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AEW is a week away from presenting its seventh annual Double Or Nothing PPV, live from Glendale, Arizona, for the first time. Tony Khan just presented his fourth Beach Break special, and there were several memorable moments and occurrences. Meanwhile, one of the greatest wrestlers ever has issued a statement upon his return to the Jacksonville-based promotion.
All Elite Wrestling's inaugural Beach Break edition of Collision was taped on Wednesday at NOW Arena near Chicago, to air in its usual Saturday timeslot. The show opened with Megan Bayne defeating Anna Jay, and closed with Powerhouse Hobbs defeating Wheeler Yuta. The taping also featured a special tribute to local hero, the late Steve "Mongo" McMichael. His widow Misty was present with Tony Schiavone, along with Dean Malenko and wrestling legend Ric Flair.
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The Nature Boy declared that Mongo would be in our hearts forever. The emotional WWE legend paid tribute to his fellow Four Horsemen member on Collision last night, then took to X/Twitter today to share a few photographs and a video from the segment. Flair also thanked AEW and Tony Khan for the opportunity. Steve McMichael passed away on April 23 at the age of 67 following a battle with ALS.
"Thank You @AEW & @TonyKhan For Giving Me The Opportunity To Honor Mongo During #AEWCollision! Mongo, You Will Be In Our Hearts Forever! ❤️🙏🏻," Ric Flair wrote.
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Flair's All Elite debut came in October 2023 as Tony Khan's "special gift" for Sting's retirement. The multi-year deal made Flair's Wooooo! Energy beverage brand, the company's exclusive energy drink, but the two sides parted ways last summer after a largely uneventful partnership. The deal was nixed ahead of time.
AEW releases full Mongo tribute segment
Steve "Mongo" McMichael had a short pro wrestling career, but is widely regarded as one of the most-liked and well-respected crossover talents. All Elite Wrestling paid tribute to the Texas native at Collision near where he called home, the Chicago area.
As seen below, the company released the full video of the Beach Break Collision segment for Mongo, featuring his widow, Misty, Tony Schiavone, Ric Flair, and Dean Malenko, along with other friends and family in the crowd.
Mongo held the WCW United States Championship for 24 days in 1997 after dethroning Jeff Jarrett on Nitro. He was defeated by Curt Hennig on Nitro to end his reign.
