A2Z Analysiz: TNA Destination X 2005 (Jeff Jarrett, Diamond Dallas Page)

Wrestling DVDs

destination x 2005

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Universal Studios – Orlando, Florida – March 13, 2005

Mike Tenay and Don West are on commentary.

MATCH #1: America’s Most Wanted (Chris Harris & James Storm) & 3Live Kru (BG James & Konnan) vs. Team Canada (Petey Williams, Bobby Roode, Eric Young & Alistair Ralphs)

America’s Most Wanted are the current NWA World Tag Team Champions. BG and Roode start the match. Of course BG dominates and clears the ring all by himself in the opening minute. Konnan gets the tag and Young gets in the ring with him. K-Dawg continues the domination and makes the tag to Storm, who tricks Young into throwing himself out of the ring. AMW and 3LK are treating Team Canada like jobbers here. Storm and Harris take turns wiping Team Canada out with dives to the floor. Finally Harris misses a charge in the corner and hits his shoulder into the ring post. Roode attacks it and Team Canada swarms onto the injury. That doesn’t last too long before Konnan gets the hot tag. Konnan of course cleans house with his ridiculous old man Lucha offense. The referee loses control and it’s a pier-six brawl. Scott D’Amore tries to interfere and Konnan slams him off the top rope. Roode then surprises Konnan with the Northern Lariat to get the pin at 8:55. Typical Team Canada match: get dominated, D’Amore interferes, win. At least Roode hit his finisher to win. That was a solid opener and a fine way to get guys on the card.
Rating: **¼

MATCH #2: Chris Sabin vs. Chase Stevens

This is pretty random but I’m always happy to see Chris Sabin on a pay-per-view. Stevens is accompanied by Andy Douglas and Chris Candido. Sabin gets distracted by Candido right away but it doesn’t matter much. He uses a headlock and then a headscissors to send Stevens to the floor. Sabin then hits a springboard dive to wipe Stevens out, and he throws a few right hands at Douglas and Candido as well. Back in the ring Stevens catches Sabin sliding under the bottom rope with an elbow. Sabin tries to come back with another springboard but Douglas and Candido pay him back by pulling him off the apron and taking some cheap shots. Back in the ring Sabin curiously doesn’t sell the beating he just received until Stevens blatantly kicks him in the nuts. No disqualification there? Stevens goes to work and scores a couple of near-falls but he can’t put Sabin away yet. Sabin fights back with an inverted atomic drop and a series of clotheslines. He hits an enziguiri and a swank springboard tornado DDT for a near-fall. Candido distracts the referee, allowing Douglas to interfere. Stevens tries an O’Connor Roll but Sabin reverses it and holds Stevens down for the three-count at 6:18. That was a solid iMPACT type match.
Rating: **¼

The Naturals and Candido continue attacking Sabin after the bell. A masked man in a leather jacket comes out to make the save. He pulls the mask off and it’s Shocker, “direct from the McDonald’s commercial.” I have never seen this commercial and I had no idea who Shocker was until he made his debut in TNA.

MATCH #3: Bullrope Match – Dustin Rhodes vs. Raven

Raven stalls to try and avoid being attached to the Bullrope. He goes outside the ring and the referee gets him attached. Rhodes immediately pulls Raven into the ring post. He tries to use the cow bell but Raven avoids it. Raven goes up to the apron and Rhodes pulls him off into the guardrail. Rhodes expertly uses the rope to continue his dominance. He goes up to the top rope and Raven is able to pull him down. Raven brings in a steel chair and wedges it between the top and middle turnbuckles. He whips Rhodes into it face-first. Back in the ring Raven goes to work on Rhodes’ knee. Raven also uses the chair to his advantage. He then misses an elbow off the second rope and hits the chair instead. Rhodes goes back to using the rope to great effect. He goes for the Bulldog but Raven pushes his way out of it. Raven grabs the chair and holds it up to block a punch. He goes for The Drop Toe Hold but Rhodes counters with The Bulldog to get the pin at 6:12. At least they kept it short, minimizing it’s dullness.
Rating: *¾

Team Canada returns to attack Rhodes after the match, and America’s Most Wanted comes out to make the save. Rhodes and AMW were friendly around this time.

MATCH #4: The Disciples of Destruction vs. Phi Delta Slam

Who wanted to see this? Two (arguably) hot chicks fighting over Dusty Rhodes’ affections? Both teams are not good and did not last long in TNA. Bruno and let’s say Don start the match. Not much happens and tags are made. Ron fires up and clears the ring of both gargantuan frat boys. Back in the ring the D.O.D. continue to dominate. It’s ugly and it’s boring. Trinity has to interfere to give her boys the advantage. It doesn’t make the mach any better. They fight on the floor and Trinity tries to hit one of the Harris boys with a moonsault off the top rope. He’s supposed to catch her but doesn’t, and then he hurls her over the guardrail and into the crowd. Back in the ring PDS are still in control. Finally the hot tag is made and the Disciples are on fire. The match turns into a brawl, with two outside the ring and two in. Tillie hits the Tsunami Splash but the referee isn’t there to cover. The Harris boys pull a little twin magic and whichever one is in the ring hits Tillie with a big boot to finally end this match at 10:21. Who the hell gave THAT match over 10 minutes? That was rotten.
Rating: ¼*

MATCH #5: Monty Brown vs. Trytan

Trytan is rather large. Brown is not intimidated by him at all, but Trytan quickly shows off his impressive strength by press slamming the Alpha Male. They take it to the floor and Trytan slams Brown’s face into the guardrails and the steel steps. Back in the ring Trytan continues to dominate as Brown can’t find an answer. Finally Brown stuns Trytan with a dropkick and he follows up with a flurry. Brown actually hits a Fallaway Slam! That’s impressive. Brown goes for the Pounce but the lights go out in the arena. A masked man (for the second time tonight) comes out to attack. Brown hits the Masked Man (who I think was Mideon) with the Pounce and pins him to I guess get the win at 5:30? That was kind of interesting because Brown is rarely the smaller man in a match in TNA, but the finish makes no sense and as far as I remember never went anywhere. Bollocks.
Rating: ¾*

MATCH #6: Falls Count Anywhere Match – Jeff Hardy vs. Abyss

Abyss comes after Hardy with a chair but Hardy avoids it. Hardy clotheslines Abyss to the floor and then wipes him out with a dive. Abyss throws Hardy into the crowd and they fight their way through the iMPACT Zone. They fight out of the building and Abyss is throwing Hardy all over the place. Abyss sets up two tables but Hardy fights back and gets Abyss laid out on said tables. Hardy climbs up on some support beams and flies down with the Swanton Bomb! Awesome spot there and it gets a two-count. Abyss sells it for all of 10 seconds and then starts throwing Hardy around again. They make their way back through the crowd and Abyss drops Hardy nuts-first on the guardrail. Back in the ring Abyss tries to set up a chair in the corner, which gives Hardy time to recover and hit a chair-assisted Poetry in Motion (with a steel chair) on Abyss (into the other chair). I maybe could have described that better. Abyss comes right back and sets a chair on top of Hardy and goes to the second rope. He hits a big splash but it only gets two! Abyss sets the chair back on Hardy and goes for an Earthquake Splash but Hardy gets the chair all up in his balls. Hardy then levels Abyss in the head with a chair, and then decks him again but only gets a two-count. He goes outside the ring and pulls out a ladder! Hardy hits the leapfrog legdrop over the ladder and onto Abyss. That move is still cool, but it only gets a two-count. Abyss comes back and hits the Shock Treatment for two. He charges into the corner but hits the chair he set up earlier. Hardy gets a quick rollup for two. He goes up top and Abyss knocks him down. Abyss finds another table and sets it up in the ring. He puts Hardy on it and goes to the top rope. Hardy stops him and tries a rana but Abyss blocks it and powerbombs him through the table! Abyss goes for a a Chokeslam on top of a ladder but Hardy blocks it and hits the Twist of Fate! That’s enough to get the pin at 15:49. The selling was almost non-existent but they managed to wake up a comatose crowd and it was fun hardcore nonsense.
Rating: ***¼

Abyss continues the assault on Hardy after the bell. He finds a bag of thumb tacks and delivers the Black Hole Slam onto a pile of tacks!

MATCH #7: First Blood Match – Kevin Nash vs. The Outlaw

Outlaw starts with some punches but Nash shrugs them off and starts slugging away. Nash uses his boot to choke Outlaw in the corner. Tenay recites Outlaw’s WWE history while Nash continues on offense. Outlaw slips to the floor and trips Nash up so he can slam his knee repeatedly into the ring apron. That’s good strategy. Outlaw goes under the ring and finds a screwdriver, but Nash blocks it from going into his forehead. Nash catapults Outlaw from the ring to the floor. He follows him out and throws him around ringside. Back in the ring Nash tries to use a chair and referee Rudy Charles tries to grab it from him for reasons I cannot explain. Outlaw hits Nash in the junk. He uses the chair to bash Nash in the face, which the referee didn’t try to stop whatsoever. #ThingsThatIrritateMe. Outlaw grabs a pair of wire cutters and cuts one of the turnbuckle pads off. The referee tries to stop Outlaw from slamming Nash into the exposed steel. Why? It’s a FIRST BLOOD match, there are no rules! I hate when referees get involved like that. Nash goes for Snake Eyes but Outlaw slips out and pushes Nash into the referee to wipe him out. Outlaw then slams Nash into the exposed steel. Nash hits a blatant low blow for fun. He then hits Snake Eyes onto the exposed turnbuckle twice. Nash uses his fist to ensure blood, and Outlaw is bleeding. But the referee is down so he can’t call for the bell. Nash goes out to get the referee and puts him in the ring. With the referee’s back turned, Jeff Jarrett comes out and hits Nash with the NWA World Heavyweight Title belt. Then a guy in a doctor coat comes out and wipes the blood off of Outlaw’s face and takes forever to stop the bleeding. Of course when the referee wakes up, Nash is bleeding and Outlaw is not, and thus Outlaw is declared the winner at 11:23. That was long and boring, and did they really book THAT big of a fuckaround finish in a first blood match between Diesel and Billy Gunn? Yes, yes they did.
Rating: ½*

Nash attacks Outlaw after the bell and re-opens the wound on his head. He follows with a Jackknife Powerbomb, falling down on his butt in the process.

MATCH #8: Ultimate X Challenge for the TNA X Division Championship – AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels vs. Elix Skipper vs. Ron “The Turth” Killings

Styles has been the Champion since 1.16.05, and this is his third defense. The match starts as a tag team match with Styles & Skipper against Daniels & Killings. The person who gets pinned is eliminated and then they have a three-way match. When a person is pinned there, the final two men compete in Ultimate X to decide the X Division Championship. In a really good ATD, the commentators point out that Daniels and Skipper lost a “losing team can never team again” match a few months ago, and that’s how we ended up with these two teams.

Skipper and Truth start the match. Both men show off their strength and athleticism in the early going. Skipper hits a missile dropkick, much like Truth had done to him earlier. Styles tags in and he wants to fight Daniels, but of course Daniels wants nothing to do with that. Of course Daniels takes a cheap shot as soon as he has a chance. Truth takes control and tags Daniels into the match officially. Styles fights back and hits a big knee drop for two. Skipper takes a cheap shot on his own partner to give Daniels an advantage. That’s a curious twist. Daniels hits the Flatliner and tries for the Koji Clutch but turns it into a Crossface instead. Styles reaches the ropes. Daniels hits an Arabian Press for two. They start trading punches now and Styles wins that battle with an enziguiri. Styles and Truth give Skipper a taste of his own medicine by working together against him. Killings takes Skipper down and goes up top. He hits a Super Ax Kick but Daniels pulls him off the cover! Truth is quite rightly pissed and dumps Daniels to the floor. Styles then takes Daniels out with a flip dive over the ropes. Skipper hits Truth with the Sudden Death for the first elimination at 8:08.

Styles and Skipper take it to each other to start the three-way match, while Daniels rests on the floor. Both men take each other down and Daniels climbs to the top of the X and takes both of them out with a moonsault! That was cool. Daniels covers Styles but only gets two. Skipper gets right up in Daniels’ face, since they were apparently supposed to be working as a team. Daniels momentarily convinces Skipper to work with him, but he instantly stabs him in the back. Skipper fires back on Daniels with a flurry of offense. Styles comes flying back in the ring with a springboard flying forearm on Skipper. He then turns his attention to Daniels and they battle on the top rope. Skipper joins them and climbs up on the cables to give Styles a reverse rana! That was way cool. Daniels tries a rana off the top rope but Skipper catches him in a powerbomb. Skipper and Daniels slug it out, and Styles climbs on the cables and executes a shooting star press! All three men are down. Back on their feet Styles is in the best shape. Skipper catches Styles and hits Sudden Death but Daniels surprises Skipper with a schoolboy rollup to score the second elimination at 17:16.

We’re down to Styles versus Daniels in an Ultimate X match for the title! Daniels climbs toward the belt and Styles pulls him down, twice. Styles hits a backbreaker. Daniels fights back with headbutts and Styles responds with a Pele. They replay the Pele a couple of times and when we get back to live action both men are on the X climbing toward the belt. Styles kicks Daniels down and Daniels hits a Spear to take Styles down. They fight up on the ropes again and Daniels takes Styles down with a Super STO. Daniels goes up top and Styles is right behind him. They both try to reach the belt but neither man can reach it at this juncture. Now they climb at the belt from opposite directions but once again they fall. They get back up again and fight over the belt, and this time when they fall the referee gets hit in the eye and he looks blinded. Styles goes up and grabs the belt, but since the referee can’t see, Daniels hits Styles with the Angels Wings! The referee sees Daniels with the belt and awards him the match and the title at 25:28. Oddly enough this match got less exciting when it got down to the last two in Ultimate X, as it felt repetitive with all the climbing. Still this was a unique match with hard work by everyone, but I always wonder why screw jobs are necessary in matches with no pinfalls in the first place.
Rating: ***½

MATCH #9: Ringside Revenge Match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship – Jeff Jarrett vs. Diamond Dallas Page

Jarrett has been the Champion since 6.2.04, and this is his eighth defense. Monty Brown, the 3Live Kru, Larry Zbyszko, Chris Candido and The Naturals are the wrestlers at ringside. Tenay says that this is not a lumberjack match, and those wrestlers are not supposed to touch the guys in the match. Why are they there then?

The Champion stalls to start, and since none of the guys at ringside can touch him, he just continues to avoid getting in the ring. When he finally does get in the ring DDP goes for the Diamond Cutter so Jarrett bails again. Jarrett gets in Monty Brown’s face, and finally DDP just goes out after Jarrett. They get back to the ring and DDP is in control. It doesn’t take long for them to go back to the floor, and DDP is still dominating. DDP clotheslines Jarrett over the guardrail and into the crowd. He hits Jarrett on top of the head with a garbage can. They fight up the bleachers and into the crowd. They make it back to the ring and DDP brings in an office chair. Jarrett winds up sitting in it and he spins around as DDP delivers right hands and kicks to the face. DDP delivers mounted punches in the corner and Jarrett counters with a low blow. Jarrett uses the office chair as a weapon, and then starts attacking the knee. He puts on the Figure-Four Leglock and DDP eventually reaches the ropes. Jarrett tries a Sleeper and DDP counters his way out of it. DDP unleashes a flurry of offense but can’t put Jarrett away. He hits a Rock Bottom for a two-count. DDP hits a sitout powerbomb for another near-fall. Candido and the Naturals interfere momentarily, allowing Jarrett to hit The Stroke. DDP kicks out at two! Now the not-lumberjacks at ringside get into a brawl. In the confusion The Outlaw gives Jarrett his guitar. BG James gets in the ring and takes the guitar away. Konnan holds Jarrett and BG goes to hit him but misses and drills Konnan instead. Ron Killings gets in the ring to help Konnan to the back. Jarrett goes up top and DDP shoves the referee into the corner to knock Jarrett down. The Outlaw gets in the ring and hits DDP with the Fame-Ass-Er. Jarrett covers but only gets two. Sean Waltman runs in from out of nowhere and takes Outlaw out with a spin kick and the Bronco Buster. He gives Jarrett the Bronco Buster as well. The Naturals and Candido try to interfere but they get hit with Diamond Cutters. DDP then hits Jarrett with a Super Diamond Cutter. That guy Attorney Daggert gets in the ring and Monty Brown says he’ll take care of him. Instead Brown gives DDP the POUNCE and Jarrett gets the pin at 21:40. That went on forever and was slightly confusing, because the not-lumberjacks weren’t supposed to interfere and then they all did anyway. My rule is always if you need THAT much help to disguise the limitations of your main event, you should have booked something else. This was just a mess.
Rating: *

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