The AEW All In: Texas pay-per-view kicked off in the best way possible as the Opps put their AEW Trios Titles against the Death Riders, in a match that could have gone either way.
Samoa Joe, Katsuyori Shibata & Powerhouse Hobbs were determined to walk out of the Globe Life Field as the AEW Trios Champions, while Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta & Gabe Kidd had other ideas.
The match started with both teams immediately going after each other in a wild brawl. After a while, Gabe Kidd and Katsuyori Shibata traded some hard chops, and then a kick from Shibata left both of them on the ground.
Samoa Joe and Wheeler Yuta then sized each other up before Yuta tried to take Joe down with a drop toe hold, but it didnt work. Joe countered with a side headlock and took control of the match. He dropped Yuta with a punch, then followed up with a series of punches in the corner, finishing by flooring Yuta with his signature corner kick.
Powerhouse Hobbs then entered the match and dominated Wheeler Yuta with a delayed vertical suplex. Shibata tagged in next and began breaking Yuta down with hard elbows to his back. Hobbs came back in, and although Yuta tried to fight back, Joe hit him with a chop from behind. After that, both Hobbs and Shibata delivered more chops to Yuta.
Claudio Castagnoli tagged in and immediately dominated Shibata with a series of powerful uppercuts. They traded European uppercuts back and forth, but Shibata eventually took control and nailed Claudio with a huge dropkick in the corner.
Samoa Joe tagged in but was quickly knocked to the outside, where Gabe Kidd and Wheeler Yuta attacked him. They threw Joe back into the ring, and Claudio took control of the match. Kidd tagged in next and landed some hard kicks on Joe in the corner. Then Yuta tagged in and unloaded with a flurry of punches to Joes head, even biting him to keep the advantage.
Claudio then regained control over Samoa Joe by locking in a brutal choke hold. Joe slowly fought his way back to his feet and managed to break free, countering with a rolling barrel kick followed by a senton to turn the momentum in his favor.
Powerhouse Hobbs then tagged in and completely destroyed the Death Riders, getting a big reaction from the crowd. Gabe Kidd tried to interfere, but Hobbs took him out too. Hobbs then planted Claudio with a massive spinebuster. However, Claudio quickly turned things around by catching Hobbs with a huge uppercut.
Powerhouse Hobbs countered a big move from Yuta in mid-air, and then he, Shibata, and Joe teamed up to beat down Wheeler Yuta, getting a two count before Claudio rushed in to break it up. Claudio then grabbed Hobbs and did a giant swing, smashing him into the barricade on the outside and taking him out of the match for the moment.
Shibata then came in and squared off with Gabe Kidd. Kidd managed to hit Shibata with a brainbuster, but Shibata kicked out at just one. Kidd followed up with a hard headbutt. Samoa Joe then tagged in and went after Kidd, hitting him with a powerslam for a two count. Right after that, the Death Riders interfered and ganged up on Joe, beating him down.
In the final moments of the match, Wheeler Yuta climbed to the top rope, but Samoa Joe caught him and delivered a huge Muscle Buster. Joe then pinned Yuta to secure the win and successfully retain the AEW Trios Titles.
After the match, Claudio Castagnoli wrapped a chair around Samoa Joes leg and stomped on it, leaving Joe completely taken out and in pain. Fans were in shock as medical personnel checked on Samoa Joe. Afterwards Samoa Joe was being stretchered out as fans were incredibly worried for his well-being.
What did you think of this explosive opening match and Claudios shocking attack? Do you think Samoa Joe will be out for long, and who should step up next in the Trios division? Let us know in the comments section below.
