”
Ciampa tells Jericho his name is Tommaso. Jericho says that isn’t very marketable and proceeds to double down on the name he came up with for Ciampa. Tommaso says even his mother never called him Tommy. Jericho cracks another joke with “Tommy’s mommy,” prompting the crowd to turn that into a chant. Jericho then makes up several names for Tommaso before the conversation turns serious. A brawl breaks out, causing security to come out and separate the two men. Jericho is taken out of the ring, but both men break free and attack each other. They are separated once again as we move on to the next segment of the night.
Andrade sounds off on new Don Callis recruit
Renee Paquette is backstage to get comments from Kevin Knight and Don Callis for last week’s actions. Before they can speak, Andrade shows up and questions Callis about bringing Knight into the faction. He tells Knight to get to the back of the line when it comes to a world title opportunity. Knight isn’t fazed by the remarks and tells El Idolo that he’s talking to the TNT Champion. He then tells Callis they have business to attend to, and both men leave while Andrade stares a hole through them.
Jon Moxley (c) vs. Shane Taylor – AEW Continental Championship Match
- The finish of the match saw Moxley plant Shane Taylor with a stomp before locking in a bulldog choke for the win.
Winner and still AEW Continental Champion: Jon Moxley
Taylor lays out Moxley with a thunderous shot to the face. Carlie Bravo hands Taylor a leather belt, and he proceeds to whip the Death Rider. Daniel Garcia tries to make the save but is overwhelmed by Carlie Bravo and Shawn Dean. Marina Shafir then arrives at ringside, only to be struck with a kendo stick by Trish Adora. Back in the ring, Taylor chokes out Moxley before capping off the assault with a splash. Shane Taylor Promotions gather outside the ring as Moxley tries to recover.
Grade: B-
The post-match angle was more entertaining than the match itself. To be honest, most Moxley matches follow the same formula: arrive, take a beating, show the middle finger, bite the forehead, hit a cutter, land a stomp, and win.
A message from The CEO
Mercedes Mone puts the entire AEW women’s division on notice.
Former champion returns on AEW Dynamite
Don Callis introduces Kevin Knight. The Jet puts over Callis for the introduction before mocking Cincinnati, drawing loud “F*** Don Callis” chants from the crowd. Knight says Callis recognizes talent and made him the number one asset in The Don Callis Family. He adds that he aligned himself with Callis to become “Jet Two Belts.”
Knight then calls out AEW World Champion MJF, but instead, Darby Allin’s music hits. Allin blindsides Knight with a shot to the shoulder blades using his skateboard. He tells Knight, “I hope New York was worth it, bi*ch,” before going for a Coffin Drop. However, the rest of The Don Callis Family appear, forcing Darby to retreat from the ring.
Just a bunch of marks talking….
Mark Briscoe is engaged in some kind of discussion with Tony Khan, who says it sounds like a good plan before telling production to hit Briscoe’s music.
PAC vs. Mark Briscoe
- Briscoe gets his knees up to avoid the Black Arrow before planting PAC with a Jay Driller for the win.
Winner: Mark Briscoe
Briscoe grabs a mic and claims he has a “direct path” to the AEW World Championship before calling out MJF.
MJF’s music hits, and he addresses Briscoe from the crowd. He claims he’s the final word in AEW and that nobody is more important than him. Friedman once again denies Briscoe a shot at the AEW World Championship. He calls himself the rising tide of AEW and refers to Briscoe as an anchor.
Friedman then mocks Briscoe’s relationship with The Conglomeration. He distracts Briscoe long enough for Jay Lethal and his henchmen to attack him from behind. Commentary notes that the trio have been paid by MJF to do his dirty work.
Lethal attempts a Lethal Injection, but Briscoe stops him with a kick. Briscoe tries to take on everyone by himself, but the odds are stacked against him. The rest of The Conglomeration finally arrive to help Mark fend off the attackers.
Briscoe grabs the mic and calls Friedman an asshole. He reveals that Tony Khan has booked a huge main event for Forbidden Door: a steel cage match pitting Briscoe and five other men against MJF and a team of his choosing. If Briscoe wins, he gets a guaranteed title shot against MJF.
Andrade’s music hits, and El Idolo has a staredown with MJF as we move on to the next match of the night.
Grade: B+
I haven’t seen Jay Lethal on AEW Dynamite in ages. As for the Forbidden Door main event, it looks like we’ll be seeing MJF team up with members of The Don Callis Family against The Conglomeration, Darby Allin, and Konosuke Takeshita.
Andrade El Idolo vs. Orange Cassidy
- The finish of the match saw Andrade hit Orange Cassidy with the DM for the win.
In his post-match promo, Andrade says he has vanquished Orange Cassidy. The crowd begins chanting “How you know?”, prompting El Idolo to crack his catchphrase.
Grade: B+
Despite his loss against Andrade, Orange Cassidy will somehow get involved in the Forbidden Door main event. Why? Because Tony Khan loves him.
We hear from Will Ospreay
Will Ospreay addresses his win in the Owen Hart Tournament match last week on AEW Dynamite. Ospreay says the chops from Mark Davis felt like a truck caved in his chest. Alex Windsor runs into her husband, visibly upset after her loss to Mercedes Moné in the Women’s Owen Hart Tournament, causing Ospreay to turn the camera to the other side as he tries to comfort her.
The Death Riders challenge STP to a Street Fight
Jon Moxley is unable to find his voice after a brutal attack from Shane Taylor earlier on AEW Dynamite. Marina Shafir addresses Trish Adora’s kendo stick attack, prompting Daniel Garcia to challenge Shane Taylor Promotions to a five-on-five street fight on AEW Collision this week.
Skye Blue vs. Maya World – Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament Quarterfinal
Renee Paquette informs us that Maya World is competing to honor the memory of her brother, who recently passed away. For those unaware, Maya replaced Sareee in the match against Skye Blue after the Japanese star suffered a neck injury.
- The finish of the match saw Maya World pull off a sneaky pinfall for the win.
Grade: A-
First, our prayers and thoughts go out to Maya and her family in this trying time. Second, hats off to her for competing despite her brother’s tragic death. She stepped up on short notice to replace Sareee in the Owen Tournament. This isn’t the first time Maya has proved to be reliable, as she and Hayan previously replaced Nixon Newell (Tegan Nox) and Miranda Alize against TayJay on an episode of AEW Collision.
New match announced for Forbidden Door
As announced during AEW Dynamite: Summer Blockbuster Kenny Omega will face Zack Sabre Jr. at Forbidden Door later this month.
MJF talks business with The Don Callis Family
MJF approaches The Don Callis Family and pleads with them to team up for the Forbidden Door steel cage main event. Callis tries to talk tough but is visibly stunned when Max reveals a briefcase full of money. Callis accepts Max’s offer, and Friedman says he needs one week to pick his team.
Kevin Knight steps up, but only on the condition that he gets a shot at the AEW World Championship after Forbidden Door. Friedman says he will have no problem retaining his title again against The Jet.
As the rest of the family members leave, Andrade stops Callis and asks about his title shot. Callis says they’ll figure it out soon.
Swerve Strickland vs. Brody King – Owen Hart Foundation Men’s Tournament Quarterfinal
- The finish of the match saw Swerve Strickland hit a Vertebreaker on Brody King for the win.
Winner: Swerve Strickland
Grade: A-
A great match to cap off AEW Dynamite: Summer Blockbuster. The stage is now set for the Men’s Owen Hart Tournament final, which will see Swerve Strickland take on Will Ospreay at Forbidden Door.
Overall Grade: B-
AEW Dynamite: Summer Blockbuster lands as a solid but uneven episode.
The clear strengths of the show came from the Owen Hart Tournament matches. The Women’s quarterfinal stood out less for in-ring action and more for its emotional weight, with Maya World stepping up on short notice despite the personal tragedy of her brother’s passing. That added a genuine human layer to an otherwise straightforward match and made her victory feel meaningful.
The Men’s quarterfinal delivered in a different way, offering a hard-hitting, physical contest that ultimately paid off by setting up a compelling Forbidden Door final between Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay. That matchup feels like a strong direction for the tournament and one of the more exciting outcomes of the night.
Outside of the Owen tournament, however, the show struggled to maintain the same level. The steel cage announcement for Forbidden Door comes across as overbooked for the event, feeling like a stipulation that could have been saved for a standard Dynamite rather than positioned as a major attraction. Similarly, the opening match followed a familiar Jon Moxley formula, which made it feel predictable and less engaging compared to the rest of the card.
Overall, the episode had two strong anchors in the Owen matches but lacked consistency across the rest of the card. The pieces are in place for bigger developments, but the execution this week felt uneven.
That’s it for tonight, and I’ll be back with more coverage next week.
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How would you rate this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite on a scale of 1 to 10? Let us know in the comments!
