AEW Dynamite’s September 30 episode became an emotional celebration of the life and influence of Benjamin “Pac” Satterley, who passed away three days earlier at the age of 40. The tribute was felt throughout the show, but its most direct in-ring expression came when Will Ospreay faced Ricochet in a singles match shaped by the athletic innovation, competitive intensity, and unmistakable moveset Pac brought to professional wrestling.
Ospreay ultimately defeated Ricochet, but the result was secondary to the significance of the closing moments. Rather than end the bout with one of his own established match-winning attacks, Ospreay climbed to the top rope, paused, and delivered Pac’s revered finishing maneuver, the Black Arrow. The move brought the crowd to its feet and gave the match a poignant conclusion, with Ospreay earning the pinfall after paying respect to a performer whose impact extended across multiple promotions and generations of wrestlers.
Both competitors used the match as an opportunity to honor Pac not only in sentiment, but through action. Ricochet and Ospreay incorporated elements associated with Pac’s career, including techniques that reflected his work in promotions such as PWG and Dragon Gate. The bout remained a high-level contest between two of AEW’s most spectacular athletes, while also becoming a showcase of the style Pac helped make so memorable.
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Ricochet and Ospreay Draw From Pac’s Arsenal
Ricochet’s offense included the kind of aerial ability for which he is renowned. He connected with signature dives including a Shooting Star Press and a Fosbury Flop, demonstrating the explosiveness that has long been central to his own body of work. He also went deeper into the tribute by landing a Phoenix Splash from the middle rope and a Shooting Star Pele Kick.
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Those additional attacks carried particular meaning because Pac had used them during his appearances in PWG and Dragon Gate. Pac’s style was never limited to one defining move, despite the enduring stature of the Black Arrow. He could combine punishing strikes, sudden counters, brutal submissions, and gravity-defying offense in a way that made every match feel unpredictable. Ricochet’s selection of maneuvers recognized that broader legacy.
Ospreay similarly reached into a playbook associated with Pac. During the match, he landed a Poisonrana from the top rope, an especially dangerous-looking sequence that matched the high-risk tone of the occasion. Ospreay also hit a Backslide Driver, another maneuver Pac used in Dragon Gate. The move choices gave the contest a sense of shared wrestling history rather than a simple recreation of a single famous finishing sequence.
At the same time, Ospreay did not abandon his own identity. He unleashed a series of his familiar attacks and connected with the Hidden Blade, a strike that has ended many Ospreay matches. With Ricochet vulnerable, Ospreay appeared to have a clear opening to secure the decision in his usual fashion. Instead, he made the choice to continue climbing toward a more meaningful ending.
The Black Arrow Provides a Defining Closing Moment
Ospreay’s decision to use the Black Arrow transformed the final stretch from a competitive exchange into a direct tribute. He reached the top rope, took a breath, and launched into the move. The Black Arrow has long stood among the most visually distinctive finishers in modern wrestling, requiring exceptional body control and commitment as the performer rotates through the air before landing across an opponent.
Ospreay completed the maneuver and covered Ricochet for the victory. It was a striking image in the context of the night: one of the world’s premier aerial wrestlers invoking the signature move of another elite performer whose influence can be seen throughout contemporary professional wrestling.
The move was not presented as an attempt to replace Pac or claim ownership over something so closely tied to him. The reaction in the building, as well as the emotion displayed after the bell, made its purpose clear. It was a salute from a peer and a friend, delivered in the ring through the universal language of professional wrestling.
“It was good, but it wasn’t as good as Ben’s,” Excalibur said on commentary after the match.
Tony Schiavone laughed and agreed with the remark, which struck a fitting balance for a tribute to a wrestler remembered for his extraordinary talent and distinctive personality. The comment acknowledged Ospreay’s execution while emphasizing the irreplaceable quality Pac brought whenever he performed the move himself.
An Emotional Show of Respect After the Bell
The emotion continued once the decision had been rendered. Ospreay and Ricochet embraced and shed tears after the match, a powerful closing visual following a contest built around respect. Their post-match response showed that the tribute was not simply a planned collection of callbacks, but a deeply personal moment for the wrestlers involved.
The groups at ringside also came together. The United Empire, who were in Ospreay’s corner, embraced the Gates of Agony, who accompanied Ricochet. The fans in attendance responded with sustained applause and chants for Pac, giving the arena a shared moment of remembrance at the end of the bout.
Professional wrestling tributes often take many forms. A show may open with a memorial graphic, a locker room may gather around the ring, or wrestlers may dedicate their performances to someone they have lost. This match did something more specific. Ospreay and Ricochet honored Pac by using their own exceptional athletic gifts to highlight the creativity and fearlessness that defined his work.
That approach suited Pac’s legacy. His reputation was built on more than spectacular dives or difficult techniques, although he excelled at both. Pac had an intensity that made every movement feel consequential. Whether he was controlling an opponent with his physicality, flying to the floor, applying a submission, or ascending the ropes for the Black Arrow, he brought a level of urgency that set him apart.
Ricochet and Ospreay understood the responsibility of trying to represent that in the ring. Their match did not seek to imitate every part of Pac’s career. Instead, it used carefully selected gestures: the Shooting Star Pele Kick, the middle-rope Phoenix Splash, the Backslide Driver, the top-rope Poisonrana, and ultimately the Black Arrow. Together, those moments created a tribute that recognized Pac’s range as a wrestler.
Pac’s Influence Spans Styles and Promotions
Pac’s career left an imprint across the international wrestling landscape. His time in Dragon Gate and PWG helped establish him as one of the standout high-flyers of his era, while his later work continued to demonstrate how effectively he could merge speed, precision, and aggression. The specific callbacks used on Dynamite reflected the way his style traveled across promotions and resonated with fellow wrestlers.
Ospreay and Ricochet are both performers who have helped push the boundaries of modern aerial wrestling. Their ability to make difficult maneuvers look natural has made them fitting figures to lead a tribute match of this kind. Yet the ending also reinforced the respect they hold for Pac’s accomplishments. Even with their own extensive catalogs of breathtaking offense, the Black Arrow remains inseparable from the man who made it iconic.
In that sense, Excalibur’s post-match line captured the night’s feeling. Ospreay’s version of the move was impressive, and it provided a meaningful finish. But it was Pac’s Black Arrow that the crowd remembered and celebrated. The tribute worked because it did not ask the audience to separate the maneuver from its creator; it invited them to remember why the move meant so much in the first place.
September 30’s AEW Dynamite offered a difficult but heartfelt night of remembrance following Pac’s passing. In the ring, Ospreay and Ricochet turned their match into a salute to a colleague whose influence remains clear in the risks wrestlers take, the techniques they develop, and the standard of excellence they pursue. Ospreay’s Black Arrow secured the win, but the lasting image was not simply of a finishing move. It was of wrestlers, teams, commentators, and fans coming together to honor Pac.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.