After a video package looking back at last week when Bobby Lashley became the #1 contender to the TNA World Title, we go to the arena where Jeff Hardy convulses out to the ring for an opening promo. He has a message for Decay: he wrestles every match like it’s his last for his CREATURES because they are an unstoppable army, but Decay dun him wrong last week, and he even used to think they were cool. Decay’s music hits, and out they come as Abyss says he and Hardy know each other very well, and he even thinks Jeff would be a great addition to the family, but his devotion to the CREATURES makes him weak, and he is BEAUTIFUL. Steve agrees that the CREATURES make Jeff weak, but Jeff says he’s dead wrong because the only way you decay is by dying. They’re not dead yet, but he’s about to kill them. Rosemary says his head is a prize because his pain and suffering fetched a high price, and they were well compensated. Jeff realizes that somebody paid Decay, and Abyss says that the person behind the attack will reveal themselves at the right time, but in the meantime, he’d be more concerned about what they’re going to do to him tonight. Decay surrounds Jeff, and Jeff fights them off until Rosemary nails him in the ding ding. Decay pummels Jeff until James Storm runs in and chases them off. He says that they owe him a tag title rematch, so since he and Jeff both know a thing or two about tag team wrestling, we’ve got us a match tonight! Abyss says they destroyed Jeff for a price last night, but this week they’ll take care of both of them for free.
TNA World Tag Team Title Match: Decay vs Jeff Hardy & James Storm
We join the match in progress as Jeff and Crazzzzzzzzzzzy Steve go at it in the ring, with Jeff dominating Steve and tagging in and out on him with Storm. Abyss tags in, but he doesn’t have much better luck, nor does Steve when he tags back in yet again. Decay finally turns things around and takes control when Abyss chokeslams Steve onto Storm. Decay works Storm over for a couple of minutes before Storm breaks free and tags in Hardy, who cleans house on Steve and hits the double legdrop to the ding ding for 2. Hardy hits the Twist of Fate on Abyss and goes up for the Swanton when the lights go out and…IT’S WILLOW! COMPLETE WITH THE UMBRELLA! Hardy sees his alter ego twirling at the top of the ramp and leaves himself open for Steve to hit him with black mist and then Abyss fiishes Hardy with the Black Hole Slam.
Winners: Decay
You knew he was coming back sometime! Maybe they can finally unload some of those umbrellas they have sitting in the TNA Main Off…I mean, the warehouse.
We look back at last week when Bobby Lashley became #1 contender and then started a fight with Drew Galloway afterward, and then we go backstage to Drew Galloway as he sits backstage and says he is glad Lashley is the #1 contender, because now there’s no ducking him and he’ll get the fight he was looking for.
Jeff Hardy is backstage, and he is REALLY pissed off over some imposter pretending to be Willow. Whoever it is, he’s going to reveal their face TONIGHT. Gee, I wonder who it’s going to turn out to be.
We see Mike Bennett and Maria at the Smashing Pumpkins concert in Boston, then they come into Billy’s dressing room afterward to talk about some suggestions they have for him. I’m sure the return of Zwan is one of them.
Back to the arena as Drew Galloway thunders out to the ring to call Bobby Lashley out. Lashley saunters out and says he’s glad Drew Galloway finally grew a thet. He wonders if Drew finally learned some rethpect for him, and Drew says Bobby is a coward, and that he is not afraid of Lashley. Lashley says Drew should be scared of him and scared that he’s the #1 contender. He’s been hurting everyone he’s gotten his hands on this year, and if Drew doesn’t believe him, he can ask Kurt Angle. He’s the only real fighter around here, and he rethpects Drew for still being standing after everything he’s done to him, and he respects him so much that he’s going to show it by taking his title. Drew knows the games Lashley plays, but Drew Galloway doesn’t play games, and when you knock him down, he’s gonna get back up because Lashley’s never gonna break him. Lashley is #1 contender, they have a ring, and he wants to fight Lashley for the title NOW. Lashley mulls that one over, then says he knows he’s in Drew’s head, and if they fought now, he would whoop Drew’s ass, but the people deserve a prize fight. He’ll give Drew a week to think it over and they can fight then if Drew wants, but Drew says he wants a fight tonight. Lashley says he’s not the person to play with, he’s beyond the baddest dude on the roster, and if Drew fights him, he will hurt Drew. Drew has one week, and after that, he’s taking his friggin’ title back. He tells Drew to have fun with the fans and walks up the ramp, and then Eli Drake comes out and says he told Drew a long time ago that it would never be over between them, he’ll take the opportunity if Lashley won’t, and he’ll have every title in TNA eventually, but that piece of art Drew’s holding is his. Drew says Eli picked the wrong night to do this, and he attacks Eli in the aisle. They’ll face off for the World Title after this break!
TNA World Title Match: Drew Galloway vs Eli Drake
They’re already in progress as we come back from commercial, and Drew is in trouble as Eli takes out his legs and covers for 2, then stomps Drew out in the corner. Eli hits a Buddy Landell corkscrew elbowdrop for 2, then they brawl outside for a bit before heading back in where Eli goes to the top and Drew tosses him to the mat. Drew goes to the top himself, and now Eli does the Kurt Angle run-up superplex for 2. Drake grabs the briefcase and goes after Drew with it, but the ref yanks it away and Drew hits the Claymore followed by the Future Shock DDT for the win.
Winner: Drew Galloway
Good match, best Eli Drake has looked in months. Lashley runs in and tears Drew in half with a spear, then grabs the title belt and holds it high over Drew’s motionless form.
Ethan Carter III is backstage and says he has a reputation as an ass kicker, but he’s a businessman too, and he’s on his way to the ring to negotiate a rematch with Mike Bennett, and he’s not leaving until Bennett gives him what he wants.
Gail Kim and Jade come into Maria’s dressing room to answer their apparent summons, and Maria says she needs a match tonight, so they’ll face each other, and Sienna will be out there to motivate them so they have one of those five star matches some Davey M guy is always talking about. Maria leaves and Sienna wishes them luck.
Ethan Carter III comes out to the ring and soaks in the fan reaction, then says he was once unpinned, unsubmitted, and unbreakable, but now he is just a man with a vendetta, so to not waste anyone’s time any longer, he wants Bennett and his wife to come out here and talk business. Maria starts to talk, and EC3 cuts her off and says he’s not here to talk to her, he’s here to talk to her husband. Bennett says EC3 needs something from him, but he needs nothing else from EC3, so he has moved on. EC3 says he knows ego is great because he has one, and Bennett says he should, because look at him and look at his wife, and by the way, he beat the infamous EC3. EC3 says Bennett lost his shot to become the World Champion last week, so he has two options: he could stand there with his thumb up his butt, or they could do a rematch right now. Maria says she had an idea this might happen, so she had a conversation with her good friend Billy Corgan at the Smashing Pumpkins concert, and her husband gave him a great idea. Bennett says he knew that when EC3 beat him, he would stop at nothing to fight him again and go to any length to do it, and Bennett would have done the same, so he has an idea. Everything EC3 did in the past eats at him, he saw it the moment he walked in here, so the EC3 story, road to redemption, so he’ll lay out all the demons in his past, and if he can beat them, he’ll give EC3 his rematch. EC3 says challenge accepted, and Bennett says he’s glad he accepted that challenge, because he might want to go to the back and get ready because his road to redemption starts tonight in Six Sides of Steel against…he’ll have to wait to find out, because this is gonna be fun.
Knockouts Title Match: Jade vs Gail Kim
Gail Kim and Jade come into Maria’s dressing room to answer their apparent summons, and Maria says she needs a match tonight, so they’ll face each other, and Sienna will be out there to motivate them so they have one of those five star matches some Davey M guy is always talking about. Maria leaves and Sienna wishes them luck.
Ethan Carter III comes out to the ring and soaks in the fan reaction, then says he was once unpinned, unsubmitted, and unbreakable, but now he is just a man with a vendetta, so to not waste anyone’s time any longer, he wants Bennett and his wife to come out here and talk business. Maria starts to talk, and EC3 cuts her off and says he’s not here to talk to her, he’s here to talk to her husband. Bennett says EC3 needs something from him, but he needs nothing else from EC3, so he has moved on. EC3 says he knows ego is great because he has one, and Bennett says he should, because look at him and look at his wife, and by the way, he beat the infamous EC3. EC3 says Bennett lost his shot to become the World Champion last week, so he has two options: he could stand there with his thumb up his butt, or they could do a rematch right now. Maria says she had an idea this might happen, so she had a conversation with her good friend Billy Corgan at the Smashing Pumpkins concert, and her husband gave him a great idea. Bennett says he knew that when EC3 beat him, he would stop at nothing to fight him again and go to any length to do it, and Bennett would have done the same, so he has an idea. Everything EC3 did in the past eats at him, he saw it the moment he walked in here, so the EC3 story, road to redemption, so he’ll lay out all the demons in his past, and if he can beat them, he’ll give EC3 his rematch. EC3 says challenge accepted, and Bennett says he’s glad he accepted that challenge, because he might want to go to the back and get ready because his road to redemption starts tonight in Six Sides of Steel against…he’ll have to wait to find out, because this is gonna be fun.
Knockouts Title Match: Jade vs Gail Kim
Sienna is at ringside to oversee as the bell rings to start this one. Feeling out process to start, then they trade pinning combinations until Jade snaps off a flying headscissors to bring us to a stalemate. They shake hands, then both try to suckerpunch each other before trading blows in the middle of the ring. Gail drills Jade with a short clothesline, then dumps Jade to the floor and wipes her out with a crossbody through the ropes. Gail is distracted by Sienna and gets in her face, leaving Jade an opening to now take Gail out with a dive through the ropes. Sienna attacks Jade and runs her into the ring steps to cause a DQ.
Winner: Gail Kim by DQ
Sienna wheelbarrow swings Jade into the steps, then Gail comes off the apron with a dive that takes Sienna out, and she unloads on her with a flurry of forearms. Sienna is up and flattens Gail with one shot, then dumps her into the ring and lays her out with the bodybag.
We go to Al Snow’s Wrestling Academy where real young men and women can learn the skills, respect, and humility it takes to succeed in the world of professional wrestling. Now this is the exception rather than the rule, and anybody can walk into the business, and Shera and Grado are an example of that. Just because they have a dream to be a professional wrestler, we’ll find out if they really will do whatever it takes because he’ll do whatever it takes to keep wrestling the way it was. He’s going to do what Donald Trumps plans to: he won’t let just anyone in anymore, and he’s gonna shut the door in Shera and Grado’s faces.
EC3 is backstage and is ready for whoever Mike Bennett is throwing at him tonight.
Al Snow vs Mahabali Shera
They trade blows right from the start, and Shera runs Snow over with a series of shoulderblocks that drive him to the floor. Snow has a foreign object and uses it to jab Shera in the throat, then does a masterful old school job of hiding it when the ref tries to search him. Next, he uses the wrist tape to choke Shera and again hides the tape from the ref as he covers for 2. Snow takes Shera out to the floor and slams his arm into the ring steps a couple of times, then goes back inside and lets the ref count so he can cheapshot Shera as he comes back into the ring. Snow hits the Snowplow, but Shera kicks out at 2. Snow gets the foreign object out, but Grado runs out and yanks it out of his hand to set Shera up to hit the sky high for the win.
Winner: Mahabali Shera
That was easily the best match of Mahabali Shera’s life, I think there’s something to what Snow’s saying here.
Jeff Hardy is backstage looking for Willow, and he eventually finds him and starts beating the crap out of him as we go to commercial.
We’re back, and Jeff is still beating up Willow when…a second Willow comes out of nowhere and attacks Jeff. Jeff beats this one up too and chokes him with the umbrella when the first one drills him with a chairshot from behind. Jeff slumps onto a crate, and Willow 1 gives Jeff a conchairto on the crate, then a third Willow comes in and they all stand around staring at Jeff.
The Six Sides of Steel are down, and…IT’S MAIN EVENT TIME!
Mike Bennett & Maria comes out to the top of the ramp to introduce EC3’s first opponent, someone very, very close to him. The man who crushed his skull with the door the last time EC3 was in Six Sides of Steel…Rockstar Spud!
Six Sides Of Steel: Ethan Carter III vs Rockstar Spud
Spud rushes the ring and they trade blows in the middle of the ring, which EC3 easily comes out on top of. EC3 tosses Spud from one side of the cage to the other like a ragdoll, but Spud gets a cheapshot in and takes off his studded belt so he can whip EC3 with it. EC3 whips Spud to the corner and charges in, but Spud gets the boot up. Spud crawls out the door and gets completely out, but is on the steps and can’t touch the floor before EC3 drags him back inside. EC3 hits a Stinger Splash, Spud desperately tries to climb out, but EC3 climbs up to stop him. Spud knocks EC3 back to the mat twice, and comes off the top with an elbowdrop the second time and covers for 2. Spud has the belt again and tries to use the buckle to stab EC3, but EC3 blocks it, starts ramming Spud back and forth from one side of the cage to the other. Spud tries to climb again, EC3 tries to stop him and gets fought off, he climbs back up and press slams Spud off the top of the cage to the mat. EC3 yanks Spud back to his feet, hits the 1%, and covers Spud for the win.
Winner: Ethan Carter III
Great match, these two have SUCH amazing chemistry. Great way to finish off a solid episode. Mike Bennett is at the top of the ramp applauding EC3 as we call it a week.
