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Impact Wrestling on AXS TV opened with a look at what has gone down the last few weeks before previewing tonight's tournament final to name the new number one contender for Tessa Blanchard's Impact Wrestling Championship.
Kylie Rae & Susie vs. Tasha Steelz & Keira Hogan
Steelz and Hogan used the bow they stole from Rae last week to mock her.
Rae started out with Steelz. They went back and forth with some nice action. Susie tagged in and Hogan asked Steels to tag her in. Susie gets the best of Hogan. Steelz tagged in and backed Susie into her team's corner, where Hogan snapped her to the mat by her hair. Steelz and Hogan began tagging in and out, working over Susie and sending her into the turnbuckles. Hogan used her boot to smother Susie in the corner. They worked her over in the corner.
Susie was double-teamed for some time. Steelz nailed a swinging neckbreaker but Rae broke up the pinfall. Susie regained the stolen bow and made the hot tag to Rae, who cleaned house. Rae nailed a cannonball in the corner on Steels and followed up with the Kylie Special on Hogan for a two count.
Tasha nailed a Codebreaker on Susie but was caught with a Rae superkick. Hogan nailed a roundhouse kick on Rae but Susie nailed a palm strike. Hogan nailed several kicks. Hogan caught Susie on the top rope and Steelz nailed a top rope rana. Hogan covered her and scored the pin.
Your winners, Tasha Steelz and Kiera Hogan!
Good tag match with the right team going over so Impact can continue to establish them as a duo. It makes sense for Susie to take the loss so that Su Yung can come for revenge. Everyone looked good and were strong in their roles tonight.
Josh Mathews and Madison Rayne ran down the lineup for tonight.
Ace Austin was interviewed backstage. He cut off the interviewer for bringing up his loss to Willie Mack. He said everyone is concerned with the past but he looks forward. He moves towards the future and his future looks like the World Champion. He said he's outgrown the X-Division. TNA Champion Moose showed up and said he was here to tell Austin how prestigious the title Moose holds is. He ran down the list of men who held the belt and told Austin that if he wins tonight, he shouldn't be looking to come after a second-rate title but the TNA title. Austin said that maybe he will.
Joey Ryan with OVE vs. Crazzy Steve
The storyline is OVE is looking for guidance and perhaps it is Ryan they need.
It was all Steve early on until Ryan cut him off and sent him into the turnbuckles. Ryan began asking him if he thinks it's funny to be offensive. Ryan does a good job with his take on Stevie Richards from Right to Censor. He controlled Steve and nailed a kneedrop for a two count.
Ryan continued to work over Steve and called for the "Greatest Suplex on Earth." He goes for it but Steve reversed it. That made me smirk. Steve made a comeback and nailed a cannonball in the corner. Dave Crist distracted the referee. Jake got on the apron. Steve nailed him but ate a Ryan superkick and was pinned.
Your winner, Joey Ryan!
This was fine as a b-storyline match. Not too long. Just right.
After the match, Joey Ryan told OVE that they had all the information they needed to make an informed decision and asked if they would join Cancel Culture. Jake said they would. Ryan said he needs a signal to show Jake's virtue that he would put Cancel Culture ahead of everything. Joey said he had to put it in front of everyone. Dave didn't like where this was going and asked Jake if he really wanted to do this. Jake laid him out with a roundhouse kick. He shook hands with Ryan and walked off.
OVE is dead.
Rohit Raju vs. Chase Stevens
Stevens looks strong early and scored a two count after a suplex. I feel like I write this every week but Raju is the most underrated talent in the business right now. Good work and great timing. He cut off Stevens and scored a two count. Raju worked over Stevens and came off the ropes with a driving elbow for another near fall.
Raju started to get frustrated. Stevens went for a German suplex but Raju grabbed the ropes to block it. He drilled Stevens with a knee for a two count, then began choking him. He worked over Stevens, telling him he wasn't going to get Raju's spot. Stevens came back with some nice offensive maneuvers, including a scissor kick for a two count. Stevens looked real solid in the ring.
Stevens set up Raju and came off the ropes for a moonsault but Raju pulled his knees up. Raju went to advance but Stevens kicked him. Raju acted like it was a low blow so the referee checked him. That allowed Raju to blast Stevens and naile a double stomp off the top for the pin.
Your winner, Rohit Raju!
Good, solid match. They are obviously trying to give Raju some momentum and it's about time.
Raju cut a promo in the camera but didn't realize Rhino hit the ring and turned into a Gore. The announcers wondered why Rhino would do that.
Backstage, Havok and Neveah were interviewed backstage. Neveah said she and Havok have been friends for years but she's been watching from the shadows. She came here to make sure Havok is OK and needs backup. Together, they are an elite force. They have arrived.
Locker Room Talk with Madison Rayne and Johnny Swinger was next. Their guest this week was Chris Bey. Swinger was excited to see him. Bey was sorta eh on it. Bey was one of the hottest free agents in wrestling. He was asked why he wanted to come to Impact. Swinger began answering for him as Bey gave him the side eye. That was great. Rayne made it clear she was talking to Chris and asked him about Willie Mack and whether he believes he can dethrone Mack. Swinger answered again. He challenged Willie Mack and Jake Something to next week. Bey said that was fine but after that Swinger's going to help him get the X-Division title. Swinger kept calling him brother and Rayne tried to tell him that was inappropriate. Swinger is just tremendous in these segments and Rayne plays a great straight-woman for him.
This week's Impact+ flashback was Drew Galloway vs. Bobby Lashley. That's pretty damn funny actually.
Jimmy Jacobs interviewed Jordynne Grace. Taya showed up and said that it looked bad that Grace took time off. Grace said that she owes her a title shot so why not tonight. Taya said they can work something out but not tonight. Jordynne offered her next week. Taya agreed.
The Rascalz vs. Fallah Bah & TJP
The winners will challenge The North for the Impact Tag Team Championship.
TJP and Bah argued over who would start. Bah won. Clearly.
Dez and Bah started out. Dez had no shot at moving the larger Bah. Bah controlled his arm. Dez used some fast moves to reverse. Bah showed some nice, fast moves. Dez went for a flurry of offense but missed. Bah had enough and tagged out to TJP.
TJP and Wentz tagged in. TJP took him down to the mat but Wentz immediately reversed and turned it into a takedown. They had a nice flurry of back and forth moves, shooting all over the ring but with neither gaining a strong advantage. TJP escaped a head scissors and nailed a dropkick to the face. He snatched over Wentz for a suplex but Wentz landed on his feet and they faced off. Dez tagged in and took control with a head scissors takedown.
The Rascalz double-teamed TJP. Bah hit the ring and nailed a bodypress on Dez. He and TJP double-teamed Wentz with TJP hitting Air Sabu off Bah's back for a two count. TJP hit a snap suplex. He went for a back suplex but Wentz escaped and tagged Dez. Dez cleaned house with a series of kicks for a two count. Athletically, Dez is ridiculous.
TJP was trapped in The Rascalz' corner. They continued to work him over.
Bah finally scored the hot tag and cleans house, wiping out each of the Rascalz. He nailed a Samoan Drop on Dez and scored him for a two count. He drilled Dez with a strike to the head and then a boot to the face. Dez did a great job selling here. Dez was driven backwards into Bah and TJP's corner. They double-teamed Dez, who kicked up at the last second.
TJP nailed a suplex followed by a Dragon Screw Legwhip. Dez began grabbing at his knee. TJP grabbed a front facelock but Dez powered him towards The Rascalz' corner. TJP knocked Wentz off the apron but Dez drilled TJP with a series of strikes.
Wentz made the tag and unloaded with kicks and strikes. Wentz nailed a running knee and a big strike. He nailed a moonsault for a two count. Bah hit the ring and nailed a belly to bell on Wentz, then a Samoan Drop on Dez. They go into a series of near falls with the partners hitting the ring to break it up.
Dez went for a handspring elbow but TJP grabbed him in a leg submission. Dez tried to fight to the ropes but was pulled to the center every time. He finally made it to the ropes and used them to bridge backwards, trapping TJP and pinning him.
Your winners, The Rascalz!
They could have done half of what they pulled off in this match and it still would have been good. Just a fun, hard fought back and forth match.
The two teams showed each other respect and said they'll do this again one day.
They announced Deonna Purrazzo will debut next week. They aired another Purrazzo promo. She promised Impact wasn't ready for her.
John E. Bravo was coming back from "summoning locusts" with Rosemary. He said he really enjoyed it and was surprised how much he's been having fun when he doesn't really get to have fun with Taya. Rosemary said he could always come work for her. Rosemary told him he could come to her with a bite of an apple. He was about to do so but Taya called and wanted more dog food so Bravo had to run across the country for her. Rosemary was shocked by this. Bravo ran off and Rosemary remarked that this was going to be harder than she thought.
Michael Elgin demanded the sound guy play his music. He came to the ring with a mic. He said that the constant since he's come to Impact is that he's the rightful Impact World Champion and he has been for over a year. Sami Callihan hacked in. Elgin said he can do that all he wants but he's not man enough to face him. He said the next man to come out can fight him to be the true number one contender. Ken Shamrock hit the ring and attacked Elgin, telling him "I Remember!"
Number One Contender's Tournament - Ace Austin vs. Trey Miguel
Trey didn't come down to the ring. The Rascalz found him unconscious in the locker room. They called for the doctor, who checked on him.
Ace Austin said they'll have to declare him the number one contender because his opponent isn't here.
Wentz hit the ring and accused Austin of attacking Trey. Officials tried to hold him back. Scott D'Amore came out. Austin said he knows he can beat Trey, so he didn't need to take him out. D'Amore asked him if he wanted to be the number one contender. Austin said he did. D'Amore said to ring the bell.
Austin was immediately drilled by a Wentz dropkick that shot him backwards into the corner.
Wentz nailed a jawbreaker on Austin and screamed that he did this to Trey. He began raining down with fists as Austin tried to cover up in the ropes. The referee pulled Wentz back but began stomping the hell out of Austin and was pulled off again. He went back to stomping Austin, who escaped to the apron outside.
An emotional Wentz said, "That's my brother!" and superkicked Austin. He kept beating him down but was sent into the buckles as Impact went to commercial...
When Impact returned, Austin was on the apron. Wentz was on the floor. They battled with Wentz blocking a superkick and taking Austin's legs out from under him. Austin crashed down to the floor. Austin caught him with a kick to the mid-section and drove him into the ring apron. Wentz fired back and did the same, then nailed him across the back. He charged Austin but was backdropped onto the entrance ramp. Wentz was almost counted out but made his way to the ring. Before he could return to the inside, Austin attacked him again. Wentz battled back, drilling him with forearm shots. He asked Austin if he wanted to hurt people and whipped him into the guard rails. Austin reversed at the last moment, sending Wentz into the steel. He sent him back into the barriers again.
Once again, Wentz was almost counted out of the ring. He made it to the ring steps where Austin stomped his hand and drove him backwards into the ring barriers yet again. He charged Wentz, who sidestepped him and sent him into the barricades. Wentz exploded, stomping the hell out of Austin.
Wentz continued working him over on the floor. Wentz charged across the floor and went to dive off the ring steps but Austin caught him with a spinning kick. Wentz crashed to the floor as they went to commercial....
When Impact returned, they were back inside the ring, battling back and forth. Austin drove Wentz to the floor and scored a two count. Austin regained control and beat down Wentz in the corner. Madison Rayne started to question where Wentz was taking advantage of what happened to Trey and even questioned whether Wentz might have been the attacker. That was very Bobby Heenan of her!
Austin nailed a catapult, driving Wentz's throat into the bottom rope and continued beating him down, scoring a two count after a suplex. Wentz countered another suplex but Austin tried to escape. Wentz finally scored a two count.
Austin nailed a jawbreaker to escape Wentz's onslaught. He locked on an armbar, sitting over Wentz and trying to wear him down. He used a playing card to slice the skin between Wentz's fingers. Went fired back with chops. He trapped Austin against the ropes, beating him down again and again. Wentz tried to send him into the ropes but Austin grabbed his hair and snapped Wentz to the mat.
Wentz caught Austin with a big knee as he rebounded off the ropes. The referee began counting them both down on the mat. Brandon Tolle made it to the count of eight when they both made it to their feet. Wentz had a second wind and nailed a leaping enziguiri to the head. Wentz nailed a leaping knee to the face in the corner and nailed another running knee strike. Wentz nailed a standing moonsault for another two count.
Austin avoided a move and went for a spinning leg whip. Wentz ducked, nailed another knee and covered him for yet another two count. Wentz drilled him with a series of right hands. Austin slapped him and Wentz rocked him with a right hand.
Austin tried to small package Wentz, who kicked up and superkicked him for a two count. Wentz nailed another leg strike and ascended to the top. He went for a swanton but Austin pulled his knees up.
Austin took advantage of Wentz hurting his back again and nailed a double stomp. He drilled Wentz with the Fold and scored the pin.
Your winner and new number one contender, Ace Austin!
A HELL of a main event with Wentz showing some great fire and a really having the best performance of his career over the course of the night.
A solid show all the way through.
NEXT WEEK:
*Sami Callihan vs. Ken Shamrock vs. Michael Elgin.
*Impact Wrestling Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace vs. Taya.
*Johnny Swinger & Chris Bey vs. Jake Something & Willie Mack.
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