411's TNA Sacrifice 2012 Report 5.13.12
Posted by Colin Rinehart on 05.13.2012
Robert Roode retained the World Title against Rob Van Dam in a ladder match while Kurt Angle defeated AJ Styles, Austin Aries upset Bully Ray, Mr. Anderson beat Jeff Hardy and more! Get all the details on the show with 411's TNA Sacrifice Report!
411's SACRIFICE PPV REPORT 5.13.12
Championship Roll Call: TNA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: Bobby Roode TNA X-DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP: Austin Aries TNA TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP: Samoa Joe and Magnus TNA KNOCKOUTS CHAMPIONSHIP: Gail Kim TNA KNOCKOUTS TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP: Eric Young and ODB TNA TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP: Devon
TNA Sacrifice 2012
May 13th, 2012
Impact Wrestling Zone, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: Unknown at this time
Welcome back everyone to another edition of 411's LIVE TNA PPV coverage. I am your loyal host and recapper tonight once again and though Sacrifice hasn't exactly been known as a blow-away event in years past for the company, this year's card doesn't look half bad with a ladder match between Bobby Roode and Rob Van Dam for the TNA World Title set as our main event an undercard featuring Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles, Jeff Hardy vs. Mr. Anderson, Austin Aries vs. Bully Ray, and a tag title match between Joe & Magnus and Daniels & Kaz among others. If most of those matches can deliver, I'll be a happy customer. Hard-sell over, let's start the show!
Backstage the new TNA Tag Team champions Kazarian and Christopher Daniels are with Jeremy Borash. Instead of talking about their title win though they go right into talking about AJ Styles again. Can we PLEASE get something for Daniels and Kaz to do that doesn't involve AJ Styles for once? Pretty please?
TNA Television Title Match
Devon We get another "Top Ten Moments of TNA" clip, this time highlighting Kurt Angle's insane moonsault off the top of the cage against Mr. Anderson back at Lockdown 2010, which is still one of the craziest spots of the last few years. vs. Robbie E vs. Robbie T.
Who booked this crap? Devon makes a fool out of both guys early, sending T out and slamming E to the mat with a uranage before T pulls him out of the ring for a sloppy clothesline. Back inside the heels double-team Devon some more as Robbie E gets a few near-falls. Devon sends E out of the ring and eats a running powerslam from T, but E hits the ring to break up the count. The heels argue for a bit until Devon rolls Robbie E up to retain at 5:34. About as exciting as your average Xplosion main event---which is to say not very. Lord knows why this company feels the need to have Devon carrying the TV title when it could be used to get a young talent over. Blegh. 1/2*
Jeff Hardy vs. Mr. Anderson
Odd to see these two so low on the card, but maybe it'll motivate them to step their game up. Both men slap hands at the bell in a sign of respect and then lock up. Wristlock exchange and Hardy dropkicks Anderson out of the ring. He sends Anderson face first into the steel steps and Hardy pulls the steps out for the Whisper in the Wind, but Anderson moves and Hardy crashes into the steel guardrail instead. Back inside Hardy hits a Russian legsweep and a leg-drop to the abdomen. Anderson blocks the slingshot dropkick in the corner with a pair of boots and tries for a few near-falls. Anderson starts to work over Jeff's arm, trapping it behind him and slamming him to the mat. Hardy is able to break it up and nail Anderson with his own finisher, the Mic Check, but only gets two. Anderson responds by hitting Hardy with his own finisher, the Twist of Fate, but Hardy kicks out at two as well. Anderson tries a Swanton, but Hardy gets the knees up. He hits his own Swanton, but Anderson kicks out again! Jeff tries the legdrop to the abdomen again, but Anderson blocks it and counters into a roll-up that Hardy appears to kick out of at the last milli-second, but the bell rings and apparently the ref counted to three, giving Anderson the odd win at 11:55. On replay it appears Jeff absolutely kicked out before 3. The match itself was good but not quite up to some of Jeff's matches in the last few months, and the weird finish didn't help matters. Still, this is the match of the night so far. ***
Christy Hemme is backstage with the Greatest Man That Ever Lived, Austin Aries. She asks him a question from a fan on Twitter about whether he's intimidated by Bully Ray, and Aries scoffs at the question. He tells us it's about skill, not size, and tonight he's going to show Ray who the better man is.
Crimson makes his way out next to cut a promo. Heelish Crimson is so much more tolerable than babyface Crimson. He was originally set to take on Matt Morgan here but the company apparently ran out of contractual appearances for him, which seems like something you'd be able to avoid. Crimson issues an open challenge, brings in a ref, and has him begin counting to 10 even though no one's here. Before the ten count though Eric Young and ODB come out and apparently EY is here to accept the challenge.
Crimson vs. Eric Young
EY locks up with the ref when he hits the ring but then realizes he's wrestling Crimson and clotheslines the big man out of the ring. It's not long before Crimson has taken the upper hand though, tossing Young out of the ring easily. ODB tries to get in Crimson's face to defend her man, but Crimson shoves her into the corner, enraging Young who strips off his pants to reveal an American flag pair of tights. He cleans house on Crimson then hits an elbow drop, but ODB gets sent out of the ring in the process. When he goes to check on her Crimson pulls him around and hits him with the Red Sky to pick up the win at around 5:00 (the "official bell" started before Young ever even came out). Pretty much just an excuse to get Crimson a quick pin in lieu of the blow-off match with Morgan, inoffensive but nothing particularly good. Heel Crimson > Face Crimson though, easily. *
Backstage Bully Ray tells Jeremy Borash that he doesn't mess with that TWITTAH thing, no, he's old-school....he still rocks MySpace! He tells Aries that he won't be able to get him into the brainbuster tonight, no matter how big his heart is. Awesome promo from Ray, as usual.
Austin Aries vs. Bully Ray
The build for this one has been great with these two exchanging excellent promos for weeks. The build for this one has been great with these two exchanging excellent promos for weeks. Both men start trash-talking in each other's face at the bell and the crowd is hot for Aries as he looks to lock up, but Ray ducks out instead. Ray spits right in his face and Aries fires back with big rights and lefts in the corner. Aries bites a chunk out of Ray's pride and joy (his calves) and the fans love it. Aries climbs to the top rope but Ray boots him right off the top and he just plummets back and head first into the steel guardrail! Holy shit, Austin Aries is DEAD. That was one of the sickest bumps I've ever seen, and Aries has several straight up neon-purple bruises and welts on his back already from that. I'm still cringing from that bump a full two minutes later as the crowd chants "Bully sucks!" Ray works a brief bear hug but Aries breaks it up with big Mongolian chops. Ray lays in some chops on Austin but he just stands right back up and demands to know if that's all he's got. Ray responds with a chop so stiff it would make Kobashi cringe but Aries won't stay down, as he gets back to his feet and asks Ray for some more, but instead of obliging Ray goes right for an eye-rake like a true heel. Aries slips out of a powerbomb attempt and hits a discus elbow, but Ray responds by launching him 10 feet into the air and giving him an Ace Crusher in mid-air! Somehow Aries still kicks out though. Ray grabs a steel chain from ringside and this brings Joseph Park down to ringside to try and alert the ref. Ray brings him onto the rampway and grabs a chair, but turns around only to meet the heat-seeking missile tope from Aries. Back inside Aries hits a missile dropkick then nails Ray with the brainbuster! He actually got him up for it! Ray kicks out at two though to everyone's shock. Ray tries for a powerbomb again but Aries slides out of the move at the last second, flips over, and applies the Last Chancery submission to Ray...and Ray taps out! Aries picks up the win at 13:17. This totally exceeded all of the expectations I had going in, I was expecting a solid big/little man contest but what we got here was so much more. Aries took one of the sickest beatdowns I've ever seen (including a bump on the railing so sickening it would make an early 90s Cactus Jack blush) to build up just fantastic heat for the finish, which practically had the place coming unglued by the time Aries hit the brainbuster. Excellent story told here from both men, kudos. ***3/4
AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle
We've probably seen this match twenty times in the past, but considering how awesome they usually are, I can't exactly complain. Great amateur sequence to start with Angle gaining the upper-hand predictably. Leapfrog from AJ and he blocks a belly-to-belly attempt before both men tease going for their finishers (the Styles Clash and ankle lock respectively) unsuccessfully. Side headlock by Angle, but AJ breaks it up with a dropkick and tries a headlock of his own. Angle gets sent to the floor and AJ tries for a pescado as Angle moves and he lands on his feet. Angle tries a German suplex on the floor, but AJ flips over onto his feet in a neat spot. Back in the ring he can't block the overhead belly-to-belly suplex from Kurt though. Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker from Kurt and he follows with a back-body drop. AJ hits a fireman's carry slam on Angle, nailing his neck over AJ's knee in the process. Angle blocks another Styles Clash attempt but gets sent out to the floor, where AJ nails him with a springboard forearm off the top rope. Back in the ring Kurt sets Styles up on the top turnbuckle and then belly-to-belly suplexes him off for two. Styles hits the pele kick out of nowhere though and then follows with the Styles Clash, but this is TNA remember so of course it only gets two. Does anyone's finisher ever actually FINISH a match anymore? Release German suplex from Angle takes Styles inside out. Both men trade forearms and Kurt avoids the backflip-into-reverse DDT spot Styles is famous for before hitting the Angle Slam (only for two of course). Angle looks to hit AJ with his own Styles Clash, but AJ blocks it and the follow up ankle lock attempt from Kurt. Kurt turns him around and tries for the Clash yet again, and this time he connects, but again Styles kicks out. Angle misses the moonsault and Styles goes for the springboard 450, but doesn't get quite enough air though and can't complete the second rotation, turning it into a flipping back senton of sorts instead. Kazarian and Daniels run down to ringside now though and trip Styles up behind the ref's back, allowing Angle to hit the Angle Slam...but AGAIN Styles kicks out so Kurt just locks him into the ankle lock and Styles taps out at 20:51. After the match Daniels and Kaz jump Styles again, but Angle makes the save for his opponent. Face turn for Kurt? The match itself wasn't as good as some of the classics these two have had in the past, but when you've got Angle and Styles in the ring together, even when they're off it's still a great contest. Some smart psychology behind some of the counters too. ***1/2
We get another "Top Ten Moments of TNA" clip, this time highlighting Kurt Angle's insane moonsault off the top of the cage against Mr. Anderson back at Lockdown 2010, which is still one of the craziest spots of the last few years.
Elsewhere backstage Jeremy Borash is with the World champion Bobby Roode, who doesn't feel right without the World title around his waist right now. He makes the usual promise of victory and takes off as we get the pre-match hype package.
We go off the air with RVD checking in with some trainers at ringside about his possibly injured ankle while Roode celebrates with his title in the ring.
Bottom Line: Well I said that as long as all of the main matches on this show delivered in one way or another I'd be a satisfied customer, and that's exactly what happened. The tag title opener was solid if unspectacular, Aries/Ray was an outstanding slice of superb storytelling, Styles/Angle was it's usual goodness, and the main event delivered the high spot fest fun you expect from a ladder match. Everything else was pretty disposable, but I doubt anyone bought this show for the TV title match. Solid show with a good crowd for once (unlike Lockdown last month) and a pretty easy Thumbs Up even if there was nothing amazing here.
Rating: 7.0/10
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