TNA Wrestling Matters Here

[God]

Champions Roll Call

NWA World Championship
AJ Styles (3 times)
Since June 25th 2004
2 defences

X-Division Championship
Kazarian (1 time)
Since March 31st 2004
4 defences

NWA World Tag Team Championships
Chris Harris (4 times) and James Storm (4 times)
Since June 25th 2004
1 defence

Active Roster

Staff and Management


Colour Commentator - NWA Representative - Announcer & Interviewer - Lead Commentator - Director of Authority

[God]

NWA TNA Weekly PPV
June 2nd, 2004
Nashville, TN

The final weekly PPV for TNA Wrestling had the series end with a bang as several rivalries were wrapped up, and new ones born. In the opening contest, the World X Cup was on the line. With victory in Ultimate X being worth five points, all four teams were still in contention. Team Canada currently lead the pack with four points, followed by Team Mexico on three, with Team USA and Team Japan both on two points. Team Japan, Team Canada and Team Mexico were all represented by their team captains in Nosawa, Petey Williams and Hector Garza, but Team USA went with a different strategy. Team captain Jerry Lynn instead sent Ultimate X veteran Chris Sabin into the match and the gamble paid off as Sabin was able to bring home the victory and move Team USA from joint last, to top of the table and gain the World X Cup trophy.

World X Cup Finals
Ultimate X Match
Chris Sabin def. Hector Garza, Nosawa and Petey Williams w/ Scott D’Amore in 19:39.

Sabin would quickly be joined in the ring by his Team USA team mates Jerry Lynn, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper to celebrate, but the celebrations would be short lived. Irate at going from first place to second in the final match, Team Canada crashed the party. Bobby Roode, Eric Young and Johnny Devine, led by Scott D’Amore, quickly did a number on Team USA which led to an impromptu six-man tag. Given the sneak attack, Team Canada were able to control much of the match but as time went on, Team USA regrouped and recovered and looked to have the match in hand. Primetime Elix Skipper walked the ropes towards Eric Young but was tripped by the hockey stick of Scott D’Amore, allowing Bobby Roode to pick up the victory with a Death Valley Driver to restore some pride and gain a measure of revenge. Not content with the victory, Petey Williams took possession of the World X Cup and left with Team USA’s prize in hand.

Bobby Roode, Eric Young and Johnny Devine w/ Scott D’Amore def. Jerry Lynn, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper in 08:53.

Having won the World Tag Team Championships via Disqualification didn’t do much to dent the confidence of Kid Kash and his bodyguard Dallas. Just a week after their controversial victory, Kash loudly proclaimed himself and Dallas to be the greatest tag team of all time and they would take on anybody stupid enough to disagree. Former Champions BG James and Konnan were two men who disagreed and challenged the new champions but Kash moved the goalposts and insisted they earn the title shot first. Annoyed at the bait and switch, Konnan and James agreed and overcame the Naturals to challenge for the titles on the final Weekly PPV. Despite having momentum, experience and fan support on their side, Kash and Dallas were able to retain as Kash was surprisingly able to hit James with the Money Maker for the three count, following a low blow from Dallas. Kash and Dallas didn’t wait around the celebrate their victory, knowing they stole it and instead celebrate on their way backstage to safety, having knocked off one of the most experienced teams in TNA.

NWA World Tag Team Championships
Kid Kash and Dallas © def. Konnan and BG James to retain the NWA World Tag Team Championships in 09:03.

Ever since getting the attention of Erik Watts, Goldylocks became obsessed with the second-generation star and took the eventual break-up of the duo rather hard. Feeling Watts used her for her money, Goldylocks went on a crusade for vengeance as she obtained the services of Abyss. The former World Tag Team Champion quickly went on a rampage as he battled for the approval of Goldylocks, despite her showing little interest past a business relationship. Abyss constantly tried but failed to take out Erik Watts, leading to Goldylocks putting up $500,000 of her own fortune if Watts could defeat Abyss on June 2nd. But should Abyss win, Goldylocks would gain ownership of Watts contract. Watts showed he may very well have been in it for the money as he accepted the match. Watts did everything in his power to keep Abyss down, but the idea of making Goldylocks so happy was enough to push Abyss that extra mile and hit a vicious Black Hole Slam to end the match just as Watts was building momentum. An ecstatic Goldylocks quickly runs into the ring and ignores Abyss before ripped up Watts’ contract in front of him, having gotten the ultimate revenge on her ex-boyfriend by taking away his entire career.

Cash vs. Contract
Abyss w/ Goldylocks def. Erik Watts in 07:21.

The Alpha Male Monty Brown has been on a rampage since making his return to TNA in March, racking up victory after victory and rarely even getting knocked off his feet. D-Ray 3000 was the next to step up to the challenge but aside from telling Brown to Fear the ‘fro, D-Ray got zero offence in as Brown destroyed the youngster and could have won the match much quicker than he actually did. Brown toyed with D-Ray for a few minutes, hitting four Alpha Bombs in quick succession before finally putting D-Ray out of his misery with the Pounce for the widely expected three count. After the bell, Monty Brown made a title belt motion around his waist, letting the entire world know that the Alpha Male is on the hunt for some gold in the very near future.

Monty Brown def. D-Ray 3000 in 03:17.

One piece of gold that Monty Brown may or may not be looking at was up for grabs next as The Amazing Red and Kazarian go into battle in a rematch from the end of March where Kazarian won the title in the first place. Having taken on a seemingly never-ending line of challengers, Kazarian has worked hard to live up to his claim of being able to establish the X-Division Championship as the major prize in TNA Wrestling. The more Kazarian defends the gold, the more realistic his proclamation begins to look. Red, a former champion himself, looked to end the reign and claim that glory for himself as an early Code Red almost ended the match out of nowhere. Kazarian though proved his resiliency by fighting through the set back and coming back even stronger. As the match progressed, Kazarian started taking short cuts and finally one of them paid off. A thumb to the eye of Red meant the Brooklyn native had a crash landing from the top rope, giving Kazarian the opening he needed to hit the Wave of the Future for the three count and the victory. Following the victory, Kazarian found himself face to face with the man who had to forfeit the title due to injury, Chris Sabin. Having won the World X Cup for his team earlier tonight, Sabin has now turned his focus to the title he never lost.

X-Division Championship
Kazarian © def. The Amazing Red to retain the X-Division Championship in 15:51.

The main event of the final weekly PPV for TNA would feature the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on the line in the first ever King of the Mountain Match. With the match essentially being a ladder match, many believed it would favour the current NWA Champion Ron Killings and former NWA Champion AJ Styles. The opposite proved to be true as the ever-violent Raven looked right at home with having so many weapons to choose from. The Wildcat Chris Harris and Jeff Jarrett took up the remaining two places in the match. Raven was indeed the first man to become eligible for victory as he was able to score a victory over Harris inside five minutes following a Raven Effect onto a steel chair. Styles followed when he pinned Jeff Jarrett and sent Jarrett to the penalty box. As soon as Jarrett was released, Killings pinned him to send him straight back in. Chris Harris soon got revenge on Raven when he pinned him following a Spear, making four out of five men eligible for victory. When Jarrett came back into the match, Harris tried a Spear but got a guitar to the face instead, effectively ending his involvement in the match as Jarrett quickly made himself eligible. Raven pinned Jarrett next to send the two time NWA Champion out of the match for the third time with Chris Harris still motionless following the guitar shot. With three men left standing, Raven decided to set up some tables but lost focus and got taken out with the Axe Kick from Killings. Killings climbed the ladder towards victory but was quickly joined by AJ Styles who used the ropes to springboard to the top. Jeff Jarrett tried to force his way out of the penalty box early but only managed to draw Director of Authority Vince Russo to the ring. Russo told Jarrett off before surprisingly unlocking the cage early and clearing the way for Jarrett to enter the ring. With Styles and Killings trading blows atop the ladder, Jarrett with an assist from Russo comes and shoves the ladder over, sending both men crashing through the tables Raven set up. With Russo surveying the carnage, Jarrett manages to climb the ladder and hang the NWA World Championship to become the King of the Mountain and the new champion on the very last Weekly PPV, having spent most of the match in the penalty box.

NWA World Championship
King of the Mountain Match
Jeff Jarrett def. Ron Killings ©, AJ Styles, Raven and Chris Harris to become the new NWA World Champion in 22:10.

[God]

This post has nothing to do with the BTB and is just me rambling.

Yes, I'm doing TNA again. Why? It's one of the few promotions that I feel comfortable doing and one of only two promotions that I actually enjoyed doing. The only other one I ever enjoyed doing was ROH and I currently have zero interest in doing ROH. The issue I have when doing current day BTB's is the roster. I like to keep it similar to the real roster but over time it ends up getting further and further away. My previous BTB for example. I compared my roster to the current day roster and it only has 18 common talents. I'd have to write out about 20 and debut another 30 just to match up again. That killed my interest. A BTB set in the past, avoids that issue. I know who is coming and who is going (Hi, Hector!) in advance and can prepare for it. The roster won't be identical, but will be close enough for the time being. I just don't want to book some people. Erik Watts for example. He sucks and leaves in early 2005 so I just sped it up a little. Fuck Erik Watts.

I've considered doing this time frame for years now but never got around to it for various reasons. The big reason I wanted to do this time frame is because I consider it one of the two huge turning points in the company's history. The second being January 2010 for obvious reasons. The roster at this time isn't bloated but has a lot of talent with more coming in the next few weeks and months. The issue is the heavyweight division. To put it bluntly, it sucks. TNA tried to rectify this by bringing in big name after big name to no success. I'm not going to do that. Randy Savage is due to arrive in a couple of months but he's having a change of heart. Diamond Dallas Page is also due soon, but likewise he won't be showing up. I have zero interest in booking those guys when I have such a stacked X-Division roster that I can use instead along with the makings of an incredible tag team division. I do have plans for the NWA title, but it won't be the selling point long term. The X-Division and Tag divisions will be. The NWA title will be a little extra on top once I have everything set up how I want. I'd like to bring the Knockouts division along earlier than it actually happened, but I only have 60 minutes of TV time so that will have to wait for another while. Plus, I only have two women who wouldn't embarrass themselves in a ring.

I'm planning on doing this BTB in the same fashion I used to do every BTB. I'm not planning out months in advance in great detail then writing a show and posting it the next day. I'm doing my old style of planning a few weeks ahead and having the next few shows written in advance. I already have the next three shows done with the Two Year Anniversary Show ready to write. If I plan too far ahead, I'll lose interest in what I'm writing as I want to write what I'm planning instead. This time, I'm currently planning out four or so weeks ahead and then writing them. Then planning the next four or so weeks. Monthly PPV's start later this year so I'll be able to go from PPV to PPV then, just like I used to. I'll be doing match summaries instead of long winded hold by hold accounts. I'm acting as a booker here, not a road agent.

I know I jump around BTB's a lot, but I think I can stick with this one because it's a time frame I loved and I don't have to worry too much about the roster getting out of hand.

[Big Papa]

Will be reading.

Picking a time-frame you enjoy is awfully important. Myself and others have created BTBs around less appealing (to the writer, maybe no the audience) time periods but where this "potential" and fun possibilities. But sometimes getting there is a grind. And that kills many a project.

I also know what you meant about starting to deviate. With a historical project, its always a bit of a balancing act to keeping things feeling "realistic" but also telling the narrative you want to tell. Gotta find that balance that works for you.

[God]

iMPACT!
June 4th 2004

The first episode of iMPACT! opens with a six-man tag team match. Fresh from stealing the World X Cup two days ago on the final weekly PPV event, Team Canada of Bobby Roode, Eric Young and Petey Williams are instantly in the firing line as Jerry Lynn has brought Elix Skipper and Christopher Daniels as back up in a bid to regain possession of the cup. The official did his best to keep control of the match but that went out the window early on as all six men came and went freely without worrying about making tags. In the end, Bobby Roode was able to catch Lynn with a Death Valley Driver, but Daniels was quickly on hand to take him out with an STO. Before Daniels can follow up though, Williams hits the ropes and catches Daniels with a Canadian Destroyer to score the victory.

Team Canada def. Jerry Lynn, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper in 08:21.

The new NWA World Champion Jeff Jarrett was next to the ring as he thanked his new best friend for having his back on Wednesday night, TNA Director of Authority Vince Russo. Jarrett and Russo attempt to celebrate stealing the NWA World Championship but former champion Ron Killings has other ideas. Jarrett and Russo manage to escape the ring but are soon cut off by AJ Styles. Russo runs for the hills, leaving Jarrett to be double teamed by the men Russo helped pushed off the ladder two days earlier. Killings takes Jarrett down with an Axe Kick before Styles follows up with a Styles Clash. As Jarrett rolls away, Killings and Styles both try to pick up the NWA World Championship, leading to a tense tug of war over the title both men want more than anything.

Fresh off ending the career of her ex-boyfriend, Goldylocks leads Abyss to the ring with the ripped-up contract of Erik Watts in hand. Goldylocks wastes little time in gloating about the victory before announcing she would like some gold in the very near future. Abyss nods in the background before his poor opponent is introduced as Shark Boy. Shark Boy tries his best but outside a few punches that have almost no effect, he spends the entire match on his back. Abyss easily man handles Shark Boy with the Shock Treatment before finishing the match with a Black Hole Slam, knowing Goldylocks has given him a mission, he doesn’t want to let her down.

Abyss def. Shark Boy in 02:01.

The self-proclaimed greatest tag team of all time, Kid Kash and Dallas are next as they face their latest challengers in the form of the NYC, Glenn Gilberti and Johnny Swinger. Gilberti and Swinger got this match simply by asking Vince Russo for a shot and being granted one. Kash is understandably unhappy but has decided it is simply another team to add to his list of defeated opponents. Swinger and Gilberti have some early success but that all changes once Dallas tags himself in and dominates both men. Dallas easily over powers the NYC and tosses them around the ring with no concern for their wellbeing. Kash plays cheerleader as Dallas hits a Black Out on Gilberti before Kash demands to be tagged back in. Dallas obliges and lets Kash score the victory with the Money Maker, knocking off yet another team in their bid to prove themselves as the greatest tag team of all time.

NWA World Tag Team Championships
Kid Kash & Dallas © def. Glenn Gilberti & Johnny Swinger to retain the NWA World Tag Team Championships in 09:01.

The main event of the debut edition of iMPACT! is a four-way match to determine the new number one contender for the X-Division Championship featuring Sonjay Dutt, Michael Shane, Amazing Red and most recent champion Chris Sabin. As expected, all four men give it everything they have right from the start with Red even managing to catch Dutt with a Code Red but Shane was on hand to make the save. Red hit a second Code Red shortly after, this time to Sabin, but now Dutt was able to make the save, denying the former X-Division Champion again. As the match progresses, Red ends up burning out after a hot start and fading away. Shane finishes Red off with a Superkick to the side of the head, sending Red crashing off the apron and to the floor below. Sonjay Dutt catches Shane with a springboard moonsault but as soon as Dutt rolls to his feet, Sabin hoists him up and hits the Cradle Shock for the three count with just over 90 seconds left before the time limit expired. As Sabin gets his arm raised in victory, X-Division Champion Kazarian comes in behind Sabin and meets him face to face. Sabin and Kazarian exchange words before Kazarian raises his X-Division Championship to end the war of words in definitive fashion at the end of the show.

Chris Sabin def. Michael Shane, Sonjay Dutt & Amazing Red in 13:28.

[Hug Life]

This is definitely a very intriguing thread and a good starting point, really. TNA during this time period was my favorite era of the promotion so I certainly have interest in it off the bat. I like the fact that you're not bringing in big names and rather trying to just build up from the ground up. I do wonder if that philosophy will change as they do need some kind of star attraction/draw. But, at the end of the day, it's your philosophy and your vision, so I'm looking forward to seeing how you can craft this.

Good results with Team Canada starting off with a win. Roode hitting Lynn with the DVD was nice and I wonder if that will lead to a feud between the two. Williams hitting the Destroyer on Daniels is probably the smart move, as was Team Canada getting the win. Clean was a bit surprising, but nonetheless, off to a good start here.

Decent segment here with Jarrett, Killings and Styles. The tug of war thing was kinda eh, for me, but it sells the idea nonetheless. I suspect we'll see some kind of #1 contender's match between the two in the near future, which should prove to be pretty fun.

Abyss beating Shark Boy is fine. Not much else to say there.

Had to look up who 'Dallas' was and I see it was Lance Hoyt. That's right.Nothing really else to say here mostly because these guys probably should be taking down Gilberti and Swinger. Maybe a bit of a surprise that the match lasted so long.

Excellent 4-way match to finish the night off and a good way to boost the profile of the X Division. All four looked to be pretty darn good and Sabin getting the victory is a fine move for me. Him vs. Kaz should be a solid feud.

Overall, pretty fine start here. You obviously need to do some more building up here so we'll see where that goes. But, for now, I like how things started here. Keep it up.

[God]

iMPACT!
June 11th 2004

iMPACT! opens this week with some X-Division action as Team Canada’s Petey Williams goes one on one with Jerry Lynn. Recently, Jerry Lynn led Team USA to victory in the World X Cup but had their trophy stolen by Team Canada afterwards. Chris Sabin has turned his attentions to the X-Division Champion Kazarian while Mike Tenay tells us that Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper have seemingly moved their focus to the tag division, leaving Jerry Lynn to fight by himself. Lynn initially was able to hold his own against the captain of Team Canada but as the match progressed, the numbers came into play as Scott D’Amore encouraged his troops to get involved as often as possible. Lynn managed to fend off Roode, Young and Devine but in doing so gave D’Amore the opening he needed to smash the hockey stick across the back of Lynn, allowing Williams to follow up with a running Canadian Destroyer for the three count. Following the match, Scott D’Amore announced that next week Team Canada would be holding a victory parade as the rightful World X Cup winners.

Petey Williams w/ Team Canada def. Jerry Lynn in 08:01.

Following the events of last week that saw AJ Styles and Ron Killings left in a tug of war over the NWA World Championship, the NWA Board of Directors have decided to step in and make a ruling. Here to deliver that ruling is former NWA Champion Dusty Rhodes. Rhodes announces that next week on iMPACT!, AJ Styles and Ron Killings will go one on one with the winner being named the number one contender for Jeff Jarrett’s NWA World Championship. As soon as the words leave his mouth, Rhodes is interrupted by the King of the Mountain and he isn’t happy. Jarrett claims Rhodes has no authority here and can’t make a ruling like that. Rhodes says he just did. An irate Jarrett responds the only way he knows how, by smashing a guitar over the head of the legendary Dusty Rhodes, and leaving him laid out in the middle of the ring.

The Alpha Male Monty Brown makes his way to the ring next, no doubt having paid very close attention to what just happened with regards to the NWA World Championship. Eager to continue his march towards an eventual title opportunity, Brown’s latest opponent is the debuting Mikey Batts. Batts knows he is up against it but surprisingly manages to get some meaningful offence in when he catches Brown with a running dropkick early on. Batts quickly lays into Brown with forearms and knees but neither have much effect on the far bigger man. Getting desperate, Batts runs the ropes and instantly regrets it as Brown crashes into him with the Pounce. Batts lifelessly flies through the air before crashing to the mat for the Alpha Male to pin with no resistance.

Monty Brown def. Mikey Batts in 01:17.

Tag Team action follows as two of the best in the history of TNA lock up once more. Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper, confirming what Mike Tenay suggested earlier tonight, face off against James Storm and Chris Harris as a classic rivalry is renewed in an attempt to become next in line for a shot at the World Tag Team Championships currently held by the self-proclaimed greatest tag team of all time, Kid Kash and Dallas. As AMW and Triple X go hold for hold, the champions make their way out to the top of the entrance tunnel for a closer look, obviously expecting to be facing one, if not both, of these teams in the near future. In the ring, Skipper hits Storm with Play of the Day but Harris is on hand to make the save. Shortly after, Storm hits Daniels with the Eye of the Storm but now Skipper saves. Daniels soon hits Harris with the Angels Wings but again the pin fall is broken up. Eventually, Harris and Storm are able to get Daniels out of the ring long enough to hit Skipper with the Death Sentence to score the victory and potentially become next in line for a championship match. Harris and Storm point towards Kash and Dallas, but the champions aren’t impressed as they turn and walk away.

America’s Most Wanted def. Triple X in 12:52.

The main event of the evening saw a return to the X-Division as new number one contender Chris Sabin faced off against Team Mexico member Mr. Aguila in his singles debut. Aguila starts off well using his size advantage but Sabin is able to weather the early storm and fire back with hard kicks to the legs. With Aguila struggling, Sabin kicks it into a higher gear as he casually picks apart Aguila’s legs as the match progresses. Aguila gets a few minutes on top but Sabin is quickly able to turn it around again before showing some impressive strength in getting Aguila up for the Cradle shock in the middle of the ring. Sabin hooks both legs of Aguila to ensure his more experienced opponent doesn’t kick out as the number one contender builds momentum as he waits for his shot at Kazarian and the championship that he was never defeated for.

Chris Sabin def. Mr. Aguila in 09:18.

As Sabin celebrates in the ring, we go backstage to find Jeff Jarrett with a handful of Vince Russo’s shirt. Jarrett demands that Russo do something about the match next week between AJ Styles and Ron Killings. Russo claims his hands are tied, to which Jarrett questions who is actually running things around here, because he was under the impression that Russo was the Director of Authority. A clearly shaken Russo manages to state that he will see what he can do as Jarrett shoves him into a wall, obviously unhappy with his new best friend.

[Sykotic]

Really enjoying the Team Canada storyline. Petey Williams is being built up really well and he was the leader of TC back then despite how Roode's career turns out. I loved TC back in the day and hope they get involved in the tag title scene too.

Jarrett is on one tonight. I can see him causing the match next week to be thrown out and maybe a triple threat being announced. Monty Brown is the future though and it's been a disappointment how his career turned out. Hopefully he gets his due in here.

Not sure how high you are on Kash/Dallas but I'd prefers AMW/XXX/Team Canada fighting over the title than them. Hopefully a swift change is in the offing.

Finally Chris Sabin has been great and I'm expecting the original X Division star to again come out on top. This division can only get better as time goes on.

Keep up the good work mate.

[God]

iMPACT!
June 18th 2004

With the two-year anniversary show only seven days away, iMPACT! opens with X-Division Champion Kazarian in non-title action against Sonjay Dutt. While Chris Sabin has already been confirmed as the next challenger for Kazarian, a victory for Dutt would certainly put him next in line for an opportunity at the X-Division title. Dutt looked good for the victory early on but the introduction of Michael Shane allowed Kazarian to re-take control. Once Kazarian noticed Shane at ringside, his body language quickly changed as he told Shane to leave, he has this under control. Shane protests but leaves once Traci Brooks pulls him away. With the contest back to one on one, Dutt almost pulls out the victory with a hurracanrana but Kazarian escapes and quickly catches Dutt with the Wave of the Future for the victory. Post-match, Chris Sabin stands atop the entrance ramp, locking eyes with the man who took his title without ever beating him.

Kazarian def. Sonjay Dutt in 11:12.

The second contest of the night was to determine the next challengers for the NWA World Tag Team Champions as The Naturals of Andy Douglas and Chase Stevens went face to face with the most decorated team in TNA history, America’s Most Wanted, consisting of James Storm and Chris Harris. As expected, both sides proved to be more than a match for the other and for the longest time it seemed destined to go to a 15-minute time limit draw. With less than two minutes remaining, The Naturals looked to steal the victory with the Natural Disaster on Storm, but a well-timed Spear from Harris saved his partner and a late comeback was on. The Naturals tried to run out the clock, feeling they could win by judge’s decision but a superkick from Storm to Douglas was enough to gain the pin-fall with only seconds remaining on the clock. Before Harris and Storm can even get announced as the winners, the NWA World Tag Team Champions, Kid Kash and Dallas, charge into the ring. Dallas gets speared by Harris while Kash gets a Superkick from Storm, quickly sending the champions into retreat.

America’s Most Wanted def. The Naturals in 14:49.

Last week Team Canada promised a victory parade as they proclaimed themselves as the rightful World X Cup winners, despite finishing second to Team USA. Team Canada captain Petey Williams gave an acceptance speech with the stolen cup in hand but before the celebrations could really get under way, Jerry Lynn interrupted and issued a challenge. Next week on the two-year anniversary show, winner takes all. Team Canada, seeing Lynn by himself quickly accepted the challenge before the Team USA captain was joined by the Team Mexico captain Hector Garza, and the Team Japan captain Nosawa to form an all-star team. Lynn let it be known that Team Canada have burnt every bridge possible with their actions and he didn’t even have to ask for help. Both Nosawa and Garza came to him to offer their support for a six-man tag team match next week on iMPACT! with the World X Cup trophy on the line.

The main event of the evening would feature two former NWA World Champions going one on one to determine who challenges Jeff Jarrett next week. Both men have valid claims to being the number one contender, having been pushed off a ladder at the same time by Director of Authority Vince Russo during the King of the Mountain match on the final Weekly PPV on June 2nd. Since then, Russo has tried his best to keep Jarrett protected but the NWA Board of Directors sent Dusty Rhodes as their representative to set up this match. Styles and Killings unsurprisingly went hold for hold early on before Killings went for a power game. Styles did the opposite and took to the air, bombarding Killings from every angle possible. As the match progressed, NWA Champion Jeff Jarrett made his way to ringside but security was quickly on hand to escort him back away from the ring. With security tied up on one side of the arena, Glenn Gilberti and Johnny Swinger came from the other side and attacked both Killings and Styles, causing a double disqualification. With the match over, Jarrett was able to get past security and into the ring to join in the beating just as Styles and Killings looked to be fighting back. A low blow to Styles quickly put him down before Killings fell to two on one odds. As Jarrett celebrates the non-finish, NWA representative Dusty Rhodes makes his presence felt once more by announcing he had warned the NWA Board of Directors about such a scenario and they agreed on a Plan B. Since neither man could win the match, Jeff Jarrett will now defend his NWA World Championship against both Ron Killings and AJ Styles in a three-way match in next week’s main event. With Jarrett livid, Rhodes makes sure to remind him that a disqualification means Jarrett loses the title, so Rhodes advises Jarrett’s new lackeys to stay at home.

AJ Styles vs. Ron Killings ends in a No Contest.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Next Week on the Two Year Anniversary Show
June 25th 2004

NWA World Championship
Jeff Jarrett © vs. AJ Styles vs. Ron Killings

X-Division Championship
Kazarian © vs. Chris Sabin

NWA World Tag Team Championships
Kid Kash & Dallas © vs. America’s Most Wanted

World X Cup on the line
Petey Williams, Bobby Roode & Eric Young vs. Jerry Lynn, Hector Garza & Nosawa

[Sykotic]

I'm intrigued by the tension seemingly building between Kazarian and Michael Shane. I remember watching TNA around this time on The Wrestling Channel and I loved the feud between Sabin and Shane over the X Division title. Would not mind seeing both men involved with each other once again. Kazarian and Dutt are also great names in the division as it looks like AJ Styles has stepped above the division for now at least. Still backing Sabin for the title sooner rather than later.

The tag match was a great way to not only continue to put over AMW but also gave The Naturals a good rub for going so long with the 'most decorated team in TNA history'. I enjoyed seeing AMW take care of Dallas/Kash afterwards too. Hopeful my title change is not too far away.

Love the idea of the World X Cup Team Captains coming to Lynn's aid. Should be an interesting contest next week but part of me hopes Team Canada can hold onto the trophy for future bragging rights and to further the heat already on them.

As I expected Jarrett and his goons got the match thrown out and now we have a three way next week for the title. Hindsight says AJ Styles would be a great champion for the future of the brand but part of me wants to see what you can do with Killings as champ. Either way with it being the 2 year anniversary I can only see a huge surprise saving the title for Double J.

Next week's card looks great with 3 title matches and a fight for the X Cup. I'm predicting wins for Killings, Sabin, Dallas/Kash and Team Canada. Keep up the good work mate.

[God]

iMPACT!
Special Two Year Anniversary Show
June 25th 2004

The two-year anniversary of TNA Wrestling opened with the World X Cup trophy on the line as Team Canada, having stolen the cup several weeks earlier, face Team All Star, featuring the captains of the other three teams involved in the 2004 World X Cup. Eager for revenge, Jerry Lynn started the match with Petey Williams and took out some pent-up aggression on the Canadian captain. Nosawa and Hector Garza largely played supporting roles as Lynn did most of the work for the All Stars. Roode managed to be the game changer for Team Canada, using his size to his advantage as he easily over powered Lynn and Garza only for Nosawa to not even attempt to match strength and instead go straight for kicks to the thighs. Roode retreated as Nosawa charged and got a knee to the face from Young. With Nosawa dazed, Roode sent him into the ring post, making the match effectively three on two. With Nosawa on the floor, Team Canada grew in confidence but it proved to be a mistake as Lynn would catch Young by surprise with a Cradle Piledriver before Garza followed up with Tornillo for the victory and the World X Cup back in the hands of its rightful owner.

Jerry Lynn, Hector Garza and Nosawa def. Team Canada in 08:29.

Keeping with the tag team theme, the NWA World Tag Team Championships are on the line next as the self-proclaimed greatest tag team of all time, Kid Kash and Dallas, defend against America’s Most Wanted. Having gone almost an entire year without holding the titles, questions were starting to be raised about Harris and Storm with many questioning if they had simply burned out after an amazing first year together. To be fair, Kid Kash was the one asking these questions as he did everything in his power to make himself and Dallas out to be the greatest of all time. Dallas dominated the early going of the match as Kash loudly proclaimed he was right the entire time. Despite the strong start, the champions were unable to put away the challengers and foolishly allowed Harris and Storm back into the match. The match slowly but surely turned and the frustration of Kash become more and more obvious. The arrogant proclamations of being the greatest of all time were soon replaced by Kash yelling at Dallas to do something. What Dallas did was eat a superkick from Storm and then a Spear from Harris as new NWA World Tag Team Champions were crowned at the two-year anniversary show. As Harris and Storm celebrate in front of the crowd, in the ring Kid Kash slaps Dallas across the head and yells at him, blaming him for the loss. An irate Dallas shoves Kash halfway across the ring before storming off, leaving his partner humiliated and title-less.

NWA World Tag Team Championships
America’s Most Wanted def. Kid Kash & Dallas © to become new NWA World Tag Team Champions in 12:41.

In March, a heartbroken Chris Sabin was forced to relinquish the X-Division Championship due to injury. An opportunist Kazarian quickly won the title, defeating Amazing Red to do so. Now fully healed and back to 100%, Sabin looks to regain the title he never lost, something Kazarian wasn’t too willing to even consider. Kazarian, since winning the gold for the first time, has made it his mission to make the X-Division Championship the most prestigious title in wrestling today and reluctantly accepted that he would need to overcome Sabin before that could become possible. Despite having good intentions, Kazarian jump started the match with a cheap shot to Sabin to gain the early advantage. Sabin fired back as the two high fliers kept it on the mat and traded hard shots before going into a submission based match. In the end, Sabin attempted a Cradle Shock but Kazarian was able to squirm free with a handful of Sabin’s eyes. Blinded, Sabin was helpless to resist as Kazarian hit the Wave of the Future for the three count. Post-match, Kazarian offered Sabin a handshake but it was declined by the former champion. Kazarian shrugs and turns to leave, only to see Goldylocks and Abyss waiting atop the entrance ramp. Goldylocks casually announces that she has decided she wants the X-Division Championship. Abyss starts towards the ring but Goldylocks stops him and shakes her head, saying not you. A confused Kazarian is blindsided from behind by the debuting Alex Shelley who quickly lays out the X-Division champion with and Air Raid Crash as Goldylocks cheers on her new client.

X-Division Championship
Kazarian © def. Chris Sabin to retain the X-Division Championship in 16:03.

The main event of the two-year anniversary show ends in a similar fashion to the very first show with the NWA World Championship on the line. NWA World Champion Jeff Jarrett is accompanied by Vince Russo, Johnny Swinger and Glenn Gilberti while Ron Killings has Konnan and BG James for back up. AJ Styles opts to go it alone and is proven right to do so as the 3 Live Kru quickly come to blows with Gilberti and Swinger on the floor, distracting both Killings and Jarrett. With both men not paying attention, Styles takes the opening to run the ropes and dive over them to wipe out Vince Russo and gain some revenge for the King of the Mountain match a few weeks earlier. With Russo out, the Kru, Gilberti and Swinger fight to the back, leaving the match as a three way as intended, as we are shown Raven watching the match from the rafters. Killings and Styles initially work together to eliminate Jarrett with an Axe Kick and a Styles Clash, leaving the two former World Champions to settle the score. Styles gains the early advantage but misses the killing blow when he attempts a Spiral Tap. Killings follows up with an Axe Kick but Jarrett is on hand to pull the official from the ring to keep his reign alive. With the official struggling on the floor, Jarrett slides into the ring with guitar in hand and quickly introduces it to Killings’ head before disposing of the evidence as he stalks Styles. Styles stumbles back to his feet as Jarrett goes for the Stroke but Styles slips free and hits a Pele kick. With Jarrett out on his feet, Styles doesn’t waste any time in hitting the Styles Clash as the official re-enters the ring to count the three count and crown a new NWA World Champion. As AJ Styles is announced as the new champion, the first person to congratulate him proves to be a surprise to everyone as Jeff Hardy makes an unannounced appearance to raise the arm of Styles before placing the NWA World Championship over the new champions left shoulder.

NWA World Championship
AJ Styles def. Jeff Jarrett & Ron Killings to become new NWA World Champion in 19:47.

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
July 2nd 2004

TNA iMPACT! opens this week with some highlights from last week’s two-year anniversary show. We see Kazarian retain the X-Division Championship over Chris Sabin before being ambushed by the debuting Alex Shelley. Jerry Lynn with some help from Nosawa and Hector Garza was able to take back possession of the World X Cup by winning a six-man tag team match against Team Canada’s Petey Williams, Eric Young and Bobby Roode. America’s Most Wanted became four time NWA World Tag Team Champions as Kid Kash and Dallas turned on each other. The main event saw AJ Styles once again become the NWA World Champion when he won a three way featuring Ron Killings and Jeff Jarrett. Despite all that, the biggest surprise happened afterwards when Free Agent Jeff Hardy made an unannounced appearance to raise the hand of the new champion.

Fresh off making his TNA debut, Jeff Hardy is the first man to the ring tonight as he calls out the new NWA World Champion AJ Styles. Hardy wastes little time in congratulating Styles on a well-earned victory before issuing a challenge for a shot at Styles’ newly won title. Before Styles can respond, Ron Killings interrupts and he isn’t happy. Killings tells Hardy to get his ass to the back of the line and claims he should be the NWA World Champion, not Styles. Killings argument for this is Jarrett’s use of the guitar last week. An act that had the official been doing his damn job, would have resulted in a disqualification and a title change there and then. NWA Representative Dusty Rhodes finally puts an end to the ranting of Killings by insisting he will take the issue to the NWA Board and will have a solution next week. Hardy and Styles quickly accept, Killings a little more reluctantly so.

Alex Shelley made his debut last week by attacking X-Division Champion Kazarian as soon as he finished his match with Chris Sabin. Kazarian had no chance and fell victim to the Air Raid Crash as Goldylocks has set her sights on the gold Kazarian holds. Shelley’s debut opponent, Miyamoto, doesn’t need to worry about sneak attacks but does have to watch his back with Abyss stalking around ringside. The two youngsters put on a fast paced match with Miyamoto surprisingly getting a decent amount of offence in. Despite controlling a large portion of the match, Miyamoto was unable to do any major damage and soon fell to the Air Raid Crash from Shelley for the three count. Shelley is quickly joined in the ring by Goldylocks to celebrate, leaving Abyss alone on the outside once more.

Alex Shelley def. Miyamoto in 08:29.

Having suffered an annoying defeat last week against the World X Cup All Stars, Team Canada are men on a mission as they set a new target for themselves in tag team action. Bobby Roode and Eric Young, accompanied by Petey Williams, Johnny Devine and Scott D’Amore take on two thirds of the 3 Live Kru in Konnan and BG James. The veterans are understandably not focused as they have no doubt been subjected to constant ranting from Ron Killings all week long. The difference in focus showed as Roode and Young practically dominated the match from beginning to end and mercifully put James down with a Death Valley Driver from Roode for the pin-fall. Post-match, all five members of Team Canada put the boots to the Kru until security finally get them to leave the ring.

Team Canada def. 3 Live Kru in 04:54.

Monty Brown has been on an impressive win streak ever since returning to TNA earlier this year, winning the majority of his matches in only a matter of minutes. His opponent David Young has been doing the exact opposite and is currently 0-54, with most of his matches also ending in only a few minutes. Given such form for each side, the world was quickly shocked when Young managed to catch The Alpha Male off guard with a roll up as soon as the bell rang. The upset of the century would have to wait though, as Brown kicked out at one and just seemed annoyed at getting caught. Brown proceeded to destroy Young with two Alpha Bombs followed by a Pounce. Brown wasn’t done yet, but the official had seen enough and decided Young was unable to continue, awarding the match to Brown. Brown did calm down somewhat after the match but proceeded to get himself a mic and announce that he was done with his appetisers and is now ready for the main course. Brown announces that he feels like he is in the mood to hunt for a King. A King of the Mountain to be exact as The Alpha Male lays out the challenge to the recently defeated World Champion.

Monty Brown def. David Young in 01:48.

After picking up the victory for his team last week in the World X Cup six-man tag team match, Hector Garza was rewarded with a shot at X-Division Champion Kazarian. Knowing Kazarian’s mind may not be fully focused given the sneak attack he suffered at the hands of the debuting Alex Shelley, Garza looked to capitalise early on with some fast paced aerial assaults. Kazarian, proving again why he is the X-Division Champion, manages to survive the bombardment and even avoided an early Tornillo attempt. Kazarian knew he had to slow down Garza and proceeded to work over the knees, feeling if Garza can’t walk, he can’t fly either. The plan worked as Kazarian took control of the match and even brought out a Texas Cloverleaf for the first time but inexperience with the hold cost him and allowed Garza to easily escape. Garza mounted a comeback shortly after and even managed to hit the Tornillo at the second time of asking but Michael Shane was on hand to distract the official and prevent a pin-fall attempt. Garza took out Shane with a running dropkick but the work on his knees made it a mistake. Garza struggled back to his feet and the delay in dealing with Shane was enough to let Kazarian recover and lure his challenger in. Garza tried to bring Kazarian to his feet but instead got hit with the Wave of the Future for the three count and the successful title defence. After the match, Michael Shane raises the arm of Kazarian in celebrating, prompting Kazarian to question why he was even at ringside, showing he had no idea about Shane’s distraction.

TNA X-Division Championship
Kazarian © def. Hector Garza to retain the X-Division Championship in 15:28.

[Sykotic]

TNA Anniversary Review

Always nice to start with a fast paced contest and the fight for the X Cup was definitely a good choice. I was a little disappointed to see All Stars take back the cup as I wanted Team Canada's heat to grow. Hopefully the trio have an important role to play in the next few weeks, maybe even a shot at the tag team titles.

Speaking of which definitely the right call giving AMW the titles. I really dug the original AMw/Team Canada feud back around this time so hope that you recreate it with your own twist. Kash and Dallas going into singles action isn't a bad idea, Kash could definitely add to the X-Division whilst Dallas has the potential to be pushed or settle into a bodyguard style role.

Kazarian retains and I'm okay with that. Cheating was always going to be the way he did it but the gall of the man to ask for a handshake afterwards. Sabin rightly refuses but Goldylocks always gets what she wants and I'm liking the possible pairing of Shelley with Abyss as his muscle. A bit confused whether Kazarian is heel or face, but he;s definitely the good guy in this potential feud.

Awesome end to the night. The match sounded terrific and AJ Styles was probably the best choice if you use hindsight. The debut of Jeff Hardy is a little overshadowing but great for TNA and Styles/Hardy is the match of matches, but hopefully we are made to wait for it with both Jarrett and Killings probably becoming roadblocks in the way.

Let's just pretend I didn't get all four predictions wrong okay.


TNA July 2nd 2004

Onto the next show and an intriguing way to start the show which has really threw open the World title scene. The absence of Jarrett was odd but Killings proposal and logic should postpone any AJ Styles versus Jeff Hardy match for the near future. Surely Jarrett has a rematch clause?

Good win for Shelley on his in-ring debut but I sense a little story coming along with Abyss. I would love to see him snap and win the X-Division title, nobody would be able to take that away from him. In reality Shelley versus Kazarian versus hopefully Sabin still makes for a very good feud and a potentially awesome Ultimate X match down the line.

Team Canada regain some momentum. Nothing to say on this as I fully expected it.

Monty Brown is a bad mother******. Calling out Jarrett was interesting and this definitely could be the start of The Alpha Male's road to the top. I don't see Jarrett being too keen to get in the ring with him however.

Kazarian again in the main event showing how respected the X Division title is. Surprised to see Shane at ringside but I'm guessing he will want to be Kazarian's back up for the future, although I do question why he is takig his name out of contention to challenge Kazarian for the title.

Overall God two good shows, especially the Anniversary show. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with the World title and Jarrett's response to Brown's challenge. Keep it up mate.

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
July 9th 2004

TNA iMPACT! opens tonight with tag team action as the recently re-united Triple X of Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper take on World X Cup participants Abismo Negro and Heavy Metal. The Team Mexico duo have some early success as Triple X seemingly took their opponents too lightly from the offset. Despite the early advantage, neither Metal nor Negro could deal the killer blow and allowed Daniels and Skipper to get back into the match. In the end, Skipper hit Negro with the Play of the Day before Daniels followed up with the Best Moonsault Ever to score the three count. Following the victory, Christopher Daniels was quick to issue a challenge to the newly crowned NWA World Tag Team Champions, America’s Most Wanted. Daniels made sure to point out that while he isn’t expecting a title match next week, he is expecting an answer from Chris Harris and James Storm.

Triple X def. Abismo Negro and Heavy Metal in 08:21.

Backstage with Jeremy Borash we find Jerry Lynn and the recently reclaimed World X Cup. Lynn thanks Hector Garza and Nosawa for stepping up to the plate and helping him restore some honour to the World X Cup after the attempts from Team Canada to steal the trophy. Lynn announces with the World X Cup concluded for another year, he is now ready to focus on claiming some more championship gold. Before Lynn can announce what championship he is looking at, he gets ambushed by the entirety of Team Canada as Borash runs for safety. Bobby Roode, Eric Young and Johnny Devine, led by Petey Williams easily out match Lynn and beat him to the floor in a gang attack, leaving Petey Williams once again in possession of the World X Cup.

Inside the ring, a clearly unhappy Ron Killings locked up with Sonny Siaki. Siaki has been struggling for any kind of momentum in recent months so a win against the former World Champion would do wonders for him. Killings had other ideas and wouldn’t give Siaki an inch. Siaki managed a few brief periods of dominance, but Killings was able to survive and fend him off each time before retaking the advantage. In the end, Killings managed to pick up the victory with an Axe Kick before he finally gets an answer from the NWA representative Dusty Rhodes. Rhodes states that the NWA Championship Committee agrees that Killings has a legitimate gripe and as such have made a match for next week. Ron Killings vs. Jeff Hardy, with the winner going on to face NWA World Champion AJ Styles for the championship. For the first time in weeks, Killings cracks a smile once he hears the news.

Ron Killings def. Sonny Siaki in 04:51.

Former NWA World Champion Jeff Jarrett is backstage next with his new lackeys in Glenn Gilberti and Johnny Swinger. Conspicuous by his absence, is Director of Authority Vince Russo. Jarrett reminds us that last week, a peasant tried to challenge the King of the Mountain when Monty Brown announced the hunt was on. Jarrett laughs off the idea of facing the Alpha Male, stating he has a World title to regain, and tells Brown that if he wants to be taken seriously, he is going to have to earn the right to face the King of the Mountain. A confidant Jarrett goes on to announce that next week, Monty Brown will face Glenn Gilberti, something Gilberti didn’t seem to know about as he protests the announcement. Gilberti claims he can’t beat that guy, but Jarrett isn’t listening and presses on. Jarrett tells Brown that this is his big chance to impress the most important person in TNA, the King of the Mountain himself.

X-Division action follows as the recently debuted Alex Shelley takes on former champion Michael Shane. Shelley is accompanied by Goldylocks and Abyss while Shane has his long time girlfriend Traci Brooks for support. Shane and Shelley stray away from the typical X-Division match and keep it mat based with each man trying to out wrestle the other. Shane gains the early advantage but as time passes, Shelley is able to turn it around thanks to a wide variety of unique and painful submission holds. While none of the holds are enough to gain the victory, they all do damage to Shane and in the end it pays off. Shane manages to connect with Sweet Shane Music but a painful knee bar earlier in the match means Shane was too slow to make the pin. With Shane on a bad leg, Shelley manages to fight back and hit an Air Raid Crash for the victory. Following the match, Abyss climbs into the ring and looks to do some damage to Michael Shane but to the surprise of many, Chris Sabin makes the save rather than Shane’s best friend and X-Division Champion Kazarian. A clearly confused Shelley quickly bails out as Sabin fights off Abyss until Goldylocks calls for a retreat.

Alex Shelley def. Michael Shane in 12:43.

Petey Williams leads Team Canada to the ring next with the World X Cup in hand once more. Just like a few weeks earlier, Williams announces a victory celebration for the rightful World X Cup holders, seemingly ignoring the fact that Team Canada are 0-2 with the trophy on the line. As Team Canada start to sing the Canadian National Anthem, an irate Jerry Lynn runs to the ring with a steel chair in hand. Johnny Devine gets introduced to the chair across his back as Team Canada are taken by surprise. Roode gets a chair shot to the ribs but that was the end of Lynn’s ambush as Eric Young and Petey Williams quickly go on the attack. Lynn tries to fight both men off, but a hockey stick to the back from Scott D’Amore ends the resistance. Bobby Roode and Johnny Devine soon recover and join in, one again making a four on one beating. With no chance of a comeback, Lynn tries to cover up but is soon held in place by Roode and Devine as Williams takes the World X Cup trophy and smashes it across the spine of its rightful holder. Team Canada stand over a broken Jerry Lynn and a shattered World X Cup, seemingly deciding if they can’t have it, no one can.

iMPACT!’s main event this week sees the current NWA World Champion go one on one with former NWA World Tag Team Champion Dallas. Dallas manages to use his considerable size to his advantage early on but the champion is well used to fighting against the odds and is able to take everything thrown at him. Eager not to lose in his first match as champion, Styles manages to give an impressive counter to Dallas’ attempt at the Black Out, turning it into a hurracanrana at the very last second. Dallas tries to rebound but runs into a quick dropkick as Styles build momentum. Dallas knows he has to shut down Styles before he gets into top gear but inexperience in singles action costs the big man and Styles is able to connect with a Pele Kick for the three count in a tough first match for the new NWA World Champion. Styles knows it wasn’t an easy match and shows his respect to his opponent afterwards by offering a handshake. Dallas pauses before nodding and accepting the gesture. As Dallas leaves Styles to celebrate, the champion gets another unwelcome surprise to congratulate him. This time in the form of Raven, with a kendo stick. Raven lays into the champion from behind with the kendo stick before hitting a Raven Effect and taking possession of the NWA World Championship. Raven, having spent the past few months watching from the side lines has finally picked his spot and decided he wants the NWA World Championship.

AJ Styles def. Dallas in 11:02.

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
July 16th 2004

iMPACT! opens this week with X-Division action as former X-Division Champion Chris Sabin goes one on one with former NWA World Tag Team Champion Kid Kash. Sabin tried his best to keep the match at a high tempo but Kash wasn’t having any of it, and continually slowed the pace down any way he could. From bailing out of the ring to eye rakes, Kash took every short cut he could think of in an attempt to frustrate his opponent. The tactic seemed to be working as Sabin was visibly growing annoyed as time went on. Kash looked to use this to his advantage following the third eye rake of the match but Sabin blocked the following Money Maker attempt and replied with an eye rake of his own. With Kash claiming a disqualification, the official wasn’t having any of it and stood back as Sabin hit a Cradleshock for the victory. As Sabin gets his arm raised, an irate Kid Kash attack from behind which only serves to draw Michael Shane to the ring. Shane and Kash square off before Shane turns and hits Sabin with Sweet Shane Music despite Sabin saving him last week. Shane steps back and motions for Kash to continue the assault. Kash doesn’t ask questions and simply gets his revenge with the Money Maker on Sabin.

Chris Sabin def. Kid Kash in 09:19.

NWA World Tag Team Champions, Chris Harris and James Storm, collectively known as America’s Most Wanted are backstage with Jeremy Borash. Harris, as per usual, handles the talking duties and responds to the challenge from Triple X last week. Harris states himself and Storm would be more than happy to defend the titles against the former champions, but following a meeting with the NWA Championship Committee, they refused the match as a second team had also made the very same request. Harris explains that the NWA Championship Committee have instead made a match to take place next week on iMPACT! Triple X vs. Team Canada with the winners being named the new number one contenders. America’s Most Wanted make it clear that they don’t care which team wins, they will be ready for both.

X-Division action follows once more as Alex Shelley is accompanied to the ring by Goldylocks and the Monster Abyss for singles action with former X-Division Champion Amazing Red. Mike Tenay on commentary points out that the NWA Championship Committee have been very impressed with Alex Shelley since his debut and have given him what they believe to be a tough challenge to test his championship credentials. Knowing this, Red was eager to ruin the plans and instead put himself into championship contention and hit Shelley hard with everything he had. Shelley tried to keep the match on the mat but Red refused to cooperate and assaulted Shelley from the air with his unmatched aerial offence. Red almost sealed the victory with a Code Red but ended up too close to the ropes and Shelley was able to grab the bottom rope to save himself. Desperate, Red attempted the Infra-Red but Shelley pulled himself out of the way and quickly hit an Air Raid Crash for the hard fought three count. After the match, Goldylocks announces Shelley as the next number one contender for the X-Division Championship, before warning Chris Sabin to keep his nose out of other people’s business.

Alex Shelley def. Amazing Red in 13:01.

AJ Styles is next to the ring but without his NWA World Championship belt, it currently being in the possession of Raven, following his ambush last week. Styles is understandably irate at the incident and wastes little time in calling out Raven. Raven ignores the challenge and doesn’t respond, leaving Styles to up the stakes. Styles states he knows what Raven wants and has already spoken to the NWA Championship Committee and they have reluctantly agreed to the Champions request. Styles announces that next week, he will defend against Raven but only if Raven returns the NWA World Championship right now. This proves to be what Raven was waiting for as the deranged one finally makes an appearance with the championship belt around his waist. Raven, without saying a word, removes the belt and lays it across the entrance ramp, making Styles come and get it. Styles doesn’t need to be told twice and quickly leaves the ring, meeting Raven on the entrance ramp as the duo come to blows. Styles starts to gain the upper hand as security move in to separate them, allowing Raven to escape before Styles can get any meaningful revenge. Despite losing possession of the championship belt, Raven got what he wanted in the form of a one on one title match next week on iMPACT!

Jeff Jarrett joins Don West and Mike Tenay on commentary next as his lackey Glenn Gilberti reluctantly enters the ring with the Alpha Male Money Brown. Jarrett spends the entire match trying to downplay Brown but what happens in the ring is clearly worrying the King of the Mountain. Knowing this is his chance to impress, Brown hits the ground running and easily runs through Gilberti, giving his opponent zero offence. A short, one sided match ends with the Pounce, cutting Jarrett off mid-sentence and leaving the former NWA World Champion speechless. A clearly intimidated Johnny Swinger is understandably upset when Jarrett finally regains his vocal cords and announces that next week, Monty Brown will face Johnny Swinger in singles action.

Monty Brown def. Glenn Gilberti in 00:47.

The main event of the evening is a number one contenders match as former NWA World Champion Ron Killings finally gets his opportunity to potentially reclaim the title he was never beaten for against the debuting Jeff Hardy. Killings starts the match roughly, showing a new-found attitude as he cuts out the showboating and instead simply lays into the Charismatic Enigma. All week Killings has been telling everyone who will listen that Hardy is trying to steal his spot and is clearly letting his anger out right now. Hardy takes a beating for several minutes before catching The Truth with a jawbreaker to turn the match around. Hardy ups the tempo of the match and Killings struggles to adapt to the sudden change, allowing Hardy to build momentum and do a lot of damage in the process. A middle rope leg drop scores a long two count before Killings fires back with a punch to the neck of Hardy. With Hardy struggling for air, Killings hits the ropes but misses an Axe Kick, allowing Hardy to capitalise and hit a Twist of Faith followed by a Swanton Bomb for the three count and the victory in his TNA debut.

Jeff Hardy def. Ron Killings in 12:29.

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
July 23rd 2004

TNA iMPACT! opens this week with an X-Division four-way match, featuring four men who are all looking to move into championship contention as Kazarian continues to look for new challengers. Hector Garza, Sonjay Dutt and Miyamoto all exchange handshakes before the bell but Kid Kash declines and instead gives Garza a middle finger. Whatever Kash’s plan was, it didn’t work as he quickly found himself on the wrong end of a three on one beating. With Kash hurting on the floor, Garza, Dutt and Miyamoto kicked the match into a higher gear as all three men effortlessly flew around the ring, hitting anything that moved as hard as they could time and time again. Kid Kash stayed on the floor for the majority of the match before trying to steal the victory with a Money maker on Miyamoto but his pin attempt was broken up by Garza hitting Tornillo to both Kash and Miyamoto. Garza shoved Kash out of the way before pinning the unresponsive Miyamoto for the victory.

Hector Garza def. Miyamoto, Kid Kash and Sonjay Dutt in 07:21.

Recently Monty Brown decided he wanted an increase in competition and issued a challenge to former NWA Champion Jeff Jarrett. Eager to avoid the match, Jarrett instead sent Glenn Gilberti to take care of the Alpha Male. Last week, Brown destroyed Gilberti and tonight looked to do the same to his partner in Johnny Swinger. Unlike last week, Jeff Jarrett doesn’t join Mike Tenay and Don West for commentary. Before the bell can even sound, Gilberti and Swinger jump Brown and get in as many shots as they can to try and weaken the unbeaten Monty Brown. The plan works and allows Swinger to take early control once the match begins. Despite the advantage, the offence of Swinger is short lived as the repeated clubs to the back of Brown soon lose their impact as the Alpha Male simply shrugs them off. Swinger tries to offer a handshake to Brown, apologising for the sneak attack but instead gets a stiff lariat followed by a vicious Pounce for an easy three-count.

Monty Brown def. Johnny Swinger in 01:01.

Backstage we find Ron Killings with his 3 Live Kru team mates BG James and Konnan. James is trying to calm down a clearly irate Killings as the former NWA World Champion rants about undeserving newbies coming in and trying to steal his championship, a championship that should be around his waist if the officials weren’t so blind. Konnan simply sits back and lets Killings vent, leaving James with a near impossible task of convincing his partner that losing a number one contenders match isn’t all that bad. Elsewhere, Jeff Jarrett isn’t much happier as he demands NWA Director of Authority do something to stop Monty Brown. Jarrett claims to be running out of options to which Russo suggests another trial next week for the Alpha Male. Instead of a simple one on one match, Monty Brown is this time going to run a gauntlet. Jarrett loves the idea and states he will take care of the entrants before Russo warns that if Brown survives, he won’t have much choice other than to give Brown the match he wants.

The first of two tag team matches follows as X-Division Champion Kazarian teams with long-time ally Michael Shane to face the newly formed duo of Alex Shelley and Abyss. Traci and Goldylocks accompany their respective teams to the ring but neither gets involved in the match. Abyss wisely starts for his team and uses his power advantage to fend off both Kazarian and Shane as Shelley barks orders from the apron. Abyss waves it off and continues to do as he pleases, easily man handling both Kazarian and Shane for long periods of time, suggesting Goldylocks may have overlooked her best option for championship gold. As the match winds on, Kazarian and Shane manage to take the advantage with some double team offence following a series of quick tags to confuse the Monster. Despite having Abyss on the back foot, a mistimed springboard dropkick from Shane sees him take out his own partner. As Shane wastes time checking on Kazarian, Abyss recovers and quickly hits a Black Hole Slam but doesn’t get to make the cover. It turns out that while Abyss was recovering, Alex Shelley tagged himself in and now quickly enters the ring to pin Shane and pick up the victory having done nothing but stand back and watch.

Alex Shelley & Abyss def. Michael Shane & Kazarian in 06:28.

America’s Most Wanted, Chris Harris and James Storm, are next on the scene as the NWA World Tag Team Champions join Mike Tenay on Don West on commentary ahead of the number one contenders match between Team Canada and Triple X. Both teams have issues challenges to the champions in recent weeks following impressive results so the NWA Championship Committee decided to give both teams equal opportunity. While Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper looked to play it straight, Bobby Roode and Eric Young took every shortcut they could think of and it seemed like it was working. The presence of Scott D’Amore at ringside casually slapping an ankle here, or poking with the hockey stick there, ensured Triple X were operating with eyes in the back of their heads, allowing Team Canada to take advantage. Bobby Roode managed to catch Skipper with a Death Valley Driver but before he could make the cover, Jerry Lynn made an appearance at ringside. Lynn snatched the hockey stick from D’Amore and showed no mercy in using it on the Team Canada Coach. Johnny Devine and Petey Williams quickly rushed to ringside to try and save their leader but the distraction proved to be enough as Roode gets caught with an STO followed by the Best Moonsault Ever from Daniels for the victory. It may be a small victory for Lynn, but it’s a huge loss for Team Canada as Triple X celebrate their victory at ringside right in front of America’s Most Wanted.

Triple X def. Team Canada in 13:06.

NWA World Champion AJ Styles makes the first defence of his recently won championship next against the sadistic Raven. Raven once again proved himself to be the master manipulator as he managed to get AJ Styles to challenge him to a match, with his own championship on the line, allowing Raven to jump to the front ahead of official number one contender Jeff Hardy, and wannabe number one contender Ron Killings. With Styles eager for revenge, Raven opts to start the match by leaving the ring, continuing with his mind games. Despite Raven thinking he has the upper hand, Styles was expecting such a tactic and wastes little time in diving over the ropes to wipe out his first challenger. Finally getting his hands on Raven, Styles doesn’t hold back as he unleashes on his opponent on the floor before finally returning the ring. The match follows a peculiar pattern of Styles dominating Raven, only to be cut off with an eye rake or hair pull or some other underhanded tactic that allows Raven a brief period of dominance. As the match rolls on, the conditioning of Styles comes into play as Raven clearly starts to get worn down while the champion goes from strength to strength leading to Raven missing his chance at the Raven Effect. Styles manages to slip free and quickly hit a Pele Kick that sends the challenger to the mat in a heap. Styles doesn’t even attempt a pin, instead opting for a Spiral Tap just to make sure of the victory in his first defence.

NWA World Championship
AJ Styles © def Raven to retain the NWA World Championship in 11:39.

Following the match as AJ Styles gets his arm raised in victory, Ron Killings attacks the champion from behind, smashing a steel chair across his back. Killings smashes the chair across the prone body of Styles several more times while yelling at Styles to challenge him next, apparently using the Raven approach. Seeing what Killings is trying to do, Jeff Hardy quickly runs to the ring himself. Hardy ducks a wild swing from Killings and connects with a front dropkick, sending the former champion into retreat. Hardy makes sure Killings doesn’t return to the ring before turning to check on Styles. With Hardy’s back turned, Raven hits him with a low blow followed by the Raven Effect, obviously not happy with his plan failing. Seeing an opening, Killings quickly re-enters the ring and hits Raven with an Axe Kick to leave all three men down. Killings takes hold of the NWA World Championship and raises it above his head, obviously still feeling like he should be the champion right now and not AJ Styles.

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
July 30th 2004

iMPACT! opens this week with the NWA World Tag Team Championships on the line. Fresh from a somewhat controversial victory last week over Team Canada, Triple X ask no questions and challenge America’s Most Wanted for the gold. With four men all at the peak of their craft, it was understandably a fast paced and action packed opener. Elix Skipper showed some amazing agility by walking the top rope to take down both Harris and Storm with a rolling senton followed by Daniels hitting the Best Moonsault Ever for a two count on Storm. Despite the strong showing, AMW managed to survive the onslaught of Triple X and take Daniels out of the match with a Spear from Harris. With Skipper left by himself, it was only a matter of time before he fell to the Death Sentence from the champions for the finish.

NWA World Tag Team Championships
America’s Most Wanted def. Triple X in 11:17 to retain the NWA World Tag Team Championships.

Backstage we find NWA representative Dusty Rhodes with number one contender Jeff Hardy. Hardy is understandably upset with the actions of both Raven and Ron Killings in recent weeks as his NWA Championship match with AJ Styles has been put on hold. Eager to find a resolution, Hardy offers to put his status as number one contender on the line if it means a solution can be found. NWA World Champion AJ Styles interrupts with an idea of his own. Styles tells Hardy to keep his number one contendership but suggests Dusty Rhodes goes back to the NWA Championship Committee and makes three number one contenders. Styles seems happy to put his gold on the line in a four way match, once again taking any challenge that comes his way. Hardy seems happy with the suggestion but Rhodes a little less so despite agreeing to speak with the Championship Committee as requested.

The Alpha Male Monty Brown is up next as he prepares to run a gauntlet set up by former NWA World Champion Jeff Jarrett. Should Brown defeat all his challengers in the 15 minute time limit, The Alpha Male will get a one on one match with the King of the Mountain. Eager to avoid that outcome, Jarrett come well prepared and sends the debuting Shawn Hernandez to the ring as the first opponent. Hernandez manages to match strength with Brown and seems content to waste as much time as possible. Despite being evenly matched, experience comes into play as Brown sees an opening and doesn’t let it slip away. With Hernandez arguing with the official to kill time, Brown charges into the ropes and connects with The Pounce to score his first victory in the gauntlet.

Monty Brown def. Shawn Hernandez in 04:11.

Knowing time is against him, Brown doesn’t make the same mistake for his second opponent and quickly dives onto another debutant in the form of Lex Lovett. Lovett, unlike Hernandez before him, doesn’t even get a chance to waste time as Brown mercilessly beats on him with clubbing blows. Keeping one eye on the clock, Brown hits an Alpha Bomb to make up some time and score his second victory of the night.

Monty Brown def. Lex Lovett in 05:58.

Seeing that youth wasn’t working, Jarrett mixed it up with his next choice by sending in Don Harris. Brown decides against rushing into this one, instead letting the bigger man come to him. Knowing from experience that matching power with Harris wouldn’t be a good plan, Brown exploits the biggest weakness Harris has in the form of his considerable lack of speed. The Alpha Male easily avoid Harris at every turn and before long Harris is struggling to keep up. With Brown at full sprint, even the biggest challenger to date falls to a vicious Pounce as Monty Brown seems to just get stronger as the match goes on.

Monty Brown def. Don Harris in 08:02.

Just over halfway through the time limit and Jarrett is clearly getting concerned as his troops are falling much quicker than he expected, having only three men left by his side, two of which have already been defeated by Brown in recent weeks. Jarrett eats up as much time as he can making his next selection before sending Glenn Gilberti to the ring for a second attempt. Much like his first attempt a few weeks ago, Gilberti fails miserably as Brown doesn’t give him an inch before hitting another Pounce for a fourth consecutive victory.

Monty Brown def. Glenn Gilberti in 09:23.

With Jarrett seemingly resigned to defeat he half heartily waves Johnny Swinger to the ring for match number five. Swinger slowly approaches the ring, knowing he hasn’t a chance and is instead simply there to use up time. Swinger slides into the ring before quickly backing out and walking around the ringside as the official starts a ten count. On nine, Swinger slides in and back out again with a big smirk on his face, obviously feeling he has outsmarted Brown. The official has other ideas and has the clock paused until Swinger enters the ring and stays in it. Swinger reluctantly climbs into the ring and offers to lay down for Brown instead of taking a Pounce. Brown rightfully doesn’t buy it and instead stomps Swinger’s face and connects with an Alpha Bomb for another three count.

Monty Brown def. Johnny Swinger in 12:04.

Less than three minutes remain on the clock as Jarrett doesn’t even look at his final troop and simply shakes his head as Antonio Banks runs to the ring for his debut. The Miami native foolishly runs into Brown and starts laying in with rights and lefts as the Alpha Male goes into retreat for the first time. Jarrett suddenly perks up as he checks the clock and starts to think maybe he underestimated Banks. Banks maintains control for almost the entirety of the match, only stopping once to check the clock himself. As Banks smirks at the time reading less than 30 seconds remaining, he feels the Pounce as Brown rallies late on to score the sixth and final victory he needed with only seconds to spare.

Monty Brown def. Antonio Banks in 14:47.

A defeated Jeff Jarrett puts his hands to his head as he realises he now has no choice in the matter and will have to step into the ring with Monty Brown having watched the Alpha Male destroy every road block put in his path. As Brown gets his arm raised in victory, Glenn Gilberti and Johnny Swinger attack from behind. Knowing this is his last chance, Jarrett quickly runs to the ring to assist in trying to soften up the unbeaten Alpha Male. Brown easily fends off Gilberti and Swinger but then walks right into a guitar shot from the King of the Mountain as Jarrett finally manages to put Brown down for the first time. Jarrett stands over Brown, knowing it’s going to be the toughest challenge the three time NWA World Champion has ever had to face.

Backstage we find Team Canada in full effect. Petey Williams steps forward alongside Scott D’Amore as he speaks on behalf of Bobby Roode, Eric Young and Johnny Devine in condemning the actions of Jerry Lynn last week when he cost Team Canada the number one contendership for the NWA World Tag Team Championships. Williams claimed the interference was completely unprovoked and unjustified but admits he should expect nothing less from a coward like Lynn, seemingly ignoring the fact that Team Canada smashed the World X Cup to pieces only weeks ago. Williams claims not to know what Lynn has a problem with Team Canada but is willing to settle it next week in singles action, assuming Lynn isn’t scared of course.

The main event of the evening see’s the X-Division Championship on the line as Kazarian puts his gold on the line against newcomer Alex Shelley. Shelley, as always, is accompanied by Goldylocks and Abyss. The presence of Abyss at ringside means Kazarian needs to have eyes in the back of his head as the Monster continues to do whatever Goldylocks orders him to, including getting involved in the match several times to aid Shelley. After the third interference, Kazarian had enough and took out Abyss with a dive from the top rope to even the odds. Doing so almost cost Kazarian big time as Shelley quickly connected with the Air Raid Crash but was too close to the ropes, allowing Kazarian to escape at two. A second Air Raid Crash attempt followed shortly after, but this time Kazarian was able to slip free and hit back with a Pump Kick to stun the challenger. One Wave of the Future later and Kazarian scores the three count to continue his streak of successful title defences.

X-Division Championship
Kazarian def. Alex Shelley in 12:09 to retain the X-Division Championship.

Before Kazarian can even get his arm raised in victory, The Monster Abyss is climbing into the ring in search of payback. Kazarian meets Abyss at the ropes as the duo exchange right hands until the surprise appearance of Kid Kash turns things in favour of Abyss. Kash connects with a low blow on the champion before teaming up with Abyss to beat Kazarian to the mat. Chris Sabin and Hector Garza soon run in to even up the odds as Alex Shelley re-joins the action, making it three on three. As Sabin manages to hoist Shelley onto his shoulders, Michael Shane slides in and connects with Sweet Shane Music as Hector Garza is able to send Kash to the floor. Shane hits a second Sweet Shane Music, this time to Garza as the ring starts to clear. A Pump Kick from Kazarian sends Abyss out of the ring along with Shelley. With Kazarian’s back turned, Shane seems to be considering his next move but before he can decide he is confronted by his long time partner. The duo exchange words with Shane overheard telling Kazarian you said you didn’t want my help.

[Austerio]

I marked for the referee stopping the clock during the Monty Brown gauntlet. Terrific booking. Also dig the booking of Antonio Banks seemingly only losing because Brown hit the Pounce. Puts Banks over and also shows that the Pounce is a credible finisher. Good stuff, looking forward to this feud developing

Sent from my Z799VL using Tapatalk

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
August 6th 2004

X-Division action opens the show this week as former champion Kid Kash faces the debuting Roderick Strong. Kash has slowly but surely been gaining momentum since splitting from his long-time partner Dallas almost two months ago and based on his actions last week, has his sights set on the X-Division Championship. Due to this, a win for his opponent would not only earn Strong a full-time spot on the roster, but also put him right into championship contention. Knowing the stakes, Strong wastes little time in targeting the back of his more experienced foe with a wide variety of painful backbreakers. Despite the sound strategy, Kash was able to counter in the way he knows best, short cuts. A series of eye rakes followed by a cleverly disguised low blow that the official missed was enough to allow Kash to hit the Money Maker for the victory. Following the pin fall, Kash was quick to issue a challenge to Hector Garza for a match next week, apparently seeing Garza as an obstacle he needs to overcome before he can challenge for the X-Division Championship.

Kid Kash def. Roderick Strong in 08:21.

NWA Representative Dusty Rhodes makes his way to the ring next having taken the suggestion of NWA World Champion AJ Styles to the NWA Championship Committee. Rhodes reminds us that with three men all looking for a shot at AJ Styles, the Champion himself proposed he face all three men at once. The NWA Championship Committee were surprised by the suggestion, but greatly respected the courage being shown by Styles and agreed to his request, making a four-way match for the NWA World Championship next week on iMPACT! AJ Styles will defend against Jeff Hardy, Raven and Ron Killings in the main event.

Tag Team action follows as The Naturals look to gain some much-needed momentum against Mr. Aguila and Heavy Metal. A few months ago, the Naturals looked like a sure thing to become NWA World Tag Team Champions but have struggled to stand out as Triple X and Team Canada have both raised the bar in the pursuit of America’s Most Wanted. With Shane Douglas in their corner for unexplained reasons, Stevens and Douglas showed a new found mean streak as they jumped the World X Cup duo before the bell even sounded. Aguila spent the majority of the match in the corner of the Naturals as Douglas gave instructions from the floor. Eventually, Aguila managed to bring Heavy Metal in to rally a come-back but with his partner out of commission, Heavy Metal could only do so much. In the end, Heavy Metal simply ran out of steam against two younger opponents and fell victim to a Natural Disaster for the three count.

The Naturals def. Heavy Metal and Mr. Aguila in 07:39.

Current X-Division Champion Kazarian is found backstage as he approaches former champion Chris Sabin. Sabin is understandably cautious following getting kicked in the face last week by Michael Shane. Kazarian surprises many by not gloating but instead offering an apology on behalf of Shane. Kazarian states he has no idea what got into his partner but appreciates Sabin stepping up to come to his aid. Sabin remains mostly silent as Kazarian explains he just bumped into Dusty Rhodes and got some news. Next week, Kazarian was scheduled to team with Shane to face Alex Shelley and Abyss in tag team action, but following recent events, Kazarian isn’t sure he can trust Shane to have his back. As such, Kazarian requested Sabin as his partner instead. Sabin agrees to team with Kazarian, but also warns not to make an enemy out of him by doing something stupid in the match.

Petey Williams leads Team Canada to the ring next for a much-anticipated singles match with Jerry Lynn. The World X Cup holder wastes little time in tackling Williams as soon as he enters the ring and unloading with rights and lefts. Having not expected it, Williams is dragged from the ring and to safety by Bobby Roode and Johnny Devine as Eric Young runs interference. Despite the overwhelming numbers disadvantage, Lynn remains focused solely on Williams and brings the action back into the ring following a cannon ball dive over the ropes to take out Williams, Roode and Devine. Lynn maintains his advantage for several more minutes before Williams is able to turn it around by attacking the shoulder of the veteran. With Lynn reduced to one arm, Williams attempts a running Canadian Destroyer but Lynn stands his ground and instead hits a backdrop followed by a Cradle Piledriver that saw Lynn fight through the pain to pick up the victory. Before the bell can even finish ringing, Eric Young attacks, followed shortly after by Roode and Devine. Team Canada quickly triple team Lynn and look set to use the hockey stick on his shoulder when America’s Most Wanted make the surprise save, sending Team Canada into retreat without throwing a single punch.

Jerry Lynn def. Petey Williams in 09:43.

Backstage, Director of Authority Vince Russo is with a clearly distressed Jeff Jarrett. Jarrett mumbles that there has to be something they can do, to which Russo swears to God that he tried everything he could think of to get the match called off but his hands are tied. Next week, Jeff Jarrett has no option but to face Monty Brown. Russo appears to have given up hope, but Jarrett seems to get an idea. Jarrett mumbles to himself about it being a long shot, but it’s the only shot he has left, before walking out of Russo’s office. A confused Russo calls after Jarrett, trying to get filled in on what is happening but gets ignored by the King of the Mountain.

Ahead of the NWA World Championship match next week, the four competitors involved will take part in a tag team match that will serve as a preview for the show. NWA World Champion AJ Styles teams with Jeff Hardy in a dream team pairing, while Ron Killings and Raven make up a very unwilling alliance on the opposite side of the ring. Despite next week being a four-way match, Raven and Killings make it known that Styles is their target as both men manage to put their differences aside and work together to weaken the fighting champion while keeping Hardy out of the match. Raven and Killings both pick apart the back of Styles for long periods of time but the arrogance of Killings proves to be his downfall. Following an Axe Kick, Killings opted not to go for the cover and instead dragged Styles to his feet and called for a Styles Clash. Styles reversed mid move into a head scissors take down and made the long overdue tag to a very fresh Jeff Hardy. Hardy quickly ups the tempo of the match as he nails both Killings and Raven with a series of high risk attacks, showing no concern for his own well-being seven days before an NWA World Championship match. It was this recklessness that seen Hardy miss a Whisper in the Wind on Killings and get hit with an Axe Kick. Killings covered Hardy only to be told that Hardy was no longer legal, having been blind tagged by Styles during the Whisper in the Wind attempt. As Killings demands the official count anyway, Styles connects with a Spiral Tap to both Killings and Hardy to score the victory for his team.

AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy def. Ron Killings and Raven in 12:16.

Following the match, Styles takes possession of his NWA World Championship belt only to be hit with a Raven Effect from a pissed off Raven. Raven snatches up the title belt but before he can leave is met by Jeff Hardy and a Twist of Faith. With Killings still down from the Spiral Tap, Hardy is left as the last man standing while collecting the NWA World Championship belt. Hardy takes a good long look at the belt before dropping it across the chest of Styles, leaving the champion down but in possession of his title anyway.

[God]

TNA iMPACT!
August 13th 2004

This edition of TNA iMPACT! opens with tag team action as Konnan and BG James of the 3 Live Kru look to get back into the championship mix against the underperforming duo of Andy Douglas and Chase Stevens. Having struggled for opportunities as of late, The Naturals made a bold move in recruiting the services of veteran Shane Douglas. The influence of Douglas is obvious from the start as Douglas and Andrews jump Konnan and James during their pre-match mic time. Konnan is quickly thrown from the ring while James is isolated and double teamed for much of the match. Every time Konnan tried to get back to the apron, he was either knocked back down by one of Stevens and Douglas, or simply pulled back down by Shane Douglas. BG James managed some minor offence, but was unable to fend off the duo with their new found mean streak and eventually fell to the Natural Disaster for the three count. Konnan was less than happy as he practically sulked on the floor after the match.

The Naturals w/ Shane Douglas def. 3 Live Kru in 04:11.

More tag team action followed as Goldylocks led Abyss and Alex Shelley to the ring to face the newly formed duo of Kazarian and Chris Sabin. As per usual, Abyss did the bulk of the work for his team with Sabin and Kazarian struggling to get on the same page. Despite their inexperience as a team, Kazarian and Sabin managed to turn the match around as Abyss slowly started to tire out due to his partner refusing to tag in. Abyss weathered the storm as best he could but as Kazarian and Sabin found their groove, he was desperate for a tag that never came. In the end, Kazarian was able to score the victory with the Pump Kick. After the match, an irate Alex Shelley attacked both Sabin and Kazarian with a steel chair until Michael Shane ran in the chase him off. Shane quickly helps Kazarian to his feet before hitting Sabin with some Sweet Shane Music, seemingly just to let Kazarian know he made a bad call last week.

Kazarian and Chris Sabin def. Abyss and Alex Shelley in 08:29.

A video package is shown next, all the way from Mexico where Hector Garza is ready to respond to the challenge from Kid Kash. Garza states that he finds it amusing how Kash would wait until the two weeks of the year that he was unavailable in order to issue a challenge. Garza states he isn’t surprised by the tactic but has already spoken with NWA representative Dusty Rhodes who booked the match for next week instead of this week, as Kash originally requested. Garza states that his commitments in Mexico are finished later this week and he will be full time in TNA, meaning the X-Division Championship is in his sights going forward.

Over the course of recent weeks Jeff Jarrett has been moving heaven and hell with the assistance of Director of Authority Vince Russo to avoid facing Monty Brown. Tonight, he runs out of excuses and is clearly a worried man as he starts the match outside the ring. Despite having Glenn Gilberti and Johnny Swinger to use as human shields, Jarrett keeps putting off the actual match and at one stage seems to consider just walking away. Brown slowly grows frustrated in the ring and soon takes it out on Jarrett’s human shields. Gilberti and Swinger both feel the effect of the Alpha Male on the floor as Gilberti gets thrown into the crowd while Swinger gets his head driven into the ring steps over and over until both men are no longer a factor. The beating allowed Jarrett time to enter the ring and claim the higher ground which he uses to his advantage to stomp Brown as he slides into the ring. Knowing the cant let Brown build any momentum, Jarrett soon puts a sleeper on the bigger man to try and keep him down. Brown practically shrugs it off as he powers his way back to his feet with Jarrett still on his back. A fearful King of the Mountain gets rammed into the corner to break the hold. Brown coughs a few times but seems almost unaffected by the attack as Jarrett quickly goes after the legs before motioning for help from the back. His help doesn’t arrive. Jarrett frantically tries a Figure Four on Brown but is easily kicked away. Jarrett yells for someone to “get out here” but his pleas are ignored. While wondering what happened to his back-up plan, Jarrett gets snatched from behind and effortlessly thrown backwards in a release German suplex by Brown. A confidant Monty Brown stalks Jarrett around the ring before dropping his with a stiff lariat and following up with an Alpha Bomb. Despite having the match in hand, the Alpha Male isn’t done yet and drags a hurting Jarrett to his feet before slapping him a few times to try and revive him. A dazed Jarrett has no idea what is happening when Brown suddenly breaks into a sprint for the ropes and hits a vicious Pounce to the unsuspecting former NWA World Champion. Brown wastes no time in covering the lifeless Jarrett for the biggest victory of his career to date.

Monty Brown def. Jeff Jarrett in 08:22.

As Monty Brown gets his arm raised in victory, Jarrett’s back up plan finally arrives as Brown is attacked from behind and suplexed to the mat. Brown tries to shake it off but the returning former NWA World Champion Ken Shamrock doesn’t give Brown a second before kicking him in the face and quickly applying an ankle lock. Glenn Gilberti slides back into the ring and eagerly starts to stomp on Brown before soon being joined by a dazed Johnny Swinger. Shamrock wrenches on the ankle as Jarrett tries to pull himself to his feet with the help of the ropes. Brown tries to kick free but Shamrock maintains an iron grip, only helped by Swinger and Gilberti stamping the upper body of Brown. With things looking bleak, aid comes in the form of Dallas as the big Texan quickly and easily clears out both Swinger and Gilberti as Shamrock finally releases the ankle lock and decides he has done enough damage for today. Instead of staying to fight face to face, Shamrock leaves the ring as Jarrett gets helped to the back. In the ring, an irate Monty Brown sits up holding his ankle having had his next prey come to him.

The main event of iMPACT! this week is for the NWA World Championship in a match current champion AJ Styles suggested. Eager to prove himself as the best in the world, Styles continues to take on all challenges no matter how ill-advised they may be. Thus far in his title reign Styles has shown that if you want a title match, you need only let him know, a fact Raven and Ron Killings has exploited to their gain and the annoyance of Jeff Hardy. As if knowing this, Killings and Raven team up to attack Jeff Hardy before the champion is even introduced. An Axe Kick and a Raven Effect follow before Styles rushes to the ring and finds himself in two on one odds. Despite the obvious disadvantage, Styles fights both men off before sending Raven into retreat and out of the ring. Killings and Styles lock up in the ring while Raven decides to pick the body of Hardy on the floor. Referee Andrew Thomas struggles to keep up as the match splits into two. Killings and Styles going for a technical affair while Raven makes use of the ringside furniture to punish Hardy on the outside. Raven tries to whip Hardy into the security rail but Hardy leaps to the top, catches his balance and connects with Whisper in the Wind to stun the diabolical one on the floor and head back into the ring. Inside the ring, Killings catches Styles with an Axe Kick but before he can make a cover, Hardy gets some payback with an attack from behind of his own. Styles rolls to safety but is met by Raven as Hardy and Killings take over inside the ring. The official still struggling to keep up. A similar pattern follows with Raven almost never entering the ring, instead deciding he likes his toys too much to leave them. Killings does the opposite and rarely leaves the ring, happy to show his wrestling ability and go toe to toe with both Styles and Hardy. Eventually though, all four men end up in the ring and all four are showing the effects of the total non-stop action on display. Killings once again manages to hit styles with an Axe Kick but Hardy again plays the spoiler as he catches Killings with a Twist of Faith. As Hardy climbs the ropes for a Swanton, Raven slaps the ankle and Hardy has a nasty landing before falling back into the ring. Sensing his time is now, Raven hits Hardy with the Raven Effect. Raven makes the cover but before the official can count to three, Styles comes off the top rope with a Spiral Tap to both Raven and Hardy. Styles clutches his ribs but manages to climb on top of Raven to get the three count and another successful title defence for the Phenomenal One.

NWA World Championship
AJ Styles © def. Raven, Jeff Hardy and Ron Killings to retain the NWA World Championship. AJ Styles makes defence number two of the NWA World Championship.