IMPACT! Wrestling Review - July 1, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Satoshi Kojima and Jake Something def. Brian Myers and Sam Beale

Kojima and Eddie Edwards were scheduled to go one-on-one here, but because of the comment Edwards made about W. Morrissey on last week's show, Morrissey took him out in the parking lot beforehand. That led to Myers and Beale trying to pick a fight with Kojima and Something making the save. What we got was a pretty standard tag team affair, but it was enjoyable while it lasted. It also effectively furthered the feud between Something and Myers.​

Rachael Ellering def. Tenille Dashwood

Dashwood has defeated Ellering before, but this was Ellering's chance at redemption. They had another quality contest despite it not being the smoothest encounter at certain points. Ellering still needs work but has plenty of potential. Ellering was not only able to avenge her loss to Dashwood but also get back on the same page with Jordynne Grace afterward. I was sure Grace was going to turn on Ellering and Jazz here, but no such luck. Maybe we'll get Dashwood and Kaleb with a K against Ellering and Grace in tag team action before the turn happens.

Rich Swann and Willie Mack vs. TJP and Fallah Bahah Ended in a No Contest

Both of these teams are looking to enter Impact World Tag Team Championship contention. I like both tandems, so I was looking forward to seeing what they could come up with here and how much fun they could have. Unfortunately, it was cut short by Violent By Design, but obviously that was done on purpose to pave the way for a three-way tag team match at Slammiversary for the tag titles. Hopefully we'll still get Swann and Mack vs. TJP and Bahh at some point.

Chris Bey def. Petey Williams

Both of these guys are great. Therefore, it was no surprise that this was a great match from them. They'll both be involved in the Ultimate X matchup for the Impact X-Division Championship at Slammiverary, so this was all about building momentum. They worked an energetic pace and constantly kept thing moving. Bey had more to gain from the win, so it was the right result. Post-match, the new heel faction led by Ace Austin and Rohit Raju attempted to recruit Bey, but he ultimately sided with Williams, Trey Miguel and Josh Alexander. I don't know if he'll be a face going forward, but I'm sure an eight-man tag team match is coming.

Maclin def. Manny Smith

I was more impressed by Maclin here than I was during his debut a few weeks ago. He came off as intense, his offense was hard-hitting, and he wasted no time in putting Smith away. Needless to say, this is the most motivated I've ever seen him and it's cool IMPACT is giving him a chance WWE never really did. If he can talk and he's interesting as a character, then there might be something there.

AEW World Champion and Impact World Champion Kenny Omega and The Good Brothers def. Chris Sabin, Sami Callihan and Moose

I honestly didn't think Omega would be competing for IMPACT as much as he has when he first started appearing for them, so that's been refreshing. It's not like he's only wrestled on the live specials and pay-per-views. Despite the level of talent involved, this wasn't too exciting of an encounter due to it being short on time. You also had to know Moose was going to turn on his partners like he has before and that's exactly what happened. It made sense with Moose and Sabin facing each other at Slammiversary, but it's not like the in-ring action was exceptional enough to make up for the predictable outcome.

Overall Show

Omega wrestling in the main event made this a slightly more noteworthy edition of IMPACT! Wrestling than usual, but I actually enjoyed the episode for what else it had to offer. The Slammiversary build continues to be strong, the authority figure drama has taken a backseat, and people are picking up necessary victories. You aren't missing much if you don't check it out, but it was another easy and efficient watch. The consistently solid storytelling has been the best part of the program lately for me.

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