TNA Basebrawl house show results
July 1, 2011
Brooklyn, N.Y.
Report by Eric S., PWTorch reader

I caught the show at MCU Park on Friday night. The bleachers were full and Don West did a good job hyping the merchandise, talking to the crowd, and hyping backstage passes and his brown bag specials. I purchased a backstage pass for $80, which got me five 8x10 photos of different wrestlers - Mickie James, Kurt Angle, Jeff Jarrett, Ric Flair, and Mr. Anderson. Flair did not appear on the live show, though, despite being advertised.

I was told the pass would get me and a guest backstage for a photo/autograph session with some wrestlers and allow us into the ring after the event for a special photo op. (Apparently the vendor was mistaken about the second part of that deal, as that offer was made to the entire arena for $20 and ticketholders still had to wait in a massive line, plus shell out the additional dough. Plus, there was no Ric Flair. And, Double J was signing on the concourse post-show, but for additional money as well.)

Pre-show, RVD and Devon autographed for a small fee on the concourse and Mickie James had a photo-op at another part of the concourse. It was my first time at this outdoor-style wrestling event, but the atmosphere was cool and the crowd seemed psyched to be there.

(1) Amazing Red & Eric Young & Orlando Jordan beat Robbie E. (w/Cookie) & British Invasion (Doug Williams & Magnus) in a six-man tag match. Eric Young had his lumberjack beard Amazing Red was representing Brooklyn. It was a fun match with the faces going over. There were some fun over-the-rope moves by Red and Rob E. started the match saying everyone came to see him fist-pump, so he danced to his music until Orlando crept up behind him to start grinding. The match picked up from there and had some funny moments like EY running the bases.

Next, Earl Hebner came out and gave the crowd the finger, took off his ref shirt to reveal his "Damn right, I did it" t-shirt, put on shades, and strutted around the ring like Bret Hart. He refereed the following match.

(2) Knockouts champion Mickie James beat Angelina Love (w/Winter) to retain the Knockouts Title. Decent match, which the crowd seemed to be into. Both Knockouts got in some offense, Mickie took a bump off the apron, and Winter interfered, only to be accidentally knocked off apron by Angelina. Mickie then pinned Angelina after the Mick Kick.

(3) Crimson beat Jeff Jarrett. Crimson got the hometown pop. Jarrett came out to good heat. He argued with the crowd and challenged them to just bring it. Jarrett offered his hand in truce to an audience member, only to flick the guy with his sweat. After a lot of heel antics like posing and threatening to leave the arena and never wrestle in Brooklyn again, Jarrett began the match. Crimson and Jeff put on a good match and Crimson showed some decent aggression. Crimson put down Jarrett with his finisher after Jarrett missed The Stroke.

Next, Bully Ray came out and RVD's music played, but then stopped and Devon came out to the field. He challenged "Brother Ray" by saying it's obvious he knows the truth..that Devon was the boss of 3D, and challenged him in his hometown of Coney Island to a Brooklyn Street Fight. Bully accepted and Devon went to the back, then came out with a table and the match was on.

(4) Brother Devon beat Bully Ray in a Brooklyn Street Fight Bound for Glory Series match. The match was a good hardcore brawl with Devon grabbing a soda can from a fan, bashing it on Bully Ray's noggin, and the chugging the soda, trash can lids, brawling into the bleachers, etc. The fans were solidly behind Devon, especially when Bully declared "I'm from Queens, bitch!" Devon won clean with his slam.

A 20-minute intermission was announced and people with backstage passes were instructed on where to enter the backstage area. My girlfriend and I made our way through the walkway as RVD walked by us in his ring gear and nodded to everyone as he passed. Once in the room, we met Mickie James, who was constantly mobbed by fans and took the time to personalize everyone's autograph. Mr. Anderson appeared five minutes in, but was very friendly and gave different poses with everyone. A funny moment - someone behind me called out "Hey, Ken! Who's a better wrestler? You or C.M. Punk?" At first, Anderson just continued signing away then smirked without looking up. "That's a dumb question...I shouldn't even have to answer that," he said. Kurt Angle was friendly and all-smiles, though he wasn't as mobbed I would have expected. Neither was A.J., for that matter, and he vanished within ten minutes.

After intermission, Rob Van Dam's music hit and the next match was about to start.

(5) Rob Van Dam beat A.J. Styles in a Bound for Glory Series match. Solid back-and-forth chanting for RVD and A.J. They put on an exciting match like you'd expect with both hitting their big spots. The end came when RVD mounted the turnbuckle, A.J. hopped up, and A.J. went for a Frankensteiner off the turnbuckle, but RVD held on and A.J. went down to the mat. This allowed RVD to hit the Five-Star Frog Splash for the pin.

(6) Kurt Angle beat TNA World Hvt. champion Mr. Anderson in a non-title match. The crowd cheered loudly in the beginning, though, they seemed to die off in the middle of the match. Good back-and-forth by both men and the crowd finally got back into it when Angle hit the triple German Suplex spot. Anderson went for the Mic Check, but Angle countered with the Angle Slam for the pin.

After the match, Angle stood in the ring as the fireworks went off. After the show, it was announced that Kurt and A.J. would stay in the ring to sign autographs. For $20 a person or group, fans could get in the ring for a photo-op. The line quickly wrapped around the field and up through the concourse. Jeff Jarrett was also announced to be signing in the concourse "until the last person leaves."

Overall, I thought TNA put on a great event with six good-to-very good matches with clean finishes. The atmosphere felt fun and a lot more lively than some WWE events I've gone to. I definitely recommend checking out a live TNA event.

[Torch art (c) PWTorch.com]

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