GRAND SLAM AUSTRALIA – Melbourne to Brisbane and back.

The wrestling great Steve “Sting” Borden once said in a promo, “I gave my blood, my sweat and my tears for WCW.”

I can honestly say that I have given 2 out of the three for AEW on my adventure to Brisbane. What were the 2 I hear you ask. Well, let’s start with the sweat. Brisbane is a beautiful place, but geez does it leave you in the proverbial ball soup. As for the other one, my nose decided to make Jon Moxley matches look like a minor scratch in comparison. The worst thing, it happened while right at the start of the mammoth drive up to Brisbane.

Leaving Melbourne at just after 7pm on Thursday night, I thought it would be smooth sailing all the way up, boy was I wrong. Blood nose, sweaty and uncomfortable attempts trying to sleep along the way and a car battery that decided it wanted to burst a cell, but these are the things we go through for the things we love right?

Anyway, enough of my rambling. Let’s get into the meat and potatoes of why you are actually reading this. AEW GRAND SLAM AUSTRALIA.

After the hectic 25-hour drive (do not get me started otherwise we will be here forever), myself and my son we lined up and ready for our entry through the gates of the Brisbane Entertainment Centre only for us to have to line up yet again to get our eager hands on our VIP passes. Mind you the wait for the VIP line was not as long as the wait for the actual entry to the BEC.

Once we received our lanyards, we made our way up into the hallowed halls of the BEC and perused the merchandise desk which was already packed out with the other eager VIP’s. While lining up to get our proverbial AEW Grand Slam Australia sleeveless shirt word begun to seep out that the title belts were already sold out and this wasn’t even an hour after the doors had opened.

While in the merch line I got talking with some other VIP’s who purchased the higher package, and they told me that they got a chance to walk around the ring earlier in the day as well as a photo opportunity with some of the stars of AEW. They had also been given a $50 merch voucher which could clearly be used on any of the available items.

Once I obtain my son’s and I’s shirt from the merch desk, we made our way to the waiting area where we once again ran into our new friend, Jay White. No not the actual Jay White, however if it was a cosplay contest, he would definitely be getting a prize. Oh, and before you ask, yes, I did have to apply for a loan from the bank to purchase food and drink inside the venue. Anyway, back to review.

As the time ticked away before the internal doors opened, we managed to have MxM Collection, Colt Cabana and Bryce Remsburg walked past us as they made their way to the downstairs VIP meet and greet area. Unfortunately, I was not quick enough to capture any photos of them as they walked past.

Once the doors opened inside the building, we were met with the scale of the BEC and the setup for the show. With the ring covered in ROH ring dress and the AEW green and gold logo plastered over the entrance way as well as the big screens above the ring. Making our way down to the floor of the venue we were led to our seats which were located 5th row from the ring and two seats away from the actual aisle.

As you can see in the photo above, we also got the luck of being able to take home chairs from the show, one of which now sits proudly in my son’s room right near his work desk.

As the time drew closer for the start of the event, the excitement inside the building began to rise with many WOOO chants breaking out. Before we get to the main reason, we are all here, ROH was taping a special event which saw local Australian / NJPW stalwart, Robbie Eagles in action, The Sons of Texas successfully defend their ROH tag titles, Adelaide’s own Tommy Knight make an appearance in a meaty match against Mark Davis, as well as Athena once again continues her domination of the ROH Women’s division.

Oh, and how can I forget the fact that next to the main show, Big Bill was by far the most over star in the Learning Tree’s trio match. There were points that no matter who was in the ring, if it wasn’t Bill, the fans didn’t care and would chant “still not Bill”.

Now we get to the main show. AEW GRAND SLAM AUSTRALIA. A show that divided a lot of fans across the wrestling world. Was it supposed to be a PPV? Was it going to fail with the change of venue? Would the matches even live up to the hype. ONE WORD – well actually two, F**K YES!!!

Right from the opening note of Elton John’s Saturday Night’s Alright the crowd was hyped and ready for the spectacle that is AEW. Fans were ready to cheer the faces and boo the absolute sh*t out of the heels. Fine example is the Don Callis Family being booed extremely loudly even though Kyle Fletcher is from Australia.

The massive pop for both Ospreay and Omega could be felt throughout the building, and I have to say, seeing Kenny up close and personal is a sight to behold. I have had the fortune to previously attend All In London both times, and I have to say that the crowd here in Australia just connected with both Ospreay and Omega and went all out for them.

This match definitely lived up to the hype and beyond. It was great to witness Kenny make his in ring return to AEW here in Australia and especially while he teamed up with his previous nemesis Ospreay. At one stage in the bout, Ospreay and Fletcher traded chops back and forth only for Ospreay to defiantly dance in Flecthers face while the crowd chanted for Ospreay,

The team of Fletcher and Takeshita were formidable in their attempts to squash the dynamic duo, but alas it was to no avail as Kenny and Ospreay secured the win with a special One-Winged Angel / Hidden Blade combo.

The crowd barely had any time to recover from the action that they had just witnessed before they were taken into yet another moment of excitement as the home country girl, Harley Cameron was up next looking to dethrone the CE-NO!, Mercedes Mone.

One thing I have to bring to the attention of you reading, Mercedes is a hell of a lot smaller in person than when you look at her on TV. In saying that, the woman knows that she is a polarizing figure in this industry, and she definitely uses it to her advantage. Also, the RevPro championship is a tiny belt compared to a standard title.

Harley was out with a huge reaction from the Brisbane crowd. She was even more over with the puppet in tow. At one point in the match, Mercedes got her hands on the puppet and started laying into it, leading to a vicious “you sick f**k” chant directed at her. Momo Watanabe was at ringside for this match and watching the action intently scouting the TBS Champion. The crowd even turned on Nigel McGuiness during this match chanting “f**k you Nigel” and pointing their fingers at him.

Unfortunately, the Mone machine was just a little too much for Harley this time around. I do have to say that this was by far one of Mercedes better matches in AEW and it gave me a little bit of respect for her for actually putting in the work, especially walking into the hostility of Brisbane. After the match, Mercedes got in the face of Watanabe and even pie faced her before walking to the back.

After having to retire due to neck issues and thinking that he would never wrestle in front of an Australian crowd again, it was surreal to see Adam Copeland on our soil once again. You could easily tell that he was living in the moment. Especially when the crowd broke out into Metallingus after the song stopped playing. By the way, excuse my horrible singing in the video above.

The Brisbane Brawl was off to a hot start and even broke out of the ringside area and headed into the stands. The excitement of the match was felt throughout the arena especially when Cope decided to throw caution to the wind and dive off the balcony. The crowd loved every single minute of it, and we even got to see a steel chair wrapped in barb wire taken to the back of Moxley.

Wheeler Yuta tried his best to make an impact on this match as he slid into the ring and begun whipping White with his belt only for White to hit a Bladderunner on Yuta and then Moxley to hit a stomp on White’s head.

The end of this match took a little bit of breath out of the room as Cope was locked into the Bulldog Choke and refused to give in, resulting in the referee calling for the bell.

Coming on next was yet another Aussie in Buddy Matthews getting set to stake his claim for his first singles championship in AEW.

Buddy received a hero’s welcome as he made his way down the aisle and Okada’s new laser light entrance is something great to watch. The crowd was pumped and wanted Buddy to repeat his home country feat from his days in WWE and the Supershow in Melbourne. Unfortunately, for the fans in attendance, that did not happen.

The match itself was a battle of Japan vs Australia on a new level and Okada was showing the Okada of old throughout his mannerisms in this one. As Okada tried to run away from the match, Buddy got on the mic and called him a WANKER which led to the crowd joining in and making it know that Okada’s a WANKER. Honestly at this point, I was expecting Buddy to turn around a call him a c**t, but I guess they have censors to appease.

Buddy fought hard throughout the match, however ultimately Okada’s dominance once again proves itself.

Alright everybody. Now it is time. It’s main event time. In the arena we got to see a small part of the video package highlighting the history between Mariah May and Toni Storm and I can tell you that the crowd was ready.

It had been a long as f**k day for everyone on site, but the momentum of this match brought a new and refreshed energy into the arena as the champion Mariah May made her way down to the ring to a chorus of boos.

As Mariah was waiting in the ring, Luther made his way into the crowd and took the attention of everyone in attendance. This was it; this was the moment that the Timeless one made her triumphant return to Brisbane to an absolutely overwhelming reception from everyone in the building.

Toni and Mariah have a chemistry that somehow has been off the charts. These two women work so well together, and it translates so well on screen, in person and in the work that they have done together in the ring. While this might have been the ultimate showdown between the ladies, they did not go in halfcocked. They gave us the whole hog. So much so that at the end of the match, Toni revealed that she once again had torn her labia which drew a huge chuckle from the crowd.

Every single person in the arena was on edge watching this one and the term edge of the seat was very real in moments like this. Mariah was not going to let Toni get away with this one lightly. She gave it her all trying to keep her stranglehold on the AEW Women’s World Championship.

The chant of “rip her tits off” rang out in unison in the area as Toni and Mariah battled back and forth.

The finish of the match being a Small Package was absolutely perfect in regard to the story that has been told throughout this feud. It was Toni going back to the basics.

After the bell rings and it is announced that Toni has secured her 4th AEW Women’s World Championship reign, the crowd does lose their mind and celebrate along with the Queenslander.

After the match, Toni gets on the microphone and reminisces on the fact of her standing in the BEC many years ago as a young girl and then asks the crowd if anyone is heading to the Goldy? as she needs a lift.

All in all, it was a fantastic experience being a part of history in Brisbane, albeit dealing with all the extra sh*t that was thrown my way in getting to the show. I know that my son and I had an amazing time at the show, and we got to witness some insanely quality wrestling in our home country.

I look forward to what AEW Grand Slam Australia 2026 will bring us, I just hope that this time it will be in either Sydney or Melbourne. Melbourne preferably because that way I don’t have to leave my state again and spend an ungodly amount of time on the road.