AEW Dynamite & Collision recap, review (May 6): Darby’s devious plan

AEW world champion Darby Allin is running through a murderer’s row of challengers. He faced TNT champion Kevin Knight on the Dynamite Collision combo (May 6, 2026), then three more heavy-hitters stepped up to call for a shot. Well, MJF made demands, but it’s unclear if he will agree to Allin’s devious plan. The three-hour broadcast also featured Jon Moxley, Kazuchika Okada, and Orange Cassidy in matches with title ramifications, Will Ospreay training with the Death Riders, Chris Jericho in need of partners for Stadium Stampede, and more from North Charleston Coliseum in South Carolina.

AEW world champion Darby Allin

First up was Kevin Knight. This was a darn good wrestling match. I find Darby Allin to be more interesting as a wrestler when he uses technique and strategy rather than testing his body like a crash dummy. This match was a good blend of both worlds. It was actually Knight who took the riskier spots. He popped the crowd by clobbering Allin over the commentary table on a springboard clothesline. That maneuver was definitely awesome.

Later, Allin was trapped in the tree of woe, and Knight nailed a coast to coast dropkick. Knight landed the UFO splash, but Allin kicked out on the cover.

Allin noticed that Knight damaged his knee, so he gained the upper hand by kicking his knee out to fall into a guillotine choke. Knight reached the ropes to break. Allin showed urgency to close by embracing his spirit animal, the rapid squirrel. Allin turned up his aggression to hammer Knight. The champ landed a Coffin Drop to Knight hung over the ropes, then he followed for a proper Coffin Drop to win.

That was a very entertaining world title defense. I enjoyed the progression of risk as the contest wore on. The second half of that match was nuts. Knight showcased his athleticism in a memorable way. As mentioned above, this is the version of Allin I prefer over hardcore wars. He often brings out an interesting touch of strategy. In this case, it was the kick to the injured knee. Allin showed killer instinct on the finish. I don’t know if this is part of a deeper story for Knight’s development, but it does kind of play into his character arc over the past year, especially the conversations from Swerve Strickland. When the time comes for Knight’s next step up the ladder, he may have to find that killer instinct.

It’s Sting! The Icon celebrated with Allin and put over Knight with respect.

Next out was MJF. He wanted his rematch. Allin told MJF to put something on the line. The negotiations went from MJF’s scarf to the Dynamite Diamond Ring to one million dollars. Allin kept turning him down. MJF lost patience and asked what Allin really wanted. The price was MJF’s hair. That’s what the egomaniac holds most dear. Allin will arrange a contract signing next week for world title versus hair. If MJF doesn’t show up, then Allin will never give him a shot. MJF got cold feet, dropped the mic, and walked out to leave us with a cliffhanger on if he will accept. That is a glorious stipulation choice by Allin. It’s believable enough in both directions to hide who would win.

Out with MJF, in with Kazuchika Okada. Earlier in the evening, Okada said that he wants more gold. The Rainmaker is coming for the world title.

Okada approached Allin in the ring, and the challenge was accepted for next week on Dynamite.

That seems like an odd story decision for Okada with the big PPV bout against Konosuke Takeshita coming up. Is Okada looking past his rival? AEW addressed that question later with a Callis Family promo. Takeshita was frustrated at the lack of respect. Andrade felt spurned as well when Don Callis said that Okada is his handpicked choice to be world champion.

We might not even make it to Allin versus Okada, because AEW booked another world title defense for the Fairway to Hell special on Saturday night. PAC called out Allin for a shot. He was winning record over Allin in AEW.

Okay, so we will make it to Allin versus Okada. I love PAC as much as the next wrestling aficionado, but he won’t be dethroning Allin. It should be a darn good fight though. AEW really is putting Allin through the ringer with title defenses against the cream of the crop. I’m shocked that AEW is giving away the Okada challenge on TV. Double or Nothing is on May 24, so it will be interesting to see if Allin keeps going strong each week. Would MJF try to help other challengers win the title, so he can get out of the hair stipulation? Interesting times are ahead in the coming weeks.

Let’s jam through the rest of Dynamite. Catch up on all the details with excellent play-by-play from Claire Elizabeth.

AEW Continental Championship eliminator: Jon Moxley (c) defeated Juice Robinson. This was like a back alley fight with punches, small joint manipulation, biting, and brawling on the outside. That sounds tailor-made for Moxley to bleed. And that he did, however, it was an accidental cut. There was actually strategy in the chaos. Moxley’s assault on Robinson’s fingers was a defensive tactic to prevent his big punch, which sets up the DDT finisher. Robinson tried to sneak in his finisher without the punch, and Moxley swiftly countered into a choke. Robinson neared the ropes, so Mox transitioned to a piledriver. Kick out by Robinson, and Moxley went back to the bulldog choke. A takedown allowed Moxley leverage to crank the submission for victory as Robinson passed out. I like how the finish showed Moxley’s superior ring awareness and skills. It was a demonstration of how effective the Death Riders training can be.

Speaking of Death Riders training, we were treated to a sneak peak with Will Ospreay. Wheeler Yuta was doing situps, and I didn’t notice at first that Ospreay was the base doubling on neck raises to strengthen his weakness. Moxley offered a pep talk about Ospreay in a do or die moment. He’s climbed 99% of the mountain, and the last 1% will be the toughest. Ospreay needs to focus on getting his neck and mind right to reach the top. I love this style of scene blending training with philosophy. It feels like we are witnessing the evolution of Ospreay, and I’m excited to see his next step. It is a great example of show, not tell.

Samoa Joe still has his eye on recruiting Ospreay. He sees Ospreay’s momentum rising to become the next world champion. Under Moxley’s training, the question is how much will Ospreay have left in the tank to remain champion. With the Opps by his side, the answer is a very long time. Joe warned that declining this offer will result in fists. Just like how we get a sense of why the Death Riders follow Moxley as a leader, Joe’s promo also offers a glimpse into why the Opps follow him. Joe explained how he creates opportunities for his men. Those are the kind of details that help paint a fuller character.

The Ospreay saga continued with a health update. The doctor said that Ospreay’s neck was improving. Ospreay clarified that he will never be a Death Rider, but he appreciates the training. Sometimes you have to do things you don’t want to do to get where you want to be.

If you were Ospreay, which faction would you join?

Double Jeopardy: Orange Cassidy defeated Dax Harwood. FTR brought Stokely Hathaway, RPG Vice, and the Dogs for backup, so the Conglomeration were joined by the Young Bucks, Adam Copeland, and Christian Cage for an unofficial lumberjack match. It was mainly the heels playing tricks on Cassidy. The story of the match was Cassidy’s superman punch. He clocked Harwood early, but Dax rolled outside to prevent the pin. Harwood went to work damaging OC’s punching hand. The flow was Cassidy with counter offense to get the crowd excited, then the tease of the punch. In the end, Cassidy finally hit the superman punch again, but it didn’t earn the pin. Cassidy stacked on top of Harwood for the win in a sequence of positional control. Afterward, a quick melee ensued, and the babyfaces teed off on RPG Vice.

Even though there was a lot of calamity, the match itself was simple and effective. Cassidy did well selling his injury, and that kept the crowd engaged for his rallies. Per the stipulation, Cassidy will receive a tag title shot against FTR.

Stadium Stampede. Chris Jericho was furious about the constant beatdowns from Ricochet. The time for talk is over. Now, it’s time to fight. Ricochet was getting bored of this geriatric, so Bishop Kaun whispered an idea. Ricochet already beat Jericho with his own move (Ricosault), and he wants to beat Jericho in his own match for Stadium Stampede at Double or Nothing.

Talk turned to fisticuffs with Jericho blasting Ricochet on the Judas Effect elbow. The numbers got him until the Hurt Syndicate arrived. This segment delivered on both appealing angles for this Jericho story. The trademarked phrase is still running strong with a beatdown on Jericho, and we have the intrigue of mystery to find out who else Jericho can recruit. Stadium Stampede is five-on-five, so it is implied that both teams need two more members apiece.

AEW International Championship: Kazuchika Okada (c) defeated Bryan Keith to retain the title. This match turned into a DDT battle. Okada hit one on the floor and inside the ring. Later, Keith did the same. The finish was all about counter defense with both men escaping moves, such as the Rainmaker lariat. Keith bopped a headbutt and a tiger suplex. Okada kicked out. When Keith went for a finisher from the corner, Okada reversed the move into a suplex. That stunned Keith enough for Okada to clobber the Rainmaker for victory.

In a bubble, this was a pretty entertaining match. Keith looked sharp rising to the moment, and Okada did his thing. In the big picture, there was no drama, because there was no reason to believe that Keith could win. This was one of those cases where AEW stuck a cold wrestler into a title match. At least Keith got the exposure.

Kris Statlander & Hikaru Shida defeated Mina Shirakawa & Harley Cameron. This hype promo is the best. Mina ripped off Harley’s shirt in a message to look within. Mina was surprised that Harley was only wearing a bra, instead of her gear. The pep talk worked anyway, and Harley was ready for their opponents to feel the wrath.

The hook for this match was how well Statlander and Shida would work as a team. They were gelling until Shida blasted Statlander on a running knee in a case of friendly fire.

The action continued with Shida feeling Harley’s wrath. Statlander blocked Harley’s finisher to save Shida. Shida executed a Falcon Arrow to pin Harley. Even though they won, Statlander was peeved at Shida. Shida slapped StatDaddy’s chest in celebration. The team dynamic continues to be amusing with Shida always putting a positive spin on Statlander’s icy glares of distrust.

“Speedball” Mike Bailey defeated AR Fox. This was a popcorn match. Sit back and watch poetry in motion. Bailey won via Ultima Weapon.

Jamie Hayter defeated Skye Blue. Feisty fisticuffs. Hayter and Blue hammered each other. The finish was cool. They tussled for position on the turnbuckles, then Hayter unloaded the Hayterade lariat to crash down to the mat. That was an emphatic method of victory. Thekla was in the crowd watching the outcome.

Rush defeated Manny Lo. Squash via Bull’s Horns. The question remains where is this win streak leading. No hints yet.

Young Bucks, Gunn Club, & Ace Austin defeated Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta, Daniel Garcia & the Dogs. The final match of the show had a hectic pace and action galore. The finish came down to Ace and Yuta. Ace flipped out of a German suplex, then he was joined by the Bucks for a triple superkick. Ace hit The Fold to win. I don’t know if there is a story direction coming from this bout. These factions have been orbiting each other, so we’ll see if it becomes more clear as the PPV approaches. It was nice to see Ace earn the pin though.

Notes: Ted Turner died earlier in the day, so AEW dedicated the show to the founder of WCW. Tony Schiavone and Sting spoke about the importance of Turner to the history of professional wrestling, and AEW hit a ten-bell salute in his memory.

Willow Nightingale is honored to be the current face of TBS. The legacy of Ted Turner deserves a fighting champion, so she encouraged the next challenger to step up.

Swerve Strickland wants power. He is targeting dangerous men to create power through fear. That’s why Swerve is coming for Bandido.

Bandido replied that he is easy to find. Brody King warned that there will be hell to pay if Swerve messes with his friends.

Jack Perry rode his jungle bus to climb rocks in a hype video for his AEW National Championship defense against Mark Davis. It’s not the size of the dog in the fight. It’s the size of the fight in the dog.

Stud of the Show: Jon Moxley

I was impressed by his strategy in the ring and philosophy outside the ring.

Match of the Night: Darby Allin vs. Kevin Knight

For a match that had no doubt about the winner, it sill delivered maximum entertainment.

Banging action all night long, and I really enjoyed how AEW developed character motivation in several scenes.

Share your thoughts about AEW Dynamite. How do you rate it? What were your favorite moments from the show? Who impressed you the most?