The SmarK Rant for AEW All In 2026 – 08.30.26

The SmarK Rant for AEW All In London 2026 – 08.30.26

Well, it’s my birthday, and what better way to celebrate than by reviewing the biggest AEW show of the year?

Also, I know this may come as a shock to some of you, but my actual age is slightly higher than I was teasing in the buildup to this show.

Live from London, England

Your hosts are Excalibur, Bryan Danielson, Tony Schiavone & Taz

We’re joined on the main show with Swerve Strickland making his entrance for the Trios title, with the other 6 teams already in the ring, and the addition of Kofi and Austin Creed as the New Level. They run wild to start and clothesline GOA out of the ring to eliminate them. Ricochet takes out both Yuta and Orange Cassidy, and we get some drama between Hangman and Swerve, leading to a bunch of eliminations. Ricochet boots Hangman out to eliminate the champs, and Swerve dumps him out. So this all leaves Swerve & New Level v. Pac, Claudio & Gabe Kidd. The heels triple-team Kofi and send him to the apron, as we get our first wacky battle royal elimination escape from Kofi in AEW. Kofi hands on his back, so Nana wheelbarrows him back into the ring. And the New Level clotheslines the Death Riders out of the ring to win the Trios titles. Just kind of a normal battle royal outside of the memorable debut to kick off the show. They probably would have been better positioned by coming out later in the show, though.

AEW Women’s World tag team title: Divine Dominion v. The Brawling Birds

The Birds double-team Bayne to start and send her to the floor for a dive. The champs regroup and double-team Jamie out there, and back in for a spear from Bayne to take over. They work on Hayter in the corner and Kross hits her with a lariat for two. Hayter fights back with a clothesline on Kross and makes the tag to Windsor, who dropkicks Bayne off the apron and powerbombs Kross for two. But then the Birds trap her in the corner and Bayne gets a german suplex for two. The Birds get a double slam on Bayne for two, but everyone trades suplexes and the Birds hit double clotheslines and everyone is down. Bayne is up first with a flying clothesline on Windsor, but Hayter comes in and gets hit with a double chokeslam from the champs. Jamie fights back and Kross suplexes her for two. Another double chokeslam gets two, as Windsor saves and takes Bayne to the floor. Back in the ring, the Birds regroup with the Hart Attack on Kross and win the tag team titles at 11:45. A perfectly acceptable opener and the right team won, although the crowd didn’t feel super hot for it. ***

AEW Continental Challenge Cup final: Jon Moxley v. Nigel McGuinness

They trade wristlocks to start and Jon stomps the injured ankle on the ropes, so Nigel slugs him out to the floor. Back in, Nigel sweeps the leg for two and he goes to work on the arm, twisting him up on the mat before they get into a chopping battle. Mox with a dropkick to the knee and he goes to work on that. Mox beats on him in the corner and unwraps the taped ankle, so Nigel chokes him out with the tape and goes to the arm. Mox fights him off and goes to the top, so Nigel brings him down with the Tower of London for two. They trade Lebell Locks, but Moxley goes after the ankle again to break free and then hits him with a cutter to put him down. Mox stomps the ankle, so they fire up and slug it out until Nigel puts him down with a lariat. Moxley fights back, so Nigel lariats him again for two. But Moxley reverses the pinfall attempt into the bulldog choke, so Nigel uses his chin to dig into Mox’s elbow nerves and reverses into the London Dungeon hold. Mox goes for the ropes, but Nigel pulls him back to the middle and Mox teases the tap before reversing him into an anklelock. Nigel cradles for two to escape. We get a tribute to the Bulldog with a double leg cradle from Nigel for two. Mox trips him up and sinks in the anklelock again, and then he releases and curb stomps him to set up the grapevine. Nigel fights for the ropes, but he’s just 1 cm too short and he has to tap out at 17:13. I mean, we all guessed from the moment they announced the field that this is where we’d wind up, so the whole thing seemed a little bit pointless overall. But the match was a great submission battle and underdog story at least, and I think it overdelivered. ****

AEW International title: Kyle Fletcher v. Konosuke Takeshita v. Kazuchika Okada

Kyle immediately superkicks a surprised Okada out of the ring and slugs it out with Takeshita, but they both end up on the apron for a double DDT from Okada onto the floor. And Okada even pulls out a tope con hilo for the special occasion! Back in the ring, Takeshita and Okada slug it out, but Okada takes him down with the neckbreaker out of the corner. Okada with the elbowdrop, but Fletcher returns from the floor and hits him with a half and half suplex from behind. Kyle lawndarts Okada into the corner, but Takeshita gets a poison rana on Fletcher, and then Kyle recovers with a Michinoku driver on Takeshita for two. Takeshita hits Okada with a Rainmaker, but Fletcher hits Takeshita with a Raging Fire and everyone is out. Okada finds the screwdriver, but Takeshita suplexes and pins both other guys at the same time for two. But he decides not to use the screwdriver himself and everyone slugs it out again until Okada accidentally hits Fletcher with a Rainmaker. So Fletcher fires back with his own to get rid of him, but he heads to the top and Takeshita brings him down with a superplex for two. Raging Fire follows, but Okada breaks it up and the other two decide to team up on him. So with Okada dealt with, Takeshita and Fletcher throw down until Takeshita hits him with the Blue Thunder Bomb, but Fletcher fires back with the turnbuckle brainbuster, and Okada sneaks in and hits Takeshita with his own brainbuster to win the title at 13:12. Felt a bit short but it was great while it lasted, with tons of innovative stuff. ****. Afterwards, Okada demands that Fletcher raise his hand in sportsmanship, and Kyle reluctantly does that. Putting the title back on Okada kind of feels like resetting the whole storyline again.

Casino Gauntlet:

Andrade is #1, and MJF is #2. So they slug it out as expected and MJF puts him down with a back elbow. MJF hits him with the running crotch thrust, but Andrade takes off his pants and uses an even more aggressive thrust to put Max on the floor. There’s always time for a selfie, but Nick Wayne is #3 at 2:08 and hits Andrade with a poison rana during the photo. MJF offers a truce again and swears on his life that he won’t turn on Nick this time, and Mike Bailey is #4 at 3:05 and he immediately takes out Wayne with kicks and dives onto MJF. Back in the ring, Speedball with a shooting star press for two on Wayne, and we get stereo moonsaults from Bailey and Andrade onto the heels on the floor. Tommaso Ciampa is #5 at 5:00. And then before he can finish his entrance, Jericho is #6 at 6:20. And we get a lengthy bit of nothing while the crowd sings his song. He immediately puts MJF into the Walls after finally making it to the ring, but Mark Davis is #7 at 8:44, without any entrance. So he piledrives Jericho and Bailey and then piledrives Ciampa onto Bailey. MJF offers a truce and Davis turns on him and piledrives him as well for two. Komander is #8 at 10:16, although Justin Roberts calls him “Mistico”. The crowd sarcastically chants for Mistico as Komander runs wild and dives onto the pile outside while Roberts corrects himself. Back in the ring for a shooting star on Ciampa that gets two, but everyone else breaks it up. Everyone piles up on the top ropes and we get four babyfaces doing ranas, and then Mistico is #9 at 12:35 for real this time. And then we get another extended song break, but Daniel Garcia is #10 at 13:30 and he attacks Mistico to break up that entrance. Mistico is still able to run wild on everyone and we get a showdown with Komander. “Justin Roberts’ dream match” notes Taz. Mistico quickly gets La Mistica in the middle of the ring, but MJF breaks it up and tombstones him for two. Garcia tries to take out MJF with a piledriver, but Bailey breaks that up and powerslams Max for two. So Ciampa bites Bailey’s toes and hits the knee strike for two. But then Jack Perry is #11 at 17:17 and he runs wild and puts Ciampa in the Snare Trap, and Nick Wayne breaks that up with a flying splash. MJF tosses Perry, but Jericho hits Max with the Judas Effect for two. Nick Wayne gets a comeback with a Phoenix Splash on Davis for two, and we get another negotiation between MJF and Wayne, which leads to MJF turning on him with a low blow, allowing Andrade to hit Nick with the DM and pin him at 21:11. That was definitely the right call for a winner, but this wasn’t a great Gauntlet, with way too many extended entrances and slow spots. **1/2. It feels like they need some new tricks already.

AEW World tag team title: Cage & Cope v. The Young Bucks

We get a very cool video for the Bucks recapping their career, amidst the rumors about this being their last contract. Matt and Christian fight for the lockup while the crowd sings the Bayley song at them, but the champs double-team Matt in the corner to play heel. Double team slam gets two. Bucks regroup and double-team Christian, but he flips out of a suplex and hits the Bucks with a double DDT in order to make the tag to Cope. The Bucks dropkick Cope to the floor, but he catches Matt with a piledriver on the apron, THE HARDEST PART OF THE RING. Back in the ring, Cage gets a neckbreaker and they go to work on the neck. Cope with a neckbreaker of his own for two. They choke Matt out in the corner and Cage goes to a chinlock while Taz laughs about the resurgence of snapmares here in 2026. Matt fights off Cope and tries for the tag, but Christian takes out Nick from the floor. Back in the ring, Matt reverses a Killswitch on Cage and hits his own, and it’s hot tag Nick. He takes on both guys and hits Cage with a backstabber out of the corner, and Risky Business on Cope gets two. Nick charges on the apron and kicks the post by mistake, allowing Cope to go to work on the leg with a half crab. Christian tries a figure-four but Matt breaks it up and gets the tag, hitting Christian with a sliced bread from the apron after head-faking Cope. Back in the ring, Matt with the rolling northern lights, but they try the Meltzer Driver and Nick’s leg gives out and he crashes and burns. So Christian goes low on Matt and hits Nick with a Twist of Fate, which gets two. Nice little callback there. Matt and Christian fight to the top, but C&C bring him down with a delayed double superplex, only for Nick to come in with a 450 on Christian and everyone is down. Cope tries a spear and gets superkicked as a result, and then gets confused and spears Christian by mistake. Bucks with the BTE Trigger on Cage for two, but Cope makes the save. So the Bucks hit another one, but Christian kicks out this time. So it’s another Meltzer, but Cope spears Nick out of the air this time, and Cage alley-oops Matt into another spear, which gets two. So Christian grabs the title belt to distract the ref, but then loads up his arm brace with a weapon, knocks out Matt, and sets him up for another spear from Cope to finish at 20:24. Not like a top level Bucks match but C&C did their best to hang with them and it was pretty goddamn good. ****. Afterwards, the Machine Guns of the Motor City interrupt the celebration and want a title shot, and so do FTR. And of course, so do the New Level, who probably should have debuted here instead of the opener.

TNT title, falls count anywhere: Kevin Knight v. Darby Allin

Darby blitzes him at the bell, but misses a charge and Knight nails him with the TNT title and chokes him out in the corner. Knight preps a table on the floor, so Darby smashes him with a dive and runs him into the stairs before dropkicking him into the railing. Knight fights back with a leaping clothesline off the apron and puts him on the announce table for two. And then he adds a springboard splash from the ring to the table, and I’m not sure what exactly he was going for with that, and it gets two. Knight loads up the ring with chairs and tries to superplex Darby onto them, but Darby reverses into a Code Red and bounces Knight off the chair pile instead. So this brings out Brian Cage and Jake Doyle to help out, and Darby takes the most fucking insane bump crotch-first onto an open chair. And they bind his hands behind his back, but Steven Borden comes out to help with his own chair. He manages to fight off the Family by himself, but Cage powerbombs him through a table to take him out, leaving Darby to make his own comeback with his hands literally tied behind his back. Knight sets up for a Coast to Coast after Cage cuts off Darby, but the lights go out and STING returns, having seen enough of this shit. So he kicks ass on Cage and Doyle and then hits Knight with the death drop. So then the Bordens set up a ladder and Steven goes to the top and dives onto the heels outside, leaving us with Darby and Knight again. Knight tries to run away up the ramp and Darby stalks him with the baseball bat and they fight to the lighting rig, where Darby climbs for a gigantic coffin drop through the stage. And Darby gets up right away! The EMTs try to take Knight on a stretcher, but Darby tells them to move, hits Knight with another coffin drop, and pins him at 16:00 to win the title. Was it even a match? I dunno. But it was a giant shit show in every sense, in the best way. This was the damnedest spectacle you’re gonna see all year, I guarantee, and it delivered EVERYTHING that was promised. ****1/2

AEW World Women’s title: Willow Nightingale v. Mercedes Mone

Thekla is in the crowd watching the match, although sadly not on commentary and pounding drinks at the same time. Willow sends Mone to the floor right awa and hits her with a cannonball off the apron. Back in the ring, Willow with a corner clothesline and another clothesline gets one. Mercedes sends her to the floor, but she tries a rana nad Willow swings her into the railing and back in for two. And Mercedes seems like she might have busted her nose, so Willow gives her a facefirst slam, but Mone rips off the turnbuckle and rams Willow into the exposed steel as things have escalated quickly. That gets two. Mone chokes her out on the ropes and follows with double knees for two. Mone goes to work on the broken hand and then puts her in a chinlock and hits her with crossfaces while forcing Willow to smile. Willow comes back with a powerslam, but Mone counters out of it, so Willow clotheslines her and hurts her own hand in the process. Mercedes with the Three Amigos, but Willow counters the third one and suplexes her off the apron and to the floor. Back in, they slug it out and Willow makes a comeback and goes to the top. Mone cuts her off with a kimura, but Willow slams her off the top and follows with a missile dropkick for two. Mone with a backstabber for two. Mone takes her to the top, but Willow brings her down with a Spanish Fly for two. Mercedes pops up and into the Statement Maker, but Willow powers her up and into a death valley driver into the corner. She misses the cannonball and Mercedes hits her with a sunset flip bomb into the corner, but she charges and runs into Willow’s boot. Willow goes up and can’t get set properly because of her hand, but she regroups and hits a moonsault on the second try, for two. Mone blocks the powerbomb and rams Willow into the exposed steel again, setting up the Moneymaker for two. Mone goes for the cast next, but Willow pounces her and bumps Aubrey as a result. Back to the floor, Mone goes to town on he broken hand, smashing it into various obstacles and giving us some nasty SMALL JOINT MANIPULATION. So now Willow is good and pissed off and she beats on Mone with the title belt, and back in for the powerbomb, which only gets two. She follows with a buckle bomb on the exposed steel and takes Mone to the top for another powerbomb, but Mercedes reverses that one into a rana. Willow with the BACKSLIDE OF DEATH, but it only gets two. Powerbomb is reversed into another Statement Maker, and she ties up Willow’s arm and strangles her at the same time, and Willow is out at 21:50 to finally make Mercedes Mone the World champion. They absolutely beat the hell out of each other here and way overdelivered. *****

AEW World title: Kenny Omega v. Will Ospreay

Will gets a video package using “Baba O’Riley” to make him a complete babyface, and we even get a nice moment where he walks past Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher backstage and they give him a tip of the cap. And Jon Moxley is at the entrance to give him a British flag to carry out for good measure. They trade chops off the lockup as Kenny acts like a dick, but Ospreay lands on his feet when Kenny tries a rana and sends Kenny to the floor. Will hits him with a dive. Back in the ring, Will tries a springboard and Kenny slams him to counter and hits him with a knee. Kenny starts bending the neck and mugging for the camera in a funny bit, and gives him a Nash choke in the corner. Kenny with a backbreaker and adds a neckbreaker before bending his neck around a turnbuckle bolt and choking him out. Will fights back with a springboard elbow and the corkscrew kick for two. Ospreay tries a standing moonsault and lands on Kenny’s knees, but Ospreay escapes You Can’t Escape and hits Kenny with a guillotine spinkick for two. Omega bails and Will hits him with a corkscrew dive and they brawl out there. Kenny runs him into the announce desk and a pissed off Will takes out the ref in frustration, allowing Kenny to take out Will with a monitor to the head while monologuing like he’s the Joker. And then Kenny takes him down with a powerbomb off the announce desk, through the timekeeper’s table, and that’s probably not good for Will’s neck. Will manages to crawl back in at 9, but Omega nails him with the V-Trigger on the way in. Referee: “KEEP IT IN THE RING!” Kenny: “I know. I’m doing my best.” Will is bleeding buckets, and Omega hits him with a dragon suplex on the apron and then does another monologue for the camera about how Will’s friends all left him. Omega with the Terminator Dive, and back in for a missile dropkick to the back of the head to put him down again. Kenny getting more evil and crazy by the minute is great stuff. Another V-Trigger in the corner and Kenny takes him to the top for a snapdragon attempt, but Ospreay fights him off, so Kenny hits a german suplex instead and that gets two. Kenny drives some vicious knees into Will’s head, and hits him with a snapdragon series and knee strike, but Will finally pops up with the Hidden Blade to put him down. Kenny is busted open and he’s laughing about it and slugs away on Will with a show of fisticuffsmanship. Will headbutts him to win that battle and then winds up with a punt on Omega. Will starts smashing him with elbows and the ref puts the count on Kenny, but he fights up, so Will hits him with another Hidden Blade for two. Will tries for the Stormbreaker, but Kenny flips out of that and hits him with knee strikes. Ospreay with a powerbomb for two and he rolls into the Styles Clash off that, for two. Will tries the Ozcutter, but Kenny blocks it with a knee strike and they’re both down. Kenny ducks the Hidden Blade and hits him with a V-Trigger, and then Kenny is the one to pull out the Tiger Driver 91 first. This sets up another V-Trigger, and the One Winged Angel, but it only gets two as Ospreay gets to be the first guy to kick out of it. I don’t count that one from MJF. So Kenny winds up for another V-Trigger and just smokes him with it, but Ospreay escapes another Angel and hits him with his own Tiger Driver, just dropping him right on his head in a sick bump. Kenny hits him with more knee strikes and another Angel, but Will reverses to his own, and Kenny kicks out at one. So Will hits him with the Hidden Blade and Stormbreaker, and that also gets one. So Will pulls off the elbowpad, hits Kenny with the killshot, and wins the AEW World title at 34:35! Just an all time great classic to pay off the Ospreay quest for the title. *****

What a great show. This one absolutely delivered everything expected, and absolutely flew by thanks to a fantastic UK crowd and a “something for everyone” feel. Thumbs way up.