Best moments from IMPACT Wrestling (August 10th, 2023): Lio Rush ruins former United States Champion's debut; Blind wrestler's struggles revealed
IMPACT Wrestling continued to focus on both tag team divisions this week, though unfortunately, the Knockouts took a bit of a back seat. Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich found multiple teams vying for gold, while Bullet Club's ABC faced off against Sami Callihan and Rich Swann for a shot at Subculture.
We also got an incredible match between Speedball Mike Bailey and Kushida. If Speedball's on the card at a show near you, you owe it to yourself to check it out.
We'll get into all that and more in the highlights from this week's IMPACT Wrestling. We're kicking it off with a veteran from the promotion who gives fans a tease of what's going on in his head now that he's "all alone."
#5 A peek into Crazzy Steve's backstory
Poor Crazzy Steve. Rosemary and Havok have separated from Decay now that their alternate personalities have taken over. Black Taurus is looking to branch out on his own. Steve's all alone.
In a short sit-down interview with Tom Hannifan, Steve gave the IMPACT faithful a peek into the mind of a blind wrestler. For those of you unaware, the former Tag Team Champion is legitimately legally blind.
"You know just as well as any of us. 90% of what we do is travel. How easy do you think that is for someone like me, who can't see to drive? To navigate an airport? I've been doing this for 21 years, Tom. No easy feat for somebody with 20-20 vision. And I've been doing it blind. It's been the story of my life. You can imagine the struggles from an educational standpoint to a social standpoint, nothing has ever come easy for me."
Steve's used to feeling alone. He mentioned that he was abandoned when the Menagerie, a stable that debuted in IMPACT Wrestling in May 2014 and lasted until 2015, disbanded. The original Decay consisting of himself, Rosemary, and Abyss split in 2017, leading to The Monster eventually leaving the company.
The new version of Decay seems to be falling apart now as well. Not only is Steve alone in life, as he constantly struggles to connect with others while dealing with his disability, his friends have left him behind once again.
It seems we'll be getting a look into the life of Crazzy Steve in the coming weeks. The 39-year-old wrestler is a fan favorite of the IMPACT faithful, and this could be just what he needs to break out on his own much like his friends have done.
#4 MK Ultra takes on all comers for the IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts World Tag Titles
Masha Slamovich and Killer Kelly, known as MK Ultra, took the Knockouts Tag Titles off of The Coven at Slammiversary, ending the reign of KiLynn King and Taylor Wilde at 139 days. Two of the toughest wrestlers in all of IMPACT Wrestling, Kelly and Slamovich have gone to war against one another multiple times, leading to a bond forged in fire.
Masha and Kelly are all about the fight, and that was proven on this episode when they walked in on a meeting where The Coven and the Death Dollz were all demanding shots at the Knockouts World Titles from Santino Marella.
Originally, MK Ultra were set to defend the gold against The Shawntourage, Giselle Shaw and Savannah Evans, at Emergence. The Coven made a case that, being the former champions, they should rightfully get a match with the champions at the event. The Death Dolls would come in, claiming that they deserved a chance because they were "awesome" but much like a certain A-Lister, that's not enough to secure title opportunities.
When the Death Dollz huddled up to come up with a reason to be included in the match, Santino joined them in a funny moment, reminding them that they're themselves former Knockouts World Tag Champions, not to mention that they beat the Shawntourage at Countdown to Slammiversary. After the huddle, Jessika repeated those points while attempting to use Santino's accent, which is somehow worse than Santino's accent.
Santino wasn't sure what to do here, but his job was made easier when MK Ultra appeared, simply stating they'd take them all. With that, we've got a four-way at Emergence for the IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts World Tag Team Titles.
#3 Bullet Club cheated in tag title tournament
Bullet Club's Chris Bey and Ace Austin battled Sami Callihan and Rich Swann in the IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Title Tournament this week. On the previous episode, The Rascalz took out Speedball and Jonathan Gresham to advance to the finals.
Bey and Austin, known as ABC, were the previous tag team champions, losing the gold to the newly signed Subculture at Slammiversary in a four-way tag match. They hoped to get back to winning ways on this night and looked like the better team for most of the contest.
That being said, Swann and Callihan are no pushovers. Both former IMPACT Wrestling World Champions, to go over this duo would be a big feather in the cap for ABC. Singles success isn't something that's evaded ABC either, as both men are former X-Division Champions, as is Swann.
ABC stayed ahead of their opponents throughout most the bout, even nailing Sami Callihan with the 1-2 Sweet combo (Art of Finesse, an assisted springboard cutter from Bey, and the Fold, a running blockbuster from Austin) but Rich Swann saved his partner.
It seemed that Austin again had the match wrapped up, only for The Good Hands to pull the referee out of the ring. Jason Hotch was taken out by Swann, but that gave John Skyler the chance to hit the Stroke on Ace Austin. Sami Callihan took advantage, spiking Austin with the Cactus Driver for the win.
A shocking loss for arguably Bullet Club's best tag team. Sami Callihan and Rich Swann advance to face the Rascalz, with the winners going after Subculture's IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Titles. But what's going on with The Good Hands and ABC?
#2 Former United States Champion Samuray Del Sol taken out before debut
Bully Ray, Moose, and Brian Myers have found themselves a great ally in IMPACT Wrestling X-Division Champion Lio Rush as of late. The Man of the Hour, has reluctantly been assisting the three vets in their attempt to forcefully take IMPACT Wrestling back for themselves. This unholy union saw Rush ruin the debut of one of the greatest luchadors in the world today.
Samuray Del Sol, formerly Kalisto in WWE, was set to join Black Taurus and Laredo Kid in a six-man tag team match. However, he was taken out backstage before he could even make his entrance. As Kid and Taurus awaited their partner on the stage, they saw live footage of Del Sol getting assaulted by Rush.
This forced Kid and Taurus into a two-on-three situation. Despite the disadvantage, the duo put up a great fight, with Myers, Ray, and Moose struggling to get the eventual victory in the match.
After the official was taken out, Moose and Myers tried to keep Taurus at bay while Bully attempted to take Kid's mask off. At that point, the lights went out, and PCO returned. The Frankenstein of IMPACT Wrestling chased Bully out of the building, leading to the former world champion rushing to his car for a quick getaway.
Despite the playing field evening up in a two-on-two situation, Myers and Moose managed to secure the win after Myers rocked Laredo Kid with the Roster Cut.
At Emergence, Bully Ray, Moose, Brian Myers, and Lio Rush will face IMPACT Wrestling World Champion Alex Shelly, his Time Machine partners Chris Sabin and Kushida, and the former world champion Josh Alexander in an eight-man tag. One has to wonder when PCO will make his presence known that night.
#1 Instant X-Division classic
There was a lot of controversy and interference in matches on IMPACT Wrestling this week, so it was good to see the X-Division get their time to shine with two of the absolute best in the division facing off. Speedball Mike Bailey battled Kushida, the current number one contender to Lio Rush's X-Division Title, in an excellent match.
I advise you to check the match out for yourself. It's available, in full, in the video above. It's worth your time.
The Ace of the Super Juniors looked to wear down IMPACT's top striker with a multitude of submissions. Kushida's not one to back down on a striking exchange, and managed to go toe-to-toe with the former X-Division Champion.
After an incredible springboard moonsault to the floor, Bailey took over. At this point, he began breaking out his own list of submissions, focusing heavily on the injured left arm of Kushida.
Speedball easily escaped the Hoverboard Lock thanks to the damage, allowing him to nearly get the submission victory with a nasty armbar. Speedball seemed to have Kushida where he wanted him with a series of kicks, only for the Tanaka Punch from Kushida to nearly knock him out.
Speedball responded with a knee lift that would've ended things had Kushida not been near the ropes. Kushida was able to stop the Ultima Weapon and took Bailey to the mat with a Hoverboard Lock off the top rope. When he couldn't fully cinch it in, Kushida spiked Bailey with the Small Package Driver for the win on IMPACT Wrestling.