By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Impact Wrestling Slammiversary
Aired live June 15, 2023 on pay-per-view and FITE.TV
Windsor, Ontario at St. Clair College Sportsplex
Impact Wrestling Slammiversary Pre-Show
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Dave Penzer was the ring announcer… Gisele Shaw, Jai Vidal, and Savannah Evans made their entrance to new entrance music. Jody Threat, Courtney Rush, and Jessicka made their entrance…
1. Gisele Shaw, Jai Vidal, and Savannah Evans vs. Jody Threat, Courtney Rush, and Jessicka. Evans and Jessicka started the match. Vidal quickly tagged in after a stalemate during the Collar and Elbow tie up. Vidal pie faced Jessicka. Jessicka came back with a shove and Bionic Elbow. Shaw tagged in. Shaw gave Jessicka a kick, but Jessicka quickly regained control by tossing Shaw into the corners. Courtney Rush tagged in and gave Shaw a Northern Lariat.
Evans clotheslined Rush at ringside while the referee was distracted. This allowed Shaw to get the advantage with methodical offense. The heels cut the ring in half on Rush with tags and isolation offense. Rush got a window of opportunity after a reverse DDT. Threat and Vidal tagged in with Threat having the hot hand. Threat draped Shaw on the 2nd rope with a boot. Everyone took turns trading signature offense. Threat hit Vidal with a German Suplex. Rush hit Vidal with a spear for the win.
Courtney Rush, Jody Threat, and Jessicka defeated Jai Vidal, Gisele Shaw, and Savannah Evans via pinfall in 5:34.
John’s Thoughts: Good win for the babyface team. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I see more potential in the babyfaces here than I do Shaw’s act. Shaw is talented and really good, but they have booked her to look so weak that I think her act needs a bit of a refresh. I thought Threat connected better here than she did on the last Impact episode. I still wouldn’t mind a video package or promo from her just to know who she is?
Deonna Purrazzo and Trinity were shown arriving at the arena earlier today…
A hype package aired for the Digital Media Championship title match coming up…
A facts graphic aired for the digital media title match. One of the facts spotlighted Kenny King’s old career of being a Chippendale’s dancer…
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan noted that Joe Hendry has had 15 successful title defenses. Hendry took the mic for his usual pre-match promo. He said he appreciates the crowd chanting “we believe”, but he has to talk about his opponent who loves to lose his clothes. A “stripper Kenny” chant ensued. Hendry said King likes taking clothes so much that he wants Hendry to lose clothes, like the Digital Media Championship. He said he’s not “Stripper Hendry”. Hendry talked about how everyone believes in Joe Hendry…
2. Joe Hendry vs. Kenny King (w/Sheldon Jean) for the Impact Digital Media Championship. Hendry dominated the match. He sung his song and gave King double chops in place of the claps. Hendry did squats during a delayed vertical suplex. King and Jean talked strategy at ringside. Jean distracted Hendry by running in the ring which allowed King to club Hendry in the back. King hit Hendry with a sweep and Buzzsaw Kick for the two count. King took a foreign object out of Jean’s pocket.
It was a Chippendale’s necklase which he put on Hendry’s neck. King hit Hendry with a discus forearm and Exploder Suplex for a two count. King put Hendry in a Guillotine Choke. Hendry deadlifted his way out and hit King with a deadlift Suplex. Hendry rallied back with lariats and a Jumping Fallaway Slam. Hendry teased taking off the necklace but then did a hip swivel. King came back with an Eddy Gordo kick. Hendry caught King off a dive and hit him with the Standing Ovation. Jean put King’s foot on the bottom rope for the nearfall rope break.
King accidentally hit Jean with a corkscrew plancha when Hendry sidestepped. Jean recovered and held Hendry’s legs. King rolled up Hendry and picked up the win with a leverage pin where Jean assisted King in putting his legs on the ropes.
Kenny King defeated Joe Hendry via pinfall in 6:09 to become the new Digital Media Champion.
The Nick Aldis video package from this week’s Impact aired where Aldis hyped his upcoming match against Alex Shelley…
John’s Thoughts: A well worked match with the fans still having fun with the whole “Stripper Kenny” thing. I still hope they rebrand the Digital Media Title because the name and branding is an albatross on the title. I wouldn’t mind seeing King try to elevate the title. I also wouldn’t mind seeing Joe Hendry get more character development beyond his catchphrases. He showed really good character depth during his first run with Impact when he was Grado’s buddy (and teasing that he may be nefarious), and I wouldn’t mind seeing him redevelop that.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. Rehwoldt celebrated King winning the Digital Media Title. Hannifan noted that the Ultimate X Match will open the show. Hannifan and Rehwoldt ran through the Slammiversary card…
Impact Wrestling Slammiversary Main Show
An Impact Slammiversary intro video aired. It featured old footage of Jeff and Jerry Jarrett talking about founding the company. They aired current b-roll footage along with the old Scott Steiner math promo…
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Dave Penzer was the ring announcer…
Entrances for the Ultimate X match aired. Kushida actually made his entrance not dressed up as Marty McFly. Hannifan noted he was wearing the hockey jersey of the local Windsor team. Jake Something ended up being a surprise entrant to the match…
1. “The Time Splitter” Kushida vs. “The Celestial” Alan Angels vs. Jonathan Gresham vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey vs. Kevin Knight vs. Jake Something in an Ultimate X Match. After most of the field was cleared, Knight jumped on Jake’s chest to make a play at the X. Something power bombed Knight on the wrestlers at ringside. The wrestlers teamed up to dump Something away. Knight hit bailey with a high dropkick. Knight overshot a crossbody. Gresham hit Kushida with Paydirt. Knight hit Bailey with a standing splash.
The commentators noted that Knight and Kushida are tag partners. Bailey caught Jake with a Triangle Moonsault. Gresham and Bailey were on the same page, but it broke apart when they went for the X. Angels caught both men with a Spanish Fly. Kushida caught Angels with double boots. Kushida put Angels in the electric chair and Knight knocked him off with a dropkick. Bailey climbed to the top of Ultimate X and hit everyone with a crazy moonsault from the top.
Bailey fended off Jake and climbed back to the structure ropes. Angels used a chair to knock Bailey off. Angels used 6 chair shots to take down Jake. Angels climbed the X ropes. Knight caught up with Alan. Alan gave Knight a Poison Rana from the X ropes. Angels used a low blow to knock Gresham off the ropes. Jake shoved Alan into the scaffolding to stagger him. Angels used a uppercut to the balls to knock Jake off the X ropes. Angels, Kushida, and bailey made their way to the X.
Angels gave Bailey a low blow to knock him off. Kushida knocked down Angels off the X ropes and managed to get the X for the win.
Kushida defeated Alan Angels, Jake Something, Kevin Knight, Jonathan Gresham and Mike Bailey in an Ultimate X match in 11:11.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. They introduced the French Commentary team who got to speak in French a bit. Hannifan also introduced former Team Canada member A-1 at ringside. The commentary team ran through some upcoming matches…
John’s Thoughts: Simple and sweet Ultimate X match. We’ve seen crazier in the past, but I feel like this one had enough moments to stand out. Alan Angels stood out with his fun low blow antics. I hope this is a sign that he’s going to be a player in the Impact singles division. Fun return for Jake Something. I’m surprised WWE or AEW never took a chance on the guy? AEW did give him a few Dark and Elevation matches, but that’s it. The guy’s a good talker, can do comedy if you need, and has a muscular WWE body. Again, I thought it would be a shoe in that he’d get signed to NXT. Here’s hoping he gets a good run in Impact now that he’s back and not doing the Larry the Cable Guy thing with Deaner.
Gia Miller interviewed Kenny King and Sheldon Jean. The audio was horrible. King bragged about beating Joe Hendry for the Digital Media title. King talked about how he “stripped” Joe Hendry of the title. King said he’s better than the other champions like Alex Shelley or Chris Sabin. He said he’s the DMC and that’s the only title that matters…
A hype video aired to hype the Knockouts Tag Team Title match…
A facts graphic aired for the upcoming match…
Entrances for the upcoming match took place. Masha and Kelly had their own tag team entrance music now. Hannifan noted that Taylor is the current Knockouts Tag Champ, but was also the inaugural Knockouts Tag Team Champion…
2. “The Coven” KiLynn King and Taylor Wilde vs. Masha Slamovich and Killer Kelly for the Impact Knockouts Tag Team Titles. Kelly took a slap from Wilde and liked it. Masha and Kelly double teamed both opponents. Masha hit both opponents in the corner with a dropkick. Kelly hit Wilde with a Pump Kick and suplex for a two count. Kelly worked on Wilde with short-arm lariats. Kelly pummeled Wilde with strikes in the corner and gave Wilde a PK for a two count. Masha tagged in and gave Wilde rapid palm strikes and a drop kick for a two count.
Wilde gave Masha an Eye of the Hurricane for the two count. King tagged in and gave Masha a flapjack. King backdropped Wilde on Masha and got a two count. King gave Masha back elbow in the corner. Masha got a two count after a double stomp off the rollup. Masha and Kelly gave King a high low kick. Kelly got a two count. King hit Kelly with a Flatliner into the 2nd rope. Wilde blind tagged in and worked on Kelly with methodical offense. The Coven cut the ring in half on Kelly.
Kelly got a window of opportunity after dodging a diving senton from King. Masha and Taylor tagged in with Masha having the hot hand. Masha beat both women with kick variations. Masha hit Taylor with a spinning heel kick for a two count. Masha hit Wilde with a backfist and buzzsaw kick combo for a two count. Kelly and King traded arm trap headbutts with King getting the upper hand. Wilde gave Masha a lungblower, which sent Masha into King’s German Suplex. Masha avoided King’s meteora in the corner.
Kelly hit Wilde with a reverse cannonball. Masha hit King with a dropkick. Masha and Kelly hit Wilde with a stereo ripcord knees. Wilde hit Masha with Witches Wrath for a nearfall. Kelly dragged King out of the ring. Masha hit Wilde with a slam (the camera didn’t catch it, but I assume it’s the Snow Plow) for the pinfall win. The replay showed that it was a Snow Plow.
Masha Slamovich and Killer Kelly defeated The Coven via pinfall in 9:04 to become the new Knockouts Tag Team Champions.
A Bully Ray, Scott D’Amore, and Deaner hype package aired. Bully talked about how Scott is an executive because he couldn’t cut it as a wrestler. Bully said the longer he’s in the business, the more he’s shocked at the stupidity by everyone. Footage aired from his feud with Scott D’Amore…
John’s Thoughts: A fun and well worked tag team match that didn’t have to go long. As I’ve said in the past, as much as I cringe at Wilde randomly being a witch out of nowhere, she’s been doing some strong in-ring work in her latest Impact run. King has impressed as well, especially when she wrestles singles. The babyface team winning makes sense, especially since they’ve been telling a story with them.
Entrances for the Scott D’Amore match took place. Darren McCarty was the first out. Deaner and Big Kon were out next (Alan Angels was edited out of their intro video). Bully Ray was the next out. Scott D’Amore made his entrance wearing what looked like a Bobby Roode robe.
Hannifan noted that he wore that robe when he faced Dusty Rhodes from back in the day. The mystery partner was revealed to be Eric Young. He came out to the O Canada theme with Johnny Cash’s Cut You Down as the intro. Hannifan stressed that Young was “Back from the Dead” as he was kayfabe killed by Deaner. Scott D’Amore’s mom was at ringside…
3. Bully Ray and Deaner (w/Big Kon) vs. Scott D’Amore and Eric Young with Darren McCarty as the special ringside enforcer. Deaner tagged out to avoid facing his old mentor. D’Amore tagged in and did a leap frog to taunt Bully. Bully tagged out to avoid Scott. Deaner raked the eyes of D’Amore. D’Amore ran the ropes and gave Deaner a leg lariat. D’Amore gave Deaner a diving leg drop. D’Amore gave Deaner the D’Lo Leg Drop for the two count. Young tagged in and did a Death Drop with D’Amore on Deaner.
D’Amore tagged back in and gave Deaner an axe handle strike. D’Amore hit Deaner with a Sky High for a two count. Bully blindsided D’Amore when the referee was distracted. Deaner bit D’Amore in the face and gave him a right hand. Bully tagged in and tossed D’Amore to ringside. Bully yelled at Scott’s mom while beating her son up. Bully dared Scott’s mom to punch him and she did make a few missed swipes. D’Amore showed fighting spirit, taking Bully’s punches in the center of the ring.
Eric Young led the crowd in an O Canada sing-along. Bully low blowed D’Amore in front of the referee and dared the ref to disqualify him. Young protested. Bully bullied the ref to disqualify him. The referee took off his shirt and walked away. Darren McCarty put on the referee shirt to become the official referee. Bully was shocked when he turned around to see Darren in the shirt. Bully hit D’Amore with his signature Dudley punches. D’Amore blocked the final punch with a spear.
Young got the hot tag. Young took down Deaner with a discus lariat. He took down Bully with a stiff lariat. Young hit Deaner with a pile driver. Kon dragged McCarty to ringside to break up the pin. A-1 ran in to dump Kon to ringside with a lariat. McCarty hit Bully with a Stunner. young hit Bully with a body slam. Darren and EY held Bully’s legs to allow D’Amore to hit Bully with the What’s Up. Bully yelled “My Balls!”.
McCarty, EY, and D’Amore did the “Get the tables” bit. McCarty and D’Amore gave Bully a double team chokeslam. D’Amore ducked the Canadian Flagpole from Deaner. D’Amore hit Deaner with a Canadian Destroyer. Young hit Deaner with a top rope Elbow Drop for the win.
Eric Young and Scott D’Amore defeated Deaner and Bully Ray via pinfall in 11:49.
Eric Young, Scott D’Amore, and A-1 posed for a Team Canada Reunion. D’Amore then went to hug his mom at ringside…
John’s Thoughts: A fun match that exceeded my expectations. Yes, it was a novelty match, but a well done novelty. Good on Scott for getting in ring shape. He sold more than I expected being the president of the company. Sucks we didn’t get to see what Paul Levesque had planned for Young, but cool to see him back in the company that made him. We’ll see if he’s in for the long haul? Deaner being in the match was random at first, but it makes sense given how he “killed” Eric Young. Bully continues to do well in Impact. If he ever ends up in WWE, might he end up pulling HBK and Triple H out of retirement for a program? I kid, but you never know given Bully’s recent big feuds.
The show cut to Nick Aldis at his personal interview set. He cut a promo about how Alex Shelley needs to prove himself tonight. Aldis said Shelley may be a hell of a man, but it takes a better man to keep a title. He said if Shelley can’t prove himself, he’ll be waiting. Aldis said he’s a closer. He said people say it takes 3 seconds to win a wrestling match, but for Aldis it takes one mistake with a cloverleaf. He said he’s going to prove Shelley as a transitional champion and send Impact to the Aldis Era…
Entrances for the X Division title match took place. Rush knocked Sabin off the apron before the match and hit him with a flip dive. The referee went to give Sabin a concussion test at ringside. Rush posed in the corner of the ring, laughing, while Sabin was being checked on by the referee and medic. A medic said Sabin couldn’t wrestle. The referee said they need to ask Sabin. Sabin shoved away the medic. Sabin entered the ring and the bell rang…
4. Chris Sabin vs. Lio Rush for the Impact X Division Championship. Sabin took a dropkick and didn’t even get his jacket off. Rush hit Sabin with an overhead spin kick. Rush hit Sabin with The Final Hour. Sabin kicked out of Rush’s pin. Rush hit Sabin with a 2nd Final Hour for the win.
Lio Rush defeated Chris Sabin via pinfall in 1:20.
The show cut to Gia Miller interviewing Alex Shelley, who was watching Chris Sabin lose the title. Gia asked Alex if the loss is going to have an impact on his title match. Shelley no sold Gia and walked away…
John’s Thoughts: Hey. I liked that. You can see a 20-minute classic on any of the many pro wrestling shows on any given week. They tried something different here and it made Lio Rush look strong and vicious. Rush going over has me hoping that he’s sticking around in Impact. Good on Chris Sabin for putting over Rush strong too. If I remember correctly, Rush was a protégé of the Machine Guns back in Ring of Honor? Which would mean Sabin’s paying it forward here.
A facts graphic aired for the tag team title match…
Entrances for the tag team title match took place. Hannifan noted that there are 2 legal men at any given time and the other teams have to tag in…
5. “ABC” Chris Bey and Ace Austin vs. Moose and Brian Myers vs. Rich Swann and Sami Callihan vs. “The South Wales Subculture” Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster (w/Dani Luna) for the Impact Tag Team Championships. Andrews and Bey started the match. Ace and Bey used tags to cut the ring in half on Andrews. Ace and Andrews traded counters. Webster tagged in. Subculture used alternating flips to get a two count on Ace. Ace and Bey were wearing baby blue gear for some reason. Webster hit Ace with a lionsault. Swann tagged out Ace.
Swann caught Flash with a dropkick. Swann hit Flash with a springboard kick. Callihan hit Flash with a Shoulder Breaker. Myers cleared the field with a superkicks. Swann took down Moose and Myers with kicks when both men went for pile drivers. Swann hit Myers at ringside wtih a cannonball. Bey went for a flip dive on Moose but Moose turned it to an Apron Bomb. Bey hit Moose with his signature PK from the apron. Myers gave Ace a spear on the apron.
Andrews hit Myers with a flip dive. Callihan tossed Webster to the pile of wrestlers at ringside with a Death Valley Driver toss. Flash escaped a double suplex attempt by Callihan and Swann. Swann use a sunset flip to allow Callihan to nail him with a punch and DVD. Swann hit Flash with a standing splash for a two count. Flash avoided Swann’s 450 attempt. Ace tagged in and missed a disaster kick on Swann.
Ace hit Swann with a Listo Kick. Swann caught Bey with a hook kick. Bey put Swann in a Torture Rack. Ace hit Swann with a kick while Bey slammed him. Moose and Myers took down the tag team champions. Andrews caught Moose and Myers with a Cardiac Kick. Moose came back with a pump kick. Andrews countered a suplex into a Stundog Millionaire on Moose. Flash hit Moose with a Swanton for a two count. Andrews cleaned house by giving everyone headbutts.
Callihan took down Subculture with double lariats. Moose went for a dive but Swann and Bey teamed up on him for a double cutter. Ace tagged in and hit Swann with a slice kick. Ace and Bey caught Callihan with double superkicks. Bey hit Flash with a double cutter. Myers tagged out Ace. Zach Wentz and Trey Miguel ran in to toss Ace into the steel steps. Wentz hit Bey with a Front Facelock Driver.
Flash hit Myers with a Selinda Del Sol. Webster hit the wrestlers at ringside with a top rope cannonball. Andrews hit Myers with Fall to Pieces (Shooting Star Press) for the win.
The South Wales Subculture defeated Brian Myers and Moose, ABC, and Sami Callihan and Rich Swann via pinfall in 10:36 to become the new Impact Tag Team Champions.
A hype package aired for the Kazarian vs. Edwards match….
John’s Thoughts: A fun tag team match with a surprising team going over. I do like the result as it’s going to lead to ABC spinning away to feud with The Rascalz, and they don’t have to rush the Rascalz into a title program. Like Rush, I hope that Subculture winning means they’re sticking around for more than just a cup of coffee. The crowd did seem a bit quiet, but I’m guessing they were just emotionally spent from the previous two matches.
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan noted that with Kazarian being a So Cal guy he was wearing Lakers colors (Go Lakers!) while Eddie being a Boston guy was in Celtics green. Rehwoldt also noted that Killer Kowalski also wore purple and gold…
6. Eddie Edwards (w/Alisha Edwards) vs. Frankie Kazarian (w/Traci Brooks). The match started pretty even between both men. Alisha provided the initial distraction. Traci distracted Eddie which allowed Kazarian to nail Eddie with a Lungblower. Eddie backdropped Kaz to ringside to escape a headlock. Alisha taunted Kazarian. Traci confronted Alisha at ringside. Eddie gave Kazarian stiff chops at ringside. A “Boston sucks” chant ensued. Rehwoldt said he thought Canadians are polite and should also do a “California Sucks” chant.
Eddie got a two count off a suplex. Kaz came back with chops. Eddie worked on Kazarian with shortarm chops. Kazarian came back with a high angle German Suplex that turned Eddie inside out. Kaz got a two count off a rollup. Kazarian dumped Eddie to ringside. Kazarian turned a plancha into a huracanrana. Kazarian chopped Eddie around at ringside. Alisha raked the back of Kazarian to draw his attention. Kazarian backed Alisha into Traci.
Eddie caught Kazarian with a suicide dive. Eddie chopped around Kazarian at ringside. Eddie yelled at Kaz’s son, Rebel, at ringside. Eddie and Alisha threw a fit at fans saying “Boston sucks”. Kaz and Eddie traded headbutts with Eddie getting the upper hand after a chop. Eddie paintbrushed his foot on Kaz’s face against the buckle. Kazarian and Eddie traded stiff strikes in the center of the ring. Kaz no sold face wash kicks and gave Eddie his own boot. Kaz rallied back with a clothesline and spinning heel kick.
Kaz took down Eddie with a lariat. Eddie dodged a leg drop. Kazarian body slammed Eddie and hit him with a spingboard leg drop for a nearfall. Eddie escaped an Unprettier attempt. Eddie hit Kaz with a backpack stunner for a nearfall. Eddie and Kaz brawled to the top rope. Eddie hit Kazarian with a superplex. Kaz turned Eddie inside out with a suplex for a nearfall. Kazarian surprised Eddie with a cutter for a nearfall. Eddie ducked Kaz to send him into the ref. REF BUMP!!!
Both men took each other out with crossbodies. Alisha tried to hit Kaz with a kendo stick, but Traci ran in and hit Alisha with ground and pound and a lariat. Eddie went for a jackknife rollup, and Kaz reversed it into a chickenwing. Eddie tapped, but the ref was bumped and couldn’t see the tap out. Kaz broke the hold and pulled the ref back in the ring. Eddie hit Kazarian in the back with a Kendo stick while the referee was recovering. Eddie hit Kaz with a Boston Knee Party for the win.
Eddie Edwards defeated Frankie Kazarian via pinfall in 17:43.
A hype package aired for the Knockouts Title match…
John’s Thoughts: Strong effort from both men. The crowd seemed less invested in this match, but I can’t blame them because the story wasn’t too compelling between Kaz and Edwards. The wives at ringside did add to the match. I’m starting to buy into Eddie’s heel act now that it’s freshened up with Alisha being heel with him now. She’s a really good agitator at ringside.
Entrances for the Knockouts Title match took place. Trinity did her usual blacklight dance to the ring. Deonna Purrazzo had a violinist play her entrance theme. Dave Penzer handled the formal in-ring championship introductions. They actually named the referee. Hannifan noted that there were 4 title changes so far on the show…
7. Deonna Purrazzo vs. Trinity for the Knockouts Championship. Deonna took down Trinity with a tackle, but Trinity got right back up with a Kip Up. Trinity and Deonna traded armdrags. Trinity used a jackknife pin for a two count. Trinity quickly rolled away to avoid an armbar. Trinity hit Deonna with a shotgun dropkick. Deonna rolled to ringside to avoid a Rear View. Trinity hit Purrazo with a Wrecking Back kick and Corkscrew Plancha.
Deonna shook the ropes to trip Trinity to the mat. Deonna hit Trinity with an elbow stomp. Deonna focused on Trinity’s injured arm with methodical offense. Deonna dominated for a few minutes. Trinity managed to land a springboard kick. Trinity gave Purrazo right hands and a Samoan Drop. Her left arm is the “injured” one. Trinity hit Deonna with a Disaster Kick for a nearfall. Deonna reversed a Starstruck with a rollup.
Deonna reversed a huracanrana into a Thrill of the Kill pile driver for a two count. Trinity escaped a Gotch Driver attempt. Deonna used a Russian Legsweep to put Trinity into a Fujiwara Armbar. Trinity got to the bottom rope. Trinity surprised Purrazzo with a Slingshot X Factor and Split Legged Moonsault for a two count. Purrazzo backdropped Trinity to the apron. Purrazo hit Trinity with a snug looking Pile Driver on the apron.
Trinity kicked out at two. Purrazzo went for a top rope Gotch Driver. Trinity countered it into a Top Rope Full Nelson Atomic Drop. Trinity rolled up Deonna into Starstruck. Deonna tried to roll up Trinity, but Deonna ended up tapping out. Bit of a strange finish.
Trinity defeated Deonna Purrazzo via submission in 14:25 to become the new Impact Knockouts Champion.
John’s Thoughts: Hard worked match. This was paced like those NXT Black and Gold matches where it starts off methodical and ends with strong false finishes. I hope Trinity’s bell wasn’t rung off that snug looking pile driver. Only reason the thought crossed my mind is the finish was a bit clumsy, but still compelling. I feel like I said this with every title match tonight, “I hope Trinity is sticking around now that they put the belt on her”. She probably would have been lost in the shuffle in WWE or AEW, so Impact is a good fit for her to shine bright. Interesting that they’re shifting all their titles on Slammiversary and not Bound for Glory.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. Lio Rush and Trey Miguel vs. Hiromu Takahasha and Miike Bailey was announced for the next Multiverse show. IWGP Champion Sanada was announced for the “Emergence” show. Hannifan noted that Sanada is a former Impact wrestler (where he was a part of James Storm’s cult)…
The Alex Shelley vs. Nick Aldis hype package aired…
A tale of the tape aired for the wrestlers wrestling in the main event…
Entrances for the championship match aired. Hannifan reiterated that every title match so far has involved a title change. Dave Penzer handled the formal in ring championship introductions…
8. Alex Shelley vs. Nick Aldis for the Impact World Championship. Aldis taunted Shelley to start the match. Shelley spit a bunch of water in the face of Aldis. Shelley hit Aldis with the ten punches in the corner. Aldis reversed it into a Power Bomb. Alids put Shelley in a Cloverleaf. Shelley got to the bottom rope for the rope break. Aldis used a Power Irish Whip to slam Shelley into the buckle. Shelley gave Aldis’s knee a basement dropkick. Shelley came back with a shove.
Aldis hit Shelley with a Pumphandle Suplex. Aldis worked on Shelley with methodical offense. Shelley went for a dive, but Aldis caught Shelley and hit him with a Suplex. Shelley got a moment of respite after giving Aldis’s leg a Dragon Screw on the bottom rope. Shelley gave Aldis a PK to the hamstring. Shelley continued to focus his kicks on Aldis’s hamstrings. Shelley gave Aldis a baseball slide. Shelley went for another baseball slide but was trapped in the apron.
Aldis sent Shelley’s back into the ringpost. Aldis gave Shelley Snake Eyes on the apron. Aldis went back to his methodical offense. Shelley escape a suplex and gave Aldis a stunner on the ropes. Shelley hit Aldis’s hands with a slingshot double stomp. Aldis gave Shelley a thumb to the eye. Shelley came back by shoving Aldis into the ring post. Shelley trapped Aldis’s fingers into the turnbuckle screw and tortured Aldis.
Shelley gave Aldis another stomp to the hands. Shelley gave Aldis another Dragon Screw against the ropes. Shelley hit Aldis with a Chop Block. Aldis gave Shelley a thumb to the eye and slammed his face into the mat. Shelley went back to twisting Aldis’s injured hand. Aldis came back with a desperation lariat for a two count. Shelley and Aldis made their way to the top rope. Shelley hit Aldis with a Superplex.
Shelley and Aldis had a slugfest in the center of the ring. Shelley backed down Aldis with chops. Shelley hit Aldis with a Flatliner into the buckle. Aldis reversed a Superkick. Shelley blocked a Cloverleaf attempt. Shelley reversed a Figure Four into a rollup. Shelley got a two count after a Sliced Bread. Aldis reversed a Crossface into a pin attempt. Shelley escaped a Cloverleaf by giving Aldis a wishbone snap to the injured hand.
Aldis reversed a Sliced Bread into a Pile Driver for a nearfall. Aldis hit Shelley with an elbow drop for a great nearfall. Aldis dragged the world title into the ring. Shelley superkicked Aldis and dropped the title. Shelley teased hitting Aldis to return the favor from a few weeks ago. Shelley decided to not do it.
While the referee was distracted Aldis gave Shelley a low blow and Michinoku Driver for the two count. Aldis tried to hit Shelley in the head with the belt, but Shelley recovered and DDT’d Aldis on the belt to bust him open. Shelley gave Aldis Shell Shocked for the victory.
Alex Shelley defeated Nick Aldis via pinfall in 16:31 to retain the Impact World Championship.
Highlights from the match aired. Hannifan was about to close the show. Suddenly, former Impact World Champion Josh Alexander made his Impact return in street clothes. Alexander stood face to face with Shelley in the ring. Alexander soaked in “Walking Weapon” chants. Alexander took a mic. He then soaked in “Welcome Back” chants. Alexander said “I’m back!”. Shelley and Alexander jawed with each other off-mic as Slammiversary closed…
John’s Thoughts: Good storytelling here. Aldis was going for his cloverleaf, but Shelley turned the tables by preventing Aldis from locking in the move by focusing on the hands. I really liked the old school technical stuff here. Aldis even resorting to old school heel tactics by the end (which was commonplace during his NWA run). Good to see Aldis back in a prominent match in the place that brought him into wrestling. He’s such a different person compared to the Magnus days.
Nice surprise return for Josh Alexander. Hopefully he’s fully healed and not rushing back. I feel a bit bad for Steve Maclin though. Not only did they take the belt off him, so he couldn’t finish his story with Alexander; but then Steve gets his own injury that took him off this show. Hopefully Steve recovers from his injury and gets to run things back against Josh Alexander.
Overall, this was an enjoyable show. The build suffered with the card being put together pretty much last minute due to Shelley and Sabin recently winning the titles. The many title changes made for a meaningful event. It was right to keep the belt on Shelley as to not have him be that transitional champion that Aldis keeps taunting him with. I’m happy that the Scott D’Amore match was early in the show as to not overshadow their other matches. Hey? Wasn’t there supposed to be Santino vs. Dirty Dango? Anyways, good stuff.
Post Show Promo
Josh Alexander took a mic and talked about how he’s come back even better than when he left. Alexander soaked in more “Walking weapon” chants. Alexander said he’s so happy to be back in front of the fans. Alexander then plugged that he’ll be back tomorrow for the tapings. He said he’s been watching the show every week while injured and this was a good Slammiversary show. Alexander said he always knew Shelley would be a great Impact Champion.
Alexander thanked Shelley for putting on a good main event and not losing the title because he wants to challenge someone as good as Shelley for the title. Shelley took the mic and thanked the crowd. He also talked about how Alexander was tough, coming back from so many injuries. Shelley then ended the segment by plugging the tapings for the next day.
Hannifan and Rehwoldt checked back in from commentary. Hannifan ran through highlights from the Knockouts Title Match. Hannifan then plugged the upcoming Multiverse and Emergence shows. Hannifan closed the show.
Great analysis. Much appreciated. This site is the best in the business.