Welcome everyone to InsidePulse’s Live Coverage of TNA Sacrifice!
(For a full preview of the show click here.)
During the pre-show, they showed Cassidy Reilly, who bought a front-row seat to see his favorite wrestler Raven team up with Sabu. Then, Mike Tenay came out with larry and thanked Bob Carter for having faith in TNA and made a “huge announcement” (that is in reality weeks old) that TNA is going to Spike TV. Beginning October 1, iMPACT! will be part of Slammin Saturday Night. The crowd chants “Spike TV” and “TNA.”
Jeff Jarrett interrupts with Rhino (they were backstage earlier looking for Zbysko), and says he wants a guaranteed title shot if he pins Rhyno. Larry says yes, but if Jeff gets pinned, he has to wait a year before he can get another title shot. Jarrett also said his “sources” told him another 20 wrestlers from “up north” will be fired soon, and will want to come to TNA and that means TNA wrestlers may be fired, namely Jeff Jarrett himself. The crowd cheered this.
During the “countdown” pre-show, Sonny Siaki and Apolo beating Mikey Batts and Jerrelle Clark in a short match.
First match of the PPV is Diamond Diamond, David Young and Elix Skipper vs. Shark Boy, Sonjay Dutt and Chris Sabin. Sabin gets the pin with a roll-up on Skipper. Fast-paced match, after which Simon and Skipper argued.
They recap the pre-show angle with Jeff and Larry, etc., and then have Jeff interrupt a Naturals/Jimmy Hart interview to tell them they better hold onto their belts, otherwise they’ll be fired by TNA management to make room for fired WWE stars. Natural Blonde had a good comeback to Jeff, but either way this angle needs to stop once they’re on Spike, unless TNA WANTS to look minor-league.
Shocker vs. Shelley sees Baby Bear shock the McDonald’s commercial star with a … get this … ROLLUP holding the ropes.
Jim Mitchell gives an amazing promo in advance of the Hoyt match. Great, great stuff.
Surprisingly great match between Abyss and Hoyt, with the Monster beating Hoyt with a Black Hole Slam. Several near-falls, including one after a Hoyt version of the Van Terminator, where he sprung off the middle of the ropes on one side of the ring, and dropkicked a chair into Abyss, who was sitting in the corner all the way on the other side. Hoyt was elevated here despite the loss, and the crowd was HOT.
Shane Douglas interviews special ref BG James in a good segment that teased BG and Killings getting along, but Konnan being heelish.
3LK beat Brown & Billy Gunn after Konnan pinned Gunn after a BG James punch and Konnan chairshot in full view of the ref. They had BG being impartial for the most part, Konna accidentally throwing his shoe at BG, and then later on Gunn shoving BG, leading to the finish. Tenay claimed “all of our questions have been answered!” as 3LK celebrated in the ring, which leads me to believe it’s one big swerve.
Christopher Daniels, X Division Champ, cuts a promo on the winner of the Internet poll, Austin Aries. “You may be Mr. Independent Scene, Mr. Ring of Honor” … and while this is the match of his life in front of an international audience, “to me it’s just a tune-up … ’cause I’m Mr. TNA.” Daniels wins with the Angel’s Wings after a great, fast-paced match that featured excellent work by Tenay and West in the booth. Tenay compared Aries to AJ Styles, and West claimed he was part of the 55% that voted for Aries online.
Jeff Jarrett talks with AMW, letting them know their jobs are on the line come October also, as TNA Management isn’t only looking at former WWE stars (this whole angle, he never names WWE by name, by the way) but also people he’s never heard of like Austin Aries. When Storm asks him if he has proof, he says “remember Black Wednesday? About 20 guys were cut … some were good, some were bad, some were average … and some were ‘duds.’ You figure it out.”
Syxx-Pac vs. Jerry Lynn is a solid, long match, with Lynn getting the win after a Victory Roll. Pac worked the shoulder all match and had some nearfalls. They shook hands before the match, and embraced afterwards, but then Pac attacked Lynn and slammed his injured shoulder with a steel chair. Dutt, Shark Boy and Sabin — who were watching from the top of the ramp in a nice touch to show its importance — came out to save Lynn, and XPAC and Tenay had words.
Team Canada is interviewed, picture of D’Amore in their locker, about how they are united and their opponents (AMW and The Naturals) aren’t.
Team Canada beats AMW and The Naturals when Bobby Roode pins Natural Blonde. After the match, an “argument turns into fisticuffs” (Widro) as Storm, Harris, Blonde and Brown brawl and security breaks it up. Fast match, lots of craziness, and a fun spot where Natural Blonde enziguiris one of Team Canada to the floor from outside the ring on the second rope.
Shane Douglas tries to interview Joe backstage, but he won’t talk to him. Shane tells him he better give him respect, and Samoa Joe replies, I just did, but not kicking your franchise ass as they stare-off, and Joe heads to the ring to face AJ Styles in the X Cup finals. Christopher Daniels joins the booth on commentary.
Samoa Joe over AJ Styles to maintain his TNA undefeated streak and win the X Cup. AJ had a pin after a Torture Rack into an Angle Slam, but during the second part of that move the ref got kicked in the head. Daniels came out, hit AJ, then tried to hit Joe with the belt but got knocked out of the ring. Joe then won with the Muscle Buster into the rear naked choke, forcing AJ to submit inches away from the ropes.
Tenay and West talk about how great the match was — in my opinion a legit Match of the Year Candidate — Raven cuts a promo from a dark stairway, comparing the World Title to Jeff Jarrett’s “night light, teddy bear or binky” and saying he’s nothing without it, despite how scary he claims to be. He and Sabu will eradicate Jarrett and Rhino like a cancer, because their mutual respect cancels out their hatred for each other, and horrifying makes Raven wet, apparently.
Main event goes until 10:54 EDT, seeing Rhino pin Raven after a gore through a table leaning in the corner. Jarrett and Rhino have words after the match, since Jarrett getting the pin would have given him an automatic title shot. This one had blood, a ref bump, run-ins (Cassidy Riley to steal a guitar from Jeff; Abyss; and then Jeff Hardy to a huge pop (after all show they speculated that Hardy would no-show, and that he was ordered to be there or face being fired) to stop Abyss and give the Twist of Fate to Jarrett). Jarrett kicked out of Raven’t DDT, Raven out of the Stroke, and Sabu took a sick bump through a table from Abyss.
