4 Ups & 5 Downs From Impact Wrestling Genesis 2021

3. Cousin Jake's Redemption

Something Impact Wrestling diehards don't often get the chance to witness is Cousin Jake actually wrestling a decent match. That's no fault of Jake's obviously, but rather the company booking him. His semifinal bout vs. Ace Austin, though, was quite the opposite. The man sometimes known as Jake Something was sublime here.

Credit should also be given to Ace and Madman Fulton, as the duo did what they needed to in order to push Jake across as this ultra babyface trying to overcome the odds with family issues still at the front of his mind. Fulton's limited involvement at ringside was executed to such a superb extent that it felt as if he deserved that stiff punch from Jake, despite not actually doing anything to warrant the assault.

Like in the quarterfinals, Ace Austin was always going to win here, with a slingshot variation of The Fold sealing the deal for 'The One True Ace'. Nonetheless, Ace and Jake had a brilliant match that was well-deserving of its near fifteen-minute length. We need more of these performances from Cousin Jake if he's to be taken seriously as a singles act post-partnership with Cody Deaner.

As was the case with his Daivari match, a minor Down here for a lack of appearance from Eric Young, Joe Doering, and Deaner. It still isn't making much sense why they'd be fine with Jake potentially winning the entire tournament. An excellent match aside from that.