TNA iMPACT! Review - February 20, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Colons and Elijah Interrupted TNA World Champion Joe Hendry's Encore Championship Concert

We just got a Hendry concert a few weeks ago, so I wasn't particularly clamoring for another one so soon. Thus, I'm glad they switched things up by having a few other people show up. Yes, The Colons and Elijah (f.k.a. WWE's Elias) showing up was random, but the crowd ate it up. It also set up the night's tag team match with Hendry and Elijah teaming up to take on The Colons.

The Rascalz def. Tyriek Igwe and Tyson Dupont

I was surprised that this was as brief of a bout as it was. I'm not necessarily complaining since Igwe and Dupont aren't on The Rascalz's level, but you'd think they would've been made to look a bit more credible in defeat. Nonetheless, it was a nice match for what it was ahead of the now-official six-man tag team match also involving Ace Austin and Wes Lee at Sacrifice.

Frist Class Hosted the First Class Penthouse

A.J. Francis is a talented talker and does a great job of generating heat, but this lasted a little longer than it needed to, especially once he started introducing everyone on stage with him (were viewers supposed to be impressed that Mick Foley's daughter and her boyfriend were there?!). That said, I did like his AJ Styles tease toward the end, and it does make me wonder if Styles will eventually return to TNA for a one-off against Francis. We can only hope.

Lei Ying Lee def. Rosemary

I feel like Lei's IMPACT! appearances haven't been consistent enough for fans to really invest in her or her push to stick, but racking up wins and beating established names such as Rosemary will only help her cause. Much like the tag team match earlier, this was too short to be anything out of the ordinary, but it was decent while it lasted. Rosemary's post-match attack seemed to indicate these two will be feuding going forward, which I'm in favor of.

Eric Young Addressed Steve Maclin

With Alexander now gone from TNA, Young shifting his focus toward Steve Maclin is logical. They were tag team partners before Young turned heel and became the new leader of The Northern Armory, so this will be a good use of both guys for the time being. This was a solid promo from Young addressing Maclin and presumably building up a bout between them for Sacrifice.

JDC def. Leon Slater in a No Disqualification Match

Slater lost to JDC on the Final Resolution pre-show back in December, so I was hoping he'd avenge that loss here. Unfortunately, that didn't happen (what does JDC gain from being built up at this point?), but at least they had a fun No Disqualification match. The crowd popped huge for The Hardys and Oba Femi making the save for Slater afterward. It will be The Hardys and Femi vs. Moose, Eddie Edwards and Brian Myers on next week's episode. It's about time a significant star of Femi's caliber popped up on iMPACT!.

Santino Marella and TNA Knockouts World Champion Masha Slamovich Interrupted Tessa Blanchard; Slamovich def. Mila Moore (Non-Title)

Blanchard was advertised as being in action on this episode, but she once again refused, leading to Marella telling her that she'll wrestle next week or she'll be fired. The chants from the crowd were hilarious and the camera actually acknowledged them. Blanchard again received strong heat here, so I'm looking forward to her challenging Slamovich for the TNA Knockouts World Championship down the road. Speaking of Slamovich, her squash was short and sweet exactly as it should have been. Cora Jade attacked her afterward and it's now confirmed they'll face off at Sacrifice for the Knockouts title.

Elijah and TNA World Champion Joe Hendry def. The Colons

Ryan Nemeth briefly appeared on the stage beforehand to "announce" that Nic Nemeth will be back at Sacrifice. Not a single soul cared, so I didn't bother devoting an entire paragraph to his promo. At any rate, while this hardly felt like it was worthy of the main event spot given who was involved, the crowd certainly treated it like one by being behind Hendry and Elias throughout. Elias picking up the pinfall win for his team was interesting as it might mean he'll be sticking around in TNA, potentially to challenge Hendry for the TNA World Championship soon (maybe that's the Sacrifice match?).

Overall Show

It was surreal to see iMPACT! emanating live from Full Sail University, a show that featured stars from WWE NXT, no less. Imagine telling someone that two years ago. You would've been called crazy. The live episodes are always more enjoyable because of the crowds and you never know what might happen. It made for a fun night that also built toward Sacrifice next month. Not everything was a home run, but the two hours were entertaining on the whole.

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