Hardcore War
Ethan Carter III gets beaten down by Dreamer early in the match. Rhino gets in the ring and hits him with a trash can. Rhino unloads more shots and yells to the crowd. Him and EC3 exchange shots until Devon is next out. Lou Theis press and a headbutt onto his chest gives the faces control. EC3 takes a shot to the head with a trash can lid. Back from break, Snitsky and Bully Ray enter one after the other.
Bully Ray hits everyone in the ring with a trash can. A steel chain hits EC3 in the face multiple times. Zeke Jackson (Rycklon) gets into the ring and hits a Rock Bottom onto Devon. All men are scattered in the ring and EC3 chokes Bully with his chain. The final opponent is Al Snow. EC3 hits Snow and Snow counters with heads to the chest. He clotheslines Carter and gets taken out by Snitksy and Rycklon. Bully hits a double cross body from the top rope. Rhino gets a DDT from Dreamer and Rockstar Spud tries to hit him with a Kendo Stick. Spud gets head from the top rope. ECW nostalgia is in the ring and they yell to get the table. The end of the match comes when Rhino gets a 3D.
This was clustered at times, but the booking was pretty smooth. The timing of the match was crisp and I liked the tease at the end of the match with Bully and Dixie. The payoff is Dixie through a table and they continue to do a good job building it up. It was nice to see Al Snow and ECW guys in the ring in New York City. TNA is doing a good job with not overshadowing all of the younger guys with the new guys. EC3 was a main focus, as he should be. There is no better heel than Bully Ray, but his face gimmick is working because everyone hates Dixie.
Winners: Al Snow, Team 3D and Tommy Dreamer.
Samoa Joe Wins the X-Division Championship
Samoa Joe hits some forearm shots before Low Ki kicks him into the corner. Joe connects with a Uranage slam and sets up a Muscle Buster. Low Ki counters with a dragon sleeper. Sanada is able to break it up and Ki reverses Sanada with a double stomp. Low Ki runs at Joe catches him with a running power slam. Sanada breaks up a cross armbreaker. Sanada goes for a rollup out of the corner, but Joe rolls through from a bridge and makes him tap out to the Coquina Clutch.
This was a match that was booked so well. Joe needed to be in control, which he was. He hit a dive to the outside to really control the match. Sanada did not get as much of his splash offense in, but Joe is just too good for his size. The speed and the athleticism Joe possesses is freakish for a guy his size. As for Low Ki, I really do not see much of a future for him in TNA. Yes, he is an excellent wrestler, but they were fine without him. They have too many guys similar to Ki.
Time is ticking for Sanada and Storm. I can’t see them getting to far in this feud because of the language barrier. What will make Sanada crack?
“It Happens”
Dixie Carter is fired up, so she fires Snitsky and Zeke. She yells for everyone to get out of her building. Bully Ray, Devon and Tommy Dreamer come out with a table. King Mo takes a shot to Dreamer. Team 3D clears the ring. Dixie rolls out of the ring and Spud saves her. Roode, Eric Young, Samoa Joe, The Wolves, Jeff Hardy and the rest of the roster come out and trap her. They pump the crowd up and Bully Ray hits a powerbomb onto Dixie through the table.
Wow. I have criticized her for months, but this was a cool moment. I loved it. I really did. They dragged this out for SO long where you did not think it would happen. Kudos to Dixie for taking the bump. Now, can we please get to the real root of TNA’s problem? Give the talented roster a chance to save the company.
My question: How can TNA be saved? @JoshIsenberg4 on Twitter.
Impact Wrestling Reaction Final Rating:
