Impact Wrestling
July 4, 2013
Las Vegas, Nevada
We get a recap of last week’s show, including Austin Aries’ stunning switcheroo to become X-Division Champion. Mike welcomes us to Sin City as the BFG Series heats up! We begin with the aforementioned X-Division Champion, Austin Aries. Tenay is ripping Aries for what he did, but the whole point of it was to take the World Title from Bully Ray. Isn’t that what everybody wants? Aries says “Everybody cheers me or boos me, but now everyone must respect me.” He says “I outsmart people and create a buzz around TNA.” He cashed in the X-Division Title last year to be World Champion, and this year at Destination X on July 18 he’ll do it again. He calls out Hulk Hogan to officially cash it in. With that out comes our GM in red and yellow. Aries hands the title over to Hogan and wants his shot. Hogan says “Aries created Option C, and here in Sin City you pulled the biggest sin.” Hogan talks about gimmick infringement. So tonight there will be a title match and the X-Division Title will be on the line. Suicide, now called “Manik” will get his shot as well as former champion Chris Sabin. Sabin talks about his knees and the rehab. He hope to get his title back tonight.
Tonight we have more BFG Series matches. Then backstage Bad Influence bad-mouths AJ Styles as Kaz takes him on next.
Back from break and we have the updated BFG Standings. I guess they have matches on house shows because the numbers are different than what I have from last week. This is all new to me so bear with me:
Magnus 24
Samoa Joe 19
Jeff Hardy 7
Austin Aries 7
Mr. Anderson 7
Daniels 7
AJ Styles 2
Bobby Roode 0
Joseph Park 0
Kaz 0
Hernandez 0
Jay Bradley 0
BFG MATCH: Kaz vs. AJ Styles
Bad Influence comes out dressed like Ziegfried and Roy. Haha that’s funny. These guys are great. Besides the great personality, Kaz is a great wrestler. He dictates the action early but AJ works stiff and gets his shots in to come back. They bounce around and then AJ cranks up the Calf Killer, which Kaz fights off but eventually taps out. So Kaz is still scoreless, while AJ is up to 12 points and third place.
Knockouts Champion Mickie James asks a backstage hump if the ladder is ready in the ring.
Back from break and Chavo is chatting with Hernandez. Chavo tells the big guy that the BFG Series is a marathon not a sprint and not to get discouraged.
Mickie James is in the ring and she shamelessly puts herself over while standing on a ladder. Apparently next week on Impact Taryn and Gail Kim will battle in a ladder match for the #1 contender spot. Mickie says “Break a leg girls, in fact break everything. It won’t matter, neither of you will be better than me.” She continues “I will take whoever wins and drag them down the ladder from top to bottom and break your face on every rung going down.” That was actually a great promo from a veteran champion.
Al Snow, Danny Davis and Bruce Pritchard talk about Ryan Howe and the Big O, our Gut Check guys. These three dopes sound like buffoons. This entire Gut Check concept is awful. Guarantee the Big O, who won, will be eliminated first.
We now go live with Ryan Howe and Adam Ohriner, and the guys kick out Ohriner. Once again, THE GUY WHO WON THE DAMN MATCH! This is so stupid.
The Main Event Mafia are walking outside. Kurt Angle says that tonight the fourth member of the group will be revealed.
BFG MATCH: Jay Bradley vs. Hernandez
This is a must win for both guys, as they are sitting on goose eggs. This is one that I’ve been looking forward to. A couple of big hosses sloppily pummeling each other. The match went back and forth but Chavo distracts Bradley by grabbing his leg and Hernandez spears him for the victory. So Bradley is still scoreless, but Hernandez is now with 7 points.
Aces & Eights are backstage and Bully Ray credits Aries for doing what he did. Brisco keeps pushing him about Brooke but the champ cuts him off. Bully says the winner of the X-Division match faces him for the title at Destination X. Bully Ray asks “What if none of them win?” Anderson spits his beer out and laughs.
MATCH: The “Bro-Mans” vs. Storm & Gunner
Storm has ANOTHER new shirt. It says “Beer Hunter”. Tremendous. The dorks jump Gunner before the match. I like Gunner, he’s a big dude and he’s crazy. Storm-Gunner do a great move where they double hip toss Robbie E halfway, then slam him into Godderz. They hit a sweet double team move on Godderz that looks like a double neck breaker to win the match. Quick matches tonight but high energy.
The MEM is coming to the ring to announce their third member.
Back from break and Jeff Hardy comments on his opponent tonight, Joseph Park. He says “If he’s got a little darkness in him like his brother Abyss, I’ve gotta be careful.”
Back to the arena, and out comes Sting and Kurt Angle. Angle says they’re back and they are out for two things: Destroy Aces & Eights and get the World Title off Bully Ray. Sting announces the third guy that came out last week, Samoa Joe. The big guy comes out in a jacket and shirt. He looks good. He calls Aces & Eights cowards. He says “With these guys at my back, I will win Bound for Glory and will choke out Bully Ray for the World Heavyweight Championship.” Angle talks about loyalty and respect, and he announces the fourth member of the MEM: Magnus! I thought you had to be a former World Champion? I feel like they’re just taking all the babyfaces and putting suits on them. He puts over all three guys. Sting says “As for Bully Ray commenting about tonight’s X-Division Championship? There will be a winner.”
BFG MATCH: Jeff Hardy vs. Joseph Park
This match could be a legitimate train wreck. Park works like a clean face, doing clean breaks in the corners. Park actually gets a majority of the offense in the middle of the match, using his size to work the smaller Hardy over. Hardy slowly trying to comes back in the match, however Park’s bleeding from the mouth, and that means he gets “that look”. So he turns around and out of nowhere he hits the referee with the Black Hole Slam. He’s of course disqualified. So Park is at –10 points, whereas Jeff gets 3 points, to bump his total to 10.
Back from break and the Gut Check idiots are in the ring. So is Ryan Howe, who has no business being here. He lost and he sucks. Boorash asks if he gave 100% last week and he “freakin’ did.” And he lost, so what does that tell you? Al babbles, and votes no. Ryan cuts his promo to try and “kick out”. It sucks and the crowd boos him. I do too, YOU FUCKING LOST LAST WEEK! Danny Davis takes the mike. I wish it was the evil referee Danny Davis and not this hump. Of course he says yes because we always need a tiebreaker. So it comes down to Brother Love. He votes no too. Good, he doesn’t deserve it anyway. They should have let the bigger dude in.
Bully Ray is with his boys and they head to the ring for the main event, but DOC and Anderson are still pissing and moaning with each other about who the VP is going to be.
Back from break and out comes the full band of nomads. Aces & Eights head to the ring for our main event.
X-DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP: Austin Aries © vs. Manik vs. Chris Sabin
So will the winner automatically cash in? Or just Aries? It will be July 18 at Destination X in Louisville. We get comments from Taryn and Gail about next week’s ladder match. Also next week, a Joker’s Wild Tag Team Tournament with the BFG participants for 25 points. By the way, Christy Hemme looks particularly hot tonight. Aries and Sabin pair up first and go at it. At one point, Manic is thrown into DOC of Aces & Eights and gets powerbombed. The club starts surrounding the ring until the MEM comes down the ramp to counter things. When we return from break Manik is taken out on a stretcher after DOC’s power bomb on the floor. Aries hits Sabin with a reverse neckbreaker on the end of the apron. Aries is dominating, hitting a Rude Awakening on the second rope. Sabin makes a comeback with a drop kick/enziguiri combo for a 2 count. Aries finally wakes up and starts working over the surgically repaired knees. Aries gets a brainbuster but Sabin kicks out. This has been a great match, that’s three on wrestling TV this week. We get a myriad of strikes and pins and counterpins. They work on the top rope and Sabin hits a power bomb off the top rope for the victory and the X-Division Title. Wow what an incredible ending to an awesome match. Sabin is pointing at Bully Ray, so he will cash in for July 18 at Destination X. With that, we are OUT!
SCOTT’S TAKE: This was a 50-50 show. Except for the main event the matches were average, and Magnus strangely joins the MEM. Here’s the top of the BFG Standings:
Magnus 24
Samoa Joe 19
AJ Styles 12
Jeff Hardy 10
