We have seen all these story beats play out.

Owens didn’t want to face Rhodes at Bash at Berlin but went berserk when he thought the opportunity was going to Reigns.

Owens told Rhodes during the build to their match that all the people he’s turned on in the past — outside Kofi Kingston — deserved it. Rhodes didn’t deserve it then. He didn’t deserve it Friday night despite Owens holding a chair and looking angrier.

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Owens wasn’t willing to turn heel and go the extra mile he needed to defeat Rhodes at Bash in Berlin. He had to watch his friend reluctantly align himself with Reigns, with whom the Prize Fighter has a deep-rooted hatred for thanks to their history of championship matches that went the Tribal Chief’s way.

What will it take for Rhodes to finally deserve the doublecross or chair shot after the Bloodline cut Owens off from getting something off his chest?

Owens’ contract situation will have the tuned-in fans watching closely because him going to AEW isn’t farfetched — even if it’s hard to see happening — because of how close he is with The Young Bucks.

You can make the case Owens has his ceiling in WWE and settled into the upper mid-card/occasional main-eventer spot without ever being the person the company revolves around. Owens has certainly been in plenty of high-level and meaningful stories and that will continue if he re-signs with WWE. But the list of people in front of him to be world champion is only growing with CM Punk, Logan Paul, Bron Breakker, Gunther and maybe even Dominik Mysterio down the road.

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Would the vitriol Owens would likely receive from turning on Rhodes be enough to catapult him there? How does it affect his relationship with Sami Zayn? Does the turn cost Reigns a key Bloodline match? If Owens doesn’t re-sign does he get written off with a Bloodline attack?

They’re all questions that will be answered in the next three-plus months, and Owens is in a position to become wrestling’s most interesting man.

Why the rush?

Tony Khan is known for putting big-time matches or potential dream matches on important Dynamites, and the show’s fifth anniversary on Oct. 2 with a likely TV deal to announce soon fits that bill perfectly.

I’m normally understanding of it, especially when AEW used to run so few PPVs, and I see the need to try to boost ratings for a week for an anniversary show. But it’s hard to fathom giving up Ricochet vs. Will Ospreay, the one match fans were dying to see the former WWE star have in AEW, on free TV with very little build around it outside of a few backstage interactions.

This is especially so when it feels like AEW is also building a story around Ospreay and Konosuke Takeshita that makes a ton of sense.

Maybe Takeshita wrecks everything for Ospreay to force their match so there isn’t a clear winner against Ricochet. AEW better have something big planned after not taking advantage of the deeper story to tell between Ricochet and Ospreay and truly build anticipation for it.

Stuck with you

What we saw from Reigns and Rhodes on SmackDown felt unlike anything we’ve seen before in wrestling, something that few pairs of talent would be deserving of.

It was something out of a “Fast & Furious” movie, a meshing of Reigns’ and Rhodes’ real life — set in the Georgia Tech stadium the Tribal Chief played his college ball in and a state and city that mean so much to the Rhodes family — with two years of storytelling and battles and healthy professional rivalry.

It’s a reminder of just how powerful taking wrestling outside the arena can be as this segment feels like the jumping-off point for what we see at Bad Blood and well beyond for the undisputed faces of the company.

The 10 Count

Jey Uso and Bron Breakker should be really proud of their main event match on Raw. It was hard-hitting, paced well and they did all the little things to build the drama to the crescendo of Uso winning. A frustrated Breakker, whose reign felt too short, made me believe that the match was over earlier by laying motionless, eyes closed for a pin before a late kick out. Joe Tessitore was excellent and his emotional calls added to the energy. “Go ahead and Yeet. He did it” fit the moment.

Found it poignant that Jon Moxley’s new faction attacked Private Party and the former AEW World champion called them out for being in the same position they were in five years ago. If that is the agent of change he wants to be in AEW for acts that haven’t grown and maybe for Darby Allin, I’m here for it. Allin even doubled down on it with a warning to Evil Uno before their match on Collision.

Loved the energy, anger and defiance from Ethan Page’s promo to close NXT. He had been coming off a little silly and almost cartoonish of late. His character really needed that heading into his NXT championship defense against Trick Williams.

It feels like WWE has had a few creative finishes in multi-person matches of late. What we got from Bayley, Naomi and Nia Jax is right up there. WWE may need one again as Naomi and Bayley face off this week to determine Jax’s next championship challenger. A triple-threat match would allow for plenty of opportunities for Tiffany Stratton to cash in her Money in the Bank contract at Bad Blood.

WWE actually spoiled the Dominik Mysterio shark cage announcement on the preceding Bad Blood match graphic before Rhea Ripley could hit her former beau with it. While seemingly fitting, it feels a little clique and just another device — like “Bloodline Rules” — to allow all too familiar chaos to ensue.

Roxanne Perez delivered in her promo with CM Punk. It showed her worry and obsession over Giulia and her eyes and inflection made her jab at Punk feel like it stung and meant something.

It’s been a little jarring watching Nigel McGuinness — who many AEW fans probably only knew as an announcer — carry the build for his match with Bryan Danielson along. Giving him a promo on Collision this week was a good idea, but it felt long and repetitive and an anti-climatic way to close the show when you know Danielson won’t answer him until Wednesday.

Vince McMahon claiming Netflix’s upcoming “Mr. McMahon” docuseries creates a “deceptive narrative” will likely only make fans more interested in it to see what was so bad in his eyes that the former WWE chairman needed to preemptively hit back against it.

The NFL Films short on Tony Khan was a fun watch but might have leaned a little too much into the wrestling kayfabe angle of his neck injury and having Toni Storm interviewed while semi in-character. I did like seeing Khan call all the undrafted rookies the Jaguars bring in and the final appearance by his father Shad (Concerned Parent). Also, Khan’s response when Bears GM Ryan Poles questioned if he planned the neck brace was a highlight.

When it is time to finally take the TNA Knockouts championship off Jordynne Grace, Masha Slamovich really feels like the logical choice. She’d be believable and the top of the division wouldn’t miss a beat in the ring. The two teased a potential match down the road this week.

Extra, Extra: AEW star Anthony Bowens, who played college baseball at Seton Hall and Montclair State, will take part in Jose Canseco’s “The Going Yard Home Run Derby” on Oct. 5 with Andruw Jones, Rafael Palmeiro, Antonio Brown, and Johnny Manziel among others

Wreslter of the Week

Jey Uso, WWE

Finally, finally, Uso can call himself a singles champion in WWE. After 14 years of waiting and more than a year as a singles star, Uso pinned Bron Breakker in a superb main event of “Monday Night Raw” to become the Intercontinental champion. The crowd was super invested in the match showing just how over Uso is. He broke down amongst the fans when asked about the win by Jackie Redmond when the show went off the air.

Social Media Post of the Week

Match to Watch

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness, AEW Grand Slam, Wednesday 8 p.m. TBS.

We haven’t seen this match since 2009 and we probably won’t see this unlikely rivalry revived again. Danielson, who is closing out his full-time wrestling career, and McGuinness had one of the greatest feuds in Ring of Honor history from 2006-09. Both thought their careers were over prematurely but McGuinness coming out of retirement at All In will bring us this blood feud one last time. Can they turn back the clock?