Impact Wrestling: Ranking Every Pay Per View of 2018

Slammiversary XVI

There’s no shame in coming up short to one of the best events in 2018, and that’s exactly what Slammiversary was. In celebration of 16 years of Impact Wrestling, Slammiversary 16 was one of the best wrestling events of 2018. For an example of how someone else viewed Slammiversary 16, here’s what Elle Collins of Uproxx had to say about it:

"“When was the last time WWE had a main roster PPV where every match was good, and no result was infuriating? Slammiversary XVI was the best pay-per-view I’ve seen in 2018, and aside from maybe a Takeover or two, I’m having a hard time thinking of anything that was better in 2017 or 2016.”"

While the night’s main event was a spectacular showcase that proved Moose can hang on the main event level, it wasn’t their World Championship collision that stole the show. Instead, that honor belongs to two hardcore bloodbaths that happened earlier in the night. The first of those came when LAX defended their Impact World Tag Team Championship against The OGz.

Santana and Ortiz have been lighting things up inside and outside of Impact all throughout 2018, and have proven themselves to be one of the best tag teams in the industry. While they hold the initials with pride and represent them well, Santana and Ortiz weren’t the original Latin American Xchange.

Hernandez and Homicide, known in 2018 as The OGz, were founding members of LAX. As they found their way back to Impact, they obviously had some beef with the new representatives of their old name. That beef heated up throughout the summer and came to a sizzling and violent peak at Slammiversary in a 5150 Street Fight.

Speaking of heated, the match of the night and arguably one of the best of 2018 was about as heated as things could possibly get. The issues between Sami Callihan and Pentagon Jr weren’t confined to Impact Wrestling, as the two had history in Lucha Underground and had a heated rivalry in PCW Ultra.

Things reached their peak in Impact in the form of a Mask vs. Hair Match. If Sami Callihan lost he would be shaved and lose his trademark hair, while Pentagon’s mask was on the line and he committed to removing it should he lose. It’s an understatement to say that things got personal.

It was the match everyone was talking about coming out of Slammiversary, but these were just the highlights. Everything at Slammiversary was great. Johnny Impact picked up a win in a frenetic opening contest against Fenix, Taiji Ishimori, and Petey Williams. Tessa Blanchard furthered her stake at a championship shot by defeating Allie. Eddie Edwards and Tommy Dreamer went to war in a House of Hardcore Match.

Brian Cage continued his undefeated streak with a strong win over Matt Sydal to win the X-Division Championship. Su Yung continued her dominance over veteran Madison Rayne. And of course in the main event Austin Aries defeated Moose in a hard-fought contest to retain the Impact World Championship and cap off one of the best wrestling events in 2018, and undeniably Impact’s best pay-per-view of 2018.