‘AEW: Revolution 2026’ PPV Review
Welcome to this review of 2026’s AEW: Revolution pay-per-view, which emanates from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA and opened with the usual Zero Hour pre-show, which saw BOOM & DOOM (“Big Boom” AJ & Q.T. Marshall) defeat The Infantry (Shawn Dean & Carlie Bravo), Willow Nightingale retain her TBS Women’s Championship against Lena Kross and the 21-Man Blackjack Battle Royale spill over into the start of the PPV, with Jack Perry picking up the win. Now on to the main show – with our usual, more concise, AEW recaps!
Match #1: AEW World Tag Team Championship – FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood) def. Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
The two teams went at it immediately, with The Bucks sending FTR to the floor early before Nick was caught on a dive and slammed onto the announce desk, leaving him busted open. FTR took control, spiking Matt with a piledriver on the apron and keeping Nick isolated while both teams started bleeding in the brutal back-and-forth. Nick fought free with superkicks to survive, allowing Matt to return despite clearly being hurt, nearly stealing the win with a Northern Lights roll-through. Chaos broke out at ringside, with Matt’s kids getting involved, drinks flying, and all four men trading big moves on the apron and floor. Stereo Sharpshooters from The Bucks nearly finished it, but FTR refused to quit, leading to a wild closing stretch full of superkicks, piledrivers and near-falls, including Nick kicking out at one after a BTE Trigger. In the end, FTR countered one last Bucks attempt and hit a Super Shatter Machine on Nick to score the three-count and retain the titles.
My Score: 4 out of 5
Match #2: “Timeless” Toni Storm def. Marina Shafir
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Shafir dominated early, hammering Storm with strikes, judo throws and vicious kicks that left the champion struggling to breathe. Storm briefly fought back with a choke and a German suplex, but Shafir stayed in control, even hitting a back suplex from the apron to the floor before continuing the assault at ringside. Storm finally caught a break when Shafir hurt her foot on the announce table, allowing Storm to bite the injured foot and regain momentum. Back in the ring, Storm fired up with three German suplexes and a series of hip attacks, but Shafir refused to stay down, even kicking out of Storm Zero. Shafir nearly stole the win with Mother’s Milk, only for Storm to escape in desperate fashion, biting her way free before landing a headbutt and finishing the match with The Big Package to score the hard-fought victory.
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
Match #3: AEW Continental Championship – Jon Moxley def. Konosuke Takeshita
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Moxley and Takeshita started fast, trading strikes until Moxley targeted the leg, smashing Takeshita’s knee into the mat and locking in submissions to slow him down. Takeshita fought through the damage with suplexes and knees, but Moxley stayed ruthless, biting, stomping and repeatedly attacking the injured leg to keep control. Even after a Blue Thunder Bomb and several close calls, Moxley kept dragging the fight back to the mat. The match turned into a war down the stretch, with both men surviving piledrivers, lariats and exploders, while Takeshita fought through a bloody face to land a Super Exploder and Power Drive Knee for a near-fall. Takeshita even hit Raging Fire, but Moxley somehow kicked out, and when Takeshita’s injured leg gave way on another charge, Moxley capitalised with a Death Rider and finally locked in the rear-naked choke, forcing the referee to stop the match after a brutal, hard-hitting main event.
My Score: 4.5 out of 5
Match #4: AEW Women’s World Tag Team Championship – Divine Dominion (Megan Bayne & Lena Kross) def. The Babes of Wrath (Harley Cameron & Willow Nightingale)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Divine Dominion attacked the Babes from behind, and this match was underway. They threw Nightingale into the ring post and out of the ring. Cameron jumped onto Bayne, but was dumped to the mat. Kross tagged in with a basement lariat for a nearfall. Bayne tagged back in and hit a kick to Cameron, draped over the ropes. Bayne connected with a senton splash for another nearfall. Bayne missed a charge in the corner, so Cameron went up to the top and nailed a crossbody! She crawled to her corner for a tag, but Nightingale still wasn’t there. Cameron connected with a desperation DDT on Bayne and continued to her corner while Bayne was able to tag Kross. Nightingale finally tagged in! She fought with one arm against Bayne and Kross and knocked Bayne to the outside with a Pounce! Nightingale avoided a pump kick and took Kross down with a Death Valley Driver. The Babes both went for crossbodies, but Divine Dominion caught them with stereo fallaway slams. Bayne and Kross bounced Nightingale and Cameron back and forth in the corners before Bayne booted Cameron into a German suplex by Kross. Nightingale fought out of a double-team and nailed Bayne with a thrust kick, only for Kross to immediately drop Nightingale with a pump kick! She picked up Nightingale for a Jackhammer, so Nightingale slipped into a backslide, although unlike the TBS Title match, Kross kicked out! Bayne came back with a flying clothesline on Nightingale. Divine Dominion hit a double-chokeslam on Nightingale, and Kross pinned her for the win!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #5: Swerve Strickland def. Brody King
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
The crowd was hot before the bell and Swerve and King immediately turned the match into a fight, brawling around ringside with exposed turnbuckles, steel steps and the floor all coming into play. Swerve slammed King into the uncovered metal, but King fired back with a uranage on the barricade and a back suplex on the steps, taking control with pure power. Both men kept targeting each other with the environment, including a sit-out powerbomb on the apron from Swerve and a spinning slam onto the exposed floor from King. King looked to have it won after the All-Seeing Eye, but Swerve refused to stay down and answered with a brutal Vertebreaker onto the exposed floor. King barely beat the count, only for Swerve to keep the pressure on with strikes and dropkicks until a perfectly placed House Call to the back of the neck finally put King down for the three-count.
My Score: 4 out of 5
Match #6: AEW Women’s World Championship (2 Out of 3 Falls) – Thekla def. Kris Statlander
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Statlander dominated early with her strength, even hitting an avalanche vertical suplex, but Thekla stole the first fall by grabbing the rope during a roll-up while the referee wasn’t looking. Statlander came out aggressive in the second fall, overpowering the champion with throws, barricade shots and a Fisherman’s Driver before finishing things with Staturday Night Fever to tie the match 1-1. The final fall turned chaotic, with Thekla raking the eyes and accidentally taking out the referee to avoid another Staturday Night Fever. With no official in position, both women used the belt, and interference from Skye Blue and Julia Hart nearly cost Statlander the match. She fought them off, but the distraction allowed Thekla to recover, hit a spear and follow with stomps to score the deciding pinfall and retain the title 2-1.
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
Match #7: AEW World Trios Championship – Kevin Knight, Mike Bailey & Místico def. Don Callis Family (Kazuchika Okada, Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
JetSpeed and Místico came out in matching gear and started fast, with quick tags and dives keeping the Callis Family on the back foot early. Knight bodyslammed the much larger Davis, while Bailey and Místico flew around the ring with headscissors, planchas and armdrags, but the Callis Family slowed things down by isolating Knight and using their size advantage, even ripping off the lucha masks to mock their opponents. The pace exploded into chaos with all six men trading dives, kicks and near-falls, including simultaneous high-flying attacks from JetSpeed and a series of counters between Okada and Místico. The Callis Family nearly stole it with weapons and triple-teams, but the challengers kept fighting back. In the end, Místico neutralised Fletcher, Bailey dropped Davis with a kick, and Knight flew across the ring with a huge UFO Splash on Davis to score the pin and crown JetSpeed and Místico the new AEW World Trios Champions.
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
Match #8: Andrade El Ídolo def. Bandido
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Andrade stalled at the start to taunt the crowd, but once the match got going, he and Bandido traded fast counters and high-flying attacks. Bandido briefly took control with hurricanranas and dives, even tweaking Andrade’s knee, but Andrade slowed things down with power moves and mind games, including posing for selfies at ringside. The pace picked up again with German suplex exchanges, tornillos and near-falls, as both men kept escaping big finishers. Bandido looked close to winning after a shooting star press, an X-Knee and multiple attempts at the 21 Plex, but Andrade refused to stay down and answered with Meteoras, moonsaults and heavy strikes. After another wild exchange on the ropes, Andrade finally caught Bandido on the top turnbuckle and hit a huge avalanche double-underhook slam to score the hard-fought pinfall victory.
My Score: 4.5 out of 5
Match #9: Tornado Trios Match – Roderick Strong, Orange Cassidy & Darby Allin def. The Dogs (Gabe Kidd, Clark Connors & David Finlay)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
The match exploded before the bell, with all six men brawling on the floor as the Tornado Trios rules kicked in immediately. The War Dogs used their power advantage early, isolating Allin and even tying the tag rope around his neck to keep him trapped while they took turns beating him down. Strong and Cassidy tried to fight back, but the Dogs kept control with backbreakers, spears and a brutal Doomsday Device on Allin. The momentum shifted once Cassidy freed Allin, leading to chaos with submissions, weapons and dives all happening at once. Allin hit a Coffin Drop to the floor, Strong locked in the Strong Hold, and Cassidy fired off Stundog Millionaire and Orange Punch attempts as the fight spilled everywhere, even onto the stage. In the end, after a wild closing stretch of finishers and near-falls, Strong nailed End of Heartache after an Orange Punch to score the pin and give his team the win.
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #10: AEW World Championship Texas Death Match – MJF def. “Hangman” Adam Page
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Page made a wild entrance wrapped in barbed wire, while MJF arrived in full cowboy gear to mock him, setting the tone for an absolutely brutal fight from the opening bell. The two brawled all around the arena using anything they could find, including trash cans, glass, barbed wire, chairs and even a staple gun, leaving both men covered in blood early. The violence kept escalating with tables, light tubes, skewers and barbed-wire weapons, as neither man could keep the other down despite repeated Deadeyes, piledrivers and chair shots. The chaos spilled to the stage, where both men crashed through tables and equipment before barely beating the count. Back in the ring, Page looked ready to finish it with the Buckshot, but MJF resorted to a low blow and the AEW World Title to turn the tide. With Page barely able to stand, MJF trapped him on the apron in a choke until he couldn’t answer the ten count, allowing MJF to retain the AEW World Championship in a savage main event that left both men completely destroyed.
My Score: 4 out of 5
News of the Night:
- Cope and Christian returned to AEW, taking out FTR after their match versus The Young Bucks.
- Ronda Rousey appeared at the end of the Storm/Shafir match, causing a distraction so that Shafir could lay Toni out.
- Will Ospreay returned to AEW, attacking Jon Moxley (and the Death Riders) after his match.
- Kenny Omega returned after the Brody King/Swerve Strickland match to stop Swerve stomping King’s head on a breezeblock.
Final Verdict: 4/5
AEW: Revolution felt like a true pay-per-view in every sense of the word, delivering a stacked card packed with hard-hitting matches, big stipulations, title changes and multiple major returns that kept the energy high throughout the night. The show opened strong with FTR vs. The Young Bucks and rarely slowed down, with standout performances from Moxley vs. Takeshita, Andrade vs. Bandido and the chaotic Texas Death Match main event all helping the event feel suitably important. Not everything hit the same level, with the women’s tag title match and Tornado Trios bout feeling more like TV matches than PPV highlights, but even those never dragged the show down. Thekla vs. Statlander added solid drama, the Trios title match brought the spectacle, and the surprise appearances from Cope, Christian, Ospreay, Omega and Rousey gave the night a genuine big-event feel. Overall, this was a long but consistently entertaining show that balanced violence, athleticism and storyline progression well, making Revolution one of AEW’s stronger pay-per-views in recent memory.
