Impact opens with footage from the Against All Odds pay-per-view and the returns of AJ Styles and Samoa Joe. Also, Sting was victorious and was able to keep the TNA World Championship in his four way match.
The Impact intro hits as we are welcomed to this week’s show that will feature a tag team title match between Beer Money and Rhino & Abyss, plus there will be an 9-woman gauntlet match to decide a new contender. We open the show with a tag team match with Team 3D going up against Kurt Angle & Sting.
Match 1: Kurt Angle & Sting vs. Team 3D
Kurt Angle’s forehead is stitched up after suffering a gash at Against All Odds. He starts the match up against Brother Ray as they trade blows before Ray ties Angle up in the tree of woe and tags in Brother Devon. Angle is able to fight back and Sting extends his arm for the tag but Angle refuses to tag.
Devon once again takes control of the match as they hit the flying headbutt before Angle finally crawls to his corner and tags in. Instead of going into the ring, Sting confronts Angle on the outside and they get into a shoving match. Booker T, Kevin Nash, and Scott Steiner come down to get between the two as we head into a commercial break.
We return to the match to see Sting working over Ray while the Main Event Mafia surrounds the ring. Sting tries to tag in Angle but Angle jumps off the ring apron and doesn’t let Sting tag him into the match. Devon gets tagged into the match and Angle once again refuses to tag into the match as Devon works Sting over.
Sting is finally able dodge a flying headbutt from Devon and makes a tag to Angle by slapping him on the back. He sends Angle into the ring the hard way and shoves him towards Devon who rolls him up and picks up the pin fall. After the pin fall, Angle and Sting come to blows as the MEM come in and split them up.
Angle calls for a microphone and says that for the past four days he has kept his mouth shut. Angle then calls Sting and fake and a disgrace to the family and says that he was supposed to keep the World Championship in the family, not Sting. He goes on and says that they need each other and instead of kicking Sting out he is going to make him lie down and let Angle win the title tonight.
Jeff Jarrett’s music hits as he comes down to the ring with a guitar in his hand. Jarrett says that he won’t allow that to happen but Angle says it has nothing to do with him and it is about the Main Event Mafia. Sting grabs the microphone and says that he will take Angle up on his offer and will meet him in the ring tonight.
We join Mike Tenay and Don West at the announce table as they recap what just happened in the first part of the show. They send it to Jeremy Borash who is standing by with Booker T and asks if it is the beginning of the end of the Main Event Mafia. Booker says that the boss made a decision and Sting will have to do what needs to be done and that he has no choice. Borash then asks about AJ Styles and him taking the Legends Championship. Booker says he has the FBI on the job and he will go to jail for stealing his title. Booker then heads into his dressing room where AJ Styles is waiting and beats down Booker sends him through the coffee table before saying “I am legend.”
We then see footage of an interview Lauren conducted with Scott Steiner during the break who says the Mafia is going to settle their differences like men. As for Joe, he says that he knows Samoans and Joe is just a half-breed.
Match 2: Scott Steiner vs. Petey Williams (Headdress on a Pole Match)
Petey Williams’ headdress is high atop the pole and the winner of this match will be the first person to grab it off the pole. Williams goes in on the sneak attack before the bell rings but Steiner quickly tosses him out of the ring. Steiner goes for the chain mail but Williams trips him up and crotches him on the ring post.
Williams gets in a short flurry of offense before Steiner begins to power him around and drives Williams down to the mat in a modified DDT from the top rope. Steiner begins toying with Williams before taking him down with the Frankensteiner. Steiner goes for the headdress but Williams is able to recover and takes Steiner down with a powerbomb. Williams goes for the Canadian Destroyer but Steiner is able to counter and slams him on the mat.
Steiner grabs his lead pipe but Williams is able to duck out of the way and goes for another Destroyer, but Steiner lift him up and over with a back body drop. Steiner goes for the headdress once again but Williams grabs the pipe and cracks Steiner in the back. Williams goes for the item but Steiner recovers and drives Williams down with a fallaway slam from the top rope. Steiner then climbs the ropes and pulls down the headdress to win the match.
Samoa Joe’s music hits and we see Joe on the big screen. He says that Steiner won’t know when or where his nation of violence is coming, but when it does, Joe is going to kill him.
Jeremy Borash is backstage with Mick Foley who says that he knows Sting won’t lay down for Angle and that there is no controversy in Sting being the champion. Foley also says that he will be airing a new segment called Hardcore History that will be about his moments in wrestling.
Match 3: 9-Woman Gauntlet Match
Angelina Love and Taylor Wilde are the first two competitors out for this gauntlet match. The two trade punches and Velvet Sky is the next one out as the time expires. Sky helps out her partner and double teams Wilde as try to eliminate her as time expires and Sojourner Bolt is the next one out.
Bolt comes in and goes after all three of them but she ends up on the receiving end from Angelina Love. Roxxi is the next Knockout into the match and she begins taking people down with kicks and clotheslines. Roxxi tosses Sky over the ropes but Cute Kip catches her and puts her back into the ring. The Beautiful People begin working together on Roxxi as Madison Rayne is the next one out.
Rayne comes in and goes after anyone and everyone before time expires and Raisha Saeed is the next one out as we still have everyone in the match. Saeed slams Wilde down hard on the match and Cute Kip catches Angelina Love before she falls to the floor after being tossed over the rope by Roxxi.
Rhaka Khan is the next one out and she takes Rayne down with a huge boot to the face. ODB is the final entrant into the gauntlet as she comes in a nails all members of the Kongtourage before going against the Beautiful People. ODB then tosses Khan and Saeed out of the ring.
ODB tosses Love out but Cute Kip is there to catch her once again. Taylor Wilde goes up against Love right away and they both fall over the rope and onto the floor to be eliminated. Roxxi then eliminates Sky and Bolt quickly eliminates Roxxi. Bolt then eliminates ODB and it is Bolt and Rayne as the final two.
Rayne tries to pick up two quick pin falls as this match is now a pin fall match. Bolt then plants Rayne into the mat and picks up the pin fall to become the number one contender to the Knockout Championship. As Bolt celebrates her victory, Saeed and Khan stare her down from the ring entrance.
Kurt Angle is shown in the dressing room and is staring at a photo of Sting on the wall. Angle smashes the photo into pieces as we head into a commercial break.
The TNA Rough Cut segment airs and this week it is focusing on the Ultimate X Match. AJ Styles, Alex Shelley, Jay Lethal and others sound of on the match and say that it is one of the most difficult and risky matches in pro wrestling.
Match 4: Motorcity Machine Guns vs. Lethal Consequences
A barrage of quick offense between Lethal and Sabin opens this match up. The partners are tagged in and Creed and Shelley get to do the same. Sabin makes the blind tag into the match and gains control as the MMG’s cut off the ring and works over Creed until he is able to stop their double team moves and tags in Lethal.
Lethal comes in and takes Sabin down with a missile dropkick and picks up a two count. Sabin quickly comes back and the Guns use their quick tandem offense to work Lethal over. As Shelley goes for the pin, Creed pushes Sabin on top of them to break up the pin. Lethal then hits the Lethal Combination on Sabin and plants Shelley with a facebuster to pick up the pin fall.
After the match the MMG’s shake the hands of their opponents before kicking them both between the legs. Shelley and Sabin then give them the “double gun salute” and get the last laugh.
Jeremy Borash hypes the TNA Mobile service about an established international tag team coming to TNA. Borash is going to go up to the rafters to get a word with Sting as we see Jarrett walking down the steps. Borash asks if he knows what Sting is going to do and Jarrett says we will have to wait and see.
We are treated to another edition of ODB’s Angle and talks about getting fan mail asking if she is single. She says that fans can upload videos to tnawrestling.com and she will pick a lucky winner to have one night with ODB at Destination X. She then brings out Brutus Magnus as her guest who talks about his open challenge. ODB tosses out some lame jokes in this horribly edited segment as Magnus walks out in disgust.
Lauren is backstage with Kevin Nash who says Kurt Angle is the boss and that Sting crossed him. He says that Sting has what is coming to him and that it will make the family stronger. Nash then says he has to go see Johnny Sacks and leaves.
Video footage of Abyss’ therapy session from earlier in the day is aired and “Dr. Stevie” is his therapist. Abyss talks about President Obama’s children and wonders if they watch Family Guy. Abyss then says that he is addicted to violence before talking about the TV show Lost. Richards says that their time is up for this week and will resume next week.
Match 5: Abyss & Rhino vs. Beer Money, Inc. (TNA Tag Team Championship)
Beer Money goes on the early attack but it doesn’t seem to help as Rhino takes Roode down with a shoulder block and a flurry of rights. Roode finally distracts the referee as Storm shoves Rhino off the ropes and out to the floor as we head into a commercial break.
We return to the match to see Beer Money still in control but Rhino is able to fight his way into his corner and makes the tag to his partner. Abyss comes in and cleans house and drives Storm down with the Shock Treatment but Roode is able to break up the pin attempt. Rhino and Roode then begin trading blows as they fight to the floor.
In the ring, Storm spits beer into Abyss’ face and bulldogs him into the ring. Storm grabs a bottle and looks to smash it over his head, but Abyss is able to grab Storm and slam him down to the mat. Abyss grabs the bottle but Matt Morgan slides in and nails Abyss with a chair before he can use the bottle on Storm. Storm then makes the cover as Slick Johnson enters the ring to make the three count. Morgan then directs traffic for a moment and tells Beer Money to keep Rhino out of the ring as he nails Abyss with the chair once again.
The debut of Hardcore History 101 is aired and Mick Foley talks about his first no rope barbed wire match against Terry Funk in front of 150 people. Foley begins talking about cutting his fingertips on the barbed wire and how they embraced each other on the bus after the match.
Kurt Angle and Sting both carry microphones down to the ring. Angle tells Sting that this is something that he has to do as he is the Father of the Main Event Mafia and that he has to make an example out of him. Angle instructs Sting to lie on his back so they can get it over with.
Sting agrees to lay down for the good of the family but questions Angle’s integrity and honor. Sting says his loss at Against All Odds was nothing compared to losing his wife, family and honor. Sting says Angle also lost his respect and the rest of the Mafia knows what he is all about, an egomaniac that is all about him.
Sting lies down for and tells Angle to go ahead and steal his 13th championship. Angle kneels next to Sting but he won’t cover him. Angle gets on the microphone and says that he is going to take Sting’s title and is going to take his ass with it. The two comes to blows as the Mafia comes into the ring to break the two apart.
Angle gets on the microphone again and says that it is now personal between them and that they will be going to war next week. Angle goes on to say that the Mafia will clear out the Impact Zone and it will just be the two in the ring and Angle promises to end his career as Impact comes to a close.
Quick Results
- Team 3D defeated Kurt Angle & Sting by pin fall.
- Scott Steiner defeated Petey Williams in a Headdress on a Pole Match.
- Sojourner Bolt won a 9-woman Gauntlet Match to become the #1 contender to the Knockouts Championship.
- Lethal Consequences defeated the Motorcity Machine Guns by pin fall.
- Beer Money, Inc. defeated Abyss & Rhino by pin fall to retain the TNA Tag Team Championship.
Starman’s Thoughts
I enjoyed how tonight’s show opened with the focus on the Sting/Angle tension. The angle played out over a few segments but it built up the rest of the show and gave some life into the feud between these two partners. The finish of the show was also done well in my opinion and I think Sting worked the microphone as great as he ever has since joining the Main Event Mafia.
This set up next week’s match in which Angle and Sting will fight in an empty arena brawl. I’m not sure what the point of that is but you possibly couldn’t get the crowd any quieter than they were tonight. Seriously, there were moments tonight where you could literally hear a pin drop, especially during the Knockout gauntlet match.
Aside from the Main Event Mafia meltdown, the rest of the show was kind of just there for me, which may also fit into why the crowd was so dead tonight. Take Abyss for example. Last week he gave one of the best promos of his career and this week he is back to being the clown who is obsessed with cartoons and television shows. I want to see violent Abyss, not therapy and pop culture spewing Abyss. Speaking of therapy, it appears the Stevie Richards is Abyss’ therapist. I like Richards and everything, but this has the potential of being worse than the whole Right to Censor group he started in the WWE.
While I am on the topic of Abyss, why did he and his new partner Rhino suddenly earn a shot at the tag team titles? Plus, whatever happened to Rhino leading the Front Line? Is there a Front Line anymore? Over the past few months, Rhino had been regaining his main event credibility and is now losing it just as fast. What a terrible turn of events for the War Machine if I must say.
As I am in the mood of questioning ideas, what exactly was the point of the Hardcore History 101? Let me get this right, it was Mick Foley talking about one of his past matches. No video of it. No photos of it. Just Foley talking about a past hardcore match. For some reason I don’t foresee this taking over the TNA Rough Cuts spot any time soon. If it had some historic value to TNA it may be more palatable, but airing this boggles my mind.
Finally, can I just say enough with the pole matches already? Is that too much to ask for?
