By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Impact Wrestling TV
Taped in Atlanta, Georgia at Center Stage
Aired July 14, 2022 on AXS TV
Highlights from last week’s Impact Wrestling show aired followed by the Impact opening theme…
Deaner was shown nervously talking with Joe Doering at the Gorilla Position. Deaner said he didn’t know where Eric Young is, but he assumes that he’s testing them meaning that they have to wrestle the next match without him as a part of their three man team. Entrances for the next match took place…
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Right after the bell rang, Eric Young ended up making his entrance. For some reason, he wears a toy Iron Man mask to the ring with white paint on it (didn’t it used to be a hockey mask? The toy Iron Man mask gives me Shockmaster vibes)…
1. “Violent By Design” Eric Young, Joe Doering, and Deaner vs. Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, and Impact World Champion Josh Alexander. Deaner slapped around Alexander and Alexander came right back with a deep arm drag. Shelley tagged in and chained armdrag moves together. The guns traded quick tags to cut the ring in half on Deaner. Alexander tagged in and dominated Deaner with chops and punches. Alexander put Deaner in the ankle lock.
Doering dragged Deaner to ringside to help Deaner escape. Young gave Alexander a right hand while he was distracted with Deaner. VBD cut the ring in half on Alexander with VBD trading quick tags to keep the numbers advantage. Alexander tried to rally back with right hands and a suplex, but Doering blocked the suplex and took down Alexander with a flying crossbody.[c]
The Machine Guns had the advantage and cleared the heels form the ring. The Guns hit Deaner with a missile dropkick flatliner combination to give Sabin the two count. Deaner and Sabin took each other out with stereo lariats. Alexander and Young tagged in which Hanninfan noted was a rematch from Slammiversary. Young and Alexander tackled. Alexander got the advantage with a backdrop, tackle, and Northern Lights Suplex.
Alexander had the ankle lock in for a second before Young escaped. Shelley tagged in and was shoved into Young’s neckbreaker by Deaner. Young got a two count. While Young was coaching Deaner, Shelley grounded Deaner and put him in a Muta Lock so Sabin could dropkick his face. The Guns took out Young with Stereo Superkicks. Doering tried to give Shelley a Power Bomb, but Sabin nailed him with an enzuigiri. Alexander dumped Doering to ringside.
Sabin hit Doering with a cannonball at ringside. Shelley put Deaner in a Crossface while Alexander grapevined an Ankle Lock on Young. Deaner tapped out to Shelley’s submission.
Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, and Josh Alexnader defeated Deaner, Joe Doering, and Eric Young via submission in 13:02 of on-air time.
Chris Sabin and Josh Alexander teased a bit of tension after Sabin held on to the World Title longer than Alexander expected when he was handing it to him. Tom Hannifan noted that it looks like The Guns are eyeing the World Title…
John’s Thoughts: An entertaining match as you would expect given all the talent concentrated in the ring. That’s almost a problem though, because with a combination of Violent By Design and Honor No More, there’s 6 or more main event heels suppressed in those meaningless factions that Impact could be using as potential big feuds for Josh Alexander. Instead, they’re going with the babyface vs. babyface match presumably with one of the Machine Guns vs. Alexander?
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. They ran through the advertised card. Matthew Rehwoldt noted that the Honor No More vs. Bullet Club main event was sponsored by a movie staring Paul “Big Show” Wight…[c]
This week’s Killer Kelly cinematic vignette picked up where last week’s left off, with Killer Kelly taking a shower at a motel. She talked about trying to put herself in the right headspace. She was shown sitting down drinking a cocktail. She said when she shows up, she’ll be ready. The cutscene ended with Kelly looking through the eyehole in the door to see the people passing by her room…
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan noted that there’s a looming mystery as to the motives of Steve Maclin when he decided to help Moose defeat Sami Callihan at Against All Odds…
2. Steve Maclin vs. “The Cowboy” James Storm. Hannifan noted that James Storm has won the 2nd most titles in Impact/TNA. Maclin dominated after a kidney punch leading to him toying with Storm a bit. Storm rallied back with right hands. Storm gave Maclin a hip toss.
Storm hit Maclin with a lariat. Maclin rolled to ringside to avoid a Last Call. Storm tangled Maclin in the ropes and hit him with a windmill punch. Maclin gave Storm a poke to the eye and then gave Storm a Snake Eyes on the top rope.[c]
Maclin gave Storm a backbreaker. Maclin worked on Storm with methodical offense. Storm fired up after no selling being slammed into the top buckles. Storm gave Maclin an Atomic Drop and right hand. Storm used a Gamengiri to set up a neckbreaker for a two count. Storm tried to get ten punches in the corner, but Maclin escaped and trapped Storm in the Tree of Woe. Maclin hit Storm with a Tree of Woe spear for a two count.
Storm went for an Eye of the Storm, but Maclin escaped. Storm blocked Maclin’s Dirty Deeds attempt. Storm staggered Maclin on the top rope with a righ hand. Storm hit Maclin with a Frankensteiner and diving elbow drop for a good nearfall. Storm tave Maclin a Codebreaker. Maclin blocked a Last Call. Storm rolled up Maclin. As Maclin kicked out, it sent Storm face first into a turnbuckle that was exposed earlier. Maclin hit Storm with a Dirty Deeds DDT for the victory.
Steve Maclin defeated James Storm via pinfall in 8:38 of on-air time.
Hannifan reiterated that the mystery still stands as to Maclin’s association with Moose. The lights went on as Sami Callihan attempted to do his whole teleportation bit. Maclin was a step ahead of Callihan though as Maclin was already on the stage as Callihan appeared in the ring. Callihan pointed a barbed wire bat at Maclin as Maclin’s theme played…
John’s Thoughts: Nice singles match return for Storm who looks like he hasn’t missed a beat. Good decision to put Maclin over, because Maclin puts over way to many people than a powerhouse like him should be putting over. If Storm is willing and able, Storm is someone Impact should consider bringing in for a main-event level run because the guy can really carry a high level feud with his mic skills alone. I’ve seen the guy make bad writing entertaining solely with his mic ability. Storm is actually someone I always thought the WWE Performance Center should consider hiring to teach their promo class because of how versatile Storm is as a promo (And I’d think Storm would be honored to work with the legendary Shawn Michaels).
Tom Hannifan sent the show to this week’s Impact Plus Ric Flair Flashback Moment of the Week. The show cut to Lockdown 2010 as Jeff Hardy was giving someone a Swanton Bomb on the top of a Hell in a Cell and a table. Ric Flair ran into the cell to try to pull a WWE Hall of Fame ring off Abyss’s finger (I think it was Hogan’s ring?). Hulk Hogan made his entrance and teased helping Flair against Eric Bischoff, but Bischoff handed Hogan brass knuckles leading to a heel turn I guess? Abyss ended up picking up the win by hitting someone with a Black Hole Slam…
John’s Thoughts: Hmmm. There’s no way it’ll happen, but how horrible would Ric Flair’s last match be if it were against the disgraced Hulk Hogan.
Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley caught up with Chris Sabin backstage. Sabin said when he held the title in his hand, he started feeling something in his heart and soul. Sabin said that he might be able to take credit for Alexander being champion by recommending the Option C thing. Sabin said D’Amore should consider that when picking the next number one contender. D’Amore said Sabin’s right and he does see that fire in Sabin’s eyes now.
D’Amore said people aren’t handed opportunities in Impact, Opportunities are earned. D’Amore said that he also saw Shelley look good earlier. D’Amore said he’s going to book a Machine Gun vs. Machine Gun match for next week as a number one contenders match. D’Amore said “may the best machine gun win”. Sabin and Shelley patted each other on the back looking cheery…
Entrances for the next match took place. Deonna Purrazzo and Mia Yim are banned from ringside…
3. Chelsea Green vs. Mickie James. Green forced a kiss on James at the beginning of the match. James returned the favor by forcing a kiss on Green. Hannifan noted that the kiss was an ode to Trish Stratus vs. Mickie James from back in the day. Mickie dominated the next portion of the match with right hands. Green managed to make a comeback with a facebuster when the referee separated the two. Green dumped Mickie to ringside and ordered the ref to count. James avoided a baseball slide and tossed Green into the ring post.
James followed up with a seated senton on Green. Green tripped James off the top rope for a two count. Green got another two count after a shotgun dropkick. Green put James in a Camel Clutch. James used elbows to escape. James rallied back with right hands and a huracanrana. James hit Green with a running knee for a two count. Green yanked James off the 2nd rope. Green slowed the pace down to a methodical pace.
James came back with a kick combination. Green put James back down with a Yakuza Kick. Green gave James a curb stomp into the bottom buckle. Green ordered that James get out of the ring. James gave Green a kick combination instead. Green and James crawled up the ramp. Both women brawled in front of the tron. Green tossed James back in the ring. James hit Green with a neckbreaker. James and Green traded forearms. James rallied with clotheslines and a flapjack. James hit Green with a seated senton for a two count.
Green raked James in the eyes but James followed through with a Mick Kick. Green got a hand on the bottom rope for the rope break on the pin. Green tripped James which sent James’s face into Green’s knee. Green hit James with a Rollins Curb Stomp. The ref wouldn’t count the pin because he caught Green with a hand full of tights. Green got a two count after adjusting the pin. James reversed an Unprettier into a rollup for a nearfall. After trading counters both women traded kicks. Mickie went for the Mick-DT, but Green rolled up Mickie. The referee couldn’t see that Green had her feet on the ropes so Green picked up the win.
Chelsea Green defeated Mickie James via pinfall 12:41.
John’s Thoughts: Great women’s match. The James and Yim vs. Purrazzo and Green feud has led to some really good singles matches. Happy to see Green wrestle a full-fledged singles match because that became rare over the last few years due to Green’s constant wrist injuries. Fingers crossed that these injuries are behind her because she can be a top tier talent when you give her in-ring time. Cool to see her win too, because she still tends to put people over more than get credibility herself. I hope they don’t just quickly run things back by giving Mickie her win back in short order.
Taya Valkyrie apologized to Rosemary for being late to their mission to the Undead Realm because she was trying to get her outfit right. Rosemary said fashion should be last in their priority on their Undead Realm mission. Taya said she’s a bit worried, but she promised Rosemary she’d help find Havok. Through the power of Windows Movie Maker, they teleported to what looked like a green screen with an image of a forest (It kinda looked like they were standing in front of a poster).
As they were walking through the “forest” Taya freaked out due to hearing “demons”. Taya started to walk to a light where she was sent to a white backdrop. Taya found Havoc in the white backdrop area. Rosemary found Havoc and Taya. Taya introduced Rosemary to “Jessicka”. Jessicka gave the camera a lazy smile…
John’s Thoughts: Eh. I mean, I guess someone on the writing team had to let out their urges to get these segments out somehow. I just don’t get what they’re going for. Comedy? But there’s no punchline. Intrigue? But it looks so low budget. Are they also going to try to repeat their whole Su Yung-Susie thing with Havok and Jessika? I don’t care. I just know it’s going to equal more low budget crappy TV. And I feel bad the talented Taya Valkyrie has to be dragged into this bulls*it (and I actually prefer Taya’s comedy because she puts her heart into it).
An ad aired for Impact Plus, now in HD…
Highlights from Bhupinder Gujjar vs. Johnny Swinger aired from Before the Impact (that show still exists?). Gujjar beat Swinger with his awkward 2nd rope spear, which Hannifan called a Gargoyle Spear…
Bhupinder Gujjar asked Brian Myers for the title shot he told him he’d get if he beat Johnny Swinger. Myers said he didn’t promise anything and said they’d figure things out. Myers said that he can come back to him once he gets a blue twitter checkmark…
Entrances for the next match took place…
4. Tenille Dashwood (w/Gisele Shaw, Madison Rayne) vs. Masha Slamovich. Masha quickly took down Dashwood with a spinning back fist. Dashwood landed a back elbow, but was put back down with a Dragon Screw. Masha hit Dashwood with a Yakuza Kick. Masha picked up the win after hitting Dashwood with a Snow Plow.
Masha Slamovich defeated Tenille Dashwood via pinfall in 1:15.
Giselle and Madison’s jaws were dropped after the quick win…
John’s Thoughts: Impact is doing a wonderful job pushing Masha Slamovich. Masha is Impact’s version of NXT Asuka when Asuka was the buzzsaw of NXT. It’s not surprising now, but I like that they are having her squash credible opponents now. It’ll be interesting to see how she fares once she wrestles a Mickie James, Deonna Purrazzo, Mia Yim, etc. I wouldn’t mind if she picked up a quick win on one of them just to cement Masha as a star. Then, she can start wrestling longer matches. Also, why do Rosemary and Taya have to “rally the troops” against The Influence when Dashwood is the only woman who’s wrestling from the group?
A replay aired of Violent By Design beating up Alan Angels and Mike Bailey from last week…
Gia Miller congratulated Mike Bailey on his title defense last week and wanted Bailey’s thoughts on being attacked by Deaner and Doering. Bailey said he understands that he is drawing everyone’s attention. He said he has one of the most prestigious titles in pro wrestling. Bailey said if Deaner wanted his attention he should have asked. Bailey said he’s more than willing to defend his title against Deaner next week…[c]
Gia Miller caught up with Mickie James who had her luggage and was looking crestfallen. Mickie said “you’re only as good as your last match”. Gia asked Mickie where she was going and Mickie said she was going home…
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. Hannifan went into his somber voice saying he hopes that Mickie isn’t retiring. They ran through the following segments for next week: Mike Bailey vs. Cody Deaner for the Impact X Division Championship, Deonna Purrazzo and Chelsea Green vs. Mia Yim and Jordynne Grace, and Alex Shelley vs. Chris Sabin in a number one contenders match. Rehwoldt hyped up Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taiji Ishimori for the New Japan AXS show…
Honor No More made their entrance. As Vincent and PCO were walking to the back, Heath [Slater] showed up out of nowhere to give Vincent a Zig Zag. Heath ran into the crowd and jawed at Honor No More from a distance…
5. “Bullet Club” Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, Ace Austin, and Chris Bey vs. “Honor No More” Eddie Edwards, Mike Bennett, Matt Taven, and Kenny King (w/Maria Kanellis). Eddie and Bey started the match. Bey rolled up Eddie for a one count. King tagged in and took a kick from Bey.
Ace tagged in and teamed up with bey for tandem offense. King managed to tag in Taven who ate a forearm form Ace. Ace took down Taven with a dropkick. Bennett tagged in and accidentally ate a dropkick from Taven. Bullet Club cleared Honor No More from the ring.[c]
Never Openweight Champion Karl Anderson was dominating Matt Taven. The Good Brothers traded quick tags to keep the numbers advantage over Taven. Bey tagged in and continued to dominate Taven. Taven got a legsweep on Bey after Eddie caught Bey with a Gamengiri. King hit Bey with a kick combination. King countered Bey into a Half Crab. Eddie tagged in to keep the momentum on his team’s side. Bennett and Taven traded quick tags for double team moves on Bey.
Bey caught Eddie with a Pele Kick for a window of opportunity. Anderson got the tag, but was ordered back to the corner because the referee couldn’t see it. Honor No More went back to dominating Bey. Bey used kicks to fend off Honor No More to eventually get the tag to Anderson, who cleaned house. Anderson gave Taven a body slam and running senton. Anderson gave Taven a diving neckbreaker. Eddie broke up a Magic Killer attempt on Taven.
Everyone took turns hitting signature moves on each other. Maria Kanellis broke up the Magic Killer on Taven by giving Gallows a Low Blow. King hit Anderson with a super blockbuster. Taven hit Gallows with an Aurora Borealis (Frog Splash) for the victory.
Honor No More defeated Bullet Club via pinfall in 12:26 of on-air time.
Honor No More celebrated to close the show…
John’s Thoughts: An ok “Teddy Long Style Tag Team Match” TV main event with the usual format of such a match. I’m just tired of Honor No More being a thing because they’re holding back too many people who could be in more meaningful storylines on the card (again? It also feels like a cat has got the tongue of both Bennett and Taven. Bennett in particular was a main event player during the year I believe Impact had its best creative 2016). Honor No More picked up the win here, but they had to cheat against the Impact Bullet Club affiliate, which feels like Bullet Club C-Team (with Jay White not being around). Honor No More continue to look hapless in the ring, getting punked by Heath Slater and even hitting their moves on each other accidentally. I just want Honor No More to end so we can get these Ring of Honor wrestlers in better positions.
Overall though, even though there was an Undead Realm segment, I felt like Impact was still solid. At least Impact’s bad tendencies that they used to have aren’t overpowering the show. The fun part about DVR if you have it is you can fast forward the eh parts if you want to. Impact’s biggest problem is the combined forces of Honor No More and Violent By Design are holding a back a ton of main event heels that Josh Alexander can have good stories with. Heck, they can’t even find a thing to do with Rich Swann, who’s just meandering backstage at this point like he’s in 205 Live mode. If they utilize these wrestlers in different spots, they can get more out of their tapings and maybe even tape more shows during one taping day.
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