11 Ups & 2 Downs From IMPACT Wrestling (14 Oct)

2. Just A Good Match

Chris Bey vs. Chris Sabin is hardly going to be a Down in the year 2021, but Christ, what a banger they had last night.

The wrestling itself was transcendent, the counters elegant, the spots polished. Nothing went noticeably wrong here. Sabin countering Bey's Art Of Finesse finish with a backslide was a spot we've seen from others in the past, but they executed it so meticulously that it would have served as a neat finish. Furthermore, Sabin avoiding Bey's top-rope splash, then rolling him up seems as basic a spot as you can imagine on paper, but in reality, the method of Sabin's rollup was tremendous. He neatly placed his ankle around Bey's hand to twist him over.

These sweet counters rolled into the ending sequence, too. Bey attempted a forward roll, was met by a Sabin enzuigiri, and ate a Cradle Shock for the win. It was such beautiful, crisp wrestling. Though the purpose of this rivalry is between FinJuice and Bullet Club - Sabin's merely a secondary character - this was a match worth booking. It ruled.

Props, too, to Brandon Tolle for removing FinJuice, Hikuleo, and El Phantasmo at the first chance, rather than waiting for it to break down further. Little details like that preserve a match's integrity.