On Saturday, July 15th IMPACT Wrestling will celebrate its 21st year as a company. They are celebrating the only way they know how. With the annual Slammiversary pay-per-view. IMPACT Wrestling Slammiversary 2023 will be headlined by Alex Shelley who will defend the IMPACT World Championship against Nick Aldis.
Date: July 15, 2023
Arena: St. Clair College
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Ultimate X match/ #1 Contender Impact X Division Championship :
Alan Angels vs. Jonathan Gresham vs. Kevin Knight
vs. Kushida vs. Mike Bailey vs. Jake Something
Surprise entrant Jake Something quickly proved to be the most physically powerful of the six, but simultaneously the least able to reach the “X”. In a relatively short fight, lasting eleven minutes, Kushida got the upper hand.
Winner : Kushida
Rating : 6.5/10
Impact Knockouts World Tag Team Championship :
The Coven (Taylor Wilde and KiLynn King) (c) vs. Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich
A match that could very well have happened on an episode of Impact. Masha Slamovich gave her team victory after applying her finisher on Taylor Wilde, guaranteeing the first title for the Portuguese Killer Kelly in North American wrestling.
Winners : Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich
Rating : 4.5/10
Bully Ray and Deaner vs. Team Canada (Eric Young and Scott D’Amore)
(Darren McCarty as special guest enforcer)
Team Canada even got off to a better start, but strength in numbers – Kon was in the ringside zone – and the slickness of Bully Ray and Deaner turned the match in their favor.
At one point Bully Ray applied a low blow to Scott D’Amore and asked the referee to disqualify him, but the referee did not want to do it and resigned from the role. Who took advantage of the situation was Darren McCarty, who wore the referee’s jersey.
However, Kon interfered again, but A-1 threw him out of the ring.
After that the match moved into a house show- like dynamic , with Team Canada and even the referee applying some of Team 3D’s signature taunts and moves . Unsurprisingly, Team Canada won after a Canadian Destroyer by Scott D’Amore and a Diving Elbow by Eric Young on Deaner.
Winners : Team Canada (Eric Young and Scott D’Amore)
Rating : 5/10
Slammiversary 2023 / Impact X Division Championship :
Chris Sabin (c) vs. Lesson Rush
Lio Rush didn’t even wait for the bell to sound and promptly attacked Chris Sabin as the X Division champion made his entrance to the ring.
Although very weak and advised against participating in the match by the referees, Sabin even went inside the ring and was close to suffering a quick defeat, after a Final Hour , but Sabin kicked him out . It wasn’t the first, it was the second, with Lio Rush achieving victory and claiming the title after a second Final Hour .
Winner : Lio Rush (new champion)
Impact World Tag Team Championship :
ABC (Ace Austin and Chris Bey) (c) vs. Brian Myers and Moose
vs. Rich Swann and Sami Callihan
vs. Subculture (Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster)
Combat that has become chaotic. In one of the highlights of the fight, Chris Bey and Rich Swann simultaneously applied a Cutter in mid-air on Moose.
However, the Rascalz appeared to harm ABC and Subculture took the opportunity to achieve triumph and win the belts, after a Shooting Star Press by Mark Andrews on Brian Myers.
Winners : Subculture (Mark Andrews and Flash Morgan Webster)
Rating : 6.5/10
Eddie Edwards vs. Frankie Kazarian
Combat in which Alisha Edwards and Traci Brooks had a relevant role, namely the first one, costing Kazarian distractions. Edwards came close to triumph after a BackPack Stunner , but Kazarian kicked out on the ensuing laydown. Shortly afterwards it was Kazarian’s turn to come very close to winning after a Cutter , but this time it was Edwards who kicked out .
Meanwhile Kazarian unintentionally knocked the referee down and Alisha Edwards grabbed a kendo stick to try and hurt Kazarian, but Traci Brooks attacked her. Right after that she trapped Edwards in a Chickenwing and even made Edwards quit, but there was no umpire to count the settlement. In response, Edwards hit Kazarian with a kendo stick and then a Boston Knee Party to secure the win.
Winner : Eddie Edwards
Rating : 6.5/10
Slammiversary 2023 / Impact Knockouts World Championship :
Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs. trinity
Deonna Purrazzo was in control of operations during the opening minutes.
However, Trinity also had an ascending phase, which was interrupted by a Tombstone Piledriver from Virtuosa, in what was the first moment of some emotion in the combat.
Minutes later, Purrazzo applied a Queen’s Gambit to the edge of the ring and tried to quickly capitalize with a grounding, but Trinity returned to kick out .
In response, and after a Full Nelson Bomb from the top rope, Trinity achieved the triumph via submission through a Starstruck ( Headscissors crucifix choke hold ).
Winner : Trinity (new champion)
Rating : 6.5/10
Slammiversary 2023 / Impact World Championship :
Alex Shelley (c) vs. Nick Aldis
Alex Shelley started by surprising Nick Aldis by spitting water in his face, but soon Nick Aldis was in control with a Powerbomb and a King’s Lynn Cloverleaf . And whenever Shelley seemed to fight back, Aldis always found an antidote to thwart the champion.
However, the fight entered a storyline that didn’t help the show much, with Shelley punishing Magnus’s fingers and hands as if he were a heel , while the British interrupted the champion’s ascendancy by not selling a blow.
A phase filled with impactful submissions and near falls followed , with Shelley surviving a Piledriver and a Diving Elbow Drop . Frustrated, Magnus went to get the belt, but it was Shelley who almost used it to hurt his opponent. And when the referee removed the belt from the ring, Magnus took advantage of that to apply a low blow without the referee seeing it. However, in the ensuing laydown Shelley kicked out .In response, Shelley applied a DDT to the belt, a Superkick and a Shellshock to secure the victory.
Winner : Alex Shelley
Rating : 7/10