My Impact Wrestling, 10th January 2013 Recap

Crack! Aries ends a great tag match via DQ. Photo credit: impactwrestling.com

Sting, accompanied by Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe, warned Doc that at Genesis this Sunday he'll be coming for him. Joe then also threatened Aces & 8s after their group attack on him in the steel cage last week. Finally Angle took to the mic and called out Mr. Anderson, who stood by as the aforementioned attack from Aces & 8s took place on him and Joe, and demanded to know who's side he's on.

Anderson then joined them and explained that he'd turned his back on them after Sting and the others failed to help him when he was taken out by Aces a couple of months ago. After Angle then gave Ken the choice of either being against them, or with them, Anderson admitted that he'd never liked Kurt much anyway, which prompted the gold medallist to attack him and send him on his way. The best part of the opening segment was Anderson's nicely subtle but effective mic work.

Kenny King defeated Zema Ion in an entertaining match up. Both men looked good here and put in decent displays, with nicely executed and exciting moves to keep the fans going throughout.

Robbie T and Brooke Tessmacher bested Jesse and Tara in a largely pedestrian inter-gender tag bout. Tessmacher looked good enough in the ring, but that was about the only really noteworthy part of the contest. Afterwards Robbie T began dancing with Tessmacher, then laid on a big snog which apparently knocked her off her feet.

Jay Bradley beat Bryan Cage (yes, that was really the name he'd chosen to use) in a fair effort by both men in the Gut Check Challenge. The start was quite dull but once it got going they looked okay, nothing exceptional but competent enough, and better than some of the past Gut Check challengers.

In the Aces & 8s base, Mike Knox was informed that after being unmasked last week he would be given one chance to earn back his spot in he gang.

Joseph Parks called out Hulk Hogan and after completing his time at the OVW training camp begged him for a match against Aces & 8s as retribution for their attack on him, so 'The Hulkster' accepted. Brooke Hogan then joined her dad and asked if he was going to reinstate Bully Ray after he suspended him on last week's show. Hogan simply answered "No" and left his upset daughter. Brooke's acting here was awful, I mean really bad.

Jeff Hardy and James Storm won via DQ versus Austin Aries and Bobby Roode in a terrific tag contest from start to finish. I'm a fan of all four men but it still surpassed my expectations with solid wrestling and some red hot action, especially when Hardy made a hot tag to Storm, with 'The Cowboy' on top form as he barraged through his two opponents and then Christopher Daniels and Kazarian who decided to make their way down and interfere.

The disqualification came after Aries struck Hardy with his own title belt across the back of the head. Roode and AA then argued as they both held up Hardy's World Championship strap. I'm predicting a very good Triple Threat for the title this Sunday. 

After Anderson hesitated to enter the ring with Angle, Mike Knox appeared and cracked Kurt with a hammer and legged it once Samoa Joe, Garett Bischoff and Wes Brisco appeared on the scene. As Angle was being stretchered away a livid Sting then stormed out and demanded that Knox enter the ring with him one on one. After fellow Aces members convinced him to take up the challenge, Knox accepted.

Sting defeated Mike Knox in a passable, if quite drab outing. The action wasn't bad at any point, it just never went beyond okay and failed to ever really engage me. You can skip this one.

Afterwards 'The Stinger' was about to deliver some retribution to Knox with his own weapon, until Devon and crew appeared with Brooke Hogan hostage and warned him to halt. This prompted the indefinitely suspended Bully Ray to run out and save Brooke with a chain in hand to back off the Aces & 8s members. Hogan then also came out and accused Bully of being a fake and putting his daughter in harms way. Bully retorted by calling Hogan crazy and admitted that he loved Brooke more than anything else. To prove this Bully then proposed in front of a furious 'Hulkster', with his daughter accepting. Bully went on to convince her to have the wedding live on next weeks show. At least this storyline is progressing a bit more. The hilarious cartoon-face on Hogan alone made this closing segment worth watching. 

My WWE SmackDown, 11th January 2013 Recap

An emotional Del Rio after his momentous World Title victory. Photo credit: WWE.com

General Manager Booker T announced that Big Show and Del Rio will clash over the World Title in a Last Man Standing match that night, which cued an upset Big Show to come out and accused the GM of trying to encourage the latino-heavy Miami crowd to embrace Del Rio. The champ then decided to convince Booker to change his mind by grabbing him round the throat, but halted once Del Rio raced out and kicked him out of the ring. 

Randy Orton versus Antonio Cesaro ended in a no contest after The Shield (Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns) attacked and triple powerbombed 'The Viper'. The match itself had been decent enough, with solid ring work from both men, it was just lacking that real excitement or intensity.  

We were then shown a message from WWE Champion CM Punk for The Rock that had been recorded at the Sun Life Stadium, where his aforementioned future opponent last wrestled and won against John Cena last year. The champ compared the Orange Bowl Arena (where Rocky played college football) which is now non-existent to the past WWE/F that was home to The Rock's prime years in pro wrestling, claiming that 'The Great One' was no longer the top dog, but he now was. As standard with him it was a terrific promo from Punk. 

AJ Lee and Dolph Ziggler bested The Great Khali and Natalya in a mediocre and quite forgettable tag outing. Ziggler was limited in the ring with the stiff Khali, and unfortunately we didn't get anywhere near the best from Natalya against AJ. For the finish AJ bit into Natalya's ear and applied a slow and quite awkward looking corner springboard cutter for the one-two-three. Big E Langston (who as usual had accompanied Ziggler and Lee) and Dolph then further attacked Khali and Hornswaggle afterwards.

Once again we witnessed a message from CM Punk at the Sun Life Stadium where he stated that he was "the best in the world" and far superior to 'The People' that The Rock stands for, adding that "the people can rot in hell" for all he cares, claiming it's what they deserve. This time Paul Heyman also chimed in by warning Rocky that his vision of conquering the evil CM Punk and taking the WWE Title to WrestleMania doesn't matter, since no one can surpass the champ.

The Rock finally came out to a great reception from his home of Miami, and confessed his disappointment that CM Punk hadn't turned up to the show to receive some further pain from 'The Great One'. He also went on to say that home for him isn't just Miami or SmackDown, but kicking CM Punk's ass and obtaining the WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble. 

Team Rhodes Scholars (Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes) then interrupted Rock and asked him to leave, telling him that it was now their time, not his. Rocky admitted that it took guts with the way the duo were dressed to come down to the ring and tell him to go. After some amusing back and fourth with Cody involving his moustache, Sandow issued a challenge to Rock to answer three general knowledge questions correctly, and if not then he would have to leave. So after answering the first two correctly, Rock turned the tables and asked Rhodes Scholars a question. Sandow of course answered correctly, and as a special prize received a Rock Bottom, and not forgetting about Rhodes who received a People's Elbow for his troubles. It was an entertaining segment, with all three men being genuinely amusing.  

Sheamus defeated 3MB (Heath Slater, Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre) in a brief Handicap match. The trio decided to leave Sheamus at the start, only for Slater to then attempt a sneak attack from behind and instead receive a Brogue Kick and a look up at the lights as the Irishman pinned him, with a tepid McIntyre and Mahal looking on. 

Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan & Kane) beat the Prime Time Players (Darren Young & Titus O'Neil) in a passable tag bout. As usual the PTP didn't bring anything special or particularly exciting to the match, but they were okay, and fortunately a solid performance from Bryan brought the interest and excitement up.

Alberto Del Rio defeated Big Show (c) to obtain the World Heavyweight Championship in a Last Man Standing match. And what a main event this was. From start to finish both men put in more than worthy efforts and provided an engaging and dramatic title battle. Del Rio took his fair share of battering from the giant, but as any good face does he managed to scrape and claw his way back and cracked Show with some steel steps and buried him under the announce desk, with no way back up Del Rio was announced the new champion. His and Ricardo Rodriguez's face was a look of pure joy and relief when the bell rung, and bloody genuine looking, if he was acting he did a superb job there. 

If I'm honest I wasn't expecting anything that outstanding here, and certainly not a new champion being crowned, but boy was I glad I was proven wrong. Definitely one worth checking out if you normally skip the blue brand.

Overall it was an enjoyable (and at times very engaging) SmackDown for the most part, which makes a nice change from the usual pedestrian broadcast we get. CM Punk's promos, the main event and The Rock and Rhodes Scholars segment were the highlights of the show for me. Above average SmackDown for sure, but unfortunately I can't help shake that feeling that next week will all be back to normal. 

My WWE SmackDown, 4th January 2013 Recap

Randy Orton kicked things off by announcing that he had his sights set on the World Championship and that he would be entering the 2013 Royal Rumble match. Sheamus then joined 'The Viper' and also announced that he'll be participating in the same match. After some fairly heated words between the two, World champion Big Show also came out and boasted that it doesn't matter who challenges him for the title, since he'll be victorious anyway. US Title holder Antonio Cesaro as usual then berated Americans for their obesity rate. In Teddy Long-like fashion Booker T then booked all four men in a tag match for later on. 

The Miz bested Heath Slater in a fair outing. They both put in decent enough efforts, with Slater especially looking like he was trying to up his game. It wasn't anything outstanding or that exciting, but no aspect of it was bad. During the bout fellow 3MB members Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal were asked to leave by the referee.

The Great Khali, Natalya and Hornswaggle beat Rosa Mendes, Epico and Primo in a largely worthless tag bout. Epico and Primo ate talents who deserve far better than 'comedy' routines with Hornswaggle and trying to get something out of the rigid Khali.

Wade Barrett (c) defeated Kofi Kingston to retain the Intercontinental Title in an enjoyable enough contest. A bit more fun then their previous effort this past Monday, but still lacking that little something for me. On the whole a worthy title display form both men, worth a watch.

Tamina beat Layla in a passable Divas outing. Pretty run of the mill match up in front of an indifferent crowd, but no clear mistakes so I'll take that from the current Divas division.

Sheamus and Randy Orton defeated Antonio Cesaro and Big Show in a solid main event tag bout. The strongest period of this enjoyable (and intriguing, but I'll get to that in a bit...) contest was the first third with the always stellar Cesaro tangling with Sheamus and Orton. As Josh Matthews noted on commentary the US Champion didn't look out of place at all with the former World Title holders. Show also looked okay here, and put in a passable effort.  

For the finish Sheamus tagged himself in, which upset Orton and encouraged him to RKO Cesaro as the Irishman was about to Brogue Kick him. It was an interesting end to the match because I reckon this is the slow start in the heel turn we've heard rumours of for 'The Viper'. And he really needs it, his character has to freshen things up and it's probably the best way to do it.

Overall it was a decent show, although there was a large amount of content that was quite forgettable. The main event and the IC Title clash were the highlights for me, both decent, especially the tag match. As I said though there was just too much time spent on mediocre or drab matches and promos, typical for the blue brand I guess.  

My Impact Wrestling, 3rd January 2013 Recap

Jeremy Borash announced via an online poll that Jeff Hardy had been named the 'TNA wrestler of the year'. Soon into Hardy's acceptance speech Bobby Roode interrupted him and berated the World Champion for caring about the fans opinion as much as his title belt, stating that it meant everything to him when he held it. Austin Aries (my personal TNA wrestler of the year) then also chimed in and called the whole contest "rigged" as he felt after his top PPV performances and record-breaking X Division title run he deserved the accolade of wrestler of the year.

Hardy then settled things by challenging both men to a Triple Threat for the title at Genesis to prove he was the better man. Aries and Roode decided they'd then had enough of the 'Charismatic Enigma' and began attacking him, but Jeff soon turned the tables and managed to take out both men.  

James Storm defeated Kazarian in a decent contest with a great finish. Both men gave fine displays here for the most part as they went back and fourth, with an excited crowd to help boost the atmosphere. For the finish Storm executed a superb Last Call Superkick to Kaz as he came off the top rope, it looked tremendous and had the fans on their feet.  

In the Aces & 8s headquarters Mr. Anderson agreed to help out the gang, but warned them that they'll have to show no fear when Sting returns that night. Doc then came out to the ring by himself and demanded that 'The Stinger' come on out. But there was no sign of Sting, and all Doc received was a black baseball bat fall to the ring in front of him. 

Christian York bested Kid Kash to advance in the X Division Title tournament. The bout itself was a bit of a mixed bag, with decent moments of action here and there but signs of sloppiness and nerves from York still. I just feel that York's a bit overrated by many fans, he shows moments of promising ability in the ring but he's still coming across as a bit of an amateur and slow to me, which isn't good enough for someone with as many years experience as him.

Matt Morgan announced on the way to the ring that he'd picked up an injury doing weights in the gym, so instead Joey Ryan was taking his place in the following match against Hernandez, much to Ryan's surprise.

Hulk Hogan apologised for not appearing on last weeks Impact, then went on to call out Brooke Hogan and Bully Ray to sort things out after seeing them kiss. He accused Bully of breaking the code among pro wrestlers by being involved with his daughter and then indefinitely suspended him without pay and demanded that Brooke leave the ring also. The storyline's taken an interesting turn.   

Mickie James and Brooke Tessmacher beat Tara and Gail Kim in a largely average tag bout. It wasn't a bad match, there was just nothing exceptional about it at all. Mickie James was the only stand out performer with a worthy display here, while Tara, Tessmacher and Kim were disappointedly pedestrian. 

Before the main event cage match begun, Doc attacked Kurt Angle and dragged him away, then locked Samoa Joe inside with Devon and a masked Aces & 8s ally. 

Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe defeated Devon and the masked Aces & 8s member in a Steel Cage match. The first third was fairly drab as Devon and his fellow gang member began beating on Joe, but once Angle managed to make a comeback and open the cage door after beating it off Doc, the main event picked up and started to gain some excitement. Angle as usual was on good form as he began throwing around and taking out his two opponents, Joe also looked decent here, Devon and his ally gave fair performances. Angle grabbed the win after applying an Angle Slam.

Afterwards a swarm of gang members ran into the steel structure and began taking out Joe and Angle. But predictably Sting then made his return and took out all the Aces & 8s goons with his signature baseball bat. Considering the build up to his return, it all felt rather anticlimactic to me. He just strolled down in his T-Shirt, without any music or at least the lights going out, and the way he was able to take out all those men looked ridiculous, like they wouldn't be able to take down the far older 'Stinger'? Disappointing return for me, but then I wasn't that hyped to begin with. I still feel he would've been better off retiring two years back.

Overall it was a largely pedestrian Impact for me. Storm versus Kazarian and the second half to the main event were the highlights, other than that I didn't really get that into the show. At least we had some nicely executed progressions in the Hogan Bully Ray storyline and World Title picture.

My WWE SmackDown, 28th December 2012 Recap

Sheamus first said he hoped everyone had had a merry Christmas, adding that his was a lot of fun. He then challenged Big Show to a World Title match for that very night after beating him in a Lumberjack match on this weeks Raw. Big Show of course refused, calling his victory over him a "fluke." GM Booker T then soon joined them and informed Show that he'll pick a random name from a tumbler (filled with all the wrestlers from the back and Sheamus) and that wrestler will receive a World Championship match against the giant that night.

After some arguing between Eve and Teddy Long, Booker picked out Santino Marrella's name from the tumbler. Joy from the Italian soon turned to horror as Big Show approached him and he realised what he'll be up against later on.

Brodus Clay bested Primo in an average bout. At least this unmemorable outing was kept short. Afterwards Rosa Mendes had a few choice words for Clay, but was cut short by Naomi and Cameron as they double suplexed her.

Wade Barrett and Team Rhodes Scholars (Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes) beat Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan and Kane) and Kofi Kingston in a fair six-man tag bout. The action was a bit disappointing considering the talent involved but it wasn't bad by any means. Barrett grabbed the one-two-three on Kofi after applying a Bull Hammer.

Booker informed Big Show backstage that after Santino had pulled a hamstring earlier when training with Sheamus a substitute had to be picked, and it turned out to be Ricardo Rodriguez. Show laughed at the nervous number one contender, then knocked him out and called him a joke to his title.  

Antonio Cesaro defeated Zack Ryder in an enjoyable enough encounter. As usual Cesaro was on stellar form, providing faultless maneuvers. Ryder played his part well too, although he was pretty limited offensively anyway. 

Dolph Ziggler beat The Miz in the match of the night. Both men put in worthy efforts as they went back and fourth, with Ziggler as standard working hard. Dolph gained the win after bodyguard Big E Langston distracted Miz. After Miz mocked AJ Lee afterwards, Langston and Dolph decided to further beat him down. 

Sheamus beat Brad Maddox in a rather pedestrian match up. Maddox was allowed a fair bit of offense so at least he wasn't completely destroyed here, the action was just passable for the majority.

Backstage Booker agreed to give Alberto Del Rio the spot in the World Title match after Big Show took out his good friend and personal ring announcer Rodriguez.

Big Show (c) won via disqualification versus Alberto Del Rio, therefore retaining the World Heavyweight Championship. The match itself contained decent enough action, although it wasn't anything that memorable or exciting, a big step down from any of Sheamus and Show's efforts on PPV. The DQ came after Sheamus ran out and attacked Show, along with a large portion of the roster who didn't appreciate Show's harsh words towards them earlier. I'm guessing a possible Triple Threat will occur at the Royal Rumble between Sheamus, Del Rio and the champ.

My Impact Wrestling, 27th December 2012 Recap

Kazarian and Daniels on great form as standard. Photo credit: impactwrestling.com 

Bully Ray came to the ring and as part of the Open Fight Night rules asked Hulk Hogan to come out to talk, which he was obliged to as part of OFN. But instead daughter Brooke Hogan joined Bully and quietly informed him that her Dad was aware of their relationship. The fact that Ray feigned shock just seemed stupid, I mean they were both kissing out in the clear open in the parking lot on last weeks show when 'The Hulkster' spotted them. 

Austin Aries challenged Bobby Roode to a match in the main event to finally settle things after each man had screwed each other over in World Title situations over the past two weeks. He also claimed that as the top two wrestlers going it was suitable that they'd have the final televised TNA bout of the year.

An angry Samoa Joe called out a masked member of Aces & 8s that attacked him previously to a match up, and threatened to unmask him too. 

Samoa Joe defeated the Aces & 8s member via submission in a passable, if uninspiring contest. The action was okay but nothing special or particularly exciting. As Joe began to unmask his opponent, other gang members raced out so he decided to leave it for now and left.

Robbie E challenged Jesse to a 'Bro Off', which consisted of simply dancing awfully or posing to their entrance themes. Robbie E announced himself the winner after Jesse broke the rules by not saying "Bro"  and by using Tara and not "putting bros before hoes." But it wasn't over as Robbie T then also danced/posed to the music and walked off leaving a shocked Robbie E. It was a bad segment all round to be honest, it wasn't funny and the dancing wasn't remotely decent. I didn't personally find any amusement here at all, and I normally don't mind the duo of Tara and Jesse. 

Rob Van Dam ridiculously stated that his efforts had "elevated the X Division to a whole new level." Please tell me doesn't actually believe that, right? RVD hasn't done anything close to what Aries did for the division, he gives average efforts most weeks and still thinks of himself as one of the top talents in the company. He went on to then challenge Christian York to a match, much to the surprise of Kenny King.

Rob Van Dam defeated Christian York in a fair contest. While York pulls out a few exciting moves in his match ups, he does still have a tendency to be a bit clumsy here and there, and I wouldn't have believed that he's had sixteen-years experience in pro wrestling if Tenay hadn't mentioned it. Overall the bout was decent enough, nothing exceptional about it. 

Christopher Daniels as usual was on great form on the mic as he mocked the fans and named his rear the one that "makes the girls cheer." He also went on to introduce AJ Styles for one final match, but it was of course a hoax as Kazarian came out dressed as 'The Phenomenal One' and did an amusing impression of him as he claimed that Daniels was superior in every way. Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez then joined them and called the duo a pair of clowns and challenged them to a tag match.

Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez bested Bad Influence (Daniels and Kazarian) in a solid tag bout. All four men gave good displays here and finally provided a very enjoyable match for the night. It's also nice to see the tag champs back on our screens, it's felt like a while since they've been there.

Gail Kim boasted about her memorable Knockouts Title reign (longest in company history) and also challenged Brooke Tessmacher to a match as a bit of retribution for ending said reign. I do miss Kim as champ I have to say, for me she's the top female wrestler in TNA.

Gail Kim defeated Brooke Tessmacher in an intense back and fourth outing. I wasn't expecting anything special here but it was a very pleasant surprise as both wrestlers provided a great Knockouts match up. Tessmacher looked good throughout and put on one of her top performances to date, Kim was also on her usual stellar form. Good stuff here and worth a watch, miles better than any Divas contest you'll get nowadays.

Austin Aries versus Bobby Roode ended in a No Contest. It was a fun main event for the most part, with Aries and Roode each applying their own underhanded, heel-tactics throughout. It's a shame there wasn't more wrestling though, considering the high standard of matches they've put on before. The match ended when referee Earl Hebner screamed at both to stop ignoring the rules, so the competitors decided to kick Earl and chuck him out of the ring. Jeff Hardy then appeared from behind and took both men out.

Overall it was a largely average Impact, with the first half of the show providing quite pedestrian entertainment. Fortunately the Daniels and Kazarian segment was as usual solid, and their following tag bout, Kim versus Tessmacher and most of the main event were also decent to very enjoyable match ups. 

My Impact Wrestling, 20th December 2012 Recap

Aries controls Hardy in a great main event title clash. Photo credit: impactwrestling.com

Devon (c) bested Kurt Angle to retain the Television Title in an average opener. Unfortunately there was just too much happening and they never had a chance to really put on a substancial contest. Angle looked solid as usual, but again there wasn't much time and too many distractions that marred things. Samoa Joe, Wes Brisco and Garett Bischoff all came down to ringside and began brawling with Aces & 8s members, then once again later on, which was a bit overkill for my liking. The second time as the referee was distracted a masked gang member whacked Angle with a kendo stick, allowing Devon to gain the one-two-three.

Joey Ryan and Matt Morgan beat Rob van Dam and Kenny King in a fair tag bout. King was the standout performer here, with the only memorable display. RVD also looked decent, but nothing outstanding. Ryan again failed to really impress me in the ring at all, and Morgan was his usual pretty drab self. For the finish King decided he'd had enough of Morgan and left RVD to have a Carbon Footprint applied by 'The Blueprint', with Ryan then pinning him.

Hulk Hogan claimed that 2012 had bee a great year for the company, and also announced that the online voting for TNA wrestler of the year was now open. Devon and Aces & 8s members soon joined 'The Hulkster' and stated that 2012 will only be remembered as the year "Aces & 8s were born" and 2013 as the year they were all revealed and unmasked, and when Hogan was in TNA no longer. But as they approached the ring Bully Ray ran out to Hogan's aid and chased them off, but Hogan still refused to acknowledge or appreciate Bully's help.

Kazarian brought out tag partner Christopher Daniels and as a Holiday treat arranged for Santa Claus to join him and ask what he wanted for Christmas this year. So after giving it much thought, Daniels asked for presents for AJ Style's kids as they'll be struggling at the moment. As usual Daniels and Kaz were on great form, especially the hilarious Daniels who when asked if he'd been good or not gave a priceless smug look to the camera. James Storm the also joined them and defended the Christmas season and what it means to children and super kicked Santa after failing to guess what he'd asked for Christmas last year. It was a fun segment all round.  

Tara (c) beat Mickie James to retain the Knockouts Championship in a passable contest. Decent enough displays from both women but nothing outstanding, I actually found myself loosing interest towards the end too. Tara gained the win after boyfriend Jesse distracted James, allowing her to grab a quick pinfall win.

Jeff Hardy (c) defeated Austin Aries to retain the TNA World Heavyweight Title in a solid main event. Once again these two worked brilliantly together, with great chemistry. Although not as exciting as their previously tremendous bouts, it's very hard to fault either man's efforts here. Worthy World Championship contest and the highlight of the night for sure. The finish came when Bobby Roode gained some revenge by attacking Aries which allowed Hardy to apply a Twist of Fate for the important victory. 

In the parking lot Hogan spotted Bully Ray and daughter Brooke Hogan making out. Hogan simply drove away, while the interviewer pricelessly exclaimed "Oh, shit!" An amusing end to the show.