Coverage

Stardom Dream Slam 2019 Results & Review (3/28/2019)

Mathew brings us more Stardom coverage! This will catch you up nicely if you planned on going to their American Dream show April 5th in Queens, NY!

Published

5 years ago

April 4, 2019

Mathew Sarpraicone

Mathew brings us more Stardom coverage! This will catch you up nicely if you planned on going to their American Dream show April 5th in Queens, NY!

Welcome back to Stardom! This is their last big show before they head on over to the United States for WrestleMania Weekend, Dream Slam.

The show is stacked with five championship matches, a retirement ceremony, and some great matches on top of it. This will also be my last Stardom show to cover as of right now until All Japan’s Champion Carnival is all done with at the end of April.

We got a lot to cover and no time to waste as we…dive right in.

Rating System:

0 Stars: Dave Meltzer
1 Star: Vince Russo
2 Stars: Tony Schiavone
3 Stars: Eric Bischoff
4 Stars: Bruce Prichard
5 Stars: Jim Cornette

Battle Royal
Hina vs. Rina vs. Leo Onozaki vs. Jungle Kyona vs. Hanan vs. Saya Iida vs. Natsu Sumire

Review: Our first match is a battle royal with some of the rookies like Hanan, Hina, Rina, Leo Onozaki, and Saya Iida while we have some vets like Jungle Kyona and Natsu Sumire in the match. Originally Hana Kimura was supposed to be in this match but due to her having a health issue, she was pulled from the match. The rookies have a lot to prove in this match if they wanna move forward with their progression. Which one of these seven will win?

All of them are circling around the ring until six of them would face Natsu as the rookies would charge as her while she gave them all a hip toss, except for Jungle who would power out of it. This one was a little bit all over the place but they did have some cool combinations with all of them doing a Figure-Four Choke Hold with Sumire at the end as Nao Yamaguchi would go to the bottom of it to flip them all over like a Boston Crab which almost worked, but Nao tripped once she turned them over. After this though is when eliminations would start to happen as Leo was first eliminated when Hana flipped her over into a pin with help from her sisters, but Hina and Rina get her with a Gedo Clutch and a bridge to eliminate her as well. Hina and Rina would start to fight Jungle and had her down for a pin but she kicked out and applies the Boston Crab on both of them to make them tap out as we’re now down to three. Sumire would have some help from Nao again as Jungle got flipped over and Nao held her still while Sumire Dropkicked her to eliminate Kyona. Saya is the last one left and tries to knock Sumire down with Dropkicks but she wouldn’t budge. Sumire would hold Saya in place as Nao attempts to go for the Ax Bomber but Saya ducked and hits Sumire by accident, leading to Saya rolling Sumire up for the pin as she gets the surprise victory! What a win for Iida.

Now on https://t.co/q8dHnF58vW from last night at Korakuen Hall, it's the opening match Battle Royal! pic.twitter.com/KAG5mSASng

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) March 29, 2019

Rating: Tony Schiavone and a quarter

Eight Man Tag Team Match
Queen’s Quest (AZM, Bea Priestley, Konami, & Viper) vs. STARS (Arisa Hoshiki, Saki Kashima, Starlight Kid, & Tam Nakano)

Review: Our next match is an eight-man tag match with Queen’s Quest members, AZM, Bea Priestley, Konami, and Viper taking on STARS members, Arisa Hoshiki, Saki Kashima, Starlight Kid, and Tam Nakano. Viper has recently signed to the WWE as apart of the NXT UK Division, so it makes sense why she lost her titles recently and this could be apart of her farewell tour before she leaves for good. Gonna miss her in Stardom, but people move on and get experience elsewhere. Will she be able to get her team win or will STARS get the victory?

Viper and Starlight start it off as Starlight would try to tag in her teammates but no avail as they wanted nothing to do with Viper. She did hold her off fairly well when she could though, so I will give her that. I thought the match was rather sloppy at the beginning with some of them having no sense of direction and Saki botching a little bit with the Hurricanrana onto Bea where she almost fell before it landed. After that though, it was much more crisp with everything being coherent. Arisa and Tam seem to be having a little bit of an issue with each other as Tam kicked Arisa and slammed her on top of Bea and stood on them to dance, Arisa didn’t like that so she decided to do the same to Tam and didn’t fall over this time, even did a Springboard Knee Drop onto Bea for good measure, good girl. AZM and Starlight are in the ring and they once again make magic with them going back and forth in the ring and she would give AZM a 619, which Tam topped with a German Suplex hold as Starlight flipped over them to hold the pinfall as Viper broke the count. STARS would try to hit the Dropkick onto their opponents but they got up and Dropkicked them back and had them into the turnbuckles so Viper could hit them with a Cannonball. AZM hits Starlight with a Suplex, Konami hits a PK, and AZM is on the top rope to hit a Double Stomp as AZM kicked out. AZM would apply a Fujiwara Armbar as Starlight rolled her for the pin and AZM kicked out, but AZM looked like she was gonna do the La Magistral but pinned her before she rolled and gets the victory in a solid match.

Rating: Eric Bischoff

– Shiki Shibusawa was in the ring now as she has announced that she was leaving professional wrestling. She was out of action after their Goddesses of Stardom Tag League with a minor injury but during that time, she would be met with some criticism from the fans as they would bully her about her ability in the ring while some did defend her. It looked like it was too much since she started to doubt herself and lead to where we are now and her retirement. Unfortunately, some wrestlers get attacked by fans online and some can take it and even bark back at them, but there are some that can’t handle it. Wrestling is a hard business to get into as not everyone is going to like you and some will but it’s also not for everyone either. Everyone on the roster would come in to give her flowers, hug her, take a picture with her, and just wish her luck in her next journey. She would thank everyone for a great three years and knows that she’ll always be family in Stardom. All I can say to you Shiki is good luck to whatever it is you do next.

SWA Undisputed World Women’s Title Match
Utami Hayashishita (c) vs. Rebel Kel

Review: Now that the exhibition matches are out of the way, it’s time for our title matches for the remainder of the show as Utami Hayashishita is up first to defend her SWA Undisputed World Women’s Championship against Rebel Kel. This match is fairly new as Rebel made the challenge on March 21st to fight Utami for one of the four belts she has under her waist. Will Utami will have all her belts or will Rebel win her first title?

Rebel…I have nothing to say that is anything positive…maybe that she’s tall, but that’s really it. Nothing that she has done in this match was anything exciting or good. Her hits were super light and very noticeable that you think it was Great Khali hitting you or something, also anything she would execute overall was just half-assed. Utami is literally the only saving grace in this match as she tried so hard to make it work or even tolerable but no matter how good Utami is in the ring, she wasn’t even able to save the match and that’s a bad sign when one of your top stars can’t make someone else look good. I really don’t know why Rebel got this match but she didn’t deserve it. Rebel would give her an average Chokeslam as Utami would kick out of it and when she picked her up, Utami would get her for the Torture Rack Bomb and she pinned her to retain the title. Just skip this one, save the eight minutes for a better match. I would rather watch Kelly Klein and Mayu Iwatani fight again.

Rating: Vince Russo and a half

High Speed Title Match
Hazuki (c) vs. Xia Brookside

Review: Our next title match is Hazuki defending the High Speed Championship against Xia Brookside. This will be Hazuki’s fourth title defense during this reign and while she has a heated rivalry with Arisa Hoshiki, she’s gonna put that to the side so she can focus on her match. Xia is also someone that has signed a WWE deal and will also be apart of the NXT UK Division as well with Viper, so this will actually be her final match with Stardom. Will it be better than the last title match? Will Hazuki retain or will Xia take the belt with her?

Xia really has come a long way since I’ve first started following her about a year ago and the progress she has made since then shows. She was able to surprisingly match up with Hazuki pretty well here and Hazuki is someone who can work with almost anybody too. I loved the little exchange where Hazuki would try a Lung Blower as Xia caught her and tried to do it back to her but Hazuki caught her and had Xia by the ropes as Xia would turn it into a DDT. The match may be about four minutes, but it was enough to keep the fans very satisfied with their performances here. Xia would have her up on her shoulders but Hazuki would get off her to only eat a Neckbreaker right away. The two would go back and forth with the Sunset Flip and counter to break the hold to try and pin each other as it would only be less than one count for the majority of it. Hazuki would have her in the Hazukistral and got the win to retain her title. Good luck to you, Xia as I wish you the best in your next chapter.

Hazuki defends the High Speed title vs Xia Brookside, and it's on https://t.co/q8dHnF58vW now! pic.twitter.com/G4W1mAxm7Q

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) March 30, 2019

Rating: Eric Bischoff

ROH Women of Honor World Title Match
Mayu Iwatani (c) vs. Natsuko Tora

Review: Up next is another title match with a division that I despise and the company that is called a major turn-off these days. We have Mayu Iwatani defending the ROH Women of Honor World Championship against Natsuko Tora. While ROH did a terrible job with their WOH Division and how they booked the title, Stardom has done a better job with it when they made Mayu the champion. The winner of this match would be going to Madison Square Garden to defend the title at the G1 Supercard, so one of these women will walk into the legendary arena as the champion, but the question is who?

It appears as if Mayu’s knee is a bit bandaged up and Natsuko notices that as she would use that as her opening target for the match. It’s probably just me and I’m sure it’s nothing, but it did seem like Mayu’s selling was a little bit off at the beginning of the match and it’s weird because she’s a fantastic seller. There were times where she would either no sell her leg getting hurt by Natsuko or do it very little but she does start doing it more as the match goes on but again, still a bit weird. Me personally, I was hoping for Jungle Kyona to be the one involved in this match since she’s better than Natsuko but at the same time, I wouldn’t wanna give her another big loss since she was defeated by both Kagetsu and Momo already and this would’ve been a little too much to take three big losses in a row. Natsuko did still do the job she had to do with giving Mayu someone easy to work with before the Garden.

Mayu did pull off some neat maneuvers in the match like her Missle Dropkick being a thing of beauty alone and then a nice Crossbody to the outside as she gets some air. Mayu went for a Diving Moonsault as Natsuko would roll out of the way to hit a Shining Wizard as Mayu sold it like a champ. Natsuko would hit a very poor Dragon Suplex to mock Mayu a little bit and does a Frog Splash off the top rope and tops it off by climbing again for a Double Stomp and Mayu kicked out of it at two. Natsuko would pick her up again and hits the Swinging Side Slam and Mayu was still able to kick out of it, but Natsuko gets to the top rope and Leg Drops her injured knee for good measure. Mayu would eventually hit the Diving Moonsault which looks beautiful and hits her Dragon Suplex Hold to retain her title. Mayu will be defending the title at Madison Square Garden against…Kelly Klein..damn, ROH really doesn’t have anyone else to use? Either way, I’m happy to see Mayu getting a chance to shine on the big stage despite wishing she fought someone better as she’s earned this.

Rating: Eric Bischoff and a half

World of Stardom Title Match
Kagetsu (c) vs. Goya Kong

Review: Our next match is the World of Stardom Championship, who is not main eventing again as Kagetsu defends the belt against Goya Kong. oya made her Stardom debut on the March 9th show and after the main event, she would make her challenge to Kagetsu for the title but Kagetsu would first decline the challenge. However, she would have a change of heart when she figured Stardom’s President, Rossy Owaga thought it was a good idea to bring her to Stardom for a big match, so she would give in and accept the challenge. Kagetsu has had a rather odd title run thus far and a win here would make her the champion leading to their show in NYC. Will Kagetsu retain the belt or will it be Goya that takes it?

Okay Stardom, I understand that Momo Watanabe is your new ace of the company and I fully support that decision, but could you maybe throw Kagetsu a bone and start giving her more credible opponents? I mean, I know you occasionally give her some big matches but she does deserve to fight bigger and better names at this point as well instead of just random scraps. Anyway, I will say that I was not fully invested in Goya Kong but still not Rebel Kel bad, so that’s a plus. One thing that irked me a little bit was that this didn’t feel like a World of Stardom Championship match and just another random exhibition, so it made it hard to care about it fully. Kagetsu did try her best and would do what she could to pull some stops such as the red mist at the beginning and trying to take out her leg to make her tap out, which is smart since that’s what you wanna do to someone that is bigger than you.

Kagetsu would hit the first Oedo Coaster but Goya would kick out of it, leaving our Prime Minister shocked and would try to pick her up for the Michinoku Driver but was unable to lift her up and Goya would have her in a Wheel Barrel position to German Suplex her and that actually looked good, not gonna lie. Goya goes to the top ropes and Kagetsu would push the referee into the corner so she could spit green mist into her eyes to blind her as she was finally able to pick her up for a Samoan Drop. Instead of pinning her, she would go up to hit the Oedo Coaster but wait, she goes up top to hit it a second time and then a third! Three Oedo Coasters in a row and she pins her to retain the title. Mediocre match but a nice ending to give it some points.

After the match, Kagetsu would talk to the crowd and would ask them why she won today but she answered that it’s because they were in Japan, which is her home along with Stardom. She did give Goy some credit and said she would like to do it again in Mexico as the two shook hands before Goya left the ring. She would then call Nao Yamaguchi to the ring and would give her some praise for dealing with Oedo for almost a year now as the other members came into the ring with her now as they gave her flowers while thanking her for everything. So why are they doing this you ask? Well, while Shiki has announced her retirement, it’s also the end of Nao’s career in wrestling as this was her last day in the company as well. She still hasn’t fully recovered from her concussion from what I’ve heard and it looks like she wants to move on, which I can respect since concussions are no joke and her body wasn’t able to keep up with the wrestling. Whatever you do, Nao, I wish you the best of luck and going to miss you.

Rating: Tony Schiavone and a half

Wonder of Stardom Title Match
Momo Watanabe (c) vs. Andras Miyagi

Review: It’s now time for our main event as Momo Watanabe will defend her title against Oedo Tai’s, Andras Miyagi. On March 9th, their respective units were in a tag team match where Andras would actually pin the champion and she would officially make a challenge for both the Goddesses of Stardom and Wonder of Stardom Championships. Andras would fail to capture the Goddesses of Stardom Championship with Natsu Sumire when they fought both Momo and Utami Hayashishita on the March 21st show, but Andras has a chance to defeat Momo to take her white belt this time around. This is known to be Momo’s toughest challenge as she fights the former star of Sendai Girls. Will Momo overcome the odds or will someone finally put her reign to an end?

How does Andras get the top part of her hair to stay up and keep it that way until the very end of the match, I’ll never know. Momo giving Andras the disrespect when she spits water into her face but don’t worry, she would eventually do it back to her once they fought on the outside of the ring. Andras is a great choice to fight Momo since she has wrestled from another company as a lot of experience that she can share with Momo to help get her to that next level and she does that quite well for herself. Andras doing great work on working Momo’s neck since it’s taped up and would manipulate it as much as she could, even making her headbang like a rock star is still enough to move the neck around to make it more uncomfortable for her. Momo would catch Andras when she tried to springboard from the ropes as she tried to hit the Package Driver but Andras would wrap her legs around her neck to choke her down and the champion is stunned.

Momo would give Andras a Roundhouse Kick to the face and would get her down for the Package Driver to hit it this time around and then gives her one more kick to the head for good measure as the two are both laying on the mat. The two were going blow for blow once they got up and Momo would win that battle when she gets Andras to the ropes but wait, Andras drags the referee in front of Momo and hits her with a chair when the ref wasn’t looking! Andras has her right where she wants her now as she goes to the top rope to hit a Swanton Bomb and it looks like we have a new champion but Momo kicked out at two! Andras would pick her up for the Piledriver but would drop her down Tombstone style and this could be it but Momo still kicked out of it. Momo would somehow find a way to roll her up for a two count and would quickly hit a Tequila Sunrise to stun her. Momo picked her back up to hit the Peach Sunrise as it connects and gets the pinfall to retain the title!

I thought this would’ve been the right time for Momo to drop the title as Momo already broke the record for most title defenses with the Wonder of Stardom Championship and could go feud with Kagetsu next to get the top title while Andras gets fresh new opponents while being the new champion. However, it looks like they still plan on Momo still being the top of the company with the second tier belt which has a lot more prestige now. After the match, Momo would call her partner, Utami Hayashishita into the ring and now challenges her as her next opponent. Utami would accept it as this match will be the main event of their show when they come to New York on Friday! Very interesting to see them do this now since now is the time for Momo to drop the title, I feel like Utami winning a fifth belt so early will also be a bit too much. We’ll see how this plays out and I’m excited about it either way.

Now on https://t.co/q8dHnF58vW from Korakuen Hall! Momo Watanabe defends her Wonder of Stardom title against Andras Miyagi! pic.twitter.com/7PioU2gLMY

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) March 31, 2019

Rating: Bruce Prichard

Overall: I honestly thought the show was pretty weak except for the main event being the only saving grace of the show with two of the title matches being lackluster. Not all shows are going to be winners and I’m excited for when they come to New York on Friday, be sure to watch it on FITE.

Favorite Match: Momo Watanabe vs. Andras Miyagi

Least Favorite Match: Utami Hayashishita vs. Rebel Kel

Score: 6/10

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (4/26/24)

It’s Draft Day!

Published

17 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Steven Mitchell

And with the first overall pick of the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown selects…

The WWE Draft returns for 2024, the first four rounds being right here on Friday Night SmackDown! With champions protected, who ends up where to challenge them?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee w/ Zelina Vega & Carlito VS Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo; Rey & Dragon win.
Bron Breakker VS Cedric Alexander; Bron wins.
WWE Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Match: Naomi VS Tiffany Stratton; No Contest.
Cody Rhodes VS Carmelo Hayes; Cody wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Backstage interview with Paul Heyman.

Kayla Braxton is with the Wise Man and says that here on night one of the Draft, there are already rumors circulating, including those about The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. Heyman will clarify these are not rumors regarding The Tribal Chief, Roman… Reigns. These are facts! Ladies and gentlemen, Your Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns, has voluntarily withdrawn from eligibility for this year’s Draft. That is not a negative but a positive. Who built SmackDown since the Pandemic? Roman Reigns. Who is the biggest star in the entire industry? Roman Reigns. Why would Roman Reigns hog the number one draft pick spotlight when he won’t be returning in the immediate future?

Read into his words, Kayla, that is not what a real Tribal Chief would do. Instead now, the pressure is on Nick Aldis. Because if Roman Reigns isn’t the first draft pick, then who is? The first two picks make history in a brand new era. And Heyman doesn’t know about you, but he is intrigued. No Tribal Chief up for grabs, who gets their opportunity to shine in the spotlight?

SmackDown throws it to the NXT Performance Center.

Jackie Redmond says the emotion down here is palpable! There is excitement, hope, and a little bit of nerves. But for these NXT Superstars, tonight is the culmination of a lifetime of hard work, dedication, a little bit of luck and a whole lot of self-belief. It was just last year that the NEW WWE Tag Team Champion, Grayson Waller, was hoping his name would be called. And it is funny this is NXT, but time to buy a vowel, throw in an E! Who is next? We find out tonight! The draft pool is deep, who rises to the top of the list?

Corey Graves is in the ring.

Corey welcomes Cincinnati and all of us at home to night one of the 2024 WWE Draft. Understandably, the GMs have their hands full, so Corey will be moderating the contract signing for the WWE Championship match that takes place next Saturday for Backlash: France. Without further ado, it’s the #1 contender, The Phenomenal AJ Styles! Styles makes his entrance, taking a seat at the table on camera right. And now, the Undisputed WWE Champion, the American Nightmare, Cody Rhodes! Cincy fires up and sings along, “WHOA~ OH~!” as Cody makes his entrance and gets his pyro before joining everyone in the ring.

Styles looks over the contract, absolutely tuning out the fans going wild for “CODY! CODY!” Styles then gets the mic to say before he signs, he doesn’t know if we realize that we’ve got two Georgia boys about to mix it up for the first time, and for the biggest prize in the game. Styles understands why they boo, but they gotta know that he doesn’t respect LA Knight, LA Knight got under his skin. He accepts that. But that’s why Styles lost at Mania. But what happened? Styles got his composure back and realized that he is Phenomenal. Styles BEAT Knight to earn the right to face Cody Rhodes at Backlash.

Now unlike Knight, Styles does respect Cody. They hadn’t crossed paths yet, but they’ve been down the same roads. They had to prove themselves outside of the WWE. And Styles is willing to believe that the same man who gave him advice a long time ago gave Cody the same advice, on how to stand on their own two feet and be the men they are today. That man was The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes. The fans cheer for “DUSTY! DUSTY!” Styles learned a lot from Dusty. Styles gets a little emotional thinking about Dusty, he was a good man. Dusty taught Styles how to carry himself, and to carry the weight of a championship.

And Styles looks at this WWE Championship here. The weight of this isn’t just the leather and gold. And at Backlash, we see if Cody can carry it. Styles goes back to his table, signs the contract, and then hands it off to Corey. Corey brings that to Cody, and Cody picks up his mic. “So… Cincinnati…! Whadda we wanna talk about? Certainly, we can talk about respect. There is not a locker room on Earth that you’ll find where everyone in it, every single person, they all respect AJ Styles. Last week, I went on to say you are the modern day Excellence of Execution. I respect the roads that you have traveled down to get here, the parallel paths that perhaps you and I have.

“Mutual respect, much respect. But that respect goes by the wayside at Backlash. I can feel it in your words to a degree. You’ve been here before. And it seems you’re implying that I cannot carry the weight of that championship. Well, good thing the man who trained me not far from where I sit now used to tell me all the time, it’s not about winning the title, it’s about keeping it.” The fans cheer that. Cody says boy does he respect Styles’ familiarity with Cody’s last name. But when you put C O D Y in front of it on this paper, that means they’ve never touched before. That means Backlash is a level playing field.

That means no matter how Phenomenal Styles is, this isn’t a dream match for Cody. It’s a must-win! Cody signs while the fans cheer, and it is official! Cody even throws the pen to the crowd as a free souvenir. Cody then offers a handshake, and Styles says y’know what? It was a beautiful thing to see Cody #FInishTheStory and win the title. But it’s a shame that Cody’s title reign will end at Backlash. Styles still shakes Cody’s hand, and then walks away. Cody picks up the belt and holds it high, will he get to hold it high again in Lyon, France?

Triple H is here!

Just as Cody was on his way to the back, The Game makes his way out here! HHH raises Cody’s hand, then invites him over to the podium. HHH welcomes us to the first round of the 2024 WWE Draft. It is a night that changes the landscape of the WWE going into the future, and things are a bit different this year. As the GMs ponder their next steps, they have to understand it is about protecting the roster they have as it is making the roster they want. Meaning that when they use their picks, they have just as much of a chance gaining a superstar as they do losing one they already have.

HHH just felt that since champs are protected and Cody will be staying here on SmackDown, maybe Cody could help read the SmackDown picks and HHH can read the Raw picks. And since SmackDown goes first, Cody reads first. Cody takes the card to say that with the first pick of the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown selects… The E S T, Bianca Belair! The stongEST, fastEST, roughEST, toughEST stays on Friday nights! HHH reads that for the second pick of the 2024 WWE Draft, Raw selects… YEET! JEY USO! Monday nights will still have Main Event Jey Uso! And the fans “YEET!” Cody says for the third pick, SmackDown selects… NXT’s Carmelo Hayes!

The fans fire up as SmackDown manages to snag… HIM! The former NXT Champion makes history again by being the first NXT superstar to be chosen this high in the Draft! HHH says that’s a hell of a pick. But then the fourth and final pick of this first round, Raw selects… SETH! FREAKIN’! ROLLINS! It is still going to be Monday Night Rollins as the Visionary stays on the red brand! Cody and HHH shake hands, and then Melo makes his way out! Melo has the mic to say when they talk about who’s next up, about who’s the hottest out, they don’t call them “the hottest out,” they just call him “Carmelo Hayes.”

The fans chant “WHOOP DAT TRICK!” to remind Melo how he’s leaving NXT. Melo says okay, okay. But then to Cody Rhodes, ever since Cody won the title, he’s been talking about “If you aim for the king, you best not miss.” Well, funny how that works. Because when Melo shoots, Melo don’t miss. And as a first round draft pick, what better way to shoot his shot on SmackDown than to shoot it right at Cody? Melo leaves the mic with Cody but Cody picks it up to say, “Fortune certainly favors the bold, but I dunno. You folks don’t wanna see me in action tonight, do ya?” The fans go wild! Oh, but what if Cody forgot his gear?

Oh that’s right! He didn’t forget his gear! And this title right here, for Cody, means absolutely 100%, Melo’s on! They shake on it, and we’re about to see a huge first-time-ever showdown! But will this bold first move work out for… HIM?

Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee w/ Zelina Vega & Carlito VS Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo!

The LWO is still not convinced Legado Del Fantasma had nothing to do with the beating that took the Boy Wonder out ahead of WrestleMania. Will the King of Lucha help get to the bottom of things? Or will Angel & “Berto” make it as easy as ABC, 1-2-3?

The teams sort out, Dragon runs up on Humberto but Humberto LARIATS him down! Humberto drags Dragon up, tears the shirt away and CHOPS! Humberto whips, Dragon ducks ‘n’ dodges to RANA! Humberto tumbles out, Dragon builds speed and FLIES! Direct hit and down goes Humberto! The fans fire up as Dragon pushes Humberto into the ring, goes up a corner, and then CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Dragon facelocks to drag Humberto up, but Humberto wrenches out to CLUB Dragon down. Humberto waistlocks but Dragon throws elbows. Angel tags in as Humberto shoves Dragon. Dragon ducks but Angel holds ropes open, and Dragon tumbles to the floor!

The fans boo and LWO hurries to check on Dragon! Angel & Humberto just soak up the heat as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and both Dragon and Humberto are down! They crawl, hot tags to Angel and Rey! The fans fire up as Rey ducks ‘n’ dodges and tilt-o-whirl RANAS! Angel ends up in a corner, he puts Rey on the apron, but Rey ROCKS Angel! Rey goes up to SEATED SENTON! Rey keeps moving, wrenches and kicks, then hops on! CODE RED! Cover, Humberto breaks it! The fans boo but Humberto hauls Rey up. Rey fights and RANAS Humberto up and out! But Angelo kicks, scoops, but Rey slips free! Angelo kicks low, reels REy in, and underhooks, but Rey fights those to RANA Angel onto ropes! Rey dials it up to 619!

Tag to Dragon and he takes aim! Angel stands, into the tilt-o-whirl, PROJECT DRAGON!! Cover, LWO wins!

Winners: Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee, by pinfall

Carlito and Zelina hug it out with the team, but then Santos Escobar & Elektra Lopez walk out here. Santos says whoa, whoa, whoa, hold that celebration. Because Santos is many things, but a liar is not one of them. And when Santos said he did NOT attack Dragon that night before Mania, he meant it. Elektra has been working for weeks to track down the security footage from that night. And Rey… Oh, Rey. What you’re about to see, you will find very, very interesting. The footage plays, and it was CARLITO!! Carlito throw Dragon around backstage! No one can believe it, because of how well Carlito fooled even Dragno.

Speaking of, Carlito RAMS Dragon into Rey, then hits a BACKSTABBER! Never has that move’s name been more fitting! Carlito runs away in a panic, and Rey stands back up in a rage! Santos says he told Rey that he was right all along. They were supposed to be family, and yet look how that turned out. How will the LWO recover from this shocking development?

Bron Breakker VS Cedric Alexander!

The Big Bad Booty Nephew has been making a case for himself ever since showing up on SmackDown, and he’s already bringing the straps down! Is he going to break PRIMED Alexander while also breaking match time records? Or will Cedric prove he’s too fly for Bron?

The bell rings and Cedric dodges Bron to CHOP and ROCK! Cedric whips, Bron reverses and Cedric handsprings, into a SPEAR!! Cover, Bron wins!

Winner: Bron Breakker, by pinfall

Well, hard to say if that’s an all-time fast match, but that was a fast match! QR Code stuff going on, but will we all see Bron take the world by storm?

Nick Aldis heads out.

And waiting is Tiffany Stratton. She asks if he saw what she did last week. Wait, of course he did. Because she is the Center of the Universe. She dropped Naomi and Bayley, where is her title match? Aldis tells Tiff to look at his watch. It is NOT set to #TiffyTime. And he was this close to sending her to the back of the line. But then someone convinced him otherwise, good for her. Tonight, she goes 1v1 with Naomi again, and the winner faces Bayley for the title at Backlash. Whose stupid idea was that?! Bayley says DING DONG, it was hers. It is a win-win situation here. If Naomi wins, she gets the match she got cheated out of.

And if Tiff wins, then she’ll find out when she attacks the Role Model. Tiff gasps as she has a #TiffanyEpiphany. Bayley should be ringside for that match so she can see Tiff do what Bayley couldn’t, and that’s beat Naomi. Tootles. Tiff leaves, but will the only thing she gets is to #FeelTheGlow?

Michelle McCool and Torrie Wilson are here!

One is a former WWE Women’s Champion, the other is a WWE Hall of Famer, but they’re both here to present Draft picks! Michelle says with the first pick of the second round, SmackDown selects… The Viper, Randy Orton! SmackDown will still have to watch out for an RKO outta nowhere! Torrie says that with the second pick of the second round, Raw selects… BRON BREAKKER! We just saw Bron make quick work of opponents here on SmackDown, but now he’s gonna be rampaging on Raw!

Michelle says that with the third pick of the second round, SmackDown selects… NIA JAX! The Irresistible Force may have to change targets from the Women’s World to the Undisputed Women’s title, but will she be unstoppable all the same? And with the fourth and final pick of this round, Raw selects… LIV MORGAN! The Revenge Tour will still be part of Monday nights, will we watch Liv rise to the top?

The Bloodline arrives backstage.

Paul Heyman is there to greet them and open the door to the SUV. He apologizes for not being faster about that, but Solo Sikoa asks The Bloodline if they’ve been drafted. Not yet. Then give Solo the details. Okay, well, Roman Reigns withdrew right before the show began, and then Solo keeps adding members, so no one really knows what they’re getting if they draft The Bloodline! Solo sighs, and here comes Tama Tonga. Heyman asks they be patient but Solo wants Heyman to repeat that for him. Heyman gets scared, but then KEVIN OWENS jumps in! Kevin fires off on Tama, security and refs rush in to stop it!

The Prizefighter wants Solo’s “MFT” to bring the fight like he did last week! Security still drags Kevin away, but will he get that fight he wants?

Kayla Braxton is on stage.

SmackDown returns and Kayla welcomes us back to the show. And please welcome out the first overall pick, Bianca Belair! The fans fire up as The EST walks out on stage, and Kayla congratulates her on being the first overall pick. But let’s talk Backlash. Breaking news, Bianca and Jade Cargill are going to challenge for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships, against the Kabuki Warriors. How satisfying would it be to dethrone them on the stage of this magnitude? Bianca says so satisfying. She really hopes Jade gets drafted to SmackDown because given all this history with Damage CTRL, all the partners by her side, Bianca has never been the one to finally end it with them.

For everything they’ve done to her and this division, Bianca feels Jade is the perfect woman to help her end this. Now, DMG CTRL is falling apart piece by piece, and that final piece is the tag titles. So once Bianca & Jade take the gold at Backlash, the Kabuki Warriors won’t even have a reason to come back to SmackDown. But wait, they’re here now! Asuka & Kairi walk out here and Kayla moves aside. The Empress of Tomorrow and the Pirate Princess taunt the EST, but here comes The Storm! Jade makes her way to stand right by Bianca’s side. The four shout and argue, but this will be settled on May 4th!

WHOA! Tama and Kevin are brawling their way out here! The ladies move aside so the gentlemen can brawl all the way down to ringside! Tama hits low, gets in the ring, but Kevin pursues! Kevin TACKLES Tama, but Solo CLOBBERS Kevin! The fans boo as The Bloodline beats Kevin down! The refs hurry out here but clearly Solo’s Bloodline won’t listen! Tama DECKS producers, DECKS guards, HEADBUTTS them, throws hands and even THROWS the guards! Tama and Solo beat Kevin down again, but here comes Randy Orton! The Viper is still on SmackDown and he’s still pals with Kevin, so here he comes!

Orton DECKS Tama, fires hands on Solo, then RK- NO, Solo gets free and gets away! Orton wants to pursue, almost runs Jamie Noble and refs over to do it, but the Bloodline has gotten away! The fans cheer Randy on, and KAevin even hugs him! But then Kevin and Randy try to give chase! Security stops this, when and where will we see #RKKO strike down Solo and Tama?

The Dudley Boyz are here!

The fans fire up as Bubba Ray & D-Von are both here for the next round of picks! Cincy chants for “E C DUB! E C DUB!” Bubba and D-Von look at the cards, it’s hard to read. So out come the glasses! Bubba says with the first pick of the third round of the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown selects… L A KNIGHT! YEAH!! The Mega Star stays on Fridays! D-Von says with the second pick of the third round, Raw selects… RICOCHET! Mondays still has the One and Only, is Ricochet going to bring that WWE Speed Championship home to Raw, too?

Bubba says with the third pick of the third round, SmackDown selects… THE BLOODLINE! That means Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Paul Heyman are staying right here on Friday nights. And D-Von says with the final pick of this round, Raw selects… SHEAMUS! The Celtic Warrior just got back, but he won’t have to worry about going anywhere else but Monday nights.

WWE Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Match: Naomi VS Tiffany Stratton!

It’s time to run it back once again! The Glow got robbed by the Spoiled Rich Girl, but supposedly, it’s #TiffyTime. Will Naomi prove there’s no such time on the clock? Or will Bayley be the one feeling the Backlash over giving Tiffany one more chance?

The bell rings and Naomi hits a THESZ PRESS! Naomi rains down fists, Tiffy shoves her away and goes to ropes, but Naomi gets up in Tiff’s face. Naomi whips, Tiff holds ropes to bail out and fans boo. Naomi scowls, runs in and WRECKS Tiff with a dropkick! Naomi then gets Tiff up, SMACKS her off the apron, and then SMACKS her off it again! And again! Naomi puts Tiff in, goes up a corner, but Tiff gets under the jump! Naomi runs back up but Tiff YANKS her into ropes! Tiff runs to HIP ATTACK! Naomi sputters, Tiff scowls and drags Naomi up, to then put through ropes. But Naomi RAMS into Tiff!

Naomi reels Tiff in, for a HEATSEEKER! Tiff flops to the floor, and then Naomi SPLIT LEG DROPS! Naomi says it’s #NaomiTime, but SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Naomi runs, but into a SPINEBUSTER! High stack, TWO! Naomi survives and Tiff is frustrated but the fans rally up. Tiff drags Naomi up, whips her to a corner, but Naomi goes up and sunset flips! TWO! Tiff escapes, knees Naomi low, then whips. Naomi slides under the lariat to then mule kick! Then she headscissor SPIKES Tiff down! Cover, TWO! Tiff survives but barely, and Naomi keeps her cool. Naomi headlocks, but Tiff shoves her into buckles! Tiff runs, but Naomi follows, DOUBLE RUNNING FACEBUSTERS take them both down! The fans fire up as the two rise!

Naomi KICKS, ROCKS and ROCKS Tiff again! Naomi fires shots again and again but Tiff knees low! Tiff reels Naomi in, but Naomi wrenches out to ENZIGIRI! And then BUCKLE BULLDOG! But then NIA JAX attacks Bayley!? Nia SMACKS Bayley off buckles, rains down fists, and this momentarily distracts Naomi. Naomi refocuses, but by now, Tiff’s slipped away! Nia KICKS Bayley in the side, so Naomi goes out to ROCK her! Nia POSTS Naomi and that throws the match out!

No Contest

The fans boo as Nia ruins the fun, then runs Bayley over! Nia smiles as she blows kisses to Cincy. Tiff smiles, she drags Naomi up and puts her in the ring. Then she drags Bayley in! Tiff wants a repeat of last week as she puts them side by side in the drop zone! Tiff then goes up and up for the PRETTIEST MOONSAULT EVER!! Tiff says it’s her time, but the #1 contendership is still in question. Who gets their shot at the Role Model at Backlash?

B-Fab and the Street Profits meet up backstage.

Angelo Dawkins has a “WHO-DEY” sign, but Montez Ford is wondering where Bobby Lashley is right now. B-Fab says calm down, he’ll be here. Byron Saxton walks over and apologizes for interrupting. He doesn’t know what the Draft destination for this group will be until Monday Night Raw, but we do know that The Profits will challenge A-Town Down Under for the WWE Tag Team Championships. YESSIIIIIIR~! B-Fab says it doesn’t matter where they get drafted. The Profits are going to take down A-Town Down Under and take those titles. Then they’ll have their first class tickets right back to SmackDown.

SmackDown? Did someone say SmackDown~? In walk Austin Theory & Grayson Waller, showing off the titles. And Theory says you can’t have SmackDown without the GREATEST undefeated tag team of all time. And sorry, Dawkins, but these are championships, something the Bengals know nothing about! B-Fab keeps Dawkins back, but then in steps Bobby Lashley! The All Mighty scares Theory & Waller right off, and Dawkins says see y’all next Friday! Will there be nothing keeping these Profits down the night before Backlash?

The Final Testament speaks.

Karrion Kross says good evening. What’s going on here? You guessed it! More random acts of violence! Just follow him. Kross & Scarlett lead the way to show The Authors of Pain beating down New Catch Republic! Rezar beats down Pete Dunne while Akam victimizes Tyler Bate! Paul Ellering says they will know about sacrifice! Kross says whether they get drafted to Raw or stay on SmackDown, the violence will continue until they get what they want! So sayeth The Final Testament!!

Teddy Long and JBL are here!

The Hall of Famer General Manager and the Hall of Famer WWE Champion are both here, ready to give us the fourth and final round of picks tonight! Teddy gets right to it! The first pick of the fourth round, SmackDown selects… AJ STYLES! The Phenomenal One is really an obvious choice, because one way or another, the WWE Championship stays with SmackDown! JBL says the second pick of the fourth round, Raw selects… THE ALPHA ACADEMY! Raw keeps Chad Gable, Otis, Maxxine Dupri & Akira Tozawa, A THANK YEW~!

Teddy says with the third pick of this round, SmackDown selects… ANDRADE! A big move as now El Idolo will be part of Friday nights. And with the final pick of this fourth round, Raw selects… NXT’S Kiana James! The Calculator, the former NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion, has the Raw hat to put on, and after a quick hype package, Jackie Redmond is there to interview her. Kiana, congratulations! You are heading to Monday Night Raw! How much does this mean to her? This means the world to her. She is filled with gratitude, but also knows every decision she has made up to this point has been by design to get her here.

Kiana is so proud of her time in NXT, but she’s ready to show Raw why she is the One Percent. Was she surprised? Of course she was! HBK is here to wish her luck and congratulations. Is Kiana going to start the hostile takeover of the Raw Women’s Division?

Backstage interview with Nick Aldis.

Kayla is with the SmackDown GM and says that with night one in the books, how does he feel about SmackDown’s selections? He feels really good about them. SmackDown’s future is bright, he can’t wait for the new recruits to show up and show out for the blue brand. But he also wants to turn attentions to Backlash, because he’s got some new matches to announce! The first PLE in France, this is exciting stuff, Kayla. Aldis says that the WWE Women’s Championship will now be on the line in a Triple Threat! Bayley VS Naomi VS Tiffany Stratton! Will the odds make it that much harder for the Role Model to succeed?

There’s one more match to announce, but Aldis will let the GM GOAT take it from here. Teddy Long steps in, and don’t forget. We’ll talk about this tag team match. The Bloodline VS Kevin Owens & Randy Orton! Holla, players. Solo & Tama will have to face The Viper and the Prizefighter, will #RKKO strike fast and strike hard?

Cody Rhodes VS Carmelo Hayes!

The American Nightmare just put pen to paper for his match with the Phenomenal One, but he isn’t one to shy away from a challenge. The former NXT Champion is shooting his shot, but will this be nothing but net? Or will it be a frustrating airball?

The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up, the fans rally for Cody as he puts Melo in a corner then arm-drags him away. Melo runs up, Cody headlocks, Melo powers out then drops. Melo hurdles, but Cody kicks low to RHODES UPPERCUT! Melo staggers to ropes, the fans fire up, but then melo throat chops and springboard FLYING LARIATS! Melo says that’s why he’s a first round pick! But then Cody CLOBBERS him! Cody asks if Melo’s ready for this, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns once again and Cody has a headlock. Cody hits a takeover, Melo flails and kicks around, but Cody grinds him down. Melo pushes with his forearm, then headscissors, but Cody kips free. Melo CHOPS, the fans “WOO~!” but Cody brushes himself off. Melo pie faces Cody! Cody fires forearms on Melo, then whips, but Melo reverses. Melo ELBOWS Cody, then runs up to KICK him in the side! Melo fires forearms and CHOPS in a corner, then throws body shots. Melo digs his boot in, the ref counts, and Cody goes to another corner. Cody eggs Melo on, Melo storms up, but Cody puts him in the corner to CHOP!

Cody swings, Melo dodges and CHOPS! Cody turns things around to CHOP! The fans rally, Cody whips corner to corner, then he back drops Melo away! Melo staggers up, Cody runs, and he rallies on Melo with forearms! Cody goes up and over in a corner but Melo tilt-o-whirls, LA MYSTICA! Melo springboards, FADE AWAY! Cover, TWO! Cody survives that flying DDT, but we see the NXT roster all fired up watching Melo take it to the champ. Melo sits Cody up, drags him into a facelock, but the fans rally for Cody. Cody fireman’s carries but Melo slips free to dragon sleeper! Melo grins, but Cody cradles! TWO!!

Melo swings, Cody boots, then Cody springboards to BEAUTIFUL DISASTER! Melo flips inside-out, Cody covers, TWO! Melo is still in this and he snarls up at Cody. Melo gives a forearm, Cody gives it back, and the fans rally up. Cody scoops Melo, storms around, and then hits a RUNNING POWERSLAM! Cover, TWO! Melo survives and Cody grows frustrated. Cody pounds the mat, the fans rally up, and then Cody goes to ropes. Cody springboards again, CODY CUTTER! Cover, TWO!! Melo survives yet again, proving why he’s a former NXT Champion, on top of NXT North American Champion! But then Cody drags him up!

Cody back suplexes, Melo lands out of it, then FIRST 48! Doe goes Cody and Melo goes up! Melo is setting up for the game winner! NOTHING BUT- NO, Cody avoids the flying leg drop! Melo rolls through, Cody dodges to SUPERKICK! Cody brings Melo around, but Melo gets free! They both run, both springboard, but completely miss each other, and Cody takes a rough landing! Melo drags Cody up, reels him in, but Cody wrenches out to dragon sleeper! CROSS RHODES!! Cody shakes out the bad arm but still makes the cover, and Cody wins!

Winner: Cody Rhodes, by pinfall

Melo took his shot but it was blocked! Even so, Cody sits Melo up to show him respect and tell him he’s still the future. But did this match end up more of a trap game for Cody after that crash landing? Or will he be alright in time for Backlash and his phenomenal opponent?

Speaking of, Styles sneaks right into the ring! Cody sees him in time and Styles stays back. Cody and Styles stare down, but Styles says it was that close. Styles offers a handshake, and Cody takes it. There’s still respect here, for now. But will nothing stop Styles from turning Cody’s story into a tragedy after all?

My Thoughts:

A great SmackDown to open the WWE Draft but to also set up Backlash. To recap, SmackDown took Bianca, Melo, Orton, Nia, LA Knight, The Bloodline, Styles and Andrade while Raw took Jey, Rollins, Bron, Liv, Ricochet, Sheamus, The Alpha Academy, and Kiana. Many of those choices made sense, as picks won’t be wasted on keeping champions on brands, and just need to be used to keep most stories alive and change up a few others. Kiana is perhaps one of the more surprising moves, but well-deserved. She has been a solid character and solid in-ring performer almost from the start, she’s a solid addition to Raw.

Bron of course demolished his opponent tonight, it’s just a shame it was Cedric and not local enhancement talent. But Bron will also be a good addition to Raw, but maybe he can move past his squash match phase and get right to story. Melo being a first round pick was great stuff, and he had a great promo with Cody to give us tonight’s main event. That double springboard whiff was definitely a timing problem, but at the same time, a Fade Away countered into a Cody Cutter would’ve been way too epic just for TV. Cody with a great win, and we got a really good contract signing segment, but you can bet Cody retains.

Really good tag match from LWO VS Legado but naturally Rey & Dragon won. I knew it was only a matter of time before Carlito was outed, and how he handled being exposed was pretty good. And with Andrade being drafted to SmackDown, you just know that means Andrade joins the LWO. The Final Testament attacking New Catch Republic was a wild moment, I almost thought Ellering was going to use the pliers in his hands to grab at fingers. Maybe we get that next week for SmackDown in France. Good promos from A-Town Down Under and the still technically unnamed faction of Bobby Lashley’s. As great as The Profits are, it feels like Theory & Waller will cheat to retain.

Really good promo with Tiff and Bayley to set up Naomi VS Tiff round 3, but I did not think Nia Jax would disrupt all that. A Triple Threat at Backlash is good stuff, it will protect Bayley if she loses, but can also protect Naomi and Tiff if Bayley uses them against each other to win. Good promo from Bianca that then turned into the shouting match of Bianca & Jade with Kabuki Warriors. Their tag title match is official, and I’m pretty sure Bianca & Jade win. I also liked that this segment ended up having Kevin and Tama brawl right through it. Orton saving Kevin was a great move, RKKO VS Solo & Tama is going to be awesome stuff, I can’t wait to see it.

My Score: 8.8/10

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Coverage

Andrew’s TNA iMPACT! Results & Match Ratings: 4.25.2024

We just got done with Rebellion, and Under Siege is two weeks away! Gotta see how these dots connect!

Published

2 days ago

April 25, 2024

Andrew Balaz

Rebellion had quite a few returns, Mike Santana, Sami Callihan and Broken Matt Hardy. All three of these guys could easily be main event players, and its nice to mix up and expand what felt like a rather small pool of potential challengers.

Under Siege is only like 2 weeks out, so we’ll see how the dots connect in such a short period of time.

.@AJFrancis410, Rich Swann, and rap legend @BunBTrillOG are IN THE HOUSE Meanwhile, @joehendry announces he will deliver an apology to Fir$t Cla$$ NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT! pic.twitter.com/4GNe2xWfyU

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Ratings:

Mike Santana vs Myron Reed w/Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz: Santana wins via Spin the Block – ** 1/2
#1 Contender: Frankie Kazarian vs Josh Alexander: Josh wins via Grapevine Ankle Lock – ***
ASH by Elegance vs Xia Brookside: Xia wins via School Girl Roll-Up – ** 3/4
Sami Callihan vs The Good Hands: Sami Callihan wins via Cactus Driver ’97 – SQUASH
Eddie Edwards w/Alisha Edwards & Brian Myers vs Nic Nemeth: Eddie wins via Boston Knee Party – *** 1/4

Results:

Did @NicTNemeth say BROKEN? @MATTHARDYBRAND has arrived in the iMPACT Zone! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/HbkUangt6e

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

A weird opening that is just framed to put Nemeth and Hardy together against The System. Feels a little awkward, but who knows how it will play out.

.@JordynneGrace vs @miyu_tjp NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT will now be for the Knockouts World Championship! pic.twitter.com/YnKZjb9yjx

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Mike Santana vs Myron Reed w/Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz

Ahh I didn’t really pay attention to Santana’s theme at Rebellion, but its pretty damn cool. Good stuff.

Rascalz blindside Santana early, but the heel advantage doesn’t last more than a few moves. Santana whips Myron from corner to corner, hits a few Hip Attacks before Myron finally dodges one and starts using his unique offense and agility to his advantage. Matrix dodge, into an Leaping Outside Back in Slingshot Codebreaker. Some more offense and Santana powders to the ramp, Myron jumps over the rope and tries a Flying Cutter, but Santana blocks it, turns things around, gets pushed forward and hits the Rolling Cutter. Santana takes out the Rascalz, heads back into the ring, Myron tries to catch him unawares but eats the Spin the Block off the rope run! Santana wins fairly quickly.

Maclin’s music hits, he tries to employ the help of The Rascalz to attack Santana, but as soon as Maclin positions himself to get in, The Rascalz bail and flip off Maclin. Maclin makes it out of the confrontation relatively unscathed, but at least we know where he’s going for Under Siege probably.

OH FUCK ME WITH RUSTY KNIVES. Because Cardona is hurt Kon is paired with SDL, and she just challenges Jordynne and PCO to a tag match. WHY!? STOP IT. This is hot garbage.

Josh Alexander comes out…I wonder who’s Super Finisher he’s gonna conveniently kick out this time? Brian Myers? Frankie Kazarian? Rich Swann? Because yes, I’m still annoyed that Hammerstone has been in TNA for half a sandwich, he already connects with a Super version of his finish on tacks, and that’s not a finish. Oh Kaz’s music hits. Okay, so time for Josh to kick out of Fade to Black or Flux Capacitor. Kaz talks smack, says he won his match too so he should have a say in who’s number one contender. Josh challenges him, Kaz says not right now, but a referee runs out and says the match is official.

#1 Contender: Frankie Kazarian vs Josh Alexander

Kaz throws his jacket on Josh’s head, and attacks him with some strikes before Josh fights back and throws Kaz out. Commercial break, we see Kaz misses his Apron Guillotine, Josh goes for the Low Crossbody but Kaz dodges and Josh goes flying. Kaz starts throwing some chops and claws at the cauliflowered ears of Josh. Russian Leg Sweep from Kaz for a near fall. Josh swings wildly and Kaz ducks the strike and levels Josh with a Lariat.

Josh blocks a Vertical Suplex attempt, but Frankie pulls off a Fisherman’s Suplex after a few overhead strikes for a near fall. Josh stands up and connects with a straight right, rocks Kaz, Back Body Drop, into a Charging Forearm, Rolling Senton, 2 count! C4 Spike attempt countered into a Back Stabber and then Chicken Wing, but Josh fights it off, rolls through and into an Ankle Lock, Kaz kicks off and into a Head and Arm Cradle for a near fall and then the Guillotine Leg Drop into Slingshot DDT spot from Kaz for another 2 count!

Fade to Black, but its fought off, Big Boot but then Kaz counters the next move with a Power Slam into the Springboard Guillotine Leg Drop, but Josh grabs the Ankle Lock! Locomotion German Suplex time from Josh, Halfhatch Suplex after the Germans, floats over for a 2 count! C4 Spike attempt again, but Kaz fights it off, dumps him over the top rope, slingshots him in and into the Cutter for a near fall for Kaz! After the 2 Kaz grabs a chair and chain, the referee stops the chair of course, so he tries the chain, EY runs down and grabs the chain so Kaz pulls the Eddie Guerrero and the referee admonishes EY, but doesn’t DQ Josh. So as Kaz is busy laughing at EY, Josh picks the ankle, Ankle Lock with the Grapevine, Kaz taps.

Tensions are sky-high between @alexhammerstone and @JakeSomething_! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/LLCUJOCy7H

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

ASH by Elegance vs Xia Brookside

Both are jawing at each other and then throw hands before Xia gets the upper hand with a Headscissors from the Top Turnbuckle, Charging Knees, a Flurry of Kicks, but when the ref forces some space in the corner, ASH is finally able to dodge and work over Xia with her Twisting Body Splash, a few choking moves, a corner Stomp into a Snap Suplex for 2. ASH is in charge elegantly, but the referee keeps forcing space on both of them when they go for corner attacks. Xia manages to take advantage a little, but ASH regains control, kicks Xia up the ramp and then lands her Cartwheel Back Elbow up the ramp. It actually looks pretty cool executed like that.

Headlocks and Hair Pulling to keep Xia down and using energy to kick out. ASH is getting frustrated but Xia is remaining persistent. ASH goes back to the Headlock, but Xia fights up, Jawbreaker, Back Elbow, Kick to the gut and Drop Toe Hold sends ASH face first into the middle buckle. Xia rips off 4 Double Knee Smashes to the back of ASH’s head into her Flying Crossbody for a close 2! Xia pulls her up, but ASH spins out, then Xia slips it, but ASH kicks her in the chest and deposits her to the outside and demands a count from the referee. Iceman puts Jeweled Knuckles/Rings on ASH’s hand, the referee catches her, removes the stuff from her fingers and Xia hits the School Girl Roll-Up for the flash win.

Fraud has thrown the Ballot Box Battle into chaos, but also paved the way for an explosive showdown between @TheTreyMiguel and @The_Ace_Austin NEXT WEEK to determine the #1 Contender for the X Division Championship! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/lYHrtgNrc3

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Sami Callihan vs The Good Hands

So the Good Hand Jobs are about to do their job to Sami. I’m just gonna assume Sami beats the hell out of both and wins with a Cactus Driver ’97. If anything interesting happens I might actually cover it, but come on now.

.@SteveMaclin has a proposition for @FrankieKazarian #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/XY6lMdmSWo

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 26, 2024

Kaz makes a Metallica reference with the “Wash Your Back So You Won’t Stab Mine”…and Sweet Amber is the only good song on St. Anger. So…I ain’t mad.

Eddie Edwards w/Alisha Edwards & Brian Myers vs Nic Nemeth

A little early ground wrestling and headlocks for control from both men. Nothing super flashy to start until we get to the rope run and Nemeth goes for the Flying Body Press to drop Eddie. Before Nemeth can follow up, Lish grabs his foot. Nic does have his brother Ryan in the crowd, trying to get chants going and do the old school ‘power up the babyface’ thing, but Eddie has been in control since Lish got involved. Simple offense, chokes, strikes, Snap Suplexes, Knee Drops, simple yet effective. But then Eddie ducks his head too early, Nemeth kicks him in the face, bounces his head off the buckles a few times, Dropkick sends Eddie reeling to the corner, Nemeth starts the 10 Count Punches but Myers hits the apron to distract and Eddie manages to slip the situation and push Nemeth to the floor.

Commercial break happens, Nemeth is trying to fight back with Chops, but a Kitchen Sink from Eddie puts Nemeth on the floor again! Clubbing blow from Eddie, but Eddie then misses the Hip Attack in the corner and Nemeth counters with the Rude Awakening into the 10 Count Rain of Elbows. Fame Ass-er miss, Eddie tries something but Nemeth turns it into that hesitation DDT for 2! Tuning up the band starts to build and Eddie powders to avoid it. Nemeth throws Eddie back in, goes to the top, but Eddie crotches him, rises up and hits the Superplex into Tiger Driver for 2! Eddie starts mocking with Tuning Up the band but Nemeth hits his own Superkick into an Olympic Slam for 2!

Both men just trade strikes Fighting Spirit style, Eddie says “Always Trust the System” and Nemeth shuts him up with a Headbutt. Danger Zone is blocked, Boston Knee Party gets ducked, they level each other with Lariats! Myers and Ryan Nemeth start fighting to distract the referee, Moose hits the ring and hits Nemeth with the belt. Eddie lands Boston Knee Party and The System wins again!

Overall Score: 6/10

A lame opening segment, a squash match, ASH by Elegance getting her first loss, and a weird way of just pulling the number one contender out of mid air makes for an awkward show. Also Kon still be involved in, literally anything, is negative. However, I can say there was a ton of stuff thrown at the wall this episode, so there’s a chance that some things landed better with other people than myself. The ballot segments were amusing, they overused the “I need to talk to you Santino” gimmick a bit much and personally I feel like having Jake versus Hammerstone is booking yourself into a weird corner.

But hey, the main event was fun, Nemeth getting laid out to the point that there could be a story reason to take him out of the Under Siege match. Kaz with the Metallica reference was pop worthy and I guess its a lot of ‘let’s see where it goes’ kind of angle creation. So it wasn’t complete trash, but its definitely a wait and see episode.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!