10 Ups & 0 Downs From AEW Dynamite: New Year's Smash (Jan 13)

3. Jack Of All Trade vs. Master Of One

Serena Deeb and Tay Conti concocted a great last-minute build for their NWA Women's Title match, framing the champion as a pro wrestling purist opposite Conti's multi-discipline skillset, though Excalibur's Road To comments on diverting attention away from core competencies preceding a fall foreshadowed the outcome.

This match was an exercise in paying a story off effectively. Conti's arsenal is broader but less refined. She's a better martial artist than Deeb, but an inferior pro wrestler at this stage in the game, and while she attacked with kicks, throws, and submissions, Deeb progressively worked bodyparts, transitioned between phases, and looked every bit the ring general she always does. This led to her victory via Detox after rolling out of a Tay-KO attempt.

From here, Tay most realign her focus to fit her Muay Thai, Judo, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu into the kind of pro wrestling framework that Deeb has perfected. A compelling path for a developing wrestler to tread down, and it'd be remiss not to mention her stark improvement here. The Brazilian has come so far in such a short space of time that she has quietly become one of American wrestling's most exciting prospects.

As for Deeb? Her work is flawless, she commands the squared circle like nobody else in the company, and seemingly can't miss at this stage.