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IMPACT Wrestling's Slammiversary is in the history books and it was indeed a historical event from the company's perspective. The show was stacked with huge matches with a highly anticipated main event.
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Surprises, debuts and returns were sprinkled across the show to keep the intrigue high at all times. The show got off to a frantic start with a title change in the Slammiversary pre-show as Decay defeated Fire 'N Flava to become the IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Tag Team Champions. The opening match set the tone for the rest of the show with a frenetic Ultimate X match that gave Slammiversary the energetic start it needed and the crowd helped boost the match with incessant support.
The Good Brothers won the IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Championship while Chris Sabin and W. Morrissey scored big wins in their respective grudge matches.
Deonna Purrazzo defended her title against Thunder Rosa while a returning Chelsea Green emerged victorious alongside her fiance Matt Cardona.
The main event was as barbaric as they come, with Kenny Omega vanquishing Sami Callihan to retain the IMPACT Wrestling World Championship. Jay White then appeared as he stared down The Elite.
As good as Slammiversary was, there were a few things IMPACT Wrestling could have done differently. Let's take a look at a few things that should've been done differently at Slammiversary.
#5. The commentary during the Slammiversary pre-show match
Havok and Rosemary won the IMPACT Wrestling Knockouts Tag Team Championship beatng Fire 'N Flava in a fun tag team match at the Slammiversary pre-show.
However, commentators D'Lo Brown and Matt Striker spent a lot of time running down the Slammiversary card instead of calling the action which seemed unfair to the performers. It wasn't a throwaway match, but a title match with a story and history behind it. The focus should've been more on the tag team in the ring than them speculating the results of other matches.
#4. Chelsea Green's "surprise" return at Slammiversary wasn't really a surprise
Lauren van Ness aka Chelsea Green, has a strong past connection to IMPACT Wrestling. It is the company she made her name in. Fans were naturally excited to see her back in action during Slammiversary.
However, in the days leading up to Slammiversary, her return was heavily teased, with Scott D'Amore openly saying "hot mess" and the commentators speculating in a manner that was too obvious.
Not everything in pro-wrestling needs to be a tight secret, but at an event like Slammiversary where surprises are one of the biggest highlights, making Chelsea Green's return so blatant and still teasing Matt Cardona's partner as a surprise didn't make sense.
#3. Chris Sabin wins clean at Slammiversary
Chris Sabin is a veteran, a legend of IMPACT Wrestling and a first ballot Hall of Famer. Moose is coming off a world title loss to Kenny Omega in the last pay-per-view. It made very little sense for Sabin to go over Moose.
Chris Sabin had just returned from injury, so the story was readymade to explain his loss, had he lost. Moose lost a big PPV match in his last outing and could ill-afford another one at Slammiversary but that's exactly what happened. A win over an IMPACT Wrestling stalwart like Sabin would boost Moose's credibility even more than it already is. The loss has stunted his momentum and he needs to bounce back as soon as possible.
The fluky finish did nobody any favors as neither man looked particularly strong at the end of the match which is a pity as the match itself was so good. It was a confusing booking decision that IMPACT Wrestling will need to work on to build the Wrestling God back as the top guy in IMPACT Wrestling.
#2. No Way being the surprise partner for Fallah during the Slammiversary tag team four-way
No Way Jose or just No Way (as he was referred to on commentary) was Fallah's mystery partner at Slammiversary for the four-way match for the IMPACT Wrestling Tag Team Championship. The Good Brothers won the match, snatching the titles from Violent By Design to further establish The Elite's dominance over IMPACT Wrestling at Slammiversary.
It was surprising for sure, but underwhelming at the same time. No Way is decent in the ring and slightly charismatic, but that's where it ends. His character will probably never be one that receives a main event push. When he was introduced, everyone knew that the team was probably not winning.
A surprise for a championship match should be someone who can be believable as a potential winner to add an edge to the match. No Way never seemed remotely close to being the victor, however.
Sure, IMPACT Wrestling's roster needs depth and No Way can help on the undercard, but a mystery in a title match at Slammiversary deserved a bigger name, unfortunately.
#1. The ending of Slammiversary 2021
Sami Callihan and Kenny Omega went through hell to ensure the other never walked the same way again after Slammiversary. Blood was spilled, weapons were used, flesh was sliced open with kitchen tools as both men gave the fans a violent main event on Slammiversary.
A hellacious One-Winged Angel on a bed of thumbtacks finally finished off The Death Machine as The Elite and Don Callis celebrated in the middle of the ring to close out Slammiversary. But the night wasn't over yet. The lights went off and Kenny Omega's former faction Bullet Club flashed on the titantron.
'Switchblade' Jay White walked out, staring down the Elite and circling the ring. The Elite seemed to invite him to join them in performing the "Too Sweet" gesture as White entered the ring.
Two men were seen running up to the ring and that's when the feed was cut off and Slammiversary officially went off air. Fans had to look on social media for updates on how Slammiversary actually concluded.
IMPACT Wrestling presented an amazing show that was marred by an abrupt ending. Nobody knows if it was done deliberately or not, but fans deserved to see what happened as it will likely set up the biggest angle in IMPACT Wrestling as their relationship with NJPW continues. Fans were left with a bad taste in their mouth which is a shame considering how good Slammiversary was as a whole.
