Slammiversary (2020)

Slammiversary 2020[1] was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by Impact Wrestling. It took place on July 18, 2020 at the Skyway Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. It was the sixteenth event under the Slammiversary chronology.

Slammiversary (2020)
PromotionImpact Wrestling
DateJuly 18, 2020
CityNashville, Tennessee
VenueSkyway Studios
Attendance0 (behind closed doors)[Note 1]
Pay-per-view chronology
← Previous
Hard To Kill		 Next →
Bound for Glory
Slammiversary chronology
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XVII		 Next →
—

Seven matches were contested at the event. In the main event, Eddie Edwards defeated Ace Austin, Trey, Rich Swann, and Eric Young (the last two being unannounced participants) in a fatal five way elimination match to win the vacant Impact World Championship. In other prominent matches, Chris Bey defeated Willie Mack to win the Impact X Division Championship and Deonna Purrazzo defeated Jordynne Grace by submission to capture the Impact Knockouts Championship.

Production

Background
Other on-screen personnel
Commentator Josh Mathews
Don Callis
Ring announcer David Penzer
Referee Brandon Tolle
Daniel Spencer
Interviewers Gia Miller

On the June 2, 2020 episode of Impact!, it was announced that Slammiversary would take place on July 18, 2020. It took take place at Skyway Studios in Nashville, Tennessee, where all Impact! tapings have been recorded since Rebellion due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[2]

Storylines

The event will feature professional wrestling matches that involves different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storylines. Wrestlers portrayed villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that build tension and culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches.[3]

At night two of Rebellion 2020, Tessa Blanchard was due to defend the Impact World Championship against Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards in a three-way intergender match. However, due to Blanchard and Edwards being stuck in lockdowns in Mexico and Massachusetts respectively as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the match was unable to take place, and Elgin faced Moose and Hernandez in a three-way match instead, which Moose won.[4] On May 5 episode of Impact!, it was announced that an eight-man tournament would take place to determine the number one contender for the Impact World Championship.[5] Ace Austin won the tournament during the June 2 episode of Impact! after defeating Wentz, who stood in for Trey after he was attacked before the match, in the tournament final.[6] However, on the following week's episode, it was announced that Blanchard would defend her title against Elgin, Edwards, Austin and Trey in a five-way intergender match at Slammiversary.[7]

On June 22, 2020, Impact Wrestling released a statement announcing that alongside the termination of Dave Crist and Joey Ryan's contracts with the promotion, that Elgin had been suspended indefinitely pending a further investigation into allegations of sexual assault made against him.[8] On June 26, Impact released a second statement announcing that Elgin had also had his contract terminated with the promotion as a result of the allegations.[9] Twenty-four hours earlier, Impact released yet another statement announcing that it had also terminated Blanchard's contract with the promotion and stripped her of the Impact World Championship, ending her reign as world champion at 165 days and also removing her from the match.[10] On the June 30 edition of Impact!, it was announced that Austin, Edwards, Trey, and a mystery opponent will face each other in a four-way match for the vacant title at Slammiversary.[11]

On the June 9 edition of Impact!, Deonna Purrazzo made her return to the company, attacking Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace after Grace successfully defended the championship against Taya Valkyrie.[12] The following week, Purrazzo interrupted Grace's backstage interview and once again attacked her. On June 23 episode of Impact!, it was announced that Grace would defend the championship against Purrazzo at Slammiversary.[13]

On Night 1 of Rebellion 2020, Willie Mack defeated Ace Austin to win the X Division Championship, whereas the following week on Night 2, rising star Chris Bey won an X Division Four-way Match involving Rohit Raju, Suicide, and Trey. After the match, Bey went backstage to state that he deserves to be the #1 Contender to the X Division Championship; a match he would get on the May 5 edition of Impact! in a triple threat match also involving Austin, but Mack retained the belt.[14] Two weeks later on May 19th, Mack retained the title by defeating Johnny Swinger,[15] after Swinger was told by Bey the previous week that Mack was saying things behind his back.[16] However, after the match, Bey came out and assisted Swinger in a beatdown of Mack. The two eventually formed a team, that Swinger calls "The Finesse and Bench Press Express"; though it's mostly as a way to get Bey to another X Division Title shot. On the June 23 edition of Impact!, Bey, Swinger, and Raju defeated Mack and The Deaners (Cody and Cousin Jake) in a six-man tag team match, with Bey pinning Mack. Two days later, Impact announced that Mack will defend the X Division Championship against Bey at Slammiversary, with Swinger banned from ringside.[17]

On June 29, Impact Wrestling announced a Knockouts gauntlet match for Slammiversary, with the winner becoming the #1 Contender to the Knockouts Championship. Rosemary, Nevaeh, Susie, Kiera Hogan, Taya Valkyrie, Tasha Steelz, Alisha Edwards, Kylie Rae, Kimber Lee and Havok were announced to compete in the match.[18] On the July 7 edition of Impact!, former TNA Knockouts Champion Madison Rayne announced during an episode of her chat show, "Locker Room Talk", that she would be returning to the ring to also compete in the gauntlet match.[19]

On the March 17 edition of Impact!, Sami Callihan returned to IMPACT Wrestling as the mysterious ICU hacker, and launched a fireball into the face of Impact Hall of Fame-designate Ken Shamrock.[20] The feud would culminate at Rebellion 2020 Night 1 in an Unsanctioned match, where Shamrock submitted Callihan to an ankle lock. Several weeks later on May 12, Shamrock appeared on "Locker Room Talk" with Madison Rayne and Johnny Swinger, only to be attacked by Michael Elgin, taking him out of the World Championship #1 Contender's Tournament;[21] whereas the following week, Elgin defeated a noticeably limping Callihan in the first round.[22] The two kept their issues with Elgin going, from Sami distracting him in his semi final tournament match with Trey,[23] to an in-ring promo between Elgin and Shamrock,[24] and a Three-Way match won by Elgin.[25] On those same weeks, The North (Josh Alexander and Ethan Page) had defended the World Tag Team Championships in Canada against questionable challengers, including against Cody Deaner and Wheels Deaner at the Deaner Compound.[26] They eventually returned on the June 16 Impact! to defeat The Rascalz (Dez and Wentz) in a title match.[27] Unfortunately, no one was watching backstage, and were instead watching Ken Shamrock's Greatest Hits on Impact Plus. The next week, Page went on about people watching Shamrock instead of them, leading to Shamrock challenging Alexander to a match that night. However, The North would attack Shamrock before he even got in the ring.[28] The following week, The North came to address their assault, only for Shamrock to come out looking for a fight. He was eventually joined by Sami Callihan, fighting off The North alongside his rival before disappearing into the night.[29] EVP Scott D'Amore, looking to appease to an irate Ethan Page, scheduled a tag team title match between The North and the team of Shamrock and Callihan for Slammiversary.[30]

At Night 2 of Rebellion 2020, Moose interrupted Michael Elgin while wearing the old TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Defeating Elgin and Hernandez in Three-Way match, Moose would proclaim himself TNA World Heavyweight Champion, doing everything to make sure everyone knows it; from pulling out of the Impact World Championship #1 Contender's Tournament,[31] to defending the title against TNA Originals. He defended it against Hernandez,[32] Suicide twice,[33][34] and Crazzy Steve.[35] After the match with Steve, Tommy Dreamer came down to check on the injured challenger, but Moose kicked Dreamer in the side of the head and pummeled him with strikes. Once Dreamer recovered from the assault, he cut a promo on Moose saying that while he has the natural God-given talent of a professional athlete, but lacks the passion and drive for his profession. He went on to say that he created a tile for himself because he couldn't win any, despite Moose winning the now-defunct Impact Grand Championship two times, said that he'll be a footnote in both the National Football League and professional wrestling; all before capping it off by stating Moose was a "waste of talent". Moose took exception to what Dreamer said, stating that the remarks he made were slanderous and defamation of his character; threatening to sue him and the company unless he is given an apology.[36] The next week, Dreamer formally gave Moose a written apology, albeit wth some backhanded remarks that poke at Moose's delusional behavior. Moose would interrupt him, but then Dreamer said that the "TNA Championship Committee" proclaimed him #1 Contender to the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, and after the confrontation, Impact announced that Dreamer and Moose will face each other for the TNA World Heavyweight title at Slammiversary in an Old School Rules match.[37]

On April 16, WWE announced that several of their talent, both on-air and recruits, as well as much backstage personnel, were released from their contracts. [38] On June 1st, IMPACT Wrestling released a video on their YouTube channel to promote Slammiversary, featuring a hooded figure drinking and watching the news being broken about said people being released while flashing images of both former IMPACT and WWE wrestlers, teasing the returns of some of them, including at least one former World Champion.[39] Many names were teased, including the reunion of Team Canada with Michael Elgin, Heath Slater,[40] D'Lo Brown reuniting Aces & Eights,[41] Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson, and Super Eric. At the end of the July 7 edition of Impact!, it was revealed that the former World Champion won't be alone, before ending the vignette with three hands grabbing glasses of alcohol.[42]

On July 18, 2020, Gallows and Anderson announced that they had signed two-year contracts with Impact Wrestling and would be appearing at Slammiversary.[43]

Results
No. Results Stipulations Times[44]
1 The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) defeated The Rascalz (Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz) Tag team match[45] 14:17
2 Moose (c) defeated Tommy Dreamer Old School Rules match for the unsanctioned TNA World Heavyweight Championship[46] 11:18
3 Kylie Rae won by last eliminating Taya Valkyrie[Note 2] Gauntlet for the Gold match to determine the #1 contender for the Impact Knockouts Championship[47] 19:20
4 Chris Bey defeated Willie Mack (c) Singles match for the Impact X Division Championship[48] 10:01
5 The North (Ethan Page and Josh Alexander) (c) defeated Ken Shamrock and Sami Callihan Tag team match for the Impact Tag Team Championship[49] 15:56
6 Deonna Purrazzo defeated Jordynne Grace (c) by submission Singles match for the Impact Knockouts Championship[50] 15:12
7 Eddie Edwards defeated Ace Austin, Eric Young, Rich Swann and Trey Five-way elimination match for the vacant Impact World Championship 24:25
  • (c) – refers to the champion(s) heading into the match

Notes
  1. The event was held without a paying audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.
  2. The other participants were: Alisha Edwards, Havok, John E. Bravo (who entered twice dressed as Taya Valkyrie and Rosemary in order of appearance), Katie Forbes, Kiera Hogan, Kimber Lee, Nevaeh, Madison Rayne, Rosemary, Susie, and Tasha Steelz
gollark: It compiled with no warnings so it must be good and very safe and fun.
gollark: In some sense, it works.
gollark: osmarkslibc™ `malloc`:```c#include <stdint.h>#include <stddef.h>static uintptr_t MEMPOS = 1;void* malloc(size_t size) { uintptr_t bees = MEMPOS; MEMPOS += size; return (void*)bees;}void free(void* ptr) { *(char**)ptr = "hello please do not use this address";}```
gollark: I hope you were not malloced using my implementation.
gollark: ++delete all operating system development

See also

References
  1. https://www.fite.tv/watch/slammiversary-2020/2p7le/
  2. "Impact Announces Slammiversary 2020, Released WWE Talent Teased". Wrestling Observer. 2 June 2020.
  3. Grabianowski, Ed. "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks, Inc. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on 2013-11-18. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
  4. Powell, Jason (April 28, 2020). "4/28 Impact Wrestling TV Results: Moore's live review of Rebellion Night Two featuring the Impact World Championship update, Rosemary vs. Havok in a Full Metal Mayhem match, X Division four-way, Cousin Jake vs. Joseph P Ryan". Pro Wreslting Dot Net. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
  5. "IMPACT! On AXS TV Results - May 5, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 5 May 2020.
  6. "IMPACT! On AXS TV Results - June 2, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 2 June 2020.
  7. "IMPACT On AXS TV Results: June 9, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 9 June 2020.
  8. "Statement from IMPACT Wrestling". Impact Wrestling. 22 June 2020.
  9. "Statement from IMPACT Wrestling". Impact Wrestling. 26 June 2020.
  10. "Statement From IMPACT Wrestling". Impact Wrestling. 25 June 2020.
  11. "The IMPACT World Championship has been declared vacant but a new champion will be crowned on July 18th at #Slammiversary! It will be @TheEddieEdwards vs. @TheTreyMiguel vs. @The_Ace_Austin vs. a mystery opponent for the IMPACT World Championship. #IMPACTonAXSTV". Impact Wrestling on Twitter. 30 June 2020.
  12. "IMPACT on AXS TV Results: June 9 2020". Impact Wrestling. 9 June 2020.
  13. "BREAKING: @DeonnaPurrazzo will challenge @JordynneGrace for the Knockouts Championship on July 18th at #Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling on Twitter. 23 June 2020.
  14. "IMPACT! On AXS TV Results - May 5, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 5 May 2020.
  15. "IMPACT! On AXS TV Results - May 19, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 12 May 2020.
  16. "IMPACT! On AXS TV Results - May 12, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 12 May 2020.
  17. "Chris Bey Earns X Division Title Opportunity at Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. 25 June 2020.
  18. "#1 Contender Knockout Gauntlet Official for Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. 29 June 2020.
  19. "IMPACT on AXS TV results - July 7, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 7 July 2020.
  20. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - March 17, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 18 March 2020.
  21. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 12, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 12 May 2020.
  22. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 19, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 19 May 2020.
  23. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 26, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 26 May 2020.
  24. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 2, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 2 June 2020.
  25. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 9, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 2 June 2020.
  26. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 26, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 26 May 2020.
  27. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 16, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 16 June 2020.
  28. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 23, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 23 June 2020.
  29. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 30, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 30 June 2020.
  30. "Two Huge Championship Matches Added to Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. 30 June 2020.
  31. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 5, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 5 May 2020.
  32. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 16, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 16 June 2020.
  33. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 12, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 12 May 2020.
  34. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - May 19, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 19 May 2020.
  35. "IMPACT! on AXS TV Results - June 30, 2020". Impact Wrestling. 30 June 2020.
  36. "Good Brothers Coming to IMPACT? Moose Suing the Company? Super Eric?". Impact Wrestling. 1 July 2020.
  37. "Moose & Dreamer Clash for TNA World Heavyweight Championship". Impact Wrestling. 7 July 2020.
  38. "Full List Of WWE Talent Released, Background Information On Each". Douglas Canavin. 16 April 2020.
  39. "Chris Jericho Donates To George Floyd Fund, Tessa Blanchard Segment Nixed, Slammiversary Promo Note". Raj Giri. 3 June 2020.
  40. "Who Called Michael Elgin? Who Attacked Trey? Rhino's Partner Has Kids?". IMPACT Wretling. 10 June 2020.
  41. "Aces & Eights Returning? Chris Bey #1 Contender? Moose Going Crazzy?". IMPACT Wretling. 24 June 2020.
  42. "Legends Collide, A Violent Brawl & More". IMPACT Wretling. 8 July 2020.
  43. "BREAKING: The Good Brothers have SIGNED with IMPACT Wrestling and they're going to be LIVE on PPV at #Slammiversary! @The_BigLG @MachineGunKA". Twitter.
  44. Moore, John (July 18, 2020). "7/18 Impact Wrestling Slammiversary results: Moore's live review of Ace Austin vs. Eddie Edwards vs. Trey Miguel vs. a mystery person for the vacant Impact World Championship, Jordynne Grace vs. Deonna Purrazzo for the Knockouts Championship, The North vs. Ken Shamrock and Sami Callihan for the Impact Tag Titles, Willie Mack vs. Chris Bey for the X Division Title". Pro Wreslting Dot Net. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  45. "Rascalz Open Challenge For Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. July 16, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  46. "Moose & Dreamer Clash for TNA World Heavyweight Championship". Impact Wrestling. June 7, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
  47. "#1 Contender Knockouts Gauntlet Official for Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  48. "Chris Bey Earns X-Division Title Opportunity at Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  49. "Two Huge Championship Matches Added to Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  50. "Purrazzo Challenges Grace for Knockouts Title at Slammiversary". Impact Wrestling. June 23, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
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