TNA Impact on Spike TV
Live from Orlando, Fla.

[Q1] The show opened with a shot of Booker T and Robert Roode brawling in the crowd. Mike Tenay and Don West said Roode instigated it with comments he made prior to the show. Payton Banks ran out, but Traci Brooks came out of the other side of the building and speared her in the ring. Jim Cornette, Matt Morgan, and security ran out to separate the two sides...

Powell's POV: Very good opening.

At ringside, Tenay and West hyped Alex Shelley vs. Johnny Devine, Kurt Angle sparring with A.J. Styles and Tomko, plus Awesome Kong facing an opponent selected by a fan vote at the TNA website...

At ringside, Cornette hyped that the fans could choose between a last man standing, and "I Quit" match, or a first blood match. Cornette let the fans to vote for the first blood match by saying that fans who wanted to see someone get beat up badly they should choose that match...

Powell's POV: Wouldn't a last man standing match be more violent than a first blood match? Why do wrestling promotions insist on leading the fans to vote one way or another when they do these interactive bits? It's like they don't want to know what the fans really want.

Backstage, Jeremy Borash interviewed Styles and Tomko. Styles said Karen Angle moved out of Kurt's house. Tomko warmed up for the sparring session and told Styles not to worry about outside factors. Kurt walked into the picture and hyped the strength of Tomko and the speed of Styles. He threatened to hurt them both if they didn't come at him with everything they have. Angle warned Borash that it might be his turn to spar next week...

1. Johnny Devine (w/Team 3D) defeated Alex Shelley in an Xscape match qualifier in 9:30. Devine jumped Shelley to start the match. Shelley made his comeback, but he was distracted by Sting's lighting flashing. It also scared Team 3D out of the ringside area. During the match, a shot aired of the candidates for the Knockouts Title match bickering with one another. [C]

[Q2] Late in the match, Devine struck Shelley with a tripod and hit his Devine Intervention finisher for the win...

Highlights aired "from earlier today" of Black Machismo and SoCal Val's latest date. They went to the gym this time. Petey Williams walked into the picture while Lethal performing the bench press and referred to him as lightweight. Sonjay Dutt showed up and distracted Val, who was spotting Machismo. Lethal struggled to lift the weight off his chest while Sonjay and Val talked...

The announcers hyped the two interactive matches... Backstage, Crystal held the mic and Sharmell watched on while Booker cut a promo. Booker pleaded with the fans to vote for the first blood match. You know, because he couldn't make Roode bleed in a last man standing or a "I quit" match... [C]

Backstage, Team 3D cut a promo. Brother Ray congratulated Johnny Devine on his win and then turned his attention to Sting. He pointed out that their paths have never crossed. He threatened to slap the makeup off Sting's face, but the lights flashed..

A shot aired of Derek Graham-Couch (a/k/a Robbie of the Highlanders) with a graphic that read "WWE Wrestler." Tenay wondered who else was in attendance...

Powell's POV: Apparently, Robbie didn't get attend the meeting in which WWE wrestlers were told to stay away from TNA talent this weekend. Boy, this totally changes the way I look at the Highlanders and WWE. Yes, I'm being sarcastic. One can only hope that TNA would professional enough to approach Robbie before they put him on camera.

[Q3] 2. LAX and Salinas beat Scott Steiner and Petey Williams and Rhaka Khan at 4:33. A good match with the men dominating the action. Homicide pinned Petey. West pointed out afterward that Petey has lost three straight matches. Steiner placed the black hood over Petey's heads and prepared to handcuff him...

Another edition of Rough Cuts aired. Kip James bitched about B.G. James picking his father for his recent tag title shot. [C] The audio cut out for a Lockdown commercial and a vignette... A shot aired of Joel Zumaya from the Detroit Tigers sitting the crowd...

Tenay conducted a pre-taped interview with Karen Angle. She said she took the kids and moved out of Kurt's home. She said Kurt is obsessed with Joe. She said she can take a backseat, but her children shouldn't have to. Tenay asked whether the rumors are true that she's seeing someone on the TNA roster. "I have met someone who treats me the way I deserve to be treated," she said. Karen declined to reveal who that person is...

Back at ringside, the announcers hyped the website polls again...

[Q4] [C] A video focussed on Samoa Joe's match against Kurt Angle... Tenay interviewed Joe "live via satellite from Big Bear, Calif." Joe said he wants to prove that he can win that TNA Title without being a snake or politicking. "I'm coming for something on April 13, Kurt, and it's your TNA Championship," Joe said. Good interview... Frank Trigg joined Tenay and West on commentary...

Angle, Tomko, and Styles came to the ring for the sparring session. Angle dominated Tomko on the ground for the one-minute round and Tomko suffered a cut on his eye. Styles entered and dodged Angle's punches and a takedown attempt for a full minute.

[Q5] Tomko checked back into the ring and was on top of Angle for a moment, but Kurt caught him in the ankle lock late in the round. Tomko survived the round and shook hands with Kurt afterward. Styles checked back in and Angle caught him in a submission hold at the last second. Afterward, Angle shoved Styles and Tomko had to stand between them.

Christian Cage, Kevin Nash, and Rhino walked onto the entrance ramp. Christian called Angle's sparring session a joke. He said he and his partners would give the Angle Alliance a real sparring session. Angle bailed. The babyface team beat up Tomko and Styles briefly, but Team 3D ran out and gave the heels the advantage.

Team 3D seat up Christian on a table. The lights went out and when they came back on Sting was standing in the ring with a baseball bat. The crowd, which had been hot all night, came unglued. Sting took the mic and said it's really good to be back in Orlando and "It's really good to be live." Sting challenged Tomko's team to a match later in the show and Tomko accepted at ringside... [C]

Powell's POV: Good use of Sting. The live crowd loved him and he kept his promo short and energetic.

Backstage, Borash interviewed Roode and informed him that his match with Booker would be a first blood match. Roode threatened to get Booker's "skanky little wife" inside the cage at Lockdown. He said he wanted the first blood match just as badly as Booker. Solid interview...

A shot aired of James Farrior sitting in the crowd...

3. Booker T defeated Robert Roode in a first blood match in 10:45. There was a very brief technical difficulties graphic on the screen during Roode's entrance. Early in the match, Tenay said he'd been handed a note informing him that the main event would be broadcast commercial free. Doesn't he read the TNA website? That was announced earlier this week. They cut to commercial early in the match.

[Q6] [C] Roode dominated the action after the break. He avoided a kick from Booker and then threw a chair into Booker's face. Booker avoided a chairshot and the chair bounced off the top rope and hit Roode's head. Later, Booker slingshotted Roode into the ringpost. Roode bled to give Booker the win...

Powell's POV: Really good action. Roode gained something in defeat. Mission accomplished. The crowd was really hot throughout the match and has been throughout the show.

Backstage, Crystal interviewed Raisha Saeed, who cut a promo on behalf of Awesome Kong... [C] Backstage, Borash stood between Gail Kim and ODB and informed them that ODB won the fan voting. Gail was disappointed, but shook ODB's hand and told her to get the job done...

[Q7] 4. Awesome Kong (w/Raisha Saeed) beat ODB for the TNA Knockouts Title at 4:55. Tenay said Gail received less than 500 fewer votes than ODB. In the end, Kong won with the Awesome Bomb. [C]

Powell's POV: Slightly disappointing compared to some of the recent Knockouts matches. Don't get me wrong, this match would be considered a masterpiece by WWE Diva standards, but Kong, ODB, and Kim have set the bar high with their recent matches. A good brawl, though.

Backstage, Crystal interviewed Christian, Sting, Nash, and Rhino. Christian said he aligned himself with the best politician in the business in Nash, Then he made up with his best friend Rhino. And now he's introducing Sting as the latest member of his Lockdown team. Christian did all the talking... The heel ring introductions took place for the main event..

Powell's POV: They showed a close up of Tomko's eye and it looks a lot worse than it did during the sparring session with Angle.

[Q8] The babyfaces were introduced separately...

5. Sting and Kevin Nash and Christian Cage and Rhino defeated Tomko and A.J. Styles and Team 3D in 10:00. Nash tagged in early, stared at Tomko, and appeared to say, "Come on, bitch." Good, intense shot. The match itself was a brawl. Lots of punching and kicking. The final minutes of the match saw everyone get in a little offense and most of the guys hit their finishers. In the end, Sting locked Devon in the Scorpion leg lock for the submission win.

The babyface team lined up with their hands raised in the air. Out of nowhere, James Storm entered the ring and smashed a beer bottle over Sting's head. The heels took advantage of the babyfaces and celebrated. Storm stood over Sting to close out the show...

Powell's POV: A really nice effort. There were no standout matches (although I did enjoy Booker vs. Roode), but the crowd was hot, the comedy was limited, and the match finishes were clean. Good action from start to finish. They did a nice job of staying focussed on certain matches and angles. In other words, they didn't try to cram in as much as they usually do. I really hope this is the beginning of a trend for TNA. I'll have a lot more to say about the show in the TNA Impact Hitlist tomorrow.

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