AEW Power Rankings: Week of December 4, 2019
This week’s AEW Power Rankings feature champions on top and a closer look at who is on the rise in the men’s, women’s and tag team divisions.
On Dynamite, we saw the debut of the “Lexicon of Le Champion,” which is definitely not the same thing as Jericho’s famed “The List.” A raucous match kicked off the show. A newcomer got a surprising win, a beast continued to dominate and the Nightmare Collective got a new recruit. On social media, we found out why #ButcherBunnyBlade came to AEW.
Here’s how the rankings landed for the week of Dec. 4, 2019.
Men’s Division
No. 1: Chris Jericho (last week: 1)
“Le Champion” announced that he’s contractually obligated to wrestle one more time in 2019. He debuted the “Lexicon of Le Champion” and proceeded to list all the people he would not face in 2019, which was mostly Jon Moxley. He was challenged by Jungle Boy and they will face off in a non-title match on Dec. 18.
At the end of the episode, Jericho & the Inner Circle stared down Moxley. Perhaps foreshadowing a match for New Year’s Day?
No. 2: Jon Moxley (last week: 10)
Moxley vs. Janela II was this week’s main event. The pair faced each other back at Fyter Fest and “The Purveyor of Violence” came out on top. This match featured chops, headbutts and lariats on the ramp. Even going through the table wasn’t enough to stop Moxley, who won with a Paradigm Shift.
Last week, Moxley came down the stairs in the audience to stare down Jericho. This week, the favor was returned.
No. 3- Rey Fénix (last week: ranked with tag teams)
Fénix took on Trent, who defeated his brother last week. Both men went for their finishers early to no avail. Fénix swept Trent’s leg when he was on the second turnbuckle and made him hit his head on the way down. He hit the spinning musclebuster to beat Trent. After the match, Trent tried to shake his hand and Fénix shoved him. Trent had to be held back by Chuckie T.
Fénix also helped his brother later in the night.
No. 4- Pentagón (last week: ranked with tag teams)
After a loss last week, Pentagón looked to redeem himself against Christopher Daniels. He was attacked by his opponent before the bell even rang. Pentagón kicked him in the back of the head before the match started. Penta focused on Daniels’ leg for much of the match. As Daniels was going for his finisher, Fénix threw his mic stand in the ring and distracted the ref. While the ref was distracted, Pentagón kicked Daniels in the groin and got the win with a package piledriver.
No. 5- Jimmy Havoc (last week: unranked)
Havoc was previously find $10,000 for using a stapler in a match, so when the fans chanted for staples, he shook his head “no.” After going back and forth with Brandon Cutler, Havoc produced a stapler and the ref wasn’t having it. Havoc bit Cutler twice in the match. He pinned Cutler with an Acid Rainmaker. After the match, he stapled a $10,000 check to Cutler’s forehead.
No. 6- Shawn Spears (last week: unranked)
Spears faced Sonny Kiss on Dark. “The Chairman” responded to Kiss’ twerk by flexing his own cheeks. In response to the fan’s chanting “10! 10! 10!”, he planted his opponent face-down on the barricade. Once back in the ring, Spears nailed a death valley driver to pick up another win.
Spears later tweeted that the right man won, but he’d wrestle “anyday of the week, anywhere in the world. A confident, and very talented individual. Real recognizes Real.”
No.7- Joey Janela (last week: unranked)
Janela delivered a diving axe handle onto ramp. He also hit a swinging DDT on the ramp, followed by tope suicida. “The Bad Boy” jumped from the top rope and sent himself and Moxley through the table. Janela also hit an elbow drop, but Mox kicked out. Even with pulling out all of the stops, Janela is 0-2 against Moxley.
After the match, Janela tweeted: “Didn’t win tonight but accomplishing the boyhood dream is better than that! Thanks everyone!”
No. 8-Christopher Daniels (last week: ranked with tag teams)
Daniels had his first singles match on Dynamite and his first single match since Fyter Fest. Daniels was taken out by Pentagón prior to the Tag Team Tournament and had to be replaced by Scorpio Sky. He attacked Penta before the match began. Later, he went for the Arabian Night when his feet got caught in the ropes and he landed on his face. He successfully put Pentagón in the Angel Wing, when Fénix interfered and cost him the match.
No. 9- Cody (last week: 4)
Cody spoke with Tony Schiavone in the ring and went all the way in on MJF. MJF posted a picture on Twitter saying that he’ll never wrestle Cody. Like Ted DiBiase says, “everyone has a price” and “The American Nightmare” agreed. He offered the keys to his truck, an expensive watch from Tony Khan, Louis Vuitton shoes and even $50,000 to wrestle him. He wants payback for MJF’s actions at Full Gear.
No. 10- Sonny Kiss (last week: unranked)
Kiss continues to impress in each match and it’s clear the fans love him. Can’t wait to see how far his star rises in 2020.