Welcome to the Rasslin’ Roundtable for NWA TNA’s first three-hour Sunday PPV, Victory Road! As Total Nonstop Action Wrestling enters a new era, the staff of InsidePulse.com make their predictions for each match on this show that’s also promising a segment with Roddy Piper, as well as appearences by Kevin Nash and Scott Hall.
Tune into InsidePulse for full coverage of the Sunday night PPV, as well as a post-PPV live CHAT with readers and staff!
Onto the Roundtable…
Mexico’s famous high-flying lucha libre Minis in action!
Piratita Morgan vs. Mascarita Sagrada
PK – I’m pretty sure I’ve seen both of these guys before, the Pirate guy is funny!
Winner: Piratita Morgan
Ben Morse – You’ve seen one minis match, you’ve seen ’em all, and boy have I seen a lot of minis matches…I’ll tell you, every time Widro gets drunk and bored on a Saturday night, he…oh, sorry, I guess that’s too “inside” for InsidePulse (when are we going to put a space in between those two? Is it hip to not have one? Am I really out of touch?) Anyhow, as I was saying…you’ve seen one minis match, you’ve seen ’em all, and Max Mini always wins.
Winner: Mascarita Sagarada
Matthew Michaels – C’mon we all know who the winner of this one will be!
Winner: Piratita Morgan
Gordi – Midgets on PPV. Yeah, that’ll convince the fence-sitters.
Winner: Sagrada, baby, all the way!
Jed Shaffer – Why, oh why, are they not putting on a REAL match with, say, someone who isn’t doing anything (one of the members of 3LK, for instance), instead of importing midgets? Feh. Damn indys. We turn to our trusty friend, Mr. Lincoln, who says…
Winner: Margarita whatever
Trinity’s Challenge: Who will face the TNA Knockout?
PK – Surprises very rarely win.
Winner: Trinity
Ben Morse – I have no idea if the surprise will be a new women’s wrestler or a repackaged guy we haven’t seen in awhile, but I’m pretty sure Trinity will put them over. You know what would be awesome? If the mystery opponent was Johnny Damon, center fielder/media whore of the World champion Boston Red Sox!
Winner: Johnny Damon
Matthew Michaels – Well, if TNA was logical, the best bet would be to bring in the NWA Women’s Champion, who according to NWAWrestling.com is now Kiley McLean, who defeated Kameo (who?) on June 19 when then-champ Lelani Kai no-showed the event (she’s still around?!), for Trinity to face.
Winner: Trinity, over “The Wiccan Warrior” Kiley McLean!
Gordi – I can’t even pretend to care about this one.
Winner: No one
Jed Shaffer – If they could rely on her, this would be the perfect time for TNA to pull Joanie Laurer out of career obscurity. But then again, no one is buying the PPV for this. I only know of four women in the whole fed (Trinity, Desire, Traci Brooks, Goldilocks), and three are heels, so…
Winner: Chyna Version 2.0
Russo or Rhodes: The Fans Make The Vote
PK – We all know Russo is on the outs, but both should be gone
Winner: Rhodes
Ben Morse – I don’t think there’s any question Dusty will win (since Russo is on his way out), but it truly has been surreal how this has paralleled the real election, with the uptight Northerner making logical points and arguments and sounding intelligent while the cowboy Southerner replies with incoherent buffoonery and yet still comes out the victor.
Winner: Dusty W. Rhodes
Matthew Michaels – Isn’t Russo leaving to become a minister?
Winner: Dusty
Gordi – I am not a big fan of Big Dust.
Winner: An orgy of Dusty Rhodes self-congratulation. Nobody wins.
Jed Shaffer – Russo’s sticking with TNA to the end! He’s even putting his job on the line to prove it! What a stand-up guy that Vince Russo is! The industry needs more guys like him!
Winner: Boss Hogg
Kid Kash, Dallas and The Naturals vs. Ron “The Truth” Killings, Johnny B. Badd, Erik Watts and The Empire Saint Pat Kenney
PK – Can’t go wrong picking former WWE Talent.
Winners: Badd/Killings/Watts/Kenney
Ben Morse – Why is Ron Killings in this match? Why is Kid Kash being used as enhancement talent? I missed Impact! on Friday, so I’m looking forward to seeing Badd…especially since Widro pays for my PPVs so I can do The Mean! I
Winners: Two ridiculous gimmicks, Erik Watts & a Ron Killings who is asking what he did wrong
Matthew Michaels – In what looks like an eight-man tag match thrown together to get Kash & Killings on the card, it doesn’t seem to matter who actually wins this one. Perhaps they can turn Kash & Dallas on The Naturals and start a new tag feud there? Either way, this one goes on first, or at some other point where the crowd needs a pick-up that can be achieved with some Killings kickingass.
Winners: Killings/Badd/Watts/Kenney
Gordi – I guess this qualifies as the Let’s Get Eveybody On The PPV match. I guess that having Erik Watts around will at least remind everybody that Jeff Jarrett isn’t the most egregious example of nepotism in Pro Wrestling history.
Winner: The good guys win this one, although to be honest I couldn’t
tell you which is the face team without looking it up.
Jed Shaffer – I can see it now. The braintrust of TNA Creative, gathered around Jeff Jarrett’s coffee table in his house, sipping Sanka and eating Domino’s: “We got all these guys left on the roster with nothing to do…The Naturals are former Tag Champs…Kid Kash still has residual heat from his Styles feud…everybody LOVES The Truth…and we owe Pat Kinney for hosing his career by making him drop Simon Diamond…how about a big 8-man clusterf*ck? Yeah, that’s money in the bank!”
Winners: Team Long-Hair
20 Superstar Invitational X Division Gauntlet Match
Alex Shelley vs. Amazing Red vs. Chris Sabin vs. D-Ray 3000 vs. Hector Garza vs. Jason Cross vs. Jerelle Clark vs. Kazarian vs. LA Park vs. Matt Sydal vs. Michael Shane vs. Mikey Batts vs. Miyamoto Nosawa vs. Psychosis vs. Puma vs. Shark Boy vs. Sonjay Dutt vs. Sonny Siaki vs. Spanky
PK – I guess this is a shot in the dark, but I always like Amazing Red…so I’ll go with him.
Winner: Red
Ben Morse – I’m picking A.J. in the X title match, so I’m going to have to pick a heel here, though I love Spanky and Sabin. Actually…from the recaps I read, didn’t it seem like Sabin was leaning towards a heel turn on Friday? If there’s one thing you can count on, it’s Nosawa going fast.
Winner: Chris Sabin
Matthew Michaels – I really wanna say Spanky will win this one, but I haven’t heard anything about him being signed with TNA long-term… I love Red and Dutt, too. But from storylines, I’m getting the impression that Shelley’s really being groomed for Prime Time, so why not put him over in this one?
Winner: Alex Shelley
Gordi – Will this be an entertaining spot fest or an total car wreck? I guess it depends how you feel about this kind of match. It should be better than the cruiserweight travesty at WM XX anyway.
Winner: Amazing Red? Sure, OK.
Jed Shaffer – Awful hard to determine who’s gonna win when we don’t know all 20. But odds are a lot of them are gonna be indy jobbers and filler, so let’s assume the people listed are the main contenders. Shane and/or Kazarian would be logical, but only if Styles wins the X Title, since they have unfinished business. Alex Shelley has been on a roll since ditching Goldilocks…but Red and Sonjay Dutt are returning to TNA after absences. And Jerrelle Clark has made quite a mark lately. My gut, though, says none of them…
Winner: HAIL SABIN!
Last Team Standing Match
Triple X vs. AMW
PK – It’s Prime Time baby!
Winners: Daniels/Skipper
Ben Morse – Oh how I love these teams, oh how I love this feud. This match should be brutal and awesome. AMW has the TNA circular push and it’s their time of the month again.
Winners: AMW
Matthew Michaels – Wow, what a tough one. Possibly the two best active tag teams in the U.S. right now, and probably NWA’s best feud since TNA’s inception. That being said, it doesn’t seem like the winners here matter — just as long as the match kicks complete ass, which it will. I’m going to go out on a limb here and pick…
Winners: Triple X
Gordi – Like (probably) a lot of people, my favourite TNA match is the XXX vs. AMW steel cage match. That’s a lot to live up to, but this match is another with the potential to be very good.
Winners: A good match spoiled by too much outside interference. XXX win.
Jed Shaffer – Aww, do I HAVE to pick? This is like being asked to pick between killing Lindsay Lohan and Hilary Duff…too close to call. The real winners will be all of us, for witnessing what might be the best competition H’s vs. Our Lord & Savior vs. Jesus Boy at WM20 has for MOTY. Back to Mr. Lincoln…
Winners: Them rootin’, tootin’ cowboys
NWA World Tag Team Title
Team Canada vs. 3Live Kru
PK – The only reason to watch this PPV…to see the reuniting of the NAO!!!!!!!!!
Winners: 3(4)Live Kru
Ben Morse – I will mark out for the team of B.G. James & Monty Sopp. I am also looking forward to them feuding with a disgruntled Konnan and an equally bald, equally body-haired A-Train.
Winners: New Age…hahaha…Monty Sopp…
Matthew Michaels – It’s time, especially with the potential for Billy Gunn to come in…
Winners: 3LK
Gordi – If TNA are going to bring in Billy Gunn this would be the time and the place to do it. I don’t think that The Reunited New Age Outlaws will make that big of a splash in the long run, but it would be a nice PPV moment.
Winners: 3 Live Crew
Jed Shaffer – 3LK may be popular, but they got no business in this match. Team Canada’s grip on 2/3’s of TNA’s titles continues, much to my chagrin (I despise Team Canada…they make The Naturals look dynamic).
Winners: Team Crapada
Monster’s Ball: The Alpha Male vs. Abyss vs. Raven
PK – I never go against Raven…NEVER!
Winner: Raven
Ben Morse – Monty has already feuded with Raven and Abyss needs a big time opponent to get him newly over. Raven can provide either World title winner with a feud since he can skirt the heel/face fence. Plus I never go against PK when it comes to Raven…NEVER!
Winner: Raven
Matthew Michaels – I love Raven, and want to see him win the title next, but is Monty Brown’s push ready to take some time off? Plus, Abyss has kind’ve been directionless since the silly Goldy/Shelly B.S. I’ll go with my preference here…
Winner: Raven
Gordi – WTF is a Monster’s Ball? Is it like a Clockwork Orange House of Fun? This match should be a pretty entertaining brawl at the very least. I have friends who think it might outshine the X Title match.
Winner: Monty Brown? Why not.
Jed Shaffer – Just what in the blue hell is a Monster’s Ball match? Are they gonna take turns making Halle Berry scream? A case could be made that, since Raven & Alpha
Male still have unresolved issues, Abyss is the odd man out, and the favorite to win. But if Jeffykins is picking up the title, he needs a heel contender besides Planet 3J, and with Raven going on and on lately about how it’s his destiny to win the NWA Title…
Winner: The Birdman
X Division Championship
Petey Williams vs. AJ Styles
PK – Without AJ, there would be no X Division…although I think it’s time for him to come back to the big leauges.
Winner: AJ
Ben Morse – Another great match; this and the Last Team Standing are the showcase for TNA to draw new fans. AJ is my favorite wrestler in the company and also has that AMW circular push going in this division. AJ Styles looks a lot like me before I realized I could brush my bangs out of my eyes.
Winner: AJ Styles
Matthew Michaels – Petey’s f*cking awesome, and with Team Canada losing the Tag Titles in my predictions, I’ll go with Petey keeping his gold, in order to start up some tension there.
Winner: Williams
Gordi – Two very good workers with flashy finishers that require a contrived set-up.
This is probably TNA match most likely to make everybody’s year-end “Best Of” lists.
Winner: I am pretty under-informed, as I have not been following TNA very closely at all, but I’d assume Styles is getting the strap back here.
Jed Shaffer – Styles and X-Division Title go together like Hyatte and extended vacations…but not yet. He needs to chase it more, and Williams needs to hold onto it a little longer. Put Styles through the paces…maybe a gauntlet match against Team Canada?
Winner: The only worthwhile person in Team Canada
NWA World Title Match
Ladder Match Rules
Jeff Jarrett vs. Jeff Hardy
PK – Let’s see…who owns the company…and who is a drug addict that constintly no shows?
Winner: Double J
Ben Morse – I see bad stuff happening with a really obvious Hall-Nash “we were working together all along” swerve and them helping JJ retain. With Scott Steiner getting released from WWE soon, Bret Hart sitting at home and both Harris Brothers already in TNA, the time is NOW for an NWO 2000 reunion with, once again, Jeff Jarrett as the only uninjured guy. The group interviews will be surreal.
Winner: JJ
Matthew Michaels – I’m at HHH circa 2002 levels of impatience with Jarrett as this point. Just get it off of him, no matter who it is. And Jeff Hardy has the mark-etability to make this one work.
Winner: Hardy
Gordi – I hope it doesn’t end in a no-contest. I hope Hall and Nash don’t “swerve” us all by teaming up to beat on both Jeffs. I hope that isn’t their plan for how to end the PPV. That would be bad. Otherwise, both of these guys can work a ladder match; it’s too bad they’ve been done to death lately.
Winner: No Contest, poor heat, and frustrated fans.
Jed Shaffer – *knock at my door* “I wonder who that is?” “Telegraph!” *reads telegraph* [winner of NWA World Title obvious STOP stipulations guarantee Hanky-Boy will be a World Champion STOP could see it easier then a white whale on a black background STOP this joke is dying, I think it should STOP] “Whew! Thank god for that timely telegraph! I had so many sleepless nights wondering who was going to win! THANK YOU, TELEGRAPH DELIVERY-PERSON!”
Winner: Jeffykins
