By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Impact Wrestling TV
Taped in Nashville, Tennessee at Skyway Studios
Aired October 28, 2021 on AXS TV
A Bound For Glory highlight video aired to start the show…
Matt Striker and D’Lo Brown were on commentary…
New Impact World Champion, Moose, made his entrance to the Sam’s Town ring for a promo. Before Moose can talk, Eddie Edwards made his entrance to brawl with Moose. Moose dumped Eddie to ringside. Moose and Eddie brawled to the stage area. Security guards ran out and separated teh two men. Eddie was dragged to the back by half the security while Moose reentered the ring to start his promo.
Moose said he knows he did a lot of bad things to get to where he is today. He said he tried to break the neck of a man he once called a best friend, Eddie Edwards. He said he probably did the worst at BFG, by taking away everything Josh Alexander worked hard to get. He said he did it in front of Josh’s wife and child. Moose said he had no sympathy for that. He said he has the title which makes him the best world champion in the industry.
He said it doesn’t matter if you’re “Elite”, belong to a tribe with a chief, boss, Man, Woman, King, Queen, or even if a “New Day” is added to the week, Moose is still the greatest champion in wrestling. He said if you think of him as vile or evil for what he did to get to the title, just imagine what he will do to keep it. Josh Alexander blindsided Moose. Moose retreated to the crowd.
Suddenly Minoru Suzuki made his entrance. Suzuki and Alexander stood face to face. Alexander’s attention was drawn by Moose. Suzuki attacked Alexander for ignoring him. Both men brawled until the security came out to break them apart…
John’s Thoughts: A decent first world champion promo segment by Moose. Moose referencing other companies may be good to get a few people talking on their twitters, but for me it felt like him trying to be a bit too cute as opposed to add a meaningful addition to his promo. I hope Moose’s first feud isn’t against Eddie Edwards. It looks like Josh Alexander will be in a side-story with Minoru Suzuki to keep him away from the title for at least a month or two.
Matt Striker and D’Lo Brown checked in from a random room at Sams Town. The commentary team recapped Moose’s promo and ran through upcoming segments…
An IInspiration music video vignette aired to hype them appearing later in the show…[c]
Gia Miller interviewed Moose and asked Moose if he’s ready for the target on his back. he said if there’s one man that can handle that target, it’s him. Matt Cardona showed up and talked about how he was that close to beating Moose at the Call Your Shot Battle Royal. Moose said “this close” doesn’t win championships. Matt Cardona attacked Moose and a brawl ensued…
Entrances for the next match took place. Miguel’s entrance now includes him pretending to spray paint his logo on the video wall…
1. Trey Miguel vs. Rocky Romero for the X Division Championship. Romero dragged Miguel down when Miguel went for an arndrag. Miguel got the upper hand in the next sequence with an armdrag and dropkick. Trey gave Romero a DDT on the apron. Miguel went for an old school, but Romero dragged Miguel’s arm over the top rope. Both men brawled to ringside. Miguel hit Romero with a Triangle Moonsault heading into commercial.[c]
Trey went for a Tiger Feint reversal but Romero dropkicked him outside. Romero hit Trey with a Sliced Bread for a two count. Romero worked on Trey with kicks. Trey reversed Romero into a heel hook. Romero reversed it into a armbar. Trey deadlifted Romero for a power bomb to break the submission. Trey and Rocky had a fighting spirit exchange in the center of the ring. Trey hit Romero with a dropkick. Romero reversed the the meteora into a Single Leg Crab. Romero hit Trey with a series of running forearms. Trey hit Romero with a Brainbuster followed by his diving meteora for the win.
Trey Miguel defeated Rocky Romero via pinfall in 8:10 of on-air time to retain the Impact X Division Championship.
Steve Maclin attacked Miguel and put Miguel in the Tree of Woe. Maclin speared Miguel while Miguel was in the Tree of Woe…
John’s Thoughts: A good match to put over Miguel over the New Japan visiting veteran. Good start to put him in a spotlight spot. They also gave him “something” to do during his entrance theme so at least they’re putting in effort to spice up his act a bit. Here’s hoping that like other recent champions, Rohit Raju, Josh Alexander, Ace Austin, and even going back to Jake Crist, that this title reign leads to Miguel elevating himself in terms of character importance.
Gia Miller interviewed Jordynne Grace and Rachael Ellering. Gia asked Jordynne what it means to her to be the first Digital Media Champion. Grace said she’s not quite sure how this title will be defined yet but she’s hoping to use her social media presense to help define the title. Tasha Steelz and Savannah walked up to the promo set to taunt Grace and Ellering. Steelz bragged about eliminating Ellering in the Battle Royal. Ellering said it was not time for chit-chat and it was time to handle their business in the ring…[c]
Steve Maclin went up to the camera and said that Trey Miguel never beat him. Maclin said Miguel has what Maclin wants and is owed, the X Division Championship. Scott D’Amore showed up and said he respects Steve Maclin but he took offense to Maclin saying he was owed something. D’Amore said nobody is owed anything in this business. D’Amore said he’ll give Maclin a chance to earn the title next week. He said since things are chaotic this week he has to leave but he’ll figure out what match Maclin will be involved in later.
After D’Amore turned around he walked into Matt Cardona who wants a match against Moose after being close to beating Moose at the Call Your Shot Battle Royal. Eddie Edwards showed up and said he needs a match against Moose. D’Amore said the one man who really needs to face Moose is Josh Alexander. D’Amore then booked Edwards, Cardona, and Alexander vs. Moose and two other opponents of Moose’s choice. Josh Alexander was randomly attacking the referee from Bound For Glory. D’Amore pulled Alexander away. Alexander said he was mad at the ref for taking his big moment away from him in front of his family.
D’Amore said he sympathizes with Alexander and Alexander can get his hands on Moose later in the tag team match he just set up. D’Amore said Alexander can’t lose focus. D’Amore said Alexander proved at BFG that he’s the man and the face of the company. D’Amore said Alexander proved everyone wrong, but he shouldn’t prove Chrisian right in his criticism about Alexander not keeping his emotions in check. D’Amore said Josh is a Machine but Machine’s can’t run on emotion. D’Amore said Alexander can’t let his emotions take over. He said Alexander needs to do it for himself, Impact, Jen, Lucas, and Jet…
John’s Thoughts: There goes Scott D’Amore no-selling big heels like Maclin again. I’m kidding, it wasn’t that bad, but D’Amore continues to be the person who gets the most TV time and focus on these shows. I joke, but he was solid by the end of that segment in setting up Moose’s eventual opponents.
Entrances for the next match took place…
2. Rachael Ellering (w/Jordynne Grace) vs. Tasha Steelz (w/Savannah Evans). Ellering took down Steelz with a big boot and senton for a two count. Ellering blocked a meteora and hit Steelz with a buckle bomb. Steelz gave Ellering a jawbreaker over the top rope. Steelz worked on Ellering with methodical offense. Steelz hit Ellering with a Tornado DDT for a two count. Ellering rallied back with forearms. Steelz hit Ellering with a codebreaker.
Ellering rallied back with right hands. Ellering hit Steelz with a Fisherman Buster for a two count. After both women traded counters, Ellering picked up the win with a backslide rollup.
Rachael Ellering defeated Tasha Steelz via pinfall in 5:10.
Graced checked on Ellering and helped her to the back…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A decent match, but I don’t see as much upside in Rachael Ellering at this point than I do with Tasha Steelz. Steelz has a fun and unique character that Impact can make some stories out of. Ellering has just been in neutral gear for what feels like a year.
W Morrissey cut a promo saying that he wasn’t here to make friends, but he did make an alliance with Moose. Morrissey said Moose broke that alliance when things got convenient for him. Morrissey said it all worked out in the end because Moose is the world champion now, the title Morrissey wants to go after. Moose showed up and said he kept his word and that he gave Morrissey the heads up that he would eventually turn on him. Moose said he was just screwing Morrissey before Morrissey screwed Moose. Moose asked Morrissey to join his team and said if they take care of their opponents, then Morrissey can be first in line for the title. Morrissey agreed to team with Moose…
Gia Miller entered a lounge to interview Jessie McKay and Cassie Lee. Miller interviewed the IInspiration about winning the titles and about what they’re going to bring to the Knockouts Division. Lee said they wanted to give back and “inspire” the division. Miller said so far “inspire” sounds like a catchphrase. Both women cut their usual IIconic’s promo. They eventually shoo’d off Gia…
Entrances for the next match took place…
3. Joe Doering (w/Eric Young, Deaner) vs. Heath (w/Rhino). Heath rallied at Doering with punches, but Doering came back with a running crossbody. Doering ended another punch rally with a shoulder block. Doering hit Heath with a body slam into an elbow drop for a two count. Heath managed to knock Doering off his feet with a single leg dropkick. Deaner tripped up Heath leading to Rhino attacking Deaner. Because Deaner and Rhino ended up brawling in the ring, the referee called for the bell.
Heath vs. Joe Doering ended in an apparent no-contest in 3:16.
Striker said he assumed the referee called for a no-contest. Eric Young got in the ring. Rhino teased attacking Young, but Young pointed at his injured leg. Rhino went back to attack Deaner, but Young clocked Rhino with a discus lariat. Young put the boots to Heath and Rhino, showing everyone he was recovered from injury. Young gave Rhino a body slam and top rope elbow. Young left Heath lying with a pile driver. Eric Young posed with VBD to end the segment…
John’s Thoughts: I feel like they always tease us with Doering singles matches, only to take them away (That long Doering vs. Gallows match was an example of how great Doering matches can be). That said, the real focus her was on Eric Young returning from his big ACL (?) injury. Young was arguably Impact’s best heel before the injury so Impact just got a top performer back on board. It’ll be interesting to see if they keep him in the main event, or if he’s here to boast Heath’s overall profile?
Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows cut a promo backstage bragging about retaining the titles. Juice Robinson and Dave Finlay showed up. Robinson said that the Good Brothers only won after FinJuice did all the heavy lifting. Finlay talked about how FinJuice beat the Good Brothers for the titles when they showed up in Impact and the Good Brothers have never pinned FinJuice. Doc Gallows said that if FinJuice wants a title shot they have to earn it. The Good Brothers walked away…[c]
An ad aired for January’s Hard to Kill PPV…
Gia Miller interviewed the WCW Kiss Demon. Johnny Swinger showed up and said the man in the Gene Simmons costume came to swerve him. Swinger said it was the worst year of his life after he bet on Buffalo to win the Super Bowl and D’Amore showing up to close down Swinger’s Palace.
Swinger said he also had the Battle Royal to turn things around but the Demon screwed that up. Swinger said he doesn’t like “your kind” around here, refering to Demons. Crazzy Steve and Black Taurus showed up to scare swinger and stand with the Kiss Demon. Demon said he joined Impact Wrestling because Demons are welcome in Impact…
New Impact Knockouts Champion Mickie James made her entrance. Mickie soaked in the initial cheers. Mickie said she’s still on cloud nine since BFG. She said she honestly didn’t have the Knockouts Title on her mind when she returned at Slammiversary, but if an opportunity presented itself you know that Hardcore Country won’t turn it down. Mickie said that she congratulates Deonna and said that Deonna may have gave Mickie her toughest match. Mickie said she knows that Deonna gets a rematch, but we’ve also haven’t heard from Deonna since BFG.
Mickie said she watched Knockouts Knockdown and sees all her potential opponents. Madison Rayne made her entrance (oddly enough, to Tenille Dashwood’s entrance theme). Kaleb Konley was taking pictures. Rayne congratulated Mickie for becoming Champion after coming back to Impact. Rayne said people talk about cornerstones in the division being Gail Kim, Awesome Kong, or Mickie James. Rayne said she never gets the credit for the things she did for the division.
Rayne said while Mickie was jumping around in many companies, Rayne stayed here to cultivate a world class division. James brought up Rayne constantly disappearing and coming back to Impact. Rayne said Mickie can’t stay comfortable as Champion. Rayne challenged Mickie for a title shot. Mickie accepted the match for next match. Rayne said to make sure Rayne brings the photographer so he can take a shot of Mickie standing over Rayne as champion. Kaleb got in Mickie’s face and called her stupid. Mickie slapped Kaleb to send Kaleb and Madison into retreat…
Chris Sabin was shown psyching himself backstage…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Simple and effective segment to present Mickie as the new knockouts champion. Rayne has no chance to pick up the title next week, but she is a solid gatekeeper who can give Mickie a good win to kick off her current run in Impact as champion. No need to rush to a match against Deonna just yet because I see Deonna as the person they might ultimately get the belt back on.
An ad aired for Impact’s Las Vegas tapings in November…
Gia Miller asked Moose and Morrissey if they found a third tag partner. Moose walked down the hallway and asked Minoru Suzuki if he’d join their team. Suzuki agreed…
Matt Striker ran through the following matches for next week: Mickie James vs. Madison Rayne for the knockouts title, Rohit Raju vs. Maclin vs. Black Taurus vs. Laredo Kid in a number one contenders match for the X title, and Moose, Morrissey, and Suzuki vs. Alexander, Edwards, and Cardona. Striker also advertised John Skyler vs. Chelsea Green in a match on their Youtube Subscription service…
Entrances for the next match took place…[c]
4. Ace Austin (w/Madman Fulton) vs. Chris Sabin. Sabin dominated the chain wrestling sequence of the match. Sabin got a two count off a crucifix takedown. Sabin got a two count off a La Magistral cradle. Ace missed a Disaster Kick. Sabin hit Ace with a sunset flip. Sabin got a two count off a victory roll. Sabin hit Ace with a Dragon Screw and basement dropkick. Sabin hit Ace with a cartwheel slam.
Sabin modified a Surboard into a Dragon Sleeper. Ace escaped. Ace went for a springboard move, but his leg gave up on him. Ace tripped up Sabin while also trying to recover his knee. Ace choked Sabin against the second rope. Ace worked on Sabin with methodial offense heading into commercial.[c]
Ace continued to dominate Sabin for a few minutes. Sabin got a moment of respite after Ace writhed after missing a legdrop. Sabin rallied at Ace with punches and a backdrop. Sabin caught Ace with a Face Wash kick. Sabin hit Ace with a modified Kinniku Buster for a two count. Ace escaped a Cradle Shock but ate a back elbow. Ace caught Sabin with a roundhouse. Sabin tripped a running Ace who fell into the bottom buckle, nose first. Ace backdropped Sabin for a moment of respite.
Ace hit Sabin with a jumping kick for a two count. Sabin used a Fireman Carry to block a Fold attempt. Sabin caught Ace wtih a Roundhouse and Tornado DDT for a two count. Sabin and Ace brawled ot the top rope. Sabin fought Ace off. Ace distracted the referee so Fulton could get the distraction. Sabin fought off Fulton and Gave Ace a PK. When the referee got distracted again, Fulton yanked Sabin into the second rope to stagger him. Ace hit Sabin with The Fold for the victory.
Ace Austin defeated Chris Sabin via pinfall in 13:25 of on-air time.
Matt Striker hyped up Minoru Suzuki being in next week’s Impact main event to close the show…
John’s Thoughts: That was a fun main event that I kinda wish got a little bit more story steam behind it because it just felt kinda thrown out there. It may have been related to the Call Your Shot match, but they didn’t quite make that clear. That said, both men were fun here. Ace Austin needed the win because he spent the last few months as the punching bag for Josh Alexander and Christian. They also protected Sabin and I feel like Impact is doing a great job with Sabin as gatekeeper. Unlike your usual gatekeeper, Sabin picks up wins against main eventers which makes his losses mean even more to set up other wrestlers for the main event.
As usual, Impact puts on a solid show, yet nothing really must-see. I only really say that because there is so much other pro wrestling shows out there that offer more than what Impact is offering in terms of standout entertainment. To their credit, they did knock off some of the goofy bits this week, like no Swinger’s Palace or zombie women. Impact still needs to find a way to stand out though with a different product. That’s going to be tougher too because it looks like there were no AEW references on this show, meaning that their relationship with the bigger company may have finished once Christian dropped the belt.
As inevitable as death and taxes there’s somebody saying Impact/TNA is different enough. It’s tiresome at this point.