Below the Belt

What is up with TNA and their fascination with belts? And I’m not talking about title belts, I’m talking about the belts that are used in lieu of suspenders to assist in keeping you pants up.

Last night’s Impact had a match in which Robert Roode & James Storm stole a victory and the tag team titles away from the LAX. During the match, Jacqueline gave Storm her belt which he wrapped around his boot with the buckle on the bottom. Storm then superkicked Hernandez in the head which allowed Roode to pick up the pin fall. After some pleading and arguing from Hector Guerrero, the referee decided to restart the match and the LAX were able to retain the titles. Even with though they didn’t win the titles, Storm, Roode and Jacqueline would have the last laugh as they handcuffed the LAX and Guerrero to the ring ropes and proceeded to lace into them with a trio of leather straps.

The way this went down was very similar in my mind to how Robert Roode & Payton Banks laid a whoopin’ to Booker T and Traci Brooks the past February on Impact. Much like last night, Booker and Brooks were cuffed to the ropes while Roode and Banks took shots at their defenseless opponents. This lead to a Stand by Your Man strap match between the Booker and Roode at Destination X where the winner of the match got to have his valet whip the other valet ten times with a strap. Roode won and Banks, along with Roode, got to whip Brooks until Booker’s wife, Sharmell, came in and started whipping everybody, including Jim Cornette.

Roode certainly has some experience when it comes to using a belt as a lethal weapon. The LAX, on the other hand, have some experience of their own - in taking the punishment. Last night wasn’t the first time they have had the belts turned on them. As a matter of fact, during their lengthy feud against Team 3D in the early part of last year, the two teams met on an episode of Impact in a classic “Belting Pot Match.” The Belting Pot match featured lumberjacks armed with belts lined around the ring. One of the lumberjacks was Team 3D’s “cousin,” Steve Schirripa, who even got in on the action and came up with the assist in helping Team 3D win the match. Unfortunately for Brother Ray and Brother Devon, it was a non-title match.

While I am on the subject of lumberjacks armed with belts, who can forget the TNA classic matchup between Jeff Jarrett and Samoa Joe at No Surrender in 2006. That match between them wasn’t just an ordinary match, it was a “Fans Revenge Lumberjack Match.” Prior to the event, Jeff Jarrett failed a lie detector test about being in-cahoots with Larry Zbyszko and using his leverage to keep his top spot and influence match outcomes. Due to this, Jim Cornette allowed a group of TNA fans to act as lumberjacks with belts and use them against Jarrett in his match against Joe.

Yes, even the fans have gotten to use belts in TNA. And I’m sure there will be more belt madness to come in the future.