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Zero Hour starts with Renee Paquette, RJ City, and Jeff Jarrett doing the pre-show hype. They are at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA.
As they go down the card, when they get to Toni Storm vs Megan Bayne, Madison Rayne joins to give background on Megan Bayne.
For the International title, Lexi Nair interviews Ricochet and he talks about how he is on the qust for gold, but AEW is screwing him out of titles, but nothing will stop him from winning in Philadelphia.
Harley Cameron is brought in to go over the Owen Hart Tournament brackets facts and figures.
We then get a hype video for Kevin Knight.
Tomohiro Ishii and Mark Briscoe join the show and Mark cuts a fantastic promo about his upcoming match on the show. Ishii doesn’t say a word.
We then go to our first match. Commentary is by Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, and Matt Menard.
The Cru (Lio Rush and Action Andretti) Nick Wayne w/Mother Wayne and Kip Sabian vs Top Flight (Darius and Dante Martin) and AR Fox w/Leila Grey
AR Fox starts with a flurry of offense, and it’s pretty clear this opener is going to be the high-flying spot fest to hype up the crowd. After Fox’s big flurry, Darius works as the babyface in peril, which he has become good at since it seems that is his role in most Top Flight matches. He’s a solid hand when it comes to making his opponents look good, and he is able to take the big spots Cru and Wayne trade in.
Lio does a lot to try to taunt Top Flight into the ring so that his teammates can work over Darius or distract the ref. When Dante gets the hot tag, he showcases his big high spots. Kip Sabian gets on the apron to distract the ref so that Lio can try to use the chain, but Dante is able to kick it out of his hands and they scramble for it. No idea who grabs it, and we aren’t supposed to know as the announcers talk about not knowing either.
Dante and Andretti take each other out and Fox gets the hot tag, and he gets a decent pop when he hits the ring. Fox has a great sequence where he skins the cat, and then gets a series of moves on the different members of the Cru. We then get each person taking out the last person in the ring. Fox ends it with a modified Spanish Fly using the ropes and off the top in the corner on Wayne. When he goes to the top, the ref is distracted and Mother Wayne knocks Fox off the top. Wayne gets Wayne’s World for the pin and the win.
Winners: The Cru and Nick Wayne
We go back to Renee and her crew and they are with Athena, who talks about she will be picking titles off Mone when she wins the Owen Hart Tournament.
They play a video to hype Chris Jericho and Bandido. Jeff Jarrett says today is his 39th anniversary in wrestling and talks a little about that. They then discuss the Kenny Omega match with Speedball Mike Bailey and Ricochet.
Max Caster comes to the ring for his open challenge. He fails to lead a chant again, but at least this time a few people try to join, and I have a feeling it’s going to get over. He stops them for having the wrong inflections. He then shows a shirt for Ben Simmons, which the announcers let us know is persona non grata, and Max says the crowd isn’t as great as the crowds in New York City.
Max Caster vs Anthony Bowens w/Billy Gunn
The lights go out and when the music starts, no one knows who it is, which was a nice touch. Bowens’ new nickname is the Pride of Professional Wrestling. Another nice touch.
Bowens drops Caster with a right hand when the bell rings and then hits a Famouser. Bowens then hits a discus haymaker for the pin and the win.
Winner: Anthony Bowens
We get a final rundown of the show as we count down the last few minutes of the pre-show.
I like that we didn’t have a pre-show crammed with matches, and it gave time for hype for everything coming for the show tonight. The pre-show is to get people to buy the show, and when they have four or more matches, there’s no time to promote the show. This time, they were able to properly set the stage for each match and make them seem important as well as talk about how they lead to All In.
For the show proper, our starting commentary team is Excalibur, Taz, and Jim Ross.
Will Ospreay vs Kevin Knight - Owen Hart Tournament Match
The difference between the crowd explosion for Ospreay and the polite applause for Knight made me feel bad for Knight. Knight is great in the ring, but 8 days into his run in AEW, he comes off as unknown.
They shake hands to start the match. Knight gets most of the opening moves, but once Ospreay starts to get moves, Knight makes him look strong. They move into a start/stop style of fighting where they get a quick series of moves and then stop to let the crowd react as they recover. When they are trading blows and moves, the speed and precision they show is impressive. As the match moves forward, Knight is winning over the crowd as it goes on.
When the fight goes to the floor, Knight reverses a Styles Clash into a DDT and takes over the match. Knight keeps having counters to Ospreay’s big moves, and every time he does, he wins over the crowd. Ospreay finally wins with the Hidden Blade after a series of finishing moves that Knight is able to kick out of.
Winner and moving on: Will Ospreay
This is a perfect example of someone losing the match but winning over the crowd. Knight comes out of this match much stronger than when he came in. Ospreay has almost been on a mission to make other stars during his time in AEW and he did it again tonight.
The Hurt Syndicate (Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin), AEW Tag Team Champions w/ MVP vs. Big Bill and Bryan Keith
Tony Schiavone takes JR’s place, and MVP joins commentary as well.
We start off with Bill and Lashley, and he’s able to take out both members of the Syndicate. MVP leaves the desk to coach his men. MVP goes back to commentary, and the Syndicate is able to take over the match. We then get Keith and Benjamin, and it doesn’t take long for Benjamin to take over. As Benjamin is beating down on the floor, the crowd is chanting We Hurt People. Lashley gets a stalling vertical suplex and holds Keith up for almost 30 full seconds.
Bill is able to get the hot tag and splashes back and forth, but Benjamin is able to suplex him. When Bill tags in, all four men are fighting in the ring. Bill goes for Snake Eyes with Benjamin, but it looks like he gently places him on the floor. The fight goes to the floor, and MJF nails Bill from the front row. The referee misses it, and the Hurt Syndicate are not happy about this.
Benjamin suplexes Keith, and Lashley hits a spear for the pin and the win.
Winners and still AEW Tag Team Champions: The Hurt Syndicate
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