The first ever interim TNT Champion was crowned at the AEW special: Battle of the Belts. On the Saturday January 8th show, Sammy Guevara defeated Dustin Rhodes to capture the title for the second time in his AEW career.

To anyone that’s ever been told you can’t do it or won’t make it, well I’ve been told that my whole life & today I woke up a fucking CHAMPION!

If I can do it, you can do it.

#AndNEW #AndFirst Interim TNT Champion pic.twitter.com/Fp8PCWPLS1

— sammy guevara (@sammyguevara) January 9, 2022

The TNT Championship match kicked off the show. The highlights of the match include Dustin kicking out of the GTH finisher and a Canadian Destroyer through a table. The match ended with multiple rollup attempts by both men, with Guevara eventually getting a 3 count to win the match. Both men hugged each other in a show of respect after the match, with Dustin acknowledging the victory. Shortly after, Daniel Garcia confronted the new champion, in which multiple referees separated both men.

The match was different to what was originally advertised. The initial plan was for Cody Rhodes to defend his TNT Championship against Sammy Guevara at Battle of the Belts. However, due to a medical emergency, Cody was not cleared to compete. As a result of this change, the interim championship match was made. It was mentioned on commentary that a match between the current and interim TNT Champions will take place at some point in the future to unify the titles.

Featured image: Heel By Nature