IMPACT Victory Road Review - September 18, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Steve Maclin def. TJP and Petey Williams in a Three-Way Match

Maclin and Williams have been feuding for a little bit, so with Maclin winning again, hopefully they can move on from this feud and maybe we'll get Maclin vs. TJP out of it. This was the right result. It was also the correct choice for the opener as there wasn't a lot riding on it, didn't have a ton of build behind it, and was was well-wrestled enough to kick off the show on a good note. Maclin impresses the more and more I see him in action, but his character work could be a bit better as he's rather bland at the moment.

Laredo Kid def. John Skyler, Black Taurus, Jake Something and Trey Miguel in a Five-Way Match

Well, this was random. I don't remember this even being advertised in advance, though it hardly mattered because there was nothing on the line here. That said, this was a fun five-way with everyone getting their time to shine here. It was all action, and although it wasn't labeled as an X-Division showcase, that's basically what it was because all of these guys have been featured in the exciting X-Division this year at one point or another. Laredo Kid and Skyler have traded wins recently, so Laredo pinning Skyler for the victory made sense.

Taylor Wilde def. Tenille Dashwood

This was a rematch from a recent encounter on IMPACT! Wrestling that was won by Dashwood, so you had to know Wilde would get her win back here as she should have. I wasn't a fan of the outside interference, but thankfully everyone at ringside was ejected about halfway through. What we got from them was solid stuff and it was the quality contest you'd expect given who was involved. Wilde truly hasn't missed a beat despite being away from IMPACT for over a decade.

Matt Cardona def. Rohit Raju in a No Disqualification Match

This program has been the perfect use of both of these guys. I'm glad Raju beat Cardona at Emergence last month because it not only gave Raju a credible win but also allowed them to have another match a month later on this special. The added stipulation gave them more to work with and led to some strong nearfalls. They gave it a hell of an effort and Chelsea Green aiding Cardona to victory was logical after Raju beat her in an intergender tag team match on IMPACT! Wrestling a few weeks ago.

Bullet Club (Chris Bey and Hikuleo) def. FinJuice

Bey and Hikuleo have quickly developed strong chemistry as partners, while it's near impossible for FinJuice to have a bad match. Therefore, this was an entertaining affair with a really nice pace. FinJuice have gotten the better of Bey on IMPACT! lately, so Bullet Club needed this win. I'm curious if Hikuleo will be sticking around in the promotion for a little longer or if this run will be as short-lived as his time in AEW. Either way, I'm all for Bey gaining momentum.

Moose and W. Morrissey def. Sami Callihan and Eddie Edwards

IMPACT has done a terrific job of telling the reluctant tag team partner story with Callihan and Edwards given their history as rivals. This had the best storytelling of any other match on the show as a result. Everyone played their roles really well and they kept things moving throughout. I didn't think one of the heels would actually hit a move on Alisha Edwards, but that's exactly what happened and it looked brutal. She's a champ for taking that bump. That led to Eddie bringing her to the back and Callihan having to fight on his own before falling short. Callihan will probably not trust him after that, but it would have been too early for them to overcome the odds and coexist, anyway.

Impact Knockouts Tag Team Champions Decay (Rosemary and Havok) def. Tasha Steelz and Savannah Evans

I'm surprised this was positioned so late in the show considering there wasn't anything out of the ordinary about it, but I assume that's because there was no Knockouts Championship match on this show and at least this was contested for a championship unlike Wilde vs. Dashwood. It was a perfectly fine matchup. Steelz and Evans just started teaming, but it would have been premature to take the titles off Decay at this point. I'm expecting The Inspiration (f.k.a. The IIconics) to debut before or at Bound for Glory to chase them.

Impact World Tag Team Champions The Good Brothers def. Rich Swann and Willie Mack

I know Swann and Mack have gone for the gold at least two or three times in recent months, but this just wasn't the right time for them to win. Maybe at Bound for Glory if the feud continues, though. I've gradually gotten less and less interested in The Good Brothers and their matches over the years, but at least they had two talented opponents in Swann and Mack here. This was enjoyable enough and got about as much time as it needed.

Impact X-Division Champion Josh Alexander def. Chris Sabin

This was one of the two matches I was looking forward to most on this show, along with the main event, of course. A lot of the X-Division bangers we've gotten this year have been fast-paced and featured a ton of high-flying action, but this was wrestled a bit differently yet still excellent. It was way more technical and both guys thrive with that. Sabin is indeed an X-Division legend and him putting over Alexander elevates Alexander that much more. This easily could have happened at Bound for Glory, but as we found out at the end of this show, Alexander will be a part of something even bigger at the event.

Impact World Champion Christian Cage def. Ace Austin

Considering the Impact World Championship hasn't changed hands at an event before Bound for Glory since 2009 (that's an actual stat I just looked up), I didn't think Austin had much of a chance here. That said, some of those nearfalls were really well done and made me think at least a time or two we were going to get a new champ. As expected, these two worked wonderfully together and produced a top-notch main event. Austin's selling of the Spear in particular was a thing of beauty. Following Christian's latest successful title defense, he was confronted by Alexander, who announced he was cashing in Option C at Bound for Glory. I had a feeling that'd be the case months ago when he ran into Kenny Omega backstage, but Christian is an awesome opponent for him as well. Either way, count me in for that one because it should be stellar and Alexander is the right guy to take the title from Christian.

Overall Show

IMPACT has consistently delivered with these monthly Impact Plus specials in 2021 and Victory Road was no exception. There was nothing remarkably memorable about the undercard and no new champions were crowned, but there were no bad matches and everything flowed nicely. The top two matches were what made this show and are worth checking out. IMPACT doesn't make headlines often nowadays (which is probably a positive thing for them after years of ruining goodwill with their audience), but their logical storytelling and quality wrestling make it a better product than most give it credit for. Bound for Glory has been one of IMPACT's better shows on the calendar for the last few years, so here's hoping that's once again the case with this upcoming installment.

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