Hola Knockout fans and welcome to this week’s Impact Write-Up! Slammiversary is quickly approaching and our Knockouts matches are already in place for this year’s PPV event.
On this week’s Impact, we are treated to a somewhat preview to Slammiversary’s Women’s Title Unification match as the GFW Women’s Champion Sienna will team up with her ‘Hot Mess Express’ partner in crime Laurel Van Ness to take on, the unlikely pair, team of Allie and the Knockouts Champion Rosemary. Let’s see how things unfolded.
At the opening of this week’s show, we find Sienna trying to talk some sense to Laurel. She explains that Rosemary has not arrived to the building, thus leaving Allie all by herself. Sienna suggests that Laurel focus at the task at hand as Rosemary’s absence makes this the perfect opportunity for Laurel to get some revenge! Focus, Laurel, focus.
Later we meet up Allie backstage, who is in a bit of a panic upon hearing that Rosemary is a no-show. Despite some uncertainty, Allie convinces herself that her new guardian angel will come through by the end of the night.
Time for the moment of truth: Will Rosemary show up to be at Allie’s corner? Our Knockouts Tag Team Match is next:
The heels are out first and a listen from Jeremy Borash from commentary reminds us of the importance behind the title unification match taking place at Slammiversary. Laurel runs laps around the ring but Sienna is on hand to remind her that she needs to stay focus.
Allie’s music hits next and out comes Allie to a hearty welcome from the Mumbai, India crowd! She stays at the entrance ramp, weapon in hand, as Rosemary’s music hits… but Rosemary doesn’t come out. Poor Allie!
From the six sided ring, Sienna and Laurel mock Allie and begin to approach her. But what’s this? Rosemary has actually been hiding under the ring the whole time! She takes down the heels with a double clothesline before they can harm Allie and suddenly Allie’s face changes from worried to excited!
All four Knockouts make their way to the ring and the bell sounds off. Rosemary strikes Sienna with a corner splash with Allie following suit to Laurel afterwards.
Sienna manages to take Rosemary down by striking her right knee when her back is turned. Sienna follows by stomping a mud hole to Rosemary from a corner. The GFW Women’s Champion makes a tag as the audience begin to rally and chant behind Rosemary.
Laurel begins to choke out the Knockouts Champion with the use of the second ring rope and takes down Rosemary with a running dropkick. Allie tags herself in and wins control for her team by taking Laurel down with a clothesline and a codebreaker combo!
Just as Allie begins to climb a turnbuckle out comes Sienna’s cousin KM. Not so fast KM, Braxton Sutter is out too and fights off the interfering KM. Despite Braxton’s help, the distraction is enough for Laurel to knock Allie off the turnbuckle with a running elbow shot.
Rosemary steps in (did she even make a legal tag to Allie?) and gets a hold of Laurel but in runs Sienna to make the save with a big time German Suplex to Rosemary. Laurel adds in the Curb Stomp and Sienna pins Rosemary for the win. Wait a minute, did Sienna even make a tag!? Weren’t the legal Knockouts at the end of this match Allie and Laurel!? Ugh, the confusion of it all!
The heels celebrate their win as Allie and Braxton check on Rosemary.
Thoughts: It’s a bit sad to say at this point I’ve grown accustomed to these short three to five minute Knockouts matches. Damn, what the hell happened Impact? And am I the only one who was confused about who was legal towards the ending of this tag match?
On the positives, I have enjoyed how Impact have been slowly building up Rosemary’s face turn. Having read spoilers, I knew in advance that Rosemary was going to show to stand by Allie’s corner but seeing it play out on TV has been a treat. These two characters are truly the opposite of one another but yet told their story of coming together here.
One thing that did surprise me was hearing that fun fact from the commentary table that this was this first time Rosemary has been pinned since her debut. Guess I didn’t notice that before. Was it a waste to throw Rosemary’s first lost on a shortened throw away tag match? Maybe but in all honesty, it is one of the few momentum that Sienna can receive heading into Slammiversary.
I really wish that we were getting a Fatal Four Way match between Sienna, Rosemary, Allie and Laurel instead of the one on one between Sienna and Rosemary. These four women have really been the focus of the division this past month – maybe even within the last year! It would’ve been nice to see Allie and Laurel rewarded for their work with a spot on one of few real PPV events Impact holds.
It also could’ve made the match a bit more unpredictable, push Allie as a more serious in-ring competitor and used as a way to break Laurel free from this broken bride gimmick that has run its course.
There’s still one more week before the big show so let’s how things play out!
Now on a personal level, I do want to make note that I’ll be taking some time off from the site as part of my (long overdue) summer vacation. That being said, I’m going to miss out on Slammiversary this year and so I’ll give my predictions to the Knockouts matches a week early!
- Full Metal Mayhem Mixed Tag Team match – Angelina Love and Davey Richards vs. Alisha Edwards and Eddie Edwards: As I’ve said a few weeks ago, I think Angelina and Alisha being off television has cooled down the feud. Otherwise, it’s been the best feud Impact has put out this year! There’s emotion, an ongoing story of former friends and just back and forth brutality which will all end here. For this match, I’m hoping we’ll see something similar to the Monster’s Ball match from Slammicversary 2009 between Taylor Wilde/Abyss vs. Daffney/Raven. Davey and Angelina have had the ‘last laugh’ for most of this feud so I’m going with Eddie and Alisha Edwards coming out on top at Slammiversary. Alisha really needs the win here if she’s going to be more than “Eddie’s wife” and enter the Knockouts division full time; a win over a veteran like Angelina, in some form, would help give that rub.
- Women’s Title Unification match – Rosemary vs. Sienna: I wish I could be more excited for this match but there’s a lack of enthusiasm over a lack of real story here and the Knockouts division itself. This match (as well the World Heavyweight Title scene) are merely a way to get rid of the GFW Titles – which never had any true legs to stand on. I’m pretty confident that the Knockouts Championship will continue its lineage post Slammiversary, with maybe a new ‘Impact’ design to go with it. As much as I loved Taryn Terrell, Rosemary has been an absolute star for the division and if anyone is going to break Taryn’s record as the longest reigning Knockouts Champion, I’d love for it to be Rosemary! So I’m going to go with Rosemary for the win!
Good luck at Slammiversary ladies!
What did you think of this week’s Impact? Are you excited for this year’s Slammiversary? Do you miss seeing Angelina and Alisha on Impact weeks before the PPV? Let us know in the comments below!
