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Following an excellent IMPACT Plus special, IMPACT Wrestling Genesis, we head right into the go-home show before Hard to Kill on January 16th. Kenny Omega's friends, and IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Champions The Good Brothers helped the AEW World Champion annihilate Jon Moxley on Dynamite last week. Not only that, but The Young Bucks have joined forces with them.
At Hard to Kill, Omega and The Good Brothers will face off against IMPACT Wrestling World Champion Rich Swann and The Motor City Machine Guns. What will The Super Elite have to say tonight? Will Swann, Chris Sabin, and Alex Shelley get their hands on their opponents before Saturday?
We kicked things off with a high-profile Knockouts match. Former IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie faced off against Kimber Lee, current champion Deonna Purrazzo's right hand.
Taya Valkyrie w/Rosemary vs Kimber Lee w/Deonna Purrazzo on IMPACT Wrestling
Kimber Lee rushed Taya Valkyrie before her music finished playing, and looked to send a message to La Wera Loca. Clotheslines, punches, and chops battered the longest-reigning Knockouts Champion in IMPACT Wrestling history, but she turned things around with a double leg takedown.
Sending Lee into the corner, Valkyrie lit up her opponent with some stiff chops to the chest. Lee slid to the floor to avoid more punishment, and caught a diving Valkyrie with a roundhouse to the head. In the ring, she mounted Valkyrie, pelting her with punches.
Taya Valkyrie escaped a modified double shoulder lock, but ran right into a yakuza kick from Lee. The Crown Jewel planted Valyrie with a sidewalk slam, but the Swanton Bomb was blocked by Valkyrie's knees. Valkyrie made it to her feet as Deonna Purrazzo pleaded for Lee to get up. Valkyrie laid her out with a series of clotheslines before hitting a spear for a two-count.
Kimber Lee took advantage of a distraction from the IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Champion, planting Valkyrie with a German suplex. The second one was blocked, and a short-arm clothesline nearly decapitated Lee. The running double knees in the corner crushed Lee's head into the bottom turnbuckle, but Purrazzo put her arm on the bottom rope to stop the pin.
Rosemary chased Purrazzo up the ramp, but stopped when Susan appeared. Susan apparently joined forces with Purrazzo, and the duo beat down The Demon Assassin. The distraction left Valkyrie vulnerable for the Alligator Clutch.
Results: Kimber Lee defeated Taya Valkyrie via pinfall on IMPACT Wrestling.
Grade: B+
On Kenny Omega's private tour bus, The Super Elite and Don Callis were talking shop for Hard To Kill.
Callis said that we needed to see the "Real Machine Gun" when Karl Anderson faced Rich Swann tonight.
IMPACT Wrestling saw another paid advertisement from Tony Khan and Tony Schiavone. Khan said that the best moments of 2020 for IMPACT Wrestling involved his money and the AEW World Championship, before stating that IMPACT isn't even a real wrestling show. At least, not compared to AEW.
They plugged AEW Dynamite, specifically that former IMPACT World Champion Brian Cage would be challenging for the TNT Championship, his "greatest moment in his career." Khan laid out an invitation for anyone from IMPACT to show up on a "real" network.
Sami Callihan and Eddie Edwards will go to war at IMPACT Wrestling Hard To Kill in Barbed Wire Massacre. Callihan managed to lure Edwards into a trap last week, with Alisha Edwards trapped in a cage.
The Draw and Ken Shamrock laid out Edwards by trying him to the cage with barbed wire and hitting him with a bat. What will happen when these two violent enemies finally put an end to their feud this Saturday?
Our next match saw Chris Bey and Rohit Raju attempting to reveal to the world that TJP and Manik were the same person. Their plan? Challenge TJP to a tag match with Manik as his partner. Except...TJP wasn't Manik's partner, Suicide was.
Chris Bey and Rohit Raju vs Manik and Suicide on IMPACT Wrestling
Chris Bey and Rohit Raju rushed the masked men before the bell rang. Manik and Suicide's unorthodox offense was tough for them to keep up with, though. Bey and Raju fell to the floor, but managed to pick the ankles of Manik and Suicide.
Bey and Rohit lost their opponents when they went under the ring, and were caught off-guard by two dropkicks. A pair of slingshot crossbody splashes took them out.
Back in the ring, Manik hit his spiderman pose in the ropes, but was held by Raju, allowing Chris Bey to hit him with a dropkick. As Bey continued to focus on Manik, Raju worked over Suicide. Bey and tagged in and out, battering the former IMPACT Wrestling X-Division Champion.
Manik made it back to his corner, but Raju prevented him from tagging in, hitting a swinging fisherman's neckbreaker. Suicide blocked a suplex, and as Rohit tagged out, so did Suicide. Manik hoofed Bey into the corner and followed up with a double knee strike. The Detonation Kick laid out Bey as Raju was sent to the floor.
Suicide rushed back in, launching Bey into the corner with a shotgun dropkick. A modified Octopus stretch left Bey in danger in the middle of the ring. Raju tried to break it, but an abdominal stretch from Manik made it quite difficult. He managed to pull Bey out of the hold after struggling for quite some time.
All four men traded stiff shots, leaving Manik and Rohit Raju in the ring. A jumping knee from Rohit nearly knocked out the IMPACT Wrestling X-Division Champion. As he tried to unmask Manik, Suicide made the save. However, he was then caught by The Art of Finesse, giving Chris Bey another big win.
Results: Chris Bey defeated Suicide via pinfall on IMPACT Wrestling.
Grade: B
Taya Valkyrie assured Rosemary that she'd be there for her match against Tenille Dashwood tonight.
The former IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Champion wouldn't have any of it, as Rosemary knew that Valkyrie needed to prepare for her title match on Saturday. She promised that she'd come up with something, leaving Valkyrie worried.
Cody Deaner w/Eric Young and Joe Doering vs Tommy Dreamer w/Rhino and Cousin Jake on IMPACT Wrestling
IMPACT Wrestling has been plagued by the psychotic Eric Young since he returned in the summer of 2020. Now, Cody Deaner has fallen in line with the World Class Maniac. Joe Doering and Rhino both tripped up the competitors, leading to them getting ejected, leaving Jake and Young at ringside.
Cody Deaner completely demolished Tommy Dreamer early on, with his new attitude and aggression just a bit too much for the Hardcore Icon. Dreamer's patented offense, Dusty Rhodes style, was cut off by Deaner. However, a diving fist drop was countered with Deaner getting rocked with a boot to the face.
Deaner fell to the floor where Cousin Jake tried to talk some sense into him. When Deaner repeatedly slapped him, Jake had enough. After laying out Deaner, the ref called the match in favor of Deaner.
Results: Cody Deaner defeated Tommy Dreamer DQ on IMPACT Wrestling.
Grade: C-
Following the match, Rhino and Joe Doering made it back to the ring, with Eric Young's clique emerging victorious.
At IMPACT Wrestling Hard to Kill, we'll crown new Knockouts Tag Team Champions. In an incredible tournament, Kiera Hogan and Tasha Steelz made their way to the finals, as did Havok and Nevaeh.
IMPACT showed us a great hype package for the match. Who will leave Hard to Kill with the gold?
IMPACT Wrestling Co-VP Scott D'Amore brought the four finalists into a meeting to have them sign their contracts for Hard to Kill. Tasha Steelz and Kiera Hogan stated that they've beaten everyone already, and they'll do the same this Saturday. Havok and Nevaeh choked them out, warning them about what's going to happen at Hard to Kill.
IMPACT Wrestling's "Most Professional Wrestler" wanted to know what he could do for more opportunities in this company. He went over his victories since coming back, including Josh Alexander. The Walking Weapon came in to state that he'd never actually be able to beat him one-on-one. Looks like we're going to get this rematch soon.
Tenille Dashwood w/Kaleb with a K vs Rosemary on IMPACT Wrestling
Tenille Dashwood was immediately terrified and overpowered by The Demon Assassin. Rosemary tossed her around the ring, leaving Kaleb with a K worrying at ringside. He tripped up Rosemary as the ref's back was turned, and blinded her with some hair spray.
Dashwood followed up with a big boot for a two-count. A drop toe hold put Rosemary in the ropes where Dashwood hit a hangman's neckbreaker. Again, Rosemary kicked out at two.
A Taste of Tenille crushed Rosemary in the corner, and she locked in a double underhook. Rosemary broke away, bouncing off the ropes where they both hit clotheslines on one another.
Rosemary and Dashwood traded shots, with The Hive Queen getting the better of the Instagram Model. The Upside Down was locked in, and after breaking the hold, Rosemary dragged Dashwood to the middle of the ring. A poke to the eyes, however, blinded Rosemary again, allowing Dashwood to hit the double underhook suplex for another two-count.
The Spotlight Kick was missed, and a clothesline nearly took Dashwood's head off. Rosemary set up for a spear, only for Kaleb with a K to distract her again. This time, though, Crazzy Steve appeared to attack Kaleb.
As they ran through the ring, Kaleb tossed Dashwood the hair spray. Rosemary was too smart for that trick, though, turning it on Dashwood and cutting her in half with the Spear.
Results: Rosemary defeated Tenille Dashwood via pinfall on IMPACT Wrestling.
Grade: B
IMPACT Wrestling World Champion Rich Swann was excited about his match with Karl Anderson tonight. Kenny Omega, Doc Gallows, and The Motor City Machine Guns were banned from ringside, meaning Swann and Anderson had to pull out a win tonight on their own merits.
Swann promised that they would eat defeat tonight and at IMPACT Wrestling Hard To Kill.
Moose vs Matthew Palmer on IMPACT Wrestling
Matthew Palmer stunned Mr. IMPACT Wrestling with a series of running dropkicks, but Moose quickly shook those shots off. The self-proclaimed TNA Champion took Palmer off his feet with one shot.
Moose launched Palmer across the ring with ease. After being embarrassed by Palmer last week, Moose decided to take his time getting his revenge. Heavy punches, boots, and slams. Palmer couldn't avoid any of them, but after several minutes was able to shock Moose with a double throat chop. A leaping knee strike dazed Moose.
We seemed on the verge of a huge upset on IMPACT Wrestling, as Palmer rocked Moose with two diving knee strikes. A running attack was blocked, though, and Moose spiked him with two uranage slams.
Looking to send a message, Moose mounted Palmer and reigned down punches and elbows until the referee stopped it.
Results: Moose defeated Matthew Palmer via pinfall on IMPACT Wrestling.
Grade: C+
At IMPACT Wrestling Genesis, Moose beat Willie Mack within inches of his life. Moose crushed the former X-Division Champion, but voluntarily quit when Rich Swann promised him a shot at the IMPACT Wrestling World Title if he'd leave Mack alone.
As if Rich Swann's dance card isn't full enough, he's got one of the most dangerous men in professional wrestling on the hunt.
Karl Anderson vs Rich Swann on IMPACT Wrestling
The IMPACT Wrestling World Champion looked to head into Saturday with a huge wave of momentum. If Rich Swann could beat Karl Anderson, that would seriously damage The Super Elite's confidence.
Swann brought Anderson to the mat with a quick arm drag, holding him in place and working over the arm. Anderson made it back to his feet, sending Swann into the corner and picking up the pace.
Driving his elbow into the shoulder, bouncing Swann's face off the turnbuckle, kicking him square in the jaw. Anderson may not have been able to outwrestle Swann, but he could out brawl him. Anderson sent Rich Swann crashing into the ring post and to the floor as IMPACT Wrestling hit their final commercial break of the night.
Anderson focused on the newly injured shoulder of the IMPACT Wrestling World Champion, attempting to wrench it out of the socket. After several minutes, Swann was able to break away from Anderson's grip, leading to the two men trading shots in the middle of the ring.
A big clothesline took out the Machine Gun, and Swann battered the IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Champion with a quick combination followed by a swinging neckbreaker. A step-up kick to the jaw rocked Anderson.
It looked like Anderson was going to pin IMPACT's top star after a hellacious flying boot. However, Rich Swann was able to roll up Anderson for a quick and surprising pinfall.
Results: Rich Swann defeated Karl Anerson via pinfall on IMPACT Wrestling.
Grade: B+
The Motor City Machine Guns were celebrating Swann's win when they were blindsided by Doc Gallows and Kenny Omega. Swann and Anderson joined in, ending the show with an all-out war.
