Last night, the July 21 episode of IMPACT Wrestling aired. The episode was recorded on July 15 at Old Forester’s Paristown Hall in Louisville, Kentucky.
Quick Results
VXT (Deonna Purrazzo & Chelsea Green) def. Jordynne Grace & Mia Yim
X-Division Championship Match: Mike Bailey (c) def. Deaner (w/ Joe Doering)
Masha Slamovich def. Madison Rayne (w/ Gisele Shaw)
Ace Austin & Chris Bey def. OGK (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett) (w/ Maria Kanellis)
No. 1 Contender’s Match for IMPACT World Heavyweight Championship: Alex Shelley def. Chris Sabin
IMPACT News
Last night, many notable pieces of news emerged from the July 21 episode. We have collected some of the news and updates from last night’s episode.
VXT (Chelsea Green & Deonna Purrazzo)
VXT (Chelsea Green & Deonna Purrazzo) will be challenging Taya Valkyrie & Rosemary for their Knockouts Tag Team Championships.
KUSHIDA is set to make his IMPACT in-ring debut on the next week’s edition of IMPACT. The former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion is set to take on Rich Swann in singles action.
In the main event of IMPACT Wrestling, Alex Shelley took on his long-time tag partner Chris Sabin. The match was a No. 1 Contender’s Match for IMPACT World Heavyweight Championship. Alex Shelley would go on and defeat Sabin after a hard-fought bout. ,
Alex Shelley will be challenging Josh Alexander for the IMPACT World Championship. This will be Shelley and Alexander’s first ever one-on-one encounter.
Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, better known as The Good Brothers, have had a dominant run in Impact Wrestling since joining the promotion back in 2020 shortly after their release from WWE. They are the company’s current tag team champions, their third reign in two years.
However, PW Insider reports that Gallows and Anderson’s contracts with Impact will be expiring after tonight’s television taping in Kentucky, which means they’ll officially be hitting the free agency market starting tomorrow and can accept any offers made from any company in that time.
Reports are that The Good Brothers are expected to resume working for New Japan Pro Wrestling as they already have dates line up. However, this does not mean that their time with Impact is over as they did agree to work some extra dates for the promotion as long as it doesn’t conflict with their NJPW dates. Again…their contractual commitments to Impact end after tonight.
Aside from their work in Impact The Good Brothers appeared multiple times in AEW, and played a huge role in the ongoing dissension of the Elite, a storyline that will eventually play out further once Adam Cole, reDragon, and Kenny Omega return.
The Good Brothers will stay with Impact Wrestling for a little longer than expected.
Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson recently confirmed that their current Impact contracts are set to expire this summer (July 17th). However, this has changed since then. Fightful Select reported today that the tag team will stay with the company until “at least late in the summer.”
They originally signed with Impact after being released by WWE in 2020. They were given the same deal Impact offered when they were impending free agents in 2019 before deciding to re-sign with WWE. Gallows and Anderson have also worked a few dates for NJPW this year.
Anderson defeated Tama Tonga to win the NEVER Openweight Championship at Dominion. Regarding their status with NJPW, they are committed to NJPW through at least Wrestle Kingdom in January.
The Good Brothers became the Impact Wrestling Tag Team Champions for a third time last month at Slammiversary when they defeated The Briscoes for the titles.
It’s still unclear where Gallows and Anderson will work in the United States after their contracts with Impact ends, but the report noted they were told a return to Impact is possible.
Impact Wrestling star Killer Kelly had a short (and strange) experience working for WWE. She was offered a contract during her rookie year in the wrestling industry. She made her debut at the inaugural NXT UK event. Kelly also took part in the 2018 Mae Young Classic where she lost in the first round.
Unfortunately, WWE did not use her much beyond that. The young star was occasionally used to put some other talents over before being released from her contract in January 2020.
Killer Kelly spoke with SEScoops this past week to discuss her absence from Impact for the past 2 years, her new persona and more. She also opened up about her time in the Vince McMahon owned promotion.
Watch Killer Kelly’s interview with Steve Fall for SEScoops below, followed by highlights from the conversation.
Why Killer Kelly said yes to a WWE contract with very little experience:
“So I had a good and somewhat bad experience [in WWE]. As soon as I got offered that contract. I said ‘Yes, like 100% Yes, because WWE is the dream.’ It was what I grew up watching. I was like ‘Ok, this is the thing that I want to do.’ But at the same time, I was just coming up as a professional wrestler. Basically, within the year that I decided to take a chance on myself and move to Germany to train to become professional wrestler, do this professionally. I got offered the contract. It was like everything at the same time. I had no time to read, to think, to do anything. So I felt like that came too soon to me. Because WWE was the dream. I didn’t even think about anything. I just said yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I never stood up for myself. I was afraid to give ideas. I was afraid of doing basically anything. I was walking on eggshells all the time because I was afraid of messing that up.”
Her exhausting WWE experience due to mental health issues:
“The whole experience being like that, and now knowing of my mental issues that I have. Anxiety, depression, ADHD, all of that exhausted me mentally, to the point that I wasn’t enjoying my time in WWE. I didn’t enjoy it at all. Because I was so stressed. I was so anxious all the time. I had everything. I could have had a blast there. But I didn’t because of my brain. So that kind of sucks. It sucks that I wasn’t on medication early. It sucks that I didn’t know about that. So that whole experience was very exhausting for me. But other than that, I have nothing bad to say about WWE. It was just my brain. It was my brain. I didn’t have the spotlight on me but I enjoyed my position. They basically gave me matches to make the other people shine. So that means that they have the stress on me that I can help them shine, help them achieve whatever they need to. That was kind of an honor.”
If Killer Kelly had any problems with her WWE spot:
“I was happy with my place there. But then brain didn’t let me enjoy anything. I didn’t have the, I don’t want to say the guts, the mental capacity of saying what I wanted to do. [To share] any ideas. [To] actually have fun with it, which is what I’m currently doing with impact. My brain, it’s not 100% good, but it’s good. I am still anxious all the time. I’m still nervous, but that’s because I love wrestling. Now I feel like I could show my full potential and enjoy. Really, really enjoy what I’m doing and just be myself. I’m so excited about it.”
The wrestling career of Killer Kelly has been a roller coaster ride. She was offered a WWE contract not long after she decided to pursue a career in wrestling in her mid-20s. She competed in NXT UK. She also took part in the 2018 Mae Young Classic before getting released in 2020.
Kelly then made her debut for Impact Wrestling. It looked like she was finally ready to make her mark but she then disappeared from Impact for two years. The former wXw Women’s Championship recently spoke to SEScoops about her contractual status and more.
Watch Killer Kelly’s interview with Steve Fall for SEScoops:
Under Contract with Impact for Past 2 Years
Kelly revealed that she was offered an Impact contract on the day she made her debut on November 24, 2020. Furthermore, she revealed that she has been contracted for the past two years:
“Well, it was exactly on that day. On that same day that I wrestled, I got offered a deal. So I’ve been contracted for the past two years.”
When Fall inquired about the reason for her absence from Impact programming, Killer Kelly revealed that it was due to Visa issues. She had to go back to her home country of Portugal shortly after her Impact debut. Unfortunately for Kelly, this is when the Coronavirus struck and she got stuck there:
“Well, you have to ask the good ol’ United States of America (why she hasn’t been wrestling). Its legalities, legalities, legalities…It was a very tedious process, which impact dealt with wonderfully. They took care of everything, but it was a horrible process. They were wonderful about it. After they offered the contract, I had to go back to Portugal. Then I was stuck in Portugal.
They did everything in their power to get me out of Portugal. It was a visa process that started in Portugal, and then it didn’t pan out. Then I had to come to the United States and start all over again. It was a whole process. But finally, I can say that I’m part of Impact. I can finally work and I am excited.”
Being stuck at home and not being able to compete was a horrible experience for Killer Kelly. It was during this time she found out that she had ADHD, in addition to being diagnosed with severe anxiety and depression:
“It was terrible. It was horrible. Well, at least I sought some help. I finally found out that I had severe depression, severe anxiety. Most recently, I found out that I have ADHD. So that really helped me to finally seek out mental health help. But the whole waiting, the whole being locked. It was a very horrible experience.
It really put me down. I was in lower than rock bottom. It was just awful. Without my husband, without his help and without impact, I don’t know what I would do. Impact was beyond professional, beyond professional… They were amazing, dealing with everything.”
The good news is that Killer Kelly is now back in the United States and she is ready to compete in Impact again. The July 7 episode of the show featured a vignette teasing her return with a new persona.
Last night, many notable pieces of news emerged from the July 7 episode. We have collected some of the news and updates from last night’s episode.
Killer Kelly To Return
During the July 7 episode of IMPACT, a vignette aired that announced the return of Killer Kelly to IMPACT Wrestling.
In November 2020, Killer Kelly made her IMPACT debut. She competed in the Impact Knockouts Tag Team Title Tournament where she teamed with Renee Michelle. Unfortunately, Michelle and Kelly lost to Jordynne Grace and Jazz in the first round of the tournament.
Mia Yim is the new number one contender for the Knockouts Championship.
Yim and Deonna Purrazzo battled in the main event of the July 7 episode of IMPACT Wrestling. Yim was able to defeat Deonna to become the next person to challenge the Knockouts Championship Jordynne Grace.
The former AEW wrestler Alan Angels made his IMPACT Wrestling debut on the July 7 episode of their TV.
The tapings for this episode of Impact Wrestling TV took place just days after Angels’ AEW contract expired. Alan’s full-time AEW deal expired recently, but he decided to turn down a part-time deal.
It is unclear whether or not Angels has signed a contract. As Alan is from Georgia, where the tapings took place, this could be a one-off appearance.
Alan answered “Speedball” Mike Bailey’s open challenge for the X-Division Championship. On the Against All Odds pay-per-view, Bailey issued the open challenge. On the next night at the tapings, Alan Angels showed up to answer his call.
KUSHIDA is set to make his debut at the IMPACT Derby City Rumble.
IMPACT Wrestling has recently announced that at their next TV tapings the former WWE Cruiserweight Champion and current NJPW star KUSHIDA will make his debut for the promotion. The TV tapings will take place in Kentucky on July 15 and 16.
The tapings will happen at Old Forester’s Paristown Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. Tickets for the event are currently on sale here.
Alan Angels made his surprise debut at Saturday’s Impact Wrestling TV taping in Atlanta, Georgia just days after his AEW contract expired.
Angels answered the open challenge issued by X-Division Champion “Speedball” Mike Bailey on Friday night at Against All Odds. When Bailey asked on Saturday night who it would be, Angels appeared.
It will be the second title defense from Bailey, who successfully defended it against former champion Trey Miguel at Against All Odds.
This set of tapings will cover the next two weeks of TV so as it stands right now, there’s no word yet on when the date this match will air. It’s also unclear whether Angels has signed a contract or if this is a one-off appearance considering he’s from Georgia.
Earlier this week, Angels thanked AEW in his departure statement on Thursday as he said he feels his career is just beginning. His full-time deal expired, but he decided to turn down a part-time deal.
Angels made his AEW debut two years ago where he made a name for himself in a competitive match with Kenny Omega.
“There is really no perfect time to be coming out,” Shaw told The Chronicle. “It’s my journey. Now just felt right for me. Today I’m fully living my life to the fullest, truly, authentic, freely and I am a transgender and I’m very proud,” she said on Breakfast Television.
She has been wrestling for seven years after being trained by Lance Storm and has won titles for RevPro, Pro-Wrestling EVE, and Progress.
“People are going to have opinions, but whatever they say, it doesn’t define who I am,” Shaw continued. “I know who I am and I am true to myself.”
Shaw also spoke about the support she has received from her sisters after sharing the news:
“Coming from an Asian background, being the oldest, there was an unsaid rule, the expectation was that I would carry the family name, that I would set an example, that I would take care of my sisters. There was a lot of pressure from my parents to be great,” Shaw said. “My sisters were so important, asking ‘How can you feel like you have failed as a parent? Gisele gets to live her dream. If you want us to look up to someone, why not someone living their dream and being the best version of themselves?’ That was an eye-opener for my parents.”
Executive Vice President of Impact Wrestling Scott D’Amore also spoke to the Chronicle where he called her a valued member of their roster and her role “will not be affected or in any way changed by her disclosing she’s transgender to the wider public.”
The chronicle also spoke to current Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace who said that they have mutual trust and respect.
Shaw is currently scheduled to face Rosemary on next Thursday’s edition of Impact Wrestling.
Impact Wrestling star Lady Frost has decided to move on from the promotion. She has asked for her release less than a year into her run with the company.
The female star revealed this news on Twitter earlier today. She thanked the fans and the staff of the promotion for the opportunities she has been given:
“I have officially asked for my release from @IMPACTWRESTLING I want to thank the incredible fans, staff, and locker room, as well as @ScottDAmore and @gailkimITSME for the opportunities given to me. Thank you for a great experience.”
I have officially asked for my release from @IMPACTWRESTLING I want to thank the incredible fans, staff, and locker room, as well as @ScottDAmore and @gailkimITSME for the opportunities given to me. Thank you for a great experience.
Lady Frost made her wrestling debut at the age of 33 in March 2018. She competed for WWE in her very first match and the Impact star lost to Asuka in a squash match.
She went on to wrestle for some known promotions in the following years. The most notable of it was her AEW debut where Frost and Jennacide teamed up for a loss against Diamante and Ivelisse for an episode of Dark in November 2020.
Lady Frost made her Impact Wrestling debut in July last year. She answered an open challenge issued by the then Impact Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo.
Impact Wrestling has not yet responded to the release request of the wrestling star. We will keep you updated on any development in the story.
AEW superstar and current reigning ROH TV champion Samoa Joe issued a short statement on Twitter this morning explaining why he did not appear via video on last night’s Impact Slammiversary pay-per-view.
Along with the event Impact was celebrating its 20-year anniversary in the wrestling business, and got video testimonials from some of their biggest talents over the years, dating back to their days as Total Nonstop Action (TNA). This includes statements from WWE’s AJ Styles, AEW’s Sting, and the Olympic Hero himself, Kurt Angle.
Fans were quick to notice Joe’s absence from the event, as his run in TNA was quite memorable. The Samoan Submission Machine was a former TNA heavyweight champion, former TNA TV champion, former two-time TNA tag champion, and a former five-time TNA X-Division champion, and along with Styles is widely considered one of the best X-Division champions in history.
In his tweet Joe reveals that he was not asked by Impact to appear, nor would he have been available to film anything anyway. He adds that his absence should not “mar a great milestone” set by the promotion before wishing everyone well moving forward.
“Dearest cackling hens. I wasn’t asked, or available, and it should not mar a great milestone set by Impact. Happy Anniversary, and my best going forward to all involved.”
You can check out Joe’s tweet below.
Dearest cackling hens. I wasn’t asked, or available, and it should not mar a great milestone set by Impact. Happy Anniversary, and my best going forward to all involved .
A big-time WWE superstar appeared at this year’s IMPACT Wrestling Slammiversary event.
IMPACT is celebrating its 20th anniversary and what better way to do so than Slammiversary? The show had brought plenty of other surprises such as an appearance from America’s Most Wanted (James Storm and Chris Harris).
The company also had a touching tribute to former IMPACT commentators Don West and Mike Tenay.
AJ Styles Appears
(via IMPACT Wrestling)
A special video message was also sent in by none other than “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles.
Styles is considered to be “Mr. TNA” but his appearance will certainly come as a surprise. He has been with WWE since 2016 but this isn’t the first time WWE and IMPACT have worked together.
Many years prior, WWE arranged an agreement to have Christian appear during a Slammiversary event in exchange for allowing Ric Flair another Hall of Fame induction.
Here is what AJ Styles had to say during his Slammiversary appearance.
Mickie James will be the special guest enforcer in IMPACT’s first ever Queen of the Mountain match this Sunday. The event takes place from Nashville, Tennessee and airs live on pay-per-view.
Ahead of this historic match, the former Knockouts Champion spoke with SEScoops correspondent Ella Jay about her future in wrestling, being the special guest enforcer, wrestling Allie Katch at GCW Spring Break, and more.
Here are some highlights on what Mickie James said about:
Her Future In Wrestling:
“For the last couple of months since I’ve lost the [Knockouts] championship, I just kind of had a reset moment, honestly, because to be honest, I’ve done so much in the last year and a lot of it was not expected.
I just had to sit in a moment of gratitude to go like, wow, this has been a lot’. But then like what is? Because that’s the question I keep getting. ‘What’s next? What are you going to do next?’ I really I don’t know. Obviously my focus and my intention is always to help women’s wrestling and do more for women’s wrestling. But other than that, I’m like, ‘gosh, what else can I do?’ So it’s been crazy.”
Being the Special Guest Enforcer in the Queen of The Mountain Match at Slammiversary:
“Slammiversary is like 20 years and when I remember when IMPACT first started and that was the birth of myself, a little Alexis Laree coming to the Fairgrounds and to kind of come home. And even a year ago, I came back to impact at Slammiversary because of the announcement of Empowerrr and all of these other things. And I think since that moment and moving forward between NWA and IMPACT, I’ve just been able to do so many amazing things and obviously it’s in Nashville is right down the road.
It’s back at the Fairgrounds where it all began, and it’s the first ever Queen of the Mountain match. That’s incredible. And I thought, Well, I’ve really wanted to be a part of it. I didn’t want to just insert myself in the matches, like be one of the competitors because all these girls have done so much to get to this moment. But I’d really like to have the best seat in the house, you know, and definitely watch it from in the thing and make sure there’s no shenanigans.”
Wrestling Allie Katch At GCW Spring Break
“I really, really like Allie Katch, and I think that she’s really presented herself and found her niche and her home there, which is GCW. But also she was over, she was super over there and it wasn’t just because obviously it was her hometown too, and it was cool for me to go into that environment because that was not my world and they were very open. I think that the crowd was really hot and excited, but they were very split in the match because they wanted Allie to win.”
“It was great, and she’s fantastic. I would hope to wrestle her again. And I can’t wait to see what more she does and can do, you know, in the world of wrestling, because she’s really unique and she’s fun and she’s exciting and she’s bad ass and she can wrestle her butt off. So it’s cool to see.”
Impact Wrestling presents Slammiversary live on pay-per-view this Sunday from the Nashville Fairgrounds in Nashville, TN.
Gail Kim is aware that Paige plans to return to the ring at some point.
Late last week, Paige announced that her final day with WWE will be on July 7. She said the company choose not to offer her a contract extension.
Paige has vowed to make her in-ring return and it’s left many wondering where she’ll end up if she can get medical clearance.
Paige to IMPACT Wrestling?
Speaking to Steve Fall for SEScoops, IMPACT Wrestling producer Gail Kim said she’d be more than happy to welcome Paige to the Knockouts division.
“Never say never. I love Paige, I admire everything that she’s done for women’s wrestling. She also came up kind of in that period where maybe it was so powerful — what it is now.
“Women’s wrestling is probably at its best right now with main eventing. Pay-per-views, shows, it’s not an irregular thing for that to happen. So you know, Paige was part of that process.
“I have nothing but respect for her in and outside of the ring. And hey, if she wants to come over to IMPACT Wrestling I feel like the door is open. So, come on over, Paige!”
– Gail Kim on Paige joining Impact Wrestling
Watch Steve Fall’s discussion with Gail Kim:
Paige’s Next Move
Paige hasn’t wrestled since a house show event back in late 2017. She injured her neck during a tag team match and was never cleared to wrestle again by WWE’s medical team.
After retiring in 2018, WWE used Paige as a manager and later an analyst before having her sit at home until her contract expires.
Paige admitted she was frustrated with the lack of communication from WWE. At one point, she even pitched an idea to serve as Ronda Rousey’s manager but the company never took her up on it.
Nonetheless, she did express gratitude to WWE for keeping her as long as they did knowing she wouldn’t be cleared to wrestle.
Jake Crist, most known for his stint in Impact Wrestling, shared a video of him dousing two title belts with gasoline and then lit them on fire. The belts he burned were the IWA World Championship and the IWA Mid-South World Junior Heavyweight Championship which he had held for over 200 days.
He told Ian Rotten in the video that he gave him a month to pay him and since the former ECW star burnt this bridge, he thought he would do a little burning himself. At this time, Rotten has yet to comment on Crist’s actions.
For everyone that’s been screwed over by a promotion this is for you! For the people!!! No excuses, you should have paid me, what’s done is done! pic.twitter.com/ScDLi4SNyX
Accountability. I said that last night in a space. If we can't hold people accountable for their actions then nothing will change. I have to stand by @TheJakeCrist to hold IWA accountable for their actions!
Since it has been the talk of indie wrestling the last couple of days I have decided that I am going to withdraw from @IWAMidSouth King of the Deathmatches. I stand with @TheJakeCrist and @TheDukeJWM.
— The Bloodbath Behemoth (@Tank_Est1996) June 14, 2022
The promotion was founded by Rotten in 1996 and based out of Indiana. IWA Mid-South was a starting place for several notable wrestlers includingColt Cabana, Chris Hero, and CM Punk. The promotion has had some controversial moments in the past including Rotten being accused of not paying talent.
Jeff Jarrett had a confrontation with Rotten’s son after a reported pay dispute between Jarrett and Rotten.
Impact Wrestling is bringing back one of his infamous match types at this Sunday’s Slammiversary event.
On Twitter, the company announced that the Reverse Battle Royal will be back and part of the Countdown to Slammiversary streaming event this Sunday at 7:30 pm ET.
The match will stream on Impact Plus and YouTube, and will also feature a Digital Media Championship match between Rich Swann and Brian Myers.
BREAKING: The Reverse Battle Royal returns and Rich Swann takes on @Myers_Wrestling for the Digital Media Championship on #CountdownToSlammiversary streaming LIVE & FREE this Sunday at 7:30pm ET on IMPACT Plus and YouTube!
While a traditional Battle Royal sees wrestlers toss one another out of the ring to eliminate their opponents, the Reverse Battle Royal isn’t quite so simple.
Instead, the match starts with all competitors outside of the ring, fighting to enter the ring to qualify for the second half of the match.
Once half the participants are in the ring, the second part of the match starts, which plays out like a standard Battle Royal until there’s one person left in the ring.
The match debuted in Impact when Abyss outlasted everyone, in a match poorly received by fans and critics.
In the 2006 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards, that year’s Reverse Battle Royal earned the dubious honor of ‘Worst Match of the Year.’
A year later, Eric Young won the match as seen below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJyG0v9jXdU
Slammiversary 2022
The return of the Reverse Battle Royal is just one part of a stacked card for this Sunday’s Pay Per View.
In the main event, Impact World Champion Josh Alexander will defend against two-time former champion Eric Young.
In his first match for Impact since suffering a broken ankle in September 2021, Sami Callihan will face Moose in a Monsters Ball match.
Knockouts World Champion Tasha Steelz will put her title on the line against Chelsea Green, Mia Yim, Jordynne Grace, and Deonna Purrazzo in the first Queen of the Mountain match.
Josh Alexander puts the Impact World title on the line against Eric Young this weekend at Slammiversary. The event takes place from Nashville, Tennssee and airs live on pay-per-view.
Ahead of the title defense, the Walking Weapon spoke with SEScoops correspondent Ella Jay about Impact’s return to Nashville, his favorite moments in company history and what it’s like to carry Impact on his shoulders as World champion.
Watch Ella Jay’s interview with Josh Alexander:
Here are some highlights of what Josh Alexander said about:
IMPACT Returning to Nashville:
Here’s what Josh Alexander had to say about Slammiversary taking place from Nashville, TN, the city where Impact launched 20 years ago:
“Well, I’m just psyched to be back here. We spent a lot of time in Nashville during the whole pandemic era and tapings and stuff, so I’m very familiar with the city. And then we had some crowds here before we ended up venturing out, starting at Bound for Glory last year. But we’ve been on the road like crazy.”
“It’s different coming back and being able to wrestle on the Nashville Fairgrounds, maybe not the same venue because they tore it down and built a new venue there. But to wrestle on the same hallowed ground where all these people that inspired me to become a pro wrestler made their names in the asylum era of TNA. It’s coming full circle and for me to do it as champion, it’s even sweeter.”
Favorite Memories in Nashville:
“I’ve had a lot of success with IMPACT Wrestling right here in Nashville. I’ve won pretty much every championship I’ve had here. I’ve become a Triple Crown champion in Nashville. I would say my fondest memory would be the Ironman match with TJP that we did in front of no crowd, because that just don’t come along on television that often.”
“I knew it was a huge opportunity for me to not only set myself apart, but kind of put the company on the map and show them what I could do in the ring. And the chemistry I have with TJP is something that doesn’t come along very often in wrestling. So I was very excited and happy for that opportunity and then we exceeded our own expectations with it.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZfv1Ss6hB0
Full Match: Josh Alexander vs. TJP (Iron Man Match)
His Favorite Moments in Impact History:
“I always say my favorite moment, the most iconic moment that I can think of was when Kurt Angle headbutted Samoa Joe. And that Samoa Joe rose up behind him with his head bleeding and that just kicked off their feud.
Skipper doing the the run off the top of the cage, that made me jump off my sofa. But the one thing that really sticks out when you first said that was Gail Kim took a cutter off of the entrance ramp. And the way it was shot, it looked like she was just falling into oblivion, like she fell off the edge of the planet. And I remember standing up like, ‘oh, my God, she’s dead’. And then the camera cuts to just find the wreckage at the bottom beside the ring. Yeah, that that was one of the most memorable moments to me.”
Walking into Slammiversary as Impact World Champion:
“I actually was wrestling with my friend Isaac from high school on my trampoline right before he ran inside to order the very first pay per view. I had dinner with him maybe a month ago, and I was talking to him about how I just had to stop and pinch myself because not only did I never think this was possible, he certainly never thought it was possible back then that like this is where my life would have taken me. And I’m so blessed and privileged that I’m able to do what I love because this isn’t work to me. You know what I mean?”
His Favorite Stars from Impact’s 20-Year History:
“The very first episode, I remember the first match was Jerry Lynn and AJ Styles and Low Ki against the Flying Elvises. And I say it’s so often that when I saw Low Ki and AJ Styles for the first time just in that six and a half minute match they had, they completely blew my mind and just showed me this completely alternate style of pro wrestling than I ever thought possible. And that was really what got my wheels turning about, maybe getting involved with this myself and wanting to be a part of this business and pursue it as a dream. those two guys right off the bat, the entire X Division is one of the most innovative things.”
The Knockouts
“I think it’s changed the business across the entire world landscape right now. It’s all inspired by the stuff that those guys did between 2002 and 2010 and then the Knockouts Division especially, just seeing what they did like in 2007, when it really picked up steam with Awesome Kong, Gail, Kim, Tara, Mickie James, all these other people.
“It was something like you never saw before. You were used to bra and panties matches and then we were seeing kick ass wrestling coming out of the ladies like it’s carried forth to today where our entire Knockouts division was pretty much inspired by what those Knockouts did back then.”
The New Face of Impact Wrestling
Holding a company’s World title comes with a great deal of responsibility. A champion represents the organization and serve as the defacto locker room leader. We asked Josh Alexander how he’s adjusting to his role as champion.
“I recognize the responsibility that I carry because being champion, being the face of IMPACT wrestling, sure, I’m the face of the brand. I’m the one that has to trumpet and rah rah for IMPACT all the time, which is so easy for me because I started as a fan. I love this place. I can rhyme off names left and right and talk about the history of this company all day long and and I enjoy it.”
“I take the role especially seriously because the respect of my peers matters to me a lot. And I love this locker room. I love the crew. I love everybody here so much. I think we’re all–as much as this is a singular pursuit and professional wrestling, I think we all look at this like a team and we all have a chip on my shoulder. We’re all the little engine that could fight back and show that we belong and that we are the best and to represent them as the face of IMPACT Wrestling. That’s the thing I take most serious.”
Who He Wants to See “Step Up”
“As in-ring competition goes, I followed Eddie Edwards since he was “Diehard” Eddie Edwards and Noah back in the day. And I think he’s amazing. And I think if we locked up, he could do something special. And the second name, once he works his way up the ladder and comes into contention, I really think that I could make magic and trap a bunch of lightning in a bottle with someone like Mike Bailey.”
“Speedball” Mike Bailey:
“He’s a natural born talent. Once in a million kind of guy, once in a lifetime. He’s a generational talent, as they say. And I recognize that. I think everybody else does. And now that he’s gotten his Visa, he signed with IMPACT and he’s in front of the world. Everybody’s finding out really fast.”
Catch Slammiversary this Sunday, Jun 19th live on pay-per-view:
As a wrestler of over 30 years, Eric Young is no stranger to championship gold, but one prize that has alluded him is the NXT Championship.
In 2016, Young signed with WWE after a lengthy run in Impact Wrestling and formed the group Sanity alongside Killian Dain, Alexander Wolfe, Nikki Cross, and briefly Sawyer Fulton.
The group did hold the NXT Tag Team Championships, but Young never captured the brand’s top prize, despite at least one of his Sanity cohorts thinking he was ready.
Speaking to the Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling podcast, Dain said there was a window of time when he felt Young could’ve feuded with Shinsuke Nakamura who at the time held the NXT Championship.
That feud never transpired which remains a sore spot for Dain who said (via Bodyslam):
“WWE were idiots for not putting the NXT Championship on Eric Young while we were in NXT.”
Killian Dain on Young’s push in WWE.
Young after WWE
Young captured his second Impact World Championship upon his return to the company following his April 2020 WWE release.
Eric Young’s career in WWE may not have gone as he (or Dain) may have hoped, but the Canadian wrestler has done well for him since.
At July 2020’s Slammiversary event, Young returned to Impact Wrestling and captured the promotion’s World Championship in September that same year.
Young’s reign would end the following month when he lost the title to Rich Swann.
At next weekend’s Slammiversary, Young will once again challenge for the Impact World Championship, now held by fellow Canadian Josh Alexander.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jeff Jarrett claims AJ Styles was essentially “forced out” of IMPACT Wrestling before joining WWE.
Jarrett recently took to his podcast, “My World” and touched on Styles departing from IMPACT in 2014. This was just as Jarrett was making his exit from the company towards the end of 2013.
The WWE Hall of Famer notes Styles’ money was being cut, but the promotion didn’t want to cut his dates. IMPACT also began treating Styles, one of the founding pillars of the promotion, rather harshly, essentially forcing him to make the move to leave.
“I resigned December 21, 2013. In early December is when the Carter’s put the nail in the coffin for me and Toby (Keith) to acquire majority interest. We knew it was game, set, match.
“It was not happening. I knew I had to go. I knew Dixie’s position on all of it because of the, for lack of a better word, the financial de-spiral the company was in.
“AJ’s money was getting cut. They wanted to cut AJ’s money but not dates. He said, ‘If you cut my money, I’m cutting my dates.’ It was not just AJ’s contract. It was everybody’s. He was a complete, utter mess.
“AJ was so willing to commit to the product that he was willing to re-sign. I found this out later. They said some awful things and had devalued AJ. They basically forced AJ against his will to leave.
“That’s how committed AJ Styles was to the brand. He was TNA through and through. He had to be essentially forced out.”
Styles had been with IMPACT since 2002. Over the course of his career with the promotion, he racked up a plethora of titles and accolades, including two TNA World Heavyweight Championship runs, six X Division Title wins, and a three-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion.
After departing from IMPACT in 2014, Styles made appearances for Ring Of Honor (ROH), New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), and various independent promotions. However, in January of 2016, Styles finally made his WWE debut at the Royal Rumble.
“Road Dogg was very instrumental in bringing AJ into WWE because of his position at the time with the company.
“AJ was such a tried and true, and committed to his core. He was going to go back to IMPACT with Doc and Karl before he signed with WWE. He was that committed to the brand.”
Jay White is reportedly done with IMPACT Wrestling.
PWInsider reports that White has finished up with the promotion. It’s said that, due to his busy schedule with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), there’s no way to use White consistently on IMPACT TV.
This is similar to the reason why Jonah departed from IMPACT as well. IMPACT would reportedly love to have White back when they can, however, he doesn’t have anything scheduled for them at the moment, and isn’t expected to any time soon.
White joins other names, such as W. Morrisey, aka the former Big Cass in WWE, to have recently left IMPACT. White was brought into IMPACT last July as part of the promotion’s working agreement with NJPW.
He confronted Kenny Omega, Don Callis, Doc Gallows, and Karl Anderson at Slammiversary. White then teamed up with Chris Bey and eventually recruited him into The Bullet Club.
White’s last IMPACT matchup took place on March 15 at the IMPACT TV tapings, where he worked a tag team match alongside Bey, against The Briscoes (Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe).
Now back in Japan, White actually worked today’s Best of the Super Juniors Finals. He and Doc Gallows, Gedo, and Taiji Ishimori were defeated by Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano, Jado & Tama Tonga.
He’s currently slated to challenge IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada for the World Title at NJPW Dominion on June 12th.
A former AEW star will be making his return to IMPACT Wrestling at Slammiversary.
This year’s Slammiversary event will take place in Nashville, Tennessee on June 19. The card will feature an IMPACT World Title match between champion Josh Alexander and Eric Young.
There will also be an IMPACT World Tag Team Title match between The Briscoes and The Good Brothers.
The official Twitter account of IMPACT has announced that Jack Evans, who recently finished his contract with AEW, is back with the promotion and will compete at Ultimate X on the Slammiversary card.
A big main event player for IMPACT Wrestling has made his exit from the promotion.
PWInsider is reporting that W. Morrisey, who was known as “Big Cass” in WWE, is no longer with IMPACT. His last televised appearance will be on the June 2 episode of IMPACT.
He’ll be in a tag team match with PCO taking on Moose and Steve Maclin.
Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men Podcast noted back in May that WWE was impressed by W. Morrisey’s appearance on AEW Dynamite. He was pinned by Wardlow.
There’s no word on what’s next for Morrisey but he’s been making quite the career comeback and may soon find himself working for another major promotion.
NWA Worlds Champion Matt Cardona has confirmed his injury.
Matt Cardona’s Injury
On May 28 at GCW Downward Spiral, Cardona faced Blake Christian. During the match, he, unfortunately, injured his arm. Due to the injury he sustained, Cardona had to miss his scheduled afterparty. He revealed that he needed to take a ‘redeye’ to Orlando to get the injury checked out. Cardona noted before the confirmation that he ‘thought’ that he has suffered a torn bicep.
On Tuesday, Matt Cardona confirmed on Twitter that his bicep was torn, following an MRI. He also revealed that he needs surgery and that he will be canceling upcoming dates.
Got a MRI today. Bicep is torn. Surgery needed. Will unfortunately need to cancel some dates.
Cardona is set to defend the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship at NWA Alwayz Ready on June 11 against Nick Aldis. The title of the pay-per-view is a nod to Matt Cardona and his branding.
Cardona also is the reigning AIW Absolute Champion, AIW Intense Champion, and the ASW Heavyweight Champion. Cardona also competes regularly in IMPACT Wrestling and Game Changer Wrestling.
Cardona Injury Update
Cardona recently appeared on Busted Open Radio to reveal that he will still be at the NWA Alwayz Ready show in some way.
Cardona shared, “The doctor is suggesting surgery, which I will be getting on Tuesday, but there is no way I’m not coming to a pay-per-view named after me. I will be there. I don’t know what exactly is going to happen and what exactly is going to go down. I’m going to be there, I’ll have the Ten Pounds of Gold with me. It’s really Billy’s [Billy Corgan] decision on what he wants to do.”
“Part of me wanted to tape it up and work through it, but I want to be doing this for a long time. It’s probably better that I get it taken care of right now. There is no good time to get hurt and this certainly isn’t it. NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion, having a pay-per-view named after me, just being the King of Indies, the Deathmatch King, we have (IMPACT) Slammiversary coming up. It’s not a good time to get hurt, but shit happens,” Cardona continued.
It is unclear how long Cardona will be unable to complete. There is not yet an announcement on how the NWA will handle the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship situation.
H/T to Jeremy Lambert Fightful for the transcription
SEScoops would like to wish Cardona a speedy recovery.
There are results from GCW Downward Spiral included in our Saturday Night Results wrap-up here.
I think I tore my bicep and I still finished the match and beat you!!! https://t.co/PWzrCryEV6
Sorry guys. Gotta miss this after party at @NerdBarLV. Messed up my arm at GCW tonight and I need to get a red eye to Orlando to get it checked out. pic.twitter.com/tFgFRARlEE
Former TNA Wrestling commentator Don West is battling cancer for a second time after originally announcing last June that he had been diagnosed with brain lymphoma and he would begin treatment.
Things looked better last September when he announced the cancer was in remission after doing 8 weeks of chemotherapy and 13 treatments of radiation. Unfortunately, in December, it was announced his cancer had returned and he was battling it with chemotherapy.
PWInsider recently reported treatment had not worked as well as expected and now the brain tumor is “twice the size it has been”. West had been exploring stem cell treatment but due to the tumor size doctors are not progressing with those plans.
Impact Wrestling’s Scott D’Amore mentioned this past weekend that he will match 100% of all donations made to West’s GoFundMe Campaign through this Friday. He wrote the following:
“Folks, ?@IMPACTWRESTLING? OG ?@DonWestDeals? is one of the best humans to ever walk this planet. Let’s rally around DW! Any donations made by midnight EST Friday will be matched dollar for dollar. It’s currently at $34,776 so keep me honest.”
We wish him all of the best in fighting this.
Folks, ?@IMPACTWRESTLING? OG ?@DonWestDeals? is one of the best humans to ever walk this planet. Let’s rally around DW!
Any donations made by midnight EST Friday will be matched dollar for dollar. It’s currently at $34,776 so keep me honest https://t.co/w8qyJH5Du1
The 20th edition of IMPACT’s Slammiversary is just around the corner and the card is starting to take shape.
This show celebrates the 20th anniversary of Impact Wrestling. The show is exactly 20 years from the day of the first event promoted by Impact.
This will be the go-to article for an updated card of the matches and segments announced for IMPACT’s Slammiversary pay-per-view.
IMPACT Wrestling Slammiversary 2022 Matches
IMPACT World Championship: Josh Alexander (c) vs. Eric Young
Ultimate X Match for the Impact X Division Championship: Ace Austin (c) vs. Kenny King vs. Mike Bailey vs. Trey Miguel vs. TBD vs. TBD
Queen of the Mountain Match for the Impact Knockouts World Championship: Tasha Steelz (c) vs. Chelsea Green vs. Deonna Purrazzo vs. Jordynne Grace vs. Mia Yim
Tag Team Match for the Impact World Tag Team Championship: The Briscoes (Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe) (c) vs. The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson)
Date, Time & How to Watch
IMPACT Wrestling Slammiversary is scheduled to take place at The Asylum in Nashville, Tennessee.
IMPACT’s Slammiversary takes place on Sunday, June 19, 2022. The air time is set for 8:00 PM EST.
You can watch IMPACT’s Rebellion on FITE or through cable pay-per-view providers. The show is priced at $39.99.
Join us at #Slammiversary on June 19th as we celebrate 20 years of TNA and IMPACT Wrestling!
