‘AEW Collision: Maximum Carnage’ Review (Jan 17th 2026)

Welcome to this week’s review of AEW: Collision, which brings wrestling back to Saturday nights. We’ve got the commentary team of Tony Schiavone and Nigel McGuinness calling the action. Also, as usual, we’ll be abbreviating AEW’s huge match recaps where we can to save your eyes and your time! With that, let’s get into the review…

Match #1: Andrade El Ídolo def. Angelico

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Andrade immediately put Angelico down in the corner with a nasty back elbow. Andrade followed with running knees, and that could have been it, but Andrade pulled Angelico off the mat. Andrade pretended to go for a figure four and then laughed it off before a big strike across the chest. He followed with a suplex, but took too long going for a second one, which allowed Angelico to hit a rising kick and get a one count. Andrade pushed Angelico into the corner, but then ran into a pair of boots. Angelico lifted himself to the top rope, so Andrade met him with a kick to the side of the head. He came off the top with a superplex and then hung on for two more before going for a pin and once again, pulling up Angelico at two. Andrade mercifully finished Angelico with a spinning double-underhook driver. Three seconds later, Andrade had his first win with the Don Callis Family.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #2: Eddie Kingston & Ortiz def. Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson and James Drake)

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Gibson and Ortiz opened before Drake slipped in via a blind tag, only for Ortiz to catch it, dumping Gibson over the top and blitzing Drake with a step-up kick before diving onto Gibson outside. Santana & Ortiz kept the pressure on, Kingston tagging in for a double suplex and a punishing camel clutch–basement dropkick combo. GYV cut Kingston off with double-teams, but Kingston fought back with a lariat, bringing Ortiz back in. Ortiz surged on Gibson until another blind tag saw Drake floor him with a low kick, setting up Gibson to hold Ortiz for Drake’s big dive to the floor. After isolating Ortiz, Kingston finally got the hot tag, unloading on Drake with machine-gun chops. Ortiz added a powerbomb for two, but GYV broke up a tag-team finish, and Gibson sent Ortiz crashing down from the top. Kingston survived an enzuigiri and dropped Gibson with an exploder, only for Gibson to stall with a fake injury. With the referee distracted, Drake tried to choke Kingston with a scarf, but Kingston countered and kicked out of Gibson’s Ticket to Ride. Drake returned with a flatliner and submission, but Kingston fought free, survived a nearfall, and capitalised when Ortiz cracked Drake with Mad Balls in a sock. Kingston followed with a DDT to seal the win.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #3: Marina Shafir def. Zayda Steel

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Jon Moxley was with Shafir during her entrance and joined commentary for his unique perspective on this match. Steel sent Shafir to the outside almost immediately with a dropkick and a head-scissors. Steel went for a dive to the outside, but Shafir caught her! Shafir tried to chop Steel, but missed and hit the ring post! Steel threw Shafir back in the ring and went to the top, but Shafir ducked under her attack and hit a stiff kick right to Steel’s face as Moxley shouted encouragement from commentary. Shafir remained in control until she ate a back elbow and then a lung blower from Steel! Steel nailed a rising knee in the corner, but Shafir quickly cut her off with a brutal uranage. Shafir locked in a full nelson before switching her grip and taunting Steel. Shafir pulled Steel up to her feet and nailed a strike, but when she tried another, Steel turned it into a waistlock. Shafir escaped by boxing Steel in the knee and then getting the submission win with Mother’s Milk.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #4: The Don Callis Family (Kyle Fletcher, Josh Alexander & El Clon) def. SkyFlight (Scorpio Sky, Dante Martin & Darius Martin)

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

As Fletcher, Alexander and El Clon made their entrance, Jon Moxley and Don Callis’ commentary argument boiled over, ending with Callis leaving the desk and Moxley being ambushed by Rocky Romero and Lance Archer. Wheeler Yuta and Daniel Garcia rushed in, only for the Callis Family to swarm, with Claudio Castagnoli joining the fray. SkyFlight then hit the scene, diving onto both teams and triggering a wild ringside brawl before order was restored. Once underway, Darius started against Fletcher, with SkyFlight making quick tags to isolate Fletcher’s arm. Fletcher escaped and brought in El Clon, who targeted Sky’s arm before tagging Alexander. Darius turned the tide with a Spanish Fly on Alexander and a dive to Fletcher, setting up double-team offense with Dante for a nearfall. The Callis Family cut SkyFlight off with slick teamwork, including a Michinoku Driver and top-rope stomp combo on Darius. Darius absorbed heavy punishment before escaping and tagging Dante, who surged on El Clon with a dropkick and crossbody. Fletcher and El Clon regained control, knocking Sky off the apron and nearly scoring the win, before SkyFlight countered with tandem DDTs. Chaos spilled outside as Alexander and El Clon wiped out Sky and Dante, leaving Darius isolated. Back inside, Alexander trapped Darius in an ankle lock, then hauled him down with an Argentine Powerbomb and finished with the C4 to secure the Callis Family victory.

My Score: 3.5 out of 5

Match #5: Megan Bayne & Penelope Ford def. Danielle Kamela & Viva Van

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Ford returned to action for the first time in over three months. Bayne flattened Kamela at the bell with a diving clothesline before turning her attention to Van, whom she pulled over the top with a suplex. She put both Kamela and Van in the corner and splashed both before putting both down with a Samoan drop. Ford tagged in and went to the top to hit a Doomsday Device on Kamela from Bayne’s shoulders to get the win and make quick work of their opponents.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #6: AEW National Championship #1 Contender Match – Jack Perry def. Anthony Bowens

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Bowens backed Perry into the corner at the jump and tried to celebrate, but Perry quickly came back and wrestled Bowens to the mat. Bowens got back up and worked Perry into a pinning predicament to get a two-count, so he decided to celebrate again. The two continued to go back and forth but ended up in a stalemate, so Perry offered a scissors handshake. When Bowens accepted it, Perry bit him! Perry tried to run up the ropes, but Bowens crotched him and knocked Perry to the floor. He followed Perry out and tried to attack him on the guardrail, but Perry avoided it. Bowens caught Perry on his shoulders and dropped him face-first on the apron. He threw Perry back in, but Perry came right back out with a dive. Bowens was ready for it, so Perry turned it into a bulldog on the floor. Back in the ring, the two traded near-falls until Perry hit a superkick, only for Bowens to come right back with a clothesline. Perry stopped Bowens with a shot to the side and then hit his running knee to get the three count.

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #7: AEW World Trios Championship Match – “Hangman” Adam Page & JetSpeed (“Speedball” Mike Bailey & “The Jet” Kevin Knight) def. The Opps (Samoa Joe, Powerhouse Hobbs & Katsuyori Shibata)

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Hangman Page and Samoa Joe were set to start, but Joe immediately tagged out to Shibata, prompting Page to bring in Speedball Mike Bailey. Shibata faked a handshake and cheap-shotted Bailey, only for Bailey to fire back with rapid kicks and tag Kevin Knight. Knight and Bailey rocked Shibata with quick double-teams, Knight soaring in for a splash near-fall, before Shibata cut him off and tagged in Powerhouse Hobbs, who flattened Knight with a huge lariat. Knight escaped long enough to tag Page, who dumped Shibata with a fallaway slam and traded corner attacks before narrowly missing the Deadeye. Shibata regained control and set up Bailey, suplexing him on the apron and the floor as The Opps took over. Joe kept Bailey grounded until a missile dropkick sparked a comeback, with Page storming in to clear house and wipe out Joe and Hobbs with a moonsault to the floor. Hobbs stopped a Deadeye attempt until Bailey swept his legs, sending Page crashing down onto Hobbs. Knight re-entered but was crushed by Hobbs and Joe, with Shibata and Joe combining to maul him in the corner. As Shibata and Joe locked Page and Bailey in chokes, Hobbs went for the finish on Knight—only for Knight to counter into a sudden stack pin on Hobbs, stealing the win out of nowhere.

My Score: 3.5 out of 5

Final Verdict: 3.5/5

This week’s episode of Collision was a quietly solid Saturday night showing—one that didn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel, but kept things ticking along nicely with a strong back half and a couple of genuinely engaging highlights. The Don Callis Family continued to feel like a real, looming presence, with the six-man tag delivering the night’s best blend of chaos, storyline advancement and in-ring quality. Likewise, the main event Trios title match was fast, physical and unpredictable, capped off by a smart, sneaky finish that protected everyone involved. Elsewhere, the card was more hit-and-miss. Andrade’s win felt more like character work than competition, while several shorter bouts came and went without much chance to breathe. That said, Jack Perry vs. Anthony Bowens delivered exactly what it needed to, and Kingston’s grit helped elevate an otherwise familiar tag match. All told, this was a dependable episode of Collision: not essential viewing, but a good example of AEW’s depth when everything clicks just enough.