Christian Cage is the new TNT champion, but for real this time

Tonight’s (Sept. 23) episode of AEW Collision opened with a three way match for the TNT championship, with Luchasaurus defending the belt against Christian Cage and Darby Allin. This was expected to be a handicap match for the most part, given the current alliance between Luchasaurus and Cage, combined with the stipulation that Sting was banned from ringside.

Even though Luchasaurus is the rightful champ, Cage has claimed he’s the actual champion this whole time, never even letting Luchasaurus touch the belt during his reign. How would that dynamic affect the outcome of this match?

Darby used powder to gain an early advantage on both heels, but it was just a matter of time until that damn numbers game caught up with him.

The big moment late in the match occurred when Luchasaurus actually put his hands on the belt for the very first time, to use it as a weapon, which did not sit well with Christian. Cage demanded that the champ hand it over...and he did.

Darby came back and hit his Coffin Drop on Luchasaurus, and that’s when Cage tossed Darby out of the ring and stole the pin on his own ally to become the new champion.

Luchasaurus endorsed Christian as the new champion afterwards, so they are still partners going forward.

Right after the match was over, Tony Schiavone announced it will be Darby Allin challenging Christian for the belt in a two-out-of-three falls match at WrestleDream on Oct. 1, so he might not be the actual champ for very long.

What do you think of Christian as the new TNT champ, Cagesiders?