TNA Slammiversary 2014 Predictions, Hopes and Booking

There are 9+ matches and segments on this card and a Hall of Fame induction segment with Kurt Angle. I remember when WWE wouldn’t ever have more than 7 on a pay-per-view.

THE VON ERICHS (MARSHALL & ROSS) vs TBA
I have a feeling the TBA will be Bro Mans and DJ Zima Ion. If not them, then Spud. This will be a feel good moment hopefully later in the event o lift up the crowd. Robbie E and Jesse do the job, all Texans go home happy.  Maybe Lacey Von Erich will be out there too as a face valet. She could then join the Knockout division and have some fresh matches. This would also give the Bro Mans a spot on the card, when clearly all signs point to a six man tag between the Bro Mans and the Menagerie. But I guess the Menagerie can’t do a six man, when one of their guys is in the six way for the X-Division title.

KNOCKOUTS CHAMPIONSHIP: Champion, ANGELINA LOVE w/ VELVET SKYE vs GAIL KIM
Gail Kim has always been the #1 contender. Angelina Love has been ducking her since winning the title. This is about as deep as the Knockouts division goes. These four women. Angelina Loves should keep this title for the specific fact that she should never hold this title again. Gail Kim winning the title wouldn’t suddenly open up new matches to the Knockouts Division. This is it. These four women. They need to open up the division to one shot appearances from women outside the company for one match or so. Maybe with the Von Erichs appearing, they’ll bring back Lacey Von Erich to screw over Gail Kim and open up some fresh matches. Lacey was a member of the beautiful people at some point, but she’s currently doing erotic point of view wrestling.

They could also have Lacey cost Angelina the title, so Lacey can be a face valet with the Von Erichs and be her own person in the knockout division.

MR. ANDERSON vs JAMES STORM
If there’s one match on this card that I couldn’t care less about, its this one. Please let them open the show with this. After watching TNA all month or so, I can’t tell who’s the heel and the face. James Storm really comes off as a face, while Ken Anderson seems to be the bad comedy heel people want to see beat. Much like Rockstar Spud ‘s role in the Bully Ray feud. Mr. Anderson should win, keep the crowd happy, someone famous that they know. So he can get fed to MVP. Heck, if TNA cuts the match, I’d be okay with it, but I guess a promise is a promise. Have it.

WILLOW w/ ABYSS vs MAGNUS w/ BRAM
On Impact, the guys had a face to face. Willow kept saying WE, he and Jeff Hardy will take out Bram and Magnus, so Abyss comes out as back up. Personally I would have rather seen someone with Jeff Hardy’s size wear a Willow mask at the PPV to wrestle Magnus, then have the real Jeff Hardy run out to blow people’s minds. As for who wins this match? It’ll end in a DQ. Abyss just came back, Bram is new and Magnus now likes to hit people with objects, because getting you disqualified somehow moves you up the ladder? Good logic buddy.

X-DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP 6 WAY LADDER MATCH: Champion, SANADA vs TIGRE UNO vs CRAZZY STEVE vs EDDIE EDWARDS vs DAVEY RICHARDS vs MANIK
This is my most anticipated match, even though there’s zero build for it on Impact. It was just thrown together. For the past 2 years, TNA has used its X-Division title as an Option C, a guaranteed, TNA title match at the expense of giving up the X-Division title. Much like a Money in the Bank briefcase in the WWE. The TNA title match would happen at the Destination X event on Spike TV.

If Eddie or Davey win, I think that telegraphs MVP winning the title, assuming he’s not too injured to win the title. I really hope Sanada wins. He’s the guy not caught up in backstage shit and hasn’t been beat down by MVP’s group. He can be a fresh story and offer a straight up wrestling match for the title. Samoa Joe, Austin Aries and Bully Ray can fend off MVP and Ethan Carter so Sanada can get a clean match out of MVP or Eric Young at the Destination X event. It would mean so much more to have a clean wrestling match, because that never happens anymore.

Once the title is given up, there should be a tournament for the vacated championship building to Destination X.

I just really hope that Crazzy Steve doesn’t have his music blasting all match long. TNA has a real chance to turn this match into something special like Money in the Bank instead of a forgettable spot fest. They could even use the Menagerie stilt walkers to aid Crazzy Steve.

AUSTIN ARIES vs KENNY KING
Why aren’t these two in the X-Division championship match? Two former X-Division champions and all. Well they’ve got a going feud, so why not have this match? It should be a good match, but the trick is to make it a memorable match. Let Austin Aries win to feed him to MVP. Heck Aries could win this match and still face off against the X-Division champion before Destination X.

SAMOA JOE vs BOBBY LASHLEY
Even though there is no heat to this match, I’m looking forward to two bulls fighting. I would say Joe should win, since he just came back and they can feed Joe to MVP, but Bobby Lashley has 2 victories over the TNA champion, Eric Young. Bobby Lashley should win. I think this match could be memorable if its stiff and technical. Two big dudes that can suplex one another.

TNA HALL OF FAME INDUCTION WITH HOST KURT ANGLE
Wow, there are 9+ matches on this pay-per-view and they need a hall of fame induction too? Well it is Slammiversary, so why not? They have Kurt and Sting in the hall of fame, and I see this hall of fame more as an everyone not in the WWE hall of fame. So why not Dixie Carter? She can come down to the ring, accept the award and she should be in the Hall of Fame. TNA has been building to putting Dixie Carter through a table for the past few months, maybe since their last pay-per-view. Bully Ray could then appear to put her through a table, but then Ethan Carter can run out and they can have their match right then and there. That’s what ECW would have done.

TEXAS DEATH MATCH: BULLY RAY vs ETHAN CARTER III W/ SPUD
It was built up as a table match originally, but since Slammiversary is in Texas, why not have a Texas Death Match? I hope they’ll actually keep the 10 count after a pinfall like the true version. Otherwise, its just a last man standing match. The real issue here is putting Dixie Carter through the table. I would say Dixie will get put through a table at a TV taping at the old ECW arena, the Manhattan center, but Spike TV doesn’t allow violence against women. Bully Ray even came out this week on Impact and saved Brooke Tessmacher, showing to the crowd he’s not anti woman, he’s anti Dixie. Bully Ray needs to put Dixie through a table on pay-per-view. First because Spike TV won’t let them, and second, because people are paying for Slammiversary.

TNA CHAMPIONSHIP STEEL CAGE MATCH: Champion, ERIC YOUNG vs MVP
The big question going into this match is will MVP be able to compete. MVP cannot compete, I updated after this match. Supposedly he injured himself on a non TNA show. If MVP can’t make it, Lashley needs to take his place. Bobby Lashley now has 2 wins over Eric Young, that puts Lashley right there with Eric Young. Heck, MVP has lost two matches to Eric Young.

TNA must not like money, because they just had their Champion, Eric Young against the challenger MVP on free television three days from their match on PPV. Perhaps their logic is people will pay for the cage match. No. Who cares? I just saw Eric Young win and beat the challenger MVP after taking out two other men. Plus, even with a rested Eric Young against MVP, I can’t imagine them having a better match even with a cage! I remember when WCW would give away their PPV main events free on Nitro. MVP should have come out and told Eric Young, I’m not the last guy, we agreed to two out of three wins. I didn’t say I’d be guy #3. I am not a number, I am the guy you’ll face at Slammiversary. Why would MVP ever agree to this? Even with a logical cage match to keep out Kenny King and Bobby Lashley, the challenger, MVP has a history of buying off and bullying referees into winning matches. The deck is stacked against Eric Young. Better put a top on that cage! MVP will win, but I’ve bet against Eric Young before and been wrong…. Personally, I’d keep the title on Eric Young, because MVP still has power to make matches yet he doesn’t ever make wise matches, but on the other hand if MVP doesn’t win the title, that’s sort of a road block for his faction.

*** UPDATE *** TNA CHAMPIONSHIP STEEL CAGE THREE WAY MATCH: Champion, ERIC YOUNG vs TBA vs TBA
So apparently MVP is really injured and can’t make the show. So TNA has announced the winners of Austin Aries vs Kenny King and Samoa Joe vs Bobby Lashley would be entered in the match. I predict Lashley and King to be inserted into the match, when really it should just be Bobby Lashley, who has 2 wins over the champion, Eric Young. However, having the two qualifying matches gives them weight and a reason to care about them. Anyway, while I predict Lashley and King to win their matches, for the sake of a good match, I hope that its Aries and Samoa Joe in the cage, but the fans wouldn’t know who to cheer for. Eric Young should walk out with the TNA title.

There you have it, all of my predictions, hopes, dreams and musings.

TNA’s version of Money in the Bank: 6 man ladder match for Option C

TNA Wrestling has announced a 6 man ladder match for the X-division title at this weekend’s Slammiversary: Champion, Sanada vs Manik vs. Tigre Uno vs. Crazzy Steve vs. Eddie Edwards vs. Davey Richards

For the past 2 years, TNA has used its X-Division title as an Option C, a guaranteed, TNA title match at the expense of giving up the X-Division title. Much like a Money in the Bank briefcase in the WWE. The TNA title match would happen at the Destination X event on Spike TV.

If Eddie or Davey win, I think that telegraphs MVP winning the title, assuming he’s not too injured to win the title. I really hope Sanada wins. He’s the guy not caught up in backstage shit and hasn’t been beat down by MVP’s group. He can be a fresh story and offer a straight up wrestling match for the title. Samoa Joe, Austin Aries and Bully Ray can fend off MVP and Ethan Carter so Sanada can get a clean match out of MVP or Eric Young at the Destination X event. It would mean so much more to have a clean wrestling match, because that never happens anymore.

I just really hope that Crazzy Steve doesn’t have his music blasting all match long. TNA has a real chance to turn this match into something special like Money in the Bank instead of a forgettable spot fest. They could even use the Menagerie stilt walkers to aid Crazzy Steve.

If Daniel Bryan gives up the WWE title, here’s what to do next

WWE champion Daniel Bryan had neck surgery (really selling that tombstone from Kane) and might need to relinquish the WWE championship. ‘The Authority’ has really been trying to prevent Daniel Bryan from getting that title and keeping that title, so why not strip him of it? Its for his own good. Any face in wrestling will work with a broken (freaken) neck. You need to stop them from further injuring themselves.

So what happens when Daniel Bryan gets stripped of the title? Does Kane get the title since he was by some miracle the #1 contender? Does the WWE hold a tournament? Nah they just did that for the Intercontinental championship to determine a #1 contender. Do they do a battle royal? Nope, they just did that to get the title off of Dean Ambrose. Do they have a beat the clock challenge? They already did that too. WWE really burnt through their ideas in one month.

So what could they possibly do? I could easily suggest an Elimination Chamber match, but the timing is just off. Since it is June, the WWE could do a one night 8 man King of the Ring tournament, but again they just did a tournament for Wade Barrett to win.

Instead, make a Money in the Bank match for the WWE title since that pay-per-view is coming up in July. It would seem logical to just hold off and have a match involving Cena, Orton, Batista, Wyatt, Kane and some other random wrestler (Big Show? Ceasaro? Roman Reigns after a 3 way between the Shield? a mystery spot for Chris Jericho?).

While I don’t exactly think ladder match with any of those guys, they are sadly at the top. It would certainly be an uphill battle for the only face Cena (although I wonder if Wyatt isn’t a face). They could get some big drama with Wyatt interference and Evolution working as a team until the bitter end. Kane can even light a table on fire and put Cena through it. Embrace that hate right? Kane could just destroy the ladder because he doesn’t want anyone to win, he just wants to hurt people.

The WWE has had a vacant title for a month or two at some point, so there’s no real desire to have the match immediately. Since it is a while until the Money in the Bank pay-per-view…. I mean monthly special on the WWE network, here are some potential qualifying matches:

1. John Cena vs Big Show
2. Bray Wyatt vs Dolph Ziggler (to force 2 fan favorites against one another)
3. Kane vs Kofi Kingston
4. Batista vs Dean Ambrose
5. Randy Orton vs Seth Rollins
6. Mystery spot (battle royal, 5 way match between the 5 losers)

On top of that Money in the Bank match for the title, the WWE can always have another Money in the Bank match earlier that night to determine the guy to carry the briefcase. Having two of the same big gimmicks waters down the gimmick though. Although, it might be detrimental to the WWE’s interest not having someone fresh carrying the briefcase with the potential of winning.

In all, I think that could wrap up the issue, especially if Daniel Bryan is out for the long term.

What do you think?

Rebooking WWE RAW (7/9/12)

So to sum up RAW, they had 6 wins and 2 matches. Wins are what happens when a match is under 3 minutes and you can’t really get invested. matches last longer and let you care about the conclusion.

WWE Title >> AJ Lee / CM Punk / Daniel Bryan Storyline
Bryan wanting to marry AJ makes more sense than AJ wanting to marry Punk. AJ writing Punk valentines, creepy poems and stuff like that makes sense and it can be more subtle and less fucking insane. However, Bryan wanting to marry her would make sense from a title standpoint.

AJ should be asking what do you want Punk? I can be what you want! Punk can say I don’t want you, I don’t want this. I dig crazy chicks, but I want to keep my title more than I want to date you…. That can still keep the illusion of not knowing who will win the title match if CM wants to keep his belt.

At least AJ makes Punk & Bryan look tall…. because John Cena doesn’t help.

When RAW started, I thought, shouldn’t Beth just appear to destroy AJ. AJ will try to talk her out of it, Beth can say…. enough talking. You’re a wrestler, not a referee. This is a referee (who then appears) and this is a match. Then destroys AJ. Daniel Bryan can run out to pick her up and carry her. AJ… AJ are you okay? What did you do to her you monster????

Pushing Tyson Kidd
Since people are buzzing about Tyson Kidd, WWE can bring up the pay-per-view from July from a decade ago…. Canadian Stampede where the Harts reigned supreme! The Harts who trained Kidd. Have his wife / fiance give him a simple good luck kiss. Show him coming up over the years…. his long rise to even get a shot at a title shot! This man had to live on spaghetti-os and wrestle in front of 50 people to wrestle in front of 10,000. Have Bret Hart smile, hit Tyson on the shoulder and say go get that title shot Kidd.

Smackdown Money in the Bank >> Tyson Kidd / Christian / Tensai / Cody Rhodes / Dolph Ziggler / Sin Cara Storyline
I want to hear Kidd Talk. WWE needs to do a lot to sell the Smackdown guys and why they should be champion. Why should I care about Ziggler when he’s FAILED on 2 dozen title shots? Why should I care about Tensai when he FAILS to beat John Cena? Tell me why Cody Rhodes is more than just the name RHODES? Tell me why I should give a damn about Santino as more than a cartoon character. Why should I care about Christian when he’s held the belt and whined about losing it for months? Why should I get behind Tyson Kidd when he only gets lucky wins and sniffs underwear? I need to know why the hell I care about any of these people. You have 1 week. Fuck you had 4 weeks and entire careers to make me care.

Heavyweight title >> Alberto Del Rio / Sheamus Storyline
If WWE wanted to gain a 1 night heat on ADR that uses a car…. have him run over Sheamus with a car in a garage. OMG he just run him over Can Sheamus defend his title in 1 week after being hit with a car???? But then again does the WWE want to waste a car angle on a match that is the 3rd from the top at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view?

Or like I’ve mentioned for the past few weeks, build up ADR over 2 or 3 weeks by breaking jobbers arms and getting tap outs. ADR breaks arms, but Sheamus is no normal man. Then stack the deck. Submission match with a champion that doesn’t really win by submission.

RAW Money in the Bank >> John Cena / Big Show / Kane / Chris Jericho Storyline
I’ve pointed out several times…. starve people of Cena, Jericho, Kane and Big Show…. instead of putting them all together. Sure that might be what the RAW fans want to see when you have them sit through shit. Promos against one another, building each of them individually. Asking wrestlers and FANS who will win? Why will they win? Ask Punk who will win and who he wants to? Make this match seem bigger than it is.

Why should I care about Cena, Big Show, Jericho and Kane? All 4 have held almost 40+ world titles between them. Is it because they’re the best???? Well if they were, they would still be holding the title. Kane should go out and destroy the …ladder so no one can win….. why? Because he should only care about a title because it will draw more victims. People want gold and I guard that gold and I want to hurt people. Why does Big Show want to be champion when he has an iron clad contract? Is there more money in it for him? Or is it to outlive the failure of losing the Smackdown belt in what 30 seconds??? Yeah that’s it. Why does Cena want it? To be champion 11 times? You’ll always remember your 11th title reign!!!!! No…. its because Punk beat him last year at the biggest event of the year. Even bigger than Mania. Punk embarassed Cena when Cena KNEW he’d hold onto that belt. Why does Jericho want it? To prove he’s the best in the world again? No because Punk beat him and he can’t sleep at night without thinking how Punk beat him. Punk beat him 3x and he wants to make Punk pay!

Cena should really be the guy getting the sole title shot against Punk. Cena has won a lot lately. Even has major PPV victories this year over Kane, Big Show…. and well took on Jericho a lil while ago.

I’d really really really have this Cena / Kane vs Show / Jericho on house shows and not the TV. Deny fans any combination of the main event of your PPV. But give the house show fans something for their money. Nope…. instead its Cena vs Big Show and Bryan & Punk vs Kane & Jericho. wtf? How does this make sense?

Since Cena is clearly the odds on favorite to win the Money in the Bank… and he’s had major feuds with all 3 of these guys over the years…. why not Cena vs 3 of them? Or why use matches to build up these 4 guys? Is it because WWE actually needs a real match on RAW?

Let’s look at the logic of the big tag match…. why should Jericho want Big Show to tag out? Wouldn’t he want everyone to get weakened? Hell wouldn’t he just leave the arena until someone said if you don’t tag in you won’t be in the Money in the Bank briefcase.

A DQ in a tag match… John Cena & Kane vs Big Show & Chris Jericho Logistically breaking up a pin should be a DQ. Just like a singles match. I never thought of it. Yeah.  Now if the ref doesn’t see it….

WWE tag division storyline… Ron Killings & Kofi Kingston vs Hunico & Camacho
Didn’t the Prime Time Players win a title shot for the tag titles at the last PPV? Why are Hunico and Camacho getting the tag title shot at the pay-per-view? Doesn’t Ron Killings have a broken foot? Does WWE actually have 4 tag teams? That’s a start.

Sin Cara & Tyson Kidd (put Kidd under a mask and call him Kidd Canada). Ryback & Ryan (Mason). Drew & Rekks. Hawkins as a buttler for Damien Sandow. Santino & Ryder or Ryder & Ricardo. Dibiase & Regal…. if one wasn’t retired and the other injured. Jinder & Khali… who cares if one is face and the other is heel.

And again just randomly put low end guys together at house shows. Find who’s awesome enough to be on TV even if you don’t have ethnic matching like a pair of blacks and a pair of mexicans. Why not an Asian with a black guy?

Heating up a dead storyline…. Michael Cole vs Jerry Lawler
Cole vs Lawler…. smells like WWE just gave up. None of our wrestlers are over enough…. go with announcers! Wasting time on this when you should be building Smackdown guys to be credible enough to win a title or at least making RAW guys credible enough to take on Punk.

Perhaps if they spent more time making people credible and less time searching for Hornswaggle and watching commentator’s wrestle there would be 75% of fans wanting to see Christian vs Cody or Kidd vs Yoshi Tatsu.

Rebooking RAW (7/2/12)

So far it looks like there are only 4 matches for the Money in the Bank pay-per-view coming up. In last week’s rebooking RAW I think that I made 8 logical matches. Chances are the WWE will make 8 matches 2 will be squash matches involving Ryback and Sin Cara. WWE RAW didn’t give me much to work with what with all of its 3 minute matches.

MONEY IN THE BANK >> KIDD vs DOLPH vs SANTINO vs TENSAI vs CHRISTIAN vs CODY vs DAMIEN
I think booking the main event money in the bank match is a lot tougher than the Smackdown one. The Smackdown one is a place to showcase new talent and Smackdown should be the place to plug their money in the bank match (even if this is rebooking RAW). Have them explain why they want the title or why they feel they will be the next champion. Damien Sandow can talk, Christian can do his promo with the peeps, Cody can laugh, Santino can be in comedy training vignettes… Tensai can be in a video drinking tea and destroying jobbers in the gym, Dolph can tell his manager to shut up… he wants to talk, and Kidd can go out be wreckless. You can even have sit down interviews with each one to talk with them for real-sies explaining why they got in the business, their sufferage and why they stuck with it to one day be at the top of the WWE. Don’t ask Damien or Santino. They’re not real characters or have them do it in character. Then you continue them all having singles wins building up to the pay-per-view. I have a feeling WWE will throw them into an 8 man tag.

MONEY IN THE BANK >> CENA vs JERICHO vs BIG SHOW vs KANE STORYLINE
But with the main event money in the bank its a lot tougher with 50+ years of WWE experience. I’m not sure anyone has the desire to see any of them to be champion again so much as be a stepping stone for Punk. I say starve fans of interaction between the four of them. Ask wrestlers and fans at live events, who will win. Even ask CM Punk who he thinks will win since a fighting champion doesn’t care who will win. Make it like a larger than life dream match instead of a stepping stone for men who have climbed Mt. Everest. They literally do not need any matches to build them up, they are the top guys, the guys you should be paying to see and if you don’t agree with people paying to see them, the WWE has failed over the past decade.

DANIEL BRYAN / CM PUNK / AJ LEE STORYLINE
Legend has it that AJ Lee will be the guest referee… Daniel Bryan should suddenly find himself appologizing to her. Roses. He misses her. Aw Daniel you’re so sweet. I don’t like sweet. He can either then pull her hair or intimidate her then. I win at the PPV. AJ can tell them… the best man will win. Then at the PPV Punk can put Bryan in the anaconda vice and AJ can be oblivious to Bryan tapping. That’s either an… I want Bryan to win or I hate Bryan and want him to suffer thing.

DANIEL BYRAN / CM PUNK / AJ LEE / KANE STORYLINE
WWE RAW saw Daniel Bryan & Jericho vs Cena & Punk. That’s a great match on paper, but WWE should be starving you of Bryan and Punk, since we’ve seen them in singles matches 6+ times in 3 months. Punk is also the same guy who has been in a drinking angle and stuck in an AJ Lee storyline since this year started.

If WWE RAW was a movie AJ would be brushing her hair, Punk would come in. She’d try to kiss him, he’d say no She’d take her brush break the mirror. Yell at him. She’d then cut herself once and say you will love me! He can say no put that down …okay? She’d cut herself, wince in pain, tear up say it again, why don’t you love me? He’d explain then she’d cut again until he finally kissed her and she’d cry and they’d go find an EMT … together. Then she’d become his project to fix.

Then…. Daniel Bryan can get on Punk’s case. Why did he let her do that? You’re a man, you could have stopped her! You just had to give in and kiss her and she wouldn’t have done that. It’s your fault she did that. Then later Kane can stop by the ambulance / EMTs and tell them take a walk. Then Kane can say those cuts hurt don’t they… she says yeah… then he says good… then walks away laughing.

It can still be PG… just don’t show what she does with the mirror. Its not in view of the camera. Just show their upper halves. Then a week later Kane can call out AJ and ask how she’s healing if she’s scarred… like him. Join him and together they can be a pair of freaks.

Kane will keep talking… I’ve realized you and I are exactly alike. We’re both unwanted. Neither Daniel or Punk want you. Neither did I. We both like pain… Take my hand AJ and I’ll bring pain to everyone that brought it to us. Through their pain and suffering, I’ll make you feel better. They walk off hand in hand or someone will stop them asking did that just happen? and Kane will chokeslam that person.

HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE >> SHEAMUS vs ALBERTO DEL RIO STORYLINE
Since Sheamus doesn’t have any on screen friends, ADR needs to start breaking arms in and out of the ring. Zack Ryder, Sin Cara, Santino, Ted Dibiase, Drew McIntyre, heels, faces, it doesn’t matter, start breaking them 2 in each show. Until finally ADR puts the cross arm breaker on a woman, let’s say Alicia Fox. Then Sheamus appears, ADR bolts, then distracts him for Ricardo, but Sheamus no sells and puts out Ricardo. ADR can cut a final promo about the arms he’s broken and how will Sheamus lift his title… with a broken arm. ADR was an Olympic wrestler, drives beautiful cars and gets beautiful women. Sheamus is a bar brawler, drives a pinto and gets the fattest women of Ireland. That is why Sheamus is so strong from sweeping those porkers off their feet. #porklover

IN CONCLUSION
With all of this being said, I think my last rebooking RAW was better, because it lead to better matches.