4 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Rampage (Sept 9)

1. Dax Harwood Steps Up (Again)

The actual match itself was sweet.

Man, Dax Harwood has been smashing it in one-on-ones when he's been given the chance, hasn't he? Matches vs. everyone from Jay Lethal and Will Ospreay to CM Punk and now Claudio have been stunning. His performance on Friday night makes Rampage worth checking out.

As usual, the title shot story lacked a bit of context and was fairly rushed, but fans will be willing to overlook that when the quality is this high. AEW's rankings have become a bit of running joke anyway. So many title bouts have happened without the expected (or necessary) build.

Regardless, this was a rugged example of everything that's right with the promotion. It must've been a proper treat to watch live without the ad breaks too, and moves Harwood one step closer to breaking out of the "just a tag-team guy" branding he's had for years.

What did you think of this week's AEW Rampage? For more like this, check out 4 Ups & 5 Downs From AEW Rampage (Sept 2) and 10 New Directions After Last Night’s AEW Dynamite!