Scott Steiner collapsed backstage during the recent Impact Wrestling tapings in Atlanta, GA. According to multiple reports, Steiner needed to be worked on by paramedics and was later taken to the emergency room. The 57-year-old is said to be recovering and doing well currently.

Impact Wrestling EVP Scott D’Amore updated fans on Twitter to let them know Steiner is doing well and his family appreciates the concern.

Tommy Dreamer also posted that he and Joey Ryan traveled with Steiner to the hospital.

Hulk Hogan also sent the following Tweet out to his NWO stablemate:

Rick Steiner Comments On Steiner Brothers WWE Hall of Fame Potential

Rick Steiner recently commented about the Steiners Brothers potentially going into the WWE HOF. According to him, Scott’s frequent ripping of WWE will prevent that from occurring.

“I think about it when people ask me about it but I know there’s not a chance in hell that we get to be inducted because of the way my brother [rips WWE].”

“The Headshrinkers went by and shot fireworks at us and so we pulled off and got eggs and milk and anything we could throw out the window and we started chasing them … I think most of the time sh*t just happened. You hang around Hennig, you hang around Bossman and Rude [and] sh*t happens.”

• Scott Steiner Belittles WWE Hall Of Fame, Says It Only Exists In “Vince’s Mind”

Impact Wrestling this week emanated from Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas and featured a main event of Tessa Blanchard defending the Impact World Championship against Taya Valkyrie. It was the first Impact World Championship match to feature two female wrestlers in history.

Impact Wrestling 3/3/20 Quick Results:

1. TJP & Fallah Bah defeated the North (Non-title match)
2. Moose defeated Petey Williams
3. Acey Romero defeated Joey Ryan
4. No Disqualification: Su Yung defeated Havok
5. The Deaners defeated the Swinging Disco Balls (Disco Inferno & Johnny Swinger)
6. Impact World Championship
   Tessa Blanchard (c) defeated Taya Valkyrie

Here are 9 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 3/3/20:

Tessa Blanchard Retains Over Taya Valkyrie

A historic title reign resulted in a historic title match this week as Tessa Blanchard took on Taya Valkyrie with the Impact World Championship hanging in the balance. John E Bravo attempted to interfere in the match, grabbing at Blanchard’s ankle as she hit the ropes. Taya attempted to take advantage of this and charged at the champion but missed and hit Bravo instead. Blanchard then took advantage with a head-scissors into the buckle followed by a Buzzsaw DDT for the win.

Blanchard celebrated on the stage with the belt to bring the show to a close. In terms of what may lay ahead for Blanchard, Eddie Edwards told her earlier in the night that after he defeats Michael Elgin in the finals of their best of 5 series next week, he’s coming for Blanchard’s belt.

Joey Ryan, Katie Forbes, & Rob Van Dam Becoming Allies?

Joey Ryan seems conflicted. As Acey Romero was being made to “touch it” this week Ryan did not execute the penis suplex move he usually does in such a situation. Instead, Ryan seemed as though he did not want to use the move for whatever reason. This allowed Acey Romero to capitalize and hit a devastating elbow for the win.

Later on in the back, Ryan was seen talking to Katie Forbes. Rob Van Dam walked up to the two and Forbes again stated to RVD that Ryan understands what they go through with entitled fans on social media. Is there an alliance brewing between these 3 wrestlers?

Su Yung Gets Revenge For Her Own Murder

The rivalry between Su Yung and Havok is a little personal. That tends to be the case when one or both of two feuding wrestlers have attempted or succeeded in murdering the other one. Previously, Havok had tossed Su Yung over the side of a stairwell with a noose around her neck. This led to “Suzie” wandering around the halls of possibly the undead realm as James Mitchell attempted to manipulate her into doing his bidding. Rosemary helped bring the old Su Yung back, however, and she got her revenge this week on Havok.

Su Yung finished off her rival by wrapping a noose around her neck and using the mandible claw type finisher of hers. After the match, the Undead Bridesmaids made their return to Impact as well, Su put Havok in a coffin and the undead bachelorette party walked off with her inside. After, Rosemary was interviewed in the back about what had happened.

Rosemary Feels Nothing

Rosemary may have thought that rescuing Suzie from the grips of James Mitchell would bring her some type of satisfaction but it hasn’t. After Su Yung got her revenge on Havok, Rosemary was interviewed but seemed surprised that she doesn’t feel as she thought she would, possibly because nothing can bring the Bunny back (because she died, not because she signed with AEW). Rosemary may have to go searching now to find what it is that she is missing.

The Swinging Disco Balls Make Their Debut….and Lose

Johnny Swinger wanted to form a tag team with Willie Mack but Mack is not interested, noting that he has a tag partner in Rich Swann who just happens to be injured at the moment. Swinger and Disco Inferno opted to form a team instead and this week took on the Deaners.

Disco and Swinger attempted to use a roll of quarters to attack their opponents but the Deaners outsmarted them, causing Disco to hit his partner and the Deaners to pick up the win.

ICU Strikes Again

Disturbances to Impact Wrestling’s broadcasts have been taking place in recent weeks. It’s not yet clear what “ICU” wants or why they are stalking Impact broadcasts but its disturbances aren’t limited to Impact’s television broadcasts. ICU has been active on social media as well, hacking the accounts of people on Twitter.

Moose Is Ready To Take On TNA

Impact Wrestling has a special event planned for WrestleMania weekend in Tampa Bay. On April 3rd, Impact presents “Impact Wrestling TNA: There’s No Place Like Home.” There will be a King of the Mountain match and an Ultimate X match on the old school TNA themed card. Moose has let it be known that he has no time for wrestlers from TNA’s past and that includes X-Division pioneer Petey Williams. They met in single’s action this week on Impact with Moose coming out the victor.

TJP & Fallah Bah Gunning For The North’s Tag Titles

TJP and Fallah Bah have beat the members of the North in single’s matches and now have defeated them in non-title 2-on-2 action as well. TJP and Fallah Bah scored the clean victory on the tag champs this week and have seemed to have their number for a while now. With the non-title victory, TJP and Fallah Bah have no doubt earned a tag title shot somewhere down the line.

Next Week On Impact Wrestling

Here is what is scheduled for next week’s show:

• Jordynne Grace Open Challenge
• Rhino vs Madman Fulton
• The Desi Hit Squad vs the Rascalz
• Best of 5 Series (Tied 2-2) Michael Elgin vs Eddie Edwards

Co-Executive VP of IMPACT Don Callis recently appeared on Busted Open Radio. The former ECW personality discussed how the brand has grown throughout 2019; with the likes of Tessa Blanchard, Sami Callihan and Eddie Edwards being given the chance to shine on the AXS Network show.

IMPACT Roster

“I look at our roster and I’ll put that up against any roster in the industry” Callis began. “Our top eight is real, real solid and you get guys like [Tommy] Dreamer on the roster who, you know…I used to call my my good buddy Kenny Omega the best bout machine. I call Tommy the Best Pop machine because He always gets the biggest pop.”

Callis would then go on to praise the IMPACT roster and talked about how the move to AXS TV has been very beneficial to the brand. IMPACT moved over to the AXS back in October, after their parent company Anthem purchased the network. This not only propelled IMPACT to a much wider audience; but it also was the catalyst to have New Japan Pro Wrestling removed from the network. Thus impeding on their own efforts to advance in the North American market.

Arguably, since Don Callis and Scott D’Amore took over the brand back in 2018 there has been an uplift in the quality of IMPACT’s programming. The show has been critically acclaimed for its ability to build newer stars, such as Trey Miguel and Ace Austin.

“We have a lot of great talent, men and women who work their work, their tails off. And they’re there to to get the product over.” Callis then finished by saying that “obviously being on AXS is great for us, because we’re able to reach a much wider audience”

You can listen to Busted Open Radio every day via SiriusXM. Or catch the Podcast version of the show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher or your favourite podcast host.

For the first time ever, two female wrestlers will face each other with the Impact Wrestling World Championship at stake. Impact has recently announced that Tessa Blanchard will defend her Impact World Champion against Tessa Blanchard on next week’s show on AXS TV.

Valkyrie interfered in the closing moments of Tessa Blanchard’s X-Division title match against Ace Austin this week on AXS. Blanchard had defeated Austin at Sacrifice over the weekend and had been awarded a shot at X-Division gold as a result.

Tessa Blanchard vs Taya Valkyrie Head-to-Head Statistics

Taya Valkyrie holds a 6-2 record over Tessa Blanchard in single’s matches. She is 4-1 against Blanchard in matches that took place in Impact Wrestling.

1. 1/25/18 PWR: Taya Valkyrie defeated Tessa Blanchard
2. 3/8/18 Bar Wrestling: Taya Valkyrie defeated Tessa Blanchard
3. 10/14/18 Impact: Tessa Blanchard (c) defeated Taya Valkyrie (Bound For Glory 2018)
4. 10/16/18: Impact: Taya Valkyrie defeated Tessa Blanchard (c) via DQ
5. 1/6/19 Impact: Taya Valkyrie defeated Tessa Blanchard (c) – New Champion
6. 1/12/19 Impact: Taya Valkyrie (c) defeated Tessa Blanchard (Street Fight)
7. 1/18/19 PCW: Tessa Blanchard (c) defeated Taya Valkyrie
8. 9/15/19 AAA/Impact: Taya Valkyrie defeated Tessa Blanchard (c) (New Reina de Reinas Champion)

• Impact Wrestling Results and Takeaways (2/25/20)

Impact Wrestling 2/25/20 took place from Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas. The main event of the show featured Tessa Blanchard challenging for the X-Division title against champion Ace Austin.

Impact Wrestling 2/25/20 Quick Results:

1. Daga defeated Rob Van Dam via count-out
2. Rohit Raju defeated Wentz
3. Knockouts Championship
   Jordynne Grace (c) defeated Miranda Alize
4. Eddie Edwards defeated Michael Elgin (series tied 2-2) (match took place at Wrestling Revolver show)
5. X-Division Championship
   Ace Austin (c) vs Tessa Blanchard – No Contest (Taya Valkyrie interference)

Taya Valkyrie Attacks Tessa Blanchard

After Tessa Blanchard defeated Ace Austin at Sacrifice over the weekend, Scott D’Amore granted her a shot at Austin’s X-Division title. Blanchard looked poised to become “Tessa 2 Belts” but Taya Valkyrie hit the ring and attacked her. Valkyrie’s actions caused the match to be thrown out and cost Blanchard her chance to add another belt to her collection.

Valkyrie and Blanchard are no strangers, having previously feuded over the Knockouts championship. The two have also feuded over AAA’s Reina de Reinas championship. Based on the closing segment of Impact Wrestling this week, it looks as though the Taya vs Tessa rivalry has been renewed, this time with the Impact World Championship in the mix.

Do Joey Ryan, Rob Van Dam, & Katie Forbes Share Common Ground?

Rob Van Dam lost to Daga via count-out this week after he bailed on his match to search for Katie Forbes. RVD’s girlfriend accompanied him to the ring for his match but later left to go backstage after being upset with fans saying negative things about her on social media (she was checking her phone the whole match).

When RVD caught up with Forbes backstage, they were both approached by Joey Ryan who let them know he understands where they are coming from. Ryan told RVD and Forbes that the same people who are attacking them on social media also attack him. It seems as though these 3, who previously had issues with each other, may have found some common ground.

Eddie Edwards Evens Best-of-5 Series At 2

Michael Elgin had jumped out to a 2-0 lead in his series with Eddie Edwards but things are all tied up now. This match took place at a Wrestling Revolver show and saw Edwards pick up the victory with a pinning combination. The series will now come down to a 5th and final match.

Who is ICU?

Strange vignette type things have been airing at random intervals on Impact Wrestling in recent weeks. It appears a mystery person is stalking the goings-on in the promotion from afar. Time will tell when the person behind the vignettes chooses to reveal themselves.

It was announced on Twitter that ICU had hacked Josh Matthews’ account.

Jordynne Grace Issues Open Challenge

Jordynne Grace cut a promo in the back this week saying she plans on being a fighting champion and issuing an open challenge. This brought out 5x Knockouts champion Madison Rayne who thought Grace was acting a bit too confident for a 1x champion who just got the belt. Rayne would then accompany Miranda Alize to the ring for her shot against Grace for the belt.

While Alize would get in some offense and even a near fall, Grace would ultimately pull out the win with a Grace Driver.

Disco Inferno & Johnny Swinger To Form Tag Team

A backstage segment featuring Johnny Swinger and Disco Inferno aired this week. Inferno attempted to explain to Swinger why Willie Mack doesn’t want to be his tag team partner but somehow this led to the two deciding they should form a team, although Disco was still a little hazy on the details as the segment came to a close.

Gut Check Returns

Impact announced the return of Gut Check this week. Full episodes of the show are available to watch on Impact Plus but a preview was shown on this week’s episode. On the show, John E Bravo serves as a trainer and is not shy at pointing out trainees’ bad habits.

Chris Bey Is Coming To Impact Wrestling

A vignette for Chris Bey’s signing aired this week on Impact Wrestling. The 24-year old is from the Las Vegas area and has wrestled for the Future Stars of Wrestling promotion in the city. He is a former FSW Heavyweight Champion.

Rohit Raju Picks Up Win Over Wentz

The Desi Hit Squad and the Rascalz appear destined for a rivalry. Rohit Raju suggested in a backstage promo that he is upset with the tag title shot the Rascalz were recently given and felt that shot should have gone to the Desi Hit Squad.

In single’s action between Raju and Wentz this week, interference from the rest of the Desi Hit Squad allowed Raju to pick up the win. Things are likely not finished between these two factions, however.

Next Week On Impact Wrestling

Here is what is scheduled for next week’s Impact Wrestling:

• Petey Williams vs Moose
• Joey Ryan vs Acey Romero
• The North vs TJP & Fallah Bah
• No DQ: Su Yung vs Havok

IMPACT star Rob Van Dam had some enlightening points regarding concussions and CTE. The former ECW Champion has recently released a documentary (Headstrong) that focuses on his symptoms and difficulties relating to his ongoing brain injuries. “I’ve had hundreds, seriously, hundreds, of concussions” RVD revealed on this week’s episode of the Steve Austin Show podcast.

RVD was one of the main figures of the ECW promotion back in the late nineties/early 2000’s. Van Dam would help to establish the ‘extreme’ brand with his mixture of high-flying, hardcore and hard hitting in-ring action. Concussions and CTE are such a major talking point in sports, now more than ever. WWE’s current stringent policy on head injuries wasn’t something that was implemented back in the 90s, especially in the likes of the indies/ECW.

Rob Van Dam and Chair Shots

RVD would also discuss the immediate effects of hits directly to the head with Austin. “(ECW performer) Balls Mahoney would hit me with a chair. Then ‘crack’ it would be like everything’s in slow motion,” Van Dam began. “Sometimes the sound ‘goes out,’ sometimes you know everything’s spinning.”

Concussions and CTE

Concussions and CTE aren’t something that RVD was aware of early in his career. The idea that you had to take shots to the head unprotected was what was expected of ECW performers. RVD would mention to Austin that he didn’t think that the effects would be long lasting. He thought that the instantaneous ‘woozyness’ was all that he would feel early in his career. “I had double vision, but I just couldn’t shake it off and I kept thinking well. You know, it’ll be gone tomorrow, so I’m not gonna let anybody know. The show must go on.”

IMPACT

Rob Van Dam currently wrestles for IMPACT, he made his return to the company back in April last year and has been a featured part of the show since. RVD would tell Austin that he preferred the lighter schedule of working for the Canadian based promotion, due to his age and the aforementioned issues relating to concussion related injuries. RVD did however reveal that he can still do “90%” of the moves he would previously perform earlier in his career.

You can find more information on Rob Van Dam’s new Headstrong documentary here.

Impact Wrestling 2/18/20 was taped from Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas. This week’s episode was the first to air from the recent tapings. The show was also the last before Saturday’s Sacrifice event on Impact Plus from Louisville, Kentucky.

Impact Wrestling 2/18/20 Quick Results:

1. TJP defeated Josh Alexander
2. Willie Mack defeated Johnny Swinger
3. Madison Rayne defeated Mazzerati
4. Best of 5 Series
   Eddie Edwards defeated Michael Elgin (Elgin leads 2-1)
5. Rhino defeated Dave Crist
6. Ace Austin & Reno Scum defeated Tessa Blanchard, Tommy Dreamer & Trey

Here are 9 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 2/18/20:

Ace Austin Wins Big Heading Into Sacrifice

With Sacrifice and an Impact Wrestling World Championship title shot waiting for him on Saturday, Ace Austin scored a victory in this week’s main event. Ace Austin kicked the ring ropes as Trey was entering the ring from the outside, causing a low-blow and allowing the X-Division champion to hit the Fold for the victory.

Austin celebrated with Reno Scum on the outside as Josh Matthews commented that if Austin can hit the Fold on Saturday against Blanchard at Sacrifice, we could have a new world champion.

Eddie Edwards Avoids Sweep In Best of 5 Series

Michael Elgin entered into this match with Eddie Edwards with a chance to win a clean sweep in their best-of-5-series. Elgin was up 2-0 in the series and looked to have this match wrapped up as well. Elgin gave Edwards a power-bomb from the top and looked to go for the Elgin bomb but Edwards countered into a small package for the win. Callis commented after the match that Elgin should have gone for the pin after the powerbomb from the top instead of going for his finisher to put an exclamation point on the match. Match 4 in the series will take place next week.

Do TJP & Fallah Bah Have The North’s Number?

Fallah Bah defeated Ethan Page when Impact Wrestling was in Mexico last month and TJP kicked off this week’s episode with a win over Josh Alexander. The North has had a lengthy and dominant reign atop Impact Wrestling’s tag division but it appears that TJP & Fallah Bah may have the duo’s number. A 2-on-2 match would likely favor the North, however.

TJP picked up the win after countering a sleeper into a pinning combination.

Chris Bey Signs With Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling announced this week that they have signed Chris Bey. The 23-year-old is from the Las Vegas area where Impact’s most recent set of tapings took place. He is a 3-year pro and has wrestled with the Future Stars of Wrestling promotion in Vegas where he is a former FSW World Champion, FSW No Limits Champion, and also once held the promotion’s tag titles as well.

Willie Mack Is Not Johnny Swinger’s Tag Team Partner

Johnny Swinger believes that he and Willie Mack make up a tag team known as “The Pack and Mack Connection.” Mack, on the other hand, does not believe the two are a tag team. Swinger told Mack in the back this week that they need to get more reps in the ring. Mack agreed, though Mack wanted to face Swinger in a single’s match and Swinger assumed they were wrestling a tag match against another team.

Mack did not seem to respond to Swinger’s request for him to “slow down” during the match. He picked up the win with a Stunner followed by a 6-Star Frog Splash.

Swinger will take on Joey Ryan Saturday night at Sacrifice. Mack is scheduled to take on OVW’s Jay Bradley.

Madison Rayne Victorious In Open Challenge

Madison Rayne is not pleased that Jordynne Grace was given a Knockouts title shot she feels should have gone to her. She announced the beginning of the Madison Rayne “Golden Opportunity Open Challenge” this week. Las Vegas-based wrestler Mazzerati answered the call.

Callis would continue his ongoing embellished commentary for Rayne. This week he noted that she was taught the liver punch by Stu Hart. Josh Matthews noted that he didn’t think Rayne had ever met Stu Hart but Callis didn’t seem swayed by this.

Rayne would pick up the victory with a Cross Rayne. She then walked around the ring raising her own hand to close the segment.

Rhino and Moose Get Ready For Sacrifice

Rhino and Moose will meet once again Saturday night at Sacrifice. The two have been in an ongoing feud that also briefly involved AAA’s Taurus while the promotion was in Mexico last month. Moose was on commentary for this match. Rhino defeated Dave Crist with a Gore while Moose watched. Moose would note on commentary that the same thing won’t happen to him at Sacrifice.

Impact Sacrifice Lineup

Impact presents Sacrifice this Saturday. The event will stream live for subscribers to Impact Plus. Four matches have been confirmed thus far for the event:

• Impact World Championship
  Tessa Blanchard (c) vs Ace Austin
• Impact Women’s Championship
  Jordynne Grace (c) vs Havok
• Impact Tag Team Championships
  The North (c) vs The Rascalz
• Rhino vs Moose
• Johnny Swinger vs Joey Ryan
• Daga vs Jake Crist
• Willie Mack vs Jay Bradley
• Madman Fulton & Dave Crist vs Larry D & Acey Romero

Impact Wrestling Next Week

The following matches have been confirmed for next week’s episode of Impact Wrestling:

• Best of- 5 Series
  Eddie Edwards vs Michael Elgin (Elgin leads 2-1)
• Rob Van Dam vs Daga

Current Impact Wrestling Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace has shared her interest in unifying the promotion’s top titles. Speaking with Wrestling Inc. Daily, Grace opened up about how, with Tessa Blanchard now the Impact Wrestling Champion, it creates unique opportunities not presented by other companies. 

With both championships being held by women, some may argue that there isn’t a need for two separate titles anymore–especially with Impact Wrestling hosting intergender matches in the past.

“That’s definitely true and I kinda joked with Scott D’Amore, ‘So when are you guys gonna merge the title?'” Grace said. “He ignored me because he hates me or something [laughs]. He doesn’t hate me but he’s annoyed when I do stuff like that as I’ve been pushing for intergender wrestling across the board. I was all for it as I don’t think there should be a separate name for it at all. I am indifferent and I don’t mind just being called a wrestler.”

Jordynne Grace Agrees With Becky Lynch

Jordynne Grace isn’t the only wrestler who has shared her interest in removing gender association from within pro wrestling. WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch has also been talking about WWE dropping ‘Women’s” from the division entirely, a sentiment Grace aligns with.

“I agree with that and someone brought up the fact on if we get the title confused. Then someone said, ‘Why don’t we call it the Men’s World Championship’ which I completely agree with.

Triple H recently addressed the rumour’s WWE would drop “Women’s” from the NXT Women’s Championship description. He dismissed the idea, stressing that there was “never an edict” within WWE to strike the word from use. 

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription. 

At the most recent set of Impact Wrestling tapings held at Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas last week, a new inductee into the promotion’s Hall of Fame was announced. Ken Shamrock will be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Shamrock won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on the first-ever TNA Wrestling event in 2002. He would hold the title until the 8th ever TNA Wrestling event when he lost it to Ron “The Truth” Killings (aka R-Truth).

• Jordynne Grace On How She Signed With Impact, Scott Steiner Backlash

Impact Wrestling Hall of Fame Members

Impact Wrestling’s Hall of Fame dates back to 2012 when Sting was the inaugural inductee.

1. Sting (2012)
2. Kurt Angle (2013)
3. Team 3-D (Bully Ray & Devon) (2014)
4. Jeff Jarrett (2015)
5. Earl Hebner (2015)
6. Gail Kim (2016)
7. Abyss (2018)
8. Ken Shamrock (2020)

Shamrock will be the 8th wrestler and 9th person inducted into the Impact Wrestling Hall of Fame. Most inductions take place around the time of Impact’s Bound For Glory PPV. The PPV is usually held around October.

Shamrock has already been inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. He was inducted in 2003 as part of the Pioneer Wing.

• Impact Wrestling Results & 8 Takeaways (2/11/20)

Current Impact Wrestling Knockouts Champion, Jordynne Grace has addressed the rumors over how she came to sign with the promotion. She also reflected on her storyline with Scott Steiner that received a negative reception online.

There had been a long-gestating rumor that Grace was offered her Impact contract through a direct message on social media. Turns out, although the contract itself wasn’t delivered by social media, the conversation that eventually led to it did.

“Scott D’Amore originally contacted me through a Twitter DM and we exchanged phone numbers,” Grace explained to Wrestling Inc. Daily. “Then I was offered the contract through the phone conversation. Scott is one of the coolest guys ever. When he talks business, it’s serious. But in general, he’s kinda one of the boys. He was a wrestler himself so he knows how it is and looks out for the best interests for everybody.”

Jordynne Grace & Scott Steiner Backlash

Turning her mind back to Impact’s 2019 Unbreakable event, Grace reflected on her matchup. She teamed with Scott Steiner and Petey Williams against the team of Dicky Mayer, Gentleman Jervis and Ryan Taylor. The match received some backlash, however, not for the in-ring action but because of Steiner’s actions before and after the match where he slapped Grace’s backside.

“You know what’s so funny is that the first few times we worked together I don’t think he knew my name,” Grace stated. “He’s Scott Steiner so why would he know my name? But he’s been my idol for a long time and I think he’s awesome. But I don’t think he knew I was jokingly calling him my dad because the first time we did our Impact [promo] together along with Petey, he slapped my ass during the promo. I was like, ‘Well, I can never say you’re my dad again.'”

Regarding the controversy itself, Grace said “It was stupid. The first time he slapped my ass, I said, ‘Ok, whatever.’ I didn’t know he was gonna slap my ass at the end of the match, but what are you gonna do? I acted like I was surprised because I didn’t know how to play it off. He asked me if he could do it and I don’t know how I can tell Scott Steiner’ no.’ So I just let him do it.”

Jordynne Grace recently defeated Taya Valkyrie for the Knockouts Championship.

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Jordynne Grace is officially the new Knockouts Champion in Impact Wrestling. She won the title in Mexico last month but her victory over former champion Taya Valkyrie aired on last night’s broadcast.

Grace becomes the 23rd wrestler to win the title and begins the 54th championship reign in the title’s lineage. The title dates back to October 14, 2007, when Gail Kim became the inaugural champion by winning a 10-wrestler Gauntlet match.

Knockouts Championship History

Taya Valkyrie tops the list of former Knockouts Champions in terms of the longest single reign with the title. Gail Kim holds the record for most title reigns and combined days spent with the title, however.

1. Gail Kim (7x) 711 days spent as champion.
2. Madison Rayne (5x) 404 days spent as champion.
3. Taya Valkyrie (1x) 377 days spent as champion.
4. Awesome Kong (2x) 347 days spent as champion.
5. Taryn Terrell (1x) 279 days spent as champion.
6. Rosemary (1x) 266 days spent as champion.
7. Mickie James (3x) 241 days spent as champion.
8. Angelina Love (6x) 226 days spent as champion.
9. Tara (5x) 222 days spent as champion.
10. Sienna (2x) 187 days spent as champion.
11. Miss Tessmacher/Brooke (3x) 156 days spent as champion.
12. ODB (4x) 153 days spent as champion.
13. Tessa Blanchard (1x) 147 days spent as champion.
14. Velvet Sky (2x) 145 days spent as champion.
15. Taylor Wilde (1x) 121 days spent as champion.
16. Su Yung (1x) 110 days spent as champion.
17. Allie (2x) 103 days spent as champion.
18. Jade (1x) 87 days spent as champion.
19. Laurel Van Ness (1x) 65 days spent as champion.
20. Winter (2x) 53 days spent as champion.
21. Maria Kanellis-Bennett (1x) 50 days spent as champion.
22. Jordynne Grace (1x current) 25+ days spent as champion.
23. Havok (1x) 3 days spent as champion.

Impact Wrestling presented a show from Mexico again this week. The main event for the show featured a Knockouts Championship match between Taya Valkyrie and challenger, Jordynne Grace.

Impact Wrestling 2/11/20 Quick Results:

1. Best of 5 Series: Michael Elgin defeated Eddie Edwards (Elgin leads 2-0)
2. Madman Fulton defeated Daga
3. Fallah Bah defeated Ethan Page
4. Rob Van Dam defeated Joey Ryan
5. Mahabali Shera & Rohit Raju defeated Willie Mack & Johnny Swinger
6. Knockouts Championship
   Jordynne Grace defeated Taya Valkyrie (c) – New Champion

Here are 8 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 2/11/20:

Jordynne Grace Wins Knockouts Championship

Jordynne Grace is the new Knockouts Champion in Impact Wrestling. She defeated the longest-reigning champion in the title’s lineage to do so in the main event of this week’s episode.

John E Bravo made several attempts to steal the victory for Taya but Grace had an answer for him each time. It looked as though Grace would be counted out of the ring after taking a powerbomb on top of the steel steps followed by a Road to Valhalla on the stage but the challenger persevered and was able to make it back to the ring in time.

The closing moments came when Grace hit the Grace Driver but Bravo pulled the ref out of the ring. Taya then missed a spear and hit Bravo. Grace then hit a senton on both Bravo and Taya from the top before hitting another Grace Driver on Taya for the win. She would celebrate with her new title to close the show.

Rob Van Dam Counters Penis-Plex, Defeats Joey Ryan

Rob Van Dam and Joey Ryan have been at odds in recent weeks. RVD has said that what Joey Ryan does makes him embarrassed to be a pro-wrestler. Ryan countered by saying that RVD is just jealous because Katie Forbes wants to “touch it.”

The turning point of this match came when Ryan attempted to hit RVD with his patented penis plex. RVD countered the move with one of his signature kicks before hitting the 5-Star Frog Splash for the win.

Su Yung Murders James Mitchell

Rosemary brought about the return of Su Yung on last week’s episode but Suzie seemed to appear backstage this week. Suzie quickly morphed back into Su Yung, however, and proceeded to choke James Mitchell with a noose. Mitchell then awoke in the undead realm and remarked that “Daddy’s home.”

Michael Elgin Goes Up 2-0 On Eddie Edwards

Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards are in a Best of 5 series but Elgin has opened up a seemingly insurmountable 2-0 lead. This series came about after Edwards defeated Elgin at Hard to Kill but Elgin claims Edwards had tapped to the crossface at one point during the match (Edwards was really just reaching for the ropes.)

Elgin won with the Elgin Bomb and now is in control of this series. They meet again next week in a pivotal 3rd bout.

Johnny Swinger Rescues Willie Mack, Mack Ditches Swinger

Willie Mack was scheduled to take on Mahabali Shera in single’s competition this week but the Desi Hit Squad interfered causing a no contest. Johnny Swinger came out to save Mack despite the fact that Mack has not been receptive to Swinger’s attempts to align with him in recent weeks.

The match was then turned into a tag team match between the Desi Hit Squad and the team of Mack and Swinger. The Great Gama Singh got involved from the outside by grabbing Mack’s leg. Mack then left the match to go after Gama, leaving Swinger outnumbered. Shera picked up the pin on Swinger after a Sky High.

Madman Fulton Defeats Daga

OVE’s giant, Madman Fulton, took on Daga this week. Daga looked to have the match going his way but Dave and Jake Crist interfered. Turning his attention to the members of OVE, Daga dove to the outside to take out the Crist brothers.

Daga was looking to go for a springboard DDT but it was countered into a suplex by Fulton who then pinned his opponent for the victory.

Fallah Bah Defeats Ethan Page

TJP and Fallah Bah might have their sights set on the Impact tag team titles. Fallah Bah met one half of the tag team champion, the North, this week on Impact Wrestling when he took on Ethan Page.

TJP prevented Josh Alexander from getting involved in the match by taking him out on the outside. As Page got back into the ring, Bah rolled him up in a small package for the win. Josh Matthews noted on commentary that TJP and Fallah Bah might be putting themselves in a position to challenge for the tag team titles.

Next Week On Impact Wrestling

The following matches are scheduled for next week’s Impact Wrestling:

• Madison Rayne Open Challenge
• Josh Alexander vs TJP
• Michael Elgin vs Eddie Edwards – Match 3 (Elgin leads 2-0)
• Ace Austin & Reno Scum vs Tessa Blanchard, Trey, and Tommy Dreamer

The spoilers from the Impact Wrestling TV taping that took place on Sunday, February 9, 2020, in Las Vegas, NV at the Sam’s Town Hotel & Gambling Hall has surfaced online.

These matches and segments will air over the coming weeks on AXS TV. You can read the results here, courtesy of Pwinsider.com: 

Impact Wrestling TV Taping Results

Keira Hogan beat Lacey Ryan.

Impact Tag Team Champions The North beat TJP and Fallah Bahh.

Moose beat Chase Stevens. Post-match, Suicide attacked Moose. This is where it was revealed that Suicide will be part of the TNA special return show during Wrestlemania Week.

Suicide beat Shera.

Reno Scum beat Dez and Wentz.

Rhino and Sabu beat Mad Man Fulton and Dave Crist.

Willie Mack and Ace Austin beat Johnny Swinger and Disco Inferno.

Joey Ryan, RVD, and Katie Forbes announce that their new stable is called Cancel Culture. Fans in attendance noted that it’s a rip-off of Right To Censor from the WWF in the early 2000s.

Joey Ryan and RVD beat The Deaners.

Josh Mathews brought out Ken Shamrock for an interview in the ring. Eventually, the lights went out and Sami Callihan returned in order to attack Shamrock. The segment ended when Callihan threw a fireball at him.

Taya Valkyrie and Michael Elgin beat Tessa Blanchard and Eddie Edwards.

The spoilers from the Impact Wrestling TV taping that took place on Saturday, February 8, 2020, in Las Vegas, NV at the Sam’s Town Hotel & Gambling Hall has surfaced online.

These matches and segments will air over the coming weeks on AXS TV. You can read the results here, courtesy of

Impact Wrestling TV Taping Results

Madison Rayne cut a promo in the ring where she says Jordynne Grace cheated to become Knockouts Champion. She announces the Madison Rayne open challenge. Maserati answers.

Madison Rayne defeated Maserati in a short match after hitting Cross-Rhodes.

The Deaners defeated Johnny Swinger and Gil Gilberti. A tease for ICU came up on the big screen.

TJP and Fallah Bahh defeated Impact Tag Team Champions The North in a non-title match. Post-match, TJP cut a promo about how they’ve beaten them three times and challenges them for a future tag title match. Page responds by stating neither of them is championship-worthy but grants them the match.

Moose defeated Petey William after a spear. 

Chris Bey defeated Damian Drake after a rope-assisted fameasser.

Impact World Champion Tessa Blanchard defeated Taya Valkyrie with the hammer lock DDT to retain the title. 

Rhino defeated Madman Fulton with Jake and Dave Crist with the Gore. Post-match, oVe attacks Rhino until Sabu makes the save.

Game Singh did a heel promo

Rascalz (Dez and Wentz) defeated Desi Hit Squad (Rohit Raju and Mahabali) via pinfall.

Daga defeated Jake Crist after an elevated codebreaker. 

Impact Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace defeated Lacey Ryan with Madison Rayne after the Grace Driver.

Michael Elgin versus Eddie Edwards ends in a draw after both guys pinned each other’s shoulders. After the match, Impact Champion Tessa Blanchard says she’ll face both Edwards and Elgin in a three-way at the upcoming Rebellion PPV.

The longest-reigning Knockouts Champion in history will face Jordynne Grace for the belt on Impact Wrestling next Tuesday night. The match was taped in Mexico last month. Taya is the only wrestler ever to hold the championship for longer than a year, having initially won it from Tessa Blanchard at Homecoming on January 6th, 2019.

Valkyrie spoke to Steel Chair Magazine recently about what being the longest-reigning Knockouts champion of all-time means to her.

“I’m extremely blessed and also feel extremely proud of myself. Nobody else understands how much work I put into this than myself, the ups, the downs, the heartaches, the heartbreaks, the successes, everything,” Valkyrie said.

“I’m very proud of myself that it is now manifested itself as the longest-reigning Knockouts Champion,” Taya continued. “To have my face and my name in the Impact Wrestling’s history books with that title is just unreal.”

Revival Of Taya Valkyrie vs Tessa Blanchard Rivalry?

During the interview, Taya also discussed her rivalry with Impact World Champion, Tessa Blanchard.

“On Tessa Blanchard, I’ve beaten her over and over again on many, many occasions. I beat her for the Knockouts Championship, I defended my Knockouts Championship in a Street Fight in Mexico City against her and was successful, I then continued to carry the women’s division for an entire year. I then beat her at Madison Square Garden for the AAA Reina de Reinas championship.”

Taya feels she should be next in line for a shot at Blanchard’s title.

“If anybody has the number one contender spot, it’s me, and I know that in 2020, you will see the revival of the Taya versus Tessa Blanchard rivalry and it is going to get pretty messy because both of us are extremely passionate, hard-working, dedicated, mentally and physically strong.”

She concluded the interview by stating that she plans to be the one to make history in 2020.

“I know this year will be another record-breaking year for me. I will be the one who will be making even more history and even more noise in 2020.”

The full interview can be read here.

The spoilers from the Impact Wrestling TV taping that took place on Friday, February 7, 2020, in Las Vegas, NV at the Sam’s Town Hotel & Gambling Hall has surfaced online.

These matches and segments will air over the coming weeks on AXS TV as well as Impact’s Twitch account. You can read the results here, courtesy of Wrestling Inc:

Impact Wrestling TV Taping Results

Ace Austin and Reno Scum defeated Impact World Champion Tessa Blanchard, Tommy Dreamer and Trey Miguel. 

TJP defeated Josh Alexander by countering a Sleeper into a pin. 

Willie Mack defeated Johnny Swinger by using a Frog Splash

Su Yung defeated Jessica Havok in a No DQ match after Havok passed out in the Mandible Claw. 

Rhino defeated Dave Crist with the Gore. Moose came out to join commentary. Rhino and Moose had a staredown after the match

Daga defeated Rob Van Dam with Katie Ford

Rohit Raju defeated Zachary Wentz after a double stomp to the back.

Impact Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace retained her title over Miranda Alize with the Grace Driver

Ace Romero defeated Joey Ryan with a running elbow. 

Eddie Edwards defeated Michael Elgin with a cradle. 

This wraps up the tapings. The promotion returns on Saturday for another set. 

Impact Wrestling presented another show from Frontenac, Mexico this week. The promotion is building to the Impact Plus exclusive event “Impact Sacrifice” on February 22nd. Impact will also be in Las Vegas for a set of TV tapings this weekend.

Impact Wrestling 2/4/20 Quick Results:

1. Tessa Blanchard defeated Adam Thornstowe (Reno Scum)
2. Rhino defeated Taurus
3. Rosemary vs Suzie – Double Countout
4. TJP defeated Vikingo
5. Daga & Dr. Wagner Jr. defeated Dave & Jake Crist
6. Street Fight: Ace Austin defeated Tommy Dreamer

Here are 8 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 2/4/20:

Tessa Blanchard Prepares To Face Ace Austin

As Blanchard prepares to take on Ace Austin on February 22nd, 2020, she faced his run-in buddy from Reno Scum this week. Blanchard defeated Thornstowe with a Buzzsaw DDT but was attacked after by Luster the Legend and Ace Austin. This brought out Tommy Dreamer for the save and set-up the night’s main event between Austin and Dreamer in a street fight.

Ace Austin Goes To The Extreme To Defeat Tommy Dreamer

Ace Austin has the biggest match of his young career later this month when he faces Tessa Blanchard at Impact Sacrifice on February 22nd. The X-Division champion would main event this week’s show against Tommy Dreamer in a street fight.

Austin would pick up the victory by using his wand-like weapon to knock Dreamer off the ropes and onto a ladder. He then hit “the Fold” for the win. Austin would celebrate with his title belt as the show came to a close.

TJP Defeats Vikingo Before The North Attack

Last week, Vikingo faced Josh Alexander in single’s competition. This week, he’d take on TJP in another fast-paced action-packed match. With his friend Fallah Bah by his side, however, TJP was able to do what Josh Alexander could not and defeat the luchador from AAA. TJP countered a headscissors attempt into a submission for the win.

After the match, however, Josh Alexander and Ethan Page (the North) attacked Vikingo. Fallah Bah came in and broke up the attack, however. Perhaps a match between the North and TJP & Fallah Bah is upcoming in Impact Wrestling.

Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes Attack Joey Ryan

2 weeks ago on Impact Wrestling, Rob Van Dam said that Joey Ryan’s match against Maximo made him embarrassed to be a pro-wrestler. Ryan responded last week by saying that RVD is just mad because Katie Forbes wants to “touch it.”

This week on Impact, Katie Forbes provided the distraction as RVD attacked Ryan from behind. After being accused of having lost his cool, RVD would then say that next week Ryan will find out just how cool RVD really is.

Rosemary Brings Su Yung Back To Life

Rosemary and Suzie met in single’s competition this week but Rosemary wasn’t concerned with winning or losing the match. Her goal was to trigger Suzie’s memory and bring out the former Su Yung.

The match spilled to the back where Rosemary attempted to wrap a noose around Suzie and throw her over a staircase just as Havok had done to her previously. As she did so, however, Suzie morphed back into Su Yung as she remembered Havok having done the same to her oh so long ago now.

James Mitchell walked across the scene awhile later and told Rosemary that they are all doomed.

Dr. Wagner Jr. & Daga Get Revenge On OVE

Recently on Impact Wrestling, the members of OVE attacked Dr. Wagner Jr and beat him up in front of his son. Don Callis described the members of OVE as anarchists this week and that their attacks on Wagner were unprovoked and completely random.

This week, Dr. Wagner Jr and Daga teamed up in victorious fashion over the Crist brothers. After the match, however, Madman Fulton attacked Daga and Wagner and also fended off Dr. Wagner Jr’s son as well. Fulton stood tall to end the segment.

Moose Breaks Up Match Between Rhino and Taurus

Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen Rhino and Moose’s rivalry involve AAA’s Taurus. This week on Impact Wrestling, Rhino and Taurus faced each other in single’s competition. As Rhino was preparing to give his opponent the Gore, however, Moose invaded the ring and caused the match to be thrown out. Rhino would give Moose a Gore and him and Taurus stood tall to end the segment.

Next Week And Impact Sacrifice

The following matches are scheduled for next week’s episode:

• Knockouts Championship
  Taya Valkyrie (c) vs Jordynne Grace
• Joey Ryan vs Rob Van Dam
• Best of 5-Series
  Michael Elgin vs Eddie Edwards (Elgin leads 1-0)
• Madman Fulton vs Daga

Here are the lineups for Impact Wrestling Sacrifice on Impact Plus February 22nd:

• Impact World Championship
  Tessa Blanchard (c) vs Ace Austin
• Rhino vs Moose
• Daga vs Jake Crist

Impact Wrestling was back in Frontenac, Mexico this week for another edition of its weekly television program. They were also back on Twitch this week as the ban caused by Rob Van Dam’s celebrations with his girlfriend and girlfriend’s girlfriend has been lifted.

Impact Wrestling 1/28/20 Quick Results:

1. Vikingo defeated Josh Alexander w/Ethan Page
2. Dez & Wentz (the Rascalz) defeated Pagano & Murder Clown
3. Moose defeated Taurus
4. #1 Contender for Knockouts Championship: Jordynne Grace defeated Madison Rayne vs Kiera Hogan
5. Daga & Dr. Wagner Jr. defeated Reno Scum
6. Best of 5 Series (Match 1): Michael Elgin defeated Eddie Edwards (Elgin leads 1-0)

Here are 9 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 1/28/20:

Michael Elgin Takes Early Lead In Series Against Eddie Edwards

Michael Elgin really feels cheated by the referee’s decision at Hard to Kill. Elgin feels Edwards tapped to his crossface during their single’s match but he was really just reaching for the ropes when his hand hit the mat. Regardless, Elgin feels he should have been awarded Edwards’ Call Your Shot trophy. They met in this week’s main event in the first of their best-of-5-series.

Elgin would score the first victory in the series, choking out his rival after delivering a Death Valley Driver from the top rope.

Jordynne Grace Earns A Title Shot Against Taya Valkyrie

Jordynne Grace picked up the win in a triple threat match against Kiera Hogan and Madison Rayne this week that has earned her a shot at Taya Valkyrie’s Knockouts Championship. Hogan and Rayne had made a deal with Valkyrie that one of them would get the next title shot but Grace inserted herself into the picture as well.

Rayne and Hogan attempted to work together during the match but their combined efforts simply were not enough to stop the streaking Grace. She has come up short when challenging Taya before but Grace seems as though she’s really hit her stride lately and could provide more of a challenge than before.

Joey Ryan Responds To Rob Van Dam

Joey Ryan was interviewed backstage this week. He commented on Rob Van Dam’s criticism of him from last week. RVD said that Ryan’s match against Maximo last week made him feel embarrassed to be a wrestler.

Ryan then said this week that he doesn’t think it was his match against Maximo that got RVD all upset, he thinks Katie Forbes wants to touch “it” and that is why Rob said what he said. It seems as though these two could face-off against one another soon.

Rosemary To Turn “Suzie” Into A Warrior

Last week, Suzie wandered off away from James Mitchell during a match between Rosemary and Havok. Rosemary approached Suzie in the back this week and told her she thinks she can turn her into a real warrior. Suzie seemed to like this idea so Rosemary challenged her to an exhibition match next week and then handed her some wrestling gear before Suzie just sort of wandered off again.

Moose Gets Revenge On Taurus, Rhino Gets Revenge On Him

Last week on Impact Wrestling, Taurus won a triple threat match against Moose and Rhino. This week Moose and Taurus went one-on-one. After Taurus missed a running strike into the post, Moose landed the No Jackhammer Needed spear and picked up the win.

After the match, Rhino ran out from the back and delivered a Gore to Moose. It looks as though this rivalry between these two heavyweight contenders will continue.

OVE Assaults Daga & Dr. Wagner Jr

Daga teamed up with Dr. Wagner Jr this week in victorious fashion over Reno Scum. After the match, however, the members of OVE minus Sami Callihan attacked. They would even beat up Wagner Jr. in front of his own son who was at ringside and was forced to witness the events by Reno Scum.

Vikingo Defeats Josh Alexander In Fast-Paced Opener

Vikingo certainly opted to make the most of his opening match on Impact Wrestling this week against Josh Alexander from the North. This was a really interesting style mash-up as Vikingo has a high-flying Lucha style and Alexander’s offense is heavy on suplexes and amateur wrestling moves.

After several exciting exchanges between the two, Vikingo pulled off the mild upset with a head-scissors into a pinning combination.

It was later announced that Vikingo will face TJP next week.

The Rascalz Defeat Their Peyote-Induced Clown Hallucinations

Last week on Impact, the Rascalz were shown in the back taking peyote. Things were going fine until Pagano and Murder Clown sat down. This week, the Rascalz were forced to face their fears when they met the two stars from AAA in tag-team action.

As frightened as they were, Dez and Wentz managed to pull off the victory with some unique double-team offense. The next set of tapings for Impact is in Nevada, where the Rascalz will likely go back to what they are accustomed to.

Next Week

Here are the matches, Impact Wrestling has scheduled for next week’s episode:

• Rosemary vs Suzie
• Tessa Blanchard responds to Ace Austin (Austin was bragging about having beaten her twice.
• Vikingo vs TJP
• Daga & Dr. Wagner Jr. vs OVE

Gail Kim recently spoke to PW Insider regarding the recent controversy surrounding Impact World Champion Tessa Blanchard. The weekend of Impact’s Hard to Kill PPV, several female wrestlers accused Blanchard of using a racial slur and bullying wrestlers backstage.

“It was pretty stressful in the sense I didn’t like the angst of all these women fighting, or I don’t know what the term is, but it weighed heavily on my heart in a way. When that happened, we went to a pay-per-view and it wasn’t even 24 hours,” Kim said to PW Insider. “I went to speak to Tessa. Those details are private between her and I and are no one’s business. I based my decision of support at the pay-per-view and showing that support based on her time in the company. In the three years that she started with Impact wrestling, I’ve never seen any signs of any of that, of the undertones of bullying or racism. That’s where I made my decision of what I did and what I showed.”

Gail Kim Says Tessa Blanchard Has The Support Of The Impact Lockerroom

Kim would continue to say that she hasn’t seen any attitude problems from Blanchard in the entire time she has been with the company. Blanchard signed with Impact in April of 2018 as a 22-year-old and became the promotion’s youngest ever world champion when she won the title at 24.

“Any wrestler would tell you this, if someone was so crappy and such a terrible attitude and terrible person, do you think we would support that person? We would probably let that person bury themselves. She has the support of the locker room for a reason,” Kim continued.

“I didn’t see any attitude problems, that’s the thing. I don’t know what that reasoning is. I’ve never even heard anybody say in the locker room in the last three years that she had an attitude problem,” Kim would later add.

Tommy Dreamer Comments On Tessa Blanchard Controversy

• Tommy Dreamer: “I Do Not Feel Tessa Blanchard Is Racist”

On Busted Open Radio, Tommy Dreamer also commented on the situation and his relationship with Tessa Blanchard.

“I would state that I have a great relationship with (Tessa), I also have a great relationship with a lot of the other women that were talking about her. I was not there, I do know that there was a very very physical confrontation between her and this other wrestler and that led to I mean a physical brawl. Sometimes in the heat of battle you say things that you regret. I know that Tessa used to date a famous wrestler who’s in WWE that is African American. I know Tessa is currently engaged to Daga who is Mexican, I do not feel that Tessa Blanchard is racist.”

Impact Wrestling star Moose has addressed the evolution of his character since his debut with the company in 2016. Speaking during a recent media scrum, Moose confessed how he was too “comfortable” with his character and style when he first arrived. However, it got to a point where, if he wanted to take the next step, he was advised he would have to change his approach.

“I have so much more to give to pro wrestling that the old Moose wasn’t doing. My new attitude just shows how much charisma I have. I get to talk a bit more on the mic and it shows my presence in the ring and my swag. So I felt like it was the right move for me to make to grow as a professional wrestler.”

He continued,” I think me, Quinn Ojinnaka which is my real name, is a really fun guy to be around. I’m a fun guy like Kawhi Leonard says. People like to be around me and I’m charismatic. I felt like when I first got to Impact I was trying to be this tough guy and I’ll kick your ass. I feel like wrestling in 2020, everybody is a tough guy. One thing I’ve been doing lately is going to the archives and watching old wrestling from 1990-92 and there wasn’t a lot of tough guys. There were a lot more characters and there’s not a lot of character-driven guys in wrestling in 2020.”

Moose’s Turning Point

Moose shared how his evolution began after he told himself that he didn’t want to be a “tough guy” anymore. Instead, he wanted to fuse his in-ring ability with more personality, allowing him to show his swagger and have more fun.

Moose recently competed at Impact Wrestling’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view. He defeated Rhino in a No Disqualification matchup.

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Impact Wrestling presented its first show from their recent tapings in Mexico last night on AXS TV. The show did not air on Twitch this week due to the ongoing ban that likely stems from Rob Van Dam’s celebration with his girlfriend and his girlfriend’s girlfriend last week.

Impact Wrestling 1/21/20 Quick Results:

1. Taurus defeated Moose and Rhino (triple threat)
2. Joey Ryan defeated Maximo
3. Havok defeated Rosemary
4. Willie Mack defeated Rohit Raju
5. Taya Valkyrie & Ace Austin defeated Tessa Blanchard & Trey Miguel

Here are 8 takeaways from Impact Wrestling 1/21/20:

Challengers Step Up To Tessa Blanchard

Impact Wrestling kicked off this week with Tessa Blanchard delivering an in-ring promo. She was interrupted by Taya Valkyrie who noted that Blanchard was afraid to return to the Knockouts division. Taya and Blanchard have a long history and have feuded over the Knockouts title and AAA’s Reina de Reinas title. Ace Austin also came out and noted he was victorious over Blanchard at Bound for Glory when he won the X-Division Championship ladder match.

A brawl started as Austin and Taya teamed up on the champion. This brought out Trey who still has a grudge against Ace Austin for the things he said about his mother. A tag match pitting Blanchard and Trey against Austin and Valkyrie was scheduled for the main event.

During the match, Blanchard took Taya out with a plancha but this left Austin and Trey alone in the ring. Austin would then pick up the win with the Fold (flipping neckbreaker/blockbuster) on Trey. Taya and Ace celebrated to end the show but Taya didn’t want him to get too close.

What does this mean in terms of who will face Blanchard for the title next?

Taurus Steals A Victory Over Moose From Rhino

Moose defeated Rhino at Hard to Kill but this week another wrestler with a large animal name was thrown into the mix. AAA’s Taurus, Moose, and Rhino kicked off Impact this week with a triple threat match.

It looked like Rhino had Moose down and was ready to avenge his PPV loss when he hit Moose with a Gore. Taurus swooped in, however, and delivered a headbutt to Rhino to take him out before stealing the pin on Moose for the victory.

Joey Ryan Defeats Maximo, RVD Embarrassed To Be A Wrestler

Joey Ryan faced AAA Exotico Maximo this week in singles competition. After some shenanigans, Ryan was able to deliver a penis suplex to Maximo followed by a lollipop-assisted superkick for the win.

After the match, Rob Van Dam was interviewed in the back. RVD said he’s embarrassed to be a pro-wrestler based on what he just saw in the ring. He would continue to say that he’d rather wrestlers just steal his moves if that is the alternative.

Havok Earns A Victory In The Dark War

Havok picked up a victory over Rosemary in the latest battle of the Dark War. Mitchell and “Suzie” accompanied Havok to the ring this week for her match against Rosemary. The Demon Assassin has been attempting to stop Mitchell from continuing his manipulation of Suzie.

Rosemary was distracted by Mitchell at ringside and delivered a poison mist blast to his face. Her distraction led to Havok gaining the advantage, however, delivering a tombstone piledriver and picking up the win. In the midst of the match, however, Suzie wandered off.

On another note, Father James Mitchell is hoping wrestling fans can help his family raise money for his step-daughter who is battle stage 3 lymphoma. Mitchell posted the following GoFundMe appeal to social media:

Michael Elgin Thinks He Won At Hard To Kill

Elgin is all upset he didn’t win Eddie Edwards’ Call Your Shot trophy at Hard to Kill. He claims Edwards tapped while in a crossface (he was actually just reaching for the ropes.) Edwards attempted to announce he was calling his shot at the next PPV when Elgin interrupted. It was then announced that a best-of-5 series between the two will begin next week.

The Rascalz Take Peyote, See Scary Clowns

The Rascalz tend to prefer when Impact’s tapings are held in Nevada, California, anywhere in Canada, or similar locations. Tapings in New York or Mexico provide somewhat of a challenge for the trio and possibly for Rob Van Dam as well.

This week, Wentz announced that he had picked up some peyote instead and that this location was “no longer a desert.” Since Trey was wrestling in the main event, he chose not to participate, however. Wentz and Dez seemed to have a good time until Pagano and Murder Clown sat down and scared them away. The Rascalz will face their scary clown hallucinations in tag action next week.

Johnny Swinger Attempts To Rescue Willie Mack

During a backstage interview with Jimmy Jacobs, Willie Mack was interrupted by Johnny Swinger this week. Swinger said that if Mack teams with him as the Mack and Pack Connection they will draw a lot of money. Mack did not seem interested, however, since Rich Swann is his partner.

After Mack picked up the win on Rohit Raju, Mahabali Shera hit the ring and began delivering a post-match beatdown to Mack. Swinger then attempted to make the save but was outnumbered by the Desi Hit Squad, who are without Raj currently as Shera sent him on a spiritual journey without first checking in with Gama.

Next Week

• #1 Contenders Match: Jordynne Grace vs Kiera Hogan vs Madison Rayne
• Michael Elgin vs Eddie Edwards
• Dr. Wagner Jr. Returns
• Josh Alexander vs Vikingo
• Pagano & Murder Clown vs the Rascalz

Konnan has addressed the physical altercation that took recently took place between himself and Psicosis II—who is not the Psicosis who wrestled in WCW and WWE. The incident occurred outside of a taping for Impact Wrestling in Mexico, with Psicosis II approaching and then slapping Konnan. Konnan, however, did not retaliate following the attack.

Speaking on his podcast, Keepin’ it 100, Konnan explained how the issues between them stem from Psicosis II supposedly working stiff with the original Psicosis. Konnan and Psicosis II would trade barbed words on social media, which angered Psicosis II enough to confront Konnan and lead to their exchange. 

“Now I see he’s with other guys, so I’m kinda looking around and thinking, ‘bro, is this guy gonna actually jump me here with these guys?’ While I’m kinda looking out of my peripheral and I’m trying to defuse the situation, he slaps me,” Konnan explained. “I’m thinking real quick for that split second, ‘bro, if I hit him, I KNOW I’m gonna get jumped.’ I just know I am, I just feel it.”

Konnan continued, “If we would’ve been one-on-one, I would’ve punched the sh*t out of him. I’m thinking in that moment, let me get out of here so I can get into the dressing room and I can get everyone out.” 

You can watch Konnan detail the incident in the video below:

H/T to ProWrestlingSheet for the transcription.

The spoilers from the Impact Wrestling TV taping that took place on Saturday, January 18, 2020, in Mexico City, Mexico has surfaced online.

These matches and segments will air over the coming weeks on AXS TV. You can read the results here, courtesy of Fightful: 

Impact Wrestling TV Taping Results

The Rascalz (Wez, Dez & Trey) def. Dinastia, Draztik Boy & Iron Kid

Madman Fulton def. Daga

Moose def. Taurus. Post-match, Rhino hit Moose with the Gore 

Tessa Blanchard def. Adam Thornstowe in an open challenge. Post-match, Ace Austin and Luster the Legend attacked Tessa. Tommy Dreamer made the save.

Rosemary vs. Su Yung ended in a no contest.

TJP def. El Hijo del Vikingo. Post-match, The North attacked El Hijo de Vikingo until TJP and Fallah Bahh made the save.

Michael Elgin def. Eddie Edwards

Rhino vs. Taurus ended in a no contest when Moose interfered.

Rob Van Dam def. Joey Ryan

The Desi Hit Squad (Rah Singh & Mahabali Shera) def. Willie Mack & Johnny Swinger

Pagano def. Luster the Legend

Jordynne Grace def. Taya Valkyrie to win the Knockouts Championship

Ace Austin def. Tommy Dreamer – Street Fight

Dr. Wagner & Daga def. oVe (Dave & Jake Crist)

The spoilers from the Impact Wrestling TV taping that took place on Friday, January 17, 2020, in Mexico City, Mexico has surfaced online.

This taping served as the fallout from Impact’s latest pay-per-view event, Hard to Kill, that aired last Sunday night in Dallas, Texas at the Bomb Factory. The headliner saw Blanchard beat Sami Callihan to become the new Impact World Heavyweight Champion. 

These matches and segments will air over the coming weeks on AXS TV. You can read the results here, courtesy of PWinsider.com: 

Impact Wrestling TV Taping Results

Impact World Champion Tessa Blanchard came to the ring for a promo about her historic title win at Hard to Kill. Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie (with John E. Bravo) interrupts by proclaiming herself the #1 Contender. A brawl erupts.

TJP defeats Johnny Swinger

Fallah Bahh defeats Ethan Page

Taurus defeats Moose and Rhino – Triple Threat Match

Joey Ryan defeats Maximo

Willie Mack defeats Rohit Raju

Taya Valkyrie & Ace Austin defeat Tessa Blanchard & Trey

Hijo del Vikingo defeats Josh Alexander

Jordynne Grace defeats Kiera Hogan and Madison Rayne – Triple Threat Match

The Rascalz(Dez & Wentz) defeat Pagano & Murder Clown

Michael Elgin defeats Eddie Edwards

Daga & Dr. Wagner Jr. defeat Reno Scum(Adam Thornstowe & Luster The Legend). Post-match, oVe (minus Sami Callihan) attack Daga & Wagner.

• Impact Wrestling Results & 5 Takeaways (1/14/20)

WWE Hall of Famer Booker T thinks it was a terrible idea for Impact Wrestling to make controversial figure Tessa Blanchard become their World Champion.

The former WCW World Champion commented on the situation on the latest installment of his Hall of Fame podcast.

Booker T first praised Tessa Blanchard for her work, but he went on to claim that making her the world champion is ‘the worst idea’ in Impact’s history.

“I’m not holding my judgement on it. Big ups to Tessa Blanchard because she’s good. She’s really good at what she does, but this is the worst idea for Impact Wrestling in the history of the company, it really is that bad. It’s worse than paying me 10 grand for six-hour power commercial that never aired.”

Explaining the reasoning behind his comments, The WWE Hall Of Famer said that now if she goes against the men in the promotion and beats them, then it will diminish every guy in the company.

He later compared it to WWE and Booker said that he can’t imagine Becky Lynch going up against Samoa Joe or Brock Lesnar. The former Champion claimed that intergender wrestling is for independent companies.

You can listen to Booker T’s comments about Tessa Blanchard winning the Impact Wrestling World Championship below: