Hall’s TNA Impact Review 10.22.26

TNA iMPACT!
Date: October 22, 2026
Location: Dothan Civic Center, Dothan, Alabama
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

We’re coming up on Destination X, and now we have a #1 contender to the World Title, as Trey Miguel won a ladder match last week. That sets him up to challenge Leon Slater, which should be a heck of a match. Other than that, the card needs to be set up, and that should be done this week. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

We open with the return of Daria Rae, who tells these disgusting human beings to “shut up, I’m talking”. She brags about her success and says that if she had been around, Indi Hartwell wouldn’t have become Knockouts Champion. This brings out Hartwell, who mocks her with the belt and says that Rae’s time away didn’t make her any better. Hartwell offers to let Rae slap her, but Rae says Hartwell has to defend the title against Xia Brookside right now, even if Hartwell is in street clothes.

Knockouts Title: Indi Hartwell vs. Xia Brookside

Brookside is challenging and jumps her to start as the beatdown is on fast. Back up, and Hartwell kicks her to the floor, where Brookside grabs the title. That’s broken up, so Brookside rams her arm first into the apron. The arm is smashed into the steps and then wrapped around the rope back inside, followed by the armbar. Back up and Brookside misses a charge into the corner, but the Hurts Donut is countered into a Fujiwara armbar. Hartwell breaks out of that and counters Darkside into the Hurts Donut to retain at 6:23.

Rating: C+. This was another step forward in Hartwell vs. Rae, which is another attempt to recreate the Austin vs. McMahon dynamic. The problem is Rae doesn’t wrestle (yet), and she’s still such a generic villain that there’s no spark to the story. Hartwell is only so interesting either, and it’s a shame to see Brookside stuck in this kind of a spot.

Post-match, Apex comes in to beat up Hartwell, with Rae approving.

Leon Slater is fired up to be the youngest World Champion of all time. Trey Miguel comes in to say he’s going to do anything to take the title, which is cool with Slater. They depart in peace.

Xia Brookside has a meltdown about her loss but holds up something in her hand, which calms her down.

Fabian Aichner vs. Cedric Alexander vs. KC Navarro vs. Rich Swann

For an X-Division Title shot next week. Aichner and Alexander take over to start, with Alexander knocking him into the corner. Navarro is back in to fire off the superkicks and a tornado DDT, but Swann gives him a standing moonsault for two. We take a break and come back with Swann and Aichner trading big shots.

Alexander blocks Navarro’s tornado DDT, and Aichner gives Alexander a double springboard moonsault. Swann’s Canadian Destroyer on the apron is broken up, and Aichner hits a big corkscrew dive to take out all three of them on the floor. That’s enough to bring out the System to jump Aichner, though, allowing Alexander to hit a moonsault for the pin at 9:41.

Rating: B+. It’s a formula that has worked forever, and it worked rather well here, with everyone flying around and getting in their offense where they could. The System interfering is about as good a way to get out of the match as possible, as it’s not like anyone was really standing out over the others. Heck of a fun match here, which is what makes the concept work time after time.

Post-match, Amazing Red comes out for the staredown.

Tasha Steelz tells Special Agent Zero that there is one thing left to do, and they shake hands.

AJ Francis isn’t happy with what the Hardys did to Expressions. Mila Moore and John Skyler come in, with Skyler setting up a match with Francis for next week.

The Hardys and Moose give Avery Styles a pep talk before his Impact debut.

The System isn’t happy with Eddie Edwards, who walks off with Alisha Edwards. That implosion feels like it’s a long time coming.

Avery Styles vs. Joe Alonzo

Alonzo says he’s going to make Styles finally put away those chairs. They go technical to start, and neither of them gets anywhere, so Styles hits a dropkick instead. Alonzo bails to the floor and gets taken out again as Frankie Kazarian approves. Back in, Styles knocks him down and grabs the chinlock, but Styles is up with a Pele. A running Fameasser and a sliding forearm give Styles two, and Alonzo is staggered. The Phenomenal Forearm is superkicked out of the air for two, but a second attempt connects with Alonzo. The Spiral Tap gives Styles the pin at 5:59.

Rating: C+. So the point here wasn’t so much showcasing everything Styles can do, but rather giving us a preview of him. He’s brand new to wrestling, and this is by far his highest profile singles match to date. He wasn’t out there for very long, and what he did went well enough. Obviously he’s a long-term project, but he has to get his feet wet, and that’s what we saw here.

The Elegance Brand brags about their success, but Elayna Black comes in to say she had M beaten and only needed five more minutes. Jada Stone comes in to back Black up, but the Brand walks off.

Santino Marella announces a men’s and women’s Ultimate X for Destination X, plus the return of the World X Cup. Daria Rae comes in to glare at him without saying anything.

Here are Allie and Kiera Hogan for a chat. Allie sounds rather nervous as she says they want a rematch for the Knockouts Tag Team Titles. Hogan: “Are you finished?” Hogan is tired of how this has been going because Allie is the reason they lost the titles. Allie was always the weak link in this team, and they’re done. Cue Tasha Steelz to jump Allie, and Fire N Flava is back together.

The lights go out, though, and Shotzi Blackheart runs in to take the villains out. There was a lot going on here, and while I like the Fire N Flava reunion, please do not turn the split with Allie into a big thing. Allie and Hogan had four matches together as a team. That doesn’t need some huge feud.

Harley Hudson comes up to the Righteous, who want an answer about her future soon.

We get an exclusive clip from last week with Elijah jumping Nic Nemeth for costing him the ladder match.

Elijah promises that Nemeth will reap what he sowed. Ryan Nemeth comes in to deliver a threat from Nic, with Elijah not being impressed.

International Title: Mustafa Ali vs. Jason Hotch

Ali is challenging in a 2/3 falls match. They shove each other to start, and Ali grabs a headlock, which doesn’t get him very far. Hotch knocks him down and Ali isn’t looking pleased. A dropkick puts Ali on the floor, but he gets up to the apron and catches Hotch with a nasty German suplex for the big crash. We take a break and come back with Ali’s rolling neckbreaker being countered with a DDT. They trade some rollups, and Ali actually gets a clean pin at 9:29.

Ali – 1
Hotch – 0

Hotch slips out of a powerbomb attempt and kicks him in the face. That’s enough to send Ali outside, with Hotch hitting a suicide dive. A triangle moonsault hits Ali as well, but he grabs the title to knock Hotch silly for the DQ at 11:39.

Ali – 1
Hotch – 1

Ali throws him back in for some near falls, and Hotch’s kickouts just make Ali all the more frustrated. The referee gets bumped in the corner by mistake, allowing Ali to get in a rather harsh low blow. Ali grabs a belt to whip away, at least until Hotch takes the belt for some whips of his own. They go outside again, and Ali sends him into the post to knock him silly.

Ali loads up a superplex to the floor but gets shoved down, only to superkick a diving Hotch out of the air. Back in, Hotch charges into a Spanish Fly for two, and they slug it out. Hotch gets suplexed into the corner but is still able to avoid the 450. Ali misses a charge into the corner of his own and gets put in a torture rack for a flipping knee to the face to retain the title at 18:45.

Hotch – 2
Ali – 1

Rating: B. The good thing here is that Hotch felt like he belonged. That’s more than you can say about a lot of people who are trying to get into the deeper waters, and TNA might have something with him. It was a good, solid TV main event, and Hotch beat Ali again, which hopefully wraps up their feud for the time being, though Ali pinning him clean to start might mean one more match.

Post-match, Leon Slater comes out to congratulate Hotch on his win, saying the new generation isn’t waiting anymore because they’re right now.

Syx challenges the Hardys to step into their world to end the show.

 

Results
Indi Hartwell b. Xia Brookside – Hurts Donut
Cedric Alexander b. Fabian Aichner, KC Navarro and Rich Swann – Moonsault to Aichner
Avery Styles b. Joe Alonzo – Spiral Tap
Jason Hotch b. Mustafa Ali 2-1

 

 

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8.5

The final score: review Very Good

The 411

The build to Destination X has been kind of thrown together, but it’s a show that sort of has its own setup built in. The focus is on the X-Division and therefore we’re getting two Ultimate X matches and a competition, plus two mostly X-Division wrestlers fighting for the World Title. That part went well, and you had two very good TV matches. Not bad for a night’s work.