By James Caldwell, PWTorch columnist

TNA Impact on Spike TV
November 13, 2008
Taped Oct. 10 in Orlando, Fla.
Report by James Caldwell, Torch columnist

The show started with a recap of the Turning Point PPV with Kurt Angle doing his big cannonball dive on Abyss and Main Event Mafia having total domination at the PPV. Tonight, Christian Cage Gets Made by the Mafia.

Backstage: Jeremy Borash brought in Jeff Jarrett and Mick Foley to discuss the Mafia dominating at the PPV. Jarrett said it's not how many times you get knocked down, but how many times they get up. He said they just need to stand up and shake things off. Foley suggested offering a message of hope. Borash asked if he has anyone on speed-dial. Foley said Borash is exactly what's wrong with TNA because they don't know when it's time to GET SERIOUS and when it's time to have a laugh. Foley cut a promo on wide-eyed Borash and the Machineguns, then he walked off in a huff.

Impact Zone: After Mike Tenay and Don West set up the show, Foley came to the ring ready for a word. Tenay narrated clips of how the Mafia won all their matches, effectively ending any hope of selling TNA PPV replays, then Foley addressed the less-than-stellar night from the Originals. Foley said he's going to call out these individuals for a little chat. Principal Foley called out A.J. Styles first, then Styles walked out in street clothes. He looked very disconcerted. Foley then called out Samoa Joe, Machineguns, Petey Williams, Eric Young, Jay Lethal, and Consequences Creed.

Foley said he was embarrassed and humiliated, but not by their effort. He said you don't win a Super Bowl with four interceptions and you don't win respect with four losses at Turning Point. Foley stopped and looked at troublemakers Shelley and Sabin, who were joking around. Foley told Shelley to understand the power of words like the word "in." He told Shelley that he's a valuable piece of talent, but he is not "invaluable." Foley said he'll deal with him next week.

He then went to Joe and said maybe Kevin Nash wasn't kidding about being the smartest man in wrestling. Foley said Joe beat Nash from pillar-to-post, but Nash got the win. He then went to Styles and said today is a new day; there are always new opportunities because if you don't learn from your mistakes, the Mafia will strike them out every single time.

Foley said he believes in second chances and Young earned the X Division Title shot to face him. And that happens tonight. Sabin was just bored to tears here. He said Styles's mental mistake doesn't change the fact that he's one of the most talented wrestlers. Foley told Joe he gets a chance to show he's one of the baddest men in wrestling when they team up to take on Beer Money tonight. Foley asked the crowd about a TNA Title match tonight and he told Jay Lethal he gets a chance at the belt tonight. He summed up the chat, then the Young Lions huddled up. Why not just put dunce caps on them and dress them up in schoolboy uniforms to hammer home the point that they're not money draws and just a bunch of kids who need a pep talk from the principal who appears to have not owned a razor for a shave in several years?

Backstage earlier today: Lauren found Christian Cage in the parking garage to ask him what his thoughts are on joining the Mafia tonight. Christian said it doesn't even matter what he thinks because he doesn't have a choice. Kurt Angle then stepped in with the rest of the Mafia and said Christian gets a celebration like none other tonight. Booze. Women. Music. You name it. Scott Steiner then handed Christian a suit before the rest of the Mafia walked by. Sting drifted off in the background, then Christian took the suit and threw it in the trash.

[Commercial Break]

[Q2]

Backstage: ODB was ripping apart something. Her new talk show is debuting next week. ODB had a crazy 1980s hair style going on while cutting a promo on Lauren about putting together the set for her new show. There are no words.

Impact Zone: Awesome Kong, Rhaka Khan, and Raisha Saeed came to the ring for the opening bout. Roxxi came out first as the opposition, followed by Taylor Wilde. Before the bell could sound, Rhaka and Kong tried to jump the babyfaces on the ground. Kong whipped Taylor hard into the guardrail, then Khan nailed Roxxi with forearm blows.

1 -- Knockouts champion AWESOME KONG (w/Raisha Saeed) & RHAKA KHAN vs. ROXXI & TAYLOR WILDE

Bell sounded when Kong brought Taylor into the ring, then Kong tossed Taylor half-way across the ring by her hair extensions. Taylor eventually broke free from Kong at 2:00 and made the hot tag to Roxxi, who knocked around Kong before climbing on her back. Khan then entered the ring to break that up, setting off a four-woman brawl. Roxxi dumped Khan to the floor, which nearly resulted in a wardrobe malfunction, then Kong smashed Roxxi and gave her the implant buster in center ring for the win.

WINNERS: Khan & Kong in 4:00. About as expected with Khan in there - things fell apart at the end after some good energy in the ring. (*)

Backstage: Lauren was with Shelley and Sabin in the Originals locker room to talk about turning thing around tonight. Shelley said there will be wins along with the losses. He said their group is like a snake. At the head is Styles and Joe, while at the end is everyone else. Shelley said he doesn't get how this happened. He said they believe they're the toughest, strongest, and most handsome, which should make them the top of the class. Sabin chimed in for Joe and Styles to get things done on their own terms, but they'll get things done the Detroit way on their terms.

[Commercial Break]

[Q3]

Backstage: More with Lauren. Oh boy. Traci Brooks was back on the scene with Kong, Khan, and Raisha. Raisha complained about not having any opponents for Kong. She warned Traci that if she doesn't find newer opponents, Kong will feed on innocent civilians like vacation people enthralled by that stupid mouse. That would be Mickey Mouse. Lauren then brought in Khan for thoughts on what happened last week. Khan sneered, then said, "Who wouldn't want to be on the side of a beast?" She snorted, then walked off. Traci was dumbfounded.

Impact Zone: Eric Young came to the ring for the X Division Title match, then Sheik Abdul Bashir came out to defend the belt. He stopped and looked around the building before stepping into the ring. No sign of ICP on the front row.

2 -- X Division champion SHEIK ABDUL BASHIR vs. ERIC YOUNG -- X Division Title match

Bashir was quickly on the offensive, then Young made his comeback at 2:00. This isn't Finlay vs. Hardy in terms of time allotted to the match. Bashir then ducked his head and Young powered up with a clothesline. He landed right hand blows to the head while Tenay said Young has never held the X Division Title. Young then shoved ref Shane away before walking into a low blow from Bashir. Shane then stopped short on his pin and wouldn't make the count because he maybe caught a glance of Bashir kicking Young between the legs. Bashir then shoved Shane down and Shane decided he had enough. Shane ripped off his ref t-shirt to a big pop after having a crazy look on his face. Shane fired off a dropkick on Bashir, then he smashed Bashir with a right hand that spun him into a Death Valley Driver. Young connected, then Shane made the pin for the win. Afterward, the TNA Originals including crazy old ODB joined the in-ring celebration. Ref Earl Hebner showed up to check on Shane, who was a shaking and a shivering and a convulsing. Joe and Styles then showed up in the ring apron to offer applause for Young's win.

WINNER: Young in 4:00 to capture the X Division Title. Well, now Shane is the most credible wrestler in the X Division. It doesn't get any worse for the X Division that Young was celebrating a completely tainted victory with the help of a referee that looked far more impressive than anyone currently in the division. (*)

[Commercial Break]

[Q4]

Recap: Tenay and West recapped Shane tearing up Bashir to set up Young capturing the X Division Title.

Backstage: The Originals were celebrating a tainted victory, then Young dedicated this victory to Mick Foley. Young said it's their time to shine from here on. ODB was all crazy here while Styles and Joe were pretty much in serious mode and not wanting to be part of the celebration. Either they were super-focused on the tag title shot or upset about the tainted victory. I doubt it was the second option there.

Rough Cut! We get Hernandez talking about growing up as a kid and playing football. They didn't mention it, but he went to high school in Pearland, Texas outside of Houston. Hernandez said he gave up on football to give wrestling a shot. He said he was Mr. Texas back in the day sporting a mask in Mexico. Hernandez said Homicide puts things together for the LAX team and he has a great mind for wrestling.

Backstage: Borash was in the Mafia locker room to hype the Eric Young victory. "He's on a roll, fellas!" Angle shot him a look and said he didn't beat anyone because he didn't beat anyone in the Mafia. Petey Williams then barged in and the Mafia stepped up to him, but Scott Steiner pulled him aside to say they'll talk after his match. No words from Petey, then he just walked away.

[Commercial Break]

Backstage: More Lauren with the Young Lions as Jay Lethal just kept talking and rambling over Lauren's set-up. Lethal said Men on a Mission is going down tonight. Suddenly, Petey Williams was back in the locker room over his shoulder pumping up. Lethal said the Stinger gets stung tonight. Petey then wished him good luck and said it's their time tonight. Lauren pulled Petey aside and told him to be careful with Steiner tonight. Petey said they're tight, so no worries.

Impact Zone: Scott Steiner came to the ring with Kurt Angle escorting him. Angle then sat down at the commentary table to join Tenay and West. While Angle set up, Rhino stormed the ring to face off against Steiner.

3 -- SCOTT STEINER (w/Kurt Angle) vs. RHINO

Basic exchange early on with Angle hyping himself as the greatest wrestler today, then Steiner busted out a belly-to-belly suplex on Rhino for a two count. Angle then addressed work/shoot on Jeff Jarrett and he said it's real heat between them. He said he doesn't like working for Jarrett, but he loves this company. Geez. Back in the ring, Steiner ripped off some chops while Angle hyped their big welcoming party for Christian tonight. Rhino then came back with a modified TKO to set up his comeback on Steiner. He hit a mild belly-to-belly suplex, then called for the end. Suddenly, Angle left the announce table and held Rhino's foot to block the Gore. Steiner then took advantage with a belly-to-belly suplex on Rhino for the win.

WINNER: Steiner in 5:00. Rough match. Angle's over-the-top commentary made it bearable, but this was two men trying to find their pace in the ring trying to wrestle a fast-paced heavyweight match. Rhino could barely pop his hips to suplex Steiner and instead just gingerly dropped him on the mat. (1/2*)

Backstage: Borash brought in Sting to discuss the Young Lions having a little momentum going tonight. Sting didn't care. He said it was supposed to be Joe's night at Bound for Glory and Styles's night at Turning Point, but that didn't happen, did it? Sting said when the losses pile up, the fingers are going to start being pointed at each other. He said that's the difference between the men and the boys.

[Commercial Break]

[Q5 -- second hour]

Impact Zone: Jay Lethal came out a few minutes past the top of the hour for the TNA World Title match. Sting then came out to defend the belt. Jeremy Borash handled the formal ring intros, ya know, because the X Division Title doesn't mean much. Borash introduced Lethal first with a big dramatic build about what's on the line for Lethal tonight. Good intro. Fans with a polite applause. Borash then introduced Sting to a big mix of cheers and boos.

4 -- TNA World Hvt. champion STING vs. JAY LETHAL -- TNA World Title match

Basic exchange early on to set a nice pace for the title match. Lethal then took Sting to the corner for a few punches before nailing a springboard smash for a nearfall. Sting ended up on the floor, then Lethal nailed a suicide dive to have Sting reeling, including selling a left leg injury. Is the title in jeopardy? Find out after the break.

[Commercial Break]

Back from break, Sting was still favoring his knee but in control of the match. With Sting dominating Lethal on the floor, Shelley and Sabin decided to come ringside for a closer look at the action. They pumped up Lethal, who fought out of a chinlock with elbow smashes before nailing a flying forearm to make his comeback. Suddenly, there was a mid-ring collision. Shelley then jumped on the apron to distract the ref and Sabin tried to set up Lethal for some help on Sting, but Lethal, apparently not wanting to be Eric Young winning a title by nefarious means, wanted nothing to do with Sabin's help. He shoved Sabin out of the ring, then Sting took advantage by nailing Lethal with the Scorpion Death drop from behind for the pin and the win.

Afterward, Joe and Styles stormed the ringside area to confront the Guns on their interference. Joe piefaced Sabin setting off an argument, then Consequences Creed ran down to restore order. ODB and Young even joined the fracas. Lethal said he didn't need the Guns's help, then the show was interrupted by Spike's VGAwards.

WINNER: Sting in 8:00 to retain the TNA Title. Fine title match. Sting gave Lethal enough to elevate him a touch in the credibility department. It sets up the storylines to go a couple of different directions with the in-fighting among the Young Lions. (*1/2)

[Q6]

Backstage: After the Video Game Awards interruption, they cut to the back where the Mafia were beating down on Petey Williams. Angle landed a few European uppercuts, then Steiner nailed Petey with a trashcan. Booker laid into Petey, then Steiner dragged him to some movable steps to punish his former protege.

[Commercial Break]

Backstage: Borash brought in Beer Money to discuss the TNA Tag Title defense against Joe and Styles tonight. Robert Roode wanted nothing to do with Mick Foley's decision-making, then he told Foley to hit the road. James Storm chimed in with a "Hit the road, jack" rendition. He then stepped in to tell Joe and Styles not to focus on their little soap opera drama, but on the best tag team going right now.

[Commercial Break]

Impact Zone: Samoa Joe came to the ring first, and alone, for the tag title challenge. A.J. Styles then came out to team up with him. Beer Money came out next, and Storm rode a Beer scooter to ringside while sporting the beer helmet on his head. Something new every week.

[Q7]

5 -- TNA tag team champions BEER MONEY (ROBERT ROODE & JAMES STORM w/Miss Jackie) vs. A.J. STYLES & SAMOA JOE -- TNA Tag Title match

Nice flurry from Joe to start things off, as he ripped off a sweet enziguiri kick on Storm. Styles then knocked Storm to the outside and Joe & Styles stood tall in the ring in total control. Team 3D decided to get a closer look at the action while they cut to break.

[Commercial Break]

Brother Ray and Devon were on commentary out of the break as Beer Money worked on Styles in their corner. Devon was suddenly doing a lot of talking and Ray said I guess that's what happens with Obama in office. Ray said it's obvious Beer Money want no part of the 20-time world tag champions. After Storm came over for a word with Ray, they went back in the ring where Roode continued to work over Styles. Tenay asked 3D about the War and Ray said the Mafia has it right with the young punks today having no respect for them. He said he doesn't think the Mafia has it right either since they don't have the greatest tag team of all-time in their stable.

Styles pulled out the Pele kick on Storm to cut him off and make the hot tag to Joe, who came in to clean house with straight right hand jabs. Joe landed a running kick on Roode, then he nailed a corkscrew gutbuster out of the powerbomb position on Storm. Joe suddenly snapped off a powerslam on Roode, but it was good for a two count only. After the action broke down, Joe had the Musclebuster on Roode, but Jackie ran interference. 3D then got involved and Ray spewed beer in Storm's eyes to cause the match to be thrown out.

[Q8]

Afterward, 3D cleaned the ring except for Joe and Styles, who were not happy with them causing the match to be thrown out. They confronted Devon while Ray talked trash to Roode, who had a busted nose.

WINNERS: Match thrown out in 11:00. Good energy tag match. Definitely above-average with 3D offering some enhancing commentary to the action. They addressed the question of where 3D stands and let it play out a little this week to set up future storylines. Well done.

Backstage: Christian Cage was shown walking in anticipation of the Mafia segment up next.

[Commercial Break]

Backstage PSA: Kip James welcomed in Angelina Love and Velvet Sky to give their formal offer to Sarah Palin to be part of the Beautiful People based on her spending $150k on her wardrobe. Velvet said that if Palin chooses to accept their offer, they will donate $50,000 to whatever charity her heart desires. She also offered free tanning with the Beautiful People. Angelina said if she joins the Beautiful People, she will know what it feels like to be part of a winning team. Cute Kip approved this message.

Impact Zone: The Mafia walked out to the ring, then Kurt Angle welcomed out Christian Cage to officially join the group. Angle clapped it up for Christian, who simply walked out in street clothes with his hands in his pockets. Steiner wanted to know where the suit is. Angle said when they give him a suit to wear, you wear it. All of them have had differences with Christian at some point, but they want to welcome him to the family. He said family is commitment. Angle went through all of the commitments from the other Mafia members, then he brought up Christian possibly going to WWE. He said the Mafia members had the same offer, but when it comes down to it, you're in the ring for a going-away party, not a welcoming party. Angle said once you abandon the Mafia and TNA, you abandon everyone. Angle threatened a beating, so Christian went for the first punch on Angle. That set off the Mafia, except Sting (who wasn't there), beating down on Christian. And beating down and beating down. They made their mark on Christian. End show.

We welcome your 1-10 score and comments on this show for an "Impact Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on Impact, click here.

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