6 Ups & 5 Downs From AEW Dynamite (29 Dec)

4. Jade Cargill's Powerful Win & Even More Powerful Ally

Jade Cargill's best singles match to date wasn't without sputtering splashes of evidence that she's still very, very new to all of this, but when her TBS Tournament semi final bout with Thunder Rosa popped, it popped all the way f*cking off.

Cargill's simply not like anybody else in the game, and when AEW nail the spots that reflect that, it's genuinely exhilarating. A pulsating pump kick and a backbreaker from a caught dive were the highlights here, though Cargill deserves credit for gamely selling a damaged knee and the strain and stress of not being able to beat Rosa by herself.

The veteran was undone by yet another experienced hand making her presence felt, and what an instant hit this was. Mercedes Martinez and AEW couldn't make a relationship work in 2019, but that's been at long last addressed in the here and now. Alongside Cargill, this domiant duo could cause some pretty incredible damage, and Martinez could and should be a huge help in bringing along her prodigious partner in tag battles. And that's without fantasy booking the eventual split.

This rules now, and will rule even harder in a year's time.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett