The Inner Circle has gained a new ally over their run. While not an official member, Konnan has been in the mix with them for a while now, and has some history with Santana & Ortiz. This makes him a natural fit to help represent them as they work towards a dream match with FTR. FTR will be represented tonight by the veteran voice of The Pinnacle, former member of The Four Horsemen: Tully Blanchard.
FTR Lay Out Konnan
Tony Shiavone would be in the ring with Blanchard, before calling Konnan down to join the party. Blanchard brought up that last time he saw Konnan, it was getting involved in a fight in a nightclub, but he’s a legend and will let him talk first. Konnan would say that Santana & Ortiz have been shot, stabbed, kidnapped and god knows what else, and FTR knows nothing about the life they lived. They’ve survived racial profiling, gang violence and more. While Blanchard is a mentor to FTR, Konnan is like a father of Santana & Ortiz.
Blanchard would take the microphone, and simply say that FTR will end the game when they hit the ring with Santana & Ortiz, and then we will never see Konnan again. Apparently prepared for an attack from FTR, he’d have Santana & Ortiz ready. They’d hit the ring apparently, but it was Wheeler & Harwood in disguise. Santana & Ortiz were laid out backstage, and FTR wasted zero time hitting Mindbreaker on Konnan.
Andrade & Vickie Guerrero Fail To Interrupt The Show
Recently, we saw one of the best matches in AEW Dark history. Matt Sydal took on one half of Top Flight, Dante Martin in a bout that had the fans talking. Putting a veteran high flyer in with someone who is just starting their career in the same style is always great, and this is no exception. Now, they’re going to run this match back on Dynamite, giving it the spotlight it deserves.
However, before Martin could even hit the ring, Vickie Guerrero was out on the ramp to introduce Andrade for some reason. He was not dressed to compete, so Martin wasn’t set to be replaced in the match at least. Sydal would hit the ring to interrupt a MAJOR announcement from Andrade & Guerrero, so they would need to wait for that.
Dante Martin & Matt Sydal Pull Off Another Great Match
Sydal & Martin would lock up in the middle of the ring and start with some mat wrestling. Martin would get a Flying Mare and a springboard dropkick off the bottom rope, before a headscissor takedown. Sydal was being outdone, but nailed the rolling leg lariat for a two count.
Moving into his submission skills, Sydal would nail two quick knee breakers. Martin was able to keep moving for a basement dropkick, but the veteran would corner him and nail a running double knee strike. The surfboard stretch would be applied before Sydal moved into a reverse single leg boston crab.
Sydal would hit a leg lariat to send Martin to the outside, where he was hit by a headstand into a headscissor. It would give Martin a chance to breathe, but back in the ring Sydal was back on the submission offensive before laying in some strikes. Martin fought back with a chop, before countering a kick into a snap Death Valley Driver. Some gamiguris in the corner set up a double springboard moonsault for a two count, before both men went to the corner and fought for control.
Sydal would hit the headbutt, and Martin crashed down in position for the diving knee drop for a two count. Martin got a huge sunset flip for a two count, before a flipping stunner for a two count. He’d go up high but miss the dive, take a head kick and Lighting Spiral for the finish.
Dante Martin is starting to come into his own with AEW after a rocky start and injury to his brother, but that’s two impressive singles matches for him. He’s this good at twenty, and if AEW sticks with him long term, they have something here. However, Sydal got the win tonight, and is building towards a TNT Championship challenge. Match Rating: 3.5/5 (*** 1/2)
Will Dante Martin outshine his brother too much while he’s wrestling solo? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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