wrestling / TV Reports
Himanshu’s Impact Wrestling Review 01.05.23
Image Credit: Impact Wrestling
Loading...Hey there, IMPACT fans! It’s Thursday and that means it’s time for another episode of IMPACT Wrestling. I’m Himanshu (you can follow me on @Himanshu_Doi) and you know how this works. Tonight, Matt Cardona, representing the Major Players and his partner Brian Myers, squares off with one half of the IMPACT World Tag Team Champions, The Motor City Machine Guns’ Chris Sabin. Decay’s Black Taurus goes one-on-one with Anthony Greene. The Knockouts are in action, as surging contender Masha Slamovich takes on IMPACT Wrestling legend Taylor Wilde. Plus Jonathan Gresham makes his in-ring return ahead of his showdown with Eddie Edwards at HARD TO KILL. So let’s jump right in!
As a reminder, the GoFundMe for Larry’s daughters is still active and if you can make a donation, that would be awesome. Thank you so much to everyone who’s done so thus far.
IMPACT Wrestling
Deonna Purrazzo comes out to join the commentary team for the first match.
Match 1: Masha Slamovich vs Taylor Wilde
Masha sits Taylor down and kicks her across the back. Taylor gets out of the corner and rams a running Slamovich face first into the apron for two. Slamovich hits a Northern Lights Suplex followed by a double stomp. She goes for a vertical suplex but Taylor Wilde gets out of it and hits a bridging German Suplex for two. Masha Slamovich hits two snap suplexes followed by a suplex on the corner turnbuckle. Taylor Wilde comes back into it and whips Masha into the ropes but they both take each other down with a clothesline. Taylor goes for the Wilde Ride but Masha fights out of it. Masha pulls Taylor throat first into the ropes and goes to the outside and spits at Deonna. She gets back into the ring and gets into a package pin by Taylor for three.
Result: Taylor Wilde def. Masha Slamovich by pinfall
Rating: **¾
Promo by Sami Callihan and he says he wants an answer by the end of the night on whether The Design want Sami Callihan or not.
Promo from Rich Swann and he challenges Maclin to a Falls Count Anywhere match at Hard To Kill.
Crazzy Steve is in the ring and he says Anthony Greene is yellow and wishes he never stepped in an IMPACT ring and he will be black and blue after the beating he suffers at the hands of Black Taurus.
Match 2: Black Taurus vs Anthony Greene
Anthony Greene takes down Black Taurus with a hurrancanrana. Black Taurus gets a power slam for two. Greene hits chops onto Taurus. Taurus goes for a monkey flip but Greene throws Taurus outside the ring.
Back from commercial and Greene is in control. Taurus pops up Greene into a Samoan Drop. Taurus drops Greene back first onto his knee and hits Destination Hellhole for three.
Result: Black Taurus def. Anthony Green by pinfall
Rating: ***
After the match, Trey Miguel attacks Greene near the entrance stage and spray paints on him.
Kenny King is in Speedball’s dojo in Montreal looking Bailey. He attacks Bailey’s students and leaves them all laying.
Bailey is backstage and says King has gotten his attention. He challenges Kenny King to a Pit Fight.
Match 3: Jonathan Gresham vs jobber
Jonathan Gresham gets a submission where the arm is trapped under his leg and he’s hooked one leg. He’s on his back and gets the three count.
Result: Jonathan Gresham wins by pinfall
Rating: SQUASH
Tasha Steelz is talking with Savannah Evans about the Death Dollz. Gisele Shaw shows ups with Jai Vidal and suggests they team up. Savannah Evans asks what they have in mind.
Cody Deaner cuts a promo and says Sami Callihan is walking in a den of vipers and that he doesn’t choose The Design, The Design chooses him.
A promo shows Josh Alexander’s record-breaking World Title reign and all his accomplishments in IMPACT.
Moose makes his way to the ring. He says he’s done a lot of bad things and at Hard To Kill, Joe Hendry gets a taste of what those bad things are. He says Joe Hendry is always smiling because he’s never been through adversity. He says the difference between him and Joe is that Moose has done anything and everything to get to the position he is in now. He used to be people’s hero, but he found his calling as being a scumbag. At Hard To Kill, he’s going to be Joe’s first adversity and he’s going to wipe the smile off his face. He says it’s going to be easy and he is not going to wait until Hard To Kill. He calls out Joe Hendry.
Joe Hendry comes out and says there’s nothing worse than a grumpy Moose. He says he’s written Moose a song. A song plays out which makes fun of Moose’s dancing. A “dancing Moose” chant breaks out. Moose says he believes. He believes he’s going to beat Joe Hendry. He asks for his music but the “dancing Moose” music plays instead.
A sit-down interview airs where Mickie James talks about her career. She talks about getting her opportunity with ROH and TNA, leaving for WWE, returning to IMPACT as Hardcore Country, meeting Nick Aldis, going to WWE again and returning back to IMPACT. She cries talking about her mother and father working two jobs and that wrestling has given her so much.
A promo airs for Don West with comments from current and past IMPACT talent.
Match 4: Matt Cardona vs Chris Sabin
Matt Cardona whips Sabin into the ropes but Myers grabs his leg and Cardona clotheslines him out of the ring. Sabin drops Matt Cardona onto the ramp as we go to commercial.
Back from commercial and Cardona has the advantage on Sabin as he hits a hat-trick of neckbreakers for two. Cardona gets Sabin in the corner and Cardona climbs the turnbuckle to punch him but Sabin gets out of there and drops Cardona. Cardona is hung in the corner and eats a dropkick. Cardona rakes the eyes and sits Sabin in the corner but Sabin throws Cardona out of the ring as we go to commercial.
Back from commercial and Cardona hits a knee on Sabin. Sabin hits a tilt-a-whirl DDT from the top rope for two. Shelley comes out to chase away Myers and Sabin hits a Suicide Dive onto Myers. Sabin hits a crossbody onto Cardona for two. Cardona hits a Missile Dropkick but Sabin gets right back up and hits a Cradle Shock for the pin.
Result: Chris Sabin def. Matt Cardona by pinfall.
Rating: ***
Bully Ray comes out after the match and calls out Josh Alexander. Scott D’Amore comes out as we go to commercial.
Scott says Bully wasn’t there when Josh called him out but now that Josh isn’t in the building, he calls Josh out. Scott says when he left the industry, he took a hard look at himself because he didn’t like who he had become. But IMPACT gave him a chance and he wanted to give Bully the same chance. Scott says he turned away Devon so much that he wouldn’t even be in the same room with Bully. And Tommy Dreamer is in a hospital because of Bully. Scott says at Hard To Kill, Josh is going to give him the beating of his life. But if Josh loses, he walks into a locker room that respects him and a family that loves him. But Bully goes to an empty hotel room. Bully says he’s wrong. It leaves him a 3-time World Champion. He says Scott is a suckah. He’s no different than all of these people. He challenges Scott to punch him in the face. Scott punches Bully Ray. Hotch and Skyler grab hold of Scott and Bully Ray hits a piledriver on Scott. Bully gets a table and powerbombs Scott into the table. Bully asks Scott if he knows who he is. He is the next IMPACT World Champion. Bully leaves the ring with Scott laid out.
