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April 12th
On this day in history in ....
1909 - Walter Willoughby defeats Ed Atherton for the World Middleweight Title in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
1947 - Tarzan López defeats Black Guzmán to win the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Title. This began López's second reign and ended Guzmán's second reign.
1948 - Mike Kelly defeats Gory Guerrero for the NWA World Middleweight Title in Mexico City, Mexico.
1958 - Verne Gagne defeats Dick the Bruiser in Chicago, Illinois to win the Chicago/Detroit NWA United States Heavyweight Title, beginning his second reign, which carried over into the AWA. Gagne held the title until August 1960 when he won the AWA World Title.
1960 - Tony Anthony is born in Knoxville, Tennessee.
1961 - The Mysterious Medics defeat Bobby and Don Fields in Mobile, Alabama for the Gulf Coast NWA Southern Tag Team Title, ending the Fields' fourth reign and beginning the Medics' second.
1963 - Karl Von Schober and Ricky Waldo defeat The Masked Destroyer and Jim Wright for the Stampede International Tag Team Title in Calgary, Alberta.
1967 - Ricky Romero defeats Stan Pulaski to win the California Heavyweight Title in Los Angeles, California.
1968 - Mr. Wrestling defeats El Mongol in Atlanta, Georgia to win the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Title, ending Mongol's fourth reign and beginning Mr. Wrestling's second.
1969 - Moondog Mayne defeats Luther Lindsay for the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title. This began Mayne's sixth reign and ended Lindsay's fourth.
1970 - Bill Watts defeats The Spoiler to win the Tri-State NWA North American Heavyweight Title in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
1972 - Bob Kelly defeats Don Fargo for the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Title in Mobile, Alabama, ending Fargo's third reign and beginning Kelly's seventh. At the same event, Gorgeous George, Jr. defeats Bill White for the City of Mobile Heavyweight Title, beginning his second reign.
1973 - The Wrestling Pro defeats Bob Kelly to win the NWA Mississippi Heavyweight Title in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, ending Kelly's 11th of 18 total reigns.
1976 - Don Leo Jonathan and Jimmy Snuka defeat Gene Kiniski and Siegfried Steinke to win the Vancouver NWA Canadian Tag Team Title in Vancouver, British Columbia.
1977 - Fritz Von Erich defeats Bruiser Brody in Dallas, Texas to win his 14th of 16 NWA American Heavyweight Titles.
1980 - The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) defeat Ivan Putski and Tito Santana for the WWF World Tag Team Title in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1980 - Bob Orton, Jr. and Tony Peters defeat Terry Gibbs and Bob Roop to win the International Championship Wrestling Southeastern Tag Team Title in Knoxville, Tennessee.
1982 - Bill Dundee and Steve Keirn win their second AWA Southern Tag Team Title from Bobby Eaton and Sweet Brown Sugar in Memphis, Tennessee.
1983 - Ron Bass and Stan Hansen defeat Giant Baba and Jumbo Tsuruta for the NWA International Tag Team Title in Matsuyama, Japan, ending Baba and Tsuruta's fourth reign.
1984 - The Spoiler defeats Brad Armstrong to win the NWA National Heavyweight Title in Wheeling, West Virginia.
1984 - The Grapplers (Len Denton and Tony Anthony) defeat Jerry and Ted Oates in Kansas City, Kansas to win the NWA Central States Tag Team Title, ending the Oates' second reign.
1985 - Cien Caras and Sangre Chicana defeat Cachorro and Ringo Mendoza for the Mexican National Tag Team Title in Mexico City, Mexico.
1986 - Billy Jack Haynes defeats Bobby Jaggers to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title in Portland, Oregon. This began Haynes' fourth reign and ended Jaggers' fourth reign.
1987 - The first of three untimely deaths by suicide in the Von Erich family occured when Mike Von Erich intentionally overdosed on Placidyl, a tranqulizer. The overdose occurred after Mike wrapped himself in a sleeping bag in the woods near his home. He was one-third of the World Class Six-Man Tag Team Champions at the time, along with Kevin and Lance Von Erich. Mike had replaced his brother Kerry in the team after he was injured in a motorcycle accident during the previous summer. Mike Von Erich was just 23 years old.
1987 - Rick Steiner and Sting defeat Chris Adams and Terry Taylor to win the UWF World Tag Team Title in Atlanta, Georgia.
1988 - Kendo Nagasaki and Mr. Pogo defeat Chris and Mark Youngblood for the WWC World Tag Team Title in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to begin their third reign. This was a rematch of their March 19 match in Caguas.
1990 - Robert Fuller and Kendall Windham defeat Brian Knobbs and Hurricane Walker (subbing for Jerry Sags) to win the NWA Florida Tag Team Title in Tampa, Florida.
1990 - The Lightning Kid (Sean Waltman) defeats Matt Derringer to win the Pro Wrestling America Light Heavyweight Title in Fridley, Minnesota.
1991 - Eric Embry defeats Bill Dundee for the USWA Texas Heavyweight Title in Dallas, Texas. This began Embry's fifth reign and ended Dundee's second. At the same event, Jeff Jarrett defeats Tom Prichard in a rematch from their April 8 match, also in Dallas, to win his third USWA Southern Heavyweight Title.
1993 - Simply Devine (Steve Doll and Rex King) win their fourth USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennesseee, ending The Moondogs (Splat and Spot)'s fourth reign.
1996 - Ray Roberts defeats D'Lo Brown in Westland, Michigan for the Great Lakes Wrestling Heavyweight Title.
1997 - New Japan Pro Wrestling holds Battle Formation '97 at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, before 60,500 fans, the 24th largest crowd attending a professional wrestling event. The results were:
- Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Manabu Nakanishi by submission.
- El Samurai pinned Shinjiro Otani.
- Chris Benoit pinned Kevin Sullivan.
- Junji Hirata and Satoshi Kojima defeated Osamu Kido and Kazuo Yamazaki, when Kojima pinned Kido.
- Shiro Koshinaka pinned Takashi Ishikawa.
- J-Crown Champion Jushin Liger pinned The Great Sasuke to retain the titles.
- Antonio Inoki defeated Tiger King by submission.
- Keiji Muto pinned Masahiro Chono.
- Riki Choshu and Kensuke Sasaki defeated IWGP Tag Team Champions Tatsumi Fujinami and Kengo Kimura to win the title, ending Fujinami and Kimura's fourth reign.
- Naoya Ogawa, in his professional wrestling debut, defeated IWGP Heavyweight Champion Shinya Hashimoto by TKO.
1997 - NWA New Jersey's second-annual Eddie Gilbert Memorial Brawl is held at West High School in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The results:
- The Beach Bullies (The Inferno Kid and Ray Odyssey) defeated NWA United States Tag Team Champions Downward Spiral (Adrian Hall and Twiggy Ramirez) to win the title, ending their second reign.
- Mr. Puerto Rico defeated Steve Corino.
- The Black Scorpion (Rick Ratchet) defeated Donnie B. Deviously.
- Tommy Gilbert defeated Ian Rotten.
- King Kong Bundy defeated Don Montoya.
- Lance Diamond defeats Cheetah Master and NWA North American Heavyweight Champion Reckless Youth in a triangle match to win the title.
- Marty Jannetty defeated Harley Lewis.
- NWA World Heavyweight Champion Dan Severn fought Dory Funk, Jr. to a double-countout to retain the title.
- I-Con won a battle royal.
- Doug Gilbert defeated Buddy Landell.
- Flash Funk defeated Ace Darling.
- Goldust defeated Derrick Domino.
1997 - The Shooting Stars (Jerry Faith and Troy Haste) defeat Flash Flanagan and Billy Travis for the USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee, ending Flanagan and Travis' second reign. At the same event, King Reginald (Reggie B. Fine) defeats Jerry Lawler, ending Lawler's 26th USWA Unified World Heavyweight Title reign.
1997 - Otis Apollo and Denny Kass defeat Maximum Intensity (Bobby Clancy and Mike Legacy) to win the Border City Wrestling Can-Am Tag Team Title in LaSalle, Ontario.
1998 - ZAP I (Kaoru Itoh) and ZAP T (Tomoko Watanabe) defeat Takako Inoue and Kumiko Maekawa in Tokyo, Japan to win the WWWA World Tag Team Title, which had been vacated by Etsuko Mita and Mima Shimoda on January 9. At the same show, Momoe Nakanishi wins her second AJW Singles Title, defeating Emi Motokawa.
1999 - In this week of the Monday Night War, WWF RAW is WAR got a 6.3 rating, beating WCW Monday Nitro's 4.4 rating.
The WWF held a live RAW is WAR at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The results were:
- The Big Show defeated Christian.
- Val Venis fought Billy Gunn to a no contest.
- Owen Hart and Jeff Jarrett (with Debra) defeated The Acolytes (Bradshaw and Faarooq) by disqualification.
- The Godfather defeated WWF Intercontinental Champion Goldust to win the title, ending Goldust's third reign.
- Hardcore Holly defeated D-Lo Brown (with Ivory).
- WWF Tag Team Champions Kane and X-Pac defeated Test and Triple H (with Chyna) to retain the title.
WCW Monday Nitro was live from the Yakima Sundome in Yakima, Washington, coming off the Spring Stampede pay-per-view. The results:
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion Rey Misterio, Jr. defeated Juventud Guerrera by disqualification to retain the title.
- Bam Bam Bigelow defeated Hugh Morrus (with Jimmy Hart) in a kendo stick match.
- El Dandy and La Parka fought The Master Blasters (with Jimmy Hart) to a no-contest.
- Kidman defeated Psychosis.
- WCW World Television Champion Booker T defeated Rick Steiner to retain the title.
- Goldberg defeated Kenny Kaos.
- Sting defeated Ric Flair (with Arn Anderson).
- WCW World Heavyweight Champion Diamond Dallas Page (with Kimberly) defeated WCW United States Heavyweight Champion Scott Steiner to retain his title.
2000 - The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Robert Gibson and Ricky Morton) defeat Steven Dunn and Jackie Fulton (subbing for Reno Riggins) for the NWA World Tag Team Title in Waegwan, South Korea. This began the Express' fourth reign.
2000 - Chris Michaels defeats Sean Casey in Jeffersonville, Indiana, to win his second OVW Light Heavyweight Title, ending Casey's third reign.
2000 - Zodiac defeats Navajo Warrior for the American Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Title in Window Rock, Arizona, ending Warrior's second reign and beginning Zodiac's second reign.
2001 - S.A.T. Red (The Amazing Red) defeats Billy Bax and champion Evan Leppy in a three-way match in Pottstown, Pennsylvania to win the Premier Wrestling Federation Light Heavyweight Title.
2002 - The WWF Hardcore Title changes hands four times at a house show in Amarillo, Texas. William Regal, the original challenger for the title, became a brief double-champion (he also held the WWF European Title) when he won the title from Bubba Ray Dudley, ending Bubba Ray's third reign and beginning Regal's third. Spike Dudley began his second reign as Hardcore Champion by defeating Regal. Spike then lost the title to Goldust, his fourth title win. Bubba Ray Dudley left with the title though, beating Goldust, and beginning his fourth reign.
2002 - Jazmynn Viktoria defeats Katerina Heiss to win the NWA East Women's Title in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. This began Viktoria's second reign and ended Heiss' third. She was the final champion, the title was abandoned the same year.
2003 - Jeff Daniels defeats Tommy Capone for the NWA Main Event Television Title in Columbia, Tennessee.
2003 - Sinister X defeats Smokey M. to win the CyberSpace Wrestling Federation (later NWA Cyberspace/Shockwave) Heavyweight Title in Rahway, New Jersey.
2003 - All Japan Pro Wrestling held the 13th and final event of its annual Champion's Carnival tour at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan with 16,000 fans in attendance. The results were:
- Gran Hamada pinned Gran Naniwa.
- Gigantes and George Hines beat Hiroshi Hase and Masayuki Kono, when Gigantes pinned Kono.
- Ryuki Ueyama defeated Ryuji Hijikata by submission.
- Kaz Hayashi and Jimmy Yang beat Omega Griffon and NWA International Junior Heavyweight Champion Low Ki, when Hayashi pinned Griffon.
- AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Champion Kendo Kashin defeated Carl Contini by submission to retain the title.
- Shinjiro Otani and Masato Tanaka defeated Hideki Hosaka and Shigeo Okumura, when Otani pinned Hosaka.
- AJPW All Asia Tag Team Champion Nobutaka Araya, Nobukazu Hirai and Genichiro Tenryu defeated Tomohiko Hashimoto, Tomoaki Honma and Kazushi Miyamoto, when Araya pinned Hashimoto.
- Keiji Muto and AJPW Unified World Tag Team Champion Satoshi Kojima defeated Masa Fuchi and Toshiaki Kawada, when Kojima pinned Fuchi.
- AJPW Triple Crown Champion Shinya Hashimoto defeated AJPW All Asia Tag Team Champion Arashi by TKO to retain his title.
2003 - Combat Zone Wrestling held its third-annual Best of the Best event at Viking Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The results:
- Sonjay Dutt and CZW World Junior Heavyweight Champion Ruckus defeated Chris Cash in a three-way falls count anywhere Best of the Best Tournament first round match.
- CZW World Tag Team Champion Trent Acid and Ric Blade defeated Tony Mamaluke in a three-way Best of the Best Tournament first round match.
- B-Boy and Lil' Cholo defeated Deranged in a three-way Best of the Best Tournament first round match.
- Jay Briscoe and Jimmy Rave defeated Jason Cross and A.J. Styles in a four-way Best of the Best Tournament first round match.
- Nate Hatred won a 30-man battle royal, where the winner received a shot at the title of his choosing.
- Sonjay Dutt defeated Mark Briscoe (replacing the injured Ruckus) in a Best of the Best Tournament quarterfinal match.
- Trent Acid defeated Ric Blade in a Best of the Best Tournament quarterfinal match.
- B-Boy defeated Lil' Cholo in a Best of the Best Tournament quarterfinal match.
- Jay Briscoe defeated Jimmy Rave in a Best of the Best Tournament quarterfinal match.
- Sonjay Dutt defeated Trent Acid in a Best of the Best Tournament semifinal match.
- B-Boy defeated Jay Briscoe in a Best of the Best Tournament semifinal match.
- CZW World Heavyweight Champion The Messiah defeated Nick Gage to retain the title.
- B-Boy defeated Sonjay Dutt to win the Best of the Best Tournament.
2012 - WWE Smackdown ran Dublin, Ireland. Matthew Macklin filed the following live report:
The building seemed to be very close to full surprisingly. Lilian Garcia was the ring announcer for the evening.
1. The Great Khali def. Jinder Mahal
This was absolutely tedious from start to finish. It was far too long, and Khali should be given a one way ticket back to India. Khali who could barely walk, Won after the chop and Khali bomb
2. Alberto Del Rio def. Yoshi Tatsu
This was quick. I'd say it was less than two minutes. Del Rio won with the armbar.
Del Rio then got on the mic and did the usual anti Ireland promo that happens at every show until he was interrupted by Ezekiel Jackson. People didn't know what was happening here as Zeke came out and chased Alberto away until the ref rang the bell.
3. Alberto Del Rio def. Ezekiel Jackson
Nothing special. Del Rio won with the armbar. I'm not exactly sure what the point of the two matches were.
4. William Regal & Tyson Kidd def. Hunico and Camacho
This was fantastic! I loved this match. Beforehand Regal got on the mic and said he used to look for boos in Dublin as an English villain, but his time he was having one more go with "a body like a badly made bed". Regal pulled out some old school British tricks. Kidd was great here, as the match went on the Tyson chants got louder and louder. Camacho is actually pretty solid in the ring. This match went long enough and built to the it tag to Regal nicely. Regal got the pin on Camacho after the running knee trembler.
5. Intercontinental Championship
Big Show def. Cody Rhodes
Cody cut a great promo before the match saying how he was the future and despite loosing his bags at the airport he had one bag big enough to hold the title belt. The match was more or less the same as the WrestleMania match except slightly longer. Show won with the knock out punch.
Intermission
6. AJ def. Natalya
Hornswoggle was the ref. Lots of Yes chants for AJ. This was a decent match by women's standards with some nice counters and pinning combinations. AJ got the pin with a roll up after a distraction from Hornswoggle.
7. Street Fight
Randy Orton def. Mark Henry
Mark Henry was. Terrorized with Sexual Chocolate chants all match long. Orton got a huge reaction. It was a good match with a chair and kendo stick being used. Orton won with the RKO.
8. World heavyweight Championship
Sheamus def. Daniel Bryan
There were some Yes chants for Bryan during his entrance. The reaction Sheamus got coming out was monstrous to say the least. He really was treated like a hero making his homecoming. It took several minutes for the crowd to die down so the match could begin. Sheamus was close to tears at one point. There were some deafening Ole Ole chants throughout the match. The match itself was superb. Bryan was brilliant! The match was fairly long and had a few nice false finishes towards the end. Sheamus won after the Brogue Kick.
He then got on the mic and said the World Title was for the people of Ireland. Overall it wasn't a great show. The Sheamus stuff saved it from being a complete disaster.
2012 - WWE broadcast Superstars. Richard Trionfo filed the following TV report:
We start off this week with the Raw brand and your announcers are Josh Mathews and Scott Stanford.
Match Number One: Kofi Kingston versus Curt Hawkins with Tyler Reks
They lock up and Hawkins backs Kofi into the corner and Hawkins teases a clean break but Kofi avoids Hawkins. Kofi teases a kick and Hawkins goes to the floor to discuss things with Tyler. Hawkins returns to the ring and Hawkins with a drop toe hold and a slap to the head before applying an arm bar.
Kofi counters the arm drag and he gets a near fall after a leg sweep. Kofi with an arm drag into an arm bar. Hawkins with a shoulder after the referee separates them. Hawkins with a snap mare and kick to the back. Hawkins with a side head lock take down. Kofi gets back to his feet and Hawkins with a shoulder tackle. Kofi with a leaping back elbow for a near fall.
Kofi with a drop kick and clothesline that sends Hawkins over the top rope to the floor. Kofi with a suicide dive onto Hawkins. Kofi sends Hawkins back into the ring and Reks distracts Kofi long enough to allow Hawkins to connect with a knee lift and he follows it with a neck breaker and Kofi goes to the floor.
We go to commercial.
We are back and Hawkins with a head lock. Kofi punches Hawkins but Hawkins with a clothesline and he gets a near fall with a lackadaisical cover. Hawkins with a reverse chin lock. Kofi with punches but Hawkins gets a near fall. Curt with a front face lock on Kofi but Kofi with punches. Hawkins pushes Kofi into the corner and Hawkins slaps Kofi. Kofi goes to the apron for a pendulum kick and then he goes up top for a cross body and he gets a near fall.
Kofi with chops followed by a drop kick and then he runs into a boot from Hawkins. Kofi with SOS for a near fall because Hawkins grabs the ropes. Kofi with a shoulder from the apron and he leaps over Hawkins on a springboard move. Hawkins with an emphatic slam for a near fall. Kofi hits Trouble in Paradise for the three count.
Winner: Kofi Kingston
We go to commercial.
Match Number Two: Brie Bella with Nikki Bella versus Kelly Kelly
They lock up and Brie backs Kelly into the corner and kicks her. Kelly with a kick and then she chokes Brie in the ropes. Kelly trips Brie and pulls her to the floor and she slams Brie’s head to the floor. Brie begs for mercy but Kelly is not related to Zack Ryder so she does not fall for it. She stomps on Brie’s hand and then slap her in the rear end. Kelly tries for the screaming head scissors but Brie with a side slam for a near fall.
Brie kicks Kelly and pulls her hair until the referee warns her. Brie gets a near fall but may have taken too much time to make the cover to cost her. Brie chokes Kelly in the ropes and then Brie gets a near fall. Brie with a rear chin lock. Kelly with the Thesz Press and then she punches Brie. Kelly is able to hit the screaming head scissors this time and that sets up the handspring back elbow and then the Stinkface.
Kelly with a bulldog for a near fall. Brie with a knee and she tries for an X Factor but Kelly blocks it and gets a jackknife cover for the three count.
Winner: Kelly Kelly
We are back with the Smackdown portion of the show and your announcers are Matt Striker and Josh Mathews.
Match Number Three: Ezekiel Jackson versus Jinder Mahal
Mahal works on the wrist and applies a top wrist lock but Jackson pushes him to the mat. Mahal with a slap but Jackson with forearms. Zeke with punches in the corner followed by a biel across the ring. Jackson charges into the corner but Mahal with a drop kick to the knee. Mahal with a neck breaker for a near fall.
Mahal chokes Jackson in the ropes and kicks him. Mahal with a cravate and knees to the head that stagger Jackson. Mahal with a rear chin lock into a side Russian leg sweep for a near fall. Mahal returns to the reverse chin lock into a cravate. Mahal with a knee and slap to the head. Mahal with kicks the corner and the referee warns Jinder.
Mahal slaps Jackson again but Jackson grabs Mahal by the throat and punches him. Jackson with a slam and then he clotheslines Mahal into the corner a few times. Mahal with a boot to a charging Jackson and then Mahal with a high knee to the back. Mahal with the camel clutch and Jackson taps out.
Winner: Jinder Mahal
We go to commercial.
We are back with a Raw Rebound and then we go to credits.
2012 - TNA broadcast Impact Wrestling. Stu Carapola filed the following TV report:
Welcome to the Impact Wrestling Report here on PWInsider.com!
We look back at last week as Hulk Hogan laid down the law and reversed the decision in the main event on Bobby Roode, then set up the Lethal Lockdown to decide which Bischoff gets to stay in TNA. After that, we're off to the Impact Zone as Easy E opens the show, makes fun of some fat broad in the audience, then gets down to business and says that Hogan and Garett think they have him cornered, but what they don't understand is that the name Eric Bischoff will live on long after we're all dead and gone. He's going to be a legacy in the business, and refers to last week when Hogan questioned his ability to lead. He put together a badass team for Lockdown, and introduces them now: Bully Ray, Gunner, Frankie Kazarian, and Christopher Daniels. Bully Ray says he is proud to stand next to Bischoff and go to war for him, but as great of a man as Bischoff is, he made one mistake: his bastard son Garett Bischoff. Eric says he knows Bubba is going to take care of that at Lockdown and reminds us of the stakes this weekend. We've got a best of three series tonight to determind who will have the advantage at Lethal Lockdown, and that Gunner will lead the charge and take on anyone Garett throws at him.
Garett Bischoff comes out and says Eric and his team are obviously ready to go, but he's got his team all lined up and ready to come out and get their hands on Eric's team. In fact, one of them is ready to go right here and right now, so let's kick this off right off the bat. Ken Anderson's music hits, and he comes out to kick off tonight's show!
Gunner vs Ken Anderson
Gunner jumps Anderson before he gets a chance to take his shirt off, and Anderson gets some offense in, but Gunner goes to the eyes and Anderson is back in trouble. Anderson tries to roll outside to get some breathing room, but Gunner continues the assault and tries to slam Anderson on the floor, but Anderson slips out the back and rams Gunner into the ringpost. Anderson unloads with right hands and rams Gunner into the barricade, then rolls him back inside and takes him out with a back elbow. Gunner escapes a Finlay Roll and rolls Anderson up with a handful of tights, but Anderson is out at 2 and takes Gunner out with a clothesline and a chain of elbowdrops. Anderson looks REALLY REALLY MAD as he stomps right on Gunner's bladder, no doubt ruining his plans for the evening, but Gunner goes back to the eyes again and takes Anderson out with a clothesline, then blatantly chokes him right in front of the referee. Gunner smashes Anderson face first into the top turnbuckle and goes all Jesse Ventura by raking his boot laces across the eyes. Gunner with another rollup with the tights, but Anderson again kicks out at 2, officially making Gunner the worst illegal tights user of all time. Anderson sends Gunner shoulder first into the post and then stomps a mudhole in him in the corner before choking him out with his boot until the referee calls for the disqualification.
Winner: Gunner by DQ
Anderson isn't done, and continues stomping Gunner's chest in before walking off.
Eric Young is backstage admiring himself in the mirror when Joseph Park walks in to tell EY how snazzy he looks and asks if he's thought about a prenup. He asks EY if he's heard anything about his brother Chris because he's been here for the better part of a decade, and to think about where he last saw him. EY says last time he saw him, he was mixed up with that Immortal group, so Joseph hands him his card and thanks him again.
We go out to the ring with the Motor City Machine Guns, and Chris Sabin says that injury after injury has plagued the MCMGs, but no more, then hands the microphone to Alex Shelley, who says that the MCMGs have been teaming for over six years, while Samoa Joe and Magnus have been teaming for six months. Shelley says Morgan and Crimson rub baby oil on each other, while the MCMGs beat Beer Money, they retired Team 3D, and this Sunday, they're not wrestling Curry Man and Shark Boy, they're wrestling one of the greatest teams ever, and they're going to be the new TNA World Tag Team Champions. Samoa Joe and Brutus Magnus come out to the ring to put the MCMGs over as one of the most impressive teams of all time, and Magnus says Sabin has his respect for coming back from injury, but it's not about who the best team ever is, it's about who is the best team right now. At Lockdown, the two best teams on the planet go at it to see who is the best of the best and who deserves to be the champions. Magnus says they look ready, and he and Joe are always ready, so if they don't want to wait, they can go right now. Wait a minute, Mexican America's music hits and they come out to crash the party. Anarquia says they were champions for six months and if they want to be left out of the picture, they have one thing to say. Well, they don't really say anything, they attack both teams and get their asses kicked. Having gotten their workout for the evening, the MCMGs and Joe & Magnus stare one another down, and we're at commercial.
Christopher Daniels vs X Division Champion Austin Aries
They tie up and Daniels goes to the arm, Aries goes to the ropes, cartwheels past Daniels, and boxes the ears. Daniels takes Aries to the corner by the hair and shoulderblocks his abdomen, Aries shoots Daniels to the ropes and now Daniels cartwheels past Aries and jabs him in the face. Aries gets a side headlock, Daniels headscissors his way out, but clearly has never seen an Austin Aries match before because he eats the kickout dropkick square in the grill. Crowd is solidly behind Aries as he goes to the top rope, but Daniels comes along and shakes the ropes, crotching Aries, and then a short jab sends Aries tumbling to the ring apron. Daniels fires Aries hard into the corner and snaps Aries over with a vertical suplex for 2. Daniels with a Cobra Clutch and snaps Aries backward over his knee, Aries knees Daniels in the head until he breaks the hold, but Daniels tosses Aries out to the floor. Daniels goes for an Arabian moonsault to the floor, Aries dodges and Daniels sees him move and lands on his feet, but Aries quickly pops into the ring and hits the heat seeking missile to the floor. They go back inside where Aries wipes Daniels out with a roaring elbow and teases the pendulum elbow, but instead goes for a handspring elbowdrop that gets 2. Aries gets a sunset flip out of the corner, Daniels gets out and tries rolling Aries up with the tights, but the referee catches him and Aries reverses to a rollup of his own, but also has the tights and the referee won't count that either. Daniels with a uranage and goes for the BME, but Aries moves and hits a missile dropkick, followed by the IED in the corner and then the brainbuster for the win.
Winner: Austin Aries
Awesome match! This may have been the best match on Impact in months, and now the best of three series is tied up at one apiece.
We're back and the steel cage is being built for the wedding, but first, Jeff Hardy comes out to the ring to tell us that the thing with Angle started when Angle cost him the World Title, and it's going to end in the steel cage. They'll make history this Sunday, they're going to hurt each other, and it's inevitable. Hardy puts the microphone down and heads to the back. Short and to the point.
We look back at last week when James Storm (joined by his theme music guys) says he's sick of Bobby Roode's bulls**t, and then the music guys say that after Storm kicks his ass at Lockdown, he hopes they leave the cage open so they can get some too.
EY is backstage getting himself psyched up for his wedding when Sarita and Rosita walk in dressed like skanks to try and scare EY by telling him that they don't think he and ODB are a good fit, and once he has that ring on, he's stuck with her. They flash their boobs at him (I swear I'm not making that up) and asks Eric if he thinks he's going to be missing anything, but EY freaks out and runs off.
It's wedding time, and there's a preacher behind a camouflage podium looking solemn as Eric Young comes out to the cage dressed in what appears to be one of Vince McMahon's old, powder blue jackets. The Knockouts Tag Team Title belts are proudly on display as the bride music hits...then turns off. EY looks confused, but then ODB's regular music hits and she comes out in a dress that looks like it was torn off a shower somewhere. Strangely, it's the most feminine she's probably ever looked, and she chains the cage door shut behind her so Eric has nowhere to run. The preacher says how symbolic the cage is for marriage because of the strength it takes to live in marriage together. We see a music video looking back at the crazy love Young and ODB have shared and how we got to where we are today, and then we hear they're vows which they've prepared for each other. Eric says he promises to stay with ODB, even when she farts, and let her rub his feet anytime she wants...because he knows she's into that. He vows to be his tag partner in wrestling and in life, now and for the rest of their lives together. ODB promises not to take his last name, but will take his ring music, and to slap his ass whenever necessary...because she knows he's into that. She promises to give him a buffet of BAM anytime he wants (that gets an ODB chant from the crowd), then the preacher asks if anyone has a reason they should not be married, and of course Sarita and Rosita come out to object. They tried to show Eric what a real woman looks like backstage, but he ran. They'll give Eric one last chance to choose whether he wants to stay with that beast, or be with the greatest Knockouts Tag Team Champions of all time. Rosita strips her robe off and she's got her stripper outfit on underneath as Sarita says that could be all his. Now Sarita takes her robe off and she's wearing a matching stripper outfit and shakes her ass as ODB starts crying. ODB says she gets it, she doesn't have what those girls have, but those girls don't have what she has. ODB tears off the dress to reveal her own underwear with her big BAMs and asks Eric what it's going to be. Crowd chants for ODB, and EY walks over and holds her hands and says that she's perfect for him and he's been dreaming about this since she was a boy. He wanted to make this wedding perfect, and now they've found a way to make it perfect. Eric strips down to his own underwear, then ODB tells the preacher (who has somehow managed to keep a straight face through all this) to strip down as well so everyone matches. The preacher shrugs and decides to go with the flow, then asks Eric if he takes ODB to be his lawfully wedded wife. The crowd does the Daniel Bryan chant and EY says absolutely. Same question for ODB, same Daniel Bryan chant, and ODB says BAM, then the preacher pronounces them man and wife and ODB climbs on top of Eric as we get our happy ending.
We go backstage to Team Bischoff as Ric Flair gives Bully Ray a pep talk in preparation of his tiebreaker match with the third member of Garett's team.
Bobby Roode is backstage with his security team and says that James Storm wants to see him face to face, and that's fine because this is personal.
Bully Ray vs AJ Styles
Bubba has all of Team Ric at ringside, while AJ has Team Garett come out to the ring with him. Bubba takes AJ to the corner and tries a cheapshot, but AJ moves out of the way. Bubba takes AJ to the corner again, and AJ dodges another shot and this time returns fire. AJ gets a side headlock on Bubba, but gets eelvated and dropped hard to the mat with a back suplex. Bubba unloads with right hands and elbows, but comes off the ropes right into the swanky dropkick from AJ, who charges Bubba and gets backdropped out to the ring apron. Bubba boots AJ to the floor and Team Eric tries to go after him, but Team Garett shows up to stop them and leave this man on man. Bubba slingshots AJ into the ring and locks in a tight bearhug, AJ breaks free but takes a high BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK BODYDROP. Bubba misses a big splash and AJ starts firing back, comes off the ropes with a leaping clothesline, another one in the corner, but Bubba blocks a tornado DDT and gets a Samoan drop for 2. Bubba goes to the second rope, but AJ quickly gets to his feet and nails Bubba, then hits a Frankensteiner out of the corner and covers for 2. Frankie Kazarian grabs AJ's ankle from the floor, and both teams wind up brawling on the floor as AJ hits a Pelle kick on Bubba and covers for 2. AJ goes out to the floor to join the fray as Eric Bischoff tosses Bubba his chain wallet, then Bubba nails AJ in the face with the chain as he comes off the top rope and covers him for the win.
Winner: Bully Ray
Team Eric celebrates, but Hulk Hogan's music hits and he congratulates Eric on his win, then says he's changing Lethal Lockdown to a five on five, and gives Eric three minutes to decide who his fifth man is. Hey, what a coincidence, we just HAPPEN to be going into a commercial! How about that?
We're back and Hogan says Bischoff's time is up, and Eric begs Ric Flair to join the team because he knows Hogan is going to make himself be the fifth man, then does an about face because he wants to stand over Garett's broken body at the end, so he names himself the fifth man. Hogan says Eric is so predictable, but Hogan says that he's taking his GM position seriously and won't be in the match. However, he informed Garett of the change to five man teams a few days ago, and he and Garett introduce their new fifth man: Rob Van Dam, making his return to TNA after months off TV.
We go to a video package of James Storm, voiced over by Bobby Roode talking about how Storm winning the title before him was a joke because he carried Storm to all those tag titles and made him who he is. He's accomplished a lot since Roode kicked him to the curb six months ago, and there's nothing Roode won't do to keep the title, and he won't hold back because he's going to prove that he's the World Champion for a reason. We then go to James Storm, who says it took ten years to build a company, four years to build a friendship, and one bottle to ruin it all. But in three days, the bulls**t stops. Seriously, this may be the best build to any match in TNA history.
Gail Kim & Madison Rayne vs Velvet Sky & Mickie James
Anyone else notice that Gail Kim's old music sounds a hell of a lot like the old Sid Justice entrance music from 1991? Velvet didn't let the pigeons loose as she got into the ring, and Taz gets all bent out of shape over Velvet destroying the gimmick. Mickie and Madison start us off, Madison yanks Mickie to the mat by the hair, but Mickie catches her with a dropkick. Madison gets pissed and boots Mickie in the skull, then tags out to Gail Kim, who comes in and is promptly flapjacked in the middle of the ring. Velvet tags in and Gailimmediately bails to her corner and tags out to Madison. Velvet kicks the crap out of Madison and snapmares her so Mickie can come in and wipe her out with a basement dropkick. Gail hits Mickie from behind, then tags in and unloads on Mickie with kicks and a hard clothesline. Mickie and Gail double team Mickie, but Mickie dodges a charge and Gail crashes into the second turnbuckle, awkwardly crashing ribs first, and Mickie manages to make the tag. Velvet Sky comes in and unloads on Gail, then snaps off a flying headscissors and a running bulldog for 2. Velvet hits a snap DDT and then goes back after Gail, Velvet blocks Eat Da Feet and hits the sitout Pedigree, then pins the Knockouts Champion to win the match.
Winners: Velvet Sky & Mickie James
It's time for the final face to face confrontation between James Storm and Bobby Roode before Lockdown this Sunday. Storm says that for the last few weeks, they've done a lot of talking. He asks if he remembers the time they were on a fifteen hour plane ride to Japan and laughed because they never thought they'd be the World Champion. They're four time TNA World Tag Team Champions, the longest reigning tag champions in the history of TNA, travelled all over the world, entertained millions of people, kicked a lot of butt, and drank a lot of beer. Crowd starts a "beer" chant, and Roode says he's not going to pretend that Beer Money never existed. Beer Money was one of the greatest teams in the history of the business, and being part of it was one of the proudest moments in his career in life, but there's another proud moment that they probably both remember, which was last year when they put their tag team aspirations aside and entered the Bound For Glory Series for a shot at the World Title. They both wound up in the final four and made it to the semifinals, but only Roode made it to the finals, and he went on to win the whole thing. That sent him to Bound For Glory where he challenged for the World Title while Storm sat in the back twiddling his thumbs and drinking his beer. Storm says he remembers doing something: he was sitting their drinking beer and watching the monitor when Roode got beat. Storm asks if he remembers the next week when he beat the guy who beat Roode, in record time no less. Roode says he vaguely remembers it because Storm's reign was so short that two weeks later, Roode not only beat him for the title, but became the It Factor of professional wrestling and the leader of the selfish generation. Storm says he's glad he brought that up because it was the night Roode hit him in the head with a beer bottle and destroyed the legacy of Beer Money and their friendship. Roode tells Storm to cut the bulls**t because they were never friends. They hated each other when they met, and the only reason they were so successful was because of their individual passions for the business. All the stuff about hanging out drinking beer is crap because they hated each other, and from day one, Storm has been jealous of him. Storm asks what he has to be jealous of, because where he comes from, family and friends mean something and you don't sell them out for money like Roode did. Storm does this for the love of the sport, and he does it for all the fans, and his superkick leg is getting tired from the trip down memory lane, so no more history class because in three days, they step into the cage to kick the crap out of each other in Storm's hometown of Nashville, in front of his friends and family. Roode says he doesn't give a crap about Nashville, his hillbilly wife, or his redneck kids. Storm takes his jacket off and so does Roode, and Storm says Roode won't need luck, he'll need a damn miracle to walk out of that cage, and Roode says he's heard Storm's line a million times and he's sick of it. He tells Storm to look at him, dammit, and in three days, Storm will be lucky to walk out of that cage, and says that Storm has no luck with his two dead brothers and his dead father. Storm and Roode go nose to nose, and we go off the air.
HELL of a go home episode there. I'll be back tomorrow to discuss Impact and more with Dave Scherer on the Stu & Pid Show!
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