AEW Rampage Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights From March 1
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- Claudio Castagnoli vs. Rugido
- Riho vs. Trish Adora
- The Righteous and Lance Archer in action
- Magnus vs. Matt Sydal
Rampage.AEW
Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of AEW Rampage on May 1.
We are just two days away from Revolution, so a lot of stars are preparing to compete in big matches for both titles and personal pride.
For now, we still have Rampage and Saturday's Collision, so plenty of people will be competing more than once this week. Here's a look at the card from Friday's show:
Let's take a look at what happened on this week's Rampage.
Rugido vs. Claudio Castagnoli
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- Rugido is half of the CMLL Mexican national tag team champions alongside Magnus, who appears later in the show.
- Rugido had a cool mask designed to look like a lion. His name means "Roar" in Spanish, so it's fitting.
- The video package AEW used to show us who Atlantis Jr. was during Dynamite was great. Using short videos like that should be done for all of these CMLL talents for their first match on AEW TV.
- The giant swing is always fun.
Blackpool Combat Club.AEW
The feud between the Blackpool Combat Club and the CMLL promotion was highlighted in the opening bout when Castagnoli battled Rugido.
The Swiss Superman easily overpowered the luchador at every turn. While Rugido had a slight speed advantage, it wasn't enough to even the playing field.
This match was almost all Castagnoli controlling the pace while his opponent had brief comebacks occasionally. Unlike Atlantis Jr. vs. Chris Jericho from Dynamite, this did not feel very competitive, but that seemed to be by design.
Castagnoli was supposed to look like an unstoppable force here and that is exactly what happened. Every time Rugido would string a couple of moves together, the former ROH world champion would stop him dead in his tracks.
This was a solid performance on a technical level, but it lacked excitement. Being predictable wasn't even part of the problem. It just never felt like they went beyond second gear. Castagnoli picked up the win and delivered a low blow before being chased off by Rugido's partner, Magnus.
Result: Claudio Castagnoli defeated Rugido
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
The Righteous Squash, Riho vs. Trish Adora
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- Riho's head hitting Adora's knee was a scary moment. She went completely still for a second on the mat, but the ref checked on her and she seemed fine.
- Adora was showing a lot of personality and charisma in this match. She is a good presence on screen.
- Ruby Soho and Angelo Parker were preparing for a date when Saraya and her cronies attacked them.
Rampage.AEW
Archer, Vincent and Dutch were in trios action this week against three local competitors. This was a quick squash won easily by The Righteous and Murderhawk Monster.
Result: The Righteous won
Grade: Incomplete
The Infantry's Adora faced Riho in a big mismatch of size and power. Adora overpowered her easily, but Riho's flexibility and agility allowed her to bridge out of an early pin attempt and make a comeback.
Sadly for her, it was a short comeback. Adora hit a swinging backbreaker that ended up with Riho's head hitting her knee.
After a break, the former AEW women's champion started building up a head of steam as she hit a series of quick moves. The final couple of minutes picked up quite a bit and gave the match a good finale.
Riho got the victory and celebrated as the crowd cheered.
Result: Riho defeated Trish Adora
Grade: B-
Notable Moments and Observations
Magnus vs. Matt Sydal
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- AEW played a video for Magnus that was introduced by Mark Henry.
- Magnus has interesting entrance music.
- Sydal's ability to do standing moonsaults and shooting star presses is wild. It looks like it takes him almost no effort at all.
- Magnus had one or two awkward moments when he wasn't selling enough. It really stood out when he was shoved off the middle rope onto his back and just stood up like it was nothing.
Rampage. AEW
Magnus was back in the ring to take on Sydal in the main event. The winner would earn a spot in the All-Star Scramble match at Revolution.
The luchador refused to shake hands before they engaged in a fast-paced exchange of takedowns and counters.
Magnus is going to be new to a lot of fans, but most AEW viewers are well aware of how talented Sydal is. The fact that this felt like an evenly matched fight that made both men look great is probably going to lead to some fans Googling the luchador to see more.
In a big of an upset, Sydal lost to Magnus, giving the CMLL star a spot on the Revolution card on Sunday.
Result: Magnus defeated Matt Sydal
Grade: B+
Notable Moments and Observations
The Final Word
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Claudio Castagnoli.AEW
Friday's episode of Rampage wasn't exactly memorable or noteworthy, but it wasn't a bad show by any means either.
The card felt like it was designed more to give a lot of regulars a break than it was to draw in fans. Every match had at least one competitor who is not an AEW regular, so the incentive for some fans may be low this week.
Castagnoli and Rugido had a decent encounter, and Adora and Riho were solid, but the best thing we saw all night was easily Sydal vs. Magnus.
The continuing storyline with Soho and Parker is one of the few stories AEW seems to have confined to Rampage, but it's been a fun little ride. With Parker being taken out this week, Soho is going to be out for blood in the coming weeks.
Grade: C
