When Adam Cole and MJF took the ring in the main event match of All In at Wembley Stadium, it felt special.
Sure, the duo had already wrestled on the show earlier in the night, securing the Ring of Honor Tag Team Championships off of Aussie Open after they themselves took the titles off of the Lucha Brothers at Death Before Dishonor back in July, and even started out the match by wearing the very same “Better Than You, Baybay” shirts that you can buy and turn sleeveless at ShopAEW.com but sooner or later, things would turn contentious and the feel-good story of the summer, a Bromance for the ages, if you will, would come to an end with a whimper, not a roar, with Cole and/or MJF turning on the other in spectacular fashion.
Taking the ring separately, with Cole coming out to his relatively traditional entrance and MJF being carried to the ring on a giant throne as his Devil Worshippers celebrated his presence, the duo started the match out slow, feeling each other and laughing at each other's missteps as is so often the case when tag team partners work singles matches. Though the intensity of the match waxed and waned as the contest went on, with the duo exchanging maneuvers over and over as they attempted to get one up on the other, the real drama didn't start until the action went outside of the ring, when MJF lifted up his fellow Ring of Honor Tag Team Champion and almost delivered a Tombstone Piledriver on the table in what could have finished off the match for good.
Would MJF do it? Would fans get the double-cross they'd been hoping for? As it turns out, the answer was a resounding no, as MJF released his tag team partner and walked it off, unwilling to risk his friend's future health in favor of a cheap win. Cole, however, wasn't so thoughtful, as he dropped MJF the second he got a chance and left him reeling on the table.
This wasn't the only time Cole would take liberties with his friend's health, as he delivered a brutal Brain Buster on the ring steps that looked like it might have left the match's finish with a big X next to it to show that the bout was thrown out.
Despite almost being counted out, MJF recovered, and after getting back into the ring, he exchanged barbs with Cole until they decided to hit their signature spot, the Double Clothesline, despite the maneuver being their tag team finisher. The duo ran at each other at full steam, and after connecting with their respective elbows, the finish was counted 1-2-3 by Bryce Remsburg, leading to the match being ruled a draw with the champion retaining.
A lackluster ending? You bet, but after Cole requested five more minutes, MJF turned it down, announcing that “5 minutes isn't enough, Adam. We're going until we got a winner in f*cking Wembley!” The match, as they say, was back on, and 81,000 All In fans were in for a freakin' treat.
Adam Cole and MJF sent All In out on a high note with an incredible finish.
With the match restarted, Adam Cole and MJF got back into action, and in a move right out of The Bloodline's playbook, the “Panama Playboy” decked Remsburg and left MJF open to pick up a steel chair. What, you may ask, did he use the steel chair for? The classic Eddie Guerrero spot where he pretended to take a chair shot in order to squeak out an easy win and get one over on his friend.
That, unfortunately, wasn't the end of the referee hijinx, as Cole inadvertently hit Remsburg with a Panama Sunrise and allowed MJF to take the Dynamite Diamond Ring out of his pants and considered using it in the finish, even though he once again opted against it in favor of friendship.
Speaking of friendship, one of Cole's oldest friends, Roderick Strong, came out to help his friend while Remsburg was down and hit him right in the “yam bags,” to paraphrase Taz, leading some to wonder if the former leader of the Undisputed Era would align with his long-time tag team partner or if he would stay true to his newfound Brochacho.
Well, as it turns out, Cole stayed true to MJF, and as a thank you, he was rolled up with an Inside Cradle for the 1-2-3. Though Cole was incredibly disappointed with the outcome of the match, rejecting MJF's offering of the ROH Tag Team Champions, in the end, the duo hugged it out and celebrated the win together. Whether this pairing lasts another week, another month, or goes on indefinitely, the finish allowed fans to leave Wembley on a high note, which should hold them over until All In 2024, which is now officially booked for next August.