Against All Odds 2009: A Solid Card Without a Defining Classic

Alex Shelley defended the X Division Championship against Eric Young in the opening match, a rematch motivated by Young pinning Shelley in an Impact tag bout. Young sent the champion to the floor and launched a slingshot crossbody, but Shelley answered with a knee from the apron and repeated kicks after Young crashed into the guardrail. The momentum kept changing on the ring apron and through a string of inside cradles. Young escaped the Shellshock and Sliced Bread attempts, while Shelley fought out of a Death Valley Driver and turned a top-rope exchange into a bulldog. His follow-up frog splash produced a near fall rather than ending the defense.

In the decisive exchange Young blocked Shelley on the turnbuckles and forced the champion away, but Shelley recovered and caught the distracted challenger in a quick roll-up for the pin. The recorded 13:01 run earned its time through counters and escalating near falls rather than simply through a champion holding the belt. The B / 7.8 grade rewards an energetic title defense that starts the televised card with wrestling action and a clear winner. WATCH the finish as well as the preceding apron exchanges; Young is beaten by an opportunistic pin, not by a spectacular finishing hold.

Scott Steiner's singles win against former ally Petey Williams played their uneven size matchup for much of the 11:17. Steiner opened by throwing Williams around, then caught a top-rope attack with a belly-to-belly suplex. Williams had several runs of counters: a tornado DDT, diving headbutt, quick roll-up and a springboard Codebreaker. None lasted long enough to keep Steiner down. The challenger also tried to outmaneuver Steiner at the ropes, using speed to send him outside, but the veteran kept answering with heavier throws and slowed the tempo again.

Williams' attempted slingshot hurricanrana was the turning point: Steiner caught him and drove him down with a powerbomb on the floor. Back inside, Steiner applied the Recliner until Williams reached the ropes, then landed the Steiner Screwdriver for the decisive pin. That sequence explains the C / 6.4 judgment more precisely than generic claims about a routine middle-card fight. SKIM for the closing powerbomb and finisher, plus Williams' brief counterattacks. The result advanced Steiner's physical dominance in the Main Event Mafia period without a title changing hands.

Brutus Magnus answered his own open challenge with a singles match against Chris Sabin, wearing his gladiator presentation shortly after introducing it to TNA audiences. Sabin used quick arm drags and counters to keep the newcomer from settling in, then fired off an inverted atomic drop, clotheslines and a springboard attack as the crowd began siding with him. Magnus responded with heavier strikes and grounding holds. The pairing offered a recognizable contrast between established X Division speed and a newcomer whose entrance and character work took nearly as much attention as his wrestling.

Sabin tried to attack from the top rope late, but Magnus disturbed the ropes, stopped him at the turnbuckles and finished with Tormentum for the pin. The result gave Magnus a debut-period victory but did not create title stakes or a longer competitive payoff; its inherited 6:38 duration also left little room for the challenger's offense. D+ / 5.3 fits a short character introduction better than a destination match. SKIP in a selective replay, noting the Tormentum finish as the meaningful documented result rather than describing an unspecified generic pinfall.

Awesome Kong defended the Knockouts Championship against ODB in a rematch with an imposing physical divide. Jim Cornette had Kong's entourage sent backstage before the opening bell, leaving the champion to face ODB without the ringside support normally available to her. ODB attacked while Kong was protesting the decision, briefly using surprise to overcome the size disadvantage. Kong then took control with power offense and a prolonged bearhug, forcing the challenger to build a comeback one strike at a time rather than dominating the shorter title defense.

Kong missed a splash from the top rope and ODB eventually lifted her for a body slam, earning only a two-count. The champion recovered and hit the Implant Buster to pin ODB and retain the belt. This was the title match's deciding move, not a disqualification or escape from an outside attack. C- / 5.6 reflects how quickly the competitive portion ended despite a credible upset tease from ODB. SKIP on a focused rewatch; knowing the pin and the champion's continued reign is sufficient to follow the Knockouts division after this show.

Booker T defended the TNA Legends Championship against Shane Sewell, a referee turned occasional wrestler, with Sharmell in his corner. Booker spent much of the short contest taunting the challenger, backing him into a corner and working over his arm before using chops, knees and kicks to control him. Sewell eventually rallied with a pair of clotheslines and a body slam. The champion briefly tried a Book End and scored only a near fall, leaving room for Sewell's comeback even though the match was framed around the veteran's dominance and Sharmell's presence.

After Sewell landed a bulldog and looked to keep attacking, Sharmell reached in from ringside and grabbed his foot. That distraction opened the finish: Booker struck Sewell with the Axe Kick and covered him for the pin to retain in the recorded 6:01. The decisive involvement was the manager's trip and Booker's follow-up, not a clean competitive breakthrough for the challenger. D+ / 5.0 fits a brief character and title-defense segment that contributes little beyond protecting the champion. SKIP on a selective rewatch, while retaining the accurate finish and continued Legends title reign in the Event File.

Abyss met his former tag partner Matt Morgan in a long grudge match, and their first exchanges sent both heavyweights to the ropes and out among the spectators. Abyss tried to bring a kendo stick and other weapons into play, but the referee repeatedly removed them because the bout was not officially a no-disqualification match. Morgan gained control with the Carbon Footprint and power attacks, and both men worked through chokeslam attempts. The ringside and chair exchanges made the fight feel more volatile than an ordinary singles match, though the referee disruptions also slowed the pace.

Morgan struck Abyss with a chair during one officiating distraction, then survived an initial Black Hole Slam when a replacement referee came down to count. Morgan later hit a low blow and attempted another Carbon Footprint, but Abyss avoided it and landed a second Black Hole Slam for the decisive pin. The recorded 15:37 duration provided space for the former partners' rivalry to escalate, while the chairs and two-referee finish limited its sporting clarity. B / 7.5 recognizes the physical back-and-forth and an identifiable final move. WATCH for the last near falls, including the contrast between the first kick-out and the second winning slam.

Beer Money defended the TNA World Tag Team Championship against Jay Lethal and Consequences Creed shortly after winning the belts at Genesis. Lethal and Creed used tandem speed to push James Storm and Robert Roode onto the defensive before the champions isolated Lethal and cut off his attempts to tag. Creed eventually entered with rolling clotheslines and a springboard crossbody, but the champions attacked his arm and shoulder to restrict that burst of offense. Jacqueline repeatedly threatened to tilt exchanges from ringside, making the title challenge as much about the challengers getting an uninterrupted rally as about the teams' technical contrast.

Lethal finally returned and landed his top-rope elbow on Roode, only for Storm to break up the cover. After another near fall from the Lethal Combination, Jacqueline passed Storm a chain. Storm struck Lethal with the concealed object, and Robert Roode pinned Jay Lethal to retain the championship. The recorded 15:41 length allowed a fuller tag-team structure than the show's brief middle bouts, but the illegal punch took the decisive agency away from a normal finishing sequence. B / 7.8 rewards the athletic comeback and team pacing while acknowledging the interference. WATCH the final exchange to understand who was actually pinned and why the champions survived.

Sting entered the four-way still holding the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, facing Kurt Angle and both members of Team 3D, Brother Ray and Brother Devon. Ray and Devon initially worked together, but their shared interest in the title undermined that alliance when each briefly tried to steal a pin from the other. Angle and Sting also fought despite their Main Event Mafia connection. The challengers traded control in and around the ring, with Angle using an ankle lock and Angle Slam while Ray and Devon kept finding opportunities for double-team attacks. That friction among nominal allies was the distinctive dynamic, not an elimination tournament or ordinary tag match.

The closing exchanges turned when Team 3D attempted the What's Up double-team attack, but Angle disrupted Devon with a suplex from the ropes. Ray responded by sending Angle out of the ring, leaving Sting a chance to strike. Sting pinned Brother Ray after the Scorpion Death Drop to retain the title at the inherited 14:34. Devon and Angle were not pinned; only Ray took the decisive fall in the four-way. B- / 7.2 gives credit for overlapping rivalries and the title stakes but reflects a busy finish that never fully escapes its tag-team structure. WATCH the last minutes for the precise fall and the growing distrust between partners.