411 PPV Preview: The Road to TNA Destination X 2009

TNA presents its fifth installment of the Destination X PPV from the Impact Zone in Orlando, Florida.

Taylor Wilde, Roxxi & The Governor vs. Velvet Sky, Angelina Love & Madison Rayne

Lowdown: Angelina Love and Velvet Sky lived up to the “dumb bimbo” stereotype when they were duped into believing that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was going to reward them with a place in her cabinet for their weeks of toiling at her request. The ruse was finally up as “The Governor”, Taylor Wilde and Roxxi revealed the truth to The Beautiful People en route to drenching them in mud to further their humiliation. Love and Sky, of course, were not going to take this lying down, and attacked The Governor backstage in a heinous assault. Newcomer Madison Rayne quickly aligned herself with The Beautiful People after initial losses to Awesome Kong and Sojourner Bolt and now Rayne, Love and Sky will clash with Wilde, Roxxi and The Governor on Sunday.

Prediction: This is a tough one to call as both The Governor and Rayne should be kept strong, especially in their PPV debut, but one side has to take the loss. The Governor pins Velvet Sky.

Likely to be Match of the Night? No.

Match of 10,000 Tacks
Abyss vs. Matt Morgan

Lowdown: Following their singles match at last month’s Against All Odds PPV, Abyss and Matt Morgan have remained in each other’s faces. Morgan wants to avenge his loss to “The Monster” from Against All Odds and has taken the route of goading him into a rematch – on the March 5th Impact, this finally paid off as Abyss snapped and accepted Morgan’s challenge for a Match of 10,000 Tacks in a rage-filled state following Morgan’s crude behaviour shown around Abyss’ “girlfriend”, backstage interviewer Lauren.

Prediction: Abyss won their last match, it only makes sense that Morgan emerges victorious from this one as I don’t see the feud finishing yet.

Likely to be Match of the Night? No.

Scott Steiner vs. Samoa Joe

Lowdown: Samoa Joe’s “Nation of Violence” is coming to Destination X and it is coming for Scott Steiner. On the December 18th edition of Impact, Big Poppa Pump and the rest of the Main Event Mafia put Joe on the shelf by attacking his arm repeatedly with a steel chair. Joe returned in vignette form on the January 29th Impact, sporting a tribal tattoo on his face and telling the Main Event Mafia that they would soon be introduced to the “real” Samoa Joe. The Samoan Submission Machine made it clear that Steiner was his target at Against All Odds when he again appeared in a vignette, this time threatening Steiner following Steiner’s victory over Petey Williams. In the following weeks on Impact, Joe snuck up on Steiner not once but twice, holding a machete to Steiner’s throat and swearing revenge on The Genetic Freak.

Prediction: Joe’s gonna kill you.

Likely to be Match of the Night? No.

TNA Women’s Knockout Championship
Sojournor Bolt vs. Awesome Kong (c)

Lowdown: Earlier this year, Knockout newcomer Sojournor Bolt and Rhaka Khan joined forces with TNA Women’s Champion Awesome Kong and Raisha Saeed to form The Kongtourage. The unit seemed unstoppable until dissention appeared in the ranks following Bolt’s victory in a gauntlet match to earn a shot at Kong’s title on the February 12th Impact. It all came to head on the February 26th Impact when Bolt and Rhaka Khan challenged Kong and Raisha Saeed to a match which they won after Bolt pinned Saeed, effectively ending the Kongtourage and making Bolt’s title aspirations clear.

Prediction: I could see Bolt dethroning Kong after a prolonged feud, but Kong will retain in this match.

Likely to be Match of the Night? No.

Off the Wagon Challenge for the TNA World Tag Team Championship
Team 3D vs. Beer Money, Inc. (c)

Lowdown: After seemingly clearing out TNA’s tag team division, Beer Money decided to raise the stakes by putting their belts on the line in a series of Off the Wagon Challenge matches where if Beer Money retained, the person from the challenging team who took the fall would be fired from TNA. Petey Williams and Lance Hoyt took that risk and both now find themselves unemployed. On the February 26th Impact, LAX came out on top in their Off the Wagon Challenge, however this was down to disqualification therefore they did not capture the tag team titles that they are so desperate to regain. The next team to take up Beer Money on their offer? Twenty-one time tag team champions and current IWGP Tag Team Champions, Team 3D.

Prediction: Team 3D aren’t going anywhere. Beer Money lose the belts. *sob*

Likely to be Match of the Night? No.

TNA Legends Championship Match
AJ Styles vs. Booker T (c)

Lowdown: As he predicted, Booker T retained the TNA Legends Championship against Shane Sewell at Against All Odds, but he didn’t predict AJ Styles’ post-match attack on him. The Phenomenal One got a few shots in before seizing Booker’s title belt and declaring that he was going to be the next Legends Champion. The tension continued to build in the ensuing weeks on Impact after Styles trashed Booker’s customised locker room and attacked him backstage multiple times. Booker gained a measure of revenge by having Styles arrested, however both parties settled on deciding matters this Sunday in a one-on-one match for the TNA Legends Championship.

Prediction: Booker has had a long run with the title and the Frontline needs a bit of ammo. Styles wins.

Likely to be Match of the Night? Possibly.

Ultimate X Match for the TNA X Division Championship
Consequences Creed vs. Jay Lethal vs. Suicide vs. Alex Shelley (c) vs. Chris Sabin

Lowdown: The innovative, highly-dangerous Ultimate X match returns as Alex Shelley defends the X Division title against his Motor City Machine Guns partner Chris Sabin, Lethal Consequences cohorts Jay Lethal and Consequences Creed and the debuting Suicide. The mysterious Suicide has certainly made an impact (no pun intended) after cleaning house in the ring on multiple occasions and in doing so staking his claim for the X Division Championship. The question is, what can we expect from him this Sunday?

Prediction: They’ve built him up so much that it surely has to happen – Suicide wins.

Likely to be Match of the Night? Yes.

TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match
Kurt Angle vs. Sting (c)
Special Guest Enforcer: Mick Foley
Special Guest Referee: Jeff Jarrett

Lowdown: Sting successfully defended the TNA World Heavyweight Championship at Against All Odds and Kurt Angle has been livid ever since. The Olympic Gold Medalist hasn’t been able to hide his jealously – although initially claiming that he simply wished for the World title to remain in the Main Event Mafia’s camp, it is clear that he wants the belt for himself. This created a huge amount of tension within the Mafia and what came from that tension was Angle and Sting deciding to settle their differences in an empty arena match on Impact. At the conclusion of that match, the rest of the Mafia came out and Kevin Nash tried to reason with both men, saying that the Mafia should stick together in order to receive the respect they deserve from the rest of TNA. Nash’s plea appeared to have worked as Sting extended his hand to Angle for a handshake, only for Angle to spit in The Icon’s face. “I’m all in Kurt!” roared Sting in the post-match promo and the two men will square off for the biggest prize in TNA at Destination X, with Angle’s perennial nemeses Jeff Jarrett and Mick Foley serving as referee and enforcer respectively so as to keep order in a match that will no doubt be watched closely by Kevin Nash, Booker T and Scott Steiner.

Prediction: I thought that Angle was going to take the belt last month and still think that he will win it soon, but there is simply too much going against him in this match. Sting retains.

Likely to be Match of the Night? Possibly.