When AEW returns to its second home, Chicago, Illinois, for Beach Break this week, plenty of unanswered questions will be answered ahead of Double or Nothing. Some questions you might learn before Wednesday night. For example, I’ve learned that we Brits have a very different definition of what a beach is!
For those wrestling on Wednesday, this will hardly be a vacation. No tropical, relaxing getaway, this won’t be a vacation for those wrestlers on the card. For some, like Jon Moxley, if he lets his guard down for one second against Samoa Joe, inside that steel cage, it’s over.
Instead of lounging by the pool and downing cocktails, “Timeless” Toni Storm looks to extend her Eliminator winning-streak with another big four-way victory. Chicago’s Skye Blue returns. Who fills the other two slots? Another returnee? A debuting wrestler? Could there be another toxic spider sighting? Can someone break Storm’s streak and earn a title match?
On Collision, Ricochet assaulted the first one-legged wrestling superstar, Zach Gowen. Stealing Gowen’s prosthetic leg, the former WWE wrestler gets a full circle moment in his first match on national TV in over twenty years.
Out of my way!
This Wednesday, 5/14!
Don’t miss #AEWDynamite‘s return to Chicago, IL for Beach Break!
Tune in for a classic AEW tradition LIVE at 8pm ET/7pm CT on @TBSNetwork + @SportsOnMAX, THIS WEDNESDAY 5/14! pic.twitter.com/S3XmgFh06g
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) May 11, 2025
AEW Dynamite Beach Break Matches Announced:
- Hangman Adam Page and Will Ospreay vs. Konosuke Takeshita and Josh Alexander
- Ricochet vs. Zach Gowen
- AEW Women’s World Championship Eliminator: “Timeless” Toni Storm © vs. Skye Blue vs. ??? vs. ???
- AEW World Championship: Jon Moxley © vs. Samoa Joe inside a steel cage
AEW Dynamite Beach Break Segments Announced:
- Bobby Lashley will answer MJF
Bobby Lashley’s Answer
The Hurt Syndicate has become one of the most consistent and entertaining groups since their debut. I’d argue that more than Death Riders, their interactions with other wrestlers have caused more positive change to AEW, in its turning of the creative corner. MJF’s attempts to join The Hurt Syndicate have drawn comparisons to Sami Zayn’s and The Bloodline.
The comic and engaging progression from week to week has engaged and made many fans laugh. However, some fans, particularly women, have soured on MJF’s character. The fix for which I’ve discussed is easy and changes nothing about the characters or storyline.
For weeks, MJF clashes with Bobby “Bob” Lashley, and attempts to bribe and win him over have failed. Lashley says he will make his decision. So, is MJF in, or is there a caveat? In a reversal of history, will Lashley make MJF run a gauntlet of further challenges? Does this lead to a match at Double or Nothing? Has MJF done enough?
Gamble of the Night: Steel Cage Match
On paper, in fantasy booking, in a vacuum, the prospect of this heavyweight, hard-hitting, and violent contest could be epic. These two MMA-inspired wrestlers could produce some (bloody) magic inside the cage. Samoa Joe’s TNA World Championship cage match against Kurt Angle is the stuff of legend. Joe, under pressure, delivers. Joe will kill and has presented himself as a viable threat.
Yet in AEW history, a steel cage hasn’t always stopped interference or overbooking. Likewise, the current Death Riders arc is something some fans are apathetic to and others despise, as I’ve analysed here. Something I didn’t cover in that storyline analysis was Moxley’s in-ring form. Moxley’s matches have underdelivered.
Progressively, the developments and changes in the Death Riders saga have seen glacial character progression and promise. The Opps’ victory over Death Riders at Spring BreakThru was a capital M moment. It was catharsis. It could be a turning point in the storyline if the match and finish deliver. Here’s hoping that neither man chokes.
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – AEW – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on AEW Dynamite and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world. As well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can catch AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TBS. AEW Rampage airs on TNT at 10 PM EST every Friday night. AEW Collision airs Saturday at 8pm Eastern on TNT. More AEW content available on their YouTube.
