NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #15
Date: October 2, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Don West, Mike Tenay

Things are are…well I’m not sure if picking up is the right turn, but the big story is AJ Styles getting an X-Division Title shot against Jerry Lynn. Other than that, Jeff Jarrett is still dealing with BG James, because that’s a story that needs to continue. There are good parts to the show but they are few and far between. Hopefully the good gets a focus this week. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here are BG James and Syxx Pac to get things going. James rhymes about wanting Jeff Jarrett and company to come to the ring (with some Gilligan’s Island references sprinkled in). If Ron Killings is the future, they’re in trouble, so Killings can get out here too. Syxx-Pac agrees before James calls Killings out.

Cue Killings, drawing an OVERRATED chant, and he wants to fight. Syxx Pac issues the challenge but here is Jeff Jarrett to say he’s ready to fight too. Scott Hall isn’t here though, so we’ll make it a handicap match, with these two joining Jarrett. Cue Elix Skipper and Brian Lawler to jump the good guys from behind but James and Pac clear the ring. James can still talk but my goodness he feels forced in there.

We run down the card.

Amazing Red vs. Shark Boy

Elix Skipper is on commentary. They go with the grappling to start and that’s good for an early standoff. Shark Boy starts in on the leg before a neckbreaker gets two. Red kicks him out to the floor but Shark Boy is back in with a missile dropkick. They go outside with Shark Boy hitting a suplex, followed by a running flip dive.

Red shrugs that off and hits his own running flip dive, only for Shark Boy to hit a super Jackhammer of all things for two. Red’s middle rope jumping neckbreaker gets two more, as does Shark Boy’s Dead Sea Drop (Diamond Dust). Shark Boy tries it again, which is reversed into a reverse DDT. The Infrared sets up a running corkscrew shooting star press to pin Shark Boy at 6:52.

Rating: B-. Standard X-Division match with both of them flying around and doing their thing, which worked out well. The good thing is that the people in the division are talented, but they can only do so much with a limited amount of time. Then again I’m always a sucker for Diamond Dust so we’ll call it a good one.

Post match Skipper runs in to beat down Red and then beats up security…until Don Harris chases him off.

We recap Ron Killings getting pinned by Jerry Lynn. Now Low Ki is coming for the World Title, but he also doesn’t like Syxx-Pac. Ki doesn’t like the World Title being treated as more important than the X-Division Title so prepare for a new champion. The mirror behind them showing not only that they are in the restroom but also the cameraman doesn’t help either.

Here is Ron Killings to say he is Low Ki’s bullseye. He wants the match right now so get out here.

NWA World Title: Ron Killings vs. Low Ki

Killings is defending and slugs away to start, only for Ki to strike back. A big kick sends Killings outside but he knocks Ki into the crowd. They brawl up to the stage and then back to the ring, where an ax kick gives Killings two. Something like an STF goes on but Ki is quickly up with a rolling kick to the head.

Killings is right back with a powerslam for two but a 450 misses. Ki’s dragon sleeper over the ropes has Killings in more trouble until he hits a kneeling MuscleBuster. Another dragon sleeper is broken up and Killings catches him on the top. Killings’ super gordbuster retains the title at 12:59.

Rating: B-. As usual, it helps when you let the talented wrestlers do their thing, which is what we got here. Killings is doing rather well in this role and it’s a good sign to see the X-Division guys rubbing elbows with the main eventers. It would be nicer to see them win some more of these matches, but I’ll take what I can get.

Post match Killings grabs the mic but a guy in a white hoodie runs in to beat him down. We don’t see who it is.

SATs vs. Flying Elvises

For a future Tag Team Title shot. Jose works on Estrada’s arm to start and snaps off a hurricanrana. Estrada fights back and hands it off to Yang for a spinwheel kick. A middle rope hurricanrana takes Yang down though and Joel comes in for a belly to back suplex. The slingshot hilo gets two on Yang and a running clothesline in the corner gets the same.

Yang is up with a moonsault press for two of his own as the manager in a vest and Sonny Siaki are (separately) watching. It’s back to Estrada to clean house but a guillotine legdrop misses. A springboard high crossbody sends Jose into a sunset flip for two and Siaki gets on the apron. For some reason Estrada goes for the tag but Siaki drops to the floor, allowing the SATs to hit a doomsday cutter for the pin at 8:49.

Rating: B-. Another match where they were allowed to fly around the ring and do their stuff, which worked well. If nothing else, it’s nice to see the SATs, as in anyone other than Ron Harris, in the title picture. The division is only kind of a thing at the moment, so putting more and more teams in there is going to help build it up.

Post match Jerry Lynn jumps Siaki in the back but AJ Styles makes the save and Lynn gets double teamed. They throw Lynn into an anvil case and Styles sits down on top of it.

Sonny Siaki vs. David Young

The muscular Young knocks Siaki to the floor to start but Siaki does it right back to him. The fight on the floor goes to Young, who throws Siaki back inside for two. Back up and Siaki ties him in the Tree of Woe for some shoulders to the ribs, followed by some hard forearms for a near fall. A belly to belly sends Young into the corner but he snaps off a spinebuster. Young’s moonsault misses though and a fisherman’s neckbreaker gives Siaki the pin at 6:13.

Rating: C. And there goes the string of overly good matches. It wasn’t quite a squash, but Siaki was only going to be able to do so much. What mattered here was getting him in the ring though and building him up for something bigger. Nothing particularly interesting to see here, but I’ll take that over something stupid.

We look back at Chris Harris and James Storm retaining the Tag Team Titles over Ron Harris and Brian Lee last week, only for Ron to jump them after the match.

Ron Harris and newcomer Ashley Hudson are coming for the Tag Team Titles. And his brother Don better not forget the pact they made last week. Don’t worry about what that means.

Tag Team Titles: Chris Harris/James Storm vs. Ashley Hudson/Ron Harris

Harris and Storm are defending. Storm and Hudson lock up to start, with Hudson bailing to the floor for a chase. Back in and Hudson hammers away but Storm snaps off a running headscissors. Chris comes in for two off a bulldog but Ron send shim to the floor. A dropkick and high crossbody have Ron in trouble though and it’s back to Hudson.

Storm gets a boot up in the corner to cut off a charge but Hudson is right back with a superplex. Ron comes in for some running corner clotheslines and Hudson chokes on the ropes. The middle rope fist misses though and Storm brings Chris back in to clean house. Ron boots Hudson down by mistake and Chris steals the retaining pin at 7:05.

Rating: D+. So again, the Tag Team Champions aren’t good enough to win, but rather they retain because Harris hit something. This promotion has a weird love affair with the Harris Twins and I don’t know if I want to know why. Either way, it was another bad match which was designed to make Harris look important while the champs just came along for the ride. In other words, the focus is all wrong, again.

Post match Ron lays all three of them out. Don Harris comes out to drop Ron with one right hand.

The Flying Elvises rescue Jerry Lynn.

X-Division Title: AJ Styles vs. Jerry Lynn

Lynn is defending in a ladder match. Styles starts fast with a neckbreaker over the ropes and then follows up with a regular version. A slingshot hilo onto Lynn onto the ladder connects so Styles grabs a chair, which is dropkicked into his face. The ladder is sat up in the corner but Styles reverses Lynn’s whip for the big crash. Styles climbs up, seemingly for the sole purposes of getting powerbombed back down.

The ladder is slammed into Lynn’s back and a Death Valley Driver sends him into the ladder again. It’s finally time to bother climbing for the title, which allows Lynn to pull him down for the big crash. The ladder is rammed into Styles as Sonny Siaki comes down again. Styles gets in a shot of his own and goes up, only to get knocked down in a hurry.

Lynn goes up this time but Styles shoves the ladder over, sending Lynn into the referee. A shot to the head busts Styles open and Lynn hurricanranas him off the ladder. Styles suplexes him off the ladder for another knockdown but Lynn does it right back to him. Lynn goes up as Styles climbs the buckle, meaning it’s a pair of stereo dives so they collide in the air. Cue Siaki to ringside so Lynn dives onto him, only for Styles to dive onto both of them. Styles goes up to get the belt and win at 17:28.

Rating: B. Yeah of course it’s entertaining as it’s a ladder match between Styles and Lynn, but it’s not like they need the ladder to have a good match. I’m sure the idea was to give the fans something they wanted to see, but dang this promotion is liking ladder matches way too much. They’re also getting dangerously close to burning this feud out and that’s not a good thing when it’s one of their few solid pieces.

Post match Lynn goes after Siaki so Styles and Siaki beat him down. Cue Bob Armstrong to say that’s not right so we’ll have a rematch next week. As in another ladder match, with Lynn DEFENDING because Armstrong is giving the title back to him. FOR WHAT? Interference? A post match beatdown? Good grief. Oh and great: ANOTHER ladder match.

Don West does his hype for next week.

Brian Lawler/Jeff Jarrett vs. BG James/Syxx Pac

Before the match, Pac suggests he is sleeping with Lawler’s girlfriend and offers to let him watch. Ok then. Anyway the brawl is on fast with everyone fighting on the floor. Jarrett goes inside and dropkicks Pac, who is right back with a suplex on Lawler. James comes in but Jarrett gets in a cheap shot from the apron so Lawler can hit a superkick. A bulldog gives Lawler two but a second attempt is broken up.

That’s enough for Pac to come in and everything breaks down. The Bronco Buster hits Jarrett but cue Elix Skipper to X Factor Pac to give Lawler two. Back in and the sleeper gives Jarrett two arm drops before Pac reverses, only to get crotched on top. James comes back in to make the save and hits a quick pumphandle slam to pin Lawler at 9:41.

Rating: C. It’s fine, but there was no way this was going to be able to follow the ladder match. That’s one of the biggest problems with TNA right now: they focus WAY too much on the “star power” without realizing that those people can’t back it up. Lawler’s nonsense with his girlfriend isn’t interesting, Jarrett is Jarrett, James is nothing but rhyming and Pac is….well he’s actually good. That’s nowhere near enough to warrant this spot though and that’s been obvious since the start of the company.

Post match Jarrett and Skipper run in for the beatdown. Amazing Red and the SAT’s come in for the save but Jarrett cleans house with a chair. Ron Killings is in as well and the big heel beatdown ends the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show felt more focused and that’s a good sign. What matters the most is that they didn’t have as much of the insanity throughout the show, with only the Tag Team Title match being weak, pretty much entirely due to Ron Harris. They have talented people around here and it works when they slow down and let those wrestlers do their thing. If only the focus could shift from the older names (who do have a place around here) to someone else, we could be in for a much better show. For now though, the action carries this one rather well, but that might not last forever.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #14
Date: September 25, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Don West

Things are in quite the transitional period around here and that makes for an interesting time. If nothing else, it makes for a necessary time, as the show has gone from total insanity to something more coherent, but that doesn’t make it interesting. Last week’s show ended with something of a Kliq reunion and that is not something that has me interested. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We go to the back where Jerry Lynn is attacking Sonny Siaki, who cost him the World Title last week. The brawl keeps going until security breaks it up.

Commentary previews the show.

Sonny Siaki vs. Amazing Red

This doesn’t seem fair. Red jumps him on the floor to start and they get inside, with Siaki being sent into the corner for a running dropkick. Siaki fires off some running shoulders in the corner and a big backdrop sends Red to the floor. Red gets dropped onto the barricade for some near falls back inside but the bad rips are slowing Siaki down. A bearhug keeps Red in trouble and a superkick makes things even worse. Siaki chokes a bit but Red is back with the Code Red for two. A spinning kick to the head drops Siaki again but he’s right back with a spinning neckbreaker for the win at 7:25.

Rating: C+. Well so much for Red. Not only did he come in with an advantage, but he jumped Siaki to start, only to lose anyway. Siaki is getting more and more featured time and there are worse ideas, but it isn’t going to matter all that much unless he breaks into the holy trinity of the X-Division. Those guys are the ones who matter and everyone else is just kind of there beneath them. Either change that or nothing Siaki does really matters.

Post match Jorge Estrada comes out to say the rest of the Flying Elivses are giving up on Siaki.

We go to the back, where Ron Killings is attacking Amazing Red.

Tag Team Titles: Brian Lee/Ron Harris vs. James Storm/Chris Harris

Storm and Chris are defending in a tables match and this is a rematch from last week when they won the belts. Lee hammers on Chris to start as I wonder why there are tags. The villains are sent to the floor for a pair of dives from the champs but Lee takes over back inside. Ron loads up a table in the corner but gets cut off, leaving Lee to choke Chris instead.

With Storm on the floor, Ron loads up a powerslam…and completely ignores the table and plants Chris in the middle of the ring instead. Chris fights out and brings in Storm to clean house and after sending Ron to the floor, knock Lee through the table at ringside to retain the titles at 6:39.

Rating: D+. This is where TNA, and other promotions for that matter, look bad and I still don’t get it. There are some people who need to be protected and others who can take a loss without any issues. Ron Harris and Brian Lee have next to no value around here and having one of them take a finish for a clean pin is not going to hurt them. If you want Storm and Chris to be a big deal, let them look like a big deal rather than having to knock Lee through a table to win.

Post match Ron wrecks the champs again, but security breaks it up…including Don Harris, who gets in a shoving match with his brother. So yes, the newly crowned Tag Team Champions, and by far the best team in the company, is laid out for the sake of THE BATTLING HARRIS BROTHERS.

Earlier today, Bruce arrived and got in an argument with an elderly woman.

Here is Ron Killings for a chat. He talks about growing up in poverty with five people in one bed but now people who grew up with security are talking about how he should live. There is real prejudice around here because Ricky Steamboat is gone now that Killings won the title. Where is Killings’ merchandise? Or his private dressing room? Killings calls out Jerry Lynn but gets BG James, because they were partners in the WWF (which commentary points out).

James says that he protected Killings in the WWF and now it’s time to slap some sense into his head. After getting annoyed at the WHAT chants, Killings says this is a new reality and James is his b****. The brawl is on and Killings bails, with James saying he isn’t Tom Cruise or Jack Nicholson because he can handle the truth. It’s more stuff from the WWF, but at least it’s something that was only a few years ago at this point.

You can see AJ Styles at a county fair in West Virginia! And that’s the kind of thing that makes this place feel low level.

Brian Lawler insists that everything is fine with April (his girlfriend) and their business is their business. April doesn’t want her talking for him so he yells at her and gets the camera cut off. This really isn’t as interesting as TNA thinks it is.

AJ Styles vs. Low Ki

2/3 falls for the #1 contendership to the X-Division Title. Styles works on the arm to start and then grinds away on a headlock. Ki kicks his way out of a wristlock and drops a hard elbow for two, only to get caught in an atomic drop of all things. Back up and Ki sends him to the floor for the big running flip dive from the apron but Styles gets in a crotching on top back inside. Styles strikes away and grabs a quickly broken chinlock and kicks him down, setting up the Dragon Clutch for the first fall at 6:35.

Styles is right back up with a discus lariat and a delayed suplex into a knee drop. A jumping enziguri knocks Ki to the floor, where Styles drops him hard onto the ramp. Back in and Ki strikes away but Styles sunset flips him out of the corner for the pin to tie it up at 10:57. Styles kicks him out to the floor and gets smart by going after the legs.

Back in and a super shinbreaker sets up something like a spinning toehold to keep Ki down. The Ki Crusher attempt is countered and the leg gives out again so Styles rolls him up for two with feet on the ropes. With the cheating not working, Styles hits the Styles Clash for the pin at 14:43.

Rating: B-. This felt rushed even though they had some time. The good sign here though is that these two (along with Jerry Lynn) are guys you can throw out there in any combination for a good result. That’s what you had here, even if the 2/3 falls deal wasn’t really necessary for the match.

Jeff Jarrett isn’t happy with the suggestion that he’s getting further from the World Title. Tonight though, he has options.

Elix Skipper/Brian Lawler vs. Scott Hall/Syxx Pac

April is here with Skipper and Lawler. Pac and Skipper trade missed kicks to start until Skipper throws him down. Lawler dances on the apron (as he does) and it’s off to Hall. We pause for Lawler to order April to stay in a chair on the floor, allowing Hall to come back on Skipper. A chokeslam gives Hall two but the villains get together to crotch him on the post a few times.

Lawler and Skipper take turns beating on Hall, who finally clotheslines his way out of trouble. Naturally, Lawler is on the floor checking on April, even as Pac comes back in to clean house. The fall away slam sets up a missed Bronco Buster but Skipper dives into the X Factor for the pin at 9:12.

Rating: D+. And again, it’s a problem of focusing on one idea and not realizing that it isn’t very interesting. Why in the world should I care about Lawler and April? There is nothing to April save for her being with Lawler, who isn’t interesting in the first place. That was the entire focus of the match and it’s not like Hall is able to do much to keep up the interest between the bells.

Post match Jeff Jarrett is in with a Stroke each to Hall and Pac. Don Harris makes the save.

AJ Styles hits on Goldilocks and wants to face Jerry Lynn for the X-Division Title in, say it with me, a ladder match.

Jorge Estrada vs. Kid Kash

They fight over wrist control to start but Kash messes with Estrada’s hair. That leads to a standoff as a rather nerdy man is shown watching from the stage. Estrada fights back and hits a clothesline to the floor, setting up a dive which is almost left low. Kash is right back up to chop away and a double jump flip dive drops Estrada for two. Estrada hiptosses him into a running shooting star press for two but a pumphandle faceplant drops Estrada again. They chop it out until Kash hits a DDT for two. Back up and Estrada drops him for a Lionsault into a Swanton for the pin at 6:06.

Rating: C+. You had two guys who can do flips and dives doing flips and dives until one of them won. That’s the kind of filler match that is entertaining but doesn’t feel overly important. At least Estrada has something going on with Sonny Siaki, though it’s still a bit difficult to make him seem important or serious when he’s in an Elvis suit.

Post match Estrada calls out Sonny Siaki, who comes out to apologize for the issues with the rest of the team. He’s willing to turn in his Flying Elvis uniform…and we see a video of him burning it earlier today.

We recap the X-Division getting behind Jerry Lynn trying to win the World Title last week, only for Siaki to cost him.

X-Division Title: Jerry Lynn vs. Ron Killings

Only Lynn is defending in a lumberjack match. Killings tries to bail to the floor to start but is quickly tossed back inside. Lynn hammers away in the corner and a middle rope bulldog gets two. Back up and Killings hits a middle rope shoulder into a wheelbarrow faceplant for two of his own. Lynn is tossed outside where the lumberjacks check on him, which earns Amazing Red a shot to the face from Killings.

Back in and a kneeling MuscleBuster gives Killings two more and we hit the chinlock. A powerslam plants Lynn as AJ Styles has set up a ladder on stage. Lynn gets a boot up in the corner but charges into a powerslam. The front facelock, with feet on the ropes, keeps Lynn in trouble but he fights out and grabs a reverse DDT. Back up and they slug it out until Killings sneaks in a low blow. The cutter is blocked though and Low Ki gets in a cheap shot, setting up Lynn’s TKO to retain at 9:07.

Rating: B-. Again, no surprise that this worked, as Lynn is one of the few people around here who can wrestle with anyone and Killings is certainly fine enough. Lynn getting a win should set up a rubber match between the two of them, or Ki getting a World Title shot of his own. This was another example of the X-Division being treated seriously and that is very refreshing to see.

Don West hypes up next week’s show, with the ladder match confirmed.

Jeff Jarrett vs. BG James

Naturally James runs his mouth before the match and promises a beating before getting in his catchphrase. James punches him down and dances before a right hand sets up the shaky knee drop. Jarrett comes back with an enziguri but James’ dancing punches send him outside. Some chair shots to the back knock Jarrett into the crowd, where he takes over. They go back to ringside where Jarrett gets in some chair shots of his own, setting up the running crotch attack to the back inside.

Jarrett grabs a sleeper but James fights up into one of his own, meaning it’s the required belly to back suplex counter. James hits a big boot and rains down some right hands in the corner. Jarrett is sent into a chair in the corner but here are Elix Skipper and Brian Lawler. The latter offers a distraction but Jarrett runs into him by mistake. James goes after both of them, allowing Jarrett to get in a chair shot to the head for two. Another comeback is on but this time Lawler and Skipper run in for the DQ at 9:08.

Rating: D. I know I’m getting repetitive with these criticisms, but it’s the same thing again: the least interesting people are getting these spots because they’re stars with names. That might make sense on paper, but it’s also making for some awful television. James was busted open last week and his dad has been attacked, so he’s out there doing his funny dancing stuff to pop the crowd. It’s almost tolerable if he’s having a good match, but this was just more slow paced stuff that wasn’t any good in the first place.

Post match the brawl is on, with Syxx Pac and Scott Hall running in for the save. Ron Killings runs in with belt shots and the villains stand tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. It really is amazing to see how much this show feels divided in two. You have the X-Division having fun, fast paced and athletic matches where they all feel like they’re trying to break out and become stars. Those parts are often good, but the rest of the show feels like “here are a bunch of former WWF names, you’ll probably remember them, ignore that their stuff is terrible.” It’s a problem that has plagued many a promotion and it’s doing so again here. Having those people around is ok enough, but just cut down on their focus really fast.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #13
Date: September 18, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Don West

We’re in kind of a weird place here as the company has been gone for a bit, with only the Best Of The X-Division airing two weeks ago. Things have needed to change somewhat due to financial problems and that could be quite the shakeup around here. Jerry Lynn is the X-Division Champion but tonight is about crowning new Tag Team Champions. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Goldilocks talks about tonight’s Gauntlet For The Gold for the Tag Team Titles and here is Scott Hall, who will be teaming with Syxx Pac.

Commentary hypes up the show.

Earlier today, Jeff Jarrett tells Brian Lawler that he can trust him and implies that Lawler’s girlfriend is cheating on him.

Here is Jarrett, who wants Bob Armstrong out here right now. Jarrett immediately goes to the back but gets jumped by the Bullet. The fight comes back to the ring and it is indeed Brian James (Road Dogg) underneath the mask. James talks about walking out on the WWF with Jarrett but then he went back to become part of a team called DX. He’s so mad that he’s going to….win the Tag Team Titles tonight. His mama called him BG so his name is BG James, and the G stands for “Get it, got it, good”. So his name is BGIGIG James? Doesn’t make for a great t-shirt.

Sonny Siaki is back with the Flying Elvises and compares himself to Shawn Michaels, who needed to be a teammate before he became a singles star. Oh and he wants Jerry Lynn to win the World Title.

Kid Kash vs. AJ Styles

Before the match, Styles promises to come for the X-Division Title because he isn’t done with Jerry Lynn. They fight over wrist control to start and Styles ducks the spinwheel kick. A legsweep takes Kash down but he sends Styles out to the apron and out to the floor. The flip dive connects but Styles is back up with a moonsault out to the floor. Back in and a springboard dropkick connects with Kash, followed by a TKO onto the top rope.

A diving spinning Downward Spiral takes Kash down again but he’s back up with a German suplex for two back inside. Styles gets in a dropkick to the ribs and a hurricanrana brings Kash down again. Kash gets knocked into 619 position and a dropkick to the back gives Styles two. Back up and a springboard missile dropkick is kicked out of the air, allowing Kash to score with some clotheslines. Kash takes him up top but Styles fights out and hits a super Styles Clash for the win at 9:57.

Rating: B-. As usual, Styles is capable of doing just about anything and Kash is someone who can fly around well enough. The finish looked rather good and I want to see more of Styles every time he’s in there. He has been one of if not the best things about this promotion so far and it has been great to see him getting some time in there rather than being stuck in a four minute match.

Buff Bagwell is here for a second chance. BG James comes in and asks Bagwell to be his partner tonight. Sure.

And now, Dustin Diamond, better known as Screech from Saved By The Bell. He talks about being in Celebrity Boxing and wants to fight tonight. Don West volunteers Tiny the Timekeeper (later known as Big Fat Oily Guy).

The Hot Shots aren’t happy that they have to qualify for Gauntlet For The Gold. Disco Inferno comes in but Goldilocks does not have time for him.

Dustin Diamond vs. Tiny The Timekeeper

Tiny has no idea what he’s doing and gets knocked out in about 40 seconds.

Ace Steel/CM Punk vs. Derek Wylde/Jimmy Rave vs. Hot Shots

The team who takes the fall is out of Gauntlet For The Gold. Punk takes O’Reilly down to start and grabs a waistlock but gets knocked into the corner to cut him off. That doesn’t last long as Steel comes in with a brainbuster but Stevens cuts him off with a sitout powerbomb. Rave comes in and gets Michinoku Drivered into an Arabian Moonsault for two.

The handspring elbow sets up a double basement dropkick into an assisted moonsault for two. O’Reilly hits a gordbuster for two but a Lionsault hits raised knees. Punk comes in to clean house, including the running dive to hit Stevens on the floor. More dives connect, leaving Steel to hit a Gory Stretch neckbreaker to finish O’Reilly at 7:35.

Rating: C+. This match is noteworthy for one reason whatsoever and that’s something that wouldn’t matter for a long time. Punk was just a young kid at this point trying to make a name for himself and that is where a place like TNA could be useful. It was a nothing match, but they got to do their dives and flips and that’s better than nothing.

Chris Harris and James Storm are ready to win the Tag Team Titles because they are the best team around here.

Here are Scott Hall and Syxx Pac, with Hall talking about their history together. Pac talks about how they’re here out of their love for wrestling. They’ll likely get fired from here too so let’s make it work while it lasts. Brian Lee and Ron Harris run in and are quickly laid out.

Brian Lawler is paranoid about his girlfriend.

Here is Hermie Sadler for a chat. He respects these people and announces that NWA-TNA will be sponsoring his car in an upcoming race. At least it was short.

Miss TNA: Bruce vs. ???

Bruce is defending and Hermie Sadler is on commentary. We get the open challenge and a fan (indy wrestler Christi Ricci) answers. The fast beating ensues, with Bruce hitting a powerbomb to retain at 1:10. This stuff is still so freaking dumb.

Post match Sadler comes in to clear Bruce out.

Jerry Lynn is happy with being the X-Division Champion but he wants to beat Ron Killings, who is the best today. Killings comes in and says oh yes he is the best.

Tag Team Titles: Gauntlet For The Gold

The titles are vacant coming in. This is a Royal Rumble with one minute intervals and wrestlers entering one at a time. When we’re down to two, the partners come back and we have a regular tag match for the titles. Brian Lawler is in at #1 and James Storm is in at #2, with Lawler using the ropes for a low blow to start fast. Storm fights up but gets suplexed down. Joel Maximo is in at #3 and he teals up with Storm to go after Lawler.

Derek Wylde is in at #4 and Lawler tosses him almost immediately. Lawler kicks Joel out and tosses Storm as well to clear the ring, meaning it’s time to dance. Buff Bagwell is in at #5 and hits the running neckbreaker before hammering away in the corner. Kobain is in at #6 and fires off some clotheslines, but Lawler drops both of them. Ace Steel is in at #7 and gets in the offense you would expect. Jorge Estrada is in at #8 and doesn’t get to do much, as Brian Lee is in at #9.

Syxx Pac is in at #10 to pick the pace way up, including a bunch of kicks and an X Factor on Estrada. Kobain is out and CM Punk (partner of Ace Steel) is in at #11….as Steel is eliminated. Lawler cuts Pac off with a powerslam and Jimmy Rave (partner of Derek Wylde) is in at #12. Raven and Estrada double team Punk in the corner but Punk bulldogs his way to freedom. Ron Harris (partner of Brian Lee) is in at #13 and helps Lee get rid of Estrada, Rave, Punk and Bagwell in a row.

Lawler is out and BG James (partner of Buff Bagwell) is in at #14. James slugs away on Harris until Jose Maximo (partner of Joel Maximo) is in at #15…and Harris tosses him out in three seconds (Jose’s feet never touched the mat). A double spinebuster plants Pac, who is right back up with a double clothesline. Cue Lawler to offer a distraction though, allowing Pac to get tossed out.

Slash (partner of Kobain) is in at #16 and James gets triple teamed. Sonny Siaki (partner of Jorge Estrada) is in at #17 and goes after Slash as James can’t quite fight back. Disco Inferno (partner of Brian Lawler) is in at #18 and gets thrown into the corner as Scott Hall (partner of Syxx Pac) is in at #19.

Hall slugs away at Harris and dumps him out before clotheslining Slash out as well. Chris Harris (partner of James Storm) is in at #20 to complete the field and Siaki misses a charge to eliminate himself. Inferno stops to dance and gets punched out by Hall and James, who then slug it out. Lee tosses both of them at once though, leaving he and Harris as the winners at 23:12.

Rating: C-. It was a mostly dull Royal Rumble with two winners, one of whom represents a lame, thrown together monster tag team. I can’t believe I’m saying this but if you want to use one of the Harris Brothers, put the two of them together and let them do what they’ve done for years. That being said, the only thing that mattered here was Chris Harris and Storm advancing and that went fine.

And that leads us into:

Tag Team Titles: Chris Harris/James Storm vs. Brian Lee/Ron Harris

For the vacant titles and Harris jumps Storm on the stage. Cue Jeff Jarrett to brawl with BG James to the back as Chris gets double teamed by the monsters. Ron kicks Storm through the apron but Storm gets in anyway, only to be double teamed right back down. Naturally a table is set up….but it takes so long that Chris gets a rollup to pin Lee for the titles at 4:54.

Rating: D. What was that? The whole point of this was to crown new champions and they give the young, talented team a quick rollup win while one of the stupid monsters picks up a table? If you want the new champs to look good, then let them look good. This felt like a way to protect Ron and Lee and….why?

BG James is rather busted open in the back.

NWA World Title: Ron Killings vs. Jerry Lynn

Only Killings is defending and he starts fast by knocking Lynn down. Lynn is back up with some right hands and a slingshot elbow connects in the corner. Back up and Killings sends him to the floor, where Lynn is dropped onto the announcers’ table. Lynn is busted open as they get back inside, where Killings grabs a belly to back suplex for two. A spinning sunset flip out of the corner gives Lynn two of his own but Killings side kicks him in the face.

They head outside again where Lynn sends him into the barricade, only for Killings to go after the bloody cut again. Back in and Killings grabs a surfboard of all things, followed by a big boot for two. Lynn’s spinning sunset flip gets another near fall (and a nice hope spot) as AJ Styles comes out to watch. Cue the Maximos and the rest of the X-Division to cheer Lynn on and the comeback begins. Lynn goes up but the referee stops to yell at Styles, leaving Sonny Siaki to shove Lynn off the top. A running cutter retains the title at 12:27.

Rating: B-. This right here shows that TNA is already ahead of WCW in one major area: can you imagine the Cruiserweight Champion getting involved with the World title picture? There was a wide gap between the two title pictures before and now they’re doing a better job of spreading them out. That’s a great sign and gives me some hope for the X-Division, assuming they actually keep it up.

Don West hypes up next week’s show.

Ron Killings and Jeff Jarrett pop back up, double teaming BG James back to the ring. Scott Hall and Syxx Pac run in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Well, they certainly focused on the Tag Team Titles, but the execution of the two matches involving them was so weak that it brought the rest of the show down. I’m also really not happy with so much of the focus being on the “names” again as Hall, Pac, Bagwell and James got A LOT of the attention here. That’s a bad sign after seeing the X-Division get so much attention but maybe it’s just a one off. Not a good show, but for different reasons than before.

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TNA Weekly PPV #13
Date: September 25, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Don West, Mike Tenay

So after last week’s near disaster we’re back to Tennessee for more of TNA’s early nonsense. This week our main event is Jarrett vs. BG James to keep up the feud that no one is really interested in but it’s Jarrett’s company so there’s not much else you can do. Other than that we’ve got Lynn vs. Killings again, although this time for the X Title. Let’s get to it.

We open in the back with Siaki and Lynn brawling due to Sonny costing Lynn the world title last week.

Tenay and West run down the card.

Sonny Siaki vs. Jerry Lynn

Siaki is a more generic heel now and isn’t dressed like Elvis anymore. Red takes him out before Siaki can eve get to the ring with a senton followed by a shooting star off the apron. They head inside where Siaki comes back with a flapjack and neckbreaker for two, only to have Red snap off a pair of kicks. The Amazing one shrugs off some shoulders in the corner to hit a reverse tornado DDT for two more.

Red charges into a backdrop to send him to the floor though, allowing Siaki to drop him onto various metal things. Somewhat geeky manager Mortimer Plumtree is watching from the ramp. Back in and Siaki gets a few near falls off a belly to belly suplex before putting on a quick bearhug. Red fights out and seems to leave a leapfrog a bit short. Oh wait he landed on Siaki’s back on purpose to turn it into a sunset bomb for two. Red hits a kind of STO off the middle rope but misses some kind of a dive off the top, allowing Siaki to hit a kind of neckbreaker for the pin.

Rating: C+. Good opener here with power vs. speed which almost never fails. Red was a flip machine which is fine, as Siaki played the heel role well at this point. I don’t remember Red being around much before this so seeing him was a nice surprise for the fans. He would be a big cult favorite for a long time.

Post match Jorge Estrada pops up on the stage and says before tonight is over, he’s getting Siaki’s Elvis gear. I’ve heard of worse reasons for a feud.

In the back, Ron Killings is beating up Amazing Red, shouting that he’s getting rid of the X-Division because it devalues the world title.

We recap America’s Most Wanted (Harris and Storm) winning the tag belts last week.

Tag Titles: James Storm/Chris Harris vs. Brian Lee/Ron Harris

This is a tables match and Harris/Storm aren’t known as AMW yet. For the sake of simplicity, only Ron Harris will be referred to as Harris here. The challengers jump them to start and only one person has to go through the table for the win. It’s Lee pounding on Chris to start but Chris comes back with a backdrop and clothesline to put both guys on the floor. Chris dives on Lee but gets caught, only to have Storm dive as well to take everyone down.

Another brawl breaks out as the tables haven’t been a factor yet. Harris pounds Chris down before it’s back to Lee for more slow pounding. Harris slides in a table and sets it up in the corner but Storm makes the save. After Storm is sent out, Harris powerslams Chris down instead of sending him through a table because Harris isn’t that bright. He does the same thing with a suplex and it’s off to Lee for some of the worst elbow drops you’ll ever see. He basically pulls his elbow up before hitting Chris’ chest.

Lee misses a top rope knee drop and Chris makes the tag off to Storm. Everything breaks down and Harris is knocked to the floor. Lee is sent to the apron but manages to clothesline both champions down. AMW fights up and knocks Lee off the apron through a table which I don’t remember being set up to retain.

Rating: D-. Not only did the match suck, but did we really need a gimmick to protect RON FREAKING HARRIS and Brian Lee? TNA is trying to push AMW as a big deal but they can’t even get a clean pin over these two lunkheads? Last week there was the mess with the ropes and now they have to have a tables match? Is Ron Harris’ spot THAT important? The match sucked too as the tables were barely a factor.

Post match Harris beats up the champions and puts Storm through a table. Security comes out to break it up until Don Harris, Ron’s twin brother, comes out for a staredown. The champions are a complete afterthought here, and we get the last thing we need here: ANOTHER guy named Harris.

In the parking lot, Bruce gets into a fight with a handicapped woman named Sara the Ticket Lady. Can we please end this character already?

Here’s Ron Killings to complain about how bad of a town “Trashville” is. Truth complains about rats and says the fans wouldn’t like them in their bed. That’s either a stupid line or a REALLY clever insider lingo joke but we’ll go with the former. He’s also not happy with the prejudice going on around here because he hasn’t seen Ricky Steamboat since he won the title. Truth doesn’t like not having merchandise or a private dressing room and as he’s starting to complain about the X-Division, here’s BG James.

James talks about a posse in his pants and their time back in the WWF where James stood up for Truth with the boys in the back. They go back and forth with stupid lines and the brawl is on with BG taking over. BG says that just unlike Demi Moore and Tom Cruise, he can handle the Truth. Next.

Brian Lawler and his girlfriend April argue about nothing in particular. At least I think they do as you can hear JB hyping up the card to the live crowd in the background. I mean he’s drowning out the interview.

AJ Styles vs. Low Ki

This is 2/3 falls and the winner gets a shot at the X Title. Feeling out process to start as AJ cranks on the arm before they head to the mat for a headlock by Styles. Back up and Low Ki escapes the wristlock and chops away, only to be taken down by an atomic drop. Low Ki sends him to the floor and hits a running flip attack off the apron to take over again. Back in and a hard kick to AJ’s back gets two and it’s back to the chops to the neck.

AJ crotches him on the top rope and hits a backbreaker/gutbuster combo to take over again. A nice dropkick in the corner gets two for Styles but Low Ki comes back with some chops. Off to a chinlock with AJ’s knee in Low Ki’s back for a few seconds before a double clothesline puts both guys down. Back up again and Low Ki hits what we would call the Disaster Kick for two before putting on the seated Dragon Sleeper for the submission and the first fall.

The second fall begins with Low Ki being sent throat first into the middle rope and clotheslined down for two. A delayed suplex puts Ki down and AJ pounds away. Styles hits a standing enziguri to put Low on the floor, but as he heads out, Low Ki kicks Styles in the head. AJ slams him down onto the ramp to break another Dragon Sleeper before we head back inside. A sunset bomb is countered by Low Ki but AJ keeps rolling into a sunset flip for the pin and the second fall.

AJ poses so Low Ki kicks him square in the jaw to send him to the floor. Once they’re both on the floor, AJ takes out Low’s knee before firing off kicks to the knee back inside. They both go up to the middle rope and after the Styles Clash is broken up, AJ comes off with a shin breaker to Low Ki. Off to a modified spinning toe hold but Low Ki rolls through it for two. Low Ki rolls through a powerbomb into a rana for two but can’t hook the Dragon Sleeper again. After a somewhat botched rollup attempt, AJ hits the Clash for the pin and the title shot next week.

Rating: C+. Not bad here but the lack of selling got annoying after awhile. I’m still not a fan of Low Ki at all as the kicking drives me crazy, but at least he threw in some ranas here to keep things fresher. AJ getting back into the X Title picture was a solid idea as he and Lynn had the best matches in the company so far. Not bad at all here.

Jarrett says he’ll eliminate Hall, Waltman and BG to get the title that he wants.

Elix Skipper/Brian Lawler vs. Scott Hall/Syxx-Pac

Skipper slips while trying to moonsault into the ring. Lawler makes sure to cover up his girlfriend’s body during the entrance. Pac and Skipper start things off with Elix getting a crotch chop for his efforts. Hall gives Elix one of the same, sending Skipper into such a rage that he misses a spin kick. A second attempt connects with Pac’s jaw and it’s off to Hall vs. Lawler. Hall throws the toothpick at Lawler, sending him out to the floor in a fit. Back in, more stalling, more yelling at the girlfriend.

Off to Skipper again before Lawler has any contact at all. At least he earned his paycheck tonight. Anyway Elix gets pounded down and chokeslammed for two before bailing to the floor. Some double teaming by the heels allows them to crotch Hall on the post and it’s off to Lawler for some biting and punching. A suplex puts Hall down and it’s off to Skipper for a top rope ax handle.

Hall puts Skipper down with a belly to back suplex but let’s look at Lawler yelling at Don West for talking to April. Off to Syxx who cleans house. An X-Factor gets two on Skipper with Lawler making the save. Everything breaks down and Pac misses the Bronco Buster on Skipper. Lawler and Hall fight as Elix goes up top, only to dive into the X-Factor for the pin.

Rating: D. These matches with the big stars are getting to be insufferable. They’re sloppy, by the book and really dull all the way throughout. I have no idea why Elix Skipper was involved in the match here but at least he was someone young and different from the regular “stars”. Nothing to see here at all.

Post match Jarrett runs out to beat down Hall and Pac.

AJ implies that he wants a ladder match for the title.

Bruce comes out and calls himself the only woman in TNA. Sara the Ticket Lady comes out and yells and that’s about it.

Kid Kash vs. Jorge Estrada

Feeling out process to start with Estrada taking over with an armdrag. Mortimer Plumtree is watching again as Jorge headscissors Kash down and clotheslines him to the floor. Jorge leaves a suicide dive WAY short and lands on his head in a SICK crash. Back in and Kash takes over with a double springboard backsplash for two back inside. Estrada thankfully doesn’t have a broken neck and comes back with a hiptoss and a standing shooting star for two.

Jorge goes up but Kash shoves the referee into the ropes to crotch him down. A top rope rana brings Estrada down but Kash charges into an elbow in the corner. Kash pokes him in the eye and hits a DDT for two, only to have his rana countered into a powerbomb for two for Jorge. Estrada busts out the TCB (Taking Care of Business), a big flippy dive for the pin.

Rating: C. Just a battle of the flips here which is about what you would expect from a show like this. Estrada isn’t bad and Kash is Kash so the match was entertaining but the lack of selling continues. This is another match which was here to give us the post match stuff because we need our Elvis developments.

Estrada demands his suit back and we see Siaki burning it in a barrel.

We recap Siaki costing Lynn the world title last week.

X-Division Title: Ron Killings vs. Jerry Lynn

This is a lumberjack match and all of the lumberjacks are X-Division guys. Killings tries to bail to the floor early but Low Ki sends him back inside. Back in and Lynn pounds away with a bunch of right hands before bulldogging Truth down for two. Truth bails to the floor again for the same result, only this time he manages a top rope shoulder to take over. Now it’s Jerry getting thrown to the floor for a stomping by Kash. AJ, the only X guy not at ringside, is on the stage with a ladder.

Back in and the challenger gets two off a backbreaker and the same from a powerslam. That works so well that Truth hits another one before putting on a front facelock with his feet on the ropes. Lynn comes back with a reverse DDT and a powerbomb for two more but Truth stops him cold with a low blow. Low Ki is annoyed and yells at Killings, so Jerry rams them together and hits a TKO to retain the title.

Rating: C-. So let me make sure I’ve got this straight. Truth is feuding with the X-Division, so his first match in the feud is against the champion. He loses there, so now he goes down the division to fight lower level talent, all while being the World Champion? Does this sound as stupid to anyone else but me? The match wasn’t great but it was better than last week’s mess.

West hypes up the show for next week.

BG James vs. Jeff Jarrett

Main event time. BG says he’s Jeff’s second mountain and he can’t be negotiated. BG shoulders him down to start and pounds away with right hands. The shaky knee gets two but Jeff comes back with an enziguri to take over. Roadie fires off the juke and jive as we hear about them being together in the WWF back in 95. Out to the floor for some chair shots from James to knock Jeff into the crowd.

Jarrett gets in some chair shots of his own to take over and we go back to ringside. Jeff slams him into the announce table and pounds on the back and face with the chair some more. Back inside we go for the running crotch again in 619 position and a sleeper by Jeff. James fights up after two arm drops and puts on a sleeper of his own, only to be suplexed down by Jarrett.

Both guys are down now which is likely a good thing given the ample gut that Road Dogg has on him at the moment. Back up and James takes over with right hands but the referee takes a shot to the head. Jeff wedges a chair between the ropes but goes face first into it instead, giving James two. Elix Skipper and Brian Lawler come out to help Jarrett but Jeff nails Lawler by mistake, giving BG two more. The referee gets rid of the cronies so Jeff can hit James with a chair for a near fall. BG hits the anal rape pumphandle for two, only to have Skipper and Lawler run in for a DQ.

Rating: D. Could this have been any more overbooked? At the end of the day this BG James/Jarrett/Lawler stuff is completely uninteresting and I’m still not sure why they’re even fighting. The match was your standard Attitude Era brawl and the match was nothing of note. The X Title match really should have gone on last here.

Post match Hall and Syxx-Pac come out for the big brawl but Truth evens the odds and Jarrett and company stand tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. These shows are all suffering from the same problems: the overbooking of the main event and the lack of anyone caring about people like Lawler and BG James. Now I will give them this: they’re logically setting up feuds and stories with what looks like a six man tag set up for next week. The X Title stuff is WAY better than anything else but it’s not enough to get you through a two hour show.

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TNA Weekly PPV #16
Date: October 9, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Don West, Mike Tenay

Things are starting to pick up around here and we have a new story with the guy in white attacking Killings. If my memory is correct, that will start a story that lasts for months to come. Other than that tonight we have Jerry Lynn vs. AJ Styles for the X Title in a ladder match for the second time in two weeks. Also if we’re lucky, we might get more Brian Lawler! Oh and Chris Rock is here for some reason. Let’s get to it.

West and Tenay hype up the show.

We look at the man in white attacking Killings last week.

It’s supposed to be time for the opening match but here’s Ron Killings instead. Truth does some basic “your sports teams suck” stuff so the fans tell him he’s overrated. He says the man in white is the mystery partner in a six man tag later tonight and that’s not cool with the champ. Don West of all people cuts him off, saying that Truth isn’t telling the truth. It was ok when Killings came in last week to jump BG and Syxx-Pac but it’s not cool when someone jumps Killings?

We get a clip from the end of last week’s show and Killings says West just screwed up. Compared to him, West is just a pebble on the beach so Truth wants Syxx-Pac, James or the man in white. Cue James and Syxx-Pac with the former talking about drinking Coronas and how we don’t live in a perfect world.

Curt Hennig walks out, apparently the mystery partner for later tonight. Hennig says he doesn’t like the Truth and Pac says they’re going to do to Truth what his mama should have done years ago. The three come to the ring and here are Jarrett and Lawler for the big brawl. Our heroes clean house and the heels retreat. BG wants the match right now so here’s a referee.

Curt Hennig/BG James/Syxx-Pac vs. Jeff Jarrett/Brian Lawler/Ron Killings

BG and Jarrett get things going but Curt gets the tag before there’s any contact. Mike is immediately running through Curt’s career resume which is one of his trademarks anymore. No contact until about a minute in when Curt hits a single right hand to knock Jeff into the corner. Hennig runs Jeff over and chops Jarrett’s partners down for fun. Back in and Jeff fires off right hands of his own followed by a Hennig neck snap to Hennig, earning him a right hand for gimmick infringement.

Jeff is sent to the floor again as Lawler is freaking out. Back in and it’s Lawler vs. Syxx-Pac with Brian missing a cross body but coming back with a powerslam. Off to the world champion who gets punched in the face by BG but nips back up, only to walk into the big right hand to put Truth back down. Back up and Truth does the splits to avoid a clothesline and hits the ax kick for two. Jarrett comes back in but misses his running crotch attack on the ropes, only to have Truth come back in to keep control.

Lawler gets the tag and drops BG with a neckbreaker for two and it’s back to Jarrett again. Jeff walks into a clothesline and it’s hot tag to Syxx-Pac. Kicks abound but the Bronco Buster hits a boot between the legs as Pac plays some Ricky Morton. Truth powerslams him down and it’s back to Jarrett with a suplex for two. Really basic stuff at the moment and it’s not exactly thrilling. Back to Lawler for a chinlock but Pac fights up with something resembling a Sky High.

The real hot tag (minus the heat) brings in Hennig and house is cleaned. BG chases Jarrett up the ramp with a chair as Lawler hits Hennig low to put him down. A guillotine legdrop gets two as Pac makes the save and gets two of his own on Truth with the X-Factor. Lawler takes out the referee and here’s the man in white, now with Mr. Wrestling III written on the back of his jacket to powerbomb Truth down. The PerfectPlex is enough to pin Truth.

Rating: D+. It wasn’t the worst match in the world and it definitely picked up near the end, but this was a bad sign for the main event picture. At the end of the day, these guys aren’t moving well at all and the matches range from passable at best to boring and sluggish at worst. This wasn’t horrible but at nearly fifteen minutes it went on WAY too long.

BG James is out cold in the back with a pipe next to him.

We look back at the X-Division Title match last week with Jerry Lynn getting “cheated” out of the title, only to have it handed back to him in a decision that screwed over the heel.

Here’s X Champion Jerry Lynn with something to say. He challenges Sonny Siaki, the man that cost him the title last week, to a match on the next show. Cue Sonny who says let’s do it right now. Jerry charges up the ramp but gets thrown off the stage, getting his leg caught in the barricade. Tenay talks about Jerry’s history of knee injuries and we hear Lynn say “not again.” We do the stretcher job as this eats up a few minutes.

Syxx-Pac apologizes to Low Ki over insulting him last week. Low Ki is about to respond but AJ Styles comes in to say that he’s beaten Low Ki four times so he should be Syxx-Pac’s favorite wrestler. AJ leaves and Low Ki and Syxx-Pac agree that Styles is a jerk.

Tag Titles: Spanish Announce Team vs. America’s Most Wanted

Storm starts with Jose and they flip around a bit until James hooks a cross armbreaker of all things. Jose comes back with a dropkick to the knee and something resembling an inverted figure four, only to have Storm grab a nearby rope. Storm comes back with a hurricanrana but Joel comes in with a missile dropkick, only to be speared down by Harris. Jose goes up but gets shoved down onto Joel onto the floor. Harris follows up the shove with a BIG plancha to take both Maximos (the SAT if that wasn’t clear) out.

Back in and AMW double teams Jose, only to have Joel crotch Storm to break up something off the top. A moonsault/neckbreaker combo (think the Motor City Machine Guns’ Skull and Bones but with a moonsault) gets two on Storm but James comes back with a freaky spin into a Downward Spiral for two. Off to Harris for a big tilt-a-whirl powerslam, good for two on Jose. Things settle down a bit and Jose gets two of his own off a tornado DDT.

Joel powerslams Harris and everything breaks down with a moonsault getting two on Storm. James comes back with a big old superkick for a delayed two but a Maximos double team takes the Cowboy down. A guillotine legdrop gets two for Joel but he dives into the Catatonic, only to have Jose break up the pin. The SAT loads up the Spanish Fly but Storm makes the save, setting up an overly complicated double powerbomb into a whip Rock Bottom for the pin to retain the belts.

Rating: B-. This got a bit too sloppy at the end but I’ll take whatever I can get for tag team wrestling int his company at the moment. As has been the case for weeks now, AMW is the only good team around and they’re just looking for some decent opponents. The Maximos aren’t great but they’re better than anyone else AMW has gotten to face so far as champions.

Here’s Chris Rock for the first big celebrity appearance for the company. He says TNA is the best wrestling in the world and invites anyone to come prove it’s not fake….and that’s it. Literally he was in the ring for 30 seconds.

Kid Kash vs. Ace Steel vs. Low Ki vs. Tony Mamaluke

This is a 15 minute iron man match for no reason whatsoever. Steel is most famous for training CM Punk and Colt Cabana and comes out to what would become Abyss’ music. During the entrances, we see a sign saying Totally Nuke Al-Qaeda for what has to be the tenth time tonight, but it’s been in various different places. It’s either a group of fans or a plant by the company for whatever reason. Mortimer Plumtree comes out to do commentary.

We start with the usual multi-man spots where it’s so clear they’re working together that it takes away almost all of the illusion from the match. Low Ki pounds on Kash in the corner as the other two fight in the middle of the ring. The pairings trade off as armdrags abound, setting up a standoff. Mamaluke dropkicks down Low Ki and Steel followed by a double abdominal stretch, only to have Kash springboard in to break it up.

Kash snaps off some hurricanranas before nearly breaking Steel’s neck on a third. Low Ki and Steel head to the floor where Kash hits a huge dive to take both guys out. Naturally Mamaluke dives onto the three of them, putting everyone down on the floor. In a stupid looking move, Kash and Low Ki get up on opposite sides of the apron and springboard at each other for a double clothesline. Steel and Mamaluke come in with legdrops for a double pin, giving them a fall each.

The fans are behind Low Ki as Ace pounds him in the corner as the match slows way down. We have under eight minutes to go as Kash hits a fisherman’s buster on Mamaluke for a pin, leaving Low Ki as the only person with no pins. Mamaluke and Kash head to the floor as Low Ki’s springboard is almost caught in a fireman’s carry, only to roll down into an armbar for a submission for Low Ki, giving us a fourway http://buysoma.net tie. I guess we’re supposed to assume Mike meant pins and submissions when he said you could only win by pin.

Kash slams Mamaluke off the announce table, bouncing him off his head. Low Ki hurts his ankle on a springboard so Steel spins his leg around to work on the leg even more. Five minutes left now as Tony and Kash fight on the floor. Low Ki gets a rollup for two on Steel with 4:20 to go. A Kash powerbomb gets two on Tony with four minutes even left. Everyone knocks everyone else down for the next minute. Steel breaks up a Kash Boston crab and we have two minutes left.

Everyone is moving slowly now so this isn’t exactly thrilling. Kash and Ki chop it out on the floor but head back in with 1:00 left. Steel hits a running corner dropkick on Ki with 30 seconds to go. Mamaluke hooks a Russian legsweep off the apron and into the barricade to take out Kash. We’ve got 15 seconds left as Ki hooks his leg choke on the ropes followed by the spinning springboard enziguri, but Steel falls into the ropes. Ki pulls him back into the ring with two seconds left. Ki grabs a rollup but Plumtree trips him up to give Steel a pin, even though the bell ring before the referee was even on the mat.

Rating: D. Matches like these are the kind of indy nonsense that gets on people’s nerves. I have zero idea what the point was in making this an iron man match other than it sounded good on paper. Surviving a fifteen minute match doesn’t prove you’re tough as anyone should be able to last that long. There was no flow, no story, and a botched ending on top of that. Terribly booked match, but I’m sure I just don’t get REAL wrestling, right?

Here’s NASCAR driver Hermie Sadler because there’s a TNA car in the minor league race. He tries to get us to care about a race but here’s Miss TNA Bruce to interrupt. Bruce makes jokes about Hermie driving a car and demands that he pick a career already. This brings out Jeff Jarrett to insult Sadler and demand a bigger name to drive the TNA car. Sadler makes fun of Jeff for not having any titles but says he respects Ron Killings. He asks if Bruce is a man or a woman and a brawl is on, drawing in Jarrett and BG James for the save. Horribly stupid segment and no one cares about Sadler.

Ron Harris/Sonny Siaki vs. Chris Michaels/Rick Michaels

GET DIFFERENT LAST NAMES ALREADY! This is a #1 contender match between two teams that haven’t teamed together in the company before. Harris and Siaki jump the Michaels to start and take it to the floor. We start with Rick vs. Siaki as Tenay tries to get us to care about Rick’s accomplishments in the indys. Off to Chris vs. Ron with Harris pounding away in the corner. We’re definitely in squash territory here. Chris gets in some armdrags to bring in Rick, only to be thrown down by Ron.

Back to Siaki as this slow destruction continues. Rick comes back with a quick neckbreaker before it’s back to Chris, only to have Harris send him into the barricade. Siaki pounds on Chris a bit more inside but Rick gets the ice cold tag to clean a bit of the house. Sonny hits something resembling a Samoan drop on Chris but Harris breaks up the pin. He tells Siaki to hold Michaels up, only to kick Sonny in the face by mistake, giving Chris the fluke pin.

Rating: F. We just sat through seven and a half minutes for a screwy ending with one team we’ve never seen before beating another team we’ve never seen before. West tries to call this the biggest upset ever in TNA, but it makes the winners 1-0 and the losers 0-1. How is that an upset? On top of that, we’re now in week three of an angle for RON HARRIS. Was there NO ONE ELSE on the roster that could have done this story???

Post match Ron and Sonny slug it out until Don Harris makes the save and beats up Sonny. Just get to the Harris Brother reunion so no one can care again.

Bill Behrens comes out to say that Jerry Lynn can’t wrestle, so the title is vacated. However, due to legal requirements, there will be a title match so it’s Ace Steel vs. AJ Styles for the title in a ladder match instead. Jerry will get a title match with rules of his choosing upon returning. Low Ki comes out to cry foul on the Plumtree interference.

Plumtree and Steel come out to insult Ki and dear goodness I do not care. Plumtree mentions Low Ki trying to beat up Tammy Sytch, which is a reference to a recent indy show that maybe .3% of the audience will have heard of. Ki calls Plumtree a nerd and here’s southern hick Bob Armstrong because there aren’t enough freaking people in this segment. Armstrong makes Ace and Ki for the spot in the title match.

Low Ki vs. Ace Steel

Steel goes right for Ki’s knee like anyone would as this looks more like a UFC fight than a wrestling match. Note that I didn’t say a good UFC fight but a UFC fight nonetheless. Plumtree gets in a chair shot to the bad leg behind the referee’s back to send him to the floor. Armstrong and Behrens say the match is over and Ki wins by DQ.

Armstrong says the X-Division has been a mess since the beginning (not really but thanks for burying the most popular thing you have) so anyone in the X-Division can come out here and be in the ladder match for the title. Well why in the world not.

X-Division Title: Ace Steel vs. Jose Maximo vs. Joel Maximo vs. AJ Styles vs. Kid Kash vs. Tony Mamaluke

The Maximos pull out ladders as AJ suplexes Mamaluke. Everyone goes to the floor for a big springboard shooting star from Styles. Back in and AJ hits the moonsault into the inverted DDT on Joel before taking Jose down as well. There’s a brainbuster to Kash before AJ sends Steel into the barricade. The ladders are finally brought into the ring but Jose dropkicks Mamaluke off the ladder for the save.

Everyone is hit with or sent into a ladder until it’s down to Steel hanging AJ in a tree of woe on a ladder for a baseball slide. Kash rides a ladder down onto AJ as the Maximos are back inside. There’s no flow or anything to this so expect a bunch of random spots for the rest of the match. Joel gets crushed between two ladders in the corner and Styles gets suplexed down by Mamaluke. Kash superplexes Steel down and goes up the ladder, only to be shoved down with ease.

After more brawling, Kash knocks Tony off the ladder but tries a moonsault onto Steel and Jose instead of grabbing the title. Well he never all that bright. AJ rams his shoulder into the ladder to knock it to the floor but completely misses the Maximos he was aiming at. Tony is holding his arm and is likely injured. Styles and Kash both set up ladders and go up, only to be joined by the Maximos.

The Spanish Fly is blocked by Kash so he “hits” a “tornado DDT” on Jose, meaning he grabbed him and kind of fell backwards, driving the top of Jose’s head into the mat. Mamaluke goes up and the ladders collapse before Kash can powerbomb him down. AJ goes up and gets shoved right into the referee who wasn’t needed anyway. Kash dives off the top onto Joel for no apparent reason as Jose and Styles fight on the ladder. AJ rides the ladder down onto Jose who was crushed under both AJ and the ladder.

Kash dropkicks the ladder to take out Mamaluke and Steel, putting everybody down. Joel goes up with Kash and hits a C4 off the ladder followed by a sunset bomb from Styles to Ace, leaving Tony on top. Tony can’t quite hit a tornado DDT on Styles as this mess needs to end. Steel and Joel are fighting on the floor and AJ tosses Mamaluke out to join him. Styles superplexes Kash down and goes up, but here’s freaking Syxx-Pac to suplex him down, climb up and take the title.

Rating: C-. It doesn’t matter. That’s the title of this entire show: it doesn’t matter. These six guys were all working hard, but the match was such a mess and WAY too dangerous to make it work. On top of that, it doesn’t matter though because Syxx-Pac gets to come in and win the title in 30 seconds. That’s what WWE would do with Hornswoggle and it was just as stupid. Horrible way to end things here.

Next week, you guessed it: LADDER MATCH!

Overall Rating: D-. Again, IT DOESN’T MATTER. That iron man match? Didn’t matter. The six guys killing themselves for fifteen minutes? Didn’t matter. The Michaels guys winning? Didn’t matter, as the focus is still on Ron Harris. This was like the brainchild of one of those fans on the internet that drives you crazy and has no idea how wrestling actually works. We had meaningless gimmicks added to matches, stories being ignored for the sake of throwing everyone into one match, and a big SWERVE at the end because why not. This was awful with very little to remember at all. Horrid show.

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TNA Weekly PPV #15
Date: October 2, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Don West, Mike Tenay

We’re back here after a long absence on my part for two more of these things. The main stories tonight are AJ getting an X Division Title shot and what looks to be a tag match between Sean Waltman/BG James/Scott Hall vs. Brian Lawler/Jeff Jarrett/Elix Skipper. The company still isn’t all that interesting but maybe things will pick up soon. Let’s get to it.

After Tenay runs down the card to start, here are BG James and Syxx-Pac to open things up. BG is here tonight to take care of business but he wants to talk some smack first. They’ve done that before though, but it’s a new day here in TNA. Gay jokes abound and BG wants to fight Jarrett and Elix Skipper right now. James rhymes a lot and says that if Ron Killings is the future of wrestling, the future is grim. Killings may be the future, but BG and Syxx are the past and present.

Waltman says Low Ki isn’t ready for a match against Killings tonight because it should go to one of them. Both BG and Syxx want Killings, more commonly known as the Suntan Superman. BG says they’re white Kryptonite and says the theme from Cops, asking what Killings is going to do when they come for him. Here’s Killings (world champion) to say he thinks the two of them are crazy. Truth says they want the title and the fans chant overrated. Killings makes racial references to set Pac off, who wants a fight right now.

This brings out Jeff Jarrett who wants to know where Scott Hall is for the six man tag tonight. BG says Hall isn’t here but Jarrett has no business complaining about anyone. Jeff says we’ll make the six man a handicap match, allowing Skipper and Lawler to come in through the crowd for the beatdown. The good guys clear the ring and stand tall in just a few seconds though.

Tenay talks about new cable providers carrying TNA.

The announcers run down the card for a few moments.

Amazing Red vs. Shark Boy

The fans are behind Sharky as we get a technical sequence to start. Elix Skipper jumps in on commentary, ranting about being taken out of the main event. The main event is now BG/Syxx-Pac vs. Jarrett/Lawler. Shark Boy works on the leg for a bit and gets two off a neckbreaker. Mortimer Plumtree, generic corporate manager, is watching from the stage. A one knee Codebreaker puts Red down and a missile dropkick is good for two. In a surprising power display, Shark Boy gorilla presses Red out to the floor.

Shark Boy dives onto him to keep the crowd fired up as Skipper keeps ranting about giving someone a beatdown. Red can’t quite avoid a second dive but a third one sends Sharky into the announce table to give Red control. Back in and Red hits a BIG flip dive, nearly missing Shark Boy at the same time.

Both guys head back inside with Shark Boy hitting a middle rope Jackhammer of all things for two. Red comes right back with a middle rope neckbreaker for two of his own. A nice Dead Sea Drop (Diamond Dust) gets a delayed two on Red but a second attempt is countered into a reverse DDT. Red goes up for a quick twisting moonsault and a standing shooting star for the pin.

Rating: C. Take two guys and let them fly around for awhile. Red may fly higher, but he was definitely the sloppier of the two. Shark Boy is much better in the ring than he was given credit for as he’s mainly known as a gimmick guy. The fans were into it though and that’s the point of an opener.

Post match Skipper comes in and lays Red out. Security is beaten up too.

Video on Ron Killings vs. Jerry Lynn from last week, setting up Killings’ war with the X-Division.

Low Ki wants a piece of Syxx-Pac, even though he has a world title match tonight. He’s ready for Killings and is taking the title tonight. Heaven help us if he does.

We’re supposed to have a #1 contenders match for the tag titles but here’s Ron Killings to interrupt. He wants to know what Low Ki is smoking and thinks there’s a conspiracy. Truth demands the match right now so here’s the challenger.

NWA World Title: Low Ki vs. Ron Killings

Killings throws him around to start but Low Ki takes out the leg to send Truth to the floor. Low Ki follows him out but gets sent into the barricade over and over. Ki comes back with a kick and climbs onto the barricade, only to be kicked in the jaw, sending him into the crowd. They fight up to the stage with Low Ki sending Truth into the cages by the entrance. Truth whips him into the side of the ramp and crushes Low Ki with an anvil case to take over.

We head back into the ring with Truth getting a pair of two counts and stomping Low Ki down into the corner. An ax kick puts Low Ki down for two as Plumtree is watching again. Truth cranks on the arms but but Low Ki comes back with something like a Pele kick. The comeback doesn’t work though as Truth pounds him down in the corner again. Another kick to the face puts Truth down again for two as the fans are entirely behind the bald guy.

Low Ki fires off more kicks but walks into something like a Downward Spiral before it’s back to a double armbar. This hasn’t been all that interesting so far. A powerslam puts Low Ki down for two but Truth misses a 450 to give Low Ki an opening. Low Ki hits a spinning springboard kick to the face but can’t make a cover. A running forearm gets two on Truth and it’s off to a Dragon Sleeper on the ropes but it only lasts a few seconds.

Back up and Truth takes it to the corner for a kneeling Muscle Buster, good for two. Low Ki blocks a Stunner and hooks the Dragon Sleeper again, only to have Truth fight out a few seconds later. Truth goes up but gets caught by an enziguri, crotching him on the top. Low Ki goes up for a superplex but gets caught in a sitout front superplex to retain the title.

Rating: C. This picked up a good bit at the end but I couldn’t get into it for the most part. Truth is just kind of there at the moment as champion and the war against the X-Division isn’t doing much for me. Low Ki isn’t a guy I care for most of the time and the title never felt like it was in jeopardy here.

Post match a guy dressed all in white comes in and beats down Truth.

Tenay hypes NWA house shows.

Spanish Announce Team vs. Flying Elvises

The SAT’s are Joel and Jose Maximo and the Elvises are Jimmy Yang and Jorge Estrada. The winners of this get a tag title shot in a week. Joel takes Estrada down and hits a dropkick to the side of the head for two. Estrada comes back with something resembling a Stunner for two and it’s off to Yang. Both Maximos come in and get caught by spinwheel kicks to keep the Elvises in control. Joel gets in a shot to the face and makes the tag off to Jose who gets two off a suplex.

Back to Estrada who takes over on Jose as Plumtree is watching yet again. The Maximos hit a double dropkick for two on the now legal Yang as this match is falling apart. Joel and Jose hit a bad looking sequence with a dropkick each into a sitout powerbomb by Jose for two. Yang comes back with a great looking moonsault press for two as Sonny Siaki is watching from the ramp as well.

Yang enziguris Jose down and it’s hot tag to Estrada who suplexes Joel down and gets two off a Lionsault. Jorge misses a guillotine legdrop and everything breaks down. Yang clotheslines Jose into a sunset flip for two and here’s Siaki on the apron for a tag. Jorge goes to tag him but Siaki drops to the floor, allowing the Maximos to hit a Doomsday DDT for the pin and the title shot.

Rating: D. This was a huge mess and not a good sign for either team. It was a bad looking spotfest with no flow to it whatsoever, but that’s no excuse for the match to be bad. Red and Shark Boy had the same kind of match to open the show but it was light years better than this mess.

Jerry Lynn jumps Siaki in the back for costing him the world title shot. AJ Styles comes in to help Siaki in a double team. They throw Lynn into an anvil case and AJ dances on top of it. It’s as disturbing as it sounds.

Sonny Siaki vs. David Young

Young is most famous for losing something like 100 straight matches. Siaki scores with right hands but gets slammed down and backdropped for his troubles. Sonny bails to the floor for a bit, only to have his face slammed into the apron. Young, a decent sized guy, hits an Asai Moonsault followed by a hurricanrana back inside for two. Siaki comes back with something resembling a slam into a Diamond Cutter for two to take over as the match slows down.

Young is tied up in the Tree of Woe for a running shoulder to the ribs for two as Siaki is in control. David grabs a quick northern lights suplex for two but Sonny takes him right back down with a standing flip legdrop for two of his own. Sonny suplexes him into the corner for two but Young comes back with a spinebuster, apparently his finisher, for no cover. Instead David goes up and misses a moonsault, allowing Siaki to hit the Money Clip (reverse Cross Rhodes) for the pin.

Rating: D+. Nothing special here as Siaki is much better on the mic instead of in the ring. The problem is without the Elvis bit, Siaki is really just a generic heel with nothing all that special in the ring. Young was a guy with a look and some nice high spots but he doesn’t have that it factor that makes you want to watch him. Nothing match but it wasn’t bad.

We get a far too dramatic video on last week’s tag title tables match.

Ron Harris and his new partner Ashley Hudson, an Aussie that I’ve never heard of before, say they’ll win the titles. Ron tells his brother Don to remember their pact.

Tag Titles: America’s Most Wanted vs. Ron Harris/Ashley Hudson

Oh jeez Storm has guns now. Hudson starts with Storm in a slap off followed by a chase scene around the ring. Back in and Storm slaps Hudson in the back of the head before it’s off to Chris Harris for some double teaming. We get Harris vs. Harris, only to have Storm hit a missile dropkick on Ron followed by a high cross body from Chris for two. Chris spears the legal Hudson down before bringing Storm back in to pound away in the corner.

Hudson finally comes back with a clothesline to bring in Ron for some corner stomping. Some running clotheslines have Storm in trouble before it’s back to Hudson for some choking. Back to Ron for a big boot and a side slam but Storm avoids a charge in the corner. Hot tag brings in Chris as everything breaks down. The Catatonic (spin out Rock Bottom) gets two on Hudson but Ron accidentally kicks Hudson down, giving Storm the pin.

Rating: D. This was long and dull. I don’t know what the appeal of Ron Harris and whatever partner of the week he has is, but just get us to the Harris Brothers reunion so no one can care about it and we can move on. AMW is good but they’re the only decent team in the tag division and it’s really showing.

Post match Ron beats Hudson and Chris Harris down. Don Harris comes out to break up the fight and stares his brother down before punching him in the face to stop Ron.

Jerry Lynn is banged up.

X-Division Title: Jerry Lynn vs. AJ Styles

Jerry is defending and this is a ladder match. AJ goes right for the bad neck with forearms and a snap across the top rope to take over. Jerry comes back with a dropkick but is easily taken down by a neckbreaker. It’s ladder time with AJ laying Jerry on top of the steel for a slingshot hilo. The ladder is catapulted into Jerry’s face but AJ wants a chair instead of the title. Jerry dropkicks him off the apron before baseball sliding the ladder into AJ’s face for good measure.

Lynn’s climb for the belt is quickly stopped so he shoves the ladder straight into AJ’s head to put him down. The ladder is set up in the corner but AJ counters a whip to send Jerry into the steel. Jerry blocks a tornado DDT off the ladder but AJ slams him down and climbs the ladder, only to get taken down by a sunset bomb. A clothesline puts AJ down as the Plumtree stuff continues. AJ comes back with a Death Valley Driver into the ladder and a springboard legdrop to crush the bad neck even more.

Styles goes up but Jerry easily pulls him back down as Sonny Siaki comes back down to ringside. The distraction lets AJ break up a climb attempt and both guys are down again. AJ dropkicks Jerry down off the ladder and the fans are getting into this again. Styles bridges the ladder between the ring and the barricade but Lynn escapes a slam and suplexes AJ onto the ladder.

Back inside again and Jerry goes up, only to have AJ shove the ladder over, sending Jerry into the referee. They fight over a chair until Jerry sweeps AJ’s leg out and hits a Fameasser onto the chair. AJ is busted open and Lynn pounds at the cut with a violence you don’t often see from him. Jerry still can’t get the title down though as AJ tries a powerbomb, only to have the champion counter into a hurricanrana.

Both guys slowly climb up and they slug it out on top with Lynn hitting something like a suplex to take both guys down. Jerry goes up again but this time he catches a diving AJ with a midair clothesline. Lynn climbs the corner but has to dive onto Siaki instead of staying on Styles. AJ hits a huge springboard dive to take Jerry out, landing almost entirely on Lynn’s neck. AJ goes up and pulls down the title to win.

Rating: B. Another good match between these guys but they need to move on to someone else. They’re on the verge of losing their heat as the people are going to start getting bored. At the end of the day, you can only have good matches like this for so long before the quality starts to slip. Still though, good stuff and it opens a new feud with Siaki for Jerry.

Post match Lynn goes for Siaki but AJ and Sonny beat him down. The rest of the X-Division makes the save. Bob Armstrong comes out to say that Jerry gets the title back because of the interference. There’s going to be another ladder match with AJ getting yet another shot. That’s totally bogus as there are no DQ’s in ladder matches, meaning AJ broke no rules.

Don West hypes up next week’s show. Chris Rock will be here next week filming parts of Head of State.

Jeff Jarrett/Brian Lawler vs. Syxx-Pac/BG James

Before the match BG does Scott Hall’s hey yo to a modest reaction at best. BG rambles about payback and Pac says he’s going to take Lawler’s woman but if Lawler wins, he can watch Pac and the girlfriend. After that nonsense, it’s time for the main event that almost no one cares about. Naturally it’s a huge brawl before anyone gets in the ring with people being rammed into various objects.

We finally start with Pac vs. Jarrett in the ring and there’s even a referee now. Jarrett takes over with a nice dropkick but Pac comes back with a spinwheel kick to the jaw. Jeff gets up a boot in the corner and it’s off to Lawler. The fans chant Jerry’s Kid which applies to either Jarrett or Lawler. Pac clotheslines Lawler down and brings in BG for some finger bending (seriously) and right hands. A Jarrett distraction allows Lawler to superkick BG down, followed by some fish hooking of BG’s jaws.

There’s a bulldog for two on James and Lawler demands that April watch. Brian pounds in right hands to BG’s head but a second bulldog attempt results in Lawler being crotched in the corner. Hot tag brings in Pac to clean house, including a sitout powerbomb for two on Jarrett. Both heels get Bronco Busters but the X-Factor to Lawler is badly botched. Cue Elix Skipper to lay Pac out, giving Lawler two.

Jeff hooks a sleeper on Pac but it’s only good for two arm drops. Pac hooks a sleeper of his own but gets sent into the ropes for the break. A double clothesline takes the heels down and it’s back to BG. House is cleaned and everything breaks down with BG pinning Lawler with the pumphandle slam.

Rating: D+. This was the usual from these guys: nothing special and the fans don’t care about them for the most part. I’m not even sure why most of these guys are fighting in the first place. I believe Jarrett disrespected BG’s dad and that’s about it. No one cares about Lawler and the reactions confirm that theory. It’s not a horrible match but it didn’t help the story at all.

Post match Skipper comes in for the 3-2 beatdown but Amazing Red and the SATs come out for the save. It’s a huge brawl with Killings coming out as well to help the heels to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Well I’ve seen worse, but that’s not something you want to hear about a company that’s not even four months old yet. There’s a lot of WCW in this company: the stuff in the middle and the bottom of the card is good but the main event stuff doesn’t do much for anyone. Still though, this went by relatively quickly and they’re setting up stuff for the future which is a good sign. Not a bad show here.

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TNA Weekly PPV #13
Date: September 18, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Don West, Mike Tenay

Yes indeed I’m still doing these shows even though I haven’t done one since about Thanksgiving. I have no idea what’s going on at this point in TNA given how long it’s been, but apparently there’s a Gauntlet for the Gold (gauntlet match) for a shot at the tag titles and Ron Killings is defending the title against Jerry Lynn. Let’s get to it.

We open with Goldilocks explaining the rules for Gauntlet for the gold. Basically you have ten teams and two individual wrestlers start. Every minute another wrestler comes out and it’s over the top rope until we get down to two. Then their partners come out and it’s a tag match with the winners getting the belts. I’ve heard of worse ideas. Anyway Scott Hall pops up and says he has a surprise partner. It’s Sean Waltman who pops up for a second. Nice job on the surprise there people.

The announcers run down the card, including a celebrity boxing match. Oh jeez.

Earlier today Brian Lawler tries to jump Jeff Jarrett but Jeff fends him off with some luggage. Jarrett says that he never touched Lawler’s girlfriend April. Apparently April is playing Brian and Lawler can only trust Jeff. Ok then.

Cue Jarrett to the arena where he says he’s had it with Bob Armstrong and his masked man. Either Armstrong comes out now or Jeff is coming back there to get him. Jarrett goes to the back but is jumped by the Masked Bullet. They fight to the ring and Bullet does every single Road Dogg move there is and even says Oh You Didn’t Know into a mic. With Jeff down, Bullet pulls off his mask and it’s…..Road Dogg (called Brian James). Well that’s a bit anti-climactic.

Dogg says that he and Jarrett bailed on the WWF back in 1995 but then Dogg became part of DX. Apparently his name here is BG James with the G standing for “Get It, Got It, Good”. James is going to be in the Gauntlet for the Gold tonight and will find a partner somewhere. I guess Lawler vs. Jarrett is done now.

Jorge Estrada and Sonny Siaki say that it’s all about the Flying Elvises and not Sonny himself. Sonny talks about how we should support Jerry Lynn in the main event tonight, implying that he’s going to interfere.

AJ Styles vs. Kid Kash

Before the match AJ says that Sonny won’t be supporting Jerry Lynn tonight and it’s not over between himself and Jerry. AJ sounds even more like a hick here than he does now. Feeling out process to start with Styles taking over with an armbar. They head to the mat with AJ holding an armbar before Kash escapes a backslide. Both guys snap off some armdrags as we’re told that Low Ki returns next week. A Jericho springboard dropkick puts AJ on the floor and a slingshot rana keeps him down.

AJ gets back up and runs to the apron for a moonsault to take Kash down. Very fast paced stuff so far here. Back in and Styles takes Kash down with a sweet springboard dropkick for two. Kid hits the Bank Roll (kind of a Whisper in the Wind) for two and it’s off to a standing Boston Crab on Styles. That goes nowhere so Kash tries the Money Maker but gets backdropped out to the floor instead. AJ hits a sweet jumping DDT off the apron and both guys are down.

Back in and Kash sends AJ face first into the middle buckle before getting two off a German suplex. AJ comes back with his moonsault into (not really but close enough) the reverse DDT for two. Kash runs up the corner and hits a SWEET rana followed by a tornado DDT for two. AJ comes back with a dropkick to the knee and the always cool nipup into a rana of his own.

Discus lariat gets two on Kash as does a dropkick to the back of his head. AJ loads up another springboard dive but jumps into a dropkick to put both guys down. Kash tries a top rope splash but only his canvas. He manages to crotch AJ, but a top rope rana is countered into a Styles Clash off the middle rope for the academic pin.

Rating: B-. This was just a spotfest and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s not a good match as there have been far better versions of this before, but AJ looked good and that was the right idea here. AJ was rapidly gaining credibility and a win over a decent name like Kash was only going to help that.

Buff Bagwell says that he’s Marcus Bagwell again and wants another chance. BG James pops up and asks him to be his partner in the Gauntlet. Marcus accepts, and I think we’re supposed to buy this as the latest super team. You know, because Bagwell won like five WCW tag titles. Surely you remember his EPIC partnership with The Patriot right?

Here’s Dustin Diamond (Screech from Saved By the Bell) who says that after winning on Celebrity Boxing, he could come here to be a wrestler. This leads to an argument with Tiny the ring announcer and a boxing match is scheduled for later. Please make it short at least.

The Hotshots (Chase Stevens and Cassidy O’Reilly) say they’ve given up their spot in the Gauntlet because they want to earn it in a three way match. They leave and Disco Inferno pops up, looking for Brian Lawler.

Dustin Diamond vs. Tiny the Timekeeper

Boxing match, Tiny is a short fat guy, Dustin knocks him out in 35 seconds. Seriously, that’s it.

Hot Shots vs. Derek Wylde/Jimmy Rave vs. Ace Steele/CM Punk

Indeed, CM Punk was in TNA for a half a cup of coffee. The team who takes the fall here is out of the Gauntlet. Punk has blonde hair here which is a weird look for him. Stevens and Punk get things going and we get a gymnastics exhibition with both guys spinning around with little contact being made. Punk hits a kind of reverse powerbomb onto Steele’s knee with Ace coming in legally. Steele chops away on Chase (Stevens, along with his partner Cassidy O’Reilly) but a blind tag brings in Wylde. He tries to slingshot in, only to be powerbombed down by Chase as things speed up.

Off to Rave vs. O’Reilly with Jimmy getting caught by a slingshot splash. Cassidy likes to dance around a lot and shout at the fans. The Hot Shots hit stereo dropkicks to Rave’s head for two and a leg lariat from Chase puts Rave down. Back to Cassidy who slams Rave down but hits knees while trying a Lionsault. Jimmy tags in Punk who misses a springboard missile dropkick on Chase before having his head taken off by Cassidy.

Everything breaks down and the Hot Shots hit a nice superkick/German suplex combo on Wylde. Cassidy misses a twisting dive to the floor and it’s time to unleash the dives. Back in the ring, Steele puts Stevens in a Gory Special and drops down into a kind of Widow’s Peak to win the match and spot in the Gauntlet.

Rating: D-. Well that sucked. I know it’s blasphemy to say a Punk match sucked, but there’s no other way to put it. This was boring, sloppy and uneventful as none of the six guys were anything special in the slightest. I know Punk would get WAY better, but at this point he was nothing to see at all.

Harris and Storm are ready for the Gauntlet and Harris finally calls Storm buckaroo.

Here are Hall and Waltman with something to say. Hall reminisces about his time with the 1-2-3 Kid and the match they had on Raw in 1993. Waltman (Syxx-Pac here) says that he’s here to be a wrestler, not a sports entetainer. Ron Harris and Brian Lee try to interrupt but get beaten down by the stars.

Brian Lawler panics about his girlfriend missing and says it’s a life or death situation. Next.

Hermie Sadler is praised for being awesome in NASCAR and is invited to be here for the next match.

Bruce comes out to insult Sadler’s wife and calls out some chick from the crowd for a match.

Miss TNA: Bruce vs. ???

She doesn’t even get a name and is pinned by a powerbomb in like a minute. Did I mention they have no idea how to fill an hour and forty five minutes of PPV time at this point?

Sadler gives Bruce an atomic drop post match.

Jerry Lynn is ready for his one shot at greatness when Killings comes in and says Jerry has to kill him to beat him. This wasn’t bad actually.

Gauntlet for the Gold

There are twenty people (ten teams) in this with two individuals starting. It’s a Royal Rumble style match and when there are two people left, the partners return for a tag match for the vacant titles, which were vacated when AJ/Lynn had a double pin against Jarrett/Killings. Brian Lawler is #1 and James Storm is #2. Lawler crotches him on the ropes before the bell but Storm fires off right hands. Apparently Chris Harris is going to be #20.

Storm pounds away to start and a missile dropkick puts Brian down. With nothing else happening, here’s Jose Maximo at #3. Lawler gets double teamed in the corner for a bit before fighting both guys off. Derek Wyles is #4 but after some headscissors, Lawler throws him out. Joel is dumped too and we’re back to Storm vs. Lawler. Actually scratch that as Lawler eliminates his third guy in a row by sending Storm out. You know, because Brian Lawler is AWESOME.

Buff Bagwell is #5 and he comes in with middle fingers blazing. Oh wait he’s Marcus Bagwell here, despite looking and wrestling like he has for years. Bagwell hits a neckbreaker and pounds away in the corner until Kobain is #6. Lawler again gets to dominate some more talented people until Ace Steele is #7. There’s nothing of note to talk about here as it’s just standing around and slowly beating on each other in the corner with Lawler biting Bagwell’s head.

Jorge Estrada is #8 and gets chopped by Steele. The ring is getting too full now. Lawler hits Bagwell low in the corner and Brian Lee is #9. Hopefully he can throw some of these little men out. We don’t get that of course since that would help the match, so here’s Syxx-Pac at #10. Syxx cleans house and dumps Jose off a chop (yes a chop) before hitting the Bronco Buster on Marcus.

CM Punk (Steele’s partner) is #11 but Steele is thrown out before Punk makes it to the ring. We hear about how impressive it is that Lawler has lasted ELEVEN minutes as Jimmy Rave (Derrick Wylde) is #12. Punk hits a Rey Mysterio sitout bulldog on Rave as there are too many people out there. Ron Harris (Brian Lee) is #13 to give us our first full team. Their dominance is shown as they send Jorge to the apron, but the Karate Elvis (again, seriously) sunset flips Lee down to survive. The second attempt works though and Estrada is gone.

Punk and Rave are tossed by the big guys as well, meaning two full teams are eliminated. Syxx sends out Bagwell and Lawler (no fanfare, which is odd as the announcers have spent ten minutes worshipping the guy) as BG James (Marcus Bagwell) is #14. We get heel miscommunication between Lee and Harris but Road Dogg (blonde here for some reason) gets stomped down I the corner. Joel Maximo (Jose Maximo) is #15 and is out about two seconds later.

Syxx gets hit with a big double spinebuster but since Waltman is a GIANT KILLER he clotheslines both of them down at once. Since we haven’t seen enough of him tonight, here’s Brian Lawler AGAIN to throw out Syxx. Slash (Kobain) is #16 and BG James is triple teamed. Sonni Siaki (Jorge Estrada) is #17 and he goes after Slash to give James a breather.

Disco Inferno (Brian Lawler) is #18 as the match continues to drag. Scott Hall (Syxx Pac) is #19 and he pounds away on Lee. Ron Harris is dumped out and Chris Harris (James Storm) is #20, giving us a final grouping of Hall, Chris Harris, Siaki, Disco, James and Lee. The announcers aren’t sure if Slash was eliminated despite seeing him go over the top. Siaki is dumped and Disco gets caught between Hall and BG until Hall finally knocks him out. Hall and James square off but Lee jumps both guys for stereo eliminations, getting us down to Harris vs. Lee, meaning the battle royal is over.

Rating: D. This was long and dull with the partner thing going almost nowhere. Between that and the worship of Brian Lawler, this never went anywhere. The fast intervals helped, but so many of these people are unknown for the most part, which makes it hard to care about any of them. Also the two giants looked pitiful out there for the most part which didn’t do them any favors.

Tag Titles: James Storm/Chris Harris vs. Brian Lee/Ron Haris

Ron chokeslams James on the stage to start things off as a handicap match. Also here’s Jeff Jarrett to beat up BG James and take the focus off the title match. Lee kicks Chris in the face as AMW (are they even called that yet?) is in big trouble. Chris comes back for a bit but gets clotheslined down for two. West points out the problem here: too many people named James and Harris.

Storm finally gets back in and cleans house, only to get caught in a chokeslam/belly to back suplex combo for no cover. Ron pulls out a table for no apparent reason and lays Storm out on top of it. Lee loads up Chris in a chokeslam but gets rolled up (and into the ropes) to give AMW the pin and the titles.

Rating: D. This was barely even a match with Chris getting beaten down for a few minutes and Storm being on the floor most of the time. The table thing was stupid and the ending was even worse as both guys were in the ropes for the fall and the referee counted it anyway. Nothing to see here, but at least the right team won.

BG James is bloody in the back to make sure the tag titles get no focus.

NWA World Title: Ron Killings vs. Jerry Lynn

If Lynn wins, he’s a Triple Crown Champion three months after the promotion started. Truth jumps him to start and elbows Lynn down before talking a lot of trash. Tenay thinks that whoever controls the match will win. This man is the PROFESSOR people. A headscissors puts Truth down and a backbreaker gets two for Jerry. Lynn hits what appeared to be a slingshot elbow to the groin in the corner but Truth pops up and throws him out to the floor.

The champion drops Jerry face first onto the announce table and Lynn is busted open. Back in and a kind of belly to back suplex gets two for Truth and he shows Jerry’s bloody face to the camera. Lynn comes back with his spinning sunset flip out of the corner for two but Truth does his backflip into a drop down into a side kick sequence. They head back to the floor with Truth ramming Jerry’s bloody head into the post and gouging at the cut.

Back in again and Truth puts on a modified surfboard but Lynn grabs the rope. The ax kick gets two for Truth but Jerry comes back with a spinning rollup for two of his own. Truth stays on offense as AJ Styles is at ringside. Now Kid Kash and the S.A.T. come down as well. Here are the Flying Elvises as the fans are ALL behind Lynn. Jerry makes a comeback with some clotheslines but the cradle piledriver is countered. Lynn reverses a suplex into a DDT for two but AJ breaks up the pin. The challenger goes up but Siaki shoves him down, allowing Truth to hit a Diamond Cutter for the pin to retain.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t bad but the drama felt manufactured and the big moment feeling they were going for doesn’t work when the company debuted three months before this. The match wasn’t bad but Truth wasn’t the kind of guy you want working a match like this. The Siaki interference was as obvious as you can get as well.

BG James comes out to talk trash about Killings for no apparent reason. This brings out Jarrett because he has to end the show but Hall and Waltman make the save to close us out.

Overall Rating: D. This didn’t work at all for the most part. We had a mindless spot fest to start and then a pretty boring feature match for the tag titles. On top of that we have a just ok main event and WAY too much Brian Lawler. When you combine that with the stupid boxing and Bruce stuff, this wasn’t that entertaining. They need a story and they need it soon.

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