5 Ups & 5 Downs From AEW Double Or Nothing 2023
4. Wardlow (c) vs. Christian Cage
Wardlow being the one to request a ladder match against one of the modern architects of the stipulation felt like a knowingly big flex from the TNT Champion, but his own experience with the dangerous implement of destruction was called upon in the build too.
If one draws a line from that to the Swanton Bomb 'The Wardog' hit on Luchasaurus at the end of this odd outing, the whole thing's made sense and the restored titleholder has taken yet another impressive and stature-enhancing scalp. But it wasn't quite that simple. Christian started off dodging big moves, but that thread was dropped. Arn Anderson arrived to try and send the dinosaur packing, but suddenly he was biting his thumbs and nobody could quite work that out. Wardow's sheer mass warped a ladder, then he tried to climb it anyway.
It was impossible to shake the feeling, though Wardlow retaining in such spectacular fashion shows major company commitment to the project if nothing else. That might seem patronising to one of the best big men in the game an industry icon, but a straight singles match might have scaled a little higher than this.