Ric Flair's Last Match Review - July 31, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Pre-Show: Ren Narita def. Yuya Uemura

I'm familiar with Narita from the match he had Katsuyori Shibata at Wrestle Kingdom earlier this match, but I'm not as familiar with Uemura. This didn't last long at all, and on an hour-long pre-show, I don't think it would have hurt to give them a few more minutes. Since neither of them are big names, the crowd didn't really react to much of what they did, but I thought they made the most of their time and had and a well-wrestled match.

Pre-Show: Jay Lethal and Karen Jarrett Addressed Ric Flair

I haven't seen Karen Jarrett as an on-screen character in several years. Maybe since she, Jeff and GFW "invaded" IMPACT back in 2015? She was unbearable at one point, but as a one-off, she worked well in her role on this show. She definitely knows how to garner heat, I'll say that much. Meanwhile, I thought Lethal was terrific here. We need to see this side of him more often in AEW. Both he and Karen did a nice job o putting more heat on themselves ahead of the main event.

Pre-Show: Jacob Fatu Attacked Frank the Clown

I assume the opening match on the pre-show ran short or they simply mistimed things because this felt thrown out there and didn't serve any sort of purpose, especially since Fatu was already in action on the main card. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about seeing that goof Frank the Clown getting his ass kicked (including an assist from his girlfriend's father Mick Foley), but this was a waste of time.

Pre-Show: Mance Warner Won the Bunkhouse Battle Royale

This was certainly one way of getting a bunch of wrestlers on the card. Unfortunately, this was a pretty bad Battle Royal. It was an absolute mess on the whole, and while it was cool to see a few familiar faces, this screamed bush league and the GCW crap did nothing for me. The final stretch was fine and the crowd was happy when Warner won. The best thing about this is that was relegated to the pre-show.

The Motor City Machine Guns def. The Wolves

This was referred to as a rematch, and although the commentators probably mentioned it, I don't know when the original encounter would have been since The Wolves didn't arrive in IMPACT until January 2014 and The Motor City Machines weren't together at that point. Nonetheless, this was the enjoyable encounter you'd expect from these two talented teams. Not exactly a barn burner, but a fun opener. Eddie Edwards and Davey Richards are doing their own thing in IMPACT and MLW at the moment, but I'd love to see a reunion run from them somewhere soon.

Killer Kross def. Davey Boy Smith Jr.

It was interesting that this was touted as an MLW exclusive match as I don't believe Smith has made a single appearance in MLW since being released from WWE late last year. I know he spent time in the promotion prior to that and had success there, but he's mostly been a regular in the NWA as of late and I don't think the fact he's one-half of the NWA World Tag Team Champions was even mentioned. Nonetheless, this was a short-and-sweet hoss fight. The crowd didn't really seem to care, but then again, I don't blame them since it was too brief. It was a hard-hitting affair while it lasted, though.

Brian Pillman Jr. and Brock Anderson def. Ricky and Kerry Morton

Ricky and Kerry teaming up here representing Rock 'N' Roll Express (with Robert Gibson in their corner) against two second-generation talents in Pillman and Anderson representing The Four Horsemen was a treat. It was billed as a "legacy" match, but there wasn't a ton to it due to being on the shorter side. It was solid for what it was. Varsity Blonds are clearly dead in the water and Anderson's partner Lee Johnson is out injured, so I wouldn't be opposed to Pillman Jr. and Anderson teaming in AEW.

Rey Fenix def. Bandido, Laredo Kid and Black Taurus in a Four-Way Match

This was arguably the best match on the whole show. It was presented by AAA and the funny thing is that I don't follow AAA at all but I know all four guys from the time they've spent elsewhere. They're all outstanding athletes and thus it was no surprise that this was such a blast. They made the most of the time they had and this was when the crowd was at their hottest outside of the main event. Fenix is the biggest star of the four, so him winning was logical.

Impact World Champion Josh Alexander vs. Jacob Fatu Ended in a No Contest

I didn't know I wanted this match until I saw it announced. Kudos to IMPACT and MLW for making it happen. Obviously, I didn't think the title would actually change hands, but I really dug what we saw from them and am definitely down for a rematch. These two hosses can do some wild things at their size and are among the most underrated in all of wrestling today in my opinion. Matt Cardona and his crew being the ones to interrupt this was random, along with Diamond Dallas Page laying out Cardona with a Diamond Cutter, but the crowd sure didn't seem to mind.

The Briscoes def. The Von Erichs

If you haven't been paying attention to The Briscoes' work in MLW these last few years, you definitely should be. Ross and Marshall have turned into a terrific team, which should come as no surprise given their family legacy. This was the perfect clash of styles on paper and they ended up having a fun affair. They didn't have a chance to do anything special in the seven minutes they were allotted, but I enjoyed it for what it was.

Impact Knockouts World Champion Jordynne Grace def. Rachael Ellering and Deonna Purrazzo in a Three-Way Match

I felt bad for these three because, for whatever reason, this crowd showed them little love and didn't care about any of the action. That's a shame because this was well worked on the whole but suffered from a quiet crowd as well as Ellering getting hurt within moments of the match starting. She continued to compete after that, but it was clear Purrazzo and Grace weren't sure what to do at first. Ellering was weird addition to this match since she's no longer in IMPACT, but I thought they had a nice outing and deserved better.

Ric Flair and Andrade El Idolo def. Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal

The entire third hour was devoted to this match, the entrances, the aftermath and everything else. A lot of it felt dragged out, but considering this was what a majority of the people paid to see, I don't think there were many complaints. Lethal and Andrade thankfully carried a majority of the match, but the real star of this thing was Jarrett and his exceptional heel work. His entrance alone was proof of that. I don't want to see him have a full-fledged run anywhere, but this did serve as a reminder of how amazing of a heel he can be. Flair was Flair. He looked incredibly gassed at multiple points and it was sad to see, but I can't say I expected anything else. Despite that, the crowd was vey much behind him and treated him like the wrestling legend he is. The match itself was passable and that's all you can really ask for considering the circumstances. Fingers crossed Flair's career is truly over and he doesn't get the itch to wrestle again. Then again, I can easily see him breaking this retirement because of how well-received he was here.

Overall Show

I know this event was obviously all about Ric Flair's last match, but my top takeaway was the cool collection of talent that was featured from every major company. Kudos to Conrad Thompson on that because that's almost impossible to pull off nowadays, and as a result, it came off like All Out 2. I doubt that's what Jim Crockett Promotions would be if it were brought back, though, so I can't say I have much interest in seeing that happen. Nonetheless, this was an entertaining show on the whole. The undercard was slightly underwhelming because some matches didn't get the time I was hoping they would, but there were plenty of well-worked matches and the main event wasn't a complete disaster. All in all, this earns a thumbs-up from me.