Tony Khan introduced AEW Dark: Elevation as a spinoff to AEW’s YouTube exclusive show, AEW Dark, in 2021. Elevation, more or less, followed the same model as Dark in the sense that it featured pre-taped matches involving AEW’s rising stars and established names on the independent roster.
AEW Dark: Elevation began airing on March 15, 2021. It maintained storyline consistency with AEW’s other programming. Moreover, many stars found the opportunity to elevate themselves by working with established names. While most Elevation matches were short in length, they did serve their purpose of helping talents hone their craft.
With that being said, these are the best AEW Dark: Elevation matches of 2021:
Diamante, Emi Sakura & Nyla Rose vs. KiLynn King, Red Velvet & Ryo Mizunami (October 10)
This was a short but fun six-person tag team match. All six competitors pulled something from their arsenal to deliver a solid outing. Vickie Guerrero and Lulu Pencil showcased their managerial skills by calling out each other from the opposing sides.
Red Velvet almost paralyzed herself with the Spanish Fly. Other than the scary spot, everything else played out well and the six competitors managed to entertain the Miami crowd.
KiLynn King vs. Ryo Mizunami (March 29)
This was one of the better Elevation matches that came out in 2021. KiLynn King and Ryo Mizunami got nearly 10 minutes to showcase their craft. KiLynn forced Ryo to bring out the energetic and brawler side of her in the match.
Ryo used her veteran instincts to help KiLynn deliver some creative offense from bell to bell. It was a solid encounter that helped put the spotlight on KiLynn while letting Ryo maintain her unintentionally comical personality.
Danny Limelight vs. Konosuke Takeshita (AEW Dark: Elevation #5)
Konosuke Takeshita had a phenomenal showing in AEW in 2021. Jun Akiyama’s protégé delivered some great matches on Dark and Elevation. One of his better outings came against Danny Limelight.
The match followed a pretty standard structure. Limelight showed out with his Limelight flying DDT. Takeshita retaliated with his incredibly beautiful Blue Thunder Bomb. AEW did a great job highlighting the DDT star with this match.
Death Triangle vs. The Dark Order (August 23)
All six competitors were given 10 minutes for this action-packed match, and they utilized every second of it. Dark Order, in particular, delivered a solid performance against three of the best wrestlers in PAC, Penta El Zero Miedo and Rey Fenix.
Alan Angels of The Dark Order was the standout performer from his team. He really brought some unique offense to the heated match with Death Triangle. Colt Cabana and Evil Uno also had some good sequences with Fenix and Penta.
Anthony Bowens vs. Dante Martin (AEW Dark: Elevation #25)
This was an incredibly entertaining opening match of AEW Dark: Elevation. Both Anthony Bowens and Dante Martin were in the midst of finding their footing in AEW when this match took place. The pair had always been looked at as tag team specialists, but they showcased their strengths as singles competitors as well.
Dante Martin showcased some breathtaking high-flying offense. Bowens relied on his strength and power moves to slow down the young high-flyer. The two competitors won the fans over with their incredible performance in this match.
Also read: Best AEW Dark: Elevation Matches of 2022
