411’s PPV Preview: TNA Sacrifice 2008

Posted by Seth Roy on 05.09.2008

A full preview of Sunday’s show!

Hello, I am Seth Roy, the regular reviewer for the Office in the Movies/TV Zone, and also new TNA Pay-Per-View preview guy, which I'm starting just in time to have a heck of a pay-per-view to preview. And, by "heck," I mean cluster-heck...What should I get to first?

TERRORDOME MATCH: Jimmy Rave vs. Johnny Devine vs. Shark Boy vs. Curry Man vs. Jay Lethal vs. Sonjay Dutt vs. Chris Sabin vs. Alex Shelley vs. Consequences Creed vs. Kaz
Background: Jim Cornette unveiled the plans for this new "concept" match on a recent episode of Impact. It's a cage that is 30 feet high, shaped sort of like a dome with a small opening at the top. From my limited understanding of the match, the first person to escape wins the match and, so far, the number 1 contendership for the X Division Title. Though, maybe with Petey Williams out for a while, the winner could maybe be the actual champion? Or they could do what the UFC does when a champion can't defend a title, and name a temporary champion of sorts, with a Petey vs. temporary champion match later on...It only makes sense, right?

Match: I just hope someone doesn't die. There is no need for anyone to drop 30 feet, and I hope it doesn't happen. This match will probably be fast-paced for a while, and eventually feature a scramble to the top, where, undoubtedly, someone will fall from a ridiculous height. It could be fun, but a little cluster-iffic, since there will be 10 people inside the cage. The winner will come down to who TNA wants to push. My guess is that Jay Lethal and Sonjay Dutt will continue to do their own thing and not win, Sabin and Shelley are still being punished, Jimmy Rave should not be near the X Title and Johnny Devine has had his shots. So we're left with Shark Boy, Curry Man, Consequences Creed and Kaz.

Will Win: Curry Man or Shark Boy. They are both pretty popular, and would be a different direction for the division.
Should Win: Kaz. He's done nothing of note since his matches against Cage and Angle, and a big win here could give hiim back some of that lost momentum.

TNA KNOCKOUTS MAKEOVER BATTLE ROYAL:
One Knockout gets a shot at the Women's Championship - while the runner-up gets her head shaved!
Gail Kim vs. ODB vs. Traci Brooks vs. Velvet Sky vs. Angelina Love vs. Jacqueline vs. Christy Hemme vs. Roxxi Laveaux vs. Rhaka Khan vs. Salinas
Background: Another super gimmick match announced by Cornette recently. Basically, all the women will have a battle royal. The last two will have a ladder match, and the winner of the ladder match gets a shot at the title. The loser of the ladder match (not the first loser of the battle royal) gets her head shaved. I guess it's kind of a risk-reward type of thing? On Thursday's Impact, Gail Kim received immunity because she won a Shears-on-a-Pole Match. Sounds simple enough.

Match: I am actually really looking forward to the ladder portion of the match. I would have rather seen the women have one-on-one matches leading up to Sacrifice, but a battle royal can work, too. One of my favorite early women's matches was Lockdown last year, with Gail Kim vs. Ms. Jacqueline. If that match is any indication, TNA's women have no problem going hardcore. It will be interesting to see how TNA uses this match. If it is used as a way to get a new women over, ala Roxxi Laveaux from Lockdown, or if it's used to give an already established wrestler another lift. Either way, I fully expect the ladder portion of the match to be tremendous, and I also expect it to feature Gail Kim. Otherwise, what would be the point of the immunity? Gail vs. Roxxi would be fun, as would Gail vs. Jacqueline, ODB or Traci Brooks. So, that's what I'm hoping for.

Will win: Roxxi Laveaux. Yes, she won last month. But another big win here would really give her a shot in the arm, and TNA seems pretty high on her. Also, with Gail Kim losing the ladder portion, TNA fixed their booking problem that would have seen the only other person to survive the battle royal get penalized.
Should win: Roxxi Laveaux. I just like her, and think she needs another big win to stay atop the division.
Should get her head shaved: No one! Or...Rhaka Khan. Then she would match Petey and Scotty. Though, maybe she's not actually in the match. So, Angelina Love or Velvet Sky should get shaved.


DEUCES WILD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT:
With Team 3D, The Latin American Xchange, AJ Styles & Super Eric, Christian Cage & Rhino
Egotistical Eight: Sting, Robert Roode, Matt Morgan, BG James, Booker T, Awesome Kong, James Storm, Kip James

Background: AJ Styles and Tomko were the champs for a long time, and LAX was the number 1 contender. Those teams faced off in a triple threat tag title match with Kaz and Eric Young on an episode of Impact. During THAT match, Eric Young ran off and Super Eric came in and got the pin. Because EY wouldn't admit to being the same person as Super Eric, Jim Cornette vacated the titles. Still with me? Then, Cornette set up this tournament by making eight "established" teams face off with each other to qualify for the tournament at Sacrifice, while the eight singles wrestlers got a free pass to the event. With Tomko "injured" (read: suspended), AJ Styles needed another partner, and came up with the guy who cost him the titles in the first place. Also, on Thursday's Impact, Cornette named Sting and James Storm, and Matt Morgan and Kip James as respective teammates. The other two teams are, as yet, unnamed.

Match: Oy vey. The LEAST they could have done is provide a bracket for this tournament. I'm guessing that, in the first round, each established team will face a thrown-together team, and I'm also guessing that the established teams will win two of those matches. Here are my predictions for the teams, and the tournament brackets. (I do have a slight spoiler here...One of the following matches is already scheduled to open the show. But I won't say which one. The rest are just what I think could happen.)

Round 1:
Team 3D vs. James Storm and Sting
AJ Styles and Super Eric vs. Booker T and Robert Roode (This whole random pairing thing doesn't seem so random, does it?)
Christian Cage and Rhino vs. Amazing Kong and BG James
LAX vs. Matt Morgan and Kip James

Round 2:
LAX vs. Booker T and Robert Roode
Christian Cage and Rhino vs. James Storm and Sting

Championship:
LAX vs. James Storm and Sting

Will win: James Storm and Sting
Should win: LAX
Thoughts: This tournament could be really fun, but there is just too much of a chance to bury the wrong people. There is NO way that James Storm and Sting should be able to beat the established teams of 3D and LAX, but it could very well happen. Kip James and BG James are in there solely to take the pins for their respective teams so that Kong and Morgan don't look weak. I could see Kong going nuts, and maybe beating upp on Christian Cage on the outside while BG gets pinned. Another problem? Super Eric has been unstoppable so far, and he shouldn't lose, so I see AJ Styles taking the pin there, too. I just hope they do they right thing and put the belts back on LAX.


TNA WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Champion Samoa Joe vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner vs. Kurt Angle
Background: Samoa Joe won the title from Kurt Angle at Lockdown. Scott Steiner had already vowed to use his briefcase shot during Sacrifice. During an Angle/Joe rematch, Steiner hit Angle with a pipe behind the ref's back. Because of this, Cornette made the Sacrifice match a triple threat match. In the ensuing weeks, the three faced each other in various tag team matches that included either Petey Williams or Kevin Nash.

Match: This should be pretty good. We'll have to see how Angle's re-aggravated neck injury from the past week plays into the match, though. I expect him to go full force, but I hope he doesn't do anything stupid. This should be a very good heavyweight bout, and may be a bit rough. Expect Steiner to take the pin. (If you're counting, here's what the Feast or Fired match has brought us: A negative in losing Christopher Daniels, but a positive in Curry Man; The wonderful James Gang break-up; the distancing of Roxxi Laveaux from the voodoo crap; Little Petey Pump and an X-Division Title Change, and a loss in the world title match...Not quite the track record of Money in the Bank)

Will win: Samoa Joe
Should win: Samoa Joe

All in all, Sacrifice looks to be riding a thin line of either being a huge cluster-heck, or a decent PPV. It also has the chance to hurt a lot of wrestlers (both physically, and in halting momentum)...So, here's crossing our fingers for a good show.