[7.0] "Good match: Starks and Lethal are great wrestlers and delivered two solid perfomances in this match. The action was enjoyable with a couple of nice exchganges, especially in the second part of the match. The final minutes were really good and lethal injection into the rochambo was a beautiful counter. 7/10 - 3.5*/5*"
[8.0] "Big title match between Starks and Lethal here which had no reason to be that good and yet was of very good quality, I know they're both very qualitative workers and I love to see them in action every time but I honestly didn't think they would click so well and give us something that enjoyable. So I was happy when I saw this match live then and even happier when I saw it again now because it's still as good as I remembered it, it's one of those underrated gems that doesn't really get talked about and that's a shame because it's probably one of the best matches we've seen on Rampage this year and it's also for me the best of Ricky Starks' career without too much debate possible. Lethal is fantastic at making the young guys in the company shine and giving them experience as well as he did with Guevara a few months ago during his TNT title run, and here he gave a hell of an effort against Starks. The two connected very well and that ending was chief kiss."
[8.0] "Very impressive match from both men here. Finish was sensational and pulled off perfectly. I really want to see Starks receive more opportunities to demonstrate his skills in singles competition, because he came across as a man with main event star potential here."
[8.0] "Das war so ein Match, von dem ich nicht wusste, das ich es haben will. Gute Chemie zwischen den Beiden. Lethal durfte hier zeigen, wie gut er im Ring ist. Schlussphase war stark und das Finish fantastisch. Wunderschöner Konter von Stark"
[7.0] "Very good match between two of the best most complete wrestlers on the planet. The Finish was beautifully executed and the correct guy won. It is a shame that Lethal has not gotten any worthwhile wins so far."
[8.0] "I wasn't really a fan of AEW signing Lethal but if he's going to be used in a Sydal-like capacity to put over younger talents then I guess I understand why they signed him. The transition from the Lethal Injection into the Roshambo was beautiful."
[8.0] "Starkes Match.Lethal durfte sehr viel zeigen.Technisch absolut erstklassig.Lethal wollte seinen Finiher zeigen aber Starks kontert diesen mit seinem Finisher fantastische Sequenz.***3/4"
[8.0] "Let Lethal have 10-12 minutes against a rising star and let him do what he does best : put over. That was flawless as fun. Transitions were very good ans Starks had clearly the chance to show what he's about. Lethal is that type of vet' AEW needs. The finish was a bang, didn't saw it coming."
[8.0] "Das war mal ein richtig gutes Wrestlingmatch! Jay Lethal ist einfach richtig guter Worker und wenn Ricky Starks im Ring steht, wird die Ringpsychologie groß geschrieben. Die diversen Konter und besonders das Finish waren herausragend!"
[9.0] "I struggle to rate really good matches because I want to give this a 9 but that puts it with some very elite (no pun intended) matches. However, this was tremendous fun and very well worked, to the point that I can see myself watching it again in the future. For that alone, I have convinced myself to go with a 9. I hope AEW continues to push both Starks as a shining up-and-comer and Lethal as the terrific veteran who gets good matches out of anyone."
[8.0] "Fantastic main event! Jay Lethal didn't need AEW ; AEW wanted Jay Lethal and he's been pretty much underused and this match sets a defining example ringing around the minds of the creative team that it's a mistake. Starks looked strong and shined like a diamond here and this might be his best singles match in AEW. Hope he shines even brighter and hope Lethal becomes relevant here in AEW and leaves a good impression before ROH's return in April. The finish i.e. the counter to Lethal Injection into Roshambo is one of the dope and slick spots I've seen recently. 4 out of 5 stars!"
[8.0] "Really good TV Main Event between two of the most misused and underused talents in AEW, back and forth with neither man getting the advantage for most the match. The few times it seemed like Lethal was taking control, Hobbs would halt his momentum, until Dante Martin came to even the odds after Lethal missed a dive onto Hobbs. A great ending, with Ricky Starks reversing the Lethal Injection into his finisher."
[6.0] "I thought this was only solid, nothing too special. Ricky Starks looked very good but Lethal seemed iffy, particularly that badly botched dive onto Hobbs. Very nice finish though."
[6.0] "Dante is some kind of strange type, I can't understand his character and that's bad. Jay Lethal can't find himself yet and win a really important fight, it's sad. The fight turned out to be normal, but here the result rather played not on the side of the general impression."
[5.0] "This match really didn? t do it for me. After seeing 3 other matches with weak stories or random interference i was hoping this wouldn? t be the case in this match"
[6.0] "I don't know if this really felt like a main event of any sort but it was a decent match and that finish was executed very smoothly. Team Taz are pretty much the Suzuki Gun of AEW right now and Starks is exemplary of that. It's hard to fully hate his heel antics. AEW seem to be making more use of the FTW belt recently which feels to me like they're setting up a Hook story."
[6.0] "A good match between two guys that AEW desperately need to feature far more. Their chemistry was strong and they showed good energy as they brawled and traded bigger moves. Starks has been one of the most naturally charismatic guys on the roster ever since his first match, and he once again did a great job highlighting that great heel confidence of his, leading to some very entertaining moments as he lets his ego get the better of him. Lethal was a bit more 'plain' in his character work, but his in-ring work was still very clean and impactful, reflecting his many years of experience. I really liked the handful of intelligent counters both guys pulled out, showing that they both had answers for the other at different points. The finish with Starks countering the Lethal Injection into the Roshambo was absolutely perfect. The only real issue with this match was how clearly dead a lot of the crowd were, but both men managed to pick up the pace and still wake them up every now and then. I think if both guys wanted to have a great match with more psychology, character work, and exciting offence then they probably could, but they were clearly told to just have competently good little sub-15-minute match, which is exactly what they did. ***1/4"
[8.0] "Jay Lethal and Ricky Starks have great chemistry. This was a great main event and even woke up a tired crowd. Ricky is a special talent, his in-ring ability is good and he can work the crowd fantastically. That Lethal Injection reversal into the Roshambo was a work of art."
[6.0] "Well, it took AEW a little while, but it finally put Lethal in a big-match situation that allowed him to show off his years of experience. While Lethal was the veteran, Starks more than held his own. This was not a one-sided performance. If anything, Starks had more impressive spots throughout the match."
[7.0] "7.5 - Loved this. Given both men haven't had ample main event experience in AEW they filled this slot perfectly. Both played their role well and looked super comfortable."
[8.0] "Excellent match here, hopefully Starks is fully recovered from injury and Lethal will be used more going forward. The two men had excellent chemistry, and it was a great back and forth match with counter after counter. More of this please."
[10.0] "Fabulous finish to an already great bout. Ricky is a complete package and Lethal, with his experience, serves as such a nice opponent. Good main event!"
[8.0] "Really good main event. Ricky Starks needs to wrestle more, he's awesome. Lethal, we all know the allegations but he's also a great wrestler. ***3/4"
[8.0] "A Main Event at the height of this show, obviously it is a totally secondary title and that currently has little relevance (I say this because Ricky has defended it little) but this fight was great, the rivalry of Lethal vs. Starks had been there for weeks and I liked that."
[8.0] "This was a cracking little match. Starks and Lethal seem to have really good chemistry. The finish was superb, one of the best I've seen for a long time."
[8.0] "Just one word, great, the race is beautiful, and the more time, the better the race. Both wrestlers struggled. I hope the FTW belt has more opportunities."
[8.0] "This was great. It was nothing super fancy until the finish; just good, hard hitting pro wrestling that looked like a struggle, was mostly pretty smooth, and advanced the storyline. Good finisher teases, good selling, good stuff with the cornermen. But the entire reason why this match is going to be talked about at all is that finish. Holy cow. Such a smooth counter. It's a cliche now, but it really did come out of nowhere. This is the perfect example of how to finish a match on a high note. ****"
[7.0] "Good main event to enhance Ricky Starks' run with the FTW Title, beating a proven champion in Jay Lethal, who gave him a stern test. Can see Starks losing the title to Dante Martin, who then loses it to the man who should really hold the title, HOOK."
