TNA Wrestling held one of their major pay-per-views last night with Lockdown from the campus of Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. There were five title matches on the card and TNA crowned a new Knockout Women's Champion, new Tag Team Champions, and a new World Heavyweight Champion. Below are my thoughts on a segment by segment basis. To make things easier to read, I will begin each paragraph with a bold heading so those who want to skim the review can do so.
Eric Young b. Danny Bonaduce in pre-show dark match
After the build and hype for this match I felt it was a disappointment. Bonaduce was never booked to look like he had a chance and while he took some solid bumps for not being a pro wrestler, the crowd didn't buy it. The crowd didn't buy into much of anything last night but Young easily took care of Bonaduce. After the match, Bonaduce attacked Young with numbchucks and Rhino came out and made the save.
Suicide b. Jay Lethal, Sheik Abdul Bashir, Kiyoshi, and Consequences Creed in an X Division Xscape Match to retain the X Division Championship
TNA opened the pay-per-view with their X Division elimination-style match that came down to Sheik Abdul Bashir and Suicide. The match was a pretty decent opener but not the spot fest I had expected. The crowd, which was a problem all night, didn't seem to be into the match and that always hurts things. The spot of the match came when Suicide dove off the top of the cage to the outside onto Kiyoshi and TNA security to win. Absolutely incredible watching a worker take that big of a risk.
ODB b. Madison Rayne, Daffney, and Sojo Bolt in a Queen of the Cage match
ODB was the only worker in this bout that drew any reaction from the crowd. This was nothing more than a forgettable filler match that was actually pretty ugly in certain parts. The crowd was silent except for when Cody Deaner poured the contents of ODB's flask in her mouth.
The Motor City Machineguns b. LAX and No Limit to retain the New Japan Jr. Tag Team Titles in a Match with Tornado tag team rules
This was a good match that lived up to expectations. I was impressed with the work of Naito and Yujiro who looked very comfortable in the ring. Naito missed on an impressive twisting moonsault that you don't see often executed in the United States. Alex Shelley ended up pinning Naito to get the win. Hernandez and Homicide worked very hard as they always do to put on an entertaining encounter.
Matt Morgan b. Abyss in a Doomsday Chamber Of Blood match
Prior to the match, Abyss cut a very good promo backstage with Lauren where he truly came off psychotic. I'll go as far as to saying it was one of the best promos I have seen him do. The match itself was your typical Abyss gimmick match. It was entertaining at points but nothing we haven't seen before. They worked with pieces of broken glass which was amusing until Abyss hit Morgan in the head with a piece where he clearly bladed. Morgan made it way too obvious he used a blade. Abyss bled like he always does as it was gushing from his head early on. Interesting to note they never changed the ring canvas after the match. The finish saw Stevie Richards run in and end up distracting Abyss to the point where Morgan was able to hit a low blow and get the win. They referee got knocked out during the match which was typical overbooking for TNA creative.
Angelina Love b. Awesome Kong and Taylor Wilde to become the new TNA Knockout Women's Champion
TNA did not book this match to be a competitive encounter as much as they booked it to make Angelina Love look like the heel that outsmarts her opponents. Kong missed on a somersault flip from the top rope which was awesome. It showed how versatile Kong is and had she connected on Love, it would have probably killed her. Velvet Sky and Love ended up tying Kong's braids to the cage which ended up having Kong kick Wilde in the face and Love stealing the win and the championship. Wilde continues to underperform in the ring and looks to be lacking focus. I'm not against Angelina Love getting a run with the belt as I feel she is one of the better female workers in the company. Kong is definitely the top female TNA now that Gail Kim is gone, but Love is on up there. I would expect Kong vs. Love to continue.
Team 3D b. Beer Money, Inc. in a Philly Street Fight to retain the IWGP Tag Team Titles and win the TNA Tag Team Titles
Team 3D cut a promo before the match out in the concourse, drinking beer with the faithful Philadelphia fans. They entered through the crowd and took the action through the arena to start things off. Tables got involved and the fans got as loud as they had all night for the finish. The finish was very well booked where James Storm inadvertently hit Roode in the head with the cage door which allowed Team 3D to put him through a table in the ring and get the pinfall victory. There was no way they weren't going to put Team 3D over in the match but the company did a great job of booking it to make Beer Money look competitive. Hats off to all four workers as they worked good but there were some production problems such as missed camera shots. That's not something you see often and I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, but that is the only thing that took away from the match.
Team Jarrett (Jeff Jarrett, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, & Christopher Daniels) b. Team Angle (Kurt Angle, Booker T, Scott Steiner, & Kevin Nash) in a Lethal Lockdown match
The Lethal Lockdown match has produced some classics and while this was no classic it wasn't bad either. I was entertained as Daniels and Angle started things out as more workers started to enter. Styles and Angle worked on top of the steel structure which was very risky but entertaining. AJ took a nasty bump through the top of the cage into the ring on a spot where I thought he broke his leg. Steiner went vintage and even hit the Frankensteiner and Booker looked uninspired as he has lately. Nash was treated like a big star by the crowd but the best offense I saw him hit was a sideslam. Jarrett tried to hit AJ with a chair but ended up hitting Booker with a guitar shot for Styles to get the pin and the win. Bobby Lashley made his surprise debut after the match which surprised everyone. Prior to the match Samoa Joe was seen backstage talking to someone and they're teasing who it was for this week's Impact.
Mick Foley b. Sting to win the TNA Championship
Prior to the match they had more production problems as a backstage interview with Sting and Lauren was interrupted by Lashley's music playing. The match didn't have the big feel to it like TNA was billing but it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Foley and Sting worked like the veterans they are and were creative in hiding what they couldn't do. I admire Foley for being able to climb out of the cage and how he hung in there. The match featured color, as Foley was busted open throughout, and I like how he sold his ankle to immobilize him which helped explain his limitations. To be honest Foley as TNA Champion scares me. He isn't an active wrestler anymore and can't carry the company as the top guy. In my eyes it lowers the credibility of the title and is a complete injustice to guys like Samoa Joe and AJ Styles.
If I were to give TNA Lockdown 2009 a school letter grade it would be a D. The show had some good parts to it but the dead crowd hurt the event. There were filler matches that could have been removed to give some of the other stuff more time. Foley vs. Sting was meant to thrive off their names, not their work, and I'll give it to them that they didn't stink it up. However, they did not put on a classic by any means. TNA has a lot of problems and while they continue to bring in big names such as Bobby Lashley they refuse to develop any of their talent. TNA is living off the past, trying to capitalize on guys that were popular in the 90s instead of keeping up with the times and putting over their workers. Guys like LAX, AJ Styles, and Samoa Joe continue to take a backseat to the over the hill veterans that not only are past their prime, but work more like they are just going through the motions rather than giving it their all. You may want to watch the title changes so you can stay current but there was nothing on this pay-per-view I would label as must-see.
Richard can be contacted at richard [at] grayinternet.com
Richard Gray is a professional wrestling journalist and frequent contributor to Rajah.com. He has been covering the world of professional wrestling since 1999 and has had the opportunity to cover ground breaking stories such as the demise of ECW, the WCW buyout, the Benoit tragedy, Bobby Lashley leaving WWE, and more. For more on Richard check out his web site, Wrestling News World.
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