Impact Wrestling Results: Winners, Grades, Reactions and Highlights from September 29

Bound For Glory is Impact Wrestling's most prestigious pay-per-view of the year, and the company continued its build to the October 7 extravaganza Thursday night.

Ahead of her defense of the Knockouts Championship, Jordynne Grace hand-picked No. 1 contender Masha Slamovich's opponent in this week's main event, a Monster's Ball match against Game Changer Wrestling's Allie Katch.

That contest headlined a broadcast that featured quality tag team action and the latest in all of Impact's top storylines.

Juice Robinson accompanied Bullet Club teammates Ace Austin and Chris Bey to the squared circle for the night's opener, an X-Division tag team match against Trey Miguel and Laredo Kid.

The heel tandem dominated the action, thanks to their ability to isolate Laredo Kid from his partner. A tag to the former Rascal late allowed for a babyface comeback that put Bullet Club on the defensive.

Austin kept the heels' hopes alive long enough for Bey to recover from a late onslaught and deliver the Art of the Finesse, before adding The Fold for the pinfall on Miguel.

There is rarely a time when booking these four guys in the opening match and letting them set the tone for the rest of the show is a great choice, especially when they are one of the few matches on the card with no real impact to speak of on the upcoming PPV card.

The right team went over here as Bullet Club are a considerably bigger deal than the makeshift tandem of Miguel and Laredo Kid, who exist as a twosome simply because there is nothing else better for them to do.

One can only hope, for the underrated Miguel's case, it's a trend that ends soon.

Result

Austin and Bey defeated Miguel and Laredo Kid

Grade

B

Top Moments

• "If you don't throw it up, Ace Austin will suplex you. So sayeth the Rehwoldt," commentator Matthew Rehwoldt joked, drawing laughter from broadcast partner Tom Hannifan.
• Backstage, Frankie Kazarian cut a solid promo on "Speedball" Mike Bailey, who he will challenge for the X-Division Championship at Bound For Glory.

Brian Myers successfully retained his Digital Media Championship against Bhupinder Gujjar in a ladder match two weeks ago, but he faced a challenger of a different breed Thursday in Decay's Crazzy Steve.

Despite a tough challenge from Steve, Myers was able to capitalize on an out-of-place official to deliver a thumb to the eye and the Roster Cut for the pinfall victory.

Myers has thrived in his role as digital media champion and is a more-than-adequate midcard titleholder. His post-match challenge to the wrestling world suggests the Forbidden Door will again open come Bound For Glory, with a star from a different promotion likely to accept.

Whether that competitor or someone homegrown, such as Gujjar, should dethrone The Most Professional Wrestler remains to be seen.

Result

Myers defeated Steve

Grade

C

Top Moments

• "Using a steel chair is illegal, but cannibalism is perfectly fine here in Impact Wrestling," Rehwoldt said in response to Steve biting the champion.
• "In about three months, I've taken this title and turned it into the most coveted championship in all of Impact Wrestling," Myers said after the match, moments before issuing an open challenge for a shot at the gold at Bound For Glory.

Former Ring of Honor star and booker Delirious battled Decay's Black Taurus, who entered Thursday's match riding a considerable amount of momentum following recent breakout performances.

A competitive bout turned on Delirious' ability to change direction and alter the pace, keeping his larger opponent off-guard.

Taurus weathered that storm, though, and downed his opponent with Destination Hellhole (still the best name in the business) and for the pinfall victory.

This was a perfectly acceptable pro wrestling match between two veteran competitors currently going nowhere. Delirious is not even signed to Impact while Taurus continues to have banger after banger (*tips hat to Sheamus*) but moves neither up nor down the card.

Taking that into consideration, the effort was there and the result was entertaining enough, but it is difficult to get past the utter meaninglessness of the contest.

Result

Taurus defeated Delirious

Grade

C+

Top Moments

• Delirious delivered 10 consecutive leg drops to Taurus.
• Gia Miller interviewed new Impact signing Bobby Fish, who laid down a challenge to world champion Josh Alexander and expressed his intention to enter the Call Your Shot Battle Royal at Bound For Glory.
• Mia Yim cut a promo on her upcoming bout with Mickie James, complete with video from their first encounter way back when in Maryland Championship Wrestling. Gisele Shaw interrupted and set up a match with Yim for next week.

Honor No More's Eddie Edwards, Impact tag team champions Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, Maria Kanellis, Vincent and PCO hit the ring for a Victory Road Victory Celebration.

Taven, Bennett and Kanellis took their turns propping Edwards up ahead of his Impact World Championship match against Josh Alexander.

The Walking Weapon interrupted and answered Edwards' claim that the numbers game was in Honor No More's favor, especially considering the lack of backup behind Alexander, by saying he had the fans on his side.

The verbal back-and-forth devolved until the heels beat down Alexander. Rich Swann, Heath and The Motor City Machine Guns made the save to even things up a bit.

The segment was decent enough and set up what will be a massive tag match prior to Bound For Glory, but it also felt like filler designed specifically to get the stars on television without really advancing the storyline in any significant way.

That's not always a bad thing, but wasting time feels like a misstep this close to a PPV.

Grade

C

Top Moments

• Edwards turned his scorn on PCO in his continuing crusade to boot The French Canadian Frankenstein from Honor No More.
• Bennett correctly pointed out Edwards is the first star to pin Alexander since Moose did it a year ago at Bound For Glory.
• Kanellis referred to Edwards as a better wrestler than Alexander based on his victory, then produced a video package recapping (repeatedly) his victory over The Walking Weapon. 
• "You see this title as job security. I see this Impact World Championship for what it really is: This signifies that whoever holds it is the best wrestler on earth," Alexander said to Edwards, downplaying the imaginary war the leader of Honor No More has touted since his heel turn.

On the heels of Edwards criticizing PCO for repeatedly failing Honor No More, the fact that he and Vincent lost to Rich Swann and Heath in tag team action moments later will not help matters.

A fun, if unspectacular, match, it highlighted the four competitors involved while furthering an ongoing storyline. It also gave Swann a much-needed win, something that has been rare since his reign as world champion came to an end over a year ago.

He and Heath will join the Call Your Shot Gauntlet match for a shot at whatever championship they see fit.

Result

Swann and Heath defeated PCO and Vincent

Grade

C+

Top Moments

• Backstage, a confrontation between Moose and Steve Cutler gave way to Scott D'Amore announcing a match between them, with Sami Callihan as guest referee. 

Game Changer Wrestling's Allie Katch battled top contender to the Knockouts Championship, the unbeaten Masha Slamovich, in a Monster's Ball match in the main event of Thursday's show.

A chaotic, violent brawl intensified with every passing minute, appearing to climax with Katch delivering a spike piledriver to Slamovich onto a pile of thumbtacks.

The unfazed Slamovich kicked out and appeared to be fueled by the pain, mounting one last offensive that saw her deliver the Snow Plow into the thumbtacks for the win.

There will be some who criticize this sort of match, and a brawl such as this is never going to fly for them. That is understandable. Maybe the hardcore stuff isn't their thing. From a storytelling perspective, though, this made perfect sense.

Unlike other promotions on weekly television, this wasn't a violent cluster or chaotic brawl for the sake of having one or to pop a rating. At Victory Road, Slamovich set Jordynne Grace up in a match with Max the Impaler in hopes of weakening the Knockouts champion and test her toughness along the way.

Grace survived that battle of attrition and did Slamovich one better, booking her to fight one of the toughest women in the industry. This wasn't a thoughtless brawl or a gimmicky main event. It made total sense within the context of the story, and it worked in that regard.

As a match, it was also a great brawl that upped the violence as it went, rather than blowing it all early. Each spot meant more, climaxing with the finish.

An expertly laid-out hardcore fight, it proved Slamovich's toughness and exposed the great Katch to a potentially new audience. A win-win for Impact.

Result

Slamovich defeated Katch

Grade

A

Top Moments

• Katch and Slamovich approached the match with smirks, hinting at the depravity of the competitors involved.
• Slamovich dug into Katch's mouth with a street sign, which Rehwoldt rightly pointed out are often sharper than you think.
• Katch smashed away at the forehead of Slamovich using a torn soda can, as both women sported crimson masks to varying degrees. 
• Slamovich delivered a Death Valley Driver into a steel chair, but Katch kicked out. She answered with a DVD of her own through a door, but the seemingly unstoppable heel escaped at two.
• Both competitors crashed through a table following a Russian leg sweep off the ring apron.