Bound for Glory 2006: Sting's Title Win and a Loaded Upper Card Deliver TNA's Biggest 2006 Statement

Bobby Roode defeated Lance Hoyt in a 3:38 singles match on the Bound for Glory 2006 pre-show, with Traci Brooks accompanying Roode. The result is confirmed by the archived event card, which lists Roode's victory separately from the televised gauntlet that followed. This was a short supporting appearance, not an X Division championship match or a part of the later title-changing stretch. Because the preserved result source supplies the winner and time without a detailed sequence of moves, attributing an elaborate finishing exchange would go beyond the available evidence.

The C- / 5.5 assessment reflects how little the bout contributes to the recorded championship and rivalry stories of the night, not a claim that the surviving sources establish every moment of its in-ring execution. For a viewer revisiting the broadcast, the Kevin Nash Open Invitational is the practical starting point; Roode and Hoyt's pre-show result is worth knowing, but not essential to follow the main card. SKIP for a focused rewatch, with the qualification that the short pre-show match is not covered in the same detail as the televised bouts.

Austin Starr entered the Kevin Nash Open Invitational first alongside Sonjay Dutt and outlasted the rotating field in a 17:11 gauntlet. Jay Lethal entered fourth and survived until the finish. When the field had narrowed to those two, the rules shifted from eliminations to a pinfall or submission: Starr put Lethal away with the Starr Busta for the decisive fall. Presenting this as Lethal's final over-the-top elimination misses how the match actually ended.

The long early X Division showcase gives Starr a recognizable win and makes the final exchange with Lethal more useful than a routine battle royal conclusion. Alex Shelley's frustration during the winner's presentation also gives the victory an immediate story consequence. At B+ / 8.0, the gauntlet earns a WATCH for its varied entrants and pinfall finish, even if not every interruption or comedy beat is equally rewarding.

Four separate teams entered the six-minute-plus tag match: Team 3D, America's Most Wanted, the James Gang and the Naturals. Chase Stevens and Andy Douglas weren't merely ringside seconds; they were a full competing team. A multi-person Tower of Doom and a rapid procession of near falls gave the bout energy without allowing many of its eight wrestlers much time to settle into a sustained sequence.

The finish belonged to the Naturals' own mistake. Andy Douglas accidentally struck Stevens with a knee, and Team 3D followed with the 3D on Douglas for the pin. That closing stretch rewards a selective viewing because it carries the result and the Shane Douglas-Naturals tension in a single exchange. B- / 7.0 fits an entertaining but compressed supporting match; SKIM the last few minutes rather than treating this as the tag division's main payoff of the night.

Samoa Joe's Monster's Ball was a four-way against Abyss, Brother Runt and Raven, with Jake Roberts serving as special guest referee rather than a fifth wrestler. The match went through chair shots, tables, a high-risk stage sequence and a thumbtack spot. Joe absorbed much of that punishment yet still emerged with the win. He pinned Raven, not Abyss, after Roberts delivered a DDT to Raven and Joe followed with a Muscle Buster.

That actual finishing sequence gives the match an identity beyond its collection of weapons. Roberts had a direct hand in the decisive stretch while Joe's result strengthened his standing without a championship on the line. The A- / 8.5 score reflects a busy, dangerous-feeling spectacle that has a clear winner and a memorable finish. WATCH for the escalating spots and the final Raven fall; it's one of the card's real attractions.

Eric Young and Larry Zbyszko wrestled under a Loser Gets Fired stipulation, so the result was more important than the 3:21 bell-to-bell time. Zbyszko stalled before Young got on offense, then tried to use brass knuckles after striking the referee. Young intercepted the weapon and used it himself to take the pinfall. The finish was built around the officials' distraction and the consequence of losing, not a long competitive wrestling exchange.

Young's victory let him keep his place while Zbyszko took the stipulation's penalty. It's a quick resolution on a card already carrying an X Division title change, a major tag cage match and a world title challenge. D+ / 5.0 is a fair match-quality assessment despite the straightforward character payoff. SKIP on a match-focused rewatch, or watch the final minute to understand why the result settled their dispute.

Chris Sabin's X Division title challenge against Senshi was decided by a flash pin, not by an uncontested finishing move. Senshi caught him with a double stomp, then went back to the Dragon Clutch, but Sabin escaped into the roll-up that secured the championship. Their 12:51 match had a different emphasis from the earlier gauntlet: two wrestlers trading counters and near falls with a title on the line rather than a parade of entrants.

The late sequence is why the A- / 8.7 grade has an argument beyond the belt changing hands. Senshi came close to defending after the double stomp; Sabin survived, found one opening and scored the fall. The result provided the first major championship change of the evening, ahead of the Six Sides of Steel tag match and Sting's challenge. WATCH the exchanges and closing pin, not just a title-change clip.

Christian Cage and Rhino started their 8 Mile Street Fight outside the arena and fought over a Zamboni before reaching the ring. Rhino introduced chairs and a table, while Cage brought in the street-sign prop, ladder and eventually a straitjacket. Rhino escaped the restraint and drove Cage through a ringside table with a piledriver from the apron, but Cage put a foot on the rope to avoid the three-count. The structure made their former friendship feel like a bitter fight rather than a routine singles match; the many props also gave the contest a stop-and-start quality.

Rhino tried to end it with a Gore, but Cage moved and Rhino crashed through a corner table. Cage's subsequent Unprettier onto a table wasn't enough either. The decisive finish came when Cage stacked chairs, pieces of table, the sign and a ladder over Rhino, then struck the pile repeatedly with a chair before getting the pin. Cage won by pinfall after the weapon barrage, not from the earlier Unprettier. B+ / 8.3 rewards the escalating fight and inventive closing image, with a deduction for the abundance of contrivances. WATCH the table piledriver and final weapon sequence.

LAX's victory over A.J. Styles and Christopher Daniels came inside Six Sides of Steel for the NWA World Tag Team Championship. Homicide and Hernandez wore the challengers down against the cage, and the closing stretch featured riskier exchanges above the ropes as the champions tried to rally. Konnan also interfered from outside with a wire hanger while the action continued inside. The finish was Homicide pinning Styles after the Gringo Killa, giving LAX the belts.

This is the real tag-team climax of the card, distinct from the short four-way earlier in the night. The cage stipulation gives the feud a payoff that a regular tag match wouldn't, while the individual pinfall clarifies which champion lost. The A / 9.0 assessment rests on the sustained pressure, the dangerous late exchanges and the title transfer. WATCH in full; it's a stronger replay priority than the show-opening tag traffic.

Sting challenged Jeff Jarrett for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship with his TNA career at stake, while Kurt Angle served as the special enforcer. They fought across ringside before trading their signature offense. Sting delivered the Scorpion Death Drop but Jarrett escaped the cover; Jarrett answered with the Stroke and Sting also kicked out. When both wrestlers were down, Angle grew impatient with the regular referee's count, gave him an Olympic Slam and took charge of the officiating. The match's drama came as much from Angle's interventions as from the title-versus-career stipulation.

Jarrett later tried an ankle lock, but Sting escaped and looked for his bat. Angle confiscated the weapon. Jarrett smashed a guitar across Sting's head, yet Sting recovered and applied the Scorpion Deathlock, forcing Jarrett to submit. The deciding result was a submission, not a pinfall following the earlier Death Drop. Sting left as champion after 15:01; his career was safe. The A- / 8.9 grade credits the stakes, dramatic resistance to the guitar shot and championship payoff while allowing for the distracting officiating. WATCH the final exchanges and submission, where the event's central story is actually resolved.