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Eddie Edwards shows lack of ‘Honor’ at No Surrender

Bob Kapur

Why, Eddie, why? That’s the question Eddie Edwards will have to answer after his actions during the main event of Impact Wrestling’s “No Surrender” special event on Saturday night. Specifically, why did he turn his back on his company and help the renegade ROH faction Honor No More win the match, and as a result, the right to stay in Impact?

His shocking betrayal was the capper of a great match on a night full of them.

Eddie was originally scheduled to be on Team Impact, along with Chris Sabin, Rhino, Rich Swann, and Steve Maclin. But earlier in the night, Eddie had been laid out backstage by unknown assailants and wasn’t cleared to wrestle. As a result, Willie Mack was asked to replace him in the match against Honor No More, the faction led by Maria Kanellis-Bennett and comprised of Matt Taven, Mike Bennett, Kenny King, Vincent, and PCO.

Before the bell, the two teams started brawling and everyone spilled to the floor. The ref finally got everyone on the apron and called for the bell.

In the ring, things played out well, with everyone getting a chance to shine in various pairing-offs. Team Impact started to gel as a team, and they were able to trap Kenny King in their corner for a bit. But a distraction by Maria allowed Honor No More to turn things around when they swarmed Sabin with a series of cheap shots behind the referee’s back.

Sabin finally got loose and tagged in Swann who fared well, until he got caught in a Flying Dive attempt and quintuple-teamed with a Stomp that nearly put him through the floor. Honor No More took turns beating down Swann in their own corner. Lucky for Swann, he side-stepped a Shoulder Block by PCO and the big man flew hard to the floor, giving Swann a chance to escape.

 

As the match continued, the referee seemed to lose more and more control, with people running in and out of the ring to help double- and in some cases triple-team their opponents, only to see their pin attempts broken up by someone else running in from the other side.

Things really picked up after the ref – who really lost control of things – got hit and knocked out of the ring. This started a nice series of huge dives to the floor, by members of both teams. And then a gruesome Senton by PCO off the top onto Swann and Mack on the apron, followed by a Double Redrum on them by Vincent.

Later, in a highlight reel clip, PCO hit a Giant Moonsault off the top to the floor onto everyone else. That was great.

After that, Rhino looked to end things with a GORE GORE GORE, but Maria stood in front of Bennett and blocked his path. This prompted Eddie Edwards to run to the ring, brandishing a Singapore cane. He cleared away Bennett and Taven left the path open for Rhino to flatten Maria.

But when Rhino charged, Eddie clocked Rhino with the Singapore cane!

 

Then then took out other members of Team Impact. Honor No More rolled the referee into the ring and Kenny simply laid on top of a knocked-out Rhino for the easy pinfall.

As noted, this was a great main event with lots of action. Eddie always had a strong connection with ROH, even though he has been Impact’s staunchest flag-bearer. But it was a good way to mix things up and put a new coat on him since he had pretty much done everything he could do as the loyal Impact babyface.

It may be a challenge to keep Honor No More as fresh and exciting now that they are accepted in the company. Some of their edginess was precisely because they were invaders. Now that they’re allowed to stay, they’ll need some new motivations that drive them. Hopefully the energy doesn’t fizzle away now that they’ve been somewhat legitimized.

No Surrender – Full Results

 

Pre-Show Match 1: John Skyler vs. Trey Miguel

Miguel’s X-Division Championship was not on the line in this one. The commentators noted that Miguel was wearing pink in tribute to his mother who recently passed away from breast cancer. That, and some injuries meant this was his first match for a while.

They had a good back-and-forth match, with both of them hitting some good moves. Skyler hit a Powerbomb and then transitioning it into a Boston Crab, forcing Miguel to reach the ropes for the break. Miguel came back with some quick moves, including a big Dropkick and a Flying Somersault Dive to the floor. Skyler blocked a Frankensteiner and then dropped Miguel with a Super Somersault Slam from the top. But Miguel blocked a second top rope move, sent Skyler to the mat, and then hit a Meteora for the win.

 

This was a good opener – nothing crazy, but solid action throughout, with the right ending.

Winner: Trey Miguel

Gia Miller interviewed Team Impact, who confirmed that all of them – including Steve Maclin – were 100% on the side of Impact.

 

Pre-Show Match 2: Tenille Dashwood (w/ Madison Rayne and Kaleb) vs. Havok (w/ Rosemary)

Havok was sporting bright orange hair, but the new look didn’t affect her power at all – which, why would it? Rosemary was too, in case you were wondering.

The Influence used some distractions on the outside to allow Dashwood to take Havok down and deliver some hard Low Cross Body Splashes in the corner. Dashwood nearly got the win after a High Cross Body, but Havok kicked out. Dashwood went for the Spotlight, but she got distracted when Kaleb’s phone went off, as he got a call from The Iinspiration. When she confronted Kaleb about it, Dashwood turned her back on Havok, which was a mistake. A Havok Driver later and it was all over.

This was a good, short one, but ultimately was just a way to further the tease of Kaleb switching his allegiances from the Influence to The Iinspiration. Havok is probably someone who could benefit from a serious singles push.

Winner: Havok

 

Match 1: Chris Bey vs. Jake Something vs. Ace Austin (w/ Mad Man Fulton) vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey

The winner of this one becomes the number one contender to the X-Division Championship.

Like the song goes, one of these things was not like the others. That thing was Something who had the big size advantage over all of the others. But he did do some big X-Division moves, including a huge dive to the floor early on, where he landed on all three opponents and Fulton. All of them had a chance to shine, with Bey in particular shining – at one point, he did a dive into the entrance ramp that went so far that he actually overshot his target.

Later, Bailey did a great Springboard Moonsault onto everyone. Later, Bailey broke up a Bey pinfall attempt with a Standing Shooting Star Press. In the end, Jake Something’s power proved to be the difference. With Bey and Bailey out on the floor, Austin when for The Fold on Something who caught him and planted him with Into The Void (a Black Hole Slam) for the pin.

This was a fun X-Division style match. Something vs. Miguel seems like it may not have the best dynamic – especially compared to all the other guys (and certainly it would seem the big money match here is Trey and Bailey), but he did well here.

Winner, and new number-one contender to the X-Division Championship: Jake Something

An Eric Young promo video aired. He put himself over and said that his reputation in the business will be as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. And that Jay White will learn why when they compete later tonight.

 

Match 2: JONAH vs. Black Taurus

It’s unusual to see someone thicker than Taurus in Impact, but JONAH ticks that box. Early on, he made that clear with a huge body block that dropped Taurus. But Taurus has aerial skills too, and after a Flying Dive to the floor, he followed that up with a Flying Corkscrew Press that looked good. Unfortunately, he took air twice more at  the hands of JONAH who heaved him – first onto the top turnbuckle, and then halfway across the ring in a Running Gorilla Press.

And then we got ourselves a good, old-fashioned slobber-knocker, with big hits all around. Taurus hit a big Crucifix Bomb and some big Kicks, but then got squashed by an Avalanche and a Brick Wall Press. Later, Taurus went up top, but got thrown down and hit by a Super Thesz Press and a huge Powerbomb. A big Clothesline put Taurus on the mat, and a Tsunami kept him there for the three-count.

Another fun match, this was a good hard-hitting affair. JONAH was the right winner here. It’s unfortunate his feud with Josh Alexander was so short-lived, because he’s been somewhat directionless since, and could use a good dance partner to propel him further up the card.

Winner: JONAH

Backstage, Gia Miller interviewed Jake Something who said he was the best he’s ever been, and is confident that he can beat Trey Miguel for the X-Division Championship. Miguel walked up and said that he had no intention of losing. Then Ace Austin and Mad Man Fulton barged in a challenge was made for a tag team match for next Thursday.

 

Match 3: Eric Young vs. “Switchblade” Jay White

Interestingly, neither man was accompanied to the ring by his respective faction; Violent By Design came out onto the entrance ramp with Young, but they didn’t stick around.

They started off pretty evenly for the first few minutes, but when things went to the floor, White took over by smashing Young back-first into the apron a few times. Back in the ring, Young reversed a throw and whipped White hard into the turnbuckle, but he tried to follow up and got dropped with a DDT and a Twisting Suplex. The momentum switched hands a few times after that as they kept staying one step ahead of the other.

At one point, it looked like Young would get the win after a Flying Elbow Smash, and later, White nearly won after a King Switch. Later, each of them tried for a Death Valley Driver on the apron but they both escaped with an eye rake. White couldn’t escape a Piledriver on the apron, though, and they both fell to the floor, barely re-entering before being counted out.

After a series of pinfall attempts, reversals, and counters, White was able to get behind Young and hit a Half-and-Half Suplex, which dazed Young. White followed that up with a Blade Runner and got the pin.

This was really good. To the point that my notes probably didn’t do it justice, because I got caught up simply enjoying watching it. I’ve never really watched much of Jay White’s stuff before, but if it’s all like this, then let’s have some more, please.

Winner: Jay White

Backstage, Ace Austin found Mike Bailey and asked if he would be his partner for the match against Something and Miguel on Thursday. At first, Bailey declined, but then Austin played some mind games and made him think that Something and Miguel disrespected him. So Bailey accepted.

 

Match 4: Deonna Purrazzo (c) vs. “Lucha Baddie” Miranda Alize – for the ROH Women’s Championship

Alize answered Purrazzo’s open challenge and chose to compete for the ROH title, as opposed to the AAA Reinas des Reinas title. Very early on, Alize tried for her Miranda Rights submission hold, which was right out of Purrazzo’s playbook. But then Purrazzo started her trademark dissection, working over Alize’s back and stretching her out in a Dragon type submission, and then pounded her with some kicks and hard shots.

Alize tried to fight back, putting Purrazzo in some jeopardy after a big Running Elbow and a huge Knee Smash, and then locked on the Miranda Rights Crossface, but Purrazzo escaped. Alize went to end things with a Senton Splash, but Purrazzo moved and Alize crashed hard. Purrazzo immediately swept in and locked on the Armbar to get the tapout.

Purrazzo is great, so maybe it was the level of competition that made this one good, but not up to her usual standards. There seemed to be some miscommunication at times, and it didn’t feel like the match story was as logical as is her norm.

Winner, and still ROH Women’s Champion: Deonna Purrazzo

Gia Miller interviewed the band Chapel Heart, who are friends with Mickie James, and sang the national anthem at the top of the show. Chelsea Green came in to give her best wishes to Mickie for her match. It wasn’t clear if she was being 100% sincere or not.

 

Match 5: Jordynne Grace vs. Matt Cardona (c) – Digital Media Championship

Grace nearly got the win early on after a big Vertical Suplex that showed off her strength advantage over Cardona. Cardona tried to leave and take the countout loss, but Grace went and threw him back in the ring. A scared Cardona then used the referee as a human shield and used the tactic to take a cheap shot that allowed him to take over.

The story of this one was that Cardona was super-aggressive and angry. He hit Grace with a lot of hard shots, including Suplexing hard into the turnbuckles. But Grace fired back with some hard shots of her own, including a big Sliding Lariat and a Spinebuster for a near fall. They exchanged big hits in the corner, including two Reboots by Cardona, for a close count. After getting rocked to the floor, Cardona was desperate and grabbed a chair, but Grace kicked it into his face before he could bring it into the ring. Grace tried to use it, but the ref stopped her. Cardona then picked it up and went to hit her with it, but Grace stopped him in his tracks with an instinctive kick to the groin. The ref had no choice but to disqualify her.

After the bell, a frustrated Grace blasted Cardona with the chair, and he skedaddled with his title.

This was good. Cardona finally brought some of his GCW heel personality to Impact and he’s so much better as a result. Seriously, it’s like he’s a completely different person than he has been since joining the company. Hopefully this sticks.

Winner, and still Digital Media Champion: Matt Cardona

Backstage, Gia Miller interviewed Tasha Steelz, who was accompanied by Savannah Evans. Steelz said that her pinning Mickie James on Thursday was simply a preview of what she would do tonight, but this time the pin would earn her the Knockouts Championship.

She was interrupted by someone screaming for help. The cameras ran over and saw a stagehand standing over Eddie Edwards who was knocked out.

 

Match 6: The Good Brothers (c) vs. the Guerillas of Destiny – for the Impact World Tag Team Championship

This match is somewhat of a coup for Impact, in that this is the first time these two teams have ever faced each other, and is considered by some to be a dream match.

This quickly became a brawl with the fight taking place in the ring and on the floor. When the ref finally restored some order, the intensity didn’t abate, with big shots exchanged all around. Finally, Gallows was able to slow things down with a nifty Pumphandle Powerslam on Tama Tonga. They beat him down for a while until he finally broke loose and got the tag to his brother Tanga Loa. Then it was G.O.D.’s turn to lay a beating down, this time on Anderson – but even that was relatively short-lived.

The match broke down after that, with all four men in the ring, hitting hard shots and trying for – and countering – finishers. Some more of that ensued, and while all four men recovered, Chris Bey – G.O.D.’s fellow Bullet Club member – ran down to the ring. G.O.D. were confused by his presence and questioned him. As he tried to explain himself to them and the referee, “Switchblade” Jay White slid into the ring. He surprisingly then sneak-attacked Tama Tonga with a Blade Runner.

That left him prone for a Magic Killer and an easy pin by the Good Brothers. After the match, the Good Brothers celebrated with Bey and White, and apparently rejoined the Bullet Club, replacing G.O.D. in the faction.

This was a really good match, and may actually have been the Good Brothers’ best one since their arrival in Impact. Like with the White match, this one was a good showcase for the Bullet Club stuff. Over the past few weeks, the company has done a good way to integrate all of those storylines into Impact, and this one continued in that vein.

Winners, and still Impact World Tag Team Champions: the Good Brothers

 

Match 7: Tasha Steelz (w/ Savannah Evans) vs. Mickie James (c) – for the Knockouts Championship

This one started off with some good technical exchanges, with Mickie controlling the pace. A Springboard Dropckick by Steelz that sent Mickie to the floor pumped up the challenger’s ego, but a Neckbreaker by Mickie on the floor knocked her back into reality. A dirty shot by Evans – running Mickie’s head into the ring post, sent Mickie into dreamland, though.
Steelz  punished her for a while, using kicks and ground-and-pound smashes to good effect. But a fired up Mickie used some dirty tactics of her own, kicking Steelz in the groin, which the commentators noted was legal in a Knockouts match. Mickie then looked to end things with a Super Seated Senton but Steelz kicked out. James turned her back on Steelz to dispatch Evans off the apron with a Mick Kick, but then got hit with a huge Superkick by Steelz, for two. Chelsea Green ran to the ring to stop Evans from interfering further. Mickie avoided colliding with Green on the apron, but inadvertently ran Steelz into her, knocking Green to the floor. Mickie was then able to get a bridging pinfall on Steelz for the successful title defense. After the match, Green was not upset by what happened, but rather was ecstatic that Mickie got the win.

This was fine, but the finish was a bit busy. It looks like they are building to Chelsea eventually snapping and turning on Mickie, which should be interesting.

Winner, and still Knockouts Champion: Mickie James

Backstage, Gia Miller interviewed Team Impact to find out what they were going to do now that Eddie Edwards was not cleared to wrestle after his attack. Rich Swann said he called his pal Willie Mack to replace him. Mack walked in, and they were good to go.

 

Match 8: W. Morrissey vs. Moose (c) – for the Impact World Championship

They started with a big hockey fight and then a series of colliding Clotheslines. As Morrissey got up, he got blasted with a violent Spear by Moose, and then another. But Moose couldn’t get the pin, as Morrissey rolled to the floor. They got back in the ring and Morrissey avoided a third, and then blasted Moose with a Running Boot to the Head and a huge Powerbomb. This time, it was Moose who rolled to the floor. What a great, intense start.

 

On the floor, the pendulum of violence swung back and forth. Morrissey whipped Moose into the ringside barricades. But Moose recovered and put Morrissey through a ringside table with a Uranage. Then Morrissey Powerbombed Moose on the apron.

In the ring, Moose reversed a Powerbomb attempt into a Hurancarana, and then smashed Morrissey in the corner. And then came a brutal chop exchange, and a Double Clothesline that sent them both head over heels. Moose then escaped another Powerbomb attempt and hit a Spear that would have ended things – but the referee noticed that Morrissey got his arm under the bottom rope and broke the count. Then Morrissey hit a Powerbomb, but it was Moose’s time to get his foot under the rope to break the count.

After that, Moose hit a Superplex, and when Morrissey finally struggled to get upright, Moose hit him with one more Spear, and that was enough to keep Morrissey down for good.

 

This was really good and action-packed, and in some ways it felt like they were trying for a WWE “epic” kind of match, with big guys hitting and kicking out of each other finishers, like Brock vs. Taker.

That said, two things could have been done better.

First, they weakened the presentation of that by having Brian Myers join the commentary team for the next match. He was terrible. This was an intense, violent battle and he diluted things with stupid jokey commentary. He pretty much sucks at everything, and this was no exception.

Second, if you’re going to have pinfalls broken up with rope breaks, visually it’s much more impressive – and obvious – if the person gets their hand or foot ON the rope instead of UNDER it. The consecutive rope breaks actually confused the fans in the audience, and it took them out of the action – instead of being excited by the close call, they got angry at the referee for screwing up. Keep it simple, stupid.

Winner, and still Impact World Champion: Moose

 

Match 9: Honor No More (Vincent, Matt Taven, PCO, Mike Bennett, and Kenny King) (w/ Maria) vs. Team Impact (Rich Swann, Rhino, Willie Mack, Chris Sabin, and Steve Maclin)

 

Winners: Honor No More

After the match, Eddie ripped the Impact patch off his gear and threw it away. He and his Honor No More brethren celebrated their win to close the show.

 

Impact No Surrender - February 19th, 2022
4.5

Alario Center - New Orleans, LA

This was a very strong show, with strong matches from top to bottom. In some cases, these were Impact career bests – see Matt Cardona and the Good Brothers. Though not everything about the production and presentation was perfect (looking at you and everything you do, Brian Myers), that didn’t take away from the overall quality of the show. Go out of your way to find this one if you didn’t get a chance to see it on Saturday.

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