By Jason Powell

TNA Impact on Spike TV
Taped on Feb. 24 in Fayetteville, N.C.

[Q1] The show opened with a recap from last week that included Dixie Carter, Hulk Hogan and Immortal, the Jeff and Karen Jarrett wedding vow renewal ceremony, Kurt Angle and Bart Scott, and Sting defeating Jeff Hardy to win the TNA Title... Tonight's show is called "The Return of The Icon"...

Jeremy Borash introduced Sting as the new TNA Champion. Sting walked to the ring and held the Jeff Hardy version of the TNA Title above his head. Mike Tenay and Taz checked in on commentary. Sting said he feels like he's accomplished a lot in his life, but he knows he could not have done it on his own.

Sting said he feels like the fans have supported him since he first stepped foot in the ring. "For that I cannot thank you enough," Sting said. "Thank you." Sting said he's also thankful for his opponent last week Jeff Hardy. He said he may not appreciate Hardy's actions, but "you are one of the greatest wrestlers I've ever had to face in this ring." He said he hopes Hardy gives the fans back what they've given him all these years.

The Immortal music played. Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff walked onto the stage and headed to the ring. "It's good to see you again, champ," Hogan said. He said he knew that somehow the two of them would end up in the ring together again where it all started. Hogan said he had to give Sting credit for seeing "the real Hulk Hogan" coming. Hogan said people didn't listen to Sting, and the momentum went his way.

Hogan said Sting took his ball and went home. He said Sting is now a day late and a dollar short. "These fans here don't need another hero because they've already got one - Hulk Hogan." The fans booed. Sting said he quit, but not on the people. Sting said he quit on the thought of having to deal with Hogan, Bischoff, and Ric Flair making his life miserable.

Sting said the longer he sat at home, the more a fire started to burn inside of him. He said it was like the fire he had the first time he wrestled Flair, the first time he dropped Bischoff on his head, and the first time he stepped foot in the ring with Hogan. Sting said the fire is burning inside him now and tells him he's not going anywhere.

Sting said he has to take back what was never Hogan's to begin with. He said it starts with the TNA Title. Mr. Anderson's music interrupted the trio in the ring. Anderson headed to the ring with a scowl on his face. He said he wants his rematch. He said that since Hogan's "little bitch" Jeff Hardy lost the belt, his focus is now on Sting.

Anderson said he doesn't care what Hogan, Bischoff, or the network want. He said the only thing he cares about is "me, me, me, me, me, me!" Anderson said he doesn't think he and Sting have ever been formally introduced. He acted humble before belting out his Mr. Anderson introduction and saying he's an asshole.

Jeff Hardy's music played and he headed to the ring. Hardy introduced himself as the anti-christ of pro wrestling and said he was robbed. He said he had no chance to prepare for his opponent. Hardy told Anderson that the line for a title match starts behind him.

Rob Van Dam's music played and he headed to the ring. Van Dam said the whole thing started when he was stripped of the title because Hardy nearly had him killed (by the MIA Abyss). Van Dam complained that he lost his rematch because of a special referee (Anderson) with selective vision.

Van Dam addressed Sting. He said it takes some balls to come back after a four month hiatus and claim to be calling the shots. Hogan said no one calls the shots other than him. Bischoff chimed in and said we know that Sting and Hardy will meet at the pay-per-view, and Anderson and Van Dam will meet in a grudge match. He booked Sting and RVD vs. Anderson and Hardy...

Powell's POV: An excellent verbal segment to start the show. They introduced all of the major players and made the TNA Title seem important by talking about it. Well, at least as important as a personalized title belt can seem. The introduction of the pay-per-view matches was weak. Bischoff acted like we already knew, but those matches were never announced on television until then. The belt and the poor PPV hype aside, it was as good of a verbal segment as you'll get from TNA. Anderson is doing a damn good job of playing the bitter ex-champion who wants his rematch.

[Q2] Backstage, Angelina of "Jersey Shore" was talking smack to the Beautiful People while Sarita and Rosita backed her up. Winter walked in and said that she has Angelina Love's back. Velvet Sky told Love that if Winter acted out, she and Love were going to have problems... [C]

Powell's POV: Why does Velvet Sky blame Angelina Love for Winter's behavior?

1. D'Angelo Dinero defeated Samoa Joe (w/Okato) in 3:15. Pope entered through the crowd and hit Okato with a chain. Joe hit some good power moves during the first couple minutes of the match. Pope came back and removed the turnbuckle pad. The referee pointed to it as if to ask why he removed it, yet he waited until after Pope tried to throw Joe into that corner to fix it. Pope used the distraction to pull out the chain and strike Joe with it, which led to the pin...

Powell's POV: Good action when Joe was on offense. Maybe these two are finally starting to click now that this feud has gone on for what feels like an eternity. It was one of those finishes that accomplished little more than making the referee look like a dope.

Backstage, Bull Ray told the camera crew to tell Tommy Dreamer that he'd be in the parking lot and he could meet him out there for a fight... The announcers hyped the six-Knockout tag match... [C]

[Q3] Madison Rayne and Tara headed to the ring together. Madison said the reason the Knockouts go by that name is that it's exactly what she does to them. She was pleasant until she let out a shrill "Quiet!" to the crowd. She invited her latest open challenge participant to come out "so I can make you famous"...

2. Madison Rayne (w/Tara) defeated Roxxi in 1:30 to retain the TNA Knockouts Title. Not much reaction for Roxxi, whose hair still appears to be in the awkward stage all these years after it was shaved. Tara was in S&M gear. Madison dominated the match and won quickly. Afterward, Mickie James came out, punched Tara, and ran off Madison...

Powell's POV: The production crew has to know that the key to putting over the returning talent is showing the shocked look on Madison's face. I think we saw it for a second or so. Roxxi didn't get a chance to show much during her latest return.

Backstage, Tommy Dreamer spoke to the camera as he headed to the parking lot and called out Bully Ray... [C]

Powell's POV: Maybe it's a big parking lot.

Bully Ray was in the parking lot with a chain. He called out for Dreamer. Devon attacked him from behind instead. Devon dominated Ray and then picked up the chain. Devon hit Ray with the chain a couple times. Ray begged him to stop. Devon told him to beg more. Ray said they are brothers.

Ray took a shot and Devon hit him with the chain again. Devon picked up a yellow sledgehammer. Tommy Dreamer showed up and said that was enough. He told Devon he'd go to jail as he tried to pull him away. Devon yelled that Ray is a "little bitch" and a coward. A security guy showed up and helped Ray to his feet. Ray beat up the security guard and whipped him with the chain and a guardrail for touching him...

Powell's POV: Devon did a good job of showing the type of frustration his character should have, and I loved Ray beating up the security guard for putting his hands on him afterward. It was a quick and simple way to give Bully Ray his heat back after taking the beating from Devon. However, we are now 45 minutes into the show and there's been less than five minutes of in-ring action in front of the Fayetteville crowd. The building looks great, but it's a shame we're not seeing more of it.

[Q4] [C] 3. Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, and Winter defeated Jersey Shore Angelina, Sarita, and Cookie (w/Rosita) in 1:50. Winter shook her ass in a disgusted Velvet's face as part of the ring entrance routine. Funny. Robbie E ran in and grabbed Velvet from behind. Cookie and Angelina argued about which one of them would take the free shot.

Winter saved Velvet and then backed Angelina up toward Velvet, who rolled her up for the pin. Velvet smacked her own ass as the live crowd cheered following the match... [C]

Powell's POV: Yeah, that's not the in-ring action I was hoping for. Angelina of Jersey Shore fame didn't come across like a star in any way. It didn't feel like a special moment when she started the match. She scored TMZ pub. Let it end there. Winter was fun during the pre-match routine. She also made sure she stood right next to Love on the ropes, and stood by her again when the refs raised all of their hands. I liked the twist of having Winter save Velvet even though I'd rather have those two minutes of my life back.

[Q5] Highlights aired of the Bart Scott segment along with video footage recorded backstage at a TNA live event of Kurt Angle and Mr. Anderson talking about what happened. Angle said that if the NFL goes on strike, Scott could be back...

Backstage, Anderson sat inside a room with Jeff Hardy, Hulk Hogan, and Eric Bischoff. Anderson asked if they were high for booking him and Hardy in a tag match. Bischoff said it would be dumb of Anderson to take out Hardy and then have to face RVD. Anderson stormed off. Hogan told Hardy it was strictly business... Highlights aired of the Fortune and Immortal feud...

Ric Flair's music played. Flair strutted onto the stage, where he was met by Matt Hardy. They headed to the ring together and Flair let out a big "wooooo" to start his promo. He then called out A.J. Styles, who got a nice pop as he headed to the ring. Flair told Styles that he's in Flair Country and said he hopes it's grabbing him by the balls. Styles said Flair is in TNA - the house that A.J. Styles built.

Flair asked the fans how many of there mothers he slept with. Funny. He told Styles to kiss his ass in front of the Fayetteville crowd. "Yap, yap, yap, yap, shut up," Styles said. Hardy interjected. He said Styles doesn't know him and he damn sure doesn't know him. Hardy referred to Styles as "kid" and said he doesn't know what he's been through in the business and could never understand it.

Hardy said he was once like Styles. He said he had dreams and goals, but the business isn't about what he wanted. "This business is about what the systems wanted," Hardy said. He added that what he was about to do to him wasn't personal. Styles said he doesn't like Matt or his brother and then punched him. Tenay said they'd be back with the three-way street fight... [C]

[Q6] 4. Ric Flair beat A.J. Styles and Matt Hardy in a three-way street fight in 5:25. The match was joined in progress. Taz said the fans missed Styles bouncing Hardy all over the ring during the break. Styles put Flair in the Figure Four. Hardy came off the second rope and broke it up with a leg drop.

All three men went to ringside. Styles fought them both successfully at first. Flair bladed. Hardy hit Styles with a trash can to the back of the head. Hardy pulled a ladder out from underneath the ring and the fans cheered. He slammed the ladder into Styles, who made a comeback, only to have a bloody Flair fire back at him.

Styles made another comeback and hit the Pele kick on Hardy. He set a chair down in the middle of the ring and was about to hit the Styles Clash when Flair low blowed him. Hardy hit the Twist of Hate on Styles, and then let Flair pin Styles...

Powell's POV: I feel like I missed a promo to set up the match. Hardy's persona won't click with the casual viewers. The talk about what the business did to him and "the system" just won't register with the average viewer who watched him have too much success in WWE to think that he was wronged. That said, I liked the "kid" talk. He seems more comfortable on the mic than he has in the past.

Backstage, Sting told Rob Van Dam that they got off on the wrong foot because he Hogan and Bischoff brought RVD in, so he assumed he was part it. Sting apologized, but RVD didn't seem very receptive... [C]

5. Ink Inc. defeated Generation Me in 4:15. Beer Money came out and joined the announcers on commentary for the match to hype their pay-per-view match with Ink Inc. James Storm said he used to travel with Shannon Moore, so they know each other well in and out of the ring. He put over Ink Inc. and said they deserve their title shots.

[Q7] The announcers said something about an Ultimate X match. Jesse Neal hit a couple of moves, but ran into a super kick. He came back with a cool spear off the ropes. Ink Inc. hit a double team move and scored the clean pin. There was some bickering between Max and Jeremy Buck after the match.

Shannon Moore took the mic and said the book of DILLIGAF says that Ink Inc. is going to win the tag titles at the pay-per-view. James Storm stood up and said they're going to be whipping their ass. He delivered the "Sorry about your damn" line and let the crowd fill in the "luck" part...

Powell's POV: Beer Money was a little too precious on commentary as they spoke about their love of competition and how great Ink Inc. is. My guess is that they're playing the nice guy roles so that Ink Inc. look like bigger heels for turning on them. I always thought Storm's beer swilling and cooler riding antics would work better if he were a babyface, so I hope he doesn't shy away from that too much. Remember when TNA treated Ultimate X like a major attraction? I miss those days.

Backstage, Jeff Hardy asked Mr. Anderson if he was going to stab him in the back. He pointed out that it would be RVD and Sting against Anderson. "If I were you, I wouldn't like those odds," Hardy said. Anderson talked quietly as he said he's kind of different and illogical and then yelled that it's because he's an asshole...

The announcers hyped the tag team main event... [C]

Backstage, D'Angelo Dinero said he's sick of Samoa Joe and his sidekick. He said he wants to put an end to it all. He said everyone knows that Victory Road leads to Lockdown. He said he's going to do the world a favor and rid TNA of both men...

A recap aired of the wedding vow renewal from last week... Backstage, Jeff and Karen Jarrett spoke about the wedding. Jeff tried to play it cool, but Karen said Kurt Angle ruined everything. Jeff said it was just a speed bump. Jeff said their honeymoon was up next. He spoke about five star resorts, suites, and limos. Jeff said the honeymoon would be in Orlando. Karen wasn't blown away, but she was happy by the end of it...

A video hyped the Ultimate X match and a graphic showed that the match will feature Kazarian vs. Robbie E vs. Max Buck vs. Jeremy Buck...

Powell's POV: That's more like it. I still don't think they go far enough with the concept. It would be great if they built up the X Division wrestlers as major players and then showcased the Ultimate X match as major pay-per-view match. As it stands, Kazarian is defending against two guys who just lost to Ink Inc. and another guy who he beat last month.

[Q8] The announcers ran through the Victory Road pay-per-view lineup... A Sting video aired. He said he had no desire to become a pro wrestler until he saw a show at the L.A. Sports Arena. The video shifted to Immortal drama, and included clips of Sting throwing a football with his kids, plus Sting beating Hardy last week...

Backstage, Jeremy Borash interviewed Sting, who said there's an issue with RVD, but he apologized. Sting said it's been a great seven days and he's the champion for "I don't know how many times now." Sting said he's tired of talking about it and it's show time. Suddenly, Anderson attacked Sting. Anderson took the Hardy belt and said it belongs to him and he wants a rematch... [C]

Powell's POV: I really like what they're doing with Anderson. Here's hoping they keep him his own man rather than have him pick a side.

6. Sting and Rob Van Dam beat Jeff Hardy and Mr. Anderson in 4:25. There was a female ring announcer who handled the introductions. Taz said it was So Cal Val because Anderson took out Borash during the Sting interview. Sting didn't come out either, and Taz explained that it was because of the Anderson attack.

Anderson slapped the back of Hardy's head to tag him into the match. Funny. Hardy returned the favor by slapping Anderson hard across the chest to tag him back into the match. A short time later, Anderson hit the Mic Check on Hardy.

[Overrun] Sting's music played and the lights went out. When they came back on, Sting was in the ring, He hit the Scorpion Death Drop on Anderson, and then motioned to Van Dam, who hit the Five Star Frogsplash on Anderson for the win. Sting had a bad hair moment as he and RVD looked at one another. RVD nodded approvingly, and then Sting pointed at him Scott Hall style...

Powell's POV: So much for putting heat on the heels (okay, one heel, one tweener) heading into the pay-per-view. Instead, we got the happy ending with RVD and Sting. That didn't exactly sell me on the pay-per-view. Aside from that strange decision, I like the way the top guys were booked tonight. They've established who the stars are right now.

Although there were plenty of things I liked tonight, it was a failure as a go-home show. They had Anderson attack Sting, and then Sting get his revenge on Anderson, when the focus should have been on Hardy and Sting since they're wrestling on Sunday. Devon beat the shit out of Brother Ray, but the match is actually Ray vs. Tommy Dreamer. They failed to make make Victory Road feel important, and the final hype for most of the matches was bizarre. I'll have more to say in Friday's TNA Impact Hitlist.

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