AEW Collision (Dec. 9, 2023) emanated from Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The show featured a chink exposed in Bryan Danielson’s armor, Eddie Kingston back on the winning track, Kenny Omega wrestling Ethan Page for the pride of their country, and more.
Catch up on all the Collision details with top-notch play-by-play from Cain A. Knight.
Saturday night is alright for fighting. Eddie Kingston impatiently tooted the theme song.
Continental Classic shows that Bryan Danielson is beatable
The Continental Classic presented two matchups from the Blue League for the evening. Eddie Kingston versus Claudio Castagnoli started the show. Bryan Danielson versus Andrade finished the show.
Kingston fired off an opening salvo of aggression. Claudio weathered the storm to pummel his opponent for a long stretch. He even took Kingston on a ride for the big swing.
Once Kingston rallied, it was a proper donnybrook inside the ring for the rest of the bout. Claudio struck with precision and technical acumen, while Kingston relied on his toughness throwing haymakers. The Mad King managed to clock Claudio with a spinning backfist. Claudio responded with a European uppercut. Kingston stood strong to unleash another spinning backfist. That wasn’t enough to keep Claudio down.
When Kingston lifted his rival for a powerbomb, Claudio countered for a roll-up. Kingston kept the motion flowing to end up on top and earn the win.
The main event was a competitive clash with a shocking conclusion. Andrade was triumphant over Danielson. That result was not the surprise. It’s how El Idolo got the job done.
Andrade ripped off Danielson’s eye patch midway through the contest, and he didn’t hold back attacking the surgically repaired injury. Andrade went so far as to blatantly gouge Danielson’s eye. El Idolo drew blood on the American Dragon’s scar tissue.
Danielson isn’t one to be worried about pain or blood, so he kept coming full steam ahead. Danielson executed an avalanche suplex then applied the LeBell Lock. Andrade struggled to the ropes for the break.
Andrade’s bread and butter down the stretch was a spinning back elbow. He collided the point into Danielson’s eye on several occasions. The contact took its toll wearing down the Dragon. Andrade poured on the punishment in the corner with vicious elbow strikes to the orbital bone. It appeared that Danielson was knocked out. Andrade carried the dead weight to the center of the ring, then he finished with a hammerlock DDT to win.
Afterward, Andrade tried to make nice. He did whatever it took to win, and he felt Danielson would understand that. It’s unclear how Danielson responded on the mat, but his Blackpool Combat Club brethren weren’t interested in hearing Andrade’s apology. Heat simmered between Andrade and Claudio to set up their future tournament bout.
Danielson presented himself as unbeatable for the Continental Classic. He was on his way proving it too. That was until Andrade found a chink in the armor. It was only a matter of time before someone tested Danielson’s eye. Andrade was ruthless in his approach, and it paid dividends in victory. That strategy was executed well by protecting Danielson and increasing the value of Andrade’s stock to win the tournament. Cruising for a sweep of the competition would have been an acceptable story for Danielson, however, this result adds great drama to the overall angles of the competition. Danielson is damaged goods for his next matches. Will he be able to survive or possibly thrive in the face of