5 Best moments from IMPACT Wrestling (June 8th, 2023)
As IMPACT Wrestling finished up everything for Against All Odds this weekend, they gave fans some strong in-ring action free of charge. A preview of the 8-4-1 match in the main event as four former world champions squared off in a tag team match.
The IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Tag Team Titles were on the line as The Coven defended against the team that beat them at Under Siege, the new Death Dollz. There was impressive action between Chris Bey and Jason Hotch ahead of the tag title bout at Against All Odds and a very strong performance from Bhupinder Gujjar against X-Division Champion Trey Miguel.
But what moments made the top five this week? We're starting with a fan favorite, the Digital Media Champion Joe Hendry!
#5. Joe Hendry mocks the "Divas Reject" after a strong non-title victory
.@SheldonJean_ may have broke @joehendry's nose AGAIN with that Pump Kick!
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/r6AdUkFTYt
The Prestigious One continues to gain support from the IMPACT faithful week in and week out. With a 10-match win streak in singles competition, Hendry walked into a bout with one of the promotion's latest and more impressive young talents, Sheldon Jean.
The IMPACT Wrestling Digital Media Champion already faced Jean before and suffered a broken nose for his trouble. This week, Jean nearly recreated that injury with a nasty pump kick after Kenny King distracted Hendry.
.@SheldonJean_ is in trouble! @joehendry
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/TGki25YEwR
Hendry would eventually recover, overpowering Jean and finishing him with the Standing Ovation. As good as a performance as that was, it paled in comparison to Hendry's special music video he made for his Against All Odds challenger, Dirty Dango.
.@joehendry knows exactly why @DirtyDangoCurty has been so "cranky" lately!
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/aUCv6skm0t
Hendry went after the former WWE star's run, claiming everything went downhill after his debut win over Chris Jericho at WrestleMania. He mocked Dango's time as part of the Fashion Police before bringing up Total Divas, where he claimed Dango failed to "get laid."
The crowd, and Joe Hendry, all got a laugh out of it, unfortunately for the champ, that gave Kenny King, Sheldon Jean, and Dirty Dango time for a sneak attack. Luckily for him, Santino Marella was there to make the save.
.@milanmiracle and THE COBRA made the save on #IMPACTonAXSTV! https://t.co/BhHZAIio98
Not only did Marella put a stop to it all, but he broke out the Cobra!
#4. The IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Tag Champions beat The Rush
DEATH DOLLZ! ☠️
@WeAreRosemary @FearHavok
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/upVzQKQ7mp
Despite Rosemary being seemingly exorcised from her body, Courtney Rush is still rocking out with Jessicka as the Death Dollz, and they have their eyes on the prize. The IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Tag Team Titles, to be precise.
On this night, the duo aimed to win back the gold from The Coven. Taylor Wilde and KyLinn King have been incredibly dominant in tag team competition. That is until Under Siege two weeks prior, when they lost to the Death Dollz in a non-title match by submission.
What a RUSH!
@WeAreRosemary
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/DtLnC2UOFe
Jessicka started the bout off strong early, but the underhanded antics of the champions left her in a bad way. After countering Wilde's Witch's Wrath with a wicked clothesline, Jessicka finally got to Courtney Rush.
The former Rosemary brought the fight to KyLinn King and Wilde, and it seemed as if we'd have new IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Tag Team Champions. Once a Sharpshooter was locked in, Wilde began to tap.
The Coven are STILL Knockouts World Tag Team Champions.
@KiLynnKing @RealTaylorWilde
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/EaNFlAjYHg
Unfortunately, the referee missed it as he was distracted by KyLinn and Jessicka brawling on the floor. Rush went to check on her partner only to be blindsided by a shot from KyLinn, allowing the Coven to hit her with their spine-buster/big boot combination for the win.
Can anyone dethrone The Coven?
#3. The Bullet Club laid out ahead of title defense
We're kicking off #IMPACTonAXSTV with ABC!
@DashingChrisBey @The_Ace_Austin https://t.co/gJSZGE2PkJ
Speaking of tag team dominance, The Bullet Club's ABC has been on a roll since their excursion to NJPW back in 2022 for the Super Junior Tag League, where they came up just shy of winning the whole thing.
Ever since then, Chris Bey and Ace Austin have proven themselves to be the top tag team in IMPACT Wrestling as well as one of the best teams on the planet. On March 3rd, they defeated the Motor City Machine Guns for the IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Titles and haven't looked back.
.@DashingChrisBey is feeling it!
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/nIc8cMZpyn
At Against All Odds, they'll face their challengers, The Good Hands, for the gold. Before that, though, the Ultimate Finesser Chris Bey faced Jason Hotch in singles action.
Accompanied by John Skyler and Brian Myers, Hotch looked to prove himself against one of IMPACT Wrestling's best and brightest and took the fight to Bey in a great opening contest.
.@TheJasonHotch catches @DashingChrisBey mid-air and DROPS him with a Blue Thunder Bomb!
#IMPACTonAXSTV https://t.co/3gXpP3ws1p
Hotch managed to stop the Art of Finesse twice, catching Bey out of mid-air the second time for a brutal Blue Thunder Bomb. In the end, Bey managed to catch Hotch in a series of pin attempts, countering a cradle and securing the win.
.@DashingChrisBey may have won the battle, but The Good Hands won the war by leaving ABC laying on #IMPACTonAXSTV!
@Myers_Wrestling @TheJasonHotch @TheJohnSkyler https://t.co/MLxsoOYUhj
After the match, though, Myers and the Good Hands laid out the IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Champions. After mauling Ace Austin, the challengers planted Chris Bey with The Favor before holding the belts over their heads. Will we see new champions at Against All Odds?
#2. Nick Aldis suffers first loss since his IMPACT Wrestling return
We're getting an 8-4-1 match preview RIGHT NOW in our #IMPACTonAXSTV MAIN EVENT!
@RealNickAldis @TheMooseNation https://t.co/nuedx2z3iV
In the main event, Nick Aldis teamed up with Jonathan Gresham to take on Rich Swann and Moose. Aldis and Gresham will team with Heath and Bully Ray to take on Moose, Swann, Speedball Mike Bailey, and PCO in an 8-4-1 match at Against All Odds.
The winners of that 8-man tag will then face each other in a four-way bout to determine the new #1 contender for the IMPACT Wrestling World Championship. Steve Maclin will also defend that gold at the event against Alex Shelley, with that victor facing the 8-4-1 winner at Slammiversary on July 15th.
We had four former world champions in tag team action here, and it was a strong finish to the show. Moose, of course, didn't gel well with Swann as Moose is rarely ever a team player. He'd force the tag once Swann did the work to wear down Gresham before bullying the technician with his brute strength.
Gresham's impressive ability to always stay fighting and outmaneuver Moose allowed him to finally tag in Nick Aldis, giving us the clash of the Titans of sorts. It was something Moose attempted to avoid all match.
In the end, Rich Swann nearly had it won when Moose forced another tag that led to Gresham spiking him with a gnarly running powerbomb. Gresh didn't see it, and was laid out with a powerbomb from Moose, securing the victory for the two former IMPACT Wrestling World Champions.
While he wasn't pinned, this is the first loss on Nick Aldis's record since returning to IMPACT Wrestling this year. If you add his two victories from his special appearances last year at the Multiverse of Matches and Slammiversary, this ended a four-match win streak.
#1. PCO Stands tall ahead of 8-4-1 match
Things are BREAKING DOWN on #IMPACTonAXSTV ahead of #AgainstAllOdds!
#RichSwann @HEATHXXII @RealNickAldis @TheMooseNation @bullyray5150 @PCOisNotHuman https://t.co/4o9y6KKaHc
Immediately after the match, everything broke down. All the 8-4-1 contestants ran down to the ring, leading to an all-out brawl. Moose stood tall over Aldis, Swann, and Gresham before Heath ran down to the ring. After they tossed out the big man, Aldis and Heath brawled to the floor.
Rich Swann rolled into the ring for a dive only to be blindsided by Bully Ray. It seemed that Bully had easy prey in his sights until PCO ran in. The Perfect Creation himself bowled over all of the 8-4-1 contestants, minus Bully and Aldis, with an incredible dive through the ropes.
Considering the war that PCO went through with Steve Maclin for the belt at Under Siege, the champion probably doesn't want to deal with him again. More than likely, he's hoping for anybody else aside from Nick Aldis to win.
Are PCO, Bully, and Aldis the favorites of the match? Who will move on to challenge for the IMPACT Wrestling World Championship at Against All Odds?!