Source: TNAStars.com
Opening Segment
Impact Wrestling starts with a video package highlighting James Storm TNA Title win with backstage comments talking about how hard he’s worked to become champion. He says that it feels like a dream, and if anyone pinches him to wake him up, he’s going to knock that guy out.
We then go out to the ring as the new champion addresses the crowd, telling them about how he watched Wrestlemania 3 with his late dad and he decided that he wanted to be World Champion one day, and he silenced all the people who said he wasn’t good enough because now, he’s the champion. He couldn’t have done it without the fans, so he wants to thank them for helping make his dream come true, but he also wants to bring Fortune out to the ring to thank them as well. He specifically wants to tell Roode that he got screwed out of the opportunity he worked his whole life for, so he got drunk and decided to give Roode the first shot at the title. Roode accepts of course, but Samoa Joe comes out to say he used to be part of this group that fought the power that held them down, but for all their self righteousness they preach, he sees the same four scumbags that he did a long time ago, and he sees another Immortal group trying to keep it all in the family, which shouldn’t be too hard for that hillbilly James Storm. Joe’s words, not mine. Instead of giving all his friends title shots, he’s going to prove to everyone that it’s a new day and give Joe a title shot. Storm says Joe had his opportunity and the window closed, and maybe he should give his friends title shots first since Joe’s lost to everyone for months now. Sting’s music hits, and the new Authority Figure comes out to settle the dispute. He says they both have really strong cases, so tonight, it’ll be Joe against Roode with the winner getting a title shot next week in Macon, Georgia. ((Jarrett’s Jab – Liked the short main event segment. I thought that the opening video and the opening segment was well done. ))
Tonight Jeff Hardy will have his first televised match since Victory Road when he faces off against Bully Ray. And One half of the Knockouts Tag Team Champions Tara will face Gail Kim in her first match back in TNA.
We go backstage to Christopher Daniels, who claims that AJ Styles fed doctored audio through the speakers to make everyone think he quit at Bound For Glory, and he’ll show how good he is next when he faces Rob Van Dam.
-Commercial Break-
Christopher Daniels vs Rob Van Dam
Chain wrestling starts off the contest and RVD wins the exchange with a bodyscissors rollup for two. More back and forth leads to Daniels rolling RVD up for two as AJ Styles comes out to join Mike and Taz at the announce booth. RVD boots Daniels in the face and hits a standing moonsault for two, Daniels drop toeholds RVD into the bottom turnbuckle and puts the boots to him, but eats RVD’s boots on a charge into the corner. He hits a uranage and goes for the BME, but Van Dam moves and hits the stepover leg lariat. RVD with the rolling monkey flip out of the corner and a springboard thrust kick, but Daniels rolls out of the ring to escape Rolling Thunder. RVD doesn’t miss a beat and hits a dive over the top rope, rolls Daniels back into the ring, and Daniels rolls to the floor to dodge the five star frogsplash. RVD goes out to the floor and drapes Daniels on the guardrail and hits the leg lariat off the apron. Daniels goes under the ring and grabs a toolbox, ramming it into RVD’s ribs to get himself disqualified.
Winner: Rob Van Dam by DQ
Daniels grabs a screwdriver out of the toolbox and stalks RVD with it, but AJ drops his headset and comes tearing down to the ring to chase Daniels into the crowd.
-Commercial Break-
Karen Jarrett comes out with her entourage. Gail Kim says everyone can stop with the emails and the tweets asking her why she did what she did last week, because it’s nobody’s business. But she’s happy to tell us anyway: people have been telling her what to do for her entire career, from TNA to ANOTHER COMPANY and back, but finally Karen made her realize it’s not about the company she works for or the fans who never put a dime in her pocket, it’s all about her being the center of attention and being the one who’s noticed, but most of all, it’s about her being treated like the main eventer she is. Karen says she is a woman of her word, and she gives her a Knockouts title match with Velvet at Turning Point, and the sooner they get the belt off that prostitute Velvet Sky and around the waist of Gail, the better off everyone will be. Gail says she won’t let Karen or herself down, and she wants a piece of fresh meat to come out so she can prove her greatness.
Gail Kim vs Tara
Gail attacks Tara on her way into the ring and starts viciously ramming Tara’s face into the mat and then repeatedly drills her in the head with right hands. Tara tries to fight back, but Gail flatlines her with a clothesline. Gail yells at Tara, saying she’s pathetic, before dumping her out to the floor. Karen shoves Traci around and yells at her at ringside as Gail hauls Tara back into the ring and stomps her in the face as we go to commercial.
-Commercial Break-
We are back on Impact Wrestling and Gail Kim chokes Tara in the corner with her boot and stays in control by locking in a Scissored Armbar and Tara drops down to break the hold. Tara starts to get some offence with rights and a neckbreaker for two as Traci is seen “applauding”. Kim uses the bottom rope to choke Tara before she puts her in the ‘Eat Defeat’ (Inverted Stomp Facebreaker) and pins her for the three count.
Winner by Pinfall: Gail Kim
Bully Ray is backstage and asked if “Jeff Hardy pissed in Sting’s cornflakes.” He said that tonight will be Jeff Hardy’s first and last match back.
In front of the Immortal Office, Ric Flair suggests that Eric Bischoff uses tough love on his son tonight and Bischoff agrees.
-Commercial Break-
Television Championship: Eric Young (c) vs. Robbie E (with Rob Terry)
There is a velvet rope which Terry opens for Robbie’s entrance. Eric ties up with the ref right before the bell rings. Robbie E throws Young into the turnbuckle and Young flips over the turnbuckle and onto the apron. EY flies over the top with a clothesline, and hits a really nice belly to belly. He gets distracted by Rob Terry and Robbie backdrops him, but Young gets his foot up as Robbie charges him in the corner and gets a crucifix for the win.
Winner by Pinfall and STILL TV Champion: Eric Young
Rob Terry blindsides Young after the match and holds him so Robbie can ram his fist into his gut. Young goes down in a heap, but Terry pulls him back up and now Robbie rams his knee into Young’s midsection. He tells Terry to pull him up again and Robbie E slaps and piefaces Young. They head to the back, and Young grabs a microphone and asks who punches a guy in the stomach. He’s never been accused of being the smartest guy, but Rob Terry got involved and now, he’s got to bring in the Hollywood heavies, so when they get to Macon, Georgia, he’s bringing Ronnie from the Jersey Shore. ((Jarrett’s Jab – I want to forget about the Television Championship because it’s a joke. It is light years away from when Eric Young held it the first time, it’s even light years away from when AJ Styles held it the last time and renamed it the Television Championship.))
-Commercial Break-
Christopher Daniels is backstage trying to negotiate his contract with his agent, and Frankie Kazarian comes in and says this stuff with AJ has to stop. He wants Daniels to call him and talk things out friend to friend. We then go to Bully Ray, who asks if Jeff Hardy pissed in Sting’s cornflakes because he must have to get him in his first match back. He’s going to make sure Jeff’s first match back is his last match back, and he’s never respected Jeff because rehab is for quitters.
A Garett Bischoff video package airs, and we see all kinds of clips of Garett intentionally blowing calls to benefit his dad as he talks about how he thought all he had to do was follow his dad because he idolized him his entire life, but he doesn’t want to be like him anymore. He doesn’t want to hit his dad or beat up an old man, and then immediately after that we see a clip of last week when he knocked his old dad out.
Now we go to the arena and Bischoff is coming out to talk. This ought to be enlightening. If boos could kill a man, Bischoff would have been dead before he got close to the ring. He has some family business to take care of here, because his firstborn son, and the crowd actually chants “we want Garett” as Bischoff calls his kid out for a chat. Yeah, encourage him, way to go. Garett comes out and gets in the ring, and Eric says that he conceived and raised him to follow in his footsteps, and he didn’t waste his semen so he could go follow someone else. He’s raised him to follow in his footsteps from the day he brought Garett to the AWA studios in Minneapolis, and Garett let him down and embarrassed him and the entire Bischoff family for generations to come. He could kick Garett’s ass, but instead, he’ll do what he never does for anybody. Garett says he doesn’t want it to go down this way, and Eric says he doesn’t give a damn what he wants and calls him a “selfish little prick”, then says that Garett will apologize to him before the end of the night or he’ll kick his ass. He calls his son a punk and walks off. What a great segment.
Ric Flair is backstage losing his mind over Garett being a disrespectful punk, and he’s going to find Garett and talk to him about respect.
-Commercial Break-
Garett is backstage with Flair and says “Hello, Mr Flair” but Flair says it’s not Mr Flair, it’s God. Wrestling needs men, and not disrespectful little punks like him. Garett tries to explain, but Flair says he doesn’t want to hear it because Garett isn’t big, tough, or have enough balls to do what his father did. This business is breaking in punks who couldn’t walk in his shoes 30 years ago. Garett keeps trying to talk, but Flair keeps cutting him off to tell him that he needs his ass kicked in front of the world to teach these kids respect because this is a sport for men who have bled and sweated and paid the price and not to be surprised if Flair is out there kicking his ass too. Flair slaps him around and shoves him hard in the chest several times before saying something that gets bleeped out and walking off.
A Jeff Hardy video package airs, as he talks about how he needed to go home and get away from TV and wrestling and just get his head together while everyone else wants him gone from TNA. Jeff Jarrett comes out to the ring and says there’s one thing missing from the video package, and that’s the way Hardy looked when he showed up all messed up at his last appearance in early 2011. Maybe they should show him main eventing Turning Point 2006, except that they can’t because he didn’t show up. Hardy’s music hits and he comes out to confront Jarrett, who tears his shirt off and dares Hardy to get in the ring with him. Hardy slides into the ring and they brawl until security comes out to pull them apart yet again. As you might expect, Bully Ray runs out of the back and blindsides Hardy, and the bell rings…
Jeff Hardy vs Bully Ray
Crowd is solidly behind Hardy as Bully Ray drills him in the head and lights him up with a massive chop in the corner and we go to commercial.
-Commercial Break-
We’re back and Hardy is unloading on Bubba in the corner and hits the Whisper In The Wind, then goes for the Twist of Fate but Bubba shoves him off into the ropes and takes him out with a boot to the face. Bubba gets Hardy in a nerve hold, Hardy tries to fight out but Bubba just yanks him down to the mat by the hair. Bubba hits a slam and comes off the ropes with a sweet elbowdrop for two, then hits a running avalanche in the corner for another two. Bubba repeatedly drills Hardy with crossfaces and the referee yells at him for some reason I don’t understand because it’s a legal move. Bubba charges Hardy in the corner, but Hardy gets the boot up and comes off the second rope with a legdrop for two. Bubba hits a big backdrop but misses a big splash, Hardy hits the Twist of Fate and Swanton and that’s all she wrote.
Winner: Jeff Hardy
Christy Hemme is at ringside and congratulates Jeff on his return to Impact Wrestling, and Hardy wants to welcome everyone back into his life, but the interview is cut short when Jeff Jarrett comes back through the crowd and lays Hardy out from behind. He tosses Hardy back into the ring and Bubba takes his head off with a clothesline. Jarrett pulls a table out from under the ring and they set it up on the inside, but Ken Anderson runs out to save Hardy from death via super bomb and Jarrett and Bubba hightail it to the back. ((Jarrett’s Jab – I can’t wait for Hardy to move on from this feud because it is becoming, at least for me, increasing more awkward and confusing. Everything Jeff Jarrett is saying is absolutely true, he has no-showed several Pay-Per-Views, Turning Point 2006 was just the last one he was actually promoted for. Jeff Hardy almost legitimately ended Ken Anderson’s career last year with a botched chair shot and now he’s rushing to save him?))
Bobby Roode is backstage saying he has a ton on his mind: he’s got a chance for another title shot tonight, his best friend is the World Champion, and tonight he has to go through Joe for another shot at achieving his lifelong dream.
#1 Contender Match: Samoa Joe vs Bobby Roode
Tie up and Joe takes Roode to the corner and just beats him down, but Roode pops up and stomps a mudhole in Joe in the corner. Roode tears through Joe with a clothesline and gets a neckbreaker for 1. Joe gets a back elbow, but Roode takes him down into the Crippler Crossface and Joe quickly slips out to the floor. Joe pulls Roode out after him and rams Roode back first into the ring apron, then they head back in and Joe snaps Roode over with a quick powerslam for two. Joe with the inverted atomic drop, running boot, and senton combo for two. Joe gets Roode in a rear chinlock, Roode fights his way out but Joe drops him with a running forearm to the face and goes back to the chinlock. Joe gets another inverted atomic drop, but comes off the ropes and Roode catches him with an Arn Anderson spinebuster or, as Tenay calls it, a “Double R” spinebuster. No idea who Double R is, but I’m sure he was watching on proudly. They go toe to toe in the ring with Roode coming out on top, and Roode gets the advantage and takes Joe down with a Blockbuster for two. Joe hits a Death Valley Driver but only gets two, so he goes for the Muscle Buster, Roode slips out and gets him in the Crippler Crossface, and Joe reverses to a cradle for two. Joe with a double kneebreaker, but Roode reverses a whip to send Joe hard into the corner and gets a Perfectplex for the win.
Winner: Bobby Roode
James Storm comes out of the back and shares a look of respect with Roode, then motions that it’ll be the two of them next week as Roode smiles excitedly. We then go backstage to Bischoff, who says he’s looking forward to confronting his son after what happened last week. ((Jarrett’s Jab – Pretty good match, which is the standard for these two. Can’t wait to see Roode and Storm next week, but I also wish they would do something with the extreme talent they have named Samoa Joe. And due to them hyping it up during this important match, Eric Bishoff and his former referee son will be closing the show.))
-Commercial Break-
A video plays of Eric Bischoff’s ultimatum to Garett which leads to Eric Bischoff’s entrance into the Impact Zone with Robert Roode’s minitrons still playing for the majority of it. Bischoff tells the crowd to settle down and states that it’s a little embarrassing to air his personal life in front of an audience and calls out Garett Bischoff. Eric says that he forgives Garett for what he’s done and asks him to tell the world that he’s sorry and everything will go back to the way it was. Eric holds the mic to Garett and he stops to listen to the crowd. Bischoff states that Garett is pissing off and demands him to apologize in front of all these people and Garett shakes his head no. Eric slaps Garett and Garett grabs his dad by the shirt and backs him to the ropes. Out comes Ric Flair he shoves Garett back. He says he told Eric to treat Garett like he treated him, then yells at Garett to quit worrying about the fans and apologize to his father. Flair slaps Garett and tells him to apologize to his father and then kiss his ass. Flair slaps him again and says he’s not messing around like his dad and tells him one more time to apologize. He takes his coat off and shoves Garett into the ropes, and Garett comes off and decks Flair in the face. Flair pulls his jacket off and kicks Garett low, then Eric comes from behind and punches his son in the junk, then Flair stomps on his groin, beats the crap out of him in the corner, and kicks him in the nuts again. Flair steps on Garett’s head and tells him to kiss his ass before stomping on his head repeatedly.
((Jarrett’s Jab – I’m not a happy camper that THIS is what they chose to close the show rather than the #1 Contenders Match. That should have priority over a feud with a former referee and a former authority figure. The huge LED Board that says “Wrestling Matters” is getting more and more ironic by the week with the 40 minute opening segment last week and this week’s ‘main event.’ I really hope that the World Title match main events next weeks show.))
