Inside the Decision to Drop the AEW Tag Team Championships on Collision

The wrestling world was taken aback when Ricky Starks & Big Bill clinched a victory over FTR, securing the AEW Tag Team Championships on the October 7 episode of Collision. The match, which lasted less than five minutes, saw Cash Wheeler being chokeslammed through an announce table by Big Bill, sidelining him for the remainder of the bout.

Initial speculations suggested that this abrupt match conclusion was to account for Wheeler’s purported injury, with rumors circulating about him suffering from broken ribs. However, recent insights from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter paint a different picture.

Contrary to the injury narrative, Dave Meltzer reports that while Wheeler is indeed banged up, this wasn’t the primary reason for the title change or the match’s swift conclusion. “Cash Wheeler was examined, and while he’s certainly not in perfect shape, the X-rays revealed no broken ribs. He was fit enough to participate in a full-length match,” Meltzer clarified.

The real story behind the title change was a creative decision pitched by Dax Harwood. “The angle was envisioned by Harwood, where Wheeler would be portrayed as injured, leaving Harwood to fend off both opponents. The intent was to strongly establish Bill & Starks and add a significant twist to the Collision episode,” Meltzer elaborated.

Interestingly, before this title shift, AEW had been building towards another face-off between the Young Bucks and FTR, especially after the Bucks secured a number one contender’s spot at WrestleDream. This anticipated bout was slated either for Full Gear in Los Angeles or the preceding week’s tapings in Ontario, California.

While Starks and Bill have publicly dismissed the idea of granting FTR a rematch, Meltzer suggests that fans might witness a rematch either on the October 28 or November 4 episodes.