Slammiversary 2023
Date: July 15, 2023
Location: St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

Impact is back to pay per view and the show is looking rather good on paper. The main event will feature Alex Shelley defending the World Title against Nick Aldis in what could be a heck of a match. Other than that, we may be in for a major surprise return as Scott D’Amore needs a tag partner and put in a phone call last week to close Impact. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Gisele Shaw/Jai Vidal/Savannah Evans vs. Jody Threat/Death Dollz

Jessicka and Evans go with the power lockup to start, with Jessicka shoving her around. Vidal comes in and gets hit in the head, followed by Shaw getting rammed into the buckle over and over. It’s off to Rush, who gets cheap shotted so the villains can take over. Vidal lays her over the middle rope for a running shot to the ribs but Rush reverse DDTs Evans. The hot tag brings in Threat to clean house, including a running knee to Shaw in the ropes. Vidal gets suplexed and Rush hits a spear for the pin at 5:34.

Rating: C. This was very quick and to the point, which didn’t leave them much time to get going. There is only so much that can be done with six people in less than six minutes, but they managed a short form story. Rush getting the win over a glorified lackey in Vidal makes sense and should start the night out on the right foot.

Pre-Show: Digital Media Title: Joe Hendry vs. Kenny King

King, with Sheldon Jean, is challenging. Before the match, Hendry says Stripper Kenny wants to strip him of the title, but that isn’t going to happen because the people believe. King charges to start and gets caught in a delayed vertical suplex. With King on the floor, Jean slips Hendry a Chippendale’s tie for some choking.

King gets two off a suplex of his own before grabbing a guillotine. Hendry powers up and does some hip gyrating while still managing a backdrop at the same time. The Standing Ovation connects but Jean puts the foot on the rope. King misses a dive onto Jean but he grabs a rollup (with Jean holding the feet) for the pin and the title at 6:09.

Rating: C-. What a weird match. It’s not just the result (Hendry losing here is beyond questionable and almost into the world of idiocy) but they rushed through everything and the ending game out of absolutely nowhere. The stripping deal was hardly an interesting story and I really wasn’t feeling a lot of this one.

The opening video talks about legacies and dreams with everyone having their own path. We get some clips of the stars on tonight’s show, complete with some classic audio, with most of the Steiner Math promo. I get what they’re going for, but that’s not exactly the most serious promo for something that should be pretty important.

Kushida vs. Alan Angels vs. Jake Something vs. Jonathan Gresham vs. Kevin Knight vs. Mike Bailey

Ultimate X for a future X-Division Title match. Something is a surprise and runs some people over to start but Knight climbs onto Something’s shoulders in a failed attempt. Instead Something powerbombs Knight onto the pile at ringside before running over Gresham and Bailey.

A quadruple dropkick staggers Something until Gresham and Bailey get to clean house. Hold on though as the team isn’t sure who gets to go after the X, so Angels super Spanish Flys both of them down. Angels gets dropkicked down onto a pile on the floor but Bailey climbs onto the structure and hits a gigantic moonsault onto everyone else.

Something starts getting back up so it’s a bunch of chair shots to put him back down. Back in and Angels goes for the X but drops down to poisonrana Knight instead. Gresham gets low blowed by Angels, who climbs up just like Kushida. Angels is knocked down though and Kushida gets the win at 11:13.

Rating: B-. This wasn’t one of the better Ultimate X matches as it was more about stopping Something, who didn’t really go for the win anyway. Kushida getting the win is fine as more Kushida is always a good thing, but these matches are all about the stunts and the drama, with the latter not really being around this time.

Former Team Canada member A1 is here.

We run down the card as the structure is taken down.

Kenny King brags about winning the Digital Media Title and says this is the only title that matters.

We recap the Knockouts Tag Team Title match. The Coven, the champions, attacked Killer Kelly so Masha Slamovich, her former rival. Kelly and Masha are being presented as a certain kind of team without anything ever being flat out said.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: The Coven vs. Masha Slamovich/Killer Kelly

The Coven is defending. Kelly shoves Wilde around to start and invites her to start fighting. Everything breaks down quickly, with the champs in early trouble. Slamovich comes in and gets Russian legsweeped for two, allowing King to come in and toss her into the corner. Slamovich gets in a double stomp and hands it back to Kelly, who is sent throat first into the middle rope.

King misses a middle rope backsplash though and it’s Slamovich coming back in to clean house. Wilde grabs a Codebreaker into King’s German suplex to slow Slamovich down but she misses the running knees. Everything breaks down again and Wilde’s Witch’s Wrath (swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker) gets two as King and Kelly fight outside. That leaves Slamovich to hit the Snowplow to finish Wilde for the pin and the titles at 9:02.

Rating: C+. This got better near the end and while there still isn’t much of a division to be seen, it is nice to see a pair of actual teams for a change. The Coven has been quite the addition to the division and Kelly and Slamovich could do well too. It helps that they feel like teams rather than two women being thrown together, so this felt like an important title match. If nothing else, Slamovich finally winning something is nice to see, as she felt like the next big thing in the regular Knockouts division.

We recap Bully Ray/Deaner vs. Scott D’Amore/???, which is much more about Ray vs. D’Amore. Ray hates how D’Amore runs the company so D’Amore is finally standing up for himself. Deaner is replacing Steve Maclin and D’Amore’s original partner PCO was set on fire, so it’s mystery partner time.

Bully Ray/Deaner vs. Scott D’Amore/???

Big Kon is here with the villains and former NHL enforcer Darren McCarty, who doesn’t like Ray either, is guest enforcer. We get the old Team Canada theme and…..Eric Young is back as the mystery partner, despite dying in December. Young and Deaner (the guy who MURDERED him last year) start things off as we get the explanation of “eh, looks like Young is back”.

Ray comes in and gets his arm cranked before it’s off to D’Amore, who has Ray backing up. It’s off to Deaner, who gets leg lariated down and legdropped for two, setting up a reverse 3D for two. A Sky High gives D’Amore two but Kon and McCarty have a staredown, allowing Deaner to take over on D’Amore. Now Ray is willing to come in on beat on D’Amore, meaning it’s time for the crowd to sing O CANADA in a great touch.

Ray yells at the referee….who walks out on the match, meaning McCarty is now the full on referee. Some left hands to the jaw wake D’Amore up enough to spear Ray down, allowing the tag off to Young. The piledriver hits Deaner but Kon pulls McCarty outside. A1 (still in the crowd) takes out Kon, leaving McCarty to Stun Ray. A three man What’s Up means the good guys can get the tables and Ray is chokeslammed through. D’Amore Canadian Destroys Deaner, setting up Young’s top rope elbow for the pin at 11:49.

Rating: C+. This was a goofy match and that’s what it needed to be. There were multiple changes to the match and while Ray got beaten up, it felt like it let the door open for a D’Amore vs. Ray showdown later on. For now though, it was nice to have Young back, as at least he gets to be around here rather than waiting and waiting and waiting for his WWE return.

Nick Aldis is ready to beat Alex Shelley because he is a closer, and he’s ready to close Shelley’s book.

We recap Lio Rush challenging Chris Sabin for the X-Division Title. Sabin won the title for the ninth time last month and now Rush is here to get it for the first time.

X-Division Title: Lio Rush vs. Chris Sabin

Sabin is defending….and gets jumped on the floor before the bell. The medical staff comes out to say Sabin can’t go but Sabin says he’ll do it anyway. The bell rings and Rush knocks him down again, setting up a spinning kick to the head. Rush hits the Final Hour for two, followed by a second for the pin and the title at 1:18. I’m going to assume Sabin is injured or something, as this is a very odd way to go otherwise.

In the back, Alex Shelley has nothing to say about what just happened.

Tag Team Titles: Subculture vs. Rich Swann/Sami Callihan vs. Bullet Club vs. Moose/Brian Myers

The Club (Chris Bey/Ace Austin) is defending, Subculture (Mark Andrews/Flash Morgan Webster) has Dani Luna in their corner and it’s one fall to a finish. Bey and Andrews start things off by trading some flips until Austin comes in for a headscissors. Webster comes in for a pair of flipping dives and a near fall. A standing moonsault drops Austin so it’s off to Callihan to throw Swann at Austin.

Moose and Myers both come in but stereo powerbombs are broken up. The Club clears the ring but Bey’s running flip dive is countered into an apron powerbomb from Moose. Austin knees Moose in the face from the apron but Callihan shoves people onto the pile on the floor. We settle down to Webster striking away at Swann and Callihan until the latter grabs a Death Valley Driver.

Swann misses his middle rope 450 and the Club hits a springboard kick into a torture rack neckbreaker. Moose and Myers are both back in to clean house until Andrews kicks both of them away. The Stundog Millionaire hits Moose and Webster’s Shadows Over Malice (Swanton) gets two. We hit the parade of strikes to the face until Swann and Bey cutter Moose out of the air. The 1-2-Sweet is broken up and here are the Rascalz to go after the Club. Webster hits his standing Sliced Bread #2 on Austin, setting up Fall To Pieces (shooting star press) to give Andrews the pin and the titles at 10:35.

Rating: B-. A few weeks ago, Subculture’s match against the Motor City Machine Guns seemed to be enough to get them a job and that seems to be the case. If nothing else it got them the titles here in an entertaining match. Much like the Ultimate X match, there was only so much to be seen here with so many people flying around, but what we got was a lot of fun.

We recap Eddie Edwards vs. Frankie Kazarian. They’re both veterans and have split the first two matches, as Kazarian doesn’t seem to like Eddie’s lack of respect. This is the “here are two veterans who are going to have a good match” match and their wives are both here too.

Frankie Kazarian vs. Eddie Edwards

Kazarian has Traci Brooks and Edwards has Alisha Edwards. They start fast with Kazarian snapping off a hurricanrana into a headlock. Back up and Kazarian chops away but Alisha offers a distraction. Traci does it right back, allowing Kazarian to hit a Backstabber for two. Edwards drops Kazarian hard to the floor and a suplex gives Edwards two back inside.

Kazarian comes back with a release German suplex and Edwards is sent outside. The diving hurricanrana drops Edwards again but the women nearly get into it, allowing Eddie to hit a big dive. The fans are all over Eddie, complete with BOSTON SUCKS chants, so Kazarian makes the comeback with some shots to the face.

Kazarian drops a springboard spinning legdrop for two but Eddie is right back with the backpack Stunner for two. A nice looking top rope superplex drops Kazarian again and they’re both down. Both miss the others’ finisher so Kazarian sends him to the apron and slingshots him back into a cutter for two.

The referee gets bumped and a double clothesline leaves both of them down. Alisha tries to bring in the kendo stick so Traci takes her down. With the women out, Kazarian gets the chickenwing to make Eddie tap but there’s no referee. Kazarian goes to check on him and gets kendo sticked in the head. The Boston Knee Party finishes for Eddie at 17:43.

Rating: B. I’m not sure there is a way for these two to have an actually bad match, so giving them this much time on a big stage was a near guaranteed success. It might not have been some epic showdown, but it was a solid back and forth match between two talented stars. You can run a match like this anytime and it will work, as it did here.

We recap Trinity challenging Deonna Purrazzo for the Knockouts Title. Trinity has shown up and is ready to be the new star, but Purrazzo is saying not so fast.

Knockouts Title: Trinity vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Purrazzo is defending and has a live violinist play her to the ring. They trade armdrags to start before Trinity has to roll away from a Fujiwara armbar. The threat of the Rear View sends Purrazzo outside so Trinity takes her down with a slingshot flip dive. Back in and Purrazzo starts in on the arm and the cranking has Trinity in trouble. Trinity tries to go up top but gets pulled into a leg/neck crank to keep her down.

With that broken up, Trinity manages a kick to the face into a Samoan drop. A springboard kick to the face gives Trinity two but Purrazzo is back with a leg trap Tombstone for the same. The Queen’s Gambit is blocked so Purrazzo settles for the Fujiwara armbar. Trinity makes the rope and hits a slingshot X Factor. The split legged moonsault gets two but Purrazzo is right back with a Queen’s Gambit on the apron for two. Back up and Trinity quickly pulls her into Starstruck for the tap and the title at 14:26.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure what was missing here but it didn’t quite get to the next level. Trinity is crazy athletic and feels like a star but the match felt like a pretty firm downgrade from the usual great Knockouts stuff. She did win in a good match here and it makes sense to go with her early on, so well done here, even if it could have been better.

We recap Alex Shelley defending the World Title against Nick Aldis. Shelley finally won the title last month and Aldis doesn’t like the lack of respect since his return. Aldis turned on him, and now it’s time for a title showdown.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Nick Aldis vs. Alex Shelley

Shelley is defending and spits water in Aldis’ face to start fast. Aldis powerbombs him hard out of the corner and the King’s Lynn Cloverleaf is on in less than a minute. With that escaped, Aldis grabs some suplexes but Shelley dragon screws the leg. Aldis is knocked to the floor but cuts off the baseball slide by tying Shelley in the ring skirt.

Shelley gets posted and sent into the barricade but manages a Stunner over the ropes for a needed breather. It’s off to Aldis’ arm for a change, with Shelley wrapping it around the post to take over. Aldis’ fingers are bent into the turnbuckle but he rakes the eyes for a needed breather.

Shelley is right back to the bad arm but Aldis clotheslines him down. The top rope elbow is countered into a superplex, followed by a standing Sliced Bread to plant Aldis. Shelley snaps the fingers, which are good enough to piledrive Shelley for two. The top rope elbow gets the same so let’s bring in the title. With the referee taking it away, Aldis hits a low blow into a Michinoku Driver for two but Shelley kicks the belt away. A DDT onto the belt busts Aldis open and Shell Shock retains the title at 16:33.

Rating: B. It was another rather good match but I don’t know if it was going to draw in that much interest. Shelley winning the title was a very cool moment, but he doesn’t quite feel like the top star. The same is true for Aldis, who has made a career out of having the tools without making fans care all that much. The wrestling was fine and Shelley using Aldis’ cheating against him was good, but I never really got pulled into it.

We get a video on the match….and Josh Alexander is back to stare Shelley down to end the show. Well there’s Bound For Glory.

Overall Rating: B-. I’m not sure what it was but I couldn’t get into this show. The wrestling was fine to good, but nothing on here made me all that interested in what they were doing. The show had all kinds of title changes though and that should give them a lot of momentum going forward. They need something of a top story though and while Shelley vs. Alexander looks good on paper, I don’t know how well it will go in reality. Completely watchable show and you won’t feel like you’ve wasted your time, but not a great one.

Results
Jody Threat/Death Dollz b. Gisele Shaw/Jai Vidal/Savannah Evans – Spear to Vidal
Kenny King b. Joe Hendry – Assisted rollup
Kushida won Ultimate X
Masha Slamovich/Killer Kelly b. The Coven – Snowplow to Wilde
Eric Young/Scott D’Amore b. Deaner/Bully Ray – Top rope elbow to Deaner
Lio Rush b. Chris Sabin – Final Hour
Subculture b. Moose/Brian Myers, Rich Swann/Sami Callihan and Bullet Club – Fall To Pieces to Austin
Eddie Edwards b. Frankie Kazarian – Boston Knee Party
Trinity b. Deonna Purrazzo – Starstruck
Alex Shelley b. Nick Aldis – Shell Shock

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Impact Wrestling
Date: July 6, 2023
Location: Center Stage, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

We are just over a week away from Slammiversary and the card is all but set. Oddly enough, one of the better built matches has been Scott D’Amore/PCO vs. Bully Ray/Steve Maclin, as the videos on D’Amore have been great. On top of that, there is also a new alliance in the form of Nick Aldis and Lio Rush, who are going after the Motor City Machine Guns. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Eddie Edwards vs. Frankie Kazarian

Alisha Edwards is here with Eddie and shouts at Kazarian, even as he suplexes Eddie into a neckbreaker to start. A fisherman’s suplex gives Kazarian two but Eddie manages to send him outside, where Alisha gets in a tornado DDT. Back in and Eddie rakes the eyes and chops in the corner, allowing Alisha to choke away.

Kazarian is sent to the apron where Alisha gets in another cheap shot, allowing Eddie to hit a clothesline. A slingshot DDT plants Eddie on the apron though and it’s a double down on the floor. Back in and Kazarian counters the Blue Thunder Bomb into a failed chickenwing so it’s an Unprettier for two on Eddie instead.

Another chickenwing attempt is blocked and Eddie grabs the tiger driver for two of his own. The chickenwing finally goes on but Alisha offers a distraction, allowing Eddie to drive it into the corner, with the referee getting bumped in the process. Alisha kendo sticks Kazarian from behind though and the Boston Knee Party finishes for Eddie at 10:46.

Rating: B-. Well yeah of course this was good. They’re both talented wrestlers and they have a story going. Giving them some time to put a match together is going to work and it went well here. You can probably pencil in some kind of a mixed tag for Slammiversary and that opens up more than a few options.

We look back at Nick Aldis and Lio Rush laying out the Motor City Machine Guns. That’s your main event tonight.

Chris Sabin is ready to face Rush for the X-Division Title at Slammiversary.

Rush says he’s here to win titles instead of making friends. Nick Aldis comes in to say he’s here to make history, and they can accomplish these things together. As long as Rush stays out of Aldis’ way.

Frankie Kazarian congratulates Eddie Edwards on the win, even if that’s not how Killer Kowalski taught them. They’re 1-1 so let’s have the rubber match at Slammiversary, with Kazarian offering to bring his wife, Traci Brooks, to even things up.

Champagne Singh/Shera vs. Rich Swann/Sami Callihan

Swann get double teamed down to start and Singh drops him with a Downward Spiral for some trash talk. Swann trips him down though and it’s back to Callihan to pick up the pace. This includes the always stupid throw a team together and make someone DDT his partner spot. Swann comes back in for a double superkick to Singh, meaning it’s the Cactus Driver to finish Singh at 3:16.

Rating: C. Not much beyond a squash here but it’s good to have Callihan and Swann look like a solid team on the way towards Slammiversary. They’re long established as friends and have teamed together, but rarely as a two on two team. Beating up Singh and Shera is always fun too, and it worked well here.

Moose and Brian Myers are ready to give Callihan and Swann real competition.

We look at Santino Marella yelling at Dirty Dango, allowing Heath to jump Dango from behind.

Dirty Dango talks about how he loved wrestling in the 90s (Juventud Guerrera, Villano IV, Villano VII, people like that) but then he realized that things change when you get into the arena. Go back to school instead of wrestling. As for Santino Marella, Dango has grown up while Santino is still stuck in 2010. Dango: “It’s like going to a Yoko Ono concert where she just yodels the whole time.” As for Heath…..maybe try being a fork lift driver?

Angels vs. Jonathan Gresham

The Design is here with Angels, who is quickly sent outside. Deaner yells at Angels to do what he says so he goes back in and suplexes Gresham. A running dropkick sends Angels outside though and we take a break. Back with Gresham dropping him again for two and they fight over a suplex. A half and half suplex sends Gresham into the corner so Angels can hammer away, which doesn’t seem to be following Deaner’s plan. They fight over some rollups for two each until Gresham pulls him into the Octopus for the tap at 10:27.

Rating: C+. The idea here was Angels trying to pay attention to Deaner and do his own thing with neither exactly working. Beating Gresham is hard enough on its own and he did his whole technical wrestling master deal. If nothing else, it’s better than the same stuff the Design was doing with Sami Callihan for months, so hopefully this leads to the team falling apart and going away for good.

Post match Gresham offers a handshake but Deaner doesn’t want Angels to do it. Angels teases leaving but goes back in, with Deaner breaking up the handshake attempt. Deaner pokes him in the chest so Angels grabs his hand and then shakes Gresham’s hand.

The Bullet Club is ready to defend the titles against anyone, including three teams at Slammiversary. The Rascalz come in and want to be in he match, but Chris Bey says they haven’t won anything around here. Wentz suggests a match with Bey, and if Wentz wins, they’re in the title match. Seems to be a deal.

Video on the Australia shows. Good for them for getting to go somewhere else, as they’ve turned things around so much in the last few years.

We recap the issues between Deonna Purrazzo, Trinity and Gisele Shaw.

Trinity thanks Purrazzo for having her back last week. Purrazzo says she wants Trinity 100% when she beats her at Slammiversary and that’s not cool with Trinity. Purrazzo is willing to put out the open challenge next week to show Trinity who she’s facing at Slammiversary.

PCO vs. Good Hands

Scott D’Amore joins commentary. Before the match, the Good Hands talk about how PCO is about to feel these good hands. PCO beats them to the floor to start and hits the big running flip dive. The Deanimator hits Hotch and a reverse DDT plants Skyler back inside. The PCOsault finishes Skyler at 1:56.

Post match Hotch goes after D’Amore and gets beaten up for his efforts, including a Sky High. The Canadian Destroyer is loaded up but here is Bully Ray to interrupt. Steve Maclin sneaks in from behind though and the villains wreck PCO and D’Amore with a chair. D’Amore gets handcuffed to the rope and PCO gets destroyed even worse, including being put through a chair.

PCO gets thrown down a ramp into the backstage area. After yelling at D’Amore some more, they follow PCO outside and pour…..battery acid into PCO’s mouth. Then they add lighter fluid and light him on fire. This went on for a LONG time and while the ending looked cool, it was hard to keep interest all the way there.

Post break, we look back at what we just saw.

Scott D’Amore is looking at PCO, who doesn’t know how the Slammiversary match is affected and really doesn’t care.

Gisele Shaw vs. Courtney Rush

Jai Vidal, Savannah Evans and Jessicka are here too. Shaw runs her over to start so Rush grabs a top wristlock. Rush sends her outside for a breather, followed by a reverse DDT for two back inside. Vidal offers a distraction though and Shaw gets in a kick to the head to start the comeback. A suplex gives Shaw two and frustration is setting in. Rush knocks her away but Evans offers a distraction. Jessicka slugs her down but gets sent into the steps. Vidal gets on the apron as well and that’s enough of a distraction for Shaw to grab a rollup with feet on the ropes for the pin at 6:13.

Rating: C. Shaw gets another win as the numbers game is too much for Rush and Jessicka. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Shaw accept Deonna Purrazzo’s challenge next week, though adding her to the title match at Slammiversary at this point doesn’t feel likely. So far the new Death Dollz haven’t been doing so well but their whole huge story has had so many twists and turns that something is going to come from all of it.

Kenny King and Sheldon Jean are interrupted by a random fan who has no business being backstage. She tries to put money in King’s pants, and another woman does the same. Then Joe Hendry pops up and produces Yuya Uemura to prevent a 2-1 beatdown. The villains leave.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Motor City Machine Guns vs. Lio Rush/Nick Aldis

Sabin wants Rush to start but gets Aldis instead. Aldis easily wins an exchange of shoulders and elbows Sabin in the face for a bonus. Rush comes in and starts the dodging, setting up a jumping kick to the head. We hit the rear naked choke but Sabin slips out and slides outside to trip Aldis. Shelley uses the distraction to jump Rush from behind and Sabin gets two off a double stomp.

The abdominal stretch keeps Rush in trouble and Shelley knocks him outside. This time Aldis gets in a cheap shot on Shelley and we take a break. Back with Aldis clotheslining Shelley and stomping away a bit more. Aldis starts in on the leg and Rush comes in for some right hands of his own. Rush chokes in the corner and the bodyscissors goes on. It’s back to Aldis for a chinlock but Shelley fights up with a Downward Spiral into the corner.

The tag brings in Sabin to clean house, including a middle rope missile dropkick to Rush. Everything breaks down and a Magic Killer of all things gets two on Rush. Aldis is taken down with a dragon screw legwhip over the ropes, with Rush taking one of his own. The Guns go after Aldis, allowing Rush to hit a big running flip dive to take everyone out. Aldis adds a top rope elbow for two but Rush misses the final Hour.

There’s the Dream Sequence to Rush and a cutter drops Aldis. The powerbomb/sliding cutter hits Rush for two with Aldis making the save. Aldis gets the King’s Lynn Cloverleaf on Shelley, with Sabin making the save. Rush hits Sabin low and kicks him in the head, setting up the Final Hour for the pin at 17:54.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going but eventually picked up well. What mattered here was setting up the King vs. Sabin title match at Slammiversary and they covered that well. Aldis vs. Shelley is more or less set up in advance, so this was a good way to make both title matches feel more interesting at the same time.

Overall Rating: B. Another solid show here as Slammiversary has come together rather well and I’m wanting to see the show. The PCO thing was quite over the top but it does kind of fit with how intense the feud has been. In addition to that, the title matches got some nice boosts and nothing is feeling overly weak. Next week is set up for the big go home show and now I’m curious to see what they’re going to do for the big finale. God stuff here, which might as well be the official subtitle as of late.

Results
Eddie Edwards b. Frankie Kazarian – Boston Knee Party
Sami Callihan/Rich Swann b. Champagne Singh/Shera – Cactus Driver to Singh
Jonathan Gresham b. Angels – Octopus
PCO b. Good Hands – PCOsault to Skyler
Gisele Shaw b. Courtney Rush – Rollup with feet on the ropes

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: June 15, 2023
Location: Ohio Expo Center, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

We’re done with Against All Odds and my goodness things went nuts. First of all, Alex Shelley actually won the World Title from Steve Maclin in a heck of a surprise. If that’s not enough for the Motor City Machine Guns, Chris Sabin won the X-Division Title from Trey Miguel, cementing them as maybe the best tag team Impact has ever had. Nick Aldis is waiting for Shelley at Slammiversary so let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Against All Odds.

Here are the Motor City Machine Guns to a heck of a reception. Chris Sabin talks about how he had a dream that the two of them went into Against All Odds and came out with the gold. Not tag team gold as you might expect, but instead he won the X-Division Title and Alex Shelley won the World Title. Then Sabin realized that it was a dream come true. Shelley: “Yup.” Shelley talks about how he ugly cried when he won the title because he was finally good enough to win the big one.

When he mentors someone, they become World Champions, like Kazuchika Okada, Trey Miguel, Kushida, the Young Bucks, Seth Rollins or Jay White. At some point though, it needed to be his turn and he had to prove it to himself. Now he can say he is a World Champion and he did it because of the fans, everyone in the locker room, everyone in New Japan, everyone in Ring Of Honor and people like Sabin. Shelley: “Ask me if I’m a World Champion.” Sabin: “My friend, my brother, are you a World Champion?” Shelley: “Yup.”

This is the Machine Gun Era, but here is Nick Aldis to interrupt. Aldis says the two of them did it at Against All Odds and he was one of those people who was there cheering for Shelley when it was his night. He’s proud of Shelley and yes, Shelley deserves the title. When Aldis first got here, he was drowning and was going to be on a list of “remember that guy” names. Then Shelley pulled him up, so you can add his name to the list of World Champions that Shelley mentored.

Aldis kept climbing though, and now it’s the two of them for the World Title, and no matter who wins, there will be a World Champion that this company will be proud of. As Shelley’s friend though, Aldis is going to do everything he can to make sure it’s him. Cue Trey Miguel to interrupt because he isn’t happy with the lack of respect. Sabin invites him in to say this to his face, but Miguel turns him down.

Cue Kenny King and Sheldon Jean, with King saying Miguel is the only one out here telling any truth. King accuses the three guys in the ring of jumping the line and getting a bunch of shots, so Sabin invites the other three in to see what happens. The villains come towards the ring but cue Gisele Shaw/Savannah Evans/Jai Vidal of all people to interrupt. Shaw says the spotlight should be on her and asks Shelley if he deserves all of this. Shelley: “Yup.” He thinks her problem is with Trinity so here is Trinity to interrupt.

Vidal threatens Trinity, who threatens him right back, so here id Deonna Purrazzo to interrupt. Purrazzo says she now has over 500 days as Knockouts Champions so she should be in the World Champion discussion. Trinity: “Until Slammiversary.” Cue Santino Marella to make the big ten person tag match for later tonight. This took about twenty minutes and it’s been happening more recently around here. Please don’t be the new norm, because it’s way too WWE instead of Impact.

Steve Maclin is livid about his loss and shouts that he should still be the World Champion. He shoves the camera away.

We look at Sami Callihan hitting Deaner in the face with a baseball bat and piledriving him onto a barbed wire board to beat him at Against All Odds.

Deaner wants to know who should be blamed for the Design’s loss. That would be Angels, who doesn’t like being bossed around this much. He has done everything Deaner has asked, and then Deaner (accidentally) hit him in the face with a baseball bat at Against All Odds. It was Deaner’s fault that they lost so the argument is on. Kon says this is exactly what Callihan wants so they need to get it together. Cool. Just do it on another show.

Moose vs. Rich Swann

Swann tries to move around to start but gets sent into the corner a few times. Some dropkicks stagger Moose a bit and a middle rope version staggers him even more. The low bridge sends Moose outside but he pulls a dive out of the air and powerbombs Swann onto the apron. Moose doesn’t let him go though and sends him into the barricade, followed by a toss powerbomb into the ropes.

We take a break and come back with Moose chopping away in the corner. Moose’s release Rock Bottom gets two and they head outside, where Swann ducks a chop that only hits post instead. Back in and Moose charges into a boot to the face, setting up a DDT to leave them both down.

Swann goes up top but gets superplex back down for a huge crash. We take another break and come back with Moose running the corner, only to dive into a cutter in some great timing. Swann’s Lethal Injection gets two but the middle rope 450 misses. The powerbomb gives Moose two but another spear is countered into a jackknife cover for the pin at 17:32.

Rating: B. These two were going back and forth and as usual, power vs. speed works well. It also helps to have this much extra time, allowing them to get things going more than usual. At the same time, it is a little strange to see Moose getting pinned clean, though I could go with more of Swann getting a singles push, as he is one of those recently untapped resources that Impact has.

On BTI, Heath took out Champagne Singh and Shera.

Heath talks about how he came here and then got hurt for 11 months. Then he had to save his best friend from a cult. Then Rhino got hurt, but then he came back and they won the Tag Team Titles. Now though, Rhino is hurt again, so he has to figure out what is next for him. Everyone is getting a wake up call.

Moose is annoyed when he runs into Brian Myers, who brings up Moose’s recent losses. Moose doesn’t want to hear this, but Myers offers to reform their team, which has Moose thinking.

Here is Bully Ray for a chat, complete with a piece of paper in his hand. Ray says he is a victim of the atrocious management around here, along with a victim of unnecessary violence at Against All Odds at the hands of Scott D’Amore. He is a victim of the system around here, and now he demands justice.

Cue D’Amore, with Ray demanding answers. D’Amore says when you’re a jerk to everyone, someone is going to be a jerk back. D’Amore mocks him for having a letter of complaint but reveals that he went before the board. They told him he was unbecoming of a president, which has Ray looking near stunned. Now all Ray wants is him to apologize, but D’Amore apparently has to take a leave of absence as president.

That’s music to his ears, with Ray saying D’Amore’s bosses screwed D’Amore over. Then D’Amore takes him down for some not so great right hands, which draws out Steve Maclin for the save. The beatdown is on, with Ray choking with a chair. The lights go out though and the lightning means it’s PCO time. A punch knocks the chair into Ray’s face and Maclin is knocked outside as well. Hold on though, as D’Amore has made one more match: a tag match between the four of them at Slammiversary.

Post break Maclin yells at Ray, who tells him to act like a Marine. Ray says that PCO (or maybe D’Amore) is just a man, but Frankie Kazarian pops up to say he’s a man who just beat them both up. Eddie Edwards (with Alisha Edwards) comes in to get between them and a match seems to be teased. With Ray and Maclin gone, Kazarian wants to know what is up with that. Eddie says they don’t like each other, but they’ll always have a bond, so they’re good. Kazarian (and Alisha) is confused but they’re at peace.

Decay vs. Bullet Club

Non-title. Austin gets taken into the corner for a kick to the head from Taurus and Steve gets in some hair pulling of his own. A kick gets Austin out of trouble but Taurus comes in sans tag and headbutts him down. Steve bites both champs but gets kicked out of the air for his trouble. Bey comes in and it’s the Art of Finesse into the Fold to finish Steve at 3:08.

Rating: C. I could have gone for more of this but that is the case with most of the matches the Club has these days. They really have gone into the area of being a great team, which is more than I was expecting when they were put together. This was shorter than it should have been, as Decay can put on a good match when they are given the chance, which isn’t the case in a match that barely breaks three minutes.

Post match the Club goes to the back and runs into the Motor City Machine Guns, with a showdown teased.

We get a preview of an upcoming documentary on Bhupinder Gujjar.

Gujjar is excited when Dirty Dango comes in to say no one would want to watch that. He’s assuming that Gujjar will sit around and hope that someone makes him a star. Gujjar calls him a bitter a****** and leaves. Dango: “I thought the backstage interview girls were supposed to be hot. No?”

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Trinity/Motor City Machine Guns/Nick Aldis/Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kenny King/Sheldon Jean/Savannah Evans/Trey Miguel/Gisele Shaw

Purrazzo and Shaw go to the mat to start and come up to a standoff with some trash talk. Shaw runs into an elbow to the face and Trinity comes in to unload with forearms. Shaw drives her into the corner though and it’s Evans coming in for some slams. Trinity breaks that up and Purrazzo comes back in for a Fujiwara armbar. Shaw’s save is cut off by Trinity with Starstruck but Miguel makes a save.

We take a break and come back with Aldis fighting out of King’s headlock. Sabin comes in to forearm Miguel and twists Jean’s knee across the middle rope for a bonus. Miguel sends Sabin into the corner and Jean’s knee is fine enough to come in for some elbows to the chest. Sabin is sent outside for a big group stomping, with Sabin’s partners being held back by the referee.

Back in and King stays on Sabin’s arm, allowing Miguel to come in for a front facelock. King cuts off a comeback attempt but a middle rope tornado DDT plants King for a breather. Shelley gets the hot tag and picks up the pace, including an overhead belly to belly to Miguel. A super atomic drop has Miguel gyrating quite a bit so Shelley pulls him into the Border City Stretch. Everything breaks down and King kicks Shelton by mistake. Aldis gives King a Michinoku Driver and Shell Shock finishes Jean at 18:38.

Rating: B-. This was a long match and at the end of the day, all that mattered was getting Shelley a win. Shelley got his big moment earlier in the night and he gets a pin as champion here. The Trinity vs. Purrazzo match is already set, though adding Shaw in wouldn’t be a crazy idea given what they have been doing. At the same time, another Miguel vs. Sabin match, maybe in something like Ultimate X, would fit in nicely at Slammiversary as well. All in all, there was a lot going on here, but it could all be setting up things for later.

Post match Aldis holds the title up to Shelley….and then blasts him with it to turn heel and end the show. That’s going to be better for him, as the respectable former champion was only so good.

Overall Rating: C+. They went in a rather different direction here with some LONG talking segments and only three matches. There was a lot of television time given to the matches and there were ten people in the main event, but it was like bunching several things together in some big lumps. I’m hoping that this isn’t the new norm as it’s not bad, but it’s not as good as it was before. Go with more acting and less talking, as it suits Impact a lot better. The Machine Guns era is off to an ok start, but they might be going in a shaky direction.

Results
Rich Swann b. Moose – Jackknife rollup
Bullet Club b. Decay – Fold to Steve
Motor City Machine Guns/Nick Aldis/Trinity/Deonna Purrazzo b. Gisele Shaw/Savannah Evans/Trey Miguel/Kenny King/Sheldon Jean – Shell Shock to Jean

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

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AND

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Impact Wrestling
Date: June 1, 2023
Location: Western Fair District Agriplex, London, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the first show after Under Siege and a lot of things took place at the show. First and foremost, Steve Maclin retained the World Title by defending PCO but Bully Ray attacked Scott D’Amore to end the show, even putting him through a flaming table. Other than that, we have a new #1 contender in the form of Alex Shelley, who will get a World Title shot at Against All Odds. Let’s get to it.

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

Under Siege recap.

Here is Bully Ray to get things going and no one is happy to see him. He has been putting people through tables throughout his career and no one is better at it in wrestling history. We hear about some of the people who he has put through them over the years, but the really bad ones are the people he puts through flaming tables. That’s what he did to Scott D’Amore and there is no one here to stop him.

Now it is on to Against All Odds, where he can become #1 contender and then to Slammiversary to win the World Title. Cue World Champion Steve Maclin to interrupt to say he liked what happened to D’Amore. What Bully needs to understand though is Maclin allowed Ray to hurt D’Amore like that. Ray tells him to shut up and says no one tells him what he can do….but then backtracks and says Maclin is the World Champion and can do what he wants. Maclin proposes a partnership, but he’s also cool with the idea of beating Ray at Slammiversary if he has to.

Cue the Motor City Machine Guns to interrupt, with Alex Shelley saying he’s leaving Against All Odds with the World Title. Ray says that usually he would rip Shelley apart on the might but the reality is that Shelley is one of the best in the world. He has seen wrestlers in the locker room watching Shelley matches, but Shelley must be bothered by never winning the big one.

Chris Sabin brings up beating Ray for the World Title but Maclin cuts him off to yell at Shelley for the lack of respect. Shelley says “yep” when asked if he thinks he can win the title but Maclin asks why it will be different this time. Shelley says it’s because Maclin is no Josh Alexander, which makes Ray laugh. That doesn’t make sense to Shelley, because Alexander beat Ray too. We finally get the challenge for the tag match tonight and Ray likes the idea….but not tonight.

Cue Subculture (Mark Andrews/Flash Morgan Webster/Dani Luna, formerly of NXT UK) as this segment is somehow still going. Subculture wants to face the Guns tonight and that match is on. This was nearly twenty minutes long and felt WAY out of place on an Impact show, especially when the only match made was from people who popped up at the end. I know they don’t have much time before Against All Odds but please don’t let this WWE style segment become normal around here.

Nick Aldis feels dangerous when he is in a nice suit like this but he feels all the more dangerous when he has momentum behind him. He praises Kenny King for a great match at Under Siege and King will be even more ready whenever they face off again. As for Against All Odds, Aldis is ready for the 8-4-1 match (starts off as an eight man tag, with the winning team immediately having a four way to crown a new #1 contender) because he’ll have to adapt, which is what he does best. Then he’s winning the World Title.

Eddie Edwards vs. Yuya Uemura

Alisha Edwards is here with Eddie. Feeling out process to start with Uemura grabbing an armdrag into an armbar. Back up and Eddie takes him into the corner for some chops, only to have a forearm knock Eddie outside. The slingshot dive drops Eddie again though and we take a break. Back with Uemura fighting out of a chinlock but getting taken right back down.

This time Uemura fights up with a running clothesline and a belly to back suplex gets two. Edwards tries a double underhook but gets backdropped away, only to have Alisha distract Uemura on the top. That means a superplex can bring Uemura back down but Uemura cuts off the Boston Knee Party with a dropkick. The swinging Rock Bottom sets up a high crossbody, which is kneed out of the air. The tiger driver gives Edwards two and the Boston Knee Party finally finishes Uemura at 13:30.

Rating: B. They had a good match here as Uemura continues to get better and better every week. Commentary is right when they say that he needs a big win, but I’m not sure how much longer he is going to be here on excursion in the first place. If that’s the case, just how far does Impact want to push him? For now, I guess they’ll have to settle for a good hand who can work well with anyone.

Post match Eddie teases respect but pulls away from the handshake. Cue Frankie Kazarian to say that isn’t how we do this around here and the fight is on, with Eddie being dropped. Alisha tries to jump on Frankie and is dropped as well, allowing Kazarian to leave.

Decay vs. Sami Callihan/Jake Crist

Crist bites Steve to start and hands it off to Callihan, only to have Taurus come in and clear the ring. That’s not enough for Taurus, who throws Steve over the top onto both of them. Back in and Crist starts firing off superkicks for a breather, followed by putting Steve on Taurus’ shoulders. Callihan puts Crist on his own shoulders for a cutter to Steve and the pin at 1:35. Cool finisher and dang that went fast.

Post match here is the Design to lay out Crist and Callihan. Rich Swann makes the save.

Post break, Swann, Crist and Callihan are ready for Against All Odds….but Swann already has a spot in the 8-4-1 match. Callihan and Crist understand so they can find someone else. Callihan says the doctor is going to have to call the fox.

Trinity vs. Savannah Evans

Jai Vidal and Gisele Shaw are here with Evans. Trinity grabs a waistlock to start and gets backed into the corner for her efforts. A headlock takeover doesn’t work for Trinity so she forearms away in the corner. Evans plants her with a powerbomb for two and Trinity is in trouble. Back in and Trinity gets smart by hitting a springboard kick to the face to put Evans down. A side slam cuts Trinity off but she pulls Evans into the reverse Rings of Saturn for the tap at 4:33.

Rating: C+. Evans continues to work as a monster but that is only going to have so much impact if she keeps losing all the time. Trinity is someone who is probably going to wind up being near the top of the division sooner rather than later so her winning here makes all of the sense. They went back and forth here for a few minutes but ultimately, Trinity winning was the only option.

Post match Trinity gets the mic and says she wants the Knockouts Title. Cue Deonna Purrazzo to say ask her to her face. Trinity issues the challenge for Slammiversary and Purrazzo is in. Shaw, Evans and Vidal are up for the beatdown though, only to have Jordynne Grace come in for the save. That doesn’t exactly work though as she is beaten down as well, setting up a pair of knees from Shaw.

Dani Luna vs. Jody Threat

Dani Luna is part of Subculture, who are here with her. Threat headlocks her over to start but Luna does the exact same. Luna powers her into the corner but gets sunset flipped for two. Threat knocks her back down and scores with a heck of a Cactus Clothesline. Threat’s running flip dive off the apron, followed by the running knee to the back. Luna has had it with this and hits a powerbomb for two and a hard lariat gets the same. Threat snaps off a German suplex and hits a reverse F5 (the F Bomb) for the pin at 7:05.

Rating: B-. This was a hard hitting fight and it worked well with what they were doing. Impact has done a nice job of turning Threat into…well, a threat, and that’s what they need to do every so often. Threat is someone who feels like she has been built from the ground up and could become something around here. On the other hand you have Luna, who could do well as a powerhouse with a unique look.

Santino Marella and Joe Hendry are talking about Dirty Dango when Sheldon Jean and Kenny King come in. King thinks Jean should get a match with Hendry, so Santino makes it for next week. As for Against All Odds, Hendry can defend his Digital Media Title against Dango. Works for Hendry.

We look at Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich brawling at Under Siege. A chain was involved.

Kelly wants a dog collar match with Slamovich. Her talk about giving in to your natural instinct is designed to make various suggestions.

Here is what’s coming on various shows.

Subculture vs. Motor City Machine Guns

Shelley and Andrews get things going with Shelley’s armdrag not getting him very far. Sabin comes in to headlock Webster to little avail as Webster grabs an armdrag of his own. Everything breaks down and the Guns send Andrews outside to kick Webster down. Back in and Andrews gets kicked down as well, allowing Shelley to grab a cross arm choke on Webster.

Back up and Webster gets Shelley into the corner for a quick dropkick to the leg. Subculture hits back to back flips onto Sabin to send him outside as well, setting up the stereo suicide dives. Back in and the Guns hit some clotheslines to take over and we take a break. We come back with Andrews being caught in a surfboard for a bulldog from Sabin. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Andrews fights up, allowing the tag off to Webster. Everything breaks down again and Webster hits a springboard moonsault to drop both Guns.

Webster hits a big dive onto Sabin and a double Falcon Arrow (that’s a new one) gets two back inside. Shelley comes back in for the save and house is cleaned, including a Death Valley Driver/running neckbreaker combination (that’s a new one too). A Magic Killer (that’s not a new one) gets two on Andrews but he pops up off a Doomsday dropkick.

Shelley is knocked outside, leaving Sabin to clothesline both of them inside out. Cradle Shock is countered into a Stundog Millionaire (sweet) but Webster misses a 450. Sabin grabs a cutter on Webster and the Dream Sequence hits Andrews. The Dirt Bomb finishes Webster off at 16:13.

Rating: B+. There are certain matches that are designed to have talented stars letting it all hang out and hitting one big move after another until someone finally gets pinned. That is what you had here and this was an awesome TV main event. The Guns can still hang with anyone and if Subculture wants a job in Impact, there is a good chance that they got one here. Great stuff here and worth a look if you have time.

Overall Rating: B. I find myself looking forward to Impact more and more each week and that was the case again here. The opener and main event (especially the latter) are both rather awesome TV matches and the rapid fire build to Against All Odds wasn’t bad at all. Cut down on the way too long opening segment and this show is probably the best TV show of the week. Awesome stuff here, as I’m starting to wonder if it’s still fair to say Impact is on a roll, as this has been going on for a long time now.

Results
Eddie Edwards b. Yuya Uemura – Boston Knee Party
Sami Callihan/Jake Crist b. Decay – Elevated cutter to Steve
Trinity b. Savannah Evans – Reverse Rings of Saturn
Jody Threat b. Dani Luna – F Bomb
Motor City Machine Guns b. Subculture – Dirt Bomb to Webster

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

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 25, 2023
Location: Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

It’s the go home show for Under Siege and the card is mostly set. There is still some tightening up that could be done for most of the show and that is where this week can come into play. Other than that, it might be time to start setting things up for the next big show after Under Siege so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Chris Sabin vs. Mike Bailey

Sabin blocks the kick to start but Bailey jumps over him, allowing Sabin to elbow him in the back. There’s the apron kick to the chest and Bailey is in trouble early. Back in and Sabin takes him down into a double underhook crank on the mat. That’s broken up and Bailey kicks him in the face to take over. More kicks put Sabin down and there’s the running shooting star press for two.

Sabin kicks the arm out and hits a missile dropkick but Bailey is back with more kicks. The standing moonsault knees to Sabin’s chest look to set up the tornado kick but Sabin kicks him back down. Back up and Bailey kicks him to the floor, setting up a kick to the head and a top rope Asai moonsault to drop Sabin again. Bailey kicks him in the head back inside but the Ultimate Weapon takes too long.

Instead Sabin sends him to the apron for a sunset bomb out to the floor (ouch). Back in and Sabin catches him on top again, this time with a release German superplex to send Bailey face first down. A heck of a clothesline sets up the Cradle Shock but Bailey reverses into a cradle for two. Bailey kicks him down hard for two more and now the tornado kick connects. The Ultimate Weapon doesn’t though and Sabin goes classic with a MuscleBuster. The Cradle Shock finishes Bailey at 12:25.

Rating: B+. This was another rather awesome X-Division opener and Bailey almost had me on that reverse of the Cradle Shock. These guys were trading one big move after another and they had a heck of a match as a result. Sabin can get in there against almost anyone and beating Bailey means a lot around here. This was rather awesome stuff and Bailey didn’t get get that annoying. I’m as shocked as you are, but great opener.

Video on Trinity debuting, feeling the love from the crowd, and accepting a match with Gisele Shaw at Under Siege.

Video on PCO vs. Steve Maclin.

Maclin says he has taken out PCO, so PCO won’t get a title shot at Under Siege. He’ll name his own replacement tonight.

Sheldon Jean/Kenny King vs. Decay

Nick Aldis is on commentary. Steve takes Jean down by the neck to start so Jean hands it off to King. That’s fine with Steve, who brings in the rather terrifying Taurus. We take a break and come back with Taurus knocking Jean down and kicking him in the face out of the corner. The reverse Sling Blade allows the tag back to Steve as everything breaks down. Taurus suplexes Steve onto King and then flip dives onto Jean. With Taurus on the floor, King Royal Flushes Steve for the pin at 10:24.

Rating: C. Perfectly fine match here though it never got into another level. This was about King looking better to get ready for his showdown with Aldis and the win gives him some momentum heading into the match. Other than that, Aldis being all chill on commentary sets a nice tone for him, but he’ll still need to find something to make him more interesting against King.

Post match King talks about Aldis, who says King can’t keep his name out of his mouth. Aldis knows King is trying to make a name for himself at Aldis’ expense, but the reality is that King needs to work his way up from being a little b****. Aldis takes his jacket off but has to deal with Jean, who comes after him on King’s orders. That’s enough to get Aldis in the ring, but King bails while singing his version of Annie’s Tomorrow.

Rosemary’s hourglass is almost out and Jessicka is panicking.

Jessicka vs. Taylor Wilde

KiLynn King is here with Wilde, who starts fast by knocking Jessicka down. A running basement DDT sets up a fisherman’s neckbreaker (the Witch’s Wrath) to finish Jessicka at 39 seconds.

Post match the beatdown is on and we see the hourglass running out. Cue a pair of red Chuck Taylor’s….and Courtney Rush (Rosemary before she was Rosemary) is here. Ruse comes in and cleans house, leaving the Coven to run off. Jessicka is thrilled to have Rush here and hugging ensues.

Post break Jessicka isn’t sure what the deal with Rush is, but Rush says she is kind of Rosemary but not really, as it’s kind of a possession sort of thing. Since she is here though, there is an adventure to go on, with Jessicka being invited along for the ride.

Angels vs. Rich Swann

The rest of the Design and Sami Callihan are here too. Swann bounces out of a wristlock to start and takes Angels down without much trouble. A hard kick drops Angels fast but he sends Swann to the floor, setting up a catapult into the post. Back in and a powerslam cuts Swann off again but he’s right back with some kicks to the face. A neckbreaker drops Angels again and there’s the step over kick to the face to make it worse.

Angels catches him on the middle rope and kicks the legs out to take over again. Swann ducks a kick to the head and scores with a dropkick, only to have a cartwheel moonsault hit raised knees. Angels sends him outside for a dive, followed by a frog splash for two back inside. That’s enough for Swann, who catches him on top and snaps off a hurricanrana. The middle rope 450 finishes for Swann at 6:56.

Rating: C+. Angels is pretty easily the best in-ring star of the Design but that isn’t exactly the hardest field to overcome. The war against Callihan continues, but there is only so much to get out of this story as it somehow keeps going. I’m almost scared to see who is going to team with Callihan and Swann tomorrow, but hopefully it isn’t someone with too much value being sunk into this thing.

Post match the Design comes in so Callihan tries to make the save. The baseball bat shots knock the good guys down.

Deonna Purrazzo isn’t worried about Jordynne Grace but Alisha Edwards comes in. Edwards talks about that Grace is going to show her true colors but Purrazzo isn’t convinced.

Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich have a big brawl in the back. Slamovich chokes her out.

Alisha Edwards vs. Jordynne Grace

Eddie Edwards is here with Alisha. Grace gets shoved in the face to start and Alisha chops her, earning a laugh. Another slap is countered into Dalton Castle’s Bang A Rang, setting up the Grace Driver (Alisha landed HARD) for the pin at 46 seconds.

We get an explanation from Dirty Dango of why he attacked Santino Marella. Dango explains that he grew up watching the Attitude Era and he doesn’t like people walking around talking about how happy they are to be here. No he doesn’t have to worry about walking on eggshells because he makes money outside of wrestling. When he broke in, it was about talking in the locker room and what you did rather than looking at your phones.

People cared about the crowd reactions rather than their social media. No he isn’t worried about people hitting him in the face, but he might get a tweet. As for attacking Santino, it’s because the Cobra was a big deal in 2010 and Santino is stuck doing the same things over and over. Joe Hendry is just another stooge and it would be ironic and funny if Dango won the toy title. So he’s Jim Cornette’s complaints about modern wrestling?

Video on the six way #1 contenders match at Under Siege.

Chris Bey vs. John Skyler

Ace Austin, Brian Myers and Jason Hotch are ringside. Bey snaps off a hurricanrana to start and hits a double stomp to the back. Skyler is sent outside and ducks the dive, allowing his friends to offer a distraction. One heck of a clothesline takes Bey down and we take a break. Back with Skyler grabbing a chinlock but Bey is up in a hurry. The running elbow hits Skyler in the corner but a middle rope elbow misses for Bey. We get a series of standing switches as Hotch offers a distraction. With that not working, Bey dropkicks Myers down and the Art of Finesse finishes Skyler at 9:17.

Rating: C+. Another nice match between talented guys. The Good Hands have wound up being a perfectly nice team and a cool addition to the division. That being said, the Bullet Club has gone from just another team to maybe the best in the company today (yes including the Guns). I could go for those guys holding the titles for a long time, as this worked rather well, with skilled tag wrestlers getting to show their solo skills for a change.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Here is Steve Maclin to name his replacement World Title challenger for tomorrow night. Maclin declares PCO dead so here is his new opponent: Champagne Singh! Cue Singh, with Shera, to say it’s time he finished his story. He has a list of people to thank and it’s probably hundreds of names long. Instead here is Scott D’Amore to interrupt, with Singh saying we should get a contract out here right now.

D’Amore says nah on the match so Maclin yells about this being unfair. D’Amore says he wants the best wrestler in the world to be the World Champion and that might be Maclin. Then Maclin tries to do something like this and the title is disrespected. D’Amore wants to bury this right now. If Maclin retains at Under Siege, D’Amore will shake his hand and apology, even handing Maclin the title. That doesn’t work for the champ, who tells D’Amore to leave and show him the respect that he deserves.

The title makes Maclin D’Amore’s boss, and he wants D’Amore to strap the title around him if he wins at Under Siege. That works for D’Amore, but Maclin still wants to know the replacement. D’Amore hasn’t named a replacement, because THERE IS NO REPLACEMENT. Actually, he’s here tonight and cue PCO so the fight can be on. Maclin bails as the lackeys are beaten up to end the show. This was a long segment to set up the D’Amore stipulation and nothing else, as otherwise we’re right back where we started coming into this show.

Overall Rating: B-. Under Siege is looking good and this show helped boost it up even more. What mattered here was making me care about the big show a bit more and they accomplished their goal. The opener was good and the segments worked well enough, though the women’s matches not even breaking 90 seconds total was rather strange. As usual, the show knows what it needs to do and then goes out to do it, which is harder than it seems. Good show here, with the more important show hopefully following suit.

Results
Chris Sabin b. Mike Bailey – Cradle Shock
Kenny King/Sheldon Jean b. Decay – Royal Flush to Crazzy Steve
Taylor Wilde b. Jessicka – Witch’s Wrath
Rich Swann b. Alan Angels – Middle rope 450
Jordynne Grace b. Alisha Edwards – Grace Driver
Chris Bey b. John Skyler – Art Of Finesse

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Impact Wrestling
Date: May 18, 2023
Location: Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

We’re almost up to Under Siege and things have started to get all the more interesting around here. Above all else, Steve Maclin has to defend the World Title against PCO, but might also have Alex Shelley to worry about either before or after. Other than that, Trinity has an open challenge for the show and is going to need an opponent. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Trey Miguel vs. Laredo Kid

Non-title. Kid takes him down without much effort to start but they’re right up with a standoff. Back up and Kid sends him outside for the big running dive as Miguel can’t get much going here. Miguel finally uppercuts his way out of trouble and hits a basement dropkick for two back inside. Some slow kicks to the head seem to wake Kid up, meaning it’s a Michinoku Driver into a not so great looking bottom rope moonsault.

The middle rope moonsault to the back gets two but Miguel kicks him away again. A running flip DDT plants Miguel again though and something like a reverse Koji clutch keeps him down. With that broken up, Miguel flips over him and hits a basement dropkick to the back of the head for two more. A loud enziguri sets up a missed Lightning Spiral, only to have Miguel pull off the mask. That’s enough for a rollup with tights to give Miguel the pin at 8:54.

Rating: B-. This was what you would expect from these two as Miguel is one of the more dependable stars in Impact these days and Kid has always been worth a look. That being said, I really could go without seeing the “HE RIPPED OFF THE MASK” for a very long time. It comes off like the emergency exit for a match involving a masked wrestler these days and just feels uncreative.

Post match Miguel insults the crowd and says it’s time to get some respect on his name. Actually, Miguel wants it so much that he is holding this show hostage until he gets his respect. We take a break and come back with Miguel still in the ring until Chris Sabin, the #1 contender to Miguel’s X-Division Title, interrupts. Sabin talks about how Miguel needs to give respect to get it back, and he didn’t give any respect when he defaced the title.

It was disrespectful to everyone who who has held that title before. Sabin is an eight time X-Division Champion and a former World Champion, so at Under Siege, he is taking the title and giving it the respect that it deserves. Now get out of his ring, which Miguel does. This made the title match feel that might more important and that is a great thing, as the X-Division Title rarely gets this much attention.

Trinity is warming up when Jai Vidal interrupts. Gisele Shaw isn’t happy with her, but Trinity says come do something about it face to face. Shaw is injured but will be back next week, where Trinity will be waiting.

Rich Swann and Sami Callihan talk about their history together. They started at a small independent promotion in Philadelphia and became friends. Sure they fight from time to time, but people as close as they are will always come back together. We see some of their fights over the years and Sami says he’ll still call Swann the best wrestler in the world.

Ace Austin vs. Jason Hotch

Chris Bey is here with Austin and Brian Myers/John Skyler are here with Hotch. Before the match, Myers and Skyler threaten Austin for going after one of the Good Hands. They go technical to start with Hotch working on a headlock before running Austin over. That doesn’t seem to bother Austin, who rolls out and kicks him in the back.

A hip toss and armdrag have Hotch in trouble, setting up a jumping legdrop for two. Austin grabs a headscissors, sending Hotch over to the ropes rather quickly. Back up and Hotch sends him throat first into the rope to take over and we take a break. We come back with Austin hitting a running forearm in the corner, only to get caught with a Blue Thunder Bomb for two.

Austin fights up again and looks to set up the Fold but Myers’ distraction lets Skyler pull him to the floor. Bey takes Skyler down but Hotch catches Austin with a Spanish Fly for two. Back up and Myers gets in a cheap shot from the floor, allowing Hotch to grab a rollup for the pin at 11:32.

Rating: B-. Hotch is someone who you haven’t seen much from around here but he actually does live up to the Good Hand moniker. The Hands should be fine enough for an upcoming title shot as Myers is just enough of a threat to make you think that the titles could change hands. Another good match here, as this show is doing rather well so far.

Steve Maclin thanks Champagne Singh and Shera for taking out Heath last week. He needs them to prove their worth again though and it is time to do it right now. Come with him.

We look back at the Coven retaining the Knockouts Tag Team Titles over Jordynne Grace and Deonna Purrazzo last week.

Grace wants to be the face of this division so she wants no doubt when she beats Purrazzo. Alisha Edwards comes in to say she doesn’t believe anything Grace is saying. Grace took Purrazzo out last week on purpose…but the threat of a right hand sends Edwards bailing.

Trinity vs. KiLynn King

Taylor Wilde is here with King. An early kick to the face staggers King and the threat of the Rear View sends her to the apron. Back in and a kick to the head rocks King, setting up the splits splash for two. King finally fights back and ties her in the ropes, setting up a kick of her own to rock Trinity for a change. A backslide attempt doesn’t work for Trinity and King blasts her with a clothesline for two.

King slowly hammers away and hits a high collar suplex, followed by alternating rope choking. Trinity fights back up but gets crotched n top by Wilde, which is enough for an ejection (not a DQ, but an ejection). A high crossbody hits King and a good looking top rope Blockbuster gives Trinity two more.

King is right back with a powerslam for two of her own but Trinity sends her into the ropes. Something like a jumping hanging Pedigree (minus the double underhook) gives Trinity two but King grabs an AA for the same. Trinity knees her in the face though and pulls King into Star Struck (the reverse Rings of Saturn) for the tap at 10:31.

Rating: B. This was a lot of trading moves but they were rocking by the end and while there was almost no way that Trinity was losing, the near falls had me wondering how this was going to end. They did a great job of pulling me in here and the fans seemed rather invested. If nothing else, it showed that Trinity can still go after such a long time away from the ring, which is exactly how you need to get things started. Very good stuff here and they were working hard throughout,.

Post match Jai Vidal interrupts and says everyone knows who Gisele Shaw is. Shaw has a message for her: she accepts the challenge for Under Siege and Vidal goes to slap her. That’s broken up with a twist of the hand and a kick to the head, with Trinity accepting the acceptance.

Steve Maclin, Champagne Singh and Shera jump PCO and beat him down backstage. They put some cement blocks on his back and crush it with a sledgehammer, leaving PCO screaming.

Jessicka is waiting on Rosemary to get back from the Undead Realm when the Coven interrupts. They offer to open the door to the Realm but Rosemary has said they aren’t powerful enough. King (who looks fine after a hard hitting match that absolutely took place right before this took place) says Rosemary isn’t always right and the Coven seems ready to open the door.

Jody Threat vs. Sierra

Threat kicks her into the corner to start and fires off some clotheslines. The release northern lights suplex drops Sierra again and a top rope seated senton makes it worse. Threat grabs a German suplex and finishes with the F416 finishes Sierra at 2:25. They’re certainly trying with Threat so points for pushing someone new.

Eddie Edwards comes up to see Frankie Kazarian before their six man tag. Edwards says follow his lead tonight, with Kazarian agreeing, though he hopes it goes better than Honor No More.

Dirty Dango clears Johnny Swinger and Zicky Dice of attacking Santino Marella because they’re too stupid to figure it out. They accuse Joe Hendry, who pops in, with Dango asking if that’s true. Hendry denies it, but says he’s a champion and therefore moving on from all of this. Dango doesn’t like that and gets his shirt ripped open, revealing MISSING CHEST HAIR! Dango tries to deny it….but yeah he did it. Dango: “Case closed bro.”

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Frankie Kazarian/Moose/Eddie Edwards vs. Yuya Uemura/Jonathan Gresham/Alex Shelley

This is everyone in the Under Siege #1 contenders match. Shelley cranks on Eddie’s arm to start before it’s quickly off to Uemura vs. Moose. Uemura armdrags him into an armbar before it’s off to Kazarian to headlock Gresham. Edwards comes back in to headbutt Gresham, only to have Shelley come in off a blind tag to take out the leg. Everything breaks down and Shelley and company clear the ring as we take a break.

Back with Uemura suplexing Eddie and getting over for the tag to Shelley. Shelley comes in to start taking over on Eddie, who enziguris his way out of trouble. Kazarian hits a leg lariat for two on Shelley and hands it back to Moose, who isn’t happy with this. The slow, alternating beatings continue until Shelley goes after Eddie’s bad knee. The Boston Knee Party gets Eddie out of trouble but Shelley knocks him down again, allowing Uemura to come in and clean house.

A suplex gets two on Eddie but he’s right back with the Blue Thunder Bomb for the same. Moose cuts Uemura off with a Randy Orton backbreaker, followed by a standing powerbomb for two. Uemura kicks his way out of trouble though and brings Gresham back in. Moose’s powerbomb is broken up and Gresham rolls him into a failed ankle lock attempt. Gresham cranks the leg out anyway and victory rolls the now legal Kazarian for two.

Shelley comes back in and gets clotheslined, followed by the running forearm. The slingshot DDT gives Kazarian two but Shelley drops Kazarian and Edwards at the same time. Kazarian Backstabs Uemura but gets suplexed hard by Gresham. Uemura dives onto Moose at ringside and we settle down to Shelley Shell Shocking Edwards for the pin at 20:21.

Rating: B. The solid wrestling show wraps up with a solid six man as Shelley gets some momentum built up for Under Siege. This was a bunch of stuff that kept going until the end with Eddie’s knee injury being the main focal point. Other than that, it was a great way to get a bunch of people some shine at the same time, while being unique enough that it felt worth seeing.

Overall Rating: B+. This is the kind of show that you do not get very often and it was a very special watch. It was two hours of awesome wrestling and storylines being advanced. I had a really good time with this show and there was nothing bad throughout. They even had a lack of Design for a bonus. Rather great show here and one of the best Impacts in a long time.

Results
Trey Miguel b. Laredo Kid – Rollup with tights
Jason Hotch b. Ace Austin – Rollup
Trinity b. KiLynn King – Starstruck
Joey Threat b. Sierra – F416
Yuya Uemura/Jonathan Gresham/Alex Shelley b. Frankie Kazarian/Moose/Eddie Edwards – Shell Shock to Edwards

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: April 20, 2023
Location: Rebel Entertainment Complex, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

We are done with Rebellion and the biggest story is the new World Champion, having defeated Kushida to win the vacant title. At the same time, Deonna Purrazzo is once again Knockouts Champion, having defeated Jordynne Grace for the vacant title in the show’s main event. Let’s get to it.

Here is Rebellion if you need a recap.

We look at the new champions being crowned at Rebellion.

Mike Bailey/Jonathan Gresham/Trey Miguel vs. Time Machine

Gresham and Shelley go technical to start for a standoff so it’s off to Bailey vs. Sabin. An armbar has Bailey in trouble as commentary points out that everyone but Miguel lost at Rebellion. Kushida comes in and gets sent into the corner, where Miguel rakes his back. That doesn’t last long as Kushida gets over to his own corner, allowing all of Time Machine to crank on Miguel’s arm.

It’s off to Bailey, who gets caught in the Tree of Woe for a triple dropkick as the dominance continues. Shelley starts in on Bailey’s arm before it’s back to Kushida, who kicks Gresham and Miguel off the apron in a smart move. Everything breaks down and Sabin hits a suicide dive onto Gresham and Miguel as we take a break.

Back with Bailey’s arm still in trouble but he kicks his way to freedom. Gresham comes in and gets to face Kushida with Gresham getting a series of near falls. Sabin accidentally kicks Shelley in the chest though and it’s Miguel getting to clean house. Bailey busts out the slingshot springboard moonsault onto the pile on the floor but Kushida Hoverboard Locks Miguel. Time Machine all get submission holds on at once and we take another break.

Back again with Miguel knocking Kushida into the corner. That doesn’t last long as it’s back to Sabin, who gets to slug it out with Shelley. Bailey kicks him down and this the moonsault double knees to the chest. Sabin is back up with a German superplex and Shelley/Kushida break up the tag attempts. Bailey manages the Ultimate Weapon to a standing Sabin’s back as everything breaks down. The parade of strikes to the face leads to Kushida kicking Miguel in the face, setting up Cradle Shock for the pin at 26:35.

Rating: B. Like this wasn’t going to work. They had all six guys getting time and Bailey getting beaten up. What else could you want in a match? The ending even sets up Sabin (though Kushida and Shelley could be right there too) as Miguel’s next challenger, which boosts up the competition a good bit. Very solid opener here as they let six talented people have a long, long TV match and it worked.

Santino Marella is happy with his in-ring return but says he won’t be returning to the ring very often. Alisha Edwards interrupts to to yell about PCO but Santino sends her to the ring for her match. Gia Miller: “Did she have a match tonight?” Santino: “She does now.” Johnny Swinger and Zicky Dice come in to ask about Swinger’s match but Santino says he can’t keep wasting resources on a loser. Dice has found the world’s greatest luchador though, and he’ll even pay for said luchador’s appearance and transportation. Even Santino is down with that.

Video on Deonna Purrazzo, the new Knockouts Champion.

Alisha Edwards vs. Tara Rysing

Alisha takes Tara into the corner to start and sends her flying without much effort. Tara manages a clothesline out of the corner but gets sent outside. Back in and an X Factor finishes Rysing at 2:27.

Post match Edwards stays on Tara but Jody Threat makes the save.

Post break Threat promises to take care of Edwards for Rysing.

Moose vs. Yuya Uemura

Brian Myers and Bhupinder Gujjar are here too. Moose takes him straight into the corner to start but gets pulled into an armbar. With Moose on the floor, Uemura loads up a dive but Myers takes the impact for him. That earns Uemura an apron bomb and Moose shoves him around back inside. Uemura fights up but Myers offers a distraction, allowing Moose to knock him back down.

Back in and Uemura hits a dropkick, followed by a middle rope bulldog for two. Moose suplexes his way out of a suplex but gets caught in a German suplex. Uemura’s high crossbody is broken up so Moose goes up, only to get belly to back superplexed down. Now the high crossbody can connect but Myers offers the distraction. Gujjar goes after him but Moose sends Umeura throat first into the top rope. The spear finishes Uemura at 9:57.

Rating: C+. Power vs. speed with interference mixed in worked well enough here and Uemura is feeling more and more like a player every week. He’s no longer just the guy on excursion but rather someone who might be something around here. Granted that isn’t going to have the longest future, but for now I can settle for a young, talented star giving Moose a nice match.

Nick Aldis is happy to be back and tells us some of his history around here. He’s coming for Steve Maclin and the World Title because he knows what it’s like to be under that pressure. As soon as Maclin’s strong legs start to wobble, Aldis will be right there to take the title from him. As usual, Aldis cuts a good promo, but he’s only so interesting.

Frankie Kazarian vs. Good Hands

Kazarian slugs away to start but gets caught in the wrong corner rather quickly. A dropkick puts both Hands down at once but Skyler low bridges Kazarian to the floor. Back in and Kazarian takes over without much trouble, setting up a Figure Four and small package for two at the same time. The slingshot cutter hits Hotch and the chickenwing finishes Skyler at 3:40.

Rating: C. Just a showcase for Kazarian here, which wasn’t the most thrilling stuff but it wasn’t supposed to be. Kazarian getting a push is a fine way to go as he would be a good choice for a one off World Title shot at Maclin. You aren’t likely to get anything worse than pretty good out of him so warming him up like this could be a rather smart move.

The Coven is coming for Deonna Purrazzo.

Sami Callihan talks about how smart he is and claims to have infiltrated the Design to take them down from within. Was that really supposed to be a surprise?

Digital Media Title: Joe Hendry vs. Sheldon Jean

Hendry is defending and brings up Jean being on Big Brother Canada but having his season cut off by the Coronavirus pandemic. Jean shrugs off an early beatdown and hammers Hendry down on the mat for a bit of a surprise. That’s enough for Hendry, who fights up with some clotheslines. The fall away slam sets up…actually a strike off until Jean gets dropped. The Standing Ovation retains the title at 4:33.

Rating: C. This was a little longer than I expected and Jean got in a nice bit of offense so it might have been a tryout for him. Hendry got to break the smallest bit of a sweat to retain, but the real perk here was the energy that he brings. The motivational stuff is great and I could see Hendry going pretty far around here, as the fans are into him and that’s what matters a lot of the time.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

It’s time for new World Champion Steve Maclin’s Changing Of The Guard ceremony. Maclin walks to the ring under military guard and talks about having to learn who he was when he came back. Now he’s the World Champion and issues the open challenge to any Canadian. Cue Scott D’Amore to say he’s not happy with Maclin being the champion but he earned it. Why did Maclin take so long to go after Josh Alexander during his record title reign?

Maclin laughs him off because he was hoping the old D’Amore would show up. D’Amore says Maclin hit him like a coward and the jacket comes off. If Maclin wants to face a Canadian at Under Siege, he can face the perfect Canadian: Perfect Creation One, PCO! Cue PCO to beat up the guards, with Maclin bailing. Some guards are put through a table to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I’m running out of ways to say it but Impact continues to be a completely watchable wrestling show every week. You can follow the stories really easily and it isn’t hard to jump into a lot of this stuff. They were at a new starting point with a lot of the stories this week, but there is enough to have more going on next week. Good show here, with a rather nice opener and a surprise first challenger for Maclin makes it even better.

Results
Time Machine b. Trey Miguel/Jonathan Gresham/Mike Bailey – Cradle Shock to Miguel
Alisha Edwards b. Tara Rysing – Facebuster
Moose b. Yuya Uemura – Spear
Frankie Kazarian b. Good Hands – Chickenwing to Skyler
Joe Hendry b. Sheldon Jean – Standing Ovation

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

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Rebellion 2023
Date: April 16, 2023
Location: Rebel Sports Complex, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

It’s back to regular pay per view around here and that should make for a good show. The injury bug has struck Impact hard though as a new World and Knockouts Champion have to be crowned tonight. Other than that we have a Hardcore War, because we just needed more Tommy Dreamer vs. Bully Ray. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Heath/Rhino vs. Champagne Singh/Shera

Singh offers Heath money to throw the match but Heath throws the money instead. Heath works on the arm to take over before it’s off to Rhino vs. Shera. Rhino gets taken into the corner and Shera hammers away, setting up some choking on the ropes. Rhino gets in a clothesline but Shera is back up to knock Heath into the barricade. The belly to belly gets Rhino out of trouble for good though as the tag brings Heath in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Singh rolls Heath up, with Shera holding the feet for the pin at 6:08.

Rating: C. Very basic match to open things up here and that’s all it needed to be. They kept things moving and while I’m not sure about the logic of having Shera and Singh win, well anything really, it wasn’t long enough to get bad and the fans are going to cheer for Rhino and Heath. Just don’t expect me to care about Singh and we’ll be fine.

Post match Rhino Gores Singh.

Pre-Show: Knockouts Tag Team Titles: The Coven vs. Death Dollz

The Dollz are challenging and it’s Rosemary and Wilde both tagging out to start. It’s way too early for the Sick Driver so Jessicka clotheslines her to the floor instead. Back in and King is sent into the corner for a running splash from Rosemary. King manages to get over for the tag to Wilde, who quickly takes over on Rosemary. A running shoulder in the corner connects and Wilde runs her over again for a bonus.

Rosemary slugs at Wilde, who gets caught with a Codebreaker to cut her right back off. An exploder to Wilde gets Rosemary out of trouble though and there’s the double tag so Jessicka can clean house. Everything breaks down and it’s quickly back to Rosemary, who gets to bite King. The spear gives Rosemary two but Wilde makes a blind tag. Rosemary hits a second spear for no count, as instead she walks into a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker to give Wilde the pin to retain at 9:39.

Rating: C. Slightly longer match than the opener here but it didn’t make that much of a difference. The Knockouts Tag Team Titles are certainly better than either Women’s Tag Team Title in WWE but that isn’t the biggest hurdle to clear. The division needs some more teams, but the Coven still feels fresh enough to make them last for a while to come.

The opening video focuses on the World and Knockouts Titles being vacated and how we need new champions.

Tag Team Titles: Motor City Machine Guns vs. Bullet Club

The Club is defending in Ultimate X. It’s a brawl to start with Sabin getting knocked down but Shelley back off, allowing Sabin to try for the belts. With that not working, the Guns are sent outside for stereo dives from the Club. Back in and the Guns take over on, with Austin’s arm getting banged up.

Austin and Sabin climb up at the same time with the bad arm being rammed into the structure. Sabin ties up both of the Guns and Shelley goes up but gets pulled back down fast. Bey’s knee is banged up but he’s fine enough to grab a quick DDT and give everyone a much needed breather.

With everyone else on the floor, Austin busts out the big flip dive to take out both Guns. Back in and everyone gets knocked down again before all four go up for a climb at once. They all come crashing down and it’s the Art of Finesse to drop Shelley, allowing Bey to pull down the titles and retain at 13:07.

Rating: B. Hot opener as expected but there wasn’t much in the way of climbing, which made it kind of a regular match until the ending. The good thing is the people involved are able to do just about anything and make it work so this went well. I did like the lack of climbing and insanity though, as it was more about the people rather than the big crashes and spots. You don’t get that kind of thing in a match like this very often and it was nice for a change.

Commentary runs down the card as the audio quality goes down.

Steve Maclin is upset over the situation because he wanted to win the title from Josh Alexander. He spent years in a war zone and now he is ready to tag em and bag em. Oh and beat Kushida.

We recap Callihan trying to join the Design in maybe the dumbest story going in wrestling today.

Design/Callihan vs. Dirty Dango/Santino Marella/Joe Hendry

Before the match, Hendry mocks Callihan and the Design because the fans believe in him. He introduces Santino and….I still have no idea why this is supposed to be interesting. Is he really that kind of Canadian hero? Dango suplexes Angels to start and brings in Santino to wrestle Angels down. The threat of the Cobra sends Angels into the corner for the tag off to Callihan.

Santino gets taken into the corner corner so the beating can begin. A quick escape allows the tag off to Hendry though and Kon is pulled out of the air. Deaner gets suplexed and the tag brings Dango in to take over on Callihan. The Dirtbag Shuffle hits Callihan but a Kon distraction lets the villains get in a cheap shot. Dango gets beaten down in the corner but he manages to knock Angels down, allowing the hot tag off to Santino.

Everything breaks down and Hendry hits a double fall away slam, only to get caught with the Cactus Special 97. Deaner’s discus lariat hits Santino but he wants Callihan to finish him off. Callihan is handed the baseball bat….and he hits Deaner with it (thank goodness). Callihan gives him the thumbs down and walks out, leaving Santino to hit the Cobra for the pin on Deaner at 10:40.

Rating: C+. Pretty basic six man with the focus being on Santino and Callihan. That isn’t the most thrilling match but the fans being into it helped things a lot. At the very least, we’re done with the idiotic Seven Deadly Whatevers for Callihan, meaning we can finally move on to ANYTHING else. Not a great match but the fans liked it enough so it could have been a lot worse.

Tommy Dreamer is sad about his mother’s health but wants to be here anyway to fight in her honor. Dreamer is leaving a bit after tonight, but he’s ready to fight with the people he loves.

We recap PCO vs. Eddie Edwards. Eddie turned on PCO during the Honor No More days, sending PCO into a quest for revenge. For some reason Eddie has tried to bury PCO multiple times, which has been as bad of an idea as it has sounded. Now PCO wants to end Eddie for good in a Last Rites match.

Eddie Edwards vs. PCO

Last Rites (casket) match with Alisha Edwards in Eddie’s corner. PCO wastes no time in diving onto Edwards and the fight is on outside. Edwards gets in a shot though and hits his own dive to take over. They get inside for the first time, where PCO hits a running corner clothesline and a DDT.

The middle rope legdrop hits Edwards again and the Deanimator makes it worse. Back in and a chokeshove sends Edwards right back to the floor but it’s too early for the casket. Edwards gets in a shot to the arm and yep that’s dislocated. A German suplex and superkick don’t make things better for PCO so he goes outside…and slams the shoulder into the post to pop it back in.

They chop it out (with PCO opening his vest to make it easier) and Edwards is in trouble again. The PCOsault connects and Edwards gets chokeslammed onto the apron for another painful crash. Edwards gets in a shot of his own and smashes a kendo stick over PCO’s head. The Boston Knee Party connects but PCO pops back up. Cue Alisha with a shovel to the back for no avail, leaving PCO to chokeslam Eddie into the casket for the win at 13:46.

Rating: B-. PCO is not an overly complicated idea and sometimes that is what you need. In his case, you have a monster who is going to hurt people and is nearly unstoppable, which is exactly what you had here. I’m not sure what is next for PCO, but Edwards needs to go away for the time being while PCO moves off to something else. Good brawl here though, with PCO’s monster offense being great.

Trey Miguel’s promo….cannot be heard as there is no sound.

We recap Trey Miguel defending the X-Division Title against Mike Bailey and Jonathan Gresham. In short, two challengers, stupid champion, interference, triple threat results.

X-Division Title: Jonathan Gresham vs. Mike Bailey vs. Trey Miguel

Miguel is defending in an elimination match. They go with some three way grappling to start and that’s good for a three way standoff. Gresham and Bailey double hiptoss Miguel for a double two before Miguel is smart enough to bail to the ramp. The other two get to fight a bit until Miguel comes back in with an enziguri to Gresham.

Bailey is back up with a missile dropkick to Gresham and the standing shooting star gets two on Miguel. Bailey Indian Deathlocks Gresham and suplexes Miguel at the same time to crank on the leg even harder. Miguel gets dropped again and the challengers get to slug it out. Bailey poisonranas Gresham and crashes outside with Miguel in a big heap. Gresham dives onto Miguel but Bailey dives onto both of them to take over again.

Miguel cutters Bailey down and hits a big running version over the top for two on Gresham inside. Gresham is fine enough to Figure Four Bailey (that won’t work) but Miguel breaks it up with a top rope Meteora to eliminate Gresham at 9:45. Miguel figures Bailey’s four and they chop it out with the hold still on.

Bailey finally breaks out and wins a chop off until he kicks Miguel in the face. A standing flipping slam gives Bailey two and there’s the tornado kick. The Ultimate Weapon misses so Bailey sends him outside for the standing moonsault knees. Back in and the Ultimate Weapon only hits mat, allowing Miguel to roll him up with trunks to retain at 13:53.

Rating: B. Good, fast paced match here which shouldn’t be a surprise, much like holding Bailey in a pair of Figure Fours for two minutes straight making him do more flips and kicks. That is just something you know is coming from Bailey but at least now we get to move on to more of Miguel as champion. His time as champion is getting to be impressive as he is getting into the all time ranks and that can make for some very fun times.

We recap Team Bully vs. Team Dreamer. This is all about Bully Ray vs. Tommy Dreamer, which has been going on for about six months now. Ray pretended to be good, Dreamer wasn’t sure, Ray revealed he was evil, it’s time for a big fight with friends because they used to be around each other in ECW.

Team Bully vs. Team Dreamer

Bully Ray, Moose, Brian Myers, Masha Slamovich, Kenny King
Tommy Dreamer, Killer Kelly, Yuya Uemura, Frankie Kazarian, Bhupinder Gujjar

It’s basically WarGames without the cage, with the first two entrants in for three minutes. Then Team Bully (thanks to winning a match on Impact) gets an advantage for ninety seconds. All ten have to get in and then it’s first pin or submission, anything goes. Moose starts for Team Bully and Frankie Kazarian starts for Team Dreamer.

Kazarian starts fast by throwing a trashcan at Moose’s head and we’re ready to go. Moose fires back with a chop and they head outside, where Kazarian sets up a table. We’ll save that for later though as they head back inside, with Kazarian sending him into the corner. Brian Myers is in to give Ray the advantage and he sets up another table next to the first.

Bhupinder Gujjar evens things up and goes after Myers to give Kazarian a breather. The cheese grater to the head has Myers busted open (good thing he is in a white shirt) and Moose gets trashcan lidded down. Kenny King is in to uneven things again and house is quickly cleaned. Moose hits Gujjar in the head with a bottle of water and Killer Kelly makes it 3-3. That means a staple gun to Myers’ head and another shot between Moose’s legs. Then Kelly staples her own head and it’s Masha Slamovich in to give the villains control again.

Everyone else is knocked down and it’s Myers alone to face Yuya Uemura as things are evened up. The good guys clear the ring again and it’s Bully Ray to complete his own team. Ray is smart enough to take his time so the rest of his team can get back up and jump Team Dreamer. Kelly is held down but it’s Dreamer to even things up with the kendo stick. Dreamer goes after the leg….and everyone else gets involved for a ten person chain submission for quite the visual.

Kelly and Slamovich have a chair duel until Ray shoves Kelly off the top. Moose spears Ray by mistake and Uemura hits Moose with a high crossbody. The Killer Klutch has King in trouble but Slamovich breaks it up and Snow Plows Kelly. Dreamer piledrives Slamovich but here are the Good Hands to jump him.

Kazarian breaks that up and let’s bring in a ladder. The Good Hands come back in to go after Kelly, who beats them up like the goons they are. Kazarian cutters Skyler through the tables at ringside but Ray low blows Dreamer inside. Another table is set up….and here are a bunch of referees to beat Ray up for revenge from the last few weeks. Dreamer drops Ray and, with the referees holding the ladder, goes up to splash Ray through said table for the win at 25:07.

Rating: C. What is there to say here? You have a bunch of other people there to keep everyone else warm for the sake of Ray vs. Dreamer. This is a feud that has been going on for months for reasons I still don’t quite get, but hopefully this should wrap it up. The hardcore stuff was kind of there but it was all basic stuff with only a few spots of note. It was fine enough and far better than Ray vs. Dreamer on their own, but it has been a story that wasn’t interesting for months and wasn’t much better here in the blowoff.

We recap the World title match. Josh Alexander had to vacate the title after about a year long reign, setting up #1 contender Steve Maclin vs. Kushida, the best remaining option. There isn’t much heat on the match, but it is a case where they didn’t have another choice and are doing the best they can.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Kushida vs. Steve Maclin

For the vacant title and former World Champion Nick Aldis is here as a surprise guest commentator. Aldis says he is officially back in Impact, which is better than nothing for him. Kushida goes right at him to start fast but it’s way too early for the Hoverboard Lock. Back up and Kushida rides him into a headlock without much trouble as Maclin can’t get anything going here.

Kushida can’t hit the basement dropkick so he takes it over into a wristlock instead. The Hoverboard Lock is blocked again and this time Maclin sends him throat first into the top rope to take over. A backbreaker gives Maclin two and Kushida’s back is sent into the post. They head outside with Maclin grabbing a suplex and dropping an elbow off the apron, though he might have banged up his knee in the process.

We hit the chinlock with a knee in Kushida’s back as Maclin certainly has a target. An Angle Slam is blocked though and Kushida hits a running kick to the arm. A discus forearm sets up the small package driver to give Kushida two but Maclin is fine enough to crotch him on top. They go to the ramp where Kushida hits a running shot to the arm but said arm is fine enough for a German suplex back inside.

A buckle bomb into a sitout powerbomb gives Maclin two and he puts Kushida on top. That is hardly the best idea as Kushida pulls him down into a cross armbreaker. Maclin gets over to the rope for the break and they crash out to the floor again. Back in and Maclin’s spear in the corner sets up the KIA for two, leaving Maclin frustrated.

Maclin goes up top but dives into the Hoverboard Lock, only to break it up with some forearms to the head. Another Hoverboard Lock goes on but Maclin reverses into a Death Valley Driver into the corner. Kushida gets the Hoverboard Lock AGAIN, only to have Maclin reverse into another KIA for the pin and the title at 18:27.

Rating: B. That was about the only way they could go as Kushida was a filler opponent for Maclin. That isn’t something they could really get around given the circumstances and it wound up being a rather good match anyway. Maclin has been built up to be champion for months now and it was the only conclusion they had here. Kushida going for the arm time after time but having Maclin escape it at every turn worked well. They were limited in what they could do and made it work as well as possible.

Post match Maclin insists that Scott D’Amore come out and hand him the title. D’Amore does so and gets hit in the face with the belt. Nick Aldis gets in and glares Maclin off. Aldis works just fine for a first challenger, as Maclin has already run through a lot of the other options.

Here are some upcoming major events. Multiverse United 2 is on August 20.

We recap the Knockouts Title match. Again the champion, Mickie James in this case, was forced to vacate the title due to injury so we have the #1 contender and a former champion fighting for the title.

Knockouts Title: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Jordynne Grace

For the vacant title. They shake hands to start and Grace grinds away on a headlock. Purrazzo cranks away on the arm and has Grace in some early pain. Some armdrags into a running hurricanrana has Grace in more trouble but she sends Purrazzo outside. That means a dropkick through the ropes and a Jackhammer on the floor as Purrazzo is rocked.

A rather stalled suplex gives Grace a slightly delayed two but she has to roll out of a Fujiwara armbar. The Queen’s Gambit on the ramp is broken up so Purrazzo settles for a moonsault to the floor instead. Back in and the Queen’s Gambit is broken up again but Purrazzo is able to grab a Koji Clutch.

Grace powers out and drops her hard with a Vertebreaker for all things for two. The Grace Driver is blocked and she pulls Purrazzo into a rear naked choke. They trade some strikes but Purrazzo pulls her into the Fujiwara armbar. Make that the Venus De Milo but a foot on the rope is good for the break. Back up and Grace’s spinebuster gets two, followed by a Grace Driver for the same (as Rehwoldt is getting into these near falls). Purrazzo counters a superplex into a sunset bomb, setting up the Queen’s Gambit for the pin and the title at 17:06.

Rating: B. This is an interesting way to go as I would have expected Grace to win but Purrazzo is a completely acceptable choice as well. Grace had held the title for a long time until James took it off of her but it has been a bit since Purrazzo. They could go quite an interesting direction with Purrazzo fighting off some challengers and hurting some arms, so this was certainly a smart idea. It was a good match as well, similar to Kushida vs. Maclin actually, but with the submission holds having more success until Purrazzo managed to pull it off.

They hug to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. They were in a rough place here as the two biggest matches had stories thrown together over the last two weeks. That left the main story of Bully Ray vs. Tommy Dreamer with four friends each. Given what they had, they had put on a rather strong show, which has been the case for their bigger events in recent memory. Good show here, and worth some extra praise all things considered.

Results
Champagne Singh/Shera b. Heath/Rhino – Rollup to Heath
The Coven b. Death Dollz – Swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker to Rosemary
Bullet Club b. Motor City Machine Guns – Bey pulled down the titles
Santino Marella/Dirty Dango/Joe Hendry b. The Design/Callihan – Cobra to Deaner
PCO b. Eddie Edwards – Chokeslam into the casket
Trey Miguel b. Jonathan Gresham and Mike Bailey – Rollup with trunks to Bailey
Team Dreamer b. Team Bully – Splash through a table to Ray
Steve Maclin b. Kushida – KIA
Deonna Purrazzo b. Jordynne Grace – Queen’s Gambit

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Impact Wrestling
Date: April 13, 2023
Location: St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

The road to Rebellion end this week and that means it is time to finish off the build towards the show. In this case it means we are going to be seeing more build towards the new World Title match of Kushida vs. Steve Maclin. This week will also see what happens with Mickie James and the Knockouts Title. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Kenny King vs. Frankie Kazarian

The winner gets the advantage in the Hardcore War at Rebellion and the other teams are at ringside. They fight over a lockup to start until Kazarian snaps off some chops. King cuts him off though and starts hammering away in the corner to take over. A backbreaker gives King two and we hit the one armed camel clutch. Kazarian breaks it up and makes the clothesline comeback, capped off by a running forearm.

The springboard spinning legdrop gives Kazarian two but King is back with a tiger driver for the same. King sends him to the floor but Kazarian comes back in with a slingshot cutter for two. The brawl on the floor finally breaks out as Kazarian gets the chickenwing. Cue Brian Myers for a distraction, allowing Moose to spear Kazarian down for the pin at 8:18.

Rating: B-. These two were having a good match until the screwy ending, which was quite the twist as Myers and Moose haven’t had anything to do with this feud so far. They would be an upgrade over the Good Hands for the match but that might be asking too much. For now though, I’ll settle for talented wrestlers having a good match to open the show, as is the norm around here.

Post match the beatdown is on and Team Dreamer is left laying.

Earlier tonight, Steve Maclin interrupted the Canadian National Anthem. Kushida made the save and cleaned house in a brawl.

Lince Dorado vs. Black Taurus vs. Laredo Kid vs. Rich Swann

Crazzy Steve handles Taurus’ intro. Taurus sends everyone to the floor to start and hits the big dive, only to have a triple superkick send him to the floor. That means the dives can take him out and leave everyone down as we take a break. Back with Taurus launching Dorado onto the top, where he can superplex Kid (while on top of Taurus’ shoulders for a crazy visual).

Back up and Kid hits a springboard armdrag to Swann, followed by a double Golden Rewind from Dorado. Taurus is back in to clean house, including a heck of a pop up Samoan drop to Dorado. That’s not enough as Taurus powerbombs Kid onto Swann at ringside. Taurus cleans house and goes up, only to have Kid catch him with a super Spanish Fly for the pin at 10:44.

Rating: B-. This might not have broken the mold for a match like this but they did their thing well. Kid has felt like he should be the next breakout star in the division almost every time he is around but nothing has ever really clicked. It seems like they’re trying it again and pinning Taurus is certainly a good way to start. Taurus got to show off again here and that power is always worth a look. Fun match, as expected.

Long video on the Bullet Club vs. the Motor City Machine Guns in Ultimate X for the Tag Team Titles.

Jessicka and Rosemary want to go to the Undead Realm to get Taya Valkyrie back but Rosemary says she’s going alone because Jessicka doesn’t know how to do it. She opens the coffin….but it’s just a regular one instead of the portal. The Coven must be behind this!

Jessicka vs. Taylor Wilde

Rosemary and KiLynn King are here too. Hold on as Wilde gives Jessicka a tarot card to start so Jessicka shows it to Rosemary. That lets Wilde jump her from behind so Jessicka says STOP HITTING ME. Jessicka misses a charge and gets choked in the corner before a Backstabber brings Jessicka down again. Back up and some jabs stagger Wilde, setting up a running crossbody for two. Rosemary and King get into it, allowing Wilde to slip out of a Sick Driver and grab a fisherman’s neckbreaker for the pin at 4:28.

Rating: C. The more I see of Wilde, the more amazed I am by the fact that she is the same woman who came back to almost no reaction last year. This is a completely different way to go for her and it is working rather well. The Coven has been a nice breath of air for the division and I could go for them holding the titles that much longer.

Jordynne Grace is ready for the Knockouts Title match at Rebellion but she can’t control what happens with Mickie James. She can control winning though.

Alisha Edwards is glad to have brought Eddie Edwards back to the right path. Now they want to get rid of the monster blocking his path.

Dirty Dango/Joe Hendry vs. Angels/Callihan

Before the match, Hendry confirms our belief in him. The rest of the Design is here too because what would it be like without the rest of them. Callihan suplexes Hendry for a fast two so Angels comes in, only to get suplexed as well. Dango comes in for the Dirtbag Shuffle but Angels takes him down. Callihan is whipped into Angels though and it’s back to Dango to clean house. Kon grabs the leg though and it’s a standing Sliced Bread to drop Hendry. A frog splash gets two, with Hendry making the save. Callihan hits Angels by mistake so Deaner stops to yell, leaving Hendry to hit the Standing Ovation for the pin at 4:39.

Rating: C. Egads I don’t know how much more I can take of this story. It feels like it has been going on forever and the Design somehow gets lamer every single week. Just get to someone turning on someone so they can have their big violent match and we can move on. Dango continues to do fine in his role and it’s nice to see him getting away from the dancing stuff. Hendry continues to be awesome and that’s all he needs to be.

Post match the Design jumps them again, until Santino Marella comes out for the save. This includes the Cobra because….oh my head hurts again.

Video on Steve Maclin vs. Kushida.

PCO promises to bury Eddie Edwards in a Last Rites match at Rebellion.

Bully Ray introduces Moose and Brian Myers as new members of his now seven person army. They’re ready for Rebellion and promise destruction because they’re family. Keep in mind that this is all to destroy TOMMY DREAMER.

Gisele Shaw vs. Tasha Steelz

Jai Vidal and Savannah Evans are here with Shaw. Steelz scares her to the floor to start before Steelz slaps her in the face back inside. That sends Shaw back to the floor and we take a break. Back with Shaw slapping her in the face as the theme continues. Steelz chops away but Shawn knocks her outside, where Evans hits a chokeslam onto the apron.

A snap suplex gives Shaw two more and we hit the reverse chinlock. With that broken up, Shaw hits a double jumping stomp in the corner and we take another break. Back again with Shaw hitting a running jumping uppercut for two more, followed by a swinging suplex for the same.

Steelz fights up and hits an ax handle into an atomic drop into a…completely missed jumping neckbreaker. Shaw’s belly to back toss sets up a running shot to the back of the head for two. The annoyed Shaw stomps away in the corner before they head outside for a slugout. Steelz sends her into the steps but misses a running knee, which only hits said steps. Back in and Steelz kicks the knee out for the pin at 21:23.

Rating: C+. Something tells me we didn’t miss much between those breaks as I have a hard time believing that these two had a pay per view main event length match out of nowhere. It wouldn’t surprise me if this had to be extended due to the Mickie James injury and if that is the case, they did rather well in an area they probably haven’t been in before.

Mickie James tells Santino Marella that the doctor has given her a diagnosis of her rib injury.

The fans leave the arena for Mickie’s announcement. I’m assuming this is to avoid the announcement getting out, but it comes off like some tragedy.

Rebellion rundown. Apparently Brian Myers and Moose are taking the Good Hands’ spots on Team Bully. At least they don’t have to find two more people for Team Dreamer.

Video on Mickie James’ Last Rodeo and path to winning the Knockouts Title again, plus Jordynne Grace and Deonna Purrazzo waiting for their shots.

Here is Mickie for her big announcement. When she started the Last Rodeo, she wanted to show that she still had it and that is what she did. At some point, every champion has to lose and she can handle some of that, but she can’t fight age. There is a difference between her and most of the division, but she feels like she is 20.

The fact that she isn’t makes this even worse and she thanks everyone for this Last Rodeo. She just got off the phone with the doctor though and she isn’t cleared to compete at Rebellion. She is a woman of her word and it is Deonna and Jordynne’s (watching in the back) time now. Mickie leaves the title, and her hat, in the ring and leaves. Grace leaves and Deonna looks on to end the show. This felt a lot like a retirement speech, but retiring over a broken bone feels like quite the stretch. James should be back and probably will, as ending a legendary career over something that will heal in a month or two is nuts.

Overall Rating: B-. The Mickie angle at the end was actually emotional and felt like a huge deal, which should set up the Knockouts Title match that much better. Other than that, the card for Rebellion was already mostly set coming into this show so there only so much that needed to be done. This show did well enough with the little that it had to cover, so nice job on hammering things down on the go home show.

Results
Kenny King b. Frankie Kazarian – Spear from Moose
Laredo Kid b. Black Taurus, Lince Dorado and Rich Swann – Super Spanish Fly to Taurus
Taylor Wilde b. Jessicka – Fisherman’s neckbreaker
Dirty Dango/Joe Hendry b. Callihan/Angels – Standing Ovation to Angels
Tasha Steelz b. Gisele Shaw – Kick to the knee

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Impact Wrestling
Date: November 10, 2022
Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

We have two shows left before Overdrive and the card is mostly already set. This week is likely going to be a lot more firming up of the card, plus some extra X-Division Title tournament matches. The tournament still needs a final and we are probably getting closer to one this week. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Digital Media Title: Joe Hendry vs. Brian Myers

Myers, with Matt Cardona, is defending. Before the match, Hendry promises to be a Digital Media Champion that will inspire the comments section. The fans make it clear that THEY BELIEVE as Hendry works on the arm to start. A delayed suplex gives Hendry two but Myers is right back with a kick to the face. The chinlock goes on for a bit before Myers switches to a guillotine choke.

That’s broken up with straight power into a suplex but the Standing Ovation is blocked. Myers hits a lifting Downward Spiral for two but Hendry gets the same off a pop up powerbomb. They head outside where Cardona offers a distraction but here are Heath and Rhino to take care of him. Myers hits the inverted DDT for two, only to have the Roster Cut countered into the Standing Ovation to give Hendry the pin and the title at 5:59.

Rating: C. They kept things moving here and Hendry gets a title to make him feel like a bigger deal. Myers and Cardona can go after the Tag Team Titles now so there isn’t much of a need for them to dominate the Digital Media Title any longer. Hendry feels like he is getting some support too so let him have this as a stepping stone.

Jai Vidal has a tribute video ready for Gisele Shaw but it needs her holding the Knockouts Title. She’s working on that. We get the video, which has some odd audio issues where the wrestlers’ mouths and voices don’t quite line up when they say “Gisele Shaw”. Just a coincidence I’m sure.

Violent By Design is back with a new era. I’m not sure this is important enough to have Amazing Grace playing in the background.

X-Division Title Tournament Semifinals: Mike Bailey vs. Trey Miguel

Bailey starts fast with his bouncing kicks before being sent to the apron for a standoff. Miguel snaps the arm over the rope, kicks it out, and takes Bailey down with an armbar. Back up and Bailey fires off some kicks but here is Kenny King to watch. We take a break and come back with Bailey hitting a standing shooting star press for two as King is at ringside with a bucket of popcorn.

They trade spinning shots to the face and it’s a double knockdown. Miguel misses the Meteora but avoids the Ultimate Weapon and poisonranas Bailey out to the floor. Back up and Bailey kicks him off the apron, setting up the middle rope moonsault. The moonsault knees from the apron crushes Miguel again….and then King sends Miguel into the steps for the DQ at 10:33.

Rating: C+. This one definitely gets points for a creative ending, as commentary had been talking about how annoyed King was at losing to Bailey and wanting revenge, but they went with a less than conventional idea. If nothing else, it means Bailey won’t be champion and that is a nice relief at this point. Miguel feels like he is going to be the guy who puts over someone else to give them the big win, which is more or less his specialty at this point.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Jordynne Grace b. Taya Valkyrie to win the Knockouts Title on February 11, 2020.

Jessicka is upset by her loss so Taya Valkyrie and Rosemary tell her to get mad and crush Tasha Steelz next week. Rosemary: “EAT HER FACE!” Jessicka: “Ok.”

Kenny King saw something in Mike Bailey last week and now he has seen it again. He’ll be seeing Bailey again soon.

Bhupinder Gujjar vs. G Sharpe

Gujjar dropkicks him into the corner to start but Sharpe snapmares him down for a basement dropkick. Sharpe grabs a seated abdominal stretch but Gujjar is right back up with a Sling Blade. A Samoan drop gets two on Sharpe, who is right back up with a kick to the head. Gujjar hits a pop up powerslam into the Gargoyle spear for the pin at 3:54.

Rating: C-. This was just a step above a squash as Sharpe got in a bit of offense before losing to the obvious. Gujjar is still someone who feels like he is on the verge of moving up to the next level and he has gotten better over the last few months. He still needs a bit more polish and something to fight over, but he’s getting the basics down.

Heath and Rhino are ready for the Major Players. They walk over to Josh Alexander to warn him that Bully Ray is horrible.

Jessicka has found a self help book that tells her to drink a lot.

Alisha Edwards comes up to Eddie Edwards, who says he left Honor No More and now they can be ok. She doesn’t buy that everything is over though.

Chelsea Green vs. Mickie James

Deonna Purrazzo is here with Green, who takes over on the arm to start. Mickie switches into a hammerlock and kicks her in the head for two. A Purrazzo distraction lets Green grab a Backstabber but more cheating gets caught, meaning Purrazzo is gone. Green is back up with a lifting Downward Spiral for two and we hit the quickly broken chinlock. Back up and Mickie snapmares her down, only to get pulled into the half crab.

That’s broken up with a kick out to the floor, meaning it’s time for a slugout on the apron. Green knocks her to the floor but falls down as well, leaving them both to dive back in. They slug it out from their knees with Mickie getting the better of things and grabbing a neckbreaker for two. Green is sent into the referee though, only to walk into a flapjack. Cue Purrazzo to interfere but Taylor Wilde comes out to brawl her to the back. I’m Prettier gives Green two so she goes up to miss a missile dropkick, allowing James to grab a rollup pin at 10:35.

Rating: B-. There was a lot going on here but James was in jeopardy a few times here to make it more interesting. James continues to roll towards a likely showdown with Jordynne Grace at Hard To Kill but she isn’t crushing everyone on the way there. Green had one of her better matches here and had James in trouble so it was a nice next step in the Last Rodeo.

Steve Maclin goes looking for Scott D’Amore but finds Tommy Dreamer instead. Dreamer tells him to chill and be a locker room leader but Maclin accuses Dreamer of only caring about himself and Bully Ray. The obvious match is made.

Zicky Dice vs. Bully Ray

Johnny Swinger is here with Zicky Dice and they say GET THE TABLES. That takes too long though and it’s a Bully Bomb to finish Dice at 1:10. If you need to push Ray, feed him morons like these two.

Post match Moose comes in with a low blow to Ray and the spear sends him through a table.

Sami Callihan has kidnapped a Violent By Design goon and isn’t happy with having interference last week against Eric Young. So let’s do it one more time, but in a Death Machine Double Jeopardy match, where you have to make your opponent bleed to win.

Jordynne Grace is ready for Gisele Shaw.

Chelsea Green leaves, telling Deonna Purrazzo that she is going home.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

During the break, Bully Ray said he wanted to make his Overdrive match with Moose a tables match. Sure why not.

Video on Frankie Kazarian’s time in Impact Wrestling, which doesn’t include a World Champion. Kazarian says he has to win at Overdrive.

Knockouts Title: Gisele Shaw vs. Jordynne Grace

Shaw, with Jai Vidal, is challenging. Grace grabs an early spinebuster for two but has to kick Vidal in the face for offering a distraction. That’s enough for Shaw to hammer away and take over, including some running elbows in the corner. Grace easily muscles her over with a suplex but gets driven straight into the corner. Back up and a hard shot drops Shaw and we take a break.

We come back with Grace winning a slugout and firing off some slams. Shaw catches her with a kick in the corner though and a hanging DDT gets two. Grace cuts her off on top though and hits a superplex into a Jackhammer for two of her own. A Vertebreaker of all things gives Grace two more and Shaw’s neckbreaker gets the same. The running knee misses though and Grace hits a heck of a powerbomb. The Grace Driver retains the title at 14:31.

Rating: B. Shaw was a good challenger here and gave Grace a lot, with Vidal not being much of a factor. They have turned Grace into an unstoppable force and it is going to take someone special to get the title off of her. Building up James for that spot could go very well, but Hard To Kill is a long way off. They’ll need someone else in the mean time, but I’m not sure who that could be.

Post match Masha Slamovich (I had been wondering about her.) comes out and decks Grace with a chair. A Snow Plow onto some chairs leaves Graces laying with Slamovich holding up the title.

We go to the desert, where a bolt of lightning hits a grave. PCO’s hand pops out to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a weird one as the show was good but the more I hear about Overdrive, the less interest I have in seeing anything on the card. There isn’t much worthwhile on the show and the World Champion was reduced to a cameo here. There’s nothing wrong with a match built around two stars colliding with no personal issue, but that feels like the build to a lot of Alexander’s matches. On the other hand, the women’s division is quite good right now and I want to see where it goes. Plus Joe Hendry is getting a push and that’s a great thing to see. Nice show, but Overdrive needs to come and go.

Results
Joe Hendry b. Brian Myers – Standing Ovation
Trey Miguel b. Mike Bailey via DQ when Kenny King interfered
Bhupinder Gujjar b. G Sharpe – Gargoyle spear
Mickie James b. Chelsea Green – Jackknife rollup
Bully b. Zicky Dice – Bully Bomb
Jordynne Grace b. Gisele Shaw – Grace Driver

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

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AND

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