Write Forever: Jamie Hayter reaches The Owen finals on AEW Dynamite for April 23

April 23, 2025

Fresh off of something interesting finally happening with Death Riders, it's time for an AEW Dynamite with not much announced ahead of time. Tonight we'll see Jamie Hayter and Kris Statlander in the semi-finals of the Owen Hart Cup to see who wrestles Mercedes Moné in the finals as well as "Speedball" Mike Bailey & Kevin Knight taking on The Young Bucks.

Both of those matches should be great! But, I always prefer and love when we get a fully stacked card announced days in advance.

AEW was busy on socials today also announcing Brody King & Will Ospreay vs Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander and Mark Briscoe vs Ricochet.

And Master P! For some reason! For WCW reasons? I don't know! Let's find out!

Stokely Hathaway finally found his tag team

I'm not going to pretend that I understand it yet. FTR and Stokely Hathaway aren't a combination that I would ever think of putting together. Generally, FTR are good-to-great promos depending on the feud and material. Dax carries that side of things more than Cash, but they're not a team that I've ever thought needed a mouthpiece.

Stokely, of course, is just incredible in all that he does. The last we saw him, he was trying to find a tag team. I think we got one vignette of him reviewing some matches and then a few failed attempts at courting Top Flight before he disappeared.

Today, April 23, 2025, Stokely Hathaway finally found his tag team.

FTR welcomed the Rock 'N Roll Express into the ring before, predictably, murdering them via spike piledriver on Ricky Morton. They were chased off by The Paragon, which I understand – if I were on the show and saw Adam Cole coming, I would also run to avoid being the same segment as him. I guess this means we'll get to run back FTR/Roddy & Kyle at some point. Here's hoping it stays together a bit more than their last match!

I do think it's time for someone to have a talk with the Rock 'N Roll Express, though. Almost every time they show up on an AEW show, someone beats their asses. Is someone forcing them into it? Have their brains been scrambled to the point that they don't remember what happens at each show? Someone please help those old men :(

The Young Bucks: pretty good wrestlers!

The Young Bucks made their return to the ring against the duo of "Speedball" Mike Bailey and Kevin Knight tonight. To the surprise of nobody, the match whipped ass! The Bucks looked incredible in their first match back in AEW while Bailey and Knight continued to look like huge deals.

The lovely thing about The Bucks? They don't mind eating losses so it felt as possible for them to win this match as it felt for them to lose this match.

The other lovely thing about The Bucks? They're incredible and haven't skipped a beat!

In the end, it was Ricochet who would cost Knight and Bailey the match – specifically by distracting Knight as revenge for Knight stopping Ricochet from stabbing Mark Briscoe to death with scissors earlier in the night.

It appears that Kevin Knight has found his first singles feud and I can't think of a better person to have it with. Ricochet has been on fire for months and Knight came into AEW with a rocket strapepd to his back. I'm very much looking forward to the singles match between those two.

I think I'm just not that into The Hurt People

Maybe I'm an outlier. Maybe it's just the storyline with MJF. But, something about me is just not clicking with The Hurt People are in the ring cutting promos. Give me Shelton Benjamin matches all day long! I'd love that!

Maybe they feel too generic? Like too prototypical "we're gonna beat up and hurt everybody" without much spice or character work? In a company full of wrestlers who are either over-the-top characters or absolutely insane in the ring, Lashley falls devastatingly short for me.

I'm not throwing in the towel completely. I want to get through this never-ending saga with MJF and then see how I'm feeling. At the moment, though, the main thing they're hurting is my interest in their segments and matches.

Wrapping Up

I don't know what you can say about the opening segment of the show. It was an absolute fever dream, but great! Tony Schiavone introduced Master P who introduced The Opps to celebrate their Trios Titles win. This brought out Death Riders for the attack, but they were thwarted and laid out by The Opps – until The Elite arrived to break things up – until Swerve Strickland arrived to chase The Bucks up the ramp – until Kenny Omega arrived to chase The Bucks out into the crowd. Pure chaos!

Joe made his intentions known after the fracas: he wants Mox's World Championship, and he'll get his shot May 14 in Chicago. But how will this sit with Swerve Strickland who has also had his focus on Mox's belt? And what of Hook when he eventually returns? Lots of threads in this story and lots of ways to see everything come together!

"Lots of threads" seemed to be the theme tonight with one segment bleeding into the next all night long. It's nice when this happens; it makes the show feel cohesive and like everything that happens on the show isn't happening in a vacuum of its own little segment. It also makes the show feel like it flies by, which it certainly did tonight.

In the main event, Jamie Hayter beat Kris Statlander to advance to teh finals of the Owen Hart Cup against Mercedes Moné. It wasn't everything I wished it would have been, but it was totally fine and got better as the match went on. Hayter and Stat work unbelievably snug at times and I wish more would!

Hayter's run as World Champion really shook the foundation of the women's division, completely changing the in-ring style of the entire division for the better. Everybody had to step up to the insane quality of Hayter and most did. It really sucked that she went out with an injury because she was truly operating on another level – one that it seems like she's getting back to after returning.

All around, a fun Dynamite! Not a blow-me-away episode but easy to watch and lots of advancement for stories up and down the show. What more can you ask for in a weekly pro-wrestling show?

Best AEW Matches of 2025

Don't see a match on the list? It's not because I didn't see the match, but because I didn't do a write-up for that show for whatever reason (timing, schedules, etc.). This list is as comprehensive as it can be.

I've also decided to omit squashes from the list since they're just going to crowd space at the bottom.

Toni Storm vs Mariah May: Women's World Title (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Swerve Strickland vs Ricochet (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
"Hangman" Adam Page vs Orange Cassidy (Dynamite: January 1, 2025)
Swerve Strickland vs Ricochet (Dynamite: February 5, 2025)
Daniel Garcia vs Mark Briscoe: TNT Title (Collision: January 4, 2025)
Konosuke Takeshita vs Orange Cassidy: International Title (Dynamite: February 26, 2025)
Mercedes Moné vs Momo Watanabe: TBS Title (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Will Ospreay vs Kyle Fletcher (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Toni Storm vs Megan Bayne: World Title (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Mark Briscoe vs Kyle Fletcher (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Will Ospreay vs Konosuke Takeshita (Dynamite: April 16, 2025)
Kenny Omega vs Ricochet vs Mike Bailey: International Title (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
MJF vs "Hangman" Adam Page (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Mercedes Moné vs Athena (Dynamite: April 16, 2025)
Death Riders vs Rated FTR: Trios Titles (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Will Ospreay vs Kevin Knight (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Mike Bailey & Kevin Knight vs The Young Bucks (Dynamite: April 23, 2025)
Konosuke Takeshita vs Kenny Omega: International Title (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
"Hangman" Adam Page vs Josh Alexander (Dynamite: April 16, 2025)
Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, & Wheeler Yuta vs Samoa Joe, Katsuyori Shibata, & Powerhouse Hobbs: Trios Titles (Dynamite: April 16, 2025)
Will Ospreay & Brody King vs Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander (Dynamite: April 23, 2025)
FTR vs Kyle O'Reilly & Roderick Strong (Collision: March 1, 2025)
Rated FTR vs Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, & Wheeler Yuta (Dynamite: January 1, 2025)
Roderick Strong vs Jay White vs Swerve Strickland (Dynamite: January 1, 2025)
Toni Storm vs Kris Statlander vs Willow Nightingale (Dynamite: January 8, 2025)
"Hangman" Adam Page vs Christopher Daniels: Texas Death Match (Collision: January 18, 2025)
Toni Storm vs Queen Aminata (Dynamite: February 5, 2025)
Jon Moxley vs Swerve Strickland: World Title (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Kazuchika Okada vs Brody King: Continental Championship (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Mark Briscoe vs Ricochet (Dynamite: April 23, 2025)
Orange Cassidy, Powerhouse Hobbs, Mark Briscoe, & Will Ospreay vs Bryan Keith, Mark Davis, Lance Archer, & Brian Cage (Dynamite: March 5, 2025)
Private Party vs The Hurt Syndicate: Tag Team Titles (Dynamite: January 22, 2025)
PAC vs Komander (Collision: January 11, 2025)
Will Ospreay vs Buddy Matthews (Dynamite: January 8, 2025)
Komander vs Nick Wayne: ROH TV Title (Collision: April 17, 2025)
Toni Storm vs Deonna Purrazzo (Collision: January 4, 2025)
Women's Casino Gauntlet (Dynamite: January 15, 2025)
Hounds of Hell vs Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher (Dynamite: February 5, 2025)
Bryan Keith vs Will Ospreay (Dynamite: February 26, 2025)
CRU & Nick Wayne vs Top Flight & AR Fox (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Jon Moxley vs Powerhouse Hobbs: World Title (Dynamite: January 15, 2025)
Swerve Strickland vs AR Fox (Dynamite: January 22, 2025)
Daniel Garcia vs Adam Cole: TNT Title (Collision: March 1, 2025)
Jamie Hayter vs Kris Statlander (Dynamite: April 23, 2025)
Will Ospreay, Kevin Knight, Mike Bailey, & Mark Briscoe vs CRU, The Beast Mortos, & Ricochet (Dynamite: April 9, 2025)
FTR vs Jon Moxley & Wheeler Yuta: Mid-South Street Fight (Collision: February 1, 2025)
Jamie Hayter vs Julia Hart (Dynamite: January 22, 2025)
Cope vs PAC (Dynamite: January 22, 2025)
Jamie Hayter vs Julia Hart (Dynamite: January 1, 2025)
Will Ospreay vs Mark Davis (Dynamite: February 5, 2025)
Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander vs Rocky Romero & Tomohiro Ishii (Collision: April 17, 2025)
The Hurt Syndicate vs The Gates of Agony: Tag Team Titles (Dynamite: April 16, 2025)
The Beast Mortos vs Mike Bailey (Dynamite: March 12, 2025)
Toni Storm & Thunder Rosa vs Megan Bayne & Penelope Ford (Dynamite: March 26, 2025)
Kazuchika Okada & Ricochet vs Brody King & Swerve Strickland (Dynamite: March 5, 2025)
Brody King vs Kyle Fletcher (Dynamite: March 26, 2025)
Lance Archer vs Kevin Knight (Collision: April 17, 2025)
Rated FTR vs The Learning Tree (Collision: January 4, 2025)
Private Party vs Lio Rush & Action Andretti: Tag Team Titles (Collision: January 4, 2025)
Mercedes Moné & Harley Cameron vs Julia Hart & Kris Statlander (Collision: April 17, 2025)
Daniel Garcia & FTR vs Undisputed Kingdom (Dynamite: February 26, 2025)
Daniel Garcia vs Katsuyori Shibata: TNT Title (Collision: January 11, 2025)
Daniel Garcia vs Kyle O'Reilly vs Lee Moriarty: TNT Title (Collision: February 1, 2025)
Bandido & Powerhouse Hobbs vs Big Bill & Bryan Keith (Collision: March 1, 2025)
Men's Casino Gauntlet Match (Dynamite: January 8, 2025)
Cope vs Big Bill (Collision: January 11, 2025)
Mariah May vs Harley Cameron (Collision: January 11, 2025)
Will Ospreay & Kevin Knight vs Blake Christian & Lee Johnson (Dynamite: April 2, 2025)
Samoa Joe & Hook vs Kip Sabian & Nick Wayne (Collision: February 1, 2025)
Swerve Strickland vs Clark Connors (Collision: March 1, 2025)
Kenny Omega vs Brian Cage (Dynamite: January 15, 2025)
Hook vs Christian Cage (Dynamite: January 15, 2025)
Julia Hart vs Queen Aminata (Collision: March 1, 2025)
Daniel Garcia vs Lee Moriarty: TNT Title (Collision: March 8, 2025)
Swerve Strickland & Willow Nightingale vs Jon Moxley & Marina Shafir (Dynamite: April 2, 2025)
Brody King vs Lance Archer (Dynamite: April 2, 2025)
Will Hobbs vs Mark Davis (Dynamite: March 26, 2025)
The Outrunners vs Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta (Collision: January 11, 2025)
Adam Cole, Kyle O'Reilly, & Roderick Strong vs Lee Moriarty & The Infantry (Collision: January 18, 2025)
Julia Hart vs Harley Cameron (Collision: January 18, 2025)
Rated FTR, The Outrunners, & Powerhouse Hobbs vs Death Riders & The Learning Tree (Collision: January 18, 2025)
Cope vs Wheeler Yuta (Dynamite: March 5, 2025)
Mark Davis vs Mark Briscoe (Collision: March 15, 2025)
Chris Jericho vs Bandido: Mask vs ROH World Title (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Hologram vs Dralistico (Collision: March 8, 2025)
Mark Briscoe vs Konosuke Takeshita (Dynamite: March 26, 2025)
Cash Wheeler vs PAC (Collision: April 5, 2025)
Kris Statlander vs Thunder Rosa (Dynamite: April 9, 2025)
Kenny Omega vs Blake Christian (Dynamite: March 26, 2025)
The Hurt Syndicate vs The Outrunners: Tag Team Titles (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Max Caster vs RUSH (Collision: February 1, 2025)
Bobby Lashley vs Mark Briscoe (Dynamite: January 8, 2025)
Private Party & Mark Briscoe vs Shelton Benjamin, Bobby Lashley, & MVP (Dynamite: January 15, 2025)
Serena Deeb vs Momo Watanabe (Collision: March 8, 2025)
Orange Cassidy vs Hechicero (Dynamite: March 12, 2025)
Mercedes Moné vs Julia Hart (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Powerhouse Hobbs & Tomohiro Ishii vs Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita (Collision: April 5, 2025)
Adam Cole vs Claudio Castagnoli: TNT Title (Collision: April 17, 2025)
Thunder Rosa & Kris Statlander vs Megan Bayne & Penelope Ford (Dynamite: March 5, 2025)
Kazuchika Okada vs Tomohiro Ishii: Continental Championship (Collision: January 18, 2025)
FTR vs Undisputed Kingdom (Collision: March 15, 2025)
The Outrunners vs Premier Athletes (Collision: March 8, 2025)
Adam Copeland vs Claudio Castagnoli (Dynamite: April 2, 2025)
Ricochet vs Katsuyori Shibata (Collision: March 15, 2025)
Top Flight vs CRU (Collision: April 5, 2025)
Toni Storm vs Penelope Ford (Dynamite: April 2, 2025)
Mike Bailey vs Dralistico (Collision: April 5, 2025)
Samoa Joe & Hook vs Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta (Dynamite: April 9, 2025)
Jon Moxley vs Adam Copeland: World Title (Revolution: March 9, 2025)
Mercedes Moné & Harley Cameron vs Athena & Julia Hart (Collision: April 5, 2025)
Jon Moxley vs Katsuyori Shibata (Dynamite: April 9, 2025)
The Hurt Syndicate vs The Learning Tree: Tag Team Titles (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Chris Jericho vs Dax Harwood (Collision: January 11, 2025)
Thunder Rosa vs Megan Bayne (Collision: March 15, 2025)
Wheeler Yuta vs Willie Mack (Collision: March 1, 2025)
Top Flight & Hologram vs The Infantry & Lee Moriarty (Collision: March 15, 2025)
Willow Nightingale vs Penelope Ford (Dynamite: March 12, 2025)
The Acclaimed vs The Hurt Syndicate (Dynamite: January 1, 2025)
Kyle O'Reilly & Roderick Strong vs The Infantry (Collision: March 8, 2025)
Komander vs Dante Martin vs Brian Cage vs The Beast Mortos (Collision: January 4, 2025)
Daniel Garcia vs Adam Cole: TNT Title (Dynasty: April 6, 2025)
Murder Machines vs The Outrunners (Dynamite: February 26, 2025)
The Outrunners vs Chris Jericho & Bryan Keith (Collision: February 1, 2025)
Hologram & Powerhouse Hobbs vs Brian Cage & Dralistico (Dynamite: March 12, 2025)
Taya Valkyrie vs Harley Cameron (Collision: February 1, 2025)
Deonna Purrazzo vs Harley Cameron (Dynamite: February 26, 2025)
Max Caster vs Konosuke Takeshita (Dynamite: March 12, 2025)
Murder Machines vs Top Flight (Collision: January 18, 2025)
Jeff Jarrett vs Aaron Solo (Collision: January 4, 2025)