Thursday 22 November 2012

TNA Turning Point 2012 Review

TNA Turning Point took place on the 11th November at the Impact Zone in Orlando, Florida. To be brutally honest, I forgot that this was even on as I've not watched Impact in a while and I have only been keeping up with it, thanks to the reviews by The Wrestling Nerd (thanks, by the way!). Therefore, I didn't write a predictions article. Despite that, it would be nice to just watch the show and not worry about my predictions.

We open the show with Tazz in the ring and he talks about Hurricane Sandy and Bully Ray along with local radio host Buckethead come out. In order to help with donations to the American Red Cross, who are helping with the relief, they ask the crowd and the TV audience to break a World Record to simultaneously text a donation. I know a couple of twitter buddies who were affected by the Hurricane so it's good to see TNA do something like this.

Anyway, back to the reason we are here. The first match is between Magnus and Samoa Joe for the Television Championship and it was no disqualification. Joe gets the early advantage before Magnus hits a clothesline.Joe splashes Magnus into the turnbuckle followed by a kick to the head and Magnus gets out of the ring and throws a steel chair at Joe when he attempts a suicide dive. Later on, Joe applies the STF but Magnus gets to the ropes. Magnus hits a top rope elbow drop but Joe kicks out at 2. Magnus tries his steel chair move again; however, Joe outsmarts him by going over the rope instead of through the ropes. Joe hits the Muscle Buster but Magnus kicked out. Joe then applies the rear naked choke and the referee drops the arm three times sorry, only one bizarrely for Joe to get the win. I enjoyed the match but I found the ending a little off and I found it weird that only Magnus was taking advantage of the no-disqualification stipulation. Despite that, it was good way to start the PPV.
Winner: Samoa Joe

The next match was between ODB and Eric Young (remember them?) taking on Knockouts Champion Tara and Jesse(?) ODB and Jesse start the match ODB and Young beat up Jesse. ODB hits the Bronco Buster then Tara decided she's had enough and hits ODB in the back. Young gets tagged in and Jesse manages to recover and beat up Young. Tara does tag in occasionally but she's not in the ring for long before tagging back in Jesse. Young starts a brief comeback before a double clothesline. ODB spits alcohol into Jesse's face and then low blows him to give Young the opportunity to tag her in. ODB hits the Bam on Tara but Tara rolls out of the ring. Young blind tags himself in and ODB hits Jesse with a bodyslam followed by a Macho Man elbow drop to give them the win. The match was pretty decent and I thought Jesse was quite impressive. Shame that I REALLY hate Eric Young's gimmick.
Winners: ODB and Eric Young

After we see a video of Aces and Eights going Hammer Time on Sting at the previous Impact, the next match is for the X-Division Championship as Rob Van Dam is challenged by Joey Ryan, who is without Matt Morgan thanks to Hulk Hogan banning him from ringside. Some of the highlights include Ryan pushing RVD off the top turnbuckle to the crowd barrier, and Ryan hitting the Moustache Ride for a 2 count. Eventually, RVD hits the 5-star frog splash to get the win and retain the X-Division Championship. Afterwards, while RVD is celebrating at the top of the ramp, Morgan comes in and destroys RVD with a Carbon Footprint. It was another good match and I like to see them continue their feud.
Winner: Rob Van Dam

The next match is between Aces and Eights DOC and Joseph Parks (brother of Chris? You know...Abyss?) Yeah, I can't see this match going for long. I like the way the crowd got behind Parks chanting "You can do it". Parks tries to take down DOC and manages to slap him. DOC doesn't take well and goes after Parks. Parks flees to the outside and DOC hits his hand on the ring post. Parks takes advantage and focuses on DOC's injured hand. The action goes back inside the ring and DOC wraps his hand with his belt strap. The referee stops him so DOC gets a hammer when is stopped again by the referee.  DOC eventually gets to beat up Parks. DOC hits Parks with the belt, busting him open. That pisses Parks off and hits DOC with the Black Hole Slam. Despite Park's best efforts, DOC hit him with the Chokeslam to get the win. After the match, DOC continues to beat up Parks and is about to go Hammer Time on him but Bully Ray runs in to save the day.
Winner: DOC

The next match was for the Tag Team Championships as Christopher Daniels and Kazarian challenge Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez. Chavo and Daniels start the match and Kazarian hits a cheap shot on Chavo in order to get the advantage. Hernandez helps out Chavo with a double clothesline. Chavo and Herandez focus their offence on Kazarian. Chavo misses a frogsplash thanks to Daneisl pulling Kazarian out of the way and this gives the opportunity to wear him down. During this time, they celebrate with a gangnam style dance. Chavo manages to hit a torando DDT which gives him the chance to tag in Hernandez. Herandez tries the Air Mexico but Daniels kicks the ropes to stop it. Despite the best efforts of Kazarian and Daniels, Hernandez gets Daniels on his shoulders and Chavo crossbodys him to get the win and retain the Championships. This was a fun tag team match to watch and I'm so glad that we have (hopefully) seen the end of the feud between Christopher Daniels and Kazarian and AJ Styles.
Winners: Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez

Next was a triple threat match between Bobby Roode, James Storm and AJ Styles to determine the No.1 contender for the TNA World Championship. The stipulation in this is whoever gets pinned will not a title match until the 2013 Bound for Glory (harsh, much?) Early on, Roode and Storm are punching each other outside the ring and Styles does a suicide dive onto them. Styles gets sent to the outside, leaving Roode and Storm to fight it out for a little while. Styles focuses his attack for Storm's left leg and he goes for the Styles Clash but Storm reverses it into an Alabama Slam. Storm and Roode get into it for a bit and Storm hits the Codebreaker and goes for the Last Call. However, Styles stops that by crossbodying Storm. Storm and Roode work together to suplex Styles and Storm hits Roode with a Russian legsweep to get a 2 count. Styles misses with a springboard 450 splash and gets hit with a spear by Roode for a 2 count. The end comes where Roode is about to hit Styles with the Fisherman's suplex when Storm hits Roode with a backstabber. Storm then hits the Last Call on Styles to get the win and become the No 1 contender. I really enjoyed the match and it's nice to see Storm get a chance for the World Championship. I'm surprised that Styles took the pinfall as he has not been TNA World Champion for 3 years. Despite that, it will be interested to see what they do with Styles. Hopefully, he won't reignite his feud with Christopher Daniels and Kazarian.
Winner: James Storm

The penultimate match is between Kurt Angle and Devon. The match goes back and forth before Angle injures his shoulder when he goes into the steel steps. Angle hits a missile dropkick and starts a comeback but is stopped by a clothesline. Angle applies the anklelock and Devon manages to get out of it. Angle hits the 3 German suplexes for a 2 count. Devon tries a flying headbutt but misses and Angle hits the Angle slam. Aces and Eights then decide to pay a visit and the distraction gives Devon the chance to spear Angle for a nearfall. Angle then applies the Ankelock and grapevines Devon's leg to give him no choice but to tap out. Angle then commences Operation GTFO as Aces and Eights go into the ring and DOC threatens Angle. It was a decent match and I'm enjoying Devon's heel turn. It's just that I really think that he should have won this match to make the group look strong.
Winner: Kurt Angle

After an interview with AJ Styles that was inspired by Josh "Bad Timing" Mathews that consisted of Styles just looking at the interviewer then walking away; the main event is a ladder match for the TNA World Champion as Austin Aries (the best thing in TNA right now) gets his rematch against Jeff Hardy. Aries decides not to fuck around as he throws Hardy out of the far side of the ring and goes to grab the ladder located at the entrance ramp. Hardy stops him and the match continues in the ring for a while. Hardy and Aries fight over the ladder and Hardy pushes the ladder into Aries sending him over the steel steps. Hardy tries to climb the ladder towards the belts (the normal belt and the "Megatron" belt were up there) but Aries stops him with a Russian legsweep. Aries beats up Hardy for a bit and starts to climb up the ladder. Hardy then tries to splash Aries but Aries sidesteps him and Hardy lands into the ladder, which had been inverted, sandwiching him. That manoeuvre destroyed the ladder; luckily there's a spare one under the ring. Aries then sandwiches Hardy in a ladder then puts the steps against it to trap him. Aries climbs the ladder and has the match won. However, he notices the referee Earl Hebner and gets suspicious so he climbs down and realises that Hardy had escaped, went under the ring and is now climbing the ladder. Aries just manages to stop Hardy by pushing the ladder and Hardy lands quite badly onto the ladder then the mat. Aries starts to climb up with Hardy in pursuit. Aries gets Hardy off then uses the ladder as a weapon against him. Hardy manages to make a comeback, destroying another ladder. Hardy then has to grab another ladder from under the ring and he starts to climb up before being stopped by a missile dropkick. Aries then hits the Brainbuster and pushes Hardy out of the ring. Aries then slowly climbs the ladder and Hardy hits Twist of Fate from the ladder then follows up with a Swanton bomb. Hardy then climbs the ladder and is about to grab the belts when they get moved up. Hardy wonders what the fuck is going on and looks to see Aries with the control for the hydraulic rope holding the belts. Hardy then goes after Aries and sends him flying over the crowd barrier. Hardy then grabs a bigger ladder and climbs up it. Aries goes after him and they fall onto one of the ladders that had been placed on top of one of the ringposts. Hardy then hits the Twist of Fate onto that ladder, sending Aries to the outside. Hardy then climbs up and grabs the belts to get the win. I really enjoyed the match with some ingenious spots by both guys, and I thought the spot where Aries puts the belts up higher was brilliant.
Winner: Jeff Hardy

After pulling my finger out and making time to watch the show, I really enjoyed it. As always with TNA PPVs. the wrestling is normally good and I thought the No 1 contender and the main event were really good. I was going to say that I was looking forward to the Storm/Hardy but that plan failed when Roode challenged Storm to the No 1 contender's spot at the following Impact and won, and that meant that the match at the PPV was a waste of time. Despite that, TNA has got better (in most parts) over the year so I'm interested to see if they finish the year strongly.

Monday 19 November 2012

WWE Survivor Series 2012 Preview

The 26th Survivor Series will take place this evening in Indianapolis. Will the multiple changes they made to the card result in a good show? Let's take a look.

The Pre-Show match will be between Team Co-Bro and 3MB. This should be a decent tag team match and I can see either team winning. I think that 3MB will win this and continue their push.
Predicted Winners: 3MB

The Divas Championship will be defended as Kaitlyn challenges Eve. The Divas matches have been quite good recently and this should be a good match. I would love to see Kaitlyn win but I don't think that will happen, so I'm picking Eve to retain.
Predicted Winner: Eve

The United States Championship will be defended as R-Truth challenges Antonio Cesario. Cesario has been great to watch as Champion and he has been on a roll. Therefore, I can't see them giving the belt to R-Truth.
Predicted Winner: Antonio Cesario

The only Survivor Series match is between Team Ziggler (Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow, Alberto Del Rio and Wade Barrett) and Team Foley (The Miz, Kofi Kingston, Kane, Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton with Mick Foley acting as ringside captain). Despite the changes they made to this match, it should be an entertaining to watch. I'm going for Team Foley to win here.
Predicted Winners: Team Foley

The World Heavyweight Championship will be defended as Sheamus challenges The Big Show. Their match at Hell in a Cell was pretty good. I expect the same here. I think the Big Show will retain here.
Predicted Winner: Big Show

The WWE Championship will be defended in a triple threat match between CM Punk, John Cena and Ryback. This should be an interesting match and I think that CM Punk will win this. I can't see either of the two winning; although Cena hasn't been Champion, so I can see them giving the belt to him.
Predicted Winner: CM Punk

Work has really disrupted me watching the PPVs and writing about them. Hopefully, I'll get to watch it during the week and review it then. Until then, I hope you enjoy the show.


Monday 5 November 2012

WWE Hell in a Cell 2012 Review


WWE Hell in a Cell took place last Sunday at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. How did the event go? Let's take a look.

The Pre-Show didn't feature a match but we had John Cena coming out to speak to Michael Cole about the allegations surrounding AJ's resignation from her position as RAW General Manager. At least, that was the plan. Cena instead just went on answering questions about the Ryback/Punk match and challenging The Rock to another match. Good to see that Cena cares about AJ.  Oh wait... Anyway, Vickie Guerrero comes out and...I've lost interest.

The show starts with Alberto Del Rio taking on Randy Orton. The action goes to the outside almost immediately and Del Rio gets creamed with a clothesline. Del Rio starts to focus on Orton's left shoulder and arm. Del Rio hit a couple of armbreakers. Orton tries a powerslam but Del Rio sees it coming and hits the Cross Armbreaker. However, Orton managed to get to the ropes. Later on, Ricardo "Virgil" Rodriguez pulled Orton's shoulder onto the ring post, giving Del Rio the opportunity to apply the Cross Armbreaker. Orton gets out of it by turning it into a pin. Del Rio has to let go of the move to avoid being pinned and he tries to do a inziguri. However, Orton ducks and hits the RKO to get the win. It was a decent match to start the PPV, although there was a minor botch near the end.
Winner: Randy Orton                                                                                                 Predictions: 1 for 1

After Josh "Bad Timing" Mathews interviews RAW Managing Supervisor (?) Vickie Guerrero, we get Paul Heyman trying to cancel the match between CM Punk and Ryback. Vickie understandably denies his request. We get to see Heyman keep on trying to cancel the match during the show.


Next we get the Tag Team Championships match with Team Friendship Hell No defending against Team Rhodes Scholars. Kane and Daniel Bryan focus their efforts on Cody Rhodes before Damien Sandow hit Kane with a chopblock. Bryan gets the hot tag and is all over Sandow. Sandow gets back the advantage. Bryan tries for the LeBell Yes No Lock but Sandow stops that from happening. Kane gets the tag and takes out Rhodes. Bryan gets the blind tag and hits Rhodes with a flying headbutt and Kane stops the pin. Later on , Bryan accidentally hits Kane outside the ring and he and Bryan argue. Rhodes hits Bryan with the Cross Rhodes but Kane stops the pin. Kane then starts beating the shit out of Sandow and Rhodes. The referee keeps on warning Kane then has enough and calls for the bell, disqualifying Team Hell No. I enjoyed the match but I really didn't like the ending as I felt it wasn't necessary.
Winners: Team Rhodes Scholars                                                                   Predictions: 1 for 2

               (Team Hell No keeps the Tag Team Championships)

The next match was for the Intercontinental Championship as The Miz challenges Kofi Kingston. We get to see The Miz keep Kofi grounded. Kofi increases the pace of the match and hits the SOS but Miz kicks out. Miz injuries Kofi's left knee and then exposes it in order to keep on injuring it. Miz applies a single leg Boston crab but Kofi turns it into an inside cradle. Miz tries for the Skull Crushing Finale but is thrown out of the ring. Miz immediately goes back in and gets hit with the Trouble in Paradise to give Kofi the win. As a big fan of The Miz, I enjoyed the match and it would be good to see a rematch between the two.
Winner: Kofi Kingston                                                                                               Predictions: 2 for 3


We next get a bonus match for the United States Championship between Justin Gabriel and Antonio Cesario. On a side note, the crowd was so quiet during the entrances. We get some aerial ability by Gabriel before Cesario throws him out of the ring and takes advantage. Cesario does an European uppercut to the back of Gabriel's head. Gabriel starts a comeback hitting some impressive aerial moves.Gabriel attempts a springboard dive to the outside of the ring; however, Cesario hits him with another European uppercut. Cesario then hits the Neutraliser to get the win. It was a good match but fuck me, the crowd were not into this match.
Winner: Antonio Cesario                                                                                                Predictions: N/A


We get  backstage segment where Heyman thanks Vickie for cancelling the match and he and Punk are about to leave. Vickie's going "Er, I didn't cancel the match" and is not happy with Heyman.

We get another tag team match between Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara and The Prime Time Players (#Millions of Dollars!)  Young  and O’Neill dominate Mysterio before Cara is tagged in and hits O’Neill with a crossbody for a 2 count. O’Neill hits Cara with several backbreakers and he and Young dominate Cara for a while. Young attempts a clothesline but misses and this gives Cara the opportunity to tag in Mysterio. Cara recovers enough to keep O’Neill while Mysterio gets the win with a 619 and a splash. It was a decent match and it’s good to hear that Sin Cara is ok after landing on his head selling a move.
Winners: Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio                                           Predictions: N/A


The next match was for the World Heavyweight Championship as The Big Show challenges Sheamus.  Show dominates in the early going, throwing Sheamus out of the ring a few times. Sheamus tries to fight back but he gets hit with a superkick. Show applies a bearhug then later on a Vader Bomb. Sheamus counters a chokeslam into a DDT for a 2 count then Show hits a chokeslam to get another 2 count. The action goes to the outside and Sheamus sends Show into the ringpost and this gives him the chance to get the momentum. Sheamus manages to lift Show up to hit the White Noise, which gets a 2 count. Sheamus tries for the Brogue Kick but gets hit with the WMD that only gets a 2 count. Sheamus manages to hit the Brogue Kick but he only gets a 2 count. Sheamus tries again with the Brogue Kick but Show steps to the side and hits Sheamus with the WMD to get the win and Show is the new World Heavyweight Champion AND it lasts more than 45 seconds as Ziggler decides not to cash it in. I enjoyed the match but I didn’t think that Show would win as I was expecting a Sheamus/Ziggler feud in the near future. Despite that, I’d like to see where they go from here.
Winner: The Big Show                                                     Predictions: 2 for 4

After a Ron Simmons “Damn!” moment involving Zack Ryder, Santino Marella (in drag, don’t ask), Teddy Long and Eve Torres; we see CM Punk try one last time to get his match cancelled by speaking to Vince McMahon. Vince instead gives Punk a pep-talk and tells him to go out and show why he’s the “Best in the World”

The penultimate match is for the Divas Championship as Eve defends her title against Layla and Kaitlyn.  Eve gets teamed up by the challengers before Eve starts to focus on Kaitlyn’s injured leg and does an impressive springboard crossbody. Layla and Kaitlyn brawl for a while and Kaitlyn hits a powerslam. Eve hits Kaitlyn with a senton, rolls her out of the way and pins Layla to win the match. The match was decent enough and I know some people might dismiss it. However, this match was second last on the card, had a actual story going into it and was a triple threat. I can’t remember the last time that I saw a triple threat Divas match on PPV.
Winner: Eve                                                                    Predictions: 3 for 5

After Josh “Bad Timing” Mathews interviews new World Heavyweight Championship The Big Show, we get the only match  in the Hell in a Cell as CM Punk defends his WWE Championship against Ryback. Straight away, Punk gets out of the ring and is trying to leave the cell. Heyman distracts Ryback, giving Punk the opportunity to spray a fire extinguisher at Ryback. Punk hits a springboard clothesline and a couple of elbows from the top rope. The action goes back to the outside and Punk hits a neckbreaker then hits Ryback with a chair. The action goes back to the ring and Punk connects with his running knee/bulldog combo. Punk then hits the Macho Man elbow drop then grabs a kendo stick and uses it on Ryback. Ryback starts the fight back with a few power moves and has Punk in position for the Shell Shock. However, the referee Brad Maddox, who has been the subject of some debatable calls over the last few weeks, hits Ryback with a low blow and Punk pins him to get the win. After the match, Punk and Maddox try to leave the cell, Ryback recovers and basically fucks up Maddox. Punk gets out of the cell and decides that climbing the cell would be a good way to escape. Ryback goes after him and hits Punk with the Shell Shock on top of the cell to end the show. It was a good match but WWE put themselves into a corner with this match. I couldn’t see Ryback winning so this might be the best way for the match to go. The main problem that I have is the referee. I find it hard to believe that the WWE would assign a WWE Championship to a referee who is the subject of a lot of questionable referring decisions. That’s wrestling logic for you.
Winner: CM Punk                                                            Predictions: 4 for 6

I thought that the event wasn’t bad. There were some good matches, especially the World Heavyweight Championship and it will be interesting to see what direction the WWE go with the Big Show, Punk and Ryback, and the Divas.

What soured it a little for me was the crowd which were really quiet sometimes and the ending of the Tag Team  Championship match. Kane and Daniel Bryan are probably the best thing in the WWE right now, helping to make the Tag Team division fun to watch. I get where they were going with it, emphasising the fact that they could implode at any time. However, I didn’t think they needed it and it looked dumb.