As I’ve made clear many times in my years here at The Outerhaven, I love professional wrestling. I’ve been a fan since I was born, watching the greats such as Million Dollar Man Ted DiBiase, Macho Man Randy Savage, Rowdy Roddy Piper, and Sgt Slaughter; all the way through to the modern era with stars such as Cody Rhodes, Will Ospreay, Kenny Omega, and more who spend their time between the ropes in WWE, AEW, and other companies both in the USA and overseas. Grand Slam
I’ve also been involved with the Australian professional wrestling scene for over 20 years, doing everything from stage production to referee, commentator, and even a wrestler. During this time I’ve met many of my heroes, deepening my love of the sport while getting a real education behind the curtain.
The big leagues, like WWE, TNA, and AEW, rarely come down to my little part of the world. So when they do, the events are usually larger than people think they are, with some of them making TV or Pay-Per-View (or Premium Live Events if you are a WWE fan). So when I heard that AEW was coming down to Australia, my wife bought me tickets and we drove up to Brisbane from Melbourne (A 3 day trip) to see the best wrestle at AEW Grand Slam Australia.
Event: AEW Grand Slam Australia (Collision)
Location: Brisbane Entertainment Center
Date: February 15, 2025
Duration: 2 Hours
Cost: $300 each (Floor seats)
Viewable on: HBO Max, TrillerTV, TNT & Other selection outlets
AEW Grand Slam Australia: A Rocky Start
To say that this event isn’t without a bit of unstable history is a bit of an understatement.
Back at AEW All In: Wembley in the United Kingdom in 2024, AEW announced that the next event was going to be held in Australia, with 3 venues being considered for the event: Marvel Stadium in Melbourne (Where I live), Allianz Stadium in Sydney, and Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. It was announced that AEW would hold their Grand Slam event at Suncorp Stadium, a stadium that holds around 52,000 people… However, ticket sales were not meeting expectations, so a few weeks after went on sale AEW announced that the event was going to be moved to Brisbane Entertainment Center, a much smaller arena that holds around 14,000 people. You might even remember me promoting this version of the event during an interview with Kyle Fletcher (If not, you can view it here)
It was originally believed that Grand Slam Australia would be broadcast as a pay-per-view (PPV) event. However, during the January 15, 2025, episode of Dynamite, it was confirmed that the event would air on February 15 as a standalone television special, simulcast on TNT and Max and airing on tape delay that night in place of Collision. AEW had also announced that the show would air at 8:00 p.m. US-Eastern Time; however, due to a scheduling conflict with TNT’s NBA All-Star coverage at that time, it was reported that Grand Slam Australia would air on TNT following the NBA; it was not confirmed if it would still air at 8:00 p.m. ET on HBO Max In a media event for AEW Full Gear in November 2024, AEW President Tony Khan stated that due to the time difference of the show occurring at 5:30 p.m. Australian Eastern Standard Time (2:30 a.m. US-Eastern Time), it presented a challenge to air the event via PPV, as many fans in the United States would have likely not watched it live.
The Trip to AEW Grand Slam Australia
Traveling to Brisbane for AEW Grand Slam Australia is a complete adventure and a challenge at the same time. If you have listened to the Spectator Mode podcast, you would know that I underwent surgery for a condition called Cauda Equina Syndrome, which saw a bulging disc shoot into the nerve stem of my back, doing major damage that I am still recovering from. To say that sitting (and driving) in a car for close to 24 hours of travel time is a challenge would be an understatement. However, I’m lucky that my wife loves driving and would take the majority of the travel time driving.
The trip would see us cover over 1800 km (1120 miles), driving from my home in Mooroolbark, Victoria all the way through New South Wales, and then finally to Brisbane, Queensland. The estimated time of the trip was 18 hours 23 minutes, but when you factor in stops for food, toilet breaks, and leg stretches, the time is closer to 26 hours. We did this all by driving for about 4 hours at a time, then stopping for a break to either get food, stretch our legs, or swap drivers before arriving at a hotel along the route to sleep for the night. However, we did make time to stop in and see family along the way up to Brisbane as well as stop at some tourist locations, which lengthed the actual trip time.
As you can see from the photo above, we decided to tell the story of our trip in a different format. Using my childhood teddy bear as a storytelling device, I did a series of photos that I posted to my Facebook, X, and BlueSky accounts that had his accounts of what was happening along the way. Each stop we would take a different photo and make a small story that goes with it. I might add these photos again at a later date, but for now if you know my socials, you can find them there.
After a long three days of riding in the car, with very little pain in my back and legs, we arrived at the New South Wales/Brisbane border at around 11 am Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time (10 am in Queensland). It was another hour from there to our hotel. When we arrived, checked in, and had a nap, we spent time in the pool. We were lucky that we arrived the day before the event, as more people showed up at the hotel for the event, and things got busy on Friday night and Saturday morning.
Getting to the event wasn’t too bad. I organized a Taxi to take us to the event. It was a short drive at around 15 minutes, costing me $19.20 for the trip. Security at the arena was tight, with signs being taken from anyone who had one… I was able to hide mine in my bag which was cleared ahead of time for medical reasons. There were thousands of people packed into the hallways waiting for the doors to open, most getting a last-minute bite to eat, something to eat, or pillaging the merchandise stands like a plague of hungry locus. Australia doesn’t get AEW merchandise locally, so people were getting everything they could. When my wife and I got to the front of the stand, there were a handful of shirts, exclusive Toni Storm figures, and hats available. I got what I could and then waited for the moment when we were allowed to go in. When we did, I was emotional seeing the setup for the first time, and then we headed down to our seats.
While people were complaining online that AEW Grand Slam Australia was announced as an AEW Collision taping, we were also treated to an extra event: Ring of Honor Global Wars Australia, a one-hour show from the ROH brand. These matches were announced while we were traveling up for the show, so to see the ROH ring skirts on the ring when we arrived was a bonus surprise.
The Learning Tree: Chris Jericho, Big Bill, & Bryan Keith vs Bandido & The Outrunners: Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd
The Lead-up: While I’m not up to date on the storylines of most of the ROH brand, I know this match came about due to Bandido returning to AEW and instantly getting into the sights of The Learning Tree, the group led by Chris Jericho. Jericho isn’t happy with Bandido being around and wants to collect the “bounty” that was on Bandido’s head. After Bandido defeats Big Bill and Bryan Keith in singles matches, Jericho tries a trios match in order to get the job done. Bandido gets help from The Outrunners, an 80s throwback tag team, to battle The Learning Tree.
The Match: This was a weird one to open up with, but also showed what type of crowd we were going to be tonight. Almost instantly, the Australian crowd showed that we are one of those non-traditional crowds where the rules of who to cheer for do not apply. The crowd was behind Big Bill of all people, one of the heels (bad guys) from The Learning Tree. Then you had Los Outrunners, the team of The Outrunners just with lucha masks on. This match was a mixture of hard-hitting action and a lot of comedy. These guys were doing things that they would usually not do when playing out this storyline or match on AEW TV shows. It was a great match with Bandido eventually getting the pin and the win. After the match, The Learning Tree attacked the trio, but Powerhouse Will Hobbs came out and we got a stare-down between Hobbs and Bill, with the crowd chanting “BEEF! BEEF! BEEF!” to end the after-match action.
Winner: Bandido & The Outrunners
ROH Pure Championship: Lee Moriarty (Champion) vs Robbie Eagles
The Match: This match featured the first of many Australians on the card with South Australian Robbie Eagles taking on the ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty. A ROH Pure Championship match has a strict set of rules and guidelines, with penalties given out for breaking the rules. This is one of the most interesting grappling matches you will see in wrestling. Robbie dominated a lot of the match before Moriarty got the better of him and retained his title. Robbie got a good send-off from the crowd as the first Australian to be on the show in front of the home country crowd.
Winner: Lee Moriarty
Mark Davis vs Tommy Knight
The Match: In an unadvertised match, Sydney native Mark Davis, who is with his tag partner Kyle Fletcher who will show up later in the night, took on local Brisbane wrestler Tommy Knight. This was a match where the crowd was chanting “BEEF!” a lot as these were two big men smashing against each other. I don’t remember much of this match as I took a moment to go buy some water at $6.50 per bottle as my wife and I were getting dehydrated thanks to the low smoke in the arena.
Winner: Mark Davis
ROH World Tag Team Championship: Sons of Texas: Dustin Rhodes & Sammy Guevara (Champion) vs MxM Collection: Mansoor and Mason Madden
The Match: This match was another comedy-style match, with the over-the-top nature of the MxM Collective being the means to do such weird moments such as trying to make the almost 60 years old Dustin Rhodes do a kip-up (going from your back to your feet without using your hands/arms). Sammy did his best to do some high-flying dives from the top rope to keep the crowd entertained, and MxM Collection kept up the offensive the best that they could, with the larger Mason Madden knocking people down every chance he got. But ultimately, the Sons of Texas got the win, allowing Dustin a moment to praise the crowd as much as they praised him.
Winner: Sons of Texas
ROH Women’s World Championship: Athena (Champion) vs Alex Windsor
The Match: I was a bit distracted during this match as I needed to do a bathroom run, and getting up all those stairs to exit the arena area wasn’t easy for me. By the time I got back, the match was in full swing with both women giving their best to entertain the crowd, which was pretty much ready for the main show to begin at this stage. Windsor did a good job at wrestling against the longest-reigning ROH Women’s World Champion, but Athena got the win in the end without too much effort.
Winner: Athena
There was a slight intermission so the ring crew could change the ring skirts, the commentary table, and other things over to the AEW Grand Slam branding so the main taping could begin. We got introduced to the commentary team for this event: the legendary Tony Schiavone and former ROH wrestler Nigel “God damn it” McGuinness, even though we wouldn’t be able to hear them… And that’s a good thing because the nickname “God Damn it” is one my Discord channel gives to anything Nigel says.
The lights dimmed, the AEW Collision opening video package, modified to be Grand Slam Australia themed, played and the show was happening. All the driving, the work with my rehab, the money spent, it was all time for it to pay off… And man, it paid off big time.
Will Ospreay & Kenny Omega vs. Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher
The Lead-up: This is one of the longer feuds on the show card. This whole thing revolves around a group called “The Don Callis Family”, which had both Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega as members at one time. Kenny was the first one to be kicked out of the group, by the arrival of Ospreay, and then Ospreay asked to be released from the group when he returned from injury. This puts both men in the crosshairs of Don Callis, the manager of Takeshita and Fletcher, thus their obsession with eliminating the former members of the group. This match has been months in the making as there is another connection between Ospreay and Fletcher, who were roommates during COVID and wrestled together as the United Empire. Fletcher betrayed Ospreay to stick with Don Callis, thus the two having issues.
The Match: HOLY SHIT! This was one hell of a way to start of AEW Grand Slam. The crowd as HOT for Ospreay and Omega, with the chants and cheers getting so loud I thought I would never hear anything again. The crowd booed for the only time for a local boy, that being Kyle Fletcher (Who I interviewed to promote the show). Takeshita and Fletcher pushed themselves to the limit against their opponents, but their opponents are two of the best wrestlers in the world PERIOD. Ospreay and Omega wrestled circles around the duo, countering a lot of what was thrown at them. In the end, Omega hoisted Takeshita on his shoulders for his finish, the One Winged Angel, with Ospreay hitting Takeshita with his own finish, the Hidden Blade before Omega completed his finisher in one hell of a combination move.
Winner: Will Ospreay & Kenny Omega
TBS Championship: Mercedes Mone (Champ) vs Harley Cameron
The Lead-up: This is a weird one. Harley Cameron, a Brisbane native, didn’t have a match for AEW Grand Slam Australia, so she started annoying the TBS Champion with musical segments and a puppet of Mercedes Mone. Over a couple of weeks, Cameron was able to wear down Mone to the point where Mone accepted a TBS Championship match against Cameron just so she could destroy Cameron in front of her home crowd and family… and end the puppet.
The Match: One of two hometown girls makes her way to the ring with the whole crowd behind her. Harley Cameron, who grew up in Brisbane, was extremely popular with the crowd on hand, with everyone cheering that her opponent would “Feel the wrath”. However, Harley’s opponent was Mercedes Mone, the female Hulk Hogan of wrestling. Harley tried her best in the ring with the TBS Champion, even bringing out the Mercedes Mone muppet a couple of times to huge applause from the crowd. Mone kept up the offense and eventually got the win over Harley. Even after defeat, the crowd was cheering for the hometown girl like she won the match.
Winner: Mercedes Mone
Death Riders: Claudio Castagnoli & Jon Moxley vs Cope & Jay White
The Lead-up: The Death Riders have been a group with a mission: To end the current style and mindset of AEW and create something more violent where only the strong survive. The group, led by AEW World Champion Jon Moxley, has been trying to beat down anyone who gets in their way. The Death Riders were starting to gain ground in their mission until a returning Adam “Cope” Copeland got involved. Cope has been leading the charge to get people together to take down the Death Riders before they can upset AEW forever. Jay White has been in on the fight for a while, originally getting caught in the crossfire as his group, Bullet Club Gold (aka The Bang Bang Gang) got taken out by the Death Riders. Now wanting to get his hands on Moxley and the AEW World Championship, White teams up with Cope to show the Death Riders that there is still some fight in the AEW faithful.
The Match: AEW doesn’t know how to use the breaks to calm fans down, they want us loud and excited for the whole show… And we were. Nothing shows this more than when Adam “Cope” Copeland, aka former WWE Superstar Edge, made his entrance to his trademark song: Metalingus by Alter Bridge. In a moment that almost made Cope cry, the Australian crowd continued to sing the song after the audio ended, a moment that was captured on TV. You can see it below.
As for the match itself, it was a violent affair, with all four men beating the living shit out of each other. Cope made his way into the crowd with Claudio, brawling up into the stands where Cope did an amazing dive off one of the railings onto Claudio, taking them both out of the match for a little bit. Moxley and White brawled around, with a table getting set up at ringside. More violence followed, with Cope taking a powerbomb into the table on the floor. The match went on for a while longer before Moxley made Cope pass out to get the win with a brutal submission.
The Death Riders left through the crowd, the same way they arrived, and the crowd gave White and Cope a hero’s reaction, with a lot of respect from the crowd for the guys who put it all on the line. Later it was revealed that this might be Cope’s last time in Australia, so I’m glad we sent him off with one hell of a memory.
Winner: Death Riders
AEW Continental Championship: Kazuchika Okada (Champ) vs Buddy Matthews
The Lead-up: Who is the bitch? Okada is one of the best wrestlers in Japan, with many NJPW World Championship reigns under his belt, and is currently the longest reigning AEW Continental Champion. Buddy Matthews is Australia’s best wrestler (No personal bias here) and wants to add some single gold to his collection after the exit of Malakai Black from AEW. Buddy thinks Okada is a bitch and Okada called Buddy a bitch. So not only is the Continental Championship on the line, but we will see who the bitch really is.
The Match: This was a very exciting match-up for me. I’m been a fan of Buddy Matthews since the day he walked in for his first day of training at PCW as a very skinny rookie… Yes, that beef of a man was once a skinny kid. But from day one, those who knew how to spot talent would see that he would go a long way in this business. As the promotion for this match said: This was Australia’s best going up against Japan’s best. Okada is one of the best wrestlers and champions coming out of New Japan Pro Wrestling, headlining some of Japan’s biggest matches on their biggest shows.
While Buddy did his very best against Okada, with both men putting on a show of great technical wrestling and Japan’s “Strong Style” wrestling, it was apparent to those, like me, with in-ring experience that something was off. It turned out that Buddy injured his ankle as he jumped off the second rope during his entrance, giving him a disadvantage for this match from the beginning. But Buddy being Buddy, he wasn’t going to let the home crowd down and pushed through the pain to put on a show for us. As much as we would have loved to see Buddy win, Okada was too good and too strong, pinning Buddy. In a promo after the match on TV, Okada said Buddy has his respect, but he’s still a bitch. Hopefully, this is not the end of the matches between these two.
Winner: Kazuchika Okada
AEW Women’s World Championship: Mariah May (Champ) vs. Toni Storm
The Lead-up: Pure Cinema is the phrase that would be the one to describe this feud. Timeless Toni Storm is one of the best characters in AEW, with her over-the-top nature and acting style being a highlight of any time that she is on screen. Well over a year ago, Toni took Mariah May under her bosom (her words, not mine) and trained her to be a ruthless “Actress” like herself. This ended with Mariah betraying Toni and winning the AEW Women’s World Championship from Toni. What occurred afterward was Toni returning to her rockstar gimmick, the persona she had in WWE’s NXT UK brand, NXT, and when she started in AEW, complete with Toni thinking that she was back in her rookie days in wrestling… and the fans went along with it. We would learn that this was Toni’s role of a lifetime, playing the dumb rookie role until she got her chance to take on Mariah May for the title once again.
The Match: Time for the main event, and you know who the crowd is going for from the second the lights dimmed for the history video package. The chant of “TONI! TONI STOOOORMMM!!” rang loud and was continuous through Mariah May’s entrance, though the TV audio didn’t make people hear that. Then Luther appeared, directing the crowd to the entrance of Timeless Toni Storm, with the crowd getting even louder, again TV doesn’t do the crowd justice. The match itself was solid, with both Toni and Mariah traded moves and blows, knowing each other’s style really well. Luther kept the crowd energized at ringside, even laughing at a chant of “Rip her tits off” from the crowd. Eventually, Toni would get the pin and the crowd went nuts for their new AEW Women’s World Champion. By the time Toni was raising the belt, I was at the top of the stairs, getting a head start so I wouldn’t hold up the crowd of people to come. As I headed out the doors to the arena, I could hear Toni thanking the crowd in attendance and saying how much Brisbane meant to her. A great ending to a great night out.
Winner: New AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm
AEW Grand Slam Australia: An Adventure of a Lifetime
By the time you read this, I would have arrived home, had a shower, gotten some sleep, and then started writing most of this up… Almost a week after the event happened. I’m sure you would have seen the show on your local TNT channel provider or online resource, so the whole thing about the winners isn’t news to you. However, this was my take on the event from a live perspective to show you the lengths some of us are willing to go to get something different for you to experience through us.
Overall, the event was crazy. It was an intoxicating feeling being surrounded by 14,000 other AEW fans, getting involved in the chants during the show, and singing Metalingus by Alter Bridge. I tried a few times to get my signs on TV, but I was so far back that I haven’t seen them on the broadcast versions, but I’m going to keep looking. I even was able to get up and down the stairs to and from my seat without assistance, something that I didn’t think was going to happen after my surgery.
The wrestling on the show was great, the AEW wrestlers put everything they could into their matches to entertain a crowd who loved every minute. As much as people wanted a huge Stadium show, I think moving to the smaller arena was a better idea, making the crowd more compact but louder at the same time. Australian crowds are something that you need to experience for yourselves as we are a community of people who are passionate and have zero filters. We’re that crowd that companies like AEW and WWE love to perform in front of, a big change from the standard American crowds.
We got back to the hotel around midnight, even though the event finished at 11 pm. We spent 45 minutes in a long line to get a Taxi back to the hotel… But someone left their VIP commemorative chair on the side of the path leading to the Taxi point… Yeah, I grabbed it, getting something I didn’t think I would get to remember the night with.
7 am the next morning, we were checking out of the hotel and back on the road. This time around we took a little extra time traveling back, with the driving time a lot more manageable and stopping at more places. We found a giant prawn (shrimp) in a Bunnings hardware parking lot, a Big Banana that had a cafe attached, got a fresh seafood pizza in Port Macquarie, and stopped in to see some friends in the remote town of Wagga Wagga. Eventually, we arrived home by 3 pm on Wednesday, collapsing into bed for a lot of well-needed sleep… Which is why I’m writing this on a Friday.
Overall, this was a great experience and one I’d be happy to do again sometime. Australia is a large country with many great places to experience, much like AEW is a company that is full of different styles of wrestlers from all over the world. AEW Grand Slam Australia was an excuse to get away from all the hassle and pain that I’ve suffered for the last 7 months and the overall stupidity of the world, much like wrestling itself is an escape from the reality of the world.
I’d say that if this is your first experience with professional wrestling, AEW, or just Australia in general, then I hope you enjoyed yourself as I chronicled this experience. You can find AEW on ESPN in Australia (via Foxtel or Kayo), TNT in the USA and Canada, HBO MAX or TrillerTV online, and other media all over the world. If you get a chance to see a wrestling show live, even if it is AEW, WWE, TNA, International, or Independent (Yes, your town or state might have a local promotion) wrestling promotion, go do it. It’s an experience that you will never forget, and you might even become a fan.