From Jon Moxley’s Debut to Cody vs Dustin, 5 Insane Moments From AEW Double or Nothing 2019

AEW will enter its third year as a pro wrestling giant with their annual Double or Nothing PPV. Double or Nothing 2019 represented a shift in the wrestling landscape, putting AEW on the map. We saw insane matches, insane debuts and insane moments that puts this PPV on the list of best wrestling shows of all time.

Hangman Page grabs the brass ring

If you had to create a pro wrestling babyface from scratch, it would resemble Hangman Page. The cowboy from Virginia has taken the world by storm with his ‘drunk cowboy’ gimmick, but things were different for him in 2019.

AEW chose Page to be the face of the company and probably be the first AEW World Champion. Winning the Casino Battle Royal was an obvious first step to booking a date with Chris Jericho, who also became #1 contender on the show. Although he was unsuccessful at All Out, Page persevered, and he has remained AEW’s top talent for months.

An Awesome debut for Awesome Kong

The AEW Women’s division had quite a showcase at Double or Nothing. Not only did the joshis kill it, we saw the three cornerstones of the division compete as well.

Nyla Rose, Britt Baker, and now former AEW Superstar Kylie Rae had the chance to take a hold of the division and establish themselves as future champions, only for Brandi Rhodes to walk out.

She teased entering the match herself, but she introduced former WWE superstar Awesome Kong to the ring. Kong walked out to a gigantic ovation from the Las Vegas crowd and put on a wonderful performance. Despite Britt Baker picking up the win, the interactions between Kong and the Native Beast, Nyla Rose, had the crowd on their feet.

Bret Hart reveals the beautiful AEW World Title

Remember the time Mick Foley unveiled the WWE Universal Title at SummerSlam 2016? The Brooklyn crowd absolutely hated it, which resulted in them losing interest in an incredible Seth Rollins vs Finn Balor match for the title.

The scenario at Double or Nothing was the complete opposite. WWE legend Bret Hart walked to the ring and unveiled the beautiful AEW World Championship. It looked significantly larger than any of the WWE Championships and looked worthy of being held by the best wrestler in the world.

Cody and Dustin put on a bloodbath

Double or Nothing featured some incredible matches, from the opening six-man tag to the women’s matches and even the Match of the Year candidate between the Young Bucks and the Lucha Brothers. However, the match that stole the show was a mid-card clash between Cody and his brother, Dustin Rhodes.

Cody sat on a throne, akin to his former employer Triple H but destroyed the throne with a sledgehammer. This was an obvious shot at WWE and NXT, since the Wednesday Night Wars would begin a few months later.

Don’t let the entrance take anything away from the match, as the Rhodes brothers put on a bloodbath. The match resembled nothing like their match at WWE Fastlane 2016 but received a five-star rating from WON’s Dave Meltzer. To this day, it remains one of the best matches in AEW history.

Jon Moxley, welcome to AEW

Double or Nothing’s main event saw Kenny Omega take on Chris Jericho in a Wrestle Kingdom 12 rematch. In 2018, Omega knocked off Jericho and retained the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship, only for Jericho to attack him at 2018’s All In.

At Double or Nothing, it was Jericho who prevailed over the Best Bout Machine, and became #1 contender for the AEW World Championship. As he demanded a thank you from the crowd, little did he know a former friend from WWE would visit.

Jon Moxley, formerly WWE’s Dean Ambrose, made his way through the crowd and took down Jericho with Dirty Deeds, now renamed the Paradigm Shift. He attacked Omega, but he tossed him out of the ring and they brawled their way into the crowd.

Upon reaching the entrance ramp, Moxley and Omega climbed atop the giant poker chips. Moxley subdued Omega and dropped him with the Paradigm Shift on the ramp, before tossing off the chips onto the ramp below with an insane fireman’s carry slam. He stood atop the chips and posed to a humongous ovation from the crowd, marking the end of a perfect PPV.

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