Singles Match
Davey Richards vs. Austin Aries
If this isn't match of the night, then something has gone horribly horribly wrong. Give Davey Richards and Austin Aries 20 minutes and a ring and then leave well alone! The pair put on good matches in their previous home of Ring of Honor, even having their own PPV named after them in 2009. Expect a quick paced, technical match up with a dose of high flying action, with Richards finally being able to show what he can do as singles competitor in the company, opposite one of the all-time TNA greats.
Obviously with implications for the on-going tag team series between The Wolves and The Dirty Heels, the chance of interference in the match are high, especially with The Dirty Heels new found Dirty Heel-dom. This could be a sticking point for the bout and if their is interference one would hope that it is cleverly done, steering away from the over-booking that this one could do without.
I'm strongly leaning towards Austin Aries winning this one, to give The Dirty Heels the advantage going into the final match of the series, offering a much more interesting story to see played out on the next week of television.
Prediction: Austin Aries wins.
Non-Sanctioned Match
James Storm vs. Magnus
Skimming past that having a Non-sanction match on PPV still makes no sense, this match is one of the few on the card that has received a lot of build across television over the last few months. Whilst it would be easy to focus on the horrendous angle that saw Storm push Magnus' fiancee Mickie James onto a train track, this feud has actually been a rather entertaining watch. Magnus has finally stepped up as a babyface, becoming very easy to root for and relateable to a large portion of the viewing audience, whilst James Storm continues to develop his role as leader of The Revolution.
The gimmick would suggest a big ol' fashioned brawl, chuck in some weapons and a handful of big spots and you should have top quality match. Both men are capable of putting on an enjoyable contest, let's hope they got all out and put on a contest fitting of their last in TNA (for now) as both men will be moving to pastures new following the show.
Prediction: Magnus wins
King of the Mountain match for the vacant TNA King of the Mountain Championship
Jeff Jarrett vs. Matt Hardy vs. Eric Young vs. Drew Galloway vs. Bobby Roode
It's been a long time since we've had a moment in wrestling like Jeff Jarrett's TNA return on Wednesday night, but he's straight into action as he attempts to go out how he wants to. I expect to see that play a big part in this match. It's a gimmick that needs to pay attention to the detail for it to work, with a complex set of rules that makes it stand out from WWE's multi-man ladder contest Money in the Bank. This match lives on it's booking and how the falls are placed to help build the drama, whilst the big spots will obviously help things along as well. With very little known about how the King of the Moutain title will work, the winner of this match is anyone's guess really.
Prediction: Eric Young becomes the inaugural King of the Moutain Champion
Singles Match
Bram vs. Matt Morgan
I'm yet to be convinced by Bram's efforts within in the ring, which seem to be below his notable skills with a microphone. Matt Morgan, whilst a competent competitor for such a large man, might not be the ideal opponent to convince me that Bram has the skills within in the ring that will make him a major player for the company. I fully expect we'll see continuation of Bram's winning streak, as he continues to call out past TNA stars, but hopefully things will last little longer than his matches with Crimson, Joseph Park and Vader on Impact Wrestling.
Prediction: Bram wins.
3-on-2 Handicap Match
The Dollhouse vs. Awesome Kong & Brooke
We saw a similar match on Impact Wrestling a few weeks back with Gail Kim in the place of Brooke, which had a lot more interest behind it, due to the past between Gail and Awesome Kong and that wasn't anything to write home about. There's a lot of talent in this match, with both Jade and Marti Belle yet to be given the time to shine as well as they could do for the company, it seems a bizarre decision to hire wrestlers with notable talent and then hamper then with a gimmick that limits their chances to perform to the best of their abilities. Expect Awesome Kong and Brooke to win to build to their Three Way match with Taryn for the Knockout's Championship on Impact Wrestling next week.
Prediction: Awesome Kong & Brooke win.
Tag Team Match
Lashley & Mr. Anderson vs. Ethan Carter III & Tyrus
This feels like having four guys that simply happened to be available for the show and were therefore chucked together. It's a match that isn't particularly inspiring and there isn't really any reason to care about this. Whilst I'm not expecting a stinker, I wouldn't expect this to be anything you wouldn't find on any wrestling television programme. At least EC3 has two big name roster members to go over before challenging Kurt Angle for the World Heavyweight Championship next Wednesday, I suppose.
Prediction: Ethan Carter III & Tyrus win.
Singles Match
Jessie Godderz vs. Robbie E
The Bro-Mans...EXPLODE! I was probably the biggest fan the Bro-Mans had, found them to be entertaining heels and thought they were good enough in the ring to get by in the role they were given. Will they be able to exist as singles competitors? Now's their chance to prove it, I suppose. Godderz seems the one set for a push, but Robbie E winning could open up some more interesting avenues for the pair in the coming weeks.
Prediction: Robbie E wins.
Finally...
The three top matches have the potential to make this show, but the undercard doesn't have a whole lot to get your teeth into. A strange time for TNA in an ever-changing wrestling world, let's hope they come out of the other side stronger and continue with their TV product which has been stellar over the last six months.
Slammiversary is live tonight on Challenge at 1am in the UK.
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