Powell's TNA No Surrender 2012 Preview and Predictions: Who is behind Aces & 8s? Who will win the Bound For Glory Series? Are they the same person?

By Jason Powell

New Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning plays his first real game in 20 months against a Pittsburgh Steelers defense that... Oh, wait, that's right, TNA is committing pay-per-view buy rate suicide tonight by going head-to-head with the first NFL Sunday Night game of the season. Why isn't this show taking place two weeks from now? Anyway, those of us who order the show while thanking God for the invention of DVRs should be in for a show filled with good in-ring performances. The matches look good on paper. For the rest of you, be sure to check in tonight for my live coverage review for results as they happen while you enjoy the game.

Bully Ray vs. James Storm in a Bound For Glory Series semifinal match: As I mentioned on the site on Friday morning and explained in detail in my Q&A audio on Friday afternoon, I believe Bully Ray is the main man behind the Aces & 8s faction. I thought it would have to be someone outside the company to pack a real punch, but Ray is actually perfect for this role. He looks the part and he has the mic skills to lead the faction. Does any of this mean he has to win the BFG Series? No, but I assume he will, so I have him going over in this match, perhaps with an Aces & 8s distraction. You know, the type that makes it seem like they are pro-Storm, yet somehow Ray goes over.

Bully Ray advances to the finals.

Jeff Hardy vs. Samoa Joe in a Bound For Glory Series semifinal match: I really thought we were heading to an Aries vs. Samoa Joe at Bound For Glory. If Ray isn't the guy, then Aries vs. Joe is still my fallback pick. That said, if Joe isn't winning the four-man tournament, then he doesn't have to go over here. In fact, it looks like he's heading into a program with Magnus. Thus, I see a Hardy vs. Ray finals.

Jeff Hardy advances to the finals.

Bound For Glory Finals: Sticking with my theme that Bully is the Aces & 8s President, I like the idea of him winning the series and even taking the TNA Title from Aries at Bound For Glory. That would be a hell of an unveiling moment. I just hope TNA stays the course if this is the plan and they're worried that the online fans have figured it out. Who cares? I've seen some great pro wrestling reveals coming a mile away and that doesn't mean (a) casual fans knew it was coming, and (b) that those who have figured it out don't enjoy the ride. By the way, I'm also not buying into Devon being out of the picture. Assuming his contractual demands weren't over the top, then I could see him playing a nice part in the Aces & 8s faction. Hell, he could be the VP for all we know.

Bully Ray wins the BFG Series.

Austin Aries fights "Arm Breaker" of Aces & 8s: They went out of their way to make it clear that this is a fight rather than an actual wrestling match. In other words, there's no reason to predict an outcome since there's no reason to believe they will have an actual finish. Congrats to Arm Breaker for getting his nickname without actually breaking Austin's arm. I guess it has a better ring to it than "Boo-Boo Maker."

Christopher Daniels and Kazarian vs. A.J. Styles and Kurt Angle for the TNA Tag Titles. It remains to be seen how much Angle will actually be able to do during this match due to the injury that's slowed him down over the last couple weeks. There's no need for Angle to be a hero. Styles and the tag champs are more than capable of carrying the match if Kurt needs to spend the bulk of the match watching from the ring apron. I don't have a good feel for who is going over, so I'll go with the team that needs the straps more.

Daniels and Kazarian retain the TNA Tag Titles.

Miss Tessmacher vs. Tara for the TNA Knockouts Title. I'm looking forward to this match more than most of the recent Knockouts Title matches. I like the student vs. teacher dynamic they are trying to create and I hope this is a setup for a rematch at Bound For Glory. Tessmacher just had the hiccup title belt loss to Madison Rayne last month so I don't see any reason to take the title off her here.

Miss Tessmacher retains.

Zema Ion vs. Sonjay Dutt for the X Division Title. Ion and Dutt were stuck working the skeleton crew house show on Thursday night in Georgia, so they never got a chance to hype their match on Impact. It's a shame because this looks like a good match on paper. We're at that point where it already feels like the focus on the X Division is drifting again. Here's hoping that changes tonight and the X Division Title match at Bound For Glory feels like a meaningful part of the card.

Ion retains the X Division Title.

Magnus vs. Rob Van Dam: All signs point to a Magnus vs. Samoa Joe feud. I suppose they could turn it into a three-way match at BFG if they're trying to find room to put everyone on the show. Magnus needs the win much more than RVD. Magnus just attacked Joe on Impact, so perhaps that leads to Joe interfering and inadvertently costing RVD the match to set up a three-way next month. I'm sticking with that pick, but the results are probably too heel heavy, meaning that at least one other babyface will probably go over on this show. It could easily be RVD. That said, only the absolute diehards and non-NFL fans are watching this pay-per-view, so it seems like a good time for the heels to go over and the champions to retain their titles.

Magnus goes over.