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TNA house show report
December 30, 2007
Oshawa, Ont.
Report by Sean Cooper, PWTorch correspondent
I went to the TNA show last night in Oshawa at the General Motors Centre. All the ringside seats were filled, but half of the seats in the upper sections were empty. Very vocal crowd. Before the show, AJ Styles & Tomko were signing autographs for some fans and being interviewed and photographed by the media.
Jeremy Borash was the announcer tonight. No pyro or titantron, only theme music for wrestlers.
(1) Black Machismo won an TNA X-Division Title Elimination Match: Jay "Black Machismo" Lethal vs Sonjay Dutt vs Johnny Devine vs Jimmy Rave. Black Machismo came out with the X Division Title, apparently getting it back at one of the house shows. Great back and forth match. Jimmy Rave was eliminated first, followed by Johnny Devine. The crowd was actually surprised after the first elimination since most people thought it was a one fall match. Sonjay Dutt turned heel and started to attack Jay Lethal. Finish came when Lethal hit the elbow drop from the top rope. Really great opening match. Johnny Devine attacks Lethal behind when he was celebrating and takes back the X Division Title to a chorus of boos.
(2) Eric "Showtime" Young pinned James Storm. Storm came out without Jacqueline Moore. Earl Hebner was the ref, which got a lot of "You Screwed Bret" chants. He got even more heel heat when he stood up on the ring ropes and posed. The match started with Eric Young taking the Canadian flag and singing "O Canada" with the crowd. Storm got some major heel heat when he stomped on the Canadian flag. James Storm hit the Eye of the Storm for a near fall. Finish came when Eric Young rolled up Storm for the 3 count with the crucifix.
(3) Gail Kim & Ms. Traci Brooks defeated Jacqueline "the Pride of Tennessee" Moore & Awesome Kong. Gail Kim and Traci got a huge pop when they were announced as being from Canada. Awesome Kong dominated most of the match, until she accidentally hit her partner. Gail Kim dropkicked Kong out of the ring and got the pinfall.
(4) A.J. Syles & Tomko beat LAX to retain the TNA Tag Team Titles. A really amazing match with a lot of great spots. Crowd was very behind AJ Styles. Homicide hit the suicide dive, while Hernandez hit the splash over the top ropes to the floor to a big ovation. Finish came when Homicide was about to hit the Gringo Killa when AJ rolled him up with a handful of tights. Excellent match.
Pre-Intermission: Jeremy Borash told the crowd to be loud as they were filming a segment that would air later on TNA Today and TNA Impact. He said TNA is planning to run a pay-per-view in Canada very soon.
Intermission: Christian Cage signed autographs at the merchandise stand. The merchandise was a good deal (two TNA shirts for $20), but there were only general TNA shirts, not shirts for wrestlers like Kurt Angle, which ticked off a lot of people.
(5) Abyss beat Chris Harris in a no-DQ mystery opponent match for Harris. Harris comes out to heel heat. Harris takes the mic and complains to the crowd about how terrible Canada is. He says that he's beaten everyone on this Canadian tour so far and asks for some real competition. Suddenly, the Monster Abyss' music hits to a major pop. Abyss controls for most of the match until being slammed through a table for a near fall. Abyss gains control again and goes under the ring for thumbtacks and lays them out. Abyss tries to hit the Black Hole Slam into the tacks, but Harris reverses the move and slams Abyss into the tacks. Abyss comes back and nails the Black Hole Slam for the victory. After the match Abyss was visibly bleeding.
(6) Samoa Joe pinned Robert Roode. Roode comes out and runs down Canada. As usual, he treats Traci Brooks poorly. Samoa Joe controls most of the match, even taking Traci's chair to nail Roode. Funny spot when Roode jumps off of the top rope and Joe just walks out of the way. Roode almost wins with the Pay Off, but Joe nails the Muscle Buster for the victory. After the match, Joe scares a kid going up the ramp, getting a pop out of the crowd.
(7) Kurt Angle pinned Christian "the Instant Classic" Cage to retain the TNA World Heavyweight Title. Crowd was really hot for this match. Christian takes the mic and says that he's going to win the belt for his home country. Christian plays the full blown babyface for this match. Crowd was 60/40 in favour of Christian. Awesome match with many great spots. Angle gets control when he hits a Belly to Belly suplex on Cage out of the ring. Christian gains control and nails the Unprettier for a near fall. As with all TNA main events there is a ref bump (my gosh, please stop with the screwy finishes!) and Angle takes advantage by hitting the Olympic Slam. Another ref runs down, but Christian kicks out. Angle soon hits the low blow and tries to use the title, but AJ runs down and stops him. Christian has the visionary tap out on Angle with the Ankle Lock, but there is no ref. Christian tries to revive the ref, but Angle clocks him from behind with the title belt and picks up the pinfall. After Angle leaves, Christian takes the mic and thanks the crowd for their support, vowing to tell Dixie Carter and Jeff Jarrett to come back to Canada soon. This was by far the match of the night.
NOTES: As with the other house shows in Canada, the fans were able to take a signed photo with Kurt Angle for $20 at the end of the show. A lot of people lined up for that. Jeremy Borash, Gail Kim, and Ms. Brooks took pictures and signed autographs with fans at ringside.
Outside the arena, some fans and I watched a few wrestlers get in their cars and leave. Samoa Joe signed a few autographs and left, but Christian didn't even look at anyone and just left (I can't blame him, he must be tired). The last person to leave was Simon Diamond who waved before driving off.
This was by far the best wrestling event I have ever been to! Excellent action and a great experience meeting the TNA wrestlers at the end of the event. Way better than a WWE event by far! If TNA ever comes to your city be sure to see them because it will be an experience like no other!
Loudest Pops
1. Christian Cage
2. Eric Young
3. Kurt Angle
4. Samoa Joe
5. Abyss
Most Heel Heat
1. James Storm (stomping on the Canadian flag)
2. Robert Roode
3. Chris Harris
4. Johnny Devine
5. LAX Send feedback on this article to pwtorch@gmail.com and we'll regularly publish reader feedback in the "Torch Feedback" category on the Main Listing.
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