Tay Melo & Anna Jay A.S. vs. Ruby Soho & Willow Nightingale
Melo and Nightingale start the bout and feel each other out. Willow gains the upper hand, but Melo tags herself in. Jay A.S. tags in as well. Soho unloads on her with a series of right hands. Willow tags back in and double-teams Jay with Soho. Jay gains the upper hand, as she and Melo isolate Willow in the corner. They continue to control the action, but Willow rallies. Soho tags in and clears house as she takes the fight to Melo. She drills Melo with a series of strikes. Ruby drills Melo with the No Future for a two count. Willow takes Jay down with a clothesline and eats a pump kick. Soho dumps Melo with a backdrop suplex. Melo and Jay double-team Soho, and Willow breaks up a pin attempt. Willow and Jay brawl at ringside. In the ring, Melo and Soho trade strikes. Jay gets a chair and goes to hit willow, but referee Aubrey Edwards stops her. With the referee distracted, Melo kicks a chair into Soho’s face and hits the Tay-KO for the win.
Winners: Tay Melo & Anna Jay A.S.
#TayJay @taymelo @annajay__ steal the win after a completely physical back-and-forth tag team bout against @realrubysoho and @willowwrestles!#AEWDynamite: #NewYearsSmash is LIVE on TBS! pic.twitter.com/gkfhdlL1Mw
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) December 29, 2022
Backstage, The Gunns (Austin & Colten Gunn) leave early and say they’ll address their win over FTR next week.
In an interview, Ricky Starks shares his thoughts ahead of his match with Chris Jericho and vows to get revenge for Action Andretti. He says he’s a star that Jericho can’t control. Starks promises to whoop Jericho’s ass and bring him down several matches.
TNT Championship: Samoa Joe (c) vs. Wardlow
Wardlow doesn’t come out at first, but he eventually makes his way to the ring. He takes the fight to Joe, but it’s clear that his leg is bothering him. The challenger drops Joe with a spinebuster and continues to control the match. Joe slams Wardlow to the mat. Wardlow fires up with a clothesline. Joe takes Wardlow down with a knee-breaker. The ringside doctor checks on Wardlow, and it’s clear that he’s in pain. He eventually limps back into the ring, and the fight is back on, but Joe again targets the vulnerable leg. He battles Wardlow on the top rope, and the challenger knocks him down. Wardlow hits a Swanton Bomb, but in doing so, he clearly aggravates his knee injury. Wardlow rallies with two German suplexes. He hits the Whisper in the Wind but hurts his knee again on the landing. Joe goes for the Coquina Clutch, but Wardlow escapes. Joe hits a Dragon screw and chops Wardlow in the corner. Wardlow floors Joe with a powerbomb. He goes for the Powerbomb Symphony, but his leg gives out. Joe hits a chop block and locks in the Coquina Clutch until Wardlow passes out.
Winner and still TNT Champion: Samoa Joe
#AndSTILL TNT Champion is @SamoaJoe, after one heck of a fight by @RealWardlow!
It’s #AEWDynamite: #NewYearsSmash LIVE on TBS! pic.twitter.com/2gIhG9T01D— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) December 29, 2022
Joe attacks Wardlow after the bell and gets a tool box. He takes out some scissors and headbutts the referee. Joe then cuts Wardlow’s hair. Darby Allin charges into the ring and hits Joe in the back with a skateboard.
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