Impact Wrestling No Surrender Review – February 24, 2023
Deonna Purrazzo vs. Gisele Shaw (Pre Show)
Gisele Shaw is in command until Deonna Purrazzo takes her down with headscissors and a pump kick followed by a standing moonsault for a one count. They start fighting on the outside, as Shaw traps Purrazzo in the ring skirt. Shaw takes over by keeping Purrazzo in the corner with chops and choking her out with her boot.
They both go at it, until Purrazzo hits a high knee and a Russian leg sweep for a two count, right into the Fujiwara armbar but Shaw escapes. Shaw escapes out of the Queen’s Gambit and hits a backbreaker/flatliner combo for a two count. Shaw teases going for the Queen’s Gambit herself but Purrazzo turns it into a roll up for a two count.
Purrazzo dodges a knee by Shaw and puts her right back into the armbar again, as Shaw, with the help of Jai Vidal, reaches for the rope to break it up. Vidal gets on the apron, as Savannah Evans runs out and takes out Purrazzo with a Full Nelson Slam right before Purrazzo was going for the Queen’s Gambit. Shaw follows this with The Denouement for the win.
Winner: Gisele Shaw (9:07)
Rate: 5
Jonathan Gresham vs. Mike Bailey (Pre Show)
Match starts off with a lock up as Mike Bailey corners Jonathan Gresham before the referee breaks them apart. They start exchanging chops then Gresham ends up on the apron, where Bailey kicks him off before hitting a moonsault to the outside on Gresham.
Back inside, Bailey stays in control by kicking Gresham in the corner, but Gresham encourages it before dropping Bailey with a dropkick. Bailey starts hitting kicks now but misses a standing shooting star press. Gresham starts attacking Bailey’s leg by smashing the knee into the mat repeatedly.
After Bailey tries to fight it Gresham applies a Figure 4 while trying to pin him until Bailey is eventually able to grab the bottom rope. They start trading shots back & forth until Gresham hits a hard forearm before they both are laid out. Gresham hits a springboard moonsault off the ropes before hitting a suicide dive to the outside on Bailey.
They fight a bit more, and very quickly, Bailey hits another moonsault to the outside. Bailey tries to go for another kick but his leg gives out as Gresham hits a forearm. Bailey is able to hit his kick but Gresham dodges the Ultima Weapon followed by a roll up for the win.
Winner: Jonathan Gresham (11:01)
Rate: 7
Santino Marella heading to the ring as he introduces us to No Surrender. Santino talks about how things that happen in Las Vegas don’t stay here anymore because of cell phones. He starts talking about a time when he woke up in an orange jumpsuit and how his wife found out, but he cuts himself off before introducing his first acquisition, Frankie Kazarian.
Frankie Kazarian vs. Big Kon
Frankie Kazarian takes Kon to the outside where he hits him with a basement dropkick before they start brawling on the outside. They start brawling on the outside before they go back inside Kon stays in control keeping Kazarian down with a nerve hold. Kazarian tries to mount a comeback, but Kon stops him with a spinebuster for a two count.
Kon sends Kazarian flying to the outside, but as they head back inside Kazarian starts punching Kon before hitting him with a leg drop on the ropes as Kon was still draped on the ropes, Kazarian followed with another leg drop, bouncing off the ropes.
Kazarian hits a reverse DDT for a two count before he tries to put on the Chicken Wing. Kon breaks it up by backing into the corner and heads to the top rope but Kazarian follows him up. Kon knocks him off and misses a diving headbutt.
Kazarian tries a roll up for a two right into the Chicken Wing but Angels gets on the apron as Kon breaks out as Angels is distracting the referee Sami Callihan goes to hit Kazarian with a chair, just to hit Kon instead. Kazarian follows with a cutter off the ropes on Kon to score the win.
Winner: Frankie Kazarian (9:24)
Rate: 6
Backstage Gia Miller is with Brian Myers and asks for his strategy in tonight’s Impact World Title #1 Contenders Fatal 4 Way match. Myers says he’s been studying 4 ways all week and won’t speak about the status of Matt Cardona. Myers does say Joe Hendry humiliated Cardona and hopes Moose returns the favor and makes a fool out of Cardona.
Knockouts Tag Team Titles Match
Death Dollz (Jessicka & Taya Valkyrie) (c) vs. The Hex (Allysin Kay & Marti Belle)
Taya Valkyrie & Allysin Kay starts the match off before Jessicka & Marti Belle quickly tag in, as Belle stays in control choking out Jessicka on the ropes. The Hex keeps Jessicka in their corner, as Kay taunts Valkyrie. Jessicka fights out of a choke by Kay backing up into the corner, but Belle tags in and keeps at it on Jessicka.
Jessicka is able to make the hot tag to Valkyrie as she goes right after Kay and takes her down. Valkyrie stomps Kay and goes for the pin but Belle breaks it up. Both teams go at it until Valkyrie spears Kay and tries to go for the Road To Valhalla but Kay kicks her way out and tries Hex Marks the Spot but Jessicka breaks it up by spearing Belle and then hitting Kay with a choke bomb. Jessicka hits the Sick Driver with an assisted kick by Valkyrie scores the victory.
Winners & Still Knockouts Tag Team Champions: Death Dollz (8:57) (STILL CHAMPIONS!!!!)
Rate: 5
Before the match Joe Hendry gets on the mic before the match and talks about the sins of Sin City but says the only sin is not saying the words ‘we believe in Joe Hendry’.
Digital Media Title Dot Combat Match
Joe Hendry (c) vs. Moose
Moose starts the attack before the bell rings and goes to get weapons from under the ring that include a chair, a keyboard and a Sega Dreamcast. Hendry takes the keyboard and attacks Moose with it. They start fighting on the outside where Moose hits a devastating Uranage to Hendry into a ringside table.
Moose stays in control back inside and teases the crowd by saying ‘we believe’ before setting a chair wedged in the corner. Moose flips off Hendry, as Hendry flips the lid of the Dreamcast and starts attacking him with it. Hendry finds a toddler remote control car and drives it right into Moose, who just kicks it away.
Hendry then goes and finds a box under the ring with a more proper remote control car that he tries to drive into Moose, but as it didn’t work he decides to just toss it down low to Moose. Moose whips Hendry into the chair in the corner followed by a Sky High for a two count.
Moose finds a bag under the ring and spills it to reveal they are keycaps and hits Hendry with another Uranage. Moose heads to the top rope but Hendry throws keycaps in his face, followed by a superplex onto them for a two count. Moose grabs a steel chair while Hendry tosses a gaming chair into the ring as they have a chair off with Hendry throws the gaming chair into Moose’s face followed by a pop up powerbomb for a near fall.
Hendry finds another box with a VR headset that he puts on Moose. Moose then starts dancing as if he’s in a strip club which Moose adds music for before switching over to the song he did making fun of Moose. Moose gets out of a Standing Ovation attempt and hits a low blow for a two.
Hendry reverses a spear into a roll up for a two count then they go back & forth a bit more until Hendry rolls up Moose for the win.
Winner & Still Digital Media Champion: Joe Hendry (12:14) (STILL CHAMPION!!!!)
Rate: 6
Backstage Gia Miller is with Knockouts Champion Mickie James and says Jordynne Grace will get a rematch in the future but she has one of her toughest challenges tonight in Masha Slamovich. Mickie admits having a lot on her plate and Grace hasn’t stopped talking about making James tap out. Before that, Mickie must get rid of the poison she brought into Impact in Slamovich but tonight she’s focused on her, and the era of Mickie James as Knockouts Champion has just begun.
Dave LaGreca comes out first for this live edition of Busted Open Radio. LaGreca said he was asked by two companies to be here tonight in SiriusXM & Impact Wrestling and says things have gotten heated between Tommy Dreamer & Bully Ray. Greca says they will have 60 seconds each to talk, uninterrupted, to get whatever they want off their chest as Bully Ray will go first after winning his Beat The Clock challenge last night. Lars Frederiksen of Rancid is seen sitting ringside as Dreamer makes his way to the ring. LaGreca tells Bully to go first, but he stays silent. After a long delay, Bully finally says ‘I’m sorry’, and that’s all. Dreamer says this has gone further than ‘I’m sorry’ and asks if The Good Hands are going to come out now. Dreamer talks about how he was with Bully when his mother was in the hospital, while Bully did the opposite when Dreamer’s mom was in the hospital. Bully goes up again and thinks he doesn’t think a time restraint is needed as he agrees this has gone too far, too deep, and that he has gone too far and asks if it’s okay with everybody, to get rid of the time restraint and talk. Bully talks about his mom dying and what he said about Dreamer’s mom being wrong and her being always awesome with him.
Bully says that on Sunday he watched the documentary on the NWO and he saw Kevin Nash have to talk about Scott Hall and how he asked the cameras to cut as he realized that Nash ever had to do a documentary with Hall there. Bully says it got him thinking about how he and Dreamer are just as tight as how Nash & Hall were and thinks about what would happen if anything would happen between them. Bully says if you are having problems with someone it’s better to work it out than to have to see them dead in a coffin and says if anything were to happen to Dreamer, he would be there at his funeral carrying his casket and knows Dreamer would be at his also. Bully agrees that life is too short and for the benefit of Impact, Busted Open, and their friendship he would rather stay on good terms with Dreamer.
Dreamer says this has gone way too far for hugs, handshakes, and apologies and suggests they both go their separate ways and is proud of Bully to even admit something like this and thank him. Bully then takes a cup of hot coffee that was there at the podium and throws it in Dreamer’s face. Bully knocks down LaGreca then knocks Dreamer in the head with the coffee pot and keeps asking Dreamer what he meant by saying ‘somebody like me’. Bully starts walking ringside asking Matthew Rehwoldt & Dave Penzer if they have a problem with him.
Backstage Gia Miller is with Rich Swann and asks what’s going on in his mind right now. Swann says tonight is the night after two years he finally gets this opportunity and the one thing he cares about most in this business is the Impact World Title. Steve Maclin interrupts and says he hopes Swann wins tonight, so at the main event of Rebellion, he can beat him again. Swann said he’s not focused on Maclin’s mind games but the Impact World Title and says Maclin has to worry about winning his match and he hopes Maclin wins so he could whoop his ass at Rebellion.
Impact World Title #1 Contenders Fatal 4 Way Match
Brian Myers vs. PCO vs. Heath vs. Steve Maclin
As soon as the bell rings, everybody goes after PCO but he is able to punch them all away before going over the top rope to the outside with Steve Maclin as they are fighting, Heath takes them out with a senton on the outside. Maclin follows by hitting a suicide dive on Heath & Brian Myers before they all get taken out by a PCO Sault to the outside by PCO.
They continue brawling on the outside, including Maclin & Myers hitting PCO with a back body drop on the ramp. Back inside, Heath sends Maclin to the outside before Myers hits Heath with a running knee for a two count. Myers & Heath start trading punches before Myers hits a flatliner.
Myers does his pose before he realizes PCO is entering the ring as Myers runs away. PCO goes after Maclin, but he dodges PCO who goes tumbling to the outside on Myers. Heath goes after Maclin, hitting a power slam for a two. Heath follows with a Wake Up Call but as Maclin is trying to escape, PCO hits him with a De Animator.
Heath & Myers go back & forth until Myers hits a spear for a two count. Myers sets up the Roster Cut, but PCO breaks it up by splashing him in the corner and hitting a reverse DDT.
PCO heads to the top and hits a PCO Sault, but before he can get the win Eddie Edwards runs out with a shovel and takes out PCO as referees are kicking Edwards out, Heath hits the Wake Up Call on Myers but Maclin runs in and hits the KIA on Heath for the win.
Winner & #1 Contender To The Impact World Title: Steve Maclin (9:18)
Rate: 5
After the match X Division Champion Trey Miguel comes out and talks about people fighting to become a champion here tonight, while himself, the X Division Champion is left off the card. Miguel questions if it was AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Chris Sabin & Frankie Kazarian as X Division Champion would they forget about him? Miguel starts walking towards PCO and says how badly he got beat up, but PCO wakes up and chokeslams Miguel on the apron followed by a clothesline.
6 Man Tag Team Match
Time Machine (Impact World Tag Team Champions Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin & Kushida) vs. Bullet Club (Ace Austin,Chris Bey & Kenta)
Kenta & Kushida starts the match off as they run the ropes a bit until Kushida tries an armbar that Kenta quickly escapes out of as they keep going for takedowns and submissions. Alex Shelley & Chris Bey tag in and go at it and run the ropes a bit before Bey stomps on Shelley’s back for a one count.
Ace Austin tags in and starts working on Shelley’s arm followed by slashing Shelley’s hand with his playing card. Chris Sabin tags in as the Motor City Machine Guns start double teaming on Austin. Kushida joins in before Bey tries to break them up just for more Time Machine triple teaming.
They go after Kenta next by driving him into the post followed by a dropkick. Time Machine stays in control keeping Austin in their corner, as Shelley starts bending back Austin’s fingers. Austin & Sabin start fighting on the apron as Austin hits an Fosbury Flop to the outside followed by a dive from Bey.
Kenta teases going for a dive but just does his power walk instead before heading outside. Bullet Club is now in control triple teaming on Kushida as Kenta plays with the crowd. They both tag out to Sabin & Bey as Sabin takes all 3 opponents out before hitting a top rope crossbody on Bey & Austin.
They send Kenta to the outside where Sabin dives onto him as everybody else ends up on the outside as well. Time Machine starts triple teaming on Bey where Sabin gets a two count after a missile dropkick from Shelley. Bey uses Sabin’s leg to hit Shelley by accident, and Sabin then hits Kushida in the corner by accident as well.
Kenta takes advantage and hits the top rope stomp on Sabin, who kicks out at two. Kenta teases Go 2 Sleep but Sabin turns into a roll up for a two. Sabin comes right back with a brainbuster. Bey & Austin start double teaming on Sabin before Kushida goes after Austin.
Kushida hits a handspring elbow and tries the Hoverboard Lock before everybody else comes in and starts fighting. Time Machine starts attacking Austin with multiple dropkicks attacking him in the corner as Kushida hits a moonsault from the top rope. Bey & Kenta hold back Kushida & Shelley as Austin puts a backslide on Sabin for the win.
Winners: Bullet Club (19:04)
Rate: 8 (Recommend)
Knockouts Title Match
Mickie James (c) vs. Masha Slamovich
Mickie James starts by working on Masha Slamovich’s left arm and keeping her down on the mat. Masha tries to go for a rear naked choke, but Mickie gets out and hits a couple of kicks to Slamovich’s face, knocking her down for a two count. Mickie tries for a MickDT but Slamovich counters by dropping Mickie’s throat first onto the top rope.
Slamovich stays in control until James comes back with a headscissors and some kicks but Slamovich hits a dropkick sending James to the outside where she hits her with a twisting dive. Slamovich sends Mickie back inside and gets a two count. James mounts a comeback with more kicks and a flapjack before heading to the top rope.
Slamovich joins her up there but James knocks her off and hits a seated senton for a two count. James comes right back with the Mick Kick but only gets a two count. Slamovich comes right back with an inverted piledriver but only gets a two count. James dodges Slamovich and puts on a single leg crab who quickly grabs the bottom rope.
Slamovich puts on a rear naked choke hold but they end up spilling in the ropes as the referee has to keep breaking it up. They tussle a bit back & forth in the corner until James rolls up Slamovich from another rear naked choke into the win.
Winner & Still Knockouts Champion: Mickie James (12:19) (STILL CHAMPION!!!!)
Rate: 7
Impact World Title Match
Josh Alexander (c) vs. Rich Swann
Josh Alexander tries to start the match with a handshake but Rich Swann says he will wait until after the match as he worked too hard for this the last 2 years. They go at it before Alexander is able to stop Swann with a body slam. Alexander starts working on Swann’s ankle but Swann gets out and smacks Alexander right in the face. They start running the ropes with shoulder blocks before Swann drops Alexander with a dropkick.
They get into a shoving exchange before Alexander delivers a smack of his own. Swann kicks Alexander to the outside of the ring and hits him with a senton. They back & forth inside the ring with suplex attempts until Alexander is able to hit one. Alexander goes right after Swann, dropping him on his face followed by a rolling German Suplex for a two count.
Alexander stays in control in and outside of the ring, taking Swann down with a back elbow once they head back inside. Alexander seems a bit distracted by the chants for Swann, as they go through a smack exchange. Swann kicks his way out of Alexander’s attack in the corner and follows with a rolling clothesline.
Swann continues with punches until he clotheslines Alexander and himself over the top rope to the outside. They fight a bit on the outside before Swann gets sent to the apron where he hits a twisting splash onto Alexander’s back on the outside. Swann follows with a rolling splash for a two count.
Alexander comes back with two German suplexes, but as he tries a 3rd, Swann holds on to the turnbuckle and climbs to the top. Alexander follows him and tries a German suplex but Swann lands on his feet and hits a poisonrana for a two count. Swann was going for the handspring cutter but Alexander stops him midway with a spear.
Alexander heads to the top and goes for a moonsault but Swann gets out of the way. Swann tries to hit a rana on Alexander off the top rope, but he is able to escape and puts on the ankle lock that Swann quickly breaks out of.
Alexander stops another rana attempt and drops Swann down face first, but Swann comes right back dropping Alexander for a two count. They go back & forth with pin attempts until Alexander hits the C4 Spike but Swann rolls out of the ring before he can make the pin.
They start fighting on the apron before Alexander drops Swann straight down. Swann escapes out of another C4 hits a bunch of kicks and heads to the top rope where he hits the Phoenix Splash for a two count.
Swann goes for another Phoenix Splash but Alexander dodges it and puts on the ankle lock. Swann eventually stands and punches his way out of it, knocking Alexander’s headgear off in the process.
They start trading chops and smacks until Swann hits the springboard cutter for a two count. Swann tries another cutter but Alexander blocks it and hits a Tombstone followed by a C4 Spike for the win.
Winner & Still Impact World Champion: Josh Alexander (25:13)
Rate: 9 (Recommend)
