Top 10 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Pay Per Views

I miss TNA Wrestling. Since day one of the company, the promotion tried to capture the old-WCW & ECW fans that couldn’t get into the WWE product and had nothing to watch. TNA was much more than just an alternative, but wrestling fullfillment. What started as a promotion just for Jeff Jarrett to get over and bury his own roster made a life on its own. TNA Wrestling would very well be the last Attitude era style promotion that we all knew an love. Wrestling nowadays don’t care much for storylines, personalities, gimmick matches, high stipulations, or creativity anymore.Despite the many dumb decisions booked by Vince Russo, TNA was the last time I felt that wrestling did exactly that and be as creative. Just look at how excellent their tag team division was, the smaller wrestlers that they managed to make stars out of, and the X Division dammit. So many promotions like WCW & WWE has a cruiserweight division and doesn’t know what to do with them. Many smaller guys who wrestled in the X Division made an impression and dare I say it… an impact. Popular names like AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, Samoa Joe, Chris Sabin, Jay Lethal, Alex Shelly, Frankie Kazarian were all new faces that challenged the privilaged ex-WWE starts that got to the TNA roster. At the same time, familiar faces like Sting, Kurt Angle, Christian Cage, Scott Stiener, and Bobby Lashley were great starts that dropped the ball with and TNA utilized properly. I see Total Nonstop Action as the perfect chance to have dream matches that WWE would never have the brain cells to book themselves. Today, TNA Wrestling (or Impact Wrestling) is a laughing stock now thanks to the damage done by Hogan & Bischoff that turned the product into WCW 2.0. But before TNA lost all credibility, from 2004 – 2009, this was the shit! Marks who only expect workrates (like your Dave Meltzer) would never understand what it’s truly like to just have fun. Since WWE stopped the Attitude era, this was the closest thing we were ever going to get to Attitude and ECW. High flying, over the top storylines, stakes that actually mattered, crazy situations, character for the last time felt bigger than life, and spots & segments that us with such an impression is all we ask for in wrestling. No longer do we see promotions that made winning and losing actually matter because in TNA, it was everything. As Impact Wrestling and the rest of the wrestling industry focused too much on workrates rather than storylines and characters, it just made TNA Wrestling from 2004 – 2009 age better. When picking ten of TNA’s best shows, these picks are proof of all that was great about the promotion.

 

Number 10. – Turning Point 2004

You have to remember that TNA went through a long journey of getting themselves into the number 2 promotion in North America. Their first monthly pay per view broke away from the TNA Asylum, start booking and producing competent shows, and start making a great alternative for wrestling fans everywhere. I’m proud to say that Turning Point 2004 is the show that put TNA on the map. The only thing that sucked about Turning Point 2004 is that this was the very last match Macho Man Randy Savage was booked ever and it was his fault to only show up in the match between his team of Jeff Hardy and AJ Styles vs. Jeff Jarrett, Scott Hall, and Kevin Nash. All he did was put one punch to Jarrett’s face and have a pinfall victory. And that was the end of Savage’s impecable career into ending it in a complete wimper. The rest of the Turning Point 2004 was FUN, FUN, FUN! Diamond Dallas Page vs Raven was a great call back to WCW Spring Stampede 1998, Petey Williams defending his X Division Championship against Chris Sabin was a great X Division bout, and Monty Brown vs. Abyss in the Seregeti Survival match was a great hardcore re-match from their Monster’s Ball match at Victory Road. Every tag team match in this card felt like filler, all except for the main event. That was Triple X vs. America’s Most Wanted in a Six-Side Steel Cage match. Throughout the TNA Asylum-era, Christopher Daniels, Elix Skipper, Chris Harris, and James Storm have been feuding throughout the era. Having this as their last ever match was an end of an era where whoever lost meant the tag team had to disband. I will always cherish this match with all of my heart because it was the feud that gathered TNA fans into the strongest fan-base I’ve ever seen in wrestling. All four of these men kept diving off the cage and had the hardest landing I’ve ever seen. The highlight of the entire show had Elix Skipper walk on accross the top of the cage and effortlessly frankensteiner Chris Harris down the mat. That was the spot of 2004 and it’s still one of my most re-played spots in all of wrestling. This very cage match always gets me emotional because never again will we see the TNA Asylum-era ever again as the promotion had to forward by ending Triple X. Only James Storm, Chris Harris and Christopher Daniels were able to make a good career after this match, while Skipper couldn’t recover from this defeat. It got really bad for him in 2009 when his son got shot and things never got better for the underrated Elix Skipper. Turning Point truly live up to its name as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling started to grow much larger and started to be the ultimate alternative to the WWE that WCW fans, ECW fans, and ex-WWE fans were searching for. Turning Point 2004 may not be a perfect show, but it had one of the best damn match in the company’s history, and one that the whole roster worked hard to make TNA a possibility.

 

Number 9. – Final Resolution 2005

For the longest time I wondered why TNA Final Resolution is regarded as one of TNA’s best pay per view events. There were a lot of standard matches that felt middle of the road. Then I remembered that his show pushed Monty Brown to the main event. Then I remembered the greatest Ultimate X match was held here. And AMW’s return to the NWA tag championship after defeating Triple X at Turning Point 2004 (the show prior) was a joyous moment. Even dispite Jeff Jarrett spoiled all the fun and buried the most charasmatic and talented big man in the company, this was Monty Brown’s crowning achievement by pulling double duty in beating Kevin Nash and Scott Hall to qualify his chance to face Jeff Jarrett for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Though Brown lost, he lost strong and this was the very last time we would see Monty Brown propperly in the main event picture. It was also great that after ending Triple X at Turning Point 2004, AMW challenged the NWA World Tag Team Champions Team Canada’s Bobby Roode and Eric Young. That tag team match was intense considering how much AMW earn those Tag Team titles and Team Canada once was TNA’s hottest heels. The look of Scott D’Moore’s face when his team lost the belts will always get a huge laugh out of me. The best of match of the night is without question The Ultimate X match between AJ Styles vs. Petey Williams vs. Chris Sabin for the X Division Championship. This match absoultey kicked so much ass and it still remains one of, if not the best, Ultimate X match of all time. The amount of flips, high flying, stiff shots, hard landing, and in-ring psychology was masterfully executed. Wrestlers everywhere today are heavily influenced with this style, but rarely do you ever see it mixed with in-ring psychology like it is here. There are so many moments where I thought AJ Styles was dead because any other wrestler would botch that match and actually have a career threatening injury out of amount of the bumps he took that night. And how he won got that X Division belt from an arm injury is one of the most creative and victories that I’ve seen from any gimmick match. Final Resolution 2005 may not be as great of a show as most wrestling fans say it is but that Ultimate X match won it for me and ultimately elevated the show into greatness.

 

Number 8. – Lockdown 2005

What I love most about TNA Lockdown 2005 was that it was held on my birthday and this was an original concept from TNA. Dusty Rhodes is one genious when it comes to booking shows and this was the best thing he came up with since inventing the Wargames match. An entire event where all the matches in the card are cage matches. How fucking cool is that? That mean more high flying action, more brutality, and more insanity. Because this show gave me such an impression is why I always look forward to Lockdown every year, even if I am not tuned into TNA wrestling. Sure plenty of matches don’t age well. This is the match were Chris Candino had a nasty leg injury that led to his blood cloth and cost him his life later on. It sucks that such an amazing talent as Candino had to pass away because of a injury that gotten worse. Thankfully, the rest of the show did a lot of creative and exciting things with the cage match stipulation. How about Dustin Rhodes vs. Bobby Roode in a Best 2-out-of-3 falls cage match oddly called Prince of Darkness match or the first ever Xscape match between Shocker vs. Chris Sabin vs. Matt Bently vs. Sonjay Dutt? Hell America’s most Wanted had an epic tag team bouth with Team Canada’s Eric Young and Petey Williams. Christopher Daiels had an epic feud with his former Triple X partner Elix Skipper for the X Division Championship. Sure the first ever Lethal Lockdown was a very weak Wargame knockoff. Once again Kevin Nash no-showed this event so I don’t even know why BG James, DDP and X-Pac still kept the name Team Nash when facing Team Jarrett’s Jeff Jarrett, Monty Brown, and Billy Gun. Honestly that was the weakest match of the card. Because I have two match of the of the night. Raven vs. Jeff Hardy in a Tables cage match was the best brutal beat down of the night as Jeff swanton bombs Raven through the piles of tables from the top fo the cage. But in actuality, the match of the night will always be the main event between Abyss vs. AJ Styles for the World Championship #1 contenders. This is one of AJ’s greatest matches where he and Abyss brawled outside of the ring and almost got himself killed from the sickest cage door slams I’ve ever seen. God, that looked so brutal and the fun doesn’t end there where Abyss got top-rope powerbombed from the top of the cage to the thumbtack and even got Styles-clashed in the same thumbtacks. Lockdown 2005’s main event will always have a special place in my heart for telling a great David and Golliath story and the brutality towards an epic finish will always create a satisfying impression out of me. Go out your way and see TNA Lockdown 2005 and have a hell of a fun time! This is a concept of a PPV that never get old and because this gave me a hell of a first impression is why TNA’s Lockdown is my Wrestlemania for the company (not Bound For Glory).

 

Number 7. – Destination X 2012

We all know that the best thing about TNA wrestling is their X Division. Would you beleive me if I told you that there was a show where all of wrestlers in the X Division ran an entire show and there were very, very little ex-WWE stars booked here? It’s funny because Hogan, Bischoff, and Dixie Carter didn’t really gave two-shits about Destination X 2012 and made the undercard take over this pay-per-view. It was almost like this was the night where TNA gave their X Division their own show and after all the bullshit we had to put ourselves through, this show is shining example of why we held on to the promotion for so long. And never have I seen sitting through so much bullshit actually lead towards to a rewarding experience. This is in my humble opinion, that last time ever where TNA made a great show. The absense of Hulk Hogan really benefitted Destination X and before the Aces & Eights faction forever ruined the quality of the product beyond repair. TNA were really trying to make Austin Aries their CM Punk and the underrappreciated feud betwen Aries vs Bobby Roode for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship was the last great moment of the company. Destination X 2012 was the very last time where I was satisfied with every match of the card. With Aries giving up his X Division title to risk it all for the gold, to X Division Championship Tournament going on, Bound For Glory series match between Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle, to finally AJ Styles having his last great TNA match agaisnt Christopher Daniels in a Last Man Standing match was a mastercard. This is where the Impact Zone as celebrates one of the most improbable world title wins in professional wrestling history. Not since CM Punk beating John Cena at Money in the Bank has there ever been a title change that made me so satisfied to see. All that build-up between Austin Aries and Bobby Roode absolutely paid off in the last ever satisfying moments in the production’s history.

 

Number 6. – Against All Odds 2006

While Final Resolution 2006 was a great show for bringing back Sting to perform (and then dissappearing afterwords) his tag team partner challenged Jeff Jarrett for the NWA World Heavyweight Champion. While WWE pushed Edge to the moon, Christian beat Jeff Jarrett for the World Championship which made it a glorious night. You see, Jeff Jarrett was without a doubt the most despised heel and having Christian beat him felt like Jarrett’s reign of terror was over (boy how wrong we were when we got to Slammiversary). At that moment in time, Christian became the face of TNA and everyone went home happy. However, our match of the night was the re-match between Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels vs. AJ Styles for the X-Division Championship. It wasn’t as good as their Unbreakable bout and you can see TNA tried to make another 5-star match booking this one once more. But that doesn’t matter, Joe, Styles, and Daniels absolutely rocked the house with their Against All Odds bout and as expected all three of them performed a hell of three-way clash and made viewers satisfied. Another great match had Rhino vs. Abyss in a Falls Coutn Anywhere match which was a brutal and rambunctious as expected. Having Rhino goring Abyss to the stacked tables from the bleachers was the best finished of this Attitude-era style hardcore match. That certainly scratched that itch. Even though I would prefer Team 3D & Team Canada to have an NWA tag title match with America’s Most Wanted tonight (instead AMW defended their tag titles against Alex Shelly & Petey Williams) 3D vs. Team Canada was so much fun with the comination of team combos and comedic intesity (thank you, Scott D’Amore) it was fun. The Naturals had an excellent match with ROH’s best tag team combo Austin Aries & Roderick Stong in a big sleeper match. The New Age Outlaws… I mean James Gang had an enjoyable LAX tag bout and Jay Lethal got himself a push in beating Matt Bentley, Alex Shelley, and Petey Williams in a Four-way match. This was one of the best shows in TNA history for making the card a fun as it can be. From the great world title change to the solid action happening throughout, Against All Odds 2006 is an example of why you should have watched TNA around this time.

 

Number 5. – Bound For Glory 2007

TNA finally got the hang of how to book a signature show. Last year’s Bound for Glory show was a masterclass booking and this Bound For Glory show is arguably better.  Is there anything this show doesn’t have? If you’re approaching this pay-per-view like it has great matches throughout, you’re only setting yourself up for disappointment. If you know TNA they’re more about storytelling and having fun; not chasing for 5-star scores. Not every match was perfect (you can skip the Reverse battle royal match), but all of them were executed well and didn’t waist anyone’s time. If you want a great example of a match being so fun look no further than The Steiner Brothers vs Team 3D in Two out of three falls tables match. God, it was funny that that Scott kept saying “Faat Asses” when cutting a promo and that moment when one of the tables broke down for Scott laying on top of it. Like, damn. Scott Steiner and his returning brother Rick made that match so much fun. The opener had an Ultimate X tag match between Latin American Xchange vs. returning Triple X – Shenshi & Elix Skipper! It was such joy to see these “X” teams go at it as X-Division wrestlers and someone as big as Hernandez took a high-risk dive off of the X above the ring. The other member of Triple X, Christopher Daniels challenged Jay Lethal for the X-Division championship and young Jay Lethal was red hot! Even though I despised Pacman’s time in TNA and how Ron Killings was technically in a handicap match throughout their time together, having AJ Styles and Tomko take the Tag Team belts away from them meant this was the end of Pacman (thank God). The TNA Knockouts division finally opened and the battle royale match to crown TNA’s first Knockouts Champion was very good. It was absolutely the right call to put Gail Kim as the winner because she make the Knockouts division a possibility. For every time WWE promote a “women’s revolution” I roll my eyes knowing that TNA was a decade ahead of them. Samoa Joe vs Christian Cage was almost as good as their Destination X bout and it was as good as you expect. Abyss finally winning his first Monster’s Ball match over Raven, Rhino and Black Reign was a glorious moment for Abyss after jobbing to other wrestlers throughout his career. And the main event between Sting and Kurt Angle wasn’t half bad. The botch spot where Sting was supposed to catch the bat from Angle but hits him in the face and not flinching proves why Sting is one of the best wrestlers that ever lived. Sure Kevin Nash interfering knocked the match a bit, but for Sting to beat Angle at the Bound for Glory 2007 main event is another year where Sting made us happy that he won the gold. The claims that BFG is TNA’s Wrestlemania are true at times, but BFG ’07 is a qualitative A-show. Bound For Glory 2007 was TNA’s biggest show up to that point and it proved that TNA is more than a capable promotion.

 

Number 4. – Sacrifice 2007

I remember seeing recommendations of best Total Nonstop Action Wrestling pay-per-views and I remember being confused at seeing Sacrifice 2007 being at the top of many lists. I thought to myself, “Really? Was that really that good of a show?” So I had to re-watch the whole pay-per-view and see if it was better than what I remembered. Holy crap! Sacrifice 2007 was a very good show! This was the first show where TNA parted ways from NWA which means the NWA World Heavyweight Championship had to be vacated. The new TNA World Heavyweight Championship was on the line between Sting, Kurt Angle, and Christian Cage. You can already tell that that main event was gold and I don’t think I’ve seen Sting took that many bumps in his career up to that point. In fact, this wasn’t the other title match that had triple threat stipulations considering that the NWA World Tag Team Championship was lastly held at this event Team 3D, Scott Steiner/Toko, and The Latin American Xchange. And the X-Division Championship was also held in a triple threat match between Chris Sabin, Jay Lethal, and Sonjay Dutt at the opener. But Sacrifice 2007 isn’t defined by those triple threat title matches but also the undercard as well. Nothing brought a bigger smile on my face than to see letting Robert Rude go over Jeff Jarrett. The Basham Brothers buried Billy Gunn on a 2-on-1 handicap match (also a good call). Jerry Lynn vs. Low Ki vs. Tiger Mask vs. Alex Shelley was those feel good X-Division matches that no TNA show shouldn’t have. Christopher Daniels vs. Rhino was a better match than it had every right to be. And Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles is always a good bout whenever I see them together on any card. However, the match of the night for me was Chris Harris vs. James Storm in the Texas Death match. TNA definitely regrets putting these two broken former-tag team partners in a blindfold cage match at Lockdown that we finally got the blood feud that we were promised. There are more violent matches in TNA, however I don’t think I’ve seen a feud in TNA history that felt so passionate and heartbreaking than Storm vs. Harris here. Never before was I on the edge of my seat wonder which of the two of AMW was the better wrestler. And before you know it, the match ended in dramatic fashion. It’s such a shame that Chris Harris is one of those wrestlers that had the biggest potential but later on got fat and couldn’t get anywhere in his career. But in this very moment, Harris looked like he was going to get a great singles career after AMW. Sacrifice 2007 made a lot of changes for TNA from forever break apart AMW, crowing the first ever TNA World Heavyweight Champion, no dusty finishers, and for me personally the one rare card where I agree with single result. That’s very rare for me to find a card where I agree with every single victor of each and every match and feel so satisfied with each result. I understand that you can’t always get what you want but Sacrifice 2007 was that rare instance where they did everything right. I didn’t appreciate this show upon first viewing but now I realize that Sacrifice 2007 that needs more appreciation.

 

Number 3. – Turning Point 2009

Part two of TNA’s final epic trilogy is the better sequel. It’s rare for most promotion to out-do their signature show (when it’s been really good) with the follow-up show. Though a lot of feuds concluded at BFG 2009, Turning Point started some new ones and also had some unfinished business. Now that TNA was free from the Main Event Mafia and Sting is gone, TNA took the perfect opportunity to promote their promising performers. Right from the beginning Amazing Red continued his reign as X Division champion (starting from BFG 2009) and defended his title from the underrated Homicide. Their encounter in the Ultimate X opener in the previous show was all around amazing and even without Ultimate X, these two performed together in near perfection. That opener is a display why these two are so worth your attention and why X-Division is still a highligh of the promotion. The three way tag team amtch between British Invasion vs. Motor City Machine Guns vs. Beer Money for the TNA Tag titles was full of action, tag double combinations, and great spot throughout. Tara (WWE’s Victoria) had a brutal match with Awesome Kong in a Six Sides Steel Cage match and it didn’t need a title stipulation to show how vicious this feud was. Shit seeing Tara powerbombing Kong, and Tara jumping off the top of the cage that was one of the most intense TNA Knockouts spots ever! Bobby Lashley and Scott Steiner had such as fun Falls Count Anywhere match that went all over the impact zone. But the two matches that you need to go out your way to see is the main event and the semi-main event. You couldn’t find a more perfect opponent for Kurt Angle than Desmond Wolfe (aka Nigel McGuinness). Coming straight out of ROH, Wolfe made one of the best PPV debuts since Kurt Angle defeated Samoa Joe. Having two technical wrestling gods with former-WWE’s Kurt Angle against former-ROH’s Desmond Wolf (Nigel McGuinness) in a submission match was a dream match if I ever saw one. As Nigel’s PPV debut, he put Angle to his athletic limits in that match. And even though the rematch between AJ Sylez vs. Chrisopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe wasn’t quite as good as their Unbreakable bout, it still kicked all sorts of major ass. To not attempt to do this triple threat masterpiece seemed like it would have been a missed opportunity. Thank God this turned three way clash for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship never siezes to amaze me. Turning Point 2009 is a show where all of the matches puts a big smile to any wrestling fan. As a post-match show after Bound For Glory 2009, Turning Point somehow out-did everything by putting good storytelling and wrestling over gimmicks and nonsense. But yet this is only the middle of the TNA’s fanal epic trilogy…

 

Number 2. – Final Resolution 2009

This is third and final act of TNA’s final epic trilogy. The fact that this was the most consistant booking since Spring Stampede 1994 & Slamboree 1994 is truly an accomplishment. Very similar to how WCW’s Spring Stampede ’94 and Slamboree 1994 were wrestling pay-per-view masterpieces before Hulk Hogan came in and ruined everything good about WCW, history somehow repeats itself with Bound For Glory, Turning Point, and Final Resolution 2009 before Hulk Hogan began his reckoning shorty after. Out of the trilogy, Final Resolution 2009 is the best of the three. Just look at the card! The opener with The British Invasion and Motor City Machine Guns for the Tag titles was so hot that the audience roared with excitement. They knew that this show was going to be awesome before the PPV even started. The Feast or Fired match was absolutely clustered, but it’s that good type of over-booking that we lesser serious wrestling fans have a soft spot for. Most of all this is the best pole match ever booked because the four briefcases had a reward for them and one of them is the pink slip of getting fired. God, it was so funny to see who unfortunately got the fired that night.  Bobby Lashley had an epic revenge with Scott Steiner in their rematch from last pay per view into a Last Man Standing match. As crazy as that match got, the feud between Lashley and Steiner had closure and it wouldn’t be the only match of Final Resolution that had a blowoff.  This was the last time you got to see Scott Steiner in a very good match before he jump shift out of the company. Abyss and Mick Foley actually had a great ECW-style tag match with Stevie Richards and Raven that feels like I’m back in 1995. What was great is that this was a continuation of what Abyss and Mick Foley left off from Bound For Glory and they both had their conclusion together as a tag team. It was goofy and over-booked but it’s that type of slock that we lesser serious wrestling fans just find so fun to watch. If you thought that Angle and Wolfe’s match of the night at Turning Point 2009 was great, you have to see their follow up match here. Kurt Angle and Desmond Wolfe had a fantastic rematch in a 2-out-of-3 falls cage match (which is called 3 Degrees of Pain) and it was the last time TNA properly utilized Nigel McGuinness before they didn’t know what to do with the technical indie star. Who knew that he and Kurt Angle had so much chemistry together that it’s a shame that they didn’t have more matches together. Go out your way as watch the 3 Degrees of Pain match between Angle and Wolfe to see how much of an underrated dream match it truly is! And our main event with Christopher Daniels and AJ Styles for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship may be the best match they both had with just them together. That’s saying a lot considering that Daniels and Style had so many matches together and this was their epic send-off to everythign they build up to. This was the most-stiffest high-flying match I’ve seen from both of them. This long rivalry got to main event status and their fight for the TNA World Championship was grand! This is the final TNA PPV before Hogan and Bischoff arrived and the company proceeded to go down the shitter. As the last hurrah, they went out in a bang before TNA lost all of its momentum. If there is any pay per view that I recommend watching in order it has to be Bound For Glory, Tunring Point, and Final Resolution 2009. Once you finish all three of them in that order, then you’ll see why many TNA aficionados considers them the TNA’s Final Epic Trilogy! It is the final time we get to see TNA being product that we once knew and love that the ended up being a trilogy that meant more as we get older.

 

Number 1.  – Lockdown 2006

I remember Lockdown 2005 created such an impression with me that I couldn’t wait to see the next Lockdown in 2006. There was so much insane amount of hype for Sting becoming a full-time performer. All of that build up of showing Sting and then not showing Sting got so much anxiety out of me that it was more effective than his build up in Starrcade 1997. You couldn’t book a better show with every cage match stipulation throughout than Lockdown 2006. I’m more than happy to say that TNA’s second ever Lockdown surpassed the first by every stretch of the imagination. While the first was trying to figure out how to make a card full of cage matches work, Lockdown 2006 had full confidence and offered one of the greatest nights in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling history. If there’s any show that deserved a 10/10 perfect score, it has to be this very show. I mean look at how stacked up the card is and all of the performers properly booked on each slot of the card. From your opener with Team Japan’s Black Tiger, Minoru Tanaka & Hirooki Goto vs. Team USA’s Sonjay Dutt, Jay Letha, and Alex Shelley was one of the best special guest wrestler’s match that I’ve ever seen and it perfectly set the tone of the rest of the show. Last Lockdown we Christopher Daniels faced his former partner from Triple X against Elix Skipper and now he face his other former partner of the same team Senshi. Talk about a bout that had so much history between the competitors and it was awesome as well. Even a dud like like Bob Armstong vs LAX’s Konnan in an arm wrestling challenge was entertaining and got a laugh out of me. If you want an ECW-style bout look no further than Sabu taking on the X Division Champion Samoa Joe. Samoa Joe just reminds me so much of Taz from ECW and seeing him wrestle Sabu just got me that nostalgic feeling that I’m back in 1999 once again. Brother Ray, Devon, and Spike Dudley (I mean Brother Runt) had a very fun and exciting match with Team Canada’s Bobby Rood, Eric Youn, and A-1. God, not only seeing all three of the Dudley trio was fun as hell but seeing Scott D’Amore losing his shit at ring side got me laughing as always. As great and fun as the undercard is we had two matches of the night. First being the semi-main event with Christian Cage defending his NWA World Heavyweight Championship against Abyss. Though Abyss did have a better match against AJ Styles last year but hot damn Christian look like a top star in facing Abyss in brutal fashion. Also seeing Christian do a frog splash from the top of the cage onto Abyss made him look like a million bucks! Even Powerbombing Abyss through the tumbtacks in the second year in a row didn’t slow the monster down. Christian fought his life for that victory and that match has to be one of Christian’s best in his career. Of course the Lethal Lockdown between Sting’s Warriors (Sting, A.J. Styles, Ron Killings and Rhino) vs Jerrett’s Army (Jarrett, Scott Steiner, AMW) was far superior than last years messy Lethal Lockdown. Sting made Wargames famous in WCW and he made Lethal Lockdown definetly work here. Damn, Jeff Jarrett made himself the biggest heel possible and all we wanted was Sting Warriors to win. Talk about the most chaotic as you imagined it. Once Sting came in a brought hell, the roof of the cage came down and it was full of weapons hanging. Oh my God, it was non-stop fun just watching this glorious main event. The best moment was AJ used a ladder to land on Chris Harris on the table on top of the cage ceiling. Talk about absolute fun right here! I have too many nice things to say about Lockdown 2006, and that’s because it was completely satisfying. Whenever I think of TNA’s greatness, I’m constantly thinking about how awesome they build up Sting full-time return and epically delivered it all on Lockdown 2006. This is one of my all-time favorite shows in all of wrestling and upon each re-watch it still is just as fun as it first aired on April 23, 2006. TNA Lockdown 2006 is every bit as good and is enjoyed by anyone who has a hobby of professional wrestling.

 

10.    9.    8.

7.    6.    5.

4.   3.   2.

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