After months of back and forth bitter attacks on one another, Rosemary and Taya Valkyrie were let loose on this week’s Impact Wrestling!
.@BraxtonSutter needs a moment with @AllieImpact. #IMPACTonPOP pic.twitter.com/UuW4RodEQ9
— TDE Wrestling (@totaldivaseps) March 16, 2018
Before we get into the action, let’s first check in backstage where one of the newest names to the Knockouts division in Kiera Hogan congratulates Allie on her big title win from last week. Hogan also expresses her gratitude to Allie for being so helpful with a friendly hug.
The good-feel moment gets interrupted by Braxton Sutter who wants to go somewhere to talk with Allie but the newly Knockouts Champion rejects Sutter’s advance and excuses herself from Sutter.
NEXT WEEK – after winning the Championship last week, @AllieImpact will have to start her reign running as she faced the challenge of @Sienna. #IMPACTonPop pic.twitter.com/JAggjMRry8
— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) March 16, 2018
Speaking of Allie, she is set to defend her Knockouts Championship on next week’s episode against Sienna.
Onto our featured Knockouts match of the week:
The bell sounds off and Rosemary kicks things off with a spear to Taya. Taya slips to the outside but The Demon Assassin stays on her trail and connects a flying spear from the ring apron. Rosemary tosses Taya back in the ring and climbs the top of a turnbuckle for a top rope crossbody.
She proceeds to take Taya to a corner for forearm strikes. Rosemary whips Taya to an opposite corner and charges after but Taya dodges causing Rosemary to hit the turnbuckle instead. Taya takes control with an arm drag and a slap to Rosemary’s face. Taya stands over Rosemary to connect a foot stomp that earns a two count.
Taya takes a moment to mock the Impact Zone, who begin to rally behind Rosemary. Rosemary begins to fight back but gets slowed down by a hair pull. The Knockouts meet at a corner where Rosemary attempts an Upside Down submission by counters with an elevated faceplant. Taya sets Rosemary up for the Road to Valhalla but the latter counters out with a forearm.
Rosemary goes for a swinging kick but Taya ducks out the way and follows up with a curb stomp. Taya climbs the corner for a moonsault but comes up empty. Rosemary strikes back with a running knee strike. A running clothesline by Rosemary takes the action to the outside floor. Referee Riley (does anyone miss the Hebners?) begins to count the Knockouts out. Just as Taya tries to break the count out by re-entering ring at the nine-second mark, Rosemary pulls her back thus ending the things in a Double Count Out.
Oh ho but the battle continues between these two! The Knockouts brawl it out on the entrance ramp that ends with Taya hitting the Road to Valhalla at the top of the entrance ramp!
Thoughts: I’m pretty pleased to see that the Knockouts were given a reasonable amount of time for the second week in a row. Both women really made the most of it and there was plenty of back and forth action that spoke of the grudges these two have been building since late 2017.
It has only been two weeks since Taya returned to Impact to restart things with Rosemary. While it may feel too soon to book them in a match after beings months apart, the Double Count Out allows for this feud to stay alive a bit longer and a chance for Rosemary to regain some redemption after falling to Taya on more than one occasion.
Impact is currently in the midst of trying to build Allie up as the new top face to the Knockouts division, which means she needs to defend her Knockouts Championship against top contenders. In a normal scenario, that would’ve been against the former titleholder through a rematch clause, in this case, Laurel Van Ness, but given that she has already departed from the company, that now goes to Sienna.
It just would’ve been nice to at least see the challenger make an appearance week before the title match so that it doesn’t feel too much like a throwaway.
What did you think of this week’s Impact? Are you satisfied with seeing a Double Count Out finish? Are you excited for next week’s show? Let us know in the comments below!
