Impact recap: The return of Santino’s cobra

Santino Marella is making his return to the wrestling ring for his first televised match in nine years at the Impact Rebellion PPV on April 16. Santino will be joined by Joe Hendry and Dango to compete in trios action against the Design. Santino is also bringing another friend with him. That’s right, it is the return of the cobra.

During the latest episode of Impact Wrestling, Hendry and Dango tagged against Angels and Callihan as a preview for Rebellion. Deaner and Kon were ringside to assist their Design mates. Callihan accidentally thumped Angels, and Deaner was livid. The Design are still working through trust issues on if Callihan is just playing them as a long con. Deaner pulled Callihan off the apron to shout at his minion. That left Angels hanging in the wind when looking for a tag. Hendry capitalized for a chokeslam to win.

After the match, the Design put the boots to Hendry and Dango. Santino ran out and quickly realized he was outnumbered. Santino’s stalling allowed his pals to clear the ring. Santino peppered Deaner with punches, then he turned his focus to Angels. Bing, bam, boom, the cobra struck! The classic bits never get old.

Let’s blitz through the rest of the results.

• Kenny King defeated Frankie Kazarian. Kaz secured the chickenwing submission, then a melee broke out between Team Dreamer and Team Bully. Brian Myers ran in as a distraction for Moose to surprise Kaz with a spear. King made the cover for victory. Backstage, Bully confirmed that Moose and Myers will be on his team along with King and Masha Slamovich. (Full details here.)

• Steve Maclin interrupted the Canadian national anthem to run his mouth about being the next Impact world champion. Maclin sassed the fans to claim not a single person in the building can beat him up. Enter Kushida for fisticuffs. Security was eventually able to separate the two with Kushida standing tall.
• Laredo Kid won the X-Division showcase. It was a four-way with Black Taurus, Lince Dorado, and Rich Swann. Laredo pinned Taurus off a Spanish Fly variation for victory. This was a meaningful moment, because it was Laredo’s return to Impact after suffering a serious injury in AAA.
• Rosemary and Jessicka revisited the coffin that swallowed Taya Valkyrie into the Undead Realm. Rosemary open the lid to enter her home, but the magic doorway was closed. Rosemary blamed black magic from the Coven.

• Taylor Wilde defeated Jessicka. When Jessicka was setting up to finish with a piledriver, KiLynn King hopped onto the apron as a distraction. Rosemary tried to spear her adversary, but King put her knee up to block. Jessicka released her grip to attack King. Wilde took advantage to plant Jessicka on a fisherman’s swinging neckbreaker to win.
• Alisha Edwards always loved Eddie Edwards. When he finally put the Honor No More stuff behind him, Alisha was back in his corner. The problem was that PCO wouldn’t allow Eddie to leave the past behind. Alisha did what any wife would do to help her husband. It is time for Eddie to finish this business in a casket match. Alisha and Eddie are ride and die. For PCO, it’s just die.

• PCO’s response to the Edwards couple was that he will not die. PCO is going to bury Eddie in the Last Rites match.

• Tasha Steelz defeated Gisele Shaw. Jai Vidal and Savannah Evans were ringside. Shaw targeted Steelz for a running knee against the ring steps. Steelz dodged, and Shaw collided into the steel. Inside the ring, Steelz dropkicked the injured knee and scored a roll-up to win.
• Mickie James announced that she is not medically cleared (due to a broken rib) to compete at Rebellion, so she will honor her word and relinquish Knockouts Championship. The new titleholder will be determined in a singles match between Jordynne Grace and Deonna Purrazzo. (Full details here.)

That episode hit the marks as the go-home to Rebellion. It kept all the feuds fresh with the twist from Bully, revisiting the Undead Realm story, clarifying Alisha Edwards’ motivation, the return of Santino’s cobra, and the dramatic promo from Mickie James to relinquish the Knockouts Championship. The show did its job to build interest for the PPV.

The Rebellion PPV broadcast starts at 8 pm ET on Sunday, April 16 streaming through Fite TV.

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