Impact opens with footage from Lockdown focusing on the Angle/Jarrett, Lethal Lockdown and the three-way match for the TNA World Championship. Sting is seen walking around the US Bank Arena saying that he wants Hulk Hogan, Mr. Anderson, Rob Van Dam and everybody in the ring.
AJ Styles’ music hits as he is lowered down from the rafters and into the ring that is surrounded by a steel cage that is littered with weapons. Styles says Bully Ray didn’t end his career and said he showed up to Lockdown to take him out. Styles continues by saying he wants Ray to come out and face him like a man so he can finish the job.
Ray’s music hits and he comes out and says that he could beat Styles so badly that he would never wrestle again. Ray warns Styles what he is capable of and says he will take care of his wife when he is done with him. Ray begins to make his way towards the cage but stops and says he has nothing left to prove to him and promises to take care of him on his own time.
Ray begins to walk up the ramp but is cut off by Christopher Daniels who backs him into the cage and locks the door. Styles begins to toss Ray around the cage before taking him down with the Pele kick. Styles then takes Ray out with a garbage can as Gunner runs out and gets into a brawl with Daniels on the entrance ramp and to the backstage area. Back in the cage, Styles puts Ray onto a table and climbs to the top of the cage but Ray is able to get up and escape the cage before Styles is able to do any more damage.
We then join the announce team as they run down what happened at Lockdown and say that Immortal is reeling after they were unsuccessful in having RVD join their group and how Fortune defeated Immortal in Lethal Lockdown. They also say that Robert Roode took out Ric Flair during the Lethal Lockdown match and the legend will need to have surgery.
Immortal’s music hits as Rob Terry and Murphy come out to the ring. Terry gets on the microphone and says the two of them have something to prove to Hulk Hogan and challenge Beer Money to a match. Terry says payback will start right now as they will take the titles from them. Beer Money’s music hits as Robert Roode asks the fans what they think about having a match against them in a cage. The fans give their approval as the tag team champs come down to the ring as we head into a commercial break.
Match 1: Rob Terry & Murphy vs. Beer Money (TNA Tag Team Championship)
We return to the match already in progress and Terry and Murphy are in control. Terry picks up a near fall on Roode after hitting a slam and turns the match over to his partner. Murphy continues wearing down Roode until Roode is able to fire back with a clothesline and tags in James Storm. Storm comes in and takes out both of his opponents and picks up a near fall on Terry after hitting a DDT. Beer Money then hit the DWI on Terry to pick up the pin fall to retain the TNA Tag Team Championship.
We see a horse drawn carriage pulling the Jarrett’s around who are all dressed up. Jeff tells his wife that he will be returning the favor tonight for what she did at Lockdown and promises to make the Royal Wedding pale in comparison as she becomes the queen of the King of the Mountain.
Hulk Hogan is seen walking backstage with a lead pipe in his hands as we head into a commercial break. We return from the break as Hogan’s music hits and he makes his way down to the ring. Hogan says he calls the shots around here before ordering RVD to come down to the ring.
RVD comes out and Hogan tells him that he made the mistake of his life by not joining Immortal and that he is going to pay for it. RVD talks about accomplishing everything he has done with respect, and not turning his back on everyone. RVD says things have changed but he won’t as Hogan says RVD’s career has been mediocre and without Hogan he will be nothing more than a mid-card player.
Sting’s music hits as he joins Hogan and RVD in the ring. Sting says RVD is a main eventer as he will be challenging Sting for the TNA World Championship at Sacrifice. Sting says the network put a clause in his contract stating that if he was the champion he can choose his opponent and he chooses RVD. Hogan gets irate about the network and says RVD will have his hands full with Abyss tonight since he runs the show. As for Sting, Hogan books him in a match against Matt Hardy in the main event.
Kurt Angle is seen walking around and is looking for Jeff and Karen Jarrett. He is told that they were seen in the parking lot with a horse and carriage as he walks away.
Madison Rayne and Tara are seen arguing in the dressing room as Madison blames Tara for losing the TNA Knockouts Championship. Madison says she thinks Tara and Mickie James were working together the whole time. Madison tells her the only way to get back on her good side is to win the Knockouts Tag Team Championship with her tonight before walking away.
Kurt Angle walks out to the parking lot and talks with Eric Young as he shows them how to take care of horses as he is feeding them beans. Angle tells them they are going to crap everywhere and tells him to get a couple of buckets as Angle begins to smirk as he gets an idea in his head.
Match 2: Sarita & Rosita vs. Madison Rayne & Tara (TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship)
We join the match already in progress and Madison and Tara are already arguing with each other. Madison then takes control of the match but instead of going for the pin fall, she walks back to her corner and begins yelling at Tara. Mexican American then distracts the ref as Sarita and Rosita double team Madison and pick up the pin fall to retain the Knockouts Tag Team Championship. After the match, Tara walks away from Madison as she continues to yell at her.
Jeff and Karen Jarrett are seen walking in the back as they are heading out to the Impact Zone for their royal coronation. The happy couple make their way to the ring all dressed in white where there is a throne and crown waiting. Jeff Jarrett says his wife’s actions this past Sunday brought a tear to his eye. Jarrett calls it an act of true love and says he is going to officially coronate her tonight as the Queen of the Mountain.
Jarrett tells the crowd to stand on their feet as he places the crown on Karen’s head, however, she soon is showered in runny horse dung. Kurt Angle comes out to the ring as the announce team puts over how bad the stench. Angle takes Jarrett out with an Angle Slam and Angle tells his ex-wife that while he won’t lay a hand on the mother of his children, he knows someone who will. Angle says his “mistress” is all about pain and she can’t wait to meet her. Angle then leaves the ring with a huge smile on his face.
Hulk Hogan is backstage talking with Abyss and says it’s time for them to take care of business. Hogan then tells Abyss to stand back as he goes over to talk to Mr. Anderson. Hogan wants to know if he knows anything about the network executive and Anderson says he has been screwed over by both the network and by Hogan. Anderson then tells Hogan that he is boring him as he walks away. Hogan then walks back to Abyss and says it wasn’t his time yet and they go out to search for RVD.
Match 3: Abyss vs. Rob Van Dam
Hulk Hogan accompanies Abyss down to the ring for this match. The bell rings and RVD quickly takes down Abyss and goes for the Rolling Thunder but Hogan hooks RVD’s leg. Abyss then takes RVD down with a big boot and then connects with a series of blows to RVD’s head. Abyss’ mouth is bleeding as RVD is able to stop his momentum with a kick to the face.
RVD follows up with Rolling Thunder and begins to head to the top rope but Hogan distracts him with the steel pipe. The referee tries to get Hogan to the back as he slides the pipe over to Abyss. RVD goes back in the ring and Abyss nails him with the pipe before hitting the Black Hole Slam to pick up the pin fall. After the match, Hogan enters the ring as Abyss continues beating RVD. Abyss holds RVD as Hogan is about to swing it but Crimson runs out to make the save as he chases them out of the ring.
Sting is backstage and says he is fighting to get Jeff Hardy back to TNA and calls him one of the best wrestlers in the business today. As for Hulk Hogan, he is making Sting do something that he does for a living, and that is wrestle. Sting says he is going to show up and wrestle because it is showtime.
Matt Hardy is sitting backstage staring at Jeff Hardy’s custom belt. Hardy says Sting threw the belt away like it was a piece of garbage, but it meant everything to his brother. Hardy promises to destroy everything that Sting is tonight in the ring.
Matt Morgan comes down to the ring and says Hernandez is behind him and he is back on the fast track to winning his first TNA World Championship. He continues by saying he is sick of waiting for his time to come and says his time is now. Morgan says if he doesn’t get it, he is going to take it. Scott Steiner’s music then interrupts Morgan as he comes down to the ring.
Steiner says he always wakes up in a good mood but something always pisses him off. Steiner says Morgan may be the DNA of TNA but he will never be the genetic freak that he is. Steiner says the line for shots at the World Championship starts behind him. Morgan says he respects Steiner and tells him not to mistake his respect for weakness. Morgan then challenges Steiner and holds out his hand but Steiner kicks him in the midsection. Steiner then locks Morgan in the Steiner Recliner and leaves Morgan lying in the ring.
Ms. Tessmacher is backstage and says there has been a lot of changes in TNA since she was last around, but one thing that hasn’t changed is her determination. She then warns the Knockouts that she is back.
Velvet Sky is backstage and is talking about how Angelina Love went too far last week by using her own finisher onto a steel chair. Winter then comes in and tells Velvet to stop her whining and Velvet says she was going to go to the authorities but wants to take care of Winter herself. Angelina then comes in and attacks Velvet and takes her out. Winter tells Angelina that she has had enough and will take care of her for good next week.
Match 4: Matt Hardy vs. Sting (TNA World Championship)
Matt Hardy wears his brother’s custom belt to the ring for this match. Immortal blocks the entrance ramp as Sting comes out but Fortune comes out and go up against them as Sting and Hardy begin going at it on the floor. Gunner sneaks in from behind and nails Sting in the back of the leg and rolls him into the ring as this match officially begins.
Hardy begins to focus on Sting’s leg and picks up a near fall on the champ after hitting a leg drop from the middle rope. Hardy then misses with a moonsault as Sting gets to his feet and tries for the Scorpion Death Lock but Hardy is able to kick Sting off. Hardy then focuses on Sting’s leg and continues to wear him down with a single leg Boston crab as we head into a commercial break.
We return to the match to see Sting trying to fight his way back into the match but Hardy keeps on working over Sting’s leg. Hardy then tries for the Twist of Hate but Sting counters and takes Hardy down with a series of clotheslines. Sting, though, misses with a Stinger Splash but is able to counter Hardy’s next attack with a Scorpion Death Drop to pick up the pin fall and retain the TNA World Championship.
After the match, Mr. Anderson runs into the ring and lays Sting out with the Mic Check. Anderson then picks Hardy up and takes him out with another Mic Check. Anderson’s microphone then lowers from the rafters and tells Sting that he is going anywhere anytime soon. Anderson then stares down at Sting as we head into the final thoughts of the night.
Karen Jarrett is seen screaming at her husband for what happened earlier in the night but Jarrett is in pain and wonders how many times he has to beat Angle’s ass. We then see Hogan talking on the phone and says and tells Mr. Anderson that he got his message loud and clear. Hogan then says Anderson is smarter than he looks but he will pay the price for not joining Immortal. Hogan also says the network has to show their face and when they do, they will realize how bad they screwed up.
Mr. Anderson talks about giving out some Mic Checks tonight and says he doesn’t have many friends in the business. Sting is seen limping out and says its not the executives or power that’s on his mind, but getting revenge on Mr. Anderson is as Impact comes to a close.
Quick Results
– Beer Money defeated Rob Terry & Murphy by pin fall in a steel cage match to retain the TNA Tag Team Championship.
– Sarita & Rosita defeated Madison Rayne & Tara by pin fall to retain the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship.
– Abyss defeated Rob Van Dam by pin fall.
– Sting defeated Matt Hardy by pin fall to retain the TNA World Championship.
Starman’s Thoughts
Right off the heels of Lockdown and we immediately get yet another cage match for the first bout on Impact – as if an entire pay-per-view full of cage matches weren’t enough already. I don’t mind the all steel cage concept of Lockdown, but it does diminish the effectiveness of cage matches when they are used all the time, especially when they take place in an impromptu match on standard television.
I will give TNA credit for the hot start that kicked off tonight’s show. I wish AJ Styles would have been featured more prominently on tonight’s show, but he made the most of the opening segment and worked well going back and forth with Bully Ray. Plus, it broke the streak of having a weak opening segment of nonstop talking from Immortal.
I hate to admit it, but Bully Ray is starting to win me over as a main event player. I had my doubts about his singles career, but Ray is great on the mic and seems to be more rejuvenated as of late. TNA doesn’t need any more wrestlers crowding the main event scene, but Ray is a nice addition to have in the upper tier.
Not only has Bully Ray been great on the microphone, but so has Sting as of late. Sting was never one that shined on the microphone, but he seems to have finally gotten some confidence on the stick and doesn’t seem to be forgetting his lines. He also seems rejuvenated, and although he is getting up there in age, this is probably the most entertained I have been by his character in some time.
Sting revealed tonight that he has a clause in his contract that allows him to pick who will challenge him for the TNA World Championship. He handpicked RVD to face him at Sacrifice, but then Hulk Hogan books him to defend the title tonight against Matt Hardy. So do they both get to pick who gets a shot at the title or does the network only have the power to allow Sting to choose who will challenge for the title on a non-network televised event?
Also, is it the network’s decision to always go to a break just as a match is about to start so the fans miss half of the match due to commercials? I hope Hulk Hogan gets to the bottom of who is behind the network so I can give them a piece of my mind as well.
The foreshadowing was pretty thick as to what was going to happen during tonight’s coronation. It doesn’t seem like the Angle/Jarrett feud will be ending any time soon and it now has another added level with Angle bringing out his “mistress” to deal with Karen Jarrett. I’m looking forward to seeing who it may be and hope this is used to introduce or re-introduce a worthy Knockout into the fold. After seeing Ms. Tessmacher back on television, I hope that it isn’t her.
Speaking of Knockouts, it looks like the feud between Madison Rayne and Mickie James is taking a slight detour as tension between Madison and Tara is starting to boil over. I really wish TNA would have changed the title match at Lockdown as the ending seemed anti-climatic after Mickie’s chase for the Knockouts Championship lasted for several months. Mickie winning the title for the first time should have seemed more special than it did and now the title is around the waist of an injured wrestler. Not only that, but one would think that Madison would want to regain the title she lost, but instead she challenges for the tag team belts. I guess you can’t do much with an injured champion.
Overall, tonight’s Impact was a middle of the road show. Seeds were planted for a few new feuds and a couple of them continued on, but like I said before, I wish more focus was put on AJ Styles and his return. A month isn’t too long of time to be away, but this was one of the biggest stories coming out of Lockdown this past Sunday. I was hoping for bigger things with the follow up than what was given.