Slammiversary 2010: Styles-Lethal and a Strong Opener Outshine an Uneven Anniversary Card

Kurt Angle opened TNA’s eighth-anniversary show against Kazarian and immediately had to survive counters that made the challenger look credible. Kazarian reversed repeated Angle Slam attempts, hit a slingshot DDT for a near fall and even escaped an ankle lock with a rollup. Angle hit four German suplexes in a row, but Kazarian answered with the Axe Guillotine Driver and later a powerbomb after cutting off Angle’s attempted moonsault. Neither wrestler could settle the result merely by landing his best-looking power move.

The turning point was Angle escaping another piledriver attempt and dragging Kazarian back from the ropes while applying a grapevined ankle lock. Kazarian submitted after just over fourteen minutes. The B+ (8.4) acknowledges how much offense both wrestlers packed into the opener, and how the submission established Angle’s path through his proposed top-ten ranking challenge. It is worth watching for the chain of credible reversals rather than simply for the veteran eventually winning.

X Division champion Douglas Williams defended against Brian Kendrick in a clash between deliberate chain wrestling and sudden flying offense. Williams grounded Kendrick with a bow-and-arrow stretch, cravate and suplexes before Kendrick mounted a comeback with a dive to the floor, missile dropkick and kicks to the head. The crowd warmed to Kendrick’s increasingly risky choices, while Williams repeatedly reset the exchange in his preferred pace. Kendrick even bit Williams on the arm to escape a rolling Chaos Theory attempt, showing how difficult it had become to outwrestle the champion conventionally.

Kendrick tried to superplex Williams from the corner, but Williams shoved him down and immediately connected with a middle-rope tornado DDT for the pin. Williams retained the title in roughly ten minutes, a decisive counter to the challenger’s attempted high-impact finish. The B- (7.4) is a solid score for a coherent technical-versus-aerial battle; its relatively compact time and Williams controlling stretches hold it below the more ambitious opener. A skim captures the counter sequence and championship defense.

Madison Rayne made her Knockouts Championship defense against Roxxi into a career-threatening confrontation before either wrestler had locked up. Rayne accused the challenger of repeatedly leaving and returning to TNA, demanded Roxxi stake her career on this title shot, and hit her with a microphone as soon as she accepted. Roxxi was bleeding heavily when the referee started the match, an unfair advantage that defined much of its short duration. Even so, Roxxi fought back with kicks, a fallaway slam and a hammerlock spinebuster that nearly ended Rayne’s reign.

Rayne rolled out of the ring after the spinebuster to prevent a cover. As Roxxi followed the champion and tried to return through the ropes, Rayne struck and planted her with a knee-assisted neckbreaker to get the pin. The result sent Roxxi out of the promotion under the impromptu career condition, and Rayne mocked her afterward. The C- (5.8) reflects a finish driven more by a pre-match attack and stipulation than satisfying championship wrestling. The consequences are consequential; the bout is mostly a skip.

Brother Ray’s match with his former pupil Jesse Neal began with an apparent reconciliation, not wrestling. Ray summoned Brother Devon, apologized for insulting Neal’s Navy service, hugged him and raised his hand. Ray then punched Neal while the group walked up the ramp and dragged him back into the ring. Devon tried to intervene but was escorted away, leaving Neal to take a one-sided beating after the opening bell. Ray ripped at Neal’s shirt and dog tags, adding a personal note to the attacks, while Shannon Moore watched anxiously from the entrance area.

As Ray prepared a second-rope senton, Tommy Dreamer appeared among the spectators and drew an enormous reaction. Ray paused to stare at Dreamer; Neal moved out of the senton and speared Ray for an upset pin after roughly four minutes. The C- (5.8) evaluates the limited match itself rather than the much bigger story around Ray’s betrayal and Dreamer’s unexpected TNA appearance. Skim the apology, turn and Dreamer distraction to understand the angle.

Matt Morgan tried to avoid wrestling Hernandez by appearing in street clothes, a neck brace and a supposed doctor’s note. Hernandez attacked him on the ramp, tore away the brace and forced the match to start. The confrontation concerned Morgan having injured Hernandez months earlier, which explains the challenger’s anger but does not excuse the way the bout ended. Morgan exploited that aggression to drive Hernandez into the ring post and take over while continuing to feign serious neck pain whenever the situation suited him.

Hernandez fought back but repeatedly choked Morgan with a shirt after being told to release the hold. Finally he grabbed the referee and threw him aside, earning a disqualification rather than pinning the man he wanted to punish. After the bell, Morgan pulled referee Brian Hebner into the path of Hernandez’s attempted kick, extending the injury angle. The D+ (5.4) accurately describes a five-minute match overtaken by a deliberately frustrating finish. The story progresses, but this is not a contest worth replaying in full.

Abyss and Desmond Wolfe filled their Monster’s Ball match with implements that gradually overwhelmed the feud with Chelsea. Wolfe tried a kendo stick and garbage can, while Abyss produced barbed-wire boards, a barbed-wire teddy bear and a bag full of shattered glass. The most striking ringside moment was Abyss chokeslamming Wolfe through the floor near the commentary position. Wolfe recovered enough to drive Abyss into barbed wire and then the glass, making the match more violent than its comparatively ordinary opening exchange suggested.

The decisive moment came when Wolfe demanded brass knuckles from Chelsea. She had removed them from her purse and tossed them past Wolfe to Abyss instead, allowing Abyss to strike Wolfe and secure the pin. Chelsea’s betrayal is an integral part of the finish, not merely decoration around the weapon spots. The B- (7.4) reflects the recognizable escalation and spectacle, tempered by the reliance on interference and an abrupt object-assisted result. Skim for the chokeslam and unexpected transfer of the knuckles.

Jay Lethal confronted A.J. Styles with Ric Flair at ringside in one of Slammiversary’s clearest underdog pairings. Lethal stayed competitive through Styles’ athletic counters and Flair’s attempts to interrupt the challenger, including a ringside choke and a moment when Flair dragged Styles’ foot underneath the ropes to break a pin. Lethal landed a cutter and fought off a Figure Four, then turned the technique back on Styles himself. Flair’s ringside agitation reinforced the imbalance between the established contender’s entourage and Lethal’s attempt to win on merit.

After Styles landed a Pelé kick he tried to climb the turnbuckle, but his knee buckled and he stumbled. Lethal seized the opening with a rollup and pinned Styles, provoking a furious response from Flair while Kazarian came out to calm matters. The A- (8.9) values the lively near falls and meaningful upset: the loss damaged Styles’ aura and made Lethal’s growing importance unmistakable. Watch the entire match for the finish to feel earned rather than accidental.

Jeff Hardy and Mr. Anderson were an unusual new partnership facing Beer Money, one of the company’s most practiced teams. Robert Roode and James Storm repeatedly isolated Anderson, then Hardy, using frequent tags and double-team moves to limit the less experienced duo’s chances to coordinate. Hardy found one apparent winning sequence with a Swanton Bomb, but Storm pulled referee Slick Johnson outside before the count was complete. The interrupted fall prevented a decisive finish and prolonged the struggle while Anderson tried to rejoin the match.

Anderson eventually escaped Beer Money’s control and ducked an oncoming Storm strike, causing Storm to hit his own partner Roode. Hardy then occupied Storm at ringside, and Anderson put Roode down for the three count. The B (7.8) reflects an actual tag story built around Beer Money’s superior teamwork being undone by a rare mistake. Anderson’s announced team nickname provided comic relief, but the competitive result rested on how the partners finally found a way to interrupt the veterans’ rhythm. This is a worthwhile watch.

Rob Van Dam defended the TNA World Heavyweight Championship against Sting in a match that carried more storyline consequence than its roughly eleven minutes of wrestling allowed. Sting had criticized the company leadership and taken Van Dam’s title belt; he used his signature bat after a collision left referee Earl Hebner unable to intervene. Before that, Sting and Van Dam had brawled through the ringside barriers and exchanged strong, fast offense, with Van Dam regaining momentum through kicks and a split-legged moonsault.

Jeff Jarrett appeared after Sting attacked Van Dam with the bat, seized the weapon from behind and struck Sting across the jaw. Van Dam landed Rolling Thunder, but Sting escaped the delayed count; Van Dam then survived an attempted corner splash and finished with the Five-Star Frog Splash to retain. This was a real title defense but not a wholly unaided championship victory. The B- (7.4) recognizes the live crowd energy and star power while assigning a cost to the outside bat intervention and abbreviated main-event duration. The key finish is worth a skim.