The Undercard
Madison Rayne defeated Gail Kim. Once again, Gail Kim issues an open challenge. Rayne comes out and they have a pretty decent match. Lei'D Tapa is at ringside and watches. I am not too sure if they bigger story is Rayne winning or the fact that is seemed like Tapa was not doing much on the outside. Isn't she supposed to help Kim? Where is the bodyguard mentality from her? Anyways, the Knockouts Division seems more and more scarce with talent because they are not building anyone besides Gail Kim right now. This used to be a part of the show that I would love to watch. Right now, not so much.
Grade: C+
Chris Sabin defeated Austin Aries to win the X-Division Championship. Chris Sabin and Austin Aries will always give you a great match. The athleticism and talent between these two guys is off the charts. I love the fact that both men are very similar. They have similar attacking schemes in the ring and really work every body part of their opponent. The end of the match came when Sabin was hit with a missile dropkick. Sabin yelled at Velvet on the outside to go over to the other side and basically do what he told her to. She begrudgingly gets on the apron to distract Aries. Sabin low blows him and wins the title back. Eh, I really did not like this. It was very heel-ish for Sabin. I understand that. Is that all he really needed to do to beat Aries? It just seemed very amateur and extremely lame. We need to see more from these guys and more consistency when changing titles. There was no need for a title change tonight.
Grade: B
Samuel Shaw defeated Norv Fernum. Sam Shaw, who I was a fan of during the Gut Check, gets a brand new gimmick. It was very odd and creepy. That is what they were going for. She seemed like a strangler, with the pants and gloves. He hits a few moves, looks at Christy Hemme and then finishes Norv off with some random choke hold. He stares at Hemme while leaving. This felt like he was going to head over and kidnap her. I think TNA wanted him to come off like this. Well, it worked.
Grade: C
Bobby Roode and James Storm defeated Kurt Angle and Gunner. This was the smartest thing TNA did tonight. They allowed Angle to pick a partner, which ended up being Gunner over Storm. Storm, pissed off, goes to his former partner. Roode and Storm, who hate one another, team up to take on their rivals. After a great tag team match, Storm was able to hit Last Call on Gunner while Roode hit the Death Valley Driver for the win. The end of the match had Angle try to get the better of Roode. This match will be another great one at Genesis, one that many layers and great story telling from both guys. As for Storm and Gunner, I see the briefcase being on the line at Genesis. It will make a singles match meaningful. This is their version of the Money in the Bank. Nothing in wrestling is original. TNA ought to take advantage of Storm vs. Gunner earlier than later. Gunner should win and use it to get himself to a Magnus level. He has THAT talent and the unique look. That guy is really good.
Grade: B+
