By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Impact Wrestling TV (Episode 991)
Taped in Atlanta, Georgia at Center Stage
Aired July 13, 2023 on AXS TV
Highlights from last week’s Impact Wrestling aired… The show cut to a Busted Open Radio clip with Dave Lagreca, Mark Henry, and Bully Ray. Dave talked about how Steve Maclin was no longer Bully’s tag partner at Slammiversary and who Bully now needs to name a replacement. The Busted Open crew welcomed Deaner to the show. Deaner talked about how he wanted to be considered as a tag partner for Bully because of how he hates Scott D’Amore.
Deaner said that Scott didn’t want him in Impact at first and it was Jeff Jarrett that brought him in. Deaner said Scott laughed at him when he arrived at Impact and Deaner called Scott a piece of shit. Bully said that Deaner could be his tag partner. The rest of last week’s highlights aired…
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary… Entrances for the opening match took place…
1. Zachary Wentz (w/Trey Miguel) vs. Chris Bey (w/Ace Austin). Wentz dominated the early collar and elbow. Wentz retreated to the ropes when Bey went after him. Bey landed on his feet during an armdrag attempt. Bey hit Wentz with a dropkick. Both men traded quick counters with Bey getting the upper hand with a double stomp. Wentz retreated to Trey at ringside. Wentz caught Bey with a Yakuza Kick when the two teams started bickering.
Miguel choked Bey on the 2nd rope when Wentz distracted the referee. Wentz worked on Bey with methodical offense. Bey recovered and hit Wentz with a dive for a two count. Wentz recovered and hit Bey with a CQC combo. Bey came back with a sweep and Code Red for a two count. Ace tripped Trey off the apron. Trey hit Ace with a superkick. Bey hit Trey with a wrecking ball kick. Wentz may have raked the eyes of Bey (the announcers didn’t know either). Wentz hit Bey with a Front Facelock DDT for the win.
Zachary Wentz defeated Chris Bey via pinfall in 6:49.
John’s Thoughts: Good match and good to see Zach Wentz back on TV. Not a huge surprise as he was at top form last time we saw him when NXT presented him as a tag team champion. He also looked pretty good as a singles wrestler too. We rarely see him wrestle singles because throughout the years he’s either teaming up with Wes Lee or Trey Miguel.
The show cut to footage from Dirty Dango vs. Heath from Before the Impact. Dango called Santino a bitch while Santino was on commentary. Dango gave Santino a cheap shot while he was being held back by security…
Scott D’Amore and Santino Marella were chatting backstage. Scott was still concerned about PCO after he got burned last week. The Rascalz showed up. Trey talked about how the Rascalz should be inserted into the tag title match since Wentz won. Santino noted that the Rascalz cheated. Wentz said they still won though. Santino said he never made the stipulation that The Rascalz would be at Slammiversary if they won. Trey drank a water bottle and dropped it in front of Santino…
John’s Thoughts: I actually hope that sticks. Impact, and other wrestling companies, usually feel the need to get everyone on the big show to the point where everyone gets stuck in multi person battle royals or matches. So many people in one match just makes everyone homogeneous and not stand out. I wouldn’t mind an ABC vs. Rascalz feud by itself, and heck, I wouldn’t mind Trey and Zach getting put over strong by taking the titles off ABC.
An ad aired to hype Alex Shelley vs. Nick Aldis at Slammiversary. This was followed by a full hype package…
Entrances for the next match took place. Kevin Knight came out wearing Doc Brown’s Back to the Future goggles (similar to what Kushida wears)…
John’s Thoughts: If you get Kevin Knight, Kushida, KM, New Japan’s Funky Weapon, and NXT UK’s Kenny Williams all together in a stable, you can have a full on Back the Future group. I don’t think Alex Shelley got sucked into Kushida’s love for Back to the Future.
2. “Speedball” Mike Bailey vs. Kevin Knight. Bailey dominated early on with a side headlock takedown. Bailey followed up with a clothesline. Bailey got a two count. Bailey continued to dominate with an armdrag. Knight came back with a armdrag and high standing splash for a two count. Knight got a one count off a springboard crossbody. Bailey knocked Knight off the apron with a Big Boot and hit Knight with a Triangle Moonsault.[c]
Bailey took down Knight with rapid kicks. Bailey hit Knight with a Vader Meteora for a two count. Bailey took down knight with more kicks. Knight dodged a Standing Shooting Star and hit Bailey with a high Dropkick. Knight knocked Bailey off the top rope with a high dropkick. Baily tripped Knight off the slingshot to drop him on the apron. Bailey gave Knight a double stomp to the back. Knight dodged chamber kicks and came back with a superkick.
Bailey hit Knight with a kick. Knight came back with a leaping Frankensteiner. Bailey quickly came back with a kick to leave both men lying to recover. Bailey slammed Knight and gave him a backflip knee to the gut. Knight recovered when Bailey went high risk to give him a Superplex. Knight gave Bailey a Sky High for a nearfall. Bailey backdropped Knight and gave him a Tornado Kick. Bailey hit Knight with Ultima Weapon for the win.
Mike Bailey defeated Kevin Knight via pinfall in 8:10 of on-air time.
John’s Thoughts: Great match. Cool to see Mike Bailey again in a singles match. We were graced with awesome Mike Bailey singles matches for the longest time, but the guy ended up getting booked by companies like New Japan which led to less television appearances. Good to see him back in form. Knight looked great as usual. He’s a joy to watch, especially with his high leaping ability. Hope we eventually find out more about him other than he can jump really high. I guess he’s also a Back to the Future fan too because he’s adopting some of the Back to the Future stuff from his tag partner Kushida.
A promo package aired with Masha Slamovich and Killer Kelly talking about how they’re coming after the Knockouts tag team titles. They were also playing with a chain. They may or may not be into BDSM (that was just the tone of the package)…
Joe Hendry made his entrance for one of his pre-match promos. He said he usually talks about himself, but he’s going to be selfless and talk about “Stripper Kenny”. Hendry said it is a free country and you can chant whatever you want, but “Stripper Kenny” might hurt Kenny’s feelings. Hendry then said you can chant “we believe” to Hendry and his tag partner Yuya Uemura. Yuya Uemura made his entrance…[c]
Kenny King and Sheldon Jean made their entrances. King refused to take off his sweater. Rehwoldt said that the crowd shouldn’t make King ashamed of being a sexy man…
3. Yuya Uemura and Impact Digital Media Champion Joe Hendry vs. Kenny King and Sheldon Jean. King teased facing Hendry, but quickly tagged out. Hendry tagged out to Yuya. Yuya dominated the chain wrestling with Jean. King tagged in and the heels double teamed Yuya with quick tags. Yuya managed to roll away and tag in Hendry who rallied back against King. Hannifan joked that it’s odd that King is wearing a sweater during the summer.
Hendry took down King with a lariat. King hit Hendry with the Eddy Gordo Kick. All four men took turn hitting their signature moves. King hit Yuya with a Tiger Driver. Hendry took off King’s sweater to make King feel naked. King retreated to the back. Yuya hit Jean with an enzuigiri. Hendry hit Jean with a Standing Ovation (Delayed Uranage) for the win.
Joe Hendry and Yuya Uemura defeated Sheldon Jean and Kenny King via pinfall in 5:12.
John’s Thoughts: Fun sports entertainment stuff here. One thing I would have done different, small thing, is have Yuya pick up the win because he never wins. Just a nitpick. I feel like the Kenny King chippendales thing has been overused throughout the years, but I assume that not everyone knew it so there’s some comedy that can be milked out. The biggest problem with Hendry is that toy title belt though. Hey, Orange Cassidy is a comedy guy and they rebranded his title. Look at the wonders that did for him (credit to Orange though, Orange is also a good serious wrestler).
The show cut to the Impact Plus Flashback Match of the Week which was Kenny King vs. Chris Sabin vs. Suicide (Wikipedia says it’s TJP-Suicide) in an Ultimate X match for the X Division Championship. Chris Sabin ended up winning the match…
Lio Rush cut a promo in a dark room. He was wearing a fancy watch and black suit. Rush said he’s been a fan of the Motor City Machine Guns for a long time. Rush congratulated the Guns on their success, but he said he never has and never will give a damn. He said he’s not here for the nostalgia or to build the brand of Impact.
He said he’s here to build his brand and win championships. He said he’s here to win the X Division champion, which legends have held. Rush said he’s going to be a legend, the man of the hour. Rush said at Slammiversary you’ll find out why they call him “the bad child”…
John’s Thoughts: Good production and good promo from rush. There is a little bit of a too little too late feeling to it because of Sabin just recently becoming champion and therefore the short build. But it’s also “better late than never”. Rush has also been a top level talker since his time in 205 live (and Raw), but for some reason following his run with Lashley, he’s been presented as a somber introvert. Rush needs the mic because he’s really good at the promo aspect. Hey, if WWE wants to find a mouthpiece with a rap background to replace Swerve in Hit Row, Rush would be one of the people I’d be rushing to sign.
Gia Miller interviewed Chris Sabin about his response to the Lio Rush video. Sabin said Rush is one of the most talented wrestlers he’s seen with tons of potential. Sabin said he’s starting to see why there isn’t a locker room that wants Rush in it. Sabin said Rush is arrogant, selfish, and thinks he’s the main character.
Sabin said Rush thinks he found the cheat code to leapfrog his way to an X Division title shot. Sabin said that sadly leads to a final boss, the three-time tag champion, world champion, and nine-time X Division Champion. Sabin said Rush will be humbled and Sabin will be still champion…
Entrances for the next match took place…
4. Sami Callihan and Rich Swann vs. Moose and Brian Myers. Myers gloated a bit after a shove on Swann. Swann did his signature counters and hit Myers with a huracanrana. Swann caught Myers with a hook kick. Swann hit Myers with poetry in motion and tagged in Callihan. Myers tagged in Moose who pummeled Callihan with punches. Callihan dumped Moose and Myers to ringside. Swann hit both opponents with a cannonball.[c]
Myers worked on Swann with methodical offense. The heels cut the ring in half on Swann. Swann used a victory roll to get a two count on Moose. Moose came back with a Uranage. The heels cut the ring in half on Swann again. Swann used a victory roll to tag in Callihan. Callihan hit Myers and Moose with a Flatliner and DDT at the same time. Moose and Callihan traded headbutts and took each other out with lariats.
Myers and Swann tagged in. Swann hit Myers with two thrust kicks. Moose held Swann in place, but Swann ducked to cause Myers to superkick Moose. Swann took down Myers with a kick. Swann hit Myers with a Lethal Injection. Moose shoved Callihan into Swann to break the pin. Swann hit Moose with a Frankensteiner. Swann hit Moose with a 450 for a nearfall.
Moose hit Callihan with a low blow during a Cactus Driver attempt while the referee was distracted by Myers at ringside. Moose hit Callihan with a spear for the win.
Moose and Brian Myers defeated Sami Callihan and Rich Swann 9:23 of on-air time.
John’s Thoughts: Surprising good chemistry for both teams; and I say that because Moose, Callihan, and Swann are more well known for being main event level singles wrestlers. I’m always a fan of putting heat on heels and that was the logical move here. Callihan has been taking losses recently, but he’s come off protected so it’s no problem. If Impact can resist doing too many multi team matches, they might have one of the best tag divisions in wrestling (WWE and AEW have the personnel, but they aren’t pushing their tag teams efficiently).
The show cut to a promo by the [South Wales] Subculture team of Flash Morgan Webster, Mark Andrews, and Dani Luna. Andrews talked about how they are fighting for everyone at the bottom and how they will get to the top, which is the tag team titles…
An ad aired to hype Alex Shelley vs. Nick Aldis for the Impact World Title…
An Alan Angels promo aired where he talked about winning Ultimate X at Slammiversary. He said he’s more than an Angel, he’s a celestial. He said he’s making his mark at Slammiversary and X marks the spot…
John’s Thoughts: I couldn’t tell it was Angels at first when he wore sunglasses. Great and simple promo from Alan Angels, who looks to have moved on from mid-card cults. I’m glad because he really has the potential to be a standout star. Hey, I wouldn’t mind if Alan brings over Brooke Havoc who’s been a part of his act in Atlanta indies and in the Oakland Hoodslam promotion. Ya’ll haven’t seen Havoc yet, but she’s great. Angels is great too which is why I’m looking forward to this guy on his own and not in a random “cult”.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. They ran through the advertised Slammiversary card. Because PCO was burned, Scott D’Amore now has a mystery partner (I hope it isn’t Tommy Dreamer). Oh lord, speaking of Dreamer, Impact announced Darren McCarty and Tommy Dreamer vs. Champagne Singh and Shera for two weeks from now…
A Nick Aldis promo aired. He said Impact asked him to come back and he let it be known that he will have his eyes set on the world title. He said he’s become synonymous with being a world title. Aldis said world titles are only as valuable as the man holding it and he’s proven to be valuable in that role. Aldis said he was happy to see Alex Shelley win the world title because Shelley was the first person to pull him up from drowning in the company when Aldis first came to America.
Aldis said he’s sick and tired of the “you deserve it” story. Aldis said Shelley is a hypocrite. Aldis said that it’s rubbish when Shelley talks about building this company or helping the business. Aldis said Shelley is only special now because he’s world champion, not before. Aldis said Shelley is now in an elite group, one that Aldis was already a part of. Aldis talked about how the Machine Guns weren’t even in Impact when Aldis beat Jeff Hardy for the world title.
Aldis said the Guns weren’t even there when Aldis beat Sting, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, or Kurt Angle. Aldis said the Guns are just arrogant in trying to take credit for building the company. Aldis said other people just agree and nod their head just because they are afraid of offending the Machine Guns’ cult weirdos. Aldis said he doesn’t give a flying f*ck what they say.
Aldis said Impact management wants and needs him as champion. He said the pressure is on Shelley to prove he’s not a transitional champion. Aldis said that Shelley needs to prove his name is etched in history forever. Aldis said Shelley can go out on his face or on his back…
John’s Thoughts: Good promo from Aldis and more clear and concise from his promo from a few weeks ago. It was good to include clips from his Magnus days because he’s so much better now.
Deonna Purrazzo made her entrance for an open challenge…[c]
Deonna took a mic for a promo where she talked about always having a chip on her shoulder. She said some women have forgotten who she is. She said she’s here to remind people that she’s The Virtuosa, the three-time Knockouts Champion, and she’s issuing an open challenge. Jody Threat made her entrance to accept the challenge…
5. Deonna Purrazzo vs. Jody Threat for the Knockouts Championship. Both women had a stalemate during the initial collar and elbow. Threat managed to get an armdrag in. Deonna came back with a side headlock takedown. Threat got a two count off a victory roll. Threat pummeled Deonna with lariats in the corner. Threat hit Purrazzo with an Exploder Suplex.
Purrazzo avoided a meteora attempt and gave Threat a leg whip. Purrazzo hit Threat with an armbreaker.[c]
Purrazzo focused her offense on the left arm of Threat turned the tables with a suplex to get a moment of respite. Threat gave Purrazzo a kick, meteora to the back, and German Suplex for a nearfall. Threat escaped a Gotch Driver attempt. Threat hit Purrazzo with a top rope cannonball and clothesline for a nearfall. Purrazzo escaped an F Bomb attempt. Purrazzo put Threat in a Fujiwara Armbar.
Threat escaped. Threat hit Purrazzo with a Michinoku Driver for a two count. Purrazzo reversed a F5 into a Rings of Saturn for the submission win.
Deonna Purrazzo defeated Jody Threat via submission in 9:17 of on-air time to retain the Impact Knockouts Championship.
Purrazzo gave Threat a handshake after the match. Gisele Shaw, Jai Vidal, and Savannah Evans ran out and put the boots to Threat and Purrazzo. Jessicka and Courtney Rush ran out to even the numbers. The Coven ran out to put the numbers back in the favor of the heels. Masha Slamovich and Killer Kelly ran out for the save, but weren’t enough.
Trinity ran out to clean house. Security guards ran out to maintain control. Trinity and Purrazzo were left alone in the ring with the title belt. After both women went for the belt, they ended up trading forearms. Referees and guards separated Purrazzo and Trinity…
John’s Thoughts: A good match but the crowd seemed very cold on Jody Threat. I feel like Impact needs to tell the crowd and viewers “who is Jody Threat”. I’m not even sure who Jody Threat is other than she was famous for being that lady that AEW’s Athena beat up for no reason. The post match stuff was a bit contrived. Looking forward to Purrazzo vs. Trinity though which should be a great match.
A Slammiversary hype video aired. The show ended with a stinger after the closing graphic. Scott D’Amore was on the phone and told the unknown person that “PCO can’t come back to life, can you?”. The camera panned back to show a Team Canada shirt…
John’s Thoughts: Ok, Tommy Dreamer is not Canadian so it shouldn’t be him. Did Eric Young somehow get out of his WWE contract? That was just the first name that came to mind because D’Amore talked about someone coming back from the dead, and Deaner “killed” Eric Young with a shiv. Petey Williams and Bobby Roode would be other known names, but I’m pretty sure WWE has them locked down harder. Maybe D’Amore pulled off his magic again and negotiated with WWE to let Roode, Young, or Williams wrestle a one-off with them (Similar to how he got AJ Styles to appear last year)? My best guess is EY getting out of his WWE deal.
Steve Maclin going down might be a slight blessing in disguise for Slammiversary because they may have had some huge angle planned this week; and because D’Amore has been pushing his match harder than the world title match, it helps the world title match that whatever angle they had planned was cut. Feel bad for Maclin though as he was world champion a month ago, then gets reduced to being an extra in the match with his boss, and now has the unfortunate injury.
Join me for my live review of Slammiversary on Saturday night.
Slammiversary is going to be so great tonight as I can’t wait to see Trinity against Deonna Purrazzo as I think that match can go either way. I also want to know if EY or Rude will be Scott’s partner. It’ll be crazy if VBD’s new leader Deaner has to go against EY.
I can’t wait to see Traci Brooks as well.
Very confident that it’s Eric Young. He’s the only guy who fits the come back to life and Team Canada clues.
Yeah, I’m leaning more towards EY as well as he is the only one who fits the story here and Team Canada clues. Somebody on another site told me Rude was dealing with a neck injury, so it definitely ain’t him. It’s gotta be EY.