6 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Collision (April 27 - Results & Review)

by Jamie Kennedy

1. Swerve & Claudio Smash It

Swerve Strickland Claudio Castagnoli
AEW

No-one will be shocked to find out this was match of the night.

Everyone knew Swerve vs. Claudio would be stellar as soon as it was announced earlier in the show, and it didn't disappoint. One of the best things about Castagnoli's work is that he never rushes for the sake of it; everything is given room to breathe, and that makes him the ideal foe for a new champion like Strickland.

The first half of the main was a slow-burner, but the second? Ooft! The second was all fire and ended up packed full of believable near falls. One coming off a killer Claudio uppercut, in particular, was great. Tony Schiavone followed that up with a terrific line on comms about "hearing, almost feeling the physicality just watching the match".

One can already tell Swerve is gonna be a giving champ, which is a plus. He heaped some unlikely sympathy on himself by referencing family during an emotional opening promo, then proved to be every bit the fighting champion vs. Castagnoli.

It'll be fun to find out what Claudio whispered to Swerve about Prince Nana post-match too.

What did you think of this week's AEW Collision? For more wrestling, check out 5 Ups & 5 Downs From WWE SmackDown (April 26 - Results & Review) and Ranking Every Night One WWE 2024 Draft Pick From Worst To Best!

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.