6 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (17 May - Review)
2. Jay White Vs Ricky Starks
That a match ending in a disqualification or count-out still feels like a transgression is a credit to AEW's booking and may be a Jay White staple based on this being the second match to get thrown out since he landed a full time spot with the company. However, this one felt much, much closer to the sort of finish WWE would roll out in order to "protect" one wrestler or extend the programme towards a less satisfying sequel.
The excitement of this being brought forward to a Dynamite two weeks before Double Or Nothing centred around the idea that neither man could really lose. Starks was the hometown favourite and White was the new hot heel. Something had to give, and...nothing did.
There were flashpoints where the pair luxuriated in their natural gifts too, and more's the pity after it was thrown out to tee up something else down the road. Starks' babyface run hasn't been as smooth as hoped, but few heels have complimented and stifled his fire quite like 'Switchblade'. But it wasn't close to hitting projected heights before then, and trying to find a personal issue in a post-match only acted as reminder that they've failed to do so along the way.