Which Former WWE Superstars Debuted At Slammiversary 2020?

Is this a new era for Impact Wrestling?

EC3
Source: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling built the hype for this year’s Slammiversary event by implying that they’d gone on a mass hiring spree following WWE’s culling in April. With several marquee independent attractions now on the market, and having seen out the last of their 90-day no compete clause by the time Slammiversary aired, fans were anticipating an event where literally anything could happen.

Impact stayed true to their word, providing audiences with plenty of shocking moments which certainly shifted the landscape of Impact going forward. With these following names now officially a part of the Impact roster, we could indeed be witnessing the start of a new era.

Let’s run down all of the returns, debuts and surprises from this past weekend’s Slammiversary pay-per-view.

 

The Good Brothers (Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows)

Slight cheat here from Impact in an attempt to draw in a few final PPV buys, The Good Brothers confirmed via social media that they had indeed signed with Impact Wrestling and will be present at the Slammiversary event before the show had even started. Fans were a tad disappointed that the former IWGP and RAW Tag Team Champions weren’t kept secret until the show itself, perhaps that’s a slight on how Impact sees them? Maybe not big enough stars to warrant a shocking entrance in the middle of a tag frenzy.

Regardless, Impact fans were happy to see the Talk N’Shop duo officially announce their place on the roster. The Impact Tag division is certainly one to keep your eye on, with teams like The North and The Rascalz and now the returning Motor City Machine Guns all vying to put Tag wrestling back on the map within the promotion. With Big LG and The Machine Gun entering the fray, things are about to get even more interesting.

The Good Brothers made their presence felt towards the end of the show, coming to the aid of new Impact World Champ, Eddie Edwards after being attacked by Ace Austin and Madman Fulton. What this means for the futures of Anderson & Gallows, who knows, but if a main-event stable is on the cards for them that maybe a new Bullet Club equivalent could be forming under the Impact umbrella.

 

Heath Slater

What a week it has been for the Free Agent Heath Slater. After making what was presumably his final appearance on WWE RAW, facing down his former 3MB partner, Drew McIntyre, Heath has now made his official indie debut as part of the Impact Wrestling roster.

It seems that Impact are already putting a big storyline in place for ‘The One Man Band’, after assaulting Rohit Raju prior to his X-Division match, Impact’s EVP, Scott D’Amore caught up with Slater backstage and informed him that had no right to be in the ring, as he hadn’t officially been signed to a full-time contract. This was all while Heath was catching up with former Tag partner, Rhino.

Perhaps a nod towards a return of Beauty and the Man-Beast in Impact’s Tag division? Either way, there should be some big things in wait for Slater as he once again battles for a contract.

 

Eric Young

Impact mainstay Eric Young made a shocking appearance in the show’s main event, turning the World Championship contest into a Fatal Five Way. This match in particular was one of the biggest talking points heading into the show, with Impact building towards a mysterious fourth entrant that was set to replace Rich Swann due to an injury sustained at the hands of The North. Impact teased that it could be a former World Champion, which opened up plenty of possibilities.

Enter EY.

Young might not have had the greatest of careers outside of NXT, but during his time as Impact’s biggest player, he was certainly on the top of his game. Unfortunately, Impact were utilising his underdog qualities during the rise of Daniel Bryan in WWE, so it all came across like a bit of a rip-off. But Eric played his part well and should always be credited for carrying the company during one of their lowest periods.

There’s no surprise that Young immediately stepped back into the title picture, if anyone deserves that treatment in his old stomping grounds, it’s him.

 

EC3

This return absolutely had to happen, EC3 turned things around for Impact throughout 2013-2015, EC3 was Impact. After being given a pretty rough ride in WWE, EC3 has finally returned to where he made his name and is coming back in a huge way. In the closing moments of the show, EC3’s new, edgier gimmick sent the fans home happy, claiming that he’s got his eyes on the Impact World Championship.

Fans won’t have to wait long to see the new and improved EC3, as he’s been confirmed for this week’s episode of Impact TV. Surely this is going to be a testament to just how much of a star EC3 still is, depending on how many viewers he and Impact manage to draw for their post-Slammiversary show.

The eyes of the wrestling world are on Impact and EC3 right now, everyone wants to see Ethan Carter rise through the ranks once again and claim what’s rightfully is the company he helped rebuild.

With several show-stealers and huge comeback moments across the board, Slammiversary is a pay-per-view that’s worth hunting down. Even if you’ve yet to tune into an Impact show since the downfall of the company, give this one a shot, it seems that they’re turning things around in a big way and are on their way to embarking into a new era.

Who are you most pleased to see in an Impact ring? Let us know in the comments below.

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