Welcome to the seventh installment of NWA-TNA Wrestling and the Sunday Night Retroview with NWA-TNA PPV #7. Mike Tenay welcomes us in tonight as we start with the X-Division title match.
NWA-TNA PPV #7
X-Division Championship Match
AJ Styles (C) w/ Jerry Lynn vs. Primetime Elix Skipper
Hot start as Elix Skipper jumps AJ before the bell. Jerry Lynn joins the booth and discusses the issues between Styles and himself again.
AJ takes control of the match, hits a dropkick and clothesline, and goes for the pin but only gets a 2. A back and forth of holds, and Skipper finally gets a suplex and takes back control of the match. After a minute or two of offense and pin attempts from Skipper, AJ gets some strikes in but Skipper counter with a suplex and starts to work over Styles’ neck now. The action pours out of the ring, and Skipper hits a guillotine leg kick, back in the ring, and Skipper applies a submission hold, but Styles doesn’t tap. Styles counters and shoots Skipper off the rope but Skipper counters the hurricanrana with a powerbomb.
AJ kicks out of the pin attempt, and Skipper goes back to the submission and works the neck some more. AJ is finally able to counter a northern lights suplex to a submission, but Skipper breaks out. Skipper with some shots, but AJ counters and goes to the top rope. Skipper rolls away from the leg drop, gets up, and goes to knock Styles out of the ring.
Today in #IMPACTHistory: AJ Styles defeated Elix Skipper to retain the X-Division Championship. (NWA-TNA PPV #7) pic.twitter.com/9fEdYKgOob
— IMPACT Plus (@IMPACTPlusApp) July 31, 2020
Both men are on the outside now. Styles misses a moonsault, and Skipper is able to hit a dive from the ropes. Back into the ring, and Styles catches Skipper and goes for the Styles Clash. Skipper counters and goes to springboard off the ropes, but Styles kicks the ropes and dumps Skipper on his head. Styles is up to the top rope and hits the Spiral Tap for the 1, 2, 3 during NWA-TNA PPV #7.
Winner: AND STILL X-Division Champion – AJ Styles
We go to ringside as Tenay introduces Don West and Ed Ferrara. Tenay informs us about Ricky The Dragon Steamboat being in the building tonight. But before tonight, Steamboat ruled after last week that Shamrock is still the NWA World Heavyweight Champion (We have learned today that stealing a belt is not considered an official title change). We also learn that Jeff Jarrett’s 60-day suspension has been lifted at the request of Scott Hall, and the two will meet tonight.
The music hits, and Monty Brown is out to go after Elix Skipper and lays him out in the center of the ring.
Jeff Jarrett’s music hits, and Jarrett comes out with a burlap sack, and it appears someone is in the sack. Jarrett is complaining about how he is still not going to get his world title match, and after thinking about it, Jarrett has decided to work his way from the bottom up to the top.
He reveals that Todd Stone in the sack as he says he’s (Sic) “going to beat a midget.” Puppet is out to confront Jarrett and pulls out a gun. Security rushes the ring, and, in the confrontation, Jarrett gets a chair and starts laying out Puppet.
Ricky Steamboat is finally in the building to confront Jarrett. Jarrett wants to settle it the old-fashioned way; if Jarrett wins, he gets a title shot; if Steamboat wins, Jarrett will take his suspension. Steamboat gets in the ring, but Scott Hall hits the ring before they lock up and sends Jarrett out. He receives a stretcher from under the ring and a mic and tells Jarrett that Jarrett will be carried out on a stretcher after tonight.
We cut to the back, and Goldylocks is looking for a word from Sonny Siaki. Instead, Siaki berates Goldy for checking him out and tells us he’s given Jorge Estrada and Jimmy Yang the night off. Siaki doesn’t need backup, and one Elvis is always better than three.
Back to the ring, and Slash is out with Father James Mitchell, followed by Sonny Siaki.
NWA-TNA PPV #7
Slash w/Father James Mitchell vs. Sonny Siaki
Slash is in control early, and James Mitchell is talking about the Arc of the New Church at the announce table. Sonny Siaki is in control, hits a standing front flip leg drop, and sends Slash to the floor. Siaki rolls Slash back in the ring and hits a slingshot Swanton, and gets a two count.
Slash counters with a power slam and is back in control of the match. Slash gets Siaki up and hits the Slash and Burn but only gets a two count. After that, we go through a few spots of Slash dropping Siaki and going for pins to no avail.
James Mitchell leaves the table to go back to the ring to watch the match. Slash finally goes to the top rope, and Siaki is able to catch him. Both men are up on the top rope exchanging shots, and eventually, both men crotch themselves. Siaki is on the mat, and Slash goes for a leg drop from the top and misses. Siaki is back up and hits a combination of clotheslines and discuss elbows and drops Slash with a pump-handle suplex, but Slash’s foot was on the rope.
Mitchell climbs to the apron to confront the ref, and Slash gets a black hood, puts it over Siaki’s head, hits a neck breaker with the hood on, and gets the pinfall.
Winner: Slash
After the match, James Mitchell gets the arc and says the audad has the ability to anoint or desecrate. Unfortunately, Siaki has already chosen the wrong path, and Mitchell proceeds to smear what we assume to be blood on the forehead of Sonny Siaki.
Head of security Don Harris hits the ring to save Siaki and lays out Slash. James Mitchell pulls him out of the ring in retreat at Malice hits the apron, and we have a staredown between Harris and Malice. Mitchell pulls Malice down as they retreat up the ramp with Malice still staring down Don Harris.
Goldylocks is now with Ricky Steamboat and wants to know is Steamboat is able to control the chaos. Steamboat says that the law of the NWA has been in place for decades, and the locker room is no longer going to be able to run roughshod and do as they please.
Back to the ring, and Truth is out now, and he confronts the dancer. He calls those in charge a modern-day PT Barnum. They are using her for their personal gain; she may say she likes the job and the money. But Truth knows the Truth; she is nothing more than a two-dollar ho.
The dancer slaps Truth, and he goes for his belt Truth presumably whips her when Monty Brown blindsides him. Brown gets some shots in, but Truth is able to get the upper hand and crack a 2×4 across Brown’s back.
Both men go to the back as Steamboat hits the ring and calls out Truth to say what he wants to say to his face. Truth demands that he talks to him with some respect; Steamboat says he has to earn his respect. Steamboat is here to listen to Truth.
Truth says Steamboat thinks he’s one of them, but he’s not. Truth wants to talk about his WWF career, brings up when Steamboat won the Intercontinental Championship. But why did it stop there? Why didn’t Steamboat get an opportunity at the WWF World Championship? Fifteen years later, Truth is in the same position. Steamboat does understand where he’s coming from. Next week Ron The Truth Killings will have his shot against Ken Shamrock for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship!
Father James Mitchell is back out again with Malice, followed by Apolo.
NWA-TNA PPV #7
Apollo vs. Malice w/ Father James Mitchell
Both men stare each other down and trade shots back and forth. Both men trade-off the advantage in the match, and eventually, Apollo sends Malice to the floor and hits a dive. Apolo is now lying into Malice on the outside.
Malice gets his shots in and starts to send Apolo back and forth between the rails; Apolo is now busted open. Back in the ring, and Malice hits a powerbomb and only gets a two count. Malice starts working the bleeding forehead, gets Apollo up to the top rope, and hits a superplex.
Another couple of shots and Malice hits a leg drop for only a two count. Apolo finally counters and rolls Malice up for a two-count. A couple more shots back and forth, and Apolo hits the superkick and gets the pin.
Winner: Apollo
After the match, Malice is back up and attacks Apolo and then chokeslams the ref. Malice goes for the chokeslam on Apolo, and Harris hits the ring again. This time Slash comes in with the hood and hits Harris with a neck breaker.
Mitchell is back in the ring with the arc and tells Harris it is time for more desecration. He smears Harris with blood, and the New Church leave the carnage they created in the ring.
We’re back, and Don West introduces Miss TNA Taylor Vaughn. But, before she’s able to speak, Bruce is out to the ring to confront her. He’s inspired by The Truth’s words, wants to be treated equally, and wants a shot at Miss TNA.
Vaughn hits Bruce with a low blow, and a ref hits the ring.
Miss TNA Title
Taylor Vaughn vs. Bruce
Vaugh hits a suplex and then a body slam but only gets a two count. Bruce gets the upper hand and goes for a leg drop but misses. Taylor goes for something, but Bruce hits a slam for the three count.
Winner: AND NEW Miss TNA, Bruce
We cut to the back, and Goldy is looking for a word from Lo-Ki. Lo-Ki reiterates that he does his talking out “there” and heads to the ring. Jerry Lynn and Styles are out next.
Jerry Lynn vs. Low-Ki
Styles joins the team, and the two men in the ring lock up. Low-Ki and Lynn exchange holds back and forth. Then, they have a staredown and chain wrestle some more. Another staredown, and they’re back to the holds on each other with neither man gaining an advantage.
Again with a staredown and both men trade off submission holds. Lynn finally hits a kick and gets the advantage. He hits Lo-Ki with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and gets a two-count. Low-Ki kicks Lynn and is now on the offensive. Low-Ki gets a two count on the pin and locks in a submission, but Lynn doesn’t tap. Instead, Lynn gets a roll-up for a 2, and Lo-Ki gets back on the offensive.
Low-Ki applies a dragon sleeper in the ropes, and the ref is forced to break them up. Lynn counters the shoulder block with a guillotine leg drop. He then applies the Gory Special and drops Low-Ki on his face and only gets the two count. Lynn goes for the piledriver, and Lo-Ki counters with an armbar. Lynn regains control temporarily, but Low-Ki hits a combo of kicks and gets another near fall.
Both men are up, and exchange blows in a back and forth. A couple more near falls, and Lynn hits the piledriver for another two count. Low-Ki locks in the dragon sleeper, and Lynn counters with a tornado DDT. Low-Ki goes for the Ki Crusher, but Styles kicks Lynn in the back, causing the DQ during NWA-TNA PPV #7.
Winner via by disqualification: Jerry Lynn
Goldylocks is in the back looking for a word from Don Harris. Harris isn’t going to cut a pro wrestling promo. But if Malice wants blood, he’s going to get it. Harris is going to talk to Steamboat and get a first blood match for next week.
We’re back on the stage, and Disco Inferno is back. Disco is in talks to replace a popular talk show host, but he’s introducing his first guest (rather colorfully), Goldylocks.
Goldy isn’t happy about being insulted and doesn’t want to do the segment, but Disco begs her to stay. Disco wants to talk about her music but quickly switches up to demanding Goldy shows the audience her breasts. Goldy refuses and slaps Disco and knees him in the Disco balls.
A woman grabs Goldy and puts her in a sleeper hold. She is revealed to be Paulina from Tough Enough. Goldy is laid out, and Paulina helps Disco to the back.
After Don West runs down next week’s show, Jeremy Borash introduces our main event.
NWA-TNA PPV #7
Scott Hall vs. Jeff Jarrett
Hall doesn’t waste time and comes right after Jarrett. Hall is all over Jarrett and lays into him all over ringside. Eventually, the action gets back in the ring, and Jarrett tries to mount some offense but is met with a fall-away slam.
Jarrett rolls out of the ring and makes a run for it. Hall chases Jarrett to the back, and we are brawling in the back. The action spill back out the stage and make their way into the crowd. Jarrett is back in the ring, and Hall goes for the stretcher. Jarrett catches him and starts using the stretcher as a weapon. We’re back in the ring, and Jarrett sets the stretcher in the corner and whips Hall in toto the stretcher a couple of times. Jarrett goes for a third time, but Hall counters and throws Jarrett into the stretcher instead. Hall is now lying into Jarrett with the stretcher. Hall hits the Outsiders Edge, but Truth hits the ring and pulls the ref out.
Truth lays out Hall and drags Jarrett on top of Hall for the ref to count, but Hall kicks out at 2. Monty Brown hits the ringside and starts brawling with Truth.
Jerry Lynn comes in and hits Jarrett with a leg drop. AJ Styles comes out and potatoes Lynn. Styles goes to the top rope, but Don Harris comes out to knock him back off.
Malice and Slash come out after Harris, and they brawl to the back. Both Jarrett and Hall are up, but they butt heads, and both men are down.
Hall with a few big punches. Hall goes for the stretcher; he swings and misses and hits the ref. Jarrett kicks the stretcher back into Hall’s face. He then gets a chair, but Steamboat hits the ring. Jarrett swings at Steamboat but bounces the chair off the rope and back into his face.
Hall comes to and gets the chair. Steamboat grabs the chair, and they have a tug of war over the chair. Finally, Jarrett grabs Hall, hits the Stroke onto the chair, and pins Hall for the 1, 2, 3 to end NWA-TNA PPV #7.
Winner: Jeff Jarrett
Jarrett drags Hall onto the stretcher, and we go off the air with Jarrett celebrating in the ring.
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Another strange up and down PPV from TNA. A myriad of non-wrestling segments with some short, kind of blah, matches that are sandwiched between two great X Division matches. The main event is the classic everyone runs in breakdown that WCW and WWF ran time and time again. I’ve said this before, but Jerry Lynn and AJ Styles are the shining stars here, and the old guard occupying the world title picture just feel muddled, dated, and uninteresting after watching the X Division. Maybe Truth’s match with Shamrock is what we need to reinvigorate the world title. We’ll find out next week.
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Jay Batch is the owner of Best Batch Promotions. You can find him at The Wrestling Classic on October 24th with special guest Danhausen and November 6th and The Retro World Expo with special guest Tatanka. Search Best Batch Promotions on all social media to stay up to date.
