Backstage Notes From Impact Wrestling: Hard To Kill

Last night's Impact Hard To Kill pay-per-view received praise from both fans and industry professionals alike. According to PWInsider, there was a similar feeling backstage after all was said and done.

It was noted that internally, Impact was excited for the buzz they received with the announcement that Mickie James, the current Knockouts Champion, will be competing in the WWE Royal Rumble. James' match last night was the first time an Impact PPV featured the Knockouts Championship match as the main event since the Championship's inception back at Bound for Glory 2007.

The company heads to The Factory in Dallas, Texas today to tape the fallout of Hard To Kill. Among the matches scheduled, ROH Women's World Champion Rok-C will compete against Deonna Purrazzo.

The ROH invasion storyline is set to continue, with Mike Bennett, Matt Taven, PCO, Vincent, and Maria Kanellis all attending the next set of tapings. PWInsider notes that the included stars are actually not under any active ROH contracts at this time. PCO exited Ring of Honor in November 2021 while the others' deals expired at the end of the year. They note how Maria's there's still uncertainty on the status of Maria's contract but she will continue being involved in the storyline.

Newly acquired Impact Wrestling announcer, Tom Hannifan, received universal praise behind the scenes for his commentary work. He and D'Lo Brown played off one another and seemed to have good chemistry going throughout the evening.

A match that was nixed from the Hard To Kill card due to COVID-19 concerns, The IInspiration vs. Influence bout for the Knockouts Tag Team Championship, will take place at the forthcoming Fort Lauderdale TV tapings.

As noted earlier today, it was also announced that the next major PPV event for Impact will be their Rebellion show on April 23.