[Lucky]

Because I'm more pumped for this than Wrestlemania.

Next Sunday, April 13th in Lowell, Massachusetts TNA holds its annual Lockdown PPV. All matches in the steel cage, or the "six sides of steel" as it happens to be in TNA. After a very disappointing gate for Destination X in Virginia Lockdown is looking to be TNA's largest crowd in history. Why? Besides the fact that the North east is cool?

Kurt Angle (c) vs Samoa Joe for the TNA World Championship

Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe face off for the 5th time. Angle is 3-1 in these matchups and owes his wins to chairs, cheating, and backup. But as he defends the TNA World Title in the cage (the second time he's defended it against Joe) they fight on even ground, he has vowed to forget his wife and family even exists so that they do not distract him, and the Angle Alliance is occupied in their own Lethal Lockdown war. Samoa Joe has promised that if he does not win this match he will not return to TNA and that Orlando will not see him until he is champion. This is the moment that TNA fans have been waiting for for a year and a half.

But this is not a one match card and there is a double main event.

Lethal Lockdown
Tomko, AJ Styles, Team 3D, and James Storm vs Christian Cage, Sting, Rhino, Kevin Nash, and Matt Morgan

For the 4th time Lockdown sees Lethal Lockdown, the descendant of War Games. Two teams battle. Two men start in the cage and with the end of each timed period a new man joins from alternating teams. When the ring fills with all participants the cage lowers on it (this is actually a ventilated cage roof that DOES allow some men to escape but only with great agility) and the first pinfall is the winner.

For over a year Christian Cage ran through TNA with the help if his Coalition of Tomko and AJ Styles. But in November AJ and Tomko formed an Alliance with current TNA Champion Kurt Angle against Cage's knowledge or wishes. A brief alliance between the two factions existed before Angle made it clear that he would not share power with Cage and that Tomko and AJ must choose their loyalties. AJ was hesitant and torn at first but was ultimately seduced to betray his one time idol Cage by Karen Angle yet Tomko refused to take sides. Tomko finally stood besides his long time friend Christian against the Angle Alliance only to betray him in a show of independence from the role he had played for years as Cage's lackey.

When Cornette announced Tomko and Cage as the team captains for Lockdown Tomko quickly recruited the infamous Team 3D/Dudley Boyz to join him and AJ in the match, preying on the fact that Cage's only friends were on the other side of the ring. Cage struggled at first to find men who would trust him but turned to Kevin Nash who had been his unlikely ally in the past few months against the Angle Alliance. He then managed to regain the trust of long time friend Rhino whom he had betrayed and abandoned during hard times and went to war with a year ago. Finally Sting (who had also been betrayed by Cage) returned to TNA impressed by Cage's change in character and completed the team as the veteran of 2 Lethal Lockdowns and 5 War Games. Until Tomko showed he had an ace in the hole when "Cowboy" James Storm brutally attacked Sting and was named the 5th member of Team Tomko by deputy commissioner Matt Morgan. Tomko believed to have organized an edge over Cage before it was revealed that Cage masterminded a final trick to gain revenge on Tomko and Storm by revealing Morgan as their 5th man.

So 10 men with rich history and a red hot story go to war in the cage with an impressive mix of veterans of such matches and men like Tomko and AJ looking to break through to the main event and men like Storm and Morgan looking to break through into the upper card.


Also on the card?

Xscape Match for the X Division Title
Jay Lethal vs Curry Man vs Johnny Devine vs Sonjay Dutt vs Sharkboy vs ??

Another standard of Lockdown is the X Division Xscape match. 6 men battle in the ring and seek to eliminate each other by pin or submission. When two men are left the first to escape the cage is the winner. On the line this time is the X Title held by "Black Machismo" Jay Lethal. Battling for the title is his friend Sonjay Dutt who seems to have grown resentment for him of late, Johnny Devine who recently warred with Lethal and briefly held the X Title, and the odd couple of Curry Man and Sharkboy. One spot remains and will be filled this Thursday as TNA newcomer Consequences Creed takes on Rock 'n' Rave Infection's Jimmy Rave. You take a wild guess who is the favorite to be the 6th man.

Booker T & Sharmell vs Robert Roode & Payton Banks

Booker T and wife Sharmell face off against Robert Roode and Payton Banks in what Jim Cornette says will be the final battle in a war. A war that started with Roode simply wanting to make a name for himself but was escalated when he struck Sharmell putting her in the hospital and savagely whipped Booker with a belt. Sharmell returned to whip Roode and Banks and got Cornette in the crossfire, leading to him wanting this all over and done with.

Awesome Kong & Raisha Saeed vs Gail Kim & ODB

TNA Women's Champion Awesome Kong has warred with former champ Gail Kim and ODB for almost 6 months now and Kong has managed to avoid being out numbered thanks to the help of her mysterious manager Raisha Saeed. For the first time in TNA Saeed steps in the ring to join Kong in a tag team war against Kim and ODB. Those who know know that Saeed is one of the top women's wrestlers in the world and I for one am very excited to see her "debut." Not to mention that the brutality that Kong has laid on the Women's Division can only be increased inside the cage.

Queen of the Cage

And not to be left behind the rest of the women's division will meet in a new match inspired by an infamous TNA match. The Queen of the Cage will adapt "Reverse Battle Royal" rules by having all the women fight their way INTO the cage over the walls. The first two that make it will battle it out in a match to determine the Queen. Traci Brooks, Velvet Sky, Angelina Love, Roxxi Leveaux, Salinas, Christy Hemme, Rhaka Khan, and Ms. Jackie Moore are all scheduled to take part.

BG James vs Kip James

And the former members of the Voodoo Kin Mafia, James Gang, and New Age Outlaws face off in a match TNA dares you to give a damn about.


The rest of card will round out this Thursday. Most of the roster is accounted for on this card but the tag division that has been at war of late is noticeably absent. LAX, Motor City Machine Guns, Rock 'n' Rave Infection (unless Rave wins a spot in Ultimate X), Rellik & Black Reign, Kaz & Eric Young, and Scott Steiner & Petey Williams are all still free and one presumes we will see 1 or 2 matches setting the division against itself. LAX technically holds a title shot for the tag titles but this is TNA where title shots disappear into oblivion. After all, MCMG were technically the #1 contenders not that long ago.


I am super pumped for Lockdown. I will be watching the same group of wrestling fans I watched Wrestlemania with (the casuals and non-fans having moved on) and THEY are the ones who initiated this despite not truly being TNA fans. The card and Joe's match just made this special to them. And me and by "Cowboy" James Storm t-shirt will be there. I'm thinking of buying a hat.

[bdbdbd]

I'm not sure when or how I became a TNA mark. Maybe it's just making up for the long lost WCW, which though a northerner I always preferred and still grieve--especially in September (Fall Brawl, War Games!) and December (Starrcade)--but I care about this card more than WrestleMania too.

The only thing I fear about this show? The Joe/Angle match has supposedly been planned as "MMA-like". I don't doubt that that that they can pull of a match like that and make it somewhat entertaining, but I just don't think it belongs in the main event of a wrestling show. If it went up before Lethal Lockdown that would be one thing, but then a World Championship match shouldn't play second banana-fiddle to a gimmick-cage match that (I think) bestows contendership.

The rest of the card is fairly strong.

If we're lucky, Queen of the Cage will eliminate the problems the Reverse Battle Royal had.

I'm in lust with Kong/Kim/ODB matches, and from everything I've seen with Cheerleader Saed she should be able to mesh well in there, then become a good part of the Knockouts division.

If the X-Scape match doesn't come down to Lethal and Guru with Val standing outside, or even climbing up the side of, the cage it'll be the most confusing booking ever. More importantly I'm hoping Devine and (if he does get in) Creed are allowed to put on a show. I don't know why, but it seems like people don't love Devine like I think they should.

Oh! And maybe the New Age Outlaws will both die!

[Lucky]

Now that I know Creed has a qualifier for Thursday I'm calling it a damn near lock that he wins the title. Dutt vs Lethal doesn't really make a ton of sense at the moment. They're still friends and Dutt's just kind of pushy. And if they're the final 2 guys then they're just competitive and should go at it. But I think you can effectively start Dutt's turn here by having him betray Lethal in the course of the match as they have some sort of alliance. Dutt hits him from behind or takes advantage of him and eliminates him. Then Dutt can do the real turn on Impact or try and convince Jay that it was just the heat of battle. But realistically Dutt and Lethal haven't had any real tension yet and while the two of them finishing up with Val on the outside works, it seems like you can leave that for later when the feud has actually begun.

Dutt betrays Lethal and gets him eliminated, Dutt gets eliminated by someone else, Creed takes the title. Then you can do the Lethal/Dutt thing without the title and Creed as X Champ is something new. In the next month I can see Joe as World Champ, Creed as X Champ, and LAX as Tag Champs and that's just a different looking TNA that feels fresh and interesting. Plus Lethal losing the title and going to war with his buddy should mean the end of the Black Machismo character.

I don't love Devine at all. He's always been pretty vanilla and just there to me. He's done a good job being killed during the whole Team 3D vs MCMG/Lethal war but even in that regard Rave is more impressive at being killed. I'm not sure I love Creed at all either but he's something different and I REALLY want a serious X champ at the moment with so many comedy acts floating around.


They've been saying that Joe/Angle is built MMA style but I don't think that means they're going to have an MMA match. There's no way we're seeing rounds or anything like that. Just the boxing/MMA build with the focus on their ability and competitiveness and the title, and not soap opera stories. That's what I'm counting on at least. Once they get in that ring I expect the same match we've seen from them 4 time, which will certainly have mat grappling, strikes, and submissions but which will be a wrestling match. Just hopefully with less interference than in the past and a different outcome.

I'm not worried about the style of the match at all. My only worry is that they'll not come through on what they've basically promised and Tomko, AJ, Karen, Morgan, Cornette, and everyone else will get involved. Even worse, that Karen will reveal her boyfriend this Thursday or on Sunday and Angle will be affected by it. I'm not even worried that Joe will lose. I'm just worried that he might not win clean.

[bdbdbd]

Oh, I didn't think they would do rounds or anything like that, I'm just not in the mood for any long sections of ground rolling or submission trading. Unless it's the endgame or really crisp it doesn't always come off good with big guys.

I could also be reading more into the Guru/Lethal/Val vignettes, but Lethal certainly seems to be getting annoyed to me. Maybe not take it to the ring annoyed yet, but being in a match together could certainly push it to that.

[Batman]

Apr 6, 2008 9:37:16 GMT -5 bdbdbd said:

I'm just not in the mood for any long sections of ground rolling or submission trading. Unless it's the endgame or really crisp it doesn't always come off good with big guys.

You're high. Lots of counter-wrestling is exactly what I expect from a match between Kurt Angle and anybody who can keep up with him. Joe being the top (surviving) guy in that particular club.

But, hell, Angle can make 'Taker look like a catch-as-catch-can specialist.

[Moreofabreadguyanyway]

I'm really tempted to buy this show, because the card looks great and I haven't bought a PPV since the Rumble and a TNA PPV since Bound For Glory. I just hate how every match at Lockdown's in the cage. You could still call the show Lockdown and have it have a lot of steel cage matches, but once in awhile, I think I would need a break in cage matches during the show. I know TNA tries to vary the stipulations, but to me, every match in a cage is overkill.

[Fire-Babe]

darn it. I thought I had another week to work on Seamus to order another PPV. Are there any webcasts where one could view it?

[Pun]

Someone in chat will find something, fire. And you do realize you do have another week, right? The PPV is not tonight.

[Lucky]

Yeah, I'm just being overzealous because I'm all pumped for this.

And yeah, we are going to see lots of mat wrestling and submissions in Joe/Angle... because that's what they are. This "MMA style" rumor is just a smoke screen. If this was complete sports entertainment the match would still be heavy on the mat wrestling and submissions because all 4 to this point have been. With an extended sequence at the end of the match where the two trade submissions over and over.

Its the build that I think they're trying to be "more MMA like" and not the style. Serious, straight forward, about the fight. And if the match is a big deal then build it as such and don't throw the guys in tag matches and 6 mans each week or have them distracted with superfluous storytelling. Joe and Angle have been in training and away from each other for a month. Kong, Saeed, Kim, and ODB haven't been going at each other. Booker and Roode have been separated since their match was booked. VKM is being built with the Rough Cuts. I think that's more what they're going for with Joe/Angle kind of being the extreme because its a huge "money" title fight like you'd have in MMA or boxing. But I think its notable that with the exception of Lethal Lockdown most of the matches at Lockdown have been getting a slow and natural build the last month and have largely relied on the history of the feuds and the natural draw of the matchup.

I'm less concerned about them trying to change the way matches work as I am them overloading on this training stuff and trying to feed us a weigh in.

[Lucky]

And someone help me out here. Is this song/video pretty cool or am I just marking out too hard?

[BTR]

LAX isn't on the card because they remember last year when Homicide got ELECTRIFUCUTED by Six Sides of Voltage.

There's no question that I'm excited to see Joe (probably) win the belt. But there is a sense "it's about damn time" that trumps the "Hooray!" aspect of it all. I mean, I don't know if I would trade Joe winning at BFG and get rid of the Angle/Christian/AJ/Tomko stuff, but that single moment would definitely be better than the pin or submission coming here.

[Fire-Babe]

Apr 6, 2008 13:07:02 GMT -5 Pun said:

Someone in chat will find something, fire. And you do realize you do have another week, right? The PPV is not tonight.

Nope. Thought it was tonight. Thanks to Lucky. (Yeah, I know he put the date in there, but I only skimmed it.)

But we will be ordering it. The conversation went:

"Can we order Lockdown"
"I don't know...."
"Eh, it's okay. How 'bout buying a motorcycle?"
"My choices are Lockdown or a motorcycle?
"yes"
"I choose the motorcycle"

But then we agreed to order lockdown anyway.

[Byrntrigan]

Fire -

wouldn't it be cheaper to just bribe your husband with the tried and true cliche of sex, and not motorized transport?

[Fire-Babe]

Well, that was the plan. But then I thought I saw that it was tonight. And I had hockey tickets. So there was no time. Had I realized it was NEXT Sunday, I would have all week to work my womanly wiles.

I suppose I could focus my full attention on getting the bike this week

[Mr. Dashbee]

Re: MMA Style -
I've read that Jarrett is pushing for a more physical style to take over TNA starting with Angle-Joe. I think that's where this is headed. It started with the success of Global Impact. Personally, I just hope this leads to a more wrestling focused product, with some renewed emphasis on the X-division as well. Bascially, it's ROH-esque Samoa Joe winning the World title from Kurt Angle on Sunday. I hope the last 5 minutes of the match is just Joe killing Angle and taking the title.

A few other notes:

I too am almost more excited about this one than WM24. Almost.

A buddy of mine made a good call: Dutt "accidentially" costs Lethal the X-division title on Sunday. Maybe they make up over the next month and team at Slammiversary, where Val turns and reveals herself to be with Dutt all along, and we get a good X-division feud that doesn't involve the title. Not that the X-division title has really been a focus as of late.

Has it been announced that the winner of the fall in Lethal Lockdown gets a title shot? I know that's happened before.

Roode/Banks vs. Booker/Sharmell...Kong/Saied vs. Kim/ODB...Queen of the Cage...3 matches with Knockout influence...TNA easily has the best women's division this side of SHIMMER.

And Joe-Angle better go on last...

[Lucky]

Agreed. Joe/Angle NEEDS to be last but I'm not even questioning that. Its weird because when Lethal Lockdown was first announced as the co-main event I got worried but even though LL has clearly been more of Impact's focus the last 3 weeks it still feels undeniable that Angle/Joe is the main event. And at least its listed as such on the website.


Update, so many people from my group of friends want to watch Lockdown that we can't actually watch it at our original location. What was 3 friends watching the show became 6 or 7 people and became too much for a small place. So its been moved to a larger home and will almost certainly pick up more people and a crowd similar to what we had for WM. Please note that we are NOT a wrestling crowd who get together for PPVs. WM was the first time we've watched a wrestling show together in years. Lockdown will be the second.

There is a buzz about this PPV. Anyone who watches TNA seems to want to see this and is jumping in. And now we're getting people who have never seen TNA at all who are just interested because we seem so excited.

SOOOO pumped.

[sackings108]

I'm completely hyped for this as well, and was almost certain that Joe would be taking the title, until that Steiner/Angle bit last week. I still think Joe will probably win it, but what exactly was that about? It just seemed odd for them to be setting up a Steiner/Angle title feud if Joe is supposed to win the match.

[Ultimatejobber]

I am ok with Angle and Steiner getting in each other's faces. In a way it makes sense because right now Angle is the champ, and Angle always believes he's going to win. So to me it felt natural that Steiner would confront the current champ, and that the champ would fire back, cuz he knows he's coming out of Lockdown with the title.

That being said, I live in Mass and I really wish I could go to the show. But the wife is only letting me spend money on one show, so I chose ROH in Boston over TNA.

[Lucky]

I loved the Steiner thing because the thing I've always liked about TNA's title picture is that there's always a line of guys interested. Sometimes its really obvious and it leads to KotM type stuff and sometimes its on the back burner. But that was sort of a return to that. Steiner has a shot and he wants the belt. He's making that clear. Angle's the champ so he's confronting him (plus Joe isn't there) but he also tells him he doesn't think he's gonna be champ after Lockdown. Only problem I have is that Steiner's kind of an idiot for not Edging the title shot and challenging the winner of Joe/Angle. Because Joe beating Steiner in an 8 minute match after a 20 minute Angle match would have been one hell of a exclamation mark.

Also, Joe and Steiner work well together and (in my mind at least) have a still unresolved feud. So I really do think Scotty is the perfect 1st defense for Joe.

Or they could have been setting up Steiner/Angle and I may start to sweat hard on Sunday that Angle is gonna win. Which is why its not a big deal that they have made it seem clear that Joe is winning. I WANT to be confident in that but after the last 18 months or so I'm gonna be wringing my hands until he gets the pin.

[Demko]

Hey guys... I always saw you all posting over on OO about making PPV picks. I was wondering where a newbie might be able to get in on some of that. :-)

[Attitude Adjuster]

Gotta get this in because I'm seeing way too much "Joe's Gonna Win" stuff around here. Has anyone thought of this scenario:

Angle beats Joe, and Joe really does "retire." Well, actually, he hangs around for a couple months while Steiner and Angle do their thing (which could be good), then somehow weasels his way into a non-sanctioned match with Angle to win back his ability to wrestle in TNA. Just because a guy says he's going to retire if he loses doesn't mean he's going to stay retired.

[DevSop]

We thought of it and then realized TNA can't possibly be that stupid anymore.

[Lucky]

pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease
pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease

Of course we've considered a loss and a screwy Russo-rific story. We're just hoping, praying, and presuming that it doesn't happen because the truth is that if TNA fucks over people on this it will deserve every insult and attack it gets. It will confirm to the people who hate it that it isn't worth their time, it will re-enforce many of the negative opinions about the company especially towards their booking of Joe, it will further exasperate a fanbase that largely feels Joe should have won the belt 18 months ago and convince many of them that he will never win it, it will damage Joe and be the 2nd or 3rd time TNA did so, and it will honestly turn away many fans who have maintained hope that this was coming and that TNA really wasn't gonna tease them and screw them and never give the new stars a chance to carry the ball.

[bdbdbd]

So, I started fading in and out to the announcers on iMPACT! last night, but two things said in chat confused me and I can't find confirmation on the website.

Is Saeed wrestling in her burqa? And what, exactly, is the cuffed match? Did they go through the rules?

[DevSop]

No, she is not wrestling in the burka...I'm pretty sure they made a point to clarify that her face will be revealed on Sunday night. Now I'm 99% sure she won't be wrestling in her cheerleader attire, even though that would be awesome on so many levels, but I assume she'll have some full body covering attire to keep up with the gimmick, but the face will be revealed.

With regards to Cuffed in the Cage, the only thing I believe they said is that it's anything goes and the goal of the match is to wind up being the only man not handcuffed to the cage. There will be 11 sets of handcuffs attached to the cage and 12 men in the match.