AEW Dynamite Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction, Highlights Before WrestleDream 2026

Welcome to Bleacher Report's coverage of the final Dynamite before WrestleDream this weekend.

Here's a look at the card AEW advertised for the three-hour special:

Dani Luna and Hyan vs. Britt Baker and Persephone

Triangle of Madness vs. Mercedes Mone and Divine Dominion

Will Ospreay and Andrade El Idolo vs. Tommaso Ciampa and Samoa Joe

Let's take a look at what happened on this week's supersized Dynamite.

The first match of the night saw Jon Moxley, Daniel Garcia and Gabe Kidd take on Wardlow, Mark Davis and Jake Doyle in a trios bout.

While not explicitly babyfaces, The Death Riders were the default fan favorites in this bout due to facing the always villainous DCF. Mox spent more time than usual in the crowd during his entrance to get everyone riled up. The major exception was Wardlow, who got a pop from his hometown crowd.

Garcia kicked things off against Davis, so it was the smallest guy from one team against the biggest guy from the other. Dunkzilla almost laughed at Garcia's attempt to push him at one point.

The most surprising thing about this match was how structured most of it felt. Trios bouts in AEW can often be chaotic, but this one took its time building up to the more exciting stuff.

This might not end up being the match of the night, but it certainly had the crowd invested, especially with AEW being in Wardlow's home of Cleveland, Ohio. It felt like all six guys contributed, but it also felt like it was teasing a possible singles feud between Wardlow and Mox.

Davis ended up pinning Moxley to get the win, which definitely caught a lot of people by surprise.

Result: The Don Callis Family defeated Death Riders

Walker Stewart was with the commentary team this week.

It's going to be interesting to see how this run goes for Wardlow. If he can stay healthy, he could go far.

Moxley testing Wardlow was fun. He looked like he was having a ball.

Marina Shafir taking a shot at Davis was hilarious. The crowd loved it.

The joke of the night goes to Garcia attempting to chokeslam Wardlow.

Another Clockwork Carnage qualifying match was up next with Adam Copeland taking on Josh Alexander, making this the second match in a row with DCF representation.

They started with a simple exchange of headlocks and takedowns. Cope took control for a moment, but Alexander started going after his leg to soften him up.

The Walking Weapon has rarely had a chance to show off in singles competition in AEW, so it was great to see him get the opportunity to remind everyone that he is an accomplished technical wrestler who brings a lot to the table.

This was a decent match, but it felt like it lacked energy in some spots. It wasn't until well after the mid-match break that it started to pick up.

Alexander sent Copeland into an exposed turnbuckle and used his own Spear against him, but it wasn't enough to get the win. Once he recovered, the Rated-R Superstar hit the Spear to get the win.

While Copeland was still in the ring, Don Callis came out with Brian Cage. He told Cope he might not make it to 2027, which led to a few DCF members attacking him from behind. Konosuke Takeshita and the Conglomeration came out to make the save.

Copeland always looks surprised when the crowd keeps singing his entrance music after it stops playing even though it happens pretty much every time he comes out now.

It was a little surprising to see Alexander alone for this bout.

You don't see Copeland hitting a one-legged dropkick too often. It was a nice way to sell his bad leg.

Cage and Takeshita were already in the ring after the last segment, so their match got started right away after a quick video explaining Clockwork Carnage.

Cage had an obvious power advantage, but Takeshita is no slouch. He is a big, strong wrestler who is also quick on his feet, so it felt like this was an even matchup.

The Machine took control after their initial exchange of punches, and he kept the upper hand at ringside by using the environment to his advantage.

This was another Clockwork Carnage qualifier, so it felt like both guys were taking the stake seriously. This was a physical back-and-forth bout that allowed both guys to put their skills on display.

The only real criticism we could have with this bout was that it didn't feel like some of the bigger moments were sold enough. Cage hit a hurricanrana from the top turnbuckle for a near-fall, but Takeshita was back to his feet almost immediately. A couple more seconds of selling would have been easy.

That being said, the pace was good, the action was fun, and we got to see some cool spots from a guy you wouldn't expect to be able to do that kind of offense. Takeshita got the win with a dragon sleeper to advance to WrestleDream.

Copeland gave a speech after his match and revealed Christian Cage was injured at All Out. He put Cage over for finishing the match despite a bad injury. He also revealed 2027 will be his final year in wrestling.

Cage hitting a dive over the top rope will always be cool to watch. You just don't see guys like him do that very often.

Cage hit a 619. It was a little slow, but he still made it look decent.

Tony Schiavone welcomed FTR and Stokely Hathaway to the stage for an interview. They called out The Young Bucks right away, but The Motor City Machine Guns showed up instead. MCMG challenged them to a best-of-five series.

Up next was another Clockwork Carnage qualifier with Okada taking on Reed. This was also an international title bout, so Reed had a huge opportunity to win a belt and earn a shot at another in one fell swoop.

There was a huge difference in the style of these two men. Okada is methodical and technical, while Reed is fast-paced and takes a lot of risks. The nice thing is that both guys are versatile performers who can adapt to other styles.

Whenever Okada was in control, the pace slowed down and he played the heel. Whenever Reed made a comeback, everything got much quicker.

This match probably didn't need to be as long as it was, but the length helped Reed look like a great competitor because he was able to last so long against someone on Okada's level.

Predictably, Okada got the win with a Rainmaker clothesline, but Reed put up a good fight.

Reed's new purple hair really stands out on camera. It's a cool look.

If WWE ever lets Okada have a run with the world title, it needs to lean into how funny he can be.

Reed hit a really nice superkick at one point. The way Okada sold it was perfect.

Triangle of Madness vs. Divine Dominion and Mercedes Mone

Mojo Brookzz, the comedian, joined Kofi, Austin Creed and Prince Nana since Swerve Strickland was unable to be at the show this week. They gave a promo about defending the trios titles at WrestleDream against Hangman and Brodido.

Thekla, Skye Blue and Julia Hart took on Mercedes Mone, Megan Bayne and Lena Kross in trios action ahead of Thekla and Mone's title match this weekend at the PPV.

The CEO and Toxic Spider started for their teams with a fast-paced sequence that led to a stalemate.

This was a solid match with some good action, but it didn't really do much to advance the feud between Thekla and Mone. If anything, the other four women stood out more, which is good for the tag team division.

Thekla was able to get the win by pinning Kross with a stomp, giving her some momentum before her title shot this weekend.

Result: Triangle of Madness defeated Mone and Divine Dominion

There is something special about Kross. AEW needs to make sure she gets a singles push at some point. She could be very popular if booked right.

Thekla has such an expressive face. It really helps her tell a story during matches.

Bayne makes it look like taking a shot from her would be about as fun as getting hit by a car. She lays it in.

The next match saw two WrestleDream singles matches get combined for a tag match when Ospreay and El Idolo battled Joe and Ciampa.

Ciampa teased starting the match against Andrade, but he tagged in Joe before anything happened to play some mind games.

All four of these guys are known for being great in the ring, so saying this match was good almost feels pointless because if you pay attention to the product, you already knew this would be fun before it even happened.

Joe and Ciampa may not be regular allies, but they made for an interesting combination. If AEW insists on keeping The Opps going, adding Ciampa to the group wouldn't be the worst option.

This was a high-energy match that kept the crowd invested after it had already sat through a couple of hours of wrestling. Joe scored the win for his team by choking Andrade out.

Result: Joe and Ciampa defeated Ospreay and El Idolo

Andrade is really taking this ladies man gimmick seriously.

Ospreay's twisting moonsault off Andrade's back was a cool spot.

Ciampa's chops were making some loud impacts.

Joe's walkaway spot is funny every single time.

The next Clockwork Carnage qualifier saw Ricochet take on The Bang Bang Gang's Austin.

These are two guys who can fly with the best of them, but they can also grapple, so their initial exchange was a nice technical sequence.

Austin has been good since coming to AEW, but he has been especially impressive in his last few outings. He might not be getting tons of wins, but he is definitely building credibility as a reliable in-ring performer.

It's actually kind of surprising this was put in the third hour of the show instead of the first because this is the kind of match that would have made the start of the show even more exciting than it was.

There were a little light on selling, but that can sometimes be forgiven when you have two guys who work at breakneck speed like these two. Ricochet ended up getting the win to advance to the match at WrestleDream.

Due to the rules of the match, nobody from their respective groups was allowed at ringside.

The way Ricochet shoved Austin out of the ring was pretty creative. You don't see that kind of thing very often, but it was effective.

The back-and-forth suplex attempts was entertaining, but it also felt a little too contrived.

Persephone and Britt Baker vs. Dani Luna and Hyan

Nick Wayne had a segment in the ring just to celebrate the fact that he beat Chris Jericho. It didn't take long for Jericho to make an appearance. They agreed to one more match at WrestleDream.

The penultimate match on the show was a tag bout with Baker and Persephone taking on Hyan and AEW newcomer Luna.

Hayn came right out of the gate with a running dropkick to take Persephone down after the bell, but it took the TBS champion almost no time to recover and hit a suicide dive.

With Baker being a former champion and Percy being a current champion, they felt like the heavy favorites against two women who are still establishing themselves in AEW.

This bout had good energy, but it definitely felt a little clunky in places. Nothing looked too bad, but there were moments that stood out in the wrong way.

DMD and Persephone ended up colliding when Luna shoved them into each other, and then she rolled up Baker for the upset win. The losers kept up the attack after the match was over, but Queen Aminata showed up with a belt to send them running.

Result: Luna and Hyan defeated Baker and Persephone

Callis, Kyle Fletcher and Kevin Knight had an interview backstage. The Young Bucks attacked them from behind.

Wayne cutting off Jericho's music to prevent the fans from singing was funny. The song choice for his video package was even funnier.

The Cleveland crowd did not sound happy to see Baker waving her Philly towel around.

Persephone has a presence you can't fake or teach. She feels like a more legitimate fighter than many people on the roster just by how she carries herself.

It was weird that Baker and Luna were not fighting at ringside when the match started.

The main event of the night was another title match and Clockwork Carnage qualifier with Darby Allin defending the TNT title against Hechicero.

Allin tried to use his speed to avoid the technical luchador, but Hechicero eventually grounded him and went after his arm to set up for a submission.

Allin may be known as a risk-taker, but he is also a wrestler who knows how to work against any style. It's easy to forget that he can actually grapple when the main thing people focus on is his huge stunts.

On the same note, Hechicero may be known as a technical wizard, but he can also hit some risky spots when he needs to, so he and Allin were able to combine their styles and deliver a match that felt violent without needing to be bloody.

Depending on the style of wrestling you like best, this might be the match of the night for you. Both guys made sure the fans left satisfied and delivered a great performance.

Allin was able to retain his title and qualify for WrestleDream with two Coffin Drops to get the pin. The Don Callis Family showed up to attack Allin, but United Empire and Copeland made the save.

Hechicero is also the CMLL world champion, but his belt was not on the line tonight.

Walker Stewart was good on commentary, but his voice is somewhat similar to Excalibur's, so it wasn't always clear which one was talking sometimes.

The bump Allin took on the apron looked nasty.

Wednesday's combined Dynamite and Collision special was an action-packed show that also did a good job hyping this weekend's PPV.

Most of the Clockwork Carnage participants were decided on this show, and a few other matches were added to round out Saturday's card, too.

Allin and Hechicero stole the show, but Austin and Ricochet had a great showing, and so did Ospreay and El Idolo against Joe and Ciampa.

However, the most intriguing moment of the night may have been the video that is teasing the debut of Ilja Dragunov. He is going to bring something special to AEW, and anyone who is not familiar with his work is in for a treat.