Match Spotlight: Hangman Adam Page Vs. Adam Cole, AEW Revolution 2022

AEW Revolution 2022, the third annual edition of the event, which has become known as one of the company's "big four" pay-per-views, was a memorable one that took place live from the Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, Florida in front of around 8,700 fans, a sold-out crowd. The show proved to be a big one for AEW, providing plenty of memorable moments and debuts that would help shape the course of the company for the next few years.

Revolution 2022 saw the debuts of both Swerve Strickland, who would go on to become the first Black AEW World Champion, and William Regal. Jon Moxley, who had just returned to AEW after confronting his demons, took on Bryan Danielson in a match that would begin to establish the Blackpool Combat Club, which also involved the debuting Regal. And, in perhaps the most memorable bout of the night, CM Punk took on MJF in a brutal, bloody dog collar match, where Punk emerged victorious after 26 minutes of hell.

A match that perhaps doesn't get enough credit looking back on the pay-per-view card is the main event between "Hangman" Adam Page and Adam Cole for the AEW World Championship. Page was in the midst of his first run with the title, the championship he won after defeating Kenny Omega at Full Gear the previous November. Page defeated Danielson twice, then won a defense against Lance Archer in a Texas Deathmatch on an edition of "AEW Dynamite" the month before Revolution.

Following that defense, "Hangman" was confronted by Cole, who had been stacking victories to rise to the top of AEW's rankings, making him the next contender for the AEW World Championship. The match was made official the following week, and the pair were set to square off at Revolution. 

The heel Cole had plenty of help from reDRagon, Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly, in the weeks leading up to the match, and the men would also interfere at Revolution. It was just Cole and the champion to start things off, however, and they'd go on to have an almost-26 minute long match.

The men traded hard strikes to kick off, but soon made their way to the outside, where Page dominated Cole until the challenger ducked out of the way of a clothesline, and Page drove his forearm right into the ring post. They continued to go back-and-forth, having one another scouted, with commentary mentioning they were roommates when they first started out, adding some context. Page hit Cole with a lariat off the middle rope to the apron, then connected with an orihara moonsault to the challenger on the outside. Back in the ring, Cole dodged another moonsault with a superkick, but Page was still able to hit a Deadeye.

After some more back-and-forth, Page hit a tombstone and the men battled on the ropes, ending in a Spanish Fly by Page. That brought out reDRagon, who distracted Page for Cole to hit the Panama Sunrise to the floor. The referee was distracted by Cole's buddies back in the ring, allowing for Cole to hit a low blow followed by the Panama Sunrise, then The Boom, which Page miraculously kicked out of.

Fish and O'Reilly brought out a table, but it was Page to hit the Deadeye, sending Cole right through it. The Dark Order came out to check on Page and they ran off reDRagon. Page hit a Buckshot to Cole, who survived by getting his hand to the bottom rope. In the end, Cole walked into a super kick, then Page hit his own Boom, then a Buckshot to retain.

The pair put on an excellent match with too many great spots to name, but was highlighted by Page surviving the Panama Sunrise into The Boom, as well as the Deadeye through the table. The crowd was hot, despite it being the main event out of a 12-match AEW pay-per-view, as the company's events have become notorious for running long. The crowd leaned to some silliness playing off the first names of the competitors, chanting "We want Adam!" and "Let's Go Adam" with the response of "Adam sucks!"

Revolution 2022 overall was a highly-rated event on Cagematch, currently sitting at a 8.86 (out of 10) average rating with just over 475 votes. Page and Cole's match for the AEW World Championship has an average rating of 8.26, based on 645 votes, with a majority of those votes rating the bout an eight or nine. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter gave the match four-and-a-half stars.

Page would go on to successfully defeat Cole once again in a Texas Deathmatch on an April 2022 episode of "AEW Rampage." "Cowboy S***" would come to an end, for the time being, in AEW, when Page lost the title to CM Punk at Double or Nothing in May, ending his reign at 197 days.

Cole would go on to begin his infamous bromance-turned-failed feud with MJF as "Better Than You Bay-Bay" in June 2023. The storyline, which saw Cole reveal himself as "the Devil" was marred by injury, and in recent memory, Cole appeared to retire, or at least announced an extended hiatus, at All In 2025.

"Hangman" has faired better, and following his second reign with the AEW World Championship, is back in the title scene once again. He goes one-on-one with MJF in a Texas Deathmatch at Revolution on Sunday.