7 months ago
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AEW
Roderick Strong is still AEW International Champion after defeating former friend Kyle O'Reilly with his signature Strong Breaker (aka the End of Heartache) during AEW's Dynasty pay-per-view. Friends since their Ring of Honor days in 2009 and together as Undisputed Era teammates in "WWE NXT," Strong nonetheless turned on O'Reilly at the beginning of April when O'Reilly was reluctant to immediately join the Undisputed Kingdom after returning to AEW television following a neck injury that required surgery.
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The match started off as an even bout and the competitors traded multiple pinfall attempts. Strong hit multiple back breakers on O'Reilly throughout the match. At one point, Strong hit his former friend with a huge knee strike, taking both champion and challenger down, and they were barely able to get up before the count of 10. O'Reilly locked in a guillotine submission, but Strong was able to send O'Reilly's throat into the top rope. Undisputed Kingdom member Wardlow attempted to get into the ring, distracting the referee, but O'Reilly attempted to roll up a distracted Strong twice as Wardlow remained at ringside. O'Reilly hit a brain buster and Strong kicked out, hitting his signature back breaker for the victory.
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After the match, Matt Taven and Mike Bennett rolled out the injured Adam Cole in a wheelchair. Cole stood up and walked down the ring on his own, still wearing his "The Devil" t-shirt, seemingly indicating he could be soon returning to the ring. Cole also gave Wardlow a noticeable nasty look as the stable celebrated and Strong walked up the ramp with the International Championship in tow.
