8 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (January 3 - Results & Review)

1. What Next For The Continental Championship?

Eddie Kingston becoming the first Modern American Triple Crown winner and Continental Champion at All Elite Wrestling was - in the moment at least - far more than just 'The Mad King' grafting his way through a tournament to win the company's latest randomly-arrived-upon singles title.

Because what is this new belt if it's not an era defining recognition of unreal determination and the old-fashioned meaning of work rate? What is it if it's not the life's work of the person holding it aloft? The symbol of excellence in an era as battle-worn men pose for magazine shots draped in the trappings of their gritted-teeth success?

These are sadly not rhetorical questions.

Apparently, it is a belt that can and will be defended on television against opponents that win random multi-mans. Just like the TNT Championship was and often is. Just like the International Championship was and is despite Orange Cassidy's attempts to subvert the bit. Trent was successful in being the first to follow that formula, in what was justifiably the coldest match on the show. Fans came up for Danhausen's interference and it was telling that he helped his Best Friend stablemate despite being back-jumped in the World's End pre-show battle royal for another title shot (see?) less than a week ago.

Kingston will beat Trent, and there's always got to be awkward first defences and stat-padding. But the Champion was best flying to Japan to toast his successes in the Tokyo Dome rather than sitting ringside seeing his work trivialised by booking that left some with a sinking feeling.

Advertisement
Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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