WedHead2Head

by JCH

Welcome to WedHead2Head.

They are calling this a war, I like scores and stats, so decided to match up segments and score them as if I was an MMA or Boxing judge. I also wanted a broader set of opinions. So asked some of my fellow Nerds if they fancied joining me. Two of the Matt’s Connolly and Brummitt took me up on my offer and have kindly sent in their own scorecards and thoughts. We are still in the early stages of this so forgive me if I haven’t managed to match up the segments to your liking.

Round 1

AEW - Private Party vs Young Bucks

NXT - Drew Gulak vs Lio Rush (NXT Cruiserweight Championship)

MB- R1: Both shows started off with cracking matches. Against most segments, NXT would have won here but I’m giving the slight edge to AEW. Kassidy’s selling was A-grade, but the real difference was that AEW’s 1st round tournament match finish felt bigger than NXT’s title change.

10-9 AEW

MC - 2 really strong openings to the shows. Private Party popping the crowd huge with a fast paced and very surprising victory over what some consider the best tag team in the world. Lio Rush beating Gulak in a technically sound and exciting match to capture the Cruiser title. I'll edge with AEW on this one because the shock value involved. Also, I felt Mauro was basically telling me the result here.

10-9 AEW

JCH - Rush and Gulak was a very good match. I really enjoyed it; however, Bucks vs Party takes this one. A super fun tag match where the established team put over the up and comers. Now I get the feeling that AEW won’t WWE this and just have Private Party lose to the Bucks next week, but it will be put on the back burner and addressed at a different date.

AEW 10-9 NXT

Round 2 –

AEW – Chris Jericho promo

NXT – Rhea Ripley vs Aaliyah

MB: Jericho smashed it out of the park tonight. What a promo. As much as I like Rhea, an Aaliyah match vs a promo of the year candidate? This round is the equivalent of a couple of knockdowns.

10-8 AEW. 20-17 AEW so far.

MC: Ripley made to look a monster in this and finished the match with a move I can't even describe without waving my arms about. But essentially it was a squash. Although this made Ripley look good it didn’t really set the world alight. Jericho's promo attempted to tie up loose ends from last week and I am always in awe of his mic ability so for that reason the GOAT and AEW get the nod.

10-9 AEW – 20-18 AEW

JCH: Jericho’s promo was very good. I loved Rhea’s finisher and thought she looked like a complete badass. But Jericho basically got 5 people over in one go. So will have to give the nod to AEW 10-9

Overall AEW 20-18 NXT

Round 3

AEW – Darby Allin vs Jimmy Havoc

NXT – Roderick Strong vs Isaiah ‘Swerve’ Scott

MB: Going into tonight’s AEW show, this was the part I was most looking forward to. I wouldn’t watch wrestling as much as I do now if it wasn’t for Jimmy, & Darby is a super exciting talent. However, though good, the match wasn’t quite at the level of Strickland/Swerve vs Roddy.

10-9 NXT. 29-27 AEW so far.

MC: Again 2 good TV matches going head to head. Strong is easily my favourite performer here and the debate is there that his match was better but the stakes in the other match made it more interesting and the coffin drop is a scary, awesome and dangerous move that I like to see.

10-9 AEW. 30-27 AEW so far

JCH: Not a contest for me here. Strong and Scott absolutely killed it whilst Havoc vs Allin was just there. 10-8 NXT

AEW 28-28 NXT

Round 4

AEW: Riho & Britt Baker vs Bea Priestley & Emi Sakura

NXT: Forgotten Sons vs Breezango

MB: This is one of those rounds where both fighters try to establish a jab without really connecting. I’ve not really clicked on Britt Baker yet. She is a decent technician but doesn’t emote particularly well. However (a) she is way more exciting than the Snoozefest Collective that is the Forgotten Sons (no offence lads, but please go away) & (b) I love her finisher and how it fits her character.

10-9 NXT. 38-37 AEW so far.

MC: 2 matches that again are hard to decide between, but it is at this point I feel I am just being biased towards AEW as I again give them the edge. Neither match was memorable but the Bea/Britt interactions and title implications going forward made it more interesting than the Men’s tag. Big Fan of Breezango's packaging though.

10-9 AEW. 40-36 AEW so far.

JCH: A win here for AEW. The slow build between Bea and Britt is nice whilst Riho is smashing it with the fans and Emi is great. I’ve forgotten the other match although I did enjoy the Breezango new entrance.

10-9 AEW. 38-37 AEW so far.

Round 5

AEW: Shawn Spears vs Jon Moxley

NXT: Bianca Belair vs Dakota Kai

MB: Going into this, I’d have expected a comfortable round for AEW here. The Moxley/Spears match was solid, but I was equally into Belair/Kai. I would have liked to see Kai win, but her underdog character means she can take a loss. Belair-Ripley should be fun too. If we add the preceding Ciampa promo to this segment, then I think it’s too tight to call.

10-10. 48-47 AEW so far.

MC: Yet again there isn't much to separate these matches. I love Bianca Belair and she looked good in victory here whilst also establishing Kai as a future threat in the division. The presence of Tully in the Men’s match was my bag though. Spears doesn't seem hurt by losing here but it's a big win for Moxley's momentum. I'll reiterate too, I love Tully. He made the difference for me.

10-9 AEW. 50-45 AEW so far.

JCH: Probably in the minority here but had zero interest in the AEW match. Couldn’t get into it at all. My highlight was Pac on commentary. Great performance. Bianca and Kai had a nice match which was slightly ruined by sound issues on my version during the first half.

10-9 NXT – 47-47

Round 6

AEW: Omega/Pac/Moxley

NXT: Grimes/Boa/Dain

MB: The Grimes/Boa/Dain stuff didn’t do much for me. Pac/Omega/Moxley definitely did. However, these were too short to make any heavy impact.

AEW 10-9. 58-56 AEW so far.

MC: I am boring myself with my bias but again I go for AEW. I love Dain demolishing dudes and Grimes fleeing after the squash but the star power of the other segment peaked my interest way more.

AEW 10-9. 60-54 AEW so far.

JCH: Cameron Grimes nearly pulls this out for NXT just by being hilarious, but the superior Star Power from AEW sees it home comfortably in the end.

AEW 10-9. 57-56 AEW so far.

ROUND 7

AEW: Inner Circle vs Goldust & Page

NXT WALTER vs KUSHIDA

MB: Final round and NXT need something big to even get a draw. Fortunately, they deliver it with a banging WALTER KUSHIDA all-caps affair. These guys meshed really well & this doesn’t hurt KUSHIDA as WALTER had to use his Super Finisher to win. Let’s hope he keeps that special for the future. With that said, the AEW main event was exciting enough to prevent a knockout. The Darby Allin cameo being especially fun.

NXT 10-9

MC: I love the shenanigans that ended Dynamite. I reminded me of Attitude Era Raw going of the air where you were excited to see next week. Something that has been missing in weekly wrestling TV for a long time. I will be finally giving a point to NXT though. It was the best match over both shows in my opinion and the story of people trying to topple WALTER is one I simply do not get bored of. It helped that Kushida did it in a way smaller guys usually do not. Yes, he used his speed, but he was working limbs and trying to grind the giant down. It didn't work, but yet again WALTER makes his opponent look great in defeat.

NXT 10-9

JCH: These aren’t on the same level. I guess AEW was more about the post-match angle as they continue to set their stall, but from a pure match quality it’s another 10-8 round to NXT as WALTER and KUSHIDA had a banger. I could score it 10-9 and a draw but then would be accused of sitting on the fence. So, I’m giving it a 10-8 to the Black and Gold.

NXT 10-8

FINAL SCORES

MB - AEW win 67-66. Tight one but the Jericho vs Aaliyah showdown was the decisive segment.

MC: AEW 69-64 NXT

JCH - AEW 65-66 NXT. AEW won more segments, but NXT had higher highs for me. Enjoyed both shows again.

Week one of WedHead2Head is in the books and it’s a Split Decision victory for AEW. I think from reading this that NXT has to do a lot to sway Matt C, whilst I know I carry a strong bias for NXT which could make Brum the voice of reason!

Overall scorecard AEW 1-0 NXT

Feel free to offer any feedback on the format of the article.

JCH