Impact Wrestling – January 28, 2020: It Can Work There Too

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 28, 2020
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We’re still in Mexico and that means we should be in for a lot of guest stars. The big question though is what will Sami Callihan be up to, because you know he isn’t going to let the World Title go without a fight. He might have to wait for Taya Valkyrie and Ace Austin though, which could be interesting….maybe. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh Alexander vs. Vikingo

Ethan Page is here with Alexander. The smaller Vikingo gets shoved down to start so Vikingo nips right back up. A spinebuster puts Vikingo down again but he hits a quick Trouble in Paradise. Alexander gets knocked outside so Vikingo misses a suicide dive, only to roll through and land just fine. A running elbow takes Vikingo down again on the floor and it’s time to head back in. This time Vikingo counters what looked to be a chokeslam into an armbar but Alexander shoves him into the corner again.

That just earns him a springboard missile dropkick and they go to the floor again so Vikingo can jump from the barricade into the crowd for a moonsault onto Alexander. Back in and Vikingo spins out of a Boston crab attempt and dropkicks Alexander in the corner. A 450 gives Vikingo two but another hurricanrana attempt is countered into a powerbomb breaker. They go to a pinfall reversal sequence until Alexander tries another powerbomb, only to get countered into a hurricanrana for the pin at 9:45.

Rating: B-. Yeah this worked rather well and Vikingo looked awesome out there. Alexander is someone with a lot of potential despite not having much that makes him stand out. This was a good showdown and both guys were solid. I liked this one more than I ever would have guessed and we’ll call this a very nice surprise.

The fans throw money at Vikingo but Page and Alexander chase him off.

Taya Valkyrie isn’t happy with Jordynne Grace getting involved in the #1 contenders match. She’ll be watching closely.

Moose blames Rhino for the loss last week and promises to get him after taking care of Taurus tonight.

Rascalz vs. Pagano/Murder Clown

Dez and Wentz for the Rascalz here and they look terrified. Clown gorilla presses Wentz to start but misses an elbow, allowing Wentz to strike away. It’s quickly off to Dez for a hurricanrana but Pagano is quickly in to….move around in some weird ways. A slingshot reverse suplex puts Dez down and Pagano strikes away to send him outside.

Pagano’s big suicide dive takes everyone out, setting up a wheelbarrow faceplant/middle rope Fameasser combination for two on Dez. LAX’s old Street Sweeper hits Wentz but Pagano takes too much time going up, allowing the Rascalz to hit a double superplex. Wentz hits a Swanton and Dez adds the Final Flash for the pin at 6:11.

Rating: C. It’s nice to see the Rascalz win for a change as it seems like they lose almost all the time anymore. The match was entertaining enough as well as the monsters were built up well at the beginning but fell in the end. As weird as it was to see the Rascalz as just another team to this crowd, I’m rather glad they won.

Michael Elgin wants Eddie Edwards to be the man he was before so Elgin can beat him at his best. The trophy is his.

Moose vs. Taurus

Moose tries some running shoulders to start but Taurus is right back with a running hurricanrana. A teased chop lets Moose kick him in the ribs so Taurus sends him outside for the running corkscrew dive. Moose chops the post by mistake but manages to knock Taurus down again anyway. Boot choking in the corner ensues and Moose’s cockiness gets cranked up even higher. Another charge gets cut off at the knees though and Taurus hits a 619 for two. They hit stereo headbutts to send Taurus into the corner again, setting up No Jackhammer Needed to give Moose the pin at 6:29.

Rating: C-. I wasn’t feeling this one as much as Taurus didn’t get to show off as much as he did last week. Moose winning is the right call as he could be moving forward to something a lot bigger in the future, though at least Taurus got in a little offense. It was better than last week’s tired triple threat, but still not much to see.

Post match Rhino comes in and Gores Moose.

Eddie Edwards is ready to defend his trophy, now with a smiley face, against Elgin no matter how many times they have to fight.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Kurt Angle beats James Storm at Genesis 2012. This was a lot shorter than most of the regular clips.

Joey Ryan is a little hurt by Rob Van Dam’s comments last week but it comes with the territory for him. Maybe Rob is worried that Katie Forbes wants to touch it.

Jordynne Grace vs. Kiera Hogan vs. Madison Rayne

For the #1 contendership and Taya Valkyrie is on commentary. Grace gets double teamed to start but sends them together with almost no trouble and drops Rayne onto Hogan for an early two. A double clothesline puts them both down again but Rayne is back up to hammer on Grace. Hogan gets in a basement dropkick and Rayne adds a sliding lariat to set up….a chinlock.

That works as well as you would expect as Taya says Grace doesn’t have her number because it’s unlisted. Hogan gets in a sliding dropkick in the corner but Grace suplexes both of them at the same time. Grace goes up top and gets slammed back down, meaning it’s time for the required argument over who gets the pin. A series of kicks put Grace on the floor and it’s a game of Rock, Paper Scissors to determine who goes after her. That takes way too long though and the Grace Driver finishes Hogan at 8:13.

Rating: D+. This was very similar to what happened last week with the men’s triple threat and that’s one of the worst things that could have happened. Hogan and Rayne might as well have been evil unnamed henchmen to try and slow Grace down and that’s not exactly an interesting way to go. This was tired and dull, which is the case with most TV triple threats these days.

Ace Austin gives his case for a World Title shot.

Johnny Swinger says he and Willie Mack need to work on their tag skills but Mack makes it clear that they’re not a team. Swinger: “I was pretty cool back in ECW.”

TJP likes Fallah Bahh’s new gear and faces Vikingo next week. I know he’s still big, but Bahh’s physical transformation is remarkable.

Reno Scum vs. Daga/Dr. Wagner Jr.

Wagner’s son is at ringside. Daga runs Thornstowe over to start and it’s a quick standoff until Luster comes in. Wagner comes in as well and gets shoved down by the much bigger Luster. A falling headbutt gets two but the middle rope version misses. It’s back to Wagner but Scum gets in a few cheap shots to take over.

The neck crank goes on until Daga fights up with his string of strikes. That’s enough for the hot tag to Wagner so house can be cleaned. A Samoan drop hits Thornstowe and Daga hits a big corkscrew dive onto Luster. The Wagner Driver gets two on Thornstowe as everything breaks down. Wagner dives onto Luster and a double underhook gutbuster finishes Thornstowe at 8:06.

Rating: C-. This is something I can always live with as Reno Scum losing never gets old. They’re a team with the slightest bit of name value so losing to a legend in Wagner and someone with some potential like Daga isn’t a bad thing. The match was mainly for the live crowd though and wasn’t anything great in the first place, but at least the right team won.

Post match OVE runs in for the beatdown as Reno Scum makes Wagner’s son watch.

Rosemary appears to Susie and asks if she has found what she is looking for. Maybe it’s out there in the arena itself and maybe Rosemary could be her teacher. That works for Susie, so they’ll have a friendly exhibition next week.

Michael Elgin vs. Eddie Edwards

Match #1 in a Best of Five series. They go to the mat to start and that’s a very early standoff. Eddie gets smart by going after the knee and avoids an enziguri to set up a quickly broken STF. Elgin bails to the floor so Eddie busts out the suicide dive. That’s fine with Elgin, who swings him hard into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Eddie hitting the Blue Thunder Bomb to put both of them down. The Backpack Stunner gives Eddie two and the half crab goes back to the knee.

The STF stays on longer this time but Eddie lets go before the rope can be grabbed. A tiger driver is countered with a backdrop to send Eddie head first into the mat for a scary landing. The rolling German suplexes rock Eddie for two but he’s back up to lose the slugout. Eddie hits a clothesline though and this time the tiger driver connects for two. Elgin is up first and hits a super Death Valley Driver before elbowing the heck out of Eddie’s head. The Crossface goes on and Eddie passes out at 12:43.

Rating: B-. It wasn’t as good as some of their other matches but there’s a good formula between having Eddie’s technical/brawling hybrid style vs. the raw power of Elgin. I’m not sure how good it is to have the series go to five matches but it’s cool to see these two fighting anytime. Just don’t overdo it.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was pretty good here and I liked the show better than a lot of the shows down in Mexico. This one felt like it had more of a point and the one off matches were better than last week’s. They still have a long way to go before their next pay per view but they’re plugging Sacrifice at the end of the month quite a bit so maybe it can be the gap show. The fact that I’ll be there has nothing to do with my excitement over it of course. Anyway, not a bad show here and better than last week.

Results

Vikingo b. Josh Alexander – Hurricanrana

Rascalz b. Pagano/Murder Clown – Final Flash to Pagano

Moose b. Taurus – No Jackhammer Needed

Jordynne Grace b. Kiera Hogan and Madison Rayne – Grace Driver to Hogan

Daga/Dr. Wagner Jr. b. Reno Scum – Double underhook gutbuster to Thornstowe

Michael Elgin b. Eddie Edwards via referee stoppage

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