AEW’s TNT Championship has had an up and down time in recent months, but one thing that has remained consistent throughout the existence of the title, is that the match quality has usually been at a high, regardless of storylines or feuds.
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Unlike other AEW championships, which are defended sporadically and rarely to ensure that the belts feel prestigious and hard to come by, the TNT Title is defended much more often due to it being a TV Title. With the regular title matches, it has sometimes meant that not all matches have been at a top tier quality, with the first ten matches displaying a range of different standards.
10 Cody Rhodes Vs Warhorse, AEW Dynamite - July 29th, 2020
This was yet another instance of a popular name from independent wrestling getting a chance to show what they can do on a big stage. Unfortunately, Warhorse and Rhodes just didn’t click. Whilst the action was solid, it was very by-the-book.
A big reason for why this match wasn’t a hit was due to the huge hype surrounding Warhorse going into it, with him not living up to the lofty expectations on this occasion.
9 Cody Rhodes Vs Ricky Starks, AEW Dynamite - June 17th, 2020
There was nothing inherently wrong with this match, with Starks proving how smooth he is between the ropes, but this was too short and simple for it to truly stand out.
Starks opened the door for non-AEW talents to come and have a shot at the TNT Title, and even earn contracts in the process, which is what happened with Starks. Although the match wasn’t anything special, Starks did enough to catch the eye of Tony Khan.
8 Cody Rhodes Vs Sonny Kiss, AEW Dynamite - July 15th, 2020
This was a good showing for Sonny Kiss, and it displayed just what AEW is missing by not booking Kiss more often. The wrestling was good, and they put together some nice sequences, but here and there their chemistry with each other was a little off.
The predictable nature of this match took away from the heat of the bout, but it was nice to see Kiss in a role on TV, going toe-to-toe with Rhodes.
7 Cody Rhodes Vs Lance Archer, AEW Double Or Nothing - May 23rd, 2020
This was a classic David vs Goliath match to determine the very first TNT Champion, and whilst the action was solid due to the two professionals involved, it didn’t deliver overall. This match stunted the momentum of Archer very soon into his time with AEW, with his aura being damaged with a defeat.
Overall, the match didn’t live up to the hype of crowning the inaugural champion, but when looking at Rhodes’ time with the title, he was the right choice to begin the lineage of a brand-new belt. The inclusion of Mike Tyson at ringside served no purpose, and he was mostly just a distraction.
6 Cody Rhodes Vs Scorpio Sky, AEW Dynamite - August 12th, 2020
The psychology in this match was very good, with Rhodes’ constant defenses taking a visible toll. Sky’s selling of his back was good too, but there wasn’t enough time dedicated to this match for the story they wanted to tell.
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At times, even with the slower pace, things felt rushed, especially towards the end. Given who was involved, the wrestling itself was all executed very well, but they underwhelmed overall.
5 Cody Rhodes Vs Jake Hager, AEW Dynamite: Fyter Fest - July 1st, 2020
AEW did a good job at building hype around this match, with a press conference and a tale of the tape, making it feel like Rhodes’ biggest challenge to date. At that time, Hager had been built up quite strongly, but he still didn’t feel like a big enough threat for this sort of build.
The match itself provided one of Hager’s best showings in AEW, and he looked strong in his methodical beatdown of Rhodes, but at the end of the day, it was a cliché match in which Rhodes fought from underneath as the babyface, with nothing unique happening to make it truly stand out.
4 Cody Rhodes Vs Marq Quen, AEW Dynamite - June 10th, 2020
This was another example of the TNT Title open challenge helping to bring more awareness to the less-featured talents on the roster. To this point, Quen had just been a tag team wrestler, but this proved how good he can be in a singles scenario.
Quen’s selling elevated this match a lot, and it nicely countered the quick pace of the contest early on. His inexperience was still evident, but it didn’t take away much from the match. The predictable nature hurt things a little, but they made up for that with fluid wrestling.
3 Cody Rhodes Vs Mr. Brodie Lee, AEW Dynamite - August 22nd, 2020
This is perhaps the hardest match to rank out of every one of the first ten TNT Title matches. At just around 3 minutes in length, there was very little actual wrestling in this match. However, in terms of spectacle, story, and buzz, this was fantastic.
Brodie Lee ran through Rhodes, squashing him in impactful fashion, causing a huge shock. Although Lee was the most likely person so far to dethrone Rhodes, the result was still up in the air, so to see such a dominant victory was a big surprise. Rhodes' time with the completed design didn't last long, with it becoming synonymous with Lee from that point on.
2 Cody Rhodes Vs Jungle Boy, AEW Dynamite - June 3rd, 2020
Although Jungle Boy had been on the rise ever since his AEW debut, this match was a big launching pad to him getting even more recognition. In the main event of Dynamite, he shone in this match with Rhodes, with it being fast-paced and full of great wrestling.
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There were some big moments such as a blade job and a table spot, both of which were a little clunky, and the match would probably have been better served if it had focused just on in-ring back and forth action. Either way, it was a great match, and it kicked off Rhodes’ TNT Title open challenges with a bang.
1 Cody Rhodes Vs Eddie Kingston, AEW Dynamite - July 22nd, 2020
From the stunning pre-match promo to the electric and lightening fast display of violence, chaos, and courage, everything about this was nearly perfect. The only downside to this was that it wasn’t longer.
Kingston was introduced to the audience in a brilliant way, with his hard-hitting and hardcore style on display. There were several big moves, and a brutal thumbtack bump from Rhodes, although he managed to pull out the victory. This was Rhodes’ toughest task up to that point, and it was the best TNT Title match to that point too.
