PWTorch.com - PPV FLASHBACK: Jay Lethal vs. Ric Flair at TNA Victory Road 5 yrs. ago, plus Beer Money vs. Machineguns, four-way TNA Title match, more

Torch Flashbacks
PPV FLASHBACK: Jay Lethal vs. Ric Flair at TNA Victory Road 5 yrs. ago, plus Beer Money vs. Machineguns, four-way TNA Title match, more

Jul 11, 2015 - 5:45:57 AM

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TNA Victory Road PPV Flashback
July 11, 2010
Orlando, Fla.
In-Person Report by James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

Pre-show Dark Match: Jeff Jarrett beat Desmond Wolfe (Nigel McGuinness) in 6:00. Solid back and forth match for VIP ticketholders. Jarrett played a classic babyface overcoming the cocky heel. The match finish was Jarrett countering Tower of London into the Stroke for the pinfall.

(1) X Title match: Doug Williams vs. Kendrick. Good story to this match with Williams playing his typical strong heel character. Finish was Williams getting a submission via KO after both men dropped off the Ultimate X. They used the gimmick a few times for transition spots and the finish. Williams was lucky not to hurt his knee on the final spot when they both dropped from the structure as Williams came crashing down with all of his weight on the knee. Good opening match overall. (**1/2)

(2) Brother Devon vs. Brother Ray vs. Jesse Neal. A lot of moving parts to this one. First, Ray ambushed Neal after locking Devon in their locker room. Then, Dreamer, Richards, Rhino, and Raven showed up in the crowd. Devon eventually showed up and Shannon Moore did a run-in, but Ray scored a win by the skin of his teeth. Good reinforcement of Ray as a heel overall. It helped that Borash told the crowd before the match that Ray would be the heel here. More of an angle than a match. (*)

(3) KO champ Madison Rayne vs. Angelina Love. At the end of the match, a woman in a motorcycle outfit came out to KO Angelina. The ref called for the bell and DQ'ed Madison to give Angelina the KO Title. They didn't identify the woman to the audience but it was supposed to be a returning Tara, who was backstage.

(4) A.J. Styles & Kaz beat Samoa Joe & Rob Terry. Styles's comedy heelings were awesome. Great work from Styles and Samoa Joe was way over. Everything he did was over. It was only natural they teamed him with Terry to give him a rub. Wolfe had a run-in and red incompetence ensued. Styles and Kaz won to join Fortune. Good undercard match despite the over-booking. (**1/2)

(5) Hernandez beat Matt Morgan in a cage match. Good cage match. Morgan got over his heel persona as a beast and had his "out" taking the loss after teasing walking out of the cage mid-way through. Hernandez also tried to bleed during the match, but the blood flow wasn't there. The big spot was Hernandez missing a dive from the top of the cage after making his comeback. The finish was Hernandez breaking out of gimmicked handcuffs and flying through the cage as Morgan was about to climb out. Hernandez hit the stage and Morgan hit the ground, which gave Morgan another "out." Good win for Hernandez while they still protected Morgan in the loss. Not long enough to hit three stars but solid overall. (**1/2)

(6) Ric Flair vs. Jay Lethal. Lethal won in 12 minutes. It's amazing Flair is still able to wrestle at his age. The man isn't human. Good back and forth with Flair slowing things down to set a deliberate pace that worked well. Lethal was over despite Flair getting a babyface reaction because he's Flair. Flair did all the signature spots and Lethal matched him spot for spot to play into the TV storyline. Good match that could have been semi-main event. (***)

(7) Beer Money vs. Machineguns. Awesome, show-stealing match. They did a double finish with both Hebner refs counting pinfalls before re-starting the match with the Guns winning. I was surprised they actually continued the match rather than booking a draw and following up on TV. Overall, Guns and Beer Money perfected this match on the house shows for months and they brought it strong to PPV. The finish set up Beer Money for a re-match after this. After the finish, TNA president Dixie Carter stood up from ringside and applauded the Guns on their title victory. Best match thus far. (****)

(8) Kurt Angle vs. The Pope. It took the crowd a while to get into the match after the Tag Title match, but Angle and Pope put in a strong performance with 12 minutes. Your standard strong performance by Angle on PPV. (***)

(9) RVD vs. Anderson vs. Abyss vs. Hardy for the TNA Title. RVD retained the title in 12 minutes. Very heavy on false finishes and multiple-man spots. The finish was a bit anti-climatic with RVD simply pinning Anderson after breaking up a pin following a big false finish. After the match, Abyss attacked RVD and suggested the feud isn't over. They closed the PPV with an Abyss and RVD stare down. Overall, the main event was fine but not great for the final slot. (**1/2)

Final thoughts live: thumbs up PPV. Not great with some of the usual booking issues but some very strong in-ring performances, especially Guns vs. Beer Money. An overall satisfying PPV offering from TNA this month.