10 Wrestling Matches That Collapsed In Front Of Everybody

9. Kenny Omega Vs Jon Moxley (AEW Revolution 2021)

Shawn Michaels Randy Orton
AEW

AEW took a bold step when they booked an Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch as the final chapter of their lengthy Kenny Omega/Jon Moxley programme, but the potential payoff promised exactly the amount of finality their rivalry required.

All until it embarrassed the company and every wrestler involved with a production botch for the ages.

Subjectively the match itself was hampered by a few ropey pyro displays, but all of that would have been forgiven if the conclusion had lived up to even modest expectations set by some of the classics of the genre from the mid-1990s. AEW set these expectations themselves - video packages including words from deathmatch legend Atsushi Onita played in the Dynamites leading up to the pay-per-view, and Tony Khan's post-show comments about the f*ck up implied that he also expected something far superior to what we all received.

Just about every wrestler talked themselves out of bother on the post-show Dynamite, but AEW's typically the promotion that doesn't ask that of its performers. This was a credibility-bruising clunker.

 
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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett