Fresh off his successful defense against Kyle Fletcher at AEW All Out, Hangman Adam Page showed up to the September 24 episode of "AEW Dynamite" looking for a fight and issued an open challenge to anyone who wanted a shot at his AEW Men's World Championship. The challenge was answered by Pittsburgh's own and current ROH Pure Champion "Taigastyle" Lee Moriarty, but despite the hometown advantage, Moriarty couldn't get the job done and Hangman made another successful defense of his title.
The match started with both men jockeying for position with a technical back-and-forth, with Moriarty even opting to not strike Hangman with a closed fist, something that is a major part of Moriarty's Pure Rules matches in ROH. During the commercial break, Hangman established control, while also selling his heavily taped up neck that would ultimately come back to haunt him as Moriarty saw an opening and took control of the match, focusing on Hangman's neck in the process.
Coming out of the commercial break, Moriarty maintained control, even earning a two-count after hitting a springboard clothesline. However, Hangman would power through the pain and make a quick comeback with strikes and a series of high impact moves. The match became a more even affair when Moriarty countered a Dead Eye attempt from Hangman and turned it into a Flying Octopus, before going for the Border City Stretch. Just as Moriarty thought he had the match won, Hangman turned the tide once again by hitting a big clothesline, before hitting the Dead Eye at the second time of asking, and securing the win, much to the delight of the Pittsburgh faithful. The victory means that Hangman has now defended his AEW Men's World Championship four times, with his previous wins coming against the aforementioned Kyle Fletcher, MJF, and the man he dethroned to become champion Jon Moxley.
