Impact: Why Ace Austin just might be the future of the business

Ace Austin has been proving himself from week to week, year to year, since his start in the world of professional wrestling. In this piece, I’ve set out to prove why all that hard work on his part can culminate in his being the future of this business down the line.

To say that there are indeed a lot of epic talents in the world of professional wrestling right now would be putting it way too mildly. Both on the men’s side and on the women’s side of any company roster…these people are going above and beyond to deliver to the fans and make a name for themselves and I applaud them all.

Of course, this isn’t the case for everyone in the business, but there are some standouts, and Ace Austin over at Impact Wrestling is most definitely something special that you should be watching closely, and I know that these days it’s a bold statement to make, but this young man just might be the future of the business.

Now when I say that, do I mean that others aren’t as good? Heck no, as you all know dear readers, there are many wrestlers whose careers I support. I’m just saying that in terms of the Kenny Omegas out there, the Deonna Purrazzos out there…the belt collectors and the top of the list names that help catapult the business, I’d say that Ace Austin is up there for sure, and it won’t be long before he gets the accolades that are owed to him.

The alternative, I think, would be a tragedy, especially for someone like him, as talented and as charismatic as he is. But I don’t feel he’ll get this chance at Impact. He lost his match to Christian Cage at Victory Road this past Saturday. Had he won, he would have been the youngest male at 24 to win their illustrious World Title—the youngest person to have won it previously being Tessa Blanchard.

Do I think that was a mistake? Yes and no. I think too that Josh Alexander (who is set to face Christian Cage for the title at Bound For Glory in October) is the right person to bring the belt back home so to speak, essentially having a mainstay of the company holding the belt, but what I’d like to see is for Alexander to eventually face Ace Austin, Austin going over for the belt.

Would this happen? I don’t know, but if it doesn’t, I’d say that would be a missed opportunity.

Truthfully I feel he needs to move away from Impact, perhaps even trying for a run in NXT before perhaps landing in AEW down the line, where he can be allowed to flourish and dominate.

Too many wrestlers have been deemed mid-card and for the entirety of their careers, but that shouldn’t be in the cards for someone like Ace Austin (pun intended).

As was reported by cultaholic.com, he had some interesting things to say why he signed on to wrestle in Impact after quite the independent career (which we’ll get into in just a sec) when he spoke on the WrestleSlam Podcast:

"“…I was doing really well for myself in 2018 and I had a choice about where I wanted to go and who I wanted to work with and IMPACT showed me the most hospitality and they showed me the best working environment that was out there and that’s why I chose to start with IMPACT Wrestling back then just because I could not have thought of a better way to really lay a foundation for myself in this industry and it’s done nothing but boost up – you know, people are getting to watch a very organic story right in front of their very eyes, like a story of just a young, hungry kid who wanted to be a pro wrestler, like really fighting and earning it…”"

Of his gimmick (or lack thereof) he said:

"“…There’s no gimmicks about it, nobody wrote this storyline that you’re watching. You just are watching me organically take over the wrestling world…”"

That too speaks volumes, he showing that he is creative enough and not just athletic enough to have hung even with the men and women of the Attitude Era where the promos, storylines and character direction were also up to the individual wrestler as well as WWE Creative.

And I know full well that that won’t be as possible in WWE, but in NXT he can surely garner the momentum and exposure he needs right now after everything he’s done in the business since starting in 2015.

And of his beginnings in the business, he started out with Combat Zone Wrestling. He actually graduated from that promotion’s dojo. But perhaps the most interesting aspect of his past is the fact that he wrestled for World Extreme Wrestling, owned and operated by the Anoa’i family—specifically Afa, Roman Reigns’ uncle.

The former two-time X Division Champion trains in Parkour (a form of exercise where practitioners try to make it through an obstacle course or semblance of one athletically; the discipline has foundations in martial arts and acrobatics), very much like John Morrison. This shows in the ring, but he also has quite a bit of size on him, at 5 ft 8, he packs 190 pounds onto that frame…solid but flexible and quick…he’s definitely a sight to see walking down that ramp and very impressive.

He’s been in allegiance with Madman Fulton, a great aspect of his Impact run so far, and Fulton being yet another great up-and-comer.

So in the end, I’d say that he very well could be the future of the business, and on the level of a Kenny Omega, but perhaps he needs to make a few more stops along the way before getting there, perhaps even an extensive run in NJPW, and that’s all if Impact doesn’t smarten up and start giving him the belts he deserves, but time will undoubtedly tell.

In the meantime, keep your eyes on this young man, as he’s a top contender for the top spot in the business in my eyes for sure, and hopefully sooner rather than later.