IMPACT! Wrestling Review - August 12, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Tenille Dashwood def. Taylor Wilde

I think it was all but confirmed that it was Dashwood was responsible for Wilde's absence from IMPACT (in storyline) this summer, so I was surprised they didn't save this match for an upcoming live special. Well, the finish made it clear why that was the case. As expected, this was an enjoyable opener and Wilde can clearly still go in the ring. It was cool to see Madison Rayne return and it looks like Dashwood has finally found her tag team partner.

Impact X-Division Champion Josh Alexander def. Daivari (Non-Title)

Had Daivari won here, he would have earned himself a future opportunity at the Impact X-Division Championship. Although I never actually bought into the possibility of him winning, he looked great and had a well-wrestled match with Alexander. Daivari was also in action on Tuesday's episode of NWA Powerrr, so he's been making the rounds since leaving his position as a producer at WWE this past year. Alexander and Jake Something had a staredown afterward, setting the stage for their championship clash coming up at Emergece.

Su Yung and Kimber Lee Kidnapped Kiera Hogan

Just when you think we've seen the last of Hogan, she keeps popping up. Seriously, was this her last appearance on IMPACT! Wrestling or not? I thought she was done last week when Tasha Steelz turned on her, but she was back this year and got kidnapped by Yung and the transformed Lee. I don't care for the Yung and Lee stuff personally, so I guess this was one way of writing Hogan off the show permanently.

FinJuice def. NEVER Openweight Champion Jay White and Chris Bey by Disqualification

White will be facing David Finlay this weekend at New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Resurgence event, so this served as a nice preview of that. The four of them worked well together as expected and kept the pace consistent throughout. White and Bey aren't a regular team the way FinJuice are, so I was fine with the non-finish. FinJuice won by disqualification yet it was the heels who stood tall with their post-match attack.

John Skyler def. Matt Cardona

Skyler has popped up in a number of promotions over the years from NXT, AEW and Ring of Honor. I believe he was hurt for a few months and was only just recently cleared. I assumed this would be a fairly standard squash win for Cardona, so the outcome was definitely shocking. Hopefully Skyler will be used again (or even signed to a deal) so this isn't just a one-off. It was Rohit Raju that cost Cardona the win, so that's apparently Cardona's next feud. It wasn't what I had in mind, but it could be fun.

Brian Myers Won the Impact World Championship No. 1 Contender's Battle Royal

I like Battle Royals that further feuds and tell stories and this had plenty of both. It may not have been the best Battle Royal I've ever seen, but it was nicely executed and an Impact World Championship match at Emergence hanging in the balance made matters more interesting. W. Morrissey was eliminated early with everyone teaming up take him out, Sami Callihan and Ace Austin could be feuding soon, Chris Sabin and Moose went at it, and Steve Maclin played a role in Petey Williams' elimination. Even more shocking that Skyler beating Cardona earlier in the evening was Myers earning the next title shot. I know AEW's Christian Cage is going for the gold this Friday night on Rampage, and although I'm a fan of Myers, him being in the title picture (when someone such as Edwards or Trey Miguel could have easily occupied that spot) seems so random.

Overall Show

It's encouraging to see IMPACT maintain momentum coming off their newsworthy Slammiversary pay-per-view by bringing back familiar faces and bringing in new people, setting the stage for what should be an interesting road to Bound for Glory in October. The Battle Royal main event wasn't an all-timer by any means, but the end result is sure to get people talking, for better or for worse. The rest of the episode featured quality in-ring action and effective storyline progression ahead of Emergence next Friday.

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