Written by: Bob Colling
National Wrestling Alliance/Total Non-Stop Action presents Best Damn Sports Show Special Night 1
Date: 11/10/2004
From: Orlando, FL
Matches:
1.)AJ Styles defeated Alex Shelley
2.)America’s Most Wanted defeated Kid Kash & Dallas
3.)Christopher Daniels defeated Kazarian
4.)Ron Killings defeated Raven
5.)Teo defeated Puppet in a hardcore match
6.)Chris Sabin defeated Elix Skipper and Sonjay Dutt in an Ultimate X Match
Angle Developments/Notes:
1. The opening of the special sees Chris Rose call wrestling fake and stupid. He is hit by Jeff Jarrett with a guitar and Abyss carries Rose out of the segment.
2. Roddy Piper comes down to be in the ring with the Best Damn Sports Show hosts. Piper says Tom Arnold is okay because he took a stink face from Roseanne! Chris Rose is clearly playing a heel role for the hosts. Piper calls Rose a moron for wearing a shirt that says wrestling is fake. Piper is welcoming Rose to his Piper’s Pit tomorrow, I think. Piper slaps Rose and leaves to end the segment. I’m kidding. Monty Brown comes out to take smack to Bryan Cox, but is attacked by the Naturals. They toss powder into his face and Andy Douglas smashes a chair over Brown’s head. Douglas says Brown is just like Bryan Cox, a big dump ex-football player! The Naturals issue a challenge to Cox to find a partner for a match tomorrow night.
3. Backstage, Glenn Gilbertti and Trinity meet Leanne. Johnny Swinger is trying to hit on her, but that doesn’t work. Dusty Rhodes is interviewed by Leanne. Rhodes puts over Impact and Best Damn Sports Show. Rhodes tries to get a kiss, but that doesn’t work either.
4. It takes about twenty minutes, not counting the commercials, before we actually get wrestling on the special. Styles quickly opens the match with a dropkick and a knee drop after a slam. Shelley crotches Styles on the top and delivers a middle rope jawbreaker. Alex hits a double stomp off the top onto the back of AJ’s head. Styles catches Shelley out of the corner and wins the match with the Styles Clash! After the match, Abyss enters the ring and hits the Shock Treatment on Styles. There is a table at ringside and Abyss looks to powerbomb Styles through it but AJ gets out of it only to be sent through the table with a chokeslam! (*1/2. It was a really quick match, but I thought it was a good, quick match. The aftermath sets up a Styles/Abyss showdown tomorrow.)
5. Kash and Dallas attack AMW as soon as they enter the ring but AMW is able to quickly battle back and take control of the match. Storm is backdropped over the top by Harris and he takes Kash and Dallas out with a crossbody. Harris does the same with a slingshot crossbody onto the floor. AMW hit an awkward looking tornado DDT with Kash on Harris’s shoulders. Dallas stops Harris on the floor with a big boot. Dallas drives Storm down to the mat gut first and Kash gets a two count after a top rope frog splash. Storm superkicks Dallas off the apron moments later and Harris spears Kash to win the match. (**. Another fairly quick match, but they put together some quality action.)
6. Jeff Hammond recently sat down with NWA-TNA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett. Jarrett puts over the NWA-TNA World Heavyweight Championship as the most important championship that he has ever been able to hold. Jarrett hypes up the Ultimate X match tonight and the cage match with Jeff Hardy tomorrow night.
7. Kazarian attacks Daniels before the bell to get the cheap advantage. Kazarian dropkicks Daniels in the corner a couple of times. Kazarian gets a near fall after a slingshot legdrop from the apron. Daniels avoids a springboard legdrop attempt. Daniels hits an STO and goes for the Angels Wings but that gets reversed. Christopher slams Kazarian and hits the Best Moonsault Ever! Michael Shane enters as the referee is distracted by Kazarian accidentally hits Shane! Daniels hits the Angels Wings and wins the match. After the match, Michael Shane attacks Daniels until Elix Skipper runs out to make the save. Triple X send Kazarian and Shane to the floor. (**. Another short, but fine little match between two X-Division guys. They are not getting a lot of time to showcase what they have to offer, though.)
8. Raven stomps away on Killings in the opening minute of the match and drop toe holds Ron to the floor. Raven sends Ron back first into the railing with a side Russian legsweep a couple of times. Killings ducks a clothesline and spin kicks Raven. Ron misses a scissors kick and is clotheslined by Raven in the corner. Killings counters the DDT and rolls Raven up to win the match. (*. Yet another really quick match.)
9. Tom Arnold is the referee for the hardcore midget match, which I am not going to cover all that much here. Arnold helps Teo as Puppet has him on his shoulders. Arnold runs around and Teo hits Puppet with a trash can lid. Puppet is clotheslined by Arnold and Teo. Arnold counts the fall by hitting Puppet over the head with a microphone three times. That was just ridiculous.
10. The main event sees all three men try to hit a few moves but are unable to get anything going. Dutt hit a springboard splash on Skipper. Tom Arnold chimes in with some rather poor commentary. Skipper walks the ropes and hits a hurricanrana on Sabin sending Sabin to the floor! Dutt takes both Skipper and Sabin out with moonsault off the top rope. Tom Arnold is really bad at providing his thoughts. It sounds really forced and he is trying to be funny. Dutt begins to make his way towards the X but Skipper is doing the same on the other side. Sabin springboards off the top rope to dropkick both Dutt and Skipper! Sabin tries to get the X but Dutt gets up and battles with Sabin and knocks him off. Dutt drops an elbow from the cables! All three men are down after Dutt comes off the cables and Skipper slams both Dutt and Sabin down. Sabin catapults Dutt into the air and Dutt spears Skipper off the cable! All three men begin to climb the cables to get the X! They are kicking each other. Dutt is knocked off quickly and so is Skipper. Sabin yanks the X off and wins the match! (**3/4. Obviously the best match on the special as they were given the most time and they were able to hit some nice high spots. A good way to end the first night of specials for TNA.)
Final Thoughts:
Most of the special consisted of quick matches and Tom Arnold and his gang trying to be funny and just failing miserably at it. I didn’t find it to be all that good and it seemed to be more of a wasted opportunity to showcase what the company was all about at this time. So, for a special, this gets a thumbs down from me.
Thanks for reading.