Impact Wrestling 2012: NO SURRENDER UP!

Samoa Joe defeats Jeff Hardy in a Bound for Glory Series Semi-Final.
In this rematch from last Thursday on Impact, Tenay and Taz put over how Jeff Hardy was able to make the Samoan Submission Machine tap out! Samoa Joe had underrated the Charismatic Enigma, and this allowed Hardy to get the win and earn his spot in the Bound For Glory Series Final Four. Joe clearly wrestled a different styled match here, a little more defensive, sensing that Jeff might have beefed up on his submission knowledge. Hardy tried to be in attack mode, but he couldn't find much leeway on the big Samoan. He went for a big Twist of Fate early, but Joe was able to counter it by suplexing him and dropping him right on his head! Joe went for the Coquina Clutch but Hardy was able to get to the ropes. Jeff managed to gain a little momentum after a missed Facewash, and hit a Twist of Fate, but when he went for the Swanton Bomb, Joe caught him coming off the top rope and hit the Muscle Buster for the win to advance to tonight's final!

Bully Ray defeats James Storm in a Bound for Glory Series Semi-Final.
After months of anguish, James Storm was recently exonerated as not being behind the Aces and Eights, and is going to take out some of his anger on one of his agitators, Bully Ray! Storm doesn’t take any risks, going straight for the win, but Bully is able to duck a Superkick. Storm is able to get out of a Bully Bomb by breaking the full Nelson, but when he went for a Superkick again, Ray pulls the referee in front of him! With the referee out of action, Bobby Roode makes his return to TNA, and smashes a beer bottle over Storm’s head! Bully, never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, covers Storm for the win as another referee hits the ring to count the three.

Joseph Park is running around backstage, asking random TNA crewpeople if they have seen Sting or Hogan. He's got a big break in the Aces and Eights investigation, and he knows a current TNA wrestler is behind it! Suddenly, Park is jumped by someone in Aces and Eights! He's thrown into the wall, and is out cold! He won't be telling anybody anything, tonight!

Magnus defeats Rob Van Dam.
Magnus has been looking for a fight anywhere he could get one lately, and he found one this last week on Impact Wrestling when he said the wrong thing at the wrong time to Rob Van Dam. Van Dam is a former TNA World Champion, a living legend in the business, and definitely a skin on the wall if Magnus is able to beat him. It was a tough fought match, but one that Hardy appeared to have in hand. However, when RVD missed the Five Star Frog Splash, Magnus was able to set him up, hit the Tormentum, and pick up what has to be considered an upset win!

Miss Tessmacher defeats Tara to retain the TNA Knockouts Title.
They began the match with a handshake, to a rousing ovation from the Impact Zone crowd. The match stayed very scientific, but it didn’t last long. Tara went for a big suplex, but Tessmacher rolled her up in a small package to retain the title! Tara was furious after the match, and ended up attacking Taryn Terrell, hitting her with a Widow’s Peak! She stood over her shouting that it was a fast count! What is wrong with Tara?

Austin Aries heads out to challenge the "Armbreaker". As this massive man accepted his challenge, they brawled throughout the ring and over ringside, with Aries largely getting the advantage. The tide turned when this massive man resorted to some kind of pepper spray in his leather jacket, secretly slipping it out, and spraying it right in the World Champion's face. With the champion incapacitated, he grabbed a steel chair, wrapped it around Aries's ankle, and stomped it! He might have shattered A-Double's ankle, right there! He left the champion laying, as paramedics rushed the ring. While the champion was being treated, the announcers say they are hearing of something going on backstage. They send it back, and Hulk Hogan is laid out! He's gripping his leg and screaming in pain! Simultaneously, Aces and Eights have taken out the face of TNA and it's World Champion!

Zema Ion defeats Sonjay Dutt to retain the X-Division Title.
Dutt had been wanting a title shot since separating his shoulder at Destination X. Tonight, he finally got his shot, facing the extremely confident champion. The action here was fast and furious, harkening back to the “Glory Days” of the X-Division, while Taz and Tenay put over former champions who have gone on to hold other titles, like Austin Aries, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels, Kazarian, and Chris Sabin. Taz said he thought both Ion and Dutt could someday climb the same ranks in TNA. Dutt went for a Top Rope Hurricanrana, but Zema had locked himself in the ropes. This allowed the champion to hit a 450 splash and retain the title!

Christopher Daniels and Kazarian defeat AJ Styles and Kurt Angle to retain the TNA World Tag Team Titles.
On Impact Wrestling, AJ Styles offered to take on Daniels and Kazarian in a handicap match. Hulk Hogan refused to do that, but ended up giving him a pretty good partner, someone with whom he held the titles with just a few months ago, in the Olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle! After the Claire Lynch fiasco, Angle had to hold Styles back to begin the match, taking the lead initially. This was the match of the night. After all of the times they’ve been in the ring together, these wrestlers have an incredible sense of what the other is going to do, and could read and react to it. However, the one time that they could not get on the right level cost the challengers, as when all four men were in the ring, AJ and Angle actually collided while they were each hitting a big move. This allowed Daniels to roll up, and with a handful of tights, retain the title.

Sting comes out, somberly. He has the World Heavyweight Title in his hand. He says that the Aces and Eights attack earlier in the night was their most damaging yet. In addition to gravely injuring Hulk Hogan, Austin Aries has dislocated his ankle. Because of this, he is out indefinitely, and has been forced to give up the TNA World Heavyweight Title. After a quick meeting with Dixie Carter, with Hulk joining the call from the hospital, a decision has been reached. Whoever win's tonight's Bound for Glory final between Bully Ray and Samoa Joe will be the new TNA World Heavyweight Champion. He's sure this isn't the way Bully or Joe wanted to win the World Heavyweight Title, but he knows both men and neither will pass up an opportunity like this.

Bully Ray defeats Samoa Joe in the Bound for Glory Series Final to win the TNA World Heavyweight Title.
The crowd at the Impact Zone buzzed with the announcement of Sting, that either way, they will see a new TNA World Champion. Either Bully Ray will win his first World Title, or Samoa Joe will win his second! Both men seemed a little antsy to begin the match, with the announcers speculating that they were surprised by the announcement themselves. Samoa Joe thought he had it won early when he was able to surprise Bully by locking in the Coquina Clutch, but Joe didn’t have enough bearings about his surroundings, as Ray was able to get to the ropes. This really got the match going, as the two big men just let loose. A Bully Bomb only got a two count. A Muscle Buster attempt was foiled when Joe couldn’t balance Ray on his shoulders. On the outside, perhaps knowing the match had to have a winner, Joe risked it all, hitting a big tope on Bully Ray. Both men appeared to be getting more desperate, but it was Bully Ray that finally did something about it, sliding a chain out from his boot. He carefully wrapped it around his hand, and when Joe went to powerbomb Bully, he punched him with the chain, as Joe just crumbled like cheap furniture, allowing Ray to get the pin and the title!

As Sting reluctantly hands Bully Ray the World Heavyweight Title, Aces and Eights hits the ring! They attack Sting! Bully, using the title, holds the Aces and Eights at bay... until he pulls a mask out from his shorts, puts it on, and lays out Sting with the belt! He then hugs the Aces and Eights men... he's the active wrestler Joseph Park was about to tell Hogan and Sting about! No wonder Ray told him to keep his nose out of it! Ray then goes to the "Armbreaker", removes the mask... it's MATT MORGAN! Matt Morgan and Bully Ray are behind Aces and Eights!

TNA Newswire:

- Austin Aries's injury is not a storyline. TNA officials were thrilled he was able to work through it, but it cut the segment short. They hope he'll be back hopefully around the first of December.

- Similarly, Hulk Hogan tore his ACL the day before the show. This was the reason he wasn't shown walking, and was just shown face down on the ground. His leg was actually not shot, because it was in a cast. He will be off TV for the rest of the year.

- Despite the injuries, TNA brass was happy about the way the PPV came out. While the initial idea was to build towards Bully Ray as the head of the Aces and Eights against Aries at Bound for Glory, when the injury happened, the booking team kept course with Bully. The PPV main event at BFG is now clearly up in the air.

- Out of concern about "pulling a NWO", Aces and Eights is now considered to be capped at 6. Ray, Morgan, Two yet to be revealed heavyweights, an X-Division wrestler, and a Knockout. There will still be unnamed masked men when need be, but these men won't be active wrestlers.

- On a similar note, we've been told beefing up the X-Division and the Knockouts are of a big importance. Talent scouts have been seen recently at indie events up and down the East coast.

- TNA has been talking to Spike about another TV slot, possibly on the weekends. It's not known if this would be a one hour show, a two hour show, or even just putting Xplosion on the air in the US.