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

4. COLD Open

Delivered from the backstage area of World’s End presumably just minutes removed from him dethroning MJF, new World Heavyweight Champion Samoa Joe ended his 2023 by serving up the first great AEW promo of 2024.

‘The Samson Submission Machine’s powerful first address was all the better for its staging and show placement too. Joe cut a proud and defiant figure with the strap slung over his shoulder as he explained why he needed to break the former Champion mentally and physically following their original match at Grand Slam.

Joe left ‘The Salt Of The Earth’ with nothing, putting himself over as a man who will follow through on the worst and most dangerous of intentions and the former Champion over as a man almost impossible to beat for the belt in a straight one-on-one situation.

It was confirmed he’d appear live at the company’s spiritual home of Daily’s Place for the first time next week too. The 6’2 monster will likely look ten times that in the amphitheatre when he holds his newly-won gold aloft.

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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