wrestling / TV Reports
Cazer’s Impact Wrestling Review 2.17.22
Image Credit: Impact Wrestling
Loading...Is it Thursday Night? OHHHH SHELLLLL YEAH! Everyone’s talking about some Stone Cold guy but completely ignoring the legend that was Shark Boy drinkin Clam Juice in the middle of the Impact Ring. Impact should bring the legend back for the Dallas shows. All joking aside we are just a few days away from No Surrender and things are getting wild. Apparently Josh Alexander is actually gone and that leaves a number of Impact wrestlers left to fight the battle with Honor No More Alone. We’ve also got W. Morrisey chasing the World championship and so much more so tonight should be a solid go home show. Let’s get to the action!
– The show opens up with a recap of Josh Alexander’s promo last week and I sure hope Josh’s contract situation is a work if any of these contract stories are this one needs to be. We also see a recap of last weeks main event with Morrisey beating Meyers in a no DQ match. Poor Brian Meyers.
– Scott D’Amore is waiting in the ring with a contract and Moose comes down to sign. Moose sits down and grabs a mic, he says that he doesnt think Morrisey will make it tonight and he won’t make it to No Surrender either. Moose makes a reference to Morrisey’s old you can’t teach that slogan. He tells Scott that Morrisey isn’t stepping into the ring with just a guy but the greatest world champion in all of wrestling. This elicits a decent response, you might hate Moose but he’s undoubtedly over with the Impact audience. D’Amore says he loves Moose because he never lacks confidence, he asks Moose to sign the contract and he can be on his way. Moose says he’ll play the game but at No Surrender be prepared to send another one of his talents HOME. Moose goes to leave and Morrisey’s theme hits as Moose gets to the top of the stage. Moose runs at Morrisey but runs right into a big boot. Morrisey lifts Moose up and launches him across the stage. Morrisey tries to powerbomb Moose off the stage but Moose fights out, they struggle for a moment and Morrisey chokeslams Moose off the stage through a table. This is really good. D’Amore comes up and hands Morrisey the contract to sign. Morrisey signs it and throws it on Moose’s knocked out body. Shame that Josh didn’t get the same treatment as Morrisey. Jokes aside Morrisey has been fun to watch but it’s interesting the way he was seemingly unable to get over with the Dallas audience the way he did the Vegas audience.
– Gia is backstage with the Bullet Club. She asks how they feel about their busy night tonight. Bey says he wants to talk about whats going to happen in two beys when he wins the fatal four way match and becomes the #1 contender for the X-Division championship. He says that’s not the only dub that night, Tanga Loa jumps in and says that they will become the Impact World Tag Team Champions. Jay says at No Surrender they’re getting three dubs as he’s going to step into the ring with the leader of VBD Eric Young and take him a dub himself. He says before this weekend they have to give VBD a taste of what Bullet Club is all about. They get a nice Too Sweet in and let Gia join in, she nearly missed it.
Masha Slamovich vs. Kira Dream
Masha puts her hands behind her back and lets Kira get some offense in but it’s short lived, she hits a russian death device for the quick victory in less than a minute.
Rating: N/A
Review: This was really short so hard to give it a proper review, I like Masha but i’m ready to see her in some sort of extended program maybe even chasing the Knockouts championship.
Ace Austin vs. Blake Christian vs. Laredo Kid
The winner of this match will be added to the fatal four way match at No Surrender any one of these guys would be a great addition to the match on Saturday but i’m partial to my guy Blake Christian. Ace takes a slap from Laredo Kid giving Laredo and Blake a chance to get things started with a fast paced exchange. Laredo gets Blake into the corner and chops away before lifting him onto his shoulders. Ace cuts off Laredo Kid and sends Blake into the corner. Ace looks to send Laredo into the ropes but Kid reverses and sends Ace into the ropes instead. Ace pulls Kid to the outside and hits Blake with an enziguri on the inside. Blake catches Ace on the apron and hits a double stomp to the back of Ace. Blake looks for a dive on Ace but Ace pulls Fulton in the way. Laredo Kid with a dive to the outside and takes out Fulton. Ace with some nice acrobatics on the apron and drops Laredo Kid. Blake catches Ace taunting and drops him off the apron as we go to commercial.
Back from break and Blake looked to dive into the inside of the ring but Ace caught him and pulled him to the outside. Ace with a cover on Laredo Kid but he kicks out we get a recap from the break and some decent action for Blake on Laredo. Ace stomps away at Laredo on the inside. Blake looks to slide in but Ace catches him and hammers away at him as well. Ace with a belly to back suplex to Laredo Kid and he poses for a moment before stepping on Blake Christians face sending him to the outside. Laredo sends Ace into the corner and hits him with a forearm in the corner. Laredo with a scoop slam and follows with a springboard moonsault elbow drop. Laredo chants uno mas for a moment but Ace moves. Laredo off the ropes and looks for a tornado DDT on Blake but he reverses it with a gutbuster. Blake with a forearm to Laredo in the corner. Blake with a split legged moonsault for a two count on Laredo Kid as Ace rolls to the outside. Blake hit the diving reverse DDT on both Ace and Laredo Kid. This was an AMAZING move with such precision Blake did this at the Hammerstein and it was nuts then, now to two men this is wild! Blake sets Ace up for a dive but Fulton pulls him to the outside. Blake bounces off the ropes and dives into Fulton sending him into the barricade. Blake with a forearm and enziguri to Ace on the outside. He sets his sights on Laredo Kid and rolls him inside. Laredo Kid reverses and hits a reverse rana before ascending to the top rope. Laredo with a frogsplash and covers but Ace breaks it up at two. Ace with a spinning back kick to Laredo and charges Blake in the corner but he moves, Ace runs right into a standing spanish fly from Blake for a two count. Fulton is back up on the outside tending to Ace. Blake sets Laredo Kid up and climbs to the top rope. Ace cuts him off at the top and they exchange strikes. Blake with a headbutt to Ace and Ace rolls to the outside. Blake with a 450 double stomp to Laredo Kid Ace cuts Blake off on his way to make a cover and hits him with The Fold. Ace with the cover for the victory in 11:57.
Rating: ***1/2
Review: This was an awesome triple threat x-division match. Adding a guy like Blake to the division really does wonders. I hope they can do more with him and Alex Zayne as they feel like perfect fits for the X-Division. Ace winning is fine as he’s a consistent X-Division guy but I really am ready to see faces like Blake do more.
– The Decay are backstage and cut a promo on Jonah setting up a match between him and Black Taurus at No Surrender.
– Back from break and Kaleb is posing in front of the camera as the Iinspiration walk in. They thank him for the photos he took of them last week, they say he’s the best they’ve ever had. They tell him if he ever wants to see what it’s like to be with the Iinspiration to give them a call. Kaleb says for the record he’s a very loyal person, they say they know thats what they like about him before walking out.
Lady Frost vs. Gisele Shaw
Lady Frost is the coolest wrestler you’ll ever meet. Get it? Gisele is making her debut and her theme is the same one from the vignettes and i’m sad because this song is not the best, tho it fits the character for sure. Gisele talks plenty of trash early before getting in the face of Lady Frost. Frost off the ropes and ducks a clothesline trying to hit Shaw with a clothesline but she does a weak cartwheel kinda botched and some guys in the crowd let her know it. Frost with a wasit lock before getting sent into the corner Frost hits the double boots and sends Shaw to the mat. Frost sends Shaw into the corner and drops her before hitting a variation of the cannonball. Frost with a cover for one. Shaw sends Frost into the corner and dodges the double boots this time and hits a kick to the back of the head. Shaw with a draping DDT on Frost for a two count. Shaw hammers at the back of Frost and sends her into the middle rope. SHaw off the ropes but Frost tries to catch her with some kicks but Shaw dodges them all. Shaw sends Frost into the ropes and catches her with an uppercut. Shaw off the ropes and takes a shot from Frost. Shaw sends Frost into the ropes and hits her with a running knee to the back of the head. Shaw covers Frost for a two count. Frost to her feet and Shaw goes for a superkick. Frost ducks it and hits a kick of her own. Frost to the rop and hits a moonsault on Shaw. Shaw kicks out at two I was hoping Frost would win here. Frost back to the top but Shaw catches her with a kick. Shaw follows her to the top and hits the scariest spanish fly i’ve ever seen. She didn’t get set very well at all she just said fuck it and went for it. It wasn’t bad but sketchy. Frost kicks out at two but Shaw hits a corkscrew drop onto Frost and covers for the victory in 4:30.
Rating: *
Review: Shaw is not very good, she’s gotta be really new or just very green for a long time. I hope she improves but that spanish fly was super dangerous and could’ve injured Frost. Frost made this into a serviceable match but there were a few hiccups despite how short it was. Not sure Shaw is the one to put this time into.
Gia is backstage with Honor No More. She asks how they feel about all of the members of Team Impact getting removed from the match. Taven is offended and tells Gia to jump down the rabbit hole cuz she’s not going to like what she finds. Kenny King cuts a nice promo and sends that his opponent will bend the knee to the K-I-N-G King!
– Gia is backstage with Deonna Purrazzo and Deonna says that this saturday anyone who wants a shot at either of her titles this Saturday is fine with her. I like her open challenge gimmick it’s pretty cool especially with two championships.
Kenny King vs. Chris Sabin
Ian Riccaboni is here. Just let the man call the whole show please. Lock up to start and Sabin with a wristlock. King reverses out and talks some trash before posing with honor no more outside. Not the best group pose but still cool. King with a wristlock before Sabin reverses out into an armdrag. Sabin poses with Team Impact and again not the best group celebration but still better. Sabin back into the ring and they tease a test of strength but Sabin locks in a headlock. King sends Sabin into the ropes but Sabin reverses and hits an armdrag followed by a dropkick. Sabin catches Taven trying to get involved and stomps on his fingers. King capitalizes on the distraction and hangs up Sabin on the top ropes. King into the ring and covers for a one count. King with a suplex and rolls through into a cover on Sabin again for two. King lifts Sabin up and Sabin lays in some shots of his own. King off the ropes Sabin follows and runs right into a powerslam from King. King with a cover for two, Sabin kicks out but King rolls him right around into a chin lock. Sabin fights out and goes for a shot but King with a leg sweep and lays into Sabin with a kick right to the head. King covers for a two count and again back to the chin lock. Sabin fights out with elbows to the gut but King catches him with a knee to the midsection. King sends Sabin into the ropes but he counters into a roll up for two. Sabin sends King into the corner and he gets a roll up of his own for two. Both men to their feet and they drop each other with a double clothesline. The ref begins his count but both men barely make the count. King off the ropes into a back body drop from Sabin. Sabin with a big boot in the corner and then hits a tornado DDT on King and covers for a two count. Sabin teases a cradleshock but King fights out and drops Sabin. Sabin rolls to the outside, King goes for a twisting crossbody but Sabin moves and kicks King in the face. Sabin sends King into the ring and climbs to the top. Sabin with a crossbody onto King but he rolls through into a pin on Sabin. King gets a two count. Both men to the feet Sabin with a kick to the face and goes for a forearm but King rolls through into a tiger driver and covers for a two count. King lifts Sabin up onto his shoulders, Sabin grabs the ropes and King fights but Sabin fights out and rolls up King for the win in 8:37.
Rating: **3/4
Review: This was a solid singles match but it was just starting to really get going and then Sabin wins with a roll up. This was a solid finish but i’m not a huge fan of rollups out of nowhere but Sabin made it look nice so I can’t complain. Overall it was solid but I think given the right time and story these two could absolutely have a banger.
Post Match: Maria grabs a mic and says that Team Impact is good in a one on one contest but at No Surrender Honor No More will be a cohesive unit. Maria asks if they can stay the same because they didn’t do anything to take out Gresham. She says she knows who did, she points out that one of their members (Maclin) is missing. Maria tells them to get their house in order before stepping in the ring with Honor No More.
– Team Impact is backstage and they ask each other if they can trust Maclin. Maclin walks up and says that she’s just stirring up the pot. Edwards asks how they can trust him. Maclin says that they need to trust him or find another partner. Sabin says he’s in, Swann and Rhino agree. Finally Edwards says lets do it and he reluctantly agrees.
Chelsea Green & Mickie James vs. Tasha Steelz & Savannah Evans
Evans and Green kick things off, Green goes for an early roll up but Evans refuses. Green pulls Evans faces first to the mat and then sends her face first into the middle turnbuckle before tagging in Mickie. Mickie and Chelsea with some teamwork but it’s not the cleanest. Tasha tries to catch James off guard but Mickie holds onto her and uses her to splash onto Evans. Evans spears Mickie into the corner and rams her shoulder into the mid section of James. Steelz tags in and rubs Mickie’s face across the middle rope. Mickie in the corner and Tasha catches her with a splash. Steelz runs into an elbow then a rana from James. James tags in Green and we see a double elbow drop on Evans before Green covers for a two count. Steelz sends Green into the ropes and we get some misdirection before Green sweeps Tasha off her feet. Green with a cover for two. Tasha to her feet and she runs into a forearm from Chelsea. Evans goes for a clothesline but Chelsea ducks and drops her off the apron. Chelsea to the top but Steelz catches her off guard. Chelsea shoves Steelz off the top but Evans catches Chelsea from behind and sends her from the top rope to the mat as we go to break.
Back from break and Tasha locks in a chin lock on Chelsea. We recap the teamwork between Evans and Steelz on Green during the break. Chelsea fights out of the chin lock but eats a chop from Steelz. Steelz goes for a suplex but Green reverses into a roll up for two. Another roll up for two from Green. Steelz with a stiff chop that sends Green into the corner. Tasha goes after Chelsea in the corner but Chelsea with a sunsetflip cover for two. Steelz with a kick to the face of Chelsea and covers her for a two count. Tasha lifts Chelsea up and gets in Mickies face. Chelsea launches Tasha and goes for the tag but Tasha breaks it up. Mickie tries to get in but the ref is distracted as Green goes for the cover. Finally he notices and counts two. Steelz pulls Chelsea to her corner and tags in Evans. Chelsea with a kick to Evans and finally makes a tag to Mickie but the referee doesnt see it. Mickie tries to enter the ring but the referee sends her back out of the match. Tasha tags in and stomps away at Chelsea. Evans lifts Chelsea up in the corner and hits her with forearms to the chest. Evans lifts Chelsea up for a powerbomb but Green slips out and tags Mickie. Mickie with a dropkick to Evans knee. Mickie drops her with a boot to the face. Evans tries to make a tag but Mickie locks in a sleeper hold. Evans fights out and tags in Steelz. Mickie with a series of clotheslines to Steelz. Mickie walks into an elbow from Steelz. Mickie to the top and dives onto Tasha but Steelz moves. Mickie back up and hits the mick kick on Steelz but Evans breaks up the cover at two. Evans slams Chelsea but Mickie catches her and hits her with the Mick DT. Steelz is still the legal woman. Steelz hits the crucifix bomb on Mickie and covers for the victory in 12:26.
Rating: **
Review: This match was fine but there were quite a few missteps from both teams. They’re building to James and Steelz and Tasha looks as strong as ever going into a big match this weekend and that’s all you can ask for.
– Meyers gives us the final chapter of how to be a professional. I doubt it but I hope so. Meyers tells VSK and Dice that last week was an epic embarrassment. He says he’s been picking tacks off his back for a week now. We get a weird cut and Meyers continues yelling at the learning tree. VSK says it was their idea. We cut again and it appears Dice just got smacked. Meyers says they’re the worst students he’s ever had. He calls Zicky a joke and says he wont be part of it anymore. Meyers says the learning tree is done. Meyers says Dice and VSK are cut. Dice says he invited his mom to graduation it would’ve been his first one, poor fella.
VBD vs. Bullet Club
Switchblade and G.O.D are representing The Bullet Club tonight, no Bey on the outside at least not yet. Jay and Eric kick thing off neither taking the upper hand even exchanging some light slaps to the face early. They send each other into the corner and exchange chops. Young off the ropes into a backbody drop. White forces Eric to Too Sweet him before tagging in Tanga Loa who also too sweet’s Eric. Eric tags in Deaner and her takes a combination move from G.O.D. Doring tags in and charges Tama into the corner before dropping both Tanga and Jay with right hands. The numbers are too much for Doring and the Bullet Club sends Doring to the outside. Jay and Tama with double drop kicks to Eric and Deaner sending them to the outside as we go to break.
We return from commercial and Doring is drops Tama with a scoopslam and rebounds into the ropes with an elbow on Tama. Doring with a forearm to the back of Tama before tagging in Eric. Eric and Deaner take turns laying into Tama with shots, Tama fights out looking for a tag but VBD keep him isolated as Doring drops both members of the Bullet club. Tama off the ropes and runs into a mean cross body from Doring who covers for a two count before Tama kicks out. Eric tags in and drops an elbow on Tama’s side. Eric sends Tama face first into the top turnbuckle and tags in Deaner. Deaner lays into Tama and rubs his face on the bottom rope. Deaner lifts Tama up and tags in Doring. Doring lifts Tama up and kicks him in the face. Doring gets Tama on his shoulders and fights out, Tama with a tag to Tonga. Tonga gets in the face of Doring and we get a hoss square off, not sure Tonga is a hoss but still two big meaty dudes smashing meat. Both men drop eachother and make tags. Young and White into the ring. Jay with a chop to Eric and sends him into the ropes, Jay with another Chop before sending Eric into the corner. Jay with a number of chops in the corner some good some not so good. Jay sends Eric into the corner he rolls through to the top turn buckle and drops off running into another chop from Jay. Jay lifts Eric up for a suplex and covers for a two. Eric kicks out and Jay locks in a sleeper on Eric.. Doring from behind but G.O.D team up and try to take down Doring. G.O.D get Doring up and hit him with the Magic Killer taking a shot at the Good Brothers. They go for another on Deaner but Eric cuts it off. Eric with a belly to back on Tama. Deaner with a neck breaker to Tonga. Jay goes for the blade runner on Deaner but Eric stops it. Deaner with a knee to the face of Jay and Eric with an elbow drop. Eric covers for a two count but Jay kicks out which shocks Eric. Eric with an elbow to Jay’s face but Jay goes for the blade runner, Eric fights out into a back body drop but Deaner tags himself in. Deaner dives for Jay but Jay moves. G.O.D hit the killshot and then hit a combination headbutt and splash on Deaner. Jay covers for the victory in 13:19.
Rating: **1/2
Review: Your typical six man to get everyone mixed up ahead of the pay per view. This was a solid main event but i’m not in love with all of these people who are set to wrestle Saturday having matches against eachother tonight. I get the booking style just not one I’m fond of. This was a solid six man but not anything too crazy.
Post Match: The Good Bothers come out after the match with the championships and we get a staredown between them and G.O.D
