IMPACT! Wrestling Review - July 22, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Chris Bey def. Rohit Raju

Bey was basically the babyface here, but I wouldn't call it a face turn considering what happened with him and the other X-Division babyfaces a week or two ago. He's probably more of a tweener than anything, especially after what happened later on in the show. As for Raju, he's been a shining star in the X-Division over the last year and the two of them had an enjoyable opener. Bey winning was the right outcome.

Impact Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo Agreed to Appear at NWA Empowerrr

Mickie James originally invited Purrazzo to appear at Empowerrr at Slammiversary, but Purrazzo declined. Purrazzo claimed here that the pay-per-view needed her on it before Gail Kim emerged and convinced her to agree to be a part of it. I don't know if she'll face James, or Kim if she comes out of retirement for one night, but she's a great get given the roll she's been on for the last year. This was a strong segment with very good mic work from all three women.

Matt Cardona, Jake Something and Chelsea Green def. Brian Myers, Sam Beale and Tenille Dashwood

I wasn't sure if Green's return to IMPACT at Slammiversary was intended to be a one-off or not, but I'm happy that it appears she'll be sticking around. This was basically a rematch from the pay-per-view with Something and Beale thrown in there as well. It was light-hearted fun and Green pinning Beale was a nice way of ensuring Dashwood didn't ensure a second straight pinfall loss to her. This also served as a preview of what to expect in the Homecoming King and Queen tournament (or whatever it's going to be called) IMPACT is doing going into their next live special.​

Eddie Edwards and W. Morrissey Brawled in the Parking Lot Brawl

We don't see parking lot brawls often in IMPACT (or even other promotions for that matter) nowadays, so I thought this was a refreshing change of pace. It was well executed and it also confirmed what I figured coming out of Slammiversary that the bad blood between Edwards and Morrissey isn't over yet considering because Morrissey cheated to beat him. Having some fans there for the brawl was a smart call as it added to the atmosphere. It didn't overstay its welcome and effectively furthered the feud between the two of them.

The Elite Interrupted NEVER Openweight Champion Jay White Before Chris Bey Saved White From Impact World Tag Team Champions The Good Brothers

Getting a star of White's caliber on IMPACT TV, assuming he'll be a regular for the next few months, is huge for IMPACT. He may not be Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi or Kota Ibushi, but he's the next best thing considering all the success he's had in New Japan Pro-Wrestling over the years. Plus, it's a natural story to tell given his and Omega's ties to the Bullet Club name. This was a very well-executed segment that planted the seeds for Omega vs. White down the road and also built to White and Bey against The Good Brothers next week.

FinJuice def. Ace Austin and Madman Fulton

FinJuice returned to IMPACT action with a win over Fulton and Shera at Slammiversary and they followed that up here with another win, this time over Fulton and his normal partner Ace Austin. It was a fairly standard affair yet enjoyable while it lasted. FinJuice maintaining momentum makes sense, especially if they're going to be involved in the White and Elite stuff at some point, but I'm curious what's next for Austin. He hasn't any big wins in a while and I assume he'll be done in the X-Division Championship picture for the foreseeable future.

Impact Knockouts Tag Team Champions Decay (Rosemary and Havok) def. Fire 'N Flava

Given all the star power and notable developments on this show, I was surprised this was put in the main event slot (you'd think the White and Elite segment would have gone on last instead). That said, it was cool for the women's tag team division to get the spotlight for a change and they had another quality contest. It's also logical given Kiera Hogan has since announced on social media that she's done with the promotion. I was shocked to read that because she's been a shining star in that division for a few years now, but hopefully she ends up on an even bigger platform.

Overall Show

IMPACT needed a hot follow-up show coming off their buzzworthy Slammiversary pay-per-view and this was exactly that. White appeared, spoke and set up a match for next week, Green was in action, FinJuice returned with another win, Hogan had her sendoff in the main event (unless there will be more to come from her during this set of tapings), James and Purrazzo hyped NWA Empowerrr, and Edwards and Morrissey continued their feud. Top-notch stuff from IMPACT this week and it's been nice seeing the product get the attention and praise it has long deserved.

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