Josh Alexander’s contract expires

Overshadowing the No Surrender go home episode of IMPACT this week is all the drama surrounding Josh Alexander and his contract. Alexander took to Twitter on Valentine’s Day to announce that his IMPACT contract, along with his US work visa, had officially expired. The announcement prompted members of the roster and wrestling community to send words of encouragement to Josh and have called for IMPACT to get a deal done. The expiration of his visa means he cannot work in the US, which prompted him to pull out of dates with Terminus and AML this month.

https://twitter.com/Walking_Weapon/status/1493330986855284744?s=20&t=AJzpASnB17G0ofJ_mNdYiw

As best I can tell, this part of the story is 100% not a work. Alexander is not the type of guy to ruin his reputation with independent promotions over a storyline. I fully believe his contract and visa expired. I also believe that he and IMPACT will work out a deal and he will make a triumphant return. Storylines mixed with real-life situation make for great television, but you just hope he is not gone too long. On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer stated that the two sides were working on a deal. The last thing IMPACT needs is another top babyface leaving the company.

https://twitter.com/Walking_Weapon/status/1494718948717305857?s=20&t=AJzpASnB17G0ofJ_mNdYiw

IMPACT! on AXS TV: No Surrender go home review

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, The No Surrender go home episode of IMPACT was really good this week, while mostly being the opposite of last week. While last week’s episode focused on promos and stories, this week’s was very heavy on the in ring action and built nicely to No Surrender.

HITS

W. Morrissey looks bad ass signing a contract.
IMPACT tries their best to do something different with the trope of contract signings and they succeeded here. Morrissey didn’t show up at first. He waited for Moose to sign and then kicked his ass, chokeslammed him off the stage, and signed.

.@IMPACTWRESTLING World Champion @TheMooseNation just got Choke Slammed of the stage by @TheCaZXL!#IMPACTonAXSTV pic.twitter.com/CqOEyHbVDr

— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) February 18, 2022

Ace Austin prevails over Laredo Kid and Blake Christian.
Great performances by all, but Christian stood out. At one point Christian hit a fosbury flop into a double reverse DDT on both opponents. Austin got the victory and will head to No Surrender to try and become the top contender to the X-division title.

Bullet Club defeats Violent by Design.
Very good match to close the show. There were great sequences featuring Joe Doering, one of which included G.O.D. hitting a Magic Killer. G.O.D. got the 3D on Deaner followed by two splashes and a pin by Jay White.

Gisele Shaw shines with victory over Lady Frost.
It was an outstanding debut by Shaw. Seriously, why hasn’t she been featured on American TV already? Frost also looked great, hitting her amazing moonsault. Shaw got the win after a Spanish Fly followed by a corkscrew Vader bomb.

Spanish Fly!!!!!@GiseleShaw08 #IMPACTonAXSTV pic.twitter.com/kYOt3Hn5Qm

— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) February 18, 2022

Chris Sabin beats Kenny King.
It was a solid match between the Two X-Division greats. Eddie Edwards is looking real suspect this week. Watch for the turn this weekend.

Masha destroys.
Masha killed a poor local with a Burning Hammer followed by an Emerald Flowsion. If you don’t know the origins of those moves, stop reading now and watch this match between Kenta Kobashi and Misawa, then watch more of their matches.

.@mashaslamovich just destroyed @kiahdream!#IMPACTonAXSTV pic.twitter.com/34jSVfGmsi

— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) February 18, 2022

Misses:

Mickie James and Chelsea Green vs. Tasha Steelz and Savannah Evans was not great.
Tasha pinned Mickie, which means Mickie is very likely to retain her title this weekend. This whole thing looks like it’s headed towards Chelsea turning on Mickie and winning the title.

NEWS:

• Rachael Ellering is officially gone from IMPACT. She was removed from Hard to Kill after an ill-advised Tweet trashing IMPACT for not wishing her a happy birthday on Twitter, despite the fact that Gail Kim and many others did so through text. As it turns out, IMPACT’s social team had recently turned over, were new, and just missed it. Don’t publicly trash your employers folks or belittle low-level employees over simple mistakes.
• Fightful select is reporting that IMPACT’s May IMPACT Plus special, Under Siege, will take place in the Cincinnati area on May 7, followed by a television taping on May 8.
• Sean Ross Sapp stated on his Q & A podcast that there will be some returns and debuts this weekend. My prediction is Athena but Sapp said she has been in talks with AEW.
• Trey Miguel vs. John Skyler and Havoc vs. Tenille Dashwood has been added to the No Surrender pre-show.
• Moose and Mickie James will appear for Ohio Valley Wrestling on February 24 at the Davis Arena.

🗣️📣 BREAKING: @IMPACTWRESTLING
World Champion @TheMooseNation AND Knockouts World Champion @MickieJames WILL BE AT DAVIS ARENA LIVE NEXT THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24!

Get your tickets NOW at https://t.co/gNj5fdiLjY before they are sold out!#TheFutureIsNOW #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/UeFZNRa2uJ

— OVW Wrestling (@ovwrestling) February 19, 2022

Ratings

The February 3 episode of IMPACT! on AXS TV averaged 109,000 viewers with a 0.03 demo.  Viewership is down from last week’s 117,000 viewers, but the demo tied with a 0.03. The show ranked 131st in the Showbuzz Top 150.

New Japan on AXSTV averaged 76,000 viewers, which is up from last weeks 61,000, with a 0.02 demo, which is the same as last week.

IMPACT Ratings 2022

Brace for IMPACT, hosted by JD Oliva and myself, is part of the Fight Game Media Network free feed. You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify as well as find it wherever you listen to podcasts.

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