Why This Week's AEW Dynamite Announcements Were So Last Minute
There's a good reason most of AEW's Blood & Guts match announcements came so late...
COVID-19 impacted this week's special Blood & Guts episode of AEW Dynamite, hence why the promotion refrained from announcing much of the lineup until the last minute.
Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio that AEW had "a lot of people unavailable" due to the virus that still courses across the planet. As a result, the promotion didn't book much prior to the day before the show (Tuesday) as the lineup was still being pieced together.
Before Tuesday, the titular Blood & Guts match pitting the Jericho Appreciation Society against the Blackpool Combat Club, Eddie Kingston, Santana, and Ortiz was all AEW had announced for the show. Orange Cassidy vs. Ethan Page and TBS Champion Jade Cargill vs. Leila Grey were then put together, before a Christian Cage promo and Danhausen and FTR vs. Gunn Club and Max Caster joined the card.
Meltzer stated that AEW could not book the lineup earlier "because of fears and things like that." Thus, the Dynamite matches were not typical of what fans would usually expect from the flagship show.
All the best to any parties affected by COVID-19 this week. May their symptoms be minor and their recoveries swift.