Lockdown 2026
Date: August 23, 2026
Location: Credit Union 1 Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

So this is back and…yeah I still don’t get it. The idea here is that every match is going to be inside a cage, albeit with various rules. The main event is some choice between the Hardys vs. the Nemeths for the Tag Team Titles and Lethal Lockdown, neither of which exactly screams top level match. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Righteous vs. BDE/Rich Swann

Not in a cage and Vincent stares at BDE (on the apron) before jumping Swann to start. Some double teaming has Vincent in trouble and BDE stays in to kick away at the chest. Dutch comes in to drop BDE on his face, allowing Vincent’s sliding Downward Spiral to get two. We’re already off to the chinlock, with BDE fighting up and earning himself a clothesline.

Dutch drops Swann in a smart move and Vincent cuts off another tag attempt, only to kick BDE over to Swann in quite the slip. Swann kicks away and gets two off the frog splash but Vincent is back with a Downward Spiral. BDE breaks it up and Swann’s middle rope cutter gets two, but Dutch sends him outside. Back in and Orange Sunshine finishes BDE at 7:54.

Rating: C+. For a match featuring what was supposed to be a new start for the Righteous, it was pretty much exactly what it’s always been from them. In other words, not very much to see here, with the Righteous only breaking something of a sweat against a team who didn’t pose a real threat. Then again, that’s kind of BDE’s whole thing.

Pre-Show: Trey Miguel vs. Special Agent Zero

Again not in a cage and Miguel is in Spider-Man inspired gear, though he’s no Arachnaman. Miguel rolls away to start and a hurricanrana out of the corner sends Zero outside. Back in and Zero cuts him off with a clothesline and a big right hand puts him down again. A swinging Downward Spiral gives Zero two but Miguel knocks him to the floor. That means the step up flip dive can connect and some kicks do the same to Zero back inside. Zero drops him throat first across the top and loads up a fireman’s carry, only to get cradled to give Miguel the pin at 5:11.

Rating: C+. They didn’t have much time here but they told a quick story with the power vs. speed. I’m rather surprised that Zero lost so soon as you don’t want that to happen to a monster, though it helps that it was mainly a fluke rollup. At the same time, Miguel’s return push continuing is good to see, as he has the status to turn into a bigger deal around here.

National Anthem, minus any singing.

The opening video, set to a song by Chris Bey, looks at the bigger matches on the card.

Remember: every match is inside a cage.

AJ Francis vs. Elijah

These two have been feuding for a bit and this is the rubber match. Francis runs him over to start fast but it’s too early for the Down Payment. Elijah is right back with Old School (not as impressive when he can grab the cage) and a Stunner but Francis avoids a charge into the cage. Francis whips him into the cage again so Elijah has to climb the corner to escape another Down Payment attempt.

That leaves them both on top, with Elijah getting in a powerbomb. The top rope elbow gives Elijah two so he goes all the way to the top of the cage, which seems rather dimwitted. Francis is there to cut off a Walk With Elijah on top of the cage, where they both sit down and slug it out. Elijah gets the better of things and superplexes him down for two and a huge crash.

Cue Francis’ goon Expressions in a wheelchair and the distraction lets Francis hit the Cash Out for two more. For some reason Francis goes for the door (even though you can’t win by escape), allowing Elijah to give him an F5. Now it’s Elijah going for the door, with Expressions slamming it on his head. The TFL gives Francis two as Expressions is back on his feet. A Canadian Destroyer cuts Francis off but Expressions dives in for the save. Elijah gives him a Highwayman’s Farewell, allowing Francis to hit a (nice) moonsault. The Down Payment finishes Elijah at 13:24.

Rating: C. The action was ok and the superplex looked good, but Elijah came off like an utter moron here. I get the idea of getting caught up in the moment but this was so many different levels of dumb. Elijah had to do so many idiotic things so Expressions could get involved for the distraction and it didn’t feel natural in the slightest. Just have Expressions interfere and let Elijah look a bit brighter and it’s far better.

Post match the Home Town Man comes in with a guitar for Elijah, who goes to the middle rope (somehow without Francis noticing) for El Kabong, because this feud might be continuing.

Allie can’t find Rosemary but she has a replacement partner. To be announced.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Elegance Brand vs. Allie/???

The Brand (dressed as police officers for some reason) is challenging, with the rest of the Brand with them. Allie does have a partner and it’s…..the returning Kiera Hogan. Allie fires off right hands to M to start and gives her a running knee lift. Hogan and Heather come in (with Hogan being the taller of the two at 4’11) with Hogan grabbing a neckbreaker for a quick near fall. Allie comes back in but gets distracted by Mr. Elegance, allowing the Brand to take over.

M’s dropkick to the back and suplex get two each and we’re off to the chinlock. Heather gets in a chinlock of her own, which doesn’t last long as Allie gets up and brings in Hogan to clean house. Everything breaks down (which feels weird in a cage match) and the Personal Concierge whips out some handcuffs. As she’s the size of a pipe cleaner, Heather slips through the cage bars and cuffs Allie to the cage…and Hogan easily fisherman’s neckbreakers M to retain at 7:32.

Rating: C+. The ending made me think of the scene in Raiders Of The Lost Ark where one of the villains does a big display with a sword and Jones just casually shoots him. Hogan looking to be in trouble and then just mowing M down like she was nothing was rather hilarious, even if I doubt that was the idea. If Rosemary is going to be gone for a bit, Hogan is a fine enough choice for the replacement and adds another name to the roster at the same time. That’s as efficient as you’re going to get.

Hogan seems to be the official replacement champion.

Commentary shouts out Rebel, which is great to see. Well in a way.

We recap Moose vs. Frankie Kazarian. They’ve both been in TNA for years but have never had a match, so that’s being remedied.

Moose vs. Frankie Kazarian

Escape only and Moose sits on a throne while a string (I believe) quartet plays him to the ring. Naturally Kazarian yells at the musicians and lays on the throne like a true villain should. Naturally Kazarian goes for the climb to start and is cut off just as fast. Moose’s powerbomb is escaped so he sends Kazarian into the cage and then has the referee lock the door.

Some right hands in the corner have Kazarian in more trouble and the spear makes it worse. Moose hits it again but Kazarian flips him off and sends a charging Moose into the cage. Kazarian mocks the Moose pose (it’s so easy to do) and grabs Angel’s Wings to plant Moose again. The trash talk takes too long though and Moose starts bobbing his head and pumping his fist (as moose are known to do).

Moose plants him down and hits the backsplash, only for Kazarian to Backstab him off of the ropes. Back up and Moose can’t hit a powerbomb so they trade right hands and clotheslines. Moose’s toss powerbomb sends Kazarian into the cage for quite the crash and they’re both down.

Kazarian’s climb is cut off again and they both go up, with Moose busting out a super Spanish Fly of all things. The door is opened but Kazarian cuts off the escape (er, Xscape) attempt and they’re down again. With the door open behind him, Kazarian gets caught in the cage, where Moose makes an incredibly dumb decision to go for a spear, which sends Kazarian through the door for the win at 14:14.

Rating: B. Stupid ending aside, that was a huge spot with the Spanish Fly and it was certainly a fresh match. At the same time, I do kind of like the idea of mixing up the stipulations here, as it helps keep things fresh. Odds are this isn’t finished after Kazarian won that way, though it does bring up the issue of starting with the cage match.

We recap Xia Brookside defending the Knockouts Title against Elayna Black. Brookside is the newly evil champion and Black is the hometown star getting a title shot despite not exactly doing much of note.

Knockouts Title: Elayna Black vs. Xia Brookside

Brookside is challenging. They yell at each other a lot and Brookside mocks the Chicago crowd, earning a quick takedown. Black gives her a basement dropkick and running hurricanrana but misses a knee against the cage. Brookside finds a belt from somewhere and whips away as Black is already busted open.

The point of the belt is stabbed into the cut and a few of the fans aren’t impressed. Some fingernail stabbing feels a lot more painful and Brookside starts in on the arm. That’s broken up and Black misses a running elbow in the cage. The Broken Wings hit Black as well but she strikes away and catches her on top.

That means a belly to back superplex and the comeback is on, with Black getting in a Stomp. The Blackout is countered into Brookside’s Darkside for two so Black grabs the Blackout for the same. Back up and Brookside throws some powder into Black’s eyes and gets a rollup to retain at 12:55.

Rating: C+. Well on one hand, the heel run continues tonight and so do the less than thrilling finishes. On the other hand, thank goodness they didn’t do something ridiculous like give Black the title here. Brookside is doing well as champion and Black just has not clicked, so changing things over wouldn’t have been a good idea, hometown crowd or not.

We recap the International Title match. Jason Hotch broke away from Order 4 and stunned Mustafa Ali to win the title, sending Ali over the edge. Now it’s time for Ali to try and get the title back, naturally inside of a cage.

International Title: Mustafa Ali vs. Jason Hotch

Ali, with Order 4, is challenging and he’s the hometown heel. Hotch’s family is in the front row as he starts fast with a could of superkicks. Ali gets in a superkick of his own but gets caught on top with a belly to back superplex. A discus clothesline takes Ali down again and Hotch takes him up top for a piledriver onto the turnbuckle (sweet goodness). Ali is back up with a DDT for two and Special Agent Zero opens the door.

Tasha Steelz shuts it right back though, earning some yelling from Mila Moore. Steelz knocks her down but the cage door is kicked into Steelz’ head to drop her as well. Hotch goes out to check on Steelz and John Skyler takes her to the back, with Ali getting in a dive onto Hotch from behind. They brawl around ringside and Hotch goes up the cage for a high crossbody to knock Ali through a table (that thing exploded).

Hotch starts spitting up blood so the medics take him out, leaving Ali to steal a stuffed animal from Hotch’s daughter. Ali teases LIGHTING IT ON FIRE but Hotch charges in to give him a spear. Hotch is too banged up though and Ali ties him in the cage for a whipping with a belt. Ali takes him to the corner but Hotch kicks Ali back and hits a double stomp off of the cage to a standing Ali, who somehow doesn’t pop open. Instead Ali knocks him down and hits a 450 to Hotch (still holding the stuffed animal) to get the title back at 14:17.

Rating: B. As fun as it has been to see Hotch playing way above his league in recent weeks, they had to put the title back on Ali. He very well might be the best heel in the company at the moment and it would be a big hit to him if he lost to Hotch again here. Hotch has already gotten all kinds of a career boost out of the title win so this is hardly some devastating setback.

Post match Skyler comes back in to check on Hotch while Ali and company leave. And yes, the daughter gets her stuffed animal back.

Here is Avery Styles (AJ’s son) for a chat. He’s officially signed with TNA but here is Frankie Kazarian to interrupt. Kazarian talks about the history he has with AJ Styles and warns Avery about the snakes in the locker room. Avery can always trust him. I would make a chair joke but I wouldn’t want to contribute to continuing the most overblown story of the year.

We recap Leon Slater challenging Cedric Alexander for the X-Division Title. Slater lost the title to Alexander and wants it back, but Alexander wants Slater’s history as champion on the line. Because that’s a thing you can do now.

X-Division Title: Cedric Alexander vs. Leon Slater

Slater is challenging in a Last Man Standing match in a cage, because THAT’S a thing now too. Before they come to the ring, we get a look at what it means if Slater loses and my goodness this is dumb. They immediately slug it out to start until Slater gives him a Helluva Kick in the corner. A super hurricanrana brings Alexander back out and he gets caught with a running spinwheel kick.

Slater goes up the cage for a diving back elbow to put Alexander down for nowhere near ten. Alexander catches him on the ropes though and it’s a lawn dart to send Slater into the cage. That’s enough to draw some more blood so Alexander kicks him in the face, at least until Slater is back with a toss Blue Thunder Bomb. Slater chops away in the corner but gets caught with a super Michinoku Driver.

That’s not enough to keep Slater down and somehow wakes him up for a Destroyer and some rams into the cage. Alexander is busted open as well and Slater hammers away before going up. That’s cut off and it’s a swinging superplex to leave both of them laying (as they both took it about the same). Back up and Slater hits three straight Lumbar Checks to make it personal, followed by a Swanton 450 to get the title back at 13:15.

Rating: B. Given that the other option was trying to mess with the laws of time and space, this was the way to go. I’m still not sure how the erasing the title reign would have made sense and it’s nice to see TNA reaching the point where I don’t have to see them explain it. Slater getting the title back is a bit of a problem though, as he was such a dominant champion that he needs to move into the main event scene.

Daria Rae yells at someone on the phone but finds Santino Marella checking on Elijah, who has been attacked as well.

The System vs. Ricky Sosa/Fabian Aichner/KC Navarro/Jada Stone

Lethal Lockdown, meaning WarGames, with two minute intervals. Bear Bronson and Aichner start things off with Aichner hammering away but having to block a ram into the cage. They trade suplexes and clotheslines until a double clothesline gives us a double down. Aichner is back up with a moonsault and the time expires, so Brian Myers comes in (as the System won control on Impact) to give the System the advantage. The double teaming quickly has Aichner in trouble and a double suplex makes it worse.

Aichner is sent hard into the corner and it’s Navarro in to even things up. Navarro cleans house and Aichner is up to help send the two of them into the cage. Eddie Edwards is in to give the System control again but Navarro gets smart by diving through the door to take him out on the floor. Navarro gets back inside as it’s still even for a bit but the System takes over.

The bleeding Bronson knocks Aichner down and hammers away and Edwards is back in as Sosa is here to even it up again. House is quickly cleaned again, with Sosa hammering away in the corner. Alisha Edwards is in to complete the System and a lot of stomping takes place. Stone is in as well so Alisha goes out to meet her, with Stone climbing the cage to moonsault onto everyone else.

Now the weapons are lowered and they all get up for the staredown, continuing the tradition of basically resetting the match and rendering everything they’ve done to this point useless. The good guys grab weapons and start working them over until Navarro splashes Eddie for two. Stone gets to beat on everyone with a kendo stick and of course it’s time for the back of thumbtacks.

A superplex drops Alisha onto the tacks and Stone is banged up as well. Aichner gives Eddie a Coast To Coast but Bronson is up to take out Aichner and Navarro. Naturally Bronson is sent into a barbed wire board and Sosa gives Myers a Blue Thunder Bomb into the tacks. A running elbow with barbed wire hits Myers for two as Alisha makes the save. Eddie is back up with a package piledriver onto an open chair to pin Sosa at 17:42.

Rating: C+. These things only worked so well before and that was the case again here. The match is basically cut in two with a bunch of quick segments to get everyone in and then all of the weapons. It doesn’t help that we’ve seen the weapons so many times over the years, with the tacks in particular making me roll my eyes. This is the definition of a match that sounds fun on paper but really doesn’t work in execution.

Tag Team Titles: Nemeths vs. Hardys

The Hardys are defending and this is a Texas Tornado match, which sounds rather dumb in a cage. We get a table thrown in fast and Nic is sent into the cage, followed by a slightly modified Poetry In Motion. They all climb on the ropes but get rammed into the cage to bring them back down. Danger Zone gives Nic two on Jeff but Nic splashes Ryan by mistake.

The Twisting Stunner hits Nic, who bounces back with a superkick and everyone is down. Back up and a Side Effect into a middle rope splash gets two on Nic, as does a Plot Twist to Ryan. Nic is laid on the table but Ryan gets in a jumping DDT for two on Jeff. Matt Side Effects Nic and it’s a Twist Of Fate to Ryan, but Jeff takes too long going to the top of the cage. Nic and Jeff both get crotched so it’s another Twist Of Fate to Ryan, who lays down on the table. Matt’s legdrop off the cage connects…and it’s a quick Danger Zone to give Nic the pin and the titles at 11:58.

Rating: B-. They were feeling pretty rushed for time here, which makes sense as the show was getting close to the three hour mark. I do like the Nemeths getting the titles back, as it means a break from the Hardys. The division really needs that at this point, though hopefully it sticks for a bit this time. They did what they could here in the time they had, but it was only so good.

Post match the Nemeths celebrate but here is Leon Slater, who is exercising Option C at Bound For Glory. Yeah that makes sense, as it’s the best thing he can really do now.

Overall Rating: C+. The problem here is the same as it always is at Lockdown: the cage gets a bit annoying after a bit as we’ve seen it done so many times. It doesn’t help that some of the matches simply don’t belong in a cage (Knockouts Tag Team Titles, the main event and Brookside vs. Black fit that description) and it came off as more something they had to do rather than needing to do.

The show is fine, but it really would have been better served as a regular PPV rather than the all cages thing. I do like Slater’s announcement at the end, as if nothing else it gave the fans something else to cheer for on a show that was rather dominated by the villains winning. That’s quite the choice and not exactly exciting, but I guess that’s what Bound For Glory is for.

Results
Righteous b. BDE/Rich Swann – Orange Sunshine to BDE
Trey Miguel b. Special Agent Zero – Victory roll
AJ Francis b. Elijah – Down Payment
Allie/Kiera Hogan b. Elegance Brand – Fisherman’s neckbreaker to M
Frankie Kazarian b. Moose – Kazarian escaped the cage
Xia Brookside b. Elayna Black – Rollup
Mustafa Ali b. Jason Hotch – 450
Leon Slater b. Cedric Alexander – Swanton 450
The System b. Jada Stone/Fabian Aichner/KC Navarro/Ricky Sosa – Package piledriver onto a chair to Sosa
Nemeths b. Hardys – Danger Zone to Matt

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Impact Wrestling
Date: May 14, 2026
Location: Sacramento Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s another live show this week and the card is pretty stacked. On the docket this week, we have a street fight and a 2/3 falls match as Leon Slater defends the X-Division Title against Cedric Alexander in a bid to become the longest reigning champion of all time. The live shows have been hit or miss and I’m hoping they make it work here. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at Leon Slater’s near record setting X-Division Title reign, with only Cedric Alexander standing in the way of the record.

Opening sequence.

Battle Royal

Eddie Edwards, Bear Bronson, Brian Myers, Elijah, Mr. Elegance, Mustafa Saed, BDE, Eric Young, Vincent, Dutch, Frankie Kazarian, Home Town Man, Agent Zero, John Skyler, Jason Hotch

For a future World Title shot against Mike Santana and yes that is the same 62 year old Saed from ECW. Saed uses a bunch of weapons to start, gets in a fight with Zero, and is tossed. Good grief let the ECW thing die already. Anyway Zero and Dutch get in a fight and are both tossed. Elegance gets rid of BDE and poses, only to get tossed by Man. The System tries to get rid of Man, who backdrops Myers out instead.

Hotch gets knocked outside onto the steps (as moved by Zero) but pops back up onto the apron. A jumping knee knocks him out again as they’re certainly moving here. Kazarian tosses Man out of the corner but gets eliminated as well. Elijah faces off with the System but gets grabbed by Kazarian. That’s fine with Elijah, who backdrops the System out and before slugging it out with Young on the apron. A low blow gets rid of Elijah to give Young the win at 4:57.

Rating: C. Well they made good time. If you have a bunch of people who have no real chance of winning and a few stars in there, at least they didn’t waste time with all of the nonsense. That being said, Eric Young? That might actually be worse than bringing ECW, ahem, legends, out of mothballs again and again.

Leon Slater says this isn’t just another title match tonight because it’s his chance to rewrite the record books. The Hardys come in to offer some words of encouragement.

Mustafa Ali yells at Order 4 for losing and says the International Title open challenge is back next week.

Eric Young promises to win the World Title. That has to be illegal in multiple states yes?

Here is Lei Ying Lee for a chat. Last week was the greatest night of her life and she got the Knockouts Title back. She is so proud of herself for bringing the title back to TNA and while her English isn’t the best (her words), she wants to say thank you from the bottom of her heart. Cue Xia Brookside to interrupt, saying she wants the title. Lee rants in Chinese and translates to English, saying they can do this right now. Brookside says no and calls her a b**** in Mandarin.

The System promises to take out Moose and Cedric Alexander is getting the X-Division Title tonight.

Keith Jardine, star of an upcoming movie, is here but the Elegance Brand interrupts. Jardine isn’t impressed so Mr. Elegance gets in Jardine’s face. And then security gets them apart. Ok then.

AJ Francis vs. KC Navarro

Street fight and Chris Caray (the great grandson of Harry Caray and a fourth generation MLB announcer is on commentary). Navarro avoids a charge to start and kicks him in the face but gets knocked down without much trouble. They get inside where the Down Payment is countered and Navarro hits the 305. A suicide dive is pulled out of the air but Navarro keeps spinning into a tornado DDT. The table is set up on the floor and Navarro uses a chair before sending him into the steps.

We take a break and come back with Francis posting Navarro and stealing the baseball bat that Caray brought for protection. Navarro takes it away and finds an Athletics (the team Caray broadcasts and local to Sacramento at the moment) helmet. With Francis down in the corner, Navarro takes a swing at the air, runs around the corners, and dropkicks a trashcan into Francis.

A Fameasser gives Navarro two and he throws in a bunch of chairs. The chairs are set up but Francis gets in a bat shot, only for the super Down Payment is countered into a cutter onto the steps. Francis boots him down and hits the Down Payment over the top through the tables at ringside. What’s left of Navarro is thrown back inside and pinned at 15:01.

Rating: B-. I’m a big baseball fan so this was a nice little meeting of the two words. I’m not sure on Navarro being so obsessed with revenge that he had the time to stop for the home run deal but it was fine enough. That chokeslam at the end looked great and Francis can move on to something else. Caray was actually pretty good on commentary, as he might not have known much about what he was seeing but he made some nice comparisons to baseball and certainly sounded like he was interested. That’s a lot more than some guest broadcasters do.

We look at Leon Slater winning the X-Division Title last year at Slammiversary.

Here is Mike Santana for a chat (you might not want to have him walk through so many empty seats). Santana talks about his actions and words matching up and now he has a challenger. He’s facing Eric Young, who helped build this place, but Santana is the one who helped build this place in the AMC era. This brings out Daria Rae, who says the next challenger is actually Steve Maclin next week.

No she didn’t explain this to Santino Marella, but here he is to interrupt. He likes the title match, but he has his own announcements. First, Indi Hartwell has re-signed with TNA. Marella is also proud of Lei Ying Lee but Rae brings up Marella’s issues with Arianna Grace. Santana cuts them off and says he’ll beat anyone to keep his title. Rae has got to drop the SHUT UP I’M TALKING thing as it’s one of the worst catchphrases I’ve ever heard.

Myla Moore/Victoria Crawford vs. Rosemary/Allie

Tessa Blanchard and Mara Sade are here too. Rosemary backs Moore into the corner to start and Allie gets in a bite from the apron. Allie comes in to scream a lot and hits a running corner clockwise. Moore chokes her in the ropes though and it’s off to Crawford for a chinlock. Allie gets double kneed in the corner but comes out with a neckbreaker. Rosemary comes in to clean house and it’s a double Upside Down. Sade takes Blanchard out on the floor and Allie drops Moore next to her. Back in and As Above So Below finishes Crawford at 6:26.

Rating: C+. It’s so nice to have Allie and Rosemary back, as it gives Rosemary something to do and Allie has been gone for far too long. The Undead Realm stuff was kind of weird but the division needed some fresh blood. It helps that the two of them are long established names so they come in with an advantage.

Video on Leon Slater.

The Broken Hardys are ready to delete the Righteous.

X-Division Title: Leon Slater vs. Cedric Alexander

Slater is defending in a 2/3 falls match. They trade some rapid fire strikes in the corner until Slater reverses the Lumbar Check into a rollup for the first fall at 35 seconds. We take a break and come back with Slater getting whipped into the Tree Of Woe. Alexander pulls him into a backbreaker for two and we hit the chinlock. Slater isn’t having that and makes the clothesline comeback, including a spinwheel kick.

A high crossbody gives Slater two and they trade some rollups for two each. The Michinoku Driver gives Alexander two more but Slater knocks him into the corner. That just earns Slater the Lumbar Check to tie it up at 10:41 total. We take another break and come back again with both of them pulling themselves up. Slater sends him outside for the big flip dive over the corner, followed by a super Styles Clash for two back inside.

They head outside, where Alexander lawn darts him into the steps but stops to hold up the belt. Slater is rather busted open but he’s able to get two off a small package. Alexander’s brainbuster gets the same and another Lumbar Check gets another two. Slater knocks him down but misses the Swanton 450. Two more Lumbar Checks give Alexander the title at 22:11 total.

Rating: B. Well it certainly felt big, mainly because the match was treated as a huge deal. That’s what it needed to be, as Slater has been an outstanding champion. The good thing is Slater is a made man after his title reign and very well could move on to the World Title picture. Either way, good match here, and I’m not expecting Alexander to hold onto it for very long. Rather good main event here, with the atmosphere helping a lot.

Post match….Fabian Aichner (Giovanni Vinci) of all people shows up to stare Alexander down to end the show. That’s the kind of moment that really doesn’t need to be ending a show this big. Aichner was never a huge deal in WWE and while that could be better here (it can’t be worse than his Vinci stuff), this comes off as “he used to be in WWE so bring him in”. Him being here is good, but it’s definitely not a big closing the show with a surprise moment.

Overall Rating: B. The show did feel big and the main event mixed with the better than expected street fight brights it up. That being said, TNA has a very odd definition of a big moment/surprise and that was certainly on display again here. It’s a good show, though Aichner coming out at the end was more of an “uh, ok?” moment than a “whoa”.

Results
Eric Young won a battle royal last eliminating Elijah.
AJ Francis b. KC Navarro – Down Payment through tables
Rosemary/Allie b. Victoria Crawford/Myla Moore – As Above So Below to Crawford
Cedric Alexander b. Leon Slater 2-1

 

 

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Rebellion 2026
Date: April 11, 2026
Location: Wolstein Center, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

We’re already back with a full pay per view after Sacrifice a few weeks ago. Hopefully this show’s main event doesn’t end in about two minutes due to an injury. This time around, Mike Santana is defending against Eddie Edwards due to the Feast Or Fired contract, plus the Hardys defending the Tag Team Titles against the System. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Ryan Nemeth vs. BDE

Before the match, Nemeth brings up being from Cleveland and then reveals Pittsburgh Steelers (Cleveland Browns’ big rivals) gear. BDE jumps him during his latest batch of insults and knocks him to the floor. A springboard high crossbody connects on the way back inside but Nemeth gets in a knockdown of his own.

Some right hands on the mat set up a neckbreaker for two and we hit the chinlock on BDE. That’s broken up and the springboard cutter gives BDE two of his own. A DDT gives Nemeth the same but BDE hits a jumping enziguri. The frog splash connects, only to send Nemeth outside. Nemeth Stunners him over the top rope though, setting up a jumping Downward Spiral to finish BDE at 5:00.

Rating: C. This was the right kind of opener as it gives the fans a reason to get annoyed, though BDE could have gotten his first singles win here, just to pop the fans. Either way, it wasn’t like they were out there very long and the match was a bunch of entertaining spots. For a quick pre-show outing, they did fine.

And now, the show proper.

Charity Evonna sings the National Anthem.

X-Division Title: Leon Slater vs. Cedric Alexander

Slater is defending. They start fast with neither being able to get very far. Slater misses a slingshot dive but Alexander can’t quite send him into the steps. Back in and a springboard high crossbody gives Slater two and he hammers away in the corner. Alexander is sent to the apron, where he grabs an STO to take over. Back in and a German suplex puts Slater down, followed by a basement dropkick for two.

Alexander goes outside but stops to yell at the crowd, allowing Slater to hit a dropkick through the ropes. They get back in where Alexander hits another German suplex and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up so Alexander rakes the eyes to put him right back down. A leg lariat gives Slater a breather so Alexander rolls outside, with Slater hitting the big running flip dive.

Alexander probably should have known that was coming as it’s kind of Slater’s thing but oh well. Back in and a standing Sliced bread Gives Slater two more but he misses the 450. Slater charges into a Michinoku Driver for two and Alexander crotches him on the top. A clothesline brings Slater back down and Alexander gives him a brainbuster onto the turnbuckle. The Lumbar Check gets two so the frustrated Alexander goes outside to grab the title. That takes too long though and Slater grabs a Styles Clash, setting up the Swanton 450 to retain at 14:23.

Rating: B. This was in the “of course it’s going to be good” category as Alexander can work well with anyone and Slater is on an absolute tear at the moment (ok several moments). At the same time, we’re at the point where it’s hard to imagine Slater actually losing the title, which is going to become an issue down the line. That being said, opening with the X-Division has worked for years and that’s still the case, so continuing the tradition worked well.

We run down the card.

Mike Santana, with his face painted, is ready to defend the World Title again tonight. Alisha Edwards comes in to offer him some tips on facing Eddie Edwards tonight.

Frankie Kazarian vs. Elijah

Elijah chases him to the floor to start and hits a big boot back inside. A jumping clothesline lets Elijah send him chest first onto the apron and Old School connects. Back up and Kazarian German suplexes him into the corner and a slingshot hurricanrana on the floor drops Elijah again.

The slingshot legdrop gets two back inside so Kazarian grabs the strap from Elijah’s guitar. That’s enough to swat Elijah out of the air and a clothesline gives has down again. Kazarian’s Old School is broken up with a slam though and an electric chair powerbomb gets two more.

The jumping knee knocks Kazarian out of the air for another near fall and Elijah straps him down for a change. The guitar is brought in but Kazarian catches him on the apron with a slingshot cutter onto said guitar. An annoyed Elijah pops up and grabs the broken guitar but the referee takes it away, allowing Kazarian to get in a low blow and rollup for the pin at 12:26.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t the most thrilling feud when it started and their match here wasn’t much better. It’s not that it’s bad, but it’s just kind of…there. Kazarian winning is good enough and the ending likely keeps things going for a more violent rematch. I would think a recent World Champion would get something better than this, but Elijah goes from a bit less than serious to a featured player rather quickly so it’s hard to say if this was a big step down for Kazarian or not.

Stacks says he’ll help Arianna Grace retain the Knockouts Title.

We recap Moose vs. Agent Zero. Moose has been going after Order 4 and Zero is their enforcer. Hoss fight time.

Moose vs. Agent Zero

Alisha Edwards is here with Moose, who gets jumped by Zero to start fast. Moose gets sent into the steps for the opening bell but he’s able to send Zero outside. The dive connects and it’s already time for the table. They fight on the apron with neither getting the better of things so it’s time to go back inside. Moose kicks him to the floor but makes the mistake of following, where Zero hits a powerbomb into the post.

Back in and they trade forearms until Moose knocks him into the corner for a top rope superplex. Moose nips up…and Zero does the same, only to get clotheslined to the apron. The spear through the table crushes Zero and they both have to beat the count. Back in and Zero wins a slugout, setting up a swinging Downward Spiral for two. Moose fist pumps his way back up and hits a release Rock Bottom into a backsplash.

Zero is able to send him outside though, only for Moose to catch his dive. That means a powerbomb onto the steps so cue the Good Hands, with Moose having to save Edwards. The pump kick sends Skyler to the floor but Edwards crashes down too and hurts her ankle. Moose carries her off and gets kicked in the face by Zero, making her drop Edwards in a crash. The chokebomb sends Moose onto the apron and a chokebomb gives Zero the pin at 10:47.

Rating: B. This was about two big strong men hitting each other until one of them made the mistake of showing some humanity and it cost him. Zero is starting to look more and more like a monster and beating one of the most decorated stars in TNA history is only going to help him. I could go for seeing what they have with Zero, as he’s doing rather well around here thus far.

We recap the Elegance Brand vs. ODB/Mickie James/Taryn Terrell. Basically Ash By Elegance has been running her mouth about various legends so the legends are here to go after her. The biggest issue here: Ash being called a MARK. It’s just going to be in a weapons based match to hide some limitations.

Elegance Brand vs. ODB/Mickie James/Taryn Terrell

Hardcore Country rules. James brings out the Mark Bucket, much to Ash’s annoyance. This doesn’t sit well with Ash, who rants a lot as the Brand’s shirts all say I AM NOT A MARK. It’s a brawl to start with the Brand’s anti-mark signs being destroyed. That lets all six throw in weapons and the legends all hit Thesz presses.

The Brand goes after…I think a celebrity in the first row so they get buckets put on their heads for a ramming together. Back in and Terrell suplexes Heather onto a pile of lollipops for two because that’s a thing here. The suckers are thrown into the crowd and the legends hit a bunch of baseball slides. James and Terrell are knocked down on the floor, leaving ODB to get beaten up with kendo sticks.

Back up and Ash is sent into a wheelbarrow full of hay and Terrell beats on her with a big lollipop. Mr. Elegance is sent face first into a cooler of pickle juice (because Mr. Elegance’s loins are pickle-esque) as I try to figure out what in the world I’m watching. The Personal Concierge is put in a pickle suit and Terrell hits a big dive onto the floor. Back in and Mr. Elegance clotheslines ODB, who uses a pair of tongs to grab him low. Ash is up with a DDT to ODB and a triple cover gives the Brand the pin at 10:55.

Rating: D-. What in the world was this? Hay, pickles, a pickle costume, tongs and whatever Mr. Elegance is supposed to be, all in one. I get the idea of having the goofy villains tick off the legends and then cheat to beat them, but this was a bunch of comedy stuff going on for way too long and nothing resembling a match for the most part. They had what could have been a somewhat serious story here but instead went all over the place and it was pretty much a disaster.

Post match the winners celebrate by imitating ODB’s signature taunt but Tommy Dreamer and Carlos Silva interrupt. The reason? ODB is going into the Hall Of Fame. AND THEY PICK THE MOMENT AFTER SHE LOST IN A PICKLE MATCH TO TELL HER! ODB thanks the fans and she’ll see us at Bound For Glory, maybe even with the food truck.

Elayna Black wants the Knockouts Title.

AJ Francis vs. Nic Nemeth

Francis took Nemeth out at Sacrifice and Nemeth, the hometown star, is back for revenge. As a bonus, Nemeth has former Cleveland Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar in his corner. Francis actually hits a superkick for two at the bell but misses a splash in the corner, allowing Nemeth to hammer away. The running DDT is blocked though and Nemeth crashes down to the floor.

A right hand knocks Nemeth out of the air for six and Francis hits a running knee in the corner. Nemeth elbows hits way up but collapses on a fireman’s carry attempt. Back up and Nemeth hits the running DDT, followed by the ten elbows. Now the fireman’s carry works, with Nemeth hitting an AA for two more. The superkick is countered with a spear to give Francis two but the chokeslam is countered into a Fameasser (that looked good) to give Nemeth the same.

Francis is back up and puts him on top, where Nemeth grabs a super Danger Zone…for two. Dang that should have been the pin. Francis grabs a chair but the referee takes it away, only for Francis to hit the referee. Kosar gets in the ring for the standoff but KC Navarro (Francis’ former partner) interrupts for a distraction. That means a chair shot from Kosar to set up the Danger Zone to give Nemeth the pin at 14:30.

Rating: B-. I’ve seen far worse than this, with Nemeth doing well as the hometown star and Kosar being there for the football pop. Nemeth knows how to wrestle this style rather well, while Francis has gotten a lot better in recent months. He’s still not exactly good, but he knows how to wrestle like a big man. I liked this more than I was expecting, though I’ve always liked Nemeth better as a good guy.

We recap Lei Ying Lee challenging Arianna Grace for the Knockouts Title. Grace is the undeserving champion and Lee wants the title back. Pretty simple indeed.

Knockouts Title: Lei Ying Lee vs. Arianna Grace

Grace is defending and Xia Brookside and Stacks are the seconds. Lee dropkicks her down to start and hammers away in the corner so Grace bails outside. Stacks’ distraction lets Grace take over, with a swinging neckbreaker getting two back inside. Brookside calls Stacks out on the cheating and he’s quickly ejected, leaving Grace all alone.

An exploder suplex gives Lee two and a Blockbuster connects for the same, meaning it’s time for the Warrior’s Way. Grace rakes the eyes to break that up but Lee tries it again, this time planting Grace down. The cover…is broken up though as Brookside puts the foot on the rope. Brookside pulls Lee outside and lays her out, allowing Grace to hit a running knee for the pin at 8:50.

Rating: C+. This was about the turn and really, that has been an obvious twist for weeks. That’s not a bad thing though, as Lee and Brookside were only an ok team in the first place. It also lets Grace escape with the title again, which should set up a big title change down the line. This didn’t feel like the biggest match but they went in the right direction with the result.

Here is Eric Young for a chat. He’s tired of being here but he’s heard that EC3 is here and wants him out here for an explanation of why he isn’t a nepo baby. Cue EC3 (first time in nine years) to clothesline Young outside and challenge him for Impact. Do they really want to bring up that era of the company’s history?

Slammiversary is coming to Boston.

We recap Mustafa Ali challenging Trey Miguel for the International Title. Ali wants the title and had his goons attack Miguel’s friend Jada Stone. Now Miguel is out to defend her honor and the title.

International Title: Trey Miguel vs. Mustafa Ali

Ali, with Order 4 and in something like robot gear, is challenging. They slug it out and run the ropes to start until Ali grabs a hurricanrana. Back up and Ali’s chops just tick Miguel off so he knocks Ali outside. That means a running step up flip dive, followed by a twisting Destroyer for two back inside. That’s enough to draw the Great Hands to the apron, with Miguel being sent into a cutter from Tasha Steelz.

Ali’s rolling cutter gets two but so does a small package from Miguel. They go outside and Ali loads up the steps, only to take too long and get caught with the running Meteora from the apron onto said steps. Back in and Miguel grabs a German suplex, only to get caught with a DDT. Miguel gives him a spinning DDT for two and a basement dropkick but Ali tries the rolling neckbreaker.

That’s countered with a Stomp for two so Miguel goes up top, only to get caught with a super Spanish Fly. Ali tries the 450 but dives into a cutter to send him outside. Miguel’s suicide tornado DDT sets up the top rope Meteora for two back inside but Steelz offers a distractions. The Great Hands use the helmets from their entrance to knock Miguel silly and the 450 makes Ali champion at 12:36.

Rating: B. Some of those dives were excellent as these two are able to turn up the dial with the best of them. It’s great to see Ali get some more gold, which is vastly overdue and hopefully moves him closer to the main event scene. Granted that feels like something that should have happened a long time ago, but at least it’s a step. I’m curious to see what happens to Miguel, who is far too talented to just get lost in the shuffle.

Lei Ying Lee is rather emotional over Xia Brookside’s betrayal.

It’s back to the Undead Realm for the Abyss/James Mitchell reunion. Rosemary leaves them alone but we cut to Tessa Blanchard wandering around. Back to Mitchell, who apologizes to Abyss for everything. Abyss thanks him for being there for all those years and we hear about some of the times they were unstoppable together. Mitchell talks about wanting to be a mad scientist when he grew up and thanks Abyss for making it possible. They love each other and Abyss disappears. To Be Continued.

We recap the Hardys vs. the System. Well not really as there isn’t much to recap but we do talk about it, as the System won a title shot and….now they have it!

Tag Team Titles: Hardys vs. The System

The banged up Hardys are challenging but elbow Myers down to start. Matt sends him face first into all three buckles, followed by the Side Effect for an early two. Myers rolls outside though and Bronson gets in a cheap shot to take over. Bronson drops an elbow back inside before sitting on Matt’s chest for two. Matt loses his shirt to reveal some taped up ribs, only to counter a spear into the Twist Of Fate.

The tag brings in Jeff to start the comeback but a Boss Man Slam cuts him down. That means Myers’ top rope elbow gets two as everything breaks down. Matt and Myers clothesline each other on the floor and Jeff actually wins a slugout with Bronson. Spinal Destination goes on and Matt is back in for the Plot Twist. The Twist Of Fate sets up the Swanton but Myers pulls Jeff’s bad arm onto the top rope. Matt is sent outside and a superkick/fire thunder driver combination finishes Jeff to give us new champions at 10:24.

Rating: B-. Another good enough match here as the Hardys FINALLY lose the titles. That’s been overdue for a long time but it’s nice to see a fresh team get the belts. At some point you need new blood in the division and this version of the System is new enough. If nothing else, Bronson has looked good in his brief time in TNA so it’s nice to see him getting a title like this.

Moose and Alisha Edwards argue about his loss.

TNA World Title: Eddie Edwards vs. Mike Santana

Edwards, challenging and with the System, is sang/screamed to the ring. The lockup doesn’t go anywhere to start and an exchange of armdrags goes nowhere. The Boston Knee Party misses so Santana hits an elbow to send Edwards outside. Back in and a running shoulder puts him on the floor again but Edwards comes back in with some chops. A clothesline and the tiger bomb give Edwards two and it’s time for both of them to go outside this time.

Santana is fine enough to grab a belly to back drop onto the apron, but Spin The Block hits the post. Edwards starts in on the bad arm, which is sent crashing into the post. An arm crank goes on but Santana is up for a clothesline, only to bang up the arm again. Another knockdown sets up a frog splash to give Santana two so they head out to the apron. Edwards grabs a fisherman’s buster to send Santana outside and it’s time to peel back the mats. Another tiger bomb is loaded up but Santana reverses into a Death Valley Driver. Edwards comes up holding the knee so they get back inside for an exchange of clotheslines

Cue Alisha Edwards on crutches….with Moose following. Moose points to the screen, where we see their argument from earlier, plus some bonus footage of Alisha revealing that she’s faking her injury and is still great with Eddie. Cue the rest of the System to go after Moose but Santana hits a big flip dive. The Boston Knee Party hits Santana for two so Moose gets in for a spear to Eddie for two more. Another Boston Knee Party connects but Santana snaps off Spin The Block to retain at 19:17.

Rating: B-. As much as I love Moose being smart enough to see the most obvious turn in the world coming, there was something missing to keep this match from getting great. That something isn’t exactly a surprise either, as there wasn’t much of a reason for them to be fighting. As usual, there’s something so weak about a guaranteed title match ala the Feast Or Fired stipulation and that was the case (Get it?) again here. It’s not a terrible or even bad match, but it didn’t have a ton of fire because there was no real personal issue between them. Good angle with the Moose stuff, but it didn’t get them over the hump.

Post match Santana nods in appreciation to Moose and celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I liked this for the most part, but WOW that six woman tag was another kind of a disaster. The good thing is that’s the only real negative on the show, as most of the matches were more than strong enough. It didn’t have some big must see match, but it did feel like a big time event with multiple title changes. I’m happy enough with the show, as it’s a step up after the mess that was Sacrifice.

Results
Ryan Nemeth b. BDE – Jumping Downward Spiral
Leon Slater b. Cedric Alexander – Swanton 450
Frankie Kazarian b. Elijah – Low blow
Agent Zero b. Moose – Chokebomb
Elegance Brand b. ODB/Mickie James/Taryn Terrell – DDT to ODB
Nic Nemeth b. AJ Francis – Danger Zone
Arianna Grace b. Lei Ying Lee – Running knee to the back of the head
Mustafa Ali b. Trey Miguel – 450
The System b. Hardys – Superkick/fire thunder driver to Jeff
Mike Santana b. Eddie Edwards – Spin The Block

 

 

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Sacrifice 2026
Date: March 27, 2026
Location: Alario Center, Westwego, Louisiana
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

We’re back with another big show that isn’t quite a pay per view but it’s close enough. The main event certainly feels like it belongs on one of the bigger shows as Mike Santana is defending the World Title against Steve Maclin. That should be enough to carry things but we also have Moose finally getting his hands on Eddie Edwards. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Ryan Nemeth vs. BDE

Before the match, Nemeth says he wants BDE to play a real game. Like Duck Hunt. Nemeth wrestles him down to start but BDE is up with a springboard crossbody. BDE grabs his phone and records himself doing a dive before sending Nemeth outside. Nemeth gets in a running forearm to the head and sends him into the post, followed by a chinlock. BDE fights up so Nemeth takes him down for the chinlock sequel, only for BDE to fight up again. A reverse layout DDT gives BDE two, followed by the springboard cutter. The frog splash hits raised knees though and Nemeth grabs the tights for the pin at 6:26.

Rating: C. Pretty run of the mill match for BDE here, meaning it was a nice enough collection of spots before he lost to a better star. That’s just kind of what you expect here and it’s not a bad idea. Nemeth is little more than a goof and that’s a good spot for him, even if he isn’t going anywhere else.

Kickoff Show: Jody Threat vs. Tessa Blanchard

Harley Hudson, Myla Grace, Mila Moore and Victoria Crawford are here too. Threat starts fast but a suplex is broken up, allowing Blanchard to start in on her knee. Some elbows to the knee set up some cranking but Threat is back up with some running knees. The running kick to the head sets up a German suplex but the knee is banged up.

A Backstabber out of the corner gives Blanchard two but Threat is back up with a toss powerbomb. Moore puts the foot on the rope though and the seconds get in a fight on the floor. The distraction lets Moore come in with….I believe a shoe to Threat, allowing Blanchard to hit the Buzzsaw DDT for the pin at 6:20.

Rating: C. Another quick and to the point match with the villains cheating to win. That’s kind of the point, though the ending would suggest that the feud isn’t over. At the same time though, Blanchard should be on her way up the card, as she’s more than enough of a star to not be around a title.

Post match the beatdown stays on, with Threat getting choked with some cables.

And now, the show proper.

The opening video is a pretty standard look at the bigger matches on the card.

X-Division Title: Eric Young vs. Leon Slater

Slater is defending. Young jumps Slater during the entrance and beats him down as the fight heads to ringside. Young pulls Slater’s hood off…and that’s not Slater. Instead here is Slater in the ring for a running flip and they keep brawling on the floor with Slater in control. Back in and the bell rings, with Slater’s Swanton (not the 450 version) connecting for two.

Slater knocks him into the corner and shrugs off a comeback attempt, setting up the handspring elbow for two. They go outside with Slater being sent into the steps but he comes back in with a Styles Clash attempt. That’s broken up with a bite to the leg of all things, leaving Young to hit his own Styles Clash for a near fall. What looks like it was supposed to be a wheelbarrow neckbreaker from the top winds up being more of a belly to back slam for two as Slater is in trouble.

Slater fights up with some forearms but gets dropped with a hard clothesline for two. A neckbreaker gives Young two but he can’t hit the piledriver. Slater is back up with a twisting neckbreaker for two but the Swanton 450 takes too long. Young catches him out of the corner with a Death Valley Driver for two before knocking Slater off the top.

The top rope elbow gives Young two so Slater strikes away, setting up a release Blue Thunder Bomb. Young bails out to the apron so Slater kicks him back inside. A rake to the eyes cuts Slater off though and Young piledrives him on the apron. That’s good for a very close two back inside and (the bleeding) Young can’t believe the kickout. A super piledriver is broken up though and it’s a Styles Clash into the Swanton 450 to retain the title at 15:16.

Rating: B+. Oh that was a sigh of relief as I was worried that they would try something crazy like pushing Young again. Slater continues to look like an absolute star and I can’t imagine him staying out of the World Title scene for the rest of the year. The good thing is they had a heck of a match, with Slater surviving to beat yet another former World Champion. Awesome opener.

The One Man Gang of all people is here.

We run down the rest of the card.

Mike Santana is ready to defend the World Title against Steve Maclin face to face. The title represents the sacrifices that he has made over the years, like missing with his baby girl, to get here as the World Champion. Yes he got Maclin his job back, and as payment, he’s eating Santana’s heart. Santana was fired up here and that worked, as usual.

Home Town Man/Elijah vs. Frankie Kazarian/AJ Francis

Man has quite the entrance, complete with people handing out beads. Elijah works on Kazarian’s arm to start and it’s off to Man for a string of right hands. A middle rope ax handle to the ribs has Kazarian in more trouble and everything breaks down, with the good guys hitting stereo Old Schools. Elijah hits a big running dive to the floor but Francis trips Man down, setting up the Flux Capacitor from Kazarian.

A stomp to the hand has Man down again but he fights out of the corner, allowing the tag back to Elijah to clean house. Kazarian is kicked out of the corner and Francis is sent into it, setting up a spinning electric chair powerbomb to give Elijah two. The rope walk Canadian Destroyer is blocked though and Francis plants Elijah for two more. Francis goes to get the guitar but Elijah takes it away, with Kazarian taking it away from him. Kazarian breaks the guitar on the floor and it’s Down Payment to the Man. Francis is cut off and Fade To Black finishes Man at 11:18.

Rating: C+. Perfectly fine midcard tag match here, with Francis getting to do something different than be his usual bullying self. It was a nice way to mix a pair of feuds into one match and the results were good enough. None of them have a hot feud going at the moment so this is as good of an idea as they had.

The System is ready for Jeff Hardy and Vincent.

Here are Tommy Dreamer and Carlos Silva for a chat. Dreamer talks about his history in this city and everything that it means to him to be here. He wants to bring out someone who is an inspiration to this company, which brings out Chris Bey. That’s quite the nice moment, with Bey talking about the success he has had and the future of this place. With that, he brings out the newest signee: Ricky Sosa, who debuted a few weeks ago. Sosa is happy to be here tonight and this is the moment he’s been working towards for five years. He hits his catchphrases and signs.

We look back at Tessa Blanchard cheating to win on the Kickoff show.

After the match, Mila Moore followed the white rabbit when Havok popped up behind her. Screaming ensued and this is To Be Continued.

Women’s Title: Arianna Grace vs. Lei Ying Lee vs. Dani Luna

Grace, with Stacks, is defending, Lee (with Xia Brookside) is the former champion and Luna never got a title shot she earned. Luna jumps Lee during the Big Match Intros and Grace tries a quick rollup, which has Luna even angrier. Grace is sent to the floor so Lee dropkicks Luna into the corner. Stacks’ interference doesn’t work and Luna is knocked down on the floor.

Back in and Lee kicks away at Grace but Luna suplexes both of them. Stacks low bridges Luna out to the floor though, with Grace getting two on Lee as Luna dives in for the save. A big boot gives Luna two on Lee but she catches another boot, only for Grace to come back in with a cravate. Grace fisherman’s neckbreakers Luna for two but Lee is back with the Warrior’s Way. Luna makes another save though and everyone is down. Lee Thunderstrucks Grace to the floor but gets caught with a Blue Thunder Bomb for two.

Luna loads Grace up with a super Samoan drop, drawing Stacks up for a distraction. Lee comes back in and German superplexes both of them for two each. Stacks saves Grace from the Warrior’s Way so Brookside cuts him off. Lee dives onto Stacks and Grace before heading back inside for the showdown with Luna. They slug it out until Lee kicks her in the head. Warrior’s Way connects but Stacks breaks it up, allowing Grace to steal the retaining pin at 13:43.

Rating: B-. That’s about the ending I was expecting and that’s not a terrible thing. Ultimately, Grace stealing the pin against what felt like insurmountable odds was a good way to go as there is a long line of people coming after the title. I’m curious to see who comes after the title next, but Grace as the annoying, beatable champion isn’t a bad way to go for her.

Allie gets Mara Sade to follow the White Rabbit until she meets Rosemary. Sade wants her to make Michael B. Jordan appear but is told to let the man have his privacy. Rosemary isn’t about to stab her or send her to something like Wrestle House is she? Rosemary: “RD Evans is rolling over in his grave.” They’ll have a talk after Sade’s match. Again, To Be Continued.

Order 4 vs. Trey Miguel/Jada Stone

Mustafa Ali/Tasha Steelz for Order 4 here. Miguel and Ali start things off with Ali working on the arm. They trade some flips for an early standoff and it’s off to the women. Stone snaps off a quick headscissors to take Steelz down but the men have to break up a brawl. Ali seems impressed with Steelz and we settle down to Ali vs. Stone. This has Ali laughing as he grabs a lockup and swings her around with ease.

Stone is back up with a heck of a DDT to plant Ali, followed by a super hurricanrana to send a bewildered Ali outside. The Great Hands break up a dive so Miguel takes them down with a step up flip dive. Steelz is back up to feed Stone into a hanging DDT onto the floor and the villains take Stone into the corner. Stone fights out though and brings Miguel back in to clean house. Miguel rolls the dice on Ali so it’s back to Steelz to slap him in the face.

Ali kicks Stone down by mistake but Miguel avoids a charge into the corner. Dance With The Devil drops Miguel again so Steelz drops a frog splash for two. Back up and Ali pulls Miguel into a cutter off the top, only for Miguel to come back with a top rope Meteora. Stone comes back in to pick up the pace with a split legged moonsault getting two on Steelz.

Stone’s tornado DDT plants Ali and a Canadian Destroyer sends Ali crashing out to the floor. Ali gets planted again and a corkscrew moonsault gives Stone two. With nothing else working, the Great Hands zip tie Miguel to the ropes so Dancing With The Devil can plant Stone. Ali pulls her up at two and the 450 finishes for Ali at 15:15.

Rating: B-. The idea here was to push Stone as a star but I was having a bit of an issue suspending my disbelief that she was regularly beating up someone of Ali’s size and success. It might work every once in awhile but it was going too long here. That’s especially the case with Ali getting a title shot at Miguel in just over two weeks. It wasn’t a bad match at all and the action was good, but it went too long and that hurt things.

Arianna Grace and Stacks laugh at Lei Ying Lee, with Xia Brookside defending her friend. They argue over their fathers so Santino Marella comes in to make a title match for Impact. Stacks calls Marella a terrible father.

We recap Moose vs. Eddie Edwards. Moose started the System but then got thrown out, prompting him to go after each member of the team. Edwards is the final one to go.

Moose vs. Eddie Edwards

Alisha Edwards is here too and Eddie yells at her before we get started. Alisha takes the kendo stick away from him before the bell so Moose kicks Eddie down. Cue Order 4’s Special Agent Zero to jump Moose for the DQ at 30 seconds. Apparently this is a result of a meeting between Order 4 and the System on the Kickoff Show.

Post match the big beatdown is on, with Alisha yelling at Eddie and Zero.

Mara Sade vs. Elayna Black

No DQ. Sade brings a bedazzled bat with her but Black takes it away to jump start things. They fight to the floor with Sade taking over but Black gets in a kendo stick shot. Black grabs a stop sign, which is kicked into her face. Black winds up crawling underneath the ring but comes back with a chair shot to take over. A stomp gives Black two and it’s already time for a table.

And never mind as Black sends it back underneath the table rather than let the fans be happy. Sade gets up and grabs the bat to swing away but Black enziguris her back down. Black gets a bag of thumbtacks but the Blackout is countered, with Sade sending her into the tacks instead. A slam plants Black onto the tacks and Sade’s moonsault finishes at 9:28.

Rating: C. This didn’t do much for me, as not only was the thumbtacks spot not something I needed to see, but the whole thing didn’t feel like it needed the No DQ at thing. At the same time, I’m not seeing much of the upside in Black. She’s not the worst, but she doesn’t feel like the most natural in the ring. Maybe this just wasn’t their stipulation, as it really didn’t click.

We talk about the World Title match.

We recap Jeff Hardy/Vincent vs. the System. The System are the #1 contenders and took out Matt Hardy so Jeff is out for revenge, with the Righteous’ Vincent stepping up as a replacement partner.

The System vs. Vincent/Jeff Hardy

It’s Cedric Alexander/Brian Myers for the System here. Hardy and Myers start things off and everything breaks down in a hurry, with the System being cleared out. Back in and Myers takes Vincent into the corner, with the villains getting to take over. Alexander comes in and knocks Vincent into another corner for the chops and it’s back to Myers. A Russian legsweep gets Vincent out of trouble though and it’s back to Hardy to clean house.

An elbow gives Hardy two but Alexander is back up with a Michinoku Driver for two. Everything breaks down and Alexander gets Twisting Stunnered into a spinning DDT to give Vincent two. Another Twisting Stunner connects and Hardy goes up but we see a rather bloody Matt Hardy on the Titantron. Dutch is standing over him and seems rather pleased, leaving the distracted Jeff to get hit by the Roster Cut. The Lumbar Check gives Alexander the pin at 8:42.

Rating: B-. This was a means to an end more than anything else, as I don’t think it was any secret that the Righteous were going to turn on the Hardys at some point. The question was much more “when” than anything else and the answer was apparently here, which isn’t a bad thing. This sets up their big showdown, though the System is likely to get a title shot first.

We run down some upcoming cards.

Here is the Elegance Brand (minus Ash, who is still recovering after being called a mark) to threaten ODB to not show up again, as she needs to stay in her dirty food truck. Cue ODB, who thinks a little two on one sounds fun tonight, but she’s a married woman now. She has a lot of friends wherever she goes though, like New Orleans’ own Taryn Terrell, who doesn’t like all the garbage these b****** have been saying. So let’s have them say it to her face.

Mr. Elegance threatens to beat up ODB so ODB brings out Mickie James to even things up. Mr. Elegance tries to cut her off but James calls him “Pickle Dick”, which apparently isn’t kosher. The brawl is on and Mr. Elegance gets beaten up rather painfully. This went on for a long time and we’ve covered the “Knockouts legends beat up the Elegance Brand” deal.

Santino Marella and Daria Rae argue over the main event, with Rae not liking Marella picking sides.

We recap Steve Maclin vs. Mike Santana for the latter’s World Title. Maclin lost his job via Feast Or Fired but he attacked Santana, which got him his job back as Santana wanted revenge.

TNA World Title: Mike Santana vs. Steve Maclin

Santana is defending. They take their time to start and Santana works on a headlock. That’s broken up so Santana kicks him down with the fans rather approving of the champion. Hold on though as something happens and we need the medical staff to check on Maclin. Santana plays to the crowd a bit as Maclin stands up but then drops back down to a knee. Cue Eddie Edwards in street clothes to go after Santana as Maclin is taken out. I think we can call the Maclin match off, as they only had about a minute and a half of action before the injury.

Santana fights back and loads up a table before dropping Edwards with Spin The Block. A top rope splash puts Edwards through the table on the floor and Santana is declared the winner by no contest. I don’t believe Edwards’ portion was him cashing in his title shot as that was little more than a brawl. There was no bell for them either. I’m guessing that was a legitimate injury from Maclin as the show ends with Santana celebrating. Dang I hope it’s not serious.

Overall Rating: C. The show was just decent enough to get by, but DANG that was some horrible luck at the end. I won’t hold it against them as they took care of someone who was hurt, but it could not have come at a worse time. The opener was very good, though unfortunately that was about it. The Moose vs. Edwards match was an angle advancer and the Elegance Brand stuff was just long.

It’s not a bad show, but it’s pretty much totally uneventful and felt designed to set up Rebellion more than anything else. Hopefully Maclin is ok though, as that was a nasty looking superkick that took him out. It’s a terrible ending, but that part isn’t TNA’s fault. The rest of the show not being very interesting certainly was though and that’s a rough way to go.

Results
Ryan Nemeth b. BDE – Rollup with tights
Tessa Blanchard b. Jody Threat – Buzzsaw DDT
Leon Slater b. Eric Young – Swanton 450
Frankie Kazarian/AJ Francis b. Home Town Man/Elijah – Fade To Black to Man
Arianna Grace b. Lei Ying Lee and Dani Luna – Warrior’s Way to Luna
Order 4 b. Trey Miguel and Jada Stone – 450 to Stone
Moose b. Eddie Edwards via DQ when Agent Zero interfered
Mara Sade b. Elayna Black – Moonsault
The System b. Jeff Hardy/Vincent – Lumbar Check to Hardy
Mike Santana b. Steve Maclin via injury stoppage

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Impact Wrestling
Date: January 15, 2026
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

This is a big one as we’re on AMC for the first time. That is the kind of show that you do not see very often and it should be one of the most important shows that TNA has ever had. The main event is Mike Santana trying to get the World Title back from Frankie Kazarian, but Nic Nemeth is lurking with his Call Your Shot trophy. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at most of TNA’s big stars and talks about how they’ve worked to get here.

Here is AJ Styles as a surprise to get things going. Styles says he’s going to keep this short and sweet because we have some wrestling to do. He wants the fans to keep the energy going because the fans here are TNA.

We get a shorter form (and minus voiceover) opening sequence.

Elijah/Hardys vs. Order 4

The brawl is on fast to start with Elijah using the Great Hands as stepping stones for a superplex to Ali. Order 4 bails out to the floor and we take an early break. We come back with Elijah in trouble and the Hardys being knocked off the apron. Elijah fights out of trouble though and it’s Jeff coming in to clean house. Tasha Steelz tries to interfere so Jeff hits a double Twist Of Fate for quite the cool visual. Matt comes in for a Twist Of Fate to Skyler and Jeff adds the Swanton for the pin at 8:19.

Rating: C+. They started the show fast with some of their top stars winning, which isn’t a bad idea. At the same time, having the Hardys are the starting point of a show in 2026, especially going over a team like Order 4, might not be the best idea. At some point the Hardys are going to have to be replaced and I don’t know that I see such an option anywhere for TNA.

Post match Agent Zero comes in to deck the winners but the Righteous run in to make the save. Then the Righteous jump the Hardys, even chaining Jeff to the corner so Vincent can Swanton Matt.

Frankie Kazarian is ready for the main event but here is AJ Styles to cut him off. Kazarian tells Styles to thank him for the house. Styles looks at the title, thanks him, and leaves.

Video on the X-Division.

We look at various people in the crowd. This is a bad move as it shows A LOT of empty seats.

We hear from some of the people in the front row, including Mara Sade and former WWE star Candice Michelle. Ryan Nemeth comes in and interrupts, only to crotch himself on the barricade and get chopped by an actor.

Here is Santino Marella, now looking happier than in recent weeks, for a chat. He’s happy about what is happening here, but he has been upset by what has happened with his daughter. There are a lot of responsibilities, so he is getting an assistant: Daria Rae, formerly known as Sonya Deville.

She praises Marella and hypes up the move to AMC…and then says that TNA does NOT need Marella with all of his jokes. Rae knows she can do the job better because her name is Daria Rae and she is the Suit. She has signed a new Knockout, so here is Elayna Black, formerly known as Cora Jade. Not that she actually does anything, but she is in fact here.

AJ Styles gives Mike Santana a pep talk and he’s grateful.

So to recap: we’re about 45 minutes into this show. We’ve had one match, and the big stories have been the Righteous turning on the Hardys, plus the debut of Sonya Deville, who turned on her boss in about fifteen seconds and announced the signing of Cora Jade. While that’s hardly anything, the bigger problem is TNA is treating its audience like they know EVERYTHING that has happened thus far.

On a show like this, you might want to take some time and explain some people and stories rather than just jumping right into it. AJ Styles is praising Mike Santana. Well who in the world is Mike Santana? Why should I care about him? Maybe let us know about that? Or should we just let the fans know that they’re on AMC again?

The Elegance Brand is in the ring, with the Personal Concierge introducing….Perez Hilton, as we flash back at least ten years. Hilton insults the crowd and the Concierge introduces Mr. Elegance (who looks a lot like Matt Riddle). He claims to be the far heavier (and different) man we saw teasing being in the role last week after a week on the Elegance Brand. Apparently this is OVW wrestler AJZ, who gets about as big of a reaction as you would expect.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Elegance Brand vs. IInspiration

The IInspiration is defending and jumps them to start fast but we take an early break. We come back with M’s moonsault hitting raised knees as Sol Ruca and Zaria (from NXT) are watching in the back. Lee comes in to clean house but the Concierge pulls the referee, meaning it’s time to argue on the floor. Mr. Elegance distracts the referee but gets knocked to the floor. That leaves the IInspiration to load up the Idolizer, which is broken up by Mr. Elegance’s chop block. A rollup pins Lee to give us new champions at 8:45.

Rating: D. Oh my sweet merciful goodness this show is somehow getting worse. This barely had time to go anywhere and the Elegance Brand only needed five people to beat the IInspiration. I guess they were going for the “give us a title change to make it feel important” but could they have it be in a match that was at least somewhat good?

Arianna Grace and Stacks aren’t worried about Santino Marella. Grace was also behind NXT invading. When did they do that? Who invaded? What did they do? NOT IMPORTANT!

Indi Hartwell is talking about her childhood dream…and the Elegance Brand interrupts her with their celebration.

Video on the Knockouts Title over the years.

Santino Marella is in the ring and brings out Knockouts Champion Lei Ying Lee and Xia Brookside for a chat. Apparently Dani Luna, who has been built up as the monster challenger for weeks, isn’t going to be at Genesis due to a visa issue, so it’s open challenge time. Cue Sol Ruca and Zaria to answer, with Ruca saying that Zaria should get the show. The contract is signed. So to know what just happened, you need to follow NXT and TNA. This show has no idea how to introduce a new crowd to the product.

Video on the history of the World Title.

Santino Marella comes up to Cedric Alexander in the back, saying that Leon Slater can’t be at Genesis either. Therefore, Alexander will still get his X-Division Title shot down the line, but for now, he’s in a three watch match with Moose and…that guy who appears when you say his name. Alexander says the name….and Joe Hendry calls him. Doesn’t APPEAR of course, but does call him.

Genesis rundown, again, making quite the series of assumptions that you know these people.

Here is the System for a chat. Eddie Edwards is ready to face JDC in JDC’s retirement match at Genesis. JDC isn’t done though, as he’ll be in the ring live next week to announce the newest member of the team. As for Genesis, Eddie better be ready to pull the trigger, or JDC will. So Moose and Brian Myers didn’t get to talk and we’re set for JDC’s retirement match. Who is JDC? Well that’s just not important enough to explain.

Video on Frankie Kazarian vs. Mike Santana, with Nic Nemeth teasing cashing in his title shot.

TNA President Carlos Silva brings in….oh my goodness Dixie Carter. She isn’t well received but puts over TNA. Bully Ray comes out to do commentary on the main event but stops for a staredown and hug with Carter.

TNA World Title: Mike Santana vs. Frankie Kazarian

Santana is challenging and thankfully we get a recap of the title match (Santana won the title at Bound For Glory but Kazarian cashed in the TNA version of Money In The Bank to win the title shortly thereafter). After a break (so that we can pass an hour and forty minutes with two matches having taken place), we’re ready to go and Kazarian stalls right after the bell. The first two or so minutes feature the standard opening stuff, with Kazarian going for the arm but getting knocked outside.

Commentary of course ignores ALL of this to hype up next week’s show, as the World Title and featured attraction of the show is just background noise. Kazarian throws him down on the floor and we take a break less than three minutes in, lest we actually see some wrestling on this show. We come back with Kazarian reversing a rollup into a Backstabber, which just seems to wake Santana up.

They strike it out until Santana hits the rolling Buck Fifty (rolling Stunner) for two. A super Spanish Fly drops Kazarian and the Code Red gets two more. Angel’s Wings and a slingshot cutter give Kazarian two of his own and it’s time to grab the title. Santana misses Spin The Block and the referee gets bumped, meaning the second Spin The Block connects for no count.

A belt shot sends Santana to the apron for Fade To Black and a near fall. Santana pops up for Spin The Block and a near fall (oh that did not look right, as it seems it was supposed to be the pin but was called two instead), followed by another Spin The Block to give him the title back at 15:51.

Rating: B-. Well that was….fine. They had the big emotional title change back at Bound For Glory so there was only so much they could do here. Santana has more than enough charisma to make this interesting, but at the same time Kazarian felt like a champion in over his head. There was pretty much no drama here outside of something terribly screwy and it made things feel more like a waiting game than a dramatic match. Also, wouldn’t it have made more sense for AJ Styles, who was around both guys earlier, to be on commentary rather than Ray, who had nothing to do with either of them?

Commentary points out that there is a rematch already set for Genesis. Not shown here? Nic Nemeth trying to cash in his title shot and getting in a fight with Santana. The result is Nemeth will be guest referee for the title rematch, which will be a Texas Deathmatch. But at least we got Dixie Carter on the show right?

Overall Rating: D-. And that’s being as generous as I can. This was a disaster, as it felt like a show where you needed to have watched the last few weeks (if not months) of TNA and NXT to get a lot of this stuff. That’s a really bad way to go when this is your big DEBUT rather than a finale.

That’s in addition to the total lack of wrestling for long stretches, as when you factor out commercials, you had maybe twenty minutes of wrestling bell to bell. Throw in stuff like battling authority figures, the pretty terrible Knockouts Tag Team Title match, various big names/champions not doing anything and the bringing back of Dixie (and freaking PEREZ HILTON around) and this was a rough, rough sit.

Now, there were some good points to this show. Santana has the title back, which he never should have lost, and bringing in some fresh names like Cora Jade and Sonya Deville is a wise move. Having a newcomer as Mr. Elegance is fine, though he needed a much better debut. Also, Agent Zero looked good as a monster after the opener. There are some good pieces on this show, but my goodness they botched this hard. Absolutely terrible show for the most part, with even Santana not being able to save things.

Results
Elijah/Hardys b. Order 4 – Swanton to Skyler
Elegance Brand b. IInspiration – Rollup to Lee
Mike Santana b. Frankie Kazarian – Spin The Block

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Impact Wrestling
Date: November 13, 2025
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

In the words of the 1993 forgotten classic, “A Dinosaur Story”, or “Ghostbusters II”, WE’RE BACK! After about a month removed from Bound For Glory, we FINALLY have a regular episode of the show. While a lot happened at the show, the biggest story is Mike Santana winning the World Title. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Here is Mike Santana to get things going. He’s happy to be back in front of the fans, who think he deserves the title. He knew it was going to be hard but he believed in himself, just like his daughter believed in him. That kept him fighting and clawing and now he’s here as the World Champion.

He knows there’s a target on his back and he doesn’t care what letters you come from, because you better bring the fire. This includes Frankie Kazarian and Nic Nemeth, so here is Ryan Nemeth to interrupt. Ryan says his usual stuff about Nic, with Santana cutting him off. Santana apologizes to the fans for wasting their time with this guy and says they’ll have a title match tonight.

Kelani Jordan is ready to retain the title. Mara Sade, Xia Brookside and Lei Ying Lee come up and say they’ll win the title. Brookside translates Lee, who called Jordan a “See You Next Tuesday.”

Here is Santino Marella, who introduces Ava for a chat. She puts over the TNA/NXT partnership and brings in Arianna Grace to help run things in Ava’s absence.

Video on the upcoming Gold Rush shows.

Dani Luna vs. Indi Hartwell

Hartwell takes her down and hammers away a few times to start. Luna uses the power to block a slam though and drives her into the corner, followed by a clothesline for two. The basement clothesline gets two more but Hartwell hurricanranas her way out of the corner. They head outside with Hartwell grabbing a spinebuster, setting up a top rope elbow to the back for two. The Hurts Donuts is blocked though and Luna scores with a dropkick. Luna tries a chair but gets booted in the face. Hartwell grabs the chair and blasts Luna for the DQ at 6:05.

Rating: C. Hartwell seems to be blowing off some steam after the loss at Bound For Glory, which is fine as long as it doesn’t mean an angry version of her or whatever TNA loves to do in that situation. Hartwell has something, though I’m not sure if having her as the straightforward hero is it. Maybe find something for her, as it’s not like there are a ton of options at the top at the moment.

Eric Young says the Cleanse is coming. He has fliers.

Indi Hartwell wants Dani Luna at Turning Point, No DQ.

Here is the System for a chat. They’re happy with their win in Hardcore War at Bound For Glory, with Eddie Edwards praising Alisha. His mom, his brother and his daughter were in the building for the match and he couldn’t be prouder. Moose says Alisha is hardcore and they are a family. JDC is a bit emotional and talks about how he got married two months ago.

They’ve decided that he’s going to retire from the ring after Genesis in January. He is thankful for the 27 years he’s spent in this business. There’s going to be a void in the System but he’ll help them find a replacement. Cue the Rascalz who are here to respectfully issue a challenge for an eight man tag. They know someone who can join them, with JDC saying make the match. It seems to be on.

Mustafa Ali gives Jason Hotch a pep talk. Order 4 runs into the Hardys and suggests they want the Tag Team Titles. The Hardys are fine with that.

AJ Francis beat up a YouTuber and a match is set for Turning Point.

BDE (said YouTuber) is grateful to have this opportunity. Leon Slater comes in to give him a pep talk but Rich Swann comes in to mock Slater. The title match is set for Turning Point.

Jason Hotch vs. Cedric Alexander

Mustafa Ali is on commentary as Alexander chases Hotch out to the floor to start. Back in and a Downward Spiral gives Alexander two but Hotch tosses him outside. John Skyler gets in a cheap shot on the floor and we hit the chinlock back inside. Alexander snaps off a German suplex but the Lumbar Check is countered into a rollup for two. Hotch’s rolling…something is countered into the Lumbar Check to give Alexander the fast pin at 3:33.

Rating: C+. I could go for more of Alexander, who is one of the better hands around here. It’s nice to have someone like him around as he can be heated up rather quickly, which might be what we’re seeing again. The match didn’t have much time, but Ali getting annoyed is worth a listen.

Post match Agent Zero comes in to lay out Alexander, drawing in the Hardys for the save. Ali gets back in and is taken out as well.

We meet Mila Moore, who talks about getting into wrestling in college and then getting signed. She was emotional when she was signed, but now she’s not sure what took everyone so long.

Knockouts Title: Kelani Jordan vs. Heather By Elegance

Jordan, with the Elegance Brand, is defending. After the Big Match Intros, Jordan snaps off a dropkick and Heather is on the floor in a hurry. We take a break and come back with Jordan slugging away but Heather knocks her down again. The chinlock goes on for a bit until Jordan escapes, meaning it’s time for the slugout. Jordan puts her down but One Of A Kind misses, allowing Heather to hit a tornado DDT. Back up and Heather gets sent into M, who….I’m not sure what she did but it knocks Heather down. One Of A Kind retains the title at 9:03.

Rating: C+. Jordan gets to show off her athleticism and beats the weaker member of the team in the process. It’s still weird having her be an invading champion defending against heels, as Jordan is still new at being evil. I’m sure someone will get the big win over Jordan sooner or later, though I’m not sure just how big that’s going to be as she doesn’t feel like some horrible evil monster champion.

The IInspiration is ready for the triple threat for the Knockouts Tag Team Titles.

Tessa Blanchard and Victoria Crawford are ready for the same match.

The Angels Warriors? They are too.

Here is Elijah for a concert. He talks about attacking Nic Nemeth at Bound For Glory because he didn’t want to steal Mike Santana’s night. He’s still recovering from triceps surgery, which has messed up his guitar playing, but hopefully we can have a good time. The first song is an up tempo Amazing Grace, with the first verse being the traditional version before shifting into something about walking with Elijah.

Cue Mustafa Ali (still banged up after the Hardys attack) who says no one cares about this and issues the challenge to the Hardys for a six man at Turning Point. Elijah cuts him off and wants Ali right now, only to get hit with the microphone. Ali adds in a guitar shot and Elijah is left laying.

Turning Point rundown.

TNA World Title: Ryan Nemeth vs. Mike Santana

Santana is defending. Before the bell, Nemeth demands that the fans cheer for him and threatens to have them ejected when they don’t comply. Nemeth jumps him to start and hits a running shoulder in the corner, only to get enziguried for his efforts. The Cannonball connects…and here is Nic Nemeth to…well actually get jumped by a masked man on the way to the ring. Cue a bunch of NXT stars to jump Santana for the DQ at 1:58.

Steve Maclin and the Home Town Man run in and get beaten down as well. The Rascalz are beaten up too, with Santana’s arm being cranked and Pillmanized. NXT leaves and here’s Frankie Kazarian, Call Your Shot trophy in hand.

TNA World Title: Mike Santana vs. Frankie Kazarian

Santana is defending and charges into Fade To Black for two. The chickenwing is broken up but Santana’s arm gives out as he tries to Spin The Block. Kazarian rolls him up for the pin and the title at 55 seconds. While I’m willing to give them some time and hope that they have some kind of a hot angle out of this, using the Money In The Bank cash in on the first real night after Santana wins the title is as stereotypical of a TNA move as you can get. They better have something huge planned, because otherwise, this is another horrible move.

Kazarian celebrates while Santana is crushed to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This was far from their finest hour, as it took a month to get here and it feels like every bit of the momentum from Bound For Glory is long gone. At the end of the day, this show was trying to set up a hasty Turning Point and that went well enough, but then they had the big deal at the end. I’m really not sure why Santana lost here, but I’m going to need a heck of a reason to take the title off of him after he spent months becoming the hottest thing in the company. Either way, it wasn’t a good ending and it really does not bode well for the company’s immediate future.

Results
Dani Luna b. Indi Hartwell via DQ when Hartwell used a chair
Cedric Alexander b. Jason Hotch – Lumbar Check
Kelani Jordan b. Heather By Elegance – One Of A Kind
Mike Santana b. Ryan Nemeth via DQ when NXT interfered
Frankie Kazarian b. Mike Santana – Rollup

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6