Last week I began my mini-series of pieces reflecting on the year that was 2019 for Impact Wrestling by giving out my awards for the promotion’s best male wrestler, best character, best knockout and so on.
One category notable by its absence was ‘Match of the Year’, something that will be covered here as I count down my top 10 matches that the company produced over the last calendar year. Although 2019 was not as strong as 2018 was, there was still a lot of quality over the year.
Agree with my suggestions? Think I’ve completely missed something? Let me know on Twitter @AMSinclair97.
Honorable Mentions: Eddie Edwards vs Moose (Homecoming, January 6th), LAX vs The Lucha Brothers (Homecoming, January 6th), LAX vs The Lucha Brothers (Impact TV, February 8th), Taya Valkyrie vs Su Yung vs Havok vs Rosemary (Slammiversary XVII, July 7th), The North vs The Rascalz (Impact TV, August 2nd), Michael Elgin vs Naomichi Marufuji (Bound for Glory, October 20th), Brian Cage vs Sami Callihan (Bound for Glory, October 20th), Michael Elgin vs Fallah Bahh (Impact TV, November 5th).
10. Sami Callihan vs Tessa Blanchard (Slammiversary XVII, July 7)
While Dave Meltzer was considerably higher on this match than me, Callihan and Blanchard combined well to deliver a strong match in the Slammiversary XVII main event. It never overstayed its welcome and Callihan, who continues to thrive in Impact more than anywhere else, broke out of his traditional mold to work a fun back-and-forth that would have come a little higher without the referee shenanigans.
9. Rich Swann vs Johnny Impact (Slammiversary XVII, July 7)
Rich Swann was my Impact MVP for 2019, with his X-Division title run a particular highlight. This match was a high point in his reign, with the two producing a crisp, clean match that showed off Impact in his best light and allowed Swann to overcome the challenge to cement himself as the star of the division. Although it ended up being Johnny’s last match with the promotion before he went back to the WWE, he did a tremendous job here and gave real credibility to Swann as one of the promotion’s biggest stars.
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