6 Ups & 3 Downs For AEW Collision (June 1 - Results & Review)
1. Excellent Main Event
It may not always be the most newsworthy of shows these days, but Collision has long had a reputation for delivering good-to-great main events. And this week was no different on that front, with Will Ospreay and Kyle O'Reilly putting on an excellent headliner.
Clearly, Ospreay is viewed as the guy right now, consistently receiving the loudest ovations in the entire company since he formally became #AllElite. Sure, Swerve Strickland was that guy for a spell, but the AEW World Champion has sadly felt like a midcard afterthought with how he's been booked since winning the promotion's top prize. At the same time, Ospreay's matches and promos have been garnering the hottest reactions of anyone on the roster.
While Will Ospreay obviously always steals the show and forever highlights why he is one of the very best - if not the best - in the entire industry, Kyle O'Reilly was arguably the bigger story here. KOR was on fire, bringing his majestic kicks and generally phenomenal striking game, and throwing in plenty of his great-looking submissions as he brutally beat Ospreay down and worked over his left arm.
If you ever needed a reminder of how good Kyle O'Reilly is, this was a prime example. Given how long he unfortunately had to spend on the sidelines, some may have forgotten what Kyle brings to the table - and here he brought a full buffet of his delightful, hard-hitting, snug treats to the dinner table.
Ospreay did get the win, but this felt like a case of the Aerial Assassin surviving Kyle O'Reilly rather than defeating him. The way that Will sold Kyle's offense and the damage done, plus the impact that damage had on the Brit's own offense, was magnificent, putting O'Reilly over as an utter brute. On top of that, the Canadian once again kicked out of the Hidden Blade, before a frantic, desperate, wounded Ospreay quickly put him down the Stormbreaker.
Will Ospreay may have been the winner but, without sounding too corny, not only were both men winners but so, too, were those who tuned in hoping for a barnburner of a main event.
Post-match, we got a Swerve Strickland video that did actually make the AEW World Champion feel like the big deal he should be, and he even called out the decision from Tony Khan to grant Roderick Strong a title shot. A strong finish to a mixed bag of a Collision.