Takeshita defends against Cassidy on Dynamite on TSN2
The AEW International Championship Series continues as Konosuke Takeshita puts his title on the line against former champion Orange Cassidy. Plus, Will Ospreay meets Bryan Keith and "Hangman" Adam Page is in action. You can catch AEW Dynamite LIVE on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on TSN2, the TSN App, and TSN.ca.
AEW International Championship match: NEVER Openweight Champion "The Alpha" Konosuke Takeshita (c) (w/ Don Callis) vs. "Freshly Squeezed" Orange Cassidy
There are many things you can say about Konosuke Takeshita since he embarked on his alliance with Don Callis back in 2023, but you can't accuse of him of ducking competition. Having already won the AEW International Championship at WrestleDream last October in a three-way match against both Ricochet and then-champion Will Ospreay, Takeshita became a double champion at Wrestle Kingdom 19 when he defeated Shingo Takagi for the NEVER Openweight Championship. Callis promised him gold when he aligned with him and, thus far, he's delivered. But Takeshita will face a grave challenge to his International strap in the coming days beginning on Wednesday night when he takes on former champion Orange Cassidy on Dynamite. Cassidy earned himself a shot at Takeshita by defeating Roderick Strong last Wednesday night. Of course, the battle will be only half-over for whomever emerges victorious on Dynamite as the winner has a date with former AEW World Champion "The Cleaner" Kenny Omega at March 9's Revolution. Cassidy is one of only two men to have held the International Championship on two occasions - with Ospreay being the other - and holds the record for most days as champion with 471. He last held the title in the fall of 2023, defeating Rey Fenix for the belt before dropping it to Strong after 147 days. Wednesday night's match will be the first ever singles meeting between the two men. They've faced off in multi-man matches three times previously with each man winning a match and both men failing to unseat Kazuchika Okada as AEW Continental Champion in a four-way match that also included Mark Briscoe at All Out this past September. Can Cassidy become a three-time champion or will Takeshita set up another match with archrival Omega?
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Trios match: TNT Champion Daniel Garcia and FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler) vs. Undisputed Kingdom (Adam Cole, Roderick Strong and Kyle O'Reilly)
The AEW World Trios Championships have been firmly around the waists of the Death Riders ("The Bastard" PAC, Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler YUTA) since they captured them at last summer's All Out in a ladder match against former champions The Patriarchy (Christian Cage, Killswitch and Nick Wayne), the House of Black (Malakai Black, Buddy Matthews and Brody King) and Bullet Club Gold (Juice Robinson, Colten Gunn and Austin Gunn). Among those who have tried to wrest them away from the Death Riders in recent weeks have been Daniel Garcia and 2point0 (Angelo Parker and Matt Menard) and the Undisputed Kingdom (Adam Cole, Roderick Strong and Kyle O'Reilly), but both of those crews have been unsuccessful. On Wednesday night, the Undisputed Kingdom tries to regroup when they take on Garcia, but not Parker and Menard. On Dynamite, Garcia will team with former AEW World Tag Team Champions FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler). A victory on Wednesday night would presumably put either team in line for another shot at the titles. Garcia has previously teamed up with FTR on three occasions and holds wins over both the Patriarchy and the House of Black in an Escape the Cage Match. What will be interesting to see on Wednesday night will be the intensity between the two teams. It's no secret that all of Cole, Strong and O'Reilly are interested in Garcia's TNT Championship, but there is clear mutual respect between Undisputed Kingdom and the champion. They've each come to each other's aid over the past several weeks in their respective dealings with the Death Riders. That will likely all fall to the wayside on Wednesday night. Which of these talented trios will come out on top?
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"The Aerial Assassin" Will Ospreay vs. "The Bad Apple" Bryan Keith (w/ Big Bill)
Before Bryan Keith was a Bad Apple, he was a Bounty Hunter. That's why he answered Don Callis's call when he put a bounty on the head of Will Ospreay. Ospreay has been a thorn in Callis's side ever since he left the Don Callis Family last July. While Callis pretended that his departure was an amicable one, he clearly resented Ospreay for it and immediately began plotting revenge. He managed to poison Ospreay's former friend Kyle Fletcher against him, resulting in a bitter, months-long feud between the two that is set to culminate at Revolution in a cage match. But before that can go down, he wants Ospreay softened up and Keith is the man he's paid to take the job. But can Keith get the job done? Wednesday night's match will be the first-ever meeting between the two men. Keith enters the match on a two-bout losing streak in singles action, having recently dropped matches to Bandido and Matt Cardona. Keith's last singles match victory in AEW came on the Oct. 11 edition of Rampage when he beat Rocky Romero. Ospreay heads into the bout undefeated in 2025 with singles wins over Mark Davis, Brian Cage and Buddy Matthews and is fresh off a hard-fought victory at Grand Slam Australia last Saturday when he and Kenny Omega defeated Fletcher and Konosuke Takeshita. Yet survival and not victory might be on Ospreay's mind on Dynamite. Callis wants a beating from Keith and not necessarily a victory. He wants Ospreay to suffer ahead of his grudge match with Fletcher and believes Keith is the right man for the job. And, of course, Ospreay might also have to deal with Keith's associates in ROH World Champion Chris Jericho and Big Bill. Will Keith get the job done or will Ospreay escape unscathed and ready for Fletcher?
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Harley Cameron vs. "The Virtuosa" Deonna Purrazzo (w/ Taya Valkyrie)
Harley Cameron might have come up short in her quest to become TBS Champion last week near her hometown in Brisbane as she fell to Mercedes Mone at Grand Slam Australia, but things are looking up for the Gold Coast native. In recent weeks, Cameron has emerged as one of AEW's most beloved performers and has seen a groundswell of support from fans wishing to see her win gold. On the Feb. 2 edition of Collision, Cameron picked up her first singles victory in AEW when she defeated Taya Valkyrie. On Wednesday, she will look to make it two wins on the year when she faces off with Valkyrie's Vendetta stablemate, Deonna Purrazzo. Purrazzo has joined Valkyrie in being sick of the attention lavished upon Cameron by the fans and feel she's holding them both back in the women's division. If she won't make way for them, Purrazzo plans to make her make way. But Wednesday night's match might be a bigger one for Purrazzo than she's letting on. The wins haven't exactly been piling up for the former TNA Knockouts Champion and it's perhaps easier to focus her ire on Cameron than it is to look in the mirror. Purrazzo has only won one of her last six singles matches (a victory over Shazza McKenzie on the Dec. 13 edition of Rampage) in AEW. During that time, she's dropped contests to Toni Storm, Anna Jay, Hikaru Shida, Willow Nightingale and Thunder Rosa. If she's identified Cameron as an easy win, she might be sorely mistaken. Can Purrazzo make her point or will Cameron bounce back?
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PLUS:
- "Hangman" Adam Page will be in action
- We will hear from Maxwell Jacob Friedman
- Swerve Strickland (w/ Prince Nana) will address Ricochet ahead of their grudge match at Revolution