wrestling / TV Reports
Cazer’s Impact Wrestling Review 10.21.21
Loading...Impact Wrestling
Date: October 21st, 2021 [2 days from next PPV]
Location: Nashville, Tennessee
Commentary by: D’Lo Brown, Josh Matthews
Howdy howdy folks! It’s Thursday Night so that means we’ve got another loaded episode of Impact Wrestling ahead of ourselves. We’re just TWO DAYS away from Bound for Glory in Las Vegas and I’m big on go home shows before PPVs. I think it’s important to give your viewing audience a reason to pay to tune in to the upcoming PPV so hopefully Impact does that tonight as Bound for Glory is their biggest event of the year.
– At Bound for Glory Impact will have a massive Impact Women’s Championship match between Deonna Purrazzo and Mickie James. Leading up to this big match these two women have been given the opportunity to choose opponents for the other ahead of their Bound for Glory showdown. Tonight Mickie will make her return to the Impact wrestling ring for the first time since 2015 as she will face Savannah Evans. Evans has been incredibly dominant over the last few weeks, picking up the win in the Monsters Brawl at Knockouts Knockdown and defeating Lady Frost on Impact last week. If she could pick up a win over Mickie James it’ll be a huge upset, but Purrazzo did select her for a reason. Perhaps she can at least slow down Mickie ahead of her match this Saturday.
– Another match that has Bound for Glory championship implications will feature the continuation of The Bullet Club vs. FinJuice rivalry. Last week Karl Anderson suggested that Impact make a #1 contenders match featuring both teams with the winners facing Gallows & Anderson at Bound for Glory. These two teams have been going at it for a few weeks now and they’d both love a chance at some Impact Wrestling tag team gold. All they have to do is win tonight and they’re on to a title match at Bound for Glory against the well rested Good Brothers.
– The X-Division championship will be on the line this Saturday at Bound for Glory but before Trey Miguel can take care of Steve Maclin and El Phantasmo he has to get through Alex Zayne first. Zayne reminded Miguel that when they met in the triple threat Trey pinned Laredo Kid not Zayne. This lead to a high flying match that would fit tear the roof down in PWG and will likely do the same tonight.
– Outside of that i’m sure we’ll get some more Christian vs. Josh Alexander build, more Daniels teasing a title match, some build up to the call your shot gauntlet ,continued build for the Digital Media Championship match , and much more. With all that said, let’s get to it.
Before the Impact: W Morrisey def. Jake Something
– Impact opens with a recap of the last few weeks of Impact as we build to Bound for Glory. We see all of the X Division tournament winners. We see W. Morrisey win the battle royal last week. The recap ends with a replay of last weeks tense moment between Christian and Josh Alexander.
Impact Wrestling Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders match
The Bullet Club (Hikuleo & Chris Bey) vs. FinJuice
Bey and Finlay look to start but Bey tags Hikuleo in instead. David Finlay with the headlock on Hikuleo, gets tossed into the ropes and runs into a huge shoulder block from Hikuleo. Bey tags in bey Finlay takes advantage and tags in Juice. Juice with a senton onto Bey taunts quickly before covering for two. Juice gets into the refs face he’s heated up for tonight’s match.
Juice has Bey in the corner and smashes him head first into the turnbuckle 9 times before running to the other side for a huge tenth shot. Juice looks for another shot in the turnbuckle but Bey reverses out and tags in Hikuleo. Juice gets the advantage and tags in Finlay, the hit a double bulldog on Hikuleo and Finlay covers for two. Finlay has a headlock on Hikuleo, who goes for a backbody drop but Finlay lands on his feet. Finlay runs into a sidesuplex from Hikuleo who covers for a two count. Hikuleo stomps on Finlay’s body using the ropes for assistance.
Bey tags in and Hikuleo holds Finlay as Bey hits a springboard back rakee on Finlay. Finlay fights back but Bey drops him with a stiff enziguri. Bey goes for a cover but Finlay kicks out at two but Bey rolls him right into a chinlock. Juice cheers on Finlay saying ‘we dont lose to chinlocks’ and really who does? Finlay fights out but Bey back on the offensive nails a combination of strikes but Finlay tosses Bey into the ropes and drops Bey both men down in the center of the ring.
Bey grabs Finlay to prevent the tag but Finlay makes the tag to Juice anyways. Juice tosses Bey into the ring and hits him with a huge backbody drop. Juice drop Hikuleo and gets Bey in the corner for the patented ten count punches but stops at eight and ends it with a bite to Bey’s forehead. Juice drops Bey in the corner and hits a cannonball on Bey in the corner. Juice tags in Finlay and they hit a combination move on Bey, Finlay goes for the cover but Hikuleo breaks it up. Hikuleo and Juice fight outside the ring as Bey recovers and gains the advantage. Finlay lifts Bey up and he drops the referee. Finlay goes for the cover but the ref can’t make the count. Hikuleo in the ring and chokeslams Finlay tossing Bey on to cover. We wait a bit and a new ref runs in. Bey gets a two count and Finlay kicks out in a shocker.
Bey goes for art of Finesse on Finlay but Finlay reverses it into a jumping neckbreaker. Both men make a tag and Juice nails Hikuleo with some combo strikes but Hikuleo goes for a chokeslam. Juice breaks out and goes for move off the ropes but is hit with a powerslam. Hikuleo with a pin but Juice kicks out. Juice and Bey with simultaneous pins as both refs counted on a pair of roll ups.
Winner: Both teams. Yes Really.
Review: C. That was such a fun match that opened the show well but ended in the worst way possible. I was confused at the unnecessary ref bump and didn’t like it to begin with only for it to lead to both refs making a pin. Couldn’t we have done a double count out, or time limit or literally anything else to get a triple threat title match? Also Bey was clearly not the legal man it really shouldn’t be a question.Â
Post match: The refs and both teams argue over this ridiculous finish as we go to break.
– We come back and of course both teams are arguing. Scott is here clearly he has to know Bey was not legal and this should be simple. Scott D’Amore is heated and says that he will make the decision by the end of tonight. Apparently he didn’t see that Bey was not the legal man and has to figure it out.
– Josh & D’Lo run down the card for Bound for Glory and mix in some stuff we have on tap for tonight.
– We have a Josh Alexander hype video, he’s a guy who comes from nothing and wrestling has helped save him. He discusses his life story and getting into professional wrestling. He breaks down his injury and potential retirement. He discusses how it eventually motivated him to return to wrestling and take it more serious. . He credits Low Ki and the early x-division for inspiring him to chase the X-Division title. He says it will be historic to beat someone like Christian to become champion and thinks he checks at least 4 of the 5 necessary boxes to do so. Good little promo for Josh as we go to commercial.
Jordynne Grace & Fallah Bahh vs. Crazzy Steve & Chelsea Green vs. John Skyler & Tenille Dashwood
Jordynne and Chelsea kick this one off and Chelsea has Jordynne in a headlock but is tossed off an hit with a shoulderblock. Jordynne tags in Fallah who says he doesnt want to hit a girl and Chelsea slaps him. Chelsea evades Fallah before slapping him on the bum. Chelsea goes for a roll up but Fallah drops down but Chelsea moves. Chelsea goes for a pin but Fallah tosses her off.
Crazzy Steve tags in and hits Fallah with a couple of strikes sending him into Skyler and Tenille’s corner. Steve bites at Bahh’s head before Skyler pulls him off the top rope hanging him up ont eht top rope. Skyler tags himself in and lays into Steve with nonstop punches to the head. Skyler tosses Steve into the corner chest first and follows up with a side leg sweep before going for a cover for two. Skyler tags in Dashwood who drops Steve with a kick to the guy and then chokes him on the rope in the corner.
Tenille tosses Steve into the corner and tags Skyler back in who nails Steve with a strike to the stomach. Tenille tags back in and drops Chelsea off the apron. Steve bites Tenille then Skyler. Skyler reverses sending steve into the corner tagging in Jordynne Grace. Grace drops Tenille with a spinebuster and tosses Skyler into the corner but he reverses and tosses her but is hit with a kick to the face. Jordynne hits a huge combination of strikes on Skyler in the corner. Grace with a splash on Skyler and drops Tenille with a backfist. Jordynne pins Tenille for a two count before the pin is broken up.
Fallah Bahh has all four of his opponents in the corner and splashes all four of them. Bahh has Tenille set up in the corner going for a splash but Kaleb with a K distracts long enough for Skyler to make the save. Steve gets back into the ring he knocks Skyler off the apron and drops Bahh with a DDT off the middle rope. Skyler pulls Steve out of the ring and Tenille drops Bahh with a running knee before going for a pin. Tenille gets the three count for the win!
Winners: John Skyler & Tenille DashwoodÂ
Review: C-. This was all over the place and while it never got into car crash ugly territory it still didn’t flow very well. I think this will be much better when all six can do what they do and not be hindered by the tag team rules.
– Rhino is in the ring and asks for a mic. Rhino can’t even say a word and Heath’s music hits as he makes his way to the ring. Heath says its been a little while and asks Rhino how he’s doin. Heath’s confused, the fans are confused, they’ve been through hell or high water bro, this non communication stuff doesn’t work for him. Heath says he’s been watching and knows it’s VBD and Eric Young. He begs Rhino to say anything. Maybe if he waited Rhino would’ve answered his questions. Heath tells Rhino he loves him and he’s his best friend. His family misses uncle Rhino. Rhino smiles a little bit and Heath says there you are but Eric young’s theme hits.
Violent by Design come out and Eric takes the mic out of Rhino’s hand. Eric says VBD is forever, it’s not something you can walk away from. He says Rhino made a pact with him, this is his family now. Heath says this aint family man, this a crazy bald headed man and his followers who want him to be with them. Eric says he made Rhino into his purest form. Heath says the truth is Rhino’s brain washed and can’t even think for himself. He begs Rhino to open his eyes and remember. Eric tells him not to listen to Heath or these people. Heath shoves Eric and Deaner drops Heath, Doring and Deaner start beating down Heath as Rhino stands along watching. Rhino grabs Deaner and tosses him off Heath. Rhino backs into the corner and Eric says he’s ready to prove himself and take what’s yours, he tells Rhino to cut Heath in half but Rhino rolls out and exits ringside.
Eric yells at him and tells him not to quit on them. Heath is back to his feet and drops Deaner but Doring drops him with a huge lariat. Deaner and Doring hang Heath up on the ropes and Eric chokes him out with the VBD flag. Eric whispers into Heaths ear and then breaks the pole over the back of Heaths back as Heath cries out for Rhino. Eric drapes the flag over heaths head and Josh Matthews is DISGUSTED. Wish Rhino would’ve just helped his friend, feels like a weird turn could come of this hope they can keep it simple and have Rhino save Heath at the PPV. We’ve got Mickie James up next!
– Minoru Suzuki hype video to remind us the legend is on his way to Impact. Which is awesome because I did forget, very smart of them to get him involved in the Vegas shows with him being stateside.
Mickie James vs. Savannah Evans
Mickie looks as fantastic as ever. We get a welcome back chant from the crowd as this is Mickie’s first match in Impact in over six years. Mickie and Evans lock up and Savannah tosses Mickie to the mat into the corner. Tasha talks trash to Mickie from the outside. Mickie goes for a single leg takedown but Savannah tosses Mickie. Mickie with shots to the back that seem to be annoying Savannah more than they’re hurting her. Mickie goes for a sleeper hold but Savannah backs her into the corner to break the hold.
Savannah goes for a splash in the corner but Mickie moves. Mickie with some chops in the corner. Mickie off the ropes but Tasha Steelz grabs her leg and Mickie eats a big boot for getting distracted. Evans locks Mickie up on the ropes and chokes her as the ref begins to count. Evans drops some stiff boots to Mickie in the corner before stomping directly on her face. Mickie fights back with some forearms but Savannah drops her with one swift shot.
Savannah tosses Mickie into the corner and follows right up with a big splash in the corner. Savannah locks in a bearhug in the center of the ring but Mickie tries to fight out with forearms but is right back in the bearhug. Mickie with some forearms and then bites Evans right on the face. Evans goes for a big boot but Mickie ducks and gets her leg stuck on the rope. Mickie follows with a number of strikes and follows with a kick to Savannahs leg. Evans fights back and sets Mickie up on the top rope. Mickie fights back and hits a top rope splash. Mickie follows with a pinfall attempt but Savannah kicks out.
Deonna’s theme hits and she comes to distract Mickie. Mickie covers again but another two. Savannah tosses Mickie into the corner and follows with a splash. Evans tries to lock in a full nelson but Mickie tries to slip out, Evans just hits Mickie with a full nelson slam. Evans goes for the cover and we get a very close fall with Mickie kicking out pretty much after the refs hand hit the mat. Mickie fights back with some round house kicks. Mickie with the jumping DDT and follows it with the cover for three.
Winner: Mickie James
Review: B-. This was a pretty good showcase for Savannah and Mickie’s still really good but it felt kind of rushed to the pinfall victory and I could’ve done without Deonna causing a distraction that didn’t really lead to anything until after the match. Also definitely feel like Savannah had the three count there after the full nelson slam.Â
Post Match: Deonna shoves Mickie and Josh says that breaks the non contact clause. Deonna tells Mickie to turn around and Matthew Rehwoldt drops Mickie. Deonna gets in the ring and pulls Mickie’s hair to talk trash to her. Deonna tosses Mickie’s head onto the ground as Josh continues to point out she’s breaking the non contact clause.
– Deonna is asked about the no contact clause and she says she did nothing wrong, she didn’t hit Mickie her drama king did it for her. Scott D’Amore walks up and Deonna says he can’t yell at her because she didn’t do anything wrong. Scott says yeah it was Matt not her. Scott says she made contact with Mickie and she should be stripped of the title. Scott says he hopes she loses the title in two days and if Rehwoldt is at Bound for Glory they’ll both be suspended forever. Which is doubtful as he didn’t even strip her of the championship.
– Brian Meyers how to be a professional video package. Brian is with the learning tree and tells them about consequences. He says last week was an epic failure. He says VSK lost to Rich Swann, Manny Lemons says VSK is on the chopping block now. Brian tells Manny he’s completely uncoachable and makes some WWE references before cutting him. Brian looks at Sam and says he’s going to be cut, Sam tries to play it off like Zicky dice is going to be cut but Sam’s the guy. This was cute, Sam asked for an autograph and Brian had VSK sign it for him.
– The Iinspiration send some representative to talk for them, apparently this is Deonna Purrazzo’s old entertainment barrister because they can’t find anyone else to play this role. The Decay show up creepily and we begin our official contract signing. Scott says we just need a few signatures and everyone can be on their way. Rosemary is annoyed with the ink pen as she’d rather sign in blood. Rosemary tells the lawyer that they’ll be at Bound for Glory to bite the Iinspirations face’s off. Seems like a bad investment for Impact but alas.
Trey Miguel vs. Alex Zayne
Lockup to start and Trey gets hand control locks in a wristlock smashing away at Zaynes hand. Zayne rolls through and locks in a wristlock of his own. Trey dances out of it and drops Zayne with a smooth armdrag. Zayne with a takedown to trey and shows off his amateur wrestling skill before taunting sitting on the back of Trey. Both men exchange a few words before we get a test of strength. Trey drops Zayne and goes for a cover but Zayne kicks out. We get a couple of pin attempts from Trey but Zayne kicks out of all of them.
Both men continue to exchange pins before Trey smashes Zayne with a European uppercut. Zayne off the ropes tosses Trey onto the apron but both men do a few high flying moves before landing into the center of the ring together. Miguel to the outside Zayne goes for a moonsault Trey moves and Zayne lands on his feet. Trey follows up with a moonsault of his own taking out Zayne as we go to commercial.
We are back and Trey has a sleeper hold locked in on Zayne in the center of the ring. Zayne drops Trey with a clothesline. Trey to his feet in the corner and pushes off Zayne with his foot to get on the top rope. Zayne rushes at Trey and hits a front flip into a hurricanrana tossing Trey off the top rope. Zayne goes for his front flip bodyslam but Trey reverses out and rolls up Zayne who kicks out at two.
Zayne gets to his knees and eats a number of kicks from Trey but Zayne ducks one and goes for a roll up for two. Trey to his feet and eats a running knee from Zayne. Zayne with a forearm to Trey on the top rope. Zayne looking for a superplex and Trey frontflips over looking for a powerbomb but Zayne hands on. Trey tucks Zayne’s head into the corner and hits him with the cheeky nandos kick. Zayne stays in the corner and Trey hits a modified 619. Trey to the top rope and hits a meteroa on Zayne for the victory.
Winner: Trey Miguel.
Review: B-. This wasn’t bad but these two KILLED it a few weeks ago in a triple threat, I understand showing they can perform well more traditionally but would’ve much rather saw an exciting singles match which this eventually became but it took a bit.Â
Post match: Steve Maclin attacks Trey with right hands. Maclin hits Mayhem for All on Miguel as El Phantasmo hits the ring. The Bullet Club jumps Maclin. Phantasmo with a superkick to Maclin leaving him laying. They lift Trey and Phantasmo fakes the superkick but hits a low blow right to Trey’s groin and The Bullet Club stand tall.
– They run down the Bound for Glory card and apparently Scott D’Amore decided the tag title match will be a triple threat even though Chris Bey was clearly not the legal man. Glad he finally decided though because I literally forgot he said hew as going to earlier.
– Josh Alexander comes out to the ring to speak his peace ahead of his title match and we’re going to another commercial. We’re back and Josh Alexander has the mic. He says in two days he’ll be challenging for the Impact Wrestling world championship. He says he risked his X-Division title for this match, but what is a risk when he thought he’d never take another risk again. He thought he’d live a safe life working everyday for his family. He says by the grace of god he got to come back to the business he loves. He scraped and clawed to get where he is right now. He says he’s taking every risk to show his sons that every risk yields the biggest rewards.
Christian’s theme hits as the world champion makes his way to the ring. He says here we are, two days away from Bound for Glory. Christian says he understands he’s been here before, he’s been on the biggest stages in this industry. He’s wrestled for and won world championships. He’s been in legendary matches that pay per views are named after. He says it comes down to pressure and how Josh deals with it. He says pressure is a fickle thing, some fade under pressure, while others like Christian thrive under pressure and win world titles. Christian says as much as Christian respects him nothing Josh has done in the last few weeks tells him that Josh has it in him.
Josh says he’s heard all the criticism and it’s all too familiar. He discusses their comparisons and says Josh has something to prove now just like Christian Cage needed to years ago when he first came to Christian. Josh says as long as he’s cashing the check of a billionaire who owns a different company he’ll never be the face of Impact wrestling. Josh says at Bound for Glory he’ll bring the title home where it belongs and slam the forbidden door in Christian’s face.
Christian says he’s not even the best wrestler from Canada let alone in this ring. Josh says if Christian thinks pissing him off will work in his advantage we’ll see how that works and these two start to brawl. Security tries to separate them but they can’t keep them away from eachother as Josh and Christian continue to brawl tossing security out of their way. The locker room clears and everyone is out here to break these two up. Christian holds the Impact world title above his head to close out the show. This was a great promo for Josh and I wish they had started the build this way weeks ago. Josh defending Impact against a champion who is paid by a billionaire from another company is way more compelling than what we’ve gotten so far. Fair to say im excited for their match and curious who may win.
