Full Gear 2024 Recap'

Hey everyone, it's Laure live from Luz' with the recap of Full Gear from November 23, 2024 !

The event opened with a big match: a 4-Way Tag Team bout for the Private Party's Tag Team Championships. They faced the House of Black, The Outrunners, and The Acclaimed. While the setup wasn’t exactly in the champions’ favor, it didn’t seem to matter much thanks to some discord between Max Caster and Anthony Bowens during the match. At one point, while Caster was having fun and trying to fist-bump one of The Outrunners, Bowens used the moment to attack him.

Alright, it’s still a match, so fair enough! But later, when Caster was attempting a pin and Bowens was perched on the corner, they started arguing, clearly disagreeing on what to do next. That brief distraction cost them the match, allowing the champions to hit their Gin and Juice finisher and pin Caster for the win. Private Party retains!

Before moving on to the next match, we get a short interview with Orange Cassidy, who’s in tonight’s main event. He mentions that the Death Riders sent a message this week, and tonight, he plans to send one too. In fact, he says the entire AEW is sending a message, starting with Private Party earlier in the night. This title means everything to him, just as AEW means everything to the roster, the fans, and himself. Jon Moxley doesn’t see that.

Cassidy continues, saying that Moxley never needed AEW—not like he did. So tonight, Cassidy plans to show Moxley that AEW doesn’t need him, and he’s going to become the new AEW Champion.

Back in the ring, we move to the match between Roderick Strong and MJF. True to form, MJF can’t help being a jerk. Before the match officially starts, he grabs a mic at ringside and starts talking again about Strong’s difficult childhood. Strong quickly cuts him off by attacking him, leading to a brawl outside the ring. The two smash into the barricades, and Strong injures his hand against the ring post. The match officially begins once they both return to the ring.

MJF is particularly ruthless throughout the match, as expected. He focuses on Strong’s injured hand, attacking it with strikes and submission holds. Ultimately, an Arm Bar forces Strong to tap out, giving MJF the victory.

But winning isn’t enough when you’re MJF! He grabs a chair, traps Strong’s arm in it, and delivers a brutal stomp to the chair. He likely would’ve done more if Adam Cole hadn’t rushed out to chase him off. Cole is soon joined by Undisputed Kingdom and Kyle O’Reilly, all surrounding the motionless Strong. Cole leans toward O’Reilly, but O’Reilly shoves him away angrily. Though we can’t hear what he’s yelling, it’s clear he blames Cole for what happened—setting the stage for some intense confrontations in future episodes!

Next up is the women’s match: Kris Statlander versus Mercedes Moné for the TBS Championship. I’ve been waiting for this—finally, the moment where Moné would get her head smashed in and pay for her arrogance. AEW, don’t disappoint me!

The match is exciting, with Moné pulling out every trick in the book to try and win. She grows increasingly frustrated as Statlander keeps kicking out. I’m thrilled, thinking I’m finally going to see Moné seethe in anger for the rest of her days. But what happens?!

The champion counters Statlander by sending her into the ropes and rolls her up for the pin, securing the victory and retaining her title. Excuse me? Kris, what just happened? Instead of popping champagne, I’m stuck watching Moné’s celebration as she prances around, declaring herself the best in the world. What did I do to deserve this?

Let’s move on and forget that moment, with the second round between Jay White and Adam Page. Their rivalry has reached an intense level, and it shows in their match. Page is out for blood, determined to destroy White once and for all. At ringside, ignoring the referee’s warnings, Page traps White’s weakened leg in the barricade and kicks it repeatedly to cause maximum damage.

It becomes pretty clear early on that Page’s goal is to destroy White, with victory being a secondary concern. At one point, he applies a submission hold on the entrance ramp. The referee looks at him like, “Dude, you need to be in the ring to win,” but Page couldn’t care less. Struggling and trapped in the hold, White painstakingly drags himself inch by inch toward the ring, breaking the submission. However, the damage is done, and White is left limping for the rest of the match.

And how does it all end? Page tries to lock White in an Ankle Lock again, but this time, White counters and hits his Blade Runner. Page doesn’t get up as White follows with the pin. Once again, Jay White proves he’s the strongest!

The winner exits, smiling, proud to have backed up his words. But Page isn’t about to let the night end like that. He catches up with White on the entrance ramp and attacks him from behind. Officials, including Christopher Daniels, rush out to separate them. Daniels tries to calm Page down, but it’s obvious Page isn’t listening and doesn’t care. He makes his feelings clear by punching Daniels square in the face before storming off. Uh-oh, someone’s definitely getting called into the office next week!

Next up is the most personal match of the night: the grudge match between Will Ospreay and Kyle Fletcher. Ospreay, usually upbeat and jovial, singing with the crowd, arrives in all black, scowling and ignoring the fans. Oh boy, this is going to be intense!

Kyle Fletcher enters with a fresh new look, wearing a crown and accompanied by Don Callis. He’s strutting in like a king, even though he hasn’t won anything yet. I can’t deal! But I do like the detail in their gear, playing with the black-and-white contrast: the heel, Fletcher, is dressed in white, while the face, Ospreay, is clad in black. A minor touch, perhaps, but interesting nonetheless!

From the start, it’s clear they want to destroy each other—Ospreay seeking vengeance, and Fletcher wanting to break free from the shadow of his mentor. Ospreay, as always, is brilliant, but Fletcher matches him move for move, with an added dose of sadism. At one point, Fletcher delivers a Piledriver on the steel steps outside and follows it up with another in the ring. Ospreay keeps kicking out, but it’s obvious he’s in bad shape—barely standing, hardly defending himself, which only amuses Fletcher.

Fletcher eventually hits a Brainbuster on the turnbuckle, putting Ospreay down for good. Ospreay succumbs, giving Fletcher a massive and well-earned victory! Yes, Fletcher’s the bad guy, but I really enjoyed this outcome. It’s a huge step forward for Fletcher, solidifying his independence from Ospreay. It’s a clean break, and that’s for the best.

In the aftermath, as Kyle celebrates, Mark Davis comes out to check on Ospreay (spoiler: he’s definitely not okay). Fletcher and Callis leave triumphantly, and honestly, GG to them both!

Now, let’s take a break from the violence for something lighter! It’s time for champagne and celebration as Mariah May celebrates her championship win, introduced by Mina Shirakawa. Mina asks the crowd to cheer for her partner, her friend, and the love of her life, Mariah May. The champ comes out, beaming with joy.

Mariah grabs the mic and says she’s finally getting the celebration she deserves, that destroying the entire women’s division was worth it, and that no living person can touch her (Toni Storm, where are you?).

Turning to her friend, she dedicates a heartfelt moment to Mina: “Mina, I couldn’t have done this without you.” The two share a glass of champagne, arm in arm, but seriously... Toni Storm, please, save us from this!

Mariah May then suggests to Mina that they enjoy the moment and start partying right away. They begin dancing, with Shirakawa edging closer to the entrance ramp. The champion seizes the opportunity to grab a champagne bottle (wait, what?) and prepares to strike her friend with it. Mina, apparently blessed with a sixth sense, turns around just in time to dodge the attack and stares at Mariah in shock (same here, honestly). Mina kicks the bottle, shattering it into pieces—perhaps foreshadowing a future grudge match.

Mariah May probably should’ve planned this better because not only did she miss, but she also made Mina snap. Mina charges at her, sending her crashing through a table at the bottom of the entrance ramp. With blood streaming from her face, Mina is completely unhinged, while the champion lies unconscious on the ground.

Excuse me, but what is going on? AEW, are you seriously leaving me hanging without Toni Storm’s return and ending on this? How long must we wait?!

Let’s move on and try to clear our heads. Next up is a little vignette about Daniel Garcia, featuring childhood footage and a heartfelt message from his mother ahead of his match tonight. Please, AEW, I’m begging you—if Garcia loses after this, I swear I’m boycotting. I didn’t get Moné’s loss, I didn’t get Storm’s return, at least let me have Garcia becoming TNT champion, I beg of you!

And now, it’s time: Daniel Garcia vs. Jack Perry for the TNT title. Perry starts by playing games, repeatedly rolling in and out of the ring to frustrate Garcia. It works until they end up face-to-face at ringside, where Garcia grabs Perry and repeatedly slams him against the barricade. That’s what you get for showing off!

The match progresses, and at one point, Perry decides rules are optional. He sends Garcia through a table and dumps trash on him, burying him under the debris. Excuse me, referee? Is this allowed? Am I the only one shocked by this?

Perry hoped to win via count-out with this stunt, but surprise—Garcia gets back in the ring. Annoyed, the champion grabs his title belt, hands it to Garcia, and opens his arms, inviting him to use it as a weapon (sigh). Garcia resists, hands the belt to the referee, and gets low-blowed for his trouble (oh, now we’re following the rules?). Thankfully, Garcia still manages to kick out.

He regains full control and eventually counters Perry to land a Piledriver. He follows up with his Dragon Tamer submission hold, forcing Jack Perry to tap after several grueling seconds. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new TNT champion—it’s Danny-boy! Finally, we can end on a high note and live happily ever after!

But no, there’s still more to cover, so here we go. The next match is Konosuke Takeshita vs. Ricochet for the International title. Don Callis is back on commentary but looks nervous midway through as Ricochet takes control and gains the upper hand against Takeshita. Callis eventually moves to ringside, clearly tempted to interfere.

Well, he certainly seemed more confident about Fletcher’s match! If I were Takeshita, I’d be a little offended. Still, Takeshita doesn’t let it show, and despite Ricochet’s repeated attempts to finish the match, the champion delivers an Avalanche Broken Arrow from the turnbuckle, putting Ricochet away for good. Another win for the Don Callis Family and Ricochet’s first real loss (it had to happen sometime, buddy!).

The penultimate match of the night features Swerve Strickland (with Prince Nana) vs. Bobby Lashley (accompanied by MVP and Shelton Benjamin). I appreciated how they established early on that Strickland was in for a rough night, as if he himself realized the kind of beast Lashley is.

Despite impressive moments of dominance from the newcomer, Shelton Benjamin couldn’t resist interfering, tripping Strickland to stop his momentum. Unfortunately for him, the referee caught it and ejected Benjamin from ringside. The Hurt Syndicate wasn’t happy, but let’s be honest, what difference did it make?

Not much, since Bobby Lashley remained as dominant as ever. He delivered a series of Spears, including one through the barricade, before locking Strickland in a Hurt Lock. Unable to respond, the referee ended the match, declaring Lashley the winner, much to the shock of Prince Nana, who clearly hadn’t expected Strickland to lose. Poor Nana even suffered a Hurt Lock himself when he tried to check on his friend!

And we’ve finally arrived at the main event—and what a main event it is, because believe me, the future of AEW is on the line tonight. Orange Cassidy is fully determined to knock Jon Moxley and his crew off their pedestal. He’s so fired up that, during the introductions, Cassidy goes straight for Moxley with multiple Orange Punches, kicking off the match in explosive fashion.

Of course, watching Moxley beat the life out of Cassidy reminds us of all his promos promising to make an example of his challenger. Within moments, Cassidy’s face is covered in blood, as Moxley slams him into the steel steps and smashes him onto the announcer’s table. In short, it’s a brutal, savage clash.

Midway through the match, just as Cassidy seems to gain the upper hand, Pac and Claudio Castagnoli arrive, slowly surrounding the challenger on either side of the ring. But don’t worry—the Conglomeration intervenes, brawling with them at ringside. Marina Shafir then shows up, briefcase in hand, ready to strike. But who comes to the rescue? Willow Nightingale! We haven’t seen her in ages, and she charges in to take out Shafir.

With the referee distracted by the chaos at ringside, Moxley is down, and Cassidy spots the briefcase. Without hesitation, he hurls it into Moxley’s face before going for the pin. Unfortunately, it’s not enough. Cassidy tries to follow up with another Orange Punch, but a wobbly Moxley distracts the referee. Out of nowhere, Wheeler Yuta appears and takes Cassidy out. Moxley seizes the opportunity, hitting his Death Rider and pinning Cassidy for the three count.

Once again, Moxley retains his title and isn’t done with Cassidy yet. Yuta returns to the ring with Moxley, pouring cleaning solution into Cassidy’s mouth and face as he rolls out to ringside. Is it over? Of course not! The chaos continues.

Adam Page storms in with a chair, neutralizing Wheeler Yuta and squaring off with Moxley. Page drops the chair, and though it’s unclear what they’re saying to each other, their tense moment is interrupted by Christian Cage, who delivers a Killswitch to Moxley. We all know why he’s here!

Page, holding Cage’s contract, hesitates for a moment but ultimately hands it over before leaving the ring. Cage looks thrilled, ready to enforce his contract and become AEW Champion. But guess who shows up? Jay White, who lands a Blade Runner on Cage before being ambushed by the Death Riders. The group helps their leader to the back, but White, now armed with a chair, decides to follow them backstage.

Out in the parking lot, the Death Riders find themselves in a tight spot, trying to flee to their pick-up truck. Problem is, a car comes barreling into it, utterly wrecking the vehicle. Before we can figure out who’s behind this, the Death Riders assault a random guy, steal another car, and finally escape.

The camera then pans to a bloodied Darby Allin emerging from the crashed car, shouting, “Why are you running?!” Clearly unhinged, Allin climbs onto the hood of the pick-up and smashes the windshield with his skateboard, venting his rage.

A peculiar form of therapy, but it doesn’t seem to calm Allin down—in fact, it looks like it fires him up even more! We’ll see if he’s still this amped up on Dynamite!

It was Laure with the recap of Full Gear!!

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