IMPACT! Wrestling Review - May 12, 2020

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Hernandez def. Madman Fulton in an Impact World Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament Quarterfinal Match

IMPACT tried so long to get Fulton over as a monster, and just as I was starting to buy into them, they gave up and started booking him like an afterthought. I realize they're telling a story with oVe struggling without Sami Callihan leading them these days, but viewers have no reason to take them seriously at this point. The match being as flat as it was shouldn't be too surprising considering who was involved.

Kylie Rae def. Tasha Steelz

Steelz was also in action on Tuesday night on NWA Powerrr, where she won a three-way match. IMPACT later announced that she's been signed to a full-time deal, so apparently the NWA missed the ball there. I'm also familiar with her from Ring of Honor, so it's nice that she's finally found a home at IMPACT. That said, this was all about giving Rae another win and I thought they worked well together.

Kimber Lee def. Havok

I was never the biggest fan of Kimber Lee during her time in NXT as Abbey Laith, but she's a good pickup for IMPACT's growing Knockouts division if she has indeed been signed. Havok does nothing for me in the ring, but she's protected more often than not and thus Lee beating her means something. This was less of a match and more an angle designed to further the story with Havok and Neevah (whoever that's supposed to be).

Trey def. Rohit Raju in an Impact World Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament Quarterfinal Match

I'm sorry but I could not at all buy into the idea of Raju advancing in this number one contender's tourney despite the impressive promo he cut beforehand. He's been positioned as a loser for so long that it would have been a joke had he beat Trey. However, they made the most of the time they had and Raju looked competitive in defeat. There wasn't much suspense in the nearfalls, but I applaud their effort, nonetheless.

Moose def. Suicide

I actually really dig the idea of Moose parading around as the self-proclaimed TNA World Heavyweight Champion with the belt and all given the gimmick he's been doing in recent months. He's basically IMPACT's top champion by default because of how Tessa Blanchard is going to be gone for a while. He spent a majority of this match on offense and it was boring early on as a result, but the final few minutes were fun once Suicide started to fight back. The ref bump at the end was unnecessary, though. It would be cool if IMPACT brought in more faces from the past to "challenge" Moose, but I assume they'll be sticking to whoever's on hand (Suicide, Hernandez, etc).

Overall Show

For what it's worth, The North once again successfully "defended" their Impact World Tag Team Championship against two losers at the same training facility in Canada. It's a fine way to kill television time and better than some of the other stuff they're airing. For example, what the hell was going on with Cody Deaner? At any rate, the Impact World Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament got off to a solid start on this show and the other stuff was passable. The two hours weren't must-see by any means, but several stories progressed and the show didn't drag for me, so I can't complain.