A new pre-show match has been made official for TNA Rebellion 2024.
On Countdown to Rebellion next Saturday, ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) will team up with Leon Slater against The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz) & Myron Reed. The pre-show broadcast streams live for free starting at 7 p.m. Eastern time. It will air on TNA+ and TNA’s digital platforms.
Reed is back teaming with The Rascalz after making his Impact debut last October. He’s a former MLW Middleweight Champion and is a member of The Rascalz on the indies.
Last October, it was announced that Slater had signed a long-term TNA contract. He’s been a standout on the United Kingdom indie scene.
ABC lost the TNA Tag Team titles to Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers at Sacrifice last month.
The Rebellion pre-show will also feature a Knockouts Tag Team title match with Dani Luna & Jody Threat defending against Havok & Rosemary.
The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas is hosting Rebellion. Here’s everything that’s been announced for the event:
TNA Rebellion 2024 (Saturday, April 20) —
TNA World Champion Moose defends against Nic Nemeth
TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace defends against Steph De Lander
TNA X-Division Champion Mustafa Ali defends against Jake Something
TNA Tag Team Champions Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers defend against Mike Bailey & Trent Seven
Full Metal Mayhem match: Eric Young vs. Frankie Kazarian
Last Man Standing match: Josh Alexander vs. Alex Hammerstone
Rich Swann vs. Joe Hendry
Countdown to Rebellion: Knockouts Tag Team Champions Dani Luna & Jody Threat defend against Havok & Rosemary
Countdown to Rebellion: Ace Austin, Chris Bey & Leon Slater vs. Trey Miguel, Zachary Wentz & Myron Reed
It’s the long-awaited review of Sacrifice, the latest PPV/PLE/app special from Total Nonstop Action.
The show had some good stuff—Nic Nemeth vs. Steve Maclin, Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards challenging the ABC for the tag titles, Mustafa Ali & the Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Time Machine, and Jordynne Grace defending the Knockouts title against Xia Brookside and Tasha Steelz.
But it also had some stuff that felt like it belonged on another show in another era—Kon vs. PCO, Josh Alexander vs. Hammerstone, and Moose defending the TNA title against Eric Young in the main event. And finally, it had the Knockouts tag division, which pretty much always sucks.
For more details, listen right away to the latest edition of The Big Vinny V Show!
Sacrifice is taking place from Windsor, Ontario, Canada next Friday (March 8). The show will air live on TNA+ and for subscribers to TNA’s Ultimate Insiders YouTube service.
It was announced today that TNA Tag Team Champions ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) will defend their titles against Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers at Sacrifice. The match was made official after Myers pinned Bey on this week’s Impact.
The main event of Thursday’s Impact episode was The System (Moose, Edwards & Myers) defeating Eric Young, Austin & Bey. Young is challenging Moose for the TNA World Championship at Sacrifice.
Austin & Bey are two-time TNA Tag Team Champions. Their current reign with the titles began at Bound for Glory last October.
Recently, ABC retained their belts against The Grizzled Young Veterans in a best-of-three series. The series ended with ABC winning 2-1 after Austin & Bey defeated The Grizzled Young Veterans at No Surrender.
Edwards & Myers picked up a victory over KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight on the No Surrender pre-show.
Here’s the updated card for Sacrifice:
TNA World Champion Moose defends against Eric Young
TNA Knockouts World Champion Jordynne Grace defends against Tasha Steelz and Xia Brookside in a triple threat match
TNA Tag Team Champions ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) defend against Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers
Nic Nemeth vs. Steve Maclin
Josh Alexander vs. Alex Hammerstone
Mustafa Ali, John Skyler & Jason Hotch vs. Chris Sabin, KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight
Here are some notes from TNA No Surrender which took place Friday in New Orleans — the first show the company has held since the surprising firing of Scott D’Amore.
MK Ultra regained the TNA Knockouts Tag Team titles at No Surrender, taking the gold from now-former champions Decay.
The end came when Havok hit a spinebuster on Killer Kelly for a near fall, leading to her teammate Rosemary looking for a spear to end it. However, she took a Snow Plow from Masha Slamovich to give MK Ultra the win.
Slamovich and Kelly held the titles for roughly six months from the summer of 2023 through January’s Hard to Kill when they lost the titles to Havok and Rosemary. This was the champions’ first title defense.
In a rematch from January’s Hard to Kill, Moose retained the TNA World title by defeating Alex Shelley under No Surrender rules which means the match could only end after one of the two men’s cornermen threw in the towel. KUSHIDA did the duties for Shelley after the challenger took three spears, including one with a chain wrapped around Moose.
After winning the title at Hard to Kill, Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace successfully retained the title by defeating past title challenger Gisele Shaw. Shaw had earned the shot with her win in an Ultimate X match at Hard to Kill.
ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) successfully defended the TNA Tag Team titles by defeating the Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) in the third of their best-of-three series. The first two matches took place on TNA Impact.
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Eric Young will once again have the opportunity to be called TNA World Champion for a third time after he defeated recent rival Frankie Kazarian to earn a future title shot.
Young first won the title in the spring of 2014, holding the gold for 70 days before losing it to Bobby Lashley. Six years later, Young held the title for a short two-month run in September/October 2020 before losing it to Rich Swann at that year’s Bound for Glory.
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PWInsider reported that all the top Anthem Sports & Entertainment executives were on hand in New Orleans for the first event after D’Amore’s firing.
The outlet also reported an attendance of 750 for the show and that the company added more seats after initially being set up for 600.
It’s a special double episode of the Big Vinny V Show reviewing not one, but two episodes of TNA Impact.
The main event build for Moose vs. Alex Shelley for No Surrender (including some oxymoronic stipulations) continues with plenty of action from The System, KUSHIDA, and Kevin Knight as well.
But the best thing on the show is the ongoing best-of-three feud between ABC and the Grizzled Young Veterans over the TNA Tag Team Titles.
We’re also building to Mustafa Ali’s TNA debut this Friday against Chris Sabin, Jordynne Grace defending the Knockouts title against Gisele Shaw, and a baffling program for the Knockouts tag titles.
TNA World Champion Moose will take on KUSHIDA in non-title action with everyone banned from ringside on tonight’s TNA Impact on AXS.
The reason for the stipulation is due to last week’s brawl that involved Moose, Eddie Edwards, KUSHIDA, Alex Shelley and Kevin Knight.
In the second bout in their best-of-three series for the TNA Tag Team titles, ABC will face the Grizzled Young Veterans who picked up a win last week. With a victory tonight, James Drake and Zack Gibson would become new champions.
TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace will face Savannah Evans in non-title action. Evans was given one last chance by Gisele Shaw to prove herself following her and Jai Vidal’s firing last week.
Ash by Elegance (the former Dana Brooke in WWE) will make her TNA Impact TV debut in a live promo.
Other action includes Digital Media Champion Crazzy Steve defending against Rhino, Frankie Kazarian vs. Jake Something, and Joe Hendry vs. Deaner.
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Watching TNA in the post-Scott D’Amore era certainly has a different feel to it, doesn’t it? This was taped in Kissimmee, Florida, prior to all of the craziness from the last week, but we’ll see what the vibe is at next Friday’s No Surrender.
Frankie Kazarian defeated Jake Something
Two D’Amore guys opened things up as the newly-turned heel Kazarian continued to be just that. He is still ahead of Father Time at 46 years old and looking more like 26.
The two traded nearfalls at the closing stages, eliciting a “TNA” chant from an otherwise dead crowd. Kazarian got the pin after pulling Something from a seated position off the top rope, smashing his head on the top turnbuckle. He then stacked Something up for a pin and grabbed the bottom rope for leverage and his second straight win. Something’s three-match win streak was snapped.
Eric Young was shown watching Kazarian from behind the curtain and later cut a promo challenging him to a face-to-face confrontation in the ring next week.
TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace defeated Savannah Evans (w/ Gisele Shaw) in a non-title match
The backstory here: Evans was “fired” by Shaw last week along with Jai Vidal as she was tired of their efforts to help her out. Evans asked for another chance and Shaw suggested she take on Grace who she challenges at No Surrender for the title.
This was over quickly as after some back and forth, Grace hit a muscle buster out of the corner to pick up the win. Afterward, Shaw nailed Grace and Evans with her Ultimate X trophy (?) won at Hard to Kill. This felt like Evans’ swan song with TNA while I’m wondering how Shaw feels about the promotion given what happened to D’Amore.
– Gia Miller was backstage when she was interrupted by Ash by Elegance’s concierge and then Ash herself. She made an announcement that next week would be her TNA in-ring debut. I thought she was going to do this promo in the ring, but they are really taking their time getting her going. She debuted at Hard to Kill last month and still hasn’t been in front of the fans yet. Alrighty then. I will say her concierge is a great talker.
– Alan Angels did a backstage Sound Check interview segment with Simon Gotch. Gotch put over how tough Josh Alexander was in coming back from a broken neck five years ago, but that the details in his fairy tale comeback to being signed by TNA and winning the title was missing details: that it was Gotch who pushed him to the limits in Alexander’s comeback match. He is upset Alexander got the win and future opportunities that night while he got overlooked. Alexander then busted in and went face-to-face with Gotch until they got into a pull apart. This was unexpectedly good.
ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) defeated Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) to tie up their best-of-three series
The Veterans won last week and with a win this week, they take home ABC’s TNA Tag Team titles. I kinda feel like the finale would make sense for No Surrender, don’t you?
The Veterans worked on the left arm of Austin that they injured last week for a long, long time. Bey eventually got the hot tag and after a few minutes, he got in trouble as well, barely kicking out of a Doomsday Device that got the crowd chanting, you guessed it, “TNA.”
After his own hot tag, Bey grabbed Gibson’s leg as the Veterans lined up for Grit Your Teeth, giving Austin an opening to ensnare Drake and get an impressive bridging pin for the win.
Because of the predictability of the winning team and the inevitable third match, this didn’t feel as dire for the champions. The Veterans also didn’t come off as desperate to win to end this thing and take home the titles.
– Dirty Dango, Oleg Prudius and John E. Bravo were at a racetrack. Dango said they were holding an open casting call for tag team challengers with under a year of experience. Dango namedropped Scott Norton and suggested a main event of Norton vs. Prudius. He also wondered where the Panda Energy car was. Dango certainly knows how to talk.
– Mustafa Ali was back with another politician-esque promo, putting over the X-Division and how he wants to be the leader of it. That led The Good Hands (Jason Hotch & John Skyler) asking for promo time saying how much they love Ali. X-Division Champion Chris Sabin, whom Ali will face at No Surrender, happened to be there and took issue with the Hands and some of their entourage, knocking one of them out and shoving Hotch.
Digital Media Champion Crazzy Steve defeated Rhino to retain
This was made after a confrontation both guys had on a recent edition of Xplosion. Steve defeated Dreamer for the title last month and Rhino is a former ECW guy as is Dreamer which I assume you know.
Rhino wanted things to be hardcore and brought out a table which Steve didn’t care for, putting it back after regaining the advantage. Rhino nearly had this won after hitting a TKO, but the champion rallied, distracting the referee by throwing a fork and nailing the challenger with the title belt for the pin to end a meh match.
The intent of the Digital Media title was initially supposed to be matches on, well, social media. Now it’s just a disinteresting title on the main show.
Joe Hendry vs. Deaner never got started
Before the, a retaliation video from AJ Francis aired on the big screen which distracted Hendry. Francis then came out and said from here on out, the show is now called TNAJ Francis. Hendry said he now understood how he felt when he did insult videos and that he was unprepared…except he wasn’t.
He then aired his own video to AJ Styles’ TNA music called Banned From Diving that focused on Francis’ infamous WWE dive that wasn’t and a plain looking guy named Steve that was in a Francis video.
Francis then got in the ring and laid out Hendry much to Deaner’s delight. Eventually, Rich Swann came out to even the odds and Francis walked away. This feud much continue.
– They aired Nic Nemeth’s recent appearance for the WWC where he was attacked by Steve Maclin after the match. Maclin and The Rascalz then talked to Gia Miller, but Trent Seven and Mike Bailey weren’t having it. Seven then challenged Maclin for a match next week.
Dani Luna (w/ Jody Threat) defeated Killer Kelly (w/ Masha Slamovich)
While the crowd was pretty quiet, I liked this because it felt different aesthetically and style-wise. In a short match, Luna picked up the win off a roll-up after Kelly got tangled up with Slamovich and Threat on the ropes. Afterward, Kelly and Slamovich laid out Luna and Threat which led to Knockouts Tag Team Champions Decay (Rosemary & Jessicka) coming out to make the save. Those teams square off at No Surrender for the titles.
Next week:
X-Division Champion Chris Sabin vs. Jason Hotch in a non-title match
Steve Maclin vs. Trent Seven
Eric Young/Frankie Kazarian face-to-face confrontation
The System (Moose, Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers) vs. Alex Shelley, KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight
Ash by Elegance in-ring debut
New for No Surrender (next Friday):
Josh Alexander vs. Simon Gotch
TNA Champion Moose defeated KUSHIDA in a non-title match
No one was allowed at ringside during the match after the events of last week where Moose, Edwards and Myers got into a brawl with Shelley, KUSHIDA and Knight. I have a feeling things might break down afterward because it’s wrestling.
Moose was dominant in the early minutes, using his physical force to toss KUSHIDA around. Every time KUSHIDA would rally, it was shut down quickly even after the NJPW star fired up after being slapped on the outside of the ring.
He eventually did get his shine, focusing on Moose’s right arm he injured during the match. He locked on the Hoverboard Lock, but Moose powered out of it. After a flurry of activity, KUSHIDA hit a surprise Code Red to nearly win the match.
In the end, Moose hit a spear to pick up the win in what was a fairly one-sided match until the last few minutes.
Afterward, Eddie & Alisha Edwards and Myers came out to celebrate and, wait for it, attack KUSHIDA. Who could have seen this coming? Shelley and Knight took their sweet time to come out to help and KUSHIDA roared back to life to even things out for another big three-on-three brawl. The babyfaces stood tall to close things out.
Overall, this was an ok edition of TNA Impact with nothing that stood out as must-see.
I return on another Big Vinny V Show to review the latest episode of TNA Impact.
Our main event sees TNA Tag Team Champions ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) take on the Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson) in the first of their three-match series. I explain how Austin has improved and also how the Veterans were so utterly wasted in WWE NXT.
TNA looked back at Jordynne Grace’s big day in the WWE Royal Rumble in a tremendous video package that stands in stark contrast to other parts of the show.
Elsewhere, Nic Nemeth’s enemies continued to grow, a new challenger for Chris Sabin’s X-Division title emerged, and one segment appeared to be designed to mock this very podcast.
All this and more on the latest edition of The Big Vinny V Show!
A best-of-three series for the TNA Tag Team titles kicks off on Impact tonight.
The belts are being contested in a series between champions ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) and challengers The Grizzled Young Veterans (Zack Gibson & James Drake). Gibson & Drake were one of ABC’s challengers in a fatal four-way match at Hard to Kill last month. Upset that they didn’t get a straight-up title shot, GYV launched an attack on ABC last week.
Nic Nemeth is set to compete in his second-ever TNA match tonight. He made his debut by defeating Zachary Wentz last week. Tonight, Nemeth goes one-on-one with Trey Miguel.
Brian Myers vs. Kevin Knight and Masha Slamovich vs. Jody Threat are also set to air tonight. Plus, new Knockouts Tag Team Champions Decay (Havok & Rosemary) will be in action.
We’ll hear from Frankie Kazarian following his recent heel turn. And a new talk show will debut as Josh Alexander appears on the Sound Check with Alan Angels.
TNA will also look back at Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace’s appearance in the WWE Royal Rumble.
Nic Nemeth defeated Trey Miguel (w/ Zachery Wentz)
Good match to open the show tonight. Trey Miguel was a great opponent to work with him. Time will tell if Nemeth has long term success in TNA, but he is off to a good start.
Wentz immediately distracted Nemeth and Miguel attacked, hitting a tope con giro. After that, the first few minutes of the match featured Miguel getting heat on Nemeth, often with the help of Wentz. Nemeth went for a fireman’s carry, but Miguel raked the eyes and threw Nemeth into the ring post. Miguel went for a springboard into the ring and Nemeth jumped up and hit a dropkick on Miguel as he was stretched out for a crossbody. That was cool.
Nemeth hit a Stinger Splash in the corner and a neck breaker before hitting 10 elbow drops in a row, but Miguel kicked out. Nemeth called for a superkick, but Wentz grabbed his foot and stopped it again. This time it was in front of the referee though, and the referee ejected Wentz, who threw a great classic heel temper tantrum. This allowed Miguel to hit a meteora for a 2-count. Miguel called for a superkick but as he went in, Nemeth hit one of his own and managed to get the pin.
–Steve Maclin came out and took out Nemeth from behind, offering some payback for the results of their brawl last week. The Rascalz teamed up with him, superkicking Nemeth at Maclin’s direction. Maclin nailed Nemeth with the KIA as the fans booed. I’m liking this feud so far. It shows how much Maclin has grown and how he very much so is a TNA guy, while Nemeth is trying to earn his way.
–Deaner was backstage with Kon and Kon interrupted his promo, saying that The Design was dead, and it was time to remind the world who the baddest man in TNA is. They “TO THE BREAK~!’ed” this segment fast, with Hannifan pitching it to break after saying “A relationship severed” with no emotion. I laughed.
The Decay (Rosemary & Havok) defeated Mila Moore & Savannah Thorne
Rosemary and Moore started the match, with Rosemary biting, choking, and overall being very violent to start. Thorne tagged in and hit a hard forearm to Rosemary, who no sold it and then tagged out to Havok. Thorne tried to run away, but Moore dropped off the apron to avoid being tagged in. Havok hit a Death Valley Driver on Thorne and then hit a combo chokebomb for the win.
–MK Ultra were shown to be watching the match closely, and Kelly and Slamovich claimed they wanted their rematch at No Surrender. Jody Threat and Dani Luna walked up and said they wanted to be in the picture again. Slamovich and Threat got into a shoving match, and it was announced that they would be facing each other tonight.
–Alan Angels was with Josh Alexander on the first episode of The Sound Check. Angels talked about how Alexander had to squash some bugs to get to the top of the business. Alexander said that it wasn’t about nefarious means, but working hard to get your shots. Angels said that Alexander didn’t give credit to people he should have, and he knew ho he was talking about. Alexander said he didn’t know what he was talking about, and Angels said that Alexander was not being a good example to his family, and at this Alexander walked out.
Brian Myers defeated Kevin Knight
This was a mostly nothing match when they went to picture in picture after Myers threw Knight into the apron and hit a back suplex on the floor. Like many of Knight’s matches in TNA/Impact, he got to show a lot of what makes him very good, but he loses in the end with Myers hitting a roster cut for the win. That said, Knight did look good, but I’d like to see them do more with him.
–Alisha and Eddie Edwards came down to the ring after the match and looked to be ready to lay a beatdown on Knight, but KUSHIDA came down and made the save as Myers and Edwards bailed.
–Chris Sabin was with Gia Miller, talking about Mustafa Ali indicating he was coming for the TNA X-Division championship. As Sabin was talking about how he knew who Ali was, Mustafa Ali’s political ad started playing on the TV with clips of Chris Sabin getting beaten down in the ring as Ali delivered a monologue about how he was going to bring something new to TNA to take out Sabin.
Jason Hotch and John Skyler came up laughing, and Sabin said that if they were so confident he could face Skyler next week, and Skyler did not look pleased about having to wrestle Sabin, but Hotch assured him that he would do fine and that Ali would be watching.
–Kazarian said that fans were not going to like his explanation about why he turned on Eric Young, but that he is the reason TNA exists today. He said he was the one in the video going into the water to dig up TNA in their original announcement video, and that he was done giving, and he was going to start taking. He said he had been overlooked, and that it stopped now, and he had zero desire to be the hero to the people, so he was going to become the monster he needed to be to succeed.
–The System was celebrating backstage, and Alex Shelley broke up the party to challenge Moose for a rematch for his TNA World Championship. Shelley said that he would be fighting Moose at No Surrender, but could go tonight if Moose wanted to, and Moose rejected it.
–A hype video aired for Ash by Elegance.
–Deaner came down to the ring looking distressed. He said that he had to admit that The Design was done now, and some fans gave a dramatic (and sarcastic) “Noooooooooo!” and I laughed. Deaner said he was wrong when he thought he could resurrect Violent by Design, and that if something was dead, it could never come back to life. Of course, this resulted in PCO’s scientists electrifying him and he rose up.
PCO defeated Deaner
PCO hit a code breaker in the corner and an inverted DDT before setting up Deaner for the PCOsault and nailing him for the win.
–Kon ran down after the match to take out PCO, but he also laid out Deaner. Kon wrenched the neck of Deaner, implying that he broke his neck like you do in the movies, and Kon then hit a chokeslam on PCO before doing The Iron Claw on PCO, attempting to squeeze the life out of him.
–AJ Francis walked up to Rich Swann, and Francis offered to manage Swann again, addressing Swann losing to Hendry on Xplosion. Swann said that whatever Francis was selling he wasn’t buying. Rhino walked by and Francis asked him if he needed help with Crazzy Steve and Rhino said, “**** off” before walking away. Francis then said, “See, that is why rhinos are going extinct. Can’t trust them.” That was hilarious. I like Francis here in TNA, especially if he is not wrestling.
–Jordynne Grace talked about her experience at the WWE Royal Rumble, and she said that she was so surprised when WWE wanted her to be in the match. They actually showed Grace watching footage of it on her phone, which is the first time I think I can ever recall actual WWE footage being on the air in TNA.
They showed the stadium, and Grace walking around backstage, and had actual footage of the Rumble itself with Michael Cole and Corey Graves talking about how she beat Naomi for the TNA Knockouts Championship. This was very cool, and the first example of WWE giving footage to another company to show like this, that I can recall.
This was a hard hitting, quick match, with Slamovich getting the win to continue to build to MK Ultra’s rematch for the TNA Knockouts World Tag Team Championship.
This was not a long match, though more competitive than some of the squashes on this show. Slamovich managed to hit the Snow Plough after Killer Kelly distracted Threat, despite Luna taking out Kelly to make the save.
–The System were shown backstage beating on KUSHIDA. I guess they didn’t like him saving Knight earlier in the show.
Grizzled Young Vets (James Drake & Zack Gibson) defeated ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) in a Best 2/3 Series Match
Excellent match to start this best of 3 series, and GYV going up 1-0 is the perfect start to it.
The first in this 3 match series (should it require 3 matches) started here, with GYV immediately isolating Austin, and attempting to hit a double suplex on him. However, as they had Austin up in the air, Austin kneed both of them in the heads, causing them to stumble backwards into a blind tag from Bey while Austin was upside down in the suplex position. That was cool.
Beya and Austin exercised quick tags to isolate Gibson. Drake blind tagged in as Gibson hit the roes, and Bey did not notice, and turned right into a dropkick to the knee from Drake. Another cool spot there. Drake and Gibson started getting the heat on Bey. GYV are doing a great job getting over here in TNA, which is not a surprise since they are great, but it is so interesting to see how badly WWE fumbled them with the Dyad where here they are just the violent tag team looking for titles, and it works far better.
GYV continued their heat on Bey, hitting a series of double team moves before taunting Ace Austin. Bey managed to crawl through the legs of Drake and make the tag to Austin, who ran wild, hitting a double dropkick to Drake and Gibson. Austin hit a double stomp to Drake for a two count, but Gibson broke it up. Austin called for the 1-2-Sweet, but Drake cut it off. Bey, however, came in with a frog splash for a 2-count.
Gibson and Drake managed to shove Austin back to the corner, and as he was trapped with a shoulder tackle, Drake hit a flying kick to the face of the trapped Austin for a two count. Drake screamed that Austin was going to learn what it meant for the champions to be the underdogs before setting up a doomsday device. Austin hit a superkick to Gibson to break it up.
All 4 men faced off in the middle and started brawling, with both teams hitting double team moves and helping their own partners dodge and counter attacks. Drake smashed Bey into the steps after Bey hit a suicide dive to the floor. Austin hit a Fosbury Flop to the floor, but GYV were able to hit Grit Your Teeth back in the ring after clotheslining Austin with a scarf.
Final Thoughts
There were a lot of squash matches on this episode of TNA Impact. That isn’t to say there isn’t room for that, but if you cut one squash and gave a little more time to Threat and Slamovich, ti would have made the show a little better. However, this was a very watchable show, and another good episode of the new TNA Impact.
A best-of-three series for the TNA Tag Team Championship begins on the Thursday, February 1 edition of Impact.
Authority figure Santino Marella announced a best-of-three series during this week’s Impact with TNA Tag Team Champions ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) defending against Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson). The series will begin with the first match on next week’s TNA Impact.
Also set for next week, Frankie Kazarian will explain his actions in turning on Eric Young as part of last week’s Impact.
After defeating Zachary Wentz of The Rascalz in his in-ring debut on this week’s show, Nic Nemeth will take on The Rascalz Trey Miguel on the February 1 Impact episode.
Additionally, Brian Myers vs. Kevin Knight in singles competition is set for next week’s show.
The announced card for the Thursday, February 1 TNA Impact:
Match one in a best-of-three series for the TNA Tag Team Championship: ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) defend against Grizzled Young Veterans (James Drake & Zack Gibson)
Frankie Kazarian explains his actions in turning against Eric Young
ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) will look to extend their second run with the Impact Tag Team titles as they defend them at next Saturday’s Final Resolution.
Bey & Austin will face Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards. Myers held the TNA Tag Team titles for a single day with Trevor Lee in 2015 while Edwards has held the TNA tag titles five times (all with Davey Richards) with his last reign ending 2016.
The two were rivals in 2020 and 2021, ending with a Hold Harmless match Edwards win at 2021’s Sacrifice.
A win will give Bey & Austin their second successful defense of the gold they regained at October’s Bound for Glory.
Frankie Kazarian vs. Sheldon Jean has also been announced for the pre-show. Kazarian is coming off a loss to X-Division Champion Chris Sabin in late-October while Jean is still looking for his first win (0-9).
Final Resolution, set for Saturday, December 9th, in Toronto, Canada, will be the final special event under the Impact banner before the company reverts to TNA.
Here’s the current card for the streaming special:
Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) vs. Josh Alexander & Zack Sabre Jr.
Trinity & Jordynne Grace vs. Deonna Purrazzo & Gisele Shaw
Impact Tag Team Champions ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) defend against Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards
“Speedball” Mike Bailey vs. Trey Miguel
Moose vs. Rhino
Digital Media Champion Tommy Dreamer defends against Deaner
A stipulation match has been confirmed for this weekend’s Impact Wrestling television tapings in Memphis.
It was announced today that ABC (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) will face off against The Good Hands (John Skyler & Jason Hotch) in a strap match at night one of the Mid-South Mayhem tapings. The tapings are being held at Graceland Live on Friday, September 22 and Saturday, September 23.
Austin & Bey are former Impact Tag Team Champions, holding the titles from February to July of this year.
The Impact Tag Team titles are currently held by The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz). They’re defending against Rich Swann & Sami Callihan at night one of the Memphis tapings.
The Impact Tag Team titles will be on the line as part of tonight’s Slammiversary fallout edition of Impact on AXS TV.
After losing the gold last Saturday in a multi-team match, ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) will challenge current champions Subculture (Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews) for the titles.
The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz) attacked Bey and Austin as they were about to finish the match which allowed Andrews to hit a prone Brian Myers with the pin to win the titles.
After making a surprise return at Slammiversary after a multi-month injury absence, former Impact World Champion Josh Alexander will be on hand to talk about what’s next and when he could return.
Another surprise return last Saturday — Jake Something — will be in action as he faces Kevin Knight.
Tonight will also see the grudge match between Santino Marella vs. Dirty Dango happen as well as Courtney Rush vs. Savannah Evans.
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Scott D’Amore open
After his tag team victory with the returning Eric Young at Slammiversary over Bully Ray and PCO, D’Amore opened tonight’s show thanking his hometown fans in Windsor and that the events of Slammiversary will stay with him forever.
Now that the match is over, he is now back as Impact president. He was running down the show until The Good Hands (John Skyler & Jason Hotch) came out to call him a coward along with other insults. They were about to throw down until D’Amore said they could fight with these two guys…being Sami Callihan and Rich Swann. Good thing they were ready in the back to come out!
Sami Callihan & Rich Swann defeated The Good Hands
Callihan and Swann are coming off an unsuccessful opportunity in the Tag Team title four-way at Slammiversary. They were successful here, however, in picking up the win after a double arm ringer into an elevated slam for the pin and win in a quick and decent match.
– Ace Austin and Chris Bey are tired of The Rascalz and are a little bit salty after they cost them the Tag Team titles at Slammiversary. They are focused on tonight’s rematch, but Trey Miguel and Zachary Wentz walked up and taunted them. That led to a pull-apart brawl that D’Amore and security broke up. He told Bey and Austin to go focus on their match and kicked Miguel and Wentz out much to their chagrin.
D’Amore then turned around and had to deal with Johnny Swinger and Zicky Dice. D’Amore said his previous stipulation that he would have to win 50 matches to earn a title shot was a little much. All he needed to do was win one match…and that would be against Zicky Dice. When Dice suggested he would just lay down for Swinger, D’Amore added it would be a loser leaves Impact match. Foiled!
– Eric Young was with Gia Miller in the back after his big return. Young said he’s got a lot to say and was happy to help D’Amore. Nick Aldis then interrupted to say hi to his old friend. He wanted to align with Young against those looking to run Impact into the ground. Young then talked him into having a singles match and away we go.
Jake Something defeated Kevin Knight
Something returned at the Ultimate X match in another Slammiversary surprise and now has short hair which will visually take a bit to get used to. He reminded me of Hercules Hernandez in your 80s reference of the night. Knight was also in that match so there’s your tie-in.
This was Something’s power vs. Knight’s speed and athleticism. They worked hard, but I struggled to get into it as it felt long and not that interesting until the last few minutes. Something hit his Into the Void (black hole slam) for the pin and win
Courtney Rush (w/ Jessicka) defeated Savannah Evans (w/ Gisele Shaw & Jai Vidal)
Things broke down on the outside of the ring which brought out Jody Threat who put Vidal on her shoulder and carried her to the back. Rush then hit a distracted Evans with a spear and pin. This all felt unnecessary.
– They ran a video package featuring new Knockouts Champion Trinity. She gave the new champion’s promo that the real work begins now.
– Taylor Wilde and KiLynn King then cut a backstage promo complaining about how they got screwed out of their Knockouts title at Slammiversary by Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly. They also have Trinity in their sights as well.
– Slammiversary in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, was Impact’s highest-attended event in four years.
– Jonathan Gresham sat with Tom Hannifan in a pre-taped interview as he had something to say that he just couldn’t hold back anymore. Gresham is upset that the X-Division needs rules which is what he fought for in Ring of Honor. He said, “Maybe this environment isn’t for me” and then walked off the set. Alright, then.
Dirty Dango defeated Santino Marella
This has been built up for at least a few months as Dango was revealed to be the mystery attacker of Marella as he began his run as Impact’s Director of Authority. They have exchanged plenty of words since then and their grudge match finally takes place tonight.
Having seen Dango in a big brawl a few weeks ago at an indie show, I would have liked if this was more of that vs. a straight wrestling match. Marella took out the Cobra sock and was about to strike when a man in riot gear came out on the apron. Dango ran Marella into him and Marella collided with his helmet, giving him the roll-up for the pin. The man was revealed to be John E. Bravo so the comedy will continue.
– Gisele Shaw and Savannah Evans were looking for Jai Vidal backstage and ran into new Knockouts Tag Team Champions Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich. Words were exchanged so that’s a match we’re getting soon. Jody Threat then dumped Vidal on the floor and said she didn’t want to have to do that again. Vidal is a grown man who is a champion in other places. He couldn’t have simply got away?
– Alisha Edwards had a lot to say on Eddie Edwards’ behalf to Frankie Kazarian and Traci Brooks after Slammiversary. A brawl then ensued as Kazarian and Brooks just happened to be right there. Again, we’ll see that mixed tag team match soon.
Impact Tag Team Champions Subculture (Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews) (w/ Dani Luna) defeated ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin) to retain
Webster and Andrews made their first Impact win a big one at Slammiversary, nabbing the tag titles after The Rascalz interfered in the four-way and cost Bey and Austin their chance to retain. It’s an interesting call to put the titles on Webster and Andrews since they haven’t been on Impact TV that much and I’d argue aren’t a real well-known entity even though they were NXT UK Tag Team Champions. But that’s the gamble.
This was a competitive match as expected. Bey and Austin have really gelled well as a team and are super athletic, both using and flying between the ropes as if they were gymnasts. All four men ended up on the outside at one point, punctuated by a Bey swanton over the top rope that sent viewers into the break.
The former champions nearly had it won after Bey hit Art of Finesse on Andrews, but Austin couldn’t hit The Fold and Andrews rallied to hit a Stundog Millionaire to reset things. Wentz and Miguel got involved even though they were banned from the building as Miguel knocked Austin out of the match as Wentz had the ref distracted. Andrews had a roll-up contest with Bey and eventually got the better of him for the pin and win. Miguel looked like he hurt his leg as he was limping off following the Austin shot.
– Tom Hannifan and Matt Rehwoldt said there has been no word on the status of Chris Sabin after losing the X-Division title to Lio Rush where he was knocked out by a pre-match attack but wanted to continue. Stay tuned to Impact social media for updates, friends.
Josh Alexander in-ring promo
Alexander made his surprise return at the end of Slammiversary to confront Alex Shelley after his World title defense over Nick Aldis. This started with about 15 minutes to go before the end of the show so you know something was going to happen.
He was in fully babyface mode, recalling when he had to relinquish the title in Windsor due to his torn triceps. He eventually got around to saying he got motivated to come back sooner when he saw Steve Maclin win the title at Rebellion and that he is now 100% cleared to return. The irony, of course, is that Maclin is injured and not the champion anymore.
He got around to Shelley and had a question: is Shelley good enough to beat him? Shelley then came out and wasn’t happy, referring to Alexander as Wolverine for recovering in four months. He referred back to their match from last year that Alexander won and wanted to have the match again to prove he could beat Alexander.
X-Division Champion Lio Rush then strolled out and tl;dr, if he wants to be World Champion, he just needs to exercise Option C which means he cashes in the title for a World title shot.
That brought out KUSHIDA who has the next X-Division title shot after he won Ultimate X last Saturday. He said there is no Option C until he faces KUSHIDA.
Then, Bully Ray came out and as everyone in the ring wondered why, Moose and Brian Myers attacked everyone in the ring. Ray then joined the fray as the heels beat down the babyfaces with Rush sitting on the apron looking on. They wanted Rush to use the actual X to nail Shelley, but he declined and the show just ended.
It was a flat ending to a meh Slammiversary follow-up show. There’s some intrigue with the World title picture, but Bully Ray, Moose and Myers aren’t part of that intrigue for me.
We’re on the road to Emergence.
Next Week:
Johnny Swinger vs. Zicky Dice loser leaves Impact match
The Coven (KiLynn King & Taylor Wilde) vs. Trinity & Dani Luna
The following are spoilers from Sunday’s Impact Wrestling TV taping in Windsor, Ontario, Canada — the fallout from Saturday’s Slammiversary that saw multiple new champions crowned.
These matches will air over the next two weeks of TV and featured a Tag Team title match in addition to a rematch made for next month’s Emergence.
BTI:
Alan Angels defeated Crazzy Steve. Heath Slater attacked Angels after the match.
Yuya Uemura & Joe Hendry defeated Digital Media Champion Kenny King & Sheldon Jean
Main Show:
Scott D’Amore started the show by thanking the fans and announcing he was back in his previous position as Impact president. The Good Hands come out to interrupt which led to a match.
Sami Callihan & Rich Swann defeated The Good Hands (Jason Hotch & John Skyler)
Courtney Rush defeated Savannah Evans. Jody Threat came out to aid Rush after she was being attacked by Evans’ heel team.
Dirty Dango defeated Santino Marella after an assist from John E. Bravo.
Impact Tag Team Champions Subculture (Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews) defeated ABC (Chris Bey & Ace Austin to retain the titles. The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz) interfered.
Josh Alexander did an in-ring promo and said he was 100% cleared. He mentioned Impact World Champion Alex Shelley who then came out. X-Division Champion Lio Rush came out and said he might use Option C to cash in his title for a World title match. KUSHIDA then came out and said he couldn’t because he was going to cash in his title shot he earned by winning Ultimate X. Eventually, Bully Ray, Moose and Brian Myers came out and a huge brawl broke out.
Jake Something defeated Kevin Knight
Knockouts Champion Trinity & Dani Luna defeated The Coven (Taylor Wilde & KiLynn King). Afterward, Deonna Purrazzo came out and said she was getting her rematch against Trinity at August’s Emergence.
Johnny Swinger defeated Zicky Dice in a loser leaves Impact match
Gisele Shaw defeated Masha Slamovich
The Time Splitters (Alex Shelley & KUSHIDA) defeated Moose & Brian Myers. Another big brawl took place afterward featuring the talent from the Alexander promo segment.
Zachary Wentz defeated Mike Bailey
Eric Young defeated Nick Aldis. Deaner & Kon attacked Young afterward.
Tommy Dreamer & Darren McCarty defeated Champagne Singh & Shera
The UFC will return to network TV for the first time in two years as the main card from their Saturday, January 16th show from Fight Island will air live on ABC in addition to ESPN+.
Unlike past network efforts, the Max Holloway vs. Calvin Kattar-led show will air in the afternoon, kicking off at 3 PM Eastern with the prelims starting at noon Eastern on ESPN+.
It will have stiff competition as it will be opposite an NFL divisional playoff game.
The news was first rumored on December 22nd with Dana White sharing a headline of a story on MMA Junkie on his Instagram account. This will be the UFC’s first network event since December 15, 2018, for their final event on Fox after a six-year run.
As of right now, Tom Breese vs. Omari Akhmedov and David Zawada vs. Ramazan Emeev are the only other announced main card fights other than Holloway vs. Kattar. The January 16th event will be the first on the UFC’s 2021 calendar and the first of three shows in eight days at Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.
