5 Ups & 5 Downs From Impact Wrestling (26 Jan)

3. Everyone Hates Swann

The promo and subsequent multi-man brawl that kicked off last night's Impact episode was a delightful change from what we usually see at the onset of a weekly show.

World Champion Rich Swann offered Tommy Dreamer a title opportunity at the No Surrender Impact Plus special on 13 February, seeing as that night will also mark the 50th birthday of 'The Innovator of Violence'. Cue appearances from Sami Callihan, Chris Bey, and Moose all demanding a shot at the title, before a mass brawl broke out that saw Ken Shamrock and Willie Mack join the ruckus. The visual of Callihan, Shamrock, Bey, and Moose stood united over the three fallen bodies is a sight your writer could certainly get used to.

This was great, all things considered. Impact's weekly shows typically kick off with a match, and while that isn't a terrible thing, inserting a talking segment at the beginning of the night as opposed to some in-ring action isn't always a bad thing. So long as this doesn't become a regular fixture, it gets an Up. As far as the promo itself goes, there were a few pieces to nitpick (namely Callihan and Bey vying for the title despite losing marquee bouts at Hard To Kill), but nothing you can really rant about.