Axis
Guest
TNA Against All Odds
Reliant Arena
Houston, Texas
February 8, 2009
Pyros! Fun! Excitement! Mike Tenay, Don West, and Jim Cornette are at the announce booth, spewing their endless knowledge for all of us to hear. They run down the card and get us started with the tag team championship match.
Match 1: Two Crazy Negroes[c] vs Motor City Machineguns [TNA Tag Team Championship] (30-minute time limit)
Sabin and Lethal start out in a very respectful showing. Lethal gains the advantage following a leg lariat. The tag team champions then hit a series of fun double team moves, all only getting a two-count. Sabin finds a moment to make a hot tag. Shelley gets in and delivers a snap suplex to Creed, but then tells Sabin that he hurt his wrist, so he tags Sabin right back in. A confused Sabin enters and continues his offense and tries to tag Shelley back in, but Shelley backs away. Sabin tries to take both Creed and Lethal on the rest of the match, but eventually the numbers game gets to him the Two Crazy Negroes win after a flying elbow from the Black Machismo.
Winners via pinfall, and still TNA Tag Team Champions: Two Crazy Negroes (15:17)
James Storm goes to Crawford, Texas to George Bush’s ranch with the leftover Iraq War protestors. He’s chatting with Cindy Sheehan and holding a sign that reads, “Former Mr. President, be my tag team partner!â€
Match 2: Rhino vs Eric Young (30-minute time limit)
Rhino tries to get right into a brawl, but Eric Young attempts to slow things down and get technical. However continuous goading and cheap shots by Rhino force Young to enter into a brawl as well. Once punches are thrown, Rhino obviously has the advantage, and throws EY around quite a bit. A series of suplex gets Rhino a set of near falls, but his inability to put Young away clearly frustrates the War Machine. Rhino tries for a power bomb, but EY floats over and surprises Rhino with a SPIRITED~ discus lariat. Both men are down on the mat, and Rhino is actually the first one up. He forces Young to his feet, but EY has had time to recuperate, and thus is able to whip out and even more impressive superkick. Young falls onto Rhino for a weak cover…1…2…Kickout by Rhino! Eric Young keeps his focus intact and continuously stomps at Rhino to keep the bigger man down. He even locks in an intricate wristlock, that Rhino has difficulty figuring out. He fails to use his strength to break it, so he instead just grabs the ropes. The two continue back and forth action, until Rhino catches Eric Young mid-air during a crossbody attempt and hits a spinebuster straight out of Triple H’s playbook. Rhino then takes over and hits high-impact move after high-impact move, all failing to get the three count. Rhino is EXTREMELY pissed at this point, still unable to put Eric Young away and prove to the Frontline that he’s valuable to their cause. Rhino tries for the Gore, but Young rolls out of the way and Rhino nearly hits the turnbuckle, but stops himself on the ropes. EY grabs onto Rhino from behind, and as the ref gets in Young’s face to call for a clean break, Rhino kicks backwards with a low blow without the ref seeing. Young doubles over, allowing Rhino to hit the Rhino Driver…ONE…TWO…THR – NO! Eric Young gets his foot on the rope!! Rhino is livid as he gets in the ref’s face, but the ref insists it was a two count. Rhino picks the ref up and throws him to the side, then begins to pound away and choke out Eric Young. The ref gets up and demands that Rhino lets go of the choke, but Rhino refuses. After a five count, the ref disqualifies Rhino.
Winner via disqualification: Eric Young (16:12)
Rhino continues to choke out Eric Young for a while, but then stops and rolls out of the ring. He grabs a chair from ringside and begins to just slam the steel onto Eric Young over and over again, with no remorse. He picks up a now-bloody Eric Young and RHINO DRIVERS~ him right onto the chair, leaving him unconscious in the ring. The EMTs and road agents rush out to help EY as Rhino backs up the ramp with a crazed look in his eye.
Chris Sabin asks Alex Shelley what was up with him out there. Shelley says it was nothing personal, but he had to save himself for his X-Division title match later tonight. He says that if Sabin had won last month, he would have done the same thing for him. Shelley walks away, leaving Sabin looking a little pissed off.
Match 3: Awesome Kong[c] vs Roxxi Laveaux[TNA Knockouts Championship] (15-minute time limit)
Awesome Kong throws Roxxi around for the most part, with some help from Raisha Saeed on the outside. Roxxi actually gets very little offense, but what is amazing is how many times she both avoids the Awesome Bomb and kicks out of other high-impact moves from the champion. Tenay rightly points out that Roxxi has lasted against Kong for longer than any woman since Gail Kim. Kong (who wants to be Vader more than anything in life) goes for a splash in the corner, but Roxxi rolls out of the way. She tries to lift her up for the Voodoo Drop, but Kong just weighs too much. A short-arm lariat from Kong allows her to finally hit the Awesome Bomb for the win.
Winner via pinfall, and still TNA Knockouts Champion: Awesome Kong (7:52)
Raisha runs in with the belt and hands it to Kong. Roxxi slowly gets up from the mat and stares across at the still-women’s champion. Kong eventually nods in approval and then returns to the back.
Hernandez is backstage with Homicide as they’re getting ready. They agree not to go with each other to the ring, as they need to win their respective matches on their own.
Match 4: The Rock N Rave Connection vs Abyss and Matt Morgan (30-minute time limit)
Rave and Abyss do most of the action in this match, so that it will suck the least. Rock actually really wants to get tagged in, but Rave is seemingly having a lot of fun running circles around the big man Abyss. Rave seldom actually gets any offensive in on Abyss, but every time Abyss attempts a move, Rave just floats over or rolls through and taunts Abyss, then runs away. Abyss finally gets fed up with it and tags in Matt Morgan, who is able to catch Jimmy Rave with his speed. After a sidewalk slam from Morgan, Rave bitches out and tags in Lance Rock. Morgan and Rock battle for control, with Rock gaining the advantage after outside interference from Jimmy Rave. Rock tries a chokeslam on Morgan, but he powers out of it, then Morgan hits a chokeslam of his own, but he only gets a two count. Morgan then tags in Abyss, who really DELIVERS THE PAIN~ to Lance Rock. Again, outside interference from Jimmy Rave gives Lance Rock the advantage. Rock and Rave (mostly Rock) take turns beating down Abyss, highlighted by a Doomsday Rana by the Rock and Rave connection. Rave is a dick, however, and doesn’t go for the pinfall, bur rather goes up top for another move. He leaps off for a splash, but Abyss rolls out of the way and garners the energy to get a tag to Matt Morgan. Morgan comes in and throws around Jimmy Rave. Lance Rock runs in, but Morgan hits with a running big boot that sends him right back out of the ring. That leaves Jimmy Rave alone in the ring to suffer a Hellevator, allowing Morgan to gain the three-count.
Winners via pinfall: Abyss and Matt Morgan (14:45)
After the match, Rock chop blocks Morgan’s leg and goes to work on it. Rave slowly gets up and begins kicking at Morgan’s knee as well. Rock directs Rave to the top turnbuckle, then he lefts Morgan’s leg into the air. Jimmy Rave leaps off and double stomps his leg, forcing it to quickly whip bend all the way to his face. Jimmy Rave laughs hysterically as he watches Morgan writhe around and scream in pain while holding his knee. Abyss comes to his senses outside of the ring into the ring and sees the horror of what they’ve done. He immediately fights away both Rock and Rave, who get a clue and hurry up the stage. Abyss helps Morgan to his feet and tries to help him walk to the back, but Morgan literally can’t put any weight on his leg, forcing Abyss to half carry him up the ramp.
The Main Event mafia is backstage in their locker room, getting ready for their matches later tonight. Sting says that they need to go out there and win this match, so that he can have the next month off and not have to worry about a match at Destination X. Angle starts to say something, but Nash holds him back and says that, whatever happens, happens.
Match 5: Alex Shelley[c] vs Homicide [TNA X-Division Championship] (30-minute time limit)
A technical bout to start, but Shelley begins to get more aggressive, and so Homicide follows suit, making this a far more heated contest. Homicide goes for the STF early on, but Shelley grabs the ropes with ease. Shelley rolls out of the ring and takes a breather, only to slide back in and take things slower again. We get a technical match once more, and this time Homicide targets the wrist that was “hurt†in the tag team match. Shelley fights out with some chops from his healthy hand, and then utilizes his kicks to gain control. He fights Homicide to the mat and locks in the Border City Stretch. Far away from the ropes, Homicide looks to be about to tap out, until he uses his free arm to pound Shelley’s wrist, breaking free the hold. They get technical again, but things really get heated up when Shelley resorts to a series of pushup facebusters, driving Homicide’s face into the mat. From there, the back-and-forth gets really physical, with both men really pulling out the extra stops to get the win. When Shelley gets comfortable in the lead, he starts to get stupid and whip out high-flying, high-risk moves. Things go well, until he springboards into the ring for a clothesline but is met by a SICKENING West Brooklyn Lariat from Homicide. He makes the cover … 1 … 2 … Shelley kicks out and stays in the game! This time, Homicide stays in control for a good stretch of time. He hits the Three Amigos and then heads up for a Frog Splash, but Shelley rolls out of the way to avoid it. Shelley then heads up to the top for himself and hits a flying swandive headbutt, because he is a dick, but also awesome. Homicide groggily gets to his feet and walks right into the Shell Shock. Shelley hooks a leg and gets the 1, 2, 3.
Winner via pinfall, and still TNA X-Division Champion: Alex Shelley (22:03)
AJ, Joe, Petey, and Daniels are backstage talking with the rest of the Frontline along with Devon, Foley, and BG James on the game plan for their match.
Footage is shown of the Russian Alex Koslov, touching on his career in Mexican federations, along with him representing Russia on Team International during the 2008 World X-Cup Tournament.
Match 6: Volador vs Alex Koslov [International Invitational] (15-minute time limit)
Really fun back and forth, with Koslov playing the heel and Volador playing the face right off the bat. Notably, Koslov hits several Russian Legsweeps, and every time he does, he jumps up and holds his hand to his heart and shouts “Heil Putin!†then gives the “up yours†sign to the crowd. Koslov gets his knees up and busts Volador in the face when the lucha attempts a moonsault, allowing Koslov to use his Russian legsweep into a bridged Cobra Clutch combination (Which Don West calls the ‘Russian move to beat other people’ but Cornette correctly identifies as the ‘Red Scare’), forcing Volador to tap out.
Winner via pinfall: Alex Koslov (6:04)
A video hyping the eight-man tag match is shown. It highlights the histories of all of the men, then moves on to the returns of the Petey and Daniels and the brawls that have ensued.
Match 7: AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Petey Williams, and Christopher Daniels vs Kurt Angle, Booker T, Scott Steiner, and Kevin Nash [Eight-man elimination tag match] (No time limit)
Christopher Daniels and Kurt Angle start things off on the mat for a bit, but Angle quickly resorts to underhanded tactics. He pulls Daniels to his corner and the Mafia takes turns beating down on him. Daniels hits an enzuigiri on Steiner that puts him on the mat, allowing Daniels to make the tag to Petey Williams who’s BEGGING for it. Petey runs in and just begins pounding away at Steiner on the mat. The two throw punches all over the floor until, eventually rolling out of the ring. Steiner tries to fight to get back in, but all Petey cares about is taking out Steiner. They brawl around more, filling the ref’s ten-count, thus both getting taken out of the match.
First and second eliminations: Petey Williams and Scott Steiner (4:07)
Kurt Angle and AJ Styles run in and go to the mat. When Angle starts to outwrestle him, Styles goes to high-flying antics. Styles tries for a crossbody, but Angle catches him mid-air AND THEN FALLAWAY SLAMS STYLES OVER THE TOP ROPE TO THE OUTSIDE!!! Styles lands really awkwardly on his shoulder and writhes around, holding it in pain. The ref is about to reach his ten-count on Styles, so Joe walks over and rolls Styles into the ring and then tags himself in. Angle, wanting nothing to do with Joe, tags in Booker T. Samoa Joe and Booker T then enter the fray and lock up in the center. Booker tries to use his height to gain an advantage, but Joe’s strength is too much. Joe throws Booker around a bit, but eventually gets caught up in the heelishness of the Mafia. It eventually comes to be Joe versus Angle, and Angle takes control after a series of European uppercuts. He tries a German Suplex on Joe, but Joe holds his weight and then just shakes his head. He powers out of Angle’s lock and slips behind him, then locks in the Coquina Clutch! Before Angle can tap, Booker T runs in and breaks up the submission attempt, then drags Angle back to their corner, where Kevin Nash tags in. Nash knocks Joe around a bit, and then tosses him out of the ring for Angle and Booker to ambush like vultures. Daniels enters the ring and sprints across, then dives out and takes both Angle and Booker out with a flying plancha! Joe slides back in and fights Nash into the Coquina Clutch! Nash has no choice but to tap out.
Third elimination: Kevin Nash (10:57)
Kurt Angle slides into the ring to take on Samoa Joe and is immediately really aggressive, surprising Joe to the point that he doesn’t have time to whip out any high-impact moves. Angle and Booker T really work over Joe until he finally hits his STO spot out of the corner and makes the hot tag to Chris Daniels. Daniels comes in like a MAN ON FIRE~ and takes both Angle and Booker T on at the same time. A charging high knee finally sends Angle over the top rope and allows Daniels to hit the Last Rites on Booker T! ONE … TWO … THR- NO! Angle slides back in and breaks it up! Frustrated, Daniels tags Joe back in. Joe runs across to plancha Angle, but this time Booker T sees it coming and busts him right in the face with a stiff knee. He signals for the Scissors kick, but Joe is unresponsive and doesn’t get up to get hit by it. Booker T lifts him off the mat, revealing some blood flowing from his nose, and hits the Book End for the three count.
Fourth elimination: Samoa Joe (16:32)
Daniels asks Styles if he wants to go in, but he points to his shoulder. Booker tries a spinning kick, but Daniels ducks it and gets a rollup for two. Back and forth until Daniels hits the Angel’s Wings! He makes the cover and Angle starts to come into the ring to break it up, but he stops, allowing Daniels to get the three.
Fifth elimination: Booker T (20:12)
Angle then enters the ring and begins ravaging Christopher Daniels. They both REALLY pull out some high-impact moves, including Kurt Angle’s moonsault and Chris Daniels’ Fall From Grace, but nothing puts the other guy away. After Daniels misses the Best Moonsault Ever, he has no choice but to look to AJ for the tag. AJ is uneasy about going into the match since his shoulder looks absolutely disgusting, but he agrees. He enters and tries to attack Angle with his healthy arm, but Angle quickly turns it around and gets Styles into a fujiwara armbar. Immediately after being put into the armbar, AJ taps.
Sixth elimination: AJ Styles (27:14)
Angle is a complete dick and keeps the armbar on until the ref forces him off. The ref then helps AJ to his feet, and AJ walks right up to Angle and slaps him across the face with his well arm. Angle gets turned around and Daniels comes off and nearly lariats his head off of his shoulders. Daniels tries the Angel’s Wings, but Angle spins out and tries the Olympic Slam. Daniels flows through it and tries the Last Rites, but Angle throw him off. Angle goes down and tries to control Daniels’ ankle, but Daniels stays on his feet and hits Angle with a double knee gut buster. Angle is slow to get up and Daniels hits him with the Angel’s Wings! ONE … TWO … THREE!!!
Seventh elimination: Kurt Angle (29:22)
Winner and SOLE survivor: Representing the Frontline, Christopher Daniels (29:22)
Joe and Petey lift up Daniels as Styles watches on happily, holding his arm. The four men celebrate to the back as the Mafia members all look around at each other upset.
A recap of Hernandez’s path to this TNA Championship match airs, starting with his win in the Feast or Fired match, and going through him beating Scott Steiner, Booker T, Kevin Nash, and Kurt Angle.
Match 8: Sting[c] vs Hernandez [TNA World Championship] (45-minute time limit)
The crowd is HOT for the hometown boy Hernandez. Sting tries to ignore them and get right into the match, but the “Her-nan-dez!†chants are so loud, that he steps back and shouts for them to shut up. He turns back and is met by a huge punch from Hernandez, who continues with a sequence of big punches and throws to an unsuspecting Sting. Hernandez then pulls off his short, uses it to biel Sting across the ring and throws it into the crowd, REALLY getting the fans worked up. Hernandez returns to work on Sting, but the champion gets a thumb to the eye and a closed fist on Hernandez to get back into it. Sting wears down Hernandez with a sleeper hold, but then quickly transitions to working over the ankle that Kurt Angle targeted on Impact. Hernandez fights back several times, but Sting always gets him back under control; at first cleanly, but eventually using under-handed tactics. Finally Hernandez starts to pull out some relatively high-flying moves, which really surprises Sting. A top-rope crossbody from Hernandez even gives him a REALLY close near fall. Hernandez goes up top again and tries an axe handle drop, but Sting rolls out of the way, making Hernandez fall awkwardly on his ankle. Sting then regroups and actually locks in the Ankle lock, which clearly wears away at Hernandez. After continuously failing to reach the ropes, Hernandez looks to be about to tap out until a huge “Hernandez!†chants breaks out again. Hernandez musters up a miraculous amount of strength and rolls over and pushes Sting off with enough strength to send Sting across the ring. Sting gets back up but Hernandez surprises him with a CrackerJack~! Sting flops to the mat, but Hernandez can’t get to his feet to cover him. Instead he crawls himself over to Sting and throws his body across the champion’s…ONE…TWO…THRE – NO!!! STING GETS A LEG ON THE ROPE!!! Cornette points out that if Hernandez has hooked Sting’s leg, we would have a new champion, but Hernandez just couldn’t put enough weight on his ankle. Sting and Hernandez both slowly get to their feet, with Hernandez using the ropes to help him keep his balance. The two trade punches, with Hernandez again showing that his power is greater than Sting’s. Hernandez fights back like a man on fire and even hits a slingshot shoulder block. Hernandez lifts Sting up for the Border Toss, but his ankle gives out under him and Sting breaks free. Instead of getting caught up in Hernandez’ offense, Sting just backs away, knowing that Hernandez’ ankle prevents him from keeping up with Sting. Sting then starts to run circles around Hernandez, getting in quick clubs when he can. He then throws Hernandez up against the turnbuckle and runs for a Stinger Splash, but Hernandez spins out of the way. Hernandez then situates himself on the top turnbuckle so that he is sitting and facing the ring. He grabs Sting and lifts him entirely off the mat and into the air in position for the Border Toss! Tenay marks out because Hernandez has figured out how to hit his finisher without having to put weight on the ankle. Before Hernandez can throw Sting, Sting squirms out of his grab, but stays on the turnbuckle. Sting then fights Hernandez up top and takes him down with a Superplex!!! Sting leaps off the top rope with a flying splash…1…2…3!
Winner and STILL TNA WORLD CHAMPION: STING (21:22)
The announcers really put Hernandez over as having come so close. Jim Cornette says that if Hernandez had hooked the leg earlier in the match, then Hernandez would be TNA Champion. Mike Tenay says that if Hernandez had thrown Sting with that Border Toss, then Hernandez would be TNA Champion. Don West says that if Hernandez had summoned the power of Super Eric, Suicide, and Sarah Palin, then he would be TNA Champion.
Sting rolls out of the ring and grabs his title belt from ringside, ignoring the middle fingers that the Houston crowd shoves in his face. He holds his championship up as he walks up the ramp to a chorus of boos. Back in the ring, Hernandez begins to get to his feet and looks around the arena. His hometown slowly begins to cheer for him and it eventually turns into a standing ovation. Homicide comes out to console Hernandez and the two embrace and then hold each other’s arms up as the show comes to a close.
Reliant Arena
Houston, Texas
February 8, 2009
Pyros! Fun! Excitement! Mike Tenay, Don West, and Jim Cornette are at the announce booth, spewing their endless knowledge for all of us to hear. They run down the card and get us started with the tag team championship match.
Match 1: Two Crazy Negroes[c] vs Motor City Machineguns [TNA Tag Team Championship] (30-minute time limit)
Sabin and Lethal start out in a very respectful showing. Lethal gains the advantage following a leg lariat. The tag team champions then hit a series of fun double team moves, all only getting a two-count. Sabin finds a moment to make a hot tag. Shelley gets in and delivers a snap suplex to Creed, but then tells Sabin that he hurt his wrist, so he tags Sabin right back in. A confused Sabin enters and continues his offense and tries to tag Shelley back in, but Shelley backs away. Sabin tries to take both Creed and Lethal on the rest of the match, but eventually the numbers game gets to him the Two Crazy Negroes win after a flying elbow from the Black Machismo.
Winners via pinfall, and still TNA Tag Team Champions: Two Crazy Negroes (15:17)
James Storm goes to Crawford, Texas to George Bush’s ranch with the leftover Iraq War protestors. He’s chatting with Cindy Sheehan and holding a sign that reads, “Former Mr. President, be my tag team partner!â€
Match 2: Rhino vs Eric Young (30-minute time limit)
Rhino tries to get right into a brawl, but Eric Young attempts to slow things down and get technical. However continuous goading and cheap shots by Rhino force Young to enter into a brawl as well. Once punches are thrown, Rhino obviously has the advantage, and throws EY around quite a bit. A series of suplex gets Rhino a set of near falls, but his inability to put Young away clearly frustrates the War Machine. Rhino tries for a power bomb, but EY floats over and surprises Rhino with a SPIRITED~ discus lariat. Both men are down on the mat, and Rhino is actually the first one up. He forces Young to his feet, but EY has had time to recuperate, and thus is able to whip out and even more impressive superkick. Young falls onto Rhino for a weak cover…1…2…Kickout by Rhino! Eric Young keeps his focus intact and continuously stomps at Rhino to keep the bigger man down. He even locks in an intricate wristlock, that Rhino has difficulty figuring out. He fails to use his strength to break it, so he instead just grabs the ropes. The two continue back and forth action, until Rhino catches Eric Young mid-air during a crossbody attempt and hits a spinebuster straight out of Triple H’s playbook. Rhino then takes over and hits high-impact move after high-impact move, all failing to get the three count. Rhino is EXTREMELY pissed at this point, still unable to put Eric Young away and prove to the Frontline that he’s valuable to their cause. Rhino tries for the Gore, but Young rolls out of the way and Rhino nearly hits the turnbuckle, but stops himself on the ropes. EY grabs onto Rhino from behind, and as the ref gets in Young’s face to call for a clean break, Rhino kicks backwards with a low blow without the ref seeing. Young doubles over, allowing Rhino to hit the Rhino Driver…ONE…TWO…THR – NO! Eric Young gets his foot on the rope!! Rhino is livid as he gets in the ref’s face, but the ref insists it was a two count. Rhino picks the ref up and throws him to the side, then begins to pound away and choke out Eric Young. The ref gets up and demands that Rhino lets go of the choke, but Rhino refuses. After a five count, the ref disqualifies Rhino.
Winner via disqualification: Eric Young (16:12)
Rhino continues to choke out Eric Young for a while, but then stops and rolls out of the ring. He grabs a chair from ringside and begins to just slam the steel onto Eric Young over and over again, with no remorse. He picks up a now-bloody Eric Young and RHINO DRIVERS~ him right onto the chair, leaving him unconscious in the ring. The EMTs and road agents rush out to help EY as Rhino backs up the ramp with a crazed look in his eye.
Chris Sabin asks Alex Shelley what was up with him out there. Shelley says it was nothing personal, but he had to save himself for his X-Division title match later tonight. He says that if Sabin had won last month, he would have done the same thing for him. Shelley walks away, leaving Sabin looking a little pissed off.
Match 3: Awesome Kong[c] vs Roxxi Laveaux[TNA Knockouts Championship] (15-minute time limit)
Awesome Kong throws Roxxi around for the most part, with some help from Raisha Saeed on the outside. Roxxi actually gets very little offense, but what is amazing is how many times she both avoids the Awesome Bomb and kicks out of other high-impact moves from the champion. Tenay rightly points out that Roxxi has lasted against Kong for longer than any woman since Gail Kim. Kong (who wants to be Vader more than anything in life) goes for a splash in the corner, but Roxxi rolls out of the way. She tries to lift her up for the Voodoo Drop, but Kong just weighs too much. A short-arm lariat from Kong allows her to finally hit the Awesome Bomb for the win.
Winner via pinfall, and still TNA Knockouts Champion: Awesome Kong (7:52)
Raisha runs in with the belt and hands it to Kong. Roxxi slowly gets up from the mat and stares across at the still-women’s champion. Kong eventually nods in approval and then returns to the back.
Hernandez is backstage with Homicide as they’re getting ready. They agree not to go with each other to the ring, as they need to win their respective matches on their own.
Match 4: The Rock N Rave Connection vs Abyss and Matt Morgan (30-minute time limit)
Rave and Abyss do most of the action in this match, so that it will suck the least. Rock actually really wants to get tagged in, but Rave is seemingly having a lot of fun running circles around the big man Abyss. Rave seldom actually gets any offensive in on Abyss, but every time Abyss attempts a move, Rave just floats over or rolls through and taunts Abyss, then runs away. Abyss finally gets fed up with it and tags in Matt Morgan, who is able to catch Jimmy Rave with his speed. After a sidewalk slam from Morgan, Rave bitches out and tags in Lance Rock. Morgan and Rock battle for control, with Rock gaining the advantage after outside interference from Jimmy Rave. Rock tries a chokeslam on Morgan, but he powers out of it, then Morgan hits a chokeslam of his own, but he only gets a two count. Morgan then tags in Abyss, who really DELIVERS THE PAIN~ to Lance Rock. Again, outside interference from Jimmy Rave gives Lance Rock the advantage. Rock and Rave (mostly Rock) take turns beating down Abyss, highlighted by a Doomsday Rana by the Rock and Rave connection. Rave is a dick, however, and doesn’t go for the pinfall, bur rather goes up top for another move. He leaps off for a splash, but Abyss rolls out of the way and garners the energy to get a tag to Matt Morgan. Morgan comes in and throws around Jimmy Rave. Lance Rock runs in, but Morgan hits with a running big boot that sends him right back out of the ring. That leaves Jimmy Rave alone in the ring to suffer a Hellevator, allowing Morgan to gain the three-count.
Winners via pinfall: Abyss and Matt Morgan (14:45)
After the match, Rock chop blocks Morgan’s leg and goes to work on it. Rave slowly gets up and begins kicking at Morgan’s knee as well. Rock directs Rave to the top turnbuckle, then he lefts Morgan’s leg into the air. Jimmy Rave leaps off and double stomps his leg, forcing it to quickly whip bend all the way to his face. Jimmy Rave laughs hysterically as he watches Morgan writhe around and scream in pain while holding his knee. Abyss comes to his senses outside of the ring into the ring and sees the horror of what they’ve done. He immediately fights away both Rock and Rave, who get a clue and hurry up the stage. Abyss helps Morgan to his feet and tries to help him walk to the back, but Morgan literally can’t put any weight on his leg, forcing Abyss to half carry him up the ramp.
The Main Event mafia is backstage in their locker room, getting ready for their matches later tonight. Sting says that they need to go out there and win this match, so that he can have the next month off and not have to worry about a match at Destination X. Angle starts to say something, but Nash holds him back and says that, whatever happens, happens.
Match 5: Alex Shelley[c] vs Homicide [TNA X-Division Championship] (30-minute time limit)
A technical bout to start, but Shelley begins to get more aggressive, and so Homicide follows suit, making this a far more heated contest. Homicide goes for the STF early on, but Shelley grabs the ropes with ease. Shelley rolls out of the ring and takes a breather, only to slide back in and take things slower again. We get a technical match once more, and this time Homicide targets the wrist that was “hurt†in the tag team match. Shelley fights out with some chops from his healthy hand, and then utilizes his kicks to gain control. He fights Homicide to the mat and locks in the Border City Stretch. Far away from the ropes, Homicide looks to be about to tap out, until he uses his free arm to pound Shelley’s wrist, breaking free the hold. They get technical again, but things really get heated up when Shelley resorts to a series of pushup facebusters, driving Homicide’s face into the mat. From there, the back-and-forth gets really physical, with both men really pulling out the extra stops to get the win. When Shelley gets comfortable in the lead, he starts to get stupid and whip out high-flying, high-risk moves. Things go well, until he springboards into the ring for a clothesline but is met by a SICKENING West Brooklyn Lariat from Homicide. He makes the cover … 1 … 2 … Shelley kicks out and stays in the game! This time, Homicide stays in control for a good stretch of time. He hits the Three Amigos and then heads up for a Frog Splash, but Shelley rolls out of the way to avoid it. Shelley then heads up to the top for himself and hits a flying swandive headbutt, because he is a dick, but also awesome. Homicide groggily gets to his feet and walks right into the Shell Shock. Shelley hooks a leg and gets the 1, 2, 3.
Winner via pinfall, and still TNA X-Division Champion: Alex Shelley (22:03)
AJ, Joe, Petey, and Daniels are backstage talking with the rest of the Frontline along with Devon, Foley, and BG James on the game plan for their match.
Footage is shown of the Russian Alex Koslov, touching on his career in Mexican federations, along with him representing Russia on Team International during the 2008 World X-Cup Tournament.
Match 6: Volador vs Alex Koslov [International Invitational] (15-minute time limit)
Really fun back and forth, with Koslov playing the heel and Volador playing the face right off the bat. Notably, Koslov hits several Russian Legsweeps, and every time he does, he jumps up and holds his hand to his heart and shouts “Heil Putin!†then gives the “up yours†sign to the crowd. Koslov gets his knees up and busts Volador in the face when the lucha attempts a moonsault, allowing Koslov to use his Russian legsweep into a bridged Cobra Clutch combination (Which Don West calls the ‘Russian move to beat other people’ but Cornette correctly identifies as the ‘Red Scare’), forcing Volador to tap out.
Winner via pinfall: Alex Koslov (6:04)
A video hyping the eight-man tag match is shown. It highlights the histories of all of the men, then moves on to the returns of the Petey and Daniels and the brawls that have ensued.
Match 7: AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Petey Williams, and Christopher Daniels vs Kurt Angle, Booker T, Scott Steiner, and Kevin Nash [Eight-man elimination tag match] (No time limit)
Christopher Daniels and Kurt Angle start things off on the mat for a bit, but Angle quickly resorts to underhanded tactics. He pulls Daniels to his corner and the Mafia takes turns beating down on him. Daniels hits an enzuigiri on Steiner that puts him on the mat, allowing Daniels to make the tag to Petey Williams who’s BEGGING for it. Petey runs in and just begins pounding away at Steiner on the mat. The two throw punches all over the floor until, eventually rolling out of the ring. Steiner tries to fight to get back in, but all Petey cares about is taking out Steiner. They brawl around more, filling the ref’s ten-count, thus both getting taken out of the match.
First and second eliminations: Petey Williams and Scott Steiner (4:07)
Kurt Angle and AJ Styles run in and go to the mat. When Angle starts to outwrestle him, Styles goes to high-flying antics. Styles tries for a crossbody, but Angle catches him mid-air AND THEN FALLAWAY SLAMS STYLES OVER THE TOP ROPE TO THE OUTSIDE!!! Styles lands really awkwardly on his shoulder and writhes around, holding it in pain. The ref is about to reach his ten-count on Styles, so Joe walks over and rolls Styles into the ring and then tags himself in. Angle, wanting nothing to do with Joe, tags in Booker T. Samoa Joe and Booker T then enter the fray and lock up in the center. Booker tries to use his height to gain an advantage, but Joe’s strength is too much. Joe throws Booker around a bit, but eventually gets caught up in the heelishness of the Mafia. It eventually comes to be Joe versus Angle, and Angle takes control after a series of European uppercuts. He tries a German Suplex on Joe, but Joe holds his weight and then just shakes his head. He powers out of Angle’s lock and slips behind him, then locks in the Coquina Clutch! Before Angle can tap, Booker T runs in and breaks up the submission attempt, then drags Angle back to their corner, where Kevin Nash tags in. Nash knocks Joe around a bit, and then tosses him out of the ring for Angle and Booker to ambush like vultures. Daniels enters the ring and sprints across, then dives out and takes both Angle and Booker out with a flying plancha! Joe slides back in and fights Nash into the Coquina Clutch! Nash has no choice but to tap out.
Third elimination: Kevin Nash (10:57)
Kurt Angle slides into the ring to take on Samoa Joe and is immediately really aggressive, surprising Joe to the point that he doesn’t have time to whip out any high-impact moves. Angle and Booker T really work over Joe until he finally hits his STO spot out of the corner and makes the hot tag to Chris Daniels. Daniels comes in like a MAN ON FIRE~ and takes both Angle and Booker T on at the same time. A charging high knee finally sends Angle over the top rope and allows Daniels to hit the Last Rites on Booker T! ONE … TWO … THR- NO! Angle slides back in and breaks it up! Frustrated, Daniels tags Joe back in. Joe runs across to plancha Angle, but this time Booker T sees it coming and busts him right in the face with a stiff knee. He signals for the Scissors kick, but Joe is unresponsive and doesn’t get up to get hit by it. Booker T lifts him off the mat, revealing some blood flowing from his nose, and hits the Book End for the three count.
Fourth elimination: Samoa Joe (16:32)
Daniels asks Styles if he wants to go in, but he points to his shoulder. Booker tries a spinning kick, but Daniels ducks it and gets a rollup for two. Back and forth until Daniels hits the Angel’s Wings! He makes the cover and Angle starts to come into the ring to break it up, but he stops, allowing Daniels to get the three.
Fifth elimination: Booker T (20:12)
Angle then enters the ring and begins ravaging Christopher Daniels. They both REALLY pull out some high-impact moves, including Kurt Angle’s moonsault and Chris Daniels’ Fall From Grace, but nothing puts the other guy away. After Daniels misses the Best Moonsault Ever, he has no choice but to look to AJ for the tag. AJ is uneasy about going into the match since his shoulder looks absolutely disgusting, but he agrees. He enters and tries to attack Angle with his healthy arm, but Angle quickly turns it around and gets Styles into a fujiwara armbar. Immediately after being put into the armbar, AJ taps.
Sixth elimination: AJ Styles (27:14)
Angle is a complete dick and keeps the armbar on until the ref forces him off. The ref then helps AJ to his feet, and AJ walks right up to Angle and slaps him across the face with his well arm. Angle gets turned around and Daniels comes off and nearly lariats his head off of his shoulders. Daniels tries the Angel’s Wings, but Angle spins out and tries the Olympic Slam. Daniels flows through it and tries the Last Rites, but Angle throw him off. Angle goes down and tries to control Daniels’ ankle, but Daniels stays on his feet and hits Angle with a double knee gut buster. Angle is slow to get up and Daniels hits him with the Angel’s Wings! ONE … TWO … THREE!!!
Seventh elimination: Kurt Angle (29:22)
Winner and SOLE survivor: Representing the Frontline, Christopher Daniels (29:22)
Joe and Petey lift up Daniels as Styles watches on happily, holding his arm. The four men celebrate to the back as the Mafia members all look around at each other upset.
A recap of Hernandez’s path to this TNA Championship match airs, starting with his win in the Feast or Fired match, and going through him beating Scott Steiner, Booker T, Kevin Nash, and Kurt Angle.
Match 8: Sting[c] vs Hernandez [TNA World Championship] (45-minute time limit)
The crowd is HOT for the hometown boy Hernandez. Sting tries to ignore them and get right into the match, but the “Her-nan-dez!†chants are so loud, that he steps back and shouts for them to shut up. He turns back and is met by a huge punch from Hernandez, who continues with a sequence of big punches and throws to an unsuspecting Sting. Hernandez then pulls off his short, uses it to biel Sting across the ring and throws it into the crowd, REALLY getting the fans worked up. Hernandez returns to work on Sting, but the champion gets a thumb to the eye and a closed fist on Hernandez to get back into it. Sting wears down Hernandez with a sleeper hold, but then quickly transitions to working over the ankle that Kurt Angle targeted on Impact. Hernandez fights back several times, but Sting always gets him back under control; at first cleanly, but eventually using under-handed tactics. Finally Hernandez starts to pull out some relatively high-flying moves, which really surprises Sting. A top-rope crossbody from Hernandez even gives him a REALLY close near fall. Hernandez goes up top again and tries an axe handle drop, but Sting rolls out of the way, making Hernandez fall awkwardly on his ankle. Sting then regroups and actually locks in the Ankle lock, which clearly wears away at Hernandez. After continuously failing to reach the ropes, Hernandez looks to be about to tap out until a huge “Hernandez!†chants breaks out again. Hernandez musters up a miraculous amount of strength and rolls over and pushes Sting off with enough strength to send Sting across the ring. Sting gets back up but Hernandez surprises him with a CrackerJack~! Sting flops to the mat, but Hernandez can’t get to his feet to cover him. Instead he crawls himself over to Sting and throws his body across the champion’s…ONE…TWO…THRE – NO!!! STING GETS A LEG ON THE ROPE!!! Cornette points out that if Hernandez has hooked Sting’s leg, we would have a new champion, but Hernandez just couldn’t put enough weight on his ankle. Sting and Hernandez both slowly get to their feet, with Hernandez using the ropes to help him keep his balance. The two trade punches, with Hernandez again showing that his power is greater than Sting’s. Hernandez fights back like a man on fire and even hits a slingshot shoulder block. Hernandez lifts Sting up for the Border Toss, but his ankle gives out under him and Sting breaks free. Instead of getting caught up in Hernandez’ offense, Sting just backs away, knowing that Hernandez’ ankle prevents him from keeping up with Sting. Sting then starts to run circles around Hernandez, getting in quick clubs when he can. He then throws Hernandez up against the turnbuckle and runs for a Stinger Splash, but Hernandez spins out of the way. Hernandez then situates himself on the top turnbuckle so that he is sitting and facing the ring. He grabs Sting and lifts him entirely off the mat and into the air in position for the Border Toss! Tenay marks out because Hernandez has figured out how to hit his finisher without having to put weight on the ankle. Before Hernandez can throw Sting, Sting squirms out of his grab, but stays on the turnbuckle. Sting then fights Hernandez up top and takes him down with a Superplex!!! Sting leaps off the top rope with a flying splash…1…2…3!
Winner and STILL TNA WORLD CHAMPION: STING (21:22)
The announcers really put Hernandez over as having come so close. Jim Cornette says that if Hernandez had hooked the leg earlier in the match, then Hernandez would be TNA Champion. Mike Tenay says that if Hernandez had thrown Sting with that Border Toss, then Hernandez would be TNA Champion. Don West says that if Hernandez had summoned the power of Super Eric, Suicide, and Sarah Palin, then he would be TNA Champion.
Sting rolls out of the ring and grabs his title belt from ringside, ignoring the middle fingers that the Houston crowd shoves in his face. He holds his championship up as he walks up the ramp to a chorus of boos. Back in the ring, Hernandez begins to get to his feet and looks around the arena. His hometown slowly begins to cheer for him and it eventually turns into a standing ovation. Homicide comes out to console Hernandez and the two embrace and then hold each other’s arms up as the show comes to a close.
