Impact Wrestling Preview 10/14/21

It’s a loaded IMPACT! just nine nights away from IMPACT Wrestling’s biggest event of the year, Bound For Glory! Don’t miss a moment of the action, this Thursday at 8/7c on AXS TV.

* Before IMPACT World Champion Christian Cage and Josh Alexander collide in one of the most anticipated Bound For Glory main events of all time, they will participate in the Bound For Glory Summit 

* Battle Royal: Win the Battle Royal and you enter the Call Your Shot Gauntlet at Bounf For Glory last – but come in second place and you enter first

* Chris Bey vs. Chris Sabin

* The tournament to crown a new X-Division Champion continues: El Phantasmo vs. Rohit Raju vs. Willie Mack 

* Savannah Evans vs. Lady Frost

* VSK vs. Rich Swann

* The action begins on Before the IMPACT, this Thursday at 7/6c on AXS TV. Following the closure of Swinger’s Palace, Hernandez turns his focus to in-ring competition when he takes on Fallah Bahh! 

Ted DiBiase And His Sons Ordered To Repay Millions By State Auditor

WWE Hall of Famer Ted DiBiase and his two sons are part of a group ordered to repay millions in misspent government funds

Ted DiBiase and his two sons are among a group of people ordered to repay large sums of misspent welfare money.

WWE Hall of Famer Ted DiBiase and his two sons Ted Jr. and Brett find themselves tangled up in an investigation that now sees the three of them having to repay almost $5 million to the state of Mississippi. The investigation, which has been making headlines since 2020 due to the involvement of former NFL star Brett Favre, revolves around misspent welfare money.

State auditor Shad White has concluded his investigation and issued orders to those he believes are on the hook for repayments that tally up to $77 million. The DiBiases are on the hook for more than $4.8 million of that total, with DiBiase Jr. being ordered to repay an eye-watering $3.9 million. His father has been ordered to repay $722,000.

The investigation began when Brett DiBiase, along with five others, was arrested for embezzling welfare funds in Mississippi. Brett was a deputy administrator at the Mississippi Department of Human Services at the time and is one of only two people caught up in the scheme so far to have pleaded guilty. Ted Jr. was paid the money for his motivational speaking, while The Million Dollar Man received the money via his Christian ministry.

As touched upon above, Favre is the reason this case has been getting so much mainstream attention. Favre was originally accused of receiving $1.1 million of money for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. The retired footballer paid back $500,000 of that money. He has now been ordered to repay $828,000 which accounts for the remaining $600,000 plus interest.

DiBiase has actually been working with WWE while this investigation was being conducted. The Hall of Famer worked with Cameron Grimes and LA Knight in NXT, reintroducing the Million Dollar Championship for the two of them to feud over. If the DiBiases, Favre, and everyone else ordered to repay the misspent funds refuse to do so, then they will face civil lawsuits in the future.

Source: Mississippi Today via TheSportster

MLW Fusion ALPHA Preview 10/13/21

Major League Wrestling returns tonight at 7pm ET with Fusion: ALPHA, featuring the opening round of the 2021 Opera Cup, streaming worldwide for free on MLW’s YouTube channel and Saturdays on beIN Sports. 

  • Tom Lawlor vs. Davey Richards – Opera Cup Opening Round
  • Calvin Tankman vs. Lee Moriarty
  • Delmi Exo vs. Brittany Blake

FIGHTLAND fallout! What’s next for NEW World Heavyweight Champion Alex Hammerstone? What’s the fate of the National Openweight Championship? Rumor has it Hammerstone and Cesar Duran have a very important meeting.

8 men. One shot at history. The 2021 Opera Cup begins tonight, presented by newlawoffice.com.

A technical shoot out between two dangerous grapplers kicks off this year’s tournament as 2020 Opera Cup winner Tom Lawlor tests his violent knockout power and dirty tricks against the multidimensional submission game of Davey Richards.

Can “Filthy” Tom take Davey out early and advance on to going back-to-back and reclaim the cup for one more year? Or will “The American Wolf” make a statement and eliminate the decorated former MLW World Heavyweight Champion? 

In the wake of FIGHTLAND, how will CONTRA retaliate on MLW and Hammerstone?

The Heavyweight Hustle rumbles with the master of TAIGASTYLE! Power collides with technique as Tankman readies for the Opera Cup against another competitor in non-tournament action. Could we see a preview of the Cup finals in this clash?

The Featherweights thrive as ½ of the Sea Stars Delmi Exo makes her MLW singles debut against devious rule breaker Brittany Blake. 

A scandal unraveled? Broadcast journalist Alicia Atout has an exclusive expose as she examines matchmaker Cesar Duran. Following last week’s Embedded, what scoops will Alicia score this week? Tune in to find out!

Injustice takes to the streets with a message for 5150!

Join Rich Bocchini, Joe Dombrowski and broadcast journalist Alicia Atout as MLW presents Fusion: ALPHA! 

AEW Adds Buy-In To Friday’s Rampage, Tony Khan Backtracks On Competition Comments

AEW seems serious about getting more viewers than SmackDown this week, but Tony Khan has walked back what he said about competition.

AEW has added a Buy-In show to this Friday’s Rampage in response to WWE tacking an extra 30 minutes onto the end of SmackDown.

Wrestling wars on television have usually been reserved for shows happening on the same night and in the same timeslot. Raw and Nitro battling on Monday, Dynamite going head to head with NXT. However, now that NXT has moved to Tuesdays and AEW‘s audience continues to grow, Dynamite’s numbers are being compared to Raw’s especially when it comes to key demographics.

Raw can take a break this week. Not just because Dynamite has been moved to Saturday, but also because all eyes will be on SmackDown and Rampage. Last week, WWE announced SmackDown will be Supersized this Friday and run for two and a half hours. That means the final 30 minutes of the show will run at the same time as the first half of Rampage.

Tony Khan responded to the news by tweeting that he can’t wait to beat WWE’s “main show”. In what is presumably an attempt to drum up as much interest in Rampage as possible, AEW has now announced it will be holding an hour-long Buy-In for Friday night’s show on its YouTube channel. The pre-show will include a match between Bryan Danielson and Minoru Suzuki, the first time the pair has clashed since 2004.

https://twitter.com/WFAN660/status/1447953614450872321

Not only is the Buy-In an attempt to get as many people to tune in to Rampage at 10 pm, but it also technically means an AEW show will now be going up against SmackDown for a full 90 minutes. However, Khan has backed down a little since the comments he made abiut beating WWE over the weekend.

“It’s not about competing with them. It’s about doing our best show,” Khan admitted during an appearance on Moose & Maggie. Whether this Friday is considered competition by either side or not, the numbers after the fact are going to be dissected no matter what. It’s hard to imagine Rampage will draw more viewers than SmackDown, but it will be fun to compare the two to see how they differ from previous weeks when both are on at the same time.

Source: TheSportster

WWE NXT 2.0 Preview 10/12/21

Tonight’s WWE NXT 2.0 episode will feature a NXT North American Title match and the build for Halloween Havoc will continue.

* NXT North American Champion Isaiah “Swerve” Scott defends against Santos Escobar

* NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa vs. Joe Gacy in a non-title match. If Gacy wins, he will be added to Bron Breakker vs. Ciampa for the NXT Title at Halloween Havoc

* Von Wagner and Kyle O’Reilly vs. Ridge Holland and Pete Dunne

* The second edition of “Lashing Out with Lash Legend”

Velvet Sky Says Jeff Hardy “Deserves Way More”

On Monday’s RAW, Jeff Hardy went up against Austin Theory after Theory took out Hardy the week prior. Near the end of the match, Hardy missed a swanton bomb and Theory rolled him up (while also grabbing his belt/pants) for the pinfall victory.

This loss was the latest in a string of losses Hardy has had over the past few weeks (WWE US Champion Damian Priest, 6-Man Tag Match, and a US Title Triple Threat at Extreme Rules) despite still receiving big cheers from the fans.

NWA Commentator Velvet Sky commented about Hardy and WWE’s usage of the veteran star.

“[In my honest opinion], Jeff Hardy deserves way more than how he’s being used,” Sky wrote.

https://twitter.com/VelVelHoller/status/1447736625346265089

A fan in the comments questioned if Hardy going over someone new, like Theory, was really the way to go, instead.

“No I didn’t say that at all,” Sky responded. “I don’t have a problem with vets putting over younger talent. But with Jeff he gets buried week after week.”

WWE RAW Preview 10/11/21

Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the Chase Center in San Francisco, California with the first red brand matches for the 2021 King of the Ring Tournament and the inaugural Queen’s Crown Tournament.

Stephanie McMahon Inducted Into International Sports Hall Of Fame

Stephanie McMahon was inducted yesterday into the International Sports Hall of Fame. She is the first female executive to be inducted. The ISHOF was established in 2012 to honor the world’s greatest athletes in all categories of sports.

“Humbled & honored to be the 1st female executive inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame with such a prestigious class,” McMahon wrote. “The key messages from all were passion, love, hard work, intention, & believing in yourself – #wordstoliveby. #ISHOF”

Stephanie sent out a second tweet showing a photo of herself with this year’s class.

“Congratulations Jay Cutler, Peter Westbrook, Billy Blanks, @MarcusAllenHOF, & Ernie Reyes Sr.! Thank you @RobertGoldmanMD, Fairfax and all involved for this extraordinary award. #ISHOF”

Other notable WWE connections who are in the ISHOF: WWE Hall of Famers Arnold Schwarzenegger (2012), Mark Henry (2012), Bruno Sammartino (2013), and Kurt Angle (2016). Also, Triple H (2015) and Ronda Rousey (2018).

Last month, Stephanie also made Forbes’ 2021 list of the World’s Most Influential CMOs.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Former WWE Stars Sign With Impact Wrestling

The IInspiration (Cassie Lee and Jessie McKay) are making their way to Impact Wrestling.

Just as Knockouts Knockdown was closing, it was revealed in a video (below) that Lee and McKay are to arrive at Bound For Glory on Saturday, October 23.

Formerly known as Peyton Royce and Billie Kay, both women were let go from WWE during its second massive round of budget cuts in April of this year. Following their release, both women expressed how they wanted to remain a tag team no matter where they ended up. Impact Wrestling will be their first promotional appearance since being let go.

It’s been confirmed that Lee and McKay have officially signed with Impact Wrestling.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Impact Wrestling Knockouts Knockdown Results 10/9/2021

The entire roster is stood in and out of the ring, honoring Daffney with a 10 bell salute

Mickie James and Veda Scott on commentary

 Melissa Santos returns as the main ring announcer.

 Knockouts Knockdown Tournament:

Opening-Round: Rachael Ellering defeated Lady Frost

Opening-Round: Chelsea Green defeated Renee Michelle

Opening-Round: Mercedes Martinez defeated Brandi Lauren

Opening Round: Tasha Steelz defeated Jamie Senegal

Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo (w/Matthew Rehwoldt) defeated Masha Slamovich

Semifinals of the Knockouts Knockdown Tournament:

Semifinals: Mercedes Martinez defeated Rachael Ellering

Semifinals: Tasha Steelz defeated Chelsea Green

 Christy Hemme reveals that Awesome Kong will be inducted into this year’s Impact Hall of Fame at Bound For Glory! 

Awesome Kong’s Speech:

Awesome Kong is greeted with a “You Deserve It” chant. She thanks the crowd. She begins by joking about how winded she is coming down to the ring. Kong dedicates this monumental moment to Daffney, who she says opened so many doors in the Knockouts division. She asks everyone to continue opening doors and breaking barriers in this industry and beyond. She thanks the crowd and tells them she’ll see them all at Bound For Glory!

Taylor Wilde takes a moment to reflect on her and Daffney’s first-ever and historic Monster’s Ball Match

https://twitter.com/IMPACTWRESTLING/status/1447018545527746564

Monster’s Ball: Savannah Evans defeated Jordynne Grace, Alisha Edwards and Kimber Lee

 Knockouts Knockdown Tournament Finals: Mercedes Martinez defeated Tasha Steelz

Mercedes Martinez will now be waiting in the wings for the shot at the Knockouts Championship. She will receive her opportunity after Bound For Glory!

Post-Match: Gail Kim presents Martinez with a trophy! 

Knockouts Tag Team Championship: Decay (Havok & Rosemary) (c)  (w/Crazzy Steve & Black Taurus) defeated The Influence (Madison Rayne & Tenille Dashwood) (w/Kaleb)