Quick results for the Slammiversary VIII pay-per-view.
Match 1: Kurt Angle vs. Kazarian
Kazarian countered an attempt at an Angle Slam with his inverted piledriver but Kurt Angle kicked out of the pin attempt. Angle then came back with an Angle slam but Kazarian also kicked out of the pin attempt. Angle finally countered Kazarian and put him into an ankle lock and made him tap out to take out #10 on the Top 10 Contenders list.
Match 2: Douglas Williams vs. Brian Kendrick (X Division Championship)
After several near falls, Douglas Williams goes for the Chaos Theory but Brian Kendrick stops him from doing it by biting his hand. Williams soon counters into a tornado DDT from the second rope and picked up the pin fall to retain the X Division Championship.
Match 3: Madison Rayne vs. Roxxi (TNA Knockouts Championship)
Prior to the match a new stipulation was added that Roxxi’s career was on the line in this match. Roxxi is busted open early on after being hit with a microphone but still manages to connect with the Voodoo Drop on Madison Rayne but she kicks out of the pin attempt. Roxxi hit another Voodoo Drop but Madison rolls out of the ring to recover. Madison then quickly put Roxxi away to retain the TNA Knockouts Championship and ending her TNA career.
Match 4: Brother Ray vs. Jesse Neal
Brother Ray apologized for the way he was acting before clocking Jesse Neal with a right hand. Ray then dominated Neal until Tommy Dreamer comes out from the crowd and stares down Ray. Neal then connects with a spear to put away Brother Ray and score the pin fall.
Match 5: Matt Morgan vs. Hernandez
Matt Morgan claimed to have a doctor’s note saying he couldn’t wrestle but Hernandez brought him into the ring anyway. These two big men then brawled briefly before Hernandez was disqualified after shoving the referee. The fight continued after the match was called and Hernandez accidently connected with a big boot to referee Brian Hebner that took him out.
Match 6: Desmond Wolfe vs. Abyss (Monsters Ball Match)
Abyss poured out a bag of broken glass which Desmond Wolfe made him fall into. Wolfe then asked Chelsea for her purse that contains some brass knuckles but they were missing. She then tosses the brass knuckles to Abyss who uses them to knock out Wolfe and then hits the Black Hole Slam to win the match.
Match 7: AJ Styles vs. Jay Lethal
Jay Lethal put AJ Styles in the figure four leg lock which made Ric Flair irate, who was standing ringside. Lethal then misses with a flying elbow which allows Styles to take him out with a Pele kick. Styles then goes for a springboard but Lethal catches him and counters with a suplex and a bridge to pick up the pin fall.
Match 8: Mr. Anderson & Jeff Hardy vs. Beer Money
Beer Money tried to set up Mr. Anderson for the DWI but Jeff Hardy made the save and Anderson hit the Mic Check on Robert Roode. Anderson then covered Roode for the pin fall as both Anderson and Hardy took turns announcing each other as the winners of the match.
Match 9: Rob Van Dam vs. Sting (TNA World Championship)
RVD inadvertently took out referee Earl Hebner and Sting began to attack the champ with a baseball bat. Jeff Jarrett came out and took the bat away from Sting and hit him in the gut, which allowed RVD to hit the rolling thunder but Sting kicked out of the pin attempt. Sting then missed with a Stinger Splash and RVD followed with the Five Star Frog Splash for the pin fall victory to retain the TNA World Championship.
Out of interest, what are your brief thoughts on the PPV, Starman?
I thought the pay-per-view was decent. The Styles/Lethal and Angle/Kazarian matches were worth the price of the event alone and were a lot of fun to watch. The outcome of the Angle/Kazarian match was predictable but they made the most of it. I was surprised, though, that Lethal won the match. He is over with the fans and deserves a big win like that.
The main event was alright and I didn’t like the fact that Sting didn’t deliver on his promise by lifting the veil over TNA and exposing everyone’s true colors. I also really hated the match stipulation added to the Knockouts Championship match. The Knockouts Division is hurting as it is and they just got rid of one of their best workers on a moments notice. Poor planning and judgment on TNA’s part in my mind.
The rest of the card was either predictable (Morgan/Hernandez) or mediocre (Ray/Neal), although I did like the fact that Tommy Dreamer made his debut. I’ll wait to see what they do with him, though, before I say if it was a good addition or not.