IMPACT! Wrestling Review - July 26, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Eddie Edwards Attacked Impact World Champion Austin Aries

I was looking forward to Aries gloating about his surprise successful retention of his Impact World Championship in the main event of Slammiversary and sure enough this promo did not disappoint. Aries is in his element as a heel and he did an excellent job of giving props to his opponent Moose while also putting himself over. Edwards emerging as Aries' next challenger is interesting if only because Edwards has been positioned as a tweneer (if not a full-fledged heel) lately, so I don't know what the reaction will be when he eventually faces Aries.

Taiji Ishimori def. Petey Williams

The stars of the X-Division going out there and having a great match was the perfect way to kick off the night. Even though there wasn't much of a story told between the two, the action was entertaining and I was glad they were given an ample amount of time. Afterward, they were attacked by the Desi Hit Squad, so look for that to turn into a tag team matchup sometime soon.

Tessa Blanchard def. Rebel

I absolutely love Blanchard's aggression and how intense she gets once she starts to fall behind. She truly is a star and IMPACT is lucky to have her locked down to a long-term contract. As for this match, it was exactly what it needed to be with Blanchard winning quickly and in decisive fashion. In fact, it could have been even shorter because I had no desire to see Rebel in the ring. Why does IMPACT continue to bring her back when it's well-established that she's awful?

Scarlett Bordeaux Debuted

Am I the only one who immediately thought of Taryn Terrell when Bordeaux showed wearing the lingerie that she was? It seems like the exact same gimmick that Terrell had at one point, but we'll see how she fares in the role. She definitely has a presence about her, but her promo her didn't blow me away by any means. It just felt one-dimensional. Better yet, the jury is still out on her in-ring abilities. If she was given this gimmick because she can't wrestle whatsoever, she may not last long.

Johnny Impact def. Trevor Lee

Lee is insanely talented, but I think that tends to get overlooked because he hasn't had a solid sense of direction in months. Thankfully, he had a chance to shine against Impact, and although this was all about Impact and reintroducing him with a win, I was happy Lee had as impressive of an outing as he did in defeat. Additionally, Impact calling out Kongo Kong during his post-match promo was logical considering Kong was the one who put him on the shelf (in storyline) in the first place.

Impact X-Division Champion Brian Cage def. Matt Sydal

I guess Sydal invoking his rematch clause so soon must mean that Cage is already moving on to new challengers, fueling my belief that he will be choosing Option C for the Impact World title (likely at Destination X) in the near future. I thought their Slammiversay match was better than this, but it was a very good main event, nonetheless. They have fun chemistry together and I enjoyed their encounter on the whole, but they could have benefited from having a few more minutes to work with.

Overall Show

This post-pay-per-view edition of IMPACT! Wrestling featured just the right mix of fallout from Slammiversary, follow-up on certain feuds, the beginning of new ones, and the debut of a fresh face. Plus, it was cool to see the Impact X-Division title showcased for a change in the main event slot. Bound for Glory has already been announced for New York City in mid-October, so the road starts here and I'm excited to find out what the company has in store for fans for their biggest pay-per-view of the year. If Slammiversary was any indication, they'll aim to deliver an even better show, which is saying something.