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Last night was TNA's Destination X PPV, a show of all X-Division matches with the return of the six sided ring. None of the "big" names in the company were involved in matches, like Sting, Mr. Anderson, Jeff Jarrett, Angle, Flair, Bully Ray, Gunner, Hogan, The Hardys, etc, and yet the interest in this show was much, much higher than a normal TNA PPV. I had pretty high expectations going into the show, and while the card didn't meet my expectations, it was still a pretty good show with a few very good matches. Here's a quick rundown:
- Kazarian d Samoa Joe - This was a good match but I didn't like it ending with a roll up. The crowd was really into the opener. I still don't get the Samoa Joe losing streak. It doesn't seem like a gimmick. It just seems like they don't feel like letting him win.
- Douglas Williams d Mark Haskins - This was an open challenge match and man did they book it horribly. Haskins came out looking like John Morrison and no one knew him. Then, he had a sloppy match including falling off the top rope during the finish. And then he was pinned cleanly. In an open challenge match, you either have a star return/debut, or you have a new guy like Haskins debut getting the upset win. TNA failed here.
- Eric Young & Shark Boy d Generation Me - I do not like Generation Me at all. They don't work as heels in TNA. This was an unadvertised match, and no one really cared about it.
- Alex Shelley d Amazing Red, Shannon Moore, and Robbie E in an Ultimate X match to become the #1 contender for the X-Division Title. This match was good but nowhere near the caliber of some of the classic Ultimate X matches. The finish was poorly timed so it really took away from the match with Moore taking too long to drop from the scaffolding to knock Red off allowing Shelley to grab the X.
- Rob Van Dam d Jerry Lynn - I really enjoyed this match. Yes, they are 41 and 48 years old, respectively, but I was always a fan of their matches in ECW, so I was happy to see them go at it again. They've lost a step, but it was still a very good match. Third best match of the show.
- Austin Aries d Low Di, Zema Ion, and Jack Evans to win a TNA contract. Easily the match of the night. Everyone in this match was great and the crowd loved it. Tons of stiff kicks from Aries and Low Ki. Big high flying spots from Ion and Evans. Aries won the contract, but I would be shocked if we didn't see all four of these guys again. TNA would be making a mistake if they didn't keep them, but of course, this is TNA...
- Brian Kendrick d Abyss to win the X-Division Title. The show died here and really killed the crowd. There was a ref bump which brought out Bischoff which brought out Immortal to attack Kendrick. X-Division guys came out and Immortal made them all look like geeks. Then more X-Division guys ran out and finally got the better of Immortal once it was about 15 on 5. Kendrick rolled up Abyss to get the win. They did a giant confetti celebration which really didn't seem to fit the spot.
- AJ Styles d Christopher Daniels. They went 28 minutes and it was very good, but the crowd was so dead from the previous match, it really hurt this one. Both men used the others moves. The finish came when Styles hit the Spiral Tap. Daniels showed signs of a heel turn after the match but eventually shook Styles' hand. Second best match of the show.
Tonight, Raw is live from Boston for the go home show for Money in the Bank this Sunday night. Will tonight be CM Punk's final Monday Night Raw? Many suspect it will be, at least for the foreseeable future. His contract negotiations with WWE have been very secretive and no one seems to know for sure if he has re-signed, is close to re-signing, or is ready to walk after this Sunday night. My gut feeling is he has signed a new deal, but that is just a guess. There are probably less than 10 people that know the actual situation right now. Regardless, it is making for some very compelling TV over the next seven days.
While nothing has been announced for tonight, it's a very good possibility that there will be some sort of confrontation between CM Punk and Mr. McMahon, and most likely Cena as well. After Punk's promo two weeks ago, I am praying that they don't castrate him tonight with some of the usual trash that WWE writers usually churn out. To keep the heat for the Money in the Bank show on Sunday, they need to keep the illusion that everything Punk is doing is a shoot. If you take that away, they are going to literally cost themselves thousands and thousands of buys.
It will also be an interesting dynamic between Punk, Cena, and Vince because last week Cena seemingly stuck up for Punk. There have been rumors of Punk and Cena joining together to battle the evil Mr. McMahon, but I don't see that happening. And lastly, regardless of what they do tonight, come Sunday, CM Punk is going to be the most loved man in WWE and Cena will be the most hated since the show is in Chicago.
Aside from Punk/Cena/McMahon, there is the Money in the Bank match. I can't tell you all 8 participants without looking on WWE.com. I still think it was a mistake not to do qualifying matches. Just placing guys in the match takes away some of the importance of the match. Anyway, the Raw competitors are: Alberto Del Rio, R-Truth, Jack Swagger, The Miz, Evan Bourne, Rey Mysterio, Alex Riley, and Kofi Kingston. Del Rio seems to be the odds on favorite, but we know that in WWE when someone seems to be a lock to win, they usually swerve us. This happened last year with Kane winning. The way they've been burying The Miz, it wouldn't shock me to see him get the win to try and restart his momentum. On a side note, I'm really disappointed in how they have turned R-Truth into a lame comedy act. He had a ton of heat going into Capital Punishment, and now he's just a joke.
Zack Ryder actually made an appearance on last week's Raw with the WWWYKI phrase after The Nexus match. I've read that they are thinking of having him join Otunga and McGuillicutty since Punk is gone. That really sounds like a threesome that is going to take off in WWE.
Kelly Kelly is facing one of the Bellas at MITB, so they'll have some type of match tonight.
