If there was any doubt about the quality of Orange Cassidy‘s in-ring work, there shouldn’t be after AEW Dynamite.
The All-Atlantic champion opened the show on March 1st, 2023 in a title defence against his biggest opponent yet.
Orange Cassidy went one-on-one with Big Bill, continuing the feud between the Best Friends and Stokely Hathaway’s The Firm.
Cassidy put his All-Atlantic Championship on the line against the seven-foot tall monster, who went by Big Cass during a memorable run in the WWE.
Live in San Francisco, the crowd were excited to see Cassidy in action. He remains one of the most popular wrestlers in AEW, with fans always behind the plucky wrestler.
Orange Cassidy vs Big Bill
On the face of it, Orange Cassidy vs Big Bill seemed like a mismatch. Cassidy is small, slender and not one to showcase his power in the ring.
Meanwhile, Big Bill is just that – massive. He is seven foot tall, which is something Freshly Squeezed has been unable to learn so far. Bill is also in incredible shape and looking much better than he did in WWE.
The former Big Cass has struggled with alcohol addiction in recent years. With the help of DDP, he overcame his demons and is putting on some of the best work of his career.
Big Bill has had some good matches in AEW so far, including a fantastic bout with Wardlow before Double or Nothing last year. However, he has not had a great match just quite yet, until he stepped into the ring with Orange Cassidy.
Orange Cassidy vs Big Bill opened the show on AEW Dynamite to an electric San Francisco crowd. There was a huge physical mismatch and it seemed like an impossibility that Cassidy would be able to retain the All-Atlantic Championship.
He had to use all his trickery and cunning to help take down the big man. He got into Big Bill’s head by constantly rolling out to the ring, before running back into it.
This continued for a number of minutes. The intention was clear by Cassidy. Make the giant so irate that he lost his temper and became susceptible to the might Orange Punch.
He went to the skies to hit all of his signature moves. However, one-by-one, Big Bill used his immense size and power to stop him in his tracks.
Orange Punches, DDT’s and Stundog Millionaire’s were countered as the champion was swatted out of the air by his larger opponent. Cassidy was manhandled and smashed into the ground regularly, being tossed around like a rag doll.
This was the most clear when he Big Bill locked Orange Cassidy in a Full-Nelson, being tossed around the ring until he collapsed.
The tide did not turn until he managed to roll out to the floor for a breather. Here, Danhausen, who had accompanied Cassidy to the ring, attempted to put a curse on both Stokely Hathaway and Big Bill.
Being thwarted and smashed with Hathaway’s cast, Danhausen was unable to curse them.
However, it did give Orange Cassidy the chance to hit a pair of suicide dives on Big Bill and hitting a huge superman punch into his knee. He then drop-kicked Big Bill on the floor as his skull bounced off the steel steps in brutal fashion.
Getting him back into the ring, he hit two Oranges Punches (one from the top rope) to put away the seven-foot giant for the three count, winning the match.
The match was one of the best scene on Dynamite for a long time. Yes, we’ve seen some matches with maybe more impressive technical displays or flashier moves, but that doesn’t matter.
This match told a story. And it was a story that wasn’t “I’m a better wrestler than you”. It was your classic tale of “David vs Goliath” with some Orange flavour added into it.
Cassidy’s nonchalant style meshed perfectly with the perpetual anger felt by Big Bill. They found a believable way for Cassidy to beat the man twice his size and had a fantastic AEW Dynamite opener.
While I’m not usually a fan of needless rematches, a re-run of this match down the line would be very well received. I’m always interested to see the new and exciting ways Orange Cassidy can come up with to wow the fans and enrage his opponent.
I will never stop saying it, but Orange Cassidy should be the AEW Champion.
What did you think about Big Bill vs Orange Cassidy? Tell us what you thought in the comments down below