12 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Mar 11)

8. Cody Bounces Back

Cody Ortiz
AEW

Cody stepped back in the ring for the first time since that brutal loss to MJF at Revolution, delivering a solid opening bout with the livewire Ortiz, who was competing in just his second one-on-one since 2016.

A triumph of function rather than form, this served multiple purposes. The first was the ongoing war between The Elite and The Inner Circle. The second? Cody's growing rivalry with Jake 'The Snake' Roberts and his new client, who was revealed to be Lance Archer early on. The two sat ringside for much of the bout before taking their leave, with Roberts stopping Archer from hopping the barricade and whomping Cody, save their first physical confrontation for another day.

Ortiz showed plenty of character throughout and the crowd was totally into Cody, willing him on as he worked from beneath. There were a few less-than-clinical moments, sure, but it's tough to complain about the whole, and Cody ended up taking the W via Figure Four.

Advantage The Elite, then. Would this last?

Not exactly.

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.