8 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Worlds End 2023

2. Why Did This Happen?

AEW Worlds End 2023 Dustin Rhodes
AEW

News spread pre-show that Keith Lee would have to skip the pay-per-view due to injury. Best wishes to the big man, but AEW should've called an audible right there and then. Or, a different audible to the ones fans got, at least. Dustin Rhodes replaced his old tag partner vs. Swerve Strickland instead, and that earned some eye rolling from this fan when watching 'Zero Hour'.

Things picked up when Swerve cruelly ambushed Dustin before the bell. The legend looked like he'd be unable to compete, but Rhodes defied the docs to step up and wrestle Strickland anyway. That...wasn't necessary, and the 10 minutes that followed the implied cancellation bloated Worlds End.

Why didn't they just stick with the angle and forget the match? It's not like Dustin needs to shine on PPV these days, and Swerve is obviously heading for bigger things than him and Lee anyway. Honestly, Strickland being a piece of sh*t by attacking Rhodes would've been enough.

Or, have him take credit for injuring Keith Lee. Simple.

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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.