IMPACT! WRESTLING HARD TO KILL 2023 FULL PREVIEW
TONIGHT at 8pm ET, IMPACT Wrestling kicks off 2023 in a big way with its next must-see pay-per-view extravaganza, Hard To Kill LIVE from Center Stage in Atlanta! Tickets for this event are SOLD OUT.
At Bound For Glory, Bully Ray made his shocking return to win the coveted Call Your Shot Gauntlet and earn himself a title opportunity of his choosing, any time, any place. But unfortunately for Bully, his past came back to haunt him as the IMPACT locker room showed their distrust for the wrestling legend. Everywhere IMPACT World Champion Josh Alexander went, he had friends – and enemies – warning him to watch his back. Following Alexander’s hard-fought victory over Frankie Kazarian at Over Drive, Bully made good on his promise and “called his shot” honorably for an IMPACT World Title match at Hard To Kill. But the sportsmanship ended there as Bully brutally assaulted the “Walking Weapon” and threatened to attack his wife just moments later. As one of the longest reigning IMPACT World Champions of all time, Josh Alexander has certainly proven that he is “Hard To Kill” but at IMPACT’s first pay-per-view of the new year, he will face his toughest test to date. Will Alexander remain at the top of the mountain? Or will Bully Ray usher in a new era and become IMPACT World Champion for the third time? One thing is for certain, hell will be unleashed in what is now a deeply personal showdown. Following Bully Ray’s violent attack on his former friend Tommy Dreamer, which included the use of a ladder and a steel chair, this bout will now be contested under Full Metal Mayhem rules. Tables, ladders, chairs and chains, if it’s metal, it’s legal at Hard To Kill!
For Jordynne Grace and Mickie James, the stakes have never been higher. Following her successful Knockouts World Title defense over Masha Slamovich in a grueling Last Knockout Standing match, Grace has turned her attention towards the legendary Mickie James. For months, James has been working her way through the ranks of the Knockouts Division, in what she called The Last Rodeo. With her career on the line, every match was must-win for “Hardcore Country”. And after her victory over longtime rival Deonna Purrazzo, James was confronted by the reigning Knockouts World Champion who deemed that she had successfully worked her way back to the top. Now two of the greatest Knockouts in IMPACT history are set to collide with both the Knockouts World Title and James’ career at stake – and something has got to give. Grace vs James, Title vs Career – it all goes down at Hard To Kill.
After Honor No More was driven out of IMPACT Wrestling, Eddie Edwards vowed to put his past behind him in an attempt to repair his relationship with his wife, Alisha. But Edwards would soon learn that doing so is no easy task. Following a victory over Delirious, Edwards showed his true colors when he attacked the deranged one after the bell. As Edwards continued the assault, he was haunted by another ghost from his past, the returning Jonathan Gresham. Earlier this year during the early stages of Honor No More’s dominance, Edwards was set for a match with “The Octopus” that never came to fruition. Now Edwards must pay for his sins as the two will finally do battle nine months later at Hard To Kill!
The IMPACT Wrestling tag team division has been red hot as of late, with several teams jockeying for its top prize. After the Motor City Machine Guns defeated Heath and Rhino to become the new IMPACT World Tag Team Champions, a match where the Major Players were banned from ringside, Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley laid the groundwork for an epic 4-Way Elimination match. In hopes of determining who the best tag team in IMPACT Wrestling truly is, the Motor City Machine Guns will now defend their IMPACT World Tag Team Titles against former champions Heath and Rhino, the Major Players and the Bullet Club duo of Ace Austin and Chris Bey, who had an impressive showing in this year’s NJPW Super Jr Tag League. Four teams will enter but only one will be left standing in Atlanta!
The Digital Media Title will be up for grabs when Joe Hendry defends against Moose at Hard To Kill. In a unique turn of events, it was the reigning champion Hendry who laid out the challenge for this championship showdown. The two have been at odds for weeks, ever since Moose “said his name” on an early December edition of IMPACT. Hendry has been on a roll as of late, bringing a new level of prestige to the Digital Media Championship. But now he must face his toughest test, a former IMPACT World Champion in Moose. Brace yourself for this collision between two of the heaviest hitters on the IMPACT roster!
Who will be next in line for a shot at the coveted Knockouts World Title? That question will be answered when four of pro wrestling’s top athletes collide in Atlanta, including two former Knockouts World Champions. Masha Slamovich, Deonna Purrazzo, Taylor Wilde and Killer Kelly are set to compete with a golden opportunity up for grabs but only one can call themselves the #1 Contender. We know what Masha Slamovich is capable of after she took reigning Knockouts World Champion Jordynne Grace to the limit in not one but two grueling contests. Then there’s Deonna Purrazzo who has previously held the Knockouts World Title for an astonishing 441 days. A former Knockouts World Champion in her own right, Taylor Wilde has completely reinvented herself as of late and this new-found aggression may be the key to putting gold around her waist once again. In a late addition to the match, the stunning and lethal Killer Kelly competes for the first time since November with title aspirations on her mind.
Trey Miguel has a new attitude, and that attitude is what may have won him the X-Division Championship. It was the finals of the X-Division Title Tournament where Miguel blinded Black Taurus with spray paint to steal the victory and the X-Division Title. In the weeks to follow, Miguel would not only continue to deface his opponents, but also the X-Division Title itself. Now Miguel must back up his actions when the raging bull, Taurus, challenges him in a rematch at Hard To Kill. Will Miguel escape with the victory or will Taurus restore the X-Division Title to its former glory?
For weeks, Steve Maclin has been on a violent rampage as he continues to demand what he believes he is rightfully owed – a coveted IMPACT World Title opportunity. After taking out Frankie Kazarian with a brutal steel chair assault, former IMPACT World Champion Rich Swann vowed to teach Maclin a lesson in respect. Tensions between the two top contenders exploded, leading to their match ending in a double countout. Recently on IMPACT!, Swann challenged Maclin to a rematch but this time, there will be no disqualifications and falls will count anywhere in Atlanta. With both of their sights set on becoming IMPACT World Champion, who will reign supreme in what will surely be a wild brawl at Hard To Kill?
Before IMPACT Wrestling’s first pay-per-view extravaganza of 2023, the action begins on Countdown to Hard To Kill streaming LIVE & FREE TONIGHT at 7:30pm ET on IMPACT Plus and YouTube. Preview the night’s huge event and witness exclusive matchups you won’t see anywhere else!
The Death Dollz have been on a roll since winning the Knockouts World Tag Team Titles at Bound For Glory. Boasting impressive victories over VXT, Tasha Steelz and Savannah Evans and even the unlikely duo of Deonna Purrazzo and Gisele Shaw, the Death Dollz have found their stride at the top of the Knockouts tag team division. But now, three of their adversaries are out for revenge as Tasha Steelz, Savannah Evans and Gisele Shaw join forces for six-Knockout tag team action on Countdown to Hard To Kill. Will the Death Dollz continue their winning way? Or will Steelz, Evans and Shaw put the reigning champs on notice?
Six is the magic number on Countdown to Hard To Kill as Angels, Yuya Uemura, Mike Jackson, Bhupinder Gujjar, Mike Bailey and KUSHIDA collide in an X-Division free-for-all. With the X-Division Title to be decided later in the night between reigning champion Trey Miguel and #1 Contender Black Taurus, a victory for any of these top X-Division athletes will surely move them one step closer towards a golden opportunity. Meanwhile, Mike Jackson and KUSHIDA will be making their respective returns to IMPACT on this special night.
SOURCE: IMPACT Wrestling
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