Making his AEW pay-per-view debut, Bobby Lashley beat Swerve Strickland at Full Gear on Saturday.

The match featured several trips outside the ring, with bodies flying through tables left and right. A distraction from MVP allowed Lashley to take control, delivering ground-shaking spears both inside and outside the ring.

Lashley ultimately secured the win by applying the Hurt Lock, forcing Strickland to pass out.

The rivalry between Lashley and Strickland technically began even before Lashley arrived in AEW, as Hurt Syndicate members MVP and Shelton Benjamin attempted to recruit Swerve into the group.

Strickland became public enemy No. 1 for the Hurt Syndicate when he opted to remain aligned with Prince Nana rather than joining them, which led to a match between Swerve and Benjamin on the Fright Night edition of Dynamite on Oct. 30.

After Strickland beat Benjamin, MVP placed a phone call, leading to Lashley making his AEW debut. The Hurt Syndicate then ganged up on Swerve, leaving him laid out after a vicious attack.

The Hurt Syndicate originally formed in WWE under the name of the Hurt Business, and it featured Lashley, MVP, Benjamin and Cedric Alexander.

They enjoyed enormous success as a unit with Lashley holding both the WWE and United States Championships, and the duo of Benjamin and Alexander holding the Tag Team Championships.

While Alexander is still in WWE as part of NXT, Benjamin was released from the company last year and both Lashley and MVP saw their WWE contracts expire recently, which opened the door for them to reunite in AEW.

Strickland made a ton of sense as the Hurt Syndicate's first target since he is among the fastest-rising stars in pro wrestling and would have been a massive addition to the group.

However, once Strickland turned them down, he became a potential stepping stone, as he held the AEW world title for 126 days earlier this year.

By virtue of his victory over Swerve at Full Gear, it can argue that Lashley is already being positioned for an AEW World Championship opportunity in the near future.

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