Rush and Bryan Danielson. AEW

Bryan Danielson vs. Rush and Top 3 WWE and AEW Matches for the Week of February 11

Doc-Chris Mueller

We're back with the top three WWE and AEW matches from the week of February 11.

Both companies have pay-per-views on the horizon, so we have seen a lot of time devoted to building up the cards for both WWE Elimination Chamber on February 18 and AEW Revolution on March 5.

Bryan Danielson had another hurdle placed in his path by MJF, and that hurdle goes by the name of Rush.

Bayley and Becky Lynch finally had the cage match of which we were robbed from Raw XXX, and The Elite put the Trios Championships on the line against Top Flight and AR Fox.

Let's take a look at why each of these matches stood out.

Honorable Mentions

Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin vs. Alpha Academy

Benjamin and Alexander have MVP back by their side and are starting to pick up wins again, and their match against Alpha Academy was just the first of what will hopefully be many great victories from this duo. This bout had four stars who are all known for having different kinds of athleticism, but they meshed their respective styles together well.

The Usos vs. Braun Strowman and Ricochet

The story leading up to this match was all about whether Jey Uso would show up to help his brother defend the SmackDown tag titles. Jimmy made several frantic calls throughout the night that went unanswered, but Jey ultimately showed up so both men could show out.

This was a fantastic encounter between one of the best teams in WWE history and a duo who have managed to build chemistry as partners quickly. It wasn't a classic by any means, but it was definitely the biggest highlight from Friday's SmackDown.

Bayley vs. Becky Lynch

A few weeks ago during the 30th anniversary of Raw, WWE advertised a cage match between Bayley and Lynch that did not take place due to the show running low on time.

This week, we finally got to see two of the Four Horsewomen of WWE duke it out inside the massive steel structure.

Not only did they deliver a physical performance worthy of the main event spot they were in, but they proved once again that a feud can be great without a title involved.

Too often in WWE, the biggest feuds are reserved for the champions, leaving everyone else fighting for the remaining TV time. This program between The Man and the leader of Damage CTRL is all about personal vendettas, and in some ways their storyline is more interesting without a belt.

This definitely stole the show Monday night and put both women in the spotlight. If you didn't see this one live, go out of your way to watch it on Peacock or the Hulu replay. It's a good one.

The Elite vs. Top Flight and AR Fox

If you like the kind of pro wrestling action that is so high-flying it makes you wonder if gravity really exists, then The Elite vs. Top Flight and AR Fox was right up your alley.

Fox has been given some high-profile bouts since signing with AEW, and he always knocks it out of the park with some of the most unique offense you will ever see.

Add his aerial ability to that of Dante and Darius Martin and you have what might be the most agile trio in all of professional wrestling.

The Bucks and Kenny Omega are no strangers to taking risks, too, so they were able to produce a memorable and entertaining showdown for the Trios Championships on Wednesday's Dynamite.

The second-most impressive thing about this match is the sheer number of risky maneuvers and complicated sequences they were able to pack into the time they were given. The most impressive thing was how they were able to do all of that without any major botches.

When matches like this happen, we tend to give the performers more leeway when it comes to making mistakes because the things they are trying to do are so much more difficult than the standard suplexes, slams and holds we see in typical matches. Thankfully, we did not have to give these six men any leeway because they delivered a fantastic fight.

Bryan Danielson vs. Rush

This was a tough week to pick a top match. We saw some great action across the board from both promotions, but the match between Danielson and Rush stands out just a bit more than the rest.

The American Dragon is having the best run of his career right now in terms of the quality of opponents he is facing and the matches he is having with them. There hasn't been a single weak encounter on his resume since he debuted with the company in September of 2021.

His upcoming Ironman match against MJF at Revolution will likely be one of his best performances of the year, but in order to get to the champion, he has had to go through a series of roadblocks.

This week, it was former ROH champion, Rush. The 34-year-old luchador brought out the best in Danielson in addition to drawing quite a bit of blood in their battle.

This match had technical wrestling, brawling, a few high-risk moves and all the chaos you could want out of a standard singles bout.

The amount of blood we saw spilled might have been a bit much for some fans, but the action from bell to bell was unmatched excellence from two veteran performers.

The matches highlighted here all stood out for different reasons, but everyone has their own opinion on this subject. What match stuck out to you from the past week?

   

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