Impact Wrestling’s World Championship picture was addressed with the emergence of an unofficial champion.
Night two of Rebellion saw Moose declare himself the TNA World Heavyweight Champion. Tessa Blanchard is the current Impact World Champion, but — amid the coronavirus pandemic — she wasn’t able to attend Impact’s tapings earlier this month.
Blanchard was scheduled to defend her title against Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards in a triple threat match in the main event of Rebellion. Edwards also wasn’t able to attend Impact’s tapings. Going into night two of the two-part Rebellion event, Impact was teasing that Elgin was promising to still become World Champion.
Elgin had a referee come out to the ring and wanted to be declared the new Impact World Champion on tonight’s show. As Elgin was getting ring announcer David Penzer to announce him as the new champion, the lights went out and Moose came out wearing the old TNA World title belt.
Moose and Elgin went back and forth before being interrupted by former TNA wrestler Hernandez. That led to a triple threat match between them headlining the show. Moose won the match after hitting his No Jackhammer Needed spear on Hernandez.
Following the main event, Moose had Penzer announce him as the TNA World Heavyweight Champion.
Moose has been feuding with former TNA wrestlers and calling himself better than anyone who ever wrestled for the TNA brand. Impact’s one-night-only TNA: There’s No Place Like Home event was supposed to take place in Tampa, Florida on April 3, but that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. A one-hour TNA special also aired on AXS TV on March 31.
– A new X-Division Champion was crowned on night one of Rebellion.
Willie Mack defeated Ace Austin on last night’s show to win the X-Division title. Mack sent Austin face-first into the turnbuckle with a stunner as they were fighting up top, then hit a six-star frog splash to win the title.
Mack’s tag team partner Rich Swann came out onto the stage to celebrate with him after the match. There was then a backstage segment where Mack asked if Swann was fine with him winning a singles title. Swann said they were still a team when Swann was X-Division Champion, and Mack being champion doesn’t mean they can’t also focus on the Tag Team titles.
This is the first title Mack has held in Impact Wrestling.
Austin had been X-Division Champion since defeating Jake Crist, Tessa Blanchard, Daga, and Acey Romero in a ladder match at Bound for Glory in October 2019.
– The future of the Impact World Championship will be addressed on night two of Rebellion next week.
Tessa Blanchard defending the Impact World Championship against Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards in a triple threat match had been set to headline Rebellion, but — amid the coronavirus pandemic — neither Blanchard nor Edwards were able to attend the tapings for the show. Elgin did an interview on Rebellion night one last night promising to still become the new Impact World Champion by the end of the two-part event.
Edwards did a FaceTime interview with Josh Mathews on last night’s show and said if it was only up to him he would have been at Rebellion, but it’s about his family and doing what’s best for them at this point in his life. It was also said that Blanchard wasn’t able to travel to the tapings.
Rebellion night two is airing at 8 p.m. Eastern time next Tuesday. Here’s the announced lineup for the show:
Michael Elgin promises to become Impact World Champion
Rosemary vs. Jessicka Havok in a Full Metal Mayhem match
Joseph P. Ryan (Joey Ryan) vs. Cousin Jake of The Deaners
Suicide vs. Chris Bey vs. Trey Miguel vs. Rohit Raju
Tonight’s episode is headlined by Ken Shamrock and Sami Callihan in an unsanctioned bout. Also, Ace Austin defends the X-Division Championship against Willie Mack, Rhino and Dreamer team up with a mystery partner take on oVe, Kylie Rae will take on Kiera Hogan, and a 3-way tag team match between XXXL, The Rascalz, and Bahh and TJP.
This was Impact’s first show without a crowd since the pandemic started. They’ve been taping towards the ramp for months, so there was little change from their normal set up.
Rhino, Tommy Dreamer, & Crazzy Steve defeated oVe (Madman Fulton, Jake & Dave Crist)
Dreamer and Jake Crist start the match for their teams. Short wrist control sequence with Dreamer trying to pull off some flips, but still failing at getting the better of Jake. Dreamer tried to do a kip-up and failed.
Steve tagged in against Fulton, but Steve tagged out and in came Rhino. Well, not much of a babyface. Fulton dominated Rhino early on, but when they came to blows, Rhino held his own and managed to push Fulton back, but he still got to his corner to tag in Dave Crist.
Steve once again tagged in. He got a couple of clotheslines and a running cannonball on Dave.
Fulton and Rhino came back in again. They went back to striking each other before Rhino got pushed to the oVe corner where Fulton stopped him with some shoulder thrusts. Dave Crist tagged in, but got easily overtaken and once again Steve is back. These tags feel completely unplanned.
Crazzy Steve got cut off and worked on by the Crist brothers for a bit before he tagged in Dreamer, who came in, took out Jake with the Bionic Elbow and Cutter for a two count before Fulton broke it up. Jake hit a kick combo on Dreamer for a two count, successfully cutting him off.
oVe worked over Dreamer for a couple of minutes until he and Jake Crist collided with double clotheslines. Rhino got the hot tag and took out Fulton and Jake, hit a mini-Gore and belly-to-belly suplex on Dave for a two count.
Dreamer took out Jake to the floor. Fulton tossed Steve over the top rope, but Rhino was there to send Fulton out too. Rhino hit the Gore on Dave Crist and took the win for the team. This was okay. Crazzy Steve was a detriment to the match.
Josh Matthews and Madison Rayne introduced the show and ran down the card. Matthews announced that both Tessa Blanchard and Eddie Edwards are in isolation. It seems that the Impact title match is off.
Josh Matthews had a face-time interview with Eddie Edwards. Eddie talked about not being at Rebellion, as he forced himself to quarantine to protect his family. He said that once things are good, he’ll come back and go right after the championship.
During the break, we got a promo of Crazzy Steve saying that he was back.
Gia Miller interviewed Michael Elgin about the title situation. Elgin talked about going to ROH and NJPW and his voyage to find the best competition and the World championship. Elgin said that both Tessa Blanchard and Eddie Edwards were afraid of him and are avoiding him. Elgin said that he’ll be the World champion by the end of Rebellion.
The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz) defeated Fallah Bahh & TJP and XXXL (Acey Romero & Larry D)
TJP and Xavier started the match with a collar and elbow lockup and some chain wrestling, and thanks to Romero’s distraction, TJP gained early control. As of this point, the story was that the quick smaller guys were doing everything to dodge XXXL’s attempts to tag in.
TJP kept going for submissions, first an Armbar, then an Octopus Stretch, but Xavier finally tagged in Wentz and hit a combination attack on TJP, took down XXXL and Bahh, and got a two count on TJP.
Wentz locked in a Last Chancery on TJP, but the latter made the ropes. Wentz kept the upper hand on TJP, but Bahh got the blind tag as TJP hit a dragon screw on Wentz. Bahh and TJP hit the double plancha for a two count when Romero broke it up.
Back from commercial, Larry D and Bahh are going at it as the former gets a two count with a spinebuster. Larry D goes after Bahh’s arm and gets a second two count with a kick to the head. Romero tags in and hits a splash for a two count. Larry D locked in a sleeper on Bahh and worked it into an armbar.
Bahh started to make his comeback with a desperation belly-to-belly but wasn’t able to tag out. XXXL hit a sequence of running splash and hip attacks to the corner. Romero and Larry D kept it up with quick tags and mostly strikes, but it was then when Bahh hulked up and hit a huge Samoan drop on Larry D and tagged in TJP.
TJP failed to take down Larry D with dropkicks. He was caught and sent into the Rascalz corner. TJP was taken out by The Rascalz, who tagged in. They lured Larry D to their corner, faked Romero into splashing Larry with a cannonball. They went for Hot Fire Flame, but TJP pulled Xavier out of the ring.
TJP went for a springboard on Larry D, but he was caught with an Uppercut. Bahh took out Larry, Xavier took out Bahh, Romero hit the Pounce on Xavier and got a two count out of it.
Larry D went for a Superplex when Wentz came back, took out Romero, hit a Superkick and Springboard Cutter on Larry D, and set up the Corkscrew finish by Xavier for the win.
After the match, The North sent a message to Impact from Canada. They said that they were not stuck in Canada, but rather making sure that Canada was safe. They said that since they didn’t want to go to the US, they were making an open challenge to Canada’s best.
Miller interviewed Willie Mack and Rich Swann. Mack said that he was really happy to have Swann there to back him up against Ace Austin. Mack said that he wished that they were winning Tag Team gold, but Swann stopped him and told him that the tag titles were in the past and now, it was Mack’s time to become the X-Division champion. Good stuff by Swann.
We got the build-up video package of Mack’s chase to the X-Division championship.
Willie Mack defeated Ace Austin for the X-Division title
Match started, but Ace Austin kept stalling outside the ring, dodging Mack and going for several ten counts. He offered Mack a handshake, but when he tried to trick Mack, he was taken out with a right hook to the jaw.
Ace finally took this seriously and went for a schoolboy on Mack, but Mack blocked him, sent him outside with a strike, and chased him down for more slaps. Back in the ring, Mack went for the Cannonball, but Ace dodged and kicked Mack in the back of the head.
Ace tied up Mack in the tree of woe, kicking and choking him in the process. Ace went for a crossbody, but Mack caught him mid-air and slammed him. He followed up with a standing shooting star press! Mack continued to punch Ace until the referee pulled him off.
Thanks to the distraction, Ace pulled Mack into the ropes for the Guillotine and once again cut him off. Ace hit a Superkick for a two count. Ace kept control with kicks and knees, choked Mack against the ropes. Mack tried making a comeback but kept getting cut off by Ace’s kicks.
Ace went for a Springboard Rana, but it was turned into a desperation Powerbomb by Mack for a two count.
Ace and Mack traded strikes in the middle of the ring, the chops sounded like thunder. Mack finally with some momentum, hit a couple of corner combinations and running Cannonball and finally went for the Stunner. Mack hit the Stunner, but Ace reversed it, flipped over, hit The Fold, but Mack kicked out twice.
Ace went for a second Fold, but Mack countered with a Pop-Up Cutter for a two count. Mack went for the 6-Star Frog Splash, but Ace rolled away to the corner, so Mack turned it into a Coast to Coast instead, but as he took out Ace, he also took out his back.
Mack went for the 6-Star again, but Ace rolled out and Mack crashed on the mat. Ace rolled Mack with the feet on the ropes, but the ref caught him. Ace went to the top rope but was blocked by Mack. Ace slipped down and dropped Mack, went for a Backplex, but Mack blocked, hit a Stunner from there, followed the 6-Star Frog Splash, and Willie Mack won the X-Division Championship. Fantastic match, completely forgot this was an empty arena.
After the match, Rich Swann came out to celebrate with Willie Mack. Backstage, Swann congratulated Mack and told him that they can still go for the tag titles once he’s good to return. Johnny Swinger approached them and told Mack that The Mack and Pack Connection will live forever and asked for Mack’s first title shot. Swann said they were on the way to party and Swinger invited himself.
We got a video package for Kylie Rae. We got words from Gail Kim, Eddie Edwards, and Tessa Blanchard putting her over. Kiera Hogan, however, only talked trash and cut a nice heel promo.
Kylie Rae defeated Kiera Hogan
Rae started the match by folding her t-shirt nicely. Hogan pushed her around until Rae flipped and slammed Hogan and went for an early Smile To The Finish, but Hogan made the ropes.
Rae dropped Hogan with some snapmares. Hogan offered a test of strength, but tricked Rae with a kick and finally got the better of Kylie.
Rae slammed Hogan face-first to the buckle, stomped on her back, hit a running kick, went for the Kylie Special, but Hogan caught her with an elbow and scissors kick for the two count.
Hogan kicked and choked Rae on the corner, then kicked her on the back and got a near fall.
Back from commercial, Hogan was still in control. Rae made a comeback with strikes, but Hogan took her down and landed a running boot for another two count.
Hogan whipped Rae around some more before Rae caught her with a running elbow and a couple of more exchanges, ending with dual superkicks where they took each other out. They went to exchange elbows and chops again and finally, Rae got the upper hand with clotheslines and the Kylie Special. Hogan escaped, but Rae transitioned to a superkick for a two count.
Hogan hit a huge roundhouse kick for a near fall. She went for the fisherman’s suplex, but Rae countered into one of her own. She hit a running uppercut and a cannonball for another two count.
Hogan hit another superkick but started talking trash when Rae got her with the STTF for the win. This was pretty good. Give these women some time, and they can have a great match.
Matthews and Rayne ran down the card for next week. Suicide vs Chris Bey vs Trey Miguel vs Rohit Raju, Joey Ryan vs Cousin Jake, Full Metal Mayhem between Rosemary and Havok, and the conclusion of Elgin’s threat to walking out as World Champion no matter what.
We got the video package for Callihan’s return and feud with Ken Shamrock.
Ken Shamrock defeated Sami Callihan in an Unsanctioned Match
Callihan jumped Shamrock with a dive while the latter was making his entrance. Callihan hit a suplex on the floor as the brawl started. Callihan went for a chop, but that woke up Shamrock, who started striking and kicking down Callihan.
They kept brawling around the ring, mostly ramming each other to the guardrails that were not really protecting anything, against the ring post and to the ramp. Shamrock hit an early crazy plancha from the ramp. He couldn’t even get over the ramp lights, but Callihan caught him.
They brawled to the back where Sami caught Shamrock with a fire extinguisher and some chair shots. Sami took him down with some garbage cans and pulled out a chain. Callihan started striking down and choking with the chain, but Shamrock wouldn’t submit.
Sami went for the kill shot, but Shamrock kicked him and finally took over with strikes. Suddenly, oVe jumped Shamrock and took him down. Fulton started hitting Ken with a garbage can over and over. Sami got his bat, but instead of joining in, he turned on them, taking them out with the bat, as he wanted his one-on-one cowboy fight with Shamrock.
They took it to the parking lot where they slammed each other against the production trucks. Shamrock was getting the better of Sami, but eventually, he got caught with a low punch and a sleeper. Ken fought back, got Sami off and locked in the ankle lock. Sami passed out before tapping, yet granting Shamrock the win.
This was exactly what it needed to be in terms of hiding Shamrock’s shortcomings. Only questionable detail is Callihan losing his first match since his return, but considering that Shamrock is headed to the Hall of Fame, it wouldn’t be productive to have him lose either at this point.
Final thoughts —
This was a really good show by Impact. Four matches worth checking out, where I completely forgot it was an empty arena. This did feel like the stronger card of the Rebellion nights if indeed the World title and the Knockout’s title matches are no longer taking place.
With the show unable to be held in its originally scheduled form, Impact Wrestling has confirmed their updated plans for Rebellion.
Rebellion will now air as a two-part television event on AXS TV and Twitch as part of Impact on Tuesday, April 21 and April 28. It will also air on The Fight Network in Canada and Impact’s other international broadcast partners.
Rebellion was originally supposed to be a pay-per-view. It was set to take place at Terminal 5 in New York City on Sunday, April 19, but that was canceled last month due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Impact wrote that Rebellion is taking place on a closed set with only essential personnel in attendance. The promotion held tapings at Skyway Studios in Nashville, Tennessee last week, with Dave Meltzer reporting that they were attempting to tape as much as two months worth of content, including Rebellion.
“The safety of IMPACT’s wrestlers, personnel, and fans is of the utmost importance, and while it is with some disappointment that we must scale back our original plans for the event, we are proud to have the opportunity to provide our loyal and passionate audience with some much-needed entertainment during this time,” Impact’s statement said. “We look forward to producing a proper pay-per-view event once this crisis has passed.
Tessa Blanchard defending her Impact World Championship against Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards in a triple threat match has been announced as the main event of Rebellion, but Meltzer wrote last week that “the word going around which is confirmed is that Blanchard, the Impact men’s world champion, who is based in California, is not leaving the state at this time.”
Jordynne Grace vs. Taya Valkyrie in a Full Metal Mayhem match for the Knockouts Championship, Ace Austin vs. Willie Mack for the X-Division Championship, Ken Shamrock vs. Sami Callihan, and Kylie Rae vs. Kiera Hogan are the other matches that have been announced for Rebellion.
Coming out of last night’s Impact, five matches have been officially confirmed for Rebellion.
Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace will defend her title against former champion Taya Valkyrie in a full metal mayhem match at Rebellion. Willie Mack will also challenge Ace Austin for the X-Division Championship, and new Impact signee Kylie Rae will face Kiera Hogan.
Tessa Blanchard defending her Impact World Championship against Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards in a triple threat match will headline Rebellion. Ken Shamrock vs. Sami Callihan is also set for the event.
The Rebellion pay-per-view was supposed to be held at Terminal 5 in New York City on Sunday, April 19, but that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Impact noted that they were looking at alternative ways they could produce the event.
Impact is taping two months of television in empty arena form over three days in Nashville, Tennessee this week. PWInsider also reported that “there are plans to move forward with Rebellion in some form and perhaps re-tool the PPV as a special Impact on AXS episode or AXS special.”
Impact has cancelled a number of their upcoming events due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The company announced in a statement today that their Against All Odds event in Toronto on April 17, as well as their Rebellion pay-per-view show at New York City’s Terminal 5 on April 19, have been cancelled. Additionally, the April 24 and 25 television tapings will no longer be held in Columbus, Ohio.
Despite the cancellations, Impact wrote in their statement that they “are looking at alternative ways that we can produce the events.” They also said that all tickets would be fully refunded from the point of purchase.
TNA – There’s No Place Like Home, their nostalgia event that was set to take part during WrestleMania weekend, has already been cancelled. Lockdown on March 28 and March Breakdown on March 29 have been postponed, with no new dates announced.
Rebellion was supposed to take place at Terminal 5 on Sunday, April 19. Impact has yet to announce the cancelation or what their plans for Rebellion now are.
Impact had issued a statement last week noting that they were continuing to monitor the situation regarding the coronavirus pandemic actively and were reviewing the recommendations from the appropriate government agencies and local communities.
Tessa Blanchard defending her Impact World Championship against Eddie Edwards and Michael Elgin in a triple threat match has been announced for Rebellion. Ken Shamrock vs. Sami Callihan is also set.
All events that were scheduled for Terminal 5 through the end of May are postponed or canceled. That includes ROH Battlestarr 2020, with ROH announcing last week that they were cancelling all of their shows through May 31.
The main event of Impact Wrestling’s next major pay-per-view is officially set.
Tessa Blanchard will defend her Impact World Championship against Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards in a triple threat match at Rebellion. The PPV is taking place at Terminal 5 in New York City on Sunday, April 19.
Elgin and Edwards’ best-of-five series wrapped up on the episode of Impact that aired last night. It was supposed to decide Blanchard’s challenger for Rebellion, but the finish was Edwards submitting to a crossface at the same time as he reversed the move into a pin.
As officials and Scott D’Amore were arguing about who won, Blanchard came to the stage and cut a brief promo saying she’d face both Elgin and Edwards at Rebellion.
Blanchard has been Impact World Champion since winning the title from Sami Callihan at Hard to Kill in January.
Before Rebellion, there will be a King of the Mountain match for the Impact World title at TNA: There’s No Place Like Home in Tampa, Florida on Friday, April 3. Chris Sabin will be the special guest referee for that match.
Impact Wrestling has confirmed that Rebellion 2020 will take place at Terminal 5 in New York City on Sunday, April 19. The venue for the show was announced during Impact’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view earlier this month, but the exact date for it wasn’t revealed then.
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Impact Wrestling has confirmed the location of their next major pay-per-view.
During Hard to Kill, a video aired announcing that Rebellion 2020 will take place at Terminal 5 in New York City. It was noted that the PPV will be in April, but the exact date for it wasn’t revealed.
The Rebel Complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada hosted last year’s Rebellion PPV on April 28. The show was headlined by Santana & Ortiz defeating Pentagon Jr. & Fenix in a Full Metal Mayhem match for the Impact Tag Team titles. Brian Cage also won the Impact World Championship from Johnny Impact at that show.
Last year’s Rebellion was the first time that Impact used the show name for a PPV.
Impact was at The Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas for Hard to Kill.
After suffering a back injury at Sunday night’s Rebellion pay-per-view, Impact World Champion Brian Cage appeared on Busted Open Radio this morning and gave a positive update on his status.
“Yeah, it doesn’t look like I’m going [to be] out,” Cage told Busted Open Radio when asked if he was going to be fine and able to get back into the ring soon.
Cage said the doctor told him that he thinks Cage is going to be fine and just has severe inflammation and a bone bruise. The doctor said there could be a small fracture and he’d like to rule that out, but the doctor doesn’t see it being a major fracture. Cage said that even if there is a fracture, the doctor told him there isn’t much more that can be done for it.
Cage was injured when taking a Spanish Fly from the ramp to the floor against Johnny Impact at Rebellion. Cage finished the match and won the World title, with Michael Elgin then making his Impact debut in a post-match angle. Elgin went face-to-face with Cage and laid him out with a powerbomb.
Dave Meltzer reported that Cage was barely able to walk and was rushed to the hospital shortly after the show was over. Meltzer also noted that Cage went into the ring with cupping marks all over his back, which could indicate that he went into the match with some back issues.
Brian Cage, who captured the Impact championship tonight from Johnny Impact at the Rebel Complex in Toronto, suffered a back injury in the match.
The injury is believed from the spot where he took a Spanish fly off the ramp and onto the floor. He continued the match, but shortly after the show was over, Cage was barely able to walk and was rushed to the hospital.
Cage had gone into the ring with cupping marks all over his back. Cupping is a therapy treatment popular in Japan since the 70s and gained some American use in the 2016 Olympics. But that would indicate that he went into the match with some back issues.
After the match was over, Cage was confronted by the debuting Michael Elgin. It ended up being physical when Elgin attacked Cage, laying him out with the Elgin bomb, setting up a possible future title match between the two.
Impact Wrestling returns to pay-per-view tonight as the Rebel Entertainment Complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada hosts Rebellion.
A World Championship match will headline the show, with Johnny Impact set to defend his title against Brian Cage. Lance Storm will be the special guest referee for the match.
Three other title matches are set for tonight: Jordynne Grace challenges for Taya Valkyrie’s Knockouts Championship, The Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. & Fenix) put their Tag Team titles on the line against LAX (Santana & Ortiz) in a Full Metal Mayhem match, and Rich Swann defends his X-Division Championship against Sami Callihan in an oVe rules match.
Gail Kim comes out of retirement to face Tessa Blanchard tonight. Moose & The North (Josh Alexander & Ethan Page) team against The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier, Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel, and Scarlett Bordeaux takes on Rohit Raju.
Our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
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Ace Austin defeated Petey Williams, Jake Crist, Aiden Prince, Eddie Edwards, and Cousin Jake in a 6-Pack Scramble
Great actioned packed opener, all men had a small chance to shine. Cousin Jake was towering over everyone. Match started with all men outside brawling, Eddie and Petey being the firsts to dive to the outside. Prince was looking to be the third, bu got caught by a spinning kick by Ace. Jake Crist then hit a flying cutter on Ace from the apron into everyone else down in the floor.
Back in the ring, Petey started looking to hit the Destroyer, but instead locked in the Sharpshooter on Eddie. Cousin Jake cut him off hitting a big scoop slam. Jake Crist took him off, sent him outside and went for a dive, but Ace cut him off. Ace took out Petey and Prince, went to take out Jake Crist, but got dropped by a cutter. Prince hit a 450 on Jake Crist for a two count that Ace broke, they traded a couple of kick counters until Eddie came in and hit a Tiger Driver on Ace for a two count.
Eddie went for the Boston Knee Party, but Cousin Jake caught him with a Sidewalk Slam. Petey came in and hit the Destroyer on Cousin Jake, but as he went for the pin, Ace Austin jumped in and rolled Petey Williams for the surprise win.
Josh Matthews and Don Callis introduced Impact+, which seems to be the evolution of the GWN network with live streaming, independent promotions, and the Impact library.
Sami Callihan cut a promo on Rich Swann. He told Swann that tonight he is getting all Swann deserves for betraying the family and that he got oVe rules for tonight’s match.
This match is replacing Scarlett’s live Smoke Show after they had an interaction on Twitter that escalated to this match.
This was a far different match from their Impact match, this time, Rohit Raju didn’t avoid wrestling a woman, this time he went straight to take her out. He jumped her, but Scarlett was ready for him and tossed him to the outside with a rana, Scarlett hit a Baseball Slide, but Rohit dodged and she instead took out Raj. Rohit used the distraction to slam Scarlett into the apron.
Back in the ring, Rohit worked over Scarlett’s back, whipping her to the corners, stepping on her hands, and stomping her. He hit a Snap Suplex for a two count that Rohit himself broke as he wasn’t done torturing her. All the meanwhile, Scarlett was fiercely trying to start a comeback, getting a couple of strikes in on Rohit, but she kept getting cut off until she finally manage to get some space and hit a Hurricanara, transitioned into a Crossface for a close submission.
Scarlett went for a German, but couldn’t pick up Rohit, but after the second try, she manages to use momentum to suplex Rohit to the outside, where she hit a top rope Plancha, taking out both Desi Hit Squad wrestlers. She went for a second one to take out Rohit, but Gama distracted the referee, allowing Raj to take out Scarlett. Rohit went to hit the Stinkface on Scarlett, but the referee was still distracted with Bahh and Gama, giving Scarlett the opening to low blow Rohit, hit him with the Dudebuster and pin him 1-2-3.
Moose & The North (Ethan Page & Jason Alexander) defeated The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier, Zachary Wentz, & Trey Miguel)
Moose and Trey started the match, with the latter working a kick combo and giving Dezmond and Wentz the blind tags. They continue working with quick blind tags, hitting a couple of Senton Atomicos on Moose, but Moose kicks up and blindsides them, giving the North the chance to manhandle Dezmond for a two count. North hit an assisted Falcon Arrow for another two count.
Moose and The North kept control over the ring, working on Xavier with a series of great power moves, complete dominance. Moose hit a beautiful Okada Moonsault on the corner, before tossing him to the other side of the ring. Dezmond eventually, caught Moose with a desperation Tornado DDT, but The North caught him off. Dezmond took out Alexander, only to get taken out by Page again. The match spilled out of the ring, allowing the Rascalz to work as a team and take out each man one by one, at one point hitting their finishing move from the ramp into the floor on Page. Outside the ring we saw Moose catch Trey’s Tope con Giro, and slam him into the guardrail, only to get taken out by a flying Xavier from the ramp.
Back in the ring, Alexander caught both Xavier and Trey for a slam, but they escaped. Wentz took out Moose. Trey hit the X69 on Alexander, followed by a Meteora, and a dive from his partners, but Page was there to powerslam Trey into the pin attempt. Page got rid of Wentz and Trey, leaving Dezmond oven for a combo by the heels, ending with the North hitting their finisher and a No Jackhammer Needed by Moose for the win. Great match, some spots looked mispositioned, but overall great. The tag team work in this match was top notch and by the match came to a close, the fans were completely into the match.
Melissa Santos interviewed Johnny Impact & Taya Valkyrie. Johnny Bravo was there too. They talked trash to Melissa. Johnny cut a promo on Cage saying that he doesn’t know what being a champion is like and that he is not worried about Lance Storm. He hinted having a secret up his sleeve.
Taya cut a promo on Jordynne Grace, saying that Grace’s streak ends tonight.
Impact Knockout’s Champion Taya Valkrye defeated Jordynne Grace to retain the Championship
Jordynne attacked Taya at the sound of the bell and quickly took her down. They went outside and hit an Electric Chair onto the apron, followed by a Apron Bomb. Back in the ring, Grace got a two count out of her initial flurry. Taya tried to comeback, but Jordynne hit a top rope senton for a second two count.
Taya started to escape Jordynne and use dirty tactics to get some control of the match. She rammed Jordynne arm into the ring post to start working on the limb. Taya would go and stretch Grace’s arm against the ropes, or chasing an armbreaker. Taya hit an Hanging DDT for a two count. Taya kept manipulating the joints until Jordynne overpowered herself out of the lock and hit a desperation clothesline to take out Taya, unfortunately using her hurt arm. Grace finally starter a comeback using Scoop Slams and a Michinoku Driver for a near fall. Taya went to use of of Johnny’s offense, but she wasn’t as fast, giving Grace the opening to set her up for the Muscle Buster for a 2.99 second near fall. Both women started trading roll ups until Taya just started hitting some knee shots. Jordynne went for the Grace Driver, but Taya got off and hit Road To Valhalla to retain the championship and give Jordynne her first one-on-one defeat. This was a lot better than I expected going in. Jordynne’s selling was great, and the final near falls had me excited.
Melissa Santos interviewd Gail Kim. Santos asked about how she decided to return to the ring after retiring. Gail answered that she doesn’t miss wrestling, but she needs to teach Tessa a lesson in respect.
X-Division Champion Rich Swann defeated Sami Callihan in an oVe Rules Match to retain his championship
Callihan came out with Madman Fulton, but sent him to the back for the match. Swann came out all serious, no dancing, no smiling, completely focused on Callihan.
Story of the match was that Swann brought out the violent side of himself for this match, going down to Callihan’s level. They talked trash to each other as they started pushing each other and went straight up to trading superkicks and strikes. They did a couple of reversals and counters, sending Callihan to the outside, but Swann swerved Callihan with the dive and revealed he had a stapler, chasing Sami around the ring, stapling him. Swann then tossed a couple of weapons into the ring.
Back in the ring, Callihan took the stapler and used it on Swann when the champ went for a Sunset Flip. Callihan used the momentum to start working on Swann’s head with a couple of running boots. Swann would return with a superkick and a dive, only to be received by a metal plate to the head as he flew through the ropes. Callihan hit the Cactus Special on the apron.
Callihan brought one of the guardrails to set up a metal bed next to the ramp, and continued beating up Swann around the ring. Sami went for a Razor’s Edge onto that guardrail, but Swann escaped and took out Sami with a chair. Callihan hit an Exploder Suplex onto an open chair, looked incredibly painful. Callihan went for a powerbomb, but Swann got him with a metal plate, set up a trash can on Sami’s head, and connected with a kick combo before hitting a Twisting Suplex onto the trash can for a two count.
Callihan escaped to the ramp, but Swann chased him, hitting him with safety signs. They fought up the stage where Swann used the setup for his offense, ending with a cutter on the ramp. Swamm chased the Phoenix Splash, but Callihan caught him coming down. They traded strikes and kicks, before Sami grabbed Swann by the groid and hit the Cactus Special on to the set up guardrail, but he only got a two count out of it.
Back in the ring, Sami Callihan brought out a Lego playing set that he brought and dropped them as tacks, and we know they hurt more than tacks. Sami went to piledrive Swann into them, but Swann reversed with a Jumping Frankensteiner for a two count. Callihan hit Swann with powder and hit the Cactus Special from the second rope, and he still couldn’t put down Swann for the pin.
Finally, Swann brought out a barbed wired baseball bat. This time i was Swann who went for the groin, getting control of the bat and hitting Callihan with it on the head. Swann used the bat for a Crossface, forcing Callihan to tap out. Great match, violent, and even with the weapons used, they kept it different to the ones we usually see on a Full Metal Mayhem coming later tonight.
We got the commercial for Impact’s return to New York City.
Melissa Santos interviewed Tessa Blanchard, who said that she knows about respect and that she has earned it, her family has earned respect, and while she used to look up to Gail Kim, it was respect that she has lost for her. It will be Tessa teaching Kim a lesson tonight. Tully Blanchard walked up and congratulated Tessa for her match tonight and cut a promo hyping her up. Well now i’m completely behind Tessa after Tully’s words.
Tessa Blanchard defeated Gail Kim
Robert Irvine and Tully Blanchard are both ringside. This match was a sprint, which helped to tell the story that Tessa is on her prime and the floating question whether Gail Kim has ring rust. They went back and forward all match, but there was a slight dominance to Tessa’s offense, while not taking anything away from Gail who looked great and had some great offense.
Tessa hit the first punch, but Gail came back and went for a quick paced flurry of offense striking and stomping Tessa. Gail hit a springboard leg drop for a one count. Tessa came back with a rana and caught Gail Kim in the corner, tossing her outside. Tessa dived on Kim, but she got distracted with the crowd, giving Gail time to recover.
Back in the ring, they went back and forward, Gail going after the legs, and Tessa the head, at one point hitting a big Magnum on the corner. Tessa went for a Saito Suplex, but Kim blocked and got a two count after a powerslam. Gail Kim dodged Tessa’s running tackle and locked in a headscissors that Tessa reversed into a backbreaker and a Saito for a two count.
Tessa kept working over Gail’s head, mocking Robert Irvine when possible. They fought up the turnbuckle that ended with both women spilling down to the floor. Gail Kim locked in the Figure Four on the ring post to finally take out Tessa’s knee. Back in the ring, they traded strikes ending with a crossbody from Gail for a near fall.
Gail started chasing Eat Defeat, but Tessa countered as they started brawling in the ramp. Tessa hit a huge Bitter End from the ramp to the floor. Gail made the count. Tessa went for the Buzzsaw DDT, but Gail espaced and hit Eat Defeat for a two count. Gail went to the top rope, but Tessa stopped her, where Tessa hit a Military Slam from the rope and hit Magnum for a huge near fall, but Tessa transitioned into an modified Anaconda Vice for the submission win. Dominant win for Tessa, she is no doubt the top woman in the promotion.
After the match, Tessa and Tully embraced. Tessa returned to the ring and with tears in her eyes, offered Gail Kim her hand, only to have Kim hug her and put her over. Great heartfelt ending.
Tessa left the ring for Gail, who got “Thank You Gail” chants. This was a far better farewell match for Gail Kim.
Brian Cage cut a promo backstage telling Johnny that he knows he is the deserving champion, that their friendship is over, and that there is no escape for him and tonight, the Age of Cage begins. Seems like Full Metal Mayhem is closing the show tonight.
“The Machine” Brian Cage defeated Impact World Champion Johnny Impact (w/Taya Valkyrie & Johnny Bravo) to become the NEW Impact World Champion. Special Guest Referee Lance Storm
Cage didn’t wait to talk tash and went straight for Johnny, with a shoulder tackle. Cage hit a German and an F-5 for an early near fall. Cage hit a version of the Rainmaker and a Facebuster for a second two count. Cage went for a Buckle Bomb and a Deadlift Suplex for yet another two count. Cage went for a second Deadlift Suplex, but Johnny countered into a German from the top rope.
Johnny went to get some offense, but Cage kept control until Cge distracted himself with Storm and got his eyes poked by Johnny, who finally had the opening for a combo that ended with a Standing SSP, which Cage kicked out at one, rolled over, and hit a Standing Moonsault for a two count.
Johnny tried to escape to the ramp, but Cage followed and went for a powerbomb, but Johnny instead hit a Spanish Fly from the ramp into the floor! Johnny was the first up and broke the count and went to knee Cage’s back. Johnny wanted the countout, but Lance wouldn’t give it to him and checked on Cage, who was busted open.
Back in the ring, Johnny went to choke out Cage. Johnny used his speed advantage to work over Cage with strikes and a springboard spear. Outside the ring, Taya and Bravo started setting up a table. Johnny tried to send Cage into the table, hitting a Spinning Neckbreaker for a two count. They went outside and Cage caught Johnny and powerbombed him into the table.
Johnny Bravo tried to distract Cage, who focused on him, while on the other side, Johnny hit Cage with the belt. Taya pulled Lance outside, giving Johnny the opening to take out Lance Storm as Johnny Bravo revealed his own ref t-shirt. Cage powerbombed Taya after Johnny threw her under the bus, but it was enough for Johnny to take out Cage with the belt for a two count (counted by Bravo). Lance Storm returned and took out Bravo and was going for the DQ, but Cage stopped him, hit a superkick and the Drill Claw to capture the championship.
Good, but not great match, I don’t know if someone was hurt or if there was an audible, but there was a lot of visible communication between Cage and Johnny.
Suddenly, Michael Elgin came out! He and Cage got face to face as Elgin made her intentions known that he wants a shot for the title. Elgin hit a Backfist, knocking out Cage. Elgin Bomb and visible 3-count before posing the with the championship over Cage’s body.
We got the commercial for Impact’s Slammiversary from Dallas, Texas on July 7th. G1 Climax weekend just got better!
Backstage, Konnan hyped Santana and Ortiz, who was just slamming Tequila shots one after the other.
LAX (Santana & Ortix) w/Konnan defeated Impact Tag Team Champions Lucha Bros! (Pentagon Jr. & Fenix) in Full Metal Mayhem to become the NEW Impact Tag Team Champions
LAX jumped Lucha Bros during their entrance with stereo dives. Ortiz beat up Fenix on one side of the ring, while Santana attacked Pentagon on the other. LAX distracted themselves setting up a table, giving the Lucha Bros the opening to hit a double top con giro on to LAX and through tables.
Back in the ring, Lucha Bros worked on Ortiz with a series of kicks, a Slingblade, and a team move for a two count. Next in line was Santana who took a flurry of kicks and knees from all sides. Lucha Bros started setting up tables, giving LAX time to recover and hit Pentagon with a cutter, codebreaker, and Double Flapjack combo for a two count when Fenix flew to break up the pin. Fenix made a stand against both men, but would eventually get taken out with kicks and a big Cannonball on the corner. LAX dropped Fenix with a cutter and double footstomp combo on to a bed of chairs for a two count.
LAX brought out a ladder before they all started trading strikes in the ring and setting up the sit down Strong Style challenge. Konnan gave LAX some forks, but Lucha Bros blocked them. They traded chair shots before everyone collapsed.
LAX set up a bed of chairs and went to hit a superplex on Fenix, but Pentagon stopped him and instead hit the Spiked Fear Factor into the bed of chairs, but Santana managed to kick out. Lucha Bros went for another Spike Fear Factor, but LAX countered. Santana hit a F-5 into a chair. Ortiz set up Pentagon on to a table on the ramp, while Santana set up the ladder at the ropes. Fenix instead walked the ropes, caught Ortiz into a Spanish Fly, and managed to not kill himself when he landed head first.
Back in the ring, Pentagon hit a Penta Driver into a chair for a near fall. Pentagon set up another set of tables next to the ladder, and to top it off, thumbtacks on the table. He gave Santana enough time to recover and counter. Both men climbed to the top of the ladder where they exchanged strikes, but Ortiz came out and powerbombed Pentagon on the tables after Santana had stabbed Pentagon with a fork. Ortiz pinned Pentagon to recapture the championships.
This match had some ups and downs, a lot of spots seem way choreographed, and some took too much time to set up given the props involved. When the match was straight up wrestling, the match was fantastic.
After the match, Konnan and LAX made peace with the Lucha Bros as they all embraced in the middle of the ring. The entire Impact locker room came out to celebrate with both teams. Former Knockout’s champion Taylor Wilde made a special cameo around the group.
Final Thoughts —
Impact Wrestling had a lot of eyes on them tonight and they delivered with a solid, worth watching show. Arguably, one of the better shows they’ve had so far since their new management team came in.
Impact Wrestling has added another match to the lineup for tonight’s Rebellion pay-per-view.
Scarlett Bordeaux will be facing Rohit Raju of the Desi Hit Squad in an intergender match tonight. It was originally announced that Bordeaux would be hosting a live Smoke Show segment on PPV, but Impact noted that Bordeaux vs. Raju is replacing that.
Raju tweeted to set up the match: “My second year @IMPACTWRESTLING and I haven’t been on one major PPV, no t-shirts, and ZERO love for the DHS. Yet here we are GIVING @Lady_Scarlett13 a spot on the PPV to do that hot garbage Smoke Show. Truly ‘well deserved’. YOU DON’T BELONG IN THE RING! What a joke!!
Bordeaux & Fallah Bahh teamed together to defeat the Desi Hit Squad (Raju & Raj Singh) in a match that aired on the April 19 episode of Impact. On last month’s Against All Odds special episode, Bordeaux defeated Disco Inferno.
Rebellion is taking place at the Rebel Entertainment Complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada tonight and will begin at 8 p.m. Eastern time. Here’s the updated card for the show:
Impact World Champion Johnny Impact defending against Brian Cage (Lance Storm will be the special guest referee)
Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie defending against Jordynne Grace
Impact Tag Team Champions The Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. & Fenix) defending against LAX (Santana & Ortiz) in a Full Metal Mayhem match
X-Division Champion Rich Swann defending against Sami Callihan in an oVe rules match
Tessa Blanchard vs. Gail Kim
Moose & The North (Josh Alexander & Ethan Page) vs. The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier, Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel)
Ahead of the pay-per-view taking place tomorrow night, Impact Wrestling has announced another match for Rebellion.
Moose & The North (Josh Alexander & Ethan Page) will team against The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier, Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel) at the PPV. It’s taking place at the Rebel Entertainment Complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada tomorrow (April 28).
The six-man tag match was set up by a backstage segment on last night’s Impact, with Moose, Alexander, and Page attacking The Rascalz. Moose called Alexander and Page his new Canadian friends.
Xavier had defeated Moose the previous week. Moose got pinned by Xavier after being distracted by interference from Wentz and Miguel.
A Smoke Show segment with Scarlett Bordeaux has also been announced for Rebellion. Here’s the updated card for the PPV:
Impact World Champion Johnny Impact defending against Brian Cage (Lance Storm will be the special guest referee)
Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie defending against Jordynne Grace
Impact Tag Team Champions The Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. & Fenix) defending against LAX (Santana & Ortiz) in a Full Metal Mayhem match
X-Division Champion Rich Swann defending against Sami Callihan
Impact Wrestling has announced the date and location of their next pay-per-view.
During last night’s episode of Impact, it was announced that “Rebellion” will take place at the Rebel Entertainment Complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on Sunday, April 28. This will be Impact’s second PPV of 2019.
The Rebel Entertainment Complex also hosted Impact’s Slammiversary XVI event in July 2018.
Tickets and VIP packages for Rebellion will go on sale at noon Eastern on Monday, March 4.
Before Rebellion, the next special episode of Impact will air on Friday, February 15. It’s being called “Uncaged” and will feature Johnny Impact defending his World title, Taya Valkyrie defending the Knockouts Championship against Tessa Blanchard in a street fight, and Team Impact (Sami Callihan, Eddie Edwards, Eli Drake & Fallah Bahh) vs. Team AAA (Psycho Clown, Puma King, El Hijo del Vikingo & Aerostar) in a World Cup match.
Pentagon Jr. & Fenix challenging for LAX’s Tag Team titles will air on next Friday’s Impact.
The announcement video for Rebellion is available to watch below. It mentions an “ultimate battle” for the Impact World Championship.
