Total Non-Stop Action presents Impact
Date: 5/8/2008
From: Orlando, FL
Matches:
1.) Jimmy Rave defeated TNA X-Division Champion Petey Williams, Johnny Devine, Curry Man, Shark Boy & Consequences Creed in a six way match, non-title match
2.) Gail Kim defeated ODB, Angelina Love, Traci Brooks, Jackie Moore, Velvet Sky, Salinas, Roxxi Leveaux & Christy Hemme in a 9-way immunity razor on a pole match
3.) Sting defeated James Storm in a no disqualification match
4.) Matt Morgan defeated Kip James
5.) Kurt Angle & Scott Steiner defeated TNA World Champion Samoa Joe & Kevin Nash
Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) Jim Cornette is in the ring to kickoff the show and has the TNA Tag Team Championships displayed on the table. Cornette calls out the egotistical eight, the eight men Cornette chose to be the in the tournament for the tag titles. Matt Morgan, Kip James, BG James, James Storm, Booker T, Robert Roode, Sting, and TNA Knockouts Champion Awesome Kong all make their entrances. Cornette thought he made himself clear regarding what the prize is for the tournament, but the wrestlers have been calling him regarding who their partner will be. Everyone has called, but not Sting, which Cornette appreciates. Cornette says they are going to draw two teams for the PPV tonight. The drawings will be random. Cornette pulls out the first name and it is Sting. Sting makes his way down to the ring to join the segment. Sting pulls out the next envelope and it is James Storm. Storm is not thrilled about this development. Storm also enters the ring to join the segment. Storm grabs the microphone and tells Sting that he’s not his friend or buddy. Storm sure as hell doesn’t want to be his tag partner. Storm didn’t grow up a stinger because his mom didn’t let him play with makeup. Sting decks Storm into the corner. Sting grabs his baseball bat as Storm got a beer bottle, and Storm bails to the outside. Cornette books a singles match between Sting and Storm tonight. Cornette makes the match no disqualification. The second team will also wrestle each other tonight.
2.) Backstage, Jeremy Borash is waiting in the parking lot and is waiting to talk to Scott Steiner or Kurt Angle. The limo door opens and Scott Steiner arrives with Petey Williams and Khan. Steiner says that he will coexist with Angle to eliminate Samoa Joe. Kurt Angle enters the scene and tells Steiner that for one night only they work together to beat up Joe and Nash. Angle says if they beat Joe up bad enough it will be a singles match for them at Sacrifice. Steiner accepts the offer and they walk off.
3.) Devine and Creed kickoff the match with Creed putting a head scissors on Devine. Creed arm drags Devine and puts a wrist lock on Devine for a moment. Devine controls Creed with a wrist lock. Creed fights back with a middle rope twisting crossbody for a two count. Creed jabs Devine several times followed by a strike. Curry enters the match and dances on Devine’s back. Curry maintains control with a wrist lock. Devine springboards off the ropes to plant Curry with a DDT. Shark Boy enters the mach and takes Devine down with a Thez Press and delivers right hands. Shark slingshots Rave into the ring and stomps Rave in the corner. Williams clotheslines Shark from the apron and hits a slingshot Codebreaker. Williams kicks Shark in the midsection followed by a jawbreaker and a spinning heel kick. Devine rams Shark into the corner and distracts the referee to allow Rave to cheap shot Shark. Rave snapmares Shark followed by a stomp to the face for a two count. Devine returns to the match and hits a snap suplex on Shark before heading to the top rope missing a 450 splash. Rave and Curry enter the match with Curry hitting a backdrop and clothesline on Rave. Curry sits Rave over the middle rope and sends Williams into Rave before hitting a splash onto both men. Curry climbs to the top hitting a crossbody on Rave, but Creed and Williams make the save. Williams dumps Curry through the ropes to the floor. Williams nails Curry with a slingshot hurricanrana onto the floor. Rave misses a running knee and crashes over the top to the floor. Devine misses a clothesline, and Shark sends Devine to the floor with a Codebreaker. Shark and Creed trade right hands, but Creed backdrops Shark to the floor onto the other guys. Creed hits a somersault dive to the floor. Shark kicks Petey and nails Devine with a stunner. Creed spikes Shark with the CreedDT. Williams hits the Canadian Destroyer on Creed. Rave counters a Destroyer and hits a shining wizard on Williams. Curry stops Rave with a jawbreaker and connects with a slingshot suplex, but Hemme gets on the apron to distract Curry. Curry sends Rave into the corner, but Hoyt grabs Curry’s leg and Rave drives Curry to the mat with a modified swinging neckbreaker to pickup the win. (**. Rave may have been the last guy I expected to see win this match, but I don’t hate it. It feels like TNA may be wanting to put a focus on Rave, Hemme and Hoyt as the trio is actually an entertaining group even if they are a bit over the top with their antics. Their behavior will absolutely get them over as babyfaces should that switch need to happen at some point.)
4.) Backstage, Jeremy Borash is with Sting for an interview. Sting likes that wrestling is a three ring circus. Sting says they are going to beat each other up and then work things out. Sting says that Storm will fall in like a good little solider and they will win the tag titles at Sacrifice.
5.) A video package highlighting LAX is shown. Hector Guerrero will be in their corner at Sacrifice.
6.) Backstage, all the Knockouts are in Cornette’s office. Cornette talks about the match at Sacrifice where one of the ladies will get a title match and the other will end up bald. Cornette insists he’s not mean or a bad person. Cornette wants them to think of him as a father figure. Cornette has thought of a new match where all of them will wrestle in an immunity match. The winner of the match will be protected from having their head shaved. Cornette explains there will be a large pole, and notes that several women have experience on poles. The girl who grabs the sheers off the pole will be immune. If the woman who gets immunity loses at Sacrifice, then the runner-up gets her head shaved.
7.) Backstage, Jeremy Borash is with Christian Cage and Rhino for an interview. Cage asks if they are the favorites to win the tag titles. Cage says they know what it is like to work together and fight. Team 3D enter the scene and taunts Cage for his promo. Cage jokes about Team 3D’s weight. Brother Ray says they are the 20 times tag team champions and they are the best team ever. Brother Ray declares they are greatness while they are nothing. Ray tells Cage that 20 is the amount of times that Brother Devon has slept with Cage’s wife and that leads to both teams brawling backstage. Ray chokes Cage with something until Cage breaks free with a low blow. Ray tosses a plastic table onto Cage and sends Rhino into the wall. LAX enter the scene with Hernandez tossing Cage with a Border Toss onto the floor.
8.) All nine women are brawling in the ring since this is a battle royal and there’s rules attached to it other than grabbing the sheers. In the end, Gail Kim saves her hair for Sacrifice by managing to retrieve the sheers while ODB was not paying attention.
9.) Backstage, TNA World Champion Samoa Joe and Kevin Nash are interviewed. Joe asks what Steiner and Angle are going to do about his insurance policy, Nash. Joe tells them to bring pipes and bats to take him out. Joe promises he’ll die before he loses the championship to Steiner or Angle.
10.) Sting goes to the floor and clotheslines Storm over the railing into the crowd. Sting sends Storm into the wall a few times. Storm fights back by ramming Sting face first into the wall and leaps off the railing to deliver an axe handle. Sting puts Storm through a portion of the wall in the crowd. Sting tosses Storm back into the ringside area. Storm spits beer into Sting’s face to gain the advantage and rams Sting face first into the ring steps. Storm rolls Sting back into the ring and goes under the ring to grab a table. Storm slides the table into the ring and kicks Sting on the mat. Sting nails Storm with a short arm clothesline and misses a top rope splash attempt. Storm waits in the corner and accidentally superkicks the referee. Sting leg sweeps Storm and puts the Scorpion Death Lock on Storm, but there’s no referee. Jacqueline slides a chair into the ring for Storm to use. Sting avoids a chair shot, but Storm gets out of the Scorpion Death Drop and whacks Sting over the head with a chair shot for a near fall. Storm misses a splash in the corner and Sting hits a Stinger Splash. Sting leaps off the top and hits a big splash for a near fall. Jacqueline gets on the apron, but Sting grabs the baseball bat. Sting avoids a beer bottle strike and delivers the Scorpion Death Drop. Sting lays Storm onto the table in the corner and splashes Storm through the table in the corner. Sting delivers the Scorpion Death Drop to win the match. (*1/2. A predictable outcome and a predictable style of the match.)
11.) Backstage, Jeremy Borash interviews Kip James. Kip tells Borash to not be jealous of how he looks. Kip sets the record straight and says nobody is on the same planet as him, a megastar. Kip has taken three different partners to tag gold and that means he sets the standard. Kip takes credit for making DX. Kip says whomever his partner is at Sacrifice they better get on their knees because they’ve got him as a partner for one night.
12.) Jim Cornette is in the ring to pick the second tag team for the tournament at Sacrifice. Cornette introduces the remaining six wrestlers that need a partner to join the segment. Cornette picks the names out of a bowl and it is Matt Morgan followed by Kip James. Kip gets in the ring and tells Morgan that he’s Morgan’s daddy at Sacrifice and Morgan listen to him. Morgan nods in agreement before telling Kip to suck it. Morgan chokes Kip on the mat until security comes out to break things up. Kip splashes Morgan in the corner. Morgan does the same. Cornette orders a singles match for right now.
13.) Morgan sends Kip into the ropes, but misses a clothesline and instead elbows Kip to the floor as the show goes to commercial. Morgan headbutts Kip to the mat, but misses a boot and crotches himself over the top rope. Kip knocks Morgan to the floor and rams Morgan into the railing chest first to keep the advantage. Kip rolls Morgan into the ring and chokes Morgan with his shirt. Kip stomps Morgan on the mat several times. Morgan strikes Kip in the midsection, but Kip knee lifts Morgan. Morgan nails Kip with a few clotheslines. Morgan splashes Kip in the corner followed by a side slam for a two count. Kip boots a charging Morgan, but misses a splash. Morgan hits Kip with a big boot and picks up the win. (*. I just don’t care about Matt Morgan.)
14.) Backstage, BG James is interviewed regarding Sacrifice. BG talks about the remaining three names that could be his partner. BG doesn’t think dreads on him work anymore. BG doesn’t think teaming with rich Robert Roode would be a good fit. BG wants to team with Awesome Kong and thinks that’s the only way he’ll ever look good.
15.) Backstage, Jeremy Borash interviews Scott Steiner and Kurt Angle. Borash asks if they can get along long enough to follow through with their plan. Steiner tells Angle that he doesn’t like Angle, but they need to work together for their common goal. Steiner says TNA needs one of them as the champion and not the fat ass Samoa Joe. Angle doesn’t know if Steiner can handle it and Steiner shoves Angle saying he can handle it. Petey Williams chimes in and says they can’t get along because they are all the same. Williams tries to tell them they only need ten minutes, and maybe even less. Steiner walks off.
16.) A video package promoting the feud between TNA World Champion Samoa Joe, Scott Steiner and Kurt Angle is shown.
17.) Angle and Nash kickoff the main event tag match. Angle gets a waist lock on Nash and delivers a strike to the back. Nash knee lifts Angle followed by an elbow strike to the back. Nash works over Angle with a strike in the corner. Nash drops Angle over the turnbuckle with a snake eyes and clotheslines Angle for a two count. Joe tags into the match and headbutts Angle in the ribs. Joe strikes Angle in the corner several times. Joe kicks Angle on the chest and delivers a knee drop. Joe tags in Nash and chops Angle in the corner. Angle stops Nash with an eye rake and tags in Steiner. Steiner chops Nash, but Nash nails Steiner with a big boot. Nash drops Angle to the mat. Steiner low blows Nash to regain the momentum. Steiner decks Joe off the apron and tags Angle into the match. Angle eye rakes Nash again. Angle stomps Nash in the corner several times. Steiner kicks Nash several times in the corner. Steiner comes off the ropes and delivers a clothesline to knock Nash to the mat. Angle returns to the match and hits a back suplex for a two count on Nash. Angle keeps Nash on the mat with a sleeper. Nash gets up and elbows free. Nash plants Angle with a side slam and both men are down.
Nash crawls to the corner and tries to tag, but Angle grabs Nash. The referee doesn’t see the tag because of Steiner. Joe cleans house with clotheslines anyway. Joe forearms Steiner in the corner and plants Angle with a running powerslam. Joe clotheslines Steiner in the corner followed by an STO. Joe snap powerslams Angle. Joe puts a choke on Steiner, but Angle decks Joe from behind and hits an Olympic Slam. Angle is caught in midair by Nash, but Steiner whacks Nash with a pipe. Angle hits the Olympic Slam and Steiner pins Nash for the win. After the match, Angle hits the Olympic Slam on Steiner and Steiner is tapping out to the ankle lock. That’s how the show ends before going into a video package promoting Sacrifice. (*1/2. They literally did more damage to Nash than they did to Joe leading into the PPV match, so the heels look a little bit dumb for not even attempting to take out Joe before the event. The match is your standard tag team TV main event style of match.)
Final Thoughts:
I’ve honestly disliked the build for Sacrifice and the show being heavy on a tag team tournament doesn’t help matters, at all. I’m glad to get through this overall boring month and I’m curious about the direction they’ll go in for Slammiversary.
Thanks for reading.