TNA celebrates its eighth year anniversary this Sunday with Slammiversary VIII, live from the Impact Zone in Orlando, FL. Slammiversary is usually one of the bigger events of the year for TNA and they have booked three title matches along with six other grudge matches. Here is a run down of the card.
- Rob Van Dam vs. Sting (TNA World Championship)
- Douglas Williams vs. Brian Kendrick (X Division Championship)
- Madison Rayne vs. Roxxi (TNA Knockouts Championship)
- AJ Styles vs. Jay Lethal
- Mr. Anderson & Jeff Hardy vs. Beer Money
- Kurt Angle vs. Kazarian
- Matt Morgan vs. Hernandez
- Desmond Wolfe vs. Abyss (Monsters Ball Match)
- Brother Ray vs. Jesse Neal
Rob Van Dam vs. Sting (TNA World Championship)
Sting was listed at the top of the list when TNA announced the official Top 10 Contender rankings. RVD and Sting also have a little history as RVD defeated Sting in his TNA debut but proceeded to be beaten down by Sting and his baseball bat. Sting has been saying that he doesn’t have anything personal against RVD but will lift the veil over TNA and expose everyone’s true colors.
Sting has done a good job lately with showing his brutal side and he has been having some decent promos. When I first heard of this match I was skeptical, but now I am actually looking forward to it. I have my doubts that RVD will drop the title so soon, but there is that thought in the back of my mind that Sting will walk out as champion as he reveals the deception that he has been talking about.
There is a good chance that outside factors, such as Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff, Jeff Jarrett or Samoa Joe, will have a hand in the outcome of this match. This match is truly a toss up in my mind, so I will have to side with the reigning champ on this one.
Starman’s Prediction: RVD to retain the TNA World Championship.
Douglas Williams vs. Brian Kendrick (X Division Championship)
Douglas Williams regained the X Division Championship that he was forced to relinquish by defeating Kazarian at Sacrifice. He is now defending said championship against Brian Kendrick, who briefly tagged with Williams for one match before the two got into a fight. The two met in the ring a few weeks ago with Kendrick scoring the pin fall after Kazarian distracted Williams.
Williams has been a decent X Division Champion and is trying to bring a more mat-based style to the division instead of the spot-fest that it usually becomes. I love the high octane spot-fests myself, but I also like what Williams brings to the table. This should be a good match if given time and I feel that Williams will retain the title in the end.
Starman’s Prediction: Douglas Williams to retain the X Division Championship.
Madison Rayne vs. Roxxi (TNA Knockouts Championship)
Roxxi recently made another return to TNA and defeated Madison Rayne in a non-title match. She was then awarded a shot at the Knockouts Title and said that she is ready for anything that TNA puts in front of her, including the newest Knockout, Rosey Lotta Love. Unfortunately, that was about all of the hype this title match was given.
Roxxi has been in-and-out of TNA since the beginning of the Knockouts Division but it surprises me that she has yet to win the Knockouts Championship. She has had her chances but always seems to come up short. With the Beautiful People in Madison’s corner, I feel that she will come up short once again. Madison will then move on to feud with Rosey in the coming weeks.
Starman’s Prediction: Madison Rayne to retain the Knockouts Championship.
AJ Styles vs. Jay Lethal
Jay Lethal has been on Ric Flair’s bad side ever since Lethal did some spot on impersonations of the Nature Boy. Lethal surprisingly defeated Styles and Kazarian, both of which are in Flair’s stable, in a triple threat match by pinning Styles. Flair didn’t take the loss too well and Styles is out to prove himself to Flair by taking Lethal on in a one-on-one match.
This match could be the match of the night in my opinion. Lethal has always seemed to rise to the occasion when he needs to in huge matches, such as those against Jeff Jarrett and Kurt Angle, and I believe this match will be no different. Lethal would be elevated by leaps and bounds by pulling out a win against the former World Champion, but I will give the edge to Styles. Lethal will still come out looking like a million bucks and elevated a bit.
Starman’s Prediction: AJ Styles to win the match.
Mr. Anderson & Jeff Hardy vs. Beer Money
Mr. Anderson stated that he wants to turn over a new leaf and has befriended Jeff Hardy. Anderson also booked himself and Hardy in a match against Beer Money, who took exception to that as they feel they should be in the same ring as a mismatch tag team. After some heated words, the two sides got into a scuffle and will meet each other in the ring this Sunday.
I have to side with Beer Money on this one as I also hate mismatch tag teams. With that said, this should be a decent match and I hope that Anderson doesn’t turn too soon on Hardy. Anderson is the type of character who can go back and forth with great ease, but I would feel that it is too soon for him to go back to a heel during this match. If he and Hardy stick together they should win this match.
Starman’s Prediction: Mr. Anderson & Jeff Hardy to win the match.
Kurt Angle vs. Kazarian
Kurt Angle was ranked in the second spot of the Top 10 Contender rankings but felt that he wanted to work his way up the ranks instead. Angle removed his name from the list and Kazarian took over the last spot by winning an X Division Battle Royal. Angle then challenged Kazarian to a match to begin working his way up the ranks.
Kazarian has been in a weird spot as of late. He went from chasing the X Division Championship, to winning it, to losing it, to being ranked in the Top 10, and then to aligning himself with Ric Flair. Kazarian is Flair’s new project, which could go a long way in getting him over with the fans. A great match with Angle could also do the job.
I am looking forward to all of Kurt Angle’s challenges in the coming weeks and months and this is a good starting point. Angle will win here and Kazarian will look good in the process.
Starman’s Prediction: Kurt Angle to win the match.
Matt Morgan vs. Hernandez
Matt Morgan took out Hernandez a while back with a well placed boot to the skull against the ring post while the two were tag team champions. Morgan held on to the tag team gold by himself before finally losing it to the Band, who cashed in on their Feast or Fired title shot. Morgan was scheduled to for a rematch with a mystery partner, but that match was moved up a week and his partner was none other than Hernandez.
Hernandez came out and brutally beat down his former partner before leaving him lying in the ring. Morgan was put on to a stretcher and the Band came out to pick up the pin fall on the rematch while Hulk Hogan booked Morgan in a match against Hernandez at Slammiversary.
After seeing the beat down on Morgan, one would think that he would get his revenge at Slammiversary, but Hernandez has the momentum and needs some wins with his return. This match could go either way and will probably end in a disqualification, but I have to say that Hernandez takes the victory here.
Starman’s Prediction: Hernandez to win the match.
Desmond Wolfe vs. Abyss (Monsters Ball Match)
Desmond Wolfe and Abyss faced off in a match at Sacrifice where both Chelsea and Hulk Hogan’s Hall of Fame ring was on the line. Abyss won the match and won Chelsea for 30 days. The two will now meet in a Monsters Ball match and Wolfe has vowed to get his revenge and Chelsea back.
Judging by Abyss’ history with Monsters Ball matches, we will probably see Abyss fall into a pile of thumbtacks and/or broken glass and Wolfe will more than likely get his revenge and beat Abyss at his type of match. As for Chelsea, I can see her turning on Wolfe and siding with Abyss to put a twist into this feud.
Starman’s Prediction: Desmond Wolfe to win the match.
Brother Ray vs. Jesse Neal
Brother Ray took exception to his student Jesse Neal and feels that he needs an attitude adjustment as his head is getting too big. Brother Devon has tried to calm him down but Ray challenged Neal to this teacher vs. student match.
I feel that there are two possible outcomes with this match. One, Devon is with Ray all along and totally destroys Neal. Two, Ray beats Neal unmercifully and Devon tries to stop it causing friction between Team 3D. I am picking the latter and either way you look at it, Neal is getting beat.
Starman’s Prediction: Brother Ray to win the match.
That is the Slammiversary VIII card in a nutshell. Don’t let the VIII that is tacked at the end fool you, it is in regards to the TNA anniversary and doesn’t mean it is the eighth annual Slammiversary event. It is actually the sixth Slammiversary pay-per-view and the first that hasn’t featured a King of the Mountain match.
All in all, TNA did a good job in hyping the card the last couple of weeks and making this out to be a huge event. It is also great to see some fresh matchups like Styles/Lethal, Angle/Kazarian and Williams/Kendrick. I am not the least upset over the fact that there isn’t a King of the Mountain match. Slammiversary is a solid event on paper and plenty of the matches have the potential to be great.
As always, live coverage of Slammiversary VIII will take place on Gerweck.net starting at 8PM EST.
