With Kyle Fletcher out of action indefinitely after suffering a knee injury, the AEW TNT Championship has been vacated, but a new champion will be determined at Dynasty on April 12 in one of AEW’s signature matches, the Casino Gauntlet Match. Former TNT Champion Tommaso Ciampa and CMLL’s Mascara Dorada faced off on the April 8 episode of “AEW Dynamite” to determine who will enter the Casino Gauntlet as the number one entrant, and after a back-and-forth contest, Ciampa secured the number one spot.

A classic case of high-flyer needing to be grounded, Ciampa tried everything to keep up with Dorada in the early going but was too slow for the Mexican star, who hit a number of Arm Drags, Hurricanranas, and dives to the outside to keep control. This did backfire as the match entered the commercial break as Ciampa was able to dish out some punishment of his own, even sending Dorada over the barricade and into the crowd face first before smashing his head into the announce desk at ringside.

Back from the break and Dorada was able to use his aerial offense once again to try and secure the victory, hitting a Moonsault off the ring post to the outside and a 450 Splash for a near fall. However, Ciampa was able to catch Dorada going to the well one time too often and hit a Backstabber for a near fall of his own. Ciampa went for the Psycho Driller but Dorada escaped and hit a Neckbreaker from an Electric Chair position which also earned him a two count. Ciampa got his boot up when Dorada tried hitting a Moonsault, but it didn’t stop Dorada from going for more offense. With that said, Ciampa rolled Dorada into the Widow’s Bell DDT and followed it up with a running knee for the win, securing Ciampa’s place in the Casino Gauntlet as the number one entrant.

Chris Jericho will face Ricochet at AEW Dynasty.

Jericho returned during last week’s “AEW Dynamite” for the first time since April last year, putting an end to any and all speculation over a potential WWE return and affirming his loyalty to the company. But he waited until Wednesday to address the crowd properly and set the wheels in motion for his next run, bringing a contract into the ring for his return bout at Dynasty on Sunday.

Soon enough, Ricochet and the Gates of Agony emerged to interrupt him, with Ricochet imploring Jericho not to sign the contract and saying Canada sucks. Jericho said, “You’re really bald,” and appeared to be talking in a familiar cadence that became clearer as the promo went on. 

He finally made his match official with Ricochet after stripping the backboard from his contract to reveal his name on it, resurrecting the “List of Jericho” and putting Ricochet’s name on it to confirm their contest. 

Now that @IAmJericho has signed his new contract, he’s challenged @KingRicochet for #AEWDynasty and added him to a very special list!

Watch #AEWDynamite LIVE on TBS + HBO Max pic.twitter.com/EtVL2cWC2j

— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) April 9, 2026

The match was made official complete with a graphic as the show went on. It will be his first match in AEW since last year’s Dynasty, losing the ROH World Championship in a Mask vs. Title match against Bandido.

After The Young Bucks ran out to help Jack Perry, Bandido, and Darby Allin following their match against The Don Callis Family on “AEW Dynamite,” Callis himself revealed that two members of his family will be taking on the former AEW World Tag Team Champions at Dynasty. Earlier in the night, it was revealed now former-TNT Champion Kyle Fletcher is out of action, and Callis explained his original plan was to have Fletcher and Kazuchika Okada, “ProtoKada,” take on the team.

With Fletcher out, he revealed that Okada will now team with months-long rival within the faction, Konosuke Takeshita, to face the Bucks. Takeshita and Okada previously teamed back at WrestleDream to unsuccessfully challenge then-tag champs Brodido.

Takeshita was not pleased with Callis’ announcement and said he wants to challenge Okada for his AEW International Championship. Callis said that was fine, and as long as they work together, Takeshita can challenge Okada at Double or Nothing in May to get the fight “out of their systems.” Callis said no one was leaving the family, however.

Willow Nightingale looked to continue building momentum on the April 8, 2026 episode of “AEW Dynamite” by defending her AEW TBS Championship against Queen Aminata. The challenger was never going to make it easy for the “Babe With The Power” as she was returning to action after missing five months of action with a neck injury. However, she was no match for the champion who made another successful defense of her crown.

Aminata suffered an early scare after being thrown into the guardrail on the outside where she was seen clutching her neck, which was injured at the end of 2025 by The Sisters of Sin. However, she regained her composure and took control by keeping the champion grounded before giving Nightingale some Chocolate Kisses as the match went to the commercial break. During the break, not only did the challenger maintain her control by securing some submissions, but Hikaru Shida, who had recently returned to AEW by answering Nightingale’s TBS Championship open challenge on “AEW Collision,” watched on from the crowd.

Coming out of the break, Nightingale was able to take back control and targeted the neck of Aminata, landing a Death Valley Driver in the ring and a Cannonball on the outside. Nightingale missed a Moonsault when the action returned to the ring, and the two women engaged in a striking exchange, with Aminata even countering Nightingale’s Pounce with a big elbow strike. The champion and challenger got some near falls, but Nightingale finally landed a big Pounce which almost sent Aminata out of the ring, and quickly followed up with the Babe With The Powerbomb for the victory. Both women shook hands after the bell, and Nightingale went to the barricade to stare down Shida who was still in the crowd at the end of the bout.