Booker T the surprise, but Angle still champ after Genesis

The major hype surrounding TNA’s Genesis PPV had to do with Sting’s mystery partner. Though Mike Tenay and Don West played it off as a well-kept secret, the mystery partner turned out to be not so much of a mystery after all. However, Sting’s partner is a major addition to the TNA roster and someone I can certainly dig “sucka.”

That’s right, Booker T along with Sharmell made their TNA debuts at Genesis, much to the delight of the packed Impact Zone. Booker jumped right into the Main Event stage, as he teamed with “The Icon” Sting to take on Kurt Angle and Kevin Nash for the TNA Heavyweight Championship. Throughout the course of the night, Angle was overwhelmed at the thought of exactly who Sting had brought to TNA, and, when Booker T burst into the Impact Zone, Angle’s look of shock and concern took over.

The match started off with Kurt Angle and Sting trading back and forth blows. Sting eventually made the tag to a fresh and ready Booker T, who went right after the TNA Champ and put him on the defensive. Problems within the ranks were evident throughout the match, as Nash and Angle broke up each other’s pinfall attempts at one point, causing some dissension.

After a back and forth, solid main event, the match broke down into an all-out brawl. Karen Angle came out and distracted referee, Rudy Charles, who missed AJ Styles and Tomko running out. Styles was tossed clear out of the ring by Sting, but Tomko decked “The Stinger” and took him out of the game. With Karen Angle providing the distraction, it was only fitting that Sharmell came out and got into a bit of a catfight.

With the referee on the outside tending to the catfight, Kevin Nash went for the Jacknife, but Styles tossed the TNA Heavyweight Championship to Angle, who used it to take out Nash. He then followed up with an Angle Slam on Sting, before grabbing Rudy Charles and tossing him back in the ring to make the three count. Angle then celebrated with Karen Angle, Styles and Tomko as Christian Cage came out and looked upset. An intriguing ending to an excellent PPV.

TNA Genesis 2007 PPV Report

The show began with Jeremy Borash introducing the National Anthem in honor of Veterans Day. The opening package then played as a mystery limo was shown outside the Impact Zone.

Match One – Shop of Horrors Match – Black Reign w/ Misty vs. Abyss

This was just a lot of weapons mixed together in a unique way. Reign wound up getting chokeslammed off the stage, on top of getting his hands stuck in a vice. James Mitchell came to the rescue, as Abyss went to put Misty into a board filled with mousetraps. Instead, Misty wound up getting tossed down Mitchell’s shirt. The back and forth weaponary continued, with Reign hitting his finisher on Abyss into the mousetraps for a two count. Abyss rallied back and hit the Black Hole Slam for the win. He then got the key and went to open the mystery box, only to reveal a new star in TNA, that sprayed mist at Abyss and double teamed him alongside Black Reign. Cool match and an interesting twist in the Mitchell/Abyss saga.

Winner Via Pinfall at 11:00 min – Abyss

Match Rating – 6.5/10

In the back, Jeremy Borash approached the mystery limo and was basically told to get lost by security. Funny bit. Mike Tenay and Don West did their typical hype job and then sent it to a package for The Motor City Machine Guns vs. Team 3D. In the back, Crystal was with the Motor City Machine Guns who said they were fighting for the X Division and Team 3D were just stepping stones.

Match Two – Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon) vs. The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin)

This was an excellent match, as Team 3D kept up with the high speed offense of Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin. When Team 3D had things going in their favor, The Guns turned things right back around. Team 3D brought a table into play, but Devon wound up putting himself through it as the Guns hit a double team enseguri on Ray for the win.

Winners Via Pinfall at 17:50 min – The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin)

Match Rating – 7.5/10

In the back, Jeremy Borash was with The Angles and Kevin Nash. Kurt Angle was mad that JB couldn’t find out who Sting’s mystery partner was and then he got mad at Nash. Nash said that they would take care of Sting and his partner and then it would be down to them. A package was then shown for the TNA Knockouts Championship match. Crystal then caught up with Gail Kim who vowed that she was going to keep the TNA Knockouts Championship.

Match Three – Fatal Four Way for the TNA Knockouts Championship – Gail Kim (C) vs. Roxxie Laveaux w/ VKM (BG and Kip James) vs. Angel Williams vs. ODB

This was a decent match, with VKM getting tossed for interference. At one point, Laveaux drew and “X” on the head of the referee and left him in a momentary daze. Kim hit a nice crossbody off the top to the floor on Laveaux and took her out of the equation. Later in the match, Laveaux came back after ODB had dispatched of Angel WIlliams, and sprayed ODB with mist. Kim then hit Laveaux with a spear and used a neckbreaker finisher to get the win. After the match, The Awesome Kong came out and showed that she was coming for the TNA Knockouts Championship.

Winner Via Pinfall and STILL TNA Knockouts Champion at 9:08 min – Gail Kim

Match Rating – 5/10

Outside the Impact Zone, Karen Angle was with JB and told him she was going to get into the limo. She then went right through as security cleared a path and found James Storm, Eric Young and Jackie Moore having a beer drinking contest for the Beer Drinking Title — a plastic spinner belt with a beer bottle attached to it. Very cool. Storm then pointed them in the direction of another limo that contained Sting’s mystery partner. Borash asked for a beer, but was turned down.

Match Four – TNA X Division Championship Match – Jay Lethal (C) vs. Sonjay Dutt

Sonjay Dutt made some collections before the match. Ha, ha. Excellent X Division match right here. Dutt and Lethal went back and forth, with Lethal hitting the Lethal Combination on Dutt, followed by an Elbow Drop for the win. After the match, Lethal invited So Cal Val into the ring and celebrated with her as Dutt threw rose pedals. Team 3D then came out and took out Lethal and Dutt as Val escaped. Team 3D then cut a promo about The Motor City Machine Guns not being able to beat them and how they were stealing the X Division title and holding it hostage. Devon also stole Dutt’s collections,

Winner Via Pinfall and STILL TNA X Division Champion at 12:05 min – Jay Lethal

Match Rating – 7.5/10

Kevin Nash told Kurt Angle that they had to co-exist in order to win, while James Storm and Eric Young continued their Drinking Contest backstage, by pouring shots.

Match Five – TNA Tag Team Championship Match – AJ Styles and Tomko (C) vs. The Steiners (Rick and Scott Steiner)

This was another great match on Genesis. Styles and Tomko worked as a pretty decently oiled machine, and went shot for shot with The Steiners. Scott Steiner and Tomko wound up brawling on the floor and taking out referee Andrew Thomas who stole a chair away from Tomko and got knocked down. The chair was left on the ring apron and after a low blow, Styles used it to hit Rick Steiner and knck him out for the win.

Winners Via Pinfall and STILL TNA Tag Team Champions at 10:44 min – AJ Styles and Tomko

Match Rating – 7/10

Another limo is shown backstage, as Crystal is in the back with Robert Roode and Ms. Brooks. Roode talked about how he was going to destroy Samoa Joe, while Brooks questioned the female at ringside with all the Robert Roode signs. Roode blew her off and told her they had to go.

Match Six – Samoa Joe vs. Robert Roode w/ Ms. Brooks

This match saw Samoa Joe just bring the offense to Roode. On the outside, Ms. Brooks was attacked by the female Roode stalker. Roode was unaffected by Ms. Brooks being attended to at ringside and continued the match. After some more back and forth action, Joe hit a Muscle Buster and secured the victory as the stalker looked on with disapproval.

Winner Via Pinfall at 16:00 min – Samoa Joe

Match Rating – 7/10

The new limo was shown again, as Kurt Angle jumped up and went after it with Karen Angle and Jeremy Borash in tow. Mike Tenay and Don West discussed what was going on as Angle went to break into the limo, but was attacked by Sting and the brawl was broken up by security. In the back, Crystal caught up with Christian Cage who said he was going to become the new number one contender to the TNA Heavyweight Championship. He also told AJ Styles and Tomko that he had a point to prove and to stay in the back, but Styles told Tomko that he was the captain and to follow his lead. Tomko told Styles that Cage was serious, but Styles didn’t seem to care. A package was then shown for Christian Cage vs. Kaz.

Match Seven – Fight For The Right Tournament Finals Ladder Match – Christian Cage vs. Kaz

This was a tremendous ladder match. Christian Cage got busted open early, when a ladder cracked him in the face. Cage battled through it and continued on. The match just got more and more vicious from there, with Cage hitting a top rope Frog Splash onto Kaz onto the ladder on the outside. Inverted DDTs and leg drops off the tops of ladders complimented what was simply a magnificent encounter. The contract actually fell off the clipboard at one point, so the rest of the match was basically a battle to claim the clipboard. Much to Cage’s dismay, AJ Styles and Tomko came out, which led to Cage getting distracted. Kaz then climbed the ladder with Cage and pushed it over, sending Cage onto Styles and Tomko, while Kaz caught himself on the rope and pushed the ladder back up and claimed the clipboard for the win.

Winner Via Grabbing The Contract at 15:10 min – Kaz

Match Rating – 8.5/10

In the back, the Drinking Contest climaxed, with James Storm passing out and Eric Young winning. Jeremy Borash then took a flask from Jackie Moore and got his drink on. A promo was then shown for the main event tag team match for the TNA Heavyweight Championship. Sting then cut a promo saying that the mystery partner was there and that it was showtime for Kevin Nash and Kurt Angle. Booker T was then revealed as the mystery partner of Sting. Major props to TNA for this.

Match Eight – TNA Heavyweight Championship Tag Team Match – Kurt Angle (C) and Kevin Nash vs. Sting and Booker T

Winner Via Pinfall and STILL TNA Heavyweight Champion at 13:36 min – Kurt Angle … Winning Tag Team – Kurt Angle and Kevin Nash

Match Rating – 7/10

Overall Event Rating – 7.5/10

Chris Sokol is from Long Island, NY and would win a drinking contest if the drink of choice was iced tea.

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