Welcome to a special edition of POINTS OF IMPACT—a breakdown of the top moments of this year’s edition of TNA’s Victory Road special event.
This segment will fill you in on the most important parts of the show worth checking out or keeping up to date with, in case you didn’t watch it live.
Without further ado, let's inspect the biggest takeaways of the show!
TNA IMPACT WRESTLING: VICTORY ROAD 2024 RESULTS
#5 - Countdown to Excellence
TNA pre-shows are often hit and miss, but this time around, it was a definite hit. Kicking off the pre-show was the returning Leon Slater, who’s clearly bulked up a bit as of late, against Kushida. This was a fun sprint of a match, with the Timesplitter taking more risks than usual, such as a senton atomico off the top rope to the outside, in order to counter the superior speed and agility of the Youngest In Charge. The crowd were hot for this one all throughout, and it would end with an armbar off the top from Kushida for the submission win.
The other match on the preshow saw recent allies Steve Maclin and Eric Young, having earned each other’s respect after their match at Emergence, taking on the team of Jake Something and Hammerstone, two men who’ve had issues with Maclin and EY as of late. This was a shorter match than its predecessor, but was packed with action, with a brawl to start leading to Somethingstone grabbing the advantage, before Maclin turned it around. It looked like EY’s hot tag was going to seal the deal, but in the end, Into the Void by Something gave the heels the victory.
#4 - Not Bad At All
The Hardys in 2024 have been a mixed bag. But I can confidently say this is the most fun I’ve had watching them in a traditional tag match this year, with the duo taking on First Class, AJ Francis and KC Navarro. This wasn’t anything that reinvented the wheel, but to start off the show proper, was more than fun. Navarro is a great get for TNA, Francis plays his role well, and the Hardys really seem to be enjoying themselves, and still mixing it up, like with the Twist of Fate stunner into a neckbreaker they hit in the late stages of the match.
Sometimes however, you can rely on the classics, and the Twist of Fate/Swanton combo got the win for the brothers from North Carolina who, if their backstage promo is to be believed, have set their sights on the tag titles once more.
#3 - The Shackles Are Off
Getting to see Wendy Choo let loose in a TNA ring felt like such a refreshing experience. Long misused and cast into a role where her talents weren’t allowed to shine as much as they otherwise might have, the new dark direction of her character as of late has had a lot of potential, and wrestling on the card of a different company raised that potential a fair bit.
It was an entertaining match, with the family of Jordynne Grace even getting involved at one point to stop Choo cheating, but in the end, Choo would fall like all the rest at the feet of the Juggernaut.
#2 - Spitfire Doesn’t Misfire
In what was a do or die situation for the duo of Jody Threat and Dani Luna, they more than delivered. Agreeing to disband as a team if they lost this match, the pair challenged Masha Slamovich, and standing in for Alisha Edwards, Tasha Steelz. This felt like a nice culmination to the feud, to all the chemistry Spitfire have built, and they would, thankfully, walk away with the win and the tag titles once more.
More notable than the match, however, was what happened after, as Alisha Edwards would get in the ring, and start verbally running down Masha for losing the titles. This would swiftly be followed by Steelz nailing Masha with a sneak attack cutter, effectively ending the team of the Malisha, and setting up Steelz and Alisha as a team.
Masha and Alisha, if I’m honest, always felt more like a team of opportunity and circumstance than a team that liked each other. Let Masha escape from the tag scene for a while. Like Rosemary, it might be just what she needs to give her a jolt of momentum.
#1 - Anddddd It’s Gone
Speaking of momentum, one man’s hot streak came to an end at Victory Road, as the recently crowned X Division champion Zachary Wentz lost the title back to Speedball Mike Bailey. This being Bailey’s contractual rematch from losing the belt in Ultimate X, the two competitors were respectful but fierce in the action here, in what was undoubtedly the match of the night.
Everything was crisp, fluid and quite frankly brutal looking, such as Wentz’s headlock driver. No time was wasted, no filler detected, just the embodiment of the X Division on display. Effort, passion and determination to steal the show. Not only did Bailey steal the show, he stole the title back, cutting off Wentz’s reign at two weeks.
What did you think of this year’s edition of Victory Road?
Do you think any other moments stood out on this show?
Drop your thoughts in the comments below!
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