Bound For Glory 2026
Date: October 11, 2026
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the biggest night of the year and that means it’s time for a match that is pretty important in its own right. The main event will see former X-Division Champion Leon Slater getting a World Title shot via Option C. That’s more than enough and we also have the annual Call Your Shot gauntlet. Let’s get to it.

National Anthem.

The opening video mainly focuses on Nic Nemeth vs. Leon Slater while talking about stretching to reach the highest of highs.

Ricky Sosa vs. Eddie Edwards

Alisha Edwards is here with Eddie. Sosa kicks him in the face and hits an early dropkick, followed by a quick rollup for two. Eddie is sent outside for a ram into the steps but Alisha is up with a tornado DDT off the apron. Back in and Eddie chokes in the corner, setting up the chinlock. That’s broken up so Eddie hits a quick swinging neckbreaker for two more. Sosa gets fired up and makes a quick comeback but gets sent to the floor.

That’s fine too as Sosa snaps off a hurricanrana to bring Eddie off the apron. Back in and a springboard cutter gives Sosa two but Eddie’s tiger bomb gets the same. Eddie can’t believe the kickout but the Boston Knee Party is countered into a powerslam. Alisha tries an interruption and gets powerbombed, allowing the Boston Knee Party to give Eddie two. Sosa is fine enough to hit a quick Head Shot into the corner, followed by a second for the pin at 11:19.

Rating: B-. That’s exactly what it needed to be. Sosa has been trying to find his place around here and while this won’t be the big game changing moment of his career, it’s nice to see him getting a win to prove himself a bit. I’m curious to see what they can get out of Sosa, who has the fans interested in him and can do well enough in the ring to back up a lot of his hype. Good opener.

Post match respect is shown and Eddie leaves in peace.

We run down the card.

Leon Slater agrees that he doesn’t have the same experience as Nic Nemeth but Nemeth has also never been a generational star who wants to become the youngest TNA World Champion of all time.

X-Division Title: Fabian Aichner vs. Ryan Nemeth vs. BDE vs. Cedric Alexander vs. KC Navarro vs. Rich Swann vs. Amazing Red

For the vacant title and Red, who was inducted into the Hall Of Fame earlier tonight, was added to the match on the pre-show. No one likes Nemeth to start and the ring is quickly cleared save for Swann and Alexander. Swann is sent outside fast so Aichner is in to take over. A running Red is pulled out to the floor and BDE is back in with a springboard crossbody for two.

Swann takes out the team of Nemeth and Alexander and we’re off to Navarro vs. Red for a rather odd showdown. They strike it out until Nemeth and Alexander jump them from behind, with BDE getting caught in the wrong corner. Alexander gets the worst of the Tower Of Doom so it’s BDE’s Kliq Cutter to Nemeth.

That earns BDE and Lumbar Check, followed by a Michinoku Driver for two on Swann. Aichner reverses BDE’s suicide dive into a suplex on the floor Aichner is back up with a springboard tornado DDT to Alexander but Navarro plants him. A dive takes Nemeth out on the floor and Navarro escapes Red’s Code Red back inside. Red’s super Spanish Fly plants Navarro and now the Code Red gives Red the pin and the title at 10:39.

Rating: B. Sure why not. The title was vacant coming in so it’s not like Red beat the reigning champion. With so many people flying around, Red basically won on a fluke. He was more than holding his own in there and this is far from some kind of an embarrassment. It’s a rather surprising moment but it really doesn’t hurt anything and gave them a nostalgic title win.

Post match Frankie Kazarian, who inducted Red into the Hall Of Fame earlier, comes out to show Red some respect.

Nic Nemeth is ready for Leon Slater, who isn’t ready to be the best.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Shayna Baszler/Zoey Serrano vs. Allie/Kiera Hogan

Serrano and the debuting Baszler are challenging. Allie and Baszler (whose gear says she’s “choosing violence today”) start things off with Baszler not looking intimidated. Baszler easily wrestles her into the corner but Allie manage to avoid a stomp on the arm. Hogan comes in and gets decked from behind and it’s time to work on the leg. Serrano mocks Hogan’s tag attempt and the half crab goes on to stay on the leg a bit more.

Hogan fights out of the corner but the leg gives out again, allowing Baszler to cut her off again. A clothesline isn’t enough for Hogan to get out of trouble as Serrano runs in to knock Allie off the apron. Hogan finally sunset bombs her way to freedom and it’s Allie coming back in to clean house. A full nelson backbreaker drops Serrano, who is right back with a knee to the face for two. Baszler knees Allie down and the Kirifuda Clutch gives Baszler and Serrano the titles at 8:45.

Rating: C+. There was no reason for Allie and Hogan to hold onto the titles here so this was the right call. Allie and Hogan weren’t even a regular team or the original champions so why bother keeping the belts on them? Instead go with Baszler and Serrano, who work well together and have a history. If nothing else, it gives me a reason to mock the Pure Fusion Collective again, a joy in life that seemed to have passed me by.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

This is basically a Royal Rumble (20 entrants, two minute interval to start then sixty seconds) with over the top eliminations until we’re down to two. Then those two have a regular singles match, with the winner getting a title shot anytime within the next year. Trey Miguel is in at #1 and Avery Styles (making his TNA in-ring debut) is in at #2 to get things going. They fight over wrist control to start and the technical off goes nowhere. Stereo missed dropkicks leave them in a standoff and they stare at each other a bit.

Bear Bronson is in at #3 and takes both of them down without much trouble. Frankie Kazarian is in at #4 and slugs away at Bronson, with Styles helping with the knockdown. Dutch is in at #5 as the rapid entrances are working for me thus far. Bronson and Dutch have the big slugout until the dancing LJ Cleary is in at #6. Cleary’s poisonrana drops Bronson and it’s Gabby Forza in at #7.

Forza spears Kazarian and goes after Bronson, who eliminates Cleary to clear out some space. Matthew Rehwoldt (billed from The Commentary Table) is in at #8 and takes so long getting ready that Heather By Elegance is in at #9 before he even gets in the ring. Rehwoldt gets in, mocks Heather’s height, and is eliminated by her in a bit that is still funny after being done so many times. Naturally Rehwoldt gets back on commentary like nothing happens as Heather slides outside and hides underneath the ring. Vincent is in at #10 and helps Dutch double team Miguel in the corner.

Harley Hudson is in at #11 and pulls Heather out, sending her face first between Bronson’s legs in the corner. AJ Francis is in at #12 and gets to clean house, with the fans rather approving. A bunch of people get together but can’t get rid of Francis as it’s Elijah in at #13. Francis counters Walk With Elijah but gets caught with a quick tornado DDT. M By Elegance is in at #14 and dives onto Elijah.

That earns Heather a Highwayman’s Farewell from Elijah, who gets in a staredown with the Righteous. With that not going anywhere, the Hometown Man is in at #15 and wins a slugout with Francis. Bronson gets rid of Dutch, who stays on the floor to save Hudson as Brian Myers is in at #16. The System gets together to clean house as it’s Mr. Elegance in at #17. We get a quick string of eliminations with Vincent, Hudson, Heather and M going out within a few seconds, almost as if they realized “dang there are a lot of people in there.”

Elayna Black is in at #18 and hurricanranas Francis into the corner. Forza tosses Bronson in quite the impressive feat and it’s Jada Stone in at #19. Well in theory at least as Ben Bishop debuts to jump her and take her spot. Bishop, who is described as standing 6’12, comes in and is hurricanranaed out by Stone just as fast. Well that was quite the moment. Myers tosses Stone and gets tossed by Man, who gets tossed by Francis, who is wearing a lot of orange. Francis gets rid of Forza and it’s the rather chatty Joe Alonzo in at #20 to complete the field.

That gives us a final field of Miguel, Styles, Francis, Elijah, Elegance, Black and Alonzo, which is quite the grouping. Alonzo runs his mouth a lot on the way to the ring and I think you know where this is going. Alonzo actually gets in some offense, including some superkicks, but Styles throws him out for the elimination. Styles Peles Elegance out and tosses Francis over the top, with Expressions popping up for the save.

Francis is back in to get rid of Black and Elijah tries to knock Francis out, only to get eliminated by Kazarian. We’re down to four and everyone not named Francis goes after Francis to limited success. Francis cuts of Styles’ springboard to get rid of him but Miguel catches Francis with a Canadian Destroyer. That’s enough for Francis to be tossed, leaving Miguel vs. Kazarian in a regular match.

They slug it out until Miguel takes over but misses a Lionsault. Kazarian’s springboard legdrop gets two but the chickenwing is broken up. Miguel’s sunset bomb is blocked so he settles for a 619 in the corner. Kazarian’s slingshot cutter gets two and they trade rollups for two each, with Kazarian stacking him up for the pin at 34:06 (and his third straight win in this thing).

Rating: C+. It wasn’t horrible, but dang this thing is long every year. You have these long stretches with people just staying in the ring and not much in the way of interest. Bishop stealing the spot from Stone kind of worked but when Stone is in there a few seconds later anyway, it didn’t mean much. The action was good enough, but this was way too long for the same result (or close enough) that we’ve seen for the last two years. Just make it a regular battle royal next time and cut the time way down already.

We recap the International Title match. Order 4 has imploded and now the former members are getting a shot against Mustafa Ali.

International Title: Mustafa Ali vs. Special Agent Zero vs. John Skyler vs. Jason Hotch

Ali is defending, Tasha Steelz and Mila Moore are here too and it’s one fall to a finish. After quite the over the top intro for Ali, we’re ready to go. Skyler and Hotch start fast with a Total Elimination to Ali, who misses a hard charge into the corner. Zero is sent outside, leaving Skyler to slingshot Hotch out to the apron. Hotch kicks him down and does the same to Ali, followed by a moonsault out to the floor.

Back in and Zero gets tornado DDTed for two with Ali making the save. Zero chokeslams Hotch onto the other two before knocking a springboarding Ali out of the air. A Downward Spiral drops Hotch and Zero is up with the big dive to the floor. Steelz tells Zero to get the table but Ali is up with a suicide dive into the barricade. Ali gets Hotch and Skyler together so a 450 can put Zero through the table. That’s the end of the alliance and the middle rope G9 plants Ali back inside.

Skyler and Hotch show some respect and slug it out until Ali is back in. That means a double Destroyer to Hotch and Ali so it’s time for the steps, and Zero, to come back inside. Hotch pops up to use the steps for a superplex to Ali (that looked good) and everyone is down. They slug it out from their knees until Zero is up with a chokebomb to Skyler. Hotch superkicks Zero and gives him the spinning torture rack bomb. Hotch’s top rope double stomp hits Zero as Ali 450s Hotch…who reverses into a crucifix for the pin and the title at 13:17.

Rating: B+. This was the match that interested me the most and I can go with the idea of Hotch getting the title back. He’s someone new who could become one of the younger stars around here and TNA could use all the help they could get there. The action was rather good and Ali can move on to something else, which I’ve been wanting to see him do for a long time now. Maybe it’ll actually happen for once.

We recap Indi Hartwell challenging Xia Brookside for the Knockouts Title. Hartwell has been close to winning the title before but kept coming up short. Santino Marella granted her the shot here, in spite of Daria Rae’s protests.

Knockouts Title: Indi Hartwell vs. Xia Brookside

Brookside is defending and Mickie James is guest referee. Hartwell backs her up against the ropes to start and we actually get a clean break. A corner clothesline and bulldog give Hartwell two so she knocks Brookside to the floor. Brookside is fine enough to send her into the post and it’s time to take the turnbuckle pad off back inside. Some running knees in the corner and a floatover Russian legsweep give Brookside two, setting up the chinlock.

Back up and more running knees miss in the corner, allowing Hartwell to fire off some corner clotheslines. The spinebuster gives Hartwell two, followed by a powerbomb for the same. Brookside rolls outside and grabs the belt to leave but Hartwell sends her back inside. The top rope elbow only hits belt so they’re back up for a slugout.

Brookside pokes her in the eye and gets yelled at by James (who has done nothing of note thus far). Brookside gives James a slap and is promptly slapped down for two. Back up and Darkside gives Brookside two but Hartwell breaks up Brookside’s MickieDT attempt and sends her into the exposed buckle. The top rope elbow and Hurts Donut give Hartwell the title at 10:28.

Rating: C+. Hartwell winning the title here in the big moment was hardly a secret as it’s been built up for a long time now. That’s kind of a shame as Brookside was starting to gel as champion and I could have gone for a much longer reign. At the same time, James didn’t add much of anything here but on the plus side, Hartwell didn’t use that horrible looking submission of hers.

Moose vs. Max Caster

Caster is answering an open challenge. Caster’s rap invokes glory holes and bombs dropping in Riyadh. Moose powers him around to start so Caster hammers away as we get a Voodoo Kin Mafia reference because of the Billy Gunn association. They head outside with Caster dropkicking him into the steps and a high crossbody gets two back inside. Moose whips him hard into some corners back inside and the chokebomb out of the corner gets two.

We’re off to the chinlock for a bit with Caster fighting up, setting off an exchange of shots to the face. Moose is knocked outside for a running elbow off the apron. Back in and Caster misses a charge out to the floor, where he backdrops a charging Moose onto the steps. Hold on though as Caster doesn’t want a countout so Moose sends him into the post back inside. A top rope superplex and a release Rock Bottom have Caster in trouble but he gets in a hurricanrana. Caster hits an AA but the Mic Drop elbow hits raised knees. Moose spears him for the pin at 11:00.

Rating: C. Huh? Caster is your big name showing up for the most important show of the year and Moose just beats him clean? The match was fine, the rap wasn’t great and the result is….that? I’m not saying you put Caster over clean here but why should I care about him after that kind of a result? Moose shrugged off everything Caster threw at him and then just won. This really did not work.

Frankie Kazarian, with Avery Styles, says he’s going to cash the trophy in for the Tag Team Titles, with Styles of course.

We recap Syx vs. the Hardys. There was a string of mystery attacks and the Syx (Joseph Sawyer/Samuel Shaw) were revealed as the attackers. Now the Hardys, who were attacked as well, are in for a falls count anywhere match.

Syx vs. Hardys

Falls Count Anywhere. The Hardys jump them to start fast and Poetry In Motion into the Side Effect gets two on Shaw. Jeff throws in some chairs and opens them up, with Syx being sent onto them. It’s time to brawl into the crowd and then out into the concourse, with Matt grabbing a Hardy foam finger to beat on Syx.

Matt and Shaw brawl back into the arena and a DDT plants Shaw on the floor. Jeff loads up some tables underneath a balcony (oh dear) and, sporting a pair of foam fingers, Swantons Shaw through the tables for two as Sawyer makes the save. That leaves Sawyer alone in the ring with the Hardys hitting a Plot Twist for two.

Sawyer is taken up to the stage and of course let’s grab some ladders. Shaw is back up and the Hardys grab stereo Twists Of Fate to take over again. Syx is laid on the tables but Erick Redbeard (Rowan) debuts to take the Hardys out. A suplex/powerbomb combination drops Jeff inside and Sawyer powerbombs Shaw onto him (that didn’t look good) for the pin at 12:42.

Rating: B-. It wasn’t bad, but my goodness I’m over seeing the Hardys in these hardcore matches. The good thing is that Syx already feels like a bigger deal than the Righteous and there’s always going to be a place for someone like Redbeard. Odds are Uncle Howdy is going to be here next and I’ve heard worse ideas. Good enough here, with Redbeard looking like the star.

Sidenote: are all of the other wrestlers that Syx took out (and there were a bunch of them) ever going to come for revenge? Or are they all just letting it slide?

Santino Marella says the Hardys are in charge of Impact this week. Oh that could be something and not necessarily in a good way.

We recap the World Title match, with Nic Nemeth defending against Leon Slater, who traded the X-Division Title for the shot. Nemeth is a legend and Slater is a young star who wants to be the youngest champion in the title’s history.

TNA World Title: Nic Nemeth vs. Leon Slater

Slater is challenging and after the Big Match Intros, we’re ready to go. The grappling doesn’t go very far to start so Slater takes him into the corner for the right hands. Nemeth goes to the eyes to cut that off but a running clothesline puts him on the floor. The big running flip dive over the corner is loaded up but Nemeth moves away, leaving Slater to hit a regular dive instead.

A running forearm off the steps drops Nemeth again but he’s right back with a Fameasser for two back inside. Nemeth starts in on the knee and we’re off to the chinlock. That’s broken up and Slater dropkicks him into the corner, followed by a running spinwheel kick. The high crossbody gives Slater two but Nemeth is right back with the sleeper. After doing something that looks a lot like tapping, Slater slams his way to freedom and goes up.

Nemeth cuts that off too but gets crotched on top, setting up a spinning torture rack slam. Slater tries what appears to be a powerbomb but it’s reversed into a pinfall reversal sequence. The big DDT gives Nemeth two and they fight over a suplex until Nemeth is dropped out to the floor. Slater is knocked down on the floor as well and has to dive back inside to beat the count.

Nemeth’s superkick gets two and a top rope elbow connects, only for Slater to reverse into a crucifix for two more. A Skull Crushing Finale gives Nemeth another near fall and they’re both down. Slater wins an exchange of superkicks and the Swanton 450 gets a rather near fall. Another one hits raised knees to give Nemeth two and the Danger Zone gets the same. Back up and Slater sends him to the floor for the big running flip dive and a top rope splash (three fourths of the way across the ring) connects back inside. Another Swanton 450 makes Slater champion at 18:21.

Rating: B. It was a good, back and forth match with the young star getting the chance to shine. That’s a great thing to see, but it really didn’t feel like a big moment. Slater winning is cool and it definitely shakes things up a bit while getting away from the idea of the former Dolph Ziggler being World Champion in 2026. It’s the right move, but only so interesting for the most part.

Slater celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was kind of a weird show as it had good enough action, a bunch of title changes, including the big World Title change, and a few debuts, but it still didn’t feel that special. It’s like this was just doing a checklist of things you see on a major show but it only got so far. The gauntlet match really just pulled the life out of the show as it went on so long, which is a running problem with the thing. Overall it’s a good enough show and definitely feels like it could be the start of something better, but it only felt so special on the way there.

Results
Ricky Sosa b. Eddie Edwards – Head Shot
Amazing Red b. Fabian Aichner, Ryan Nemeth, BDE, Cedric Alexander, KC Navarro and Rich Swann – Code Red to Navarro
Shayna Baszler/Zoey Serrano b. Allie/Kiera Hogan – Kirifuda Clutch to Allie
Frankie Kazarian won the Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match last eliminating Trey Miguel
Jason Hotch b. John Skyler, Special Agent Zero and Mustafa Ali – Crucifix to Ali
Indi Hartwell b. Xia Brookside – Hurts Donut
Moose b. Max Caster – Spear
Syx b. Hardys – Powerbomb to Shaw onto Jeff
Leon Slater b. Nic Nemeth – Swanton 450

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

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It’s hard to believe but we’ve back to the biggest show of the year around here. That should be a good thing though the show only feels so important. Hopefully they have something to expand beyond the hype, though that isn’t exactly the company’s strong suit. The good thing is that the action should work out, which is indeed the company’s strong suit a lot of the time. Let’s get to it.

Moose vs. Max Caster

So this is the result of Moose’s open challenge as Caster seems to have officially jumped over to TNA. Granted I’m not sure if it’s a permanent move, but Caster is someone who could do well around here. If nothing else, he already has some star power and the rapping entrance could work on anyone. It pretty much has to be better than whatever Elias is doing anyway.

I’ll actually go with Caster winning here, likely with an assist from AJ Francis, who has been having issues with Moose in recent weeks. Francis and Caster seem like they could get together to do something good and it has to be better than whatever the other guy Francis has with him all the time can do. Anyway, Caster wins here and hopefully sticks around, as I’ve been missing him in AEW.

Knockouts Tag Team Title: Allie/Kiera Hogan(c) vs. Zoey Serrano/Shayna Baszler

This is a new one as Baszler appeared on the phone earlier this week and agreed to be Serrano’s partner. That makes sense as the two of them teamed together well enough in WWE and it’s not like there are a bunch of teams around here to challenge for the titles. That’s in addition to Allie and Hogan not even being the original champions after Rosemary’s latest…whatever it is this time.

I’ll go with the title change here, as it makes more sense to have the new team get the gold. If nothing else, it’s not like Allie and Hogan really need to be champions anyway, as they’re barely even a regular team. Go with some people who should have some better chemistry, which is something the division can use. Whenever Rosemary gets back, she and Allie can go for the belts again, but for now we need them to change hands.

Hardys vs. Syx

Ok it’s Syx. I keep getting the spelling wrong but it’s easier to think of them as just slightly less than Sean Waltman. Or does that make them the British pop band Five? Anyway, this is falls count anywhere as the Hardys have shifted from one weird cult team to another weird team with violent tendencies. They certainly have a type and now it seems like we’ll be in for a violent match.

Give me the Syx to win here, as there is no reason to think they should lose just after debuting. They’re the fresh act around here and need the win, which is what I’m thinking we’ll be seeing. Hopefully the company has learned from how things went with the Righteous, but you never can tell. Either way, it can be violent and entertaining, but the Hardys need to, and should, lose.

X-Division Title: Fabian Aichner vs. KC Navarro vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Rich Swann vs. Ryan Nemeth vs. BDE

This is for the vacant title and while I’d usually do an elimination deal and figure out who would be the best option, that’s really not the case here. Other than BDE, I could see any of them winning here, which makes things a lot more interesting. In this case you could see a few different options and I’m really not sure where to go. That’s a nice feeling, but not the easiest for predictions.

I think I’ll actually take Navarro, who has been built up for a long time but needs that big win. Getting the X-Division Title would be a good way to go and that would make for quite the upset. Aichner might make more sense and odds are it’s someone else entirely, but I’ll take Navarro to win here as the big underdog. Well not the biggest but bit enough to win here.

Ricky Sosa vs. Eddie Edwards

Sosa is in an interesting spot as he’s been around for a few months but hasn’t really gotten over the hump. That needs to change as he feels like he could be something bigger around here, as the company certainly needs the boost. In theory, the idea of putting him in there with Edwards will help him get that far, as it’s hardly some stretch of an idea. So will they go that way?

Yeah I think they will, as there’s pretty much no reason to have Edwards win here. Sosa is someone who has felt like a big prospect and it would be great to see him get a chance. Beating Edwards won’t turn him into the biggest star in the company, but it will give him some credibility and he can move on to something else. That’s what we should be seeing here as Sosa wins.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

If Tommy Dreamer is in this thing, I’m going to…well probably complain about it in the review and keep watching. This isn’t a match that I tend to like most of the time, mainly because it’s for their version of the Money In The Bank contract. I’m assuming we know most of the people involved here and hopefully it doesn’t involve two winners like they did last year, which just made my head hurt.

Out of the names confirmed here, I think I’ll actually go with AJ Francis to win. He’s someone who could do something fun with the briefcase as the rather annoying villain and it’s not like many of the other options stand out. Oh yeah and Avery Styles is making his debut here. I would make a chair joke here but given the ticket sales, they probably don’t want that many chairs around.

Knockouts Title: Xia Brookside(c) vs. Indi Hartwell

This has been built up for a long time now and most of that has been about Hartwell finally getting her big moment to win the title on the most important stage. At the same time, that’s kind of depressing as Brookside has been getting better and better during her time as champion. I’m sure Daria Rae will be involved here somehow, because of course she is, but I’m not sure that’s enough.

Yeah it probably will be, as there is no reason to believe that Hartwell is going to lose here. She’s been built up as a big fan favorite and that has all of the makings of a title win. While I’d rather see Brookside get to keep going with the belt, it doesn’t seem likely to happen here. All roads seem to lead to Hartwell vs. Rae, for some reason, but Hartwell has to win first to make that happen (for the title at least) so we’ll assume that’s what happens here.

International Title: Mustafa Ali(c) vs. Jason Hotch vs. John Skyler vs. Special Agent Zero

I actually have no idea where this is going and I love that feeling. This is the match that has me the most confused, as it could go any of the four ways. Ali winning makes all the sense in in the world, but Zero winning feels like a possibility too. I’m not sure I can imagine either of the Great Hands actually winning the title (again in Skyler’s case) so that narrows things down a bit. I think.

As much as I’d like to see Zero win, I’ll go with what feels like the more realistic answer and say Ali wins. I’m not sure where that leaves him, but hopefully it points him more towards the main event scene. Then again I’ve been saying that for what feels like ever now and it hasn’t happened yet. For now though, Ali wins, even though that might be the least interesting of the four options.

TNA World Title: Nic Nemeth(c) vs. Leon Slater

Now, I don’t think there’s any secret to the story they’re telling here. The idea is that Slater is the young star who is getting the chance to take over the top spot in the company from the established veteran. It feels like a passing of the torch moment, but at the same time it really just does not feel like it has that much heat. That’s a really bad feeling going into this spot, but how important has this match really felt? I’m not sure if that’s enough to change the title, though that seems to be where we’re going.

I think I’ve talked myself out of it and I’ll take Nemeth retaining. It’s not interesting and it’s not something I want to see, but I don’t think Slater is quite ready yet. Having Slater win is certainly a possibility and it wouldn’t shock me if he did it, but this is hardly Josh Alexander or Mike Santana’s coronations as champion. Nemeth retains here, in a prediction that is already feeling wrong.

Overall Thoughts

As much talent as TNA has, they are not great at getting the hype going. Nothing on this show really feels that hot and that is a problem they’ve had for years now. The catch though is they have certainly figured out a way to make the shows work anyway, which will probably be the case here. This show has the importance baked in and if they can make the stuff they have work, it should be a good night. Just don’t have the gauntlet match go on forever, which has killed several Bound For Glorys past.

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Bound For Glory 2025
Date: October 12, 2025
Location: Tsongas Center, Lowell, Massachusetts
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the biggest night of the year and in this case we have some more guest stars. For the first time ever, Bound For Glory is featuring a bunch of names from NXT, some of whom are reigning champions coming into the show. That includes the Knockouts and World Titles, both of which TNA is trying to regain. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Elegance Brand vs. IInspiration

The Brand is challenging and jump the champs during their entrance. Lee gets sent into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs and Heather shoulders away in the corner. M’s Coast To Coast gets two as commentary runs through the Bound For Glory card. A top rope double stomp gets two with McKay making the save. Lee fights back and McKay gets the tag to clean house but M’s pump kick gets two. Heather gets sent outside though and the Idolizer retains the titles at 4:59.

Rating: C. Good example of how to do a Kickoff Show match, as they got in, did their thing, and got back out before anything went too badly. They didn’t need to make it more complicated than that and it’s nice to see the titles retained. The IInspiration only won them back recently so let them get a win and be more established as champions.

The opening video talks about the history of legends in Boston, including a look at some TNA wrestlers from the city (like Eddie Edwards). Now it’s time for some new legends to rise up. We look at some of the bigger matches on the card, as tends to be the case in such a video.

National Anthem.

International Title: Steve Maclin vs. Frankie Kazarian

Maclin is challenging after losing the title to Kazarian not very long ago. We start fast with Maclin suicide diving onto Kazarian to take over before the bell. They get inside for said bell, where Kazarian hits a slingshot Fameasser, followed by a sunset bomb out to the floor. Kazarian goes after Maclin’s mom, who flips him off (BIG pop there), allowing Maclin to jump him from behind.

An Angle Slam hits Kazarian back inside and Maclin grabs his own chickenwing. That’s reversed into a rollup for two so Maclin switches to a Boston crab. Kazarian gets out and hits a Pele Kick into Angel’s Wings. Kazarian’s slingshot cutter gets two more but he misses a spear in the corner. Maclin doesn’t miss, followed by the KIA to get the title back at 8:01.

Rating: C+. Well that’s more than a bit surprising. I’m not sure I get the idea of putting the title back on Maclin so soon, but at least he got a nice win to start the show. Hopefully this doesn’t mean something like Kazarian getting the Call Your Shot win, though it would be quite the stretch to put him there in back to back years. Either way, nice stuff here, as Maclin continues to look strong.

We run down the rest of the card.

Trick Williams wants to know why he isn’t being thanked for everything he’s done around here. Yeah he wears the TNA Title upside down because he’s turned TNA upside down. He’s the champion because he’s best for business.

We recap Tessa Blanchard vs. Gia Miller. Blanchard was a jerk to Miller (a backstage interviewer), who wanted to be just like Blanchard, which Miller doesn’t seem to find accurate. She attacked Miller as well but now Miller is ready to fight back.

Tessa Blanchard vs. Gia Miller

Blanchard has Victoria Crawford and Miller has Jody Threat with her. Blanchard lets her grab a headlock to start and is out of it just as fast. Miller’s rollup gets a fast two but she gets sent throat first into the rope. Some choking on the floor has Miller in more trouble and Blanchard beats her up in front of Miller’s family. Back in and a superkick drops Miller again and Crawford chokes in the corner.

That’s enough for an ejection but first Threat flip dives onto Crawford, security, and Blanchard. Threat chases Crawford to the back and Miller gets in a Thesz press, followed by a spinning middle rope crossbody. Granted it hit Blanchard’s feed but at least Miller is trying. Blanchard isn’t having that and takes turnbuckle pad off, allowing her to press Miller’s head into the buckle. A headbutt staggers Blanchard, who comes right back with a roll of quarters to knock Miller silly for the pin at 6:17.

Rating: D. I didn’t get why this was on the pay per view and the match didn’t make it any better. Miller got in a tiny bit of offense at best and then gets knocked out to give Blanchard the win. This never felt like it belonged on the card and I’m rather worried if this is the best they have for Blanchard. Yeah she has issues, but if this it as good as she can get, let her go elsewhere.

We look at Lei Ying Lee and Mance Warner earning the first and last spots in the Call Your Shot gauntlet match.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

20 person Royal Rumble, two minutes for the first two entrants then sixty seconds each, over the top eliminations, last two people have a regular singles match for a Money In The Bank style shot at any title. Lei Ying Lee is in at #1 and Mara Sade is in at #2. Sade knocks her down to start and dances a bit but Lee gets in a kick to the ribs. A Hennig necksnap has Sade in more trouble until Ryan Nemeth is in at #3.

The women chase him around and knock him into the corner for some stomping. Nic Nemeth is in at #4 (to quite the pop) with Sade dropping him with a superkick. Ryan has to save Nic, who clotheslines Sade and Lee at the same time. Cedric Alexander is in at #5 to go after the Nemeths until Rich Swann is in at #6. Swann takes Alexander down and knees him in the face as AJ Francis is in at #7.

Sade and Lee are both tossed, followed by Francis chokeslamming Swann and eliminating him as well. The former Northern Armory comes out and flips a coin, so it’s Travis Williams in at #8. A suplex takes Ryan down and it’s wrestling YouTuber BDE in at #9. BDE escapes a chokeslam and Stunners Francis to a big reaction. The Rascalz (all three of them) are in at #10 and team up with BDE to get rid of Francis. Dani Luna is in at #11 to clean house with some suplexes. Williams gives Luna a running knee and it’s Eric Young in at #12. Williams knocks Young down as well, only to get pulled to the apron, where Young piledrives him out.

Jake Something is in at #13 and runs some people over before he and Luna give the Rascalz stereo powerbombs. Young knocks BDE out and Rosemary is in at #14. Miguel and Alexander are both out and the Hometown Man is in at #15. Rosemary mists Something by mistake and he’s gone as Zack Clayton is in at #16. Luna tosses Rosemary but gets eliminated by the Man, with the fans approving.

Jody Threat is in at #17 but cue Frankie Kazarian to jump her and take her place, which apparently you can just do. Santino Marella comes out to glare…and he’s in at #18. The Cobra knocks Kazarian silly and Marella is knocked out almost immediately in a Royal Rumble flashback. Matt Cardona is in at #19 to get rid of Clayton but gets jumped by the Nemeths.

Mance Warner is in at #20 as the Rascalz are eliminated. Warner, with a zombie motif, grabs a chair and starts to clean house. Cardona breaks that up, leaving Young and Man to tease eliminations. Young low blows Man out but gets eliminated by Cardona. Warner is gone as well and the Nemeths go after Cardona, who knocks them both out of the corner. Nic kicks Ryan out by mistake but Warner is back to get rid of Cardona.

Kazarian and Nic are the last two so it’s a singles match for the title shot. The referee gets bumped so Kazarian’s rollup doesn’t get a count. Nic’s superkick gets a delayed near fall from a second referee so they go up top. A superplex brings them both back down and it’s a double pin (with double referees) at 30:51.

Rating: D+. That’s definitely a Call Your Shot Gauntlet, in that it was way longer than it needed to be, with pretty much nothing in the way of a good surprise, involved. It comes off as a “get everyone on the show” match, but dang it would be better if they cut it in half (at the longest) and just had a battle royal. Either that or make it all goofy fun, because this stuff is getting rather tedious over the years. Oh and yay for screwy finishes on top of that.

Post match Marella announces that there are two winners and gets booed out of the building.

We look at the NXT women beating the TNA women at Showdown.

We recap Kelani Jordan defending the Knockouts Title against Indi Hartwell. A few weeks back, Hartwell became the #1 contender but then Ash By Elegance had to step away from the ring, leaving NXT’s Jordan to step up and win the title.

Knockouts Title: Kelani Jordan vs. Indi Hartwell

Jordan is defending and grabs a headlock before sweeping the leg for two. A backslide gives Jordan two and they get up for a standoff. Jordan dropkicks her down but misses a big kick to the head, leaving Hartwell down for a breather. Hartwell gets sent into the corner for a springboard spinning legdrop to give Jordan two. Back up and Jordan cuts a springboard out of the air for a spinebuster.

We hit a chinlock with double knees in the back but Jordan elbows her way out quickly enough. They slug it out until Jordan cartwheels into a back elbow to drop Hartwell again. The splits Stunner lets Jordan grab a half Liontamer to work on Hartwell’s back for a change. That’s escaped and, eventually, Hartwell muscles her up for a sitout powerbomb.

Jordan kicks her in the head and drops a frog splash for two. Hartwell manages to trip her on the apron, followed by a running big boot. Back in and they trade rollups until the Hurts Donut gives Hartwell two more. Jordan avoids a top rope elbow and kicks her in the head, setting up One Of A Kind to retain at 12:32.

Rating: B-. Well ok then. That was quite the surprise, as it seemed like this was the time for Hartwell to get the big win and rescue the title from the (rather nice) outsider. I’m not sure where that leaves Hartwell, or the title, but it certainly seems that we’re going to be seeing NXT around here for a good bit longer.

Post match respect is shown.

The Nemeths have the Call Your Shot Gauntlet trophy but Kazarian comes in to say it belongs to him. Arguing ensues.

We recap The System vs. Order 4. They’ve been fighting for months and now it’s time to have a Hardcore War to blow the whole thing off.

The System vs. Order 4

The System: Moose, Alisha Edwards, Eddie Edwards, JDC, Brian Myers
Order 4: Mustafa Ali, Tasha Steelz, Agent Zero, Jason Hotch, John Skyler

Hardcore War, with two wrestlers starting for two minutes. Then Order 4 gets to send in its second entrant for a one minute advantage. They can all bring in a weapon of choice and the match can’t end until all ten are in, when it’s first pinfall or submission. Jason Hotch and Eddie Edwards start things off, with the latter being accompanied by the Boston Red Sox mascot. Some hip swiveling (I think) distracts Hotch so Eddie can hit a big dive to get us going.

Back in and a triangle dropkick puts Eddie on the floor, where he comes back with a trashcan lid to the head. Skyler comes in to save Hotch in the corner and it’s the Favor onto a chair. That lets Skyler and Hotch pose until JDC comes in to even things up. JDC’s big dive to the floor takes them out and it’s time to scrape Skyler’s head with a cheese grater. Steelz, in a New York Yankees jersey, makes the save and the beatings continue.

Alisha comes in to cut Steelz off with the System getting to use a staple gun. Zero comes in to make it 4-3 and tosses the steps at Eddie’s head. Myers is in with a trashcan lid, which gets taken away so Zero can wreck things. Ali completes the Order and a top rope double stomp drives a chair into Eddie’s back. Moose is in to complete the System and clears the ring rather quickly. Zero and Moose slug it out, with Moose dropkicking a chair into his face. Moose is sent outside so Zero hits a big dive onto the pile. Alisha brings in a bag of tacks (sigh) but Zero is back in.

A chokebomb puts Alisha into the tacks so Eddie comes in, only to get taken out as well. Myers and JDC swing kendo sticks at Zero, who shrugs them off, only for Moose to come back in with the spear. Another, with a chain wrapped around his shoulder, drops Zero again but Moose bangs up his own shoulder. Myers and JDC dive onto the Great Hands, leaving Ali to pour more tacks onto Alisha. A 450 only hits tacks though and Eddie is back in with a barbed wire Boston Knee Party to pin Ali at 20:07.

Rating: B. This started slow but did get better near the end. They could have done more with the weapons and I could go with never seeing tacks in a match again, though that 450 did look good. Zero looked like a monster in there and while I’m surprised that the System won, and almost even more by Ali taking the fall, I liked this more than I was expecting.

We recap Leon Slater defending the X-Division Title against Je’Von Evans. Slater is the new, big star who has been trying to prove himself. Evans is here from NXT and it’s time for the big showdown, which has the potential to steal the show.

X-Division Title: Leon Slater vs. Je’Von Evans

Slater is defending. They stare each other down to start and the fans are rather approving. They finally lock up with Slater taking him down and offering some polite applause. Evans takes him into the corner for a quick staredown before a springboard rollup gets two. Evans can’t get a standing moonsault so Slater small packages him for two more. A running shoulder puts Slater on the floor for a quick suicide dive, only for Slater to come back with a crossover.

Slater chops away but gets caught with a springboard clothesline for two. Evans gets kicked down and a handspring elbow knocks him down again. Slater’s slingshot cutter gets two and they head out to the apron, where Evans is back up with a kick to the head. Another slingshot cutter is countered into a DDT to drop Slater and Evans’ OG Cutter onto the apron knocks Slater silly.

Back in and Evans hits a heck of a frog splash, followed by a heck of a frog splash for two more. Slater is back up with a running side kick, only to get caught with a hurricanrana for another near fall. Slater manages to neckbreaker a springboard out of the air for two of his own and the fans are rather approving. Evans hits another OG Cutter for another rather near fall and they both go up top.

They crash down to the floor before Evans knocks him into the crowd. Naturally Slater is right there with a dive…and it’s a time limit draw at 20:00 (20:06 but close enough). Hold on though as the fans are VERY unhappy until Santino Marella comes in to say five more minutes. The bell rings and Evens kicks him down for two but Slater is back with Utopia. That means the big running flip dive over the post can connect, only for Evans to come back with a Spanish Fly. Then the lights go out and Darkstate is here to jump them both for the no contest at 23:42.

Rating: B. Oh sweet goodness they managed to tick the fans off TWICE. This started slow but got better as the match went on. At the same time though, it’s not a great look to have TNA now at 0-1-1 against NXT at the biggest show of the year. The good thing is that these two started going nuts near the end with the reactions to the near falls being outstanding. If they were able to build to one of them winning or something other than a time limit draw, or then the interference after the false hope, it would have been even better. But then NXT might not have stood tall over TNA and…well NXT, but it’s been a weird night.

Post match the big beatdown is on and Darkstate stands tall, with the fans again not being happy.

Here is Chris Bey to announce the new North American attendance record: 7,794. He sends us to our next recap.

We recap the Hardys defending the TNA/NXT Tag Team Titles against Team 3D. They’ve fought on and off for twenty five years so we’re doing it one more time with one more tables match. In other words, it’s time for a big legends/nostalgia match which is arguably the show’s main event.

TNA/NXT Tag Team Titles: Hardys vs. Team 3D

The Hardys are defending in a tables match, with both members having to go through for the win. Spike Dudley even shows up as a bonus. After a rather long staredown, Jeff’s charge misses and he’s sent outside, leaving Matt to charge into a 3D. Jeff fights back but misses a Whisper In The Wind and What’s Up makes it worse.

The tables are brought in and it’s a 3D to put Jeff through one of them. Another table is loaded up but Matt grabs a Twist Of Fate to D-Von on the floor. Matt’s running elbow only hits table, which doesn’t count as he wasn’t put through it by the other team. Back in and Ray is sent into (not through) a table in the corner, leaving D-Von to put Jeff on a table.

D-Von takes too long to climb a ladder, with Matt making a save. Jeff does the Swanton for the big flashback and we look at it about five times. The Hardys beat on Ray with chairs and it’s a Twist Of Fate into a Swanton. Ray gets up, they stare at each other, and it’s a double spinebuster to put Ray through the table and retain the titles at 15:56.

Rating: C+. I liked the story well enough and the match could have been FAR worse, but I wasn’t interested in seeing this before and that was the case again. Between the fans chanting for ECW at the beginning and this being a call back to a WWF match from twenty five years ago, it certainly didn’t come off as something involving TNA. It’s cool enough that they got to do it again, but dang it doesn’t exactly make the current tag division look great.

Post match we get the big staredown of EXTREME respect before Team 3D takes off their boots and hand them to the Hardys. Another big hug wraps it up. Well eventually, as the posing goes on for a good while.

Genesis is in Dallas in January.

We recap Trick Williams defending the NXT Title against Mike Santana. Williams, an NXT star, is holding the title behind enemy lines so it’s time for Santana to step up and take it. Santana is the hottest star in TNA and has been for a long time now, so this has felt like the logical conclusion for a long time. That’s not a bad thing either, as it’s the best way to go. Assuming nothing insane happens here.

TNA World Title: Trick Williams vs. Mike Santana

Santana is challenging. Williams promises a beating and does his own Big Match Intro. That earns him a kick to the face and the fight is on, with Williams getting chopped up against the barricade before the bell even rings. They go out into the crowd, where Santana blocks a trashcan shot and hits Williams with it instead. Santana is sent back to ringside, where he drops Williams onto the apron.

A belt shot knocks Santana down though and we get the opening bell. Williams hits the Trick Kick for two and grabs a neckbreaker before shoving him in the face. They head outside, with Santana being catapulted into the post to bust him open. Williams backdrops him onto the steps, followed by a side kick for two. A front facelock of all things doesn’t last long for Williams and Santana manages a Death Valley Driver into the corner.

A fireman’s carry faceplant and a Cannonball give Santana two but Williams slams him onto the apron. Williams makes the mistake of yelling at Santana’s daughter though and Santana dives onto him, followed by a powerbomb for two. The 450 hits Williams for two more and it’s time to argue with Williams’ lawyer.

The distraction lets Williams come back with a release Rock Bottom and a super Rock Bottom gets two. A quick Spin The Block gives Santana two of his own, followed by Williams hitting the Trick Shot for two of his own. Santana looks over at his daughter and it’s a clothesline into Spin The Block to make Santana the champion at 16:12.

Rating: B. This was a main event style match and what matters most is that it ended with Santana winning. There were no shenanigans as Santana overcame the odds to win the title. That’s how a major pay per view should end as a new champion is crowned. Santana has more than earned this and Williams got a lot out of being the invading champion. Good main event and it was nice to see them not go nutty with the booking.

Post match here is Nic Nemeth with the Call Your Shot trophy….but Elijah returns and guitars him down. Kazarian tries to cash in as well but gets dropped with Spin The Block. Santana is presented the belt, which he hands to his daughter in a great moment. A Puerto Rican flag is brought in (as the building is rapidly emptying out as he celebrates) and Santana poses to end the show. There was zero need to have the cash-in attempt(s) and the return here. Stop overthinking this and just let it end as it should.

Overall Rating: C+. They got the big moment at the end and, after the goofy cash in teases (BECAUSE EVERY PROMOTION HAS TO HAVE THAT STUPID STUFF THESE DAYS), the feel great moment to wrap up the show. Unfortunately, there are not many other things to be overly positive about here, between the double Call Your Shot winner, the stupid ending to the X-Division Title match and a Tag Team Title match that was first done almost twenty six years ago.

There were some good matches in there, but my goodness they need to stop making these things way too complicated. At least the ending was right, but they got really close to screwing this show up with some of their ideas. That has been a TNA problem for a long time now and it’s absolutely continuing.

Results
IInspiration b. Elegance Brand – Idolizer to M
Steve Maclin b. Frankie Kazarian – KIA
Tessa Blanchard b. Gia Miller – Punch with a roll of quarters
Nic Nemeth and Frankie Kazarian won the Call Your Shot Gauntlet
Kelani Jordan b. Indi Hartwell – One Of A Kind
The System b. Order 4 – Barbed wire Boston Knee Party to Ali
Leon Slater vs. Je’Von Evans went to a no contest when Darkstate interfered
Hardys b. Team 3D – Double spinebuster to Ray through a table
Mike Santana b. Trick Williams – Spin The Block

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

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I can never remember if I do a preview for this show or not, but it’s undoubtedly TNA’s biggest show of the year so it deserves some attention. Throw in its connection to WWE via the NXT crossovers and the show is going to be special. There are some NXT stars appearing on the card and that should make for some interesting situations, even if the main event feels easy to predict. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Knockouts Tag Team Titles: IInspiration(c) vs. Elegance Brand

This was thrown together just before the show and that’s kind of the best fit for it. While the titles are still important enough, it isn’t like there is much in the way of a division fighting over them. In other words, it’s the same problem that has plagued these things for years. The IInspiration won the titles rather soon, and in theory that should mean something for this match.

I’ll go with the champions retaining the titles here, as there isn’t much of a reason to put them back on the Brand so soon. Unless the title change was only for the sake of getting the IInspiration, and that didn’t need to be the case, I can’t imagine such a fast title reign. The titles stay in place here, even if there aren’t exactly many teams who can come after them at the moment.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

We’ll get this one out of the way early, mainly because we only know a handful of the people in the match. There are going to be twenty all together, but there are less than ten announced thus far. That is going to make things tricky, as one of those names is some kind of social media person. We don’t quite know much about the match and that leaves a lot of this in the dark.

Based on the people involved in the match, I’ll go with….geez I guess Mance Warner, who is in the final spot. Odds are this is going to wind up with someone who isn’t listed yet (Tommy Dreamer is all but guaranteed to be involved) but based on who is there, I can’t picture Nic Nemeth or Joe Hendry getting the win. Either way, just please don’t do the cash-in on the main event, unless the cash-in is failing.

Gia Miller vs. Tessa Blanchard

I have no idea why this is on the show. I get the story and everything, but you have a star like Blanchard and she’s fighting an interviewer who isn’t even a regular wrestler outside of TNA? In theory this is at worst some kind of punishment for Blanchard, but it feels like something that should be on Impact at best. Here we are though, and I’m still trying to get my head around it.

There is no reason to think that Miller is winning here (and TNA is absolutely insane if she does) so I’ll go with Blanchard taking it. This is one of those matches that almost needs to have some kind of interference or shenanigans to make it work, because otherwise we could be in for a near disaster. Blanchard needs to win and do something else or just get out of the company, as I have no idea why this is happening.

International Title: Frankie Kazarian(c) vs. Steve Maclin

I didn’t even realize this was on the card and that’s kind of telling about what it means. Kazarian took the title from Maclin not very long ago and we’re getting a rematch, which isn’t a bad idea at all. It isn’t like Kazarian has had the time to set something up with a new challenger so having him in there against a former World Champion is fine. Maclin has done well in his own right recently so this should be good.

Much like the Knockouts Tag Team Titles, I don’t see a reason for the title to change hands so quickly, so I’ll take Kazarian retaining. Odds are he cheats to win here, possibly with someone coming out there to help put Maclin down. It’s going to be a good one as both guys are more than solid in the ring and that’s a positive thing to have on any card, which is why it’s here.

TNA/NXT Tag Team Titles: Hardys(c) vs. Dudley Boyz

It’s a tables match (dubbed One Final Table) and…yeah if we just have to do this. I get the nostalgia aspect and all that jazz, but dang it’s hard to get my head around the idea that this is the best we have for the Tag Team Titles. Then again, it’s not like TNA has ever had any issue with pushing the Hardys WAY too hard so here we go one more time, as the clock is turned WAY back to the year 2000. In New York. In the WWF.

There is pretty much no reason to believe that this is going to be anything other than the Hardys retaining so I’m going to go with the most logical option. It’s going to be violent and probably bloody, but at the end of the day, it’s not likely that the Dudleys, who aren’t even a regular team anymore, are going to win the titles from two big time promotions. Just let them do their nostalgia deal here and move on with the Hardys retaining.

The System vs. Order 4

This is Hardcore War, which is basically WarGames without the cage. These teams have put together a nice story as I want to see them fight, which is a good sign. I’m not sure how much I need it to be hardcore, but it does feel like something that belongs on a show like Bound For Glory. What does hurt it though is that one team feels like it is on the decline while the other is on the rise and that’s what brings us to the result.

I don’t see much of a reason to believe that the System is winning here so I’ll take Order 4 to go over. This is the kind of match where Agent Zero could get some nice shine while Ali gets the win, which should make for a good moment. I’m hoping that they get to go insane here, as otherwise it’s not exactly going to be the most thrilling match, even with Order 4 winning.

Knockouts Title: Kelani Jordan(c) vs. Indi Hartwell

This is another match that feels rather thrown together, mainly due to the issue of Ash By Elegance being taken out of the picture out of nowhere. Jordan has been tossed into the spot and that’s about as good as they could have gone. Well granted it might have been better to put a TNA star into the spot instead, but I guess they’re going for the idea of a Knockout saving the title. Ignore that it’s from a not so evil champion.

So of course I’ll take Hartwell to win the title here. Even if she isn’t the most thrilling star to see out there a lot of the time, she’s the one that TNA seems to be going with at the moment, which means we’ll be seeing her get the title. Jordan is little more than a filler, and unfortunately that doesn’t leave much in the way of drama about what is likely happening here.

X-Division Title: Leon Slater(c) vs. Je’Von Evans

This is one of those ideas that pretty much sells itself. Here we have two incredibly talented wrestlers getting to go out there and go nuts for however long. It’s something that TNA has made work for years and that is what we are likely going to be seeing again here. Evans is someone that WWE clearly wants to push and Slater is someone who TNA is already giving quite the spot, so this should be a blast.

While I could see a slight chance of Evans winning here, I’ll take Slater to retain. TNA has lost more than enough to NXT over the course of their time together so there isn’t much of a reason to believe it will happen again here. It’s a match that should be all kinds of fun and they should be flying all over the place until Slater hits that awesome Swanton 450 to retain.

TNA World Title: Trick Williams(c) vs. Mike Santana

Here’s where we get to the biggest issue: I see a grand total of no reason to believe that Williams has any kind of a chance here. Williams has been the champion for a few months now and the idea has been that TNA needs to get the title back from the NXT invader. That’s where Santana comes in, and the fact that he has been built up so well makes it feel even more likely.

This very well might be the easiest pick on the card, as I can’t imagine that TNA would manage to screw this up two years in a row. Much like last year with Joe Hendry, Santana is ready to become the top star in the company and that is why we should be seeing a title change. Just go with what it needs to be and make the whole thing into a big happy ending for everyone involved. Unless they end with the Hardys again, which very well may be the case.

Overall Thoughts

I’m liking the show well enough, but as usual, it’s going to depend on how the two longer form matches go. In this case that means the gauntlet match and the Hardcore War, which could wind up being long and dull as they have been in the past. If we get the big happy ending of Santana winning the title though, it should work out well enough, as the card looks pretty good. Just make it more about TNA than NXT and everything should be fine.

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

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Bound For Glory 2024
Date: October 26, 2024
Location: Wayne State Fieldhouse, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the biggest night of the year in TNA and the show is looking pretty solid. The main event is Joe Hendry challenging Nic Nemeth for the World Title, but the show is billed as a triple main event. The other two main events will see Jordynne Grace defending the Knockouts Title against Masha Slamovich, plus a three way Full Metal Mayhem match for the Tag Team Titles. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Ash By Elegance/Heather Reckless vs. Brinley Reece/Xia Brookside

Reckless messes with Reece’s hair to start so Reece works on her arm. Brookside comes in for a wheelbarrow splash, followed by a double suplex. It’s off to Ash to kick away at Reece but Reckless gets taken down. The fans want Brookside as Ash faceplants Reece into a basement dropkick (which isn’t exactly smooth, with commentary saying is due to their inexperience as a team, which seems to be intentional).

Reece fights out of Reckless’ chinlock and gets in a double knockdown, allowing Brookside to come back in with some clotheslines. Broken wings connects with Ash and Reece’s Codebreaker gets two. It’s back to Reckless, whose high crossbody is rolled through so Reece can hit a TKO for two, with the Personal Concierge putting the foot on the rope. Brookside and the Concierge are ready to fight on the floor, but that leaves Reckless to hit a springboard Spanish Fly. Rarefied Air finishes for Ash at 8:38.

Rating: C. Perfectly fine match here to get things going as the fans are always going to want to see the Concierge get beaten up. If nothing else, I’m glad they didn’t start the biggest night of the year with an NXT star getting the win, as it wouldn’t have felt right. Not a great match here, but the fans were into it and that’s always a smart way to get things going.

We get the Bob Ryder Hall Of Fame video. Ryder was a longtime backstage worker in TNA and had a lot to do with building up wrestling on the internet. He also worked in ECW and WCW and helped develop a lot of the things that got the company on the map. A bunch of wrestlers say thank you and we get quite the THANK YOU BOB chant.

Eric Young is here to induct Ryder into the Hall Of Fame. Young talks about Ryder being part of the original group that made the company come together. Ryder worked in WCW and ECW, becoming a pioneer in online wrestling discussion. Ryder was in talent relations and did all kinds of things to make it work for everyone. Young and Ryder were friends and spent Christmas and Thanksgiving together and all of the Brazilian steakhouses throughout the southeast miss him.

Despite everything he loved, he loved wrestling the most and despite what one idiot backstage says, there is one King Of TNA, and that’s Bob Ryder. Young holds up the plaque for Ryder and another THANK YOU BOB chant wraps it up. You could hear how much this meant to Young and there couldn’t have been a better inductor.

We see the Rhino Hall Of Fame video. It looks at Rhino’s career before TNA, along with various people talking about how big of a deal it was for him to sign with the company. Rhino signed up here because he believed in it.

Here is Tommy Dreamer to induct Rhino into the Hall Of Fame. When he inducted Team 3D, he got 3D’d the next night. When he inducted Raven, he got DDT’d. Whoever invented the phrase “always a bridesmaid, never a bride”, he hates you. Dreamer is excited to induct Rhino into the Hall Of Fame and goes over Rhino’s career path, including coming to TNA. Rhino has found the fountain of youth because he looks the same, works the same and is the same as he has been for twenty five years. He always says it’s the year of the Lions (we pause for the chant) but this is the year of the RHINO.

This brings out Rhino for the YOU DESERVE IT chant, but he says that’s not true. WE deserve it because the fans have been here forever. Rhino talks about how much he loves Detroit and hopes to die here. After mocking Dreamer a bit, Rhino thanks his girlfriend for being here but he won’t be proposing because he doesn’t have the hardware. The fans boo, but Rhino says it’s his night.

Rhino talks about how much he loves his daughter and how much he wishes he had been there more often. He thanks a bunch of people from Jim Cornette to Paul Heyman to WWE and more, including Heath Slater. This brings up a story about his brother being diagnosed with cancer and being given a death sentence. Slater would talk to him during the long car rides and it was like the cancer went away. He thanks Slater for being a friend and a brother.

Rhino talks about his faith in God and how he prays for the family to get home save every time. His goal is to leave the planet a bit better than he found it and that’s what he hopes to do. One more thank you and he’s out. This was an excellent speech and you could feel the emotion from Rhino. Easily one of the best induction speeches I’ve ever heard for an induction and Rhino does deserve it.

Steve Maclin thanks Eric Young for his help but he’s got Josh Alexander by himself. Young is fine with that, but he’s got Maclin’s back if Alexander brings help, which seems fine with Maclin.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

This is basically a 20 entrant Royal Rumble with 2 minute intervals at first and then 1 minute intervals for everyone else, with an anytime title shot to the winner. We have standard over the top eliminations until there are two left, when it becomes a one on one match. Frankie Kazarian is in at #1 and Zachary Wentz is in at #2. Wentz takes him down in the corner to start and then pulls Kazarian out of the air, only to get caught with a Fameasser over the middle rope. Wentz fights back again and knocks him into the corner as Jake Something is in at #3 to run Wentz over.

Trey Miguel is in at #4 and picks up the pace as Wentz gets a needed breather. Hammerstone is in at #5 and teams up with Something to wreck various people. It’s not enough for an elimination or anything, but it is quite the collection of clotheslines. Rohit Raju is in at #6 and gets in an assortment of stomps. Laredo Kid is in at #7 and is quickly knocked out for the first elimination. Something tosses Miguel and it’s Sami Callihan in at #8. That goes nowhere either and it’s John Skyler in at #9 as Hammerstone seems to have been eliminated.

That means the pace can pick up a bit but no one is eliminated so it’s Bhupinder Gujjar in at #10. Again the pace picks up, including Gujjar having to skin the cat to survive an early elimination attempt. Trent Seven is in at #11 as the ring is starting to fill up. KC Navarro makes it even busier at #12 and is promptly powerbombed by Callihan. Rhino is in at #13 and gets rid of Raju, Skyler and Gujjar in short order. Callihan is gone as well and it’s Tasha Steelz in at #14. Steelz drops Navarro with a cutter but another one to Rhino doesn’t go so well.

Lei Ying Lee is in at #15 and Steelz is quickly out. Jason Hotch is in at #16 and dropkicks Seven in a hurry. Leon Slater is in at #17 as Ying goes after Kazarian, who drops her with a clothesline. Lee is out as Jonathan Gresham is in at #18. Everyone is down so it’s JDC in at #19 to…stay on the floor instead of getting inside. Slater hits his Swanton 450 but JDC is right there to toss him out.

AJ Francis is in at #20, giving us a final grouping of Kazarian, Wentz, Something, Seven, Rhino, Hotch, Gresham, JDC and Francis. Gresham goes after Francis but gets knocked out in a hurry. The Down Payment gets rid of Seven and Hotch is out shortly thereafter. Something and Wentz fight to the apron and both gets eliminated.

We’re down to Kazarian, JDC, Rhino and Francis, with Rhino tossing JDC. Francis gives Rhino a Gore of his own but Rhino hits a clothesline to get rid of him. That leaves us with Rhino and Kazarian in a singles match for the title shot so Rhino hammers away. The referee has to duck a shot though and Kazarian hits a low blow for the fast pin at 26:33.

Rating: C. These things are mainly about getting a bunch of people on the card and there is nothing wrong with that. They were blazing through the introductions, which is kind of what has to be done in a match like this. Rhino was a great choice for the push to the end, but Kazarian was almost destined to win this as he already has a tie to tonight’s World Title match.

And now, the show proper.

Ilona sings the National Anthem.

The opening video hypes up Detroit and talks about how important it is to wrestling history, with a look at the people in the bigger matches, as well as TNA’s history in the city.

X-Division Title: Mike Bailey vs. El Hijo del Vikingo

Bailey is defending and this is something of a dream match. We get the big handshake of respect to start and the fans are very pleased to start. They trade some snazzy rollups to start until Vikingo manages to send him outside. That sets up the big head first dive to drop Bailey as the fans continue to approve. Back in and Bailey starts firing off the kicks, including some shots to the ribs for two.

Vikingo hits a kick of his own and, after avoiding a charge in the corner, kicks Bailey out to the floor. That’s fine with Vikingo, who bounces of the barricade and hurricanrans him down again. Bailey is back up with a corkscrew dive to put Vikingo down as well, meaning it’s time for a double breather. A shooting star press misses for Bailey back inside so he grabs the Green Tea Plunged for two instead.

Bailey hits a fisherman’s Falcon Arrow into a shooting star press for two and we pause for a quick breather. Vikingo ducks a superkick and hits a hard kick to the face of his own and they’re both down again. Bailey wins a battle of the kicks and even hits a crane kick to drop him again. The moonsault knees set up a tornado kick and the Ultimate Weapon gets two. The Flamingo Driver is countered into a Canadian Destroyer though and Vikingo hits some running knees in the corner.

Bailey bails out to the floor but there’s a rope walk into a corkscrew moonsault to drop Bailey again. Back in and Bailey breaks up another 630, only for the moonsault knees to hit apron. Vikingo’s Canadian Destroyer from the post to the apron knocks Bailey silly again and they both go up top. That’s fine with Bailey, who grabs something like a fisherman’s superplex (Meteor Rain) for the pin to retain at 14:49.

Rating: B. The pretty much non-existent build to this match didn’t make me think the title was in jeopardy, but that’s not the worst thing. This was more about giving Bailey a hard fought win over a top international name, which I’ll take over trying to tie everything together with a last second challenger. Rather good opener here, with two very exciting stars.

We run down the pay per view card.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Spitfire vs. Rosemary/Wendy Choo

Spitfire is defending. Threat sends Choo into a slam from Luna, who drops Threat onto her for a bonus. Rosemary comes in and gets suplexed for two so it’s already back to Threat. Choo busts out her special pillow (it’s dumb in NXT too) so the pillow gets suplexed, allowing Choo to take over. Choo’s running boot in the corner staggers Luna and a double dropkick in the Tree of Woe makes it worse. A running clothesline out of said corner gets Luna out of trouble and it’s back to Luna to clean house.

The middle rope dropkick hits Rosemary and a powerbomb connects for the same. Luna’s big dive takes Rosemary out again but she has to save Threat from Choo. That just means a DDT to put Luna down on the floor, setting up the big dive from Threat. Back in and Rosemary spears Luna for two but Luna reverses a double superplex into a double powerbomb. Threat comes back in and strikes away but Rosemary hits Choo by mistake. Threat sends both of them flying and the Pressure Drop to Choo retains the titles at 10:28.

Rating: C+. As usual, the titles feel like they belong on a regular TV match more than anything else, but it’s nice to see something like an actual feud over the belts. Rosemary still deserves better than Choo and hopefully that is coming soon, as the pillow stuff is just nonsense. I’m not sure who is next for the titles, but at least Spitfire is being built up.

Post match Rosemary spears Choo down to end the team.

We look at Frankie Kazarian cheating to win the Call Your Shot gauntlet match.

Kazarian is reading Earl Hebner’s book and promises to raise the hand of the World Champion at the end of the night.

Steve Maclin vs. Josh Alexander

The brawl is on in the aisle to start and Alexander is sent hard into the steps. Maclin scores with the Scud and drops him onto the apron as the bell has yet to ring. Alexander manages a quick posting and the leg is wrapped around the post as well. They both get inside and the bell rings with Maclin fighting back. A backbreaker gives Maclin two but the Jarheadbutt misses.

Alexander knees him in the ribs and snaps off a bunch of rolling German suplexes. Maclin reverses into his own rolling German suplexes and they’re finally both down. The slug out goes to Maclin, who ties him in the Tree of Woe, only to miss the running shoulder. Alexander’s crossbody to the back knocks him to the floor for two but Maclin is right back with an Angle Slam.

A top rope superplex rolled into a Death Valley Driver for two leaves Alexander staggered but the referee gets bumped. Alexander scores with a low blow and zip ties Maclin’s hands behind his back. Maclin is able to avoid a charge though and now the running shoulder hits the ribs. The Scud, still with the hands tied (which is FINE with the referee), connects and a running knee gets two on Alexander. Back up and Alexander manages a Tombstone for two, setting up the ankle lock as Maclin passes out at 14:45.

Rating: B-. The hard hitting aspect was good and I wanted to see where it was going, but the zip tie thing completely lost me. How is that either not a DQ or maybe something that earns a quick stoppage? Other than that, Alexander winning was the right call as he’s been losing a good bit lately, so this was the best result, especially with Maclin being protecte.

We recap Matt Cardona vs. PCO in a Monster’s Ball match. Steph de Lander has fallen for PCO and they got married, but Cardona doesn’t approve. Now de Lander is off getting neck surgery, so Cardona has to fight him on his own.

International Title/TNA Digital Media Title: Matt Cardona vs. PCO

Monster’s Ball, meaning anything goes and PCO is defending both titles. An early clothesline drops Cardona but he sends PCO outside, where Cardona realizes there are no countouts. That means Cardona joins him on the floor for some rams into various steel objects, including dropping him back first onto the steps. Cardona whips out a door but a nasty backdrop sends him through it instead.

With Cardona on the floor, PCO loads up a dive, which is cut off with a trashcan shot to the head. Another door, plus some chairs (Cardona doesn’t know why his face isn’t on it) are thrown in, with Cardona building up a structure with more chairs underneath the bridged door. PCO fights back but gets powerbombed through everything for two.

The bag of thumbtacks are pulled out, with some of the tacks going into PCO’s mouth for the Reboot. PCO fights up so it’s Radio Silence for two, with Cardona being stunned. A third door is brought in but PCO breaks it over Cardona’s back. PCO pulls out a bag of his own containing…well more tacks actually. Cardona gets in a low blow and finds a barbed wire baseball bat. PCO fights up, chokeslams him into the tacks and drops the PCOsault to retain at 13:16.

Rating: B-. It was violent and PCO gets his revenge, but these things have become paint by numbers over the years. You can almost guarantee the spots you’ll see, with doors instead of tables this time around. PCO smashing through the annoying Cardona is fine, but there was no big moment here that made this one stand out in any significant way.

We recap Moose vs. Mike Santana. Moose is part of the System and Santana has gone after the team. Santana wants to get into the main event scene so he’s coming after the biggest name the System has.

Mike Santana vs. Moose

Moose has JDC with him. The fight starts fast on the floor with Santana sending him into the barricade. The referee goes to check on Moose, allowing JDC to send Santana into the steps. They get inside so Moose can get two but Santana escapes a powerbomb and hits an enziguri. Santana’s running Cannonball in the corner is countered into a powerbomb to give Moose two more. A release Rock Bottom plants Santana and Moose slaps away, only to miss a spinning high crossbody.

The rolling Buck Fifty gives Santana two so Moose rolls outside, where Santana hits a huge dive. Back in and a leg lariat gives Santana two but Spin The Block misses. Santana settles for a Death Valley Driver into the corner and a 450 gives Santana two. Back up and they go to the corner, where Moose tries the super Sky High but they both crash down instead.

A nasty powerbomb onto the apron has Santana in more trouble but he beats the count at nine. JDC comes in with a chain around his hand (works for the referee) but almost hits Moose, earning himself a Spin The Block. Moose’s spar gets two and the fans are into it again. Another spear is countered though and Spin The Block finishes for Santana at 13:44.

Rating: B. There was no reason for Moose to win here, as Santana has hit the ground running as a singles star and very well could be moving into the World Title scene sooner rather than later. What mattered here was getting Santana the biggest singles win of his career and he fought back to overcome the odds to get there. Perfectly acceptable match, with the result being what matters.

We recap Jordynne Grace defending the Knockouts Title against Masha Slamovich. Grace helped her out against the System and now Slamovich wants another shot at the Knockouts Title. Grace beat her before at Bound For Glory and now it’s time for the showdown against a much improved Slamovich.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich

Grace is defending. Feeling out process to start with Grace winning the battle over a lockup. Slamovich gets in some shots of her own but Grace ties her in the ropes for a kick to the leg. They head outside where Grace hits a rolling Death Valley Driver for a near fall back inside. Grace starts kicking away at the leg but it’s too early for the Juggernaut Driver. Slamovich fires off some kicks but the leg is too banged up for the full impact. A guillotine keeps Grace in trouble but she powers up into a Jackhammer for two.

They go up top where Slamovich plants her back down, setting up the Snowplow for a fast near fall. Slamovich knees her down and hits a running spinwheel kick, only for Grace to knock her down again. They fight back up and Grace runs her over, setting up the Juggernaut Driver for two. A leglock immediately goes on but Slamovich bails to the ropes. They go up again, and this time it’s a super Snow Plow to bring Grace down. A package piledriver gives Slamovich the pin and the title at 12:42.

Rating: B. Take two powerhouses, let the beat on each other until one of them can’t get up anymore. That’s all you had here and it worked rather well, with Slamovich FINALLY getting the big title win that she’s been needing. It was a good powerhouse match too, and now we’ll have to see who is coming after the title next. I’m not sure how much longer Grace has on her deal around here, but odds are she’ll be in WWE sooner than later, so this isn’t much of a setback.

We recap Joe Hendry challenging Nic Nemeth for the World Title. Hendry has been the hottest thing in the company and now he needs to win the big one. Nemeth isn’t so sure of that, but Frankie Kazarian, now with his guaranteed title shot, is lurking around as guest referee.

TNA World Title: Joe Hendry vs. Nic Nemeth

Nemeth is defending and Frankie Kazarian is guest referee. They go rather slowly to start with Hendry’s wristlock not getting him very far so Nemeth hits a nice dropkick to really stagger Hendry. The fans do NOT like Nemeth’s home state of Ohio so Hendry running Nemeth over makes them feel better. A rather delayed vertical suplex puts Nemeth down and Hendry drops him again with some right hands.

There’s the fall away slam to send Nemeth flying but it’s too early for the Standing Ovation. Instead Alexander grabs a pop up powerbomb for two and the ankle lock goes on (as I remember Kazarian is the referee, as he hasn’t been a factor thus far). Nemeth makes the rope so Hendry puts him on top and grabs a super fall away slam. Kazarian teases the cash in but Hendry tells him to do his job instead.

That’s enough for Nemeth to hit a Fameasser for two, even with Kazarian counting rather quickly. Hendry rolls through a high crossbody and hits an AA for another near fall. They fight out to the apron, with Nemeth planting him down with Hendry falling out to the floor. Kazarian tries to cash in again but John Bradshaw Layfield is here to give him the Clothesline From JBL.

Another Clothesline takes Hendry down and there’s a third to take out Nic’s brother Ryan Nemeth. Back in and Nic, who might not have seen what happened, hits Danger Zone and another referee comes in to count two. The superkick is countered but Nemeth counters the counter into Danger Zone to retain at 15:10.

Rating: B-. Yes really, JBL just helped cost Joe Hendry the World Title in the main event of Bound For Glory. I don’t care if Hendry is leaving next week (which he isn’t), you need to give him the title here. Hendry has been the next big thing for way too long around here, but instead of going with the title change, we’re sticking with the TNA tradition of NOT going with what the fans are begging to see. The match was good but not great, with a rather slow pace until the big messy finish. Which was about JBL.

We look at the Hall Of Fame inductions.

Genesis is back on January 19, a Sunday.

Here’s what’s coming on Impact.

We recap the Tag Team Titles in Full Metal Mayhem. The Hardys and ABC both want the belts back do we’ll do it in TNA’s version of TLC.

Tag Team Titles: Hardys vs. ABC vs. The System

The System is defending and it’s basically Tables, Ladders And Chairs. The ring is all painted up in something Jeff Hardy had to design, complete with something like a ramp on the floor in front of the hard camera. We starts slowly as the champs get double teamed to the floor with Poetry In Motion.

Bey takes them out with a dive and a bunch of chairs are brought in, but instead we get Austin splashing Myers through a table out in the crowd. Matt legdrops Eddie off a ladder through another table so we’re down to challengers vs. challengers at the moment. The Hardys take over inside, with the Plot Twist taking Bey down. Jeff gets knocked into the corner for Poetry In Motion but comes back with some ladder shots.

ABC grabs a specialty ladder and tries to climb but it takes too long to hold up, allowing the Hardys to make the save. The big ladder is bridged in a regular ladder, basically cutting the ring in half. They grab chairs and walk across the bridge until Austin and Jeff get knocked onto the bridged part, leaving everyone down. The System returns from the dead to pour a bunch of ladders out before setting up a bunch of tables (which are all painted as well).

The Hardys are put through the tables but Bey breaks up the Conchairtos. The 1-2-Sweet takes Myers down and Bey goes up but gets Blue Thunder Bombed off the ladder for another crash. Matt tries to climb, only to get pulled down with the Art Of Finesse. Myers and Bey go up the ladder to slug it out but Bey is left hanging. Myers hits a spear off the ladder ala Edge in 2001 and everyone is down.

It’s Matt coming back in with a chair, which he wraps around Edwards’ neck for the Twist Of Fate. Jeff brings in the really big ladder and Swantons Myers through a table at ringside. Austin goes up so here is Alisha Edwards to break it up. Matt takes out Alisha but Eddie goes up, only for the Hardys to throw chairs at him and powerbomb him off the ladder through tables at ringside. That’s enough for the Hardys to win the titles at 27:17.

Rating: D+. As soon as the Hardys were announced for the match, you could tell what was coming. As soon as it was announced as Full Metal Mayhem, you knew it wasn’t going to be very good. But then they went nearly half an hour in slow motion, with the whole thing being a Hardys tribute, because the Hardys have to win everything.

The painted ring, ladders and tables were little more than an eyesore and didn’t help anything. Also, why would TNA allow the challengers to set up the mood of the match or whatever it was? Shouldn’t that be the System’s deal? Either way, rather weak main event, as the Hardys just cannot do this anymore. Naturally, they’re the Tag Team Champions and get the big, ahem, feel good moment to end the show.

The Hardys celebrate with the fans to wrap it up.

Oh and one more thing:

I was watching on TNA+, the official TNA streaming service.

Show ends, Thanks For Watching graphic comes up. Fine.

Below that.

“Don’t Miss Bound For Glory On October 26!”

Overall Rating: B-. And that’s TNA in a nutshell: they have some good stuff (most of the matches were completely acceptable or better) and a nice moment with Slamovich FINALLY winning the title, only to entirely overthink the ending of the two biggest matches. Hendry winning the title, even if he loses it back on Thursday, was what the fans wanted to see. Instead, they got JBL and Ryan Nemeth getting involved before Hendry lost pretty much clean (he fought back up and even tried his finisher, so he at least had a chance).

Then there’s the main event, which was roughly the 14th time this promotion has paid tribute to the Hardys. They’re a great team and legends and everything, but that doesn’t mean they need to win the titles in the main event of your version of Wrestlemania. Right now, TNA needs something to fire the fans up.

That could have been Hendry, but instead they have a bunch of rather aged champions (save for Mike Bailey, 36, the youngest men’s champion is 44 year old Nic Nemeth). You can be older and still more than hang in the ring, but you might want to go with some people whose heyday wasn’t 15+ years ago.

Overall, this show was good, but it had the same problem that has plagued TNA for almost its entire history: they won’t just give the fans what is right there in front of them. I liked most of the show and most of it worked, only for the last two matches to leave a really bad taste in my mouth. That shouldn’t be happening very often, and it is almost a tradition around here.

Results
Ash By Elegance/Heather Reckless b. Brinley Reece/Xia Brookside – Rarefied Air to Reece
Frankie Kazarian won the Call Your Shot Gauntlet last eliminating Rhino
Mike Bailey b. El Hijo del Vikingo – Meteor Rain
Spitfire b. Rosemary/Wendy Choo – Pressure Drop to Choo
Josh Alexander b. Steve Maclin – Ankle lock
PCO b. Matt Cardona – PCOsault
Mike Santana b. Moose – Spin The Block
Masha Slamovich b. Jordynne Grace – Package piledriver
Nic Nemeth b. Joe Hendry – Danger Zone
Hardys b. The System and ABC – Hardys pulled down the titles

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: October 3, 2024
Host Tom Hannifan

This is a special show as Hurricane Helene knocked out the planned television tapings, meaning we are in for a Best Of Show. In this case it’s the Best Of Bound For Glory, which is appropriate as we are just over three weeks away from this year’s edition. We might get some quick promos to go with that though so let’s get to it.

Note that I’ll be posting the full versions of the matches, omitting any edits on this week’s broadcast.

Host Tom Hannifan introduces us to our first match.

From 2022.

X-Division Title: Frankie Kazarian vs. Mike Bailey

Bailey is defending and after a quick handshake, we’re ready to go. They trade some early rollups for two each before Bailey has to bail to the ropes to avoid the chickenwing. A dropkick sets up another failed chickenwing attempt so Bailey sends him outside for the moonsault to the floor. Back in and Kazarian knocks him off the top for a crash to the floor as the pace slows. Kazarian starts in on the leg, which never works on Bailey.

Bailey fights up and hits a kick to the chest, setting up the bouncing kicks into the running corkscrew shooting star press. Kazarian gets up this time and hits Back To The Future (electric chair bridged back into a rollup) for two before they knock each other down for a breather. Back up and Bailey kicks him in the face, setting up the standing moonsault knees. The Ultimate Weapon gets two and Bailey is stunned. The Flamingo Driver is countered into the chickenwing, which is broken up just as fast.

Kazarian misses a charge and falls to the floor, where Bailey is waiting on him with the top rope Asai moonsault. That’s shrugged off though as Kazarian comes back in with a slingshot cutter for his own near fall. The Flux Capacitor (super Spanish Fly) gives Kazarian two but another Back To The Future is countered into a poisonrana. Bailey goes up for another Ultimate Weapon but gets pulled into another cutter. The chickenwing gives Kazarian the title back at 12:34.

Rating: B-. This is what you want to go with in an opener as they were flying around the ring until one of them got caught. Thankfully Kazarian didn’t waste too long working on the knee before Bailey got up for his flips and dives, meaning the frustration levels weren’t as high here. Kazarian winning is a surprise as Bailey has been on a roll lately, but it is certainly a twist at the end of a fast paced match.

From 2021.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match

There are 20 entrants, with two minute intervals in a battle royal format until the final two have a singles match, with the winner getting a shot at any title any time they choose. Chris Sabin is in at #1 (due to being the last person eliminated from a battle royal) and Rocky Romero (a surprise) is in at #2. They go technical to start with neither being able to get any kind of an advantage. An exchange of armdrags gives us a standoff as Madman Fulton is in at #3, giving Sabin and Romero a joint target.

The clock speeds WAY up and it’s Rohit Raju in at #4 to go after the non-monsters. The mini tag match breaks out until Tasha Steelz is in at #5 as a bit of a wild card. Steelz joins in with the villains to get rid of Romero and it’s Rachael Ellering in at #6 to go after Steelz in a hurry. A bunch of people get rid of Fulton and it’s Savannah Evans in at #7. Sabin and Raju pair off as Ellering goes after Evans and Steelz. Johnny Swinger is in at #8 as Ellering and Evans eliminate each other. That leaves Swinger to hit on Steelz, who takes him down and hammers away instead.

Melina is in at #9 (another surprise) so Swinger shows her the guns. It actually works for a change, as Swinger is ready for her drop down into the splits and sends her face first into the mat. The Demon (as in WCW’s KISS Demon) in is at #10 so Swinger gets a quick autograph, followed by a quick elimination. Brian Myers is in at #11 as these intervals are all over the place. Matt Cardona is in at #12 and goes right at Myers due to the laws of the wrestling world.

More brawling against the ropes ensues and it’s Laredo Kid in at #13. A handspring DDT hits Raju as Myers dumps Melina and Steelz to clear the ring a bit. The ring is filled up a bit more though as Sam Beale is in at #14 and goes after Cardona (on Myers’ orders of course). Rich Swann is in at #15 and strikes away at Myers and Beale. Myers gets in a shot of his own but Beale tosses him out to a pretty big reaction. Ace Austin is in at #16 and kicks the Demon in the face, setting up the elimination, because the Demon was still in the match for some reason.

Moose is in at #17 and powerbombs Beale out in a huge crash. Eddie Edwards is in at #18 and there goes Kid. Moose gets kicked outside without an elimination, where he pulls Eddie out, also without an elimination. Alisha Edwards is in at #19 and it’s a family kendo stick beatdown on Moose. W. Morrissey is in at #20 (meaning we had 18 entrants in less than 20 minutes), giving us Sabin, Raju, Cardona, Swann, Austin, Moose, Eddie Edwards, Alisha Edwards and Morrissey as the final grouping.

Morrissey tosses out Alisha and then kicks Eddie out, meaning it’s time for the alliance with Moose. Raju wants to join them but joins the Edwards on the floor instead. Sabin dumps Ace Austin so here is Madman Fulton to attack Sabin, allowing Moose and Morrissey to get rid of him too. We’re down to Moose, Morrissey, Cardona and Swann so everyone takes a corner. Morrissey goes to get rid of Swann but Moose dumps both of them, leaving us with Cardona vs. Moose in a regular singles match. Cardona swings away and hits the Future Endeavored, only to miss Radio Silence. Moose spears him down for the pin at 29:38.

Rating: C-. They were flying through this one and your mileage may vary on that part. The bigger issue here was how fast people were coming in, as there wasn’t time to do much in between. It does help that there were multiple possible winners and they didn’t waste time once it was down to one on one. This could have been shortened a good bit though and the longer time is what holds it back a lot.

From 2022.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich

Grace is defending. They start very fast with Grace hammering her down in the corner and out to the floor, setting up a running kick through the ropes. Slamovich gets in a kick to the head on the apron and a belly to back piledriver on said apron knocks Grace a bit loopy. Back in and we hit the reverse chinlock to stay on Grace’s neck but Grace fights out without much effort.

A spinebuster out of the corner plants Slamovich again and they chop it out. Stereo spinning backfists put both of them down and the fans seem to approve. Back up and a Michinoku Driver gives Grace two more but the Vader Bomb misses. Grace hits a Jackhammer for another two but Slamovich slips out of the MuscleBuster for a sleeper.

That’s shifted into a bulldog choke until Grave powers up and grabs the rope. Another driver drops Slamovich again and Grace slaps her in the face a few times. The Grace Driver gets two and Grace is stunned. She’s so stunned that Slamovich is able to hit an Air Raid Crash into the corner, setting up the Snow Plow for two more, as Grace gets a foot under the ropes. They go up top where Grace gets in a shot to the ribs, setting up something close to a super Grace Driver to retain at 15:57.

Rating: B. I’d call that quite the surprise, as Slamovich seemed primed to take the title here. Grave is a fine champion but it isn’t like she was on some legendary run. Unless this is setting up a rather eventual James vs. Grace showdown, I don’t know if I get this. They had a heck of a hoss fight, but this should have been Slamovich’s big moment instead of Grace retaining.

From 2023.

Moose vs. PCO vs. Steve Maclin vs. Rhino

Anything goes and they do the whole “they’ve been locked up for twenty four hours” deal. It’s a brawl before the bell and Moose beats people up with the briefcase. As the spear is loaded up, here is PCO to brawl with Moose instead. Moose backdrops PCO over the top and through a ladder but the other two get back in to keep up the brawling. Maclin Death Valley Drivers Moose into a trashcan in the corner and hits PCO in the back with a chair.

Back in and PCO chokeslams Maclin and hits a suicide dive on Rhino. A middle rope legdrop hits Maclin and the Deanimator makes it even worse. Moose is back in with some release Rock Bottoms to PCO, who keeps popping right back up. With that not working, Moose plants CO onto some cinder blocks covers with thumbtacks (because that’s a thing).

Rhino is back up and wants tables, which the fans seem to like. Naturally it’s a barbed wire table but Maclin posts Rhino to cut him off. Cue Bully Ray to shove Maclin off the top and through the barbed wire table for the huge crash. Back in and PCO DDTs Moose, who catches him on top with some chair shots. Rhino Gores the chair that Moose is holding but it’s enough to put Moose down so that the PCOsault can finish him off at 11:11.

Rating: B-. This was exactly as advertised and that is not a bad thing. Sometimes you need to just let some big people go out there and hit each other really hard which is what we got here. PCO winning is a bit of a surprise but it does make sense given how much this match would suit him. Fun stuff here and they did what they needed to.

From 2022.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Josh Alexander vs. Eddie Edwards

Alexander is defending and Edwards sends Honor No More to the back. Both of their families are at ringside to make it more personal. They fight over a lockup to start as commentary breaks down the difference in the color of their gear. Edwards hits a chop, which is enough to make Alexander double leg him down and hammer away. Alexander knocks him outside for a breather before they switch places.

A slingshot dive drops Alexander for a change but he’s right back up with the crossbody to the back to send them both outside again. Back in and Edwards snaps off an overhead belly to belly before sending him right back to the floor. One might think they are filling in time here. The floor mats are pulled back, which takes long enough for Alexander to fight back. A German suplex from the apron to the floor is blocked so Edwards hits a Diehard Driver on the exposed floor.

Back in and Alexander seems to be favoring his leg and the Backpack Stunner takes him down. The half crab goes on but Alexander makes the rope. Back up and Alexander starts rolling some German suplexes, even going through the ropes and hitting another on the apron. That’s still not enough to break it up and they go outside with two more German suplexes, setting up another one on the ramp.

They head back inside with Alexander hitting a powerbomb onto the knee for two, only to have Eddie come back with Deep Six for two of his own. The Boston Knee Party is blocked and Alexander goes old school with a Styles Clash. Alexander puts on an ankle lock, which is broken without much trouble.

Edwards enziguris him off the top but the referee gets bumped. Cue Kenny King for a low blow before he is taken out by security, allowing a second referee to come in. The Boston Knee Party gets two on Alexander and a tiger driver gets the same, leaving both of them down. Alexander’s nose is busted but he comes up slugging, only to get rolled up for two. Another Boston Knee Party is blocked and the C4 Spike retains the title at 28:04.

Rating: B. Definitely a good match but this never hit that next level as it was bouncing pretty hard off the ceiling above it. Edwards is a strong challenger to Alexander and just like in the previous match, it felt like he should have won here instead of coming up short. What’s the point of Honor No More if Edwards loses in the biggest match the team has had? Anyway, solid main event, but I’m not sure if it was worthy of the final spot on the biggest show of the year.

A quick Nic Nemeth vs. Joe Hendry video wraps us up.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a good example of “what else where they supposed to do” and it went well enough. They gave us a few matches from the last few years and the once chosen made for a nice two hours. We can get back to the important stuff next week but for now, this was as good as they could have done given the circumstances.

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Bound For Glory 2023
Date: October 21, 2023
Location: Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the biggest show of Impact’s year and things are getting interesting around here. The main event here will see Josh Alexander challenging Alex Shelley for the World Title that he never lost. Other than that, we have Trinity defending the Knockouts Title against Mickie James, who never lost her title either. Let’s get to it.

The opening video talks about the quest for glory through victory. The main matches get attention of their own.

X-Division Title: Chris Sabin vs. Kenta

Kenta is challenging and is driven against the ropes for a clean break. They go to the slugout with Kenta getting the better of things and sending Sabin outside. The dive is knocked out of the air though and Sabin hits a high crossbody for two back inside. Kenta bails to the floor and manages to drive Sabin back first into the apron.

Back in and Kenta gets four straight near falls before we hit the chinlock. Sabin gets up and they slug it out until Sabin hits a running shot to get a breather. The missile dropkick puts Kenta down again and a middle rope tornado DDT gets two more. The Cradle Shock is broken up though and Kenta hits his tornado neck snap across the top.

Some running kicks in the corner rock Sabin again but he kicks Kenta in the face. Kenta has to grab the referee to escape the Cradle Shock and then knocks Sabin down for a double stomp. The GTS is blocked and Sabin scores with a superkick. The missile dropkick to the back sets up Cradle Shock to retain the title at 11:28.

Rating: B. As usual, the X-Division stuff is a good choice for an opener as the matches are fast paced and hard hitting enough to get the audience into things. It was a good test for Sabin as Kenta is a known star and now I wonder who is next to come for the title. This worked well and as usual, Sabin can go with anyone.

Here’s what’s coming on the show.

We recap Monster’s Ball, which is a hoss fight that was mainly started over who was supposed to get the Feast Or Fired briefcase. Rhino cost Maclin the case, which Moose wound up getting. PCO is there because he’s a monster and Bully Ray is lurking around as well.

Moose vs. PCO vs. Steve Maclin vs. Rhino

Anything goes and they do the whole “they’ve been locked up for twenty four hours” deal. It’s a brawl before the bell and Moose beats people up with the briefcase. As the spear is loaded up, here is PCO to brawl with Moose instead. Moose backdrops PCO over the top and through a ladder but the other two get back in to keep up the brawling. Maclin Death Valley Drivers Moose into a trashcan in the corner and hits PCO in the back with a chair.

Back in and PCO chokeslams Maclin and hits a suicide dive on Rhino. A middle rope legdrop hits Maclin and the Deanimator makes it even worse. Moose is back in with some release Rock Bottoms to PCO, who keeps popping right back up. With that not working, Moose plants CO onto some cinder blocks covers with thumbtacks (because that’s a thing).

Rhino is back up and wants tables, which the fans seem to like. Naturally it’s a barbed wire table but Maclin posts Rhino to cut him off. Cue Bully Ray to shove Maclin off the top and through the barbed wire table for the huge crash. Back in and PCO DDTs Moose, who catches him on top with some chair shots. Rhino Gores the chair that Moose is holding but it’s enough to put Moose down so that the PCOsault can finish him off at 11:11.

Rating: B-. This was exactly as advertised and that is not a bad thing. Sometimes you need to just let some big people go out there and hit each other really hard which is what we got here. PCO winning is a bit of a surprise but it does make sense given how much this match would suit him. Fun stuff here and they did what they needed to.

Mickie James is ready for Trinity.

We recap ABC challenging the Rascalz for the Tag Team Titles. ABC got cheated out of a title shot and the Rascalz won the belts, but now it’s time for the rematch.

Tag Team Titles: Rascalz vs. ABC

ABC is challenging and this is Chris Bey’s Feast Or Fired cash in. The Rascalz try to jump them to start and we settle down to Miguel vs. Bey with neither being able to hit their big kick. Austin comes in to kick Miguel down for two but Wentz is back in with a neckbreaker. A standing shooting star press gets two on Austin and Miguel neckbreakers him on the apron for a nasty crash. The chinlock goes on back inside but Austin manages to send both champs to the floor for the big dive.

Back in and it’s Bey getting the tag to clean house, including a Downward Spiral/reverse DDT combination. A brainbuster gets two on Wentz and a torture rack neckbreaker/springboard kick to the head combination gets the same. The 1-2-Sweet is broken up and a backbreaker puts Bey down for two. Miguel hits a top rope Meteora so Wentz’s Swanton can get two more. Wentz loads up the spray paint but sprays Miguel by mistake, setting up the 1-2-Sweet to give us new champions at 9:48.

Rating: B-. These guys work well together and we get some history to make the show feel more important. It was a good results too as ABC getting the titles back feels right as they are probably the best team in Impact today. They get their nice moment to win the titles back while having a good match in the process. Nice stuff here, which tends to be the case for ABC.

Quick video on Will Ospreay vs. Mike Bailey, which is more or less Ospreay being a big star and coming in to face one of Impact’s best.

Will Ospreay vs. Mike Bailey

Ospreay takes him up to the ropes to start so Bailey kicks away. A monkey flip puts Bailey down but he knocks Ospreay out to the floor for the moonsault dive. Back in and a hot shot into a big boot puts Bailey on the floor and Ospreay hits a dive of his own. The abdominal stretch goes on for a few seconds before Ospreay chops the heck out of him. Bailey is right back with a missile dropkick into some strikes for two.

A delayed kick to the head rocks Ospreay again but it’s too early for the Flamingo Driver. Ospreay isn’t having that though and scores with a spinning kick to the head for a breather. The Cheeky Nandos kick looks to set up the Oscutter but Bailey backslides his way out of trouble. A poisonrana puts Ospreay on the apron but he’s fine enough to kick him in the head.

The Oscutter connects to send Bailey outside with quite the crash. Back in and the regular Oscutter gets two but it’s too early for the Hidden Blade. Bailey gets back up for a hard exchange of kicks and forearms until the Hidden Blade puts Bailey back down. A top rope Oscutter is cut off by knees to the back though and the Ultimate Weapon gives Bailey two.

Ospreay elbows him in the head but Stormbreaker is countered into a hurricanrana for two more. They go up top where Bailey’s super fisherman’s buster gets another near fall. The tornado kick connects for Bailey but Ospreay pulls him into the Styles Clash of all things for two of his own. Ospreay’s Storm Driver 93 gets two more and the Hidden Blade into another Stormbreaker finishes Bailey at 17:28.

Rating: B+. Yeah this worked, if nothing else because it was two people beating the fire out of each other. They didn’t really need a story here as this was about tearing the house down in something close to a dream match. Bailey was bringing it here and Ospreay is one of the best in the world at the moment so it was going to be a heck of a match no matter what they did. Very good stuff here and worthy of a spot on the biggest show of their year.

Various wrestlers are ready for the Call Your Shot gauntlet.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

This is basically a 20 person Royal Rumble (two minutes for the third entrant, one minute for every other entrant, regular match when they get down to two) for the title shot of your choice. Jake Something is in at #1 and Eddie Edwards is in at #2. Edwards chops away and Something tells him to keep going before hitting some running shoulders. Something has him in trouble and it’s Kenny King in at #3.

Edwards and King double team Something down until Juventud Guerrera of all people is in at #4. Guerrera takes over on King and Edwards but the former hits a spinebuster to put him down. Johnny Swinger is in at #5 but King plants him with a fireman’s carry facebuster. Guerrera tosses King for the first elimination but here is Crazzy Steve (not in the match) to jump Swinger from behind.

Gisele Shaw is in at #6 and tosses the banged up Swinger. Cue Tommy Dreamer to brawl to the back with Steve as Jody Threat is in at #7. Shaw gets dropkicked off the apron but her goons are there for the save. KiLynn King is in at #8 as Edwards knocks out Guerrera. The debuting Sonny Kiss is in at #9 and gorilla presses Shaw out as Bully Ray is in at #10. Ray and Kiss….have a dance off until Ray punches King.

Matt Cardona is in at #11 as a big surprise but Kiss plays D-Von for a What’s Up. Jordynne Grace is in at #12 as the ring is getting too full. Brawling ensues along the ropes and it’s Eric Young in at #13. Young gets to clean some house and even knocks Edwards out. Joe Hendry is in at #14 and grabs a delayed suplex on Cardona. Brian Myers is in at #15 and quickly gets rid of Hendry. We get the Cardona/Myers reunion and they toss Kiss.

Heath is in at #16 and Wake Up Calls abound…until Myers throws Heath out. Frankie Kazarian is in at #17 but he gets double teamed as well. Rich Swann is in at #18 to save Kazarian and Jonathan Gresham is in at #19. Gresham knocks Threat out but has a staredown with Grace (his wife). Dirty Dango is in at #20 to complete the field…and is immediately eliminated by Something.

That leaves us with a field of Something, KiLynn King, Ray, Cardona, Grace, Young, Myers, Heath, Kazarian, Swann and Gresham. Hold on though as Dango’s goon Oleg Prudius gets to wreck a bunch of people, allowing Myers and Cardona to dump Kazarian. Swann is tossed as well and Young follows him as the field thins a lot. There goes Gresham as well but Something fights out of a double suplex and gets to clean house.

Myers hits Something low to save Cardona though and Something is out. Cardona then tosses Myers and we’re down to King, Cardona, Ray and Grace. King and Cardona are tossed as well so now it’s Grace vs. Ray in a regular match for the title shot. Grace forearms away but gets put down by a single chop. It works so well that Ray does it again but the elbow misses. Instead Grace strikes away and manages the Juggernaut Driver for the pin at 28:57.

Rating: C. This match has yet to be anything that would be seen as good and that was the case again here. Instead, we had another long match with some nice moments and a heck of a reunion between Cardona and Myers. At the same time though, Kiss was only so interesting and that’s about it for the surprise entrants. There were a lot of people here who could have had another match on the show and it isn’t so interesting to see them coming in, doing nothing and then being eliminated. Finally, this match just takes up so much time on the show and it always makes me wonder what else they could have done.

Post match Grace says she’s getting the Knockouts Title shot at Hard To Kill. Well at least they didn’t waste time.

We recap Mickie James challenging Trinity for the Knockouts Title. James had to vacate the title earlier this year due to injury and Trinity has become champion in her absence. Now James wants the title back, though they’re cool with each other.

Knockouts Title: Trinity vs. Mickie James

James is challenging and they fight over wrist control to start. Trinity tries to pull her down into Starstruck but James is right out with with a headscissors. James powers her way off the mat and kicks her in the head but charges into Trinity’s kick to the head in the corner. Back up and they strike it out with stereo crossbodies putting both of them down for a breather.

They crash out to the floor and both beat the count back in with a less than dramatic moment. Trinity hits the Rear View for two and does that annoying wiggle in the corner. James is back with the finger lick to even (?) things up before Trinity hits another kick to the head. The split legged moonsault gives Trinity two but the Mick Kick gives Mickie the save. Trinity’s Bubba Bomb into some rollups get two each so Mickie catches her with a tornado DDT. A slingshot X Factor misses for Trinity and Mickie plants her down again. The MickDT is countered though and Trinity pulls her into Starstruck to retain at 11:24.

Rating: B-. It was good but this didn’t feel like a big time title showdown. They were doing the big moves and felt like they were trying to have the epic fight but it just didn’t work. It didn’t help that they didn’t have any personal issue and went with a straight match. That makes sense for the story but it doesn’t make for the most interesting match.

Respect is shown post match.

Moose is going to cash in his Feast Or Fired briefcase at Hard To Kill. There are two of the biggest matches on the card covered, though having them be cash in matches might not be the best idea.

We recap Alex Shelley defending the World Title against Josh Alexander. Yet again, Alexander never lost the title and is trying to get it back. At the same time, Shelley seems to be insecure despite being an Impact legend who won the title. Alexander is playing into that and Shelley is getting a little edgy.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Alex Shelley vs. Josh Alexander

Alexander is challenging. They go to the mat to start with Alexander getting the better of things before they’re back on their feet. It’s too early for Shell Shock as Alexander sends him outside for a breather. Back in and Alexander grabs a front facelock but Shelley reverses into an armbar. That’s broken up and they forearm it out until Shelley goes after Alexander’s arm (the one that caused him to vacate the title).

A backbreaker gives Alexander two and we hit the double arm crank. Shelley breaks that up as well and stomps on the arm, followed by a backdrop to break up a C4 Spike attempt. The bar arm gets posted and Shelley wraps it around the post again. Alexander chops his way out of trouble and grabs Bret Hart’s Hartbreaker Figure Four around the post. With that broken up, they head back inside where Alexander rolls some German suplexes.

Shelley breaks them up but can’t get the Border City Stretch. Shelley ties up both arms instead but Alexander powers out again. That earns him a face first ram into the middle buckle and Shelley loads up Sliced Bread. That’s countered into another German suplex to give Alexander two and it’s time to go after Shelley’s leg.

They head outside with Shelley Shell Shocking him into the barricade. Back in and a frog splash sets up the Border City Stretch, which is reversed into a quickly broken ankle lock. Shelley hammers away and, after countering a C4 Spike attempt, hits a pair of Shell Shocks to retain at 22:33.

Rating: B+. They had a personal issue here and it helped a lot, though they also kept the match pretty much completely clean. What matters is it felt like a showdown between the two tops tars and now Shelley doesn’t have Alexander’s shadow hanging over him. It might not feel like the biggest match of the year, but it was a heck of a match on the big stage and that worked well.

Post match Alexander puts the title on Shelley and leaves in peace.

Oh and one more thing: Impact is going to be TNA Wrestling again starting at Hard To Kill in January. Because if there is one thing this place was missing, it’s nostalgia for the days when they felt like the most inept promotion in the world a good deal of the time. This is announced in a big video showing a bunch of wrestlers saying they need a change, meaning it’s time to go back where it started.

Scott D’Amore and a bunch of wrestlers are in the ring, with Scott saying WE’RE BACK to end the show with TNA chants. I’m sure there’s some ridiculous branding argument to do this change but….egads man this feels like a very unnecessary step.

Overall Rating: B. As usual, the wrestling worked, which has become the new norm around here. It felt like a big closing point for a lot of stories while also setting up things for Hard To Kill. We still have about two and a half months until the show but there will likely be some smaller shows to bridge the gap. What matters is they delivered on the biggest night of the year and there was only one match that wasn’t rather good. Now just find a way to move forward from here, which is often their biggest problem.

Results
Chris Sabin b. Kenta – Cradle Shock
PCO b. Moose, Steve Maclin and Rhino – PCOsault to Moose
ABC b. Rascalz – 1-2-Sweet to Wentz
Will Ospreay b. Mike Bailey – Stormbreaker
Jordynne Grace won the Call Your Shot Gauntlet last eliminating Bully Ray
Trinity b. Mickie James – Starstruck
Alex Shelley b. Josh Alexander – Shell Shock

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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Bound For Glory 2022
Date: October 7, 2022
Location: Washington Avenue Armory, Albany, New York
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

It’s the biggest night of the Impact year and the show doesn’t look too bad. Honor No More is in a pair of title matches, including the show’s main event, so tonight might determine all of the group’s future. That could go in a few ways but there is enough other stuff to keep the interest up. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Digital Media Title: Brian Myers vs. ???

Myers is defending in an open challenge and it’s……Dirty Dango (Fandango) for a surprise. Feeling out process to start with Dango hitting a dropkick to put the champ down. A legdrop gives Dango two and it’s time for Myers to bail out to the floor. Myers wins the fight outside as we go to French commentary for a bit.

Back in and the chinlock goes on, with the fans trying to cheer Dango back up to his feet. Some stomping sets up another chinlock but Dango sends him outside for the slingshot dive. Dango slugs away back inside, setting up a Falcon Arrow for two. Myers manages a quick implant DDT for two but Dango is back with a superkick into a tornado DDT. Something off the top misses though and it’s a spear into the Roster Cut to retain the title at 7:05.

Rating: C. Just a quick match with a surprise to get the show started. I doubt Dango stays around for more than another show or two and there is nothing wrong with that. Let him show up, pop the crowd and then leave without getting too involved. Myers can hold the title as long as he needs to and eventually someone is going to get a nice boost when they take the title from him. Good enough for an opener here and that’s all it needed to be.

The opening video looks at the people on the card and talks about this being in the shadow of the City That Never Sleeps. I mean…..a two and a half hour drive away if that counts.

X-Division Title: Frankie Kazarian vs. Mike Bailey

Bailey is defending and after a quick handshake, we’re ready to go. They trade some early rollups for two each before Bailey has to bail to the ropes to avoid the chickenwing. A dropkick sets up another failed chickenwing attempt so Bailey sends him outside for the moonsault to the floor. Back in and Kazarian knocks him off the top for a crash to the floor as the pace slows. Kazarian starts in on the leg, which is never a good idea for a Bailey match.

Bailey fights up and hits a kick to the chest, setting up the bouncing kicks into the running corkscrew shooting star press. Kazarian gets up this time and hits Back To The Future (electric chair bridged back into a rollup) for two before they knock each other down for a breather. Back up and Bailey kicks him in the face, setting up the standing moonsault knees. The Ultimate Weapon gets two and Bailey is stunned. The Flamingo Driver is countered into the chickenwing, which is broken up just as fast.

Kazarian misses a charge and falls to the floor, where Bailey is waiting on him with the top rope Asai moonsault. That’s shrugged off though as Kazarian comes back in with a slingshot cutter for his own near fall. The Flux Capacitor (super Spanish Fly) gives Kazarian two but another Back To The Future is countered into a poisonrana. Bailey goes up for another Ultimate Weapon but gets pulled into another cutter. The chickenwing gives Kazarian the title back at 12:34.

Rating: B-. This is what you want to go with in an opener as they were flying around the ring until one of them got caught. Thankfully Kazarian didn’t waste too long working on the knee before Bailey got up for his flips and dives, meaning the frustration levels weren’t as high here. Kazarian winning is a surprise as Bailey has been on a roll lately, but it is certainly a twist at the end of a fast paced match.

Mickie James is ready to deliver under pressure with her career on the line. She isn’t passing the torch because she is the torch (A pro wrestling torch?) and tonight, they’re burning Albany down.

We recap Mickie James vs. Mia Yim. They fought at the beginning of Mia’s career and now she wants to be the one to end Mickie’s career and finish the Last Rodeo.

Mickie James vs. Mia Yim

If James loses, she has to retire but there isn’t any personal animosity. The fans are split as we start with a rather aggressive lockup. They both try armdrags so neither can get anywhere, meaning Mickie has to grab a headlock. A headlock takeover puts Mia down so she shoves Mickie away, with Mickie coming up favoring her knee. Mia takes her down by the knee out of the corner and some hard kicks make it even worse. Back up and Mickie hits a neckbreaker for a breather but can’t immediately nip up off the flapjack.

Mia is right back up with a buckle bomb but Mickie….kisses her out of the corner and hits a middle rope Thesz press. The Mick Kick is countered into a stretch muffler though and Mia cranks away to slow Mickie right back down. Eat Defeat connects but James falls into the ropes. Mia is frustrated and misses the cannonball, allowing Mickie to hit the MickDT for the pin at 10:56.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t the biggest surprise and that’s not a bad thing. Mickie isn’t going to be losing until she’s in a major spot and while Bound For Glory is a big show, she wasn’t in a top match on the card. Mia was a good choice for an opponent here as they had a nice match, but the drama wasn’t there because of how it was set up.

We recap VXT vs. the Death Dolls. VXT took the Knockouts Tag Team Titles from Rosemary/Taya Valkyrie so now Jessicka is taking Rosemary’s place.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: VXT vs. Death Dollz

VXT (Deonna Purrazzo/Chelsea Green) is defending (ignore Taylor Wilde’s Twitter handle being show on the Dollz’s chyron for whatever reason). Jessicka and Green start things off with Green being sent straight into the wrong corner. Some splashes knock her down but she’s straight over for the tag off to Purrazzo. Valkyrie comes in and takes her down for a quick double stomp and Pandemonium makes it even worse. The champs get in some stereo kicks to slow Valkyrie down though and a double snap suplex gets two.

Valkyrie drives Green into the corner and makes the tag but the referee doesn’t see it to keep the champs in control. As tends to be the case, the hot tag goes through a few seconds later and it’s Jessicka coming in to clean house. Purrazzo manages a Downward Spiral into a stomp to give Green two. I’m Prettier is loaded up but Valkyrie makes the save, setting up a kick to the head into the Sick Driver for the pin and the titles at 7:24.

Rating: C. Well ok then. I certainly didn’t see this one coming as you would think that VXT would have kept the titles at least for a little while longer. The Dollz stuff has gone on for awhile now and I’m kind of curious to see what this win means for Rosemary. Either way, it’s quite the surprising result but the titles aren’t just sitting there, so at least they’re doing something.

We recap Honor No More vs. the Motor City Machine Guns for the Tag Team Titles. Honor No More won the titles to make the stable feel important. Then the Guns earned the title shot to set this up. Not that complicated of a story but the match should be good.

Tag Team Titles: Honor No More vs. Motor City Machine Guns

Honor No More (Mike Bennett/Matt Taven), with Maria Kanellis, is defending. Taven takes Shelley down to start and hits his catchphrase before it’s quickly off to Bennett vs. Sabin. Bennett takes him into the corner and stomps away, allowing Taven to come back in for an elbow to the head. Shelley comes in to kick Bennett off the apron though and it’s a kick to Taven’s arm to take over.

The Guns start taking turns on the arm, including stereo spinning kicks to both arms. That’s enough to draw in the illegal Bennett so he gets dropped as well. Taven misses a charge into the corner, allowing Bennett to get in a cheap shot from the apron so the champs can take over again. Some kicks to the head get two on Shelley and it’s a kick to the face into a backbreaker for the same.

Shelley is right back up and brings in Sabin to clean house, including the dropkick/tornado DDT combination to drop the champs. The Downward Spiral/missile dropkick to the back combination gets two on Taven but he’s right back up with Just The Tip for two of his own. Hail Maria (spike piledriver) gets two but the Proton Pack is broken up.

Something like a double Death Valley Driver plants Bennett and Taven gets tied in the Tree of Woe. Shelley launches Bennett into Taven but Taven breaks up something off the top. Bennett’s superkick accidentally hits Maria (BIG pop for that) but the distraction lets Taven grab a rollup (with feet on the ropes) to retain at 16:37.

Rating: B. Take two talented teams, give them over fifteen minutes, have a rather good match. This was one of the matches that looked like it was going to be among the best on the show and then they did just that. Granted the Motor City Machine Guns having a good match is like seeing the sun come up but it doesn’t make things any less entertaining. Honor No More looked like their usual talented selves and I’m glad that they’re getting to keep the titles, as they deserve the spotlight for a bit longer.

We look at Raven being inducted into the Hall of Fame on the pre-show, where he DDTed Tommy Dreamer one more time.

Video on the Call Your Shot gauntlet match. It’s basically a Royal Rumble for the Money In The Bank contract (for any title) with battle royal rules until the final two, when it’s a singles match.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match

Twenty entrants, sixty second intervals (save for two minutes after the first two entrants), Eric Young is in at #1 and Joe Hendry is in at #2. Hendry spends a bit too much time posing and gets jumped from behind but he’s right back with a suplex. A spinebuster is loaded up but Steve Maclin is in at #3. Maclin loads Hendry up in the Tree of Woe for the running shoulder to the ribs and it’s Rich Swann in at #4. House is cleaned until Hendry plants him with a tilt-a-whirl slam and PCO is in at #5.

Now it’s PCO getting to clean house, including a hanging DDT to Maclin. Savannah Evans is in at #6 and gets in PCO’s face, which doesn’t seem to be the most logical move. Everyone pairs off and it’s Johnny Swinger in at #7. Swinger slams Evans but hurts his back a bit, leaving Tasha Steelz to come in at #8. Evans and Steelz beat up Swinger until Killer Kelly is in at #9. Kelly goes after Evans so Steelz dumps both of them to clear out the ring a bit. Moose is in at #10, giving us Young, Hendry, Maclin, Swann, PCO, Swinger and Moose at the halfway point.

There goes Hendry, leaving Moose to slug it out with PCO, with the latter being sent out rather quickly. Sami Callihan is in at #11 and powerbombs Maclin as everyone pairs off again. Taylor Wilde is in at #12 and does very little until Gisele Shaw is in at #13. Young is in trouble so here are a bunch of guys in yellow hoodies to save him. One such hoodied guy, who reveals himself as Deaner, tosses Callihan. Bully Ray of all people is in at #14, for his first match in Impact in about eight years.

Ray tosses Steelz and it’s Tommy Dreamer in at #15 and we get the staredown with Ray for the ECW reunion (as mentioned by commentary). Rhino is in at #16 and we get the official ECW reunion, with Swinger joining in. Swinger is immediately tossed and it’s Bhupinder Gujjar in at #17. Dreamer gets tossed and it’s Heath in at #18. Heath and Rhino get to clean house until Bobby Fish (hometown boy) is in at #19. The ring is getting full and it’s even worse with Matt Cardona coming in at #20.

The final grouping is Young, Maclin, Swann, Moose, Wilde, Shaw, Ray, Rhino, Gujjar, Heath, Fish and Cardona. Hold on though as Cardona is cool with staying on the floor as Moose gets rid of Rhino. Heath is out as well and Cardona helps get rid of Moose, setting up a showdown with Ray. As commentary explains that this is a thing in the NWA and on Twitter, Wilde plays D-Von in a What’s Up to Cardona for a cool moment.

Wilde and Shaw fight on the ropes so Cardona throws them both out, only to be dumped by Gujjar. Young neckbreaker Gujjar on the apron for the elimination but gets kicked in the face by Swann to get rid of him too. We’re down to Swann, Maclin, Ray and Fish, with everyone else going after Ray, because he’s a monster you see.

With Ray breaking that up, Maclin gets rid of Swann and Ray gets rid of Fish, meaning it’s time for Maclin vs. Ray in a regular match for the title shot. Ray wins the slugout but gets caught in an Angle Slam for two. A Rock Bottom gives Ray the same and the Bully Bomb….finishes Maclin at 29:17. Meaning Bully Ray wins. A title shot. In 2022.

Rating: D. I know this show is designed to be the big historical event for Impact but did they really have to go back in time to BULLY RAY winning the title? Ray got his ECW reunion moment in the match and then wins the thing by pinning Maclin, who has been pushed around here for the last several months. Ignoring that a 51 year old Ray just came in and cleaned house before winning clean, it’s BULLY RAY. How low rent can you look with this stuff? But hey, he’s a name or something, and it isn’t like Impact has a reputation of going with old guys who wouldn’t get a push in a major company right? Awful call on all fronts.

As for the rest of the match, it was your usual gauntlet match. There were a lot of people coming in and going out rather quickly, with too many people in the ring at one time far too often. The sixty second intervals don’t work well for a match like this and it wasn’t even that good in the first place. Throw in the really dumb choice for a winner and this was a bad part of the show.

Eddie Edwards talks to Alisha Edwards and says it ends tonight with him winning the title. Their kids ask what happens if he doesn’t win, but Alisha says that won’t happen and leaves with them.

We recap Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich for the Knockouts Title. They’re both monsters and Grace is the last line of defense against the monster Slamovich. This has been treated as a big deal in the build to this show and it has been pretty interesting.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich

Grace is defending. They start very fast with Grace hammering her down in the corner and out to the floor, setting up a running kick through the ropes. Slamovich gets in a kick to the head on the apron and a belly to back piledriver on said apron knocks Grace a bit loopy. Back in and we hit the reverse chinlock to stay on Grace’s neck but Grace fights out without much effort.

A spinebuster out of the corner plants Slamovich again and they chop it out. Stereo spinning backfists put both of them down and the fans seem to approve. Back up and a Michinoku Driver gives Grace two more but the Vader Bomb misses. Grace hits a Jackhammer for another two but Slamovich slips out of the MuscleBuster and grabs a sleeper.

That’s shifted into a bulldog choke until Grave powers up and grabs the rope. Another driver drops Slamovich again and Grace slaps her in the face a few times. The Grace Driver gets two and Grace is stunned. She’s so stunned that Slamovich is able to hit an Air Raid Crash into the corner, setting up the Snow Plow for two more, as Grace gets a foot under the ropes. They go up top where Grace gets in a shot to the ribs, setting up something close to a super Grace Driver to retain at 15:57.

Rating: B. I’d call that quite the surprise, as Slamovich seemed primed to take the title here. Grave is a fine champion but it isn’t like she was on some legendary run. Unless this is setting up a rather eventual James vs. Grace showdown, I don’t know if I get this. They had a heck of a hoss fight, but this should have been Slamovich’s big moment instead of Grace retaining.

We recap Josh Alexander vs. Eddie Edwards for the World Title. Alexander has run through everyone but now it’s time to face Edwards, who is a former World Champion and the head of Honor No More. Edwards is more than a bit over the top though and his wife isn’t happy with what he is doing. Now Edwards needs to win the title to make everything ok.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Josh Alexander vs. Eddie Edwards

Alexander is defending and Edwards sends Honor No More to the back. Both of their families are at ringside to make it more personal. They fight over a lockup to start as commentary breaks down the difference in the color of their gear. Edwards hits a chop, which is enough to make Alexander double leg him down and hammer away. Alexander knocks him outside for a breather before they switch places.

A slingshot dive drops Alexander for a change but he’s right back up with the crossbody to the back to send them both outside again. Back in and Edwards snaps off an overhead belly to belly before sending him right back to the floor. One might think they are filling in time here. The floor mats are pulled back, which takes long enough for Alexander to fight back. A German suplex from the apron to the floor is blocked so Edwards hits a Diehard Driver on the exposed floor.

Back in and Alexander seems to be favoring his leg and the Backpack Stunner takes him down. The half crab goes on but Alexander makes the rope. Back up and Alexander starts rolling some German suplexes, even going through the ropes and hitting another on the apron. That’s still not enough to break it up and they go outside with two more German suplexes, setting up another one on the ramp.

They head back inside with Alexander hitting a powerbomb onto the knee for two, only to have Eddie come back with Deep Six for two of his own. The Boston Knee Party is blocked and Alexander goes old school with a Styles Clash. Alexander puts on an ankle lock, which is broken without much trouble.

Edwards enziguris him off the top but the referee gets bumped. Cue Kenny King for a low blow before he is taken out by security, allowing a second referee to come in. The Boston Knee Party gets two on Alexander and a tiger driver gets the same, leaving both of them down. Alexander’s nose is busted but he comes up slugging, only to get rolled up for two. Another Boston Knee Party is blocked and the C4 Spike retains the title at 28:04.

Rating: B. Definitely a good match but this never hit that next level as it was bouncing pretty hard off the ceiling above it. Edwards is a strong challenger to Alexander and just like in the previous match, it felt like he should have won here instead of coming up short. What’s the point of Honor No More if Edwards loses in the biggest match the team has had? Anyway, solid main event, but I’m not sure if it was worthy of the final spot on the biggest show of the year.

Post match Honor No More is here for the beatdown. Cue Rich Swann and Heath for the save but the numbers take them out as well. Cue Bully Ray, who teases cashing in but helps Alexander take out Honor No More. Ray holds up the title at Alexander and they stare each other down to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a show where the wrestling was good, the feeling was ok and the booking was out there. I’m not sure I get the thinking on a lot of these matches and while the quality can help, it doesn’t fix everything else that they did wrong. For tonight, it was certainly good enough but I don’t think I want to know the thinking that is going into the future around here. The Bully Ray stuff is just baffling and tells you a lot about what Impact thinks of their current crop of stars. Skip the gauntlet and you should like most of it, but my goodness there were some bad choices here.

Results
Brian Myers b. Dirty Dango – Roster Cut
Frankie Kazarian b. Mike Bailey – Chickenwing
Mickie James b. Mia Yim – MickDT
Death Dollz b. VXT – Sick Driver to Green
Honor No More b. Motor City Machine Guns – Rollup with feet on the ropes to Sabin
Bully Ray won the Call Your Shot gauntlet match – Bully Bomb to Maclin
Jordynne Grace b. Masha Slamovich – Super Grace Driver
Josh Alexander b. Eddie Edwards – C4 Spike

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I know Impact Wrestling might not be at the top of everyone’s hit list at the moment but the company does have a long history of important shows and big moments. This show is the biggest thing that they offer and we should be in for a special night as a result. The build has gone well and there are some promising matches on here so if they can live up to the hype, we could be in for a lot of fun. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Digital Media Title: Brian Myers(c) vs. ???

I’m glad to be getting this out of the way early as there is no way of knowing how this is going to go. It’s a mystery opponent/open challenge deal because we haven’t had one of those in at least 14 seconds. This could be almost anyone and while that is interesting, there is only so much to be had out of a Kickoff Show match for the lower midcard title, even with the entertaining Myers involved.

We’ll go with Myers to….lose here, as a title change like this one would be a nice way to get the night started. As for who takes it, I have a grand total of no idea, but we’ll stay home and say Trey Miguel, who is always getting some kind of a match and could certainly use the win. Odds are it will be some outside or Bhupinder Gujjar getting another shot, but Miguel is more fun so we’ll go there instead.

Mia Yim vs. Mickie James

Sometimes you come across a match where the end result isn’t in doubt but it should be a fun ride getting there. That is what we have here, as James’ career is on the line in a recreation of Ric Flair’s final (ha) run in 2007/8. In other words, James isn’t likely to lose for a very long time as she moves through one challenger after another. It just happened to start pretty close to Bound For Glory so it isn’t likely ending here.

Obviously I’ll be taking James, as there is no reason to believe that she is going to lose anytime soon. Yim beating her would be an upset, although not the biggest in recent memory. The good thing is that James should be around for a long time to come and we should get to see her having good matches like this one for the time being. The match will work and it goes to James.

X-Division Title: Mike Bailey(c) vs. Frankie Kazarian

This is the paying tribute to our past match, as former champion Kazarian, who somehow doesn’t age, comes back to challenge the hot new champion. I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’m not a big Bailey fan, but he is certainly putting in the work to make the most of his time with the title. Bailey is a lot of things but he definitely isn’t lazy, which is always a positive.

I’ll go with Bailey to retain here, as he gets a heck of a challenge from Kazarian. The good thing about someone like a Kazarian is you can put him out there to do just about anything and know that it is going to work. Other than that though, Bailey is going to have to eventually drop the title to a big name, whoever that might be. It just won’t be Kazarian here, as Bailey retains.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: VXT(c) vs. Death Dollz

I had kind of forgotten these titles existed and that tends to be the case quite often with them. VXT does at least feel like a regular team and have done well so that could be a lot worse. Other than that though, you have the latest incarnation of Rosemary/Jessicka/Taya Valkyrie, who have been around and doing their thing for what feels like the better part of ever now.

There is no reason for the Dollz to get the titles here so I’ll go with VXT to retain here. It makes sense to keep the titles on them until a new team is built up to go after the belts later on. The Rosemary etc. stuff isn’t exactly interesting anymore but there is a good chance that they are going to a split after this match goes badly for them. Or at least that is what should happen.

Tag Team Titles: Honor No More(c) vs. Motor City Machine Guns

This is one of those matches that should be good and probably will be, just because of who is involved. Mike Bennett and Matt Taven are underrated as a team and it would be nice to see them getting a chance on a big stage like this one. Throw in the Guns and they should be able to do as much good stuff as you would expect them to against a team as talented as the champions.

I’m not sure what to think of this one as you could go either way. The Guns getting the titles back would be a nice moment, but I’m not sure if there is any need to have them stop Honor No More. If the stable is continuing then they need to keep the titles here. Therefore I’ll go with Honor No More to retain in the match that I’m expecting to get completely wrong.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match

This is their version of a Royal Rumble for what amounts to the Money In The Bank briefcase. There are twenty people involved but since a lot of them are unknown, there is only so much guessing that can be done. It should include at least a few surprises and predictable moments, but the question now is where does the whole thing end, which tends to be the important part.

Given who we know is already in the match, I’ll go with a bit of a gut instinct and say Joe Hendry, even if I have no reason to believe that he’s going to win. Getting eliminated from a battle royal is hardly crushing and Henry getting to inspire us somehow is always a good thing and it would be a nice way start off his Impact Wrestling career. Odds are he doesn’t win, but I’ll go with him as the pick anyway.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace(c) vs. Masha Slamovich

Impact has been pushing the heck out of this one in recent weeks, even giving it the go home spot on this week’s TV. Slamovich was the clear challenger for this show several months ago as she has come into the promotion and wrecked havoc on the Knockouts division. You have the unstoppable Slamovich against the monster that is Grace and that should make for a good one.

I don’t see any reason for Grae to retain here as Slamovich has been built up as untouchable for the last several weeks. That is where she needs to just win the title and become the new star, so hopefully Impact gets this one right and doesn’t try to do anything funny. Grace is awesome at what she does but this is the time to change the title and I think they will.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Josh Alexander(c) vs. Eddie Edwards

Now this is where things get complicated as you really could go either way. Alexander getting his win would be the second time in a row that he has won the (scheduled) Bound For Glory main event but that would come more or less at the destruction of Honor No More. The team feels like it is ready to either drop off the map or become the focus of the company, which is more or less what is decided by this match.

With that being said, I’ll go with the illogical choice here and take Edwards to win, making Honor No More the dominant faction of the promotion. Edwards is more than capable of being the World Champion, even if it is for the short term, though I don’t know where that leaves Alexander. It could go either way, but I’ll say Edwards wins the title here, just to mix things up a bit.

Overall Thoughts

While I don’t know if this is going to live up to Bound For Glorys of years past, there is enough here to make me care about what we are going to be seeing. If nothing else, just having the name Bound For Glory means something as it has been the biggest show for the company for the better part of twenty years. Even if it can live up to most of the hype, this is going to be a good night.

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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Bound For Glory 2021
Date: October 23, 2021
Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

It’s the biggest night of the year for Impact Wrestling and we have a pretty stacked card. The main event is the battle of Canada as Impact Wrestling World Champion Christian Cage is defending against Josh Alexander. The second biggest match on the card is probably Deonna Purrazzo defending the Knockouts Title against Mickie James in a grudge match. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Digital Media Title: Jordynne Grace vs. Madison Rayne vs. John Skyler vs. Chelsea Green vs. Crazzy Steve vs. Fallah Bahh

One fall to a finish for the inaugural title, which will be defended on online shows, kind of like a modern TV Title (that’s a good thing). Rayne is replacing Tenille Dashwood for reasons that are not clear. Before the bell, we get a countdown clock, showing about 7:40 to go before Bound For Glory, just in case you thought this match might get some substantial time.

Skyler poses in the middle of the ring to start and is promptly beaten down by everyone else. Bahh clears the ring save for Grace, who actually drops him with a running shoulder. A running Vader Bomb gives Grace two but Skyler runs her over. Green knocks Skyler off the top (to a strong reaction), followed by Rayne tornado DDTing Steve. A double stomp crushes Rayne to give Green two but Grace loads her up in a MuscleBuster.

While still holding Green on her shoulder, Grace clotheslines Rayne and then plants Green for two. Grace piles up a bunch of people in the corner, but Bahh throws her in as well for the big running splash. Skyler catches Steve with a super Regal Roll with Green making the save this time. That’s enough for Grace, who picks Skyler up for the Grace Driver for the pin and the title at 5:02.

Rating: D+. This was kind of a mess and they didn’t get much time, which is always a problem in a match like this one. You can only get so far with so many people in the match at the same time, but at least they went with an interesting winner. That being said, the whole point of this was to have people in the ring to warm up the crowd and that went well enough, though it wasn’t exactly quality.

We open with part of a video from a recent Impact, featuring Josh Alexander sitting in the empty stands and talking about what the X-Division Title means to him. He handed the title to his sons and now he can’t wait to do the same thing with the World Title.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: IInspiration vs. Decay

The debuting IInspiration is defending and Harley Cameron sings them to the ring. We get all of the signature IIconics poses and it’s time for an official introduction. They say they are here to inspire up and strike the hands on hips pose…..so yeah they’re still the same team, minus some of the annoying voices. Rosemary (in orange) scares McKay into the corner to start so Rosemary sideslams Lee for two instead. Havok comes in to scream and hammer away, setting up the Upside Down from Rosemary. That’s enough for Lee to grab a suplex and McKay grabs a quickly broken chinlock.

They take each other down by the hair and it’s back to Havok to crush the IInspiration in the corner. Lee manages to send Havok outside though and it’s McKay coming back in to take over. The bulldog onto McKay’s knee gets two but Rosemary is back with a Scorpion Death Drop. Havok misses a legdrop though and gets sent into the post. That just makes her scream, so she gets sent in again, followed by another posting. Rosemary makes the save but gets sent into McKay’s knee. A sitout powerbomb/neckbreaker combination is enough to give McKay the pin and the titles at 8:58.

Rating: C. The action wasn’t great, but the IInspiration feels SO much bigger than any team that has held the titles since their return (save for maybe Fire N Flava). It isn’t like Rosemary and Havok were some legendary team (with their 98 day reign ending here) so this is the right call. It isn’t a case of Impact bringing in WWE rejects and putting them over, because this is a nice upgrade for the titles.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Deonna Purrazzo is ready to beat Mickie James, even with Matthew Rehwoldt barred from ringside.

We recap the X-Division Title match for the vacant title. Josh Alexander vacated the title so we have had a series of triple threat matches. Tonight, it’s another triple threat for the title, because modern wrestling law dictates a minimum of triple threat matches.

X-Division Title: Trey Miguel vs. Steve Maclin vs. El Phantasmo

For the vacant title. They all start going in a hurry with Phantasmo dropkicking Maclin to the floor. Miguel adds a kick to the face but Phantasmo breaks up a slingshot dive. Back in and Maclin gets punched into the corner, leaving Miguel to take Phantasmo down into a leglock. Maclin makes a save and Miguel is sent outside, leaving Phantasmo to walk along the top rope into a hurricanrana to drop Maclin again.

Phantasmo rakes both of their backs but Miguel is back in. The comeback lets Maclin knock both of them down again before putting Miguel and Phantasmo in the Tree of Woe. A running shoulder to the ribs hits Phantasmo but Miguel slips away. That’s fine with Maclin, who hits a spear to send a handspringing Miguel through the ropes and out to the floor in a nasty crash, much to the fans’ amazement.

Maclin isn’t done yet and hits big running dives onto both of them for more crashes. It’s Phantasmo up first though with a kick to Maclin’s head to knock him outside, setting up a Lionsault. Miguel takes Phantasmo down though and sends Maclin back inside. That’s about it for Maclin though as he catches a charging Miguel in something close to an AA, with Phantasmo making the save.

Phantasmo isn’t done and sunset bombs Maclin off the top. A super hurricanrana sends Miguel crashing onto Maclin, setting up a top rope splash for two. The fired up Maclin blocks Miguel’s top rope Meteora, only to get kicked in the head for his efforts. That leaves Phantasmo to punch Miguel low….and he hurts his own hand because Miguel is wearing a cup in a smart move. A brainbuster sets up the top rope Meteora for the pin and the title at 13:21.

Rating: B-. It was your run of the mill X-Division three way match, with everyone moving around and multiple cases of two people in the ring with one on the floor. What we got was entertaining though with the right result. Miguel has lost so many times now that there is almost no way he could lose again, so it makes a lot of sense to give him the big win he has been needing for a long time now. Throw in Maclin not taking a fall and this went rather well.

Mickie James knows that Deonna Purrazzo is her toughest challenge to date, but Purrazzo has made this personal. Mickie has been through a lot in recent years and tonight it is about proving that she is still worthy of being a champion.

We recap Heath vs. Violent By Design over Rhino. Violent By Design got Rhino to join the team, perhaps by brainwashing, but then blamed him for losing the Tag Team Titles. Rhino tried to leave but Eric Young wouldn’t let him. Then Heath returned and tried to get Rhino back to the good side, which is what he is gambling on tonight.

Heath vs. Violent By Design

Heath is on his own to start but hopes that Rhino will join him. Joe Doering and Deaner are representing the team here, with Eric Young in their corner. There is no Rhino to start so Heath gets double teamed, which he said he would accept if Rhino didn’t show up. The bell rings and Heath hammers away in the corner but a Doering distraction lets Deaner get in a cheap shot.

The beatdown is on in the corner as the villains start taking turns. Doering grabs the neck crank, setting up a running crossbody for two on Heath. Deaner comes back in so Heath fights back until a double clothesline puts them both down. That brings out Rhino, who takes the tag from Heath so house can be cleaned. The Gore finishes Deaner at 4:57.

Rating: C-. This was little more than an angle instead of a full on match and that’s ok. The whole point here was about having Rhino return to the side of good to save his friend. Somehow Impact managed to make me care about a story involving Rhino, Heath and Eric Young, so they must be doing something right. There was no need to have a long match here as they got to the important part and did it rather well.

We see part of Awesome Kong’s Hall of Fame induction. It’s still weird to hear her speaking as a normal person after so many years of seeing her as a monster.

We recap Jordynne Grace winning the Digital Media Title on the pre-show.

Jordynne Grace is very happy and Rachael Ellering is so happy for her. Ellering is going to win the Call Your Shot gauntlet match, but Moose and W. Morrissey come in to say not so fast.

Video on the Call Your Shot gauntlet match, which is basically a gauntlet match for a Money in the Bank contract.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match

There are 20 entrants, with two minute intervals in a battle royal format until the final two have a singles match, with the winner getting a shot at any title any time they choose. Chris Sabin is in at #1 (due to being the last person eliminated from a battle royal) and Rocky Romero (a surprise) is in at #2. They go technical to start with neither being able to get any kind of an advantage. An exchange of armdrags gives us a standoff as Madman Fulton is in at #3, giving Sabin and Romero a joint target.

The clock speeds WAY up and it’s Rohit Raju in at #4 to go after the non-monsters. The mini tag match breaks out until Tasha Steelz is in at #5 as a bit of a wild card. Steelz joins in with the villains to get rid of Romero and it’s Rachael Ellering in at #6 to go after Steelz in a hurry. A bunch of people get rid of Fulton and it’s Savannah Evans in at #7. Sabin and Raju pair off as Ellering goes after Evans and Steelz. Johnny Swinger is in at #8 as Ellering and Evans eliminate each other. That leaves Swinger to hit on Steelz, who takes him down and hammers away instead.

Melina is in at #9 (another surprise) so Swinger shows her the guns. It actually works for a change, as Swinger is ready for her drop down into the splits and sends her face first into the mat. The Demon (as in WCW’s KISS Demon) in is at #10 so Swinger gets a quick autograph, followed by a quick elimination. Brian Myers is in at #11 as these intervals are all over the place. Matt Cardons is in at #12 and goes right at Myers due to the laws of the wrestling world.

More brawling against the ropes ensues and it’s Laredo Kid in at #13. A handspring DDT hits Raju as Myers dumps Melina and Steelz to clear the ring a bit. The ring is filled up a bit more though as Sam Beale is in at #14 and goes after Cardona (on Myers’ orders of course). Rich Swann is in at #15 and strikes away at Myers and Beale. Myers gets in a shot of his own but Beale tosses him out to a pretty big reaction. Ace Austin is in at #16 and kicks the Demon in the face, setting up the elimination, because the Demon was still in the match for some reason.

Moose is in at #17 and powerbombs Beale out in a huge crash. Eddie Edwards is in at #18 and there goes Kid. Moose gets kicked outside without an elimination, where he pulls Eddie out, also without an elimination. Alisha Edwards is in at #19 and it’s a family kendo stick beatdown on Moose. W. Morrissey is in at #20 (meaning we had 18 entrants in less than 20 minutes), giving us Sabin, Raju, Cardona, Swann, Austin, Moose, Eddie Edwards, Alisha Edwards and Morrissey as the final grouping.

Morrissey tosses out Alisha and then kicks Eddie out, meaning it’s time for the alliance with Moose. Raju wants to join them but joins the Edwards on the floor instead. Sabin dumps Ace Austin so here is Madman Fulton to attack Sabin, allowing Moose and Morrissey to get rid of him too. We’re down to Moose, Morrissey, Cardona and Swann so everyone takes a corner. Morrissey goes to get rid of Swann but Moose dumps both of them, leaving us with Cardona vs. Moose in a regular singles match. Cardona swings away and hits the Future Endeavored, only to miss Radio Silence. Moose spears him down for the pin at 29:38.

Rating: C-. They were flying through this one and your mileage may vary on that part. The bigger issue here was how fast people were coming in, as there wasn’t time to do much in between. It does help that there were multiple possible winners and they didn’t waste time once it was down to one on one. This could have been shortened a good bit though and the longer time is what holds it back a lot.

Heath says Rhino was running a little late tonight but Heath knew he would be there. Rhino thanks Heath for never giving up and wants Heath to tell his kids that Uncle Rhino is back. Heath: “Hey kids Uncle Rhino is back!”. Well he did what Rhino asked.

The Good Brothers aren’t happy with having to defend against two teams.

Tag Team Titles: Good Brothers vs. Bullet Club vs. FinJuice

The Brothers are defending after the other teams went to a double pin. For some clarity, this is Doc Gallows/Karl Anderson vs. Chris Bey/Hikuleo vs. David Finlay/Juice Robinson. Bey and Finlay fight over arm control to start and trade armdrags to keep up the pace. That means an early standoff until Bey flips into a dropkick to cut him off. Robinson comes in to start in on Bey’s arm and the Swanton off of the shoulders crushes Bey again.

It’s off to Gallows vs. Hikuleo for the big power showdown though and the slugout is on in a hurry. They collide with neither getting the better of things so Gallows powers him into the corner. Bey comes in and gets dragged into the Brothers’ corner, but some rapid fire tags leave us with Hikuleo sending Finlay into the vacant corner. A delayed vertical suplex gets two on Finlay and we hit the chinlock.

That’s broken up and Hikuleo misses a running boot in the corner. Robinson comes in and starts cleaning house, including the big shot to Bey’s head for two. Everything breaks down and it’s a six way knockdown for a breather. Robinson is up first with the Cannonball to Bey and the PowerPlex connects, only to have Anderson steal the retaining pin at 9:55.

Rating: C-. I believe the term you’re looking for here is erg, as not only do the Good Brothers retain the titles but they did so in the most cliched triple threat ending possible. The action was good enough, but the match was kind of slow and it was nothing we haven’t seen before. The ending made me roll my eyes hard though and that’s not how you should feel about a major match.

Minoru Suzuki is still coming.

Christian Cage knows Josh Alexander has sacrificed a lot to get here, but Cage has too. He gave up everything to come here, then worked hard to come back after a seven year retirement. Tonight, he isn’t giving up the title without a fight.

We recap Mickie James vs. Deonna Purrazzo for the Knockouts Title. James is back and wants to prove she still has it, so she is going after Purrazzo’s championship. This has turned into a personal issue so it is time for the showdown for the title and revenge/respect.

Knockouts Title: Mickie James vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Mickie is challenging and is in full on cowgirl gear here, while Purrazzo appears to be some kind of royalty. Purrazzo gets knocked outside before the bell and Mickie hits the Thesz press off the apron to hammer away. They fight up the ramp as Striker lists off various legends in women’s wrestling history. Purrazzo takes it back to the floor and kicks Mickie in the face to put her down at ringside.

Back inside and we get the opening bell with Mickie getting stomped down in the corner to keep her in trouble. A lot of stomping puts Mickie on the floor but she scores with an elbow to the face back inside. Something like a powerbomb gets Purrazzo out of trouble though and Mickie is right back down. They trade crossbodies and it’s a double knockdown as a few fans think this is awesome.

Mickie gets the better of a slugout and hits something like a Regal Cutter. The top rope Thesz press gives Mickie two, followed by the MickieDT for the same, with Purrazzo getting in the ropes for the save. Purrazzo sends her into the corner and grabs the Fujiwara armbar, sending Mickie into the ropes this time.

The Queen’s Gambit gives Purrazzo two and she isn’t happy with the kickout. Purrazzo goes outside for a chair, allowing Mickie to go back up. The top rope Thesz press hits the referee by mistake, so Mickie gets in a chair shot of her own for two. Purrazzo catches Mickie on top with the Fujiwara armbar but Mickie slips out again. This time it’s the tornado DDT to plant Purrazzo for the pin and the title at 13:18.

Rating: B. This was about the big moment in the end but it helps that they also had a heck of a match. Mickie can still go in the ring and works well with anyone, which works even better if she is in the ring with someone as good as Purrazzo. I’m not sure how long James will hold the title, but it was cool to see her win here, as she certainly still has it.

Hard To Kill is in Dallas on January 8.

We recap Josh Alexander vs. Christian Cage for the Impact Wrestling World Title. Cage won the title from Kenny Omega in AEW to get back to the top of the mountain after a seven year retirement. At the same time, Alexander was the unstoppable X-Division Champion who cashed in his title to get a shot at the World Title here, via Option C. Alexander wants to prove himself against someone he watched for years, while Christian wants to prove that he is still at the top of the mountain.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Christian Cage vs. Josh Alexander

Alexander is challenging. Feeling out process to start and they lock up to shove each other around. Christian takes him to the mat and grabs a headlock as Striker talks about drums. Alexander catches him up top and gets in a big shove to the floor as things get a bit more physical. Back in and Christian has to backdrop his way out of a double underhook and they’re right back on the floor.

Alexander gets sent into the barricade and it’s right back inside where Christian grinds him down again. This time Alexander comes up with a wristlock, only to get sent into the corner for two. Christian strikes away in the corner but Alexander flips it around and hits him in the face. A release German suplex into the corner rocks Christian hard (that looked painful) and a running big boot puts him down again.

Christian punches his way out of a powerbomb attempt but Alexander drops him down for two more. It’s too early for the ankle lock though as Christian kicks the leg out and puts on a choke. Alexander backflips his way to freedom and the middle rope knee to the back of the head gets two. Christian is back up with a tornado DDT (Striker: “Geez.”) but Alexander pulls him down into a Crossface.

We keep up the Canadian violence with a Sharpshooter but Christian makes the rope in a hurry. Alexander misses a moonsault and gets speared down for two, meaning it’s a double breather. The Killswitch is broken up so Christian snaps the back of Alexander’s neck over the top rope. The frog splash gives Christian two but he misses a charge into the post and gets caught in the ankle lock. Alexander cranks away to keep Christian in the middle and the gets really clever by stepping onto Christian’s hand to hold him in place. That’s too much for Christian, who taps out to make Alexander champion at 18:57.

Rating: B+. They had an awesome match here with a great story throughout, as Christian was doing his best but got reeled in by Alexander. The ending was about Christian getting trapped by a submission machine as Alexander was just the better man. Alexander also knew what Christian would be trying because he has watched Christian for so many years. This was a heck of a main event and felt like a true passing of the torch, which is exactly what it should have been.

Alexander’s family gets in the ring to celebrate with him…and here’s Moose to cash in.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Moose vs. Josh Alexander

Moose is challenging and hits the spear for the pin and the title at 7 seconds, because Money in the Bank is the greatest idea in the world and must be copied as often as possible.

Overall Rating: C+. The ending really brought this down, as it felt like something out of the old school TNA days. It came off like they were going for shock value instead of the happy ending. Moose winning the title is a good thing, but it took away from a nice moment. Alexander vs. Moose will be good stuff, but egads this was frustrating and that is something Impact has avoided in recent months. I didn’t hate the ending, but I certainly didn’t like it.

The rest of the show did feel like a major night though, as you had all kinds of title changes up and down the card. That’s what you need to make the biggest show of the year feel important, as a lot of things happened here. There was more than enough quality to make the show good, but some of the matches pulled things back down. What matters here though is there was more good than bad, but a few tweaks would have made it that much better.

Results
IInspiration b. Decay – Sitout powerbomb/neckbreaker combination to Rosemary
Trey Miguel b. El Phantasmo and Steve Maclin – Top rope Meteora to Phantasmo
Heath/Rhino b. Violent By Design – Gore to Deaner
Moose won the Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match – Spear to Matt Cardona
Good Brothers b. FinJuice and Bullet Club – PowerPlex to Bey
Mickie James b. Deonna Purrazzo – Tornado DDT
Josh Alexander b. Christian Cage – Ankle lock
Moose b. Josh Alexander – Spear

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