50 Worst Wrestling Moments Of The 2020s (So Far)

28. The Winnipeg Jets!

Winnipeg Jets
AEW

In a late 2023 AEW development - these things are invariably much worse than you can remember them being - precious weeks of Kenny Omega’s career were wasted on a tag team with Chris Jericho.

It seemed like a thinly-veiled excuse for Kenny to work with the Bucks again, which is always great, but what’s better than that is the promise of a Kenny Omega top babyface singles run that AEW was essentially founded on. But then, what would Chris Jericho do?

The question, apparently, must be asked.

They went on to feud with then World Tag Team champions Big Bill and Ricky Starks, which led to an infamously bad promo duel, during which Kenny Omega admitted to not knowing what his own tag team was called. The Winnipeg Jets? The Golden Jets?

Chris Jericho’s big pop line here was to put his rivals’ names together. They’re called Big Billy Starks, he said, to the most polite, smattering echo of a chant in wrestling history. Billie Starkz was a women’s wrestler working for Ring Of Honor at the time. Was Jericho saying that Bill and Ricky were girls? Jesus Christ.

Ricky said “Well, that fell flat”, and it had.

Now, it would be cruel in the extreme not to mention that Kenny Omega was, unbeknownst to everybody including himself, hours away from being hospitalised with diverticulitis. What’s Jericho’s excuse?

Other than being a hack?

Advertisement
Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!