All Elite Wrestling (AEW) made its debut in Ottawa on Saturday, March 16th, as the Canadian Tire Centre (CTC) hosted AEW Collision.
To commemorate the inaugural appearance in Ottawa, President, CEO and General Manager, Tony Kahn welcomed the crowd before the show went live on television.
The show kicked off with a great match between Bryan Danielson and Katsuyori Shibata. Both are excellent professional wrestlers who put on quite the show for the Ottawa crowd.
As the crowd chanted, ‘This is awesome,’ they exchanged great moves and delivered a very entertaining match. After the match that Danielson eventually won, the two shared their mutual respect with a hug in the ring.
The two-hour Collision show featured a lot of wrestling, but in true wrestling fashion, it also did a good job promoting upcoming events.
The crowd at the CTC Saturday night skewed heavily toward the male demographic, which is somewhat surprising given that AEW has a solid female roster.
The event was not without technical challenges. Of the four screens showing the action over the ring and a big screen at the top of the ramp, none consistently showed the live action in the ring. If one of the fighters was thrown out of the ring, there was a good chance the audience couldn’t see what was happening. This is a production issue that should be addressed.
Regarding the live action and entertainment, the AEW roster in Ottawa showcased their talented in-ring skills and put on a good show for those in attendance.
The evening wasn’t short of Canadian talent. Most notable was Adam Copeland from Toronto. In the final segment, Copeland took to the thing to promote his upcoming ‘I Quit’ match versus former friend now foe Christian Cage.
AEW was well received by those in attendance.
