SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
I would like to kick off the Tracker this week with again giving thanks to Wade for bringing me into PWTorch! I hope you guys will tune into “Destination Impact with Zac & JB,” our new weekly podcast in the PWTorch Dailycast lineup where we cover all things TNA. We will cover current events from the Impact shows, PPVs, and feuds, as well as backstage news, signings/releases, and we will sometimes take a look back in TNA History, as well. Check out JB’s TNA Hits & Misses here at PWTorch, also.
Okay, now back to regularly scheduled programming…
Impact kicked off the show recapping the close of last week’s show where Mike Santana retained the TNA World Championship in a bout against Eric Young. Ricky Sosa returned to TNA last week to distract Eric Young, and Nic Nemeth attacked Santana at the show’s end ahead of their match at Slammiversary for the TNA Title. The intro video package then showed the return of Moose, aligning in opposition to The System.
The show-proper opened with the entrance of Xia Brookside, heading to the ring to cut an in-ring promo on the fans, and TNA Knockouts Champion Lei Ying Lee.
XIA BROOKSIDE vs. LEI YING LEE
The feud between Brookside-Lee is one of the only blood-feuds heading into Slammiversary, but it is also a contest over the Knockouts Championship. The feud has been physical for several weeks, as Brookside has played a role in the finish of several Lei Ying Lee matches over the last few weeks. Lee joined the segment, to cut a short promo before the two wrestlers needed to be torn apart by security. Lee destroyed the security guards restraining her, which led to Brookside gaining the upper hand briefly before Brookside escaped.
Breakdown: Lee-Brookside is one of the more intense feuds heading into Slammiversary right now, even with some bumps in the road along the way (Lee losing to Mr. Elegance two weeks ago was a very questionable booking decision, in my opinion). I thought this promo segment was strong in continuing to build the match; both wrestlers delivered the promos well. When Lei Ying Lee is able to cut straightforward promos, and lean less on overly dramatic acting, she actually delivers strong content. The promos and pull-apart brawl worked for me.
Grade: A
BACKSTAGE WITH TNA CHAMPION MIKE SANTANA
Santana started the segment referencing the cheapshot attack by Nemeth at the end of Impact last week, as well as mentioning Daria Rae looking to end Santana’s reign as TNA World Champion. KC Navarro entered the segment to attempt to convince Santana to focus on their six man tag match later in the show, teaming with Santana’s Slammiversary opponent, Nic Nemeth.
Breakdown: I didn’t think this was the strongest promo by a usually great Santana; I think KC Navarro was a bit over the top with his delivery, as well.
Grade: C+
ORDER 4 (MUSTAFA ALI & JASON HOTCH & JOHN SKYLER) vs. MIKE SANTANA & NIC NEMETH & KC NAVARRO
KC Navarro came up short in an TNA International Title match against Mustafa Ali last week. Their feud has continued with Ali’s cheap insults of Navarro’s deceased uncle. Order 4 entered the Impact Zone first, followed by Navarro, Nemeth, and Santana.
The story of the match from the start was the dysfunction between Nemeth and Santana. After a commercial break, Order 4 hit a very impressive triple-team powerbomb on KC Navarro. When it appeared that Santana was on the verge of gaining the victory, Nemeth tagged himself in, and failed to get the victory, leading to Order 4 taking control of the match briefly, until Navarro hit a strong diving tornado DDT.
Santana and Nemeth assisted each other, both hitting their finishers and pinning their respective opponent, while staring each other down. Following the match, Nic Nemeth’s brother, Ryan, entered the ring to attack Santana, leading to Santana inadvertently striking Navarro. Nic Nemeth hit Santana with a blindside superkick to end the segment.
Breakdown: The match had some good action with limited time. The strongest point being the interactions between KC Navarro-Mustafa Ali, which is a trend anytime they share a ring, it seems. I really like their chemistry in the ring, and I look forward to another match between the two.
As JB discussed in our debut episode of the Destination Impact podcast last week, both Navarro-Ali seem primed for elevations up the card. Ali is ready for the main event scene, and Navarro is ready for some gold and a bigger push. This is the first time I’ve seen Hotch & Skyler in action. If Ali is to remain a heel faction leader, I would like to see some stronger stablemates be introduced. Ali could also survive on his own, as Order 4 has mostly been background pieces for him lately.
The match also served as a backdrop to the feud between Nic Nemeth and Mike Santana, with Navarro playing peacemaker before, during, and after the match. Nemeth is definitely more heelish this week, but TNA does appear to be somewhat hesitant to fully transition Nemeth into the heel role. Navarro really shined in the match, and post-match, this week.
Grade: B+
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “PWT Talks NXT” with Kelly Wells and Nate Lindberg, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “pwtorch” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
THE KING’S SPEECH WITH FRANKIE KAZARIAN
Kazarian entered the Impact Zone to announce Ultimate X and a few of the wrestlers taking part in the match at Slammiversary this year. He introduced the former X Division Champion Leon Slater first, followed by current TNA X Division Champion Cedric Alexander. Kazarian declared that he was the innovator of the Ultimate X match and named himself as a competitor in the match, thanks to heel authority figure Daria Rae. Rivals Slater and Alexander went head to head in the promo, and Kazarian ended the segment with a “Hit my sexy music” line, which made me chuckle, for some reason.
Breakdown: Slater was strong in the segment, but overall, I didn’t feel it was a great build of the Ultimate X match which, on paper, could be one of the more exciting matches on the Slammiversary card. Cedric Alexander’s promo content was fine, but his delivery was grating, with the over-modulating screaming for most of it. Alexander’s reign as X Division Champion has not been very long, but I would like to see someone get a chance to show what they can do with the title. The commentary team highlighted that Slater’s spot in the Ultimate-X match would count as his contractual rematch, as the former X Division Champion, which could be a signal that he is not long for the promotion.
Grade: B-
IMPACT INJURY REPORT
The Injury Report this week started with checking in on KC Navarro’s knee following the first match on the show. Lei Ying Lee chipped a tooth in the altercation with Xia Brookside that started the episode of Impact, but was medically cleared. The Hardys were also cleared to return to action after being held out of competition for a couple weeks after the Wicked Garden match against The Righteous.
AJ FRANCIS: INSIDE THE MUSIC – AJ FRANCIS vs. ELIJAH
AJ Francis and Elijah have been going head-to-head over the last few weeks. On Impact this week, TNA aired an “Inside the Music” style (and in name) vignette, where AJ Francis talked about his journey, claiming his hero was famous music producer and mogul, Sug Knight. In the video, Francis made the case for stealing the rights to Eljiah’s music and likeness.
Breakdown: The build of this feud has been a bit odd and mostly played for comedy at this point. With Eljiah eating a roll-up pinfall against Mr. Elegance, and the Francis spoof music documentary piece, which was kind of funny at times, it doesn’t feel like TNA takes either of these wrestlers very seriously in the booking. Francis being booked to win the feud is the obvious choice, whether that happens at Slammiversary or not.
Grade: B-
RICKY SOSA vs. ERIC YOUNG and RICKY SOSA vs. DAK DRAPER
Ricky Sosa returned to the Impact Zone to distract Eric Young, leading to his losing effort at taking the TNA World Title from Santana. The two wrestlers quickly entered a feud with each other in the aftermath of that match. Sosa had his first match since returning this week against Dak Draper, in an extended squash match, with EY on commentary with Tom Hannifan and Matt Rehwoldt to put over the feud. Sosa got the win, without any shenanigans.
Breakdown: The Sosa-Young feud is a natural pairing of a popular upcoming star and a grizzled bitter veteran. Sosa was very over with the TNA fans on this episode of Impact, and I look forward to the Young-Sosa Slammiversary match.
Grade: B+
BACKSTAGE WITH THE ELEGANCE BRAND
The Elegance Brand has been everywhere on Impact over the last few weeks, for better or mostly worse. The Personal Concierge made the case to Daria Rae that Mr. Elegance deserved a spot in the Ultimate X match at Slammiversary. Rae obliged, stating that “Mr. Elegance does draw, so he’s in.”
Breakdown: Daria Rae claiming that Mr. Elegance “draws” is absolutely preposterous. There is not a more detestable and cringe-worthy gimmick in the TNA booking landscape right now, but the promotion is seemingly pushing Mr. Elegance after randomly putting him over TNA Knockouts Champion Lei Ying Lee and then Eljiah in one of the shortest matches in recent memory.
As JB and I discussed on our “Destination Impact” PWTorch Dailycast this week, we are obviously not the target audience for this Elegance gimmick, and every appearance Mr. Elegance or Personal Concierge make is groan-inducing. I was hoping for a more stacked Ultimate X field of wrestlers, but with this episode of Impact, the vision for the X Division Title is a bit foggy for me.
Grade: F (Noting that this is the worst grade so far in the current run of the TNA Feud Tracker).
ELAYNA BLACK vs. INDI HARTWELL
Indi Hartwell is coming out of the conflict between Santino and Ariana Grace and Stacks. Elayna Black has been making clear her intent to chase after the TNA Knockouts Championship. The two competitors met this week with potential future title contention at stake.
Mara Sade joined the commentary team for this match. TNA is creating some distance between Sade and The Undead Realm (Rosemary & Allie). A decent exchange between Hartwell and Black was interrupted when The Personal Concierge and Ash By Elegance walked into the Impact Zone and made their way to ringside, leading to Black gaining the upper hand in the match. Sade would offset Ash By Elegance, attacking her at ringside, leading to Indi Hartwell gaining the roll-up pinfall on Elayna Black, a distraction finish.
Breakdown: The backstage interaction of Elayna and the Elegance Brand last week seemed to tease the interference of Ash By Elegance in the Hartwell-Black match this week, almost as if a segment cannot escape the death touch of Elegance Brand. I also thought this match between Indi Hartwell and Elayna Black could have been built up more as both wrestlers appeared to be gaining some momentum among the Knockouts roster.
Grade: C
FABIAN AICHNER & SANITINO MARELLA BACKSTAGE,
Fabian Aichner has been feuding with The System since debuting in TNA. On Impact this week, Aichner pleaded with Santino Marella to give Aichner a spot in the Ultimate X match at Slammiversary. Santino obliged, but then the two were interrupted by Nic Nemeth, the no. 1 contender to the TNA World Championship, who asked Santino to give a spot in the Ultimate X match to KC Navarro, which Santino also approved.
Breakdown: Fabian Aichner and KC Navarro being added to the Ultimate X match for the X Division Championship is big news for me personally, as the field was in dire need of more upcoming talent to offset the presences of Frankie Kazarian and the dreaded Mr. Elegance. I was hoping that Navarro was going to be facing Mustafa Ali for the International Title, but the booking had other ideas, apparently. I like Aichner’s chances at winning the X Division Title in Ultimate X. I would have enjoyed seeing wrestlers earn their spots in Ultimate X rather than just handing the opportunities out, which would have helped make Ultimate X at Slammiversary feel more important, but Aichner and Navarro are solid additions to the match.
Grade: B
GIA MILLER INTERRUPTED BY MIKE SANTANA
Santana interrupted the backstage update on The Hardys, calling out Nemeth for “playing games.”
THE SYSTEM (EDDIE EDWARDS & BRIAN MYERS & BEAR BRONSON w/ALISHA EDWARDS) vs. MOOSE & THE HARDYS
Moose returned after being taken out by The System several weeks ago. On Impact this week, Moose aligned with The Hardys to face The System, complete with his own Broken Hardys-style entrance attire. At the climax of the match, The Righteous appeared with a ladder on the entrance ramp, serving as a distraction for The Hardys and Myers & Bronson. Interference by Alisha Edwards led to Eddie Edwards gaining the pinfall victory over Moose for The System.
Breakdown: At first glance at this match when it was announced, I thought it was random, but then I made the connection that The System are TNA Tag Team Champions defending the titles at Slammiversary against The Hardys and The Righteous in a three-way match. I am really hoping to see an influx in tag teams and a heightened emphasis being placed on both the TNA Tag Titles and the TNA Knockout Tag Titles. Moose looked really good in his return to action. I was not the biggest fan of seeing him lose to Edwards in his return match, but that’s what they chose to do. I anticipate Moose getting the victory at Slammiversary in the match against Edwards.
Grade: B-
TNA WORLD CHAMPION MIKE SANTANA CALLS OUT HIS SLAMMIVERSAY OPPONENT NIC NEMETH
After Nemeth announced that he would cash in his “Call Your Shot Gauntlet” title opportunity for a single’s match, rather than using it in the “Money in the Bank” style surprise cash-in, Nemeth played more into the heel role by attacking Santana last week after working together in a tag match. Ryan Nemeth entered the Impact Zone first to defend the honor of his brother, Nic.
Nic Nemeth then came to the ramp and joined the promo segment. Santana further antagonized Nemeth in an attempt to convince him to join him in the ring. The Nemeth brothers would decline the offer as Santana played to the crowd as the show ended.
Breakdown: The close of the show this week felt like a go-home episode leading into a PPV. I enjoyed the quick exchange between Nic Nemeth and TNA Champion Mike Santana. I feel TNA adequately used the time they had to build up the intensity of the match. With Santana likely not resigning with TNA, all signs point to a Nic Nemeth victory at Slammiversary.
Grade: A
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