Samoa Joe knows how to cut a promo, and once again he showed fans as much this past Wednesday on “AEW Dynamite.” The charismatic heel knows that everyone wants his AEW World Championship since he defeated former champion MJF at Worlds End, so he went ahead and shared a few rules, including a ban on “Hoe-a** comments” on social media or “cry babies” talking about their misfortunes to get a title shot.

That was when the man of the hour, Swerve Strickland, came out and told Joe he wanted the title. “Hangman” Adam Page came out next to talk about how he did a lot of stuff in 2023, including defeating Jon Moxley, but that he was coming back for his championship in 2024. Strickland left the ring with his eyes set on Page, who tried to intimidate Joe before leaving himself. Joe, of course, wasn’t intimidated by anyone, holding the title up to pose for the crowd — but this wasn’t the end for the champ, as HOOK’s music hit. The laconic FTW Champion told Joe he’s coming for the world title in one week, and they had an intense stare-down before HOOK departed.

All in all, it was a great promo segment with some of the most popular members of AEW’s roster. It made the world title feel important, made the champion feel intimidating, and set the stage for presumably the next few months of the AEW main event scene.

Written by Kellie Haulotte