By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Impact Wrestling TV
Taped in Columbus, Ohio at the Ohio Expo Center
Aired June 22, 2023 on AXS TV
Highlights from last week’s Impact Wrestling show aired…
Tom Hannfan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Dave Penzer was the ring announcer…
OVE made their entrance to their old OVE theme. Brian Myers and the Good Hands came out next. Myers took a mic and interrupted Dave Penzer’s ring announcement, saying that Penzer was a worthless idiot. Myers said the Ohians are used to outlaw mudshows, but they are about to see true pros in him, Hotch, and Skyler.
Skyler said OVE stands for Ohio vs. Everything. Skyler said of those two choices, he’d choose the everything part, everything from Tax Audits to Tooth Decay. Skyler said everything is better than Ohio, including Brian Myers and the Good Hands…
1. “Ohio vs. Everything” Sami Callihan, Jake Crist, and Madman Fulton vs. Brian Myers, Jason Hotch, and John Skyler. Skyler took down Jake with a headscissors. Crist recovered and took down Skyler with an axe handle strike. Callihan tagged in to help give the Good Hands boots. Madman Fulton gave the Good Hands chokeslams and Myers a Worlds Strongest Slam all at the same time.
Skyler swatted Crist midair. The Good Hands hit Crist with a double lariat and elbow drop. The Good Hands used tags to cut the ring in half on Jake. Myers tagged in and hit Jake with a brainbuster. Skyler tagged in to prevent Jake from rallying back. The Good Hands went back to quick tags to cut the ring in half on Jake. Jake came back with Savate Kicks and a flying forearm.
Sami tagged in for the hot tag. Sami hit Hotch and Myers with double holds. OVE all tagged in. Jake was about to go for a dive, but Moose ran out and tripped Jake off the top rope. Callihan and Fulton chased Moose to the back. The distraction allowed Myers to hit Jake with the Roster Cut for the victory.
Brian Myers, Jason Hotch, and John Skyler defeated OVE via pinfall in 5:48.
Myers and the Good Hands gloated from a distance up the ramp…
John’s Thoughts: Good win for the Good Hands. I’m happy that the push for the Good Hands didn’t just end after one Impact Plus special. Yes, their wins are tainted, but that’s their MO and it sure beats being Impact’s designated cannon fodder (Champagne Singh and Shera seem to have that role currently). I’m surprised in a good way that OVE lost due to them just reforming recently. OVE mingling with the Good Hands and Moose gives me hope that their neverending feud with The Design is finally over. OVE can be major players in Impact. Fulton looked better than I’ve seen him in the past. Jake Crist was someone I saw with main event potential, and I hope he gets an opportunity to show viewers what made him look so great all those years ago.
Eddie Edwards was warming up with Frankie Kazarian backstage and acting friendly. Eddie said that Kaz can trust him in their upcoming tag match. Kazarian said he doesn’t think he can because Eddie turned his back on the whole locker room over the past year and a half. Kazarian said he can’t trust Eddie after that one bonding moment they had last week. Eddie asked Kaz what he has to do to earn Kaz’s trust.
Kazarian said not to worry about it, he can protect himself. Eddie said that he swears on the grave of Killer Kowalski that Kazarian can trust him. Kazarian nodded and said “alright”…[c]
Sami Callihan was throwing a fit and chairs in the hallway. Rich Swann approached him. Sami berrated Rich for being late to help OVE again. Swann said he’s sorry. Swann said he adjusted his priorities and he has Sami’s back. Rich and Sami shook hands…
Dirty Dango made his entrance. A replay from last week’s Dirty Dango and Bhupinder Gujjar backstage interview aired. Dango was shirtless and took a mic. The crowd showered Dango with “Divas Reject” chants which was what Joe Hendry dubbed Dango. Dango said “man do I hate professional wrestling”. Hannifan said “that’s it?”. Bhupinder Gujjar made his entrance. He now wears a leather jacket…
2. Dirty Dango vs. Bhupinder Gujjar. Dango worked on Bhupinder with methodical strikes. Dango started to do stripper dances, which Hannifan was noted was shades of the old Fandango. Gujjar took down Dango with an enzuigiri and dropkick. Dango went to ringside for a breather. Gujjar hit Dango with a Plancha. Dango swatted Gujjar out of the air during a 2nd rope spear attempt. Dango hit Gujjar with a modified Eye of the Hurricane for the victory.
Dirty Dango defeated Bhupinder Gujjar via pinfall in 1:59.
Dango took Gujjar’s phone out of Gujjar’s jacket pocket. He was presumably filming himself on Instagram Live. Director of Authority, Santino Marella made his entrance. Dango tried to retreat, but Gujjar threw Dango in the ring.
Santino put on the Cobra Sleeve and hit Dango with The Cobra. Santino called Dango a piece of garbage and how he’ll never forgive Dango. Hannifan noted that Santino getting phyical was taking a page out of suspended Impact President Scott D’Amore’s playbook…
John’s Thoughts: I’m a bit surprised that they had Gujjar lose so quickly. After being pushed huge out of the gate, Impact has seemingly cooled off on him. He has a good look, but he needs to tweak a few things (like his bad looking finisher). Hopefully he puts it all together because it looks like he has infinite room to grow as a performer. Dirty Dango on the other hand, is must-see TV for me. He’s currently one of my favorite acts in pro wrestling today with his whole jaded veteran gimmick. I kinda wouldn’t mind him going back to NXT where this character will totally fit with all the young wrestlers there.
A replay aired of Jody Threat defeating Nevaeh with the F Bomb on Before the Impact (Nevaeh is the wife of Jake Crist and former tag team partner of Havok)…
Nevaeh thanked Jody for a good match backstage. Nevaeh then reunited with her old tag team partner Jessicka who was with Courtney Rush. Jessicka informed Nevaeh that she’s not Havok anymore, just Jessicka. Jessicka introduced Nevaeh to Courtney Rush. Nevaeh pointed out how both women transformed after going into the Undead Realm.
Rush and Jessicka had a huddle where they said that Nevaeh might be able to get Jessicka’s memories back. Rush asked Nevaeh to tell them Jessicka’s lore. Nevaeh said they have to start at the beginning. Jessicka said she likes origin stories. Rush and Jessicka ran off acting goofy…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Good to see Nevaeh back in Impact. I wonder if she’s back for good, or just back because Impact is in her and her husband’s home state of Ohio? I kinda hope they don’t drop the Jessicka and Courtney Rush characters because both characters have breathed new life into the long-time Rosemary and Havok characters. If anything I hope Nevaeh mentioning the “Undead Realm” doesn’t mean we’re getting the Undead Realm again. I hope Jimmy Jacobs put that thing in a briefcase and burned the briefcase.
Clips from the Rosemary (a.k.a. Courtney Rush) Diary documentary aired…
John’s Thoughts: I’ve watched 3 of the Diary documentary shows so far and all of them were really good. They remind me of the Jeremy Borash produced documentaries that he does in NXT. These things are really well produced. The Rosemary one actually drew tears out of me. The line from the doc that killed me was Rosemary saying “It takes so much more strength to fight away those voices, than the strength needed to go through a table”. It’s a good profile piece on taking care of your mental health. It also reminded me of the Hana Kimura tragedy, and I had no idea that Rosemary was in the same dark place. I’m really happy that Rosemary overcame that dark place and that we are all able to still watch her entertain us til this day. I’ll post the full documentary below and you can go to Impact’s youtube to get all the full Diary documentaries.
Zicky Dice was being trained by a referee backstage while Johnny Swinger was rooting for him while standing in his WrestleMania cart. The referee said that Zicky passed his referee and urine test. The referee gave Dice his referee license and referee shirt. Dice said he had his own referee shirt in his fanny pack.
Swinger called the referee “Danny Davis” and told him to take a hike. Swinger was over the moon now that he has a stooge in his pocket. He said he’s about to stooge his way to 50 wins…
Entrances for the next match took place…
3. “The Design” Kon and Angels (w/Deaner) vs. Jonathan Gresham and “Speedball” Mike Bailey. Bailey hit Angels with a Kickboxing roundhouse. Gresham and Bailey swarmed Angels with alternating strikes. After Bailey and Gresham shared a handshake, Kon took down both men with a lariat. Kon hit Gresham with a Half and Half suplex. Kon took down Bailey with a tackle at ringside.[c]
Gresham flipped away from Kon and tagged in Bailey. Bailey swarmed Kon with kicks, but couldn’t get him off his feet. Bailey got Kon to a knee with a basement dropkick and rapid kicks. Bailey finally got Kon on his back with a missile dropkick. Kon no sold a Standing Shooting Star and lifted Bailey up. Angels tagged in.
Gresham dumped Kon to ringside on a Doomsday Device attempt. Bailey tossed Gresham into Angels for a cutter. Gresham tossed Bailey into Angels for an armbar. Angels broke the hold with a rollup. Bailey hit Kon wiht a Triangle Moonsault. Angels used a baseball slide to send Gresham into Bailey. After Bailey recovered, Bailey hit Angels with a superkick.
Angels dodged a Tornado Kick. Angels caught Bailey with a Super Spanish Fly. Deaner got in Angels’ face and yelled “Finish him now!”. Angels responded “what do you think I’m doing?”. The distraction allowed Bailey to dodge a Frog Splash. Bailey hit Angels with a Tornado Kick and Ultima Weapon for the win.
Mike Bailey and Jonathan Gresham defeated The Design via pinfall in 5:17 of on-air time.
Deaner was seething in anger at ringside…
John’s Thoughts: A good win for the new Bailey and Gresham tag team while The Design continue their downward spiral. All three men are talented, but they’ve just never clicked as this cult based off Eric Young’s old cult faction. At least we’re getting character development now. I hope this ends with Deaner, Kon, and Angels in better places.
This week’s Impact Plus Flashback Match of the week was Jeff Hardy vs. Nick Aldis (Brutus Magnus) in a Dixieland Match for the Impact World Championship from a 2013 episode of Impact. Jeff Hardy yelled at Impact owner Dixie Carter and made her cry. Jeff was about to get the title belt hanging over a ladder, but Rockstar Spud (a.k.a. Drake Maverick) ran out and knocked Jeff and the ladder down. Nick Aldis won after Spud set up the ladder…
Tom Hannifan announced that Gail Kim and Gisele Shaw will be competing in Amazing Race Canada…
A replay aired from Trinity’s recent matches where Jai Vidal has been attacking her…
Gia Miller interviewed Trinity Fatu and told her that if Gisele Shaw defeats Deonna Purrazzo for the Knockouts Title at the Australian tour, then the Slammiversary title match will be a triple threat between Shaw, Purrazzo, and Trinity. Trinity said she has no worries because Deonna can handle business.
Trinity said if somehow Shaw finds a way to win, then she doesn’t mind taking it to Shaw again. Trinity said the only thing she has to worry about is Savannah Evans and “Du Boy” Jai always looming at ringside. Trinity called out “Du boy” and challenged Jai to a match next week, if Shaw will allow Jai to wrestle…[c]
An ad aired for Impact’s Australian tour…
A Nick Aldis interview was supposed to air. His personal interviewer and new AEW producer, Jimmy Jacobs, read a prepared statement left by Aldis. Aldis said he wasn’t able to be at Impact this week due to all the attacks he has been getting on Social Media. He said people have been harassing him at home in Nashville. He said he’s staying home to protect his family. Alex Shelley snatched the statement from Jimmy.
He said he doesn’t buy it. Shelley said it was Aldis that blindsided him last week. Jacobs said Aldis is getting harassed so it made sense not to be here. Jacobs said Aldis will be here next week. Jimmy said that Aldis even got Shelley a first row seat reserved. Shelley threatened Jimmy and Jimmy said not to shoot the messenger. Shelley left.
Jimmy mocked Shelley, saying that after becoming champ after 20 years, it’s gotten to his head. Shelley came back and superkicked Jimmy Jacobs. Chris Sabin asked Shelley if he changed his mind about attacking Jimmy? Shelley said “yep”…
John’s Thoughts: Jimmy’s Impact write-off? Hopefully, Shelley superkicked the Undead Realm out of Jimmy too because I don’t want to see that make it’s way to Dynamite and Collision. Good heel move to have Aldis duck out on Shelley. Even when off TV he’s a solid character. As for Shelley, can he drop the whole “yep” thing? It was good for one week, and now he’s forcing it.
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan plugged Trinity being on the cover of Pro Wrestling Illustrated…
4. Taylor Wilde (w/KiLynn King) vs. Killer Kelly. Kelly took down Wilde with a headbutt and pump kick for a two count. Kelly hit Wilde with a running PK. Wilde distracted the referee so King could hit Kelly with cheap shots. Wilde worked on Kelly’s lower back with forearms. Wilde yelled “long live the coven” and put Kelly in a Surfboard hold. Kelly escaped by pressing Wilde’s shoulders on the mat.
Wilde and Kelly traded forearms. Wilde caught both of Kelly’s arms and gave her shortarm headbutts. Kelly hit Wilde with a double underhook suplex and inverted cannonball. Wilde kicked out at two. Wilde came back wiht a backstabber. Wilde hit Kelly with an enzuigiri. Wilde rolled up Kelly for a two count. Kelly reversed a Wilde’s Wilde Ride attempt. Wilde reversed a Killer Clutch attempt by Kelly. Kelly rolled up Wilde for the win.
Killer Kelly defeated Taylor Wilde via pinfall in 5:08.
Wilde and King attacked Kelly after the match. Masha Slammovich made her entrance with a dog collar in hand. Masha teased attacking her rival Kelly, but instead came to Kelly’s aid by attacking Wilde and King. King and Wilde retreated clutching on to their tag titles. Kelly and Masha shared a moment in the ring before Masha left…
John’s Thoughts: A good match in the time allotted. As much as a hate Wilde’s lame witch gimmick, she has really found a second wind in terms of her in-ring career. She’s really good in the ring these days and I think she’s better than when she had her first Impact run about 20 years ago. Nice hard hitting exchanges. Looking forward to Masha and Kelly going after the tag titles. Despite losing a lot of wrestlers, Impact has built a strong women’s tag division by protecting Wilde and King.
A replay from last week aired of Scott D’Amore booking himself and PCO in a match against Bully Ray and Steve Maclin for Slammiversary. This included D’Amore and PCO clearing Maclin and Bully from the ring…
Gia Miller interviewed Scott D’Amore. Gia said she would have called Scott the President of Impact, but he’s currently on a leave of absense (Then why is he still wearing his producer’s headset?). He said he isn’t president now. He tossed away his headset, suit, and fancy watch. He gave props to Bully Ray for being a two time hall of famer and how Maclin is coming off a world title run. D’Amore said he can get no where in terms of in-ring accomplishments compared to Bully and Maclin.
He talked about how he was a 5 time champion in Canada. He said he was hitting home runs with a hockey stick as the manager of Team Canada. He talked about coaching more world champions than anyone in this damn sport. He said he plays by the rules, but he’s also willing to get down and dirty in the mud.
Scott talked about how when he used to give his Dad an attitude, his dad would tell him “I brought you into this world, and I can take you out”. Scott said he brought Bully into Impact and now has to take him out. Scott said even though Maclin keeps complaining, Scott is giving Maclin the opportunity of a lifetime at Slammiversary.
D’Amore said he doesn’t know how his match will end, but it’s going to rain hell in Scott’s hometown of Windsor. D’Amore said he’s pretty damn sure somebody is not walking out of Windsor. Scott said he’s ok if it’s not him, but Bully and Maclin are now put on notice. Hannifan plugged Bully and Maclin vs. Kazarian and Edwards for the main event of this week’s show…[c]
John’s Thoughts: As much as a get annoyed of Scott D’Amore pushing himself as the most badass man in the locker room (and the expense of heels), he is really good on the microphone and was good here. I actually don’t mind him getting a last in-ring hurrah in his hometown and it could lead to a heartwarming moment. I honestly think the guy deserves a good gift after giving viewers the gift of good professional wrestling over the last two years.
An ad aired for the Alex Shelley vs. Nick Aldis match at Slammiversary…
Joe Hendry made his entrance and cut one of his pre-match promos. Hendry said extraterrestrials have made contact on Earth. Hendry said everyone is trying to crack the alien code, but Hendry said the code is simple, “we believe”. Hendry said those grey alien freaks believe in Joe Hendry. His opponent was Yuya Uemura. Kenny King and Sheldon Jean joined the commentary table…
5. Joe Hendry vs. Yuya Uemura for the Digital Media Championship. Yuya hit Hendry with a few armdrags. Hendry gave Yuya a respectful bow. hendry took down Yuya with a shoulder tackle.[c]
Hendry took down Yuya with a neckbreaker. Kenny King said Hendry’s motivational speaker thing is just a gimmick. Yuya hit Hendry with a forearm and bulldog. Yuya hit Hendry with a Saito Suplex for a two count. Hendry and Yuya traded stiff right hands.
Yuya no sold a backfist combo and came back with a clothesline. Yuya hit Hendry with a body slam. King gave Yuya props for being young and hungry. Hendry rolled through a crossbody and hit Yuya with the Standing Ovation (Delayed Uranage) for the win.
Joe Hendry defeated Yuya Uemura via pinfall in 5:33 of on-air time to retain the Impact Digital Media Championship.
Kenny King took the Digital Media Championship and confronted Joe Hendry in the ring. Rehwoldt said this was deja vu from last week when Nick Aldis smashed Alex Shelley in the face with a title belt. Kenny King pressed the belt in Hendry’s chest and gave him condescending claps…
John’s Thoughts: A good match, but it’s tough to take Joe Hendry seriously with his toy belt that nobody cares about. It doesn’t help that Dirty Dango lampshaded that sentiment by calling it a toy belt the last couple of weeks. Pull an AEW and rebrand this thing. And speaking of branding, Yuya Uemura needs some branding himself. Right now he’s just generic create-a-wrestler who’s happy to be there. He needs a bit of a makeover, and he needs to stop losing all the time.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt plugged the advertised Slammiversary and Australian Tour matches. Ace and Bey vs. The Motor City Machine Guns for the tag team titles was advertised for the Australian Tour. The following segments were plugged for next week: Chris Sabin vs. Trey Miguel for the X Division Championship, Trinity vs. Jai Vidal, and Nick Aldis appearing in-person. Rehwoldt sent the show to Kevin Kelly’s weekly New Japan on AXS plug…
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan plugged Eddie and Alisha’s new “Ride or Die” t-shirt. Hannifan also noted that Eddie and Frankie pointed to heaven in honor of their trainer Killer Kowalski…
6. Bully Ray and Steve Maclin vs. Eddie Edwards (w/Alisha Edwards) and Frankie Kazarian. Maclin took down Edwards with a few shoulder tackles. Eddie came back with a Belly to Belly. Kazarian tagged in and hit Steve with a slingshot leg drop. Hannifan said he was shocked that the tag was so friendly.
Steve blocked a suplex and came back with right hands on Kaz. Kaz took Bully off the apron with a back elbow. Maclin distracted the referee so Bully could drag Kazarian, crotch first, into the ringpost.[c]
Bully and Maclin cut the ring in half on Kazarian. Kazarian managed to bring in Eddie for the hot tag. Eddie hit Maclin with rapid chops. Eddie hit Maclin with an Atomic Drop. Kazarian hit Maclin with a Russian Legsweep. Hannifan noted that these are two tag team specialists coming together from Eddie and Kazarian’s origins with the American Wolves and Bad Influence.
Eddie and Kazarian hit Bully with a double team suplex. Eddie caught Bully and Maclin with a suicide dive. Kazarian took down Maclin with a slingshot huracanrana. Bully Ray was chasing Alisha Edwards around at ringside. Hannifan noted that Bully has attacked many women in pro wrestling (kayfabe).
Bully was about to hit Eddie with a chair. Bully dropped the chair when the referee threatened a DQ. Bully chased away Alisha again. Maclin got a two count on Eddie. Maclin got a two count after a backbreaker. Bully tagged in and hit Eddie with a stiff clothesline. Bully worked on Eddie with methodical strikes. Bully mocked the crowd by leading a “let’s go Eddie” chant while Eddie was being beat up.
Maclin tagged in and knocked Kazarian off the apron. Maclin and Eddie took each other out with simultaneous crossbodies. Eddie got the hot tag to Kazarian. Kazarian caught Maclin with a crossbody. Kazarin took down Bully with a Guillotine Leg Drop. Kazarian hit Maclin with a Springboard Leg drop. Both men blocked each other’s finishers.
Kazarian hit Maclin with the Deadeye. Bully broke up the pin. Bully raked Eddie’s eyes and tossed Eddie into Kazarian. Kazarian managed to put Maclin in the Chickenwing. Eddie then accidentally (?) superkicked Kazarian, to break Maclin free. Bully tossed Eddie to ringside. Maclin and Bully hit Kazarian with a Back Suplex-Neckbreaker combo to give Maclin the win.
Steve Maclin and Bully Ray defeated Frankie Kazarian and Eddie Edwards via pinfall in 11:28 of on-air time.
Eddie and Alisha left up the ramp. Bully Ray and Steve Maclin hugged after their win. Hannifan closed the show by saying that Bully and Maclin are now unified in preparation for their match against PCO and Scott D’Amore at Slammiversary…
John’s Thoughts: A well worked tag team match with every man in that ring being a tag team specialist. The story was logical too. Kazarian and Eddie look strong and were protected due to Eddie seemingly being very shady. That will lead into whatever one-on-one match they have. Bully and Maclin get boosted in preparation for their match against their boss. Here’s hoping that Steve Maclin is in-line for a huge reward, booking wise, for presumably putting over his boss in his boss’s hometown.
A solid episode of Impact and Impact is taking their time logically booking towards the Slammiversary PPV. It almost feels like they are looking past their Australian Tour matches in favor of Slammiversary which I am all for. The Australian matches are behind FiteTV and have a lesser audience compared to Impact and Slammiversary. If Jimmy Jacobs has had a hand in this stellar pacing over the past few years, here’s hoping that he takes this television format over to AEW to help them book their show that’s paced very well. (Again, I just hope he doesn’t take over the teleporting and Undead Realm). Wait? With Jimmy gone, does that mean the Undead Realm is dead? I won’t get my hopes up because I’ve been burned at this hope before.
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