Dean Malenko, Arn Anderson, and The Great Muta are the three judges sat at ringside for the AEW World Championship match.
Cody is out first and he comes up from under the stage with fire blasting and pyro exploding all around. Jericho is out second with Jake Hager and he’s wearing a weight-lifting belt like Cody, but it says “Champion” on the back.
AEW World Championship
(C) Chris Jericho W/Jake Hager Vs. Cody W/MJF
The match gets underway on Y2J’s 42nd birthday and he climbs outside of the ring right away. Jericho gets back inside and locks-up with Cody. Wristlock from Cody but Jericho gets to the ropes to force the break. They lock-up again and Jericho breaks free to leave the ring again.
Back in the ring, Jericho takes a headlock, Cody shoots him off, and Jericho drops him with a shoulder. Drop-down, leap-frog from Cody, then a kick to the gut and a falling uppercut inspired by Dustin Rhodes. Jericho leaves the ring and throws Dean Malenko’s clipboard before talking trash to the judges.
Jericho gets back in the ring and they continue the feeling-out process until Cody forces Y2J out of the ring and he follows-up with a suicide dive in front of the judges. Cody sends Jericho back inside and hits a missile dropkick for a one-count. Cody starts to work on the right arm of Jericho, which he uses for the Judas Effect. A powerslam from Cody earns a two-count, then Rhodes clotheslines Le Champion out of the ring and onto the ramp.
Cody leaps over the ropes at Jericho but Y2J moves and Cody spikes the ramp. Cody is busted open and officials check on him with Jericho in the ring. Cody gets back into the ring and Jericho grabs a chair. The Champion sits on the chair and watches Cody, before getting up and kicking him. Jericho goes after the cut on Cody’s head and the announcers say he’s looking for a stoppage. Hager slams Cody into the barricade, causing MJF to shout at the referee.
Jericho tries to suplex drape Cody on the top rope but he miscues it and Cody flips over, almost headbutting the mat. Cody starts to fight back with right hands but Jericho drops him with a right knee to the gut. Jericho beats Cody down in the corner, but the challenger kicks him away and looks for a moonsault but nobody’s home. Jericho applies a sleeper but Cody quickly fights to his feet.
Jericho applies an abdominal stretch but Cody counters with a hip toss. They stay apart for a second, then Jericho drops Cody with a dropkick for a two-count. Jericho with a rear chinlock and Cody fights up, looks for a dropkick but misses, then Jericho jumps for the Lionsault but Cody gets the knees up. Cody hits a springboard diamond cutter for a near-fall.
Cody gets fired-up and delivers lariats, followed by ten punches in the corner, and a Disaster Kick that knocks Jericho from the ring. The fans are chanting for Cody, who rolls to the outside and eats a kick from Le Champion. Jericho lifts Cody and runs him into the ring post. Jericho talks trash to Cody’s mother at ringside, who slaps Le Champion! Cody then spears Jericho at ringside, hugs his mother, then gets inside to hit an Alabama Slam for a near-fall.
Cody grabs the foot and applies a Figure Four Leglock to Y2J. Jericho reverses the pressure and Cody reaches the bottom rope to force the break. Hager hits Cody from ringside. Jericho runs at Cody but Le Champion inadvertently hits Hager on the apron! Cody rolls-up Jericho for a near-fall but Y2J kicks him out and into another shot from Hager. The referee ejects Hager from ringside, who then beats the holy hell out of a mocking MJF.
Back inside the ring, with the referee distracted, Jericho hits Cody with the AEW World Championship and lies down as the referee returns. Jericho crawls over and pins but Cody kicks out! Jericho looks for the Judas Effect, but Cody counters into the Cross Rhodes…but Jericho kicks out! Both men get on their knees and trade right hands to the cheers and boos of the fans.
Cody jabs Jericho like his father, before delivering the bionic elbow for a near-fall. Cody kicks the chest of Jericho, then looks for the Disaster Kick but Jericho catches him with a Codebreaker for a near-fall! Jericho stomps Cody around the ring, then takes his weight-lifting belt and whips Cody with it! He does this a few times until Aubrey takes it away and the fans chant her name.
Jericho takes to the top rope but Cody superkicks him. Cody looks for a hurricanrana but Jericho holds the legs, climbs down, and applies the Liontamer! Cody considers tapping but the will of the fans helps him reach the bottom rope. Jericho unloads some ground-and-pound but Aubrey forces him to stop, so Jericho shoves her. Cody takes advantage of the confusion to roll-up Y2J but he kicks out. Jericho beats on Cody and applies the Liontamer. Cody struggles and Jericho stomps his head before sitting deep into the move. Cody won’t tap, so MJF throws in the towel!
Winner: Chris Jericho
After the match, Jericho takes his AEW World Championship and leaves up the ramp. In the ring, MJF checks on Cody and he’s torn apart by his decision to throw in the towel. The Inner Circle meet Jericho on the ramp with some bubbly and put him on their shoulders.
Once they’re gone, Cody slowly gets to his feet and he’s angry. MFJ tries to explain why he did it and he cries on his knees. Cody walks around the ring looking at the fans, then lifts MFJ up. The scarf-wearing devil then kicks Cody square in the gonads! That was a good swerve because it looked like Cody was going to hit MJF. The fans chant “a$$hole” at MFJ as he screams at Cody before fixing his scarf and leaving. At the top of the ramp, a fan throws his drink over MFJ!
