Csonka’s Impact Wrestling One Night Only: Zero Fear 2018 Review

Csonka’s Impact Wrestling One Night Only: Zero Fear 2018 Review

OFFICIAL RESULTS
– Matt Sydal defeated Dezmond Xavier @ 9:20 via pin [**¾]
– Ace Austin defeated Mr. Atlantis @ 3:50 via pin [*]
– Desi Hit Squad defeated Desmond Quicksilver & Aiden Prince @ 10:30 via pin [**]
– Madison Rayne defeated KC Spinelli @ 8:18 via pin [**½]
– Fallah Bahh & Stone Rockwell defeated The Fraternity @ 10:28 via pin [**½]
– Eddie Edwards defeated Trevor Lee @ 11:30 via pin [**]
– Su Yung defeated Katarina @ 6:52 via pin [**]
– Sami Callihan defeated Josh Alexander @ 12:18 via pin [***¼]
– Austin Aries defeated Rich Swann @ 13:11 via submission [***½]
– Pentagon defeated Eli drake & Moose @ 14:25 via pin [***½]

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– Follow all of my reviews at this link.

– The show is available on the Global Wrestling Network.

– Mathews & Callis are on commentary.

Desmond Xavier vs. Matt Sydal: Sydal talks trash to begin, and they lock up. Xavier hits an arm drag, and Sydal is frustrated already. Sydal grounds the action, and starts working the arm. Xavier picks up the pace and hits a dropkick and Sydal powders to the floor. Xavier teases a dive and Sydal slips back into the ring. Back in and Xavier gets a cradle for 2. Sydal trips him up and he gets a cradle for 2 and transitions into a neck crank. Xavier escapes, but Sydal grounds him again. Sydal then follows with kicks, keeping Xavier down. Sydal follows with a dragon screw and then dumps Xavier to the floor. Back in and Sydal maintains control, and works into a half crab. Xavier escapes, lays in elbows, and uppercuts. Xavier now hits rapid-fire strikes and a dropkick for 2. Sydal fires back, but Xavier hits a cutter for 2. Xavier hits a running shooting star press and that gets 2. Xavier heads up top and Sydal cuts him off. Xavier drops down and hits a 619. Xavier back up top and Sydal again cuts him off and counters the PELE; chemical imbalance finishes it. Matt Sydal defeated Dezmond Xavier @ 9:20 via pin [**¾] This was a pretty good opener, the work was clean and it was enjoyable, but I found it had pacing issues as it almost felt as if they weren’t really locked into the style of match they wanted to work. They are capable of so much more.

Ace Austin vs. Mr. Atlantis: Austin looks like a Dollar Tree Matt Taven. They lock up and Atlantis overpowers to begin. Austin takes him down and hits a basement dropkick. Another dropkick follows, Austin then randomly does card tricks, Atlantis misses a charge and Austin hits a disaster kick for 2. Atlantis hits a big clothesline, and covers for 2. Atlantis follows with a DVD and covers for 2 while doing pushups. Atlantis hits a rough looking suplex for 2. Atlantis then looks confused as he slows the action, not quite sure what to do next. Austin fires up with rights, but Atlantis catches a high cross and Austin escapes and hits kicks and a running blockbuster for he win. Ace Austin defeated Mr. Atlantis @ 3:50 via pin [*] This was short, but also bad; neither guy was ready to be featured in a spot like this.

Desi Hit Squad (Singh & Raju) w/Gama Singh vs. Desmond Quicksilver & Aiden Prince: Gama cuts a cliché heel promo. Raju and Prince to begin. Raju lays in strikes but Prince cuts him off and hits a dropkick and RANA. Singh tags in and Prince cuts him off and tags in Quicksilver. He hits a northern lights for 2. Quick tags follow as Prince and Quicksilver take control and pick up near falls. Singh bails and he and Raju rush in and attack, isolating Prince. They dump him to the floor but quickly roll him back in, and Raju covers for 2. Double teams to Prince follow, and Singh covers for 2. Prince fires up but he’s cut off as Raju & Singh lay the boots to him. Raju hits a suplex, covering for 2. The belly to back suplex follows and Raju again covers for 2. Singh tags in and lays the boots to Prince, and that gets 2. Raju in and continues the uninspired heat on Prince. The Hit Squad follows with double teams in their corner; Prince hits a desperation dropkick and finally tags in Quicksilver. Quicksilver runs wild and actually brings some much-needed energy to this. Raju cuts him off and dumps him. Prince cuts him off and almost dies on a suicide dive as his feet caught the ropes. The Raju dive is cut off, Quicksilver takes out Singh back in the ring and covers for 2. Prince tags in Gama takes the ref and Raju shoves Prince off the ropes and the sky high from Singh finishes it. Desi Hit Squad defeated Desmond Quicksilver & Aiden Prince @ 10:30 via pin [**] This was an OK match, but it just had no energy. Desi Hit Squad is a solid, but bland team; their control segment was lifeless and Prince’s selling during it didn’t help it. The Desi Hit Squad is still very much a project, likely a long term one.

Madison Rayne vs. KC Spinelli: They lock up, working into a series of standing switches, and Rayne gets a cradle for 2. Spinelli now hits a shoulder tackle, and then follows with rights. Rayne fights back, and gets a Skayde special for 2. She follows with rights, and hits a head scissors. Spinelli powders, and then stuns Rayne of the ropes and takes control back in the ring. Spinelli now chokes her out in the ropes, and the side slam follows for 2. Spinelli follows with a series of elbow drop for 2. Rayne fires up and goes John Woooooooo and follows with forearm strikes. Spinelli cuts her off and hits an ass attack in the corner. The delayed suplex follows and Spinelli bridges into a pin for 2. Rayne hits a spear as Spinelli talks shit to Mathews about kicking his wife’s ass. Rayne now follows with strikes and chops, and the northern lights suplex gets 2. Rayne looks for a high cross, gets caught and Spinelli slams her down and covers for 2. Rayne counters the inverted DDT into a cradle for 2. Rayne then hits cross Rhodes for the win. Madison Rayne defeated KC Spinelli @ 8:18 via pin [**½] This was a nice, solid back and forth match. Spinelli is nice o have around as she works hard and works well with about everyone, and it’s great to have Rayne back, especially with Rosemary injured.

The Fraternity (Channing Decker & Trent Gibson) vs. Fallah Bahh & Stone Rockwell: The Fraternity are douchey frat boys. Bahh is awesome and Rockwell is a wacky action adventurer. Bahh and Rockwell do some comedy, and the Fraternity attacks. Bahh & Rockwell fight them off. Decker and Rockwell officially start us off. They lock up, work into some back and forth, and Rockwell takes it to the floor and takes control. Back in and Bahh tags in. He works over Decker, when Decker fires back; he gets a no, no, no and running cross body from Bahh. Bahh slams Gibson and steamrolls them both. The Fraternity finally double teams Bahh, and takes control in their corner. Double teams and quick tags follow and a cover gets 2. Bahh fights back and Rockwell gets the hot tag and runs wild. He gets cut off and the Fraternity takes out Bahh, and get a near fall on Rockwell. The heels ground Rockwell, and continue to work double teams. Rockwell fights them off and hits a Samoan drop/fall away slam combo on his opponents. Rockwell runs on the backs of his opponents and Bahh gets the hot tag and runs wild. The belly-to-belly follows for 2. The Fraternity cut him off and hit a cutter for 2. Bahh fires back, running them together and hits a corner splash on both. Banzai from Bahh and Rockwell hits a spinning powerbomb for the double pin. Fallah Bahh & Stone Rockwell defeated The Fraternity @ 10:28 via pin [**½] This was a solid and lighthearted tag, which the live crowd really liked. Bahh & Rockwell are fun personalities.

Trevor Lee vs. Eddie Edwards: Edwards isn’t wearing tights anymore because he’s fucking insane and only wants to fight. He attacks right away, laying in chops and clotheslines to Lee. He dumps Lee and follows with a plancha. They brawl into the crowd with Edwards still in control, sand beats on Lee with a can of Pringles. Back to the ring and Le hot shots Edwards and then lays the boots to him. Lee then chokes out Edwards with his own hoodie. Lee gets a bag of Doritos, tries to attack, but Edwards drop toeholds Lee onto them. This leads to a Holy Chips chant as Lee hits a suplex for 2. Lee then hits a superman punch for 2. Edwards starts to fire back, and hits a brainbuster. The blue thunder bomb follows for 2. Edwards gets a bag of popcorn and hits Lee with it. Lee rakes the eyes and hits a dropkick for 2. Edwards cuts him of but Lee catches him with a German for 2. Edwards fights back, they blow a neck breaker spot and Edwards then hits the future shock DDT for the win. Eddie Edwards defeated Trevor Lee @ 11:30 via pin [**] I’d call this ok at best, but I really wasn’t a fan. Part of it is that Edwards is looking to establish a new style to fit his new persona. And I get that it will take time, which is why this match was such a misstep. Having the violent, attempted murdering Edwards doing comedy spots with chips and popcorn, even on a one night only show, felt poorly thought out. The live crowd liked it because they could play along and participate by giving up their food and doing silly chants. This was disappointing.

Katarina vs. Su Yung: Katarina gets a roll up right away for 2. Katarina follow with chops and follows with a monkey flip and Yung powders. Yung then gets a neck breaker in the ropes and slams Katarina into the apron and follows with forearms. Katarina cuts her off and hits a RANA on the floor. Back in and Katarina covers for 2. She follows with strikes; Yung fires back with kicks and hits a German to the buckles for 2. To the corner and Katarina is set into the tree of WHOA. Yung follows with kicks and then hits a draping neck breaker for 2. Yung lays in strikes and Katarina hits a jawbreaker and enziguri. The clothesline follows, and a Samoan drop gets 2. Yung hits the head scissors to the buckles, and covers for 2. Katarina counters panic switch into a spinebuster for 2. Katarina heads up top, Yung crotches her and hits panic switch for the win. Su Yung defeated Katarina @ 6:52 via pin [**] This was an ok but rather lethargic match. Not bad at all, but there was no real energy or sense of urgency to it.

Josh Alexander vs. Sami Callihan: They brawl at the bell, Alexander looks to ground things and they work into a double down. They work to the feet and continue to brawl and Alexander drops Sami. They continue to trade, Sami dumps Alexander to the floor and back in and Alexander cuts him off and takes Sami to the floor. We get some floor brawling and Alexander slams Sami to the apron. Alexander looks for a piledriver, Sami cuts him off and he hits an apron piledriver. Back in and Sami immediately dumps Alexander back to the floor. We get more floor brawling, Sami rolls back in and we get a countout tease. Alexander makes it back in and hits a delayed suplex. Sami fires back and takes Alexander back to the floor. Alexander cuts off the dive and hits an apron suplex. Back in and they brawl, trading strikes and Alexander hits a back breaker but Sami cuts him off, but runs into a Finlay roll. Alexander follows with a knee drop off of the ropes and covers for 2. Alexander then lays in chops, sets Sami up top and follows him up. Sami slips pout and hits Cheeky Nandos and a powerbomb for 2. He then locks on a choke, and transitions into an arm bar but Alexander makes the ropes. They trade big time strikes and Alexander then hits a spinning powerbomb for 2. Sami now rakes the eyes and hits a stuff piledriver for 1. Alexander is fired up and Sami slaps the shit out of him and hits the shoulder breaker for the win. Sami Callihan defeated Josh Alexander @ 12:18 via pin [***¼] This was good and the first thing with any real sense of urgency or energy on this show. It was hard-hitting, had good heat from both guys and felt like a fight in the best way possible.

Austin Aries vs. Rich Swann: They lock up, Aries picks up the pace and looks to work the arm. Swann escapes and frustrates Aries. Aries now grounds things, but Swann makes the ropes. Swann picks up the pace, hitting a RANA and dropkick. He then busts out a dance and Aries is not impressed. Aries now hits an am drag and follows with a dropkick. Aries then mocks Swann and dances, but hurts himself trying to do a split. Aries was stuck so Swann helps him to his feet and Aries attacks and takes control. Swann then dump Aries but Aries cuts him off, slamming him to the apron. Aries rolls back in and then hits the neck breaker in the ropes for 2. Aries then slams Swann to he buckles and rakes the back. They trade rights and Aries drapes Swann over the ropes and then covers for 2. Aries now works an inverted figure four and rolls into a cradle for 2. Swann battles back and rakes the back of Aries. He fires up with strikes and a head scissors. Aries powders and Swann follows and attacks. Back in and Swann up top and hits the frog splash for 2. Swann back up too and Aries cuts him off. He follows him up and they battle for position and back to the mat they go. Swann lays in kicks, but Aries hits the shin breaker into a German. Swann cuts off the dropkick and hits a 450 for a good near fall. Aries retreats to the ropes, and they work to the apron and Aries hits an apron DVD. Back in and Aries covers for 2. The last chancery follows, but Swann makes the ropes. Aries grabs one of his belts, but Swann rolls him up for 2. head kicks by Swann and Aries is down and the cover gets 2. Swann misses the phoenix splash and Aries gets the last chancery for the win. Austin Aries defeated Rich Swann @ 13:11 via submission [***½] This was a very good back and forth match with Swann looking good in his Impact debut, and getting in a lot on Aries before losing. Swann has been looking good in MLW, and looked good here, and will be a string addition if they are keeping him around.

Eli Drake vs. Moose vs. Pentagon Jr: They all play to the crowd for a bit and Pentagon and Moose kick drake to the floor. Pentagon hits a RANA on Moose and Moose answers back with a dropkick. Moose fires away with rights and Drake pulls him to the floor and posts him. Back in and he works over Pentagon, hitting a neck breaker for 2. Pentagon fights back and huts sling blade and then dumps Drake. Moose takes control on the floor, leading to the floor brawl. Moose lays in chops and bicycle kicks on both. They finally cut off Moose, tossing him onto the chairs in the crowd. Pentagon rolls Drake back in and follows. Enziguri by Pentagon but as he heads up top, Drake pops up and hits a superplex. They now work to the apron and Pentagon fights him off and dropkicks him to the floor. Moose back in and cuts off Pentagon, and dropkicks him to the floor. Moose follows and powerbombs Drake to the post but Pentagon wipes him out with a tope Pentagon rolls him back in and connects with the top rope double stomp but Drake breaks that up. The TKO on Pentagon follows for 2. Moose cuts him off with chops, and follows with go to hell but Pentagon breaks that up. Moose and Pentagon trade strikes now, just laying into each other. Pentagon now fires away with kicks and runs into a powerbomb and senton by Moose for 2. Moose now heads up top and Pentagon cuts him off, follows him up and Drake joins in for the double superplex on Moose. Drake and Pentagon now trade strikes, but Pentagon dumps Drake. Pentagon lays in kicks on Moose, but Moose fires up and keeps eating kicks. Pentagon follows with chops, and leg kicks but Moose cuts him off only for Pentagon to hit a destroyer for 2. Drake is back in and hits a crucifix bomb for 2. Drake argues with the ref, looks for gravy train but Pentagon escapes and Drake misses the moonsault. Drake avoids the arm break, but Moose stuns him off the ropes and Pentagon hits the penta driver for the win. Pentagon defeated Eli drake & Moose @ 14:25 via pin [***½] This was a very good match to close out the show in a strong way. All three worked well together, and all got a chance to shine; this was Moose’s most spirited performance in a while. Impact really needs to try and lock up Drake, as they really can’t afford to lose him.

– End Scene.

– Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”

6.0

The final score: review Average

The 411

Overall, Impact Wrestling One Night Only: Zero Fear 2018 was a perfectly average event from the company. If short on time and interested in some of the action, catch the final three matches, they were easily the best on the card.