No Surrender 2026
Date: February 13, 2026
Location: The Pinnacle, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

I’m really not sure what to expect from this one as TNA hasn’t exactly gone out of their way to make it feel important. It comes off like a show that happens to be taking place with a few important matches being set up and not much more. The main event is Leon Slater/Mike Santana vs. Nic Nemeth/Eddie Edwards so let’s get to it.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling

Pre-Show: Brad Attitude/TW3 vs. Sinner And Saint

Sinner And Saint say they haven’t been here in a long time and it’s a shame that the people are sleeping on the team they should be dreaming about. Williams shoulders Attitude over to start and it’s off to TW3 for some kicks to the arm. Icarus comes in to take TW3 down but it’s back to Williams, who gets kicked down off a distraction.

Williams gets kicked down some more and his chops don’t do much good. A suplex gets Williams out of trouble and a handspring clothesline allows the tag off to Icarus. Everything breaks down and a middle rope dropkick sends TW3 outside. Williams’ dive drops TW3 again and a frog splash gives Icarus two, with Attitude making the save. A running kick to the face/belly to back fisherman’s suplex combination finishes TW3 at 6:48.

Rating: C+. It wasn’t much of a match, but this was all about giving the fans some wrestling to get warmed up with before the important matches. As a result, this was fine enough, though I still don’t get the appeal of Sinner And Saint. They’re just kind of a generic team who does well enough in the ring and while they’re far from bad, I’m not sure how interesting they are.

Mike Jackson (76 years old) is happy to be here but Mance Warner and Steph de Lander come in to complain about how much time he’s getting. Jackson says he’s stood across the ring from the biggest names in wrestling and Warner isn’t one of them. A match is made for later, with Jackson not knowing de Lander’s name either (on purpose).

Pre-Show: Alan Angels vs. Ryan Nemeth,

Hold on though as before the bell, here is Frankie Kazarian to say we’re going to have an impromptu King’s Speech instead of this match. Nemeth says he gets paid just because he got in the ring so he’s leaving (with Kazarian leaving him hanging). Kazarian talks about signing a new contract and getting a big raise, which he has of course earned. He’ll be back in the World Title picture, because he just lost the World Title while wrestling with a broken hand.

As for tonight, Kazarian will be watching the main event very closely. He explains Option C….and has to pause to address the WRAP IT UP chants. Angels is still in the ring though and grabs the mic, saying he doesn’t remember Kazarian being so horrible. Kazarian says get out of his ring but Angels isn’t leaving. Kazarian threatens to punch Albert Angle in the face but Angels punches him out first. Angels wants a match and we’re doing this now.

Pre-Show: Alan Angels vs. Frankie Kazarian

Kazarian is in street clothes. Angels pulls him inside for two off a rollup and snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor. A high crossbody gives Angels two and he grabs the Rings Of Saturn. That’s broken up and Kazarian gets the chickenwing for the tap at 2:26.

And now, the show proper.

The opening video looks at TNA’s recent hot streak, plus the show’s bigger matches.

Knockouts Battle Royal

Mara Sade, Rosemary, Tessa Blanchard, Victoria Crawford, Mila Moore, Myla Grace, Harley Hudson, Jada Stone, Jody Threat, Tasha Steelz, Elayna Black

For a future Knockouts Title shot. Rosemary yells a lot and even scares Blanchard early on. Rosemary sends Hudson to the apron but gets tossed out by Threat. Rosemary is so ticked off that she comes up swinging a chair. Stone is out, followed by Steelz, with the two of them fighting on the floor.

Riggins is gone as well as the eliminations pick up in pace. Crawford eliminates Grace and poses a bit but Blanchard accidentally knocks out Moore and Crawford at the same time. Threat holds on by her feet, leaving Black and Sade to fight on the apron. The two of them slug it out with Black being eliminated but Blanchard shoves Sade out, leaving us with Blanchard and Threat. Back up and the Pop Shove It sends Blanchard to the floor so Threat can win at 8:01.

Rating: C. This wasn’t great but they kept it short enough to not be too bad. Threat winning is a surprise as Sade has been getting some TV time as of late and her getting the spot would have made sense. The rest of this just kind of showed that the division needs to develop some more stars, as they only have so much depth right now. Granted that’s what giving someone like Threat a chance can do.

Leon Slater and Mike Santana are ready for the main event, with Santana wanting to keep the grass mowed so he can take them down. Slater is glad to be back and he’s not thinking about Option C tonight. Santana threatens to eat Nic Nemeth and Eddie Edwards alive tonight.

Jelly Roll is here. Fair points on having a big name.

International Title: Stacks vs. Trey Miguel

Stacks, with Arianna Grace, is defending and Miguel has a singer named Teddy Swims in his corner. Miguel rushes at him to start and hits a dropkick to the floor. Grace pulls Stacks away from the running flip dive though and Miguel gets tied up in the ring skirt. Back in and Stacks slams him down, setting up a mockery of Santino Marella’s trombone pose. The chinlock goes on for a bit, followed by a legdrop for two on Miguel.

Back up and Miguel springboards off the bottom rope and grabs a German suplex to leave them both down. They go up top and either fall off or do a weird rolling to the side superplex to give Stacks two. A fisherman’s neckbreaker gives Stacks two more but Miguel is back with a not good looking Roll Of The Dice for two of his own.

Stacks is able to dropkick Miguel to the floor but Grace gets caught slapping him, meaning it’s an ejection. Miguel is back up with a sliding tornado DDT to drop Stacks on the floor, followed by a spinning Downward Spiral back inside. The Lightning Spiral gives Miguel the pin and the title at 11:00.

Rating: C+. They had a series of not great looking spots in there as they were going a bit too fast and it hurt things a lot. At the same time though, anytime my eyebrows actually pop up in surprise over a result, it’s probably a good sign. Miguel winning is a big surprise and I’m not opposed to it, as Stacks wasn’t going to be a long term champion anyway.

Here is AJ Francis for an unscheduled appearance. Francis talks about the Seattle Seahawks winning the Super Bowl and compares himself to Bad Bunny. They’re both rappers, they’re both wrestlers, and they’re both stars. As for Jelly Roll, if he ever wants to cross the line, he’ll see why this is TNAJ Francis’ place. He’ll be on commentary for the rest of the night. Hannifan: “What did I do to deserve this pain?”

Mance Warner vs. Mike Jackson

Jackson (76 years old) goes after the arm to start and does an Old School around all four ropes (Warner does nothing) before knocking Warner down. The dive is cut off and Jackson reverses a suplex into one of his own. A suicide dive connects and even Francis has to show him some respect. Back in and Warner’s chops don’t get him very far as Jackson strikes away as well. A neckbreaker gives Jackson two but Warner drops him with a running clothesline. The Pay Window finishes Jackson at 5:19.

Rating: C. The match wasn’t exactly great, but Jackson more than held his own in there. That’s the point of a match with Jackson, who is in pretty good shape all things considered and didn’t do anything that would embarrass him. I’m not sure how much it needed to be on a special, but there are worse ways to go.

Post match Warner tells Jackson that he still has it and they shake hands, with de Lander doing the same. Francis: “This is pathetic.” Francis yells at de Lander and blames her for ruining Warner. That gets Warner in Francis’ face and Francis storms off. That seems like a face turn for Warner, though I liked Warner better as a good guy so maybe it works.

Arianna Grace yells at Stacks for screwing up and threatens to break up with him if anything else goes wrong. Then he can eat candy all by himself. Quite the threat.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Indi Hartwell/Xia Brookside vs. Elegance Brand

The Brand is defending. Brookside takes over on Heather to start and it’s off to Hartwell for a headlock takeover. M comes in to take Hartwell down and chokes with the cloth on her arm. That doesn’t last long and it’s back to Brookside for a Russian legsweep to Heather. Mr. Elegance offers a distraction though and the champs knock Brookside down into the corner.

The chinlock goes on for a bit so Brookside grabs a small package for a breather. That doesn’t last long either as Heather sends her into the ropes, where M gets in a running boot on the apron. The champs spend too long posing though and it’s a double shove from Hartwell to put them on the floor. Hartwell comes in off the tag for some big boots and a top rope elbow hits Heather for two. A Michinoku Driver cuts Hartwell off though and she gets sent into the post, setting up Nip And Tuck. Hartwell’s foot is on the rope but Ash shoves it off to retain the titles at 11:07.

Rating: C+. The match picked up a bit at the end and that’s a good thing as it wasn’t much to see for the first part. Hartwell and Brookside are pretty much a makeshift team and that doesn’t make for the best challengers. At the same time, you’re only going to get so far with the options you have for challengers so throwing teams together is often the best you can do.

Post match Mickie James of all people comes out (Ash LOSES IT) and beats up Ash (all the more impressive since James is in massive heels).

We recap Eric Young vs. BDE. Young wanted BDE to join him but BDE refused, earning himself a beating last night on Impact. Now it’s time to fight.

Eric Young vs. BDE

It’s a brawl before the bell with BDE getting hit low and then the match officially starting. Young hammers away to start but BDE manages a middle rope Blockbuster. The running hurricanrana gets two but Young is back with a sitout powerbomb for two of his own. BDE fights back but gets powerslammed down for two more. The slow pace continues until BDE manages to get in a springboard cutter for another near fall.

Young is put up top, where he bites BDE’s face to put him down. There’s the top rope elbow for two and the Death Valley Driver connects to give Young two more. BDE bites him right back off the top and a Canadian Destroyer gets a rather near fall. BDE goes up again but the referee is shoved into the ropes, setting up the piledriver to give Young the pin at 10:23.

Rating: C+. As usual, here’s the thing: if Young is supposed to be this next big bad with whatever he’s doing with the Cleanse, he shouldn’t be needing ten minutes and cheating to beat a glorified celebrity wrestler. Young is far from the worst wrestler, but him as this tough crazy guy is horrible miscasting and has been for years. Unfortunately that seems to be continuing, and possibly in a much bigger way soon.

Jody Threat is happy with her win and gets some applause from other Knockouts. Tessa Blanchard and company come in, with Blanchard saying she should have won. A match is made for Impact.

We recap Arianna Grace challenging Lei Ying Lee for the Knockouts Title. Grace is Santino Marella’s daughter and has teased wanting to make up for him, including by getting this shot. Shenanigans may be afoot though and Lee happens to be here too.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling

Knockouts Title: Arianna Grace vs. Lei Ying Lee

Grace, with Stacks, is challenging and commentary points out that Grace isn’t very good, even citing her win/loss record. They start slowly with Grace taking over and sending Lee to the apron. Lee flips over her to come back inside and sweeps the leg…as Dani Luna (who had a title match set up but was held off due to visa issues) returns.

Security cuts her off and gets rid of her, leaving Grace to hit a neckbreaker for a quick two. Lee is sent into the apron and we’re off to a neck crank inside. That’s broken up and Lee hammers away with right hands in the corner but gets facebustered. A fisherman’s neckbreaker gets two but Lee snaps off a German suplex.

They forearm it out from their knees until Lee loads up Warrior’s Way. Grace goes to the eyes so Stacks sends in the belt, which doesn’t work well. Instead Lee kicks Stacks down so Grace pulls out the Cobra (which she stole from Santino Marella last night). That and a fireman’s carry facebuster give Grace the title at 13:21.

Rating: C. Grace is hardly a polished star in the ring, but that’s kind of the point. The idea here is that she manipulated her way into a title shot and then cheated to win (even though IT’S JUST A SOCK). That’s at least a story and it feels like someone stole a title rather than just holding it until a member of the regular roster can pick it off.

Rich Swann throws BDE a video game controller but says BDE has been playing a bit too long. Now Swann is ready to give him a tutorial in wrestling but it’s time to game first.

We recap the tag team main event. Apparently if Nic Nemeth (Call Your Shot), Eddie Edwards (Feast Or Fired) or Leon Slater (Option C) cash in their title shot, the tag match is thrown out and the World Title is on the line. Because THAT is a good idea. If you have three people with instant World Title matches available, you really need to rein things, because that’s ridiculous.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling

Order 4 vs. Righteous/Hardys

The question here is whether the Hardys can, or should, trust the Righteous. Matt takes over on Skyler to start and neckbreakers him down. Jeff comes in for a quick splash but gets into it with Ali, meaning everything breaks down in a hurry. We settle down to Dutch whipping Hotch upside down in the corner and it’s off to Vincent. Hotch is beaten down again and it’s off to Zero, who powers Vincent up rather quickly.

Ali comes in and tries a superplex, only to get shoved down, allowing Vincent to hit a tornado DDT. That’s enough for the tag off to Matt so the pace can be picked up. Hotch breaks up the Twist Of Fate to Skyler though and it’s back to Jeff instead. A basement dropkick and elbow get two on Hotch and the Whisper In The Wind does it again. Everything breaks down and Zero cleans house, followed by a heck of a suicide dive.

Dutch is right there with a big flip dive of his own but Zero powerslams him back inside. The good guys get together to beat up Zero in the corner and the quadruple teaming actually puts him down. Matt and Dutch hit stereo Twists Of Fate, setting up stereo Swantons from Jeff and Vincent but a double save breaks up the covers. They brawl onto the ramp and a big crash sends a bunch of people to the floor. Tasha Steelz throws powder in Dutch’s eyes and he takes Matt out by mistake. The 450 gives Ali the pin on Matt at 15:31.

Rating: B. They did a good job here with building up the question of whether or not the Righteous would turn on the Hardys. The ending leaves you wondering even more and that’s a good feeling. It’s better than just having the turn take place and if Order 4 gets thrown into the title picture as well, so be it.

Post match the lights go out and it’s a big guitar case casket. Elijah pops up throws Ali inside but Ali bails before their casket match on Impact.

Santino Marella tries to talk to Arianna Grace but gets Daria Rae instead. Daria threatens him if anything happens, and don’t bother looking for the sock. Do anything to anyone, and he’ll be fired.

We recap the main event of Mike Santana/Leon Slater vs. Nic Nemeth/Eddie Edwards. The idea is that all three challengers have guaranteed World Title matches and could cash in anytime.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling

Mike Santana/Leon Slater vs. Nic Nemeth/Eddie Edwards

Santana and Edwards start things off with a feeling out process until Edwards grabs a headlock. That doesn’t get either very far so it’s off to Nemeth to work on the arm. Slater comes in for a nice dropkick and nine right hands in the corner, setting up a monkey flip right back out of it. It’s back to Santana, who sends Nemeth outside…for the tease of a cash in.

That’s enough of a distraction for the villains to take over on Santana back inside, with Santana getting caught in the corner. The comeback doesn’t take long as Santana gets over for the tag off to Slater, who fights off a double team attempt. The handspring elbow drops Nemeth and Edwards and Slater takes Edwards out with a big dive to the floor. Everything breaks down and Santana hits his own dive onto the System.

Back in and Slater misses the Swanton 450 to Edwards and walks into a superkick to give Nemeth two. It’s back to Slater, who is caught in the wrong corner again but he heads outside to run around the ring. That’s not quite enough for the tag off to Santana, so Slater kicks the villains into each other. NOW it’s back to Santana to clean house, including a heck of a chop to Nemeth.

An assisted standing moonsault gets two on Nemeth and everything breaks down, with Slater hitting the big running flip dive over the corner. Cue the fired Steve Maclin to go after Santana (why this isn’t a DQ isn’t clear) and they brawl into the crowd. So that leaves Slater in a handicap match, with the System still on the floor. Nemeth mocks Slater having no partners but Slater is back with a running knee to drop Edwards.

It’s back to Nemeth, whose running DDT is countered. Slater’s high crossbody takes both of them down for two but the referee gets bumped. The System runs in to go after Slater but here is Moose to interrupt. Moose cleans house of the non-in this match members of the System, including brawling to the back with Edwards. That leaves Nemeth to Fameasser Slater for two but he kicks Nemeth down, setting up the Swanton 450 for the pin at 23:12.

Rating: B. Well, it certainly wasn’t boring. This was more a “Slater is back and he’s really good”. They managed to hide the fact that in the end, nothing was actually on the line here. That’s a hard place to go, especially with Moose wanting revenge on the team which doesn’t really have a leader. They tried something different here and while it wasn’t a smash hit, it worked well enough, especially for Slater.

Overall Rating: B-. I came into this show with pretty much no expectations and the stakes feeling pretty low (including in the main event, with the three teased cash-ins not really being a thing until tonight) and wound up getting a good show. It’s not a classic or close to it, but I can always go for a show where the worst part was perfectly fine. They’ll need to raise the stakes next time, but this worked for a nice surprise.

Results
Sinner And Saint b. Brad Attitude/TW3 – Reverse fisherman’s suplex to TW3
Frankie Kazarian b. Alan Angels – Chickenwing
Jody Threat won a Knockouts Battle Royal last eliminating Tessa Blanchard
Trey Miguel b. Stacks – Lightning Spiral
Mance Warner b. Mike Jackson – Pay Window
Elegance Brand b. Indi Hartwell/Xia Brookside – Nip And Tuck to Hartwell
Eric Young b. BDE – Piledriver
Arianna Grace b. Lei Ying Lee – Fireman’s carry facebuster
Order 4 b. Hardys/Righteous – 450 to Matt

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: January 29, 2026
Location: Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s a big night as we have the unveiling of the Feast Or Fired briefcases. Therefore, three people are going to get title matches and a fourth is going to be fired. That can make for quite the dramatic moment and now we get to see who winds up getting what. In addition, Rich Swann and AJ Francis are facing off in a No DQ match. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here is the new System for a chat. Brian Myers says it had to be done and Eddie Edwards says he’s going to break it all down for you. Moose used to be the most dominant star in all of wrestling but he is just selfish. All he cared about was himself rather than the team. Then you have JDC, who walked away from the team. This brings out Alisha Edwards, who gets in Eddie’s face and says he kept this from her. Her contract is coming up and maybe she doesn’t want to be part of the System. She walks away and Eddie isn’t happy.

BDE is ready to prove that he belongs here tonight.

Nic Nemeth, BDE

Nic Nemeth vs. BDE

Nemeth offers a handshake to start and then kicks him in the ribs to take over. A front facelock doesn’t work as well for Nemeth as BDE knocks him outside with a clothesline. The dive connects but the springboard elbow back inside doesn’t. We take a break and come back with BDE still in trouble with Nemeth sending him into the corner for some cocky forearming.

BDE manages to reverse a whip into the corner but a running knee is dropped with a clothesline. Back up and the running knee does connect for BDE and a frog splash gets two. BDE tries a springboard elbow but dives into the Danger Zone (that was nice) to give Nemeth the pin at 11:37.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t an all time classic or anything but it was a nice way to let BDE look good in the process. BDE can’t do much in the way of regular wrestling and is basically just a moves guy, but he’s likable enough and isn’t taking up any kind of major spot. Let him do what he can and have a veteran like Nemeth in there to walk him through the match. It worked well enough and I liked this.

Post match Ryan Nemeth comes out to celebrate with Nic before getting in the ring. He calls out Mara Sade, who he says has been assaulting him. Sade says Ryan got away with one at Genesis so he offers to let her give him a kiss. The ensuing superkick is blocked and a clothesline puts Sade down hard.

The Elegance Brand gives Ash By Elegance presents because she is officially medically cleared. Lei Ying Lee comes in to say she’s ready to defend anytime and here are Indi Hartwell and Xia Brookside to set up a six woman tag. Mr. Elegance seems to hit on Hartwell, who takes the champagne and says it’s not her kind of party before than leaving.

Stacks vs. Home Town Man

Non-title and Arianna Grace is here with Stacks, who holds up Man’s stolen mask. That means the brawl is on fast and Man stomps away in the corner, with the fans rather approving. They go outside with Stacks mocking a fan with the mask, which Man takes away and gives to said fan in a nice moment.

Back in and a corkscrew uppercut gives Stacks two and he grabs something like a half crab. That’s kicked away with Stacks crashing to the floor, allowing Man to hit a People’s Elbow. A crossbody gets two but Grace’s distraction….doesn’t really work. Instead Stacks goes to the eyes and grabs a rollup with feet on the ropes for the pin at 5:51.

Rating: C. Well, this match did in fact confirm that Stacks is in fact a wrestler and he is in fact just kind of there. That’s been my thoughts on Stacks for a long time now as there is nothing to him that really stands out. Yes he’s with Grace and that helps a bit, but there isn’t anything about Stacks alone to make him feel interesting or stand out. That’s not good and while there are worse options, I really don’t see it with him.

Post break Stacks says Grace didn’t help him and Santino Marella shows up. Grace seems to threaten both of them with making a mistake of her own.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling

Jason Hotch vs. Elijah

The rest of Order 4 is here with Hotch. Elijah takes him down by the arm to start and Hotch bails out to the floor. Back in and Elijah works on the arm, including Old School for two. Tasha Steelz has to offer a distraction and Hotch gets in a cheap shot to take over. Some stomping has Elijah down in the corner but he’s right back with a backdrop.

Hotch has to rake the eyes to get out of a fireman’s carry and another distraction lets him hit a Codebreaker onto the arm. The knees to the arm set up some cranking, with Elijah flipping out pretty quickly. A suplex neckbreaker gives Elijah two but Hotch is back with a superkick. The torture rack bomb gets two on Elijah, who is right back to knee Hotch out of the air. The Highwayman’s Farewell finishes Hotch at 7:58.

Rating: C+. Normally I would say that Hotch was a good hand but TNA has already beaten me to that one. This is a good way to keep the Elijah vs. Order 4/Mustafa Ali feud going, though it does make you wonder why that feud is continuing. Ali needs to move on to something bigger but maybe we’ll see it one more time and then they’ll move on for good.

Post match Order 4 jumps Elijah, with Ali grabbing the guitar. That’s enough for Elijah to fight back and use the guitar to clear the ring.

Post break Jada Stone is rather excited to be here but Order 4 comes in to yell at her. Tasha Steelz even slaps her down, with Elijah popping in to help her up like a gentleman.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling

Elayna Black vs. Ruthie Jay

Daria Rae is on commentary. Black jumps her to start and grabs a gutwrench suplex. The chinlock goes on but Jay is up for a running shoulder in the corner. Black isn’t having that though and grabs a swinging double underhook neckbreaker for the pin at 2:46. Pretty much a squash, as it should have been.

The Hardys are happy with how things have been going but the Righteous come in to talk about their Genesis match. They also seem to tease an alliance between the teams. Didn’t they do that before?

It’s time for the Feast Or Fired reveals. Trey Miguel is up first and gets…an International Title shot. Next is Eddie Edwards, who gets a World Title shot. That leaves Steve Maclin and Eric Young, with Maclin being fired and Young getting an X-Division Title shot.

Post break, Eddie Edwards and the System come up to threaten Mike Santana with a cash in. Santana glares back.

Commentary is depressed by Steve Maclin being fired.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Rich Swann, AJ Francis, First Class

AJ Francis vs. Rich Swann

Anything goes so Swann brings out a trashcan full of weapons (must be a Raven fan). Swann hits him with a baseball bat to start but Francis won’t let him bring in a table. The table is set up on the floor anyway but Francis kicks him down again. They head to the state where Swann slips out of attempts at a chokeslam and a Styles Clash. Instead Francis goes with a Pedigree and we take a break.

We come back with Francis sitting in a chair with his foot on Swann’s back. Swann fights up and sends him face first into the chair but an Air Raid Crash onto the chair gives Francis two. Back up and Swann is able to drop Francis face first onto the steps, followed by a handspring cutter for two more. Swann sets up another table on the floor and throws in a bunch of chairs, though he couldn’t keep Francis down for three.

Back in and a Pounce gives Francis two but Swann grabs a hurricanrana through the tables on the floor. The Phoenix splash hits Francis for two more and it’s time for the baseball bat again. Francis uses the delay to grab a chain and knock Swann silly with a right hand for two. Swann is put inside a trashcan and obliterated with a chair….for two. Francis tries to take him up top but gets hurricanranaed down onto the pile of chairs. That lets Swann unload with the chair, followed by a frog splash to pin Francis at 16:20.

Rating: B. This was a weapons filled and at times somewhat goofy brawl but it did feel like the big definitive ending for their feud. That’s what it needed to be as Swann needs to move on to something else. Swann is someone who could be a bigger deal around here so getting this kind of a win is a good sign for his future. Francis can go away for a few weeks and come back with one of those condescending promos of his and he’ll be fine.

Frankie Kazarian wants to talk to Daria Rae to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show felt like it was designed to get things ready for the next big stretch, with Feast Or Fired giving us three upcoming title matches. Hopefully Maclin leaving is just a head fake as TNA really doesn’t need to lose someone that good. Swann winning is a good thing to see and he won a big main event, though we’ll have to see where he goes. The Daria Rae stuff feels like it’s going to be the next big us vs. them story and…yeah that’s only so appealing after we just got done with the NXT invasion stuff. Just let Mike Santana be the focus maybe? The World Champion? Maybe?

Results
Nic Nemeth b. BDE – Danger Zone
Stacks b. Home Town Man – Rollup with feet on the ropes
Elijah b. Jason Hotch – Highwayman’s Farewell
Elayna Black b. Ruthie Jay – Swinging double underhook neckbreaker
Rich Swann b. AJ Francis – Frog splash

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: January 22, 2026
Location: Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

We’re back on AMC with another live show after last week’s less than well received debut and the ensuing Genesis pay per view. That means it is time to start getting ready for…whatever the next show is going to be. This week’s event features the return of Feast Or Fired, plus finding out the newest member of the System. Let’s get to it.

Here is Genesis if you need a recap.

Genesis recap.

Opening sequence.

Company President Carlos Silva is happy with the AMC debut. End of thoughts from Silva.

Cedric Alexander vs. Moose

Alisha Edwards is here with Moose, who has a banged up back. They shake hands to start and Moose chops him into the corner. A dropkick cuts Alexander off and sends him to the apron and they slug it out until Alexander plants him hard. Alexander hits a big suicide dive but gets sent hard into the steps as commentary runs down the show.

Moose loses a fight over a suplex and his back is banged up even more. A frog splash gives Alexander two so he kicks Moose in the bad back for a smart move. The springboard Downward Spiral gets two but Moose gets more fired up and kicks him in the face. For some reason Moose hits a backsplash but he’s fine enough to nip up.

The chokebomb out of the corner gets two on Alexander, who counters the spear into a Michinoku Driver for two of his own. They chop it out until Alexander grabs a Spanish Fly. Moose headbutts him out of the air to block a springboard before loading up a powerbomb. That’s fine with Alexander, who reverses into a hurricanrana for the pin at 9:59.

Rating: B-. I can certainly go for Alexander getting a bigger push, which is to say a push of almost any kind. This is the biggest win of his TNA career and it very well should boost him up before his X-Division Title shot. Moose sold the back well for the most part, though the last few minutes felt like a pretty standard Moose match, which isn’t a great sign.

Here is Mike Santana for a chat. He sits down in a chair and plays a message from his late father, saying Santana earned his way here, he deserves to be here, and he belongs here. The fans tell Santana that he deserves it and Santana talks about coming back here about two years ago. Every time he tries to do something, he remembers his father’s words. Santana talks about fighting back every time, even when he lost the World Title just thirty days after he won it.

Now he’s back where he belongs and he praises Frankie Kazarian after the wars they’ve had. He knows his back is against the wall against these people but that’s the way he likes it, because he’s earned his way here, he deserves to be here and he belongs here. This guy knows how to get fans behind him and he did it again here with a good promo.

Mustafa Ali, with Order 4, talks about the Hardys thinking they’re goats but they’re really sheep. Tonight, he will be Jeff Hardy’s shepherd.

We look at Zaria and Sol Ruca earning a Knockouts Tag Team Title shot earlier this week on NXT.

Indi Hartwell vs. M By Elegance

The rest of the Elegance Brand is here too. Hartwell backs her into the corner to start before grabbing a headlock. They run the ropes a bit until Hartwell uppercuts her into the corner. A running big boot misses though and M stomps on Hartwell’s foot, with the Personal Concierge smashing the foot with a shoe (as payback for Hartwell stepping on M’s foot). We take a break and come back with Hartwell grabbing a spinebuster, starting up the clothesline comeback. The Hurts Donut is broken up but Hartwell rolls her up for the pin at 9:05.

Rating: C. That was a bit of an oddly timed break at the end as there wasn’t much when we come back, though maybe AMC is still learning how to lay these things out. That being said, it was your usual Hartwell match, as she’s just not that great in the ring. The fans love her though and that’s more than enough of a reason to have her in a featured spot.

Post match the Brand jumps Hartwell but Ash By Elegance tries to cool things off. Violence is teased so cue the Angel Warriors…and Ash jumps Lei Ying Lee, suggesting that she might be able to do some physical stuff. That’s good to see after how bad things sounded.

Post break, Ash tells the Brand that she is back. If that means she’s healthy, that’s great.

Feast Or Fired

Mance Warner, Rich Swann, Hometown Man, Ryan Nemeth, AJ Francis, Eric Young, John Skyler, Jason Hotch, Eddie Edwards, Brian Myers, Steve Maclin, Trey Miguel

There are four briefcases (one at each corner), three of which contain title (World, X-Division, International) shots. The fourth contains a pink slip. Whomever gets a case has to get to the ground with it to officially win it, with the reveals next week. Miguel is a surprise, as his “break” from wrestling lasted…a week?

The ring is quickly cleared out so Swann and Miguel can have a hug. Francis cuts Miguel off from his climb and gets double powerbombed down for his efforts. Young is back in to clear the ring until Miguel…really doesn’t do well with a poisonrana attempt. Miguel hits a big dive and Man goes up top to dive off as well rather than going for a case. Man goes back up and tries for the case but Young steals his mask and the case, which he officially wins.

Hotch and Skyler go after a briefcase but Maclin takes it away and escapes so we’re down to two. Warner loads up chairs rather than going after a case, allowing Edwards to Blue Thunder Bomb him onto the chairs. Francis chokeslams Swann onto the apron but Miguel kicks Francis down. That’s enough for Miguel to get a briefcase, leaving Myers to clear the field so Edwards can get the last case. Francis is waiting on him though…so Edwards throws the case at him and hits a dropkick, allowing Edwards to get the case back and wrap it up at 8:21.

Rating: C+. This is a really weird one to rate as you have four winners but the rest don’t really lose. The big drama comes next week as we find out who gets what, but they went with a pretty standard group of winners. If nothing else, it gives me the hope that Young will be gone and that would improve a lot of things.

Mike Santana runs into Nic Nemeth and warns him to watch his step. Nemeth teases Calling His Shot and brings up Santana’s daughter, which is enough to trigger the brawl.

Post break, BDE and some of his friends are in the back playing video games. Nic Nemeth comes in to yell them for just playing games because this is real life. BDE isn’t happy and offers to face him next week. Nemeth says it’s on.

Here is Elayna Black for a chat. She’s the only one you need to talk about and she’s the only one who matters. Her first match is next week and this is the Era Of Elayna. This sounded like someone on Tough Enough making up a character on the spot.

Arianna Grace apologizes to Santino Marella, who doesn’t seem impressed. She says Stacks was wrong and begs his forgiveness. They hug, which I’m sure will go fine for both of them.

Mustafa Ali vs. Jeff Hardy

Order 4 and Matt Hardy are here too. They lock up to start with Jeff shoving him down out of the corner. Jeff takes him down for a quick ride and a right hand puts Ali on the floor. Back in and Ali gets punched to the floor again, meaning it’s time for a breather. Ali gets back in again and knocks Jeff into the corner, followed by a shot out to the floor. Agent Zero takes Matt out and we take a break.

We come back with the fight taking place on the apron until Jeff hits a Twist Of Fate onto the steps (turned on their side next to the apron). They both dive back in to beat the count with Jeff getting the better of things, including the basement dropkick. Another Twist Of Fate is blocked but Ali is sent face first into the buckle.

Tasha Steelz’s interference doesn’t work as Jeff hits a double Twisting Stunner for two so Ali grabs a title belt. Matt cuts that off and gets into it with Agent Zero, leaving Jeff to hit the Twist Of Fate. The Swanton misses though and Ali’s 450 gets two. Cue Elijah for a distraction, meaning it’s the Twist into the Swanton to finish Ali at 15:30.

Rating: B. So the Elijah vs. Ali feud continues, which hardly does Ali any favors. Ali is someone who seems like he could be put into the main event scene but he’s still dealing with Elijah, who doesn’t feel that big. Losing to Jeff is fine, though I have no idea who is supposed to take the titles from the Hardys. They feel almost unbeatable and that’s not the best situation to give the rest of your division.

The Righteous suggest it isn’t over with the Hardys. Is there really no better option?

Here is the System, with JDC, to announce JDC’s replacement in the team. He has handpicked his replacement and it’s…Bear Bronson. Bear Bronson? Ok then. The team seems happy with it…but Eddie Edwards and Bronson jump Moose and JDC. Cedric Alexander runs in for the save…and he hits Moose with a chair.

Eddie says they’re replacing TWO members of the System because Moose is out. Alisha Edwards is distraught as the beating continues to end the show. The turn makes sense, as the System works better as villains and Moose losing isn’t something they should tolerate. If nothing else, it means Alexander gets something to do and I’ll take that.

Overall Rating: B-. FAR better show this week, which was at least partially due to it feeling like a regular show instead of being the big premiere. They had some good action here, plus the big twist(s) at the end, which is a needed change. Next week should be interesting with some important matches and the briefcase reveals. Not a classic show here, but it felt like a return to form, which was needed after last week’s less than successful offering.

Results
Cedric Alexander b. Moose – Hurricanrana
Indi Hartwell b. M By Elegance – Rollup
Eric Young, Steve Maclin, Trey Miguel and Eddie Edwards won Feast Or Fired
Jeff Hardy b. Mustafa Ali – Swanton Bomb

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: December 11, 2025
Location: El Paso County Coliseum, El Paso, Texas
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

Final Resolution has come and gone and shockingly enough, it was basically just a stop on the way towards Genesis next month. Frankie Kazarian is still the World Champion after beating JDC to retain the title. Other than that, Leon Slater is still the X-Division Champion and Mike Santana is on his way through the NXT invaders. Let’s get to it.

Here is Final Resolution if you need a recap.

We open with a Final Resolution recap, including Steve Maclin losing the International Title to NXT’s Stacks.

Opening sequence.

Here is Frankie Kazarian to get things going with the King’s Speech. He’s ready to lead TNA into the AMC Era and become the face of the network, so Walter White can move over. Kazarian has heard all of the fans’ hatred and it gives him his happiness. You need to get used to it but here is Mike Santana to interrupt.

After addressing the fans in Spanish, Santana says he respects how Kazarian got the title. At the same time, he’s a hot blooded Latino so he’s mad too. Next week, he’s in a cage against the NXT wrestlers and then he’s coming after the title at Genesis on January 17. Kazarian says no, but Santana says he’s coming for the title anyway.

We run down tonight’s card.

The NXT guys are ready to take out Team TNA, including Matt Cardona. Stacks doesn’t like Santino Marella getting involved in his relationship with Marella’s daughter and next week, he’s taking out the TNA stars.

We look at Leon Slater in last weekend’s NXT Iron Survivor Challenge. Slater will be in a four way for a future NXT Title shot next week.

Lexis King vs. Matt Cardona

Cardona armdrags King to start as we’re told that next week’s cage match is basically WarGames. King is sent outside for the crash, plus a dropkick through the ropes before being tossed back inside. Cardona gets his arm snapped across the top though, followed by a ram into the post. We hit the armbar before King hammers him down in the corner.

King takes too long posing though and gets blasted with a running clothesline. The Reboot gets two but Cardona’s arm is banged up, allowing King to hit a running clothesline to the back of the head (must be an Outback Jack fan). The cane is loaded up but it’s a distraction so Stacks can come in…and get dropped by Radio Silence. King uses the distraction to roll Cardona up for the pin at 5:00.

Rating: C. This wasn’t bad but the good thing is King is finally finding something to do. He hasn’t exactly been a great star in NXT but this is at least a step forward for him. Cardona is someone who can be treated as a big deal when he’s needed and odds are he’ll be around in the quest for revenge against NXT.

Post match Cardona goes after King but gets jumped by Stacks. Steve Maclin makes the save.

Lei Ying Lee and Xia Brookside are fine after their match at Final Resolution. Tessa Blanchard and company come in, with Blanchard saying she wants a title match. Ying doesn’t like Blanchard, who doesn’t care.

Harley Hudson/Myla Grace vs. Elegance Brand

The Brand is in dressed as elves for a special theme. They swing presents at Hudson and Grace and are knocked out to the floor before the bell. Back in and we officially get started with M taking Hudson down for a basement dropkick but Heather misses a backsplash. The tag brings in Grace to clean house as everything breaks down. The Personal Concierge grabs a present but gets it slammed onto his head. Hudson rolls Heather up but it gets reversed into a cradle to give Heather the pin at 3:14.

Rating: C. The Brand continue to be the top heels in the tag division so having them cheat to beat someone is a good idea. At the same time, it’s nice to see how fast TNA has rebuilt the Knockouts of any kind. There are a bunch of fresh faces around the division and it’s good that they’re already feeling like they belong. That can take time, but they’ve done it rather quickly. Nice job.

We look at Rich Swann snapping and turning on AJ Francis at Final Resolution.

Swann talks about his history with Francis and he’s done with being disrespected. Yes First Class is over but here is Francis to jump him from behind.

Dezmond Xavier vs. Jake Something vs. Cedric Alexander vs. BDE vs. Ryan Nemeth vs. Jason Hotch

One fall for an X-Division Title shot. Alexander and Xavier waste no time in clearing the ring to start. They both miss shots to the others’ heads and seem to show some respect. Something is back in to drop both of them though and we take a break. We come back with Something getting powerbombed out of the corner, leaving Alexander and Xavier to slug it out.

Alexander dives onto Something and Xavier hits a big flipping dive onto almost everyone else. Back in and Nemeth DDTs BDE for two before grabbing a chair. Cue Mara Sade to superkick Nemeth again, leaving Alexander to Spanish fly Hotch for two. BDE is back up with a cutter and a frog splash but Alexander gives him the Lumbar Check for the pin at 10:10.

Rating: B-. As usual, this was the kind of all over the place insanity that you knew was coming when the match was announced. It makes sense to have BDE take the fall here as he’s the celebrity (work with me here) entrant in the match. Alexander is someone who has been needing a win or two in order to let him showcase his talents so I’m rather pleased with the result. The match was exactly what you would have expected, meaning it was perfectly entertaining and messy.

The System is ready for tonight but JDC wants to face Eddie Edwards in his final match. Edwards is in.

Frankie Kazarian complains about facing Mike Santana so Santino Marella says he can defend the title against the winner of an upcoming battle royal in three weeks. In addition to facing Santana. The NXT guys come up to insult Santino, with Arianna Grace slapping Stacks and telling him to watch his mouth.

The System vs. Sinner And Saint

Edwards and Sinner start things off with Edwards dropping him off a clothesline. Myers comes in and gets struck down with some double teaming, allowing Saint to work on his knee. A chinlock doesn’t last long as Myers is up with a Michinoku driver to get out of trouble. Edwards comes back in with a backpack Stunner for two as everything breaks down. A belly to back suplex/sitout powerbomb combination gets two on Edwards but Myers cuts Sinner off. Saint is sent back in for a Roster Cut into the Boston Knee Party for the pin at 4:53.

Rating: C+. The System are one of the better teams in TNA today and they work rather well together. This wasn’t exactly a squash, but at least they didn’t waste time in getting to the point. Sinner And Saint aren’t the most thrilling team, but this was a pretty nice performance from both of them.

Post match respect is shown.

Here are the Hardys for a chat. Matt says he can feel Eddie Guerrero all around us here. They beat High Ryze at Final Resolution and they’re ready to face Team NXT next week. They have to protect TNA because 2026 is going to be their biggest year ever. Cue the Righteous to interrupt, with Vincent introducing himself and his partner Dutch.

The Hardys know who they are but don’t know why he’s here. Vincent praises the team and Dutch says they’re here because of the Hardys. They wish the Hardys luck in the cage match next week and Dutch declares himself righteous. I’ve heard worse, but this wasn’t exactly a great first promo from the Righteous.

Santino Marella announces that Matt Cardona can’t compete in the cage match so Santino will take his place.

Indi Hartwell vs. Dani Luna

Dog Collar match. Luna jumps her before putting the collar on, only for Hartwell to use the chain for some pre-bell whipping. Hartwell gets Luna cinched up and the bell rings and gets pulled down by the neck so Luna can hammer away. The chain is wrapped around the ropes so Hartwell can be pulled into them. That works so well that Hartwell does the same thing to Luna as we take a break.

We come back with Hartwell getting tripped down for two and getting tied to the post. Hartwell can’t kick her way out of trouble but she can pull Luna face first into the post to draw some blood. Luna goes up and gets pulled down into a spinebuster for two, only to catch Hartwell with a running dropkick. Luna is GUSHING blood and tries some powder, which is knocked out of her hands just as fast. Back up and the referee gets bumped, leaving Luna to…hit the Lunar Landing for the clean pin at 12:27.

Rating: B-. The blood looked awesome, but the match itself was nothing noteworthy otherwise. The ending just kind of happened, with the ref bump not really changing much. Luna has come a long way in the last few months and this was the kind of win that she has been needing. On the other hand you have Hartwell, who is falling rather quickly after a hot start.

Overall Rating: C+. Right now, pretty much everything is setting up the cage match next week, which feels like it’s close to the blowoff to the whole TNA vs. NXT feud. At the same time, it feels like everything is building towards the AMC debut, which makes sense, though it leaves them with kind of a weird limbo for the next five weeks or so. This was a good enough show with a main event that felt big, though next week is the really stacked event.

Results
Lexis King b. Matt Cardona – Rollup
Elegance Brand b. Harley Hudson/Myla Grace – Rollup to Hudson
Cedric Alexander b. BDE, Dezmond Xavier, Jake Something, Ryan Nemeth and Jason Hotch – Lumbar Check to BDE
The System b. Sinner And Saint – Boston Knee Party to Saint
Dani Luna b. Indi Hartwell – Lunar Landing

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: August 28, 2025
Location: Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

The road to Bound For Glory continues but we still have a side trip at Victory Road. That show is starting to come together and now we get to see some more of the card coming together. It could take some time to get everything ready, though there have been at least a few seeds already planted. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Mike Santana/Steve Maclin vs. AJ Francis/Trick Williams

Maclin facebusters and clotheslines Williams to start before it’s off to Santana. That makes Williams think twice and everything breaks down fast. Santana hits a big flip dive to the floor and we take an early break. We come back with Maclin striking away at Francis, including an Angle Slam.

Williams offers a distraction though and Francis gets in a slam off the top to take over. Williams hammers away before Francis grabs a chinlock. Maclin is back up with a dropkick though and Santana comes in to clean house. The Death Valley Driver gets two as everything breaks down. Williams knocks Francis to the floor by mistake though and the Trick Shot is reversed into a rollup to give Santana the pin at 12:20.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of match that can go a long way to setting up the title match, likely at Bound For Glory. Santana getting to save the title from the evil invader is a fine way to go, and we very well could be in for a great moment if that’s where it goes. Maclin and Francis were just kind of there, but at least they kept things moving.

Post match Williams shoves Santana, who beats him up again.

Leon Slater and Cedric Alexander are ready to go after the Tag Team Titles tonight.

We look back at Eric Young threatening Myron Reed with the cleanse.

Eric Young vs. Myron Reed

Zachary Wentz is here too. Reed knocks him down to start and grabs a slingshot Stunner to send Young outside. A suicide dive connects and Reed hammers away back inside. Young manages a Death Valley Driver but a Stundog Millionaire gets Reed out of trouble. A slam puts Reed back down but Young misses a moonsault. Reed’s slingshot legdrop knocks Young out of the ropes but he’s right back with a powerslam. Young threatens the referee so Wentz gets on the apron, which allows Young to get in a low blow. The piledriver finishes Reed at 5:56.

Rating: C+. There are not enough words to describe how little I want to see Eric Young’s latest “I’m here to fix everything about TNA and get rid of the bad people” deal. I’m not sure why that’s something they keep going back to but it seems like we’re getting it again. Heck it wouldn’t stun me if Sami Callihan is some big surprise for Young’s upcoming team.

We look at Dani Luna snapping last week.

Luna talks about being done coming in second and it’s time to be different.

Ash By Elegance is very proud of winning the Knockouts Title at NXT Heatwave and wants a massive celebration. Next week.

Fatal Influence vs. IInspiration

McKay takes Nyx down to start and the IInspiration score with stereo kicks. It’s already off to Henley for a knee to Lee and a double flapjack gets two. Lee gets out of a Muta Lock and it’s back to McKay as everything breaks down in a hurry. Henley is tossed outside and the Idolizer finishes for McKay at 6:23.

Rating: C. Fatal Influence has gotten something out of these matches as it’s smart to have the NXT stars getting more reps in different places. It wouldn’t stun me to see them getting a quick run with the Knockouts Tag Team Titles, as they fit the requirements well enough. On the other hand you have the IInspiration, who have just been kind of there since returning, though they’re still decent enough in their roles.

Trick Williams calls in help to deal with Mike Santana.

Here is Ryan Nemeth to say that his BIG BROTHER will be back next week. Alisha Edwards and Eddie Edwards interrupt, with Alisha saying Eddie is here to shut him up.

Eddie Edwards vs. Ryan Nemeth

Edwards punches away in the corner to start and an overhead belly to belly sends Nemeth outside. Alisha gets in a slap of her own but Nemeth manages to hammer away on the way back inside. Nemeth takes him down and drops some elbows but Edwards is back up. A missed charge hits the post though and Nemeth grabs a chinlock. That’s broken up but the Backpack Stunner is blocked. Edwards settles for a tiger bomb and the Boston Knee Party finishes at 5:40.

Rating: C. I can go for Nemeth as an annoying putz who loses in spots like this and keeps running his mouth because he thinks his brother can get him out of trouble. He’s also good for someone like Edwards to beat, as Edwards is well suited for what he’s doing. He and Alisha work well together on screen too, which shouldn’t be the biggest shock.

Indi Hartwell is upset at last week’s attack at the hands of Dani Luna. Santino Marella pops in to say that due to the attack, Hartwell is getting a #1 contenders match with Jody Threat next week but Luna comes in to say she should be in for that as well. Works for Hartwell, and the match seems to be set.

We get some stills of Joe Hendry beating the Miz at WWE’s European house show.

Eric Young says the cleanse is coming…and has attacked Joe Hendry. Oh sweet goodness just get on to his lame World Title feud (if Santana wins, Young is going to get a pay per view title shot) so we can move on to anything else on the show.

Mara Sade vs. Tasha Steelz

Order 4 is here with Steelz. Sade grabs a fireman’s carry and drops her to start but Order 4 grabs Sade’s foot for a distraction. Steelz gets in a choke and then a reverse chinlock, which is broken up rather quickly. A middle rope dropkick puts Steelz down but Order 4 offers another distraction, allowing Steelz to hit a middle rope Russian legsweep. Sade shrugs that off and hits Finish Her (or tries to at least as it didn’t look great), only to go after Order 4. Rather than covering, Sade goes after Order 4, which lets Steelz hit a cutter for the pin at 5:48.

Rating: D. To say this was rough would be an understatement, as I’m not sure what they were trying near the end but it really didn’t work. It doesn’t help that they had Order 4 getting involved three times in a match that didn’t even last six minutes. Really weak stuff here, which is surprising as both have done far better before.

Post match Order 4 goes after Sade, with Agent Zero blasting her with a clothesline. The Hardys run in for the save.

Tag Team Titles: Hardys vs. Cedric Alexander/Leon Slater

The Hardys are defending. Jeff forearms Alexander to start but gets taken into the corner for the tag to Slater. We get a quick show of respect before Slater kicks Jeff in the face. It’s off to Matt for the double elbow and we take an early break. We come back with Jeff jawbreaking Slater and bringing Matt in to slug away on Alexander. Matt sends Alexander into the buckle and then does the same to Slater.

The Plot Twist into a splash gets two on Alexander with Slater making the save. The Swanton 450 misses so the Hardys try a Plot Twist on Slater, who reverses into a cutter on Matt. Slater leg lariats Jeff but the Swanton 450 misses. A Downward Spiral hits Jeff but Matt is back in with the Twist of Fate, setting up the Swanton to retain at 10:36.

Rating: B-. Good enough main event here, even if it was the champions defending against a team without much history working together. The Hardys are gearing up for the match against Team 3D, though there is no guarantee that will be for the titles. For now though, it’s nice to see the Hardys getting another win, as they’re still more than good enough to hang in the ring.

Here is Trick Williams, with his lawyer, to discuss being attacked by Mike Santana. Williams calls this a crime scene and he isn’t defending his title for 50 days. Cue Santino Marella to say Williams will defend his title at Bound For Glory. The lawyer tries to yell at Marella and gets Cobraed to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t their strongest show, but it did have some good parts. They’re clearly setting the stage for Bound For Glory, though we’re going to have to get through some other parts on the way there. Now just get the rest of that stuff ready and the show should work out well. I mean, assuming you launch this Eric Young stuff into the sun once and for all.

Results
Mike Santana/Steve Maclin b. AJ Francis/Trick Williams – Rollup to Williams
Eric Young b. Myron Reed – Piledriver
IInspiration b. Fatal Influence – Idolizer to Henley
Eddie Edwards b. Ryan Nemeth – Boston Knee Party
Tasha Steelz b. Mara Sade – Cutter
Hardys b. Cedric Alexander/Leon Slater – Swanton to Alexander

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

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 14, 2025
Location: Thomas M. Ryan Center, Kingston, Rhode Island
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the night before Emergence so this week is likely going to be about setting things up for the pay per view. The big story coming out of this week’s NXT saw Trick Williams turn his back on his partners, including #1 contender Moose, allowing Darkstate to win an eight man tag. That is likely going to require some revenge so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Moose has been attacked in the back and the System hits the ring. They call out Trick Williams and First Class so it’s six man tag time.

First Class/Trick Williams vs. The System

The brawl is on in the aisle with the System getting the better of things. We settle down to Edwards crushing Swann in the corner and handing it off to JDC. Swann gets taken down but he kicks JDC out to the floor to take over for the first time. Francis’ chinlock doesn’t last long so it’s Williams coming in for a flapjack. Another chinlock goes on, followed by a bearhug from Francis. JDC suplexes his way out of trouble though and it’s off to Myers for an implant DDT to Swann. Everything breaks down and Swann gets a rollup with feet on the ropes to pin Myers at 6:12.

Rating: C+. That’s what this needed to be, with the System still finding their footing as good guys and Swann getting to steal a win to reestablish himself. Swann is a former World Champion but he’s been gone for so long that some people might have forgotten that he can hang at this level. Myers and JDC exist to lose for the System so this was hardly some big upset either.

We run down the rest of the card.

Myla Grace/Harley Hudson vs. Dani Luna/Indi Hartwell

Hudson can’t take Luna over with a headlock to start but Luna can easily power her down. A choke doesn’t work for Hudson either so she sends Luna into the corner for some running knees to the face. Luna powers them away again though and it’s off to Hartwell to clean house. The Hurts Donut finishes Grace at 3:40.

Rating: C-. Not much to this one, though Grace and Hudson are at least getting a chance to establish themselves as something. They still have a long way to go, but they have a bit of an identity as the rookies. Eventually they’ll need to win something, but we’re a long way off before they’re anything close to a failure.

Respect is shown post match but Rosemary pops out of the crowd to mist Hartwell.

We look at Order 4 costing Joe Hendry a match against Mustafa Ali last week.

John Skyler vs. Matt Cardona

Order 4 is here with Skyler. Cardona takes him into the corner to start but a distraction from the floor lets Skyler drop Cardona outside. Back in and the chinlock doesn’t last long but Tasha Steelz blocks the Reboot. Instead Cardona hits Radio Silence for the win at 2:19.

Post match Order 4 jumps Cardona and Mustafa Ali comes out to send Agent Zero out for the big beatdown.

Jody Threat and Dani Luna check on Indi Hartwell but get in an argument.

Matt Cardona is looking for Mustafa Ali and seems ready to face him at Emergence.

We look at a three way being set up for the Knockouts Title, with Jacy Jayne defending against Masha Slamovich and Ash By Elegance.

Here is Santino Marella for a Knockouts tag team summit. This brings out the Elegance Brand, Lei Ying Lee/Xia Brookside, IInspiration and Fatal Influence, with the Brand bragging about their abilities. Brookside promises a beating for everyone and Fatal Influence promises to show NXT’s superiority. Tension is teased and the brawl breaks out in a hurry, with dives taking out security. Pretty basic stuff here.

Rosemary isn’t happy with Indi Hartwell strolling in here so she made Hartwell as blind as Hartwell seems to be.

Steph de Lander and Mance Warner are annoyed at being suspended for having some personal time in Santino Marella’s locker room last week. Nothing is keeping him out of TNA.

Eric Young vs. Mike Santana

The Northern Armory is here with Young. Santana gets jumped from behind to start and gets sent outside. The Armory gets in some cheap shots so Young can hammer away in the corner, followed by a hard whip for two. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Santana fights back and hits an enziguri, followed by the rolling Buck Fifty for two of his own. Young shoves him off the top though and hits a top rope elbow for two. Young misses a clothesline off the top though and Spin The Block finishes for Santana at 5:31.

Rating: B-. Short and to the point match here, which is the best way to go as Santana can get a win over a name. They didn’t need to let this go long as Santana got everything he needed out of it by overcoming the odds to win. Now just get Santana where he belongs on the pay back to the World Title.

Post match the Armory jumps Santana but Sami Callihan makes the save.

We look at the TNA action on NXT, including Joe Hendry getting a win and Trick Williams costing his partners the eight man tag against Darkstate.

Here is Frankie Kazarian for the King’s Speech. Kazarian brings out Jake Something and Steve Maclin (facing each other at Emergence) as his guests and this isn’t likely to go well. They go face to face but Kazarian keeps telling them to keep from fighting, which has Maclin telling him to shut up. Maclin goes after Kazarian but walks into Into The Void. I’m not sure if he will, but I could go for Something winning the title.

Emergence rundown.

Sami Callihan says he’s done if he doesn’t win at Emergence. Eddie Edwards comes in to say he wants the real Callihan to come out one more time.

Rascalz/Cedric Alexander vs. Leon Slater/Hardys

Alexander wrestles Slater down to start before Reed comes in for a Fameasser in the ropes. Slater kicks him in the head though and brings Matt in to take over on Reed’s arm. Jeff gets in a few shots of his own, allowing Slater to hit a clothesline for two. The ten rams into the corner have Reed in more trouble but he gets over to Wentz. Slater gets taken down again, with Wentz firing off some elbows to the chest for two. Jeff comes in for a quick Poetry In Motion and grabs a chinlock on Wentz as we take a break.

We come back with Matt getting taken into the corner so Wentz can grab a front facelock. That’s switched into a regular chinlock but Matt fights out without much trouble. A superplex drops Wentz and Jeff comes back in to take over on Alexander. Whisper In The Wind (though not a clean one) gets two and it’s Slater coming back in to plant Reed. We hit the parade of knockdowns and the good guys grab a string of Twist of Fates (or Twisting Stunner from Jeff because he’s weird).

It’s too early for the Swanton so instead Alexander gets splashed by Jeff. Slater’s crossover splash gets two with the Rascalz making the save. The Rascalz hit dives on the floor and Salter nails a big dive over the corner. Back in and Alexander avoids the Swanton 450 and grabs the Lumbar Check for the pin at 17:28.

Rating: B. I can always go for the “take two matches and put them into a six man” style and they did well with it here. Alexander is a good first challenger for Slater as he’s going to be completely fine in the ring and help make Slater look good. At the same time, the Hardys are getting ready for their big match against Team 3D, meaning the titles might actually be in jeopardy as they have bigger things going on.

The double staredown ends the show.

Overall Rating: B-. While Emergence only feels so important between Slammiversary and Bound For Glory, this show did a good job of building it up. Oddly save for the World Title match, which was mainly touched on earlier in the week on NXT, the card got a solid boost here. Emergence could be a good show, and this week had a lot to do with making that work.

Results
First Class/Trick Williams b. The System – Rollup with feet on the ropes to Myers
Dani Luna/Indi Hartwell b. Myla Grace/Harley Hudson – Hurts Donut to Grace
Matt Cardona b. John Skyler – Radio Silence
Mike Santana b. Eric Young – Spin The Block
Cedric Alexander/Rascalz b. Hardys/Leon Slater – Lumbar Check to Slater

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: July 3, 2025
Location: UMPC Events Center, Moon Township, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

We’re less than a month away from Slammiversary and the big story is going to be Joe Hendry and Mike Santana both trying to get the World Title back to TNA from Trick Williams. More of the card needs to be set up, which very well could take place tonight. In addition, we have Killer Kelly vs. Masha Slamovich in a chain match. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

IInspiration vs. Victoria Crawford/Tessa Blanchard

Indi Hartwell is on commentary. Crawford backs McKay into the corner to start but McKay is right back with a quick Oklahoma roll for two. Blanchard comes in to choke Lee on the ropes, followed by a chinlock. That’s broken up and Lee gets in a swinging faceplant, allowing the tag back to McKay to clean house. Hold on though as Blanchard argues with Hartwell, leaving the IInspiration to hit the Idolizer for the pin on Crawford at 5:22.

Rating: C. Having the IInspiration back is a good thing as they actually offer a regular team in the Knockouts tag team division. They’re about as perfect of a team for the division as you can get and while I don’t know if they’re here permanently, it’s nice to see them getting some reps. What they’re doing so far is working though and that’s a good start.

Post match Hartwell and Blanchard get in a fight, with Hartwell issuing a challenge for Slammiversary.

Also at Slammiversary: the IInspiration gets a Knockouts Tag Team Title shot.

Here is Order 4, minus Mustafa Ali, for a chat. Tasha Steelz reveals that she called Cedric Alexander, and wants both he and Ali out here. Alexander talks about their history on 205 Live and how they wrestled all the way to Wrestlemania, with John Cena himself watching. Ali says he doesn’t want Alexander’s help, because Alexander took everything from him.

Ali wants a Wrestlemania rematch, but at Slammiversary. That’s not what Alexander wants, but he’ll do it. The fight is on, with Alexander and the Great Hands clearing out the security. I’m not sure on the idea of having this be focused on something from WWE but at least the match should be good.

We recap Killer Kelly vs. Masha Slamovich.

Knockouts Title: Masha Slamovich vs. Killer Kelly

Slamovich is defending in a chain match. They’re tied at the wrist by a chain and they slug it out to start. The fight is quickly outside where Kelly chokes her around the post to take over. Back in and Kelly fires off some knees to the face for two but Slamovich hits some clotheslines with the chain. Slamovich uses the chain to pull her into the post and then chokes away for a bonus.

Kelly is sent face first into the steps over and over and they go up the ramp, where Kelly gets in a suplex. Back in and they slug it out from their knees before a double clothesline leaves them both down. Kelly sends her into the corner and grabs Angel’s Wings for two. A running dropkick gets two in the corner so Slamovich goes simple by just choking her with the chain for the win at 11:16.

Rating: B-. The match was fine enough but I’m not sure how much interest there was in seeing these two fight. Yeah they have a history together, but Kelly was never a big star in the first place. Once MK Ultra broke up, Slamovich has moved way up and while it’s fine to have her face Kelly like this, it’s not the biggest match in the world.

Post match NXT’s Fatal Influence runs in to jump Slamovich. Xia Brookside and Lei Ying Lee make the save.

We look at Eric Young snapping last week and arguing with the Home Town Man in a digital exclusive.

Young yells at the Northern Armory, who promise to do whatever it takes to impress him. If this means we’re done with Young’s latest stable, I’m all for it.

Mike Santana says he has earned the World Title shot at Slammiversary and it is going to be worth everything he has gone through to get here.

Matt Cardona vs. Eddie Edwards

Alisha Edwards is here with Eddie. Cardona starts fast with a faceplant before hammering away in the corner. A backdrop and flapjack put Eddie down and Cardona hits the Reboot. Back up and Eddie gets in a shot of his own for two so Alisha puts the System ring on the apron. Cue Brian Myers to argue with Eddie though and Cardona gets a rollup for the pin at 4:15.

Rating: C. We might be seeing the beginning of the end of the System and after a year and a half, it might be time. Cardona and Myers getting back together isn’t the worst idea, but it’s still strange seeing Cardona as a good guy these days. I’ll take the possible cracks in the stable though, and that’s what we’re seeing so far.

Post match NXT’s Darkstate stable (four guys who attack various wrestlers) run in for the beatdown.

The Home Town Man has been attacked. I fail to see the negatives here.

Video on Leon Slater, who has been a TNA fan for years and is trying to become the youngest X-Division Champion of all time. This is a rather personal look at Slater and it makes him a lot easier to like, as this is obviously something he loves quite a bit.

Mance Warner vs. Jake Something

Steph de Lander is here with Warner and Steve Maclin is on commentary. Warner slugs away to start but Something fights back until de Lander grabs his foot. Warner slugs away again but the running knee is cut off. Something goes outside and yells at Maclin but the brawl is on, with Maclin jumping both of them for the double DQ at 2:57.

Post break Maclin agrees to fight both of them for the International Title.

Nic Nemeth vs. Zachary Wentz

Ryan Nemeth and Myron Reed are here too and Wentz is replacing an injured Trey Miguel. Wentz flips out of a wristlock to start and a middle rope crossbody gets two. Wentz goes after Ryan but gets jumped by Nic and we take a break. We come back with Wentz slugging away and catching Nic in a sitout powerbomb for two. They trade rollups for two each until Wentz hits a spinning knee for two more. Ryan grabs Wentz’s leg for a distraction so Wentz dives on him, only for Nic to grab the Danger Zone for the win at 9:02.

Rating: C+. Having Miguel in there wouldn’t have made much of a difference so this was about as good as we were going to get. The ending wasn’t exactly inspiring but Wentz isn’t going to be beating a star of Nic’s caliber. Then again it’s all about setting up their precious ladder match at Slammiversary so momentum only means so much.

We look at Joe Hendry beating Wes Lee on NXT, with Mike Santana helping him a bit.

Here is Frankie Kazarian for his new segment, the King’s Speech. He gets right to the point and brings out his guests: Joe Hendry, Mike Santana and Trick Williams (he’s a bigger fan of one than of the other two). Kazarian talks to Williams first, with Williams saying that he’s already beaten the two of them. The fans say they believe but Kazarian believes they’re idiots. Santana gets annoyed at Kazarian for cutting him off and says that he’s here to be the best in the world, and that’s what he’ll do at Slammiversary.

Hendry says the people are still believing in him but Williams says he’s still the man around here. Kazarian likes what Williams is saying and the brawl is on with the bad guys leaving Hendry and Santana laying to end the show. This was pretty basic stuff, but despite being a big star, Hendry isn’t feeling right in here. He’s had his moment and while I get the appeal of him doing it again, this feels like it would be better with Santana on his own.

Overall Rating: C+. The in-ring side of things was a bit weaker this time but what matters here is drawing up as much attention as possible for Slammiversary. That’s what they were trying to do here and there are some stories which have my attention. They still have a few weeks to go before the big show though and things can be developed in time. Just spice things up a bit and we should be in for a good event. This wasn’t a great show, but it took some necessary steps.

Results
IInspiration b. Victoria Crawford/Tessa Blanchard – Idolizer to Crawford
Masha Slamovich b. Killer Kelly – Choke
Matt Cardona b. Eddie Edwards – Rollup
Jake Something vs. Mance Warner went to a double DQ when Steve Maclin interfered
Nic Nemeth b. Zachary Wentz – Danger Zone

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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Battle Of Los Angeles 2011
Date: August 20, 2011
Location: American Legion Post #308, Reseda, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Rick Knox, Joey Ryan

We’re back in Reseda with PWG and it’s tournament time. This is one of the bigger independent tournaments of the year and there should be a nice lineup of talent for the whole thing. That could be quite the show as these matches tend to get time and have solid action. Let’s get to it.

As usual, there is no intro here, as music is edited out. Fair enough.

Battle Of Los Angeles First Round: Chris Hero vs. Willie Mack

Both are a good bit slimmer here than their modern appearance. They show some respect to start and it’s time to fight over warm control. Hero takes him down into a headscissors but Mack flips over into a headlock, with the fans approving. That’s broken up so Hero ties up the legs in an Indian Deathlock before switching to a front chancery. La majistral gets two on Mack and Hero nips up to quite the positive reception.

Back up and Hero tries a leapfrog but Mack accidentally headbutts him low, sending Hero bailing into the crowd for a needed breather. Hero gets back inside and some armdrags send him into the corner before they loudly chop it out. One heck of a clothesline cuts Mack off and something like a neckbreaker gets two. The No Mercy Eastern Stretch has Mack in more trouble before it’s time for another slugout.

Hero knocks him down and stomps away, setting up an apron kick to the side of the head. Back up and Mack wins an exchange of kicks to the head so Hero blasts him with a forearm. The staggered Mack ducks a big boot and hits a running kick to the chest to send Hero outside for the big running flip dive. Back in and a jumping back elbow sets up a flying shoulder and Hero is in more trouble. Hero strikes away but gets caught with a running splash and clothesline in the corner.

A running boot to the face gives Hero two but Mack hits a lariat out of the corner that would make John Cena jealous. Something like an F5 drops Hero again, only for him to come back with a suplex. A Liger Bomb gives Hero two and the discus forearm to the back of the head gets the same. They’re both down for a needed breather until Hero hits another discus forearm for another near fall. Mack charges into a boot in the corner and Hero nails a cyclone boot. Hero loads up a neckbreaker but Mack reverses into a backslide and flips onto him for the pin at 19:18.

Rating: B-. Mack is someone who has always felt like he could have been a big deal if given the chance and it’s nice to see him getting to showcase some of that potential here. On the other hand you have Hero, who looks like a different person here and looked good in defeat. He can work with anyone and the fans clearly liked him, though this could have been a few minutes shorter to sharpen things up a bit.

Battle Of Los Angeles First Round: Kevin Steen vs. Dave Finlay

As in Fit and Steen’s PWG World Title isn’t on the line. Feeling out process to start until Finlay grabs him by the face and hits an elbow. Steen goes for the leg so Finlay rips at his face as you might expect. Finlay wrestles him down and stomps on the fingers to send Steen outside. Back in and a headlock has Finlay down for a change but they’re quickly on the floor for a slugout.

They get back inside and Steen might have poked him in the eye, but Finlay uses the distraction to knock him down in quite the sneaky veteran move. Steen’s chops earn him a forearm to the face so Steen gets evil by wrapping the knee around the post. That works so well that Steen bends the knee around the rope before firing off an elbow to the face for two.

Steen kicks at the leg again and mocks Finlay with something I can’t quite understand. Finlay fights back with a knee drop and a seated senton for two but Steen Codebreakers him down. There’s the Cannonball for two but Finlay gets the knees up to cut off a dive. Back up and Steen pulls him off the ropes, setting up a Sharpshooter for the (surprising) submission at 15:02.

Rating: B-. This was one of those cool historical curiosities as Finlay and Steen represent such different generations. The good thing is that Finlay has an ability to adapt to other styles very well and that’s what we got here. Steen working the leg and then winning with the Sharpshooter was a simple story, and making Finlay tap is quite the accomplishment.

Post match both of them get a nice reaction from the fans.

Battle Of Los Angeles First Round: El Generico vs. Claudio Castagnoli

This should work. Castagnoli backs him into the corner to start and they trade shoves, with Castagnoli getting the better of things. A front facelock is broken up so Castagnoli goes back to the wristlock. Generico breaks that up as well, only to be taken back down into a front facelock on the mat. That’s switched into an armbar, with the fans bringing Generico back to his feet.

Generico reverses into an armdrag but Castagnoli is right back with a neck twist to put him down again. We hit the trapezius hold for a bit, with Generico fighting up and hitting the springboard armdrag. Generico hits ocho right hands in the corner but Castagnoli sends him into the buckle and fires off some knees. A backbreaker stays on the back and Castagnoli grabs a crossarm choke with knees in the same back.

That’s broken up so Castagnoli hammers away some more, including some chops to put him down. Generico’s comeback is cut off with another backbreaker for some near falls. There’s a hard whip into the corner to stay on the back as commentary chatters on, occasionally even acknowledging the match. Generico runs the corner for a hurricanrana which doesn’t exactly work, allowing Castagnoli to hit a trio gutwrench powerbombs for two.

Back up and Castagnoli misses a pump kick and falls to the floor, allowing Generico to hit a big running flip dive. Back in and Generico’s high crossbody is countered into a nasty tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for another near fall. Castagnoli switches gears by trying a torture rack backbreaker but Generico reverses into a hurricanrana into the corner. The Helluva Kick connects but another is countered into an INCREDIBLE looking Swiss Death for two, with Generico reversing into a rollup for a red hot two.

The Riccola Bomb is countered so Castagnoli blasts him with a clothesline for two more. They go up top where a super Riccola Bomb is broken up. Castagnoli muscles him up for another anyway, with Generico reversing into a super hurricanrana. A jackknife rollup gives Generico the pin to blow the roof off the place at 15:20.

Rating: B+. These two had some incredible chemistry together and it’s no surprise that they tore the house down anytime they faced off in NXT. This was another awesome match between them, as Generico knows exactly how to fight from behind against a power monster like Castagnoli. Heck of a match here and the kind of match that gave PWG its reputation.

Battle Of Los Angeles First Round: Eddie Edwards vs. Roderick Strong

They fight over the ropes with a lockup to start until Strong goes after the wristlock. Edwards takes him down into a hammerlock as commentary talks about the fans coming to love this venue. That’s broken up and we get another standoff as this is firmly in first gear thus far. Strong’s headlock doesn’t get him very far so he sends Edwards outside instead. They chop it out with Edwards staggering around the ring, eventually getting backbreakered onto the apron.

Edwards is right back with a brainbuster onto the apron, followed by a moonsault off of said apron to drop Strong again. Back inside and Edwards staggers him with a headbutt but Strong manages a catapult to send him throat first into the bottom rope. A seated abdominal stretch keeps Edwards in trouble, followed by a running shot to the face for two. The waistlock brings Edwards back up for some shots to the face and they strike it out.

Edwards grabs a suplex to put Strong down and we get a needed double breather. Strong tries to fight out of the corner until an enziguri cuts him off again. Edwards’ half crab sends Strong bailing over to the rope and he’s back up with some hard shots to the face. A basement superkick drops Edwards for two and the Strong Hold goes on to keep him in trouble. The belly to back spinning facebuster gives Edwards two and they chop it out again.

Strong’s Sick Kick gets two but Edwards catches him with a superkick. A top rope double stomp to the apron crushes Strong again and a second to the back gets two. Edwards’ Diehard Driver is countered into a rollup for two and it’s a pinfall reversal sequence for two each. Strong’s Stronghold into a half crab but Strong slips out, only to get small packaged to give Edwards the pin at 17:52.

Rating: B. This was more of a technical match, which shouldn’t be a surprise given who was involved. Sometimes you need people like these two who can remind you that it’s a wrestling show and it helps that the two of them can do so well with this style. Good stuff here, and the time went by rather quickly, which is always a nice feeling.

RockNES Monsters vs. Dynasty

That would be Johnny Goodtime/Johnny Yuma vs. Joey Ryan/Scorpio Sky for a future Tag Team Title shot. It’s a brawl to start with the Dynasty being sent outside, where Goodtime hits a nice Asai moonsault. The brawls continue in the crowd, with Goodtime stopping for a drink before taking Ryan inside…for the opening bell, as apparently the first two and a half minutes or so were just a bonus.

Goodtime kicks Ryan down and hits him with a leg lariat before Sky comes back in to take his place. We settle down to a more standard tag format, with Yuma coming in to hammer away. Goodtime gets two off a cradle but Ryan is back up to slam Yuma into chairs on the floor. Back in and Sky stomps the heck out of Yuma in the corner, followed by Ryan’s dropkick connecting for two. Sky works on Yuma back as commentary talks about 80s movies.

A clothesline cuts off Yuma’s comeback attempt but he sends the villains into each other. That’s enough for the tag off to Goodtime as the pace picks up in a hurry. Everything breaks down and Goodtime kicks Ryan onto Sky for a double near fall (Fans: “THAT WAS FOUR!”). Sky breaks up a powerbomb with a spear though and Ryan hits a reverse exploder suplex to drop Goodtime. Ryan dives onto Yuma as Sky gets two off a rollup. Back in and Goodtime hits a kind of weird X Factor with his feet for two. Sky and Goodtime hit stereo frog splashes but Sky rolls Goodtime up for the quick win at 12:15.

Rating: C+. I wasn’t feeling this one as much, though it wasn’t bad. Sky is another guy who can look smooth in there with anyone and Goodtime/Yuma had a fine enough showing. Ryan has never done much for me in the ring but not everyone can be that kind of a star. Not a bad match at all, but it was a step down after everything else on the show thus far.

Post match the Young Bucks run in to beat both teams down. The Bucks talk about being the most controversial tag team in wrestling today and they haven’t shaken any hands (a reference to Booker T., who the fans have been cheering for since the Bucks showed up). Nick mocks the Spinarooni pose and talks about burning bridges on the first day of their WWE tryout.

They’re rock stars who will do anything they want, whenever they want, because they are bigger than TNA, WWE or the Battle Of Los Angeles. You can’t have a show without them though so they would love some opponents. The fans want the Kings Of Wrestling (Claudio Castagnoli/Chris Hero) and that’s exactly what they get, both carrying chairs.

Hero says the Bucks suck on the microphone and calls them the best crybabies he has ever seen. PWG made them stars but they went to Florida to become Generation Me…and they lost to Eric Young and Shark Boy? Castagnoli mocks Shark Boy’s pose in a funny bit before Hero issues the challenge for the title match tonight. Matt agrees and spits at Hero before leaving…and Castagnoli does a Spinarooni.

Battle Of Los Angeles Semifinals: El Generico vs. Willie Mack

Commentary starts us off by explaining that Joey Ryan is NOT allowed to talk about baseball, but doesn’t bother to explain why. They bump chests to start and yes of course we’re going to have a dance off (minus the music). Mack does a reverse Worm and Generico does I think something Michael Jackson inspired. That’s too much for Mack, who kicks him in the ribs and we’re ready to get a bit more serious.

Mack gets in a shot to the face but has to avoid a quick Helluva Kick attempt. Instead Generico does some dancing kicks in the corner, including a low blow behind the distracted referee’s back. Mack is right back with a heck of a fall away slam to send Generico crashing out to the floor. Back in and Mack drops a big knee to the chest and then does it again to the mask.

Mack drives him chest first into the buckle and Generico can’t hit the Blue Thunder Bomb. A heck of a clothesline puts Generico down again but he is able to hit the Blue Thunder Bomb on the second attempt. Now the Helluva Kick connects but Mack cuts him off with a Samoan drop. A step up enziguri gives Mack two, followed by a running corner clothesline. Generico follows him into the other corner with another Helluva Kick though, setting up the brainbuster to finish Mack at 10:30.

Rating: B-. The ending was good here, with Generico catching Mack for the fast win. Generico is pretty clearly the crowd favorite, which says a lot when he’s out there with someone as charismatic as Mack. At the same time, this was trimmed down a bit, which is likely due to Generico being in his second of three matches in one night. Fair enough, and it didn’t hurt things in any major way.

Battle Of Los Angeles Semifinals: Kevin Steen vs. Eddie Edwards

Non-title. They trade shoulders to start and bounce off the ropes a bunch until Edwards gets taken down with a drop toehold. Back up and they trade forearms, with Steen going to the eyes to cut over. Edwards tries his own eye poke but Steen grabs the hand and makes Edwards poke his own eye in a funny bit. A dropkick works a bit better as Steen is knocked out to the apron, where a knee to the back puts him on the floor.

Steen gets sent into the chairs on the floor but is fine enough to come back with a Fameasser over the ropes to take over again. Steen slowly kicks away and hits a backbreaker before getting cocky, as he tends to do. A bite to the ear draws what sounds like a MICHAEL COLE chant but Edwards low bridges him to the floor. That means the suicide dive can connect to drop Steen and they get back inside.

Edwards bites Steen for a change and they strike it out, only for Steen to come back with the pop up powerbomb. Edwards fights out of trouble in the corner and grabs a half crab, setting up an exchange of kicks to the face. Steen’s package piledriver attempt is countered into a fisherman’s buster but Steen hits him with a kind of weird pumphandle brainbuster onto the knee. The Sharpshooter goes on and Edwards taps at 12:34.

Rating: C+. The result here was only in so much doubt as Steen was not only the World Champion but also potentially facing El Generico in the final. If you have one of them you have to have the other, so Steen going over here made sense. Edwards was able to give him a good fight, which isn’t a surprise, but there were some big odds against him here.

Post match, respect is shown.

Tag Team Titles: Kings Of Wrestling vs. Young Bucks

The Bucks are defending. We have to clarify that it’s a title match, with Excalibur saying that yeah, he might have jumped the gun by calling it such. Castagnoli backs Matt into the corner to start as commentary plugs social media platforms. Nick tries to get in and trips on the rope to fall on his face.

Back in and Castagnoli grabs a headlock takeover to grind away before hitting a hard shoulder. Nick’s attempt at running the rope is cut off by a quick trip, leaving the fans even more enamored with Castagnoli. Hero comes in for a big right hand and some chops before Castagnoli tortures Nick’s knuckles. Castagnoli orders Nick to kick his boot but since that isn’t happening, Nick gets stomped on the head instead.

It’s back to Hero for a wishbone, which works so well that the Kings do it two more times. Matt tries to make a save and gets a double wishbone, with the fans rather approving of the damage to such areas. A double slam gets two on Nick as this is totally one sided thus far. Castagnoli sits down and uses his legs to stretch Nick’s legs, then does the same to Matt (without letting go of Nick) for daring to interfere.

Hero comes in to grab a double chinlock, followed by a backsplash for two on Nick. An ankle crank goes on as Hero is seemingly enjoying the torture. Yet another wishbone connects but for some reason Nick pops up and drives Castagnoli into the corner for the tag to Matt. Castagnoli shrugs off the right hands and ties up all four limbs to lift Matt up, because that’s something he can do.

Back up and Nick gets in a cheap shot, with a Randy Savage finger spin, before begging Castagnoli not to hit him. This goes as you would expect, though Matt gets in a cheap shot to knock Castagnoli outside and into a chair. Back in and Matt hits Rolling Thunder (yes with the RVD pose) and the Bucks take over for the first time. Commentary gets into a discussion about whether wins or losses matter in declaring the Bucks the greatest tag team in the world.

The alternating beating continues, with Nick helping Matt get two off a sunset flip. Some back rakes have Castagnoli in more trouble but he rams them together without much trouble. A double bulldog drops the Bucks and he rolls over for the tag off to Hero. The discus forearm sends Nick into the corner and Hero starts alternating the running forearms in the corners.

The Bucks fight up so Hero tries a top rope springboard moonsault, which only goes so well (given his size, that’s not bad). An assisted Sliced Bread gives Nick two but Hero slips out of More Bang For Your Buck. The assisted 450 hits Hero (with Nick’s knees crashing into Hero’s ribs) for two more but Castagnoli tags himself in.

A quick powerbomb gets two on Matt and it’s time to go swinging. Hero adds the dropkick (Castagnoli LOVED that spot) for two, with Matt making the save. Matt and Hero brawl to the back so Castagnoli gives Nick the UFO (no hands spinning torture rack bomb) for two more. Then Matt rolls him up with feet on the ropes for the pin to retain at 21:50 (it’s as sudden as it sounds).

Rating: C+. I wasn’t liking this one as much as I was expecting a match which involved the Bucks having various parts of them stretched in painful ways. The ending really hurt it though, as you had the Bucks getting beaten up for the entire match and then winning on a fluke rollup. I’m not sure if that’s what is considered to be getting heat, but it was more annoying than anything else.

Post match Hero and Nick come back, with the Kings wrecking the Bucks again. We get an unconscious handshake as well.

Battle Of Los Angeles Finals: El Generico vs. Kevin Steen

Non-title. Generico jumps him as he gets in to start fast (because these two are required to fight forever). Steen fights up and sends him outside for the big running flip dive and they trade chops around (the rather small) ringside. Steen drops him onto the apron and goes to mock a kid in a Generico mask, as a heel should do.

Back up and Generico gets in a boot to the face, setting up the Arabian moonsault to drop Steen again. The big flip dive to the floor mostly misses for Generico, though Steen goes down anyway. Steen gets sent face first into a wall and Generico knocks him around ringside again. A tornado DDT (off the wall of course) cuts off Steen’s comeback and leaves commentary stunned.

Back in and Steen hits a cutter before getting into a battle of middle fingers with the kid in the Generico mask. The regular Generico hits a Michinoku Driver for two but the Helluva Kick is countered with a superkick. Steen’s brainbuster onto the knee gets two more and we hit the Sharpshooter again. For some reason, Steen lets it go and slowly chokes away but takes WAY too long going up.

Steen bites the slightly exposed face (Excalibur: “Kevin Steen, you sick f***.”), setting up the package piledriver for two. The Sharpshooter goes on in the middle of the ring but Generico manages to crawl over to the ropes. Back up and Steen spits on him in the corner but charges into the exploder in the corner.

Another suplex drops Steen and Generico hits his own package piledriver for a VERY close two. The Helluva Kick makes Steen smile so Generico does it again for the same result. Instead the brainbuster gives Generico two and they head out to the apron. Another Helluva Kick sets up a NASTY brainbuster and Steen is finally done at 13:43.

Rating: B. This is on the list of feuds that works no matter what they’re doing and it makes sense to put the two of them together in a high level spot. They beat the fire out of each other and made it fun at the same time, with the walk up the wall DDT being a highlight. There was something great about seeing Generico just unloading on Steen until he couldn’t get up anymore, as it fits perfectly with the idea of surviving to the end of a tournament.

Post match Generico gets the trophy (and of course Steen flips him off) and brings the Generico kid into the ring. Steen breaks the trophy and runs off like a good heel. We get quite the celebration with the broken trophy as the OLE chants are on. The fans want a speech and, after being confused about a PA announcement about beer, Generico apologizes for his bad English and thanks the fans to end the show. Generico would beat Steen for the title in about two months.

Overall Rating: B. This was a lot of fun and having Generico getting a great moment with the win (the part with the kid was a great bonus). There is nothing bad on the whole show and while you might not like the Bucks (fair enough), there was enough of them getting tortured to make things better. Overall, it’s a simple and easy to follow show that doesn’t require a high knowledge of PWG, making this a good one to watch if you just want some high quality action.

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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Under Siege 2025
Date: May 23, 2025
Location: CAA Centre, Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s another special and this card is lacking a bit to put it mildly. There isn’t much on the card as the big TNA match of the weekend is taking place on Sunday at the NXT Battleground event. This show will also see the some odd title matches and Cody Deaner’s future decided. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Rosemary vs. Xia Brookside

Rosemary has been trying to push Brookside to the evil side and jumps her in the corner to start. A stomp to the apron cuts Rosemary off and she rolls outside to yell at commentary. That’s enough of a distraction for Brookside to hit a dive off the top but Rosemary posts her to take over. Back in and a t-bone suplex gives Rosemary a delayed two and it’s time to choke on the ropes a bit.

The Upside Down is countered into a Samoan drop though and Brookside makes the clothesline comeback. Three straight Broken Wings hit Rosemary, who is right back with a spear for the double down. As Above So Below is broken up so Rosemary hits a second spear. Therefore, it’s time for a staple gun. The referee takes that away so Rosemary whips out a belt but Brookside hits a DDT. Brookside grabs the belt and whips Rosemary for the DQ at 8:39.

Rating: C. This was a storyline advancing match more than anything else, with Brookside finally being pushed over to violence. Hopefully the two of them don’t wind up teaming together or something, but it is nice to see Brookside getting a chance to do something new. That has been missing for a good while now and maybe this is where she moves upward after a long wait.

Post match Brookside goes nuts, even whipping the security for trying to break it up. The fans certainly seem to approve and even want more, which they receive.

The opening video looks at the show’s main matches, including stars such as Cody Deaner, the absent Jeff Hardy and NXT’s Trick Williams.

Mike Santana vs. AJ Francis

Hold on though as Francis comes out on a crutch and says he has a severe case of turf toe. After mocking the Toronto Maple Leafs, Francis announces that KC Navarro will be taking his place.

Mike Santana vs. KC Navarro

Santana is fine with this and pulls Navarro in before planting him down for an early two. Three Amigos get two more and we hit the required Eddie Dance. Some hard chops have Navarro in trouble so Francis offers a cheap shot. Navarro gets in a spinning headscissors but Santana is right back with some running shots in the corner.

The rolling Buck Fifty gets two but Spin The Block is blocked. Navarro kicks him down and gets two off a splash but Santana gives him a buckle bomb. The Cannonball gets two so Navarro collapses before Spin The Block can launch. Santana isn’t having this and hits Spin The Block for the pin at 9:49.

Rating: C+. I don’t think it’s the biggest secret that Santana is going to be in the World Title scene sooner rather than later. It’s what he has been talking about and even teased a few times now and going after the X-Division Title would feel out of place. Therefore, giving him a pretty simple win like this to start the show is a good way to prop him up a bit, which is what you need in his spot.

Post match respect is teased but Francis gets in to take out Santana. Navarro eventually helps.

We run down the rest of the card.

Some Brampton government officials, and a mascot, are here. One of them is more popular than others.

We recap Cody Deaner vs. Eddie Edwards. Deaner has not won a match in over a year and his contract is not going to be renewed. Therefore, he’s fighting for his job.

Eric Young gives Deaner a pep talk.

Cody Deaner vs. Eddie Edwards

Alisha Edwards is here with Eddie. They argue to start and Deaner fires off some right hands. A Steve Austin elbow gets two but Eddie fights up. Alisha gets caught cheating but is only warned rather than being ejected. Eddie takes him down into an early chinlock so Deaner fights up and hits a clothesline. A dive cuts Eddie off but he’s right back with a Blue Thunder Bomb onto the apron.

Back in and Deaner shrugs off some chops and grabs a bulldog. Deaner goes up and gets kicked in the head, setting up a superplex into a tiger bomb for two. They go back outside where Deaner hits Sliced Bread off the steps, followed by a high crossbody back inside. Deaner loads up the DDT but Alisha offers a distraction to the referee and a ring to Eddie. The big shot to the head gets two so Alisha hits Deaner low. The Boston Knee Party gives Eddie the pin at 10:34.

Rating: C+. I get what they’re going for here with Deaner losing his job and everything….but it’s Cody Deaner. When the point of the story is that you haven’t won anything in over a year and you weren’t that important on your best day, it’s kind of hard to care about something like this. The story made sense, but it didn’t work given who it was about and that’s a big problem.

Post match here is the System to mock Deaner, saying no one cares about him and now he’s out of a job. Cue the Northern Armory, who don’t like this anti-Canadian rhetoric. Six man time.

The System vs. Northern Armory

The aforementioned mascot is in the Armory’s corner. Icarus and JDC lock up to start with Icarus taking him into the corner to kick away. Williams comes in for two off a clothesline and it’s off to Myers, who gets sleepered. Moose gets the tag and wants/receives Young for what is not quite an epic showdown.

Moose’s German suplex is blocked and Icarus comes in to strike away as the fans sing a song about Canada. A shot to Icarus takes him down and the villains (well the non-Canadian villains that is) take over on Icarus, with Myers grabbing a chinlock. It works so well that Myers does it again, setting up a Downward Spiral to plant Icarus. That’s broken up and Young gets the tag to clean house.

A high crossbody gets two on Moose and it’s a double powerbomb out of the corner to put him down again. Young’s top rope elbow connects but the piledriver is broken up. JDC gets sent outside and Young hits a Death Valley Driver on Moose. Alisha grabs a kendo stick and BEATS UP THE MASCOT but the councilmen take it away. Young piledrives Moose for the pin at 12:08.

Rating: B-. While I do not want to see Young and company as full time good guys, I can live with it as a way to add some local flavor to a show like this. That’s all this was supposed to be, though Young pinning Moose very well could get him an X-Division Title shot. It still feels like Leon Slater’s title to win, but odds are Young would be a short term deal if they go that way. Nice match too, with the Armory getting to showcase themselves a bit.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Ash By Elegance/Heather By Elegance vs. Spitfire

Street fight and if Spitfire (challenging) doesn’t win, they have to split up. Spitfire jumps them to start and load up a table but Heather is back with some hairspray. By Elegance get in a shot with a feathery stop sign but Spitfire sets some chairs on the stage. They go back to ringside where By Elegance takes over again, though it’s too early for Rarefied Air. Luna sends Heather face first into an open chair but Ash is in for the save.

Luna counters Ash’s handspring with a release German suplex but Heather is back up with a dropkick to send a chair into Threat’s face. A powerbomb onto some chairs gets two on Ash so the Personal Concierge throws glitter into Threat’s eyes. Since it’s just glitter, Threat is back up with a slam onto the floor but Ash cuts off Pop Shove It. Cue Maggie Lee to help Ash put Luna through a table and a trashcan shot cuts Threat off. Rarefied Air retains the titles at 12:11.

Rating: C+. They were going with the themed street fight here and it worked about as well as could be expected. Spitfire might not be the most interesting team, but at least they are a team who has accomplished something and that puts this above the Cody Deaner story. Odds are Rosemary and Xia Brookside are next for the titles, as it isn’t like there is a division waiting to come after them.

We look at Xia Brookside snapping on Rosemary on the Kickoff Show.

Brookside said this is what Rosemary wanted and whatever happens next is on her, b****.

We look at Mustafa Ali beating Ace Austin and reinjuring Austin’s already bad leg.

Order 4 vs. Rascalz/Indi Hartwell/???

Order 4 is Mustafa Ali and his cabinet under their official name for the first time. The mystery partner is…Raj Singh (Ali’s former associate). This is his hometown, though the fans didn’t seem to know that coming in. Singh doesn’t like the way Ali has been acting and the fight is on to start fast. The Rascalz take over on the Hands to start and hit some dives to put them on the floor.

Back in and Steelz takes over on Hartwell in the corner as we settle down. Hartwell throws her throat first onto the top rope and it’s off to Singh for something like What’s Up on Skyler. Hotch gets kicked down as well but a hanging DDT to the floor drops Singh hard. A double rolling neckbreaker and a standing moonsault gets two on Singh back inside but he’s over to Hartwell anyway.

Everything breaks down and we get the parade of knockdowns and the men get together to fight over a triple suplex. Hartwell and Steelz climb onto their backs and slug it out until Hartwell cutters her onto the pile to break it up. The Rascalz kick the Hands to the floor and hit Hot Fire Flame before breaking up Ali’s cheating rollup on Singh. Ali baseball slides Hartwell and the Favor drops Singh. Ali’s 450 finishes Singh off at 9:57.

Rating: C+. The match was fast paced and entertaining, but you’re only going to get so far with Singh as the mystery partner. It felt like a “who is that again?” reaction when he came out and that is not a good sign. I get that Ace Austin was the logical way to go but they needed someone better than Singh for a replacement.

Post match Ali stays on Singh so the cabinet tries to stop him, with Ali shoving Steelz down.

Santino Marella gives Arianna Grace (acknowledged as his daughter) a pep talk and Grace is ready to fight.

Steve Maclin, recovering from a skull fracture (geez) will be ready to face Matt Cardona.

Jimmy Korderas is here.

Tessa Blanchard vs. Arianna Grace

Santino Marella is here….but Robert Stone comes out to say Santino has to leave because he doesn’t have a manager’s license. Commentary isn’t sure how Stone has that authority as Blanchard takes her down without much trouble. Blanchard chokes away in the corner and hammers her down on the floor.

Grace seems to avoid a charge into the ropes (even commentary wasn’t sure what happened) but Blanchard hits a slingshot splash. A belly to back suplex puts Blanchard down and the comeback is actually on. Grace’s big boot gets two but Blanchard cuts her off with a cutter. Grace catches her on top with a superplex for two and stomps away in the corner. Blanchard knocks her off the top but slips on a Magnum attempt. Instead it’s the buzzsaw DDT and now Magnum can put Grace away at 8:07.

Rating: B-. Given the situation they were in, this was about as good as it was going to get. The story was that Grace was in way over her head and it wouldn’t have made sense to try anything else. Blanchard toyed with her before finishing her off and that’s how the match should have gone. Grace is from the bigger company but Blanchard is a way bigger star and talent no matter how you look at it.

Post match Marella comes out to check on Grace but Stone tells them to get out because the show must go on.

Knockouts Title: Victoria Crawford vs. Masha Slamovich

Slamovich is defending and Stone is here with Crawford. A clothesline drops Crawford fast so Stone offers an early distraction. Crawford gets in a shot of her own and a northern lights suplex on the floor has Slamovich in trouble. Back in and Crawford slowly hammers away but Slamovich fights up, cutting off some notable BORING chants. A package piledriver gives Crawford two so Stone gives her the belt. The referee gets bumped and the belt shot connects, only for Slamovich to come back with the Snow Plow. Slamovich avoids the ax kick and hits Requiem to retain at 6:57.

Rating: C. What else were you expecting here? Crawford is supposed to be the newcomer in over her head and Slamovich ran through her despite the shenanigans. That being said, I have no idea what the appeal of Marella vs. Stone is supposed to be, because it’s not connecting. Slamovich deserves something better than being part of this and hopefully the better stuff gets the focus again sooner rather than later.

Post match Slamovich grabs the mic and says Lei Ying Lee should be the next challenger. Cue Lee but Stone comes out to say Lee has to earn the shot on Impact.

We look at Joe Hendry and Trick Williams’ musical exchange on NXT.

We get a tribute to Sabu, which is nice to see given his history in the promotion.

Tag Team Titles: Matt Hardy/Leon Slater vs. Nic Nemeth/Ryan Nemeth

The Nemeths are defending and this is the Hardys’ official rematch, even though Jeff isn’t allowed in Canada. Matt and Nic start things off with the former grinding away on a headlock. Nic suplexes his way to freedom but Matt grabs it again to keep control. Slater comes in with a headlock of his own (apparently learning quickly) before the champions are sent outside.

Back in and Matt hits the middle rope elbow to start on Ryan’s arm. Slater elbows him down for two but a cheap shot sends Slater outside. Back in and Nic grabs a chinlock with a bodyscissors, followed by a Jeff Hardy legdrop between the legs for two. Slater fights up but Ryan pulls Matt off the apron for a nice save. A handspring elbow cuts Ryan off though and it’s back to Matt to pick up the pace.

The Nemeths get the rams into the buckles and a Side Effect each but the Twist Of Fate is blocked. Nic hits the Fameasser for two and an assisted neckbreaker gets two. Nic’s Twist Of Fate gets two on Matt but Slater is back in for a Plot Twist to give Matt two of his own. Poetry In Motion to the floor (dang) sets up the Twist Of Fate and the Swanton 450 gets two, with Ryan making the save. Ryan and Slater fight on the floor and Nic hits the Danger Zone to pin Matt and retain at 16:04.

Rating: B. They were in a tight spot here and they did what they could with the whole thing. No one was buying Matt and Slater as a threat to win the titles when it was made clear that Slater was merely filling in for Jeff. You’re only going to get so far with that, but thankfully Matt took the pin, leaving Slater to look good in defeat. He’s likely going after the X-Division Title around Slammiversary and he’s earned that spot.

Santino Marella gives Arianna Grace a pep talk and wants to face Robert Stone. Grace suggests a mixed tag and that seems to be the idea. As this feud continues.

We recap the main event. Trick Williams has attacked Joe Hendry, setting up their title match on Sunday at Battleground. Tonight though, Frankie Kazarian and Elijah are involved to make it a tag match. The fact that I couldn’t think of the main event until this recap isn’t a great sign.

Joe Hendry/Elijah vs. Trick Williams/Frankie Kazarian

Elijah and Kazarian get things going with Elijah taking over rather easily. Hendry comes in and wants Williams but has to stick with Kazarian instead. It’s back to Elijah and now Williams is willing to come in. Some big chops in the corner have Williams in trouble but he tries a powerslam out of the corner. That’s broken up and it’s off to Hendry, setting up some quick tags (with nothing in between) until Elijah takes the villains down on the floor.

Hendry hits a dive onto both of them and it’s time for Kazarian and Williams to argue. Hendry and Elijah break that up on the ramp and they fight into the crowd. Back in and Elijah hits Old School while Hendry holds Kazarian up with a rather delayed vertical suplex. Williams kicks Elijah down to take over for the first time though and even knocks Hendry off the apron.

Kazarian’s front facelock has Elijah in more trouble as we hear about Hendry’s success in WWE. Elijah fights up and hands it back to Hendry for the well received comeback. An Angle Slam gives Hendry two on Williams and he rolls through Williams’ high crossbody for a fall away slam. Kazarian is back in but can’t get the chickenwing, instead getting caught with an AA for two.

Elijah knees Williams, who hits a quick Trick Shot for two as Hendry makes the save. Kazarian grabs the guitar but walks into the Highwayman’s Farewell, with Williams making the save. Williams’ distraction means the referee doesn’t see Elijah small packaging Kazarian so it’s a rather delayed two. The Trick Shot hits Kazarian by mistake and Hendry grabs the Standing Ovation to pin Kazarian at 19:24.

Rating: B-. Oh man they were in a weird spot here and there was only so much that could be done as a result. This was a big preview for Battleground and nothing more, which left me a bit surprised as the result. Unless they just didn’t want an NXT star winning in the end, Hendry looking dominant is kind of a screwy way to go. Good match, but it didn’t feel important or main event worthy.

Hendry and Williams stare each other down to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show is a weird case, as there was only so much that can be done when the show feels this unimportant. There is pretty much nothing on here which felt like top level stuff and it showed coming into the event. The good action made it a completely watchable show, but at the same time, it feels like an event that you do not need to see whatsoever. That happens occasionally to to be fair, this wasn’t a full priced pay per view. Pretty skippable card here, which didn’t feel like a big surprise.

Results
Rosemary b. Xia Brookside via DQ when Brookside used a belt
Mike Santana b. KC Navarro – Spin The Block
Eddie Edwards b. Cody Deaner – Boston Knee Party
Northern Armory b. The System – Piledriver to Moose
Ash By Elegance/Heather By Elegance b. Spitfire – Rarefied Air to Threat
Order 4 b. Rascalz/Indi Hartwell/Raj Singh – 450 to Singh
Tessa Blanchard b. Arianna Grace – Magnum
Masha Slamovich b. Victoria Crawford – Requiem
Nic Nemeth/Ryan Nemeth b. Matt Hardy/Leon Slater – Danger Zone to Hardy
Joe Hendry/Elijah b. Frankie Kazarian/Trick Williams – Standing Ovation to Kazarian

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: May 22, 2025
Location: Bren Events Center, Irvine, California
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

It’s the last show before Under Siege and that could be the start of a rather eventful weekend. While TNA has its own show this weekend, its World Title is going to be on the line at Sunday’s NXT Battleground event. This is the go home show to set everything in stone and that can be a tricky way to go. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Mustafa Ali vs. Ace Austin

Ali, with a very banged up arm, has his cabinet with him. They start fast with Ali taking him down to little avail so he tries for the leg, earning himself a kick to the face from Austin. A tilt-a-whirl slam gives Austin two and he kicks Ali outside but Austin’s bad knee starts acting up. Ali is smart enough to go after that knee by pulling him out of the corner and then wrapping it around the post.

Back up and Ali ties him in the Tree of Woe, only to miss a baseball slide into the post for the painful landing. Austin misses something off the top though and gets Sharpshootered, sending him over to the ropes. Ali’s hard clothesline gets two but the 450 misses. Austin suplexes him into the corner so Ali pulls Tasha Steelz in front of him. That’s enough of a distraction for Ali to take the knee out again, setting up a kneebar for the tap at 6:59.

Rating: C+. This is a match that could have been better with more time, but they did some good stuff while they could. Ali going insane after his loss to Mike Santana is an interesting story, though I’m not sure where it’s going. Austin is someone who always felt like he could be a big deal but that doesn’t seem to likely be happening.

The System is ready to win at Under Siege and tonight.

Rosemary thinks she knows how to push Xia Brookside over the edge and has attacked Lei Ying Lee.

Northern Armory vs. Aztec Warriors

Eric Young is here with the Armory. Laredo and Williams spin around each other to no avail to start so Laredo takes him down to increase the frustration. Octagon comes in to headscissor Icarus into the corner, followed by a double faceplant and superkick. Williams offers a distraction though and Icarus goes after the eyes to take over. Young and Williams argue with the crowd though, allowing Octagon to come back in with some springboards. Reality sets back in for Williams but Octagon dives onto both of them. Back in and Laredo plants Icarus, setting up the moonsault for the pin at 5:56.

Rating: C. Not much to this one as neither team is exactly on fire at the moment. The Warriors are about as forgettable of a team as you have on the roster at this point and the Armory are even lower level lackeys than the Great Hands. That doesn’t make for a thrilling match and while the action was fine, it didn’t feel important at all.

Xia Brookside is ready to fight Rosemary at Under Siege.

Eddie Edwards vs. Jake Painter

Alisha Edwards is here and Cody Deaner is on commentary. Eddie jumps him to start and hammers away before throwing Painter outside. A Blue Thunder Bomb on the apron lets Eddie get in Deaner’s face but Painter grabs a small package for two. Painter hits a Backstabber for two more but he dives into a knee to the ribs. The Boston Knee Party finishes at 3:36.

Rating: C. I’ve said this since the beginning and it’s still true: it’s really hard to care about a story involving Cody Deaner’s future because there isn’t much of a reason to want to see him around. Even if he beats a star like Edwards on a fluke, I don’t want to see him around any longer. The match was there to show how dangerous Edwards is, even though we already know that, because Deaner can’t win a match before Under Siege. Hence the problem with the whole thing.

Video on Mance Warner and Steph de Lander. They like violence.

First Class vs. Sami Callihan/Mike Santana

O’Shea Jackson Jr. is on commentary. Francis runs Santana over to start but gets enziguried for some staggering. Navarro comes in and gets chopped down, followed by Callihan hitting a pop up powerbomb. Callihan tosses Navarro over the top, with Francis having to catch him. Back in and Navarro gets beaten down again, allowing the tag off to Santana. A Death Valley Driver plants Navarro and Francis gets clotheslined to the floor. Francis cuts off the Cactus Driver 97 though and a quick Blessing In Disguise gives Navarro the pin at 6:22.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure what is going on with Santana but it very well may be just waiting around and having him fill in time before he moves into the main event scene. Odds are he beats Francis at Under Siege and then we get to see where things go from here. For now though, Callihan taking the fall is fine as it’s not like he has anything better to do.

We look at Trick Williams and Joe Hendry performing music live on NXT, leading to a brawl.

Gia Miller is hosting a debate between Santino Marella (with Arianna Grace) and Robert Stone (with Victoria Crawford). Marella talks about how he came here just over two years ago and no one in his family has ever had political power before. Then Stone showed up and started messing with his business, which should not be happening. Stone says Marella has not made this a better place and Marella doesn’t belong in wrestling.

When Stone takes over, he’s going to fire the losers and make a lot of money. Marella calls him stupid and says he does what the people want. Cue Tessa Blanchard to go after Grace but Masha Slamovich runs in for the save. Blanchard is powerbomb onto (not through) the table (THUD) with Grace helping, followed by a running Death Valley Driver onto (again not through) the table in the corner for a nasty crash. This is a simple story, but why is Stone possibly able to take over in the first place?

Matt Cardona reveals that Steve Maclin isn’t medically cleared for Under Siege so he should be named champion. Santino Marella comes in to say Maclin will be cleared for next week so the title match is on for then instead. I’ll take that over a last second change the night of the show.

Spitfire is ready to put their careers on the line at Under Siege. It worked before so it’ll work again.

Spitfire vs. Vipress/Mazzerati

Luna takes Mazzerati down by the arm to start and hands it off to Threat for a running corner clothesline. Mazzerati is able to send them into each other though and Vipress comes in for a running kick to the chest. It’s back to Mazzerati for a cravate but Threat fights up and hands it back to Luna. Everything breaks down and a quick Pressure Drop finishes Vipress at 5:13.

Rating: C. This weekend is going to be the second time that Under Siege’s future as a team is on the line and I have the same “well, ok” response. Spitfire has yet to be an interesting team and while they have been successful, I have pretty much no reason to care about them. Having their future as a team built up doesn’t make me want to see them win more, as this match has been done more than enough times already.

Matt Hardy explains team chemistry to Leon Slater and thinks they could gel well together.

Under Siege rundown.

Elijah/Joe Hendry vs. The System

NXT’s Trick Williams is on commentary. Elijah headlocks Myers to start and grinds away a bit before dropping Myers with a running clothesline. Moose comes in to take over on a test of strength with Hendry and the villains take over for a bit. Hendry muscles Moose up for a suplex and it’s back to Elijah for an Old School tornado DDT. Moose drops Elijah though and we’re already in the chinlock as we take a break.

Back with Elijah still in trouble but Moose chops the post by mistake. Elijah kicks his way to freedom but the tag is cut off again. JDC gets in some choking from the floor and Myers grabs another quickly broken chinlock. The release Rock Bottom gives Moose two and it’s back to Myers, who gets caught with a jumping knee. That’s enough for the tag back to Hendry so house can be quickly cleaned. Hendry and Moose knock each other down so it’s back to Elijah for the Highwayman’s Farewell and the pin on Myers at 14:24.

Rating: C. They are in such a tough spot with this Hendry vs. Williams deal, as they have to get through the Under Siege tag match, which doesn’t feel important, because it’s just a big preview of Sunday’s title match. That leaves a bunch of standing around waiting and this match did not feel important in the slightest as a result. It wasn’t the wrestlers’ fault, but just the entire situation is a mess.

Post match Frankie Kazarian runs in to jump the winners but Elijah comes back with a guitar shot. Trick Williams is not pleased to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This show was stuck in a weird place and it showed badly. There is only so much you can do with the situation they’re in, as Under Siege could not feel much less important. That makes for a very weak go home show, even if the wrestlers were obviously trying. Not much to see this week, and hopefully they can find a way to make Under Siege feel more important.

Results
Mustafa Ali b. Ace Austin – Kneebar
Aztec Warriors b. Northern Armory – Moonsault to Icarus
Eddie Edwards b. Cody Deaner – Boston Knee Party
First Class b. Sami Callihan/Mike Santana – Blessing In Disguise to Callihan
Spitfire b. Vipress/Mazzerati – Pressure Drop to Vipress
Elijah/Joe Hendry b. The System – Highwayman’s Farewell to Myers

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

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