5 Major moments why AEW Grand Slam Australia is memorable for the wrong reasons
AEW Grand Slam: Australia can be seen as a success, as the show went well for the most part from start to finish. However, they cannot disregard several moments where the promotion had major lapses.
The show was considered to be a disaster heading in as there were issues with logistics, booking, and other areas. Although it ended up receiving more positive reviews than expected, it was still far from perfect and should serve as a valuable learning experience for the company.
It has been announced that AEW will return to Australia in 2026. Given what happened this time, they'll have plenty of time to prepare and avoid lightning striking twice. Here are some reasons why Grand Slam: Australia went viral for the wrong reasons.
#1. Everything about the ring setup was "undersized"
At the beginning of the show, fans quickly noticed the smaller ring. Unlike their typical 20x20 ring, this one appeared to be either 16x16 or 18x18, which was still significantly smaller.
The difference was clearly visible on-screen. As if this weren't enough, the usual steel steps at ringside were not used, and smaller versions of them were utilized. These looked like a stool in comparison to the original thing.
Although the in-ring quality was not completely affected by these changes, it gives the impression that the promotion was unprepared. Regardless of whether this was intentional or not, it does not come off as a great look on TV, as everything looked to be downsized.
#2. Tony Khan was booed by the fans in the building
There were several controversies surrounding ticket sales for AEW Grand Slam: Australia. Originally, this was supposed to be a stadium show at Suncorp Stadium. Seeing as the sales were low, the promotion relocated the event to the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.
Besides a smaller venue, those who bought the tickets in advance were not given refunds and these were just carried over to the new location. Some felt shortchanged because they were receiving less than what they originally paid for.
This was seemingly the reason why the fans booed Tony Khan when he came out to address the show during its tapings.
They eventually began to cheer after finding out that AEW would be returning to the country next year.
#3. Confusions regarding the show's format
Last night's show was their first in Australia. Although it carried their signature "Grand Slam" name, there were no clarifications about its format beforehand. Since this was originally planned as a stadium show, many believed it would have a pay-per-view format.
This was clarified only a few weeks before, as this was treated as similar to the format of a weekly episode of AEW Collision on Saturday night. The show included five matches over a two-hour span.
This set high expectations that eventually faded due to the sudden format change. The promotion should get behind this in the future and make sure this is clear to fans who are set to invest a lot of money in the show. Australian fans may have a better show next year when the promotion returns there.
#4. Buddy Matthews sustained an ankle injury
Although there were mostly no issues with a smaller ring, it seemed as if the same ring was the cause of an unfortunate injury.
Fans captured footage of Buddy Matthews rolling his ankle while entering the ring for his match against Kazuchika Okada. This may have impacted his performance, as he was seen hobbling to the back after the match. He has already broken his silence on the issue.
He revealed that holes in the ring padding caused him to stumble and “destroy” his ankle.
Fortunately, this was the only instance of this sort during the night. However, if it ended up affecting his performance, it could once again be added to the list of oversights by AEW.
#5. The AEW fans did not like the finish to The Death Riders vs. Cope & Jay White
The fans were pretty accepting of all the match results from last night's show, even though most of the hometown heroes suffered losses throughout the night. The matches made up for this.
However, fans were vocal about the finish of the Brisbane Brawl between Cope (fka Adam Copeland) and Jay White against The Death Riders. Jon Moxley choked The Rated-R Superstar, and they won the match by submission. The fans were not happy with the abrupt finish, booing this and bringing up NSFW chants.
This was not a good look for the WWE Hall of Famer, as in a few weeks, he'll face Moxley one-on-one for the AEW World Championship. It seems fans expected The Death Riders to lose.
The show made up for the negative publicity as the fans enjoyed last night's matches. However, this was far from a perfect event, and if they return to Australia next year, AEW should make it up to the fans. They should now focus on AEW Revolution in a few weeks and ensure that the mistakes made at Grand Slam are not repeated.