Impact Wrestling – October 20, 2022: Honor No More

Impact Wrestling
Date: October 20, 2022
Location: Albany Armory, Albany, New York
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

We’re still coming out of Bound For Glory and that means it is time to start getting ready for whatever the next monthly special is going to be. In this case, that means Frankie Kazarian is going to cash in his X-Division Title for a World Title shot against Josh Alexander. That is likely going to mean some competition for the vacant title and it might start tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

The Bullet Club goes to see Ace Austin but find him down in the parking lot. Tommy Dreamer is here but denies everything.

Opening sequence.

Tommy Dreamer/Bully Ray vs. Bullet Club

It’s Chris Bey/Juice Robinson here, with Robinson putting on his wrist tape on the way to the ring (as he is replacing Austin). Dreamer sends Bey to the apron to start but it’s quickly off to Robinson to stomp Ray down in the corner. Some rapid fire chops in the corner have Robinson in trouble of his own but he comes back with the snap jabs to Dreamer. Bey comes back in and tries the Art of Finesse but gets reversed into a cutter. The hot tag brings in Ray as there are a lot of empty seats directly across from the camera. Robinson plants Ray with a spinebuster but it’s the Bully Bomb to give Ray the pin at 6:21.

Rating: C-. Yeah of course the ECW guys went over. I have no idea why this is any sort of a surprise, Bully push or no Bully push. If you need to do something like this, put Johnny Swinger and Zicky Dice out there instead of, you know, THE FREAKING BULLET CLUB. I’m sure Ray will continue to get a big focus because Impact, but egads do they have to put the ECW guys over people with major potential?

Post match, Ray says some nice things to Bey. He’s a sweet guy.

Heath and Rhino are ready to win the Tag Team Titles.

In the back, Tommy Dreamer wants to know that Bully Ray did not lay out Ace Austin. Of course not, as he was a minute ahead of Dreamer, so how would he have had a chance? Moose comes in to say Ray is once a scumbag and always a scumbag. Dreamer wants Moose thrown out but Moose says if he attacked Austin, you would have known.

Mia Yim vs. Taylor Wilde

They trade armdrags to start and try stereo dropkicks, leaning us with a standoff. Wilde pulls her into an armbar but Yim is back up with a basement dropkick to put Wilde in a good bit more trouble. We take a break and come back with Yim getting two off a clothesline and getting frustrated at the kickout.

A bow and arrow has Wilde in more trouble but she manages to block Eat Defeat. Some rollups give Wilde two each and Yim is frustrated but she still can’t hit Eat Defeat. Back up and the Wilde Ride, a bridging German suplex is enough to give Wilde the rather upsetting pin at 12:51.

Rating: C. Wilde is one of those people who has been around for a long time, or at least was around a long time ago, and that’s about it. She’s perfectly passable in the ring and seems to be the next person in line for Mickie James. On the other hand you have Yim, who is on her way out of the promotion and is putting people over as she leaves. That doesn’t make for much of a match but it could have been worse.

Post match Mickie James comes out to praise Wilde. The challenge is….not on as VXT and Gisele Shaw come in for the beatdown. Jordynne Grace makes the real save.

Post break the six Knockout tag challenge is sent out.

Jason Hotch vs. Joe Hendry

This seems to be the result of Hendry taking Hotch’s Call Your Shot spot and almost his girlfriend. Before the match, Hendry thinks these people believe in him and then shoulders Hotch down. A suplex drops Hotch again and the spinebuster gives Hendry the pin at 1:58. Better than the fall away slam.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Chris Sabin b. Bully Ray to win the World Title via Option C.

Here is Scott D’Amore to accept the X-Division Title from Frankie Kazarian in exchange for a World Title shot. Kazarian comes out and hands over the title, with D’Amore saying there is no turning back. There will be an eight man title tournament starting, with the finals taking place at Overdrive. Kazarian talks about winning his first X-Division Title back in 2004 and how important it was to him.

Since then, he has gotten married and had a son, but he still feels unfulfilled. He has looked at the names of former champions and while there are legends, there are people he is better than and that isn’t ok. The title cash-in is official so here is Steve Maclin to jump him from behind. Cue Josh Alexander for the save though and the good guys stand tall. Kazarian vs. Alexander is cool, but it makes me wonder why they couldn’t have cut Ray out and done the same story with Kazarian, minus the X-Division Title.

Eddie Edwards arrives and Honor No More wants to know his decision. He tells them, and his wife Alisha, that they’ll find out what he’s doing.

Frankie Kazarian isn’t happy with Josh Alexander for saving him. If he needed a partner, they would be here. For now though, don’t trust Bully Ray.

Eric Young vs. Rich Swann

Deaner is here with Young. Swann jumps him to start but gets dropped with the wheelbarrow neckbreaker. Young takes it to the mat and grabs a chinlock but Swann is back up with a kick to the head. The piledriver is blocked and Swann grabs a handspring cutter. A Deaner distraction looks to set up the piledriver but Swann reverses into a rollup for the pin at 3:12.

Rating: C. This was too short to mean much but it’s a good sign that Young and company could be heading down the ladder. Honor No More continues to be little more than annoying but at least they’re losing more often these days. Swann is someone who feels like he could move up the ladder again, but we could be waiting a bit before that actually takes place.

Post match one of the yellow hoodied guys runs in to help with the Swann beatdown but Sami Callihan pops in for the save.

The Major Brothers are back and they want the Tag Team Titles.

Here are the brackets for the X-Division Title tournament:

Black Taurus
Laredo Kid

Yuyu Uemura
PJ Black

Alan Angels
Trey Miguel

Kenny King
Mike Bailey

Tag Team Titles: Honor No More vs. Heath/Rhino

Heath and Rhino are challenging. Rhino runs Bennett over to start and hits a clothesline to the floor. Heath comes in and pounds on Bennett in the corner and a double elbow drops him again. It’s off to Taven to knock Rhino into the corner to take over and the alternating stomping begins. The champs do the fake tag thing to stomp on Rhino’s knee, with a big shot getting two as we take a break.

Back with Rhino still in trouble and Taven grabbing a Russian legsweep. Rhino fights out of trouble and brings Heath back in to start the comeback. Bennett’s discus elbow gets two on Heath and everyone is down for a bit. Cue the rest of Honor No More (minus Eddie Edwards), allowing Maria to throw powder….into Bennett’s face by mistake. The Wake Up Call drops Bennett and Rhino Gores Maria by mistake, setting up another Wake Up Call to finish Taven for the pin and the titles at 13:32.

Rating: C+. With most of Honor No More already showing up in AEW, there was about as little drama here as you could have had. It was more a matter of waiting to find out who the next challengers would be to find the next champions and this worked well for a feel good moment. Heath and Rhino have gone from a joke team in WWE to a pretty legitimate team and it’s nice to see them getting another moment after a story that took time to set up.

Post match here is Eddie Edwards, with the fans telling him that he got beat. Alisha has given him an ultimatum to either get rid of Honor No More or save her marriage. The question is whether Honor No More is worth saving, because he sees failure after failure. Eddie asks if the team is loyal to the cause, focusing on PCO. Edwards: “PCO IS NOTHING BUT A B****!” That’s too far for PCO, who wrecks everyone, including Vincent and Edwards, to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. So that’s it for Honor No More and I’m not sure what to think of them. The team was only so good in the first place and then they fell pretty far down the ladder. They only won the Tag Team Titles and then lost their big match at Bound For Glory, so what else were they supposed to do? Other than that, this show continues to lean into the ECW guys getting another run. It’s probably because they’re in the northeast again and apparently nothing else has happened in the history of wrestling in the last twenty one years so ECW stars again it is. Lucky us.

Results
Bully Ray/Tommy Dreamer b. Bullet Club – Bully Bomb to Robinson
Taylor Wilde b. Mia Yim – Wilde Ride
Joe Hendry b. Jason Hotch – Spinebuster
Rich Swann b. Eric Young – Rollup
Heath/Rhino b. Honor No More – Wake Up Call to Taven

 

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