TNA iMPACT! Review - February 29, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

​Steve Maclin def. "Speedball" Mike Bailey

Bailey and Trent Seven (or Speedball Mountain as they're called collectively) have been feuding with The Rascalz and Maclin for the last two months, so this was part of that program. These two worked really well together and produced a fun opener. Maclin needed the win if he's going to be facing Nic Nemeth at Sacrifice. Nemeth wasn't available for this taping since he was in Japan at the time, but I liked the post-match promo he cut on the big screen.

Jake Something def. Laredo Kid

I'm not sure what purpose this was supposed to serve other than to give either guy a momentum boost since there was no established issue between them. The babyface vs. babyface dynamic didn't help, but they had a nice little match. I'm glad Something is back to racking up wins and being given more promo time in backstage segments, but he needs to do more to connect with the audience from a character standpoint.

Joe Hendry and Rich Swann def. Deaner and A.J. Francis

This marked Francis' TNA in-ring debut. Putting him in a tag team match off the bat was probably the right call so his weaknesses could be better hidden. He's gotten great heat so far in TNA, but in the ring is where he really lacks. This was a perfectly acceptable outing with the babyfaces going over, and with Hendry pinning Deaner, Hendry can still give Francis his comeuppance at Sacrifice or whenever they decide to do the match.

Kushida and Kevin Knight Saved Chris Sabin From TNA X-Division Champion Mustafa Ali and The Good Hands

This was Ali's "inauguration ceremony" as TNA X-Division Champion. I'm loving this new character he's got going and it looks like he's having a blast with it. The guy's always been really talented, but with the right booking and presentation, he can be a star and he's obviously off to a strong start in TNA. This was solid stuff with Ali addressing the audience in his first TNA in-person promo, exchanging words with Sabin and setting up the six-man tag team match for Sacrifice.

Xia Brookside vs. Tasha Steelz in a TNA Knockouts World Championship No. 1 Contender's Match Ended in a Double Count-Out

There was nothing special about their first two encounters, though this was a bit better with it feeling like they put forth more of an effort to show what they could do. It didn't last too long before the double count-out finish, and although that was lame, it did lead to Jordynne Grace coming out and saying she'll defend against both of them in a three-way at Sacrifice. Needless to say, Grace's title won't at all be in jeopardy, but that should be good.

The System (TNA World Champion Moose, Brian Myers and Eddie Edwards) def. Eric Young and TNA World Tag Team Champions ABC

The commentators acknowledged that Moose and Young have apparently never gone one-on-one before, which I found hard to believe, but then again, Moose joined TNA months after Young left in 2016. I guess they haven't crossed paths at all since Young first returned in 2020. This was a preview of their Sacrifice main event for the TNA World Championship and I assume Myers pinning Chris Bey here will be enough to earn him and Edwards a shot at the TNA World Tag Team Championship. This was an entertaining six-man tag team match to build toward both bouts.

Overall Show

I didn't realize how quick the turnaround was between No Surrender and Sacrifice, which is next Friday. Despite that, they've already announced a nearly-complete card and all of the matches make sense. I'm relieved that doesn't seem to be changing even with Scott D'Amore gone, but who knows if there's been any more uncertainty behind the scenes. This was a simple thumbs-up show with plenty of Sacrifice hype and some enjoyable action, specifically in the opener and the main event.

SEE MORE: TNA Reviews